Some time ago I was introduced to the storytelling concept of the Impact Character. While the theory book did a decent job of explaining it, it wasn’t until I saw the following video montage that the concept became painfully obvious to me.
Entries from April 2007
Impact Character Video Montage
April 12th, 2007 · 2 Comments
Filed under: Story Structure
Why the Second Half of Grindhouse is Boring
April 11th, 2007 · 5 Comments
I’ve yet to see Grindhouse (most of what I see nowadays are DVDs), but I have heard one comment repeatedly: the first half was great, the second half was boring as hell. Dramatica expert Armando Saldana Mora has a great post about why most audiences felt that way.
Filed under: Analysis
There’s a Reason We Are Both Alike
April 5th, 2007 · 1 Comment
There is a cheat that a lot of writers use when their Impact Character confronts the Main Character. The dialogue usually goes something like this: “You and I are both alike” or “You and I are not so different.” Ever wonder why those lines, as cliched as they are, work so well?
Filed under: Story Structure
Visualizing the Objective Story Points
April 4th, 2007 · 4 Comments
The Dramatica theory of story can have some pretty scary terminology. Prerequisities. Preconditions. Costs. Dividends. They sound more like advanced accounting terms than dramatic devices. Wouldn’t it be great if there was some easy chart to help you visualize how these terms relate to story?
Filed under: Story Structure
Children of Men: Analysis
April 3rd, 2007 · 18 Comments
In Children of Men, rich thematic elements of hope play out against despair in a dystopian vision of the future. Many have commented that while they found the film highly entertaining, they felt cheated at the end. They often go on to complain that the movie was half-finished. I disagree. I would say it was 3/4 finished…
Filed under: Analysis
Seeing Flaws in Your Own Work
April 2nd, 2007 · 1 Comment
You’ve finished your first draft. You’ve waited the six weeks you’re supposed to wait before reading it. And now you can’t wait to dive back into it and see how it all works. The pages turn, yet you can’t believe your eyes. “What a mess! How am I going to fix it?!”
This [...]
Filed under: Story Theory
