Beginner's Guide
We are a podcast dedicated to working out what makes greats screenplays great.
Since 2014 we’ve been doing our homework and releasing it as the Draft Zero podcast. And we’ve done a lot of homework: over 200 hours!
We’ve always scratched-our-own-itches with our craft, so our episodes zig-zag between topics. This isn’t a screenwriting course (sorry) but it is a deep-dive into the craft.
So if you don’t know where to start, what follows is a selection of our foundational episodes organized roughly by topics. Start anywhere that interests you!
Structure
How do sequences, acts, and story architecture work together? These episodes build the macro toolkit.
- DZ-46Structure & POV - Get Out, Dunkirk, & The Lives of OthersWhat questions do you want your audience asking at any given time?
- DZ-43Driving Sequences - Character and Plot IntensityWhat gives your sequences their intensity?
- DZ-54Thematic SequencesHow does removing character and plot question force your audience to engage with theme?
- DZ-10Midpoint Reversals and The RideHow can the middle of your film pivot so much that it pulls the rug out of your audience?
- DZ-32High-Tension SequencesHow can you recreate the feeling of cinematic high-tension on the page?
Protagonists & Antagonists
CWo drives the story and who opposes them.
- DZ-49Antagonists! 1 - vs HumansWhat makes a strong human antagonist?
- DZ-50Antagonists! (Part 2) - vs SelfHow can characters be their own antagonist?
- DZ-51Antagonists! (Part 3) - vs NatureWhat changes in your story if your antagonistic forces can't be bargained with?
- DZ-52Antagonists! 4 - vs SystemsHow do systems pressure your characters to change?
- DZ-53Antagonists! 5 - vs AudienceWhat if there is no antagonist?
- DZ-33Protagonist vs Hero - Dawn of Character FunctionHow does splitting 'character functions' enhance theme?
- DZ-67Writing Passive Protagonists & MelodramaHow do I tell a powerful story where the protagonist cannot drive the plot?
Character
How characters are introduced, made compelling, and motivated — even when they're bad humans.
- DZ-09Characterising IntroductionsCan the introduction of a character be so good that the character doesn't need describing?
- DZ-03Making Unlikeable Protagonists CompellingINT. EPISODE 3 - MIDDAY
- DZ-55Character Motivations (Part 1)What to do when a reader says "I don't buy that he/she would do that"?
- DZ-56Character Motivations (Part 2)Workshopping ways to fix character motivations.
- DZ-19Car-Crash CharactersHow do you make unlikeable characters compelling to watch... in drama?
First Act Problems
The hardest act to write well. A few episodes on the most common failure points.
- DZ-44Marvel, First Acts and Establishing CharactersHow can your first act effectively establish your character journey?
- DZ-15World Building Rules, Okay?How does setting up rules help you build a world?
Third Acts
What does a satisfying ending actually do emotionally?
Scene Work
The micro level — individual scenes, showdowns, status, and tactics.
- DZ-05Shifting audience point of view and heightened emotionsINT. EPISODE 5 - MIDDAY
- DZ-40Tactics and ScenesHow do tactics make your characters and scenes more dynamic?
- DZ-29Showdowns & Scene StructureWhat can fight scenes - whether physical or verbal - teach us about structuring any scene?
- DZ-08Status TransactionsHow does a shift in status or power reveal character?
Dialogue
Tools for writing dialogue that earns its place on the page.
- DZ-31Tools for Better DialogueHow does dialogue serve to reveal character?
- DZ-63Tools for Better Dialogue (Part 2) - Hook and EyeHow can you create flow and contrast in your dialogue?
Theme
What is your story really about?
- DZ-41Theme and WorldviewHow can your characters' worldview dramatise your theme?
- DZ-45Arguments of the SceneHow can you dramatise your theme on a scene level?
Words on the Page
Formatting, white space, transitions, and the craft of the script document itself.
- DZ-16Masters of Time and WhitespaceDoes manipulating time on the page make your script feel more cinematic?Listen to learn how screenwriters use whitespace to recreate cinema's manipulation of time on the page.
- DZ-60Unfilmables 1 - Engaging imaginationHow can unfilmables enhance the experience of your script?
- DZ-61Unfilmables 2 - Moments of AweHow can unfilmables help you create those cinematic moments of awe?
- DZ-62Unfilmables 3 - As Ifs & Emotional contextHow do you know if your unfilmable is good... or if you're just being a wanker?
- DZ-21Scene Transitions and the HookHow can scene transitions do more than just move from one location to another?
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