William Ray Parker III's Lounge Discussions

Welcome back! Congrats on following your dreams! What kind of music did you sing?

Thank you. I am classically trained, but I sing a little of everything. I was part of a musical this spring. I also sing worship music for my church. I just like music too much to not do a little of everything lol.

The best way to make your protagonist more sympathetic is to give him an internal problem that is having a strong negative effect on his daily life. Melvin Udall in "As Good As It Gets" is a complete jerk, but we feel sympathy for him because we know he has a compulsive disorder. (BTW, it often helps to give your antagonist the same internal problem, but have him embrace that problem as a strength, such as the Joker character in the Batman movies.) A good way to make your hero likable is to show him passionately pursuing a goal, despite tremendous odds. Audiences gravitate toward a character who makes a huge effort to accomplishing something.

I'm a freelance editor, and wrote an article about unsympathetic protagonists after some of my clients had similar difficulties. The article came out in WD's 2010 Novel & Short Story Writer's Market, and includes 9 techniques. The end of the article features how the techniques are used effectively in the film Pirates of the Carribean (the first one).

Okay here are a couple of must-have books on this."Characters and Viewpoint" by Orson Scott Card is one. The book called "Gotham Writers' Workshop WRITING FICTION (practical Guide from New York's Acclaimed Writing School)" which is one of the best all-round books of advice for writers I have struck. It has vital chapters on everything a writer needs to know including one excellent chapter on character - I find it an indispensable book which I return to over and over. The only thing its authors clearly don't know is how to write a good short snappy title for their book. :)

After I write a screenplay, I comeback and write character Bio's on the leads. That way I can relate to their history and personalities. I then rewrite the screenplay to their personalities. Currently I'm rewriting a feature where the main lead is a southerner, (from South Carolina) and the dialogue has been amended to suit her upbringing and personality. Took a huge amount of research but I've nailed the funny intricacies of the location. In simple, it takes blood, Sweat and Tears to get it right.

How often do you go out and just socialize, hang out, 'people watch'? Characters are really all around us...

I think film music is very important but I do have to say that I feel that the type of film will dictate the type of music and style. What good is a fantasy film without a beautifully rich score to support the character of the film. In the same right, what would the point of a deeply rich score be in a comedy or urban war type film. I think that as we continue forward, music in films will simply expand into every genre and possibly create its own genre.

I have found that many many many times independent directors and/or producers lack the language to convey what they want musically in their films. Usually they know what they want to achieve emotionally, but really do not have a clues as how to convey these ideas in english. Many are afraid the music will overpower and overshadow the film, and as such I find that usually the trend is that the director will want something akin to "musical wallpaper". They want music there, they know they need it, but they really don't want it to move or do anything which is pointless. I find frequently that I compose two scores- one exactly as I have been directed, and one that I feel is a bit more edgy. Most of the time, after I show it to the director they go with the edgier ideas. I have been lucky to compose for many films with a group of filmmakers that absoloutely LOVE film music- their iPod's are full of scores by Elfman, Williams, Zimmer, Goldsmith, Horner, etc etc,.. They like everything from simple minimal electronic musical scores, to the big bombastic Korngold/ Mahler orchestral style. And even though they are hardcore film score buffs, they STILL struggle with finding the language to covey what they want. I have found that these people often (dangerously) speak in terms of other composers "I want Thomas Newmann's Lemony Snicket score for my film!". I am lucky because these people love working with me and I am very fortunate because they love most of everything that I write for them. They will usually come at me with their misguided attempt to explain what they would like and I go off and write what I want and they love it. NOW- mind you,.. This is a very very rare situation, and doesn't happen everyday,.. It's just that we are on the same wavelength and have incredible respect for each other. I have worked with them for over 10 years and 5-6 films and they trust me now, so I am incredibly lucky. However when I work with others I find that people frequently lean towards incredibly minimal musical score, and I think that is largely borne of three elements: Low budget, inexperience, and lack of ability to use musical language to explain what they hear. Just my two cents.

Oh my Gosh! Music is just as important as the dialogue! The right music can make a crappy scene the best thing. You cannot have a good movie without good music. I love scores, and buy them frequently. The right music can help the viewer understand what is going on in the scene. You can also trick the viewers with the music and make them think something is going on when it isn't. Music is soooo important!

Music Kills. It can create atmosphere and suspense, be an emotional catalyst or a part of the plot. Thus, a neglected soundtrack can bog down an otherwise good project. Now regarding the inclination towards minimal, like it is mentioned above, the lack or inability of communication certainly plays its part in it. Along the lack of communication you may find inexperience and/or lack of resources. We're talking about indie, and indie means low to no budget, playground for weirdos and boot camp for aspiring cinematographers. So, the director may not have the budget to hire a full fledged pro for the job, and/or may be unable to get a hold of someone with enough under his belt to get the job done properly(and free), so they'll stick to the friend's friend that does some music. This leads to less complex and polished work. And of course minimalistic soundtrack and simpler melody aren't necessarily bad things. If striking a single detuned string on a guitar with a rusty screwdriver hits that nerve you want it to hit, then heck, print it!

What a vast subject! Different projects will need different approaches and the only 'right music' will be the score that best fits the scene. Budgetary concerns are always there, yet often there are creative ways to circumvent the limitations. I find there is a great trove of contemporary scores to enjoy. One could argue that the repetitive use of Bistro Fada in Midnight in Paris is a somewhat minimalist approach yet I found it truly engaging and effective. I know that the term minimalist in the course of this discussion has a different connotation, but a low budget can require the use of repetition and it can be effective. What I find tedious is what i hear to be a reliance on a bag of cliche's. I have no idea if these stem from directorial insistence or from a paucity of compositional ideas. Most likely a combination of the two. I mentally scream every time I hear another O Fortuna rip off as metallic monsters chew up some town full of screaming buxom beauties and cute heros.