A plot tells what happens. A story tells how it happens. A theme defines the purpose of the story in the first place. At the simplest level, a good story consists of nothing but an intriguing and interesting plot. However, even the most sophisticated plot can be more compelling when combined with a theme. A theme […]
Even though your main battle involves your hero fighting your villain, neither one are battling alone. The hero has allies and your villain has his own henchmen. No matter how powerful your villain might be, he can’t do everything or be everywhere. That’s why your villain needs allies of his own, otherwise known as henchmen. A […]
In too many bad movies, the hero is the only person who changes during the course of a story. In really bad movies, even the hero doesn’t change. If you want to grab an audience, not only should your hero change, but those around him (or her) as well. To see how multiple characters can […]
Watch a great movie like “Casablanca” or “The Shawshank Redemption” and it’s easy to be awed by story and not be able to dissect how it works. That’s why it’s often easier to dissect and understand story structure by eatching much simpler movies like any Godzilla movie from Japan. If you visit Crackle, you can […]
“El Mariachi” was a low-budget action film that cost $7,000 to make, yet it’s far more interesting than many million dollar Hollywood blockbusters. While everyone marvels at how it only cost $7,000 to make, what’s also important is to study how the screenplay story is also interesting as well. If the screenplay was weak, then […]