Approaching Creating A Narrative (Wk 8)
Again falling back into my comfort zone of talking about my personal hero, Dan Harmon, and his approach to writing a story in a three act structure. With the talk of narrative this week in the lectorial and having to assign a point value to characters in Finding Nemo based on their importance during the three acts of the film I realised that as I was talking about the three acts with my group I was thinking of the breaks in terms of Dan Harmon’s Story Circle.
I was confusing my group with my insistence that Nemo going down the drain was the end of act two because this was the return threshold. Marlin had had an atonement with the father over the fact that he thought Nemo was dead and so he and Dory had parted ways. Yet to become master of both world and finish his journey of change he had to find Nemo and bring him home. Nemo finally making it to the ocean began this reconnection and begins act three as they save Dory from the net, utilising what they learned on their journey and return home changed. This story circle is always in my mind when I discuss or create narrative and so if you are ever confused about what I am talking about when I describe a narrative in these terms, I now know to direct you right here.
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