Podcast Of The Week: Find The Magic Trick w/ Aaron Sorkin

Brian Koppelman asked Aaron Sorkin about becoming a great writer. 

Sorkin says you’ve got to find the magic trick. 

So you didn’t like something. Your friends agree it’s just crap. 

But it’s up to you to figure out WHY. 

The same with the great stuff. 

Why’d you hate it? Why’d you love it? 

Demystify it. In the things you hate – where’d they lose the track? In the things you love – what’s the mechanics underneath the brilliance? 

At the heart of this deconstruction is finding the magic trick. 

Which scene is THE thing – the emotional moment everything else is built around. 

Sorkin worships at the altar of intention and obstacle. Somebody wants something. Something is standing in their way. How will they get it? 

You don’t tell the audience who the character is, you show them what the character wants. 

I loved this conversation between two people I so greatly admire for their craft. Check out Aaron Sorkin on The Moment podcast with Brian Koppelman.