Stories in Pictures From a Coastal Landscape
By Lou Gerring
Last Autumn, just as the last of the Swallows were leaving for warmer climes, I was asked to lead a six-month workshop for beginner screenwriters at the Discovery Centre, as part of a wider project supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The only stipulation was that the attendees’ scripts should be inspired in some way by Rye Harbour and its surrounding landscape.
That would be the easy part I thought as I swung by the cafe on my way out to sample the best apple cake ever (with the best view from a cafe window ever!) and to ponder the invitation which, to be honest, felt a little too far out of my comfort zone.
But those nerves, like the migrating birds, seemed to vanish into that vista of dramatic sky above salt marsh, shingle, reedbeds and the distant sea. And, ooh, a Kingfisher on a pole - it was a sign! I felt at once calm and excited about the prospect of helping aspiring screenwriters to craft stories inspired by this sublime setting.
And the group of nine Rye locals (plus one dog) who signed up couldn’t have been more welcoming and eager to learn.
They’re an intelligent, creative and interesting bunch, too: many are poets, or have other writing experience, some are painters, a few are psychotherapists, all are impressively film literate. And of course, for everyone here, the nature reserve is like a second home. So, as you can imagine, we’ve had some engaging and stimulating discussions and it’s been a total pleasure and honour to guide them on their journeys from initial story idea through to full short screenplay.
In our first few sessions, we screened a range of short films to demonstrate the writer’s voice and thought about our own unique worldview and how to use that to create authentic stories which resonate with an audience. Then we looked at how to create three-dimensional characters with a clear goal and an emotional need. The therapists were particularly good at this! We also discussed how the structure works to move the audience and ensure they feel catharsis in the resolution.
One by one the group began to develop their own unique ideas into loglines, synopses and full scripts, and shared new work by email for peer feedback between sessions. We’ve also had class readings of all scripts to get a feel for rhythm and pace and to hear what is and isn’t working.
And now, six months on, and embarking on our final session, the Swallows have returned and the group are toiling away on their respective drafts. Finally, we’ll pay close attention to dialogue - essentially how to cut most of it out! It’s all about the subtext! Then with a little more polish, I think the scripts will be ready for our planned celebratory event in May where friends and family and members of the public are welcome to join us for a rehearsed script-in-hand reading with local actors and director.
It should be a fun, informative event with tales based on the local lives of artist, Paul Nash, and the writer, Radclyffe Hall, a bittersweet social drama about growing up and another about getting old, a more experimental slice-of-life in a bird hide, a two-hander inspired by Chekov’s ‘The Kiss’ and a sweet love story set on the local allotments.
Writing a screenplay is not easy and I’m so proud of what the group have achieved in such a short amount of time. So, please do come along, if you can, to show some support and celebrate with us.
