I grew up on a steady diet of mainstream movies and television. When I got to college I studied film and was introduced to a fair amount of world and non-mainstream cinema. My brain exploded in the best way. I saw films that seemed to follow different rules of storytelling and my appreciation for different lived experiences and approaches to filmmaking grew and expanded.
Mainstream movies tend to follow a well established mode of storytelling, sometimes called classical Hollywood cinema. In other words, it's a way of filmmaking that is characterized by omniscient narration, a high degree of communicative intent, and a focus on causality and character-driven stories. This makes for great filmmaking and often a very enjoyable viewing experience. But it’s not the only way to tell stories.
Why am I writing this? Recently I’ve been rewatching THE KOKER TRILOGY (and a few other films by Iranian filmmakers) and I’ve been reminded just how enjoyable films can be that tell different kinds of stories and use different modes of storytelling to suit the stories they tell. I’m writing this to encourage all you screenwriters, especially those of you who are primarily versed in mainstream movies, to stretch yourself, watch movies you wouldn’t normally watch, watch films from other cultures than you normally watch, watch old films and strange films and challenging films. Push yourself. I believe doing so will stretch your minds and expand your stories and the way you tell them.
And if you haven’t seen THE KOKER TRILOGY, you can find it on Criterion and elsewhere. Read more about the trilogy here: https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/6555-the-koker-trilogy-journeys-...
I could have posted this just as easily in the filmmaking lounge, but filmmaking tends to begin with screenwriting, so here it is.
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Great advice, Tucker Teague! I've been going outside my comfort zone with movies. Indie features and shorts (like the short films members post on here). I pick up things from the movies that I use in my scripts, like how I write a dysfunctional relationship and building tension in a scene.
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Very good advice. I've found podcasts like Films to be Buried With as a good source for hearing about films I'd not normally seek out.
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Ewan Dunbar thanks telling me about the podcast. I will check it out. Looks great.