Narrative Design: Screenwriting for Games and Movies

The visual design and mood of the course are very stylistic, and honestly what drew me. But the content itself doesn't live up to the artistry of the presentation. The course instructor Phoebe's contributions are minimal, but her guest James, who has credentials in video game work and storytelling, is interesting and informative. His portions would have been made better with a more capable interviewer. Many times Phoebe's questions don't make sense, miss the target, or seem completely off-base and James is visibly uncomfortable. In her solo lectures, her ideas about what makes a good story/storyteller come off judgmental, some of the things she hones in on are offensive (and ignorant) and many of her explanations are too vague to be useful. When she talks about the Hero's Journey and philosophical models, she doesn't seem to arrive where she's headed; it's meandering and more like rote regurgitation of lecture notes. Two stars because James' portions are informative, but this class would be a lot better if he lead it alone. I bought this at a discount so I saw it through to the end, but I don't feel better for it. Save your money.

The gentleman discussing philosophy and the approach to writing captured my interest. This is more of a discussion about his writing techniques than 'tutorials' - this was a fun couple of hours and worth buying

I am greatly impressed by this course, even though it is not quiet what I expected at first. The surrealistic approach gives you the artistic, creative vibe that you will need in your journey as a writer. In the beginning the course feels vague, but you get into it as you proceed further. I would like the course to be a bit longer, though it would probably contravene its structure and formula.