Character Development

Character profiles:

Anna Carter
Age: 17
Character status: Main character
Personality: Used to be fun, happy and popular, now she is distant and emotionally scarred
Costume: At the beginning of the film she wears pretty dresses and make-up, as the story progresses she puts less effort into her style
Costume at the beginning of film: Relatively bright and smart - casual clothing at the start of the film, indicating an enthusiasm for school and motivation and a stable home. Reflects the storyline of how she's initially in a stable home and happy with her friends and her family. 

Costume later on: Later on in the film, when the plot emerges, Anna's costume has to change to convey change. A pair of jeans and a hoodie is highly in contrast to the smart casual bright clothing she initially wears. By wearing dark casual clothes, she seems to not be making an effort and portrays her depression and sadness and lack of self confidence when she encounters her dilemma. 

How we were influenced to incorporate 
character: 

Taylor from 'cyberbully' 

Whilst we decided on our characters, we knew that having one main, prominent character would allow, the genre and one of our key themes (bullying, self-harm, insecurity etc) to effectively emerge. A prime example , which influenced our decision to do so, was the film 'cyberbully'. In that film, the main character Taylor, was significant; how she dealt with the predicament she found herself in was portrayed successfully, with emotions etc. The theme of 'cyberbullying' also unraveled successfully and made it more educational. 

Annie from the film 'Trust'

In the film 'trust', Annie is also a vulnurable character who also struggles with the theme of insecurity, her character also contributed to the development of our protagonist Anna.  






Rachael Carter
Age: 53
Character status: Mother of Anna.
Personality: Used to be loving and caring of Anna, but since her abusive husband left her, she has been ignorant and addicted to substances such as alcohol and drugs.
Costume: Lazy clothes, jeans/top.

How we were influence to incorporate character: In 'Cyberbully', from the user rating statistics in 'imdb', it revealed that older women also enjoyed consuming the film. This shows that the target audience was widened beyond a younger age, but was more inclusive of the older generation. This is because the film is educational even for mothers, so that they can understand and get an insight into the problems that teenagers daily face. Furthermore, within the film, the mother plays an important contribution in the storyline and is also highly effected by the problems her daughter faces. 

Taylor's mum in the film 'cyberbully'

The combination of these two elements consequently influenced us to adopt a mother, but instead of the encouraging supporting mother like in 'cyberbully', this mother would be conveyed to be a problematic mother contributing to the hardship her daughter upholds.  





Lottie Smith
Age: 17

Character status: Best friend of Anna
Personality: Always been the one to make Anna laugh, but as things start to change, so does she. She turns on Anna and becomes her worst nightmare.
Costume: Pretty dresses/outfits.

How we were influenced to incorporate character: 

Friends of the Cady in the film 'mean girls'

Almost all teen dramas, consists of friends of the protagonist(s). Even more comedic ones such as 'Mean Girls' or 'Angus Thongs and Perfect Snogging'. In these films, the friends are conveyed to be of betrayal and backstabbing friends, though there is usually one or two who remain loyal. Consequently  we acknowledged that it would be almost absurd to have absent, a friend(s) of the character. Anna's distance from her friends would leave her even more alone and will contribute to the dramatic element of the storyline. 

Georgia's friends in the film 'Angos thongs..'

Jane Moore
Age: 45Character status: Anna's psychiatrist
Personality: Helpful, polite, well-mannered.

Costume: Smart suit/trousers with name badge to identify role as Doctor.

How we were influenced to incorporate character: In the film Trust, the protagonist's (Anna) councillor, was a key figure in the film. Even though Anna initially, deluded herself and compress her problems. However, through her councillor, Anna was able to slowly pour out her emotions and admit the problems that she faced. The significance of Anna's mother was minimised and the councillor played a more motherly figure. This is what inspired us included such a key figure. Having Jane as a psychiatrists to guide and help Anna; replacing the actions her mother was inadequate in doing and would help enhance the narrative of the story and make the storyline more powerful.
After looking up the meaning behind the name Jane, we discovered that it is name known as a 'gift from God'. This is useful to us because Jane acts as a friend to Anna in other words is her guardian angel. She guides her and helps her throughout the course of the storyline, therefore her name meaning is very relevant to her character.