DZ-92: Insightful recognition in powerful endings
Explicit content warning
09/29/22 • 86 min
1 Listener
How can endings prompt an audience to reflect on your story?
Stu & Chas set out to explore what makes certain endings powerful, in particular those of LA LA LAND, INCEPTION, NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN and TURNING RED. The lens they bring to those endings is Aristotle’s moment of “anagnorisis” (don’t worry - we can’t pronounce it either), traditionally when a character moves from ignorance to knowledge (particularly of self).
But in analysing these films, Chas and Stu discover that endings can be particularly powerful when the characters experience insightful recognition in others, or in the world, or - perhaps most powerfully - when the anagnorisis is aimed at the audience. In other words, are there craft tools for your ending to prompt an audience to ask itself the question “What was that all about?”? Turns out, we think there are.
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.
CHAPTERS
- 00:00:00 - Intro
- 00:00:48 - Insightful recognition in endings
- 00:03:39 - What the hell is “anagnorisis”?
- 00:12:04 - LA LA LAND
- 00:30:45 - INCEPTION
- 00:35:14 - NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
- 01:00:04 - TURNING RED
- 01:18:18 - Wrap up & Key Learnings
- 01:24:26 - Thanks patreons!
LINKS
RELATED EPISODES
This episode brought to you by (drum roll):
ScriptUp: https://www.scriptupstudio.com – use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off; and
ArcStudio: go to https://www.arcstudiopro.com/draftzero for $30 off a subscription!
And how can we forget our awesome Patreons?, Especially Malay, Casimir, Eduardo, Jennifer, Garrett, Bjorn, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, Alex and Khrob. You rule!
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.
BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic
How can endings prompt an audience to reflect on your story?
Stu & Chas set out to explore what makes certain endings powerful, in particular those of LA LA LAND, INCEPTION, NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN and TURNING RED. The lens they bring to those endings is Aristotle’s moment of “anagnorisis” (don’t worry - we can’t pronounce it either), traditionally when a character moves from ignorance to knowledge (particularly of self).
But in analysing these films, Chas and Stu discover that endings can be particularly powerful when the characters experience insightful recognition in others, or in the world, or - perhaps most powerfully - when the anagnorisis is aimed at the audience. In other words, are there craft tools for your ending to prompt an audience to ask itself the question “What was that all about?”? Turns out, we think there are.
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.
CHAPTERS
- 00:00:00 - Intro
- 00:00:48 - Insightful recognition in endings
- 00:03:39 - What the hell is “anagnorisis”?
- 00:12:04 - LA LA LAND
- 00:30:45 - INCEPTION
- 00:35:14 - NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
- 01:00:04 - TURNING RED
- 01:18:18 - Wrap up & Key Learnings
- 01:24:26 - Thanks patreons!
LINKS
RELATED EPISODES
This episode brought to you by (drum roll):
ScriptUp: https://www.scriptupstudio.com – use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off; and
ArcStudio: go to https://www.arcstudiopro.com/draftzero for $30 off a subscription!
And how can we forget our awesome Patreons?, Especially Malay, Casimir, Eduardo, Jennifer, Garrett, Bjorn, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, Alex and Khrob. You rule!
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.
BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic
Previous Episode
DZ-91: Raising (different kinds of) Stakes
1 RecommendationsHow can you keep your audience hooked when they know the end of the story?
Chas, Stu and Mel take a deep dive into stakes, using then lens of biopics to help us think about them. If an audience already knows the “plot” outcome of a story, then how do you create stakes to make a story tense for the audience?
To explore this, we deep dive into HIDDEN FIGURES (about the NASA Friendship 7 mission), DOWNFALL (the final days of Berlin in WW2), and BRIGHT STAR (the life and death of romantic poet John Keats). We unpack the ideas around internal, external and philosophical /moral stakes and propose some new terminology that may help us write stakes more effectively.
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.
This episode brought to you by (drum roll):
ScriptUp: https://www.scriptupstudio.com – use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off; and
ArcStudio: https://www.arcstudiopro.com - go to www.draft-zero.com/arcstudio for $30 off a subscription!
And how can we forget our awesome Patreons?, Especially Malay, Casimir, Eduardo, Jennifer, Leigh, Garrett, Bjorn, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, Alex and Khrob. You rule!
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.
BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic
CHAPTERS - 00:00:00 - Intro - 00:04:41 - What even are stakes? - 00:24:26 - Hidden Figures - 01:00:46 - Downfall - 01:33:38 - Bright Star - 02:10:33 - Key Learnings - 02:18:57 - Thanks Patreons!
Next Episode
DZ-93: Talismans (Part 1)
How can you use physical objects to reveal inner character?
In this series, Chas and Stu discuss TALISMANS. Physical objects that are imbued with meaning by a character or characters. They’re a powerful tool to access inner character.
In this first part, we lay the groundwork to discuss talismans and present something of a taxonomy. What makes talismans powerful? What makes them different from MacGuffins or characters? What types of Talismans are there? In the second part, we will breakdown THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER, IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, and another film.
Examples we cover here include: TOP GUN, SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISCHER, BETTER CALL SAUL, LORD OF THE RINGS, CASTAWAY, NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, THE DARK KNIGHT, THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER, RONIN, PULP FICTION, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, BREAKING BAD, BACK TO THE FUTURE, THE TERMINATOR, TITANIC, INCEPTION, STAR WARS (of course), THE MATRIX, ANDOR (spoilers!), LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE, MAD MAX: FURY ROAD, and PULP FICTION.
As always: SPOILERS ABOUND
Audio quotations used for educational purposes only. Timestamps indicated below. Chapter markers included in the mp3.
Thanks to Chas Fisher & Chris Walker for editing this episode.
CHAPTERS
- 00:00:00 - Intro
- 00:03:15 - Talismans in our own lives
- 00:08:41 - Scott Myer's definition of Talismans
- 00:18:58 - What are not Talismans?
- 00:21:48 - Wardrobe
- 00:28:26 - Talismans vs Characters
- 00:43:18 - Talismans vs MacGuffins
- 00:49:33 - Photos
- 00:53:53 - Jewellery
- 01:02:22 - Weapons & Tools
- 01:10:02 - Vehicles
- 01:12:03 - Letters & Journals
- 01:14:19 - Andor (Spoilers)
- 01:16:20 - Talismans and Rituals
- 01:24:14 - Wrap Up & Key Learnings
LINKS
- Scott Myers / Go Into The Story: Talismans - https://medium.com/go-into-the-story/talismans-bcbf0a04d45d
- Scott Myers / Go Into The Story: Story Talismans - https://gointothestory.blcklst.com/story-talismans-89b91523e71d
RELATED EPISODES
- DZ-11: Adventure for the MacGuffin! - http://draft-zero.com/2014/dz-11/
- DZ-87: Keeping Genre fresh - http://draft-zero.com/2022/dz-87/
This episode brought to you by (drum roll):
ScriptUp: https://www.scriptupstudio.com – use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off; and
ArcStudio: go to https://www.arcstudiopro.com/draftzero for $30 off a subscription!
And how can we forget our awesome Patreons?, Especially Casimir, Eduardo, Jennifer, Garrett, Bjorn, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, Alex and Khrob. You rule!
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.
BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic
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