Name:

Date:

CSI Movie Making

A detective story is a type of mystery which has a character, either a professional detective or an amateur, who solves a mystery. Detective stories usually fit into one of three categories. The first type of detective story is the Whodunnit? story, where we follow a detective on the search of a murderer or thief, and the audience tries to compete with the detective to solve the case first. In these stories the character of the detective is a very important element. The detective must appeal to the audience, so that they want to compete with detective. Also, the mystery must be challenging, but able to be solved at the same time so that the audience does not lose interest. The second type of detective story is one that lets the audience know the crime right from the beginning. The story develops with the attempts of the criminal to get away innocent and prevent punishment. The third type of detective story can be constructed by creating a struggle between a master criminal and a master detective, in which both sides usse their mental abilities to come out on top. In this type of story the criminal and the detective characters are the most important element.

When you decide to write a detective story, consider:

The Setting - where does the story take place? The Characters - who's involved in the story? The Mystery - what happened? The Clues - how will we figure out who's guilty?

Every crime story is based on:

Motive - the reason the crime occured. Method - the way in which the crime was committed. Opportunity - who was nearby and could have committed the crime. Climax - a moment or event which should contain an element of surprise and a sense of danger or risk. The climax is the Ah Ha! moment, the mystery is solved, all the suspects, but one, have been eliminated. Conclusion - in the end, all the questions must be answered. Secrets are revealed and loose ends are wrapped up. You might do this with a confession, or your detective can describe the who, what, where, when, how, and why. Detective stories, more than any other genre, benefit from outlining to ensure all the elements are present.

CSI Movie Project - Rubric

Name: Mark Storyline Original Story Class: Deductive Reasoning Group: Forensic Science Participation

0 1-2

Has not reached the standard of any of the descriptors below. Storyline has problems, does not make sense. Scenes Storyline mostly makes sense. Some things are hard to follow. Storyline is clear and easy to follow. Story is copied from another source. Detective uses no deductive reasoning to solve the crime. Detective uses some deductive reasoning to solve the crime. Detective uses all deductive reasoning to solve the crime. Poor Forensic Science is used to solve the crime. Some Forensic Science is used to solve the crime. Good accurate Forensic Science is used to solve the crime Poor participation in all parts of the project. Participated in some parts of the the project.

3-4

Story has been reworked from another source, and some elements remain the same. Story is original, with personal touches.

5-6

Actively participated in all parts of the project.

Own Grade Teacher Grade Final Grade

Group Member

Participation Grade

Your Grades

Brainstorming
There are a lot of elements to writing a mystery. These tips should help you brainstorm. Read through them, and start making notes for your mystery. Every story begins with an idea. Keep your eyes, ears, and minds open to ideas. Ask yourself what if? Try looking for ideas as your read the news. Did burgulars rob three houses on one street in the middle of the day? How did they know no one would be home? What were the burgulars looking for? What if you decided to be a detective and solve the crime? Use news stories as a starting point and create your own idea! 1. Your main character is the most important part of your story. The main character will determine the direction the plot will grow. Is your main character a new girl at school who covers up her insecurity by bragging a lot? How will her personality affect the way the story is solved? Put yourself in your characters mind, then ask yourself, now what will I do? 2. Choose minor characters who will be in your story. Does your character have a best friend or partner who will help them sort out the clues? These types of characters are good to include, because the main character needs someone to talk to. Also, are there people who don't want the main character to solve the mystery? Who are they? 3. The plot of any story is this: The main character has a problem, and must solve it by him or herself. In a mystery story, the problem has to do with the solution of the mystery. What is the mystery idea you've chosen? Is it a crime? Is it something scary? What should the main character discover? And what, or who, is going to get in the way so the solution to the mystery won't be too easy? 4. Make a list of clues that you can use in your story. Make sure to have many clues, but there must be one crucial clue that helps finally solve the mystery. For example, maybe one character - Beth - says that she received a strange telephone call at 8:00 pm. Later in the story the main character receives information about where all the suspects were at 8:00 pm, then remembers about what Beth said about the phone call, and knows that the phone call couldn't have happened. Your detective then realizes that Beth was lying. 5. Think about red herrings. Red herrings are bits of information that are designed to mislead the audience, and suspect the wrong characters. Red herrings are fun to include because they make mysteries harder to solve. Maybe you want the audience to suspect the main character's little brother, who really likes peanut butter and grape jelly sandwiches. Suppose your main character finds smeared jelly fingerprints in a suspicious place. The audience will immediately think of the little brother's sandwiches, especially if the main character is disturbed. The audience might then miss the real clue.

6. Suspense is an important ingredient in a mystery story. Footsteps coming up the stairs in the dark; a doorknob silently turning; a suspect arriving when he's not expected; an unanswered question about one of the characters. There are many ways to make your stories suspenseful. Allow your characters to be scared. The audience will identify with him or her, and they'll be scared too. 7. The setting should fit the mood of the story. Think about where you want your story to take place. Should it be at night? On a foggy morning? During a thunderstorm? Maybe the day is sunny and bright, but the character has to explore the dark passages of a deserted building. 8. Look for the best place in which to begin your story. Mystery stories should begin with action, with suspense, with something interesting or exciting. The audience should meet the main characters and be introduced to the mystery right at the beginning. 9. Know how your story will end before you begin to write it. It's easy to being writing and suprise yourself on every page, then discover that in the middle of your story that you've come to a dead end. Think over many different solutions to your character's problem, remembering that they need to solve the mystery! As you think over ideas, you're going to get rid of some of them because they won't work. When the right solution comes along, you'll know it, and you'll be able to write your story. It's all right for the middle of your story to remain flexible. You might think of something funny or exciting that you hadn't planned on when you began. It's the ending that must remain the same, so you don't end up with a different ending that doesn't work. Make sure you know where your character is going the whole time!

Name:

Date:

CSI Movie Making

TV Example
Video - _____________________
Describe The Setting - where does the story take place? _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ Describe The Characters - who was involved in the story? _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ Describe The Mystery - what happened? _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ Describe The Clues - how did we figure out who was guilty? _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ Describe the Motive - the reason the crime occured.

CSI TV Science News Report

Your Science News Report on the video will be a little bit different. The overall idea is the same, but I want you to write it in a specifc way. Follow the directions below when writing your report.

Summary Paragraph
Introductory Sentence Main Point: Clues Main Point: Problems Who was the main character and what was the mystery that they had to solve? What were the clues that were found during the story? What were the problems or obstacles that were faced by the main character in solving the crime? What was the final clue, or moment that led the main character to finally solve the crime? Who committed the crime; how and why did they do it?

Main Point: Ah-Ha!

Conclusion Sentence

In the TV show Magnum P.I., the main character Magnum solved the mystery of the disappear statue. When the statue was stolen, there were two unconscious people at the scene of the crime and an empty bottle of champagne. Also, Magnum found that one of the other suspects left the scene of the crime at a suspicious time. Magnum had difficulty solving the case because there were so many suspects that had a motive and opportunity to steal the statue. Magnum finally found one of the suspects with the statue, but the Ah-Ha! moment was when he realized the statue was too light and was actually a fake with spy documents inside. That's when he was held up by the real criminals, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, but luckily Magnum's friends came to the rescue.

Reaction Paragraph
Pick one and respond, or respond in your own original way.
- Did you solve the mystery in a different way than the main character? Explain how. - If you were the criminal, how would you have committed the crime so that could have avoided being caught? - Was it too hard to figure out? What other clues might have been helpful in the story to help you in solving the mystery? - Did you find the main character's technique in solving the crime interesting? Explain what you liked or disliked about their method.

No Vocabulary

Name:

Date:

CSI Movie Plot

As a group fill in the following information to help you write your movie. What is the crime? ? Murder (who died) ? How

What is the motive?

Who are the suspects? 1) 2) 3) 4)

What is the evidence? A) B) C) D)

Red herrings?

Who is the detective?

Who are the other characters? a) b) c) d) e) f)

How is the crime solved?

Where does the show take place? (list all locations)

What happens in the climax?