I would love some advice on this issue. I am a Caucasian male (from New Zealand), I live in Japan with my Japanese wife and two boys, both mixed ethnicity. I got some feedback once about how an Asian actress was annoyed to see so much violence toward Asian females, so I started to write Asian female leads into some of my features, flawed characters but they are heroes or reluctant heroes in my films. Now Im concerned these works might be viewed negatively because I am not an Asian female, Im a white dude. Is it improper of me to be writing these female leads into my films as I am not one? Any advice or feedback would be greatly appreciated.
Screenwriting : Writing Characters by James Sutherland
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That perspective, taken to its logical end, would eventually have us all writing one gender scripts and only serial killers may write serial killer scripts, etc. Sometimes, an outside perspective can be illuminating. (Raymond Chandler grew up in Great Britain, but guess who turned out to be the premier describer of mid 20th century Los Angeles?) And if you trace the history of drama, writers have often stretched themselves in trying to get under the skin of characters very different from themselves. On the other hand, if you share important attributes with your main character, then I think there's a better chance of writing with authority and authenticity. But no one IMO should discourage a writer from tackling particular characters.
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I write my characters from a human perspective. I have a wealth of experience and have observed and interacted with an array of people during my life and don't concern myself with gender or race and how it relates to the way I depict my characters. I think writers that do inhibit their creativity.
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Hey, James Sutherland. No, it's not improper of you to write these female leads. I mainly write female leads. Sometimes they're Mexican, Black, White, Asian, etc. I like to research different cultures when I outline a script so I represent the characters rightfully.
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Thank you everyone, great points, I apologize, had a slightly unnecessary attack of paranoia.
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Greta Gerwig has men in her films. I am not offended.
The alternative is we go back to the 1990’s when there were entire universes with no women (perhaps the token one for the boys to perve at)..
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Not at all. Just don't play them onscreen. ;)
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Find an Japanese/Asian female character role model that's been accepted well by the global audience - use it to model your own...your name will be on the script and hopefully on the credit roll...everyone will know ure a guy, and it's fiction...so fictionize :)
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I dont know target of industry ppl you're aiming for but here in America, we got 100-years of white dudes writing and Suits in charge making movies with "'minority leading characters"
Dont fall for bullshit of critics, especially at the beginning of writing stage. Just target ppl in your wheelhouse.
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You're welcome, James Sutherland. Happy Holidays!
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James! Hmm... How bout using a pen name like Maya Higashi? Then not a problem, correct? LOL! No, seriously, if the part fits (I'm talking about the lead part) then seriously, nobody gives a darn. I'm writing a part with a Royal Saudi intelligence operative in a lead rold - of course a femme fatale!
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James Sutherland I’d say stop overthinking it, and don’t worry about what other people think. We are writers and we craft stories about diverse characters, so what is the problem? Should men only write for men characters and women for women? What would actually be improper is to take these critics seriously. Have confidence in your abilities James and forget about these naysayers.
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Writers create any entity/person in any genre with a purpose the characters & story work well in unison. I agree with @Geoff You're over thinking an end game to captivate/entertain audience/reader. The personal life of a writer should not be a factor.