Jeffrey Alan Schechter, Author/Screenwriter/Founder of Writers Room Pro: Trying to sell a script with a sympathetic character is a much better business plan than trying to sell a script with an unsympathetic character.
Film Courage: Why is it important for the main character of a story to be sympathetic?
Jeff: This is controversial, it’s a sales technique. I hate to put it that way but again I’m obsessed with stories that get sold because anybody who’s listening to this who might want to write something, I guess there are people out there I’ve run into who Oh, I don’t care if I sell anything. I’m just satisfying this artistic urge and more power to them. I’m a father, I’m a grandfather, I’ve got four kids, I’ve got three grandkids, I’ve got a mortgage, I’ve got expenses. It’s expensive to be alive. If you want to devote yourself to screenwriting and somebody’s coming to me for advice, I want to give you advice that can move the needle and try to help you not just achieve your goal of writing a script. Not anybody can write a script but almost anybody could write a script. Getting a script sold is a whole other skill set. For me the idea of a sympathetic main character makes your script more saleable. I don’t care what people say Yeah, I like good anti-heroes…whatever. At the end of the day the vast majority of people want characters that they can empathize with that are sympathetic, that you’re rooting for them to achieve their goal. That’s really what I mean by sympathetic, you want this character to achieve what it is they’re setting out to do, you’re rooting for them because now you’re emotional. You, as the audience, you’re now emotionally invested in the story. I was just watching something…(Watch the video interview on Youtube here).
BIO:
After moving to Los Angeles, Jeffrey Alan Schechter quickly established himself as a versatile writer, able to work in all genres from action films to family comedies, from pre-school to adult drama, from live action to animation. His writing has earned him a Gemini Award as well as nominations for two Emmy awards, a Writers Guild of America award, a Writer’s Guild of Canada award, and a BAFTA award. Over the years Jeff has worked with dozens of studios and networks including Warner Bros, Universal Pictures, ABC, NBC, The Discovery Channel, Nickelodeon, The Hallmark Channel, the BBC, VH1 Films, RHI, and The Walt Disney Company. Jeff is the author of a book on story structure titled My Story Can Beat Up Your Story! and is a noted speaker and lecturer on screenwriting. Jeff is the founder/creator of WritersRoom Pro software, a digital writers’ room for secure, remote creativity and collaboration.
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