Every Podcast Conversation at Your Fingertips

John and Craig investigate what characters know and how we know they know what they know. It’s something that can be as confusing as that last sentence was, but they offer clear guidance on building informed characters, audience expectations, and how to get everybody on the same page.

We also look at how ad breaks in streaming are interrupting established act breaks. But first we follow up on AI transcription and character voice, and answer listener questions on authentic depictions and how to ask for a WGA contract.

In our bonus segment for premium members, how should you act when you meet a famous person? John and Craig have big (but well-concealed) feelings.

Links:

Do I Sound Gay? Documentary
International Dialects of English Archive
Accent Tag on YouTube
Chilean beer ads in Star Wars
Letter Jam
TacticalMap
Fallout on Prime Video
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Outro by Nica Brooke (send us yours!)
Scriptnotes is produced by Drew Marquardt and edited by Matthew Chilelli.

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You can download the episode here.

0:00.0	Hello and welcome my name is John August and you're listening to episode 641 of
0:08.8	script notes a podcast about screenwriting and things that are interesting to screenwriters.
0:14.0	Today on the show, what do your characters know, and how do we know that they know it?
0:18.6	We'll stare in the epistemological looking-glass and offer some guidance on building characters who feel
0:23.7	appropriately informed. People also look at TV ad breaks and what they've become
0:28.6	in the age of streaming shows that may or may not have predetermined act breaks.
0:33.0	We'll also answer some listener questions,
0:35.0	and a bonus segment for premium members,
0:38.0	what should you do when meeting a famous person?
0:40.0	And what should you not do?
0:42.0	Craig? I did not get the memo that was. And what should you not do? Craig.
0:43.0	I did not get the memo that were being British.
0:46.0	We're being very British on the podcast today for no good reason.
0:50.0	All right. Well, I mean, I'll do it for the entire time just curious why
0:56.7	Some mornings I wake up and I'm just channeling the spirit of Claire Foy like Claire Foy is still alive and yet Claire Foy's voice as the Queen in the
1:05.8	crown just sort of seeps into my body and I just I just want to channel that
1:10.0	Claire Foy energy. So we're doing received pronunciation then would be very, very appropriate. Extreme
1:17.6	recede pronunciation. So RP. We're so RP, darling. So RP, it's just the fantastic. We're not required to keep doing it, but it's just fun sometimes just to be in that space, to be in that voice. I remember when I got to college, this young woman said, like, what is your accent? I got to college this young woman said like what is your accent like I like it but what
1:35.6	is your accent and I really had no idea but later I realized like oh it's just like
1:39.7	closet a gay kid that was my oh yes yes there is a gay accent a gay kid. That was my answer. Oh yes, yes, there is a gay accent.
1:43.7	Striving gay kid. Yeah. Oh my God, that's so specific. What a specific guy like,
1:48.8	striving gay kid. I like that. Yeah, there was a did we talk about that documentary about gay voice? I think we did. Yeah. Yeah. It is interesting. I mean it's a thing. Yeah, I think that's what I was. Yeah, I think that was yes talking about it was, do I sound gay? Do I sound gay? Yeah, I think that's what it was, yes.
	...

641 - What Characters Know

Scriptnotes Podcast

John August

Summary

Transcript