Character Psychology

During our writing for TV and film sessions we have created a character psychology sheet which shows what would symbolise three personality traits of our main character. Sigmund Freud, a famous psychologist said that every person has three parts of their personality. The ego is your every day to day  life and what kind of person you are. The super-ego is the nagging sensation at the back of your brain, it is almost like a checklist of things you wan to do but you feel like you can't or won't own up to it. Finally the ID part of your personality is your insecurities and what your fantasies are, often these are subconscious and you do not realise about them, but they appear in your life. Below I have answered some questions about my main character Albert Brookstein as well as what his three personality traits are and how they would be symbolised.

Super-Ego - (Boss)

Albert Brooksteins nagging sensation in the back of his head is that he has money on his mind and his driving force is to strip people of their riches. He always runs but he hates it, he feels he has to please everyone including his family. And that he can never win enough, he always wants more. Greed.

So Albert's symbol for his super-ego would be a mask. The reason for this is because the man he once was, a innocent who was mistaken for someone else has been corrupted and changed into a greed infested con artist. He always changes identity as he is afraid of getting caught and the only friend he has is his wife as he can't risk exposing himself too much.

Ego - (worker)

Albert's ego is that with his wife he is calm and warm hearted however he keeps everything a secret and he does not open up to his wife. He treats her like she knows nothing, he says to himself that he has stopped conning people and that he is happy with his life. But really he isn't.

The symbol which would represent Albert's ego would be a fake smile, as he puts on a front that everything is okay when really it isn't.

ID - (Subconscious/the monster in the basement)

The ID for Albert would be his wife, as he is afraid of losing her. He also has a fantasy of buying a hotel out in Spain and living there. Giving his wife the perfect holiday destination to live in while making money.


What does your character want?

Albert Brookstein wants power and money, he does not like losing and he constantly feels that he has to do one better with a con. He also wants to be able to look after his wife and make sure that he can settle abroad with her, so to escape the ever black market maze he entered in.

What obstacles must they overcome to get what they want?

Albert must overcome the fear of losing his wife so that he can actually stop doing what he does, the reason he keeps stealing from the rich is because he feels that he has to look after his wife and that if he doesn't do what he does then he will lose her.

In the end, do they get it? Was getting/not getting it good or bad for them?

In the end he gets a high earnings from one of his jobs however his wife is killed due to his actions, he finally decides to settle abroad and live a life which his wife couldn't, despite being incredibly distraught. In the end it was bad for him.

Why do we care? 

We care because the narrative focuses on the main protagonist who also acts as an antagonist and it shows his constant battle against doing the right things and doing what is wrong. This symbolises a similar relationship of the traits to Jekyll and Hyde.

What does your character NEED?

My character needs to leave his old life behind and move away, not ever regretting anything and never going back to the world he once worked in. He also needs to accept that his wife knows best and he should treat her with more maturity.

Why is this story happening now? Why is the character this particular age?

This story is happening now because it has come to a time in Alberts life where he is not as heavily into scamming clients and his wife has given his an ultimatum in which he stops conning altogether or she leaves him. Albert is in his mid 60s and the reason for this is because it shows the power of greed and how it has never left him.

What is your characters worst nightmare?

My characters worst nightmare would be of course losing his wife - as much as he neglects how much she loves him, he really does love her but he's just afraid of showing it as he does not want to lose her. He also fears not winning and not getting enough money.

What would your main character willingly die for?

My character would willingly die for his wife, he dreads for the day that he has to pick up her corpse for his actions yet he is addicted to money and power and it is this constant battle with himself which will be a selling point for the movie.