DZ-61: Unfilmables 2 - Moments of Awe

Listen if you're writing a moment that feels too big for the page (but you need it on the page). In this second part of our series on unfilmables, Chas and Stu continue their deep dive into how writing the “unfilmable” can enhance your script. Rather than looking at micro moments, they turn their gaze to "moments of awe" — those often breathtaking cinematic moments that feel beyond writing. But are those scenes actually unscriptable? In this episode we look at sequences from YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE, SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISCHER, THE INVITIATION, and MOONLIGHT. We talk writing cinematically, performance beats, breaking (and maintaining) "the spell", limited palettes of language, self-contextualising writing, and instructables. Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode, and Carissa Lee for performing the big print. As always: SPOILERS ABOUND and all copyright material used under fair use for educational purposes. LIKE THIS EPISODE? Send us feedback. Thanks to our Patrons, especially Khrob, Theis, Sandra, Jesse, Randy, Paulo, Thomas, Jennifer, Malay, Alexandre and Lily. ——— CHAPTERS 00:00:00 – Unfilmables & Unscriptables (Part 2) 00:00:31 – Intro: Unfilmables Revisited - Moments of Awe 00:11:57 – Julio - When Unfilmables Don't Work 00:22:12 – You Were Never Really Here 00:26:05 – You Were Never Really Here [script reading] 00:29:00 – You Were Never Really Here [analysis continued] 00:39:29 – Searching for Bobby Fischer 00:47:09 – Searching for Bobby Fischer [script reading] 00:48:15 – Searching for Bobby Fischer [analysis continued] 01:04:10 – The Invitation 01:12:57 – The Invitiation [script reading] 01:15:52 – The Invitation [analysis continued] 01:29:23 – Moonlight 01:49:38 – Wrap Up & Key Learnings FILMS YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE (2017) — (w) Jonathan Ames, Lynne Ramsay (d) Lynne Ramsay SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISCHER (1993) — (w) Fred Waitzkin, Steven Zaillian (d) Steven Zaillian THE INVITATION (2016) — (w) Phil Hay, Matt Manfredi (d) Karyn Kusama MOONLIGHT (2016) — (w) Barry Jenkins, Tarell Alvin Mccraney (d) Barry Jenkins SCRIPTS Study the script: YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE (2017) — Jonathan Ames, Lynne Ramsay Study the script: MOONLIGHT (2016) — Barry Jenkins, Tarell Alvin Mccraney LINKS Read: DZ-61 Unfilmables Part 2 - Collated Scripts EPISODES IN THE UNFILMABLES SERIES DZ-60: Unfilmables 1 - Engaging imagination DZ-61: Unfilmables 2 - Moments of Awe DZ-62: Unfilmables 3 - As Ifs & Emotional Context RELATED EPISODES DZ-16: Masters of Time and Whitespace DZ-60: Unfilmables 1 - Engaging imagination ——— More Draft Zero is brought to you by our awesome Patreons. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts, a rating on Spotify, or a review on Podchaser. We are @stuwillis, @mehlsbells and @chasffisher on Twitter. You can find @draft_zero and @_shotzero on Instagram and Twitter. Full show notes at: https://draft-zero.com/2019/dz-61/