How can interweaving two timelines change how we feel about a character?

In this Part 2 of Interweaving Timelines (aka The Stu Monologue Episode), Mel, Chas and Stu tackle Sorkin/Fincher's The Social Network. As you'll hear, it is clearly Stu's favourite of the examples we cover and, ah, *not* Mel's favourite. While all three bring their own biases and opinions on the reality of Facebook as it has become, we do manage to put the destruction of democracy to one side to actually analyse the meticulous craft that this film displays.

We analyse Sorkin's on-the-page skill with time jumps, managing intercutting and introducing characters - as well as explore how the flash-forward technique manages the absence of stakes (i.e. we know Facebook exists) and creates a different emotional experience to the flashbacks of Destroyer. Finally, and most importantly, we look at how the interweaving timelines change how the audience feel about Mark Zuckerberg (as portrayed in this film).

Stay tuned! SPOILERS ABOUND!

Audio quotations used for educational purposes only. Timestamps indicated below. Chapter markers included in the mp3.

Thanks to Chris Walker for editing this episode.

RUNNING ORDER

00:00:00 - Introduction
00:01:48 - The Social Network
00:07:36 - The flash forward structure
00:18:46 - Why did we pick this film?
00:29:41 - What are the stakes?
00:42:45 - Time jumps & transitions
00:52:59 - Audience's perception of Mark
01:00:45 - Storyteller cuts
01:09:20 - Sorkin vs Fincher
01:16:07 - Wrap up & key learnings
01:23:15 - Backmatter

LINKS

Watch: The Social Network written by Aaron Sorkin and directed by David Fincher
Read: Wordplayer - The Storyteller Cut

RELATED EPISODES

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DZ-79: Interweaving Timelines 2 - The Social Network

Draft Zero: a screenwriting podcast