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THE SECRET LANGUAGE OF Meaning in FiLm Visuat meoia
PAMELA jAYE SMITH‘bli by Mi Wie Pins
1240 Yea Bld #17
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1 Sine amor nef. Vnl cmt, Te ac ing
Pinedo Rel SkDEDicATiON
To Geoogia Lambert, wisdom teacher extraordinaire, She reveals in fascinating and
enlightening ways the many levels of meaning in symbols, images, and codes, from the
‘obvious to the obscure, aswell as the formerly deeply secret.
‘And to Monty Hayes McMillan a man of vision who eught me how to see
the hidden mesnings behind many things.TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INTRODUCTION
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK.
HOW SYMBOLS WORK,
1, ASTRONOMY AND ASTROLOGY
2. COMPOSITION
3, NUMBERS.
4. CODES,
5. EARTH
6. AIR,
7, FIRE
8, WATER
9. ANIMAI
10, CHAKRAS,
11, COLOR.
12. THE LEAP
a
5
~
a
2
4a
a5
9
13, ANATOMY
14, CLOTHES
15, ARCHITECTURE
16, STEPS AND STAIRS.
17, CROSSES,
18, DUALITY
19, CULTURAL REFERENCES
20, SITUATIONS AND SYMBOLS
21, GOING NATIVE
22, SEX, LOVE, AND ROMANCE,
23, WEAPONS, WOUNDS, AND DEATHS,
24, EXERCISES,
CONCLUSION
INDEX.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jot
104
105
m2
weACKNOWLEDGMENTS
For inspiration: My Texas grandfather, “Daddy Joc” Smith, for
tay first lesson in symbols — brands on cattle, llutrator Arthur
Rackham’ evocative atin Oscar Wilde's exquisite book of Fry
Tales, My best school frend, Larry Glazenes, with whom I crafted
secret code writing inthe eighth grade, Manly P, Hall's books and
teachings. Al my friends and colleagues who work in secret mean-
ings ofcourse I wont name you
‘Thanks to my contebutors, readers, and supporters on tis books
‘Monty Hayes MeMilla, Georgia Lambert, Aurora Mile,
Mike Restino, Bruce Logan John Slik, Ray Bogeo, Vanese
MeNeill, Chance Gardner, ete Meliwain, Dave Keplowite, Kathie
Fong Yoneda, Linda Seger, Devrah Cutler Robinson, Judith Clare,
Rachel Ballo, Carolyn Mille, and Ropats Taylor.
‘Mike Restaino also helped obtain allo the images for this book
and deserves a huge thank you for that. And many thanks tothe
fine publishing team of Michael Wiese Productions,
‘Special thanks to Bob and Jane Reed, who provided » paradise in
‘which to contemplate deeper meaning| aaliale
inTRODUCTION
Humans are meaningrmaking ereauses, We se animals in the
clouds, Mather Tesesa on cinnamon buns, and Jesus on rusty
sereen doors. or was that Willie Nelson?
Communication isthe mos important aspest of human
interation, and itis accomplished ina number of ways, from
utilitarian to artistic, Some ofthe most primitive yet still most
effective modes of communication are vswal — that’s just how
‘our brine aze wired
About 40,000 years ago humans began creating media They
‘held cheir hands against a rock wall and blew out a mixture of
spitand pigment, the first airbrushed images. Geafiti raging
begins here.
‘They dipped sight bundles of hae ino hollowed-out stones Pee
holding crashed bery juice and with afew exquisite stokes
re-created the power and grace of ancient surocsthundesing
cross open plains. Dapple-rumped deer skitered away fom
stylized hunters, and fearsome cave bears roared silent warnings
to say aw.‘Sister Wendy Te Compe Calon
‘Times have changed; the dangers and delights of ovr world are
typically more technological than natural. Yer artists continually
brave the impersonal swipes of nature and the devices and desires of
the human hear to reveal the truths and mysteries of or existence,
to instruct us in its ways, and to sevel in is wonders
In our rnultculural, instantaneously interconnected global village,
we speak hundreds of languages and thousands of dialects with
divers and specific cultural Bickgrounds. Haw can we commun
cate effectively across all these bodes?
Symbols and images affect people emotionally — hence their
csceptional effectiveness. Because thet is no particular ational
ateachment to them, visuals are «universal language that engages
our intuition and imagination.
Although some of the details may bemuse us, we ate sill impressed
by symbols and images hundreds and thousands of yeas old, Erotic
carvings on temples in Tndia offer enlightenment advice disguised
1s sexual postions; ancient Egyptian art provides instructions on
navigating the afelife; stained-glass windows and stone carvings
in Buropean cathedrals conize Bible sores for their once-lterate
congregations and easly American builders of massive mound
complexes seem to have thought their audience was spirits high in
the sky.
People have waged war under symbols: the Roman Empire's cag
(co-opted by the Nazis) the crusader coss of Christendom, the
«escent moon of Islam, the hammer and sickle of the Soviet Union.
People also accomplish great deeds of generosity and sel-acifice
unde icons: peaceful Buddha, Virgin Mary's compassionate sacred
hea, the euinbow of many ancient cultures and the modern
lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgeader LGBT movement. Codes hold
and pass on precious or dangerous secrets: Masonic-alchemicl-
Kabalistic keys ro transformation, secret Cele Finger language,
Depression-era hobo codes on homes hospitable or hostile, pirates
and spies’ mape and markers
Symbols and images also convey emotions, states of mind, and
actions frozen in time. Bernini’ exquisite marble statue of Sant
‘Teresa of Avila quivers with the ecstasy of adoration. A Slower
crashed in Bloody battlefield mud eaprates wars rag futilityRingo of Haren
‘A raised fst commemorates a revolution, a ried flag a victory, and
bird in flight valiant act or a release to freedom,
‘The more consciouly you use symbols, images, and codes i your
stores, the more effective your message willbe. Using appropriate
visuals will heighten the emotional impact of your story and will
connect your audience tothe rch steam of meaning — conscious
and unconscious — that flows through humanity and our aes
‘This book will show you ways that visuals have been used to great
effectiveness and ways tod that in your own projects 20 they too
will have more powerful, long-lasting impact.HOW TO USE
Kop this book beside your computer as you write your screenplay,
novel, o ad copy, and turm to it when you're thinking, “Right,
"Show, dont tll; but how do I show this emotion?" or
something spectacularly visual right here, but whar would be the
most effective?” or “Everyone in the audience should simply weep,
nov; hmmm
4 panoply of visuals to expeess and imply emotions, situations, and
concepts, this book can help you finda specific i you have the
general idea. Tecan also help if youre already scing generic visuals
what cue can I give them?” Designed to offer you
jn your head hut aten’t sure how 0 use them effectively. The Index
section helps you ceorr-rference the specific image to snd from the
«emotion situation, o concept
‘OF course you can do so, but you need read this book all the way
‘through to make good use of i, You cat approach it ikea diction
ry or thesaurus and just pick i up and use it when you wat t
make an effective visual statement and need some extra inspiration
and information.
Here are the sections in each chapter and how 0 use them
THIS BOOK
WHAT IT MEANS
Explanations from antiquity to modern times and across differ-
cnt cultures, Knowing its meaning is essential to using a symbol
cffecivly.
IN HISTORY, MYTH, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMES
Examples sometimes from 40,000 years ago, sometimes from a
thousand years ago, sometiates fom yesterdays news. That images
have been used across the years and cultures indicates their power to
convey meaning and can give you ideas on how to use them in your
media,
IN MEDIA
Symbol, codes, and imagery acct in all media, and presumably
all sors of media makers will use this book. For the examples,
however, Fuse films, because they are the most universally known
and the most accessible. Examples are from the iim classic, lst
year's Oscar winner, cul favorites, or tht blockbuster you want 10ec just one more time. Use these examples as both illustration and
speptation, You can feshen up an old thing by approaching fom
i iiferent angle, using a different perspective. Put your wnigue spin
‘on asybol and take our breath sway with the power of these visu-
isto bring forth deep emotional responses,
vse,
‘When to use the particlar image. For instance, you might want
tw indieate a particular emotional/pychologial state (fer, oy,
cmv feeling tapped, et.); a certain situation (impending danger,
camaraderie, rising tensions, et); oF 2 concept (freedom, loyalty,
spictuality, te)
se thre levels — emotional, situational, concepeual — expand
‘outward from the most indivdal o the most abstract
Use emotional symbols when your character shifts ttitude or
motive, when you want to signal his or her growth, flue, « new
‘hope, and soon. An emotional symbol is always very personal and
internal and may not necessarily reach beyond that individual. In
American Beauty, the image ofthe virginal cheedleader surrounded
by rose petals indicated Kevin Spacey’s state of mind and emotions
No one else saw that vision,
Use situational symbols when things ae changing i the environ=
ment or in a group of people. People swepe up together in the
emotions ofthe moment often rally around symbols that are
‘te, Shift in
political, religious, sports-orented, cultural, ac
cconomic or socal status ae indicated via tie catogory of images,
In Gone wit be Wind, Scarlet O'Har’ wardrobe and the condition
of Tara symbolized what was going on economically before, dusing,
and afer the wae
Use conceprual imagery to indicate higher spistual yearnings oF
abstract concepts that ar hard to shove through action, Tau,
loyalty, and fredam are concepts that of courte lead to actions
but chy start way up in those abstract planes of though and have
4 wide-ranging influence on people. Flags, eligious icons, and
seylized representations eypically indicate concepts, Watch Leni
Riefensta’s film Thumph ofthe Will fr a superb use of symbols to
clic sign-on toa mythic national cause. or the Lond of he Rings
twilogy for acial/pesies warfare causes
WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS
In prose you ae the dsectr, at director, costumer, makeup artist,
and acting coach fr every aspect ofthe story. Sue, you leave some
things for the readers! imagination or your story won engage their
imagination, but we want you to create and evoke a sich word for
sto explore
For scripts robe sold and turned int a visual medium, you must
first impress a development exee or reader with words on page
‘Make your pages incredibly more powerful using potent, visceral
words that ereste viv images.Scripts also tell the director, production designer, cinematographer,
lighting director, costumer, and actors what you envision. Yes,
they interpset your vision, but give them solid indications to
stare with,
Check your thesaurus: foreach word iste, you'l find at least «
handful more
CINEMATIC TECHNIQUES
Symbols, images, and codes aze only effective when they are
sppropriaely presented, framed, focused upon, and noticed (or not)
by your characters, This section presents suggestions on faming,
position, lighting, sound, music, and soon, to create the effect,
youre after,
OTHER EXAMPLES
Fr further research, and to ad your own examples
INDEX
‘This separate section a the back ofthe hook will help you find
various ways of visually expressing an emotion, situation, or concept
by looking it up and thea exploring the chapters that refer to itHOW SYMBOLS, iMAGES, & CODES WORK
‘Ourbins ae built wo process shapes, PET scans and MRIs zevel
‘where particular images cause reactions: squares here, circles there,
triangles over here.
Some of this s just our animal heritage taken to & mote sophist-
‘ated level, Baby chicks instinctively run and hide from the shadow
ofa cardboard hawk. As soon a they hatch, baby dicks imprint a=
Moa” the first thing they se, Humane ate sd to have a Tove
map” based on ther east experiences of relationships. Our brains
are bile 1 ecognize danger aswell as postive factors such as good.
‘ceding material, healthy food, and safe shelter
Fiom symbol-recogpition survival mechanisms tothe subtlety of|
stylized halos around Stone Age figures (supposedly hallcinations
of akered-state artist) to the composition of a shot i a movie to
show emotional sepeesion, artists use these tendencies of conscious
ness to convey meaning and emotion, Unlike talent — whic either
‘yu have ot you don't — the use of symbols images, and codes is 2
raft you can develop to improve the effetiveness of your creative
projects and to enhance your naturl tent
‘This language of visual communication has « numberof forms and
spect
+ Allegory — symbolic representation, often a play on words oF
actions. Arps Fables is human psychology illustrated by animal
actions: crafty fx, lyal dog, mindless sheep. Fassnts and Nazis
se evil sorcerers and orcs in The Lord of the Rings Jess isthe
lion in The Chromic of Narnia, Other allegorical tales include
Alice in Wonderland, EI Topo, The Maris, and The Golden
Compas.
Color — Though color has a universal physiological effect on the
ye, colors have diferent cultural mesnings, In China, white is
the color of mourning; in European cultures its black. Purple,
because the dye used tobe so rare, symbolized royalty, the only
class who could afford it. Women in red deeses are universally
sexy, and scientific studies prove it, Stdies also show chat le
walls in aroom heighten creativity, while eed wall heighten
memory and lessen creativitysu
Lauren Aaa
+ Composition — Dynamic ines of tension and isolation of a
object, be i sil or moving, move the viewer’ eye azound a
frase. One tem small and fie from a large foreground item
implies a yawning gulf of diference or separation. Move it away
from or towaed the foreground fr significance, lke Shane riding
sway across the prairie a the end ofthat fiz (separation and
sadness) or Sheif Ali riding across the desert toward Lawrence
in Lawornce of Arabia (new best frends orev)
++ Buaggeration — Mostar isan exaggeration of size, effect
emotion, ration, et. Hindu sculpeues of gods and goddesses
emphasize volupeuousners and devotion tothe beloved. Picasso,
Duchamp, Kandinsky, and other breakthrough artist of ealy
20th century Busope incorporated mystical philosophies and
‘modern physics into thie paintings, exggeratedly portraying
sultple time lines and simultaneous angles of perception
++ Metaphor —All the world’s a stage’ ae Shakespeare wrote, Or
as Persian poet Omar Khayyam observed much eae
"Tis alla Cheguerboard of Nights and Dayt
Where Destiny with Men for Pes pla
Hither and Wither maces, and mates, and lays,
“And ane by ane Back in tbe Clee aye
Because we perceive the world through our physical senses, the most
solid metaphors are those tht reflect physical reality. “Top dog”Lee
sna a bass in behavior, as does “limb the conporate ladder” or
“beat him down" When seatching for a symbol for your own visual
sia, you'll want to come as close to the actual experience as you
can and then back off a notch o two for poetic effect.
The spiritual metaphors of ritual — Masonic rte, the Chrietian|
[Bachatist, many culture’ festivals of Tight — reflect higher and
‘re abstract concepts
++ Synecdoche — the part fr the whole. The White House isthe
USS. execative branch, Google is an Internet search In music
and visuals it’ leitmoif a phease or image that represents a
“The below ald Rob — Cite Kan
certain character, situation, or emotion. Think ofthe “dum-dum,
dom-dum-dum-dum” of Jaws to announce che shark, or the color
sed in Tie Sith Senet indicate a dead person. In Citizen Kane
the sled and snow globe ate litmotfe/synecdoches for Kane's
childhood,
[All ofthese communication tols can be sed in your creative
works to speak tothe deeper par of ourselves, the meaning-making
‘mechanis that les within us all. Use them to convey your con=
cept, to entertn, to stimulate chought process, to enlighten, and
to enrich your audience’ experience.ASTRONOMY & ASTROLOGY
WHAT IT MEANS
Astronomy isthe science of stars, planets, comets, and the cosmos.
Astrology isa nonscienific system of personality analysis and event
prediction based on the movements of heavenly bodies,
IN HISTORY, MYTH, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMES
Since humans Fest noted the repeated appearance of certain stat
clusters in the night sky and projected patterns on them, we've had
constellations: Leo the Lion, Aries the Ram, Urst Major, Orion the
Hunter, We have also personalized the planets: warsior Mars, lover
Venus, speedy Mercury, jolly Jupiter, and gloomy Satur,
“Mayan astronomy was complex and astonishingly correct. Their
feathered serpent teacher god Quetzacoatl is associated with Venn
"Theories ace gaining ground that che Egyptian Sphinx and some
pyramids were built othe vernal equa inthe sign of Leo 12,500
years go,
Athens lost a decisive battle inthe Peloponnesian Wars because of
bei in astrology:
‘The Labors of Hercules take him through the zodins
“The Persian savior god Mithras i shown slaying a ull interpreted as
‘the precesion ofthe equinoxes asthe bull (Taurus) is sain by a war-
rior (Aces), with many ther symbols ofthe zodiac around them
King Acthue nd the 12 Knight of the Round Table are associated
swith the zodiac, a6 are Jesus and the 12 apostles. A pilgrimage to
certain Gothic cathedrals retraces the configuration of Virgo, the
Blessed Virgin Mary inthe stars. Some people claim descent from
Sirius othe Plies; stroll down Hollywood Boulevatd may
convince you thats possibilty.
‘There ace a number of films about the real-life Zodiac Killer
(Characters in the 1980s typically made los of references to their
astrological signs.
use
+ To describe character vi their astrological sign: Pisces i sens
tive, Leo is egotistical yer generous, Scorpio dangerously sex,
and s0 0,+ In the cate of astrology, to show a character as woo-woo gullible
or, conversely, a sensitive and wise,
+ Inthe cae of astronomy, to imply intelligence, geckiness, an
adventurous spirit, an inquisitive mind reaching off planet ito
the stars Jody Foster in Contact came to astronomy as child
+ Tn sci-fi and fantasy the stars are often the very setting ofthe
story
+ Inn alens-among-us story it could be the homeland they yearn
fr or the souree ofthe threat, and you can signal those motions
by showing dstan lights in the darkness.
WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS,
In prose, describe the constellation shape, Give your character
astrological acessories: a Sagittarivs mug, for example, or an
Aquasius Ts
For scripts, move the camera across a collection of astrology items,
‘Cut to the night sky. Have characters use a telescope or visita
planctarive,
CINEMATIC TECHNIQUES
Technical enhancement: Draw the constellation patterns make
those stars sparkle more brightly; bring the stars down to earth and
overlay them on some other objector surface; turn them into what
they represent — a bull, a centaur, a viegin. Reflect the star pattern
ina character’ eyes, ina pool of water, glass of wine, mirror a
window,
‘Move away from or onto a spinning globe, an orery asta chat
OTHER EXAMPLES:
See a planetarium show for clever ways to link viewer imaginations
to the stars,+2+
composition
WHAT IT MEANS.
‘The way we put things together tells us much about the importance
‘of one thing to another, the nature of che relationship between
them, the history and che Forure of that relationship. Composition
can create tension o relieve it It can evoke harmony or discord,
IN MYTH, HISTORY, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMES
Art history often categorizes eras and styles based on changes in
compo
rived by changes in the color blue. Chinese artistic composition i
typically based on even number, Japanese on odd number
ion and emphasis, Some Egyptian dynasties are catego
A jor aspect of composition is perspective
‘The Hogarth Curve (an *S" curve) is an acstheti layout found in
nature and used by atss to guide the flow of vision sround a piece
of act.
Feng Shut isthe Chinese practice of composing the environment to
enhance the Flow oF energy.
IN MEDIA
‘The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons books and movies make
plot points of the composition of paintings and statues,
In The Confrmis, directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, the mother,
her beauty fang, and her son, ever more distant fous her, walle
through dead and fallen leaves; che composition sys the reltion-
ship is decaying.
Bertolucci also places the protagonist of his marvelous fil in a
sori, pressed in upon by his wife and his mistress, trapped by other
dancers
USE
+ To indicate a shift in power.
+ To show isolation of loneliness,
+ To emphasize nature over man, or vice versa
+ Toillatrate the scope of «problem,4+ To signal the peychologcal quality ofa character: Show your
character agtnst water for an emotional fel, aginst the earth
fora more grounded fel, withthe sky behind them for an open
minded fel
+ nan argument, place the characters so that there's different
and significant background foreach, such a8 a window behind
one, a sold wall behind the other; ora wall of hooks behind one
(logical, inellectual) and curtains behind the other (more Highty
and insubstantial.
WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS
Use active, descriptive word: ‘The wall loomed over he, the sea
churned behind him, they huddled together, he paced a the fot of|
the bridge
CINEMATIC TECHNIQUES
Split screens: The TV series 24 uses multiple steens to give more
information and suse the ension The film (500) Day f Summer
has side-by-side sereens labeled “Expectation” and "Reality, show-
ing what the protagonist wants to experience a a party given by his
former gielfiend (them togehes) and what's really going (her
with her new boyftiend)
ony s
Bernardo Bertolacs ea genus with composition, Watch his ims
‘The Conforms and The Last Emperor for exquisite examples of
speaking volumes about emotions, situations and concepts through
AMPLI
setting,NUMBERS
WHAT IT MEANS
From the infan inspecting her own Fingers and toes to wientits
ansing supercomputer equation, numbers have always fascinated
ts, Some cll mathematis the language ofthe divine, and divine
{quiltes have often been assigned to numbers. Anything that exis
an be described in numbers, and numbers often stand in for the
‘hing tel
IN HISTORY, MYTH, AND
‘The earliest writings seem to have been accountng records; those
NTEMPORARY TIMES
who know numbers — bankers, census takers and the ike — can
sanipulate those who don't
The Fibonacci numbers underlie natute's perfect shape, the sical,
and perfect proportion, the golden mean. In this pattern each ew
number isthe sum ofthe previous two: 1, 2 3, 5, 8,13, 21,34, and
so on. This pattern appears in pineapples, unfuling ferns, seashells,
spiral galaxies, and many other phenomena
Sounds and colors can be expressed in numbers representing their
wavelengths, The musical note “A” is 440 cycles per second; the
wavelength forthe color blue is about 440 nanometers
Marie! peWHAT THE NUMBERS MBAN
0 — Emptiness, extinction, the void, no thing/nathing.
1 — Unity, wholeness, individuality, isolation, rotality, uniqueness
loneliness.
2—Union, polarity, duality (male-female), balance, connection,
entanglement, mating.
3. —Tiinity: Many mythologies have a crative tro, often «family
+ Hinds — Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva: eeator, preserve, destroyer.
+ Bagyptian — Orirs, Isis, Horus: creative spark (ithe), creative
‘material (mothe), creative result (hil).
+ Christian — God the Father, Jesus the son, Holy Ghost the
sistant Jadeo-Christanity has tie for millenia to keep the
feminine out ofthe equation, but humans inherently go the
hence the persistence of the Visgin Mary,
Spirit, matter, conscousness/soul i the trinity of the Mystery
Schools
+ Energy force, substance — the eretive trinity of metaphysics.
++ The etna eriangle of forbidden love
4+ The sexual ménage a tri.
4 — Seasons, cardinal directions (north, east, south, wes), elements
(earth, ir, fre, water).
5 —The four directions pls the center pvor pol, tre, arrow, rod,
column, ete
+ Hlumanity: two arms, wo logs, head.
++ Humanity: ive senses.
+ Elements in Oriental systems (earth, aie, fre, water, metal.
+ Points on a symbolic sar, Sides to a pentagram, Percentage ofthe
universe chat i visible mater.
‘Yuvan by Lena Ds Vin ~The Seine 9 eS4 — Two tints, balance, stasis, the connections between spiritual
tl earthly rads
7 ‘The divine trinity plus the earthly quaternasy, traditional
prinber of major chakras
{§ — An auspicious number in Burmese culture, influencing even
the oppressive military rules,
9 — "The tinitysimes thee, a lucky number for the Chines,
10 — Fingers and toes, Biblical OM Testament commandments,
Sephitot ofthe Kabals, ast days of Ramadan considered especially
hl, bass of many mathematical systems
12— Solar months, constellations of the zodia, Labors of
Hercules, apostles of Jesus, Knights of King Arthurs Round Table
13 — Lunar months, the above 12s his the Tender (Jesus plas
apostles, Arthur plus knights).
22 — Bones in the human skull, connections in the Kabalintic tre,
23 — Percentage ofthe universe that is dace mater, arbitrarily
assigned sigaificance in Robert Anton Wilson's writings and Joe!
Sehumacher's movie The Number 23
133 —Verechene in the human spinal column, steps of Scottish
Rite Freemasonry, age of Jesus at his death-reurrection-accnsion,
Kabaistie connections (22) plus the Sephiot (10) plus the hidden
Sephirah, Daath,
40.— Year the cites wate inthe Sina after ecping from
yp day Jen pet in the wikercs bing tempted hy St,
days of Lene, Srunuptercovegences before repeating in the
rosin, work of himan pregnancy.
42 — The answer to Lif, the Universe and Everything according
to Douglas Adams’ Hitbhiters Guide toe Galas. The number of
call division cycles dozing human in-utero development.
52— Number of years inthe Aztec Big Shea of yeas
172 — Degrees in one-fifth of a circle (72 5 = 360), number of
lawyers at Egyptian bad god Ser’ tril for killing his brother Osiris,
numberof virgins alloted a Muslim martyr (an unfortunate mis-
translation of astronomical plotting ofthe heavens, percentage of
the universe that is dark energy
452 — Base number for Hinds Vedic time counts of the cycles of
the cosmos,
1A
2012 is based on the Mayan calendar’ count of astonomical eyes.
In See, serial Killer Kevin Spacey used the seven deadly sins to
plot and execute his murder,
The NumBer 23 with Jima Carey
I 21, Kevin Spacey isa professor who teaches math whizzes to
count cars in Vege,USE
+ Toillusrate the mysterious complexity of nature, To imply
intelligent design. To imply intelligence in a character. To
‘mpl madness in an obsessed o OCD character. To signal
secret connections to scentfi secrets like alien life, weapons
Aexign, new materials,
WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS
For visual emphasis
vse numerical Figures rather than words,
especially for 10 and above: 22, not ewenty-two
CINEMATIC TECHNIQUES
Hiave a character write out the number, oriFlow enough, count
it off on her fingers. Have someone count aloud, or physically
touch the tems being counted, Flash-edit onthe things being
counted and emphasize it with sound
OTHER EXAMPLES:
A Beantful Mind, The Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons, The Let
‘SymeWHAT IT MEANS
Soperhero decoder sings, secret languages, cryptography .. secrecy
tnd exclusivity are consistent human tats and one ofthe best
places to ide something is ight out in plain sight. Language isa
oie fr meaning, and writen language is «code for both sound
and meaning; Unlike stand-alone symbols and numbers, a code is
‘complex system using substation (this for tha) asa guise and
requiring & hidden key to wnlock,
IN MYTH, HISTORY, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMES
Early tribal codes of smoke signals and jungle druus evolved into
Morse code and semaphores
In Greck myth, Ocdipus was the ist wo successfilly salve the
‘idle ofthe Sphinx — good thing, because the penalty for failure
was death, European fey tales are replete with riddles involving
symbolic codes and wordplay and the hezoes in many stories must
solve complex poles to win the day.
Brule ta physical code for the blind
(Clic bards used a secret Finger Language, touching specific knuck-
les and joints for specific words; Frank Herbert uses something
Similar in the Dune novels
‘The periodic table ofclements can be an entire vecret cade: 8 =
yen 6 = carbon, the base of life as we know iti 238 = uranium,
used to generate micas weapons or power.
Libraries use the Dewey Decimal Systems, websites use URLs, and
sofeware is a code
Cryptography uses codes to transmit hidden messages, be it tea-
sures ofthe gods, enemy tates, o assignations for forbidden love.
Codes often use keys suchas “every third letter in every fourth
word” to spell out secrets, Solving Nazi Germany's Enigma code
helped the Allies win Werld War Il, Ako in WWII, Navajo code
talkers simply used their own unique and unfamiliar Amerindian
language to fil the enemy.
Encryption is the tind step in code-making: 1) Start with letters
2) Turn them into numbers. 3) Tusn them back into diferent letters
—or se symbols and numbers or letters and sybols, Just remem
ber you need two sets of information cros-refernced.Iv MEDIA
‘uous emotions, Steam can symbolize contained emotions, heated
up to the boiling pong, in danger of ursing the unwary.
IN HISTORY, MYTH, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMES:
‘Though many creation stories have us made fom clay, others see
theses as our origin. Sex foam is ikened to semen in many myth,
inseminating the feminine eath. Aphrodite the Greek godess of
love, arises from sea foam, most famously portrayed in Botiel’s
portait of heron hal-shel
COndines ase the water spirits of Greco-Roman mythology: When
Jasoa and the Argonauts — Hercules among them — go in search
ofthe Golden Fleece, Hercules boyfiend Hylasis seduced to his
death by these water aymnphs, breaking Hercules’ heart and diver
ing hien from the que.
haces the Fish is considered the most emotional and sensitive
astrological sign,
“Mystic Christianity notes that Moses parted the Red Se, symbol-
ining the old way of walking through
calmed the stormy sea and walked upon the water, symbolizing the
reve way of rising above the emotions and holding rational thought
he emotions, while Jesus
‘Many “foundation” myths include «great flood that destoys a
ret civilization ora geeat umber of people. Atlantis and Lemuria
Ihave the grandest mythic scope, and paleogeology does chart out
numberof actual floods that could have been the souce of such
‘ial-memory-become-myth instance. Floods and tsunamis haveplagued humans a log as weve been humans today’s technology laf-covered swimning pool at a rundown resort. He later dreams
affords us more knowledge about them ll athe dives into the murky water to save he, but she tres
An iceberg brought
Shipwreck of movern times. Iebergs ate now melting across the
Indonesia; Beneath the natura bea
globe, and che pola ice shests ae thinning dangerou
death
N MEDIA
Considered nes usin 1953, the beach kiss ro 7
Here ta Eternity bas the lovers drenched in water, pounded
repeatedly by the rlenles waves of. you get the ida,
ineerwoven story lines of emotions such a reven d and
D.H, Lawrence writes in Women in Lave of «young couple
ving ina lake immediately afer theie wedding, leaving
19 doubt that he sees marrage as deadly emotional trap.
American flls tthe opening of The Mission nice
tk
The emotional stengch ofthe indigenous people might be
poraily swayed by Catholicism, bat like the forest, ills
ery old and very strong
Ia The Yar of Living Dangerously, Mel Gibson's charac
ter adores a beatifl yong woman who diver
Le‘Pheer of Living Danger
ipt consultant Linda Seger points our the use of water imag
cry in The English Patient to sigoal sensuality and emotional
connectedness
Mary Shelley's novel Frandenten begins and ends in the fozen
Acie wastes,
‘Tha exceedingly popular movie about young love on the high
seas, Titanic, would have been neal as effective had Jack not
drowned, leaving Rose and her newly awakened emotions clinging
soggy to her memories and millions of young girls sobbing atthe
poignant beauty of lost love
Sailing ships play «big part in many adventute stores, some of the
best being Patrick O'Brian's Maser and Commander serie, whese
the valiant men work both with and against the aestic seas,
And let us nt forget surfing fils: Big Wednecday, Fr Summer,
Print Break, Blue Crash and okay, Surf Nazis Muse Die (yes, Tve
seen them all)usp,
+ To indicate vastus emotional states. Frozen water equals frozen
«motions, Lack of water equals lack of emotions. Gushing water
‘equals contained emotions Finally freed, Steam equals danger-
ously represed emotions
++ To-emphasize a shiftin emotions «characters inner
transformation
+ To punctuate a shift in seuations, typically something that affects
lots of people and the envizonment — negatively or positively.
WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS:
Use adjectives and vet forms that apply to both water and emo:
tions: Flowing, frigid, moist, damp, and so fet
In. scrip, communicate the quantity so filmmakers can create the
cffetyou intend: looming ce elif, ering stream, rising te,
soaked with seat,
CINEMATIC TE
NIQUES
‘You have a wide aray of approaches with water since you can focus
‘oma singe tear quivering on an eyelash or show a tsunami sweeping
‘vera mountain range
‘Wavy lines ate the symbolic shorthand for water, asin much prim
tive or stylistic art, o the astrological sign for Aquarius
‘You can also use fish to draw attention to water. Topical fish in an
aquarium, a print or statue of dolphin, a whale fin necklace.
‘The opening of The Fngic Patent, with swimmers loating in
‘aint across paper and then seen frozen on sandy desert cliff, isan
‘excellent eximple of wsing liquid t evoke emotions and plc points
withoue using water isl.
‘An emotional turing poin in Blue Crus is appropriately set nn
lagoon, with the surfer girl and her boyfriend, both fly dressed,
arguing about her fears and how ta get over them, Following his
ensouragement, she goes onto surf Pipeline
Isolation and contrast are major factors in syrbotis, so set your
“inal-water moment” against «contrasting backgrovnd: a single
drop of water inthe dust, «rivulet of sweat onan otherwise dey
body, one glass of ie water ins steamy setting
A snajo emotion associated with water i the fear that we'll be
‘overhelmed. To give your audience that sense of impending dis
‘soanfrt or daorn in a“large-water momen,” st the Tens below the
idle ofthe water s0 we're Iooking up a it. Or have the frame
filed two-thirds or more with the waterie/storm/steam, either
vertically, horizontally, or diagonallyOTHER EXAMPLES.
Matin Sheen rising from the river in dposelpre News so cone t's
copied over and over. Waterworld, Castaway, Rum Silent Run Desh
Deepa Mehtas Water The Hunt for Red October, The yu. Te and
ovies: the 1998 X-Files movie
The Day Afer Tema
sow age featured ina numberof
Iee Runner, The Ie Storm, The Tn 2nd
iT+94
AniMALS
WHAT IT MEANS,
‘The outstanding characteristic ofa given animal: crafty fox, cours
_geous lon, wily serpent, silly goose, loyal dog, independent cat.
Its environment or situation: alpha mal, free asa bird, extinct as
dodo, pathetic asa caged chicken, fantastic asa dragon, mystical
A concept: Bieds often represent the soul (personal incarnation) o¢
spire (ternal lf force). The egg isa universal symbol of genert-
tion, possibilty, new beginnings. Helen of Toy and her siblings
Clytemnestrs and Castor and Pollux are often shown popping out of
gas aid by cher mother Leda after er rape by Zeus i the form of
IN HISTORY, MYTH, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMES:
From Aap Fable 1 The Chronicle ef Narnia, from the do
Ineaded Egyptian god Anubis to Scooby Do, we've always used
animals to symbolize aspects of human nature.
Pantheoas are ich with animal gods, part-animal gods, snd mixed-
animal gods, Angels have bird wings. The Babyloian teacher god
‘Ounnes was fish on tap, man on bottom — oF maybe just smart
sailor wearing chuin-mail armor.
Tribes and clans have tote animals and nations have symbolic
animals. The Roman Empite, Nazi Germany, and the United Sates
all chose the eagle
These of Setots ae wsed in Chinese rugs to symbolize happines. In Western
Jone they offen syrbolize varnpivism,
From weretigers to centaurs, humans are often shown as part
imal to symbolize an internal or external meaning. Esotrialy,
the centaur isthe Sacral Center/chakra, meaning the animal nature
(lower half) still controls where and how the human natuce (upper
ha) goes
Astrology utes animals to signal the main paychological aspect of|
many signs: Aves the Ram, Taueus the Bull, Pisces che Fish, and
In many mythologies, the concept of nature's interconnectedness is
symbolized by the spider.
‘Animals ase often combined: The medion of Singapore melds a lion
dead and chest, representing the city-states prowess on land, with
the lower body ofa fish, symbolizing its marine riches.
IN MEDIA
Tividuals have sprit animale, Many shamanic tribes use animals
as archetypes and messengers. The shamans and sometimes ord
nary people in altered states acess these totems, In The Emerald
Foret, Westerners experience the indigenous ties’ magical cx
‘onship with animal spirits
In The Golien Compas, characters have thelr own animal daemon
always beside them, leis the create of their persons: Daniel
Cig’ snow leopard, Nicole Kidmans golden monkey Sam
Elliot’ hare
[Antheopomosphized animal charaeters have been around probably
since humans begen. You can find plenty of them in cartoons, fan
tasy stories, and games. Sometimes they un true tothe stereotype,
‘hu sometimes nota al
use,
+ To elicit a strong, immediate identification of some specific emo:
tion, situation o concept+ When you need co go in-depth about a character, quickly
+ To ceeate allegories about human individuals, eypes, or situations
George Orwell’ Animal Farm isa great example
WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS,
Use pets, jeweley,clletions, memorabilia, settings (parks, 2008,
the jungle, the veld) to connect an animal and its attributes with a
character The giel who collects unicorns is vastly different from the
307 who collects dragons, Use animal terms: She stalked in, cat-
Tike; he swooped daven on chem the sergeant roared; she slithered
‘through the crowd
CINEMATIC TECHNIQUES
Include the animal n the same frame as your character: Oreut/pan!
tilt fom the animal tothe character ether before or afer, depend:
ing on the effect you want, Hits before, you pat the audience in
the know after, you either inform them about what they just saw or
firm their perceptions. Its more stl, bu yo ean also move the
camera as the POV of the animal swooping bidlike from om high,
‘crouching close tothe ground, leaping calike fom spot to spot
OTHER EXAM
Doe Chronicles of Narn, Beowulf
MeCafireys Dragonriders stoves
8
Jungle Book, NoneCHAKRAS
WHAT IT MEANS
An awareness of human psychology and physiology, aswell as
csoteric knowledge. Certain specific ways of feeling and acting
secoring to which Center of Motivation (chakra) your character x
focused in right then
IN HISTORY, MYTH, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMES
‘This ancien system of character analysis shows up in most cul-
tures myths, rom Greek Odysseus travels home from Troy, 0
Pueblo Indian sand puintings, Tibetan tankas, and Mesopotamian
sculprures,
Cristian isonogeephy shows Suit Geonge stabbing the dragon in|
the Throat (intellect) and Saint Michael stabbing the deagon inthe
Heart (emotions)
New Age followers use the chakras for vel-analysin and
selFimprovement,
‘Most Easterners have been familiar with them for millennia, and ;
i
more Westerners ae familiar with chakras toda; 0 you wil be able
to ut tis system of symbolism with more freedom thaa bef. eu phe bythe storCertainly you can use it subliminally, but Because ofthis growing
swareness, you can ako be outrgit and disec in referring to ther,
Like any yood symbol system, the chakeas cary lots of psycholog-
cal and spiritual weight,
WHAT THE CHAKRAS ARE
Physiological bundles of nerves along your spinal column that
‘connect to various organs that create hormones and affect your
emotions. There is a wealth of information about the chakras aval-
able in books, classes, websites, and films. My own book INNER
DRIVES, also by this publisher, i one
‘The chakeas, whar they sig and some film examples
+ Root — sheer survival, death / Dark Knight's Joker
+ Sacral — sex, ear, money / Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge
+ Lower Solar Pleas — individuality exclusivity, power, me-me-
te / all the actors in Tipe Thander, Roc.
+ Aspiratonal Solar Plus — inclusivity, generosity, altru-
ism, spictulity / Haevey Milk in Milt, De Patel in Shondog
Millionaire
Heart — selsatifice for the greater good / Jaan of Ars, Gand
+ Throat — commusication, art, finance, sttecaft/ Spock and
Dats of Star Tok
+ Alina — integrated, balanced collaboration ofall other chakras,
‘contra central / Frodo in The Lord ofthe Ring, Neo in The
Matrs.
+ Crown — connection toa higher spiritual self, greater awareness
angels, gods in myriad films
IN MI
In Jeo’ Ladder, Danny Aiclo is a chiropractor who plays the
psycho pomp (guide tothe ather world) to Tim Robbins fly
‘wounded Vietnam vet. Chiropratie medicine works with the
chakras, and Ailo helps Robbins move his consciousness up from
the Root chakra to the Crown chakra (see INNER DRIVES,
218)
A
Graundbog Day sso fllows characte up through the chakras as
he learns not to be a self-centered jerk but to consider others, fully
engage, and thoughtflly consider his creative actions (see INNER
DRIVES, p. 215)
In The Matis, Neo wakes up naked with wires plugged into his
chakras, feeding him the sensation of being in a “eal” world. The
chakra a the base of his skull scaled “The Mouthpiece of God” |
In The Lond ofthe Rings, Minas Tirth has seven levels witha gate
between each one anda tee atthe summit, These’ also a tower and
“seeing eye" similar to the third eye (Aja) atop the staf (spinal
column) in many euleses iconography ofthe chakasUSE,
++ Todd » metaphysial aspect.
+ To indicate a peron’s cultural background in Oriental o ancient
rnystcal philosophies,
+ To abel someone as New Ay citer positively or negatively:
+ To tein ancient traditions with modern practice.
+ To tap into an archetype and connect it to your chasaces
WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS,
Use afew words to explain the chakras. For instance, ifa character
‘refers to the Solar Plexus, have another character ask aout itso you
get in abit of explanation for your reader, assuming that your audi-
‘ence ie not already knowledgeable shout chakras
Ifyou want to be more subtle, just indieate the body spot ofthe
hala you want to emphasize — for example, “He balls his fist
tightly into his waist forthe Solar Plexus “Her hand wandered to
her throat, playing with hee necklace” fo the Throat chakra; “The
old man rubbed is forehead choughtflly” forthe Aja.
In scipts you can write inthove specific actions as directions
CINEMATIC
INIQUES,
‘Use the symbol for a chakra in the background a an icon in the }
props, oF as part ofa characters wardrobe fr example, a centaur
for Sacral, abl for Throat, fire for Sacral, and soon,
Select color palette conssten witha particular chal,
All this information is avaiable in greater detail in INNER
DRIVES,
‘OTHER EXAMPI
In my book INNER DRIVES: Create Characters Using the Bight |
(Casi Contrs of Mercaton (chakras)COLOR
WHAT IT MEANS
‘Humans only perceive a small portion ofthe light inthe universe.
(Our visible spectrum is Limited tothe rainbow of colors but does
pot include witraviole, infrared, and the myriad of her wave
Tengihs, Different wavelengths affect ou brine indifferent way,
1 fact that sno doube the bass for the ritual and subliminal use oF
Color by most cultures throughout time,
“The day-night quality of our earthly existence may he the reason we
olen asign goodness (sunshine, visibility, comfort) to white and
cil (darkness, secrecy, danger) to black Vampires reverse this, and
scifi stories speculate how a tworsun system or other arrangement
aight affect psychology, sociology, and religion.
Colors describe emotions: She's blue, hes green with envy, they saw
red, a lack mood, purple with rage
Whether by psychological affinity or astonishingly strong coin
dence, colors have taken on character
+ Pastels are soft and innocent.
+ Jewel tones ae strong and have integrity,
SS REE EERE EEE EEE
+ Yellow hues are stimulating, blue hues soothing
+ Red exits; n studies, women wearing red are deemed the most
seualystrative
+ Mourning colors vary with cultue, tiene, and fasion,
IN MYTH, HISTORY, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMBS,
[used on their atwook, ctler humans and some curent cultures
seem to perceive only primary colors
sold,
foc havea visual affinity for
Age takes away fom our abilities to persive che fll spectrum of
colors, as evidenced by those elderly women whose gasshly bright
‘makeup loks just fine to them.
Our industil and fashion color palettes shift every few years
and give identity t period avocado and earth tones fr the
1960s, Mediterranean pastel forthe mid-1980s, However, ancient
[Egyptian ar was static for centuries, then saw an explosion of «
ew be tha il lasted for centuries
The chakeas ae assigned different colors in differen systems‘Many initiator systems use colors to denote steps along the pat,
such as white bel to black bele in the martial art
Retigios rituals asign diffrent colors to diferent seasons and
When Greck nature godess Demeters daughter Persephone was
kidnapped by Hades, the word lost it color asthe mother mourned
har loss. Colo returned tothe world when Persephone returned
thus explaining the changing of the seasons.
[A good reason for red uniforms? They don't show blood that might
pect the soles,
‘THE COLORS
White
All colors combined and reflected, the unseparated spectrum.
Parity, Innocence, Goodness: Emptiness, formlessnes, inescapable
sameness, Death pallor, bloodlessnet, a blinding void and cause for
deep istinetual panic. Moby Dick i all he scarier for being pure
white, In American Westerns, good guys wear white has and bad
zuys wear back, People
sven light cols cosy
leiauze or in positions of power often
im in no danger of getting dirty”
Black
Ail color combined and absosbed. The unknown, Mysterious
Sophistication, Secrecy. Evil, Death, Dasth Vader would not be
realy as effective in pale Blue. Women in Love is set in Englands
eee er ee eee erent
‘coal mining countey the miners ate covered in black, denoting
ignorance and poverty, while the heroines are smart, intelligent gil,
decked out in sich colors,
Blue
Innocence, connections, corect relationships, loyalty (true bl),
ool, freedom, exploration, clarity, emotional. Gods and goddesses
‘often wear blue and sometiues are bie, The blve-skinned Navi in
“Avatar reflect the Hind source of the word “avatar” |
Red
Blood, sex, danger, strength, vitality, heat, anger, purpose, power,
stimulation, urgency. In The Sixth Sense, red indicates che presence
ofthe sprit world,
Yellow
Sonlight, wastth, awareness, lssitude, bright intelligence, cowardice,
Green
Life, nature, growth, nurturing, soothing,
Purple
Deep, reflective, contemplative royal, priestly, divine
Orange
Angumeatative, combstive, vip, shaep, mental, alert,
Gray
Sober, sober, grim, less, doomed, sophisticated, shy
Peavafvile ses grays and colo to contrast conservative small-
town attitudes with sexual awakening and lively joy.Broson
Earthy, solid, sturdy, luxuriant, grounded, dependable
Metallics
Precousness, weapon, technology, impermeable, strength, rigidity.
ott
Riches, quay, warmth, sola
Siler
Coolness, remotes mie.
Bach color varies from light to dar, faint to saturated, and you can
select a shade along the scale that is appropriate For your character
or situation, Alo, you can find myriad charts for color interpreta
tion of many other huss.
IN ME
[Both Schindler’s Lise and The Sixth Sense wse ved against a grimmer
‘ra coolee background to emphasize the personal impactor the
uniqueness ofthe situation
1
In Schindler Lit, the lite gil i the red cot is one person going
against he tde of the horror occurring around her, just as Schindler
‘would soon go aginst the tide of Nazi oppression as he helped save
Jews
USE
+ To signal specific moods for your characters.
“To elicit certain reactions ftom your audience.
‘To emphasize a shift in emotions of situation. In The Siatb Seni,
red means “Undead neashy beware!”
“To highlight something.
+ To show contest between chasactess and/or situations.
WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS
Include emotionally descriptive words grim gray, bouncy yellow,
shy tea, monkish brown. Link colors with other senses: piercing
yellow, screaming orange, silky gray
CINEMATIC TECHNIQUES
‘The same color appears different according to its surroundings (ee
Joseph Albers’ book Interaction of Cale), 9 do visual tests before
Final printing or Filming
Selee your basic paletie (two of three main colors) and include
accents for visual emphasis. Assiga chaeacters their own main coor
Use color ta show your character transformation throughout &
story: Start with very pale and increase the intensity ofthe hue as
characters get stronger, oF the revere if they ae loving power.As characters become clot
ing this colors closer in hue He OTHER EXAMPLES
wore blue, she wore green; as the relationship develops, each adds
he English Paton ses the contrast of sere yellows forthe danger
more of the 2
hee color. Think of courist couples who dres alk ofthe wartime desert and watery blues fr the sensuous emo
Use color as rebellion, The kid fom the conservative family puts on ‘he Red Sis ae vibrant symbols of «dancer's pasion for
bright orange, neon green, and silver. profession at well asthe lve tangle that dooms her+12+
THE LEAP
WHAT IT MEANS
‘The best sores are about transformation — sometimes external,
sometimes internal, usually both. A character transforms, 2 stuation
‘wansforms, the envisonment transforms. The exaggerated transfor-
rations in stores give us examples of how to approach the changes
in our own lives,
Showing characters actualy leaping foom one physic spor to
another symbolizes a shift into a different state of being, Initiatory
systems often use the Leap to symbolize a change ftom childhood
to adulthood, single to mazred, outsider to insider.
Dramatic conflict surrounds this pivot point in a story, because once
characters make auch a radial sift he ld ways no longer work,
and it often takes them a while to aust to the new way They ca
yearn all chey want for the od way, but there's just no gv back,
Philosophically, this image ofthe Leap says aloe about the unstop
pable passage of time and how i affects us all
AND
PORARY TIMES,
IN MYTH, HISTOR
The Tarot card ofthe Fool symbolizes the initiate starting out on
the journey of discovery, the Hero's Journey. He is poised to step
‘out into thin sir and looks pretty happy about it. For many others,
itis nota welcome step but rather a move of desperation, Like it
oe not, when you sep off the edge, some sort of transformation is
guaranteed
IN ME
DIA
‘The Fugitive Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford), wrongfully accused
of murdering his wife and detersined to find the one-armed man
who actully lle her, mut stay out of ail to do so. Eluding the
law, he makes a desperate leap out over a dasn and into a swift-
flowing river. Now presumed dead, Dr. Kimble sable to pursue the
search for the real ler. The Leap typically symbolizes the death
of the former self and a nev beginning.
ursued by a posse with no chance of eacaping back the way
they came, Butch (Paul Newman) suggests to Sundance (Robert
Reaford) that they cake a leap into the river below a a pivotal
‘moment in Buel Cady and tbe Sundance Kid, When Sundanceprotests that he cant sven, Butch bith that given the
height and the swiftness ofthe rive, i'l hanly mater. They jump.
‘Though the tone fel light, this sli or death for out antihercs,
Burch and Sundance eseape this time and do ty to go straight, But
it doesnt work out, and they eventually meet death in rain of Lw-
men's and soles’ bullets. Here the heroes were notable to leave
their forme lives behind
Sometimes the Leap is done no for the self but for others, often st
great cost ln the instance of Indiana Joner andthe Last Crusade, the
‘motivation i love. Tn’ father is dying, and only Indy (Harrison
Ford) can save im by finding the Holy Gril somewhere across
that deep chasm. This truly « Leap of Faith as the bridge is
invisible until he steps onto i. Change i often like that
sible to imagine watl you actslly doit
impos:
‘Occasionally the Leap is literally From one state of physical exis
tence to another. What begins as 2 eun fom unsatisfying lives goes
horsibly wrong in Thelma and Lewis, Thelma (Geena Davis) and
Louise (Susan Sarandon) have killed a rapist and are surtounded by
cops. Deciding they cant turn back but will bravely go together foe
total transformation, the two grasp hands and hustle out over the
‘edge ofthe canyon inte another state of being entice.
Killing of your heroes can be dramatically ffeting Just be oettain
you've justified ie throughout the story and have given enough of a
setup that it doesnt fel false
Use
+ To shift the pace or te ofthe story, as at act break,
+ When your characters or a situation has reached a seeming Point
‘of No Return. To show that what's behind i undesirable and
‘what’ ahead is unknown, There should be some obvious risk |
and some personal sacrifice involved. Sometimes the sctfice
is of away of life, or social connections, ora treasured object |
Someries ie’ itself
+ The Leap isnot fective i there’ sure thing on the other side,
s0-work in ambiguity. Make the leaper unsure of the reward, or
unsure i there even is a reward fir taking the Leap
WRITTEN DESCRIPTIONS,
‘Exaguerate the cootast between one location and the other, play up
the disparities: vast chasm, gaping distance, dizying height, yawn
ing gull
Seate specifically what the two locations offer: independence vs
‘oppression, freedom vs. prison lie vs, death,
CINEMATIC TECHNIQUE
‘The Leap is usually best viewed from a number of anges, You'll
want a wide establishing shot to give the sense of how dangerous
this. There needs tobe an overthe-shoulder from the lapers
POV to place us within her felings. We also want to look up atthe leaper and se the facil expression: i he confident, testified,
resigned? Then, depending on your budget, thee shouldbe a east,
‘one side shot ofthe Leap itself in addition tothe wide shot, pls
follow-on coverage ofthe other angles during the Leap.
Depending on the situation, thsi typically best accomplished with
a mulkicamera setup rather than a repetition of the often dangerous
and complicated live-action part of 2 Leap.
OTHER EXAMPLES
In The Wild Bunch, the antiero outlaws lap theit horses off «high
slload bridge into river and head down ito Mexico to exile
and extinetion. At the end of Crouching Tiger Hidden Drago, the
warrior Jen leaps off the bridge eo “return tothe desert” and her
beloved. Lethal Weapon, Tomple of Doom, The Great Bvape, and
Starbip Tospers all have significant Leaps.ANATOMY
WHAT IT MBANS
‘The function ofthat body par: lf force (blood), new life (ex
organs), perception (eyes, ers), spetsh (mouth), motion (legs), con-
roctons (hands), identity, consciousness, ideas (head.
Paychiatret Sigmund Freud famously observed, “Anatomy is de
tiny": Our bodies greatly determine ovr ex
fence in and with the
‘word, Just as gods supposedly make humans in their oven image,
humans fashion our erations i our own image, including our gods
Just as faces the world ovr look the same when experiencing the
‘ame emotions (that’s why cartoons and emoticons work), media
concepts
IN HISTORY, MYTH, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMES
Egyptian temples often reflect human anatomy, from the brain to
he full body
Native American kivas wed for commonity and spiritual vents
reflect the womb, with entrances through bith canal-ike tunnels or
avel-tike openings
Hindu satuay reflects the dichotomy of gender with the stone
fingae (pen) and yon (ging).
(Christian cathedral entrances, with two towers and arched do
ways topped with round windowe, resemble a reclining woman with
er knees up — accepting the sed of devotion, giving birth to reli-
sous blessings. Saints ae often shown surrounded by the pointed
wal ofthe Vesica Piss, which resembles female genitalia‘Miaed species such as Egyptian animal-headed gods, Greek
‘centaur, Sumerian winged lions, and Incanjaguae priests convey
special powers, Mixed species like the robotic Cylons and the Borg
are unsetling, often tertfying, The elephant headed Hlindu god
Ganesha syinbolizes good-natured persistence rising above adversity
Werewolves, weergers, and other human shape-shifters emphasize
an animal characteristic actually manifesting inthe body of che
Inuman, Thats much more inconvenient than just wearing animal
skins ora bear-head helmet, bur i also much more powecful fr
Distortions or disfigurement seize our attention, Some sy it an
impersonal, instinctual ceaction oa defect that may weaken or
harm the herd, At the exteme ofthat, zombies definitely catch our
Both giants and tiny people convey emotional sates, such as arro
ance or powerlessness, and situational states, ike oppression or
cleverness, operating below the level of common awareness,
Many poople note the resemblance to the human fetus of images of
supposed extraterrestrial aliens
w
AT THEY STAND FOR
Hosd — consciousness, intelligence
Stl and Crows
For some secret societies this teers to the two seats of creativity
cs — the pirate flag andthe symbol for poison
bain and loins, Both salle and eggs are symbols of fertility,
imagination, and physicality.
Pineal gland — Buddhas epknot, the pomegranate, the pinecone,
sud the pineapple in spiritual iconography all physically esemble
the pineal gland, the gland of the Crown chakra
_Eyer— perception, special bilities, prychie vision, wisdom, “You are
being watched.”
A cnivenity study ports that when pictures with eyes in them
‘were pt up in coffee room, the people acted more honesty
art — perception, cognition, awareness— :
Hands — ability to make and do things. Relationship to others:
closed equals shy, snobbish
open equals generous, fiendly; fist
cual scared angry.
Mouth: — commnsication, sexuality
Heart — compassion, lve, strife, coutage
compatsion, familial connections
Arms — stzength, protection, ability to caer.
sge — mobility, serength, silty to support, sexuality
Sex Organs — stereotypical characteristic: male equals outgoing,
sggresive, bold; female equals eceptive, nurturing, collaborative
Regeneration.
Tunnels, cute, ducts — Whether isthe bith canal (ee in, baby
out) ofthe alimentary anal (food in, wate out), tube shapes imply
transformation, a transition from one state of ing or awareness
tw another. Hopi mths tell of migrating through tunnel to new
words,
IN MEDIA
[Beauty and the Beast stories speak to both our lower and higher
atures, a well as warning us to look beyond appeatances. i
asatons on the Bea
1 the Beast concept of odd anstomy in
fio Elphant Man, The Man Without Fae, 0d Je
Cocteau 1946 Beauty and the
Beast
Modern ade
lated body parts of women (and sometime
sng often uses the headless bodies or otherwise iso
en) to promote things
often having fi
le dirsct relation to the body. But asthe saying
goes, *Sex sells”
The Playboy Bunny sequence in dpocalpee Nowe makes extravagant
use of anatomical symbols with the breatt-shaped lights and the
phallushaped missiles decorating the concert set,
Cale favorit
ondack Saints
«tunnel sequence to birth the
towin vigilante boys from behind the scenes to up-front and very
iceable to both the mob and the FBI.(One of the satiest monsters ever is HLR, Giger’ anatomically
distorted creature inthe Alien series, while the shambling ceature~
wumanoid aliens of Dstt 9 and the liand-humanoids of Alien
Nation engender more sympathy than far,
ust
+ To show the audien
omething your characters may not be
+ To convey a backstory oF connection that would take too long in
exposition
+ To add emphasis to subret.
+ Toestenalize a characters emotional wounds or weaknesses
+ To eeate unease or sympathy in your stdince via the distortion
of human anatomy.yRIFTEN DESCRIPTIONS
Use root reference. Use secondary reference va “Iie” and "as"
vi reate connections between a body par and another tem: "The
(ells embraced them like welcoming arms.”
“When referencing a specific hody part, use one of the descriptive
words from the ists above to signal your intent: “strong legs,” “sad
yes? “broken heart”
Ji script, point out anatomical references to your reader/dnector/
set director so they know to focus on that dusing filming: “The eyes
ofthe portait sem to follow them across the roon
CINEMATIC TECHNIQUES
Highligh the actul body part with lighting, foeus, or against a
vague oF disparate background,
Place an image of the body part (marble head, painting of hands,
ste) inthe sot, and depending on the story point you are making,
ithe let tbe subtle such thatthe audience nots it but the char
cers do not, or havea character note it directly by looking ai,
touching i, oF making a comment about it
Reveal the similarity to or disparity berween normal anatomy:
‘Show the mechanical insides ofthe cyborg. Tis biomechanical aes-
thetic was most effectively visualized by HLR. Giger and has been
the inspiration for many othr aliens and monsters
(ee wees rgigersom).
[Be aware of the “Uncanny Valley” syndrome: As robots or computer
_rapice get too close to human appearance, 2eeection factor sets
in — "Thats not right!” IFyou wane to create unsetting images,
{go there. Ifnot, then make your robots or CGI humanoids obvious
éseations rather than almost human,
Falany Quest, Minion Imponile, The Last Starfighter, Great
Bwaps, Die Hard. Phallic imagery: Dr. Strangelove, Armageddon, The
Right Staff. Sie disparities: Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The Incredible
SBrinking Wma The lcedile Shrinking Man; Lana ofthe Giants
‘tort; Fantatc Journeys My Giant: Iron Giant Iron Man. Hy ids:
the Star Tek Borg, the Badltar Galactica Cylons, the TerminatorsCLOTHES
WHAT IT MEANS
Character, status, mood, geoup affiliation, sexual preference and
availability, The ovter presentation a person makes tothe world
‘What they want others to think and feel about them, Clothes
rake the man, woman, child .. any character, Why else have an
Academy Award for Costume Design?
IN HISTORY, MYTH, AND CONTEMPORARY TIMES,
The first fashion show may have ben fig eaves and animal skins,
‘but humans quickly discovered tha clothes could display rank
and enforce our tendency to establish hierarchy. Castes and classes
munity bonding.
"You know how youte always tld eo make the journey difficult for
your hero? Layering your scenes with symbols and images that do
so can create deliciously complex stories that have an impact on
many levels
Concepts are more abstract but are atthe core ofall good stoi.
‘The mythic theme of your story — unless it's just silly comedy
(and theres nothing weong with that) ora slasher film with no
redeeming social value (not necessarily anything wrong with that
ithe) — will usually contain an idea that is universal and either
lnspites us or waens us aay from something,
Wete ll living, breathing, fighting, and dying for something. Or
certainly your characters should hes otherwise theyll be deadly
boring. How do you show the concepts of freedom, equality, loyalty,
spiritual aspiration? ‘Phisis where symbols and images come o the
rescue and plug your audience into those universal streams of mean
ing and make your media about moze than just che plotline.
A chssic example of combining all dhree aspects of emotional, situ-
ational, and conceptual symbolism comes from the ancient Greeks,
Some ofthe bloodiest engeance-drven stores ever concocted
revolve around the Greck House of Atrevs, a clan who cended to
serve each other — for dinner, These cautionary tales carry the
emotions of greed jealousy, lst ambition, and vengeance, but at
the very nd they ise to uphold and embrace the concept of for-
iveness and rational thought
Emotions = Cauldzon, The boing cauldron used 0 cook up the
‘Acreus slatives symbolizes che boiling emotion of scorn, lst and
jealousy barely contained inthe evuible of the cursed family.
Situation = Crosstoads, As young man, Oedipus — separated
from his Atreus-lineage parents sea baby eo he wouldn' fulfill the
prophecy that he'd kill his ther and marey’his mother — killa
tat at «crossroads who turns out to be his ruc father, an event
‘that changes everyone ives
Concept = Blindness. Ocdips blinds himself out of sorrow and
regret, and wanders for years before receiving absolution. His blind
ness represents Blind Fat, which t che Greeks was inescapable, Nomatter what you di, where you ra, or how you hid, Pate would
find you out. I was the easly version of “stu happens.” In some
versions of the myth, Oedipus is healed by the goddess Athena, who
"wears her helmet pushed back on her head soit Tooks like she has
two sets of eyes: one forthe earthly word and one forthe sptitual
realm, Many spiritual disciplines have a version ofthis concept of
opening your eyes to higher truths, the scales falling from your
yes: *T was blind, but now Ise.”
For your story, select a main symbol fr each ofthese categories. IF
you can use the same one indifferent ways in different categories,
all the better
Beside each emotion, stuation, and concept ase the chapters
contsining detailed information, Further specifies within a chapter
follow the chapter’ tte: for example, Connections: Anatomy
— hands
EMOTIONS AND ATTRIBUTES
+ Adventurous: Astronomy. Color — red, metallic, blue. Earth —
wide open spaces. The Leap. Steps and Star
+ Ambition: Anatomy — fet Fite. The Leap, Steps and Stairs
+ Angry: Anatomy — hands, clenched. Color — red orange, Fie
‘The Leap.
++ Compassion: Anatomy — heat, Color — red. Costes. Cultural
Reference,
+ Courage: Anatomy — heart, Animals — ion, Color — red
Crosses. Fire, The Leap
+ Cowardice: Animals — mouse, Color — yellow. Duality
Numbers — 0
CCrafey, Wily: Animals — fox, serpent. Color — orange. Culeural
References, Duality,
+ Friendly: Anatomy — hands, open. Color — green. Cultural
References,
+ Goekiness: Anatomy — head. Astronomy. Cultural References
Numbers.
+ General Emotions and Artributes: Astronomy and Astrology.
(Chakras. Clothes. Wate.
+ Generous — Anatomy — hanes, open. Color — green, gol
Earth — fertile, Water.
+ Ideatiey: Anatomy — head. Cultural References. Duality.
‘Numbers — 1.
+ Imagination: Architecture, windows. Astronomy. Color — bright
yellow. The Leap. Steps and Stairs,
+ Innocence: Color — whit, bite, Crosses. Water — pure,
Intelligence: Anatomy — head, Astronomy. Color ~ clear
yellow. Cultural References. Duality, Fire — mind. Numbers,
Steps and Stars,See iii
Jealousy: Color — yellow, green. Duality. Fite + Sensuousness: Anatomy —sex organs, lg fee, hai, eye
mouth, Architecture — fan, Clothes, Barth — mud, Fire. Water
+ Loneliness: Composition. Crosses. Earth — open, empty. an 7
Numbers —0, 1 4 Shy: Anatomy — hands, closed. Color — gray, black. Numbers
+ Love — Anatomy — heart, Color — red. Crosses, Duality. Fire as
“The Leap. Numbers — 2. Water. + Silly: Animals — goose.
+ Loyalty: Animals — dog. Color — red, blue. Crosses, Cultural + Snobbish — Anatomy — hands, closed. Cultural References
References, Numbers — 2.
Strength: Anatomy — arms. Barth — rocks, mountains, Fie
+ Last: Anatomy — sex organs. Color — red. Fire. The Leap.
News + Unease: Anatomy — distorted. Duality, Water — erocbled,
‘+ Memory: Achitestae — windows, mirrors. Cultural References
Duality. Step and Stair. aati
+ Nurturing: Anatomy — breasts, Color — green, brown. Earth — Alienation: Astronomy. Codes, Crosses, Cultural Referenes (not
Feri, sch, Wate. understood). Duafty. Numbers — 1
+ Pasion: Anatomy — heart, mouth, Color — red. Fire, The i
Leap. Numbers —
Barvees: Architecture — fences, walls Codes. Cultural
References. Duality. Fite
+ Pride: Animals — alpha male, Color — gol, silver, metals.
Pe Calm: Air, Color — pastels, brown,
‘Colt References. Wats
Parth — fertile, meadows
+ Sa: Cla, ated ut Cross Naber — 1 + Chaleges: Archiectre — feces, ls Clu References
Step and Sire — dows. Water — i, Dual. The Leap. Steps and Sis
+ Seated — Anatomy — clenched hands, wide-open eyes + Conflict: Dusty ice. The Leap. Numbers —+ Connections: Anatomy — hands. Architecture — bidges
Codes. Crosses, Cultural References. Duality: The Leap (t9
‘make them). Numbers — 2. Steps and Stes. Water.
‘Danger: Air — storms. Codes. Color — ted, back, Crosses
Fite. The Leap
Death: Anatomy — corpse, Color — black, gray, cold be,
Crosses. Barth — caves, graves. Fe. The Leap. Numbers —
Steps and Stirs, Water
Extinction: Animals — dodo, dinosnur, Color — black, Cross
Cultural References (not understood) Fee. The Leap. Numbers
0. Steps and Stairs — down. Water — floods
Fantasy and Exotic: Animals — dragon, unicorn. Astronomy —
stars. Cultural References, The Leap,
Hopeless, Pathetic: Animals — caged animal, Color — washed
out. Cross Steps and Stairs — dowa,
Imprisonment: Animals — caged animal, Architecture —
towers. Codes, Crosses, Cultural References, Earth — cave.
Fire, Water — drowning
Incoreeeness: Anatomy — distorted. Duality
Movement: Air — wind. Anatomy — legs The Leap. Water
—nuhing
[New Life, New Beginnings: Anatomy — sex organ, babies.
Aaimmals — egg, babies. Crosses — Christian. Earth — fertile
Fire (purification). The Leap. Numbers — 3, 7. Steps and Stars,
Water.
Oppression: Architecture — low ceilings. Codes. Color — fresh
green, Crocs, Cultural Refirence. Earth — barren. Fire —
heat, Water — heavy ain,
Poverty: Architecture — huts, shanties, Color — black, brown,
a3, muted, Earth — buerea, Numbers —0. Steps and Staes
~ down,
Prosperity: Architecture — mansions, palaces, skysrapers. Color
— gold, silver, green, bight. Earth — fel, expansive, Steps
and Stairs — up, Water
Protection: Anatomy — stm, Codes. Crosses (against evil)
Culeural References,
Secrecy: Architecture — walls, fence, blocked windows, covered
‘or cloudy mirors, Codes. Color — black, Cultural References.
Duality, Water — depths
Separation: Architecture — fences, walls. Codes. Costs.
‘Cultural References. Duality. The Leap. Numbers — 2, Steps
and Stairs
Sex: Anatomy — sex organ, fet, har, mouth. Clothes. Color —
red, pink, Duality, Fire, The Leap. Numbers — 2. Wate.«+ Space (oT earth): Astronomy. Color — deep blue, blac, twin
ling gold and white. The Leap. Steps and Stairs,
4 Spying Architecture — windows, misrors. Codes, Color —
black, Cultural References. Duality
4 Status: Architecture, Clothes, Color — purple, jewel tones
Coleual References, Bath (property). Steps and Stas
4 Unrest: Air — wind. Duality. Fire, The Leap. Water
— rorbolent
CONCEPTS
4 Antiquity, the Pats Architecture — old structures, Astronomy.
‘Chakras, Codes. Earth, Color — fade, gray, brown, Culrural
References, Water — undersea cities
++ Aspiration: Ait, Architecture — Toby ceilings towers, Costs.
Cultural References. The Leap. Steps and Stas
+ Balance: Composition, Croses. Numbers — 2, Water — clin,
«+ Capabity: Anatomy — hands. Farch — fruitful, agrcaltre
«+ Consciousness: Anatomy — head. Chaksas. Color — yellow.
Fire, Numbers — 3,7. Stes and Stats.
+ Creativity: Architecture — lofty arches, oversized rooms. Color
= yellow. Fire. Steps and Stairs
+ Doom: Coloe — gray black. Crosses. Earth. Fire, The Leap.
[Numbers — 0, Steps and Stairs — down,
+ Evil: Animals — fierce packs, snakes, predators, Color — feds
black. Crosses (protection against. Fire, Nambers 13.
«+ Freedom: Aite Animals — bird. Color — blue, Fire ~ purificw
tion, transfigoration, The Leap. Steps and Sein
«+ Heaven: Ae, Animals — bird, The Leap. Numbers 7. Steps
and Stirs
«+ Hell: Animals — serpents insets, predators, Barth, Fire, The
Leap. Numbers — 0, Steps and Stairs — down,
4 Hope: Aie. Color ~ blue. The Leap. Steps and Stat.
++ Ideas: Anatomy — head, Codes. Color — yellow, Fie — mind,
Steps and Stairs
4 Independence: Animals — cat. The Leap. Nurmbers — 1
4 Loyalty: Animals — dog, Color — red, blue, Cultral
References. Earth — rocks. Numbers — 2
4+ Magical, Mystical: Animals — unicorn, dragon. Chakras. Colo
— pple. Crosses. The Leap, Numbers — 0,3, 7,10, 12,22,
33,42, 52, 72. Steps and Stain
“+ Metaphysical: Chakeas — Ajna, Crown. Color — purple
Crowes, The Leap. Numbers — 0, 3,7, 10, 12, 22, 3, 42,52,
72, Steps and Stirs‘Mockery — Cultural References,
Naruse: Ai. Animal, Color — green, blue, Earth
New Age: Astronomy snd Astrology. Chakras, Color — pueple
Numbers — 0, 3,7, 10,12, 22, 33, 42, 52, 72, Steps and Stairs,
Peace: Air, Color — soft Barth — meadows, fertile, Water
calm,
Perception: Anatomy — eyes, eas. Architecture — window,
Power: Architecture — oversized lafly ooms, skyscrapers
palaces, domes and rotundas, Color — bold. Cultural References,
Earth — mountains, cliff, rocks. Fire. Steps and Stairs, Water
~ falls toms
Pychic abilities: Anatomy — eyes, eas. Architecture — wine
dows, mirrors. Chakras. Color — purple. The Leap. Numbers
3,7, 12, 13,33, 72 Steps and Stace. Water,
Sacrifice — Anatomy — heat, blood. Color — red. Crosses
Fire. The Leap. Steps and Stairs ~ dav,
Security and Safety: Air — cain, Architecture — sturdy enclo~
sures. Color — brown, blu. Crosses, Cultural Reference.
Soul: Animals — bird, egg Color — be. Crosses. Numbers —
38,5, 7 Steps and Stars. Water
Speech: Anatomy — mouth
+ Spirit, Deity: Air. Animals — bind, exg. Color — white, Fire
‘The Leap. Numbers — 1,3, Steps and Stars,
+ Transitions: Anatomy — canals, ducts. Architecture — bridges,
doors, runaels, chutes, ns. Chakras. Clothes. Composition
Crosses, Cultural References (from not understood to under
stood). Fie ~ tansfiguration. The Leap. Numbers — 2, 3,7
Steps ad Stirs. Water.
+ War: Air— storms, Codes, Calor — ed, bold, corrupted, rusty.
Crosses. Cultural References. Barth — embattled, Fire, The
LeapBIBLIOGRAPHY
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Kandinsky, Wassily. Concerning the Spiritual in re. Dover
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Prongeon, Augustus Le. Mevian and Fyption Pyremide. All his
books.
ure, Jl, The Myitic Spiral, Joumey ofthe Soul ‘Thames and
Hudson, 1974
Ramachandran, VS, MD, PAD. Many works on art and perception
Roob, Alexander. femy and Mts. Taschen, 2001
Seger Linda, Dr, Web Thinking: Connecting, mat Competing, for
Sus, Inner Ocean Publishing, 2002
Smith, Pamela Jaye. INNER DRIVES: Create Characters Using the 8
(Centers of Motcation, Michasl Wiese Productions, 2008, The Power
ofthe Dark Sie: Crate Great Villains and Dangerous Situations.
Michael Wiese Productions, 2005, Beyond she Heros Journey: Order
isefid Mythic Themes. MYTHWORKS, 199,
West, John Anthony. Serpent the Sly The Highr Wisdom of
Anse Exyp, Qe Boks, 1993
Whitley, Dr David. Cave Paintings andthe Haman Spirit, he
Origins of Creativity ond Bel. Prometheus Books, 2009,
Zimmer, Heinrich. Edited by Joseph Campbell. Myths and Symbols
in Indian Art ane Civilization. Princeton University Pres, 1974
bvps
How Art Made the World BBC Warner, 2006,
‘The Groat Work soon thegreatnetwoorkorg
Magical Egypt oesumagicaleryptcom.
WEBSITES
[Alpha Babe Academy, sotw.alphahaheacademy cm
Bridge Arts Media, sue. bridgeartsmadia com,
Caroline Davies, wunacarolnedaviecom,
Darryl Sapien, wes sepenfinartscom.
Georgia Lambert, sna Lambert lade com
Lodge Intrepid ~ Men and Women in Freemasonry,
up: /adgentrepi arg/Home_ Page Be
MYTHWORKS, sexo mythsorks nt
Philosophical Research Society — Symbolic Art,
up: / fw prs ry/ galery i
Universal Breemasonry — Via Lucis,
‘tp: groupe yaboncom/group/UPVLL.ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Pamela Jaye Smith grew up in a
‘world where symbols were esental
to livelihood — a cate ranch in
Texas where brands established
‘owneeship, Pair tales, with
their exquisitely ich symbolism,
filled her childhood. Bay yours
asa Catholic steeped her in the
symbolism ofthat religion, and
a lifelong interes in philosophy,
istry, anbropao
physi led eo eight years of formal
classes in Comparative Mysticism
and meta-
School courses in music, math,
sd science were filled with che
languages of unique notations
understood around the wold.
‘Ac the University of Texas, where she took a BA in English
and Latin, with secondary studies in Fil, Pamela also studied
Budhisen with renowned author and profesor Raja Reo. In Los
[Angles she studied the physies of metaphysics with Georgia,
Lambert, Pamela is Master Maron in a coed Lovge. She was
4 member of che Advanced Warfighting Working Group t Fort
Koo and brought the symbolism of warrior archetypes to seminars
there
Pamela’ clients and credits include Miceosoft, Disney, Paramount,
Universal, RALTV Rome, UCLA, USC Film School, American
Film Institute, Thot Fietion Marseille France, Natl. Film Institute
of Denasask, Pepperdine University, and many more. She has
y and StoryCon:
also taught atthe Philosophical Research Societ
the Ace and Science of Story. She is a member ofthe Institute
for Global Transformation and serves on the Advisory Board of
the Center for Conscious Creativity, Pamela is the founder of
MYTHWORKS: Applied Mythology for More Powerful Reality
(cower myedouork net, She i «co-founder of the Alpha Babe
Academy (wwoaalphababeacademy om),
“Trwveling the world for work and pleasure, Pamela relishes learn
ing bout diverse cultures through their stories and symbols. She
believes tha our experiences of the world ae sich and complex
‘with mulilayered meanings and that it isthe privilege and honor
of storytellers and media makers to both create and integpret those
meanings for ourselves and othersMYTHIC TOOLS™
10 HELP YOU IMPROVE YOUR CREATIVITY AND YOUR CRAPT
BOOKS
BEYOND THE HERO'S JOURNEY: Other Peserfel Myehie Thomes
INNER DRIVES: Create Characters Using the 8 Clane Centers of Motivation (chakess)
PITCHING TIPS FROM ANCIENT AUTHORS
{THE POWER OF THE DARK SIDE: Creating Great Vileins and Dangerous Situations]
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ALPHA BABES, ARCHEPATHS, BEYOND THE HERO'S JOURNEY, CREATING OUR NEXT MYTHS,
WARRIOR WAY FOR FILMMAKERS, and many more
Products avilable ftom: MYTHWORKS ween mytbworks net! The Writers Store wn orterstor som
FA at Amazon and your lel bookstore)
STORY CONSULTATIONS, SPEAKER, TEACHER
Pamela Jaye Smith eres pamelajayemith om pis@pamelaiyermithcom 329-874-6447
ALPHA BABE ACADEMY
‘wenolphababescademycom