Column D: Did He Go to the Prom? How Much Backstory is Too Much?

by DREW YANNO AUGUST 14, 2013 I wrote in my last column about screenwritings dirtiest word exposition. In this one, Id like to talk about another element of screenwriting thats often confused with exposition and thats backstory. Remember what I wrote last time: exposition is information that the audience needs to know in order to fully understand and appreciate the film. Part of the reason for the beginning screenwriters confusion regarding exposition and back story is that sometimes that necessary information is backstory. Namely, whenever part of a characters history is revealed, its exposition. However, its important to note that not all of exposition is backstory. Pardon the pun, but let me back up for a moment. Youve probably heard the term a thousand times, but what exactly is backstory? Simply put, its everything thats ever happened to a character before the start of the film. Its their personal history. And every character in the film has a backstory. Even the nameless waiter. However, the thing to keep in mind is that not all of a characters backstory is revealed. Not by a long shot. Minor characters rarely have any back story revealed. Indeed, even when it comes to the protagonist, very little of a characters history is ever given to the audience. Again, this is where beginning screenwriters often have trouble. They love the idea of backstory. Because they do, they attempt to cram all kinds of history about their characters into the screenplay when its simply not necessary. Because backstory revealed is exposition, only that part of a characters history that is required for the audience to understand and appreciate the film should be exposed. To drive home this point, go back and think of some famous films and look at the main character and try to recall how much of their history is revealed and, more importantly, how much is not. For example, in Casablanca, we actually know very little about Rick (Humphrey Bogart), one of the most famous protagonists in film history. Yes, he fought for the good side in the Spanish
http://bit.ly/18GVXMe

war. Yes, he ran from the states and became an ex-pat living in Northern Africa. But we dont know why he went to fight in the Spanish war or what brought him to Africa. We dont even know exactly why he ran from the states. We do know about his relationship with Ilsa in Paris. But was he ever married before? Was she his first love? Where was he born? Does he have any brothers and sisters? Are his parents still alive? Was he on the football team in high school? Did he go to the prom? What we dont know about Rick is infinitely greater than what we do. In The Descendants, it seems that we learn a great deal about the backstory of Matt King (George Clooney). We know he went to law school off-island and met his wife when he did. We know he has relatives who have a vested interest in the possible sale of that valuable land on the island. But what about his parents? What happened to them? Did he ever hold a different job prior to being a lawyer? If so, what? And where? For that matter, where did he go to high school? Was he in the popular crowd? Where did he go to college? Did he go to the prom? Again, it might appear that we know a lot, but what we dont know is a thousand times greater. One of the reasons I hesitate to instruct writers to create extensive character biographies is that once they do, the tendency is to want to put all of that history into the script. And you simply cant. Remember, if the audience doesnt need to know it in order to understand and appreciate the film, it serves no purpose. I mentioned earlier that one other difference between back story and exposition is that not all exposition is backstory. So what does that mean? Simple. It means that some of the information that the audience needs in order to completely understand and appreciate the film may have nothing to do with any characters personal history. In my previous column about exposition, I referred you to the scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark where the two government men come to see Indy about Professor Ravenwood. Go back and watch that scene once more. Youll see that some of their discussion involves Indys past relationship with Ravenwood (backstory). However, most of the scene deals with the ark and
http://bit.ly/18GVXMe


related in the least. In other words, not backstory.

the Well of Souls and the Staff of Ra. Thats just archeological information. Its not character-

A similar thing happens in Minority Report when Danny Witwer (Colin Farrell) comes to see John Anderton (Tom Cruise) and the latter explains how the pre-cogs work. Anderton goes through a long explanation of the balls and the reports and so on. But once again, thats just information. Vitally important information, to be sure. However, theres very little, if any, backstory in that scene. And yet, like the Raiders example, its information thats vital to the audiences understanding of that film and, thus, textbook exposition. So to wrap things up, keep these three things in mind: (1) backstory revealed is exposition; (2) not all exposition is backstory; and (3) not all backstory is revealed. Oh, and one more thing: unless you are writing a high school comedy, we dont need to know if your hero went to the prom. Related Articles:

More Column D articles by Drew Yanno Storytelling Strategies: The Puzzles in Silver Linings Playbook Specs & The City articles by Brad Johnson Screenwriting the Dan OBannon Way

Tools to Help:

The End: How to Write an Amazing Finish to Your Screenplay Webinar The 3rd Act: Writing a Great Ending to Your Screenplay Beginnings, Middles & Ends

http://bit.ly/18GVXMe