DZ-51: Antagonists! 3 - vs Nature

Listen to understand why pressure--not obstacles--is what transforms a protagonist when they face an unstoppable force.

In this Part Three of our Five Part Epic Exploration™ into antagonistic forces (and sources of conflict), Chas & Stu explore “nature” antagonists, including some supernatural ones. What became clear in doing the homework (and recording this episode twice) was that the antagonistic forces - whether natural or supernatural - presented different narrative challenges to the protagonists if (a) they did not seem to make choices and (b) could not be bargained with or defeated.

And so we embarked upon ALL IS LOST, THE GREY and CONTAGION — with special mentions of THE VVITCH, WORLD WAR Z, ZOMBIELAND, ANNIHILATION, ALIEN, ALIENS and probably some others we’ve forgotten.

Stu elaborates on his distinction between obstacles and pressure; Chas riffs on how nature antagonists can mirror the protagonist and reinforce theme; and they both explore the effect on protagonists who are pushed to their limits by antagonists that cannot be reasoned with.

As always: SPOILERS ABOUND and all copyright material used under fair use for educational purposes.

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CHAPTERS

• 00:13:54 – All Is Lost
• 00:34:13 – The Grey
• 01:01:05 – Contagion
• 01:37:14 – Vs Supernatural
• 01:40:28 – The Vvitch
• 01:46:36 – Wrap Up And Learnings

FILMS

• ALL IS LOST (2013) — (w) Jc Chandor
• THE GREY (2012) — (w) Ian Mackenzie Jeffers, Joe Carnahan (d) Joe Carnahan
• CONTAGION (2011) — (w) Scott Z Burns, Scott Z Burns (d) Steven Soderbergh
• THE WITCH (2016) — (w) Robert Eggers

SCRIPTS

• Study the script: ALL IS LOST (2013) — Jc Chandor
• Study the script: CONTAGION (2011) — Scott Z Burns, Scott Z Burns
• Study the script: THE WITCH (2016) — Robert Eggers

LINKS

• Read: A Letter from David Mamet to the Writers of The Unit
• YouTube: ALL IS LOST - Our Man Thrown Overboard
• YouTube: THE GREY - Wolf Stand Off
• YouTube: THE GREY - Ottway vs Diaz
• YouTube: CONTAGION - Mitch & Joy at the Supermarket
• YouTube: THE WITCH - Ending
• YouTube: TERMINATOR - Interrogation Scene
• YouTube: THE TERMINATOR - Terminator will not stop .... Ever

EPISODES IN THE ANTAGONISTS! SERIES

• DZ-50: Antagonists! 2 - vs Self
• DZ-51: Antagonists! 3 - vs Nature
• DZ-52: Antagonists! 4 - vs Systems
• DZ-53: Antagonists! 5 - vs Audience
• DZ-49: Antagonists! 1 - vs Humans

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Full show notes at: https://draft-zero.com/2018/dz-51/