The TV Showrunner's Roadmap
Page 44
Soprano, Tony (character) 100, 147, 154
The Sopranos 21, 32; cliffhangers 245; episodic structure of 172–3
Sorcher, Rob 154
Sorkin, Aaron 133
The Southern Vampire Mysteries (Harris) 230
Star, Darren 114
Stark, Ned (character) 145
Star Trek: The Next Generation 242
story development: direct pickup (or DPU) format 170; Friday Night Lights 137–43; Game of Thrones 134–5; Parenthood 131–2, 137–43; Shameless 132–3; The West Wing 133–4
story engines 95–6
storylines, theme and 187–90
strangers as family 75
Street, Jason (character) 146
structural formats 170–5, 274–5
structure, series 36, 39, 50–2, 184–6
Stults, Geoff 211
subjective POV 120
Sud, Veena: credits 218; interview 218–25
Suits 257
Supernatural 96
supernatural series 230–3, 254n1
Surface 194
Sutter, Kurt 56
Swan, Emma (character) 144
sweeps week 287
sweet spot 201–12, 288
synergistic arenas 120
tags 36–7, 174, 175n1
Tamaro, Janet: credits 259; interview 259–71
Tassler, Nina 49
teasers 50, 174, 197–200
technology, audience demands and 42–3
teleplay guidelines 175–6
television business: AMC business model 86; audience trends 42–3, 46–7; CBS primetime landscape 2; embedded advertising 169; evolution of 31; foreign markets 46–7; production schedules 41; ratings 85; script formats 169; sweeps periods 242; TV set obsolescence 169
tentpoles story structure 174
Terriers 173
thematic resonance 53
themes: central questions and 33; defined 187; storylines and 187–90; unifying 36
30 Rock 92, 94
Thomas, Craig 272; credits 284; interview 284–92
Thorne, Emily (character) 145–6
tone meetings 54
Touch 148–51
Troy, Christian (character) 118
True Blood: character expertise 254n1; as genre hybrid 97; iconic characters in 60; love triangles 92; mythology 230–1; teasers 200 24: character expertise 258; plot twists 244; point of view 123; unified storylines 192
Twin Peaks 161
Two and a Half Men 118
2 Broke Girls 118, 275
“umbrella” central questions 33
Underwood, Frank (character) 145
unfaithful partners 89–90
unifying themes 187–90, 191–6, 280
unpredictability of plot 37–8
The Uses of Enchantment (Bettelheim) 234
Veasey, Pam: interview 97
verbs, franchise types and 29
viewer investment 57–8
voice, script 41
voice-over (VO) narration 114–15, 122
Wachtel, Jeff 40
The Walking Dead: cliffhangers 246; episodic structure 177–83; family dynamics in 77; genre hybrid 97; mythology of 45, 229–30; point of view in 119; sweet spots 31, 202–3; teasers 200
Web Therapy 273
Weeds 46
Weiner, Matthew 154
Weisberg, Joe 117
Weiss, D. B. 134, 232
Wells, John 132
The West Wing: case study 133–4; character expertise 258; pilot ending 217
“the whipped cream” 276
White, Walter (character) 33, 62–9, 71, 74, 101, 112, 145
White Walkers 233
wildcard teasers 200
The Wire 258–9
The Wonder Years 94
workplace families 73, 75, 76, 79
“writing for the camera” 182–3
writing partners 289
The X-Files: character expertise 255; episodic structure 173; franchise type 30; hybrid series type 96; point of view 118; teasers 197
Yorkin, Nicole: interview 200
young love 94–5
YouTube video shorts 277–8
zombies 229–30
Zwick, Edward 138