Dunbar in Dances With Wolves, for example, is repeatedly drawn to the border of life and death, to the border of the unknown, to a new territory, to new languages, etc. We all resist bosses, colleagues, friends, spouses, and strangers who speak and act in ways that define us and force us to play a scripted part in their drama. The person or persons who can define us can control us. All characters, whether in a film or a personal narrative, struggle to have the power to define themselves. Filmmakers depend on characters who can resolve inner and outer conflicts by action, on characters whose actions and words carry depth and move the story and the audience forward.
Therapeutic activity is concentrated within a small room with one other person present.
Although both therapists, clients, filmmakers, screenwriters, actors, and editors are all telling stories, their respective stories call for very different ways of thinking and acting. Just as the crew of the Starship Enterprise had their mission, so we have our mission or prime directive. The secret is intimately linked to the treasure. Conditions for loving, acting, thinking, feeling, etc. The characters in film as in life project emotions and attributes onto others and also introject emotions and attributes from others who exert power We can regard the characters in a film as the projection of attributes associated with the central character.