Sometimes your story just can't be wrapped up in a neat bow with a perfect Hollywood ending.  As a writer, you may weave a unique narrative and the idea of tying up all your loose ends into a neat resolution just doesn't seem right. Or, if you're a producer or filmmaker you might want to set your project up for a sequel, so you may want to have your characters riding off into the sunset once you get to the end.

If wrapping up your story in perfect fashion doesn't appeal to you, why don’t you consider an Ambiguous Ending?

Ask yourself:

Is there an artful exit from your story that defies predictions and is both thought-provoking and exasperating in equal measure?

Can you work your way towards an ending that people will argue about in the bar immediately afterwards and for months (even years) online?

The Ambiguous Ending is a great storytelling trick to pull off, but it’s not easy. If you mess it up, you’re left with a confusing final reel that audiences are likely to dislike— and they’ll carry their loathing out of the theater with them. This webinar explores the possibilities and guides you past the pitfalls.

The Ambiguous Ending can present major challenges for you as a storyteller:

• How do you lay a trail of plot breadcrumbs for your audience that seem to lead them in two directions at once?
• How do you develop characters who are simultaneously engaging while possibly lying through their teeth about the reality of the situation they’re in?
• How do you set up the rules of your narrative world so that one reality can peel off from another?
• How much misdirection is OK?

This type of ending requires you as the storyteller to deploy a sophisticated toolkit out of the gate. Luckily, we have a story expert who served as the in-house story consultant for IM Global for nearly a decade and worked on developing films for Julia Roberts, Nicole Kidman, Tom Hanks and Emma Watson. In this exclusive Stage 32 Next Level webinar Karina Wilson will look at some of the tricks and techniques you can use to create delicious doubt about the ending of your script in everyone but yourself.

Praise from Karina's previous Stage 32 webinar:

"Her presentation was well organized, her slides contained the right amount of information to digest and takes notes from. Her delivery was excellent." - Martha C.

"I was so impressed!" - Loretta C.

Karina is engaging, reassuring and inspiring.

- Helen W.

Karina is passionate about horror and has a lifetime of great experiences and information!

- Cooke Q.

I was so impressed!

- Loretta C.

• Thinking About Ending on a Question Mark
• What does an ending mean anyway?
• The pros and cons of leaving your audience hanging
• Finding the right exit point for your story

• What Do You Want to Achieve with an Ambiguous Ending?
• Films that are open texts
• Playing with the supernatural vs. the real
• Providing a vehicle for an unreliable narrator
• Setting up a sequel

• Making Your Audience Do the Work
• Meeting and playing with genre expectations
• Use of symbols
• Deliberate Misdirection (including MacGuffins and Red Herrings)
• Inciting the fandom to riot

• Making Your Characters Do the Work
• Ending on the horns of a dilemma
• Saying ‘au revoir’ rather than ‘goodbye’
• False hope/dramatic irony that leads to a final twist
• Final reversals

• The Importance of Feedback
• Finding your tribe
• Seeking summaries
• Resolving conflicting reactions
• Staying true to your vision
• Audience omniscience

• Discussion of Examples
• Donnie Darko
• Shutter Island
• Martha Marcy May Marlene
• The Graduate

• Q&A with Karina

All levels of directors (advanced, intermediate and beginner) looking to learn how to entice their audience with interesting and memorable characters.

All levels of writers (advanced, intermediate and beginner) looking to learn how to entice their audience with interesting and memorable characters.

Producers looking to learn how to entice their audience with interesting and memorable characters.

Actors looking to learn how to entice their audience with interesting and memorable characters.

Praise from Karina's previous Stage 32 webinar:

Karina is engaging, reassuring and inspiring.

- Helen W.

Karina is passionate about horror and has a lifetime of great experiences and information!

- Cooke Q.

I was so impressed!

- Loretta C. 

She was very familiar with the horror genre and showed her experience and expertise in the subject. She was generous with her time, spending an hour and 45 minutes with us. Her presentation was well organized, her slides contained the right amount of information to digest and takes notes from. Her delivery was excellent.

- Martha C.

She seemed to be a good choice for this topic as she 1) reads scripts 2) is a horror fan 3) has considered the genre in depth and 4) has considered the unique issue of the horror script ending.

- Jeremy S.