Leonardo Ramirez

I was a professional screenwriter for 20 years when I went to see Lyndsey Doran at the WGA Theatre, and what she said had me nearly fall out of my chair. This simple principle improved the consistency of my screenwriting from the moment I heard it. 👇 The audience cares far less about the protagonist's achievement than we think. What they actually care about is the protagonist sharing that achievement with loved ones. Like all great screenwriting principles, it was an obvious truth; we already knew it in our gut. Every writer had put it into practice, but some of us just hadn't verbalized it to ourselves yet, making it a tool. There is a reason most movies end, not on the near-impossible triumph itself, but on celebrating that triumph with loved ones. Rocky Star Wars The Avengers The Karate Kid Top Gun: Maverick Honestly, I could pick any good film at random, and if it’s not a tragedy, the film’s ending will almost certainly be a moment shared with loved ones. Why is that? Why do we respond to sharing the triumph with loved ones even more than the triumph itself? Perhaps relationships give the triumph meaning because the relationship itself is the real triumph. I would also argue that if every relationship in the film isn’t healthier in some way at the end, then there hasn’t been enough change. I have learned to apply this principle to my writing by asking this simple question: “What is the most important relationship in the story, and does the script honor it?” If it doesn't, I go back to make sure it does.