🎙️ ROBOTS TALK ABOUT SCREENWRITING -- EPISODE 3 Want your characters to shine from the start? Discover how to write memorable introductions that grab readers' attention and make them eager to read more. 📝 READ THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE → https://www.writeandco.com/articles/character-intros 📬 GET WEEKLY SCREENWRITING TIPS → writeandco.com/newsletter — ABOUT THE SHOW Looking for practical, clear, and straightforward screenwriting advice? Welcome to Robots Talk About Screenwriting! On this podcast, you'll hear screenwriting insights delivered by AI voices. (The robots!) But rest assured, the source material is all written by a human (me!). Hi, I'm Naomi Beaty -- screenwriting consultant, teacher, and author of The Screenplay Outline Workbook and Story Structure Made Easy. I help writers craft emotionally resonant, structurally sound screenplays through consultations, workshops, and practical resources. I've been writing about screenwriting online since 2018, and this show features "discussions" of my articles, brought to life by synthetic hosts. I feed the robots only articles I've personally written. And I'll include extra notes when something needs clarification. But, just like when you listen to humans, don't take anything you hear as gospel. As always, take what's useful, leave the rest, and keep writing! This podcast is simply meant to be a fun, low-key way to share some of the hundreds of screenwriting articles I've written in a new format. Perfect for listening on a walk or while you're brainstorming your next big idea. 🎧 New episodes weekly. Subscribe and keep learning! — NAOMI'S NOTES ON THIS EPISODE 🤔 The robots' discussion of the Cassandra character introduction (Promising Young Woman) feels a bit off, but I think it's because they don't have all of the story context. The first impression of Cassandra is intentionally misleading; a setup for the reveal that happens a few minutes later in the movie. 🏴☠️ They also slightly misinterpret the Captain Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Caribbean) character entrance, but -- again -- I think they're just missing a little context that's needed to really get it. We first meet Jack as he's arriving at Port Royal. He’s standing tall on the mast of a ship, silhouetted like a hero, with dramatic music playing. He looks every bit the dashing pirate captain. But then the camera pulls back and we see the full picture: He's aboard a tiny, sinking dinghy, not a grand vessel. As he approaches the dock, the boat is literally going under — and just as it fully sinks, Jack steps gracefully off onto the dock, without missing a beat. He even pays the harbormaster a bribe to ignore the sunken vessel. In this scene, we learn everything we need to know about who Jack is, what he wants, and how he operates. We see how charming he is, of course, but importantly: we see that he acts like a legendary captain, but he’s currently captaining a wreck. That irony reflects his deep longing for the Black Pearl, the ship that represents his power, freedom, and identity (and which motivates his actions in the movie). 🙊 And finally, my apologies to Michael Hauge! I quoted him in the article, and the robots mispronounced his name.
