How can interweaving timelines elevate the emotional experience for the audience?

In our final part, part 3, of our Interweaving Timelines series, we — Chas, Stu & Mel — take a deep dive into Greta Gerwig's 2019 adaptation of Little Women. In her adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's iconic novels, Greta chose to interweave the seperate timelines of Little Women and it's sequel, Good Wives, to create a thematically and emotionally potent work. This differs from all the other adaptations, which have chosen to keep the chronological storytelling of the source material.

We compare Gerwig's choices and their resulting effects with Gilliam Armstrong & Robin Swicord's more faithful (and chronological) 1994 version. It's almost like a scientific experiment!

Stay tuned! SPOILERS ABOUND!

Audio quotations used for educational purposes only. Timestamps indicated below. Chapter markers included in the mp3.

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode.

RUNNING ORDER

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:00:37 - ScriptUp Sponsorship
• 00:02:00 - Little Women - 2019 vs 1994
• 00:06:35 - 2019's Interweaving Timelines
• 00:15:29 - Summarising the plot points
• 00:31:39 - Initial contrasts with chronological telling
• 00:35:32 - Laurie's Proposal
• 00:54:10 - Amy and Laurie's courtship
• 01:03:34 - Beth's Death
• 01:26:44 - Book burning and ice skating
• 01:36:51 - How the structure expresses theme
• 01:44:06 - Key Learnings and Wrap Up
• 01:59:02 - Backmatter

LINKS

• Watch: Little Women (2019) screenplay by and directed by Greta Gerwig
• Watch: Little Women (1994) screenplay by Robin Swicord and directed by Gilliam Armstrong
• Read/Listen: Scriptnotes, Ep 433: The One with Greta Gerwig

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-78: Interweaving Timelines 1 - Destroyer
• DZ-79: Interweaving Timelines 2 – The Social Network

This episode brought to you by ScriptUp – https://www.scriptupstudio.com – use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off.

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Randy, Garrett, Bjorn, Jessie, Khrob, and Sandra. They’re good humans.

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

How can interweaving two timelines change how we feel about a character?

In this Part 2 of Interweaving Timelines (aka The Stu Monologue Episode), Mel, Chas and Stu tackle Sorkin/Fincher's The Social Network. As you’ll hear, it is clearly Stu’s favourite of the examples we cover and, ah, *not* Mel’s favourite. While all three bring their own biases and opinions on the reality of Facebook as it has become, we do manage to put the destruction of democracy to one side to actually analyse the meticulous craft that this film displays.

We analyse Sorkin’s on-the-page skill with time jumps, managing intercutting and introducing characters - as well as explore how the flash-forward technique manages the absence of stakes (i.e. we know Facebook exists) and creates a different emotional experience to the flashbacks of Destroyer. Finally, and most importantly, we look at how the interweaving timelines change how the audience feel about Mark Zuckerberg (as portrayed in this film).

Stay tuned! SPOILERS ABOUND!

Audio quotations used for educational purposes only. Timestamps indicated below. Chapter markers included in the mp3.

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode.

RUNNING ORDER

• 00:00:00 - Introduction
• 00:01:48 - The Social Network
• 00:07:36 - The flash forward structure
• 00:18:46 - Why did we pick this film?
• 00:29:41 - What are the stakes?
• 00:42:45 - Time jumps & transitions
• 00:52:59 - Audience's perception of Mark
• 01:00:45 - Storyteller cuts
• 01:09:20 - Sorkin vs Fincher
• 01:16:07 - Wrap up & key learnings
• 01:23:15 - Backmatter

LINKS

• Watch: The Social Network written by Aaron Sorkin and directed by David Fincher
• Read: Wordplayer - The Storyteller Cut

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-78: Interweaving Timelines 1 - Destroyer
• DZ-43: Driving Sequences – Character and Plot Intensity

This episode brought to you by ScriptUp – https://www.scriptupstudio.com – use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off.

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Randy, Garrett, Bjorn, Joakim, Khrob, and Sandra. They’re good humans.

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

How does interweaving two timelines change how the audience feel?

Stu and Chas are joined by Mel Killingsworth to dissect interweaving timelines. Not anthology films. Not Cloud Atlas. But films where two plot lines featuring the same characters, but from different timelines, are woven together.

How do you manage stakes when you know a character’s future? What questions does this prompt in the viewer? And how the hell do you orient the reader?

To answer these questions, it will take three episodes. In this Part 1, our intrepid team (and Mel’s 42 pages of homework) tackle the 2018 film DESTROYER directed by Karen Kusama, written by Hay & Manfredi and starring Nicole Kidman.

Meanwhile, Part 2 will cover THE SOCIAL NETWORK and Part 3 will compare the 1994 Gillian Armstrong version with 2019 Greta Gerwig version of LITTLE WOMEN. Whew.

Stay tuned! SPOILERS ABOUND!

Audio quotations used for educational purposes only. Timestamps indicated below. Chapter markers included in the mp3.

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode.

RUNNING ORDER

• 00:00:10 Intro
• 00:01:46 Interweaving Timelines?
• 00:14:54 Destroyer & Timelines
• 00:35:28 Indicating Timelines
• 00:39:21 Ordering the Key Events
• 00:51:50 Theme & Timelines
• 01:06:44 Questions prompted by the ending
• 01:20:58 Key Learnings & Wrap Up
• 01:37:37 Backmatter

EPISODE LINKS

• WATCH: Destroyer (2018)
• FOLLOW: Melanie Killingsworth – @mehlsbells on twitter
• READ: "A Game Designer’s Analysis Of QAnon"

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-05: Shifting audience point of view and heightened emotions
• DZ-46: Structure & Point of View

This episode brought to you by ScriptUp - https://www.scriptupstudio.com - use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off.

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Randy, Garrett, Bjorn, Jack, Khrob, and Sandra. They’re good humans.

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

How do you choose which project to start next?

In their now-annual full backmatter episode, Stu and Chas let their hair down, drop the guise of objectivity, and allow themselves to have an even more subjective opinion about writing and the business of writing.

In this particular Backmatter entry, they wax lyrical on [deep breath]: character journeys, hyperlink cinema, keeping genre fresh, beginning a new co-writing relationship, managing multiple projects, choosing your next project, and - naturally - Star Wars.

SPOILERS ABOUND, particularly for The Mandalorian Season 2 and Ready or Not.

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode.

RUNNING ORDER

• 00:00:00 - Intro
• 00:02:55 - DZ update
• 00:11:18 - Mooting future topics
• 00:39:51  - Questions to ask of a new co-writing relationship
• 00:49:56 - Why is pressure different to stakes and obstacles?
• 00:55:22 - How to manage multiple projects?
• 01:07:08 - How to pick your next project?
• 01:19:54 - The Mandalorian Season 2

EPISODE LINKS

• READ: Brandon Sanderson  "My Work Life Balance As A Writer"

But the system using folders is actually from Anthony Johnston

• READ: Anthony Johnston - "The Organized Writer"

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Randy, Bjorn, Garrett, Joakim, Khrob, and Sandra. They’re good humans.

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

What can we learn from Sofia Coppola’s on-the-page skills over her career?

Following the success of the Tips from Tarantino episode, we have again decided to look at three different scripts from over the course of a long screenwriting career from a single writer to see what we can learn. Our beloved patreons not only selected Sofia Coppola as said writer, but also selected the scripts to analyse: LOST IN TRANSLATION, THE BLING RING and THE BEGUILED.

Stu and Chas are joined by repeat Draft Zero offender Melanie Killingsworth and are surprised to find that Coppola does not often write the tone or experience of her films into her scripts (given how specific her tone is and how unique the experiences of her films are). Instead, we are treated to a masterclass in writing character performance on the page - actor catnip, if you will - as well as Coppola’s insightful use of white space.

You can also watch the complete live stream on YouTube.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND.

Audio quotations used for educational purposes only. Timestamps indicated below. Chapter markers included in the mp3. Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode, and to Carissa Lee for reading the script excerpts.

RUNNING ORDER

• 00:00:00 - Intro
• 00:02:12 - Sofia Coppola & Writing to Direct
• 00:13:49 - Lost in Translation
• 00:54:07 - The Bling Ring
• 01:18:24 - The Beguiled
• 01:34:53 - Wrap Up & Key Learnings
• 01:45:28 - Backmatter: Cultural Portray in Lost in Translation

EPISODE LINKS

• FOLLOW: Melanie Killingsworth – @mehlsbells on twitter
• WATCH: Lost In Translation
• READ: http://dailyscript.com/scripts/lost_in_translation.pdf
• WATCH: The Bling Ring
• READ: https://raindance.org/scripts/The%20Bling%20Ring.pdf
• WATCH: The Beguiled
• READ: https://www.scriptslug.com/assets/uploads/scripts/the-beguiled-2017.pdf
• READ: DZ-76 Sofia Coppola Collated Scripts
• READ: Hit film gets lost in racism row
• READ: Latent racism 'Lost in Translation'

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-13: True that - Tips from Tarantino
• DZ-60: Unfilmables 1 - Engaging imagination
• DZ-16: Masters of Whitespace

This episode brought to you by ScriptUp - https://www.scriptupstudio.com - use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off.

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Randy, Bjorn, Jack, Khrob, and Sandra. They’re good humans. 

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

How can you do powerful storytelling... without dialogue?

Stu and Chas are joined by filmmaker, podcaster and writer Matthew Brown to deep dive into FURY ROAD and its astounding visual storytelling, both on the page and on screen. We talk about setups and payoffs, given circumstances, image systems, environmental storytelling, and how the relationship between Furiosa and Max is built over the course of the story with very little dialogue (besides Tom Hardy’s grunts and the odd bellow of “MEDIOCRE!”).

You can also watch the complete live stream on YouTube or just the breakdown of the Furiosa/Max fight (which isn’t in the podcast) here.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND

Audio quotations used for educational purposes only. Timestamps indicated below. Chapter markers included in the mp3.

RUNNING ORDER

• 00:00:00 Intro: Fury Road & Visual Storytelling
• 00:01:07 Why Fury Road?
• 00:06:17 World Building & Given Circumstances
• 00:23:19 World Building & Plot Points
• 00:30:50 Setups & Payoffs
• 00:35:03 Who is the Protagonist?
• 00:35:08 Max & Furiosa's Arc
• 01:00:44 Stray Observations
• 01:05:28 Wrap Up

EPISODE LINKS

• FOLLOW: Matt Brown - @tederick on twitter, or buy his book at tederick.com/furyroad
• READ: Cinephillia and Beyond - In Search of Our Better Selves: The Rebirth, Redemption and Road Warriors of George Miller’s ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’
• WATCH: Mad Max: Fury Road
• READ: The Art of Mad Max Max Fury Road

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-33: Protagonist vs Hero – Dawn of Character Function
• DZ LiVE Ep3 - Watchmen - The Comic, The Movie & The Show

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Stuart, Jack, Chris, Khrob, and Sandra. They’re good humans.

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

LINKS @ http://linktr.ee/draftzero

BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic

What can we learn from folk horror?

Draft Zero return with their next YouTube livestream! Stu and Chas are joined by previous guest (and successful screenwriter) C.S. McMullen for a deep dive into MIDSOMMAR! We analyse the film through the lens of Folk Horror, but tackle broader topics such as horror vs dread, rising tension, transgressions, unfilmables, and portraying toxic relationships.

You can also watch the recorded live stream on YouTube.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND

Audio quotations used for educational purposes only. Timestamps indicated below. Chapter markers included in the mp3.

RUNNING ORDER

• 00:00:00 Intro: Misommar & Folk Horror
• 00:00:15 Why Midsommar?
• 00:03:54 What makes horror "folk"?
• 00:18:20 The First Ritual
• 00:32:17 Transgressions
• 01:07:32 Grief & The Ending
• 01:23:18 The May Queen
• 01:40:04 Wrap Up & An Exercise

EPISODE LINKS

• Watch: Midsommar
• Watch: The Wicker Man

RELATED EPISODES

• Listen: DZ-60: Unfilmables 1 - Engaging imagination
• Listen: DZ-61: Unfilmables 2 – Moments of Awe
• Listen: DZ-62: Unfilmables 3 - As Ifs & Emotional context

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Stuart, Jack, Chris, Khrob, and Sandra. They’re good humans.

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

LINKS @ http://linktr.ee/draftzero

BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic

How do I write selling documents differently to development documents?

In developing our stories and scripts, we have probably written some combination of treatments and loglines and outlines. Some of us have probably even sent these development materials out to producers or agencies when “selling” a project — as a step towards getting someone to read or *gulp* produce your material. If so… have you written them differently? Should you have? You probably should have...

In this final part from the epic recording on short documents, Stephen explores how we should craft the words on the page and structure these documents differently when they are to sell the project as opposed to develop the project. Something that Chas and Stu badly need to hear, learn and apply right now.

RELATED EPISODES

• Listen: DZ-71: Treatments & Loglines - Development Tools
• Listen: DZ-72: Theme & the Story Synopsis - Development Tools 2

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Theis, Jack, Chris, Khrob, Sandra, and Matteo. They’re good humans.

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

LINKS @ http://linktr.ee/draftzero

How can I develop my theme without writing script pages?

Continuing our look at tools used in development, Chas & Stu are joined by Stephen Cleary to talk about Theme, The Thematic Logline and what Stephen calls The Story Synopsis. All are tools to help writers better understand their theme and how it is dramatised. We use the classic film WITNESS as an example, so spoilers abound.

Audio quotations used for educational purposes only. Timestamps indicated below. Chapter markers included in the mp3.

Thanks to Meegan May for reading the examples. Meegan May is an emerging queer screenwriter and former military intelligence analyst with plenty of award winning scripts and extensive experience in development. Look her up!

RUNNING ORDER

• 00:00:00 - Intro: Theme in Development
• 00:01:54 - The Story Synopsis
• 00:04:19 - Plot & Theme / Praxis & Mythos
• 00:11:12 - Back to the Story Synopsis
• 00:13:45 - Witness
• 00:16:09 - Thematic Logline
• 00:17:00 - Using the Thematic Logline in development ()
• 00:22:26 - Witness - 1st Act in Story Synopsis
• 00:25:46 - Witness - 2nd Act in Story Synopsis
• 00:28:55 - Characters, Plot & Theme
• 00:30:27 - Witness - Book drops his facadé ()
• 00:33:25 - Witness - 3rd Act in Story Synopsis ()
• 00:40:49 - Witness - Complete Story Synopsis
• 00:41:51 - Using the Story Synopsis in development
• 00:48:04 - Rewriting using the Story Synopsis
• 00:54:53 - Wrap Up

EPISODE LINKS

• Watch: Witness
• Watch: Lawrence of Arabia
• Watch: MacBeth

RELATED EPISODES

• Listen: DZ-71: Treatments & Loglines – Development Tools
• Listen: DZ-54: Thematic Sequences
• Listen: DZ-41: Theme and Worldview

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Theis, Jack, Chris, Khrob, Sandra, and Matteo. They’re good humans.

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

LINKS @ http://linktr.ee/draftzero

How can I develop my plot before writing the screenplay?

Stu and Chas are joined by fan-favourite, Stephen Cleary, to NOT look at what makes great screenplays work -- but what makes great  "short documents" work.  We draw on Stephen Cleary's wealth of experience in developing work with writers, as a producer, as a script editor and as a former head of development.

This recording turned especially epic and so we have divided it into three parts that can be listened to in any order.

Part I explores the short documents and tools you can use to develop your story’s PLOT before going to script, including the Premise, the Logline, various synopses, character documents, and - of course - the dreaded Treatment… But also looks at development tools that aren’t written like: script reads, mini-shoots and animatics.

Stay tuned for Part II which delves into documents that develop your story’s theme and then Part III where we look at how to write short documents differently when your objective isn’t story development but rather selling your idea/project.

RUNNING ORDER

• 00:00:00 - Intro 
• 00:13:32 - The writing gym 
• 00:19:32 - Animatics & Script Readings 
• 00:28:08 - Telling your story out loud 
• 00:31:07 - Why Treatments suck 
• 00:36:49 - The Premise 
• 00:44:43 - Exploring WRITTEN short docs 
• 01:04:29 - What about non-hero's journey? 
• 01:14:36 - Using short docs to keep going 
• 01:21:04 - Back to the Premise 
• 01:24:37 - Moving from Premise to Logline 
• 01:25:33 - Stay tuned for Part 2! 

Many thanks to all our patrons but particularly to Theis, Jack, Chris, Khrob, Sandra, and Matteo. They’re good humans.

Please considering rating or subscribing to us on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on the Social Medias! We like finding new listeners. We are @stuwillis and @chasffisher on twitter. And you can find @draft_zero on Instagram and Twitter.

LINKS @ http://linktr.ee/draftzero

BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic