The Action Heroines Journey, Monomyth Remixed 2016

The Action
Heroines Journey
RIPLEY & KATNISS VS LUKE & BEOWULF
WARPING, DISTILLING AND JUST PLAIN
EXPLODING MONOMYTH TO FIT HER STORY
FOR WRITERS
Satine Phoenix & RK Syrus

Yuan Kun Publishing Ltd.
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The Action Heroines Journey/1st ed.
Authors: Satine Phoenix & RK Syrus
EBOOK ISBN 978-1-910890-04-2
PAPER BOOK ISBN 978-1-910890-03-5
The Action Heroines Journey/Satine Phoenix & RK Syrus.
bibliographical references.
Includes
1. Motion Picture Authorship. 2. Mythology - Monomyth (Sociology).

3.
Femininity (Psychology) 4. Writing Writing Technique 5. Humor Satire Hollywood
Contents
Introduction ...................................................................... xi
In the beginning, there was Campbell ...................... xv
And then there was Christopher Vogler ................. xviii
DEFNISH()N Z ....................................................... xx
Executive Summary .......................................................... 1
PRELOGUE - Ode to the Power of Daydreaming.......... 3
Archetypes - Bringing characters to life. ........................ 4
Tragic Virtue as Character Fulcrum ............................... 6
Prefab Personifications .................................................. 8
Her Committed World (M R .
V S
T H E
ORDINARY
W O R L D ) ........................................................................ 17
Relation of Flaw in Step 1 Committed World ( T O S T E P
2 AWAKENING
TO
H ER A D V E N T U R E ) ....................... 25
Awakening to Her Adventure (M R . V S C A L L T O

A D V E N T U R E ) ................................................................ 29
Negation of the Awakening (M R . V S R E F U S A L
OF THE
C A L L ) ............................................................................ 35
Finding the Mentor Within (M R . V S M E E T I N G W I T H

THE
M E N T O R ) .............................................................. 43
The Heroine Blooms (M R . V S T H E H E R O P A S S E S
THE
F I R S T T H R E S H O L D ) ..................................................... 49
She Re-Examines Her Hierarchy of Needs (M R . V S
T E S T S , A L L I E S
AND
E N E M I E S ) ................................. 53
Her Approach to the Innermost Cave (Is an Approach of

Two Parts) ...................................................................... 57
Her Cave of Wonders (M R . V S T H E A P P R O A C H P A R T
1) .................................................................................... 61
Her Warmup Boss Fight (M R . V S T H E A P P R O A C H
P A R T 2) ......................................................................... 67
Her Boss Fight (M R . V S H I S S U P R E M E O R D E A L ) ... 77
But Rather a Strategically Placed Lead in to Step 9.... 83
Her Secret Hearthfire (M R . V S T H E R E W A R D , T H E
HERO SEIZES
THE
SWORD,
E T C .)
............................. 87
The Road Ahead of Her (M R . V S T H E R O A D B A C K ) 95

Her Reconciled Self (M R . V S H I S R E S U R R E C T I O N )
..................................................................................... 101
She Builds a Sheltering Love (M R . V S R E T U R N W I T H
THE
E L I X I R ) ................................................................ 104
Action Heroine Curriculum Vitae ................................... 112

UNDERWORLD ..................................................... 112
SICARIO ................................................................. 118
Conclusions (H O W E VE R , N O T Q U I T E
THE
E N D .) ...... 125
EPILOGUE.................................................................... 129
PRE-CREDITS SCENES ..................................... 130
ERUDITE CITATIONS .................................................. 135
Actual Post Credit Scenes (Y O U T H O U G H T W E W E R E
D O N E ? N O T E V E N C L O S E .) ....................................... 147
Galactic Sized Outrage over BSG Casting ................ 148
Rogue Regained ........................................................ 148
Alien WTF happened? .............................................. 148
The Cougar and the Canadian Conspiracy: A Syrus
Rant. .......................................................................... 151
SHH SIGOURNEYS SAYING SOMETHING 153
Archer Hits the Mark! ................................................. 155
MISSISSIPPI FILMIN................................................. 158
Appendix (F R A N C H I S E B O D Y B U I L D E R ) ...................... 161
Story-Fu Secrets from the Shao Lin Temple .............. 170
List of Oscar Winning and Nominated Women
Screenwriters ............................................................. 173
A SMALL LIST OF FEMALE HERO MOVIES & their
Main Characters ........................................................ 183
iii
iv
The Action Heroines Journey
This book is a collection of edited transcripts of

numerous chats held in the New Praetorians secret
lair and is dedicated to the action hero/heroine inside
every creative person.
vi
vii
viii
ix
Introduction
All of the great mythologies and much of the mythic story-telling

of the world are from the male point of view. When I was writing
The Hero with a Thousand Faces and wanted to bring female
heroes in, I had to go to the fairy tales. These were told by
women to children, you know, and you get a different
perspective. It was the men who got involved in spinning most of
the great myths. The women were too busy; they had too damn
much to do to sit around thinking about stories [...]
- Joseph Campbell (collected lectures) Pathways to Bliss, 2004 p. 145.
Satinator: Say WHAT? Such an old fashioned, Mad Men way

of thinking.
Sy: Yeah, he kinda did say that. Dont think about it too much,
your head will explode. Just get to our rebuttal.
Satinator: Which is herewith
Now there was a time when they used to say
That behind every great man there had to be a great woman
Now in these times of change, you know that it's no longer true
So we're comin' out of the kitchen
'Cause there's somethin' we forgot to say to you
We said, Sisters are doin' it for themselves
Standin' on their own two feet and ringin' on their own bells.
xi

- Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves" Written by Oscar winner Annie
Lennox & Dave Stewart, 1985. Single by Eurythmics and Aretha
Franklin, part of the albums Be Yourself Tonight and Who's Zoomin'
Who?
Satinator: Now without further adoyour presenters, RK Sy.

Sy: Hey! Wait a sec Satine, are you sure we should REVEAL my
secret IDENTITY to the innocent public?
Satinator: No one knows who the heck you are.
Sy: See, I was on a roll. (Screw you Bruce Wayne!)
Satinator: How about I just introduce you and then you can go
back to being IGNOMINIOUS. Thats way better than being secret,
people will actually try to avoid knowing you.
Sy: Thanks Satine, I know you always have my back. And now
us:
Satine Phoenix: A strong female lead with a sordid past.
Overcoming obstacles since childhood she has found her way through
the dark forest and settled into a nice apartment in Los Angeles to
entertain you with wonders of the Comic Book & Table Top Gaming
persuasion. Illustrator & Co-Creator of New Praetorians Graphic
Novel Series. Co-Host to Game School Podcast with Chad Parish
(Gameschool.tsrpn.com). Host of the DrawMelt Podcast recorded at
Meltdown Comics in Hollywood. CEO of Burning Quill Enterprises
creating Elegant Fantasy Fashion & Jewelry for the modern Elf. And
last but by no means least, creator of CelebrityChariD20.com. Where
she gets her friends to play custom Dungeons and Dragons games
created by Keith Baker. Their fans then donate while they play to the
Reach Out and Read (rorlosangeles.org) Charity. A charity that helps
pediatricians help parents get their children to read from as early as 6
months old.
xii
Artist, Entertainer, Podcaster, Writer, Model, Satinator, LA Woman

& Fitness Fanatic. satinephoenix.NET @satinephoenix.
RK Syrus: Writer, Luncher, ex-script coverage dude. Youve
probably fired him and dont remember. Schooled in the arts of
journalism, law, geology, genealogy, gongkwon and film studies all at
public expense (Thank you everyone, btw!). Is currently winning the
battle of Most Deplorable Desk Chairs barely. In his benignly
shameful career hes most proud to be Co-Creator of New
Praetorians graphic novel series. Feels knackered just reading about
Satines activities. @rksyrus
xiii
Here Satine and I focus on the application of monomyth to films and

screenplays. Major heroic female characters are emerging in
established film franchises.
The concept of the female action heroines is no longer dare we
say it divergent. As Shailene Woodley says:
Female heroines are making headway in Hollywood.
(straitstimes.com)
xiv
Action heroines are dominating TV. She even has her own subgenre at boxofficemojo.com1.
A female action hero, Rey, has the most screen time in the biggest
US box office hit ever, Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Maybe its time to awaken to the extra amazing possibilities of
your Action Heroines Journey.
In the beginning, there was Campbell

Satinator: Actually, monomyth has roots which predate
Campbells work: the cultural unconsciousness theories of Jung and
Bastian are its direct ancestors. The term monomyth comes from
Joyce's Finnegans Wake (1939). But Campbells works, especially
The Hero with a Thousand Faces (1949), are the most cited and
discussed.
Sy: Maureen Murdock wrote The Heroines Journey: Womans
Quest for Wholeness. It was written as a response to Joseph
Campbells book. She discussed the ideas in it with Joseph Campbell
himself in 1981.
Satinator: And?
Sy: Campbells quoted response was:
Women dont need to make the journey. In the whole
mythological journey, the woman is there. All she has to do is to
realize that shes the place that people are trying to get to
Satinator: Grrr 1939, 1949 ITS 2016! Men and Women have
come such a long way since the beginning of storytelling. Thats
Bullsh*
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/genres/chart/?id=actionheroine.htm
xv
Sy: Ahem Let Mr. Campbell finish

When a woman realizes what her wonderful character is, shes
not going to get messed up with the notion of being pseudomale.
Satinator: Thats one of the biggest issues! Women are
evolving to believe they have to become Pseudo-Male. Even in 1991,
Maureen mentions this in her book the Heroines Journey. Thats like,
Chapter 2. (Page 36: Gathering Allies) in the 25 years that have
passed since she mentions this we are seeing the ripple effect of this
and its not pretty. What else you got?
Sy: Thats all. The misogyny train has passed.
Satinator: This really riles me up, but I mustnt let you believe this
is how I feel about Mr. Campbell. Or as I like to refer to him as: Poppa
Campbell. I respect him deeply.
Joseph Campbell was by all accounts a very educated and wellrounded intellect. He is the most famous and influential mythologist
especially in the worlds of writing for film TV and stage. He received a
BA from Columbia University 1925 and an MA in medieval literature in
1927. This was about the time women won the actual, final, totally
complete (not abridged in any way!) right to vote in the UK and
America. The 1920 federal election became the first United States
presidential election in which women were permitted to vote in every
state. That journey to the ballot box was not unanimously legally
complete until 1984 when Mississippi ratified the Nineteenth
Amendment, sixty-four years after the law was enacted nationally.
Sy: Maybe they were just mullin things over, seen if all this
womens rights hoopla was just a fad.
Satinator: And Lawmakers in Mississippi only got around to
officially filing the last paperwork to ratify the 13th Amendment, you
xvi
know the one abolishing slavery 148 years late thanks to the
movie Lincoln (according to cbsnews.com).
Sy: Wow. Makes you think doesnt it.
Those were way different times the monomyth scholar grew up in.
But that was then.
Satinator: Campbell was a great mind of his age and culture and
we do not fault him for overlooking the voice and gaze of an entire
gender. All over Earth. About 51% of the planets population. It was
just part of the society brain at the time. We do not fault him. Much.
Sy: I still dont get it. Joseph Campbell was obviously well
educated; he couldnt find any Feminine super heroic mythologies?
Not even in ancient Greece? Some of the goddesses were pretty
badass tough and adventurous. Even the United States Military
Academy at West Point acknowledges this. That AINT Aress sword
and helm on their official coat of arms:
Christopher Vogler said: In the long run, the most influential book
of the 20th Century may turn out to be Joseph Campbells THE HERO
WITH A THOUSAND FACES. Given the exalted status of his work,
we find Campbells lack of faith in female mythology disturbing.
xvii
Satinator: Another downside to Campbells theories is they are

complex and unwieldly to apply as a tool to help you craft your
screenplay or creative work. There are 17 stages to his heros journey
and Campbell abstracted his ideas to fit any form of storytelling.
Sy: Still, many smart commentators have applied monomyth to film
and onscreen heroines. Valerie Estelle Frankel (Buffy and the
Heroine's Journey) has done great work applying her variant on
Campbell to her Slayerness. Frankels volume mostly covers the TV
show which ran for 7 seasons (not long enough!). TV shows are
generally structured to be open-ended and last many years. In the
Buffy DVD extra segment The Last Sundown creator Joss Whedon
said:
With those actresses theres little I couldnt have done. My only
regret is that I didnt have the energy for more.
And then there was Christopher Vogler

Satinator: Here in The Action Heroines Journey we focus on
Chris Voglers famous work A Practical Guide to The Hero with a
Thousand Faces (1985). And it works! Voglers formula has shaped
films which have entertained millions across the world for generations.
It condenses monomyth into 12 stages and was originally written in a
memo specifically designed to help people write stories for a major
studio which must NOT be NAMED.
Sy: D*sn3y, right?
Satinator: Argh! Now youve done it! Well have to change secret
lairs again.
Sy: Oh dont be paranoid although they do seem bent on
owning everything in the known universe.
As Don Kaufman keeps telling me, in your average screenplay
youve got only about 2 hours or 120 pages (1 page = approx. 1
xviii
minute of screen time) to tell your story. And that includes stupendous
Boss Fight set pieces! As a writer for film, TV or stage you have to
make every scene count.
Since 1985 people have been employing Voglers 12 Steps of the
Heros Journey with fantastic results. Here we try to add to your tool
box to encompass the special aspects of the Action Heroine.
To keep things focused and also because we pretend to know way
more than we actually do, well try to stick to four well-known
examples to help explain Wutt we mean (Satine: see the set up I just
did there?)
Satinator: Oh god, not your ridiculous Ws.
Sy: Each section will feature The Three Wutts: Wuttisit? Wuttup?
Wutt2do?
Satinator: You know THOSE ARENT CATCHY.
Sy: Yes they are.
Satinator: Oh good grief. Fine, you can keep the Ws, but Im not
saying them! Happy now?
Sy: Totally.
Satinator: See why Im glad cats dont talk? But yeah, well look at
each of the 12 elements of monomyth (following Vogler, 1985) and
see how each heroines / heros arc fits:
ELLEN RIPLEY2: Alien (1979)/Aliens (1986)
Joe Roth while president of Fox called Sigourney Weavers Ripley

"Really the only female warrior we have in our movie mythology. That was in
xix
KATNISS EVERDEEN: Hunger Games (mostly book one and

film)
VERSUS
LUKE SKYWALKER: Star Wars (mostly episode IV, 1977)
BEOWULF3: Beowulf
And now Syrus has a word on definitions.
DEFNISH()N Z
Sy: The stories of Ripley, Katniss, Luke and Beowulf are often
classified as science fiction or fantasy genre. Ridley Scotts Alien is a
haunted house plot set in space. Action genre has been variously
defined:
Action genres turn on public values such as freedom/slavery or
justice/injustice, Robert McKee, Story.
Shawn Coyne says action genre is a story in which:
a heroic protagonist overcomes arch Villains and/or nature and
ultimately sacrifices himself in order to save another human being
or even the entire planet from annihilation. (The Story Grid)
Some people have even asserted Hunger Games is, strictly
speaking, a war story (in which genre the controlling theme is always
whether the ends justify the means Coyne).
All of these views have their own merit.
1990. Moving pictures had been around for quite a while, but action heroines,
not so much. (Cited in Joss Whedon: Geek King of the Universe).
3
c. 700 CE, so freaken olde! But certainly the poem was the blockbuster
adventure story of its day. And it has had huge cultural impact. As recently as
2007 it was reimagined as a major 3D motion capture film. As well, the crusty
Geat has made a comeback on ITV Britain, returning to the shieldlands in
2016.
xx
Satine, werent you going to ask me something?

Satinator: Widow use genies destinations? Sheesh! Syrus, if
youre going to hand me a note of something to say, just type it. No
one can read your writing.
Sy: It says plain as the egg on my face: Why do we use genre
definitions?
Hmmph. So why are we messing with genre definitions?
Satinator: Yeah, I want to see action heroines kick butt.
Sy: Butt kicking will commence shortly its important to first
answer my own neatly printed question. We use genre definitions to
establish and choose from obligatory elements and scenes audiences
subconsciously expect. Even if you choose to skip or morph certain
genre expectations, you must know what they are.
For example, if you turn in a James Bond script without a Speech
in Praise of the Villain (McKee, Coyne, Pressfield) or without
everyones favorite 00 agent at some point tied to a chair facing his
primary antagonist, at best youll be asked for a rewrite.
Satinator: At worst youll be thanked for bringing the script along
as far as you have and then be quickly dumped into a tank filled with
sharks.
Sy: Death by genre trope, thatll teach you!
Satinator: I see where your Sy-brain is headed, Syrus. Alien is a
horror genre story: isolated victims are picked off one by one until the
lone survivor must face the ultimate terror. Happy ending not
guaranteed.
xxi
Sy: Holy Cabin in the Woods! Now I have to watch Alien again to
make sure Ripley gets away and saves Jones the cat.
Satinator: But that film is also science fiction genre. It is set in
space, on a spaceship and the antagonist is a very plausible
xenomorph species.
Then in the sequel, James Cameron expanded Ripleys story into
the genre of the war film, with shades of the Alamo. Yet the second
Ripley movie managed to keep the claustrophobic Sci-Fi vibe through
excellent set and creature designs.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, in which rebels grab the plans for
the original Death Star, has been described as having both heist and
war genre elements.
Sy: But I bet its full of action and adventure.
Satinator: And probably more than a few dead Bothans. Here, in
The Action Heroines Journey we use action to embrace all stories
where the heroines conflicts and desires are framed and ultimately
resolved through physical, often violent, means.
Sy: In other words, Satine, youve set up a Heroine vs Hero Boss
Fight. Let the games begin!
Satinator: Ok no more digressions or distractions. Lets do this!
Sy: We will. But first
Satinator: (groan) (Ever feel youre in a triathlon relay with
someone whos got his shoes on the wrong feet?)
Sy: an Executive Summary:
xxii
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Executive Summary
APPROVED
FOR REVIEW BY PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT
EXECUTIVES, BY ORDER OF THE SPECIAL

EXECUTIVE
CHARGE OF IMPORTANT MATTERS
THEMSELVES
IN
OGLERS
198 5 D I S N E Y M E M O had 12 categories based on

Campbells work. Vogler has posted it online4. The structure
could be used for comedies, romances, dramas and action films.
Weve tried to refine and expand his 12 Steps to specifically apply
them to the Action Heroine.
Satinator: Some have argued Campbell and Voglers models are
for male heroes only. We say: monomyth is made for a man but
strong enough for a woman, with a few fly modifications. Which are:
http://www.livingspirit.typepad.com/files/chris-vogler-memo-1.pdf
Step
Vogler 1985
A Practical Guide to THE
HERO WITH A THOUSAND
FACES
Sat & Sys 2016

Remix
THE ACTION
HEROINES JOURNEY
HIS ORDINARY WORLD
HER COMMITTED
WORLD
CALL TO ADVENTURE
HERO IS RELUCTANT AT
FIRST
HERO IS ENCOURAGED BY
THE WISE OLD MAN OR
WOMAN
FINDING THE MENTOR

WITHIN
HERO PASSES THE FIRST

THRESHOLD
THE HEROINE BLOOMS
HERO ENCOUNTERS TESTS

AND HELPERS
SHE RE-EXAMINES
HER HIERARCHY OF
NEEDS
HERO REACHES THE

INNERMOST CAVE
7.1 HER CAVE OF

WONDERS
AWAKENING TO HER
ADVENTURE
NEGATION OF THE
AWAKENING
7.2 HER WARM UP

BOSS FIGHT
7.2
8
HERO ENDURES THE

SUPREME ORDEAL
HERO SEIZES THE SWORD
10
THE ROAD BACK
11
RESURRECTION
12
RETURN WITH THE ELIXIR
HER BOSS FIGHT

HER SECRET
HEARTHFIRE
THE ROAD AHEAD OF
HER
HER RECONCILED
SELF
SHE BUILDS A
SHELTERING LOVE
Sy: Then we apply our remix of the Action Heroines Journey to the
2003 film Underworld and the 2015 film Sicario.
Satinator: This is gonna take some fleshing out, but youve got the
basics all there, Syrus. Anything else for our executive summary?
Sy: Oh, and industry leaders should #hirethesewomen. Thats it for
now.
Satinator: Christopher Vogler has made major contributions to

screenwriting and story in general. After his famous 1985 memo he
expanded and intensively researched his ideas in The Writers
Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers. Its a great book and everyone
should read it.
Sy: But not right this minute. Finish this book first, please. Its way
shorter and has pictures. And were really going to start it now with
PRELOGUE - Ode to the Power of Daydreaming.

Sy: We are creative people, you, Satine and I. You may be reading
this because you are a writer, actor, director, producer or because you
just have an abiding interest in story and the magnificent worlds
inhabited by Action Heroines. Either way, you are an essential
element of the creative process.
Satinator: As Neil Gaiman recently said in a lecture in support of
reading and libraries at Londons Barbican Centre:
We all adults and children, writers and readers have an
obligation to daydream. We have an obligation to imagine. It is
easy to pretend that nobody can change anything, that we are in
a world in which society is huge and the individual is less than
nothing: an atom in a wall, a grain of rice in a rice field. But the
truth is, individuals change their world over and over, individuals
make the future, and they do it by imagining that things can be
different.
- Neil Gaiman, from an edited version of a lecture for the Reading
Agency readingagency.org.uk (full post: neil-gaiman.tumblr.com).
The Action Heroines Journey is a friendly supplement to

established ideas on monomyth and The Heros Journey.
There are exceptions to any rule and once learned, perhaps you
can bend these rules and make something outstanding. But it is by
learning and understanding these foundations that you can most
successfully break through. We speak of the Action Heroines Journey
3
which is different than the Heroines Journey. We are Equalists with

an understanding of the chemical and societal difference between
Man and Womans Hierarchy of needs from a primitive, traditional
level to their roles in modern society. We do not cover the hierarchy of
needs of Gay, Lesbian or Transgender but look forward to another set
of humans who are inspired to research this important aspect of
humanity.
We live in a society where our fellow humans have a wide variety
of experiences and tastes. What we offer to you is a view into the
differences of Men and Women while holding them in equal regard
(Action Heroine vs Action Hero). While this may be fully understood by
some, there are still many who do not understand the value of equality
in accepting the differences between Men and Women rather than
trying to force the idea that the Feminine needs to become masculine
in order to become equal. Like a Yin & Yang, we all have a bit of
Masculine & Feminine / Testosterone & Estrogen in all of us. The
balance of these is in the hierarchy of needs of the individual. To deny
these chemical differences is to deny human nature.
Sy: Satine, are you sure were not feministas, guerilla fighters for
gender fairness? I mean Emma Watson made a rousing speech at the
UN about HeForShe. I was roused. And I responded as any roused
agoraphobic would, by immediately joining her Goodreads book
club: Our Shared Shelf.
Satinator: I guess its all about how one defines it. Ive just defined
it and thats that. Lets get on with things, the Action Heroines Journey
awaits!...
WAIT! We cant forget about the other important piece of the story
puzzle:
Archetypes - Bringing characters to life.

Sy: I was having a very nice day, in the Lair, just a very nice day
indeed, ordering some cat-proof beanbag chairs, if memory serves.
4
When all of a sudden Satine insisted we add a section in this book on

Character Building.
Satinator: Oh, please. Dont troll for sympathy. Weve got to give
the readers the best value for their time and money we can. Even
Anne Lamott (Bird by Bird) says initially the writer must worry about
characters, not plot. Our focus is on the female action heroines
journey as the protagonist of her story. Her interactions with
archetypes like the Mentor and the Boss Villain are implicit in our
Heroines Journey remix. Overall character development deserves a
word before we start in on the 12.5 Step architecture of her story. This
section is about character inspiration and inception. Its about that
specific instant the Heroine and the cast of her saga seizes the
writers imagination and wont let go until her story is told!
Sy: Ok, but dont blame me if we dont make Secret Lairs
Quarterly this year. Stylish furniture with nefarious undertones does
not purchase itsel
Satinator: Ordered! Also got free delivery and minion assembly.
Sy: Well, ok then. I guess we have time.
Satinator: Knowing the precise roles characters around your
protagonist play is vital as you flesh out your story. It can also help
you be script-nimble when, for example, after only 6 years of
development someone demands you cut $8 million from your films
budgetin two days, or else no green light.
Sy: What is a non-green light? A brown light? Black light?
Satinator: One of the ways the creative team behind Deadpool
(2016) were able to do that was by quickly consolidating several
characters into one:
5
We had to carve something like $7-8 million out of the budget in a

48-hour window, co-writer Rhett Reese told io9. And we, as a group,
just put our heads together, got creative, and said How do we cut
what is essentially nine pages out of a 110 page script?
Angel Dust, played by Gina Carano, used to be three different
characters, Reese explained. It was Garrison Kane, Sluggo and
Wire.
Knowing the precise story roles of every single character will help
you do what seems impossible.
Sy: Speaking of which: how do you keep track of named
characters if they number the population of a small country? George
R.R. Martin knows, but if he told you his secrets hed have to turn you
into a beloved character named Stark. And kill you.
The Game of Thrones book series has 1,000+ named characters.
The Song of Ice and Fire books have more than 30 point of view
characters (including those in prologues/epilogues). These characters
each are the protagonists of their own stories. Keeping them distinct
and vibrant and useful to the books was Martins first challenge as the
self-described gardener of his narrative. It also brings us to our first
Story-fu technique:
Tragic Virtue as Character Fulcrum

We should note that this is completely different from the concept it
is often confused with the pseudo-Aristotelian concept of the "tragic
flaw."
Satinator: Yknow I bet our readers, who are pretty smart, picked
up on that.
Sy: How? I havent explained it yet.
Satinator: Dont make me regret helping you out of the shark tank.
I think people will understand the difference between Tragic Virtue
6
and tragic flaw, because they are different words with different
meanings. Its very plain. This technique of character development is
also clearly used in the plays Hamlet and Romeo & Juliet.
Sy: Darn, you dont think were making it too easy. Like how every
six-year-old can do the Rubiks cube blindfolded and now everyones
into 3D Sudoku?
Satinator: You cheat at checkers. Just read what I wrote you on
the Instant Messages. Especially about the part where George Martin
was a TV writer and the 10 years he spent in Hollywood had a huge
impact on how he conceived and executed his mega-saga.
Sy: Tragic Virtue as Character Fulcrum is in evidence in the
presentation and development of GoT characters in the novels and
the HBO TV series. Martin and show creators David Benioff and D. B.
Weiss (Primetime Emmy winners) made sure each major player has
one big externality and one tragic virtue.
Of course the real Asshai magic comes when you take nearly any
two such characters and chuck them into a scene. And remember in
the novels GRRM uses a tight 3rd person POV so you have the added
possibility of unreliable information/internal narration.
Take Brienne of Tarth and a certain Kingslayer (the ultimate
Oathkeeper vs the biggest Oathbreaker ever); and
Take Arya Stark and a certain Hound (notice the mutual reliance
that forms between them with, naturally, homicidal undertones); and
Cersei Lannister vs Ned Stark (You just knew someone would end
up never again in need of a hat); and
Arya Stark and Jaqen H'ghar; or
Arya Stark and Tywin Lannister (Those scenes were not in the
novels. And that shows you how you can riff off great sequences
effortlessly when you have really well defined characters, ones with
Tragic Virtues and large daggers.); or
7
Arya Stark and anyone, or a bowl of oatmeal. Talented actor

Maisie Williams would make it work!
Scenes between finely defined characters like these virtually write
themselves because of the writers use of Tragic Virtue as Character
Fulcrum. Kalliop only knows whats taking George R. R. Martin so
long to finish. With a little DOS tweaking to his Wordstar processor
and I dont see any reason why the darned GoT volumes shouldnt
basically be writing themselves!
Satinator: If only I could rent a dragon just for a day. You know,
I use this same technique for building characters in Dungeons and
Dragons. Whether its for work or play, writing characters with dynamic
personality traits always makes for a more interesting story.
Next, on to an established route for character creation:
Prefab Personifications
These have been around for a long time and theyre still useful to
writers.
Sy: Just like duct tape, right? Its been used for hundreds of years
and Mark Watney still employed it to save his ass on Mars.
Satinator: Ive thought of a great use for duct tape just now.
Archetype lists are good for figuring out if your story needs another
character and how that character might interact with your heroine as
you take her on her journey.
Anything we could do in this short section would pale in
comparison to the amazing work down by UCLA film grad Victoria
Lynn Schmidt in her book 45 Master Characters: Mythic Models for
Creating Original Characters. If youre serious about crafting
characters, female, male and otherwise, you should get her book. And
read it, dont just flip through the pages looking for Medusa pictures
like Syrus. However, since we madly love listing things, we will have a
8
quick breakdown of some common Archetypes at the end of this

chapter.
Sy: We will point out one of the great features of studying master
characters at any stage of the creative process is flippability. Master
characters let you easily ask what is the dark/light side of [insert
character name]. For example, Schmidt has the following section:
ARTEMIS: THE AMAZON AND THE GORGON. Which is all like
When Action Heroines go Evil.
Satinator: Just think of the dynamic story mileage gotten from the
pair-ups of Daredevil-Fisk, Batman-Joker, etc. Even Ripley and the
Alien Queen can be seen as a thematic flipping of opposites.
In Jungian psychology, there are master archetypes as seen in the
Greek goddesses and gods. For example, Zeus is the patriarch and
shares some of the features of the Mentor role. For female characters
these are discussed in the very useful guide Goddesses in
Everywoman by Jean Shinoda Bolen.
Sy: But what if you are, as I frequently am, beset and hounded by
inspiration, like famous American poet Ruth Stone who:
Growing up in rural Virginia, she would be out, working in the
fields and she would feel and hear a poem coming at her from
over the landscape. It was like a thunderous train of air and it
would come barrelling down at her over the landscape. And when
she felt it coming...cause it would shake the earth under her feet.
(Elizabeth Gilbert TED talk)
Satinator: Syrus, the last time you were beset by anything it was
bad sushi. Youre just too lazy to work out character sheets. Every
person has a history; has a Story. A set of experiences that drive them
to make the decisions (good or bad) that they are compelled to make.
I say break down a timeline of the major events in a characters life.
Too many good experiences can dull a character and too many bad
can make them stone stiff. Ask your Characters questions. With
9
proper execution of their history, youll find their answers will be more
honest and interesting. Their reactions, based on their experiences,
will bring them to life.
And Ill go back to flaws, just one more time. Characters with flaws
will hands down make them seem more realistic. All humans have
flaws, some do not make theirs very public. Perhaps their flaws are
triggered by certain events or stressful situations or comments. Have
the flaw, you dont even need to show it. Having it will guide your
character to either go out of their way to avoid it, or stir the pot in
important situations.
Sy: Still, just starting a story and letting characters crash into one
another before you work out details of their past is a legitimate
technique. As Paul Haggis, owner of two Oscar statuettes, said: I
dont think writers should write about answers, I think we should write
about questions. (The Dialogue with Mike De Luca).
DE LUCA
Did [your process] involve writing character bios? Did you know
the history of your characters before the movie starts?
HAGGIS
No. I let them tell me. I let the characters talk.
Conceiving his film Crash (2004), Haggis started with fictionalized
portrayals of himself and his wife but then introduced characters who
were complete strangers and built interactions around them with little
or no idea of who they were except as they appeared to the given
point of view character in each scene/sequence.
Im calling the technique Paul and I use: Synergistic Smash
Satinator: Please dont.
Sy: Just to prove I know exactly what Im talking about, Ill give you
another well known example from the world of comics. The Kabuki
10
saga is the story of an action heroine assassin who struggles with her
identity in near-future Japan. Created, written & illustrated by David
Mack, Kabuki first appeared in comic and book stores in 1994 and its
been the celebrated artist/writers successful personal passion project
to this day. My research indicates he never ever uses character
outlines when writing.
Satinator: I dont know about that.
Sy: Oh, really? Well, it just so happens I teach a class for the Lairs
Online Community College called "David Macks Kabuki in Media and
Culture." So I think my insights into Kabuki have a great deal of
validity!
Satinator: Oh, do ya? Well, that's funny, because I happen to
have David Mack right here, so, yeah, just let me...
(SFX: Secret Lair Secret passageway opening)
... tell him!
David Mack: I heard what you were saying Syrus. I did some
designs of characters in advance with notes in them. But I think most
of the characters I figured out just by writing scenes with them. Which
included many scenes that never made it into the final cut.
(Exit David Mack)
(SFX: Secret Lair Secret passageway closing)
Satinator: Now that weve settled that, on to a character technique
without a cute nickname:
Peripheral Character Study
Normally youre trying to present your characters in the middle of
things.
Sy: Or In media res, as we like to say.
11
Satinator: That makes a lot of sense. You dont need to be shown

the weeks of Katnisss life before Reaping Day in the novel or film. Or
days and days of Tris Prior not looking at herself in the mirror. Yeah,
that happened, but Veronica Roth knows enough not to try to push
readers deep into the boredom zone. Yet many writers take a
circuitous route to a tight and spare final work.
Susanna Grant (Erin Brockovich) said I over-write all the time. My
first drafts are often 145 pages.
James Cameron is famous for his scriptments, really detailed
treatments up to ten times as long as normal ones. His treatment for
Avatar was 80 pages backed up by 1,500 pages of notes, drawings,
ideas, and character descriptions.
Simon Kinberg (Days of Future Past) will often purposely write
scenes for his characters which will never be in the final draft. For
example, the characters high school prom night, and detailed scenes
of when mutants first discovered their powers, etc.
Suzanne Collins had to know the goings on in Peeta Mellarks
house way before a starving Katniss showed up outside their bakery.
Though the final novel is told in first person from Katnisss point of
view, Collins had to have worked out Peetas POV history in detail
long before he became the boy with the bread.
Sometimes the kernel of defining moment for a future character is
in an actual experience of the writer. Callie Khouri, who is a southern
screenwriter of great intellect and poise, spoke to Mike De Luca.
When discussing how she came up with the characters in her Oscar
winning script for Thelma & Louise, Khouri said:
The personal experience that I drew from was one day, when I
was walking down the street, an old man from a car said
something to me that was so vile that I had the thought: If I had a
gun I would kill him. And just the thought of realizing the rage that
bubbled up in me at that moment and knowing that if I happening
to have had a gun I would have committed a murder right then.
That there was nothing in me that would have stopped me, thats
how mad I was. (The Dialogue)
12
Sy: Sometimes to shed a light on powerful characters, the writer

must go to very dark places indeed.
And lastly my favorite character technique:
You know nothing, [insert character name]
This is the stranger in a strange land character who may or may
not have the surname of Strange and whose tale may be stranger
than fiction.
Satinator: Ok we get it. Syrus is talking about the classic fish out
of water start point. When the threshold, or portal, or aqueous
membrane to another dimension is crossed, the protagonist learns
about their surroundings at the same time the audience does. The
character may start with a set of basic skills which the audience can
relate to and then have to adapt those to an exciting and strange
environment.
Ripley in Alien learns that the xenomorphs, even at a young age,
are terrible dinner party guests. In the second film, Aliens, Ripley is
the ranking expert on what one creature can do. But what about
dozens and dozens of them? And where did those eggs in the first
installment come from?
Similarly, Katniss, as a resident of Panem, knows the Games from
television broadcasts. But she learns of their inner workings, waxings,
and Cinna inspired makeovers at the same time as the audience.
Shes got the hunting skills to bring down game in the woods of
District 12, but what about humans who are trying their best to kill her
in an arena?
Sy: For further reading, and just for the title alone, check out Dr.
Linda Edelsteins Writers Guide to Character Traits - From Sex to
Schizophrenia: Everything You Need to Develop Your Characters!
Satinator: And if youre stuck, frustrated, going into sugar-caffeinecarb withdrawals and just want to take your keyboard and smash it
over someones
13
Sy: Hey!
Satinator: Just relax. And think about doing as Anne Lamott
suggests, taking it bird by bird. Your protagonist heroine and her
people and her world are all out there, lets go and discover them!
14
Archetype List
There are many types of characters that show up in stories.
Voglers book, The Writers Journey, goes deep into these archetypes.
Here is a brief list of basic Archetypes.
Hero
Mentor
Threshold
Guardian
Herald
Shapeshifter
Shadow
Trickster
Usually the protagonist. Someone who

represents admirable values and will put others
before themselves. A hero can be known or
grown within the story.
A guide or helper to the protagonist. Whether
teaching a skill or giving advice, the wise
mentor usually has experience the protagonist
has not yet developed and can aid in dire
situations.
A transformative obstacle in the Heros path.
Overcoming the obstacle usually encourages
growth within the character facing it. Can be
another character, a puzzle, a small quest or an
internal conflict.
Something that announces important events.
Can be a person announcing, or message.
Represents change and instability. Usually a
character who shifts sides within a story. Often
a love interest but can be other archetypes as
well (Mentor, Trickster, Threshold Guardians)
Provides conflict within the story, usually the
Antagonist. Where the Hero usually represents
the light, a Shadow is the darkness within our
nature
An entertaining character that lightens the
mood of a situation. A personification of the
unexpected.
Carl Jung goes deeper into Archetypes by looking at human

nature. We each have the following Archetypes within us that make us
who we are. It is in the embracing or lack of embracing any number of
these pieces that further develops a characters personality.
15
The Anima/Animus The opposite of our biological sex: The

Feminine aspects (Anima) and the Masculine aspects (Animus). Every
human has masculine and feminine attributes.
The Shadow Sometimes thought of as our Dark Side. Usually
the more primal animal side of ourselves and represents both creative
and destructive capabilities.
The Self The center unchanging part of the Psyche that
connects the Ego, Anima/Animus and Shadow.
16
STEP 1
Her Committed World

( M R . V S T H E O R D I N A R Y W O R L D )
ATINA TOR: TH E PROT AGON IST is presented at her start

point. The purpose and use of this sequence is always to build a
bridge between audience and protagonist. Should be the same for
heroes and heroines, eh? Not so fast! Lets drill down.
Sy: First up, the guys.
Luke Skywalker: We find Luke doing boring chores on the
humdrum Lars moisture farm located on the Great Chott salt flat on
the planet Tatooine. Wake me when youre done, son! But quietly
Luke aspires for something more, he doesnt quite know what, but its
missing from his Ordinary World.
Beowulf: We are plonked down by the poet in Hrothgars ordinary
world, and his happy mead hall, suddenly made not so happy by that
party crasher Grendel. Beowulf himself can be implied to be just
hanging around looking for adventures worthy of songs and very long
poems.
Satinator: Yet Beowulf also has a deep committed relationship
with his ordinary world. In this passage he is described as:
17
"The mildest of men and the gentlest, kindest to his people, and
most eager for fame" (Beowulf, lines 3181-82).
Sy: Those are the final lines of the whole adventure poem. What it
actually says in the original is: (Ahem)
manna mildust
leodum liost
ond monwrust,
ond lofgeornost.
Satinator: Wow, Syrus was reading off his iPad but that was
actually pretty impressive.
Sy: I know. I just had an idea, how about we write a stage play all
in Old English.
Satinator: Whyyyy dont we just pin that for a bit. Right now lets
finish up here and give people their moneys worth.
While Beowulfs being eager for fame may not sound like heroic
altruism, consider the North Germanic society in which the poem was
first performed and later written down. Most scholars agree it was
based on actual historical figures, places and events which date back
to the 5th or 6th century CE. Some are even convinced the actual
location of the great mead hall Heorot has been found at Lejre
Denmark. In that society the only way to achieve fame was to exhibit
extreme selfless bravery in service to the community. The highest
glory was reserved for those who bled the most and risked everything
for their fellow tribespeople.
On to our Ladies of Action. An action heroines pre-Adventure
world is often different from that of the modern action heros.
Ripley: Shes taking a hypersleep nap in hyperspace on the
USCSS Nostromo shes on a freaken spaceship. She is later
revealed to have a daughter back on Earth. Her ordinary world is
quite challenging already being a single mom with a Masters degree
in Engineering in space!
18
Katniss: Again, we find the HEROINES ordinary world pretty

damn dangerous and difficult. Her father has been blown to bits in a
mine explosion, her mother has zoned out, shes left to care for Prim
and herself and nearly starves to death. And this is all before the story
starts.
We argue that due to the action heroines connection and
commitment to her ordinary life it often is inextricably linked to the
Adventure and the Special world. Both women have committed to
sacrificing themselves in their ordinary world to better their family
members. The mindset and drive it takes to function simply as a
woman in the community is not so simple.
The male action hero will often just shed, or be presented awaiting
his chance to shed, his humdrum Ordinary routine, grab the jawbone
of a beast and start thumping villains.
The Action Heroines deep and enduring involvement to her
Committed World often profoundly influences subsequent action.
WUTTISIT?
Satinator: (Grr)
Step 1: Her Committed World presents your Action Heroine preAdventure in Her Committed World. Its your only first chance to make
an impression on the audience. And build empathy bridges.
Sy: Right you are, Satine. And my personal 2c (now worth about
0.3c in USD) is dont be tempted by Dialogue Diarrhea. The first
opening minutes of the films Alien and Hunger Games set the world
and tone perfectly using powerful visuals. Then the first dialogue uses
exposition as ammunition (thank you Robert McKee) and sets the
protagonists precisely in those worlds. Know when to let the visuals
tell the story.
Satinator: Based on these four examples you might generalize
that girl heroes have it tougher than boys. But that would be
19
overstating things. Ripleys character was originally written for a guy.

With the character being a single mom looking to get back to her
daughter, the Character is believable. As an audience we fill in the
blanks of how hard that must be and what it might be like to want so
badly to be reunited and your plans turned south. We believe this
because the writers allowed our base understanding of single momhood to be projected onto Ripley.
If only I hadnt promised to limit myself to four examples
Sy: Luckily, Satine, I made no such vow. In other action heroines
worlds, their Committed Worlds vary in the levels of threat and stress
they face.
In Divergent Tris (Shailene Woodley) has it pretty easy at the start,
getting her hair did. Only later do we diverge and divulge into
multilayer dystopia.
As for our personal favorite Imperator of all time, Furiosa (Charlize
Theron, driver of war rig, winner of Oscar), its a mixed bag in a dry,
nasty, Immortan Joe-dominated world. The daughter of Mary Jo
Bassa and member of the Swaddle Dog clan has risen high in the
ranks of the Citadel. And she gets to drive the best truck ever! But
developing out of this well thought out context of relative privilege, the
seeds of Wasteland Adventures are sown. Something is wrong and it
will take an Imperator and a very Mad Max to set things back off in the
right direction!
WUTTUP?
Satinator: Just to let everyone know, Syrus was all set to jumble
Sarah Connors Step 1 arc through The Terminator and Terminator 2:
Judgment Day. My favorite action heroine played by the incomparable
Linda Hamilton deserves better than that.
I stopped Syrus, cold.
Sy: She did. Shes relentless, shes the Satinator.
20
The interesting thing is James Cameron originally envisioned the

metal morphing T-1000 coming in at the midpoint of the first film The
Terminator (Hero Complex Film Fest Q&A, June 2014). Its unknown if
Reese would have been alive after the first Terminator (bad Arnie) is
destroyed in the midpoint of that alternate storyline.
As it is we have two inseparably connected stories centered on the
story of Sarah Connor. One has to look at both T1 and T2 to fully
appreciate this action heroines Committed World.
Satinator: In T1, as James Cameron said of the incredibly iconic
character created by him and Gale Anne Hurd, they wanted to create
an everywoman somebody who feels insignificant and then she
gets tapped by a great duty a great burden and she has to step up.
In T1 Sarah Connor is presented as a college student and waitress
and parent of Pugsley the iguana. She progressively has her Ordinary
World ripped away from her. Her support structure, friends, allies her
actual sense of reality are all blasted away by the appearance of
Reese and the Terminator.
And the messed up stuff happening to Sarah doesnt end there.
Finally, even her ability to run from the crawling grasping metal
skeleton killer is taken away. But even in T1 shes a girl who knows
how to use her thumbs and
SARAH
(voice icy)
You're... terminated... fucker!
(E.C.U. - BUTTON, as her bloody finger stabs it down.)
With one pithy and quotable line Cameron and Hurd take the
damsel in distress as a start point and deftly launch one of the
greatest heroines out of her ordinary world into the annals of story.
Sy: Perhaps the best example of our idea of the persistence of Her
Committed World is Sarah Connors transition between The
21
Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgement Day. Her ordinary world is

completely COMMITTED to preparing her son John Connor for what
lies ahead. Addressing the fate Reese has told Sarah awaits John in
the future is the reason for the major choice-based crises in the
second film. From start to finish the narrative spine of T2 is the world
that was dropped on Sarah Connor at the end of T1.
Satinator: Talk about committed! Linda Hamiltons fitness regime
between T1 & T2 was a surprise to James Cameron and a huge factor
in shaping Sarahs active onscreen role in T2!
WUTT2DO?
Sy: Her Committed World will always be part of your overall worldbuilding strategy. So if its full of sometimes electrified fences or
smiling happy people calling themselves Amity (yeah, right), just be
aware of how your heroines place in Her Committed World can be
used to build a bridge between protagonist and audience.
Satinator: This can be downright tricky for protagonists who are
not THE ONE. With Ripley and Katniss (novel) we as an audience are
not sure we like them right away.
Sy: Ripley at the start of Alien is just a member of the crew. She
does not even get to go out and poke around in the weird ship they
found; only Captain Dallas speaks to Mother. Until her defining
moments, Ripley is not necessarily the heroine of the story.
And as for Katniss, well, she seems to go out of her way to be
prickly. She does not save the cat, in the novel she actually advocates
drowning said cat (sorry, Buttercup). And Katniss does kill and skin a
cute little lynx who follows her around in the forest. Until she saves the
girl who saved the cat, we are totally not sure we like Katniss.
With the heroine often not presented as THE ONE (Luke) or a
proven powerful warrior lord (Beowulf), the presentation of the action
22
heroine pre-Adventure in Her Committed World must be carefully

shaped to set up who she will become. Ripley and Katniss are.
(For more in-depth depthfulness on Step 1 Her Committed World
Check out the Franchise Bodybuilder in the Appendix)
Satinator: Lets get on with things. People have scripts to write.
Present the next Step, which, having checked my notes and
spreadsheets I calculate to be Step 2.
Sy: Not just yet. Staying true to tantric technique were going to
delay audience gratification just a little longer.
Trust me, everyone will find value, humor and a touch of
heartwarming sadness in
23
24
STEP 1.5
Relation of Flaw in
Step 1 Committed World
( T O S T E P 2 A W AK E N I N G
TO
HER ADVENTURE)
ATINA TOR: O K , SYRU S, HAVE IT your way. For extra

points, lets see how close the flaw in Her Committed World can
be to your heroine and how it can be used to trigger the Awakening to
Her Adventure (Voglers Call to Adventure).
Sy: You are darned right. As Writer/Director Shane Black (Lethal
Weapon series, Iron Man 3) put it elegantly and simply: its all about
set-ups, payoffs and reversals. These are the threads that will bind the
fabric of your story.
Satinator: The more you can reward the audience for noticing
details earlier in the story with payoffs later, the tighter it will be.
Sy: In the words of Goldmember, you want your story to be
toight like a tiger.
Satinator: Therefore, to help keep your tiger as toight as she can
be, Step 2 Awakening to Her Adventure is best always related to the
flaw in Step 1 Her Committed World, one which the heroine may or
may not be aware of.
In our examples:
25
The Nostromo takes a little scenic detour to LV-426 because the

Crew is Expendable right from the start. The flaw in the ordinary
world which silently envelopes Ripley at the start of Alien is the
conspiracy to collect the xenomorph specimen. Even the science
officer-android is purpose programmed to this end. Ripley thinks she
is fulfilling her contract as warrant officer, and progressively awakens
to indications that the truth of her adventure is far more complicated
and sinister.
In Hunger Games, the flaw in the world is the dystopian society.
The most dramatic elements of which are the Games and the reaping.
Prim and the reaping are both elements which are set up in the very
first paragraph of the novel. Colliding them causes the chain reaction
of Katniss Awakening to Her Adventure.
Sy: Often in analysis of monomyth the flaw is identified as merely
Luke Skywalkers restlessness, or in the case of Beowulf a hankering
to exceed his own greatness as the greatest warrior of the Great Age.
Simply put the flaw in the ordinary world, or Her Committed World,
is a SET UP which can energize and illuminate the rest of your action
heroines Adventure.
In Aliens (1986) the same flaw in the pre-Adventure world exists:
the desire on the part of Ripleys human antagonists to bring back
xenomorph specimens.
In Catching Fire (HG2) Katniss has to deal with being an unwitting
player in a counter-Capitol conspiracy based in the same dystopia
which led to the inciting incident in HG1.
Thanks to Vogler we have the well-articulated idea that the well
crafted story poses both external and internal questions which are
apparent in the ordinary world.
We argue that the Action Heroine HAS to have a MAJOR set up in
Her Committed World. One that will take her right through her whole
story arc. Ripley and Katniss certainly do.
But theres one franchise that takes this to a whole new extrasuper Industrial Strength level.
26
Satinator: Sounds like that should come with a warning label.

Sy: Right! Its all like:
DANGER:
If you do this, you bear the risk of extreme
AWESOMENESS!!
Of course, its the Star Wars franchise. Notice how the hidden
Urusai egg of Lukes missing past provides the impetus not only for
the first movie but all three films of the first trilogy and beyond.
Satinator: Hey, I think I see a pattern here. A fantastic action
protagonist with a hidden past is introduced eking out a living on a
lonely harsh desert planet and is then drawn into an intergalactic
adventure on the Millennium Falcon by a droid.
Yes, my Sat-Intuition tells me it will be many years and many
installments before we learn any significant details of Reys history.
The Force Awakens barely scratched the surface. We may never
know her compl
Sy: I know exactly where all the answers to Reys past are.
Satinator: (inaudible guffaw sound). Oh yeah, where?
Sy: In The Box!
27
Satinator: Next
Sy: Shhh! I hear something.
Satinator: ???
Sy: I know!
I hear the CALL TO ADVENTURE :D
Satinator: (Facepalm)
28
STEP 2
Awakening to Her
Adventure
( M R . V S C A L L T O A D V E N T U R E )
Y: OH TH IS ON E is easy.
Star Wars: It does not get more literal than a holographic
droid mail. you must see this droid safely delivered to him on
Alderaan. This is our most desperate hour. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi.
You're my only hope. Yeah, Alderaan, worst real estate investment in
the galaxy.
Beowulf: The hero hears about Heorots monster infestation. He
rolls up in his bangin longship and Beowulf explains to the guards that
he is the son of Ecgtheow and owes his loyalty to Hygelac. To which
they reply Doh! Come on in!
The classic male hero is called because he is THE ONE. Who else
you gonna call? He may not know it, but trust us, hes all dat! See
totally easy, for a guy.
Satinator: Well sometimes, like with the Ordinary World, girls just
have to work harder for the 70% equivalent wage
29
Alien: As Warrant officer of the Nostromo, Ripley is already in a

challenging career. But shes not in charge. Captain Dallas is.
Locating Step 2 for Ripley might appear tricky, but we argue the
Awakening to Her Adventure for Ripley comes when she tries to stop
Kane coming back on board with his xenomorph facial.
DALLAS
(voice over)
Goddamn it. Open the hatch.
RIPLEY
We've already broken every rule or quarantine. If we bring an
organism on board, we won't have a single layer of defense left.
Sy: Why wont they listen to her?
Satinator: Maybe because shes making sense and shes a girl.
Classic save the princess & Dungeon Crawl. In Hunger Games
Katniss Everdeen volunteers to be tribute in place of her sister Prim.
Sy: But, the reader may be saying, these are not really the calls
to adventure were used to. Of course not, theyre better! Theyre
Awakenings.
The example heroines actions in Alien and HG are based on
Principled Self-Sacrifice. Ripley and Katniss call themselves to
Adventure. Forced to choose the Better of two Bads, the heroine
contradicts societys expectations for the benefit of a social unit.
And there is huge external and internal pressure on both Ripley
and Katniss to choose differently, to DENY the Adventure. Exactly the
opposite of male heroes.
Ripley is a warrant officer. Shes expected to obey the captain.
Dallas is yelling at her. Even Joan Lambert the ships navigator yells
at her to Open the God damn hatch.
Katniss has every reason to NOT volunteer. Like imminent death.
In fact District 12 hasnt had a volunteer in decades.
30
This is a huge distinction between Hero and Heroine, but not the
only one.
Sy: Tell me more, Satine, Im not convinced.
Satinator: Really?
Sy: Well, uh, you just texted me and told me to say that I am not
quite convinced.
Satinator: Well since Syrus is not quite convinced, here are two
more examples from the second installments in each series then:
In Aliens Ripley receives a more traditional call to action. Burke
bugs her to join the military mission as an advisor. But shes still not in
charge, again! And this is intentional. As one James Cameron said:
It was really critical to the story that she emerge under pressure
as the person who really takes control. They discredit her at the
beginning; Interview at io9.com5
So, is the call to action comprised by the initial dialogue beats
between Ripley and Burke OR does it occur when she is inside the
Colonial Marine Armored Personnel Carrier parked outside the
xenomorph hive and:
TIGHT ON RIPLEY as she struggles with a decision. She's
terrified of what she knows she's about to do. Ripley jumps
into the driver's seat of the APC. Takes a deep breath. Starts
slapping switches. - (Aliens by James Cameron)
Yeah baby! Ripley in the drivers seat, literally.
Again, the heroine defies expectations and conventions Ripley
is not even a member of the Colonial Marines. She risks disapproval
and personal danger to do what she, and pretty much only she, knows
is right and is willing and in a position to do.
Need another one?
5
http://io9.com/Syd-meads-original-concept-art-for-aliens-power-loade1554947249
31
Sy: Sure!
Satinator: In the second book/film Catching Fire, Katniss
immediately finds herself in the middle of conflicting personal and
societal wants and demands. (How much more sacrifice can they juice
out of this girl!?! amirite!?) Some are obvious while others even
President Snow is not aware of:
Living in Victors Village with or without Peeta.
Running away with Gale.
Being identified as the Mockingjay by the anti-Capitol resistance.
Being forced to be a caged tame Mockingjay. (yeah right!)
All of these conflicting pressures lead to the Quarter Quell arena
(and a free trip to O'ahu!)
At no time does Katniss say Hwt! I am the Mockingjay, you may
bow before me.
In fact the story artifact of the Mockingjay itself is a focal point of
manipulation, attempted suppression and mercurial social meaning.
The Quarter Quell Games are specifically designed to crush the
Mockingjay or so Snow thinks!
Want me to go further?
Sy: Go further Satine, just do it.
Satinator: I will go further. And say that the Call to Action in
Catching Fire is a negative call that backfires. Snow creates the
Mockingjay and demands the Girl on Fire burn dimly before sputtering
out or else! Her Awakening is her acknowledgment of the power
she wields, if only to be used to free her and Peeta from the games.
WUTTISIT?
Sy: Step 2, thats the Action Heroine Awakening To Her
Adventure.
32
WUTTUP?
Satinator: For the Heroine, the Inciting Incident can often be a
realization that, however ill prepared, fearful or un-empowered, SHE
MUST ACT. Therefore, by reacting to Circumstances and Societal
pressures beyond her control or knowledge, the Heroines character
often chooses to act against societal expectations, risking derision
and harm. The External Call is one for her to be passive. In rejecting it
the Heroine wills herself to Adventure!
WUTT2DO?
There is absolutely nothing wrong with Help me, Princess Leia
Organa. You're my only hope. But doesnt it test, validate and
empower your heroine and surprise your audience more when she
awakes to her Adventures so unexpectedly? It sure did in Alien and
Hunger Games.
33
34
STEP 3
Negation of the
Awakening
( M R . V S R E F U S A L
OF THE
C A L L )
Y: TH IS BEAT IS N EA RL Y as inevitable as James Bond

being tied (somewhat insecurely) to a chair to face the villain. In
Blade Runner the Refusal of the Call consists of a few lines of
dialogue and Deckard is back on the job. It is the first test of the hero
or heroines resolve and may set up a conspiracy not known to the
protagonist. Some may view this as a pro forma beat, but I for one
do not.
Satinator: And why?
Sy: Mainly because I am not exactly sure what pro forma means.
But also because it is your first chance to show the heroine making
decisions under pressure and revealing her character. The refusal
beat or negation is very important structurally.
For example, in Blade Runner, it makes a huge difference that
Deckard is just grumpily eating his noodles, he thinks he is out and
then suddenly they pull him back in to blade running.
35
This marked narrative beat is important because it establishes the

Character Uncertainty Principle for him. A pissed off Deckard who is
at odds with Bryant and Gaff has a much wider range of possible
responses to events. This heightens the audiences ability to ship for
certain outcomes thereby expanding audience involvement, audience
empathy, as well as exponentially increasing the number of possible
dramatic plot resolutions. Those are much harder to set up if Deckard
says: Hell yeah! I been waitin for this, Gaff. Lets go ventilate some
renegade skin-jobs!!!
In Star Wars, Luke feels he has to help with the moisture
harvesting (snore zzzzzzz) rather than go on his Adventure.
In Beowulf, well this was 1500 years ago and Vikings had not
developed hero sensitivity training so he skipped the refusal part.
Some analysts have tried to find it in the banter with that jealous wag
Unferth. But back when monsters were ugly and men wore boiled
leather, The One did not refuse the Call.
Our Geatish hero declares I resolved, when I set out on the sea,
sat down in the sea-boat with my band of men, that I should altogether
fulfill the will of your people or else fall in slaughter, fast in the foe's
grasp. I shall achieve a deed of manly courage or else have lived to
see in this mead-hall my ending day.
In Alien, Ripley is at first denied and thwarted after her first defining
moment. Ash opens the inner hatch to the Nostromo.
Alien in the house, man!
Satinator: This circumvention of Ripleys authority and better
judgment can be seen as the Inciting Incident for what follows. Over
the course of Alien it becomes quite apparent that Ripley is the
sharpest pencil in the box, but initially she must follow Captain
Dallass orders. By the time Dallas is a xenomorph appetizer and Ash
is revealed and defeated, refusing to take charge and blow up the ship
just means she and the remaining crew will be picked off one by one.
36
Ripley as a heroine is not given the choice to refuse the

Awakening to Adventure and for the longest dang time she is unable
to take the power to act as she knows is right.
Katniss in Hunger Games volunteers to enter the arena. So does
this mean there is no Refusal for her? We argue that, like many
milestones on the Action Heroines Journey, its complicated, but
ultimately rewarding.
In the first book, Katniss goes through two separate phases.
1. Volunteering even though the word tribute is pretty much
Synonymous with the word corpse, shes pretty much
resigned to being one of the 23 corpses. Peeta, Haymitch
and other characters encourage her. They call her out to
realize she can win. At first she rejects this Awakening
idea.
2. Eventually she accepts the burden of playing the Games
according to Their rules. Then Katniss is encouraged to
think outside the arena box. Haymitch and Peeta are
ahead of her here. Maybe they realize that with the show
of arena romance between Katniss and Peeta rules can be
bent if not broken. (The books are in first person present
tense so you really have a narrow window on the thoughts
of other characters.) Katniss at first reluctantly participates
in this call to Awaken to the power of her ability to
innovate.
In each pivotal moment above the source (antagonist) and intent of
the stress on Katniss is the same:
Accept you are going to die in the Games, says the Antagonist.
Katniss hears the contrarian call from her allies and at first refuses to
believe she can win.
Accept you OR Peeta are going to die in the Games says the
Antagonist. Katniss is reluctant to engage in cooperative behavior at
first, then takes a leap of faith and changes everything and gives
the finger to the man.
37
Sy: Aw, I still dont know, Satine, seems awful complicated. I like
the Guys style better. Its simple, yknow, like scratchin yer butt.
Someone up and says, Hey, guy, I want you to do this here
adventure. Hero up and says, Well, thanks but nah, not right now.
Then later after some serious cheroot chewing, he figures, Ok, might
as well adventure. See, guy simple.
Satinator: Sy (sigh) that argument is about as lively as a
taxidermied mongoose. Sure, thats how it was in Blade Runner. But
can it really be a Call to Adventure if the Hero/Heroine does not know
what the heck the Adventure is?
For example, in Star Wars the scene most often classified as the
Call is the sequence starting with the holograph of Leia and ending
with scenes between him and Obi-Wan at the Jawa crawler wreck.
Unlike Deckard, Luke does not really know the scope and scale of the
Adventure he initially refuses in order to help with the vaporator
mushroom harvest. Talk about being left in the dark!
In the well worn male Heros Journey, complex plots often demand
the protagonist face a SEQUENCE of Calls. Each is more complex
and dangerous than the one before it as the story builds to The
Supreme Ordeal.
Sy: I bet you have a spiffy example of that.
Satinator: I have a spiffy example: After Obi-Wan Kenobi goes to
root out Vader on the Death Star, he leaves Luke and the others in a
control room. OBW tells them to stay put. Yeah, like thats happening.
This is not a coffee klatch, its an Adventure darnit! Luke learns Leia is
in a jail cell and scheduled to be flambed. At this point he calls
another dude to Adventure, namely one Han Solo. After Han initially
refuses the call to stop Leia being executed: Better her than me,
Luke slyly overcomes Hans resistance, forms a dangerous plan and
they are off.
38
The chance to rescue the Princess is clearly a call to Adventure.

When Luke repeats it to Solo, its exactly the same as Obi-Wan asking
Luke to learn the ways of the Force and become a Jedi (the latter, of
course, without the cash incentives).
The whole story begins with Leia tasking R2-D2 with the adventure
of a secret mission. A call which is immediately declined by the more
conservative of the droid duo, C-3PO. Luke does not appear until
about 17 minutes into the Star Wars IV.
WUTTISIT?
Sy: (Satine, it wouldnt cause you physical pain to say the Three
Wutts, just once?)
Satinator: (I cringe just hearing you say them. So just as I
graciously declined the adventure when I was at Vedana Lagoon
resort in Vietnam and was offered a dish of Soft-Boiled Fetal Duck: I
say Khng, cm n bn, Th c ri.)
Sy: By all means, Satine, fit your own bill. As with Soft-Boiled Fetal
Duck you dont know the thrill youre missing.
Step 3: NEGATION OF THE AWAKENING may serve to make
your heroine more three dimensional. You can use this phase of your
action heroines journey to foreshadow fresh new unpredictable
decisions in Acts 2 and 3.
Many people think Act or Step analyses restrict creativity. We say
not so fast grasshopper.
Satinator: Did you just call our readers grasshoppers?
Sy: Well, not Oscar winner Philippa Boyens or Primetime
Emmy winner Damon Lindelof, but between us we gotta know
something worthwhile for our readers and listeners who are just
starting out. I mean we wrote an entire monograph.
39
Satinator: Ever hear the one about the monkey tapping away on a
typewriter for infinity?
Sy: Cant say I have. Did anyone ever buy his script?
WUTTUP?
Sy: In the Heroines Journey the Step 2 Awakening to Adventure
often arises from within the heroine herself. In Step 3 its
negation/refusal therefore is put in the form of an internal proposition
to passivity. In fact, these moments may be the source of an amazing
period of dramatic irony where only the audience and the heroine
know and hope and believe the ultimate goal can be reached.
Everyone on the Rebel side knows and hopes and wants Luke to
use the Force and put those proton torpedoes where the sun dont
shine in the Death Star.
Everyone in Hrothgars kingdom is pulling for Beowulf in his
battles.
By contrast, everyone flips out on Ripley when shes the only one
doing the sensible thing.
By contrast, Katniss often goes out on a limb (literally) and its only
the audience and her who believe that her skillset, innovation, her
alliances and her good judgment can pull out the big W.
Help me Obi-wan. or Oh strong Viking man with rippling abs,
help us slay this foul beast who flingeth dung about our fancy mead
hall becomes instead:
Know your place.
Comply.
Obey the rules of your society / social unit.
Therefore, the refusal of the call is a negation of the negation
(thanks Robert McKee & Bass Wakil!).
In Step 3, the heroine herself considers reverting to her preadventure status. Though its probably not as much fun as what
40
Deckard would have done if Bryant had let him off the hook in Blade
Runner #BourbonRocks.
As with the male Heros refusal of the positive Call, this particular
brand of the Heroines Negation of the Awakening is internally
generated and often conflated with other dramatic elements.
WUTT2DO?
Sy: Depends on your story. But if something isnt working in your
heroines story, or the start seems too facile, tropey or downright
smarmy, then consider who is the antagonist at that point in her story.
If her Awakening to Adventure is self-generated, consider the
dramatic tension and character depth you can inject by her Negating
her own Awakening in a moment of doubt and terror.
41
42
STEP 4
Finding the Mentor

Within
( M R . V S M E E T I N G W I T H
THE
MENTOR)
Y: YKN OW, I OF TEN WOND ER if the dang Mentor is so

powerful and wise and all, why doesnt he just do the Adventure?
Satinator: Because the Hero is THE ONE.

Sy: But
Satinator: Trust me. Hes THE ONE. Dont overthink it.
As for a Heroines mentor, one could just switch genders. And for
some stories that may just be the ticket. But often in the pretty limited
world of film action heroines and the just getting started world of
literary action heroines, the reality is much different, much more
complex. If only I hadnt promised to limit my examples
Sy: Huh? Oh, right. As you were saying, different and complex.
Many times the heroine will be presented in Her Committed World with
most of the abilities and knowledge she needs for her Adventure.
43
Ripley must learn on the job. She has no time. Theres freaken
aliens loose!
Katniss is already an expert shot with a bow. Katniss hunts with
her fathers bow. If she can be said to have a mentor it is Mr.
Everdeen. From him, Katniss has internalized the most valuable
skillsets that will serve her in the arena. In her case, the society of
Panem, District 12 and her place in it has been the largest influence
on who she is and what abilities she brings to the Adventure. The
socially derived skillset, which is applied to her Adventure in surprising
ways, is a hallmark of many action heroines.
Katsa in Cashores Graceling: shes getting her grace on right from
the start. Of course, the use and perception of her abilities changes
over the story. The secret Council are kind of like a mystical talent
agency, not mentors. And her boss King Randa is kind of a dork,
totally not a supportive mentor. Katsa the graceling has to find the
mentor within.
Sarah Connor in Terminator 2: Judgment Day has a complicated
role. She is both student of a succession of mentors and mentor to
John. Let young John lay it out:
JOHN:
We spent a lot of time in Nicaragua... places like that. For a
while she was with this crazy ex-Green Beret guy, running guns.
Then there were some other guys. She'd shack up with anybody
she could learn from. So then she could teach me how to be this
great military leader.
In the Harry Potter series, Hermione Grangers relationship with
Professor Minerva McGonagall is so totally not like Harrys with
Professor Dumbledore.
One nice gender flip comes in Rita Vrataskis mentorship of Cage
in Doug Limans often under-appreciated Edge of Tomorrow (2014).
Seriously, how many times does Emily Blunt have to kill Tom Cruise
before he gets it?
In Avatar Jake Sully may need some remedial lessons in
identifying dangerous wildlife on Pandora, but hes got a great mentor
44
in Neytiri. Zoe Saldanas portrayal of this powerful female action

heroine shows another way the Mentor Within she has internalized
comes to benefit the male protagonist and their combined journey.
Even where the heroine has a mentor, there tends to NOT be a
passing of the wand / staff / sword from the wise person to the
newbie. Many times heroines mentors will not be aging heroes
bestowing the mantle on to the next generation. One could say Giles
is Buffys mentor in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. But lets be honest, hes
more of an Alfred right? Giles knows stuff, but how helpful can he be
to Buffy with the old Im in love with a vampire with a soul dilemma?
Satinator: In our primary examples, in the ultra fast paced Aliens,
there is time for Hicks to show Ripley one end of a pulse rifle from the
other (thanks Hicks!). The time element does remain problematic for
any alien hunting seminars. Theyre on top of a freaken H-BOMB!!!
In Hunger Games, sure youre saying Haymitch is the obvious
mentor. But not so fast. Haymitch is no Obi-Wan (though they may
have similar hygiene). Haymitchs advice and strategies are ultimately
essential, but hes also mentoring Peeta. And for all their time directly
interacting, Haymitch and Katniss operate under the belief there can
only be one winner of the 74th Hunger Games.
Sy: As for our stalwart male examples, enough has been written
on the influences on Luke Skywalkers path to intergalactic heroism.
Beowulf can be seen as similar to Katniss in that we meet both of
them with their primary adventure skillsets in place. The future king of
the Geats, the son of Ecgtheow rises to heroic status among his clan
on the basis of physical prowess and the merits of his bravery. As a
boy he had many mock battles with his friends and swam for days in
full armor with sword in hand. And he totally would have beat his
buddy Breca to the beach except he had to fight nine (count em, 9!)
lousy sea monsters on the way. Grendel and his horrible cave
dwelling mammy never knew what hit them!
45
Later on in the ancient elegy Hrothgar mentors Beowulf in the art

of politics and being a wise ruler, which will only occasionally call for
the bare handed dismemberment of people who vex him.
WUTTISIT?
Sy: The Meeting the Mentor stage of the male heros journey has
long been a great place to test and temper the protagonist. In The
Action Heroines Journey Step 4: Finding the Mentor Within, like in
real life, most often the Heroine is on her own. Even if there are
characters who impart tactical and strategic knowledge to her, those
Mentors often have a conflicted agenda. The idea of the Mentor is the
Womans ability to hunt for ways to develop the skills she needs to
succeed in the adventure. Those she learns from help her nourish the
Mentor within. A womans very specific drive to survive and adapt
pulls the strength out from within.
WUTTUP?
Sy: Screen and literary heroines often find their most important
Mentor Within. Her own history, her own experience, her own
character is what really carries the day.
In Alien, Ripley comes onto the Nostromo with the sense to not let
a dang xenomorph skip through quarantine.
In Aliens she already has the skills to operate that crucial piece of
equipment the Power Loader. Why? Because (as Cameron so
perfectly foreshadowed):
BURKE
I heard you were working in the cargo docks.
RIPLEY
(defensive) That's right.
46
BURKE
Running loaders, forklifts, that sort of thing?
RIPLEY (shrugging)
It's all I could get.
A subsequent scene which sets up the fact Ripley knows how to
operate the specific Power Loader in the cargo hold of the Sulaco
provides for a great beat between Ripley, Apone and Hicks. Thats
using your exposition as ammunition.
A deep set of socially derived skills is one of the hallmarks of the
action heroine.
WUTT2DO?
Sy: Theres huge open ground for developing mentor-mentee
stories in the backdrop of female action plots. Luc Besson is pretty
darn good at writing and directing female action heroines. Two great
examples are Nikitas relationship with Amande (La Femme Nikita,
1990) and Lon and Mathildas arc in Lon The Professional, (1994).
Of course, in Lucy, the protagonist again is on her own; luckily for
Scarlett Johansson, shes evolving into a super psionic supreme being
and dont need no stinkin mentor.
Satinator: The narrative story energy of the female action
heroines place in society and her previous struggles often does more
than replace the mentor. It gives her something many action heroines
lack: a relatable empathy-generating past. It worked for Ripley and
Katniss, see if it fits your heroine to Find the Mentor Within.
Sy: For a mentor whose wide impact and learned emanations
transcend time, space and story there is no finer example than Robert
McKee. His presence in cinematic scholarship is so powerful it burst
over into actual film. McKee became a character in the 2002 film
47
Adaptation written by Oscar nominee Donald Kaufman (and one

other).
And, wouldnt you know it he has some sage advice for you, here,
right now! Lets listen. (Just imagine Brian Cox as McKee, they are
nearly identical twins.)
[Charlie] KAUFMAN
That's the book. I wanted to present it simply, without big
character arcs or sensationalizing the story. I wanted to show
flowers as God's miracles. I wanted to show that Orlean never
saw the blooming ghost orchid. It's about disappointment.
MCKEE
I see. That's not a movie. You gotta go back, and put in the
drama.
MCKEE (cont'd)
Tell you a secret. The last act makes a film. Wow them in the end
and you got a hit.
Sy: In the end wow them, and a hit you will have!
Satinator: Wisdom indeed.
48
STEP 5
The Heroine Blooms

( M R . V S T H E H E R O P A S S E S
T H R E S H O L D )
THE
FIRST
Y: F OR GUYS, NUMBER 5 IS easy. The Millennium Falcon

blasts off from Tatooine in a hail of blaster fire. Beowulf and his
homies roll up at Hrothgars dock.
Satine, how much more complicated can things be for action
heroines?
Satinator: Sometimes it is just that simple. If we swap out Luke for
Leia in Star Wars IV or put legendary shieldmaiden Brynhildr of the
Vlsunga saga in place of Beowulf, thats that. #ThresholdPassed.
Sy: But
Satinator: But, in some cases you will find your heroine is part of a
group and the adventure (if you can call Ripleys eyeless
endoparasitoid extraterrestrial that) comes to them.
49
In other cases, as in Hunger Games, there will be very clear

demarcation lines between the Ordinary World and the Special World
of the external Adventure.
Katniss volunteers for the Games.
Then she takes a nifty train ride road trip with Effie and Haymitch.
Then shes literally torpedoed up into the arena.
Each transition takes her deeper into her Adventure.
Sy: Ok, like Alice in Wonderland, the rabbit hole, the looking glass.
Got it. But Im still not seeing a but here.
Satinator: Oh, how you tempt me. Punchlines aside, we will argue
that for many action heroines the most important transition is not
crossing a Threshold, but one involving recognition of the main
character as the heroine.
Sy: Im starting to see a but nah, I just lost it. Can you explain
more please?
Satinator: Often the heroine who emerges will hold a lower rank in
her society. In Ripleys case shes the Nostromos warrant officer.
Later in Aliens Weyland-Yutani corporation has kicked her to the curb
and she ends up getting a job as a dock worker (picking up an
essential skill that will come in handy later). Even in the future its hard
for someone with a Masters degree to get a job.
In fact, right at the opening when a space crew finds the Narcissus
shuttle, they are none too happy to find Ripley alive: There goes our
salvage. Warm welcome back to Earth, not!
As for Katniss, shes a teenager who knows how to use her fathers
bow, but still just manages to keep herself and her family from
starving.
Neither Ripley nor Katniss are THE ONE. They are not the children
of the greatest pilot in the galaxy who in his spare time was the most
powerful Jedi knight ever. They are not apparently unemployed royalty
50
with the strength of 30 men in just one arm cruising around fiords
looking to give a monster a beatdown. If Ripley and Katniss were not
the main character, a different narrative could pose these same
characters as cannon fodder.
Sy: Or xenomorph chowder. I get that part. Whats this Blooming
all about?
Satinator: Simply put the heroine Blooms when she takes some
positive, often risky action and becomes recognized by her society or
group as a potential heroine.
In Ripleys case, the audience certainly realizes she is special
when she denies Dallas entry past quarantine. The rest of the crew
are slow on the uptake, they continue to follow the chain of command
and are ignorant of Ashs manipulations and end up dead. Big
mistake, crew. By the time Ripleys remaining companions on the
Nostromo realize who has the best ideas and who is the most capable
leader, its just about too late. Well, at least Ripley saves Jones the
cat.
One way to get noticed is to ride in a chariot and set yourself on
fake fire. At that point Katniss is kind of going along with things,
perhaps in a negation of the Awakening to the Heroines Adventure.
But its certainly a breakout moment, as Claudius Templesmith says to
Caesar Flickerman, People are sure going to be paying attention to
them right now.
And in case the garish S***wads of the Capitol missed it, the
second Blooming as Heroine moment comes at the tribute
evaluations. Shooting the apple from the mouth of the roast pig is a
deliberate and quite risky act. It distinguishes Katniss among the inner
circle as well as the general public with her personal evaluation rating
of 11 out of 12. Katniss is no longer invisible, neither is she just going
along with her handlers ideas. She has broken out. And Bloomed.
Sy: Hey I just thought of something, isnt katniss a flower
51
Satinator: Dont overthink it. Your head will explode.
WUTTISIT?
Sy: Step 5 The Heroine Blooms. More important for an Action
Heroines Journey than crossing a threshold from the Ordinary World
to the Special World of the Adventure may be transitioning from
background to foreground in the world of the story. Thats when an
Action Heroine Blooms.
WUTTUP?
Sy: Whether she is a mid-ranking member of a vessels crew or
one of 23 presumed future arena corpses, by virtue of her place in
society she is nearly invisible. When she Blooms other characters
notice.
WUTT2DO?
Sy: If your heroine starts from a socially disadvantaged position
and has no one to tell them they are THE ONE, the struggles, risks
and positive choices she makes may add hugely to her story. Who
knows, it might even help you through that mushy second act lag.
52
STEP 6
She Re-Examines Her

Hierarchy of Needs
( M R . V S T E S T S , A L L I E S
AND
E N E M I E S )
H I S S EC T ION O F VOG LER S memo and his subsequent

book are pretty darned solid and useful for men and women.
Satinator: He says in The Writers Journey:

The phase of Tests, Allies, and Enemies in stories is useful for
getting to know you scenes where the characters get acquainted
with each other and the audience learns more about them.
Sy: In Mos Eisley Cantina Luke Skywalker learns to not trust a
hideously mutilated former plastic surgeon who casually mentions, I
have the death sentence on 12 systems.
Beowulf learns not to trust all of Hrothgars thanes because jealous
Unferth, he most definitely be hatin.
Satinator: Your action heroines Hierarchy of Needs will critically
influence the elements of tests, allies and enemies. Often what she
needs to protect in her Committed Ordinary World or other parts of
Special World will be the most important choice the heroine makes.
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This Re-Examination of how to cling to what she holds most

precious often stems from the disadvantaged, manipulated, invisible
position your heroine has in society. The adventure the Man has
planned for her may not be the adventure she wants to be on when
she finally knows whats up.
Sy: But men can be as disadvantaged as anyone, and we
practically invented being deceived. So why do you think we need to
augment a perfectly serviceable part of the Heros journey?
Satinator: Our Step 6 is an addition to, not replacement of,
Voglers venerable Tests, Allies and Enemies. One of the best, most
pointed turns we found in our research explaining the Re-examining of
Hierarchy of Needs comes from dialogue of a male protagonist. I
suppose if you have to be mansplained to you can do far worse than
hear it from George Clooney as Archie in Three Kings:
Archie Gates: Load the people into the Humvee!
Troy Barlow: There's no room!
Archie Gates: Make room!
Troy Barlow: Whatever happened to necessity?
Archie Gates: It just changed!
-
Three Kings (1999) John Ridley (story), David O. Russell

(screenplay)
Sy: Wait a sec, some wankers are going to say that this Reexamination is just the second act climax or the peak of your Middle
Build, as Coyne calls it in The Story Grid. Those people are going to
ambush tweet us and say this isnt really a Step in your action
heroines Journey at all. And if they have room in their tweet they will
urge us to move into or out of our grannies basement, demand to
know if Satan is your tattoo artist and attach pictures of baby
hedgehogs doing rude things. What do you say to them?
54
Satinator: Yo! Internet Crazies: why dont you take a cold hard
&%(^%$* and *&&$%%^.
Sy: Wow. No wonder they keep banning you from Facebook.
Satinator: Moving along then if they question our Step 6s
rectitude theyll be as wrong as a saddle on a hog. Without question,
this part of The Action Heroines Journey exists. Call it a plot point or
what you will. What makes it distinct is the results of the ReExamination are lasting and crucial beyond the Tests, Allies and
Enemies stages.
When Ripley learns Ashs true nature, when she learns their secret
mission, her whole relationship to the next level of society changes.
The reasons why she is on the Nostromo, her relationship to
Weyland-Yutani Corporation are all changed.
Katnisss arc through Hunger Games and Catching Fire and
Mockingjay is even more illustrative. At each juncture the necessity
identified will almost certainly require her to sacrifice herself to
achieve.
First is Katnisss reaction to Prims selection in the Reaping.
Then her insistence Peeta be the one who survives the Quarter
Quell she can do arithmetic and theres not going to be two winners
again in the 75th games.
Next Katniss gives up a huge part of her free will to the people who
just totally manipulated her in the Quarter Quell.
Finally she risks life and sanity to prevent someone at least as bad
as Snow from seizing power.
WUTTISIT?
Sy: Step 6, when the Heroine Re-examines her Hierarchy of
Needs, underpins Tests, Allies and Enemies. The complex action
heroine is intimately and irrevocably connected to her family and
society. The Hierarchy determines what Tests are relevant, and who
55
the real Allies and Enemies are. When the action heroine re-examines
her needs she reacts to threats and challenges to her core value
structures.
WUTTUP?
Sy: Sometimes, the hierarchical ground shifting underneath the
action heroines feet merely adds stress to the overarching survival
life/death dilemma she faces.
When Ripley reads Special Order 937 ie: Crew Expendable the
revelation has little impact on her Alien fight except for the reliability of
anything a certain science officer has said or done. However in Aliens
the discovery of Newt and the addition of the orphan girl to Ripleys
social group has a progressive impact on Tests, Allies and Enemies
as the social group gets smaller and Ripley gains leadership.
Ultimately, Newt has an outsized impact on the xenomorph thumping
and smashing Boss Fight.
As Sigourney Weaver said between Alien and its sequel, Ripley
goes from the girl who keeps her wits about her and is courageous
and survives to this very complex character. (LA Times Hero
Complex Film Festival, August 2014, Weaver was their first female
guest of honor.)
WUTT2DO?
Sy: Examine and re-examine your action heroines socially defined
Hierarchy of Needs. It may be one of her tasks to remember who the
real enemy is.
Next up, the tricky part! Uh, Satine, would you mind explaining it.
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STEP 7
Her Approach to the

Innermost Cave
(Is an Approach of Two Parts)
ATINA TOR: TH E APPRO ACH IS described by Vogler as:
another mysterious zone with its own Threshold Guardians,

agendas, and tests. This is the Approach to the Inmost Cave,
where soon they will encounter supreme wonder and terror. (The
Writers Journey)
Sy: Whoa, Im confused now. This is a Supreme thing before the

real Supreme Ordeal deal. It seems theres a lot of Supremes here.
Satinator: So many it would take 3 Diana Rosses to sort them.
Lets examine the utility in action genre of the existing paradigms
Approach step and then give our action heroine a two pronged
uh approach to the Approach.
In strictly chronological order, the Approach is the Vogler step just
before the Supreme Ordeal. About 3/4 through the story Steps.
Sy: Well, thats no damn good.
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Satinator: Right, because in action genre the Boss Fight

(protagonist vs central antagonist) generally concludes in Act 3,
typically with 20-25 script pages to go. So if The Approach is to have
any utility as a tool storytellers can use, it has to be relevant to what
happens in Act 2 of the action genre story. As Coyne points out in The
Story Grid and his excellent podcasts, each segment of a story can be
analyzed in terms of five elements:
1. Inciting Incident
2. Progressive Complication
3. Crisis
4. Climax
5. Resolution
Sy: Coynes five story elements apply to individual scenes and
sequences of several scenes. They are like etchings along the base of
a story sextant. Equally useful in parsing a short tale by Alice Munro
as to analyzing the 12,000 pages of Jordan/Sandersons The Wheel
of Time.
Satinator: While its nice to theorize and blither on, unless youre
like Syrus who is a true stranger to the concept of gainful employment,
you as a screenwriter need to not get fired.
Sy: Or dumped into a tank full of freaken sharks!
Satinator: In Step 7 you need something that you might be able to
use to test the structure of your story at every point. Is the Approach
useful?
Sy: The suspense is too much. Is it useful?
Satinator: It is. But we argue because of its place in Act 2 it should
be split into two parts. The second part is essential for action genre
58
and the first may make stronger the bridge between your heroine and
the audience.
59
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STEP 7.1
Her Cave of Wonders

( M R . V S T H E A P P R O A C H P A R T 1)
Y: IN H ER C A VE O F Wonders the action heroine is alone or

nearly so. As Vogler said here she will encounter supreme
wonder and terror. Because the protagonist is isolated and mashed
up against their hopes and fears, this stage tends not to have as much
recognition as the hero at the mercy of the villain convention. But
maybe it should.
Consider how effective it was in The Empire Strikes Back. Luke
literally walks into a swampy cavern where the Dark Side is strong.
Luke: What's in there?
Yoda: Only what you take with you.
As for Beowulf, all his major battles (there are three in the epic
poem) occur in enclosed spaces. The fights in the mead hall and the
underwater cavern are probably not good examples of Caves of
Wonders. Some events in the last battle, Beowulf vs the Dragon, have
hallmarks of our Step 7.1. It is also the first known appearance in
western literature of the classic fire breathing dragon. (Though similar
creatures terrorize traditional legends in Native American traditions,
South American tales, and Asian folklore. Even the Bible describes
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fiery flying serpents in Numbers 21:6 and in the Book of Isaiah,

KJV.)
Satinator: Oh yeah, Syrus that reminds me, you collect dragon
toys.
Sy: Theyre finely detailed memorabilia
craftspeople. A retirement investment really.
made
by
artisan
Satinator: Speaking of which, Beowulfs final adventure happens

when hes got to be in his 70s and ready for hero social security.
Besides happening in a cave, we argue this encounter with the
unnamed wyrm antagonist is, in parts, his Cave of Wonders
sequence because:
A. Beowulf finds out who his most loyal warrior is. Only Wiglaf
stays and helps him, the others run away like little baby
thanes.
B. Before he faces the dragon, Beowulf thinks of his
childhood and how the Geats overcame and triumphed.
While this is the end of his tale, as Tolkien has said death
by dragon is the right end of Beowulf.
C. Beowulf finds an heir worthy of his sword and treasures in
Wiglaf.
Sy: Before we get to the ladies, the example of Thor in the cave in
Avengers 2: Age of Ultron is another great male heros example of the
Cave of Wonders. Thor and Dr. Selvig enter the cave of the Norns.
Selvig is there so the god of thunder will have someone to talk to.
Caves are lonely. Then Thor takes a swig of whiskey, strips down and
enters the hot spring.
No judgment here. What happens in the cave, stays in the cave.
Satinator: Once he is naked, Thor receives a prophecy. All very
practical and utilitarian, this is a low tension scene. Aside from the
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possible peril that the Norns will possess Thor permanently or Selvig
will slip into the pool, this scene is nearly 100% exposition.
Are there any other examples of men getting their Cave of
Wonders on?
Sy: Now that you mention it, these counterpoint quiet but intense
scenes in action-adventure superhero films often show up in the more
ambitious and complex films.
And none have been more successfully complexified and
ambitious than X-Men: Days of Future Past. As Oscar nominated
writer-producer Simon Kinberg said,
The Old Charles / Young Charles scene in which Professor X
encounters his older self in the future was so important the
makers restructured a lot of the middle of the movie to include
that scene. (Interview: The Q&A by the hardest working man in
podcasting Mr. Jeff Goldsmith6)
Old Charles / Young Charles is a Cave of Wonders scene. It

involves the Protagonist-Mentor in a wonderful framework for Charles
to mentor himself. And just say No to Beasts version of Benetech's
Mutant Cure Mark II.
Satinator: In Aliens, Hunger Games and the very special film
Winters Bone by Oscar nominated director Debra Granik, we see
examples of action heroines finding a Cave of Wonders. In these
scenes the value charge (thanks Robert McKee) turns positive. These
are not fight scenes or ones with a high degree of conflict, but if
wielded properly they can be used to build a bridge between the
action heroine and the audience.
In Aliens Ripley enters the cavernous dark medical bay, shes
going to rest and has her spiffy Pulse Rifle with her hey, shes an
action heroine! She finds the little girl Newt under the bed and crawls
in beside the child to comfort her. Outside in the laboratory are some
6
check out his Backstory: The Art and Business of Storytelling iPad
magazine.
63
facehuggers in jars. Inside the inner sanctum are Ripley and Newt. Its
just a single gentle beat. Yet it is significant. It is Her Cave of
Wonders.
In Hunger Games, once Katniss is reunited with a wounded Peeta,
they find a cave in the forest setting of the arena. This is where
Katniss comprehends Peeta was on her side all along and their for
show, real, but not quite outward romance begins. In that cave,
Katniss finds the connection between her and Peeta that causes her
to risk everything in the next sequence: looting the Cornucopia like a
Boss Heroine! Before she loots the cornucopia, Katniss Everdeen
ransacks Her Cave of Wonders.
In the 4x Oscar nominated film Winters Bone, in one of the
deleted scenes, Ree (played by Jennifer Lawrence) enters one of the
incredible caves in Missouri where that film was shot. As filmed after
the scene in the novel, protagonist-heroine Ree is alone and Super 8
style films represent her memories. As with Luke, she only has what
she brings with her.
Interestingly, these images are quite nice dreams of happy times
and loving family members and a yummy skinned rodent or two. No
Faces of Meth imagery. At the end, Ree lights up and inhales. Positive
value charge indeed, in that cave.
WUTTISIT?
Sy: Step 7.1: Her Cave of Wonders is a quiet and positive value
charged scene and is a distinct step in the Action Heroines Journey. It
is a chance to strengthen the audience empathy bridge with your
heroine.
WUTTUP?
Sometimes you have to trust the power of visual imagery (actually,
its most of the time) but especially for delicate scenes like this can be.
64
WUTT2DO?
When structuring your action heroines second act, submit for your
own consideration Her Cave of Wonders.
Oh yeah. My favorite coming up. Like when you get to the middle
of a wasabi hotdog and the hot goodness just hits you and you realize
Hey man, Ive barely eaten half of it!
Satinator: Just what we were all thinking, now shush.
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STEP 7.2
Her Warmup Boss

Fight
( M R . V S T H E A P P R O A C H P A R T 2)
ATINA TOR: TH ER E S R EALL Y no delicate way to put this,

and a real action heroine wouldnt try. So here it is. This is
second tine of the fork in the road we propose for Step 7. It is a
confrontation between your protagonist and the ultimate villain and/or
highest order henchpersons possible. It is always inconclusive. Hence
the Warm Up designation.
Now, of course, action-adventure is all about the heroine and the
villain duking it out, even if youre in the sub-genre of dystopia where
the ultimate enemy is the pernicious social order. There may be
several points of contact. Your ultimate villain may be elusive. It may
even be the environment is the antagonist as in a Disaster/Survival
story. The main things that distinguish this dust up are:
1. Almost always Her Warm Up Boss Fight will involve the
same characters as Her Supreme Boss Fight.
2. It will be inconclusive. The story is usually in its 2nd Act.
Youre not done with the wasabi hotdog.
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3. Your heroine will LACK something essential or she will be

revealed to have a FLAW that prevents her from being
victorious. That well-known screenwriter Aristotle called
this flaw hamartia7. Aristotle also noted three act structure
about 2300 years before Syd Field (Screenplay) jumped
on the bandwagon.
Yes,
(Sy: Pickers)
Satinator: we know classical use of the term denotes a lack of
something which inevitably leads to the protagonists downfall. But
those Debbie Downer endings just dont rule todays box office do
they? In modern legends these very same failings are OVERCOME
before or during the final confrontation with the ultimate antagonist.
Examples of heroines and heroes missing the mark? Syruss got
some, when he finishes eating lunch.
Sy: This is almost too easy (*gulp) sure you dont want to save me
for the hard bits?
Satinator:
Sy: Ok.
Star Wars IV: Luke first catches sight of Vader as hes
shishkabobbing Obi-Wan. Theres a melee and luckily he gets out of
there. Whats he missing? Pretty much everything. He doesnt have
the skills to put a dent in Vaders helm, he doesnt even know who that
dude in the crazy breath mask is.
From the Greek , (a mistake or fault) from

hamartnein) which means to miss the mark Poetics (c. 335 BCE).
Thanks to the New Praetorian Lairs resident Philhellene, Cynthia Egan, from
saving us from errors which would have caused everlasting shame to the
authors. She also hosts the best toga parties ever!
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Star Wars V: Luke crosses lightsabers with Vader. Though he

doesnt win he tried, you have to hand it to him.
Satinator: (groan)
Sy: In their second encounter in Star Wars V Luke is missing
approximately half of his Jedi equivalency credits and most
importantly still missing knowledge of who the heck this dude in the
crazy breath mask is, until its too late.
Star Wars VI: The final confrontation between father and son. Luke
wins the battle handily, but him killing his father is not the task that
comprises his Supreme Ordeal. If he does kill Vader, Luke will have
FAILED his Ordeal (and people waited six freaken years to watch him
not fail!). Lukes Real Deal Supreme Ordeal is comprised by the twin
struggles to turn away from the Dark Side and thereby defeat the
Emperors devious plans and for Luke to reconcile with Anakin
Skywalker.
As for Beowulf, this step is most clearly seen in the Scandinavian
scourges initial encounter with the dragon in the final part of his saga.
The aging but still game champion is not prepared. Beowulf is taken
by surprise by the wyrms great strength, the flames issuing from its
throat and the caustic vapor of its breath which sear his flesh and
lungs. He is badly wounded, and things look grim for our hero at the
close of his Warm Up Boss Fight.
Satinator: In Alien the xenomorph is pretty slippery, it eludes direct
confrontations unless it can win. Smart bug. We argue the direct
confrontation which could but does not lead to a conclusive result is
the destruction of the Nostromo. Ripley does not know the alien is in
the escape pod.
It is more than possible the hybrid lifeform has within its brain some
memories of its gestation host: Kane. Maybe it instinctively knows
whats happening on the Nostromo. Maybe it knows some of our
language. The ships operating system Mother keeps blaring out self
69
destruct warnings every five seconds. Maybe thats why the

xenomorph takes shelter in the only safe place, though it does not
have the skills to operate the escape shuttlecraft.
Ripley wont be fooled twice. Next time she will make sure to give
the creature its stage hook exeunt!
In Aliens Her Warmup Boss Fight takes place in the Egg Chamber.
Ripley and the Queen (the ultimate antagonist) have a nice stare
down. Our protagonist-heroine does not passively exit but rather
shoots up the joint. Ms. Weavers own stage direction to herself was
F**k this! Im going to kill you all. (Hero Complex Q&A).
But although she puts some grenades into the Queens egg filled
abdomen, the encounter ends inconclusively. Whats Ripley missing?
One b*tchn Power Loader thats what!
As James Cameron said:
I wanted to have the final confrontation with the Alien be a handto-hand fight... To be a very intense, personal thing, not done with
guns, which are a remote way of killing. Also, guns carry a lot of
other connotations as well. But to really go one on one with the
creature was my goal.
The type of Supreme Ordeal/Boss Fight envisioned by the director
was not ideally set in the Egg Chamber.
Sy: Sigourney Weavers performance in the Cameron-led film
garnered one of the few Academy Award nominations for science
fiction/fantasy performances. (Other notable noms are Alec Guinness
for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his role as Ben Obi-Wan
Kenobi in Star Wars IV; Ellen Burstyn in The Exorcist; Sandra Bullock
in Gravity; and Matt Damon in The Martian.)
Satinator: Katnisss Hunger Games antagonists are Snow and
ultimately the dystopian society of Panem. Too bad Snow wont get
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his skinny ass in the arena. The career tributes, specifically Cato, are
the Presidents proxies. And theyre in for an ass whuppin!
The preliminary whuppin of ass, we argue, makes up Her Warm
Up Boss Fight. It occurs when Katniss has been chased up a tree and
is in an overwhelmingly disadvantaged position. Or so it seems. Yes,
the careers rue the day they underestimated her and her allies.
Satinator: (groan) Hey dont be insensitive! Rue was only 12, way
too young to be in the arena. You cold hearted Syrus you.
Sy: Relax please, Rue was played by the brilliant young actor
Amandla Stenberg. She wasnt really hurt in any way. Though on-set
rumor has it she suffered from allergies from all those flowers they
kept putting around her.
Satinator: Your callous flippancy towards brave fallen female
action heroes notwithstanding, you bring up an important point:
Women of Color as action heroines. Ms. Stenberg was also in
Colombiana in which the redoubtable Zoe Saldana (Guardians of the
Galaxy, Avatar, Star Trek) played an intense action heroine. Asian
cinema has many many examples including 2015s multi award
winning The Assassin starring Chinese action star Shu Qi.
Sy: Asian films also seem to have the lead in letting action heroine
stars have long careers. Michelle Yeoh starred in Crouching Tiger,
Hidden Dragon in 2000. And then, 16 years later she reprised her
same sword wielding character in the sequel though she is now over
50 years of age and still kicking it.
Satinator: Hopefully with rising stars like these as well as Zo
Kravitz (Divergent, X-Men First Class, Mad Max: Fury Road); Nathalie
Emmanuel (Game of Thrones, Furious 7, Maze Runner: The Scorch
Trials); Naomie Harris (Bond films, 28 Days Later); Michelle Rodriguez
(Avatar, Fast & Furious, Resident Evil, Machete) who is almost a
71
genre obligatory in her own right; and Paula Patton (Warcraft, Mission
Impossible 5); and of course Halle Berry (who will always be X-Mens
Storm in our hearts, which totally makes us forget Cat%&$#*&n 2004)
we can see many more Women of Color in these fantastic empowered
roles in the biggest grossing films in history.
Sy: Back to Hunger Games and Katnisss Warm Up Boss Fight.
While our District 12 action heroine is missing what it will take to finally
triumph, she does have enough to get out of her perilous situation and
turn the odds in her favor. She has a tracker jacker nest and shes an
action heroine whos not afraid to kick it right in the careers faces.
Missing elements: a spiffy bow and Peeta.
This interim conflict, our Step 7.2: Her Warmup Boss Fight, has
significant dramatic value. Whatever you call it and however you use
it, be aware of its function to build a bridge between your heroine and
the audience. Have you ever had one that got away? In memory isnt
it the biggest/ juiciest/ best one ever? Exactly. Three more examples
should make our argument about the role of Her Warm Up Boss Fight
pretty clear.
Someones favorite example: In Labyrinth (1986) Sarah Williams
(Jennifer Connelly) is a 15-year-old heroine who braves dangers
untold and hardships unnumbered one of which is an inconclusive
struggle with Jareth the Goblin King. Jareth (Chef David Bowie)
serves the protagonist another slice of misery cake at the top of the
second Act. She escapes the cleaner trap and dives deeper into the
maze of her Adventure.
If only she had remembered something
Satinator: Squee!!! (Sparkle eyes)
Sy: Captain America 2: Winter Soldier During the freeway
viaduct fight (in fact the whole sequence from when Fury is shot by
the Winter Soldier) Cap engages with the direct antagonist controlled
by Hydra.
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Missing Element: Cap does not know the Winter Soldier is his
friend Bucky.
X-Men: Days of Future Past This film is very complex. It spans
two timelines and has two Xaviers and two Magnetos, all very deftly
handled by Singer & Kinberg et al.
We can (and we do) argue that the spine of the narrative is driven
by Raven/Mystique. While Charles is the Protagonist-Mentor, we
submit Raven is the Protagonist-Heroine of the story. It is her actions
in days past which set the future on its course. It is Ravens choices
Logan goes back in time to change. It is the antithesis of Raven which
is the future Antagonist: the evil Sentinels are based on her DNA. It is
Ravens agency (and a well-aimed bullet) which decides which vision
of the future will prevail at the third Act climax. Charles maintains his
Protagonist-Mentor status but ultimately the agency of action which
the whole film builds to from the opening belongs to the ProtagonistHeroine Raven.
If one views Fassbinders Magneto as the antagonist (instead of
Dinklages scene stealing Trask) then its clear there are two Warm
Up Boss Fights. One where Magneto tries to shoot Raven and
another when they have a polite chat in the phone booth at the French
train station.
Satinator: But Syrus, Raven has a bead on Trask in the finale in
DC and before that at the midpoint she tries to kill Trask in Paris. Isnt
that a Warm Up Boss fight?
Sy: I agree Dinklages character is an antagonist. Maybe if he
hadnt left his axe on the Game of Thrones set, things might have
been different. As it is, Fassbinders Magneto is the most active,
dangerous and energetic antagonist in the story.
Very telling is X-Men screenwriter Kinbergs statement that putting
the Magneto decides to kill Raven scene at the end of the Second
Act buggered things up8. At that point the ubiquitous screenwriter said
8
backstory.net Goldsmith interview and podcast June 12, 2014.

73
The movie had a fundamental narrative flaw. Before Magneto

decides to kill Raven, the young X-Men are kind of spinning their
wheels scene after act two scene. To solve the problem Kinberg did a
wise thing, he listened to a woman: Jane Goldman (Kick-Ass,
Kingsman). The rest is X-Men film history.
Ultimately Ravens true struggle lies in choosing which path to
follow. The audience needs time to absorb the implications of
Magnetos hasty (if not unprecedented) homicidal impulse. Moving the
Magneto shoots Raven scene from Act 2 Crisis-Climax to the Act 2
Midpoint Twist (1:05 in the Rogue Cut edition of the film) allows this
most important conflict to simmer so the audience is ready for the
events of the Act 3 Climax.
Without Her Warm Up Boss Fight placed where it ultimately was,

the X-Men script lagged in the middle.
Its also a hallmark of HWUBF that the protagonist lack something
which they later find and use to win the Boss Fight. BOTH Raven and
Magneto see themselves as agents of the greatest good. And BOTH
lack that element they will ultimately need to achieve it. The hallmark
of Aristotles hamartia.
At the Midpoint Twist in Paris:
Raven is mistaken that killing Trask will stop the new and improved
Sentinels from being built.
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Magneto (who, as usual, truly thinks hes the hero-protagonist) is

mistaken that killing Raven will stop the new and improved Sentinels
from being built. The good guys had actually achieved their mission of
preventing the Trask assassination, and then Erik buggered it all up.
Cmon Eric, theres no i in superheromutantteam!
In our analysis Trask and the Sentinels are the McGuffin (on
balance they have the lesser range of choices) while Raven and the
Xaviers share two aspects of the Protagonists duties. That makes
Erik the ultimate bad guy. As Zak Penn said on storylogue.com Erik
Lehnsherr is such an apex villain because his point of view is just over
the line from rightness into the evil zone i.e.: mass murder. Evilness
has a steep drop off.
In XMDoFP the conflict between Raven and Magneto is Her Warm
Up Boss Fight. When they meet, the energy on screen between
Raven and Erik is, well, magnetic!
WUTTISIT?
Sy: Step 7.2 Her Warm Up Boss Fight we anticipate will be derided
by pickers who may say Yup, but all thats kind of vague. These
confrontations you are labelling Her Warm Up Boss Fight can take
place in many places in linear Arch plot.
Satinator: Totally true. There is no paint by numbers writing guide
(Coyne, McKee, Viki King will all tell ya). This isnt trying to be one. Its
simply a tool to use to weigh and measure your outline or draft.
Callie Khouri even went so far as to say: Once I have to start
following a set of rigid rules, Im really really spectacularly
uninterested.
Sy: That said, action-adventure stories where the heroine does not
confront the villain at least a few times, they whats the word Im
looking for?
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Satinator: Suck. They suck. She doesnt need to go the James

Bond/Ethan Hunt route and end up tied to a chair. But this is actionadventure genre, without Boss Fight action (protagonist vs main
antagonist) wheres the adventure?
WUTTUP?
Sy: Consider how and why and when your heroine has her Warm
Up Boss Fight(s). The reasons you discover may be more interesting
to you and therefore your audience than you may have at first thought.
WUTT2DO?
As everyone has flaws and has made mistakes (though few
peoples mistakes risk ending the world as we know it as often as
some mutants lapses do). When the heroine confronts her own flaw
at the same time she confronts the main antagonist there is a very
good chance of strengthening the bridge between the heroine and the
audience.
And now what weve all waited two popcorn refills and a hasty trip
to the washroom during some expository dialogue for...
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STEP 8
Her Boss Fight

( M R . V S H I S S U P R E M E O R D E A L )
ATINATOR: WE TAKE THE NAME OF this Step from the source

of all Earthly Wisdom: gaming.
In RPG games a fight with a boss character is generally seen at

the climax of a particular section of the game, usually at the end
of a stage or level, or guarding a specific objective, aka The Boss
Fight. - (video gaming wikia)
Of all the Steps this is perhaps the most well understood (and
often most expensive) part of a genre story. The trick is to make it as
fresh as the other parts of the story even though everyone knows the
big dust up is coming. Her Boss Fight must be the perfect exclamation
point to your action heroines journey.
As James Cameron said of Ripleys final fight with the Queen9:
I wanted to have the final confrontation with the Alien be a handto-hand fight... To be a very intense, personal thing, not done
with guns, which are a remote way of killing. Also, guns carry a
lot of other connotations as well. But to really go one on one with
the creature was my goal. It made sense that Ripley could win if
she could equalize the odds. So there had to be some way of
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https://www.alienseries.wordpress.com/2014/01/09/powerloader/
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amplifying her strength, in a way that was not a comic-bookish

sort of concept, like taking a pill.
Sy: As someones fave shows
Satinator: Its me. Im the someone. I freaken love Labyrinth
Please continue.
Sy: as in many other stories, time and time again, we see the
heroine finally overcoming what they lack but only after being
supremely tested. Labyrinths Sarah faces Jareth in a girl-goblin
throwdown, she resists ultimate temptation and overcomes her
hamartia. She tells his royal evilness you have no power over me
and makes it so. Thereby sealing the boss villains fate and definitively
closing out Act 3.
But Satine, what about the Hunger Games series? Its a dystopian
storyline and the real fight is against the warped and literally wiggy
society. Thats a little different than outfoxing a rockstar goblin or
sending a pesky armada of invading aliens back into their wormhole
with a nuke suppository.
Satinator: It is. And in Katnisss Boss Fight HG sequence one
obstacle after another is overcome and finally she forces the
Gamemaker to declare two winners via some fruit.
Sy: Many times during Act 3 huge set piece confrontations will be
happening, but pros like J.J. Abrams will always find a place for the
heroine to confront the storys arch rival. In The Force Awakens Reys
personal lightsaber fight with Kylo is counter-positioned against the
larger scale X-wing fight against the jumbo super-sized-sun-sucking
Starkiller Base. Rey vs Kylo is Her Boss Fight, the essential story
element. The rest is a huge retro/fresh set piece backdrop.
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Satinator: But just having your action protagonist go from kicking

one enemys ass to kicking a bigger badder enemys ass is perhaps
not forcing your character to be all she can be.
Sy: (Now shes doing it too. You all saw.)
Satinator: I mean, this is it! The structural convergence of all the
major themes and set ups that youve put in place for 90 minutes.
Sy: One great spot of advice comes from Simon (Days of Future
Past) Kinberg who said making sure action sequences are tracking
some sort of evolving arc is really important. He cites the example of
John (Mission Impossible II) Woo whose set pieces are not
interruptions of plot/character flow but rather points where the
emotions of the protagonists become so powerful that they have to
express themselves in explosive outward action10.
WUTTISIT?
Sy: Everyone knows Step 8! In thematic terms it is that final
choice that completes the quest; the Climax Scene, or last action
beyond which the reader cannot imagine another. (Thank you Robert
McKee in Story). In practical terms our heroine be bringin the
supreme pain!
WUTTUP?
Sy: There are as many ways to accomplish this Step 8: Her Boss
Fight as there are heroines. Secret lairs can blow up or as in Hunger
Games the first arc ends with the nightlock berry scene which is a
brilliantly executed counterpoint to the I volunteer scene. Again quiet
10
Writers on Genre, 2008, Writers Guild Foundation

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willingness to self-sacrifice for family and ideals are the instrument of

victory over a dystopian society.
Coyne notes that in thriller action genre there is a false ending.
There must be two endings. (The Story Grid) Her Boss Fight in our
Step 8 MAY have a double beat.
Some may view Ripleys Boss Fights as continuous:
Nostromo-shuttle (called the Narcissus)
LV-426 (rebranded planet Archeron)-Sulaco.
In that case the second half of this continuous fight can be seen as
the second of two endings. We argue an inconclusive fight between
heroine and main antagonist is always Step 7.2 Warm Up Boss Fight.
Hunger Games has a clear double beat ending Boss Fight.
Catching Fire does not apply. The audience cannot imagine NOT
getting more action past the final frame of the second film of the
series. Katnisss Boss Fight is physically against the environment. It is
won when everyones favorite archer shoots an arrow at the fake
arena sky.
Mockingjay Part 2 clearly has two beats: the horrific melee and the
final devastating last action.
In Voglers original memo, Step 8 is called the Supreme Ordeal:
an ordeal in which the hero appears to die and be born again. But in
the same section he gives the Star Wars IV example of the trashmasher scene. We argue that this cannot be the supreme ordeal
because it just isnt supreme.
To be fair, Vogler was trying to write a memo to cover dramas,
comedies, romances as well as action-adventure. He even said:
stages can be deleted, added to and drastically reshuffled
WUTT2DO?
Satinator: Go supremely crazy. But keep it supremely real in Her
Boss Fight. This doesnt have to be an actual fight, can be an intense
confrontation. Choose wisely. As the final Boss Fight confrontations
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show in Mockingjay Part 2 and in Brad Pitts World War Z and Tom
Cruises Mission Impossible 5, they dont have to feature ever bigger
explosions. A clever confrontation will leave the audience with a
similar feeling as a traditional physical fight. A poorly written
confrontation will leave the audience bored to death wanting
something more.
Sy: OOH! Oh! Oh!
Satine, we have a problem. Remember when Campbell applied
Jungian-Bastian archetypes and collective unconsciousness theory to
myths and storytelling?
Satinator: I wasnt present in Yonkers NY in 1949, but go ahead.
Sy: And you recall when Vogler refined the 17 categories to twelve
in 1985?
Satinator: I was 5
Sy: Well, the upshot is, weve got too many steps of the journey
left. In action genre after the Boss Fight, there are usually only
Reward and Epilogue beats.
Satinator: And shawarma.
Sy: And shawarma.
(That was funny, even our editor laughed!)
Satinator: Hey Vanessa!
(Sy: I think we just broke the 5th wall. How many walls are there?)
(Satinator: In this book or the next, we will seek them all out. And
BREAK them.)
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Satinator: Yeah, Syrus I see what you mean about beats after the
Boss Fight. When the Death Star gets blowed up real good in Star
Wars IV, there are less than three minutes of run time left. Time
enough to get medals and exchange meaningful looks, but probably
not four distinct Journey stages. Most times, Voglers step number 8 in
action genre IS the Act 3 final sequence of the film.
Many people who have written on the topic usually time jump or
pull something from a sequel to illustrate these last four Vogler points.
And it may be in action genre the Reward and the Road Back mile
markers have the most relevance.
But were mulling going Full Action Heroine.
Sy: Lets go Full Action Heroine.
Satinator: Right then. Well try out all of our variations on all of
Voglers four remaining Steps and see how and where they can work
chronologically as Vogler ordered them.
Sy: OK! OK! But well take it slowly, so this is
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NOT STEP 9
But Rather a
Strategically Placed
Lead in to Step 9
W I T H T H E D R A G O N T H A T
CAVE SLAIN OR VANQUISHED,
DWELT IN THE INMOST

THEY SEIZE THE SWORD
OF VICTORY AND LAY CLAIM TO THEIR REWARD.
TRIUMPH MAY BE FLEETING BUT FOR NOW THEY SAVOR
I T S P L E A S U R E S . - V O G L E R , T H E W R I T E R S J O U R N E Y .
ATINA TOR: SO THE M AL E H ERO savors fleeting

pleasures and falls asleep? MMMhmm its an age old story
Sy: Yeah, we may need to add to this paradigm if we want our

Step 9 to be functional in the telling of female action hero stories.
Satinator: Fortunately, as Vogler says:
A great many possibilities are generated by living through a
crisis, and Reward, the aftermath of the Ordeal, has many
shapes and purposes.
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These range from Celebration, Campfire Scenes, Love Scenes,

Taking Possession of an object or social status, and forms of
Clairvoyance and Self-Realization (The Writers Journey). All are valid
and action heroines have equal opportunity at all the foregoing.
Before we decide what to label Step 9 of the Action Heroines
Journey, lets take a closer look at Luke, Ripley and Katniss after their
Supreme Ordeal/Boss Fight scenes.
In the three minutes left in movie run time after the destruction of
the Death Star, Luke experiences several benefits:
Not being vaporized
Being greeted by his Rebel allies, including Leia, back on
Yavin 4
He is reunited with Han and Chewie, friends he thought
had left him
He is assured they can fix the best R2 unit ever
Theres an assembly, medals, meaningful looks and
applause
In both the first two Alien franchise films, Ripleys reward is much
more subdued.
She has not been horribly killed
She has saved Jones or Newt
She has gained tested allies, Hicks and Bishop
In Hunger Games and Catching Fire Katniss:
has not been horribly killed
she has saved Peeta and Prim
she has given the finger to Snow and the Capitol
At the end of the series, in Mockingjay Katniss:
has not been horribly killed
she has saved Peeta (sorry Prim) and Buttercup is alive
and well
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shes tried to do everything she could to fight the dystopian

Panem and been declared mad
she has children who dont know they play on a
graveyard. But at least they are safe from the worst
games of all.
This is actually a girl whose fierceness comes from a nurturing

place, not a conquering place, said Nina Jacobson, who was
entrusted with adapting Suzanne Collinss book and was senior
producer on all four films (The Hunger Games: Official Illustrated
Movie Companion).
Sy: There are not that many female action heroines. They are
almost as scarce as female directors of feature films. Whether
Campbell is to blame it is not for us to say.
Satinator: But were not ruling out pre-emptive vengeance either.
Sy: Also, the list of female action heroines who truly are the center
of their worlds and carry the largest burden of agency through their
narratives, yup, its pretty darn thin. Although think what might have
happened had Leia been able to deliver her message in person to
Obi-Wan. In the original Star Wars trilogy, Leia seizes a great deal of
agency and is theoretically Lukes equal what if BOTH of them had
confronted their dark Vader in the next films?
TV and especially YA books are chock full of women in leading
action roles. Not surprising because pretty good evidence shows
Women buy two-thirds of the books sold in Britain - Daily Mail.
But despite their absence in many areas of culture, certain patterns
are evident in the stories of female action leads:
Buffy the series ends with:
Dawn:
"What are we going to do now?:
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(Buffy slowly begins to smile, knowing that she is no longer alone

in the world and that the burden of being the one chosen Slayer
is no longer on her shoulders.) - Buffywiki.
Nope, no parade here.
Divergent Series: Tris ends up [SPOILER] even after surviving the
[SPOILER] serum. Aaaarrrrgggh! A divergent girl just aint got no
chance!
No parade here either, though the factionless are said to make a
hella good moonshine.
Satinator: The aspect which follows Step 8: Her Boss Fight, the 9th
part of our Action Heroines Journey, we are naming
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THE REAL STEP 9
Her Secret Hearthfire

( M R . V S T H E R E W A R D , T H E H E R O S E I Z E S
S W O R D , E T C .)
THE
Y: L E T S JUMP R I GHT INTO the Three Wutts. Because

theyre cool and beloved by scripting professionals and laypeople
alike.
Satinator: (indecipherable throat rumbling sound)
WUTTISIT?
Sy: Step 9: Her Secret Hearthfire. Your action heroine can have a
parade, medals galore, she deserves it after all shes gone through.
Not to worry. However, lets say you get through the Boss Fight and
youre stuck as to what Epilogue beats are true to her character and
will really put a button on her journey.
Guys can join too. After their manly energies are spent in the
testosterone charged Supreme Ordeal, men are welcome to bask in
the hearthfire as well.
And they have:
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At the end of Star Wars IV Luke has treasured secrets not known
to the rest of the galaxy. At the end of Star Wars VI the hero knows he
has reconciled with his natural father and lived up to the expectations
of the Jedi who trained him.
A mortally wounded (and did we mention pretty darn senior to be
fighting dragons) Beowulf knows that his kingdom will be vulnerable to
enemies if he has no heir. Without witnesses or fanfare, he gives
Wiglaf, the only one of his men who did not run away, a gold neck
chain symbolizing the passage of leadership. An Old English term for
king or leader was folces hyrde: the peoples guardian or shepherd.
WUTTUP?
Sy: Consider a scene that is calm quiet and reflective. Ripley and
Katniss have enduring secrets to hold.
Ripleys version of events are not believed by the Company:
RIPLEY
Look, I told you
VAN LEUWEN
It [Nostromo shuttles the flight recorder] did not, however,
contain any entries concerning the hostile life form you allegedly
picked up.
(Ripley senses the noose tightening.)
Satinator: As for Katniss at the end of Hunger Games, yes she

has her place in Victors Village, but the forecast is for snow.
Sy: (groan) Touch, Satine, touch.
And right on the money too. Even after Katnisss most unusual
victory, in her narrative words in the book:
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Ive been unable to escape since the Hunger Games began, but
this feels different, much more personal. This feels like Ive been
imprisoned for a crime and Im awaiting sentencing. (Hunger
Games)
What? Not the Reward you were expecting? Get used to it! Youre
not a Damsel in Distress youre an Action Heroine. You bring the
Distress!
WUTT2DO?
Sy: Delve deeply into who your heroine is, where she comes from
what shes been through. Re-evaluate her whole arc in the light of
where she ends up. Help her find her Secret Hearthfire.
Satinator: Hunger Games has been criticized for its ending. Some
men say the secret hearthfire isnt relatable to men. What say you to
this, Sy? Does it break apart from the traditional blockbuster formula
too much? How can we express something so personal from our
action heroine and make it relatable to both men and women?
Sy: Great point! This is going to take some delving and
background, but finding out how the hugely influential and beloved
action heroine Katnisss story ended up the way it did is worth the
effort.
In terms of story structure this topic breaks down into two prongs:
1. Can what happens AFTER the Act 3 Climax/ Her Boss
Fight/ the Supreme Ordeal ever by itself control the tone of
the whole story following Step 8? The brief answer
according to the examples and learned texts is: No.
2. Can a film be relatable to both men and women in a huge
way which is a heroic tragedy where the priceless
McGuffin is lost and practically all of the characters,
including the male lead, die various ghastly deaths? The
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brief answer is: Titanic. (Its not strictly action BUT its
James Cameron and we can always learn from his work.)
Back to the ending of the Mockingjay duology which completes the
four Hunger Games films. There are literally thousands of articles and
reviews on the installments of the series. But were story structuralists,
not film critics dammit!
First, some set-ups to show how post-Climax scenes (which we
are placing after Step 8) MAY influence the value charges of an entire
story.
Classic Greek plays are like math and architecture, Im glad they
exist and even more glad I dont have to study them. Greek stories are
big on major downer endings. Suzanne Collins has often said she
based a lot of her plot outline on the story of Theseus and the
Minotaur.
The similarities are pretty plain. Every few years an equal number
of Athenian boys and girls were taken away as tributes to appease a
victorious king in the capital of Crete. Theseus takes the place of one
of these chosen youths and in the third act slays the psycho serial
killer with the bull head and rescues the hot princess and her younger
sister.
Satinator: Sounds pretty upbeat so far.
Sy: Thats what the Greeks thought, so they fixed it. In most
versions Athena forces Theseus to leave the smokin babes on the
beach and go back home. The hero is so bummed he uses the wrong
sail on his ship causing Theseuss own father to kill himself.
Satinator: Holy Hamartia!
Sy: Still, Ovid and Plutarch (the original one) gave it two thumbs
up. And notice how the suicide of Theseuss father is set up earlier by
Mr. Absentminded Hero promising to raise the white sails if he
survived the Labyrinth.
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Novelist Collins focuses on the overtly anti-heroic and patently grim

aspects of war. Perhaps this is related to the experiences of her own
father who served in the Vietnam War.
The novel Mockingjay is significantly bleaker than the film
adaptation in at least two major instances:
1. (In the book) During the battle for the Capitol Katniss just up
and shoots a woman armed with only a half-eaten sausage.
Without hesitation, I shoot her through the heart.
2. (In the book) Katniss really wants to do herself in. Blood runs
from the teeth marks on the hand he clamped over my
nightlock. Let me go! I snarl at him, trying to wrest my arm
from his grasp.
Etc etc.
Satinator: The Greeks would have been down with that totally. If
the Mockingjay double bill were playing at the Theatre of Dionysus,
just add some deus ex action and a bough of nightlock berries and it
would have been game over for both Katniss and Peeta.
Sy: So you see Director Francis Lawrence and writers Peter Craig
and Danny Strong had a tough job. They had to balance adaptation to
a different medium with thematic veracity towards the source material.
Structurally, the splitting of the Mockingjay book into two films
(which were financially successful pulling in nearly US $1.5 billion
worldwide) meant that you had to close the first film at the midpoint
twist and have the second film be the third act where most all the
beloved characters with great hair (thats you, Finnick) die.
The filmmakers discussed an outright cliffhanger ending to
Mockingjay Part 1 after Peeta attacks Katniss. They even called it the
Breaking Bad ending. Nina and I and Peter used to all talk about
Breaking Bad. said Francis Lawrence with a laugh. (via:
buzzfeed.com.) Instead they went a few beats farther.
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It wound up feeling like a really natural place to break the book,

because after Peetas back, and you have a whole different set of
priorities, said co-screenwriter Craig. The only other way to relieve
the downward value charge of negative story events is to place them
earlier and then have some other positively charged events happen.
For example in The Force Awakens if the killing of [SPOILER] by his
own [SPOILER] happens too late story time-wiseyoure in an X-wing
fighter with no, uh, X-wings.
Satinator: Thats a long Syrus set up to our conclusion: Her Secret
Hearthfire alone is not normally enough to redeem multiple preceding
scenes which have sharp downward value charges (eg: lots of people
dying, Prim dying, Gale becoming a bunghole, Katniss assassinating
Coin, Katniss going nuts, etc.). In action-adventure genre the whole
cadence of story beats and plot turns is focused on the Her Boss
Fight. After that the cake is baked and the rest is just frosting.
Mockingjay director Francis Lawrence said of the final installment:
There are some new elements to it. I think one of the things is when
you experience the movies vs. the book, the books are so inside
Katniss head; were not in Katniss head as much. Were not
changing the book, and were not messing with anything, [but] we are
injecting some hope to it, and some warmth to it. And there will be
some humor. And theres some surprises. So theres different layers
that were adding to it to make it richer. (via buzzfeed.com underlining
added by us).
Sy: As Robert McKee says in Story:
A STORY must build to a final action beyond which the audience
cannot imagine another. In other words, a film cannot send its
audience to the street rewriting it...
As an almost final example, suppose in Days of Future Past Raven
had sided with Magneto and killed Trask along with everyone else
they had issues with. (Anyone who thinks theres no way that could
have happened has not seen X-3.) After such a tragic denouement to
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Raven and Charless journey in Step 8 Her Boss Fight, there is no

possible content Singer, Kinberg, Goldman and Vaughn can put in
Steps 9-12 that can change the value charge of that negative ending
for not one but TWO Charles Xaviers. Thats just too much mutant
disappointment to shift.
As a really, truly, final example consider if in Mad Max: Fury Road
the film for whatever reasons had to end with Furiosa discovering
there is no [SPOILER] place. Big bummer. Thats the geographic
McGuffin shes been aiming at since the first frame. It has energized
her and given Max purpose.
Lets change the narrative to an alternative ending and have
everyone set out towards the sea. If that happens, we HAVE to see
not just the promise of The Keeper of the Seeds seeds, but some
kind of montage with plants. And little Maxes and Furiosas playing in
the corn. They would have found their green place by making it
themselves. The important thing is the elements must all be in place
well beforehand. In that way with the right set up a post Act 3 climax
sequence can turn a negative to a positive.
If Furiosa and Max drive off towards the sea and find instead an
alien city which crashed to Earth and started the (really impressive)
firestorm tornadoes, unless that element is set up well in advance it
will just seem tacked on.
Satinator: That was 1 final examples Syrus. Were counting.
And lets be honest, the ending chosen by Miller, McCarthy and
Lathouris is more unassailable than the Citadel. We want to see
Furiosa literally rip Immortan Joes face off, dont we?
Sy: That scene touched me, on a spiritual level.
Satinator: Cool. While you were blathering I had time to re-watch
Titanic. While its not strictly action-adventure, it is the product of a
master storyteller, is one of the best known films of all time, and its
spine is the story of an amazing female character: Rose. It was written
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and directed by someone who has given us so many astonishing

female action characters. Seems to me that the prologue/epilogue
framing device Writer/Director Cameron used with old Rose and the
Heart of the Ocean necklace definitively sets up the beats which fully
redeem the negatively charged main plot narrative ending. These
beats happen after the Act 3 Climax in epilogue style:
Rose gives her name as Rose Dawson after DiCaprios
character, signaling she has taken Jacks advice to heart
and, among other things, will make lots of babies.
Roses former fianc (not a nice guy) loses everything and
dies.
The destruction of the jewel McGuffin is the affirmation of
Roses Secret Hearthfire which has made her life a brilliant
success AFTER what technically is the downer Act 3
climax. Jack saved me in every way that a person can be
saved says Rose.
Because we are shown the fulfillment of the promise made during
the Supreme Ordeal and the fruits of Jacks sacrifice, these postclimax beats turn the values of a devastating disaster story gently but
firmly into positive territory.
Sy: The framing device also elevates Roses story to the level of
the A-story set against the background of the well-known historical
event, rather than the reverse. As todays leading screenwriters say
so often on Jeff Goldsmiths Q&A podcast (available on iTunes) if you
discover problems in Act 3, often the solutions will be lurking in Acts 2
and 1.
Satinator: But we digress.
Sy: I know, thats half the fun.
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STEP 10
The Road Ahead of

Her
( M R . V S T H E R O A D B A C K )
H E R O E S F A C E A C H O I C E : W H E T H E R T O R E M A I N I N
THE SPECIAL WORLD OR BEGIN THE JOURNEY HOME TO
T H E O R D I N A R Y W O R L D , - I N V O G L E R S S T E P 1 0 : T H E
ROAD BACK.
ATINA TOR: Y E AH , ROAD B AC K OR stay on the

xenomorph infested planet Archeron or in Panems District 1
post-war Capitol, I just cant decide where to spend my next vacation.
Sy: The air miles might be worth it. But this simply has not been a
choice for most action heroines. Their Special World is another
aspect of the heroines committed ordinary world. Her actions have
irreversibly changed their relation to society and their social unit.
There is no going back. So she must face: THE ROAD AHEAD OF
HER.
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Satinator: You dont really like Voglers Step 10 do you?

Sy: What gives you that impression?
Satinator: The really bad imitation of Grumpy Cat you are doing.
Grumpy Sy: I like Vogler. In The Writers Journey he gives us a
huge number of well thought out building blocks for story. I just have
trouble fitting his Step 10 into our analysis where it comes after Her
Boss Fight. The tumultuous events and brink of utter ruin and
madness our action heroine has faced in Step 8 annihilate any
chances of her mentally and emotionally returning to the Ordinary
World.
For Ripley, unless you classify the cryo-pod as her Ordinary World,
theres no returning in either of the first two films. Though her entry
into the pod symbolizes an aspiration to wake up in a better place.
Satinator: Which dream did most definitely not come true in Alien
Ugh! Fiorina Fury 161??? Ugh!
Grumpy Sy: However, Ripleys third film was honored for special
effects and we can learn from the efforts of the filmmakers as they
crafted the narrative of the third installment of Ripleys journey.
Thematically if you view the four non-Predatorized Alien films as a
single arc, Alien winds up being the all is lost moment for the
protagonist (thank you Shawn Coyne).
Satinator: Yes, that moment is hard to miss when Ms. Weaver
throws herself into a flaming [SPOILER] just as a [SPOILER] rips
through her sternum.
Carrie Henn (Newt) said:
James Cameron envisioned a third installment in which Ripley,
Hicks and Newt become a family unitand therefore the Center
of Good (Wreckage and Rage: The Making of Alien 3 Blu-Ray. Alien
Anthology Disk 5)
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The plotline they chose for Ripley in Alien went a different way. It
went ALL IS LOST.
And after the all is lost moment, unless youre Greek, a
redemption beat follows. Alien: Resurrection followed, pretty much
nailing Voglers step in the continuous arc. (Oscar nominee Joss
Whedon received sole writing credit for the fourth film featuring Ellen
Ripley, though he later sprayed acid blood on the final cut.)
Grumpy Sy: My point exactly, there literally is no Road Back for
Ripley. She does not return to anything familiar when they land on
Earth in Alien: Resurrection the final dialogue of the film is:
CALL:
What should we do now?
RIPLEY:
I don't know. [She looks out in the distance]
RIPLEY:
I'm a stranger here myself.
And as for Katniss, even if they rebuilt District 12, the Hob would
be empty, filled with ghosts.
Satinator: I dont normally like to encourage Syruss feline
grumpiness, but Voglers text sometimes puts Step 10 out of
chronological order, at a point which marks the passage from Act
Two to Act Three. He also mentions Chase Scenes, Retaliation and
Villain Escape (TWJ). These are different story elements to the
normally very brief epilogues which occur after McKees final action
beyond which the audience cannot imagine another.
Grumpy Sy: Exactly. In Voglers Step 10 hes imagining stuff all
over the place!
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Satinator: Let me think about this for a moment

SFX: Satinator thinking
SFX: Satinator thinking
Satinator: What about portal adventures? Surely those require the
heroine to make a choice whether to stay in the Special World or not.
And this always happens after the Act 3 climax. There it is, Syrus,
your Road Back.
Grumpy Sy: (grump grump grump) Ok after a little bit of grumping,
I see your point but will raise you the stakes of a world and a
protagonist forever changed.
For example, in Tim Burtons Alice in Wonderland (2010) after Mia
Wasikowska in true fairy tale action heroine fashion cuts the head off
the Jabberwocky demon she does in fact return to the time and place
from which she departed. But the world is bigger. Her choices are
much larger than whether or not to marry Hamish Ascot. The old
ordinary world has been blasted out of time and space because the
heroine has endured, survived and triumphed.
The most telling issue I have is exemplified in Voglers questions to
his Road Back section. As an exercise for the reader he asks you to
identify What is The Road Back inTerminator 2?
I say: Bam, Mr. Vogler! That is the apotheosis of my Road Back
grumpitude.
In T2 (the theatrical version without old Sarah in the park) the last
shot in this definitive action heroine film is a voiceover by Sarah
Connor. She says:
The unknown future rolls toward us, I face it for the first time with
a sense of hope.
As she looks forward, at night, racing down The Road Ahead of
Her.
[Sy drops mic, stops grumping.]
98
[Satinator pics up mic, brushes off the dust and stands alone under
a bright spot light.]
Satinator: So, the road back, is the road ahead. The literal world is
the same as it was before the story began. What was once seen
through a limited perspective now is larger than the life once lived.
Thats good! Ill buy that. Lets Shirt it!
WUTTISIT?
Affable Sy: We argue Step 10: The Road Ahead of Her is a
component of post-climax Resolution or Epilogue structure. Robert
McKee and others have said that this part of story has three possible
uses:
Subplot closure;
Showing the spread of climactic effects (action heroine press
tour!);
An emotional pause before people got to the parking lot and see
someones dinged their ride.
WUTTUP?
Satinator: Just because the Boss Fight has been won and your
heroine has gazed into Her Secret Hearthfire, or had a parade, dont
stop building bridges with the audience. Step 10 is another chance to
contextualize her journey and keep the empathy train on track.
WUTT2DO?
Affable Sy: Depends on the number of subplots still unresolved in
your story after Steps 8 and 9. Many franchise sequels loom for your
Action Heroine on The Road Ahead of Her.
99
100
STEP 11
Her Reconciled Self

( M R . V S H I S R E S U R R E C T I O N )
Y: VOGL ER S ST EP 1 1 - THE Resurrection is kind of oddly

placed in sequence (though he allows you can jumble his
numbers). Normally, the verge of spiritual death happens in Step 8 of
action-adventure. For instance, when Luke is tempted to kill Vader in
ROTJ; or Harry wakes and meets Dumbledores ghost in the
extremely well-lit Railway Station of Death in Harry Potter and the
Deathly Hallows: Part 2. If Step 8 comprises the climax of Act 3
(normally the final 20-25 pages of a screenplay), sorry, I really dont
want to see my heroine play dead and pop up again in Step 11. How
about you Satine?
Satinator: But lets not dismiss things. Christopher Vogler is hella
smart, he continues to teach his techniques all over the world in
leading Masterclasses. Hes by all accounts an excellent fellow!
Vogler in 1985 and in his subsequent works like The Writers Journey,
always takes care to point out the protagonist could be female:
There may be some masculine bias built into the description of
the hero cycle since many of its theoreticians have been male,
and I freely admit it: I'm a man and can't help seeing the world
101
through the filter of my gender. Yet I have tried to acknowledge

and explore the ways in which the woman's journey is different
from the man's. - Vogler (The Writers Journey)
So lets continue to follow the structure of the 1985 memo. Lets
see where some version of the Resurrection might fit into our Action
Heroines Journey after her definitive Boss Fight.
In The Hero With a Thousand Faces, Campbell speaks about the
last part of his protagonists journey: the hero re-emerges from the
kingdom of dread (return, resurrection). The boon that he brings
restores the world (elixir).
Vogler in Writers Journey says,
One function of Resurrection is to cleanse heroes of the smell of
death, yet help them retain the lessons of the ordeal.
In our Action Heroines Journey the Boss Fight (the Supreme
Ordeal) has happened. Any pure action left has to be less than
supreme and is probably going to be underwhelming for the audience.
In her chapter Beyond Duality Murdock, Maureen sheds
additional light on what might happen in Step 11 of the Action
Heroines Journey (The Heroine's Journey: Woman's Quest for
Wholeness).
We argue in the context of action-adventure genre her penultimate
step should be: HER RECONCILED SELF.
Your action heroine has triumphed in Her Boss Fight, perhaps
being wounded, perhaps suffering untold loss in the process. She will
hold those memories and the identity of the violent conqueror she was
forever. But she needs to conquer one last foe: Post Trauma Disorder.
Satinator: Now THAT I can relate to.
Sy: To do so effectively, she will have to EXPAND her conception
of herself to encompass all her experiences good and bad and
terrifying.
102
WUTTISIT?
Sy: Step 11: Her Reconciled Self. A chance to hang up sword,
shield and helm in order to travel The Road Ahead of Her.
WUTTUP?
Sy: At the end of the first two Alien franchise films Ripley ends up
as she started: in hypersleep. But each time her social relationships
have been profoundly altered, her life forever changed. How does this
Ripley reconcile herself with her past self?
WUTT2DO?
Sy: There may not be much time, 1-3 pages of your screenplay. A
look, a gesture and word, or a glimmer of one not spoken, a motif
repeated can have immense impact here as the audience absorbs the
visual and sonic impact of Her Boss Fight.
Male characters can do it too: notice the last living thing Mark
Watney touches during the epilogue of The Martian is a cute wee little
plant. Thats a deliberate choice by director Ridley Scott and
screenwriter Drew Goddard.
See if something can build a bridge during the closing moments of
your Action Heroines. Give us a glimpse of Her Reconciled Self.
Sy: Whew! Nearly done.
Satinator: Says you. An Action Heroines work is never done.
Hwt! There! In the roiling distance!
Foes without number advance. They seek to destroy all she has
forsworn to defend!
Sy: Save it for the Boss Fight.
103
STEP 12
She Builds a Sheltering

Love
( M R . V S R E T U R N W I T H
THE
E L I X I R )
ATINA TOR: TH E L A ST S T E P IN Voglers practical guide to

monomyth is 12: Return with the Elixir. In the male journey, the
hero has already passed his Reward stage. The Elixir story device
may represent some boon to his people or his social group, separate
and apart from his personal reward.
Returning with the Elixir is the last test of the hero, which shows
if he's mature enough to share the fruits of his quest. - Vogler
(The Writers Journey)
Sy: As if saving everyone from the Minotaur isnt enough, now he

has to pay for an orphanage. Dont people realize how dangerous
minotaurs are?!?
Satinator: After Her Boss fight is over, the heroine may pause to
understand her journey, contemplate her future, reconcile her past
and present selves in light of the Road Ahead. She may nurture a
Secret Hearthfire, a flame which can shine a light or burn. How may
this final step be relevant to her story?
104
We submit: SHE BUILDS A SHELTERING LOVE.

As Jacobson said of Katnisss character: This is actually a girl
whose fierceness comes from a nurturing place, not a conquering
place.
How can you the writer reveal your heroines inner self after the
Boss Fight in dialogue, sounds, images? Step 12 can be immensely
powerful, even if it is only implicit. And guys are welcome to have a go
as well.
At the end of Star Wars IV Luke returns into the embrace of his
new family and social group from the brink of death and the ultimate
triumph only THE ONE could achieve.
Sy: With a little help from Han whom Luke thought had abandoned
him. I mean Vader had him. He even said (speaks into empty coffee
mug), I have you now.
Satinator: Exactly, and that makes Lukes return to the concentric
sheltering emotional connection built over the story so much more
powerful. The droids who were in the Special World before Luke, the
allies he gathered and tested in the cantina, the mysterious and feisty
Princess he insisted they rescue, all are there.
Action Heroines have it the same, but different. The overhang of
the tragedies suffered in the Journey threatens to overwhelm any
sense of reward or peace or even hope. Therefore, the tenuous bits of
emotional shelter they can carve out are just that much more
precious.
Ripley at the end of each of the first two Alien films is victorious but
not triumphant. At the end of the second film, she has won a greater
battle against foes greater in number and scale, but she has lost 57
years in hypersleep. She has no more close family on Earth. Her
social circle is half a feisty (and durable) artificial person, a wounded
soldier, an orphan girl and of course Jonesy the cat.
105
It may not seem like much to many people, but for our Apex Action
Heroine Ellen Ripley its enough for her to build shelter in the
xenomorph storm and brave The Road Ahead of Her.
Katniss has it better than our 22nd century alien nemesis, and also
worse.
The defense of family, the sacrifice of herself to protect Prim, who
is the only person in the world Im certain I love has failed.
Ultimately Katnisss feline friendly sibling was caught up and mangled
and killed by the appalling machinery of power in the Capitol. It wasnt
in a formal arena, but Prim is just as dead as if no one had stood up
for her on Reaping Day (who knows, Prim and Rue would have made
a mighty duo in the first arena)
Katniss has lost more true friends than remain.
Her final sacrifice, a terminal attempt to give the people of Panem
a brighter future, is scorned. The deranged act of a madwoman driven
insane by the horrors of the arena. Shes not even able to kill herself!
Katniss and Peeta have children. But they play on a graveyard.
Against a backdrop like that, the audience will seek out any
glimmering sign Katniss has been able to Build a Sheltering Love. And
if it is there, however small, they will be dazzled by it.
WUTTISIT?
Sy: In Step 12: She Builds a Sheltering Love there may be a hold
fast where the audience can cross a draw bridge along with the Action
Heroine and have a sense of completion at journeys end.
WUTTUP?
Sy: This last step is based on every significant story event the
heroine has experienced. Your Action Heroines end to end journey
may be made up of multiple films, a trilogy of books or even a world
two million words strong and counting (Daenerys Stormborn of the
House Targaryen we are looking at you!!). Therefore, the tone and
106
precise delivery of the protagonist Building a Sheltering Love depends

on all that has come before.
WUTT2DO?
Sy: Hit it wrong and thy shame shall echo through the Ancient
Theatre of Epidaurus. Hit it right and Beowulf will toast thee with a
great horn of the Mead of Poetry (skldskapar mjaar) in the hallowed
halls of Story!
107
Sy: Whoa Satine, I lost track at about number 4. Could we recap?
THE ACTION HEROINES JOURNEY
Step
Vogler 1985
A Practical Guide to THE
HERO WITH A THOUSAND
FACES
HIS ORDINARY WORLD
CALL TO ADVENTURE
Sat & Sys 2016

Remix
THE ACTION
HEROINES JOURNEY
HER COMMITTED
WORLD
AWAKENING TO HER
ADVENTURE
NEGATION OF THE
AWAKENING
HERO IS RELUCTANT AT
FIRST
HERO IS ENCOURAGED BY
THE WISE OLD MAN OR
WOMAN
HERO PASSES THE FIRST
THRESHOLD
HERO ENCOUNTERS TESTS

AND HELPERS
SHE RE-EXAMINES
HER HIERARCHY OF
NEEDS
HERO REACHES THE

INNERMOST CAVE
7.1 HER CAVE OF

WONDERS
3
4
FINDING THE MENTOR

WITHIN
THE HEROINE BLOOMS
7.2 HER WARM UP

BOSS FIGHT
7.2
8
HERO ENDURES THE

SUPREME ORDEAL
HERO SEIZES THE SWORD
10
THE ROAD BACK
11
RESURRECTION
12
RETURN WITH THE ELIXIR
HER BOSS FIGHT

HER SECRET
HEARTHFIRE
THE ROAD AHEAD OF
HER
HER RECONCILED
SELF
SHE BUILDS A
SHELTERING LOVE
Satinator: As Coyne says of his ingenious and very rigorous Story

Grid, these devices are a tool not a formula.
As Drew Goddard (World War Z, The Cabin in the Woods, The
Martian) said,
108
If you have a pie chart for a screenplay, 90% should be

structure, and the rest is writing the script. - (quoted in Backstory
iPad magazine podcast by Jeff Goldsmith held at Los Angeles Film
School lafilm.edu).
Susannah Grant (Erin Brockovich, Pocahontas, 28 Days) said,

Ill write a little dialogue. Ill write a little introduction. But then I
try to wait until I have a good structure. Until I have a shape of
the whole thing, because thats where its hardest.
Sy: Besides being true and good advice from skilled and generous
professionals, its what weve been saying during our whole careers
Satinator: Which technically started when you, the reader, opened
this book.
Sy: and the power of these simple statements will make you
want to recommend this book to everyone. In all formats.
Satinator: Story Structure Basics by Alexandra Sokoloff is also
massively erudite on the topic. But all these are just different ways to
look at your action heroines organic journey. Maybe its complete and
ready to print/film. But weve found it never hurts to question and
justify each story element.
Sy: We try to help you do that. Youre welcome!
What now Satine?
Satinator: Im glad you asked!
Sy: You just texted
Satinator: Shhh.
Ok, Here we go. Lets dissect some movies! First well break down
Underworld. Then we will dive into Sicario. Two dramatically different
action-adventure films with strong Female lead characters.
109
Sy: Well Satine, they are more similar than you might think, except
for their start point, how they end up, and most everything in between.
Satinator:
Sy: The great thing is both characters Kate and Selene have a
strong through line. THEIR imperatives drive the action. Their lapses
or (since you've been asking me to speak more Latin) lacuna drive the
action. And while they fulfill militaristic enforcement roles in their
respective societies, the way Kate ends up in Sicario is quite opposite
to where Selene finds herself at the end of Underworld. Let's dive into
the worlds of these two fascinating action heroines and mark the
Steps of their adventures.
110
111
Action Heroine
Curriculum Vitae
UND ERWORLD
Selene
Position applied for: Death Dealer
Race: Vampire
Age: Legally I dont have to give this information, but after my
600th birthday I stopped giving a demon &^*(~
Hair: Dark Brown
Eye color: Brown / UV blue in vamp-rage
Height: Quite tall indeed when my combat platform heels are on
your chest.
Career Goal: Rid the world of Lycan trash, seek out the remnants
of good in my tattered
comprehensive dental.
Fangs: Natural
humanity,
112
obtain
employment
with
Action
Heroines
Journey
1
HER
COMMITTED
WORLD
AWAKENING TO
HER
ADVENTURE
Where each step shows up

during Selenes lively undead
journey in the 2003 series
igniting film: Underworld
We find Selene (Kate Beckinsale)
completely immersed in her work as a
Death Dealer. Shes hunting hirsute
hostiles and dealing them, uh, death.
The only thing she regrets about her
600-year-old war against Lycans is it
may be coming to an end. I lived for
it. Yup, one totally committed heroine
here.
Selenes apparent adventure is the
threat of resurgent Lycans armed with
vamp killing UV weapons.
Additionally, she has to tell Vamp
Viceroy Kraven for like the 600th time
shes not that into him.
However her true adventure comes
after an action heroine style dip in the
river when she awakens on the
embankment next to the strange
human Michael Corvin (Scott
Speedman).
NEGATION OF
THE
AWAKENING
Selenes warnings about hundreds of

Lycans in the underground are
ignored. Kraven tells her to forget all
about that strange human Corvin. He
even backhands her across the face
to put a fine point on his
remonstrations. The action heroine,
for a time, is compliant. She does not
retaliate. In this beat of her story her
hesitation causes her to negate
awakening to her truly world
shattering adventure.
113
FINDING THE
MENTOR
WITHIN
Print books have many advantages

over ebooks. This is true in the
vampire world. Ancient erudite texts
hold wisdom and bits of branded
lycan skin. Try that with a Nook!
Selene consults a dusty book to get
the inside skinny and confer with her
inward mentor. Then she calls herself
to action.
THE HEROINE
BLOOMS
Selene decides to violate the

strictures and covenants of her
society and awaken Viktor (a pretty
scary Bill Nighy). She says (VO) I
need your guidance. Shes not in
need of a mentor, but rather the most
powerful ally she can muster. She
decides to rouse the desiccated elder
vamp, and with the spurt of her bright
red arterial blood into the open mouth
of the fanged husk, Selene blooms.
SHE REEXAMINES HER

HIERARCHY OF
NEEDS
Selene says to a lycan-bitten Corvin:

By rights Id stop the car and kill you
myself. After six centuries, she
examines her hierarchy of needs. She
takes Corvin to a vampire owned
torture house and DOESNT torture
him. And thats about as Twilight emo
as Selene gets. She maintains
maximum action heroine cred even as
her priorities shift.
7.1
HER CAVE OF
WONDERS
It is in this gore garnished grotto that

the action pauses for the Cave of
Wonders scene. As lightning flashes
outside Selene and Corvin tell each
other sad stories full of heartwarming
resilience. Such is the magic of vamp
/ human-infected-with-lycan-saliva
love that we soon see past the chains
and evisceration tools. The room feels
quite sheltered and homey, just right
for a quiet scene with a positive value
114
7.2
HER WARM UP
BOSS FIGHT
charge.
Selenes WUBFs occur in very precise
measures:
The initial subway fight with Raze
(Kevin Grevious, who has a story
credit for the film and has challenged
Vin Diesel to a Gravelly Voice Off).
The brief dustup with Lucian (Michael
Sheen, who makes us wish
Shakespeare had written just one play
about werewolves).
The fight which results in the capture
of the (really unhygienic) lycan
scientist (Erwin Leder). His
torturesposition clarifies Corvins
significance and Kravens betrayal.
HER BOSS
FIGHT
Each fight is inconclusive and in each

Selene is missing one or more
elements which will complete her
journey in the film.
At 1:32 of the Extended Bloody Cut
version, Viktor gives Selene her true
challenge. Her vamp sire tells her to
kill the abomination Corvin.
Selenes ultimate struggle is to
transcend the vamp-lycan race war.
Just as Lucian and his vamp bride
(Viktors daughter) tried to do and
failed so long ago. Selene and Corvin
have another chance. This action
heroine is on a journey to true
interspecies love. The odds are
crushingly not in her favor. Can she
possibly win?
It really seems not! The All Is Lost
scene comes as Corvin is shot by
Kraven. The silver nitrate laced round
threatens to again part fang-crossed
lovers for another 600 years!
115
Relax, its only the climax of Act II.

Her Boss Fight actually starts with a
love bite. After biting Corvin, Selene
cues a Speech In Praise of the Villain
from Viktor in which terrible truths are
revealed. Said speech lasts just long
enough for Corvin to turn into a lycanvamp hybrid.
And bam, Selene has all the things she
was previously missing:
The truth about her past.
A new boyfriend with ripped blue abs.
A (possibly) magic sword which she
uses to give Viktor the worst haircut
ever. (Not kidding)
9
HER SECRET
HEARTHFIRE
10
THE ROAD
AHEAD OF HER
She has won the ages old battle

against vamp-lycan hate.
Though I cannot predict the future,
she says in a Sarah Connor style voice
over, she predicts, the consequences
of this night will reverberate through
the halls of both great covensa tide
of anger and retribution will spill out
into the night.
And are we ever glad it did!
11
HER
RECONCILED
SELF
Selene says, I will become the

hunted as she reconciles herself with
her separation from her former
identity as vamp soldier.
12
SHE BUILDS A
SHELTERING
LOVE
on top of a bedrock of rippling blue

abs!
Female Action Heroine success fact:

Satinator: Taking all 4 existing films in UW series together:
Budget $177 million; Total worldwide Box office $458 million.
116
Installment #5 will be Underworld: Next Generation and (holy crap)

it has a female action director: Anna Foerster who was mentored by
Roland (Independence Day) Emmerich. Coming October 2016.
Fun fact: The films soundtrack features works by the late great
David Bowie and a track by Milla Jovovich who is an action
heroinezombiekiller/killerpartzombieheroine in the Resident Evil
series.
Budapestopolis fact: UW 1 Takes place in that weird city in
Hungary where there are vampire mansions, werewolf cops and
everyone speaks English.
Canadian Conspiracy fact: Days before its US opening, the
president of Screen Gems green lit not only a sequel to the movie
Underworld but also a prequel after seeing the number of tickets sold
in Canada alone. (imdb.com)
Sy: you had to get me going again, didnt you!!!
Cogent Kate Quote:
I do think people like to see it working with a female lead. I think
the guys like to see it, but I think the girls like to see it too,
Beckinsale said. These movies are very entertainment. Were
not madly thinking were getting Oscars for them or anything, but
there is something extremely gratifying about exactly that. The
greatest heroines in these kinds of movies are few and far
between, and they are exactly the ones that arent sort of winking
in a sexy way at the camera.
Beckinsales template for Selene, she said, is Sigourney Weavers
performance as Ripley in the Alien films and Linda Hamilton as
Sarah Connor in the Terminator franchise11.
11
LA Times Hero Complex

117
Now lets apply this paradigms steps to a recent action adventure

work with a female lead who carries her main characters agency of
action through the whole narrative. They are not plentiful but thanks to
Emily Blunt, director Denis Villeneuve, screenwriter Taylor Sheridan
and their team we have Sicario.
Sy: Those night vision scenes rock!
Satinator: Settle down, were trying to be intellectual here. (The
NVG shots do rock!) Lets road test The Action Heroines Journey and
apply it to a realistic, gritty action movie.
SICAR IO
Kate
Action
Heroines
Journey
1
HER
COMMITTED
WORLD
Where each step shows up in Kate

Macers journey in the 2015 film
Sicario
Kates world is anything but ordinary. Shes
the lead FBI agent in a heavily armed
kidnap response team raid on the bad guys
hacienda in Arizona.
She arrives in an Armored Personnel
Carrier. Bam. Action heroine cred
established.
Shes totally committed, as one completely
perforated bandito can attest. Later we are
told this is her 5th shootout.
She barfs at what is in the walls of the cartel
house of horrors but so do the guys.
Kate has a sidekick. She is definitely the
central action protagonist of the story.
For Kate there is no departure from her
Ordinary World, her Adventure is a deviant
118
2
AWAKENING TO
HER
ADVENTURE
detour deeper into Her Committed World.

Kate quickly receives the classic Vogler
CTA, and just as quickly declines. This is
not my department, she says before she
even has any details, before she knows
who the guy in gnarly flip flops is i.e.: Matt
(Josh Brolin).
Pretty simple, just like the male Heros
Journey. But
3
NEGATION OF
THE
AWAKENING
Then on the private Department of Defense

jet Kate encounters the titular character
Alejandro (Benicio Del Toro) who lets her
know they are going to Juarez Mexico, not
El Paso Texas. This beat is a significant
escalation and divergence from what Kate
expected. Internally she has to realize this.
She begins to Awaken to Her Adventure.
After cross questioning the titular character,
Kate says shes not authorized to follow
orders from Alejandro.
This could be called a Refusal of the Call
but its really more complex. Shes actually
negating what shes internally determined is
her real Adventure. Brolins character uses
the apparent adventure which she
volunteered for to steer her back on the
track he needs her to be on.
The visible Adventure: to bring the apparent
antagonist, the drug lord Diaz, to justice
masks the subtext of Kates true Adventure.
She is being manipulated to help achieve
some kind of drug dealing dtente called
Medelln.
The surface external Adventure provides
the spine for the very effective violent
action. While Kates internal journey is the
spine of her real heroines arc.
Her questioning of Matt and his mission is
an attempt to negate what she herself
perceives as the Adventure (as opposed to
what she has been externally called to). It
119
4
FINDING THE
MENTOR
WITHIN
signals the Action Heroines Negation of her

Awakening. And is deftly pulled off by Emily
Blunt and the director and his team.
Clearly the Mentor externally is Del Toros
character. At the briefing he tells Kate
nothing will make sense to your American
ears. Later he advises her the opportune
moment to pull her weapon.
But he aint no Matrix-style Morpheus
mentor. In fact. Alejandro is the ultimate
antagonist.
Shes on her own, an action heroine out of
her normal violent comfort zone. Perfect set
up for Kate to find the Mentor Within.
Of course, unless she starts talking to
herself or we get some voice over, its kind
of hard to tell shes conferring with her inner
Gandalf.
One hint comes when Kates junior partner
Reggie (Daniel Kaluuya) asks her twice
about who Alejandro is and whats going on.
Maybe shes too tired from a really long day
to confide in her sidekick. But as she chain
smokes borrowed cigs, Kate has probably
decided to keep her misgivings about the
mission shes on to herself and Find the
Mentor Within.
Its also significant that Reggie leads the
critical cross questioning of Matt Graver and
Alejandro. Reggie says hes satisfied with
the answers.
Kate knows more. She knows enough to not
be satisfied. But continues to keep her own
counsel.
5
THE HEROINE
BLOOMS
Kate takes the initiative, uses her

experience and brains to figure out how to
legally prosecute gangster Diaz, the
apparent antagonist.
120
For the first time she is not reacting. She

strives to return to the boundary lines of her
comfort zone. The action heroine seizes her
righteous agency of action.
However, her boss tells her The boundary
has been moved. Are we clear?
Matt notices, he says, Dont go in the bank
Kate.
Kate goes in the bank.
You cant stop a girl when shes blooming.
Matt notices.
SHE REEXAMINES HER

HIERARCHY OF
NEEDS
So do some other people. Which

tangentially drives the plot forward.
The surface spine of Sicario is all about
Vogler style Tests Allies and Enemies.
Who can Kate trust? And that is completely
valid and functional.
As the action plot resonates with Kate
internally, the action and visuals and Emily
Blunts performance reveals a much deeper
subtext. Over and over again her Hierarchy
of Needs is tested and she is forced to
examine her deepest beliefs. Only when the
illusion and final manipulation is revealed is
she forced to choose an option beyond the
capacity of her characters active agency.
Kates hierarchy of needs is the basis of her
characters final crisis, not the external
violence. The impossibility of choosing what
is right according to that hierarchy sets up
Her Boss Fight/Supreme Ordeal.
7.1
HER CAVE OF
WONDERS
Sometimes an action heroine just wants to

go where no ones trying to kill her or tear
down her basic ideals. For Kate that place is
the Wild Pony western bar where most
everyone knows her name.
With most of Kates screen time filled with
121
7.2
HER WARM UP
BOSS FIGHT
taut action or grim reflection, this is as close

to a social life and personal time out as we
see her having. And it isnt long before that
goes pear shaped too
Theres lots of action (thank you Denis
Villeneuve!), mostly between off camera
baddies and Matts guys.
In Her Warm up Boss Fight the protagonist
must face her primary antagonist. This
happens just outside the tunnel.
It is inconclusive: Kate takes two bullets in
her vest (good thinking to put in that SAPI
plate, girl!) and Alejandro continues with his
covert mission.
Now, if Kates rifle had not been shot out of
her hands in the tunnel this confrontation
might have gone a little differently. However
what makes the scene thematically
inconclusive (a Warm Up) is Kate does not
have a full comprehension of the Sicario.
She still thinks she is protecting and serving
not part of dirty war the purpose of which is
order, not victory. While she had most of the
pieces, she needs one more which Matt
soon provides.
HER BOSS
FIGHT
This sets the stage for the final momentous

scene for our female action hero
In a scene which also fulfills the genre
obligatory scenes:
Hero at the mercy of the villain.
And
Speech in praise of the villain
Alejandro drops by Kates place. She hangs
on to her agency of action as long as she
can in the face of insurmountable pressure,
finally validating Matt and the Sicarios
actions under threat of death.
Alejandro leaves her with a succinct
122
summation of the grand scheme Matt has

earlier revealed. The Sicario says: And this
is the land of wolves now.
10
11
12
HER SECRET
HEARTHFIRE
Kate has a chance to shoot Alejandro, but

does not. As an action heroine she has
grasped the true nature of her ultimate
conflict. She must choose between
maintaining agency or being the center of
good in the story (thank you Robert McKee).
Kate gives up agency of action and chooses
to remain the center of good.
Like with many action-adventure genre
stories, there are few, if any, explicit beats
after Her Boss Fight.
However, a necessary implication of Kates
final choice is that she has the Secret
Hearthfire of knowing she remains the
Center of Good.
Left open.
THE ROAD
AHEAD OF HER
Implicit.
HER
RECONCILED
SELF
Unknown.
SHE BUILDS A
SHELTERING
LOVE
As Benicio Del Toro said in a Deadline Hollywood interview:

Emilys fantastic. I think she struck home in a really strong way.
Her strength that she gives to the character is really, really
beautiful. I also wanted to add that when she did the scene on
the balconyI learned this latershe told Denis that she wanted
to shoot me. And Denis said, No, no, madame. If you do, youre
just like him. There is an element of strength in the fact that she
123
doesnt shoot. To me, thats the real strength; otherwise, she

becomes a wolf.
124
WHEW!
Conclusions
(H O W E V E R , N O T Q U I T E
THE
E N D .)
ATINA TOR: TH IRT Y Y E AR S AFT ER "Sisters Are Doin' It

for Themselves" topped the charts, the female voice is
horrendously absent or muted in the most influential forms of global
cultural expression.
Female action heroine roles which are the equal of their male
counterparts are few and far between. Fingers of blame get pointed.
But really arent those fingers better employed giving a call back to
innovative creators just when the industry needs fresh voices and
ideas?
At least 1000 (or 83% of the total 1200 female members of the
Directors Guild of America) have been chronically unemployed for 5
years or more. And these are TV and Feature qualified, paid up
members (in 2015 the initiation fee was US$11,346 Feature /
Television - dga.org).
The number of major studio films directed by women has been
stubbornly low over the last five years, hitting a high of 8% (eight,
125
not eighty) in 2010 and falling to a low of 4.6% in 2014, according

to a Times analysis of films directed by women at the six major
studios, based on data compiled by IMDB and confirmed with the
studios. - (LA Times)
In 1976 the California Advisory Committee to the United States
Commission on Civil Rights determined that women were literally
excluded as creators and directors of media content in the United
States of America (womendirectorsinhollywood.com). But despite
these odds they keep filling up film school classrooms like pesky
action heroines who just wont quit. Women make up about 40% of
the enrolment of the prestigious American Film Institutes Master of
Fine Arts Conservatory program. (Check the Notes section to find out
cool stuff AFI is doing for female directors.)
If a girl does not have the most passion, the best ideas and is not
an outlandish, never-stops-moving dynamo of creative energy that
can keep a crew of hundreds motivated at 4AM in the rain, dont hire
her. But you cant ignore these numbers and the numbers are wrong.
Have these numbers influenced the types of stories which are told?
Only 15 Percent of Top Films in 2013 Put Women in Lead Roles
(Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego
State University).
Have these numbers influenced accolades at the highest level?
Only four (4) women have even been nominated for a Best Director
Academy Award. Since 1929. It does not take much space to give
them each a shout out:
Lina Wertmller for 1976's Seven Beauties,
Jane Campion for 1993's The Piano,
Sofia Coppola for 2003's Lost in Translation,
and Kathryn Bigelow for 2009's The Hurt Locker.12
And for cinematographers who are through no fault of their own
girls, its even grimmer. Brace yourself.
12
Caution: link to picture of a woman who is not afraid to WIN

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/jan/26/oscars-2014-fine-art-of-winning
126
Sy: Im braced. I can handle the truth.

Satinator: Among Cinematography Oscar nominees: over 600
candidates yet no female candidate ever. Nil. Nada. Zilch. Donald
Kaufman has more nominations than all female cinematographers
ever.
American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) was founded in
1919.
and then and then and then
Sy: What are you doing?
Satinator: Marking time before the ASC admitted its first female
member.
Oh I give up it was 60 years after it was founded. In 1980,
Brianne Murphy became the first woman ever admitted to the ASC
and the first woman director of photography on a major studio film.
Then some years and years 15 years later, the ASC admitted A
SECOND WOMAN!
Today female ASC members account for less than 5% of its 360
active members. The youngest of all male or female at the time
admitted is Reed Morano (girl) who is also a director of the fantastic
Meadowland (2015) starring Olivia Wilde and Luke Owen way to
rep Reed!
Sy: But Satine, do stories matter at all? I mean they are indeed big
business, Universal Studios (with Donna Langley as Chairperson)
made $7 billion box office in 2015. That sounds like a lot but
Universals parent company Comcast makes about ten times that
each year: $70 billion total annual revenues. And that is just one big
broadcaster with dozens of films and shows. What the heck does one
Heroines Journey matter?
127
Satinator: ?I didnt text you to ask that.

Sy: I saw it in your notes. :D
Satinator: Well maybe it comes down to something Cobb said in
Christopher Nolans Inception:
What is the most resilient parasite? Bacteria? A virus? An
intestinal worm? An idea. Resilient... highly contagious. Once an
idea has taken hold of the brain it's almost impossible to
eradicate.
The ideas that Women dont need to make the journey, the belief
that female stories do not matter, has led to the disempowerment of
women as a social group. If womens stories do not matter, how easy
is it to conclude their dignity and even their very lives are equally
irrelevant?
These ideas are perhaps the most pernicious parasites of all. It will
take a mighty heroine to face them and keep defeating them through
time. That is why our Champion will have many identities and guises.
And why she will have 1001 faces. And it is how we will recognize her
each time she appears to us.
As Sigourney Weaver said of Ellen Ripley:
Theres so much story to tell, and she holds the story.
- LA Times Hero Complex
128
EPILOGUE
Sy: So where do all those Steps lead the Heroine?

Satinator: Well wouldnt you know it, back to the start. The
audience.
In the biographical documentary Life Itself, noted critic Roger Ebert
described film as "a machine that generates empathy."
January 11, 1991, the then-head of [A MAJOR] studio, Jeffrey
Katzenberg wrote another famous memo: Some Thoughts on Our
Business. In it he concluded:
All this means is that there should be a sympathetic protagonist
who goes through some transforming experience with which the
audience can relate.
Melissa Rosenberg, creator, showrunner of Jessica Jones and
screenwriter of all five Twilight movies said:
One must never assume that a character is sympathetic
because of either the actor playing them or the fact that they're a
lead. I think that's a recipe for failure, actually, because if they
become unsympathetic, you lose your audience.
Therefore, we offer this tribute to, and expansion of, Voglers 1985
memo as a set of tools creative artists may use to tell us about their
Action Heroines Journeys.
129
PRE-CREDITS SCENES
(Also called Tags, Stingers, Credit Cookies, or Coda)
This SECTION is rated Arrrrrrrrrr for deliciously foul language and
general heresy.
Sy: Our first citation is Save The Cat! The Last Book on
Screenwriting You'll Ever Need by Blake Snyder.
Satinator: He was half right. You need this book too!
Sy: And our audiobook, which may be the first talking book to win
an Oscar.
We realize citing the late Mr. Snyder is controversial among some
industry intellectuals. But since he claimed the inspiration for his book
came from the movie Alien, where Sigourney Weaver's character
Ripley saves a cat named Jones, were totally down with him.
Some have heaped excoriating ridicule on Snyders fundamental
postulation that there be a scene in your film in which the hero does
something like saving a cat that defines who he is and makes
us, the audience, like him.
In fact the note most overwhelmingly often delivered by TV
executives to writers on pilot episodes is Yo, scriptmeister, WHY do
WE LIKE the [Main Character]?
Now, before you start dialing up Hollywood Paws or another
animal talent agency, lets move up one level of abstraction and get to
our point.
130
Satinator: You better have one, the credits below are getting tired
of waiting. Theyre like lions and tigers in cages under trap doors of
the Coliseum.
Sy: After mulling it, we suggest the most effective way of looking at
this essential segment of character presentation is to make the
character worthy of the audiences benevolent emulation. In other
words: would audience members like to have this character as a
friend and/or emulate some or all of their core characteristics?
Satinator: Mmmnn benevolent emulation sounds catchy. You
sure you dont want to trademark that?
Sy: I wont be greedy, but please you go ahead (he said
benevolently).
Satinator: Thanks, RK Syrus. You are a good guy, one worthy of
positive emulation.
Sy: Satine, this whole Action Heroines Journey was fun! And if
theres one thing we have learned from the business, a good first
installment should be followed Fast and Furiously by a Sequel to THE
ACTION HEROINES JOURNEY by us!
Satinator: Whoa there, shouldnt we make sure people like this
book first?
Sy: Think positive. You did a great job here. We havent even
scratched the surface.
As Don Kaufman said when someone suggested there are too
many female protagonist stories being developed:
What utter nonsense, Don said, his voice, normally gravelly,
dipping half an octave. I refute that entirely, sir. If the next 2000 years
131
of art and literature are dominated by female voices and female

stories, it will just about even things out!
I seem to recall he was holding a Polska Kielbasa when he said
that. Its hard to argue with gravitas like that.
Satinator: Is that a direct quote?
Sy: More or less. Listen, I dont have a recording or anything. Like
many Oscar nominees Don is very private. But I wrote it down on the
back of our Wurstkche bill.
Point is we havent even mentioned Female Action Villains! There
are not enough but the ones we have so far are very memorable.
To kick things off theres James Bonds Rosa Klebb.
Satinator: (rolls eyes)
Sy: And the mercurial mutant menace Raven/Mystique;
Theres Harry Potters Bellatrix Lestrange (played by 2x Oscar
nominee Helena Bonham Carter);
And Maleficent who (in the capable hands of Oscar winner
Angelina Jolie) proved Wicked CAN be Good!;
And also Oscar winner Charlize Therons return as Ravenna in
the next Huntsman film and possible upcoming villain role in Fast 8!!!
Notice how the HuntsMAN has 3 (count em I, II, III) energetic female
characters: Theron, Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain. And theres still
lots of stuff for Chris Hemsworth and his abs to do.
SPECIAL UPDATE: Huntsman seems to have underperformed at
the box office. That happens. Whats really bizarre and offensive is
daft analysis comments like this: Emily Blunt, Charlize Theron, and
Chris Hemsworth are all good actors, but you dont have anyone who
is really a bankable lead. What??? And no mention of Jes F%&$ing
Chastain? Not only is Ms. Chastain (The Martian, Madagascar,
Interstellar, Zero Dark Thirty) not bankable, shes not even
mentionable?
132
Sy: Well Im glad J.J. Abrams managed to snag a bankable lead in

The Force Awakens, who knows what box office nightmare would
have ensued had they not cast the well-known audience magnet
Daisy Ridley as the central protagonist. Like Don Kaufman keeps
saying, Its about the characters and their stories, stupid!
Satinator: Looks like the stuff of many future sausage and beer
festooned lunch chats at Wurstkche.
Sy: Looks like.
133
134
ERUDITE CITATIONS
(CR ED IT S)
Aristotle, Poetics
In his Poetics, Aristotle put forth the idea that "A whole is what has
a beginning and middle and end." This generalized view of threepart plot structure (in some texts referred to as protasis, epitasis,
and catastrophe) many scholar believe prevailed until the Roman
drama critic Horace advocated a 5-act structure in his Ars Poetica:
"Neue minor neu sit quinto productior actu fabula" (lines 189-190)
"A play should not be shorter or longer than five acts." (wikia)
Seger, Linda.
Making A Good Script Great
Creating Unforgettable Characters
Advanced Screenwriting: Raising your Script to the Academy
Award Level
McKee, Robert.
o
o
o
Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of

Screenwriting
There is mounting evidence that McKee is not as stuffy as his
detractors claim. In fact, he had high praise for Amy Schumer and
Judd Apatows Trainwreck (2015) saying, Its a wonderful
example of a maturation plot (mckeestory.com). Who knows, with
intellectual validation like that, the washcloth over raised penis
scene may become obligatory in the genre. Were monitoring
developments closely.
o
135
Vogler, Christopher.
o A Practical Guide to The Hero With A Thousand Faces By
Joseph Campbell (originally compiled in 1985 as a Disney
studio memo).
o The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure For Writers
Backstory: The Art and Business of Storytelling iPad magazine
and The Q&A by the hardest working man in podcasting Jeff
Goldsmith. Jeff is a great industry writer but a better podcast
interviewer, there is none.- King Leonidas.
King, Viki. How to Write a Movie in 21 Days: The Inner Movie
Method
Coyne, Shawn. The Story Grid: What Good Editors Know (also
check out his free podcast with Masterclass level advice on craft
and the worst Don Corleone impressions currently on the internet
https://storygrid.simplecast.fm/.)
Egri, Lajos. The Art of Dramatic Writing
Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life
Pressfield, Steven; Shawn Coyne (Editor).
The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner
Creative Battles
Pascale, Amy. Joss Whedon: Geek King of the Universe - A
Biography (The biographer spent so much time with the writer,
director, producer and composer that she can legitimately call
herself a Jossite Knight. Ser Amy also has NEARLY the same
name as Amy Pascal the former powerhouse Chairperson of Sony
Pictures what are the chances, eh?)
Campbell, Joseph.
o The Hero with a Thousand Faces
o Pathways to Bliss
o Goddesses: Mysteries of the Feminine Divine
Thus the unfacts, did we possess them, are too

imprecisely few to warrant our certitude... (Finnegans
Wake)
136
In 1944 Campbell also co-authored A Skeleton Key to Finnegans

Wake: Unlocking James Joyce's Masterwork. Joseph Campbell
(Author), Henry Morton Robinson (Author), Edmund L. Epstein
(Editor) In Finnegans Wake, James Joyce wrote:
At the carryfour with awlus plawshus, their happyass cloudious!
And then and too the trivials! And their bivouac! And his
monomyth!
Now, if only he had written her monomyth
Lord, heap miseries upon us yet entwine our arts with
laughters low.
Ests, Clarissa Pinkola. Women Who Run with the Wolves

Pearson, Carol S. Awakening the Heroes Within: Twelve
Archetypes to Help Us Find Ourselves and Transform Our World

Murdock, Maureen. The Heroines Journey: Womans Quest for
Wholeness
Frankel, Valerie Estelle.
From Girl to Goddess: The Heroine's Journey through Myth

and Legend
o Chosen One: The Heroine's Journey of Katniss, Elsa, Tris,
Bella, and Rey
o The Comics of Joss Whedon: Critical Essays
o A Rey of Hope: Feminism, Symbolism and Hidden Gems in
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
McCord, Molly. The Modern Heroine's Journey of Consciousness
(The Awakening Consciousness Series) (Volume 2)
Avant Stover, Sara. The Book of SHE: Your Heroine's Journey
into the Heart of Feminine Power

Pearson, Carol S. Persephone Rising: Awakening the Heroine
Within
Woodman, Marion. Leaving My Father's House: A Journey to
Conscious Femininity
Jung, Carl G.
137
Answer to Job. Translated by R.F.C. Hull
The Red Book: Liber Novus

The years, of which I have spoken to you, when I pursued the
inner images, were the most important time of my life. Everything
else is to be derived from this. It began at that time, and the later
details hardly matter anymore. My entire life consisted in
elaborating what had burst forth from the unconscious and flooded
me like an enigmatic stream and threatened to break me. That
was the stuff and material for more than only one life. Everything
later was merely the outer classification, the scientific elaboration,
and the integration into life. But the numinous beginning, which
contained everything, was then.
Shinoda Jean, M.D. Bolen. Goddesses in Everywoman: Powerful
Archetypes in Women's Lives

Mayor, Adrienne. The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior
Women Across the Ancient World

The Future of Womankind: Beyond Ellen Ripley filminquiry.com
Hernndez, Prisco R. Jungs Archetypes as Sources for Female
Leadership, Kravis Leadership Institute, Leadership Review
Homer. The Odyssey 850 BCE.
Some argue, based on literary observations, that a young Sicilian
woman wrote the Odyssey: Butler, Samuel The authoress of the
Odyssey: where and when she wrote, who she was, the use she
made of the Iliad, and how the poem grew under her hands.
[1897]

(I did not know
that!)
Beowulf: A Translation and Commentary by J.R.R. Tolkien

(Author), Christopher Tolkien (Editor)
Tolkien, J.R.R. Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics
138
Gaiman, Neil How Stories Last explores the way stories, myths
and tales survive over great lengths of time and why creating for
the future means making works that will endure within the oral
tradition.
Once upon a time, Gaiman said, is code for Im lying to
you. We experience stories as lies and truth at the same time.
We learn to empathize with real people via made-up people. The
most important thing that fiction does is it lets us look out through
other eyes, and that teaches us empathythat behind every pair
of eyes is somebody like us.
- longnow.org/seminars/02015/jun/09/how-stories-last/
Beowulf (2007) Directed by Robert Zemeckis Writing Credits

(WGA) Neil Gaiman (screenplay) & Roger Avary (screenplay) The
Poet (epic poem "Beowulf")
Portnoy, Phyllis. The Remnant: Essays on a Theme in Old English
Verse
Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games Trilogy
Mack, David. Kabuki Library
Peterson, Jordan B. Three Forms of Meaning and the
Management of Complexity
Battlestar Galactica TV Series (20042009) Creators: Glen A.
Larson, Ronald D. Moore
The Martian (2015) Directed by Ridley Scott, Writing Credits Drew
Goddard (screenplay) Andy Weir (book)
Alien (1979) Directed by Ridley Scott; Writing Credits (WGA) Dan
O'Bannon (story) and Ronald Shusett (story) Dan O'Bannon
(screenplay)
Director Ridley Scott has an incredible record successfully
bringing substantial female protagonists to the big screen:
o Alien (1979)
o G.I. Jane (1997)
o Prometheus (2012)
o Alien: Covenant (2017) which we hear will also have great
female characters.
139
Thelma & Louise (1991) garnered an Oscar WIN for Callie

Khouri for Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the
Screen.
Ridley Scott was nominated but Robbed of an Oscar for Best
Director, again. And BOTH Geena Davis AND Susan Sarandon
shared a wild double Oscar nomination for Best Actress in a
Leading Role. This has happened for Best Actress only five times:
o 1950 All About Eve. Anne Baxter and Bette Davis. Both
lost to Judy Holliday.
o 1959 Suddenly, Last Summer. Katharine Hepburn and
Elizabeth Taylor. Both lost to Simone Signoret.
o 1977 The Turning Point. Anne Bancroft and Shirley
MacLaine. Both lost to Diane Keaton.
o 1983 Terms of Endearment. Shirley MacLaine and Debra
Winger. MacLaine won.
o 1991 Thelma & Louise. Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon.
Both lost to Jodie Foster. Darn you Jodiedarn you! :D
o
Geena Davis (who already had an Oscar, thank you) recently

said of Thelma & Louise: It was really a big wake-up call about how
rarely we give women an opportunity to feel excited and inspired by
the female characters. Check out: the Geena Davis Institute on
Gender in Media.
The film, a comedic adventure crime drama focused on two female
protagonists, has a number of rapid tonal shifts. So many that veteran
director Ridley Scott expressed concern to Khouri: Can we do this?
Callie Khouri, the veteran of no films and advising on the production of
her first ever screenplay assured the director of Alien and Blade
Runner: Of course you can do it, Mr. Scott!
WORD FRO M TH E D ICT I ON ARY ZON E
The word actor refers to a person who acts regardless of gender,

while actress refers specifically to a female person who acts;
therefore a female can be referred to by either term. The Oxford
140
English Dictionary states that originally "actor" was used for both
sexes. The English word actress does not derive from the Latin
actrix, probably not even by way of French actrice; according to
Oxford, actress was "probably formed independently" in English.
As actress is a specifically feminine word, some groups assert
that the word is sexist. Gender-neutral usage of actor has reemerged in modern English, especially when referring to male and
female performers collectively, but actress remains the common
term used in major acting awards given to female recipients and is
common in general usage. Oxford English Dictionary (3 ed.). The New York Times. 18 October 1885
Aliens (1986) Directed by James Cameron, Writing Credits James

Cameron (story) and David Giler (story) & Walter Hill (story) Dan
O'Bannon (characters) and Ronald Shusett (characters) James
Cameron (screenplay)
Gale Anne Hurd received sole Producer credit on the 1986
film. The British view of female producers proved to be a big
problem for Gale, said Cameron. They didnt know such a
creature existed. She was like a unicorn.
Except that they like unicorns, Hurd added. - (Time
magazine, cited on michaelfbiehn.co.uk)
Sy: Maybe they were just getting used to having Baroness
Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS as their first female Prime
Minister. Well the loss is theirs. Hurds credits stretch all the
way from T1 and T2 to TVs The Walking Dead, The Talking
Dead and Fear the Walking Dead.
And shes not sitting on her Saturn awards: watch for Gale
Anne Hurds new series Hunters on Syfy.
"When we have somebody as prolific as Gale, when you
look at her resum, particularly in the sci-fi space, you'd better
listen," says Bill McGoldrick, executive vice-president of
original content at Syfy.
Gale Anne Hurd has sure been on a winning streak.
141
Satinator: I think, Syrus, when a streak lasts over three

decades its more of an actual phenomenon.
Alien (1992) Directed by David Fincher Writing Credits (WGA)

Dan O'Bannon (characters) and Ronald Shusett (characters)
Vincent Ward (story) David Giler (screenplay) & Walter Hill
(screenplay) and Larry Ferguson (screenplay)
"Wreckage and Rage" The Making of Alien 2010 Blu-ray Release
Michael Biehn, James Cameron, and novelist Alan Dean
Foster, have expressed disappointment with the Alien story.
Cameron said it was a "slap in the face" to him and to fans of
the previous film to do away with the characters of Bishop,
Newt, and Hicks in the manner in which the final script did.
Foster, the writer of the novelizations of the first two Alien
films, called the death of Newt and Hicks "an obscenity13.
(mini Fun Fact: Foster also wrote many novelizations of films
including Star Wars: The Force Awakens.)
Alien: Resurrection (1997) Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Writing Credits (WGA), Dan O'Bannon (characters) and Ronald
Shusett (characters) Joss Whedon (written by). Whedon later
sprayed acid blood on the final cut.
The Terminator (1984) Directed by James Cameron Writing
Credits James Cameron (written by) and Gale Anne Hurd (written
by) William Wisher Jr. (additional dialogue)
Sy: and not to pile on to Mr. Vogler BUT the first film also
ended up with Sarah Connor braving the ROAD AHEAD OF
HER. Still 11 out of 12 aint bad at all, not at all.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) Directed by James Cameron
Writing Credits (WGA) James Cameron (written by) & William
Wisher Jr. (written by) (as William Wisher)
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles Created by Josh
Friedman Based on Character created by James Cameron and
Gale Anne Hurd (Cinemablend chose Terminator: The Sarah
13
alienanthology.wikia.com/wiki/Alien_3 and Empire film magazine

142
Connor Chronicles as one of the "12 Shows Fox Should Be

Embarrassed About Canceling" in October 2015.)
Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) Directed by George
Lucas Writing Credits George Lucas
Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015) Directed by
J.J. Abrams Writing Credits Lawrence Kasdan (written by) & J.J.
Abrams
(written by) and Michael Arndt (written by) George
Lucas (based on characters created by)
The Hunger Games (2012) Directed by Gary Ross Writing Credits
Gary Ross (screenplay) and Suzanne Collins (screenplay) and
Billy Ray (screenplay) Suzanne Collins (novel)
Egan, Kate. The Hunger Games: Official Illustrated Movie
Companion
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013) Directed by Francis
Lawrence Writing Credits (WGA) Simon Beaufoy (screenplay) and
Michael Arndt (screenplay) (as Michael Bruyn) Suzanne Collins
(novel "Catching Fire")
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Parts 1&2 Directed by Francis
Lawrence Writing Credits Peter Craig (screenplay) and Danny
Strong (screenplay) Suzanne Collins (adaptation) Suzanne Collins
(novel "Mockingjay")
Sicario (2015) Directed by Denis Villeneuve, Taylor Sheridan
(screenplay)
Adaptation (2002) Directed by Spike Jonze Writing Credits (WGA)
Susan Orlean (book) Charlie Kaufman (screenplay) and Donald
Kaufman (screenplay)
Winter's Bone (2010) Directed by Debra Granik Writing Credits
Debra Granik (screenplay) & Anne Rosellini (screenplay) Daniel
Woodrell (novel)
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) Directed by George Miller Writing
Credits George Miller (written by) and Brendan McCarthy (written
by) and Nick Lathouris (written by) (as Nico Lathouris)
143
X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) Directed by Bryan Singer

Writing Credits Simon Kinberg (screenplay) Jane Goldman (story)
& Simon Kinberg (story) & Matthew Vaughn (story)
Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005) Director: Doug Liman Writer: Simon
Kinberg
Stauffer, Wayne. Katniss Everdeen as Female Hero Archetype
hogwartsprofessor.com
Dr. Amy H. Sturgis: Is Katniss a Modern Day Spartacus?
hogwartsprofessor.com
John (just John). The Divergent Trilogy: Katniss Everdeen, Meet
Tris Prior! hogwartsprofessor.com
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) Directed by Anthony
Russo & Joe Russo Writing Credits Christopher Markus
(screenplay) & Stephen McFeely (screenplay) Joe Simon (based
on the Marvel comic by) and Jack Kirby (based on the Marvel
comic)
Writers on Genre: Action Adventure/Thriller (2009) video.
Producers: Writers Guild Foundation, Edited by Ron Tammariello.
Panelists David S. Goyer (The Dark Knight, Blade), Simon
Kinberg (X-Men: The Last Stand, Sherlock Holmes), and Zak
Penn (Behind Enemy Lines, The Incredible Hulk). Moderated by
Daniel Petrie Jr. (Beverly Hills Cop, Shoot To Kill)
The Dialogue: Interviews with Screenwriters (2007) Series
Presenter: Mike De Luca, Directors: Mark Palansky, Producers:
Mark Palansky, Dave Moldavon, Aleks Horvat, Jay Fernandez,
Larry Shuman.
Anders, Charlie Jane. The Long List of Successful Action Movies
Starring Women io9.com
"Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves" Written by Annie Lennox &
Dave Stewart, 1985. Single by Eurythmics and Aretha Franklin,
part of the albums Be Yourself Tonight and Who's Zoomin' Who?
144
Fun Fact: Annie Lennox won an Oscar for the song "Into the
West." Best Music, Original Song. From the film The Lord of the
Rings: ROTK (2003) Shared with: Fran Walsh and Howard Shore.
145
146
JUICY BITS
Actual Post Credit

Scenes
(YOU THOUGHT WE WERE DONE? NOT EVEN
C L O S E .)
Outfitting your Action Heroine

Harder than you think. The first pink trimmed outfits for Ellen Ripley
made her look like Jackie Onassis in space according to director
Scott. Instead they went with actual NASA flight suits which fit
Sigourney Weaver perfectly. The rest is Alien wardrobe history.
Fun fact: The original flight suit Ripley wears in Alien hangs in
Sigourney Weavers closet.
!!!
147
Galactic Sized Outrage over BSG Casting

"When [the fans] heard Starbuck was going to be a woman, it
was just like, There can never be peace between us! Blood has
been spilled! We just decided that we didn't care." Ronald D.
Moore explains the gender switch: "Making Starbuck a woman
was a way of avoiding what I felt would be 'rogue pilot with a
heart of gold' cliche." - Strong Women Steer Battlestar Galacticas
Final Voyage wired.com
Rogue Regained
The X-Men: Days of Future Past Rogue Cut Blu-ray retains the
lengthy sequence where the mutant Rogue and [SPOILER] go to
rescue [SPOILER].
Every movie has scenes that are cut out, but not every movie
has scenes cut out with such a beloved character, - Simon
Kinberg
This special edition Blu-ray features an action heroine definitely in
need of her own film played by Anna Paquin who won an Oscar at
the age of 11 for her turn in The Piano. Ms. Paquin has always
claimed no mutant powers were involved in her performance.
Alien WTF happened?

Sy: While Satine assures me the subject I know LEAST about is
film direction.
Satinator: Its a close race, but that is currently leading your
personal marathon of ignorance.
148
Sy: Even so, I will venture the issues besetting Alien were NOT
related to direction. David Fincher has been resoundingly successful
from Se7en in 1995 to Gone Girl in 2014. The pictures of the Alien
sets which filled the, at the time, largest sound stage in Britain are
breathtaking. The effects team was Oscar nominated for Best
Effects, Visual Effects. The issues identified by Cameron and Foster
were fundamentally tied to story, structure and character.
A Fox executive involved in the production said We did not have a
script going into the movie only a release date.
Satinator: By the time Fincher agreed to direct, about $13 million
(back when that was real money) had already been spent on the
production (Cinescope). Including a reported $500,000 on a script
doctor and after that doctor was shown the production infirmary door,
another $600,000 for an emergency cardiac rewrite. And no script,
huh?
Sy: While were on that topic, we are compelled by our good taste,
a desire to serve the Arts and our passion to benefit all humankind to
mention:
SATINE AND SYRUSS FAMOUS SCRIPT

DOCTORING SERVICE .
NOW H ALF PR IC E (WITH PR OOF OF PURCH ASE OF
T H I S BO O K ) ST AR T ING AT ONL Y $ 250 ,000 .
JUST U SE THE DISCOUNT CODE THE PROS FROM
DOVER WH EN PLACING YOUR ORD ER ONLIN E.
SATINA TOR: THE D OCT OR S ARE IN !
SY: W E C ER T A IN L Y AR E , F O R AN YO N E W IT H
$ 250 ,000 .
149
Sy: It is a fact that studio execs like the ones who worked hard on
Alien often take a bad rap. They have a difficult job and there is high
turnover and burnout. Execs are often smart, dedicated and have
many more letters after their names than both me and Satine
combined.
But
Satinator: I saw that but a mile off.
Sy: But, for an IP which was said to be crucial to the studio, and
for a film budgeted at $55 million (back in 1991 when that was real
money compare Tim Burtons Batman at $35 million a few years
earlier, and the $18 million for Aliens) the admission that We did not
have a script going into the movie its like, all meh.
Satinator: Thats your scholarly assessment? Meh.
Sy: Indubitably.
On the other hand, the movie did provide Ryan Reynolds
Deadpool with one of his more heartwarming exchanges with a
wayward mutant youth:
Deadpool: [Commenting on her shaved head] Ripley from Alien

3!
Negasonic Teenage Warhead: Fuck, you're old!
Satinator: So, it wasnt a total loss.

Sy: Gosh darn, I think weve blown our PG-13 rating. Thanks to
two typically foul mouthed action heroines: Sarah and Teen Warhead,
we said fuck twice. (Shit, 3 times!)
Thats it! Precocious screenwriters in middle school will have to get
their parents permission to read our work. There will probably be a
150
movement to ban our book from libraries. The Amish will burn it, with
wooden matches of course.
Satinator: Dont be such a worrier. According to the Classification
and Rating Rules published by the Motion Picture Association of
America (MPAA) and the National Association of Theatre Owners
(NATO).
Sy: NATO? They seriously call themselves that? They dont have
nuclear warheads or anything do they?
Satinator: Only the Negasonic variety. Anyhow, according to
MPAA, NATO, and their Classification and Rating Appeals Board
(CARA no relation to Kara Zor-El), they have pretty wide discretion
in awarding the coveted rated R: Restricted cougar.
The Hip Hop Project, has seventeen uses of the f word, Gunner
Palace has 42. And Mark Watney uses the ultimate curse of mass
destruction twice in The Martian. All are PG-13.
Sy: Oh thank frak for that.
Satinator: There is the link. Warning: absolutely no nude or gross
pictures. http://filmratings.com/downloads/rating_rules.pdf
The Cougar and the Canadian Conspiracy: A

Syrus Rant.
Sy: In a diabolical attempt to subvert true American Culture, the
Restricted symbol was actually invented in British Columbia,
CANADA!
151
In 1960 BC Chief Censor R.W. (Ray) MacDonald chose the cougar

design as it is the largest wild cat native to the CANADIAN province.
He hoped it would scare kids away14.
Satinator: Which worked out about as well as the Reefer Madness
propaganda film campaigns. And Sy often claims to be Canadian
so
Sy: Satine, lets be serious! Ryan Reynolds virtually flaunts the
fact he is from CANADA and he produced and starred in the biggest
R-rated movie of all time. James Cameron was born in
Kapuskasing, CANADA, and he wrote and directed the two highest
grossing films of all time.
Conspiracy Bullet Points:
14
Its bigger and been going on longer than anyone

imagines. Deadpools buddy Wolverine was born James
Howlett in Cold Lake, Alberta, CANADA, during the late
1880s. CANADIANS are known for their icy resolve and
cold determination. It took them 6 years to get Deadpool
made. And James Cameron is so busy putting hidden
subliminal messages in Avatar 2, it wont be out until at
least 2018.
Proof of the insidious Canadian conspiracy to undermine
true American values was uncovered by Jeff Goldsmith, a
true American. In an interview with Deadpool writers Rhett
Reese, Paul Wernick it was revealed the aforementioned
James Cameron read the script and encouraged Fox to
go ahead with the movie. #Busted.
The Canadian government paid for this bit of mind warping
brainwash called Deadpool through fiendishly aggressive
http://www.consumerprotectionbc.ca
152
production tax incentives. They are basically coproducers. #SitOnThat!

Cant you see whats happening, Satine? Will you and three
hundred and twenty-one million true Americans wake up one day and
find all your favorite fructose sweeteners have been replaced by ohso-slow-pouring Maple Syrup?
Satinator: Ill write my congressional rep.
Anyway, Alien was rated R for monster violence, and for
language. IMDBs notes give it 10/10 for cursing: Profanity Almost
pervasive strong language, including frequent usage of the f word;
the theatrical version has 85 uses of it.
Fun fact: William (Neuromancer) Gibson was hired to write the
very first draft of Alien. His story featured militarized space Marxists
and the Sulaco docking at a space station/shopping mall.
#whatmighthavebeen.
From our research, much of the story development of Alien largely
consisted of trying to figure out whether a wooden planet in space
could be logically presented instead of developing the rich backstory
of Ripley and taking the action heroines character to a fresh new
level. No wonder Ms. Weaver insisted Ripley do a xenomorph
assisted backflip right into a fiery [SPOILER]!
SHH SIGOURNEYS SAYING

SOMETHING
The Bitch is back, the Alien trailer intones
They called me about the trailer-of course, it had already been

made, Weaver says. and I said, Am I supposed to be the
bitch? They said, No no no no no-its really like the profile of the
alien against your cheek.
153
I think anyone whos seen Aliens knows that the bitch is this
creature, she says. She sighs. Anyway, there was nothing I
could do about it15.
Sigourney Weaver talked to Roger Ebert about being a top moneymaking action heroine actor: Sigourney Weaver: A woman of action
and drama and comedy January 5, 1995, rogerebert.com
"It [the Variety article] went on and on, Weaver was recalling,
about Arnold and the other top box-office men, and what that
meant about their careers. But it didn't even say, Isn't it
interesting that there's a woman in the top three? They sort of
went, like, it was a fluke.
Sigourney Weaver has said Ellen Ripley is larger than herself as
the actor who portrayed her. Asked to elaborate she said:
I feel like Im a little human soul and when I tap into Ripley I feel
like, because of the writers [woot! woot!] whove created her its
just theres so much story to tell and she holds the story to me.
Shes a very compelling character. I was sort of the vessel so Im
not really the expert, but I can feel people have a connection with
her because of her moral compass and because somehow shes
so consistent. She cant help wanting to preserve humanity. - (LA
Times Hero Complex; woot! woot! added.)
on Flux (2005) The Total In-Depth Analysis, which

Delves more Deeply and Diligently into the Dichotomy of
that film than Anyone has Dared
Satinator: Things started off well. As they often do. A rising female
director with a fresh vision, Karyn Kusama, was hired. Her first feature
had been Girlfight (2000). The highly regarded film won the Cannes
Festival Award of the Youth and launched the still burgeoning mega
career of Michelle Rodriguez.
The cast of on Flux (2005) included Charlize Theron (winner of
Oscar), Sophie Okonedo (future nominee of Oscar) Frances
15
http://www.ew.com/article/1992/05/29/sigourney-weaver-talks-about-
alien3
154
McDormand (winner of Oscar) and Pete Postlethwaite (nominee of

Oscar).
on Flux (2005) was based on a madly successful animated
series by Peter Chung (winner of Primetime Emmy).
on Flux (2005) was green lit budgeted at a reported
$65,000,000.00 at a time in history when that was considered real
money.
Sy: Ok Im ready. Ive put an extended absence greeting on all my
apps. Got two extra yellow legal pads for notes. Hit me with the in
depth stuff!
Satinator: In the words of director Kusama, speaking to BuzzFeed
about how she was hired, then dismissed, then rehired to fix the final
cut in post-production, on Flux (2005) was
A real f&*k-job of a movie.
And so, moving on to
TV we Love
Felicity (TV)
Alias (TV)
Lost (TV)
Fringe (TV)
All outstandingly successful series with hugely influential female
characters created by The Force Awakens writer/director J.J. Abrams.
Seems like someone knows what side the female protagonist bagel is
buttered on.
Archer Hits the Mark!

155
The Archer Film Festival is a high school film festival that strives to
empower female filmmakers. Bad Robot (Abramss production
company) is a sponsor of the festival and is taking action in ensure job
submissions be proportional to the United States population.
Abrams gave the keynote speech and talked about diversity,
stating that theres a benefit to voices not just of women, but people
of color and people that are typically not as well-represented.
Abrams also highlighted how important action is, and encouraged
aspiring female filmmakers to take action after sharing an anecdote
about how director Mike Nichols pushed him to do the same when
Abrams was in his early twenties. Implicit there is also a very valuable
lesson about the importance of mentorship. Nichols and Abrams
worked on Regarding Henry together, with Nichols as director and 24year-old Abrams as writer. Its advice that someone in any field can
really use.
He taught me that my voice was as important as anyones. Not
to say that I know any better. Its critical that you dont walk
around thinking that, but to know that your voice matters. That, to
me, is a really important thing to keep with youBut wherever
the inspiration comes from, when the inspiration comes, I think
the most important thing is action. And figuring out a way to trust
yourself enough and know that your voice is important enough
and that you should express it. - http://www.themarysue.com/jjabrams-archer/
Sy: People cant see this but Satine just did the call me thing with
her hand.
Satinator: Did not! Yknow I think its time we talked about
separate secret lairs.
WUTTUP AT AFI
Sy: American Film Institute (afi.com):
156
The AFI Conservatory's academic program confers either a Master

of Fine Arts Degree or Certificate of Completion. The Master of Fine
Arts Degree or Certificate of Completion is a 60-plus credit hour
program awarded in six disciplines: cinematography, directing, editing,
producing, production design, and screenwriting. Students without an
undergraduate degree complete the same curriculum as the MFA
programs and receive a Certificate of Completion.
Only 140 Fellows are admitted to the program each year 28
cinematographers, 28 directors, 14 editors, 28 producers, 14
production designers and 28 screenwriters.
Enrolment in the Conservatory program was 324 in Fall 2014; 42%
of the students were women. (Source: National Center for Education
Statistics)
The AFI Conservatory Directing Workshop for Women (DWW) is a
separate program. It is a hands-on training program committed to
increasing the number of women working professionally in screen
directing. THE PROGRAM IS TUITION-FREE (Holy Crap!) though
participants are responsible for raising the funds for their projects.
Since the AFI DWW programs inception in 1974, more than 275
women have been trained in screen directing. Among its alumnae are
Maya Angelou, Anne Bancroft, Neema Barnette, Tricia Brock, Ellen
Burstyn, Rebecca Cammisa, Dyan Cannon, Hanelle Culpepper, Jan
Eliasberg, Naomi Foner, Jennifer Getzinger, Lyn Goldfarb, Randa
Haines, Victoria Hochberg, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Matia Karrell,
Lesli Linka Glatter, Lynne Littman, Nancy Malone, Becky Smith,
Cicely Tyson and Joanne Woodward. (variety.com)
AFI said, While great strides have been made to lessen the gap of
working female directors in the film community, there are still limited
training opportunities for directors with diverse visions who want to
work in the changing landscape of episodic storytelling across multiple
platforms. AFIs DWW will provide aspiring female directors the
opportunity to develop their skills as storytellers across multiple
platforms, working in an environment where they can gain insights
from accomplished mentors working in the field of directing.
157
Past mentors have included AFI Conservatory alumnus Patty

Jenkins (The Killing, Monster, currently directing Wonder Woman,
2017) and Kimberly Peirce (Boys Dont Cry, Carrie).
In 2014 the program received generous support from The Will &
Jada Smith Family Foundation and NBCUniversal.
You can play a part in American film and support this tuition-free
(Holy Crap!) program with a donation http://www.afi.com/dww/
MISSISSIPPI FILMIN
Sy: In fact the more they increase their cash incentives for film
production in that state (filmmississippi.org), the more we are
positively warming up to The Hospitality State, despite what pickers
may tweet at us.
Notable writers, performers, and galactic nemeses originally from
Mississippi include:
Darth Vader (born James Earl Jones, O Nom), Oprah Winfrey
O Nom, Lacey Chabert, Morgan Freeman O Winner, Jim Henson
O Nom, Gerald McRaney, Parker Posey, Jamie Lynn Spears, Sela
Ward, Elvis (last week spotted near the town of Alligator pop. 208 + 1
King), John Grisham, Charlaine Harris, Thomas Harris, Kathryn
Stockett, Jesmyn Ward, Eudora Welty, Tennessee Williams O Nom,
and of course: William Faulkner who was a pretty handy screenwriter The Big Sleep (1946) - and gave the best acceptance speech ever
receiving his 1949 Nobel Prize, while he was TOTALLY WASTED!!!
#Respect.
Satinator: We are only really down on those few members of the
state bureaucracy who are, to this very day, pissed off at the
outcomes of:
the struggle for gay marriage (LGBT persons in Mississippi face
legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. State law
158
does not address hate crimes based on gender identity or sexual

orientation.wikia),
the fight for women's suffrage,
and the entire Civil War.
Sy: Still, we aint hatin. Now if they could just do something about
that state flag. Im sure France would let them use the red, white and
blue.
VS. VS. VS.

Sy: Oh yeah, I nearly forgot, Satine, we never found out who
would win in a team-up heroines vs heroes MAIN CARD Boss Fight:
Ripley & Katniss vs. Luke & Beowulf
Satinator: OMG
Sy: Sure youre saying Lightsaber: THE END, right? But what if
Ripley had a Power Loader and Katniss had one of the laser melee
weapons that can beat a lightsaber like the General Grievous staff or
the tonfa mace in TFA
159
160
MORE WORDS!
Appendix
(FRANCHISE BODYBUILDER)
HOW TO CON VERT A C EDAR CLOSET

INTO A SAUNA
OR
HOW TO USE YOUR ACTION HEROIN ES
CO MM I TT ED WOR LD ( ST E P 1 )
TO BU ILD A FRANCHISE
The first thing I did was give Ripley a past, a life back on
Earth, - James Cameron describes his process when he set about
conceiving Aliens.
Sy: We wouldnt be the first to parrot the common wisdom that

franchises are a huge part of the modern film industry. In a widely
publicized memo back in 1991 Jeffery Katzenberg pretty much
affirmed it. And look, heres some latecomers to the bandwagon:
The Importance of a Franchise in the Movie Industry yuppee.com
161
The
Future
of
Franchising:
The
Shared
Universe
flickeringmyth.com
In 2015, 10 of the 12 highest grossing films were part of existing IP

or outright sequels. Over 25% of box office receipts came from 5
(count em, five) films.
Satinator: So? Whats your compulsive number crunching got to
do with our Action Heroines Journey?
Sy: Well, if you want your heroine to have any kind of journey at
all, maybe one of the first things to figure right out of the gate is how
she can have more than one adventure.
James Cameron said, Story tends to be the last thing people think
about when theyre considering sequels. I like to think he used a
mildly disapproving but understanding tone when he said that.
(BONUS HINT: Killing off all your wonderful action heroines
buddies and dropping her in a vat of magma, or drowning and then
eviscerating her will not eliminate your sequel options but may limit
them or require a future-past reboot. You have been warned.)
While there are plenty of articles on world-building and the rules of
sequels (eg: more enemies, bigger explosions) were going to focus
on character and backstory and tie these into the action heroines very
first step: Her Committed World.
Satinator: All set. Let her rip!
Sy: I thought last week you said youd prepare this one.
Oooooooooooooook, lets wing it.
Lets try to find some common ground for each of Ripley, Katniss
and Sarah Connor. Theyve each been the focal protagonist in
multiple films and in Sarahs case also a big budget TV series. What
makes each action heroine fresh and exciting through multiple
iterations?
162
Ripley: She has no special weapon or suit of flying armor. The core
of her character as it was revealed during the spaceship of horrors
stress of Alien and then expanded upon in the next film is determined
innovation to overcome a physically disadvantaged situation. She
cannot kick the crap out of the alien with her own strength she must
find a way to win for herself and those she has to protect. She uses
tools: notably a grappling hook and a Power Loader.
Disadvantage: Being tied to fighting one semi-sentient type of
monster. Even Ms. Weaver said by the third film: "I felt that Ripley was
going to become a burden to the story ... There are only so many
aspects to that character you can do." (Cinescape, cited on
michaelbiehn.co.uk). To be fair, by Alien the studio was planning to
kill all the friends she made in Aliens, convinced her to shave her
head and worst of all cut out from the script swaths of Ellen Ripleys
backstory which could have depthified and energized future iterations
(Last in Space ew.com).
Frankly, Ripley is too smart for her opponent. In William
(Neuromancer) Gibsons draft of Alien the android Bishop (exquisitely
played by Lance Henriksen) suggests they track the aliens back to
their home world and kill them (a la Heinleins Starship Troopers).
This is a Darwinian universe, Hicks. Will the alien be the ultimate
survivor, or will man? If the sapient humanoids admonition is to have
weight, the notional intelligence of the xenomorph would have had to
be upped at some point. As Hudson said in the second film Theyre
animals. Just before he got outflanked and eaten.
Satinator: However, lack of advanced language and calculus skills
has not stopped the alien from going on to make films by itself
(wonder if it has an agent and manager?). Alien vs. Predator and
Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem were both smaller scale films but quite
successful.
The good news is thanks to Ridley Scott, Jon Spaihts and Damon
Lindelof, the Alien world has been depthified by a return to LV-223 in
the chronological prequel Prometheus. According to some sources the
163
next installment Alien: Covenant may have some connection with

Ellen Ripley. Which could tie in nicely to the blogged about Neill
(District 9) Blomkamp project Alien 5 of which Weaver said to Variety:
Its got a lot of sinew in it. It will certainly stand up to the others
and probably break a lot of new ground as well.
Just like careful maintenance of cropland, filmmakers can harvest
the same franchise fields successfully season after season, but only if
they have the wisdom to put character development first and foremost
as they did with Ripley in the first two Alien films.
Sy: Now onto an action heroine whos been in four huge smash
hits and has all the cool toys: Katniss Everdeen!
Shes got bows and arrows, the Mockingjay pin, the three finger
salute, the theme song whistle. And beyond just being distinctive,
each one of these story artifacts holds special resonance for the
personal history of the action heroine. Her best bow was made by her
father, she hides it in the hollow of a tree just beyond the District 12
perimeter fence. The mockingjay pin was given to her by a kindly
character (film: Hob Vendor; book: Madge Undersee the mayors
daughter). The three finger salute is a regional gesture, understood by
all her neighbors. The theme notes evoke Rue from District 11,
Katnisss junior ally in the arena.
The important thing is all of these story artifacts exist before the
Inciting Incident and then are given clear meaning and sharp
iconographic energy as they seem, effortlessly, to surface during the
narrative.
Satinator: That kind of effortlessness, it takes a lot of effort.
Symbols alone do not build character or win Panem revolutions.
But notice how powerful it can be to associate images, sounds,
objects and implements with all that is best in your action heroine.
This is more about symbolism as it relates to the story, not symbols
just for merchandizing. Your audience will see right through that.
164
Katnisss weaknesses: She needs to break out of the arena mold.

All three installments in the trilogy are based either in an actual arena
setting or use that very distinct visual language to drive the narrative
(her allies picked off one after the other, traps, muttations, and
miniature parachutes).
Maybe the character arc of Katniss on the big screen is done.
Some people were making pining noises about further adventures
featuring the fearless Girl on Fire.
Sy: Ill try to muffle my outbursts of pining. You know Katniss has a
lot more in her story, SHE knows she has a lot more in her story. With
Panem in disarray, maybe theres civil war, maybe theres an invasion
by marauding mutant Maori (!) and everyones favorite girl archer
could develop into a freedom fighting Robinne Hood.
Satinator: I was talking about the pining of people whose ideas
actually matter: the Hunger Games writers and producers. If they do
consider continuing the storyline and want to be true to Collinss
character, they will have to harken back to the core traits Katniss
already possessed when we found her in Her Committed World.
Sy: Now on to the one of the few action heroines who has been
played by several actors: Sarah Connor. Clearly that makes her more
like James Bond, Wonder Woman and Batman in films.
As well as the feature films, there was a very popular (10 million
viewers) TV series, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles starring
Lena Heady, Brian Green and Summer Glau. Which incidentally
makes two actors from Game of Thrones who have played Sarah. The
most recent being Emilia Clarke in Terminator Genisys.
While Sarah Connor does not have any particular superpower or
weapon of choice, there are hallmarks of what she brings to an action
narrative:
A robust innovative physicality. Shes not the 90 pound girl kung fu
kicking the cyborg through windows. Shes not Arnie in a dress. But if
165
Sarah finds herself in a straight jacket and only has a paperclip, pretty
much you know shes going to find a believable way to get free.
A commitment to try to alter a really bad future for her son John, or
prepare him for the worst if she cannot.
A guarded acceptance of former foes as allies. For example in T-2
the reprogrammed T-800 and Dr. Miles Dyson, and in TVs Sarah
Connor Chronicles Cameron (!) the Terminator (Summer Glau) and
Derek Reese. Had that series gone on she may even have tried to coopt the boss Terminator the T-1001.
Satinator: Speaking of television, thats where you absolutely
NEED to have a backstory arising out of your heroines Committed
World that keeps on giving. And giving. And giving enough for 23
forty-two minute episodes per year plus a Holiday Special.
Sy: The showrunners of the action-adventure drama television
series Supergirl on CBS were faced with that problem. In fact things
looked very grim for our girl in blue and red. Superman is present in
her world, albeit in a different city. Smallville (Clark Kent as a young
man) ran for 10 years and 218 episodes. What possibly could the
writers do with Kara Zor-El that was not going to be a warmed over
rehash of her much more famous cousins legend? The odds were
stacked mightily against Kara before she ever unfurled her cape!
Satinator: And then?
Sy: After a brilliant bit of luck casting Melissa Benoist as the title
character, the shows bible has clearly built a backbone on the
superheroines Committed World. Firstly, shes older when she leaves
Krypton. Shes 12. In human years just let me think, uh
Satinator: Thats still 12.
Sy: Thanks. Also Kara Zor-El was sent with a specific mission: to
help her cousin on this weird planet. Along with the burden of
166
expectation she also has a lot that Kent does not. Kara has first-hand
memories of Krypton, its people, rituals, foods, music. The
depthification Her Committed World provides to the story is the spark
that set off a serialized success: 97% approval rating on Rotten
Tomatoes and an average of 10 million total viewers per episode so
far!
Yes Satine, Kara Zor-El packed her Kryptonian baggage and is on
a trip to Successville.
Satinator: (makes sharp inhalation, as though in pain)
As a reality check (and, working with Syrus, you bet I have a
perma-stickie on my monitor screen to do just that at regular intervals)
lets contrast some indisputable male action franchise champs:
James Bond: 26 films and counting
Batman: 11 theatrical films (including the 1940s serials)
The major advantage the guys seem to have is a deeply seated,
well defined backstory that dates chronologically from before their first
adventure. In the case of Batman, Christopher Nolan and David Goyer
successfully mined Bruces origin for the trilogy igniter Batman Begins.
What the enduring hero does always comes from who he is and
that is shaped by an established past event, history or the legacy he
receives. This is, in our opinion far more important than having a
multiplicity of different enemies to fight or varying settings in which
those fights take place.
The legacies of these heroes which has normally been internalized
by the audience gives instant, deep and resonating meaning to the
otherwise superficial objects associated with the characters:
The Walther pistol is like the sword Excalibur and in 007s hands it
invokes the same protector of the Realm signification.
The Batmobile instantly invokes the Batcave, the darkness and the
creatures there and the driving shadow within Bruce Wayne.
167
Sy: These types of character traits are known as canon. You can
redesign and modernize, but at the core of the most enduring action
heroes are backstory and rules you just dont mess with.
For example, people totally noticed when Christopher Nolan
changed the movie Zorro to the operetta Die Fledermaus on the night
Bruce Waynes parents are murdered. But since Die Fledermaus
means The Bat most ardent fans have come to accept this swerve
from accepted tradition (rambles.net).
Of course if you really want to feel the Wrath of the Canon Zealot,
just try gender flipping a space pilot action hero/heroine. Katee
Sackhoff definitely braved the heat of a hundred Viper thrusters after it
was announced she would play Lieutenant Starbuck. In the original
1978 series the character was male. In the universally acclaimed
SyFy reboot of Battlestar Galactica, she was, ah, a she!
"I was booed, Sackhoff said after the 2004 San Diego Comic Con.
It was lovely (Sackhoff sarcasm). At that point, I'd seen the miniseries
and I knew I'd done a good job. I had my confidence back. I didn't
care anymore." (ew.com, Sackhoff sarcasm added.)
Satinator: Go Katee, woot!
Besides the three we have looked at in depth, other successful
action heroine franchises are:
Selene (Kate Beckinsale) the vampire in the Underworld
series
Lara Croft (Angelina Jolie) from the Tomb Raider duology
Alice (Milla Jovovich) from Resident Evil
And the upcoming franchise jump-starters:
Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) (2017)
Captain Marvel (???) (2019)
Black Widow (????)
See if you can identify their iconography and the tenets of their
character canon and how those arise out of each protagonists
Committed World.
168
169
HAAYYYAHHH!!!
Story-Fu Secrets
from the Shao Lin
Temple
Y: WE TH IN K A D EEP consideration of the heroines start

point meshes really well with the advice given by Oscar
winner Michael Arndt (Toy Story 3, Catching Fire, The Force
Awakens) that the Introduction / Ordinary World / Committed World
feature clear expectations of the heroine for her future. The disruption
caused by the inciting incident is then able to be shared by the
audience.
The writer/producer also shared a little story-fu trick at a Toronto
Screenwriting seminar.
Uhh
I dont know, Satine, are we supposed to talk about story-fu tricks,
yknow out loud?
170
Satinator: Goon, its not like that other group youre always
bugging me to join, Story Fight Club.
Sy: Ok. The trick is freeze frame visualize the worst possible
thing that can happen to your protagonist which also sets the plot in
motion. Then reverse engineer back to the Ordinary World to show
how they come to be in that spot. At once youve got a clip for the
trailer which gives nothing away and teases the lead up to the Act 1
break.
Satinator: Thats pretty sneaky.
Sy: No one ever said writing was fair.
And heres some very exclusive writers resource references that are
worth the cost of this book. Each.
Writers on Genre, 2008, produced by the Writers Guild
Foundation.
And
The Dialogue - Learning From the Masters Dozens of
interviews with some of Hollywoods Hottest Screenwriters. High
powered producer Mike (Rush Hour 2, Fifty Shades of Grey) De Luca
somehow found time between being nominated for Oscars to
compile this brilliant set of one-on-ones.
And
Anatomy of a Script with Susannah Grant, Nancy Meyers,
Callie Khouri and many others, this series is also produced by the
Writers Guild Foundation which has 93 views, half of them ours.
Really great Masterclass level stuff with the greatest screenwriters
ever. Known to few people. Now known to you.
171
Youre welcome!
172
List of Oscar Winning and Nominated

Women Screenwriters
Sy: (and fun facts and inspiring quotes, the compiling of16 which
was way too much like real work. Just so everyone knows.)
Dont give up. Youre going to get kicked in the teeth. A lot.
Learn to take a hit, then pick yourself up off the floor. Resilience
is the true key to success.
Melissa Rosenberg (Twilight, Dexter)
One nice thing about being a woman in Hollywood is that the

women tend to be very close-knit. All of us writers and directors
know each other and cling to each other for safety and support.
Diablo Cody (Juno, Young Adult)
If you want to be a screenwriter, take an acting class to get a

sense of what youre asking actors to do. Learning other skills will
help you communicate with people and respect what they do.
Tina Fey (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, 30 Rock)
If theres specific resistance to women making movies, I just

choose to ignore that as an obstacle for two reasons: I cant
change my gender, and I refuse to stop making movies.
Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty)
Fun Fact: the second Academy Awards were held in 1930. The
event and the presentation ceremony lasted about thirty minutes.
There was some confusion about who was nominated, the host
16
Compiled quotes via screencraft.org & screenplayscripts.com and wikia quotes.

Other data courtesy of imdb.com.
173
William C. DeMille had a list, which was in his pocket, then he had a
drink and well, everyone recalls Bess and Josephine did a swell job
on these here fine films and deserved to be on the final list which was
compiled when everyone sobered up. #F**kProhibition
Bess Meredyth
A Woman of Affairs (1928) Nominated
Wonder of Women (1929) Nominated
Josephine Lovett
Our Dancing Daughters (1928) Nominated
Frances Marion
The Big House (1930) WINNER!
The Champ (1931) WINNER!
The Prizefighter and the Lady (1933) Nominated
Sarah Y. Mason
Little Women (1933) WINNER!
Sonya Levien
State Fair (1933) Nominated
Interrupted Melody (1955) WINNER!
Lenore J. Coffee
Four Daughters (1938) Nominated
Elizabeth Hill
The Citadel (1938) Nominated
Dorothy Parker
A Star Is Born (1937) Nominated
Smash-Up: The Story of a Woman (1947) Nominated
Sy: Just that title deserves SOME kind of award: Smash-Up: The Story of
a Woman.
Joan Harrison
Foreign Correspondent (1940) Nominated
Rebecca (1940) Nominated
Lillian Hellman
The Little Foxes (1941) Nominated
The North Star (1943) Nominated
Claudine West
Goodbye Mr. Chips (1939) Nominated
Mrs. Miniver (1942) WINNER!
174

Random Harvest (1942) Nominated
Elizabeth Reinhardt
Laura (1944) Nominated
Gladys Lehman
Two Girls and a Sailor (1944) Nominated
Muriel Box
The Seventh Veil (1945) WINNER!
Tess Slesinger
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945) Nominated
Sally Benson
Anna and the King of Siam (1946) Nominated
Ruth Gordon
A Double Life (1947) Nominated
Adam's Rib (1949) Nominated
Pat and Mike (1952) Nominated
Fun Fact: Yes, this is the same Ruth Gordon who won an Oscar for Best
supporting Actress in Rosemarys Baby (1968). Academy members claimed
an icy will that drew breath from the darkest parts of the cosmos made them
vote for her. #ThatWorks4Me
Irma von Cube
Johnny Belinda (1948) Nominated
Janice Loeb
The Quiet One (1948) Nominated
Fun Fact: Janice Loeb was also a hugely talented cinematographer who
produced the Nominated documentary The Quiet One (1948).
Virginia Kellogg
White Heat (1949) Nominated
Caged (1950) Nominated
Helen Deutsch
Lili (1953) Nominated
Betty Comden
The Band Wagon (1953) Nominated
It's Always Fair Weather (1955) Nominated
Frances Goodrich
The Thin Man (1934) Nominated
After the Thin Man (1936) Nominated
175

Father of the Bride (1950) Nominated
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) Nominated
Fun Fact: Along with 4 Nom noms, Frances Goodrich won the 1956
Pulitzer Prize for Drama for the play "The Diary of Anne Frank" with Albert
Hackett. She also got credit for the screenplay of It's a Wonderful Life (1946).
Dorothy Kingsley
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) Nominated
Isobel Lennart
Love Me or Leave Me (1955) Nominated
The Sundowners (1960) Nominated
Fay Kanin
Teacher's Pet (1958) Nominated
Fun Fact: Fay Kanin was President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts
and Sciencesfrom19791983.
Marguerite Duras
Hiroshima mon amour (1959) Nominated
Fun Fact: Marguerite Duras grew up on poor subsistence farms in
Vietnam and Cambodia. Later she spied for the French Resistance during
World War II.
Eleanor Perry
David and Lisa (1962) Nominated
Ariane Mnouchkine
L'homme de Rio (1964) Nominated
Bridget Boland
Anne of the Thousand Days (1969) Nominated
Rene Taylor
Lovers and Other Strangers (1970) Nominated
Penelope Gilliatt
Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971) Nominated
Suzanne De Passe
Lady Sings the Blues (1972) Nominated
Gloria Katz
American Graffiti (1973) Nominated
176

Fun Fact: Gloria Katz also wrote Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom,
(1984) as well as the How did the Academy ever overlook this one film
Howard the Duck (1986).
Suzanne Schiffman
La nuit amricaine (1973) Nominated
Gladys Hill
The Man Who Would Be King (1975) Nominated
Lina Wertmller
Pasqualino Settebellezze (1975) (aka Seven Beauties) Nominated
Fun Fact: Wertmllers nomination for directing the same film was also
the first time a woman was nominated for Best Director.
Danile Thompson
Cousin cousine (1975) Nominated
Nancy Dowd
Coming Home (1978) WINNER!
Fun Fact: Nancy Dowds involvement in the Slapshot series led to
allegations she was involved in the Canadian Conspiracy. Nothing was ever
proven, eh.
Valerie Curtin
...and justice for all. (1979) Nominated
Harriet Frank, Jr.
Hud (1963) Nominated
Norma Rae (1979) Nominated
Fun Fact: Actor Patricia Neal initially read her part in the script for Hud
and commented Well, its not a very big part. Later after she won the Oscar
for Best Actress in a Leading Role she sent Harriet Frank a telegram saying
Its big enough!
Another Fun Fact: instead of going to the ceremony Harriet Frank let her
writing partner / husband Irving Ravetch go.
Well, I knew damn well we werent going to win, She said later. When
asked how she could know that she replied, Well, I did. And I was right.
Irvings more brave than I am, so he went alone. But Im smart. I went to
Paris instead! - (Michigan Quarterly Review)
Elaine May
Heaven Can Wait (1978) Nominated
Primary Colors (1998) Nominated
177

Fun Fact: Elaine May wrote and directed Ishtar (1987). Dont laugh, she
gets a royalty every time the film is used as the punchline of a joke.
(Sy: Crap I think we owe her $3.33 now!)
Nancy Meyers
Private Benjamin (1980) Nominated
Fun Fact: Nancy Meyers is the highest grossing female director. Her films
gross an average of over $100,000,000.00 each.
Jay Presson Allen
Cabaret (1972) Nominated
Prince of the City (1981) Nominated
Melissa Mathison
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) Nominated
Anna Thomas
El Norte (1983) Nominated
Barbara Benedek
The Big Chill (1983) Nominated
Alice Arlen
Silkwood (1983) Nominated
Nora Ephron
Silkwood (1983) Nominated
When Harry Met Sally... (1989) Nominated
Sleepless in Seattle (1993) Nominated
Fun Fact: The Nora Ephron Prize is a $25,000 award by the Tribeca Film
Festival for a female writer or filmmaker "with a distinctive voice." (Sy: Satine
totally has dibs on this.)
Ada Bortnik
La historia oficial (1985) Nominated
Beth Henley
Crimes of the Heart (1986) Nominated
Anna Hamilton Phelan
Gorillas in the Mist: The Story of Dian Fossey (1988) Nominated
Pamela Wallace
Witness (1985) WINNER!
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
A Room with a View (1985) WINNER!
Howards End (1992) WINNER!
Remains of the Day (1993) Nominated
178

Anne Spielberg
Big (1988) Nominated
Naomi Foner
Running on Empty (1988) Nominated
Fun fact: besides being a crackin good writer, Naomi Foner is the mother
of Maggie Gyllenhaal and Jake Gyllenhaal.
Agnieszka Holland
Europa Europa (1990) Nominated
Carol Sobieski
Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) Nominated
Fannie Flagg
Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) Nominated
Callie Khouri
Thelma & Louise (1991) WINNER!
Becky Johnston
The Prince of Tides (1991) Nominated
Meg Kasdan
Grand Canyon (1991) Nominated
Jane Campion
The Piano (1993) WINNER!
Anna Pavignano
Il Postino (1994) Nominated
Emma Thompson
Sense and Sensibility (1995) WINNER!
Hilary Henkin
Wag the Dog (1997) Nominated
Susannah Grant
Erin Brockovich (2000) Nominated
Nia Vardalos
My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002) Nominated
Naomi Sheridan
In America (2002) Nominated
Kirsten Sheridan
In America (2002) Nominated
179

Sofia Coppola
Lost in Translation (2003) WINNER!
Shari Springer Berman
American Splendor (2003) Nominated
Fran Walsh
Heavenly Creatures (1994) Nominated
The Lord of the Rings: FOTR (2001) Nominated
The Lord of the Rings: ROTK (2003) WINNER!
Fun Fact: In 2004 Fran Walsh was well advised to bring her biggest
Birken bag to the Academy ceremonies, she triple dipped on LOTR:ROTK,
taking home 3 (three) Oscars for writing, producing and music.
Philippa Boyens
The Lord of the Rings: FOTR (2001) Nominated
The Lord of the Rings: ROTK (2003) WINNER!
Julie Delpy
Before Sunset (2004) Nominated
Before Midnight (2013) Nominated
Diana Ossana
Brokeback Mountain (2005) WINNER!
Sarah Polley
Away from Her (2006) Nominated
Fun fact: Sarah Polley lives openly CANADIAN. Our sources indicate she
is intricately connected to the powerful Frost Elites of the Great White North.
#FairWarning
Iris Yamashita
Letters from Iwo Jima (2006) Nominated
Tamara Jenkins
The Savages (2007) Nominated
Nancy Oliver
Lars and the Real Girl (2007) Nominated
Diablo Cody
Juno (2007) WINNER!
Courtney Hunt
Frozen River (2008) Nominated
Terri Tatchell
180

District 9 (2009) Nominated
Lisa Cholodenko
The Kids Are All Right (2010) Nominated
Debra Granik
Winter's Bone (2010) Nominated
Anne Rosellini
Winter's Bone (2010) Nominated
Sy: FUN FACT: Winters Bone was JLaws breakout role, was nominated
for 4 Oscars, nabbed another 61 wins & 117 nominations and best of all is
featured in the worlds authoritative guide to structuring action heroine
screenplays!!!
Annie Mumolo
Bridesmaids (2011) Nominated
Kristen Wiig
Bridesmaids (2011) Nominated
Satinator: FUN FACT: There is a wiki page on all the nominations Kristen
17
Wiig has received . Wiig received seven consecutive Emmy Awards
nominations. And Syrus dont say it, dont you even think
Sy: Nom Nom Nom, you know what they say, Always a Bridesmaid
Satinator: Thats it! Youre banned from this Appendix. Consider yourself
Appendectomied.
Bridget OConnor
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) Nominated
Lucy Alibar
Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) Nominated
Melisa Wallack
Dallas Buyers Club (2013) Nominated
Meg LeFauve
Inside Out (2015) Nominated
Phyllis Nagy
Carol (2015) Nominated
17
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_awards_and_nominations_received_by_Kristen_Wii
g.
181

Andrea Berloff
Straight Outta Compton (2015) Nominated
Emma Donoghue
Room (2015) Nominated
Whats the trick to writing a genuinely funny comedy? The trick

is therapy. Take notes.
Lake Bell (In a World)
It seems that the greatest difficulty is to find the end. Dont try
to find it, its there already.
Sophia Coppola (Lost in Translation, The Virgin Suicides)
Whats the trick to writing a great female character? Make her

human.
Nicole Holofcener (Lovely & Amazing, Friends with Money)
Let your characters talk to each other and do things. Spend

time with them theyll tell you who they are and what theyre up
to.
Greta Gerwig (Frances Ha, Hannah Takes the Stairs)
Dont lose faith in what you are trying to do, even though you
will get pummeled emotionally left and right. There are a lot of
NOs to any YES. And thats OK.
Jennifer Lee (Frozen, Wreckit Ralph)
Young writers seem to forget that people in the industry are

desperate for good material. The business isnt constructed to
keep you out of it, but to bring you into it.
Aline Brosh McKenna (The Devil Wears Prada, 27 Dresses)
182
A SMALL LIST OF FEMALE HERO MOVIES &

their Main Characters
on Flux from on Flux (2005)
Alex Munday from Charlie's Angels (2000)
Alice from the Resident Evil film series (2002-2012)
Beatrix Kiddo from Kill Bill (2003-2004)
Buffy Summers from Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992)
Captain Frankie Cook from Sky Captain and the World of
- Tomorrow
Cherry Darling and Zo Bell from Grindhouse (2007)
Coffy from Coffy (1973)
Dylan Sanders from Charlie's Angels (2000)
Elastigirl from The Incredibles (2004)
Ellen "The Lady" from The Quick and the Dead (1995)
Ellen Ripley from the Alien series
owyn of The Lord of the Rings film series (2001-2003)
Everly from Everly (2014)
Evelyn Salt from Salt (2010)
Fox from Wanted (2008)
Foxy Brown from Foxy Brown (1974)
Guinevere from King Arthur
Imperator Furiosa from Mad Max: Fury Road (2014)
Inspector Jessica Yang from Supercop (1992)
Jackie Brown from Jackie Brown (film) (1997)
Jen Yu from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
Jordan O'Neil from G.I. Jane
Julie Pierce from The Next Karate Kid (1994)
Lara Croft from Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) and Lara Croft
- Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003)
Lucy from Lucy (2014)
Mallory Kane from Haywire (2011)
Mathilda from The Professional (1994)
Mei from House of Flying Daggers (2004)
183
Natalie Cook from Charlie's Angels (2000)

Newt from Aliens (1986)
Neytiri from Avatar (2009)
Nikita from La Femme Nikita (1990)
Padm Amidala from the Star Wars prequel trilogy
Pauline in the movie serial The Perils of Pauline
Princess Leia Organa from Star Wars
Rey from Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Sarah Connor from the Terminator franchise
Selene from the Underworld film series (2003present)
Sgt. Rita Rose Vrataski from Edge of Tomorrow (2014)
Tank Girl from Tank Girl (1995)
Trinity from The Matrix series[4]
Yu Shu Lien from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
Yuki Kashima from Lady Snowblood (1973) and Lady Snowblood
2: - Love Song of Vengeance (1974)
Zen from Chocolate (2008)
THIS IS AN INDIE PUBLISHING

PROJECT.
REVIEWS HELP OTHER READERS FIND BOOKS
184
Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads.com, they all help. We

appreciate all reviews, send us the link to yours and possibly qualify
for the Advanced Readers Copy of our next project.
Reviews@theActionHeroinesJourney.com
www.facebook.com/theactionheroinesjourney
@satinephoenix Or if you must: @rksyrus (follow at your own risk!)
For Signings or Bookings:
Booking@theActionHeroinesJourney.com
Sign up to learn more about our books and receive special offers.
www.theActionHeroinesJourney.com
185
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188
THE ACTION HEROINES JOURNEY
SATINE PHOENIX: She has a lively, playful disposition, which

delights in anything ridiculous. @satinephoenix
RK SYRUS: A robust and combative urchin, by the age of twentyfour he had begun to struggle against the yoke and authority of his
nurse. @rksyrus
CONTACT / SIGNUP FOR UPDATES / GIVE GENEROUSLY TO

OUR MERCEDES S Series FUND.
WE NEED ONE TWO, WE NEED 2.
theactionheroinesjourney.com
NEW PRAETORIANS SECRET LAIR:

Book your next evil gathering NOW: info@newpraetorians.com
Satinator: One day, Sy, Ill find whoever taught you Photoshop,
and there will be blood!
189
190
You can read Satine Phoenix & RK Syruss sci-fi Graphic Novel
Series New Praetorians by going to NewPraetorians.com or catch
Satine at one of the Southern California Comic Book Conventions.
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The Action

Satine Phoenix & RK Syrus

1. Motion Picture Authorship. 2. Mythology - Monomyth (Sociology).

Awakening to Her Adventure (M R . V S C A L L T O

Finding the Mentor Within (M R . V S M E E T I N G W I T H

The Heroine Blooms (M R . V S T H E H E R O P A S S E S

Her Approach to the Innermost Cave (Is an Approach of

The Road Ahead of Her (M R . V S T H E R O A D B A C K ) 95

Action Heroine Curriculum Vitae ................................... 112