BPS 341: Creating Comedy's Hero's Journey with Steve Kaplan
Nov 17, 2023
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Renowned comedy consultant Steve Kaplan discusses his approach to Comedy's Hero's Journey, focusing on engaging the audience and creating relatable characters. Topics include the importance of character development in comedic films, movie comedy favorites and challenges, the quirky story of 'Tag', exploring scenes and the 'WTF moment', balancing humor and heart in comedy films, creating empathy for characters, the characteristics and journey of the comic hero, and analyzing 'The Hangover' and comedy sequels.
Creating empathy for comedy characters is crucial in engaging the audience and making them believe in the hero's journey.
Real pain and loss, alongside humor, are essential components of successful comedy.
Starting a comedy with characters dealing with loss and pain adds meaning, resonance, and real stakes to the story.
Deep dives
The Comic Hero's Journey: A Template for Writing a Comic Feature
The Comic Hero's Journey is a new book by Steve Kaplan that offers a template for writing a comic feature. It explores how story structure works in comedy, highlighting the differences from dramatic or action films. One key aspect is that the hero in a comedy starts off with some loss or pain. The book emphasizes the importance of creating empathetic characters and developing real stakes and losses. It also discusses the concept of the discovered goal, where the hero's ultimate goal is revealed midway through the story. Overall, The Comic Hero's Journey provides valuable insights and guidance for crafting successful and funny films.
Creating Empathy and Transforming Characters in Comedies
In The Comic Hero's Journey, Steve Kaplan emphasizes the importance of creating empathy for comedy characters. He notes that while the hero in a comedy may start off with zero skills, they still need to possess at least one trait that makes the audience believe they have a shot at something. Kaplan points out that in order for the audience to care about the comedy, there must be real pain and loss, in addition to humor. He also discusses how comedy characters experience transformations and go from being comfortable and resigned to becoming more actualized and integrated in the world.
The Role of Loss and Pain in Comedy
Loss and pain play a significant role in comedy, according to Steve Kaplan's book, The Comic Hero's Journey. Kaplan highlights that many successful comedies, such as Sleepless in Seattle and Spy, start off with characters dealing with loss and pain. He underlines that in order for comedy to have meaning and resonance, there must be moments of real stakes and actual losses. Kaplan also notes that comedy often involves a GAN, where characters experience a moment of total loss or despair. These elements contribute to creating a satisfying and meaningful comedic story.
Real Stakes and the Hangover Franchise
Steve Kaplan examines the Hangover franchise as an example of comedy with real stakes. While the original Hangover film successfully blended a frat boy Las Vegas concept with mystery elements, the sequels lacked the empathetic characters and thematic development of the first film. Kaplan recognizes the importance of empathetic characters and a narrative that includes real stakes and losses. He emphasizes that comedy should not solely rely on humor, but also incorporate honest moments of loss and pain to create an engaging and meaningful story.
The Comic Hero's Journey Offers New Insights into Comedy Writing
The Comic Hero's Journey, written by Steve Kaplan, provides valuable insights into comedy writing. It explores story structure in comedy, focusing on the unique aspects that differentiate it from other genres. The book emphasizes creating empathy for characters, developing real stakes and losses, and the role of pain and transformation in comedy. It also offers a template for writing a comic feature, providing a framework for crafting successful and funny films. Overall, The Comic Hero's Journey offers new perspectives and guidance for writers looking to delve into the world of comedy.
Steve Kaplan is a renowned comedy consultant and author of "The Hidden Tools of Comedy," a book that delves into the mechanics of comedy and the psychology behind humor. He has adapted Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey framework to comedy writing in a way that helps writers understand how to create engaging and funny stories.
In Steve Kaplan's approach to Comedy's Hero's Journey, the focus is on using humor to engage the audience and enhance the storytelling process. This framework helps comedy writers understand how to create funny and relatable characters and situations while still following the classic Hero's Journey structure.
