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right - no idea if this will work but LET’S MAKE A CHRISTMAS FILM. there are only about four or five variations, with set formulas, so how hard can it be?
first thing’s first - where is it set?
where is said small town?
please note i will ignore this if the vote goes to ‘sunny’, this thing’s going to be set in Wisconsin or something
the male / female lead dynamic - who arrives at the snowy small town from the big city, and who’s already there?
next important decision - what does she do for a living?
also - her relationship status:
and what about him? well, only a couple of options really:
something in the small town is under threat from closure - but what? this is a tough one, hence TWO GROUPS. group 1:
thing in small town that’s under threat from closure - group 2:
so - now we know what female lead does for a living (PA to pushy boss 
) what does she *really* want to do/be?
) what does she *really* want to do/be?
plot device - why does she end up in small town?
as Executive Producer i’ve taken the decision that lead male is going to be a single dad, with an [spins wheel] 8-yr-old boy.
next step - how do they meet/interact?
going to skip over the possibility that they know each other - ie old school friends who were always meant to be together but never quite made it happen- as that usually necessitates the small town being the arriver’s home town, and previous decisions exclude that (i think)
whenever he’s outside, will the male lead ever wrap his scarf around his neck properly or do up his coat when it’s supposed to be freezing?
which Christmas town tradition is happening in 2 days which, despite her initial attempts to leave, she will inevitably participate in:
budget question: what kind of snow are we having?
quick mid-thread break to answer some questions...
this was a tough one - architect was on the shortlist, alongside interior designer, high-end fashion (magazine?), actress, retail executive and corporate publisher https://twitter.com/_shenton/status/1335879205897334787
we have our screenwriter https://twitter.com/pro_elbows/status/1335995083343204357
good point - i’m going to cover myself and retrospectively combine a tree lighting ceremony with the parade/pageant https://twitter.com/niamhoniamh/status/1336027898109681665
other than not being able to wear a scarf properly, we don’t know much about him - what does he do?
* for choice one, let’s assume it’s a) the store originally opened by his late wife that he can’t let go but he’s struggling to keep open, and therefore b) its the place that’s under threat of closure (as per previous decisions above )
)
ok FINE, he’s a teacher - but only part-time because he also runs his late wife’s bakery. but he *loves* teaching and a new promotion has opened up at the school, but he has to commit to it full time...
IF ONLY THERE WAS SOMEONE HE KNEW WHO’S ULTIMATE DREAM IS TO RUN THEIR OWN BAKERY 
anyway, before we get to that - what crisis will kick off our third act?
to clarify/expand on a couple of points: a variation on option 1 is that she gets told she’ll be fired unless she returns. either way, it’s back to the Big City for her.
option 4 (misconstrued hug) has multiple variations of course - one happens to see the other in the arms of what they see as a threat to their blossoming relationship, but of course it’s just a hot best friend/colleague etc. can be combined of with option 3 (ex turning up), obvs.
and so it is written - his ex shows up (we don’t like her, she doesn’t like Christmas plus other Unsavoury Things...), he rejects, but she goes in for a kiss/hug, which is spotted from across the street etc etc. writes itself.
important detail - how many other festive films have the two leads been in before (combined)
