ABSTRACT
Premise is a term with different meanings. Meaning 1: foundation of the story. Lajos Egri’s definition in The Art of Dramatic Writing: the truth that writers seek to prove. Do stories prove anything? Anton Chekhov on the writer’s duty to present, not solve the problem. Denouement as the unravelling. Problems with premise as proof. Revelatory and transgressive insights afforded by premise. Proof as paradox: Carl Jung on destiny. Meaning 2: the initial state of affairs. Examples in Breaking Bad, Rear Window, Three Colors Blue. Premise as the starting point/set-up. Meaning 3: set-up and the protagonist’s course of action — stronger if an audience both wants and does not want the character to take it. This meaning applied to Breaking Bad, Rear Window, Three Colors Blue. Meaning 4: a combination of the above two elements plus the question the protagonist comes to confront. This meaning applied to Breaking Bad, Rear Window, Three Colors Blue. How these meanings relate to theme and structure. The question the protagonist faces versus the question the story poses. The former in TV seasons. The latter as thematic question. The director applies each meaning of premise to their film. Practical applications. Premise and the broad punctuation of a film. Premise and Three Colors Blue, Gangs of New York. The means of such punctuation. Premise as connective tissue.
