Screenplay ideas found in everyday college situations

My roommate and I both have our own methods for this process, but the purpose is the same -- to take advantage of this microcosm of society that is dear old Penn State University and write down all the important stuff, the interesting people you see along the way. There really is a lot of promising movie material going on in the growing metropolis of State College, Pa.

I tend to take snippets of conversations (editing for style and grammar of course) and compile them in a notebook or the back of my head. Derek is a bit more serious, promising young film major he is, waking up at night once and jotting down an entire 10 minutes of the screenplay extracted from a dream.

During this investigation of the world around me, I discovered that some of the most intellectually stimulating dialogue generated during the college years happens on the phone.

Cordless phones lend to such good material when you catch a piece of someone else's conversation, such as this gem of misguided testosterone overheard as a poor guy was getting shot down in flames.

"Yo, check this out, what are you doing like this Thursday?"

"Check this out . . . ?"

Now, someone in a more intelligent galaxy than ours, on the outer reaches of the universe, has got to be listening in and enjoying this. Just the same, he is laughing at another ancient ritual of collegedom that could easily fit into a movie scene. Four friends are standing in the rain in front of a house for two hours on a Friday night.

Listening closer, the eavesdropper hears the conversation being spun in front of the oak doors:

"OK, I know this guy, Matt, he's a brother here, I think. And I also know Bob, Mike, Bill, Tim . . . no, um . . . see, those girls there, we're with them, I swear."

See how stereotyping and generalizing, while not politically correct, can be fun and entertaining?

The climax in the movie would come quite brilliantly I am sure. Here's one idea:

The population of the University keeps growing, until walking to class becomes nearly impossible. The students protest and ask for something to be done. The administration gets a good piece of advice -- put up some lovely concrete barriers along the major walkways on campus. The students cheer.

The students try to walk to class the next day. The students stage a protest to have the barriers removed.

Now, it's serious, and the venerable Undergraduate Student Government steps in. Will B. Republican III (senior-politics) proposes a bill that asks the University to take down the barriers.

However, following three hours of intense debate, another bill is passed that disallows them to pass bills that ask the University to do something like that, and somewhere in the ensuing confusion, pass another bill accidentally disbanding themselves.

See, all you have to do is take the time to observe everything that goes on around you and then compress and condense it into stereotypes. Then you can create all the characters necessary for you own movie. And take a minute or two to talk to that guy that hangs out in front of Subway late at night, he's gotta fit in somehow.

And if I ever do make that movie, stay for the credits, your name just might be in there somewhere.