Screenplay development notes through an impact-oriented lens -- SPOILER ALERT

Welcome to Impact Notes

If you work in film, you’ll know that script notes are a part of the development process of a screenplay, where producers or executives provide the writer comments and questions about a draft to help refine the story and hone the characters. 

These posts use the same process as script notes, but instead of looking at story and character, I give comments and ask questions about the potential social impact the story might have. 

I believe that  impact notes are an important part of the development process because any piece of content put out into the world has a social impact, whether the creators intended for it to or not. People digest and internalize what they see, subliminally or consciously, and take those ideas out into the world with them. This process helps make sure we feel clear on what those ideas or messages are before we put them out into the world. 

Here, I will look at the shooting script of recently released films or tv shows and analyze them as if I’d been asked to give notes on this final version of the script with an eye towards impact. A shooting script is basically what you see if you watch the movie I’m talking about, so if you’ve watched it you’ll know what I am talking about.