Lessons from the Screenplay

The freerunning chase in Casino Royale serves as a great example of how an action sequence can reveal character, and how to introduce the world to a new James Bond.

Parasite a tense social satire about a poor family, the Kims, who con their way into becoming the servants of a rich family, the Parks. In February 2020, it made history by becoming the first non-English language film to ever win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. In this video, we examine the way Parasite cleverly utilizes symbols and motifs to express its theme.

Celebrating its 70th anniversary, the Hollywood classic Sunset Boulevard tells a story that follows an uncommon trajectory. Instead of containing a "positive change arc" as so many films do, this is a story of disillusionment. And despite it being a story from long ago, this disillusionment story bears remarkable similarities to Parasite—a tense social satire about a poor family, the Kims, who con their way into becoming the servants of a rich family, the Parks. In this video we compare the character arcs from both films.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe, also known as the Infinity Saga, features multifaceted, three-dimensional characters. In particular, Iron Man and Captain America have compelling and complete arcs that span the series’ impressive run. This video dives into those arcs to examine how they're introduced as flawed characters, demonstrate how they're forced into extreme and opposite positions at the midpoint of their journeys, and explore how the completion of their character arcs leads to balance and closure for both heroes.

A well-designed team of characters enables the story's protagonist to achieve their goal, and at the same time keeps the story interesting by providing a constant source of conflict. In this video we examine the team tasked with hunting down a great white shark in Jaws to see how each individual’s character traits create the ideal balance of harmony and dissonance.

Mad Men, a show about mid-twentieth century American advertising, skillfully employs text, subtext, and symbolic imagery to emotionally sway the audience. In this video, we break down the acclaimed season 1 finale, "The Wheel", to uncover how the show's protagonist, Don Draper, utilizes all the meaning-making tools at his disposal to make a sale, even as the show's creators use those same tools to evoke a response in us.

X-Men: First Class thoughtfully utilizes the setting of its midpoint sequence, Sebastian Shaw’s attack on Division X, to heighten the scene’s emotional impact on the audience. In this video, the LFTS team breaks down the design of the young mutant’s archetypal “warm house”, the roles it helps establish, and why the scene feels so dramatic as that sense of safety is stripped away.

The Outer Worlds demonstrates how companion characters and player choice can come together to create a unique experience for each player. In this video, we explore how Parvati Holcomb, one of the first companions you meet, can influence the decisions you make throughout the game and how your advice and choices shape your relationship as you help her deal with a difficult situation.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl showcases the best of the adventure genre by using key genre elements as fundamental building blocks of the story and character design. In this video, the LFTS team explores four critical components of classic adventure films, dives into the deeper ways Pirates utilizes them as core design rules (or guidelines), and demonstrates why remixing the genre with an unexpected element helps make the film feel fun, spooky, and surprising.

This video examines one of Christopher Nolan's trademark techniques—the crosscut—by dissecting The Dark Knight, Inception, and Interstellar.

This video examines how the unique tone of Stranger Things—a blend of sci-fi horror and 80s coming-of-age nostalgia—is conveyed in the show’s pitch deck, in the script, and on the screen.

Coraline borrows elements from some of the most ancient forms of storytelling itself. In this video, we examine how Coraline uses an underlying fairy tale structure to shape the protagonist’s journey, dissect how the film also incorporates grotesque imagery and classic ghost story elements, and discover how utilizing all these ancient forms lends power to the story by reinforcing one of its central themes.

We look at how screenwriter Aaron Sorkin constructs a battle by examining how the script establishes compelling stakes and defines both the battleground and weapons used to fight, and we dissect how increasing the pressure on the central characters results in an unforgettable climactic explosion.

We look at how Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol" is a simple, memorable example of five-act story structure.