Draft Zero: a screenwriting podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

DZ-112: Breaking the 4th wall

How is the effect of breaking the 4th wall different to VoiceOver?

As part of our series on how filmmakers can directly communicate to the audience, we finally examine the most blatant tool of them all: when character look directly down the barrel of the camera… and thus look directly at us, the viewer. Chas, Stu and Mel take the craft tools/levers they identified in previous episodes and use them to examine HIGH FIDELITY, ABBOTT ELEMENTARY and - of course - FLEABAG.

By examining how “in-world” the camera is, who is talking, and whom the character is talking to (i.e. who we are in the relationship), we end up discovering how breaking the 4th wall can involve the audience in the emotional present of the character and also grants the character a degree of narrative control (a craft lever that can be dialled in and out).

Separately, in a Backmatter to this episode to be found on our Patreon page, Mel and Chas answer a listener question and take a deep dive into how breaking the 4th wall changes the RELATIONSHIP between you - the viewer - and character.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND and all copyright material used under fair use for educational purposes.

Thanks to Chris Walker for his excellent editing this episode.

CHAPTERS

00:00:00 - Cold Open
00:00:17 - What is “barrelling”?
00:13:45 - HIGH FIDELITY
00:39:46 - ABBOTT ELEMENTARY
01:04:09 - FLEABAG
01:40:54 - Key Learnings
01:50:48 - Patreon thanks

RELATED EPISODES

• Backmatter on Breaking the 4th Wall
• DZ-109: Talking DIRECTLY to your audience
• DZ-110: Voiceover
• DZ-111: Unreliable Narrators and Fight Club

This episode brought to you by (drum roll) ArcStudio: go to https://www.arcstudiopro.com/draftzero for $30 off a pro subscription!

And how can we forget our awesome Patreons, especially Lily, Paulo, Alexandre, Malay, Jennifer, Thomas, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, and Khrob.

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, @mehlsbells and @chasffisher on Twitter. You can find @draft_zero and @_shotzero on Instagram and Twitter.

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How does the unreliability of a narrator impact the way a story is told?

In this episode, Stu and Mel (sans Chas!) take a deep dive into FIGHT CLUB and its use of the unreliable narrator. This is a bridging episode between our previous episode on VOICEOVER and our forthcoming episode on TALKING TO CAMERA as Fight Club does both.

We dissect the film’s disconnected sequence-driven structure and how the voiceover ’stitches’ the film together.  And then we look at what makes ‘Jack’ an unreliable narrator and how his control over the storytelling impacts us. 

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND and all copyright material used under fair use for educational purposes.

Thanks to Chris Walker for his excellent editing this episode.

CHAPTERS:

• 00:00:01 – Cold Open
• 00:00:20 – Fight Club
• 00:24:57 – Unreliable Narrators
• 00:49:09 – Key Learnings & Wrap Up
• 00:54:07 – Many thanks to our Patrons!

RELATED EPISODES:

• DZ-110: Voiceover
• DZ-109: Talking DIRECTLY to your audience
• DZ-53: Antagonists! 5 – vs Audience

How can we forget our awesome Patreons, especially Lily, Alexandre, Malay, Jennifer, Thomas, Paulo, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, and Khrob.

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. You can find @draft_zero and @_shotzero on Instagram and Twitter.

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SUBSCRIBE TO SHOT ZERO via Substack

How can ‘games’ help us write better scenes?

Stu and Chas turn their attention to a topic that has long eluded them: the game of the scene. We look at how considering the game that characters are playing — its rules, arenas, players, referees, and win conditions — can help you write more dynamic scenes.

This will be a two-parter, and for this half, we talk BLUEY, “The Quiet Game” (from Season 2) and “Phones” (from Season 3), and JOHN WICK 4. We also touch on GAME NIGHT and LIFE OF BRIAN.

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND and all copyright material used under fair use for educational purposes.

CHAPTERS

• 00:00:00 - Cold Open
• 00:00:18 - Sponsor: ScriptUp
• 00:01:52 - Intro: What do we mean by Game of the Scene?
• 00:15:06 - The Life of Brian: "What have the Romans ever done for us?"
• 00:20:03 - Bluey
• 00:35:08 - Sponsor: Arc Studio Pro
• 00:37:56 - John Wick 4
• 01:14:34 - Wrap Up & Key Learnings
• 01:22:17 - Many thanks to our Patreons

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-100: Scenes through Swords
• DZ-99: Science Questions
• DZ-40: Tactics and Scenes

RELATED LINKS

• Shot Zero on Game Night's Hot Potato Sequence

This episode brought to you by (drum roll):

• ScriptUp: https://www.scriptupstudio.com – use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off
• ArcStudio: go to https://www.arcstudiopro.com/draftzero for $30 off a pro subscription!

And how can we forget our awesome Patreons, especially Lily,  Alexandre, Casimir, Jennifer, Thomas, Garrett, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, and Khrob.

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. You can find @draft_zero and @_shotzero on Instagram and Twitter.

BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic

SUBSCRIBE TO SHOT ZERO via Substack

What can we learn by analysing how ‘oners’ are written on the page?

Chas, Stu and Mel reunite to talk about writing the *feel* of camerawork in screenplays. We use “oners” — a long-playing continuous take — as a lens to talk about how some writers have “directed” from the page. We talk immediacy, camera positions, handovers, and anchoring action and more.

We breakdown the famous Copacabana shot from GOODFELLAS, the awe-inspiring chase sequence from THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN, and the heart pounding ‘Zed attack’ from CHILDREN OF MEN. We also briefly discuss THE BOURNE IDENTITY, HEREDITARY, THE BEAR, ALL THE PRESIDENTS MEN and TOUCH OF EVIL.

And we do this breakdown by closely reading the actual words on the page. So thanks to Meegan May (of Starship Q Star) for performing the big print / action lines. Script Pages available on our Patreon.

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND and all copyright material used under fair use for educational purposes.

CHAPTERS

• 00:00:13 - Cold Open
• 00:00:23 - ScriptUp Sponsorship
• 00:00:33 - New Chapter
• 00:01:58 - Intro: Camerwork on the page
• 00:09:50 - Contrary Examples: The Bourne Identity and Hereditary
• 00:13:15 - Narrative Purpose and Oners
• 00:16:30 - Goodfellas (intro)
• 00:16:57 - Goodfellas (excerpt)
• 00:18:22 - Goodfellas (discussion)
• 00:32:48 - The Adventures of Tintin (intro)
• 00:34:14 - The Adventures of Tintin (excerpt)
• 00:37:23 - The Adventures of Tintin (discussion)
• 00:49:34 - Children of Men (intro)
• 00:53:38 - Children of Men (excerpt)
• 01:00:32 - Children of Men (discussion)
• 01:12:24 - Key Learnings and Wrap Up

SCENE EXCERPTS via

• Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/posts/dz-101-script-85503252
• DZ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/draft_zero/
• SZ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_shotzero/
• DZ Twitter: https://twitter.com/draft_zero
• SZ Twitter: https://twitter.com/_shotzero

LINKS

• WATCH: Goodfellas, The “Copacabana” shot - https://youtube.com/watch?v=OJEEVtqXdK8
• WATCH: The Adventures of TinTin, “Get that bird!” - https://youtube.com/watch?v=ryB-3BRdd64
• WATCH: Children of Men, “Zed’s attack” - https://youtube.com/watch?v=YMM8XrZe1R8
• WATCH: The Bourne Identity, “Escaping The American Embassy” - https://youtube.com/watch?v=tqsUt9n13Gg
• WATCH: All The President’s Men, “The Dahlberg Scene” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qeemjaosp-E
• WATCH: Every Frame A Painting - The Spielberg Oner: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8q4X2vDRfR
• LISTEN: Starship Q Star: https://starshipqstar.com

LINKS

• WATCH: Goodfellas, The“Copacabana” shot - https://youtube.com/watch?v=OJEEVtqXdK8
• WATCH: The Adventures of TinTin, “Get that bird!” - https://youtube.com/watch?v=ryB-3BRdd64
• WATCH: Children of Men, “Zed’s attack” - https://youtube.com/watch?v=YMM8XrZe1R8
• WATCH: The Bourne Identity, “Escaping The American Embassy” - https://youtube.com/watch?v=tqsUt9n13Gg
• WATCH: All The President’s Men, “The Dahlberg Scene” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qeemjaosp-E
• WATCH: Every Frame A Painting - The Spielberg Oner: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8q4X2vDRfR
• LISTEN: Starship Q Star: https://starshipqstar.com

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-60: Unfilmables and Unscriptables (Part 1) - Engaging imagination
• DZ-61: Unfilmables and Unscriptables (Part 2) - Moments of Awe
• DZ-62: Unfilmables 3 – As Ifs & Emotional context
• DZ-16: Masters of Time and Whitespace

This episode brought to you by (drum roll):

• ScriptUp: https://www.scriptupstudio.com – use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off

And how can we forget our awesome Patreons, especially Lily,  Alexandre, Casimir, Eduardo, Jennifer, Thomas, Garrett, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, Alex, and Khrob.

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. You can find @draft_zero and @_shotzero on Instagram and Twitter.

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What scene work tools can be learned from martial arts?

In this slightly unusual episode of Draft Zero (but also incredibly on brand), Stu and philosopher swordsperson Damon Young discuss how the lessons they have learned from martial arts can be applied to scenes. In particular, they discuss how approaching an opponent in a sword fight can be analogous to how characters approach conflict, such as: the distance between the characters, who chooses to engage first, how to feint, how to lure an attack by leaving yourself vulnerable, etc. 

They reference classic conflicts such as Clarice interviewing Dr. Lecter in SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, when Miranda puts down Andrea in THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA, and the final showdown between Obi-Wan and Darth Maul in the animated series THE CLONE WARS. 

You can find Damon Young here:

• Website: https://www.damonyoung.com.au/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/damonayoung/
• Mastodon: https://mas.to/@damonyoung

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND.

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-29: Showdowns & Scene Structure: draft-zero.com/2016/dz-29/
• DZ-84: Choices & Decisions 1: http://draft-zero.com/2021/dz-84/ 
• DZ-84: Choices & Decisions 2: http://draft-zero.com/2021/dz-85/ 

This episode is brought to you by our awesome Patreons, especially Alexandre, Casimir, Eduardo, Jennifer, Thomas, Garrett, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, Alex, and Khrob.

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. You can find @draft_zero and @_shotzero on Instagram and Twitter.

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How do audience questions shape scenes?

nspired by our earlier episodes on sequences, Chas and Stu narrow their focus to look at the atomic unit of screen storytelling: the scene. In particular, we breakdown how question and answers prompted in the audience structure individual scenes.

We talk plot, character, and theme questions (and their hybrids) by analysing scenes from LOKI, THE LAST CRUSADE, THE BOURNE SUPREMACY, QUEEN AND SLIM,  and DO THE RIGHT THING. We also briefly discuss SUCCESSION, DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: HONOUR AMONG THIEVES, and ANDOR.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND

CHAPTERS

• 00:00:00 - Cold Open
• 00:01:56 - Intro: Scene Questions
• 00:16:30 - Loki
• 00:23:24 - The Last Crusade
• 00:33:03 - The Bourne Supremacy
• 00:45:50 - Queen and Slim
• 01:03:03 - Do The Right Thing
• 01:15:03 - Key Learnings & Wrap Up
• 01:33:02 - Many thanks to our Patreons

SCENE EXCERPTS via:

• Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/posts/dz-99-scene-82312058
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/draft_zero/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/draft_zero

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-54: Thematic Sequences: https://draft-zero.com/2018/dz-54/
• DZ-43: Driving Sequences – Character and Plot Intensity: https://draft-zero.com/2017/dz-43/
• DZ-45: Arguments of the Scene: https://draft-zero.com/2017/dz-45/

This episode brought to you by (drum roll):

• ScriptUp: https://www.scriptupstudio.com – use promo code DZ10 to get 10% off

And how can we forget our awesome Patreons, especially Alexandre, Casimir, Eduardo, Jennifer, Thomas, Garrett, Randy, Jesse, Sandra, Theis, Alex, and Khrob.

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. You can find @draft_zero and @_shotzero on Instagram and Twitter.

BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic

What effect does adding a ton of characters have on your story?

In Part 3 (the final part? Ha!) of our exploration into ensemble stories, Stu, Chas & Mel examine films whose genres do not conventionally require a ton of character or that use those ensembles in unconventional ways - in particular, adding whole storylines that are separate from the main character’s story. To that end, we dive into three films that were horrifically snubbed by the Oscars: THE WOMAN KING, RIDERS OF JUSTICE and NOPE.

We breakdown the effects of choosing to use an ensemble on the narrative function of characters, their skills, the webs they exist within, and, ultimately, the story’s theme. Plus we re-apply and re-contextualise the tools uncovered in previous episodes in how to service all these characters.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode.

CHAPTERS

• 00:00:00 - Cold Open
• 00:01:35 - Intro: Character Function
• 00:08:43 - The Woman King
• 00:50:00 - Riders of Justice
• 01:20:36 - Nope
• 01:47:00 - Key Learnings & Wrap Up
• 01:59:06 - Many thanks to our Patreons

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-96: Ensembles 1 – What do we mean by an ensemble?
• DZ-97: Ensembles 2 – Servicing Characters

EPISODE LINKS

• Mel Killingsworth on The Möbius Strip Storytelling of NOPE
• Mel Killingsworth on Riders of Justice: Tidings of Trauma and Joy

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 pro subscription!

And how can we forget our awesome Patreons, especially Alexandre, Casimir, Eduardo, Thomas, Jennifer, Garrett, 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, @chasffisher and @mehlsbells on twitter. You can find @draft_zero and @_shotzero on Instagram and Twitter.

BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic

How do you give your audience access to a lot of characters?

In Part 2 of our exploration into ensemble stories, Stu, Chas and Mel examine films whose plot and genre require a lot of characters. Thus we tackle a team sports film (PITCH PERFECT), a murder mystery (GLASS ONION), a slasher (SCREAM 2022) and a family holiday flick (THE FAMILY STONE).

By looking at these films, we discover tools for writers to service characters and give them more dimension. These tools include: shifting group dynamics; the spectrum of private to public behaviour; breaking POV, and quintessential group introductions.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode.

CHAPTERS

• 00:00:00 - Cold Open
• 00:01:46 - Intro: Servicing Characters
• 00:14:40 - Pitch Perfect
• 00:37:54 - Glass Onion
• 01:09:20 - Scream 5
• 01:32:17 - The Family Stone
• 02:13:22 - Key Learnings & Wrap Up

RELATED EPISODES

• DZ-96: Ensembles 1 - What do we mean by an ensemble?
• DZ-43: Driving Sequences – Character and Plot Intensity
• DZ-09: Characterising Introductions

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 pro subscription!

And how can we forget our awesome Patreons? Especially Casimir, Eduardo, Jennifer, Garrett, 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, @chasffisher and @mehlsbells on twitter. You can find @draft_zero and @_shotzero on Instagram and Twitter.

BUY DRAFT ZERO MERCH via TeePublic

DZ-96: Ensembles 1 - What do we mean by an ensemble?

How can the same story feel different when you have more characters?

In the first part of our series on ensembles, Chas, Stu and Mel start by laying the groundwork for our future episodes. And we begin by asking the seemingly innocuous question:

‘what do we mean by calling a story an ensemble?’

As we unpack our own assumptions, biases and thoughts, we ask (and attempt to answer) more questions: How does an ensemble differ from a single protagonist or two hander? Why does this distinction even matter? What challenges What genres inherently are ensembles? And what do we hope to learn from the series?

We ice-skate over myriad films including JURASSIC PARK, ALIEN, TOP GUN vs TOP GUN: MAVERICK, DEATH AT A FUNERAL, WAR OF THE WORLDS vs INDEPENDENCE DAY, LORD OF THE RINGS vs WILLOW, OCEAN’S 11 vs OUT OF SIGHT, THIEF vs HEAT, AWAY FROM HER, DIRTY DOZEN, SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, SE7EN, READY OR NOT. Look, there’s heaps. We talk a lot of movies.

We also talk through our lens for breaking down group dynamics: collaborative vs competitive vs combative.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode. <3 Chris!

CHAPTERS

• 00:00:00 - Intro
• 00:04:17 - What is an ensemble?
• 00:26:51 - Taxonomy of Ensembles
• 00:47:25 - ArcStudio Sponsorship
• 00:48:32 - Group Dynamics
• 01:08:39 - Wrap Up & Hopeful Learnings
• 01:15:15 - Patreon Thanks

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

How do you maintain hope in the face of, er, screenwriting?

Time for our annual backmatter episode, where we drop any ruse of any objectivity, and fully embrace our subjective opinions!

In this episode we discuss: potential topics for 2023; the ostensible shortening of first acts; balancing new projects vs current projects; how to maintain hope in the face of an industry as fickle as ours; and end with a discussion of Andor vs Obi-Wan. Yup, Star Wars is the new Die Hard. Get over it.

SPOILERS ABOUND for Andor and Obi-Wan.

FYI we recorded this episode with both of us in the same room (for a more casual atmosphere )but that means there’s more technical gremlins like crosstalk. Our apologies in advance!

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode. <3 Chris!

CHAPTERS

• 00:00:00 - Intro: Backmatter
• 00:02:44 - Housekeeping
• 00:05:49 - Future Episode Ideas
• 00:25:52 - Are first acts getting shorter?
• 00:40:16 - New projects vs current projects
• 00:48:59 - Maintaining Hope or Avoiding Despair
• 00:54:21 - The Big Lessons of 2022
• 00:55:19 - Andor vs Keobi
• 01:14:37 - Key Lessons & Wrap Up
• 01:16:06 - Many thanks

LINKS

• LISTEN: Starship Q Star - https://starshipqstar.com/links

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