From Black Widow to Pantheon - everything I loved this week
Weekly Reset is my lil diary of stuff I've done, stuff I've enjoyed and anything else I want to talk about - this week we've got a great video about taking notes, a fantastic sci-fi show and more
Welcome to Weekly Reset, a selection of some of my favourite things I’ve watched, read, listened to, played, unboxed, ate, smelled…you get it. I love reading these so I thought I’d make one. Don’t forget to sound off in the comments with what you’ve been enjoying lately.
‘How I use notebooks to improve my creative writing’ by ParkNotes - I’ve been a big fan of ParkNotes for a while now, his channel has had a huge influence on the development of my notebook system. In my recent post about how I organise my world-building I talked about how important using a physical notebook is in my thought process and this video beautifully articulates why. I do make use of ‘compendium’ notebooks for different areas of my life (one for Altered Narrative and one for my world-building project, for example). In those notebooks I’ll sketch ideas and brainstorm to help develop plot points, world-building and more. I strongly recommend seeking out his Substack - Parker’s Ponderings - for more musings on philosophy, creativity and science fiction and fantasy.
Black Widow - this film got short changed. It was dumped into cinemas about 5 years too late (and during another wave of the pandemic) and that’s not to mention the severe lack of time and resources afforded to the post-production team. The often lambasted VFX actually hold up really well (especially when you consider the artists working conditions on the film) and the overall look and tone of the film feels of a piece with the wider MCU while still having its own flavour. Florence Pugh is the real MVP here. The whole cast (Ray Winstone notwithstanding) are great but Flo-Pugh is amazing. She’s charismatic, charming and an instant favourite. I’m glad to see she’s getting more of the spotlight in Thunderbolts* and Avengers: Doomsday.
Adolescence - like everyone, this shocked and enthralled me. The filmmaking craft is impeccable, the performances magnificent and the story utterly compelling and terrifying in equal measure. An important piece of storytelling that is a reminder of the true power art can have in an increasingly complex and unpredictable world.
Pantheon - this is a riveting animated series that feels like classic science-fiction told exceptionally well. It starts off as a conspiracy thriller about a disparate group of characters who uncover sinister secrets about a mysterious company and their goal to upload human intelligence before becoming something entirely different and more bizarre. It’s all on Netflix and I highly recommend it.
Captains Log
Captains Log is basically my way of holding myself to account. Or at least that’s the idea, anyway.
‘3 reasons why I love Star Wars: The Phantom Menace’ - Star Wars is wizard and I’ll take any opportunity I get to write about it.
This week was all about the first draft of a new screenplay and I managed 15 pages - mostly writing on my phone in bed.
That’s everything this week. I ended up breaking breaking a rib on Tuesday so most of this week has been laid up in bed recovering (and watching Pantheon/Adolescence). Here’s hoping next week is a better one filled with 100% less falling over.
Remember to sound off in the comments about what you’ve been loving this week.