Tag: Christopher Nolan

The Best Approach to Art and the Importance of Endings

Written by Brendan O’Meara

A funny thing happened. In an effort to connect better with readers I had started writing every day on this blog (I’ve since moved that every-day writing to my journal, something I’ll get to in another post.).

I figured since I’ve got a smattering of email subscribers, the total of which could field two football teams, writing every day may be welcome. False. I wrote every day, was feeling good, only to find that instead of gaining more readers, five left. I guess they got their free signed book and peaced out. Such is life. I’m thankful to have had them for a brief time.

I did find it mildly irritating that the more I fed the blog, the less weight it gained. It’s like I fed it celery. These things happen. But you’re still here … for now … and so I’ll give you some cool stuff I’ve stumbled upon.

I got this great quote from Austin Kleon’s blog. You need to be reading his work and especially his books Steal Like an Artist and Show Your Work. Just makes you want to make stuff! Here’s the quote:

Don’t make stuff because you want to make money — it will never make you enough money. And don’t make stuff because you want to get famous — because you will never feel famous enough. Make gifts for people — and work hard on making those gifts in the hope that those people will notice and like the gifts. —John Green

Make gifts for people (readers). They’ll reward you in kind. Perhaps. Ha!

The Importance of Endings

I’ve been into screenplays recently. I’ve read The Dark Knight Trilogy screenplays but also The Grand Budapest Hotel. In The Dark Knight Trilogy book, there’s a wonderful interview at the beginning with the writers and director of the movies. Christopher Nolan, director and writer on all the movies, said:

For me, endings are everything. I did have the same thing on The Dark Knight. Once I figured out the feeling I wanted to get at the end of that film, then I knew I had a project that I wanted to get into. For me, that’s everything in this kind of story, to know where you want it to go. (emphasis mine) And then it took years and years for all of us to figure out how to get there.

I’ve written about the ending to The Dark Knight on this blog before and how I think it’s one of the strongest movie endings in all of cinema. Nolan nails his endings every time. The ending to Inception still has people wondering what was real and what wasn’t. The Prestige is brilliant on every level, especially its coda. The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises leave you with goosebumps every time. Well, me, I suppose.

Take Notes, Take Notes, Take Notes

Written by Brendan O’Meara

I was listening to The Moment with Brian Koppelman. It’s a great podcast for screenwriters, but also creatives in any genre. The principles of creativity are the same across all disciplines. First and foremost: get your ass in the seat and work. Don’t be a little shit like I was in this post. I could delete that post and pretend it never existed, but that would be dishonest and weak. Own it, yo.

What Koppleman and John Hamburg talked about in an earlier episode of The Moment was finding a movie (could be a book, essay, etc.) that inspires you. Take your favorite movie and get a notebook. Take notes throughout the whole movie. Pause the movie. Watch the movie five, six, seven times. What works? How did the director lay out the scenes? How did he sew them together? How does the dialogue work? The list goes on and on.

I’ve watched The Dark Knight probably 15 times. I’ve watched the ending to The Dark Knight probably 50 times. It sums up everything about the movie beautifully. The movie, in many ways, is about duality. “You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” It’s illustrated in Two Face. It’s illustrated in the Batman v. Joker rivalry. It’s in the duality of Batman v. Bruce Wayne. Everything has its dipoles in this movie, positive and negative components of a magnet.

In the ending of The Dark Knight, Jim Gordon says of Harvey Dent (covering up the mess Dent made), “A hero, not the hero we deserved but the hero we needed.” Then as Batman runs into the night Gordon says, “Because he’s the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now.” I love how Christopher Nolan and Jonathan Nolan flipped the wording. Again with the duality. The past and present tense. (It’s also classic Christopher Nolan cross-cutting.)

Whatever the creative medium, if you’re serious about your art, you stand on the shoulders of titans before you and you examine the what the why of their work. Football head coaches watch hours and hours and hours of game film, why? They’re trying to understand the inner workings of an opponent. In art there are no opponents, but the same measure of examination is imperative to those serious about the art.

I think The Great Gatsby is THE model of first-person storytelling. I’ve read it six times, but never with a notebook. When I read it again I’m going to peel back its facade to the scaffolding underneath. I recommend this to anyone, for anyone.

It’s the dirty work that goes unseen.