Creating Story Rhythm with Anchor Sequences - ISA Connect Class w/ Max Timm

International Screenwriters' Association 3 years ago

Creating Story Rhythm with Anchor Sequences

Structure is of course just logistics - in other words, "this happens here for that particular reason". But story isn't just a series of beats. Story is emotion that rises and falls due to a trajectory of character actions. Even though that sounds extremely technical, it's actually a very fluid and malleable way to look at any story. Audiences want to go for a ride, but when they know what to expect along the way, it's the difference between a lazy river raft ride, and the best roller coaster we want to ride again and again.

Understanding how to anchor your story with big moments, and why those anchors are important from a logistical perspective, helps you not only marry basic structure with emotional structure, but it allows you to develop your story from a non-linear perspective. We don't want to approach story with a low-level energy of "this happens then this happens then this happens, etc". We want to understand what the big moments are that the story is working toward, and then keep the audience on their toes while we take them from big anchor moment to big anchor moment.

Let's dive into this free monthly class with the ISA's Director of Education, Max Timm. There will be a lot of information covered in one hour, and he will do everything he can to answer as many questions as possible. So come prepared. Put your creative thinking caps on.

Topic(s):

ISAConnect Exclusive, ISA Virtual Events, Development Notes

Genre(s):

Adventure, Rom-Com, Young Adult, Western, Thriller, Sports, Science Fiction, Romance, Mystery/Suspense, Horror, Fantasy, Action, Animation, Biography, Children, Crime, Historical, Family, Comedy, Drama