What I learned about Vocal Challenges from...

The first cinema visit of last year was to see A Complete Unknown, with Timothee Chalamet playing Bob Dylan so well that it became one of my films of the year. It even won The Rachel for best musical biopic.

So, it seemed fitting that I started this year with another exceptional performance by Chalamet in Marty Supreme, a fictionalised account of Marty Reisman’s career as a table-tennis player. Marty Supreme has been well-reviewed and in particular Chalamet’s performance has received acclaim. It is a good film. However, this film is unlikely to make my awards list at the end of the year. Not because of any problem with the performances, writing, direction or production, but it did not illicit much of an emotional response. I watched it, I nodded along, but I didn’t really care. I was barrelled along by the plot, but with little concern for the characters.

And that is why I am going to recommend it for people engaged in the current crop of Vocal Challenges.

Let’s start with the Mismatch challenge.

The challenge asks writers to blend two contrasting genres and to let the reader discover what happens when two sets of expectations collide.

Marty Supreme does just that. It is a ‘sports’ movie. You know the genre? Plucky under-dog takes on the world, fights obstacles and triumphs in the end. But as we watch, with that set of expectations, the structure and emphasis change. It swerves from sports movie to “hustle” or “conman” film. Marty Mauser may be good at table tennis, but he is bad at friendship and his hustles to make money catch up with him double-quick.

These are genres that cause friction with each other. A ‘sports’ movie requires a hero. A ‘hustle’ movie demands an anti-hero. Marty Supreme is interesting because the central character is both.

You’ll note I say ‘interesting’ rather than captivating. The danger with mashing genres is that it becomes an intellectual exercise, rather than a visceral response to the story.

My advice to anyone entering the Mismatch Challenge is to be aware of the tropes of both genres and find a character who can bridge those possibilities.

And then there is the Craft Over Catharsis Challenge.

I must admit when I first saw this challenge I felt at a loss. Surely most creative writers are writing to find that perfect sentence that resonates so strongly that it pulls readers’ emotions to the surface. As writers we hope that there is a metaphor out there that leaves tingles and dances in the minds of our audience. Aren’t we all aiming for some deep reverberation of recognition, a lightning flash of feeling?

However, most of my life that isn’t why I’ve been writing. Academic writing aims to sway through reason, logic, argument and structure. An appeal to the senses and emotions is seen as cheap, even cheating, low-handed.

Craft over Catharsis is asking that of us too. It is a challenge that argues that structure matters. Fancy words are nice, but stories can be told dispassionately and still hold our attention.

Marty Supreme did that for me. I’m not saying it didn’t have fancy cinematic techniques, such as close-ups, montage shots and blurs of action. But as I reflect on it, it told a story simply. This happened and then that happened and decisions had consequences.

There is a character arc. Marty matures over the course of the film. But that isn’t what keeps us watching. Instead, it is the attention to story and the controlled ways in which we are fed the information.

These are my Marty Supreme hints and tips for the Craft Over Catharsis challenge:

- Don’t worry about making characters likeable. They are what they do. Actions matter more than words or motivations.

- Understand your plot and why one action follows another

- Recognise stories have a beginning, a middle and an end. Don’t try and take the story further than the ending and don’t provide a backstory that mitigates motivation.

- Make a detail matter, or leave it out

- Give your characters plenty of obstacles. If readers aren’t being offered recognition or emotional involvement, they need plot to see them through

- Keep the pace up. This isn’t about reflection and growth. This is about consequences.

- Trust your reader. They can find their own meaning without your clever, witty or manipulative words.

Good luck with the challenges!

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