Selling a Movie with Thematic Issues
April 25, 2007
Of all the four levels in a story - Genre, Plot, Theme and Character - the one that is hardest to distinguish is Theme. This is because Theme rests on a sliding scale whereas the others are seen as more static. Theme ebbs and flows within a story. Unfortunately, because it is so elusive, theme can end up muddied or worse, forgotten altogether. It was nice, therefore, to see it so obviously illustrated in the trailer for First Snow.
Watch the following trailer and see if you can determine the thematic elements within:
Seems like Fate and Destiny might play a huge role in this film!
How do we know? Well, besides being flashed on the screen for us to read, you get a sense that events are happening to poor Jimmy Starks and he doesn’t know whether they’re random occurrences or if they all add up towards some sort of pre-engineered direction. These happen to be the Dramatica definitions of Fate and Destiny, respectively.
Take a look at the Dramatica Quad that contains these terms:
As the trailer illustates, these thematic issues are often discussed in films that are dark and brooding. There is something about this kind of filter on a story’s problems that just feels heavy…(Interestingly enough, the real world scientific correlation to this quad is Mass).
So in this quad you have Fate and Destiny - dynamically opposed to each other at the thematic level. These two will play off each other throughout the story. I’m assuming that these issues are present in the Objective Story - that is, the story at large. They could also be part of the Main Character’s personal throughline, but the trailer seems to portray everyone having some kind of stake in this dire situation.
Theme is presented on a sliding scale
Along with Fate and Destiny, you also have Interdiction and Prediction. Both are shown equally as well in the trailer.
Prediction can be seen with the Fortune Teller, who may or may not be some sort of Impact Character, but is most likely a Guardian (embodying the motivations of Help and Conscience). He presents Jimmy with some serious revelations about the future - death will come to Jimmy by the first snow.
(Short digression and pop quiz: The climax occurs when the first snow falls - Optionlock or Timelock?)
And then you have Interdiction - the drive to intercede against events that will or will not happen. Jimmy wants the girl to find out what the Fortune Teller knows so he can do something about his fateful end. The question of the film seems to be - can you change that which has already been determined?
Which leads me to think that this is the true Objective Story Thematic Issue. I’ve always heard that the best way to illustrate an issue is not to discuss it at all. Instead, it should be shown in light of the other opposing pair within the quad. In other words - Interdiction will shown to be positive or negative as it relates to Fate and Destiny. Is trying to intercede against perceived future events a smart path to take or does it make matters worse?
The trailer seems to advocate the latter.
A fantastic example of theme at work and a story I look forward to experiencing.