Week 3 Day 5: Stacking Intrigue — GAME OF THRONES

Hi! It won’t let us access the video for the assignment. It says, Video unavailable.

I watched the video at this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JO4dQ1bt6eE&list=PL5XnQwqrwrqHMGXjd8e3xgNM3DvxZwCPa&index=5

But since I’m not sure this is a good substitute for the one in the assignment that is no longer available on YouTube, I have not completed this lesson.

Same- I was not able to watch the video.

The group on what appears to be a routine patrol.

The travel through the forest.

Spotting smoke in the distance

Sneaking up and discovering the horrendous massacre of innocents.

This is an effective use of stacking intrigue as the scene builds to the climax.

Watch 1st time for basic scene components:

Scene arc: Three men go on horseback through a MASSIVE defensive ice-wall. They split into three and travel into the forest on a patrol. One of the soldiers sees smoke in the snow-covered woods and dismounts, crawls on his belly over a rise where he sees a group of “wildlings” has been killed, dismembered, and ritualistically arranged into some kind of art. He runs…

Situation: Three horsemen on patrol

Conflict: It’s implied from the massive ice-wall that whatever lays beyond the wall is extremely dangerous.

Moving the story forward: This is the opening scene in a series, so we don’t know where this is going, but it keeps raising questions such as “why the ice wall”, “what are these men patrolling for” and “who killed these people?”

Entertainment value: very intriguing, I want to know more.

Setups/payoffs: It’s mostly setups at this point – the portcullis, the long tunnel, the wall, the men on patrol all hint of some kind of terrifying threat. The murdered people is a payoff on that threat, but also another setup — who did it?

Watch 2nd time for:

What makes this scene great? The CGI ice wall, and the bleakness, almost black-and-white monochrome of the snow-covered forest until you come across the blood from the dismembered wildlings.

How does each step create more intrigue? It raises questions without saying a single word.

Different forms of intrigue used. The effect of stacking a series of intriguing images and statements on top of each other. The portcullis (defensive), long tunnel (defensive), massive ice-wall (mega-defensive), and fact these men wear swords all point to some kind of threat, which is delivered when one of the rangers finds the bodies. The bleakness and silence of the forest (you hear only the horse), faint wolf-howls, all add to the vulnerability of the rangers.

What are your insights about stacking intrigue? This scene layered multiple levels of intrigue.

Week 3 Day 5 Stacking Intrigue Game of Thrones Opening_The Wildlings are Dead_S1E1 Assignment

Watch 1st time for: · Basic scene components:

· Scene arc:

Three horsemen, on patrol in a snowy forest; one finds the remains of a ritualistic cult sacrifice of twelve people and flees to tell the others.

· Situation:

Evil against humanity exists in the nearby woods.

· Conflict:

The evil in the woods is constrictive to any activity the community has outside their fortified compound. The riders must deal with the Evil, in the woods, immediately, and completely.

· Moving the story forward:

· Action: The waiting riders in the beginning of the scene, called attention to the riders, their look, and their mannerisms, while waiting for the wooden door to slowly slide open. What will happen next?

§ Action gradually increased by transitioning movements, such as the first rider motioning to others to spread out, alone, to different areas. What will happen next?

§ Upon finding a rising mist, beyond a ridge, the second rider investigates, the action stops, giving rise to the climatic visions, until

§ At the very fast-fleeing rider, stumbling against a dead child, with horrified frozen face, turns and rides to tell the others, developing the top of intrigue, begging the question: What will happen next?

· Visuals: Timely and detailed visual scenes force the audience to more intense information without focusing on dialogue, sound effects, or an intricate soundtrack.

· Sounds: Sometimes absent, sometimes faint, sometimes music-like, but never with dialogue, the sounds haunted the scene for both the audience and the riders, which put the focus of the riders’ task at hand.

· Pacing: From the riders waiting to leave the tunnel, to their slow preview of the woods, to the full stop to investigate the terror, ending in the flight because of the realized horror lurking still in the forest. Pacing played an excellent part in focusing the realization of what each action meant.

· Sequencing: Sequencing of the action elevated the anticipation of the rider’s findings. By having the rider come to a full stop, off the horse, and able to do nothing but take in the terrifying unanticipated murder scene, full horror and shock came over everyone, rider, and audience, with maximum trauma inflicted.

· Point of View:

The audience, (We) watch the actions, as outside observers in the beginning. Once the second rider sees the mist, then we assume split images from watching as outside observers – to watching through the eyes of the second rider. Back and forth the point of view changes, until after the second rider has fled to tell the other the news. Only then are we as birds above in the trees looking down on the horrific death below.

· Frame Shots:

The use of composition of vision in each shot of this scene focuses the audiences’ attention in the most purposeful way. No vision or action is wasteful. All information, as in action, composition, and presentation, is important. Clues exist that heighten the awareness and hint at the reality of the scene if the observer is attentive enough to notice. Each frame is positioned to give the most visual with impact needed at the time, from the close ups to the far away shots.

· Entertainment value:

The action, visuals, and total compilation of this “show-me” experience keep the interested audience glued to the scene, and asking, “What comes next?”

· Setups/payoffs:

§ Setups:

v Waiting for the door to rise.

v Waiting to see what is at the end of the tunnel.

v Waiting to see what is in the woods.

v Waiting to see what is causing the mist to rise beyond the ridge.

v What will happen when the second rider tells the other riders?

§ Payoffs:

v We see a rock tunnel.

v We see a path to the forest in a deeply frozen winter.

v We see a quiet peaceful frozen forest without any movement at all, no animals, birds or rustling at all.

v We have the shock of seeing the ritualistic death scene, which hints at the terror found in the woods.

v We have a hint that more ritualistic deaths will occur in the future.

Watch 2nd time for:

What makes this scene great?

Continuous movement and action, enhanced with changes between POV, pacing, and payoffs, create a personal quest we must complete. You are part of this group and have skin in the game and are horrified at the end of the scene just like the second rider.

How does each step create more intrigue?

By increasingly showing closer visuals as the scene progresses.

By pacing the shots faster and with different points of view.

By showing instead of telling, detailed and timely visuals with no dialogue.

Different forms of intrigue used:

§ Visual shots that make the viewer search for information.

§ Slow to fast action shots

§ Action that pulls you onto the next shot

§ Sound that enhances the action

§ Intriguing characters which insight questions.

The effect of stacking a series of intriguing images and statements
on top of each other.

A series of intriguing images, characters, sounds, and statements topped onto each other only add to the questions and attention of the viewer.

What are your insights about stacking intrigue?

In building up intrigue in my current script, I found that having intricate characters with the audience having open-ended questions about them, continuous actions that may not connect to logic immediately, and pacing may be helpful.

Week 3 Day 5: Stacking Intrigue — GAME OF THRONES

Intrigue means we are perceiving that there is something underhanded, covert, or dangerous under the surface.

1. Please watch this scene and provide your insights into what makes this scene great from a writing perspective.- No dialogue. Action drives everything. Scene begins with 3 men on horseback passing though a gate. Then, a long passageway. Finally, they pass through a heavy gate into the winter wilderness. They eventually split up to scout the area. The youngest rider spots smoke rising from a fire and gets off his horse to investigate, and stealthily crawls up to the top of the hill. Upon seeing the ritualistic killing of many people, he turns to face off to a young child nailed to the tree, her eyes wide open. Scared to death he races away. We see a slow build up tension. From the long tunnel to the huge, heavy gate. With such a wall and gate, we know it to protect the fort from something menacing. The young man investigates with trepidation. What he sees is a shock to him as it is for the audience. But, when he turns to race of, he’s confronted with a small baby girl nailed to a tree, her eyes wide open.

2. Read the other writers comments and make notes of how you might create this kind of drama in your script.

3. Rethink or create a Stacking Intrigue scene for your script using your new insights and rewrite the scene. Then post the answer to the question, “What I learned rewriting my scene…?” and post it in the forums.

Game of Thrones — Night Watch meets White Walkers

NOTE: This scene’s intrigue is done primarily through images and action, and a little through dialogue.

Watch 1st time for:· Basic scene components — Scene arc, situation, conflict, moving the story forward, entertainment value, and setups/payoffs.

Watch 2nd time for:

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