Story – Robert McKee's Creative Storytelling Magazine Issue 005 – Drew Carey | Page 42

CHARACTER CREATION Part 4: Build a Complex Character Around a Need BY ROBERT MCKEE In his ongoing series on character creation, Robert McKee explains how a character’s need will affect the character’s choices. The second major directive is to build a complex character around a need. If you’re working in one of the five character-driven genres, such as the redemption plot or the disillusionment plot, you will soon realize that relatively uncomplicated characters of one or two dimensions cannot carry these stories to satisfaction. They demand Story Magazine // Issue 005 the three, four, five, or more dimensions of a richly complicated protagonist. To achieve such complexity, you must imagi