Does your Screenplay make an Emotional Argument? - Let's see!

When you write your screenplay...does your character's motivation make sense?

Probably.

But your readers aren't connecting with them?

Why?

Chances are your main character's reason for striving toward their goal is firmly based on logic.  And logic makes sense but doesn't make emotion.

Consider two examples:

Logic - A son wants his father to include him in his will because he's running his father's business and he could use the inheritance to expand the business.

Emotion - A son wants his father to include him in his will because he is his father's son.

The first example makes sense and is reasonable.

The second example makes sense and is unreasonable.  You can't argue logically with the line "Because I am your son."  The irony is that motivation such as that is a catalyst, a firecracker engine for drama/comedy.  The less the motivation is reasonable the more conflict you can draw from it.

Passion and emotion cause conflict, they get us into wars, they provide the juice and blood that fuel great screenplays.

Think about this:
When your upset...how do you calm down?  Using reason.

Don't let a reasonable motivation calm your screenplay down and snuff the flame that will connect your readers to your story.