Robert McKee's Story Seminar - The Setting

[biancorosso11]

Those that can, do. Those that can't, teach. Those that can't teach, teach gym.

Woody Allen

[megafoned]

@biancorosso11 what I usually say is:

Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach. Those who can't teach, are worthless fucks.

[JayFGrissom]

Just finished McKee's book (for fun, I'm not a "serious" story writer) and had to search for more of his work... Great stuff here! Thanks for posting this video! I'm definitely subscribing.

[jhohcable]

AND WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU WASTING MY TWO PRECIOUS HOURS, WITH YOUR MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVIE

[ivanUtube]

@jhohcable AND GOD HELP YOU IF YOU USE VOICE-OVER IN YOUR WORK, MY FRIENDS. GOD HELP YOUUUU

[ivanUtube]

@ivanUtube AND DONT YOU DARE BRING IN A DEUS EX MACHINA

[rodrigortr]

veron films was here

[Flewti2]

McKee, Truby and Syd made the usefulness of analytical approach to scriptwriting popular and accessible. These men are keen critical thinkers and problem solvers. If would be screenwriters were to rely purely upon other credited screenwriters for instruction, most may end up writing like the instructors.

Instead, the aforementioned trio equips the writer with skill sets culled from many works of literature and screenplays. Au contraire, Syd Field did write a few screenplays.

[MeatballsMarlowe]

I just read War and Peace and I've got to strongly disagree with his statement about it being set in a "small little world." I think he needs to explain that a little better. I wonder if War and Peace were written today, would it pass McKee's standards for a good story.

[cardiffwilly]

@MeatballsMarlowe Having just read his book, I agree that you have to take a lot of what McKee says with a pinch of salt. But I think what he's trying to say is that you can't have a story which can be taken out of its setting and still have the same meaning - I haven't read War and Peace, but I imagine that the story wouldn't work outside the context of the Napoleonic War. Every story must be confined to a one, clear, perfectly realised setting. Or something.

[rleneway]

Kevin,

This may help when thinking about Uncle Jessie.

Dad

[demboys18]

I LOVE the fact that he has a "storylogue," now I just gota save up to join, lol.

[stacyrchambers]

He actually has written and sold a lot of screenplays, but none of them have been made into movies.

[rawREN]

A lot of popular books and movies sell well without paying attention to story structure ideas like McKee's... but we all know popularity does not mean the stories are good. At least McKee offers a framework to work around and to respond to, even if ultimately discarded or ignored.

[mysticpamela]

Knowledge, see, is power. Start at the beginning. And when you get to the end.... STOP.

[geoffdoor]

mckee rocks and he smokes

[stefanthedentist]

This guy is killing freedom,imagination,reason! "McKee's Former Students Have Written or Co-Written: Desperate Housewives

CSI, Law & Order, Iron Man,So You Think You Can Dance"...do we need more?! they also wrote Lord of the Rings I, II, III!

Can you imagine how "small" tolkins world is, and how s.becketts universe in waiting for godot is "big"?!

Halo McKee...setting has nothing to do whit it.

[christpunchers]

And the best movies are usually set in VERY small worlds (Kaufman's movies, Glengarry Glenross, STOL).

[0FindGlory]

Does anyone know where any of us can find a McKee's 'top ten' or 'top twenty' of 'rules' worth bearing in mind when we write? are the top ten tips in any of his books or better still, online?

[SagaciousMusic]

I LOVE Dr. Strangelove!!

[MeatballsMarlowe]

around 4:09 i think he briefly lapses into senility.

[shootmewithpotatos]

i love how he keeps laughing at the mention of "apocalypse" or "mushroom cloud".

[Maxcherrybailbonds]

I think for good reason, a lot of writers discard these screenwriter gurus who don't actually write screenplays. But McKee and Syd Field do have a lot of knowledge on the subject.

[Fett4]

@Maxcherrybailbonds Robert McKee does write. His unproduced screenplay MISS JULIE MONTGOMERY is excellent.

The man can WRITE.

[bgrundfest1]

...

[mark1800]

"You can't have a protagonist without desire, it doesn't make any sense. Any FUCKING sense!"

[eleonb]

I just took the Seminar in Chile a few days ago, and I totally recommend it for anyone.

It's about writing, of course, but more than that it's about LIFE, human nature, human mind, human behaviour.

If u have the chance to go, don't doubt it.

[TheObnubilators]

i jsut finished "Story" yesterday and I agree. A lot of wisdom here, not only about screenwriting. There are certain things that I doubt, methods he advocates and philosophies, but it's certainly all to be taken into consideration.

[BenMcCormack91]

I've never been to his seminars... but I have his book, "Story." I found it in Barnes and Noble, thought the cover looked awful, opened it, and realized it was amazing... True to the saying...

I actually had an English teacher who was as good as McKee in high school - talked about the same sorts of things, though in terms of novels and short stories, not film. So this book was a great help to me, and I think it'd help audiences as well as writers.

[PaxLuna]

Thank you! I'm thinking of going to the one in LA, & your comment encourages me!

[nephling]

Don't get me wrong, I WORSHIP this man's honesty, expertise and wisdom...but WHAT has he written HIMSELF?

[brewer921]

He has written numerous scripts that have never gotten made. Some he got paid for, some he didn't.

[randywong]

the sad truth is that just writing a good screenplay is just a fraction of the process. In the end, if someone doesn't think it is marketable, it will not be made.

[markjhf]

He hasn't written any screenplays HIMSELF, but I'm sure your BRIGHT enough to know that to teach is it's own art. After all, are all airplane mechanic's, pilots? Of course not, because you don't have to DO one to ACHIEVE the other. But Surely you know this.

Hope I didn't get you wrong...

[markjhf]

wow! your BRILLIANT mcpark, then tell me out of curiosity, who taught Einstein, or Socrates, or Van Gogh, maybe you can tell me who taught you how to drive, surely it musta been somebody who wins car races, because if not then why on earth would you learn from them, what on earth could they possibly teach you. pray do tell genius.

[markjhf]

Thanks for the bit of common knowledge micpark, but you fail'd to answer any of the questions ask of you. But maybe those just aren't you field, so let's stick to film: who taught Robert Towne how to write, or who taught Scorsesse how to direct, Brando to act. You can't be suggesting that any thing made of any relevance in this wolrd is only born from someone who had a genious teacher in their field. You can't be so naive.

[Adrian101882]

There's a quote of his which addresses your question:

"The world is full of people who teach things they themselves cannot do"

[EjkoUSC]

If we were to stretch that reasoning than we'd say only the greatest athletes can make great coaches. Red Aurbach and Phil Jackson are the greatest coaches in NBA history. Phil was a limited player while Red didn't even play. Does that make them unfit to instruct a team? Teaching is its own art. Many succesfull screenwriters probably couldnt teach or spread their wisdom for the life of them. Oh he also wrote STORY. Best seller. So obviously he can write about writing. That good enough for you?

[collinsneluat]

No i can hear his voice while i read :D

[InGodWeTrustTV]

Fantastic book for all storytellers.