Because characters are so necessary to story, the Character Phase is the first phase of development that opens for contribution after an Open Screenplay has been started.  Once the Character Phase timeline ends, the characters and character traits with the highest number of votes become Voted-Contributions and can then be used in the following Story Outline/Storyline, Scene Outline, and Script Phases.

Character Elements

During the Characters Phase, you’ll be able to contribute many characters and also choose their characteristics – and how fun is that?

When adding a character to an Open Screenplay, you’ll have the option to add the character’s Name, Gender, Age, Race, Occupation, Character Flaw, and Description.

As added features, everyone will also be able to upload a Sketch for the character and/or recommend real-world actors they would like to see in the roles. (Please note that Sketches and actor recommendations are for fun and greater visualization of the project and do not share in the proportional compensation for the screenplay.)

All Contributors to an Open Screenplay will be able to suggest new ideas for each Character Element (Name, Age, Occupation, etc.), and all contributions will be voted on by all of the Followers and Contributors to the Open Screenplay. Working together in this way will help create the best choices for each Character and Character Element and help bring the material to new levels of excitement.

During the Character Phase, the Contributions with the most votes will appear at the top of the lists of submissions for each element.  

Important to note: There will also be the option to Vote Not to Include a character.  Why?  Because all users will have different ideas for characters and want to contribute them (which is awesome!) but obviously not every character can be used in a screenplay. The Followers and Contributors as a whole will be able to decide which characters will be best for each story and choose them accordingly.

While creating a character you can include as little or as much information as you like. Less detail may encourage contributions from other writers. More detail may paint a rich image in the minds of your collaborators and inspire future ideas.

Whichever approach you choose, keep in mind that characters are your audience’s “way in” to your story.