Preproduction: Defining Characters

Introduction

At Milagros Studios, representation in our film is important to us, and after prior research, diversity in film is important to our young audience as well. Representation of characters is a key factor to success in a mainstream audience in the film industry, and especially with the drama genre, a realistic, familiar approach to portraying characters is needed to do so. Therefore, to resonate with as many audiences that could relate to the themes and genre of our film, we decided to depict demographics that represent the majority population at our school, in addition to minority groups. In the chart below, the main cast is said to have an all women of color cast, in which Mercedes (the main character) and her best friend Lizzy are both straight/ heterosexual, while Christine is lesbian. 

Main CHARACTERS:

Character 1:

Name: Mercedes (main character) 

Acting: 

-Confident, Popular, Flirtatious, Upbeat, Feminine, Curious/ Prospecting, Ambitious, and keep healthy relationships (setting boundaries). 

 

Appearance: 

-Face: dark brown eyes, curly hair, slender face, sculpted jawline and cheekbones, button nose, and beauty mark 

-Body: Lean, muscular, toned, smaller stature, and light-skinned/ light brown 

-Clothing: Baggy, neutral or dark colored jacket/ hoodie, biker shorts, jeans, scrunchie, graphic t-shirt, and light-colored sneakers 

-Facial Expressions: relaxed, casual, pleasant, perplexed, and anxious 

 

Body Language: 

-Confidence: hands swinging at her sides, bouncy/ upbeat walk, hands clasped behind her back, holding hands with her loved ones, or hands at her hips, making eye contact, and head held high. 

-Nervous: Hands folded, one hand grips her shoulder or elbows, head held down, quick walking, hands in her pockets, and her fists are clenched. 

-Neutral: walks at a casual pace, hands at her sides/ in her pockets, head is held straight and up, shoulders are squared, and back is straight. 

-Ecstatic: Hands are clenched, fast-paced movements, rhythmic movements that mimic dancing, hums in a sing-song tone, running, head is facing the sky, and her hands are stretched into the air. 

-Uncertain: slow-paced watching, looks around/ over her should in case of danger, her shoulders are more tense vigilant of her surroundings and noises, and can only make up slurred mumbling noises 

Voice Quality: pleasant, energetic, outgoing, inflected, and warm. 

Character 2:

Name: Christine (obsessive friend/ hinted love interest) 

Acting:  

-Obsessive, touchy, mysterious, gaslighting, manipulation, crosses boundaries, charismatic, vindictive, ecstatic, infatuated, love-stricken, daydreamy, out of touch with reality, stalking behavior (like Joe Goldberg from the Netflix Original titled “You”), possessive, and delusional 

Appearance: 

-Face: round, youthful, beauty-marked, plump lips, kinky/ curly hair, decent, and long eyelashes. 

-Body: curvy, short-statured, narrow shoulders, light-skinned/ very light brown skin, and chubby. 

-Clothing: brown pants, black boots, jean jacket, plain white t-shirt, and hair tie. 

-Facial Expressions: intent glare/ stare, unnerving fake smile, grin, lighthearted, discontent, hateful,  

vengeful, and fiery rage 

 

Body Language:  

-Manipulative: head leaned in disbelief, scratches, itches neck, picks her nails, rubs shoulder of victim, her hand grips her elbow, and arms crossed. 

-Ecstasy: pleasant, relaxed smile, with wrinkles at the sides of her eyes, laughter, intent, and subtle nodding, and hand covers her mouth/ or is in her pocket. 

-Vengeful: harsh glare, head is lowered, fake grimace, eye squint, blank, emotionless face,  condescending tone, and folds hands under chin in deep thought. 

-Infatuation: Passionate, attentive stare, wiggles around, dances, chiseled smile, blushed, faintly  whispers to herself, leans forward, rests head on her hand, mirrors the motions of her victim (Mercedes), stares at mouth and fixes herself to look her best when her crush is around. 

-Delusional: anxious movements, humming, hyperventilating/ irregular breathing, extensive zoning out and daydreaming, breathy speech, subtle shaking, in a confined body position (curled up, head lowered, while arms and legs are crossed), talks to self, and may stumble on or bump into objects. 

Voice Quality: calm, inflected, giddy, breathy, giggly, deep, confident, accusatory, resonant, and at times dead.

Character 3

Name: Lizzy (Mercedes’ best friend) 

Acting: Energetic, humorous, outgoing, protective, introspective, skeptical, and quirky 

Appearance: 

-Face: round, slightly freckled, button nosed, dark-brown eyes, long eyelashes, youthful, and plump/ prominent facial features. 

-Body: Curvy, tall stature, mature features, and medium brown-skinned/ brown skin tone. 

-Clothing: form-fitting, casual, contemporary, athleisure, jeans/ or long pants, neutral-colored sneakers, ankle shoes, Beatz headphones, zipped jacket, and graphic t-shirt 

-Facial Expressions: concerned, puzzled, inspective, pleasant, resting face/ neutral, and anxious. 

 

Body Language: 

-Skeptical: head tilted, eyes squinted, tense shoulders, and body leaned in/ leaned forward. 

-Concerned: eyebrows raised, slight shaking, tense muscles, slow walking, and fast-paced heartbeat. 

-Enjoyment: playful grin, dancing, swinging arms, arms stretched high, and wide, and humming. 

-Remorse: lowered head, crying, feet shifting, body swinging and moving back and forth, fidgety fingers, and hands behind their necks. 

-Anxiety: shaking, lips quivering, irregular breaths, heart racing, impatient/ jumpy movements, and  

pacing back and forth. 

Voice Quality: soothing, casual, deep pitched, orotund, warm, and inflected. 

Additional Information:

Age  -Mercedes:16  -Christine: 15  -Lizzy: 16	Gender -Mercedes: Female  -Christine: Female  -Lizzy: Female
Ethnicity  -Mercedes: Dominican American  -Christine: Biracial  -Lizzy: Jamaican-American	Sexuality  -Mercedes: Straight/ Heterosexual  -Christine: Lesbian/ Homosexual  -Lizzy: Straight/ Heterosexual
Identity or title  -Mercedes: athlete  -Christine: theater kid  -Lizzy: class clown	Class and social status  -Mercedes: low-middle class  -Christine: low-middle class  -Lizzy: low-middle class
Abilities  -Mercedes: creativity  -Christine: critical thinking  -Lizzy: social skills	Lifestyle interests  -Mercedes: fashion, sports  -Christine: arts and crafts, photography  -Lizzy: socializing, networking
Moral Values  -Mercedes: hopefulness  -Christine: perseverance  -Lizzy: honesty	Struggles  -Mercedes: suffers from anxiety  -Christine: attachment issues from past neglection  -Lizzy: vulnerability to life-threatening abduction
Costume  -Mercedes: dark jeans, biker shorts, black jacket, and a cream white shirt.  -Christine: blue shirt, or blank white t-shirt, black combat boots, oversized grey hoodie, and wide-legged jeans.  -Lizzy: form-fitting, skinny blue jeans, oversized, navy blue, NASA hoodie, blue sneakers, and a dark hair scrunchie.	Hair/Makeup  -Mercedes: long, brown curly hair  -Christine: thick, black wavy hair, in a braided and twisted style  -Lizzy: voluminous, black curly Afro
Props  -Mercedes: green water bottle, iPhone, and a school ID  -Christine: school ID, bloody scissors, markers, crayons, plushie, sketchbook, and laptops  -Lizzy: rope (used to tie her hands), bracelets, hair scrunchie, pencil, and laptop	Colors that are used to define your character -Mercedes: green, white, black, and dark blue to complement her understated sense of style  -Christine: light blue, grey, and black to contrasts her extreme personality  -Lizzy: range of blues, white, and black to represent her neutrality and simplicity

Supporting CHARACTERS:

Merlene (Mercedes’ mother)	Cherie (Christine’s mother)
Demographics:    -Age: 54 years old  -Race/ Ethnicity: Biracial, Hispanic  -Gender: Woman  -Income: Middle Class	Demographics:    -Age: 52 years old  -Race/ Ethnicity: African American  -Gender: Woman  -Income: Low Middle Class
Appearance:    -Face: Wrinkled, round, and beauty marked  -Body Shape: Pear  -Clothes: Glasses, baggy pants, oversized jacket, bonnet, and slides  -Skin Tone: Medium Brown  -Stature: Tall, approximately 5’7” in height  -Eyes: Dark Brown	Appearance:    -Face: Wrinkled, oval/long, and dimpled  -Body Shape: Lean and slim  -Clothes: light colored cardigan/ jacket, bonnet, slippers, sweatpants, or jeans  -Skin Tone: Light Brown  -Stature: Medium- Short   -Eyes: Dark Brown
Facial Expression:    -Concerned  -Neutral/ Resting face  -Content  -Interested and engaged	Facial Expression:    - Enthusiastic  -Pleased  -Stressed  - Interested
Body Language:    -Stressed    -Casual/ Relaxed    -Proud/ Grateful and Accomplished    -Eased	Body Language:    -Invested  -Reminiscent  -Casual  -Content
Personality:    -Upbeat     -Enthusiastic     -Empathetic     -Casual	Personality:    -Empathetic     -Calm     -Laid-back     -Reserved
Costume, Hair, and Makeup:    -Hair Bonnet     -Glasses     -Oversized jacket     -No makeup	Costume, Hair, and Makeup:    -Hair Bonnet  -Oversized cardigan  -Baddy sweatpants/ any pant  -No Makeup
Colors that are used to describe who they are:    - Black    -Dark Blue    -Red    -Grey	Colors that are used to describe who they are:    -Red  -Yellow  -Muted Blue  -Black