DZ-130: Positive Character Arcs

Listen to understand how to dramatize a character's internal change.

Welcome to our third entry in our character arc series; and the first where we talk about characters that actually change. And positively, too.

We deep dive into BARBIE, WIDOWS and ALL OF US STRANGERS to work out what makes an arc feel positive -- even if the film itself is heartbreaking. All three films are "positive arcs" that feel wildly different. We speculate whether that's due to the nature of the relationship questions, the use of additive/subtractive rewards; and whether it's do with the connection of the characters needs and their goals.

We further crystalize two tools we've been kicking around:

The relationship question — take a character question ("will she learn to connect?") and pose it as a relationship problem ("will these two grow closer or further apart?").

Additive vs subtractive rewards — We continue buildling on this idea from our Steadfast episodes. Does the story give the character something or take something away? And is that a good or a bad thing?

And Mel brings up a third:

Repeating a beat from a different angle so we can trace a character's gradual evolution.

We also debate whether Barbie's void scene is a producer's note personified — a director going into the endless nothing to spell the themes out one more time.

All this and more on DZ-130!

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

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