Film Storytelling

How do master storytellers compel us? There have been many attempts to understand what makes a good story, but few have used a scientific approach. In The Science of Storytelling, Will Storr applies dazzling psychological research and cutting-edge neuroscience to our myths and archetypes to show how we can tell better stories, revealing, among other things, how storytellers - and also our brains - create worlds by being attuned to moments of unexpected change.

Brought to you by Penguin. A masterclass in telling stories - and how they shape our world - from the internationally renowned narrative expert To command narrative is to control a sometimes frightening power. What is it that turbocharges some tales, and how is it possible to harness that...

Mastering Photography in a Classic Way by Siu Lun Yuen is a calm, craft-first guide for photographers who want to slow down, see with intention, and create images that last. Blending time-honoured technique with mindful practice, this book teaches you how to work with light, space, and story—without getting lost in gear overload. If you love the look and discipline of classic photography but still shoot digital, this book is your bridge between eras. Across clear explanations, practical exercises, and elegant line-art diagrams, you’ll learn how to translate photographic fundamentals—...

Robert Altman and the Elaboration of Hollywood Storytelling reveals an Altman barely glimpsed in previous critical accounts of the filmmaker. This re-examination of his seminal work during the "Hollywood Renaissance" or "New Hollywood" period of the early 1970s (including M*A*S*H and Nashville) sheds new light on both the films and the filmmaker, reframing Altman as a complex, pragmatic innovator whose work exceeds, but is also grounded in, the norms of classical Hollywood storytelling rather than someone who rejected those norms in favor of modernist art cinema.

Mad Men meets The Gilded Age in this witty and enchanting novel about a young woman in 1950s Manhattan who resists the conventional future planned for her, spurred on by a group of ghostly relatives who are the unexpected guests at a star-studded party thrown by Alfred Hitchcock in the family...

For nearly two decades, Invisible Ink has been the go-to guide for storytellers worldwide. Used by industry giants like Pixar Animation Studios, Cirque du Soleil, Microsoft, Sony Interactive, Disney Feature Animation, and many more, this book has cemented Brian McDonald's reputation as a globally respected expert in storytelling. This updated 2nd Edition brings even more invaluable insights from the award-winning filmmaker and writer. For the first time, McDonald shares new concepts from his acclaimed classes, including a deep dive into "writing from the inside out," the core principle of ...

AI-Powered Screenwriting: Revolutionizing Storytelling with Artificial Intelligence Unlocking Creative Potential, Enhancing Script Quality, and Transforming the Industry By Ammanuel Santa Anna Step into the future of filmmaking with AI-Powered Screenwriting: Revolutionizing Storytelling with Artificial Intelligence. This pioneering guide by Ammanuel Santa Anna, a visionary with over 25 years of leadership experience in politics, NGOs, and international business, offers an in-depth exploration of how AI is reshaping the screenwriting landscape. Key Features and Benefits: Unlock Your Creative...

Discover the Invisible Architecture Behind Your Favorite Animated Films Why does a Disney movie make you feel like you can conquer the world, while a Studio Ghibli film makes you want to sit quietly in a forest? Pull back the curtain on the four creative superpowers that have defined modern storytelling: Disney, Pixar, DreamWorks, and Studio Ghibli. This is not just a history book. It is a deep dive into the divergent philosophies of East and West. Explore how Disney’s "Hero’s Journey" champions the triumph of the individual, while Ghibli’s "Kishōtenketsu" structure honors the quiet ...

The Hero’s Path: Understanding the Enduring Ideas of Joseph Campbell takes readers on a compelling journey into the world of one of the twentieth century’s most influential thinkers. Joseph Campbell dedicated his life to uncovering the patterns behind myths, stories, and symbols that unite humanity. This book explores his most important ideas in depth, including the Hero’s Journey, archetypes, the monomyth across cultures, and the role of myth in religion, storytelling, and personal transformation. From ancient epics like The Odyssey and The Epic of Gilgamesh to modern classics like ...

This edition of Story by Numbers is no longer available.

Ah, another screenwriting guide? Just what the world needed. And there's nothing new in it too — unless you're paying attention ... FROM CAMPFIRE TO NETFLIX: STORYTELLING TECHNIQUES THAT HAVE SURVIVED THE AGES Skeptical? Good. You should be. But hear us out. This isn't your typical "Hero's Journey" rehash or a collection of Hollywood plot zombies. Instead, we're diving into the ancient art of storytelling—you know, the stuff that's kept humans enthralled since we first gathered around fires to share tales of wooly mammoths and angry gods. WHAT'S INSIDE? Glad you asked: Six emotion pairs...

Every producer aspires to design an entertainment brand that can grow into a pop icon, a brand whose storyworld or hero has enough creative potential to power spin-offs and reboots, theme park rides and acres of merchandise. So how can independents achieve this degree of success if they don't have a hundred million dollars to spend on a marketing campaign or the time to gamble on a viral video or game? In "Transmedia 2.0: How to Create an Entertainment Brand Using a Transmedial Approach To Storytelling", Nuno Bernardo will show readers how to use the transmedia approach to build an ...

A hilarious guide to life from a man who has "lived large and fallen hard--lost every job I ever had, messed up everybody I've ever dated, been kicked out of every institution I've ever been in"--and still survived; offering observations on courage ("Lots of guys brag they'd fight off anything...

Brought to you by Penguin. The ultimate guide to writing a great screenplay and building a screenwriting career—from the creators of the "highly influential" (Vulture) hit podcast Scriptnotes. With decades of Hollywood experience, John August and Craig Mazin know what it takes to write a...

Written during the formative years of motion pictures, How to Write Photoplays (Third Edition) by Embrie Zuver is a practical, no-nonsense guide to storytelling in the silent-film era—when images carried meaning, structure was everything, and writers learned to think in reels rather than words.

Alternating between personal anecdote, hilarious insight, and smart analysis, Luke Skywalker Can't Read contends that Barbarella is good for you, that monster movies are just romantic comedies with commitment issues, and that Dracula and Sherlock Holmes are total hipsters and, most shockingly, shows how virtually everyone in the Star Wars universe is functionally illiterate.

John Gaspard's More Popcorn Principles: The Sequel! (Further Cinematic Storytelling Strategies for Novelists) is an illuminating guide that takes you on a cinematic journey, revealing the secrets to crafting compelling narratives and characters that resonate. This book is an invaluable tool for any aspiring or seasoned novelist, blending Gaspard's deep understanding of the art of storytelling with inspiration from the world of film.

Melanin in Movies examines how Hollywood shapes the perception of Black Americans. This book challenges the idea that Hollywood is just about entertainment, exploring how the film industry actively influences society's view of Black people. By analyzing key examples and trends in Black representation, Melanin in Movies reveals how film can be both a tool for liberation and a means of oppression.

Thanks to this guided storytelling course, you will learn how to create and structure a story from beginning to end, following the archetypes of storytelling. If you have a book in your drawer, if you are missing some incipits or some narrative features, this is the path for you. You will learn to create blocks to build in order to make your story compelling and exciting, and to characterize protagonists, antagonists, and secondary characters following a functional narrative scheme that has been used on many occasions, from TV series to novels and ancient literature.