Exploring aspects of THEME in scriptwriting seminar
Date Posted: March 7, 2022
We are hosting a seminar in Exploring aspects of THEME in scriptwriting with Franz Rodenkirchen on Thursday 24th March at 5:30pm – 8pm on Zoom.
One of the most complex, yet very useful concepts in film dramaturgy is the term “theme”, or, as it is sometimes also called “emotional theme”.
The word has a diverse usage in everyday language with a lot of different meanings. But in order to understand what we mean when we use “theme” as a term in connection with scriptwriting and script consulting, we first have to define it within our specific context.
A first important aspect we associate with theme is that it can make any story more universal, allowing audiences from different cultural backgrounds, with different languages and traditions, to emotionally involve themselves in a story.
We also use theme when we wonder “what the story is really about”. Theme is the means through which writers most clearly communicate with their audience.
The talk will focus on the most important aspects of theme, on applying theme-related narrative strategies during the development process, as well as theme’s potential functions in the context of genres or different forms of visual storytelling. We will also look at its limitations and the potential pitfalls of working with “theme” in scriptwriting.
Franz Rodenkirchen is a Berlin-based independent script consultant. He works for international project labs like CineLink /Sarajevo, SEAFIC (Southeast Asia Fiction Film Lab) and Midpoint. For Berlinale Talents he selects and mentors filmmakers at their annual Script Station.
With Françoise von Roy he founded Script Circle in 2014, a bi-monthly script development-workshop in Berlin, and the script consulting training workshop Six Days of Practice.
From 2005-2020 he was a tutor for Script&Pitch/TorinoFilmLab. From 2006-2015 he was one of the core advisors at Binger Filmlab/Amsterdam.
Franz occasionally publishes short essays and lectures for diverse institutions on script consulting approaches.
To attend, please RSVP to [email protected].
