From the course: Creating a Short Film: 02 Writing

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Creating a “mystery box”

Creating a “mystery box”

From the course: Creating a Short Film: 02 Writing

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Creating a “mystery box”

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- At the very end of this course, I'm gonna give you a list of my favorite writing resources. But I'm gonna jump the gun a little bit here and tell you about one of my favorites. In 2007, writer-director J.J. Abrams gave a TED talk about mystery boxes. These are basically mysteries that writers create to keep the audience hooked, because it's like a box they can't open. When you make an audience curious, they are interested and engaged and more susceptible to having a powerful reaction to your story. One of the examples J.J. Abrams used was one of his own in the TV show "Lost," when those that crash-landed on a tropical island saw a polar bear. - Guys, this isn't just a bear. (bear softly growls) It's a polar bear. - A perfect example. They don't mention it again on the show for quite a while, but you keep tuning in looking for the answer to what the heck that polar bear was doing on a tropical island. That polar bear was a mystery box, in Abrams' own language. As with "Lost," "Back…

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