‘Yes, And’-ing Your Story: The Sixth Sense

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Let’s do some more “Yes, and’ing” of movie stories, shall we? This time, I’ve looked at a screenplay that I originally covered on the job as a professional Reader, then watched it sell in a huge $3+ million deal for M. Night Shyamalan to write and direct the film that not only went on to become a huge hit, but at the time it became the biggest horror film to date and even broke into the top ten of biggest box-office hits in history (not adjusted for inflation). You know it, you love it.

The Sixth Sense. Read more

‘Yes, And’-ing your story: The Hunger Games

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When watching a movie or TV show, I’m always thinking about how and why a story works, and how and why the writer made those particular story choices. I’m also intrigued by how the concept began. How small was the kernel of the idea when they began to formulate the story and how did they go about expanding on the original premise to populate their world and find the protagonist’s ultimate journey?

I had the thought that the ol’ Improv 101 method of “Yes, and” could make for a great method to build a story from the first bud of an idea. At least, to get it started. This would probably work best with a writing partner or a group as you talk aloud and just keep the conversation and ideas going, but you can also do it on your own. (I also call this method “concept stacking” because it’s a process of adding new elements on top of an original premise.) Read more