THE STORYTELLER’S MISSION WITH ZENA DELL LOWE

EPISODE 52 – How To Tell The Truth Without Violating Your Audience 

Follow along with the cheat sheet below, which lists the main points for this episode. Or DOWNLOAD FULL TRANSCRIPTS FOR FREE on the podcast page of our website.

EPISODE DESCRIPTION - Last week, we discussed the question of how to make your story good before God. I argued that the number one criteria was to tell the truth, the whole truth, about the human experience, which means including the true consequences of our actions when characters engage in sin. But this begs the question, can we therefore show sex, language, and violence in a gratuitous way, so long as it's "true" behavior for the characters in that world? 

The answer is no, because in addition to telling the truth, there is another principle we must adhere to, namely, we must not willingly harm our audience, OR our actors, OR our crew - the responsibility is huge if you're a filmmaker.

The key principles to help us avoid harming any of the people in these categories include:
1. We must wrestle and labor over what we choose to show.
2. We must live in consultation and constantly see if our work passes the test.
3. We must limit the potential for Voyeurism and promote the possibility of Involvement. 

In other words, it's not so much WHAT we show, it's HOW we show it. We must show it in a way that forces all parties to emotionally engage with the characters, to feel their pain and suffering, to empathize. Rather than to detach.

UP NEXT - Next week, we will continue to explore additional principles for making your story good before God. If you have any questions or concerns about this episode, please do reach out to me at [email protected].

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT - THE WELL CREATIVITY CONFERENCE - Zena Dell Lowe is honored to be a Keynote Speaker at THE WELL CREATIVITY CONFERENCE, which takes place in Grand Rapids MI on April 22-23, 2021. She’ll also be teaching an acting/improvisational workshop for actors and writers called, “Make Me Believe.”  To find out more or to register to attend, CLICK HERE, or go tohttps://seeyouatthewell.net

OUR NEW ONLINE PLATFORM - The Storyteller’s Mission online platform is finally up and running! Sign up for one-on-one COACHING, get a SCRIPT CRITIQUE, or register for one of our highly anticipated ADVANCED CLASSES ON WRITING today!

TOPIC REQUESTS? - If you have a question or a specific writing related topic that you would like Zena to consider addressing in a future podcast, LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL recording with your problem, question, or issue!

 SPECIAL THANKS - The Storyteller’s Mission with Zena Dell Lowe would like to thank composer CARLA PATULLO for the original music she graciously permits us to use in the intro and outro of this podcast. To find out more about this amazing talent, go to  www.carlapatullo.com

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