The Sense of an Ending (2017) with Alistair Owen - Screenplay by Nick Payne

This week we're talking about adaptation again, in the context of how to bring a first-person, ruminating narrative about memory and loss into the detached and visual realm of film. Alistair Owen, who has published various books on screenwriting, calls in from England to talk about this interesting adaptation of Julian Barnes' novel 'The Sense of an Ending' which was directed by Ritesh Batra and written by Nick Payne. We use examples from the film to discuss the whether there is such as thing a 'unadaptable', how to show internal change in a character's actions, and how film as a narrative engine perhaps demands more in the way of story and character development than literary fiction. 

If you enjoy this episode, you can purchase and enjoy Alistair's book 'The Art of Screen Adaptation' from his website.

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