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A screenplay’s theme can be expressed through the main actions of your protagonist, dialogue and imagery. But here’s a great way to really connect your protagonist to the theme and give it that added resonance.

This method is used in many great films: give your hero an object that they carry around or identify with which symbolizes themselves and / or their struggle through the movie. This object—a visual motif—whether it’s a Blackberry or a flower—can be highlighted in certain scenes as a symbol of their growth and therefore the theme.

For example, at the start of the film Lonesome Jim, Jim (Casey Affleck) arrives at his parent’s house depressed having run out of money and nowhere else to go. As they fuss around him, he tearfully asks for some water. Throughout the film there are a few key references to Jim and water as he rebuffs local nurse Anika (Liv Tyler) while waiting to leave town. Significantly, in the last scene, [spoiler alert!] having decided to stay and make a go of his relationship with Anika, her son gives him a bottle of water and we see him, for the first time, drinking heartily.

In other words, the thematic object for Jim in this film is water, which represents his “life force” or “spiritual energy.” At the beginning of the film, his dehydration symbolizes his “emotional de-hydration.” He’s worn out, physically, mentally and emotionally. When he drinks the water at the end, thematically this is saying he’s been “revitalized” by making the right choice in life.

Adding a symbolic object to your protagonist’s world, like Jim’s water, or Ryan Bingham’s (George Clooney) suitcase in Up in the Air, adds an extra thematic layer to your script. Few non-professionals writers utilize it, but it can be an extremely powerful tool.

Of course, these kind of thematic details are usually added after a few drafts when your screenplay is beginning to really take shape. Try it out. Give your protagonist a visual motif which can represent their emotional state throughout the course of the film and watch your script pull away from the pack!