The Lean Forward Moment: Create Compelling Stories for Film, TV, and the Web

Chapter One. How We Tell Stories

	Without change, something sleeps inside us and seldom awakens. The sleeper must awaken.
	--FRANK HERBERT

Film is about change. Drama in film is doubly about that. Writers shape their stories around it, directors look to exploit it, cinematographers shoot for it, and editors cut for that change, whether consciously or subconsciously.

Let me give an example of what I mean.

Imagine a scene in which the lead character, Adam, opens a door to a room that he thinks is empty. He walks across the room and looks down to where he sees a dead body lying on the ground. He jumps back, startled.

That’s the scene. Now, let’s imagine ...