Story Consulting During POST-Production
During post-production, my job as a story consultant often involves fixing a film’s ending. If the film lacks a climax scene, that’s a big problem. What can be done?
The director could continue shooting (read one strategic success story here).
Or, you could create a climax. As documentary and narrative filmmaking continue to borrow from one another, staging the likelihood of a climax scene is more acceptable than ever.
For example, you can arrange an encounter between two antagonists. In Revenge of the Electric Car, two competing electric car CEO’s meet-up at an auto show.
I was so intrigued by this dynamic scene that I asked co-producer Jesse Deeter if they had posed the players. While the producers had let one character know that the other was at the show, they didn’t try to script or control the conversation. Subsequently, the scene feels vibrant and not manipulative.
Imagine asking your subjects to have a respectful fight on camera. Filming arguments between key subjects can create genuine blow-by-blow plot points, and possibly a climax scene.
Another solution? Move a dramatic story to the end of the film, framing it as a backstory. For a terrific narrative example, see The Prince of Tides with Barbra Streisand and Nick Nolte.
There are loads more problems to fix in post-production, including creating an effective story launch, organizing your ideas, threading a theme, maximizing dramatic timing, and fixing a deadly denouement. To learn more about our story consulting services in post, click here.
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