6 Basic Types of Film Sequels

2. The World BuilderDescription: You're not content with just re-writing history, be it through revisionary imagination, plot devices, or even just a flat out repeat. Good for you! Though I have to warn you, moving into this patch of Sequel Country needs a lot of skill, because instead of just writing one flick that pushes things along, you're looking at the long view. You don't want just another story to tell, you want to expand the world in which you're telling it. This is a good move, as it opens things up to more sequels down the road. The more pathways and people involved in the story, the more places and events you can have the greater number of characters roaming about doing things. You told the first chapter in a sitting room, and now you're ready to go outside and invite the neighbors for fun. The Right Way: When opening up your world, it's important to structure it as well as you did your first foray into said world. Which is to say you need to structure a larger playing field, and still at the same time make sure you have connective tissue to the initial setting, so as to not completely disregard the already classic original. That said, new people and places are easy to come by, but you need to choose them well. You can't just put anyone anywhere and expect anything, it has to fit with the story that's come before. You might be outside, but everything that happened in the Sitting Room still counts. Doubly so if your character(s) are to learn anything from those events to apply to future re-occurrences. (Example: Aliens. Ridley Scott's Alien has been widely regarded as a Haunted House movie in Space. James Cameron, while respecting the claustrophobic and traumatic nature of a slow pot boiler of a film, turned the Alien franchise into an Action/Adventure spectacle with guns, explosions, and bigger groups of both xenomorphs and humans. Scott's battle became Cameron's war, and Ellen Ripley turned from a battle scarred veteran of a previous encounter into a rough and tough hardcase that could dish it out as good as they brought it.)The Wrong Way: The funny thing about expanding a storytelling universe is that it's kind of like expanding an image. You need to keep the dimensions and proportions in mind while expanding it. Too small, and you can hardly see what's going on. Too big, and everything starts to lose definition. Too few characters, and it seems very recycled. Too many characters, and you're in danger of having too many underdeveloped persons doing things we don't care about. All of these factors together makes expanding a universe seem like a game of Battleship, with each decision being the other person's turn to call out their strike co-0rdinates. Oh, and before you get any ideas Universal, this was NOT a call to expand the universe of Battleship. No one cared the first time, so just pack up your kit and go home. (Example: The Bourne Legacy. With a full trilogy behind them, and plenty of titles to continue making films with, Team Bourne decided to go for broke and start a new trilogy after Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass took their ball and went home. Unfortunately, Tony Gilroy was the one kid who thought it was a good idea to keep playing his way when everyone else left for the day. While this gave him full creative control, he didn't know how to wield it. Much like any other kid who really, really, really wants to be in charge, when he got the chance he took a rather kitchen sink approach to things. Too many characters, too many secret projects, and not enough rapport and empathy built for the audience to care lead to a film that was damning at best and pathetic at worst.)