Your Script Is Missing This: Setups and Payoffs

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These Videos were extremely helpful in the creation of this video:
Why Modern Movies Suck - Setup And Payoff by The Critical Drinker: • Why Modern Movies Suck...
Planting and Payoff by Lindsey Ellis: • Planting and Payoff - ...
Hot Fuzz Setups and Payoffs: • Hot Fuzz - Foreshadowi...
Setups and Payoffs are one of the key elements that makes a story feel alive, intentional, and interwoven. They can make or break your story. If you don’t clearly understand how they work and why they are important, you can fill your story with all sorts of thematic, structural, and expositional problems.
Today I am going to explain what setups and payoffs are, common problems with setups and payoffs, and how you can build them into your screenplay.

[@TylerMowery]

Get Practical Tools to Write Your Great Screenplay: www.practicalscreenwriting.com

[@robertsalisbury5195]

I really appreciated your video. Gave me some things to think about with my writing. I’m taking a break from rewriting an award winning short of mine into a feature length one. I know I had one set up in particular with no pay off and I’m fixing that. Outside of that I’m curious what you’d say about it because I use flashbacks a lot throughout and I was told I did so well. Im just curious if you think there’s ever a time you can think of when flash backs were used well? You know the ones that broke the rule but it worked? At the moment I’m only thinking up signs as an example. Any ways. Thanks again for the video! I plan on looking at more of your content in the future.

[@dariushcreates]

My favourite Chekhov’s gun is in Kung Fu Panda. Who knew that a secret soup ingredient would be the cause of Po finally realising the true essence of being the Dragon Warrior?!!

[@Flare_kil]

"It's just You,Bruh"

[@dariushcreates]

The secret ingredient is… nothing!!

[@bonafide4874]

The first Pirates of the Caribbean film has tons of these! I thought they were just called parallels but set up and payoff makes more sense. The ones I can think off the top of my head: 1. Will throwing his sword: When Jack and Will first fight, Will throws his sword at the door to prevent Jack from escaping. At the end of the film, when Jack is about to be hanged, Will throws the sword so Jack can stand on it when he is being hanged 2. Elizabeth falls off the cliff at the start. Jack “trips” off the cliff at the end, knowing that the fall down to the water below is survivable because he saw Elizabeth fall and rescued her at the start of the film 3. When Elizabeth falls off the cliff originally, it’s because she faints. In order to save Jack/ help Will free Jack, she fakes fainting 4. Elizabeth screams in shock/ fright when she sees the monkey as a skeleton for the first time; later, when the monkey jumps out at her in skeleton form, and she is trying to be quiet, she doesn't scream, and throws it off the ship 5. The Coin: Will Turner has the coin, Elizabeth takes it from him and hides it, and when she falls into the sea it “goes off” and alerts the Black Pearl to its where abouts. Instead of this happening at the beginning and at the end, this happens mostly in the first act of the film. 6. Jack’s last bullet. He says to Will “this shot isn’t meant for you” and then used it to kill Barbosa when he is mortal again at the climax. I think it’s also a double set up bc it was Barbosa who originally marooned him and gave him the gun with one bullet. 7. Jack using “sea turtles” to escape the island; when he is stranded there again by Barbosa it’s revealed it’s somewhere frequented by rum traders and that's how he got off the first time. 8. Barbosa and apples. I think you see him a total of four times with an apple: when he first explains the curse to Elizabeth, he asks her to try an apple, another time Jack is eating an apple in front of him and Barbosa is annoyed and later throws the apple off the ship, and last when Barbosa dies, an apple roles out of his hand. If you have watched the hour long KZbin video about why the first Pirates of the Caribbean film is a masterpiece, this guy points all these things out (and more). Also to clarify, all motifs are set ups and payoffs but not all set ups and payoffs are motifs?

[@coloraddiction]

I didn't notice the first one! (Not consciously at least)

[@Whimsy3692]

At the very least, those are called callbacks. The difference is that those callbacks do nothing whatsoever to reflect any values, themes, or move the story forward. An example I can think of is from "I, Robot." Sonny asks Spooner what the act of winking is when Spooner is about to interrogate him. Spooner replies that it's a "human thing" and "a sign of trust." He wouldn't understand. Later... Sonny uses the act of winking in the most correct context I can think of. It was silent, undetectable from the antagonist, a callback, and reflected the theme of the story: robots have the capacity for trust, and therefore, have an element of humanity.

[@bonafide4874]

@@Whimsy3692 I loved that part in that movie! It was definitely a highlight. However, I'd argue a lot of the set ups and payoffs I mentioned (if not all) reflect how the character's have changed/ grown, or trust each other more, and all are relevant plot points/ move the story forward. If you reread what I wrote, all are plot relevant. I didn't write it above, but for 7., after finding out from Jack about the rum on the island, Elizabeth gets Jack drunk and then sets fire to the rum, using it as a bonfire to try and signal to people that they're stranded on the island. Which works. A lot of them also reflect the theme -- like when Will first throws the sword, it's to prevent a pirate (something he despises) from escaping, but at the end when he throws the sword, it's to help a pirate (his friend Jack) escape from execution. Will even later says, when someone says 'he' (Jack) 'is a pirate', Will adds 'and a good man!' proving that he understands that pirates are people, not all good, not all bad, and people are multidimensional, and a person can be a pirate and a good person.

[@Jeremy_Black92]

​@@Whimsy3692I know this is a year-old comment, but I very much disagree. When Will throws the sword in the beginning it's to stop a pirate from escaping. When he does it at the end, he does it to rescue the same pirate from hanging, officially throwing in his lot with pirates and showing his growth. When Elizabeth faints at the beginning, the corset represents the oppressive nature of her role in society, when she fakes fainting at the end, it represents her using the way society sees her to manipulate them like the pirate she's becoming. Jack's single shot also has a bunch of thematic relevance.

[@meliza87]

Great video! I think Back to the Future is also an excellent example of setups and payoffs. Each of them land so satisfyingly, it’s part of why the film is so rewatchable.

[@TylerMowery]

Back to the future is a fantastic example. Absolutely

[@JohnRolf]

Hot Fuzz is literally the best movie to see setup and payoff in action. Every scene either has a setup or payoff from an earlier scene. Love that you mentioned it.

[@EdRobinson]

Your analytical skills are superb and mind boggling...matched only by your ability to convey your findings to us...We are grateful! Thank you, Professor Mowery!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad you enjoyed the video!

[@yasminteixeira5588]

Best storytelling teacher ever 🥰🥰🙏🙏

[@TylerMowery]

Thanks so much!

[@Vinsaino]

Fax

[@pizmeal]

This is real shit. Genuinely the mest teacher ive had my whole life lmao! Grateful for you and your work Prof. Mowry!

[@Rae066]

The TV show Atlanta does a great job with setup and payoffs.

[@psithurismin]

using this, it will make my stories feel satisfying to read and write. thank you.

[@TylerMowery]

Best of luck!

[@KDRtheMDDGNS]

As a young writer, I was unaware of this concept. Thank you for this video. I can feel my writing getting better just listening.

[@TylerMowery]

Glad to hear it!

[@gordo6908]

have you watched any of brandon sandersons presentations or the writing excuses podcast? could be a resource as a writer and he focuses on these concepts

[@sacha7958]

I see you took some inspiration from the video about setups and payoff from Folding Ideas (with the example of the pink unicorn from suicide squad). But this video truly went above and beyond exploring many aspects of setups I hadn't ever considered. Crazy to think that it has taken me so long to understand what a motif really is.

[@TylerMowery]

Yes that’s a great video!

[@brace4impact258]

11:45 I actually think that could still work if done right. It replaces its setup with a layer of mystery instead of the beginning exposition so there’s still a set up and pay off just more drawn out, but then that would depend on the execution of the story so who knows.

[@ssmithjr1]

Thought I was the only one that disagreed on the flashback part. I mean, they’ve been done very well before & we’ve all had plenty of gripes about exposition, so this is def a subjective case, rather than a fact

[@TheBestZestInTheWest]

I think saying nonlinear stories suck is an outrageous call, but the theory of what he said still stands imo. If the nonlinearity muddles the set ups and pay-offs then it will most definitely be confusing and unsatisfying. Introducing an element of mystery doesn't mean you don't set stuff up, in fact I reckon the set ups are actually what drive the element of mystery.

[@brace4impact258]

@@TheBestZestInTheWest I agree memento and pulp fiction are sone examples of how to do a non-linear story. I feel it’s about the execution but I don’t think a lot of writers know how to do that properly, mainly because a lot of them do rely too heavily on flashbacks for exposition.

[@fruzsimih7214]

The motif of Indiana Jones's fear of snakes (his Achilles' heel, if you will) in Raiders of the Lost Ark is one of the best examples of a seemingly casual setup and a massive payoff.

[@collincabrera2270]

I've always appreciated well-done setups and payoffs. Back to the Future is one of the best examples that I can think of. Great video!

[@TylerMowery]

Back to the future has FANTASTIC setups and payoffs

[@diegofortes5]

This should be taught in elementary schools. Great job!

[@sadyoshhours2769]

I've read dozens of books on story but like. Idk how you learned all this stuff. You're a master at your craft, Tyler!

[@wiseauserious8750]

"you can simply add a new idea that changes everything" a perfect example of this narrative pitfall was in the Rise of Skywalker, where apparently now a Jedi can just prevent/reverse death whenever they want by touching the wound and concentrating real hard

[@TylerMowery]

Exactly

[@JohnBradford14]

Or how holding two lightsabers in an X shape somehow negates and reverse force lightning?

[@melancholyentertainment]

Okay but that was setup earlier in that movie, it wasn’t just added as a payoff with no setup to solve that problem at the end. That example follows every rule put forth in the video.

[@melancholyentertainment]

@@JohnBradford14 Deflecting force lightning with a lightsaber was not a new thing in that movie lmao

[@JohnBradford14]

@@melancholyentertainment But what was it about the two lightsabers that suddenly made it even better-er?

[@neinherman9989]

The most satisfying use I've seen, is the nuclear bomb in The Iron Giant. The gravity of the last situation would not have been so tense without the "duck and cover!" Video earlier in the movie

[@TomEyeTheSFMguy]

Aw hell yeah. I've been waiting for this from you

[@TylerMowery]

More to come!

[@nathanhiggins3677]

The flamethrower in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood - would you say that's technically a flashback as when it's set-up we see a time before our current story takes place? Even though it's of course set up BEFORE we get to the end? And also 'non-linear stories suck' I think Pulp Fiction would be a good example of this working as while things are out of order, we are still told the important stuff first.

[@TylerMowery]

Yes.

[@legendarioscast6311]

Tyler, you are aweasome! thanks a lot for your free content, you understanding so much of writing! thanks for sharing your knowledge about this artform we all love so much. Always excited when i see you have posted something. take care and a good day to you all!

[@TylerMowery]

Thanks for the kinds words!

[@ssmith9880]

Well done. Thank you. I've read about setups and payoffs countless times, but your breakdown really brought it all home especially with the setups and payoffs that just don't work or don't mean anything. It makes or breaks a film. Thank you so much for this.

[@andrewah15]

Thanks for that information. Another example is in Die Hard when McClane takes his shoes off in the beginning then later in the film he has to walk through broken glass to escape. Great video - keep up the good work 👍🏾

[@badandy9716]

Up is one of the greatest movies of all time. To think, I had to be dragged into the theater to see it and I left a changed man for the better.

[@muthamalarajesh3757]

Love u man ❤️🎬

[@TylerMowery]

love you too bro

[@WW_Studios]

Always love your videos! Thanks!

[@TylerMowery]

Thanks for watching!

[@crimsonstudios680]

This video deserves more views. It was invaluable information that will become incredibly handy for my screenwriting

[@nighthawk6777]

Amazing vid my man, keep it up!

[@nico_fspz]

So much to learn, thanks for the lesson!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@MTHR3E]

Great video man. A lot of it seems like common sense but you explain it so well and in a way anybody can understand. Keep up the good work and writing!

[@chaznoonan]

Your videos are absolutely brilliant.

[@KEP1983]

Great video! Loved it!!!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@asifrahman60]

Excellent video. I particularly liked the part setups as exposition.

[@uglystupidloser]

this is a really well told video. very concise. i'm trying to hammer out a monster of a labyrinth... and it's nice to hear someone say it so calmly and in a straight forward manner. i'm trying to navigate through an inception-like idea that spans generations and realities. and setting up all the right landmarks and goal posts for the audience (and, really, myself) is quite the mountain to climb. it's "heavily borrowing" from inception, westworld, and game of thrones. i love the way these stories made me feel, and i wanted to pay homage to it... but i had to dissect the stories apart to get a better grasp of the mechanics. and then trying to aim for emulating the audience reaction while creating a brand new story... is like a 100k puzzle piece set. and i have no idea where most of the puzzle pieces even are. i want to cry 😅

[@ApexGale]

I think this is an issue a lot of games have, too. I honestly feel like TLOU2 would have been a more coherent and enjoyed story if all the flashbacks were done chronologically.

[@TylerMowery]

Lots of stories suffer from thinking flashbacks are beneficial

[@enduraman1]

Well done!

[@birdcar7808]

For your TLJ example, it is actually set up that the First Order can’t track the small transports: Finn and Rose leave the ship undetected in one such transport. I guess it doesn’t make sense how Holdo would know the first order isn’t monitoring the little ships but it’s not a new concept.

[@PhilipClyde]

Geez these videos are awesome

[@tulliodesantis4290]

I needed to hear this 😂😂😂 I've been trying to find the right spots to work in these flashbacks but now I know, just put em in order in the begging. Thank u 💗

[@lmlsergiolml]

The most useful channel ever

[@TylerMowery]

Glad to be of help!

[@emmacarena7103]

thank you, that was super interesting!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@GD-os8mz]

Great insights. Thank you.

[@mitter1997]

well explained. thank you.

[@TylerMowery]

Glad it was helpful!

[@cjpreach]

Tyler - This helped me SO MUCH! I will watch this video many times as I work on revisions of my novel. Ironically, the first setup/payoff I perfect has to do with a gun! hehehe

[@TylerMowery]

Glad to hear it was helpful!

[@traviskeas9614]

Amazing!!!!!!!

[@CodeyWi]

Good one, Tyler 🤘

[@alexman378]

I’ve noticed that a major offender of putting the meaningful flashback AFTER the significant moment has happened are Asian films. Which is interesting, because they’re usually great at storytelling, but flashbacks we have never seen are usually added in during or after we’re supposed to care. Noticed it in Train to Busan, All of Us Are Dead and Alice in Borderland. I like all three of them, but I noticed all three made that same mistake.

[@TylerMowery]

Interesting

[@giantcarot]

Bravo and thank you so much ! (from Paris, France)

[@beautyreaccaped5579]

Thank you for this kind of help full video you are literally going to become one of the most important person who help me to become a successful screenwriter in future thank you for your wonderful teaching ❤️

[@valentinlongarela2983]

Thank you for this video!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad it was helpful!

[@sarasvathip68]

@@TylerMowery aaranya kaandam screenplay analysis

[@ianbrewster8934]

Great advice

[@didutasev4427]

Man, if I thought that your video on subtext was your best, I was wrong.

[@madhavamahendra8072]

you always provide valuable knowledge and great piece of information about script writing through your videos. I liked this useful video like any other your previous videos. thanks mowery bro..

[@Salsa_Shark]

It seems like “The Last Jedi” was intended to be a silent film, but after they finished editing, decided to add dialogue.

[@jimmyqdinh]

Very good. Thank you.

[@mercurious6699]

Great video, thank you

[@AALucas]

Thanks for "BANG!!!" - wow, what an end for an essay video :)

[@bradpyoung]

Excellent video

[@freddyfranchise]

I love how you explain an incredibly important principle about storytelling and then advise to complete your first draft without worrying about that. Getting the first draft out is so crucial and takes enough of your focus, energy and perseverance. Worry about most things later. Planting Setups and Payoffs is so much fun and will be part of your journey anyway, sidling up to your story that you already have and making it hopefully irresistable when integrated on a high level. I actually embrace that writing is rewriting. You will discover things you didn't even plan for. As a writer you are an explorer, thrusting into the unknown. Magic can happen in any draft. If you do 10 or 20 you're giving yourself 20x higher chance of magic =) It's like "magic find" in a video game. But it takes some experience to know when to stop doing drafts for a moment and start a new project to come back to it later and get a fresher perspective. Love your work, Tyler. You're a mentor and healer and warrior.

[@TylerMowery]

100%! Writing isn’t about applying perfect theory every time. It’s about being practical, rewriting, and slowly getting better!

[@codyeasonBGR]

This was a great video

[@TylerMowery]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@codyeasonBGR]

@@TylerMowery thanks, man. You are an intelligent guy.

[@Poodlestroop]

I’ve seen Fury Road four times and I didn’t realize the boot motif until this video.

[@neco5740]

It also prevents plot armour. Instead of things coming out of nowhere, even if the reader did not think about it proactive, it is now a thing established or hinted at earlier and therefore does not feel the writer pulled something out their ass to safe the character. It's also important for good plot twists

[@sennathesenna1384]

Great video as always, although I personally disagree with the notion that flashbacks fundamentally suck, though admittedly my arguments as to why do not come from films. I think flashbacks can also be used to apply setup and payoff, but more importantly to recontextualize earlier events. In the Skypiea story arc of One Piece, we are introduced to the passed down tale of "Noland the liar", who claims to have found an island with a city of gold, but when he goes back to it with the king's henchmen, the city is nowhere to be found and Noland claims it has gone up in the sky. Convinced that Noland is lying, the king gets him publicly executed. This tale, among other things that point to the "sky island" being real, drives our main character Luffy and his pirate crew to go to the island for themselves. As the crew embarks in search of treasure, they become entangled in a three-way war between the native Skypieans, the vengeful Shandians, and the land's cruel "god", Enel. Right before the climax of this arc, we get a flashback, showing what actually took place all these years ago with Noland, which largely multiplies the meaning of the motif of the giant golden bell, which was introduced before the Straw Hat pirates went into the sky. When Luffy rings the giant bell at the end of the climax, we now understand that it is not only meaningful for the people down on earth's surface, but also for the Shandians who got trapped on Skypiea, and this moment would not have been as powerful without such an effective flashback. Essentially, the flashback works as a payoff for the setup of the tale, but it also works as another setup for the end of the climax. In the Enies Lobby arc of One Piece, the central character arc is that of Nico Robin, who is introduced in the Alabasta arc as a sidekick to the main antagonist, Crocodile. When Crocodile is defeated by Luffy, the underground area they're in crumbles and Luffy ends up saving Robin, even though she demands Luffy to leave her there to die. As a result of not having any place to go, Robin joins the Straw Hat pirates, to the dismay of the majority of the crew. Over time she grows close with the crewmembers, but in the Water-7 arc, to ensure the safety of the others, Robin gets willingly taken away to the juridical island, Enies Lobby, by the government, who wants to have her executed because of her ability to uncover parts of history the government wants to keep hidden away. The pirates head to Enies Lobby to save their friend, but when Luffy eventually finds Robin, accompanied by the antagonists, and is about to head towards her from across the rooftop, she exclaims "I've told you countless times, I won't come back to you anymore! Go back! I don't even want to see your faces anymore! Why did you come to rescue me!? I never wished for such a thing. When did I ask you to save me!? I only... I only want to die!" Luffy is naturally taken aback by this. After some time, when the other members start arriving as well, he responds "Anyway, we're still gonna save you. And after that, if you still want to die... You can die after we save you." The next few episodes are a flashback, to Nico Robin's youth. We learn that as a child, Robin was quite an outsider, but she did manage to make friends through archeology. It is for the archeological ability of this islands inhabitants that the government chooses to burn the entire island to the ground, but Robin manages to escape to sea. Being left with nothing, other than the words of her lost friend Saul: "The sea is vast, so someday, definitely... ...you'll come across friends who will protect you." The following 20 years Robin tries to find places to call home, but she's never able to because of the bounty placed on her head. "You shouldn't be allowed to live in this world, Robin!" "Your existence itself is a huge crime, Robin!" The poor girl gets convinced she has no right to live. Robin eventually turns to lying and deceiving. Putting up with the wrong people and ditching them when they aren't of use to her anymore, which results in her teaming up with Crocodile. But after all of that, when Robin meets the Straw Hat pirates, she finally found people who she can call her friends. Now we are back in Enies Lobby. The rest of the crew arrived and are looking right at the balcony(?) Robin and the antagonists are standing on, making for one of the most iconic stand-offs ever. Seeing everyone standing on the roof, Robin realizes she did finally find a place, or rather people, to call home. Luffy exclaims "Robin! We still haven't heard you say it! Say you want to live!" Robin thought it was something she dared not wish for. No one ever let her wish for it. If... it's really okay for her to utter her wish for once... "I want to live!!" Robin screams, sobbing. "Take me to the sea with you!" Again, we have a flashback that reinforces the stories motifs and themes and sets up one of the best moments in the story, but this time it's also really effective at answering questions we may have had. Previously we had no idea what made Robin pick the choices that she did, but now with this knowledge we know what let her to make the choices she did, or in short, this flashback serves as a payoff for the setup of Nico Robin's entire character up to this point. This whole story arc would not have been the same without this amazing flashback. Wow I really wasted over an hour of my time on this comment no one will ever read. tl;dr read or watch One Piece

[@mathikumar491]

excellent

[@TylerMowery]

Thanks!

[@bugyourparents]

Yo-ho-ho!! Tyler Mowery be my fiction college bro! The way his words accompany the video clips of good and bad storytelling, it rewires your brain 🧠 appropriately! Thanx homie!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad to help!

[@augustolasta2468]

The original back to the future has a ton of great set offs and payoffs that either contribute to the story or to world building

[@kaptinkanoodle5039]

One of the few non-linear stories that works well is the Mandela catalogue. The snippets from seemingly disconnected events in time works well in the analogue horror genre to create a narrative that feels rewarding when the viewer pieces together clues.

[@runterhaltung]

Hey awesome video! Can you give some examples how to build in a reminder in a story? I understand the concept of Setups and Payoff, but the reminder isn't clear for me yet. Would be super nice!

[@mohammaddehbashi4624]

I Wish I Could like this video 1000 times!! :)))

[@TylerMowery]

Haha thanks!

[@misterwhyte]

Man, I was with you until you said Up wouldn't work the other way around. I respectfully disagree. I can totally picture a rewrite that would make Carl appear like just a grumpy old man at the start only for his sweet side and sad backstory to be revealed later on. His pin (why is he wearing this?) and his adventure book (what's in it?) could even add some mystery for the audience. It would be a completely different movie experience but that could totally work.

[@TylerMowery]

Sure. But having read tons and tons of scripts that use this flashback format, it is WAY less engaging.

[@misterwhyte]

@@TylerMowery Arguable. That sounds more like a personal preference than a fact to me. ;)

[@carnilino.m]

I agree with this. Tyler has strong opinions about flashbacks (as in just never use them), but I also think it is just his personal preference. I personally love stories where we gradually find out information about the character which changes our initially wrong/bad opinion of him, that way it just hits harder than knowing it straight away. Flashbacks are used well when the mystery/the questions are set up first and then the payoff (the audience is already curious and wants to know the answer) comes in a form of flashback, recontextualizing a lot of the previous story, giving it another layer of complexity for a better rewatch value. In Up's case, frontloading the character's background was probably a better choice for the given audience - simpler structure for the children. If it was for the adult audience, I would prefer it the other way.

[@ComplexAce]

Edit: after writing this I took another look and realized you already made a video about it, thanks a ton, I already watched it and left a thumbs up Can you do a video about flashbacks and non-linear stories then? I got your point here and I'd like to avoid that mistake, but my style still feels better as none-linear with flashbacks, I'm talking about the mood more technical matters, I doubt I'm the only one.

[@lion7676]

Plz make some videos on how to direct a scene or sequence and how to shoot a fight scene with multiple angels.

[@TylerMowery]

There are better channels for how to successfully direct and shoot sequences. This channel is dedicated to writing and storytelling.

[@Novastar.SaberCombat]

I've been mentioning just how many brilliant setups & payoffs are in "Diamond Dragons" (series) for YEARS. Absolutely no one listened, read, nor bothered to learn from any of it, LOL! 😂🤣😂 Oh well. They're all still there, and always will be. 🐲✨🐲✨🐲✨

[@timarlow8007]

So much insightful advice! I feel like Animes often break this rule and do a setup/exposition after the payoff - ie main character does something cool and other characters then explain what happened. But, thinking about it more, the main characters power may have already been setup, it's used in different way than expected (payoff) and then there is exposition explaining that. Thoughts?

[@elizabethfenelon7922]

Attack on Titan is a prime example. You’d have a field day analyzing the storytelling elements present 👍

[@melancholyentertainment]

Okay great video and explanation but I just want to add that the hyperspace tracking was setup earlier in TLJ, it’s what like half of the plot is about up until that point.

[@DUST35]

Great video! Hopefully, we'll work together sometime next year 👍

[@TylerMowery]

I hope so too!

[@angeloisern]

Using mad max as example. Respect.

[@clara-kl7er]

Heyy, first of all I wanted to say that I love your videos and you're such an incredible person for explaining it all to us, thank you. Second, I have some doubts about the flashback and non-linear stuff. You said that it doesn't work and your explanation really makes sense, but how does some people make it work? Like Christopher Nolan in "Memento" and "The Prestige", he uses flashbacks and non-linear storylines and those are some really good movies, so why does it happen? What do you think he does different from the others to make it work? (english is not my first language so sorry for any incorrect stuff).

[@sanketvaria9734]

Eliie giving the book back still makes me cry. The scene is just too strong.

[@HilliIndustries]

The sad part ist, that everything you just explained is like one of THE Basic Storyelements and Hollywood seems to have forgotten that. So weird. I mean... Star Wars TLJ was really miserable. But lets take LOTR Rings of Power... there are so, so, so many scenes that are simply pointless, there are several set ups but no pay off and several payoffs without set ups, to the point where I refused to believe that this was really written like that. It does not make sense... It´s like you have a 5 star restaurant and hire random people as cooks, that never ever made anything to eat themself. Why would you do that? Thank you for that video man!

[@user-jh2yn6zo3c]

Thanks for--

[@happybirthdaypaulie8584]

Rian Johnson and JJ Abrams: “…wait, you’ve gotta have BOTH of those?!”

[@Wolf-ge7iz]

Hello! I’m having trouble with trials. What do you think makes trials good? How do you thimk they should be structure? Do you have any examples that could help? Thank you! And love your vids! Ps. The Pasigier, I believe, is amazing and full of great examples!

[@kayag8]

What do they want?

[@daviddelayat-dnapictures]

Can the setup be created inside a flashback or is it unstable to do so ?

[@WhenIsItUs]

I love the movie Up, but I think it fails to deliver. Most people tear up when they think of the movie because they remember it as being a sad romance, when the point seems to be making people believe that their relationship was the true adventure. While I do agree that our relationships with others are the true adventure in life, the movie itself is about an adventure. It leaves many viewers feeling as if the old man failed, or perhaps his wife failed, and that the satisfaction they have with their lives is forced, or some sort of settlement. It feels almost like Call of Duty telling us war is bad while rewarding us for head shots.

[@afrosymphony8207]

i have a love hate relationship with this technique, SOMETIMES even when done right it just makes a movie seem a bit generic. Can you do a breakdown of social network, tarantino called the most perfect film in the last decade and i completely agree, it breaks many cinematic rules, its absolutely insane that a movie with that kinda structure which mostly entails flashbacks can be THAT good, absolutely fucking insane.

[@bascal133]

Is The Usual Suspects an example of setup in hindsight?

[@fenix925]

Quick question, this is only useful for a script or can it be apply on a novel?

[@TylerMowery]

It absolutely applies to novels.

[@sanketvaria9734]

A question: Then how to use mystery element and plot twist? Let's take the leiya example from starwars. I believe it was set as some sort of minor twist or mystery revelation. clearly it didn't work in that case but how to do it?

[@zachary4670]

12:35 arbitrary opinion given as fact. Christopher Nolan has made a huge career on non-linear stories. Also, exposition after the reveal is used all the time in detective stories, to show how clever the detective is. Sherlock Holmes and Psych are both great examples. I would suggest that instead of giving opinions and personal value statements, try giving more grounded ideas. Right? Instead of, “This is bad,” say “This is how this story used it. This is why it might not work.”

[@laundrybucket9059]

I love the video but I would like to say I disagree with the flashback point you said when done correct flashbacks can serve the story amazing the best example in my opinion is the god father part 2

[@ThirdEyeGamings]

I really like the non linear structure. Is it stupid to write non-linear?

[@TomEyeTheSFMguy]

I feel like no matter what your structure is, you still have to be coherent.

[@pinakichakraborty8759]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@lifeisgood7745]

Hey are you a comic book fan cause is their a way to make a great comic book movie?

[@melanienolley]

Thank you for eloquently explaining one of the many reasons why, Amazon's Rings Of Power, is the epic failure it truly is.

[@chriswest8389]

My story Has to be non lineal, otherwise massive Info dumps after the resolution. Telling not showing , assuming the audiance even gets it. Yes, I know we're not T. Qurintino,, a genius, but rnt most t v shows in particular now told out of squence? Power I thought did this superbly. Westworld, not so well. What R anyone's thoughts here on split screen,2 or more scenes on screen simultaneously. The Thomas Crown afair is one of the few. An underutilized format in my opinion. Perhaps split screen is a kind of hybrid between lineal and non lineal story telling.

[@moeenhassan6600]

With gpt 3 and all does it even matter for us to write anymore?

[@fogartyfox592]

Lit video

[@fogartyfox592]

Wow lit is such an old word what a loser that’s so 2017

[@fogartyfox592]

Bro I was just being nice, chill man

[@fogartyfox592]

I know but lit is such a cringy word, don’t use it next time

[@fogartyfox592]

Okay. Duly noted

[@fogartyfox592]

Ugh don’t use the word duly you idiot, it makes you look like your trying too hard.

[@adilzade3022]

New tittle; things that are missing in movies since 2015.