Here, on MugenMilano, we always talk about how character development makes a movie or series better. But what is character development anyway?
Most people believe that a good story follows a Field’s three-act structure or Campbell’s 12 steps of a hero’s journey. Although these frameworks were strongly established by history’s finest screenwriters, the story is only as good as the character’s growth–in my opinion.
This growth is what is described as character development. The character changes. A dynamic character. And there are three steps in making a character developed that usually make a story great. Note that a character doesn’t necessarily have to go from bad to good. You can also use these steps to turn a good person bad.
Therefore, in this article, we will look at two character developments that make a story great. The first one is Marlin from Finding Nemo (bad to good) and Eren Yeager from Attack on Titan (good to bad).
Step 1: Establishing False Belief
Establishing false beliefs happens when a character undergoes a traumatic experience that misguided their judgment, personality, and the cause of their fight throughout the story. The sooner this happens in a story, the better.
For example, in Finding Nemo, the movie starts with Marlin’s traumatic experience. The death of his wife while she protects their eggs. Marlin suffers a great loss and is left with one surviving offspring, Nemo. Here, Marlin’s false belief is established: “I must protect Nemo at all cost”. Which makes him unreasonably overprotective and doesn’t trust Nemo to make his own decision (bad).
Meanwhile, in Attack on Titan, the anime starts with the massacre in his village. The titans attack his home and eat his mother. Eren suffers a great loss and is left with vengeance. Here, Eren’s false belief is established: “I will kill every single titan!”. This makes him hot-tempered and vengeful against the titans in most parts of the anime, making him an enthusiastic soldier (good).
So if you’re planning to write a story, consider traumatizing them right away! 🙂
Step 2: Acknowledging False Belief
Although not necessarily, this stage usually happens while a plot twist is revealed. This step happens when the character realizes that they have been making wrong judgment because of their trauma. Here, the character will make a surprising decision that doesn’t fit their personality.
For example, in Finding Nemo, Marlin has been established as an overprotective father. However, in the climatic part of the movie, Marlin trusts Nemo to make his decision to save a huge amount of fishes from being caught. Marlin lets Nemo go and they work together to tell the fishes to swim down, to just “keep swimming”.
Meanwhile, things are getting messed up in Attack on Titan. Eren learns that the titans he swore to kill are the people of his own race. He learns that the titans are victims of Marleyans. It is shocking for him to learn that the titans are the victims and humans are the perpetrators. To achieve absolute freedom, Eren decides to eliminate everyone outside of the walls, instead of eliminating all of the titans.
Step 3: Embracing New Belief
And this is the stage where the characters have fully developed. In Finding Nemo, Marlin is shown to be more lenient and trustful of his son Nemo. He becomes a good father who fully embraces the fact that his son is growing and will eventually live his own life (good).
Meanwhile, in Attack on Titan, Eren establishes a new political idea called Yeagerism, dedicated to initiating Rumbling, eliminating the rest of the world to ensure their Paradis’ survivorship. Upon learning the truth of the world, Eren becomes the anime’s main antagonist (bad).
Conclusion
In conclusion, character development is the transformative journey that shapes the essence of a story. It’s more than just following established narrative structures; it’s about crafting characters who evolve, challenge beliefs, and confront their inner demons. Whether they transition from bad to good or vice versa, their growth adds depth and complexity to the narrative, elevating the storytelling experience. Which explains why Finding Nemo is such a great movie and why Attack on Titan is such a great anime.
But what if I told you a character can be just as interesting without being ‘developed’? Well, that’s an article for another day.
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