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The Land Lady - Roald Dahl

Summary:
"Landlady" is a short story by Roald Dahl that explores themes of appearance versus reality, and the sinister lurking beneath the mundane. The story follows a young man named Billy Weaver who travels to Bath, England, and decides to stay at a seemingly quaint and charming bed and breakfast. The landlady who runs the B&B appears to be a sweet old lady, but as the story unfolds, it becomes apparent that she has sinister intentions. Through subtle hints and eerie details, Dahl builds a sense of foreboding and unease, leading to a chilling revelation about the landlady's previous guests. This story is a classic example of Dahl's ability to mix the mundane with the macabre, making the reader question the true nature of everyday encounters and individuals.

Inspiration:

Assigned to create an animatic for the intro of Roald Dahl's "The Landlady," I drew inspiration from a couple of videos. These videos excellently captured the story's unique, awkward atmosphere and offered a variety of shots that influenced my approach to the characters and scenes in my animatic.

Deciding what I could potentially change or modify from the original story; The Land Lady:

Untitled spreadsheet

6 Word Stories:

My Thoughts:

In making my six-word stories, I chose broader psychological themes instead of specific physical settings to reach more people. Using a specific place like a pub might limit who can relate to it, especially if they're not familiar with such a place. But focusing on common experiences like hope or change allows a varied audience to connect with the story. These themes aren't tied to a physical reality, so they go beyond personal or cultural differences, inviting readers to find their own meaning. By highlighting psychological aspects, the stories aim to engage a wider audience in a shared and reflective narrative journey.

Upon retraction, fresh sprouts claimed void.

"Upon retraction, fresh sprouts claimed void" is a short way of saying that when you step back or take a break, new things can arise in the space you left behind. "Retraction" here can mean like pulling back from something, maybe a plan or a situation, and that leaves this empty spot. But instead of just staying empty, fresh new chances, possibilities or 'sprouts' come up to fill the void. It's not as much about emptiness, it is more about making room for something new and unexpected to come. The words "claimed void" are clever because they show that this new growth isn't shy; it's utilizing the space and bringing something different to the table. It's like saying even if you face a setback or have to switch gears, there’s room for new stuff to come in and take root. Anyone who's had to backpedal and found new paths opening up can easily relate with this story.

Destination reached, mind corners tomorrow's wants.

"Destination reached, mind corners tomorrow's wants" is like a short but sweet jab at how we're kinda programmed to always want more. You get to where you want to be, but your brain's already eyeing what's next. It's like, you can't even chill for a moment and enjoy the win because your mind's already drafting whats next on the wish list. This story is like a mirror to our never-satisfied nature, where the finish line keeps moving as we get close. It exposes this endless cycle of wanting, getting, then wanting again, making you wonder if we're ever going to find that 'happy place' or if the chase is all there is. And the word "corners" is a good choice because it paints this image of our thoughts always turning, always hunting down the next craving, next thing to be drawn into, even when we just scored what we've been after. It's like there's no full stop, just a bunch of commas in this endless sentence of seeking more.

8 Archetypal Narrative Arcs:

Types

The Hero's Journey:

Overcoming the Monster:

Rags to Riches:

The Quest:

Voyage and Return:

Comedy:

Tragedy:

Rebirth:

Personal Favourites

Tin Tin, Indiana Jones

IT, Alien, The thing

The Pursuit of Happyness

Jason Bourne Franchise

Alice In Wonderland

It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia

Titanic, Donnie Darko

Gemini Man, Spiderman

Three Act Stuctures/Story Circles

Exploring three-act structures in films and books.
In class, we analyzed "Star Wars: A New Hope" to understand how it fits this narrative scheme.

Understanding Three-Act Structure:

Act One (Setup): Main characters, their relationships, and their world are introduced. It includes a key event changing the protagonist's life.
Act Two (Confrontation): Focuses on the protagonist facing challenges while trying to resolve the initial problem. Character development and rising action are key elements here.
Act Three (Resolution): The climax where main tensions are resolved, and the dramatic question is answered.

Exploring The Dan Harmon Story Circle:

You (Comfort Zone): Character in a familiar situation.
Need (Want Something): Character desires something, leading to an inciting incident.
Go (Unfamiliar Situation): Character steps into a new world or situation.
Search (Adaptation): Character adapts to new challenges in pursuit of their goal.
Find (Achieve Goal): Character achieves their goal, but at a cost.
Take (Pay Price): Character faces consequences of their actions.
Return (Familiar Situation): Character returns to their familiar world.
Change (Transformed): Character has changed due to their experiences.

Both the Three Act Structure and the Dan Harmon Story Circle provide distinct frameworks for storytelling. The Three Act Structure is more about the overall plot, while the Story Circle emphasizes the character's personal journey and transformation.

For individual analysis, I selected the film "Wall-E," and the book "Alex Rider" examining how they fit in with the three-act structure.

bubblecow.com. (n.d.). Mastering the Three-Act Structure: A Comprehensive Guide for Writers. [online] Available at: https://bubblecow.com/blog/three-act-structure.

Kindlepreneur. (2022). The Dan Harmon Story Circle: The Ultimate Guide in 8 Steps. [online] Available at: https://kindlepreneur.com/dan-harmon-story-circle/.

Film narrative breakdown: Wall-E

Act I Setup

- A robot is left to clean up the rubbish left on earth
- Wall-E is distracted from his normal job of collecting trash when he finds a living plant. Another robot called EVE shows up to investigate the plant.
- Wall-E feels a connection with EVE and shows her the plant, but after EVE sees the plant, she goes into standby mode waiting for her spaceship to return.

Act II Confrontation

Wall-E doesn't want to leave EVE and thus attempts to follow her on board
Robots on board the ship seem reluctant to embrace this new found plant
The captain discovers an old recording of the original director of the ship, stating why humans originally left, due to lack of habitable life, this regrouping of plant and robots has led the new captain of the ship to realize that with the return of growing life on earth, there's a chance of repopulating Earth

Act III Resolution

Wall-E and the current crew acknowledge that the original programming of the ship needed to be undermined and change course, going back to where it was originally programmed to leave.
Once returning to Earth, humans have been made aware to take more care of the planet and be more responsible and ecological.
Wall-E and EVE end up happily together and everyone helps clean up the planet

IMDB (2008). WALL·E. [online] IMDb. Available at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0910970/.

Book narrative breakdown: Alex Rider - Stormbreaker

Act I Setup

- We meet Alex Rider, a 14-year-old living in London.
- Alex’s uncle, who was like a father to him gets killed.
- Alex finds out his uncle was a spy for MI6, and he's been trained for the same role without knowing. MI6 wants him to complete his uncle’s last mission.

Act II Confrontation

Alex goes undercover to check out a wealthy businessman, Herod Sayle, and investigate his gift of Stormbreaker computers to UK schools.
Alex faces some challenges and discovers Sayle’s deadly plan to release a lethal virus through the Stormbreaker PCs.

Act III Resolution

Alex stops Sayle’s evil plan, preventing the virus release and saving lives.
MI6 sees Alex's success.
Alex's life has changed and now he's ready for more adventures as a teenage spy.

Horowitz, A. (2015). Stormbreaker. 15th anniversary edition ed. [online] Amazon. Walker Books. Available at: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stormbreaker-Alex-Rider-Anthony-Horowitz/dp/1406360198 [Accessed 28 Nov. 2023].

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