I watched Adaptation last week. It’s a movie about a writer struggling to write a screenplay based on a best-selling novel about orchids. It’s a movie about a brother struggling with his twin brother’s writing talent. It’s a movie about a man struggling with his own adequacies. And it’s a movie about story.
As in, it’s about Story, the book about how to write a good story, written by Robert McKee. In the movie, the protagonist’s brother recommends that he read the book and attend the seminar on the book. Charlie Kaufman, the protagonist, ends up reading the book, talking to the author, and entertaining dialogue ensues. I’ve decided to start reading the book as well, and there have been many a highlight-able passage. In fact, I have been so inspired by the meaningful instruction in the book, that I feel compelled to write these passages down, repeat them and demand David discuss them with me. But writing them down on paper, I realized, would not be enough. I needed something bigger to reflect the gravitas of the ideas. So, we bought a whiteboard. On this whiteboard, we will draw elaborate diagrams that reflect brilliant brainstorming. Our visitors will marvel at the profundity of the Story quotations and of course, our creativity.
