Coffee & Content: Why Every Creative Choice Should Make You Feel Something

Happy Sunday, Creative Army!

I hope your weekend has been a creative one so far. Whether you have been writing, filming, editing, or sketching out the next spark of an idea, I have something today that will give you a boost. So grab your coffee, and let’s dive in.

This week’s featured video comes from Variety- How 'One Battle After Another' Shot the Car Chase Scene Like a Gritty '70s Film. Cinematographer Michael Bauman breaks down how they blended the richness of VistaVision with the rough, kinetic energy of films like The French Connection. But what stands out immediately is how intentional every creative choice was.

They were solving a very specific challenge: how do you create a visually rich, large-format image while still preserving that chaotic, handheld, on-the-ground feeling that made those older films so immersive? The answer came through a combination of constraint, experimentation, and commitment to doing things practically.

They scouted a location with rolling hills that allowed cars to disappear and reappear, building tension through geography alone. They mounted cameras just inches from the road to exaggerate speed. They used long lenses to compress distance and create visual pressure between vehicles. And they pushed a camera system far beyond what it was originally designed to do, strapping it to moving rigs and running massive amounts of film through it under intense conditions.

All of it in service of one thing, making the audience feel something. That’s really the takeaway here. It’s not about the gear or even about the technique; it’s about intention.

Every decision, from where the camera sits to how the cars move through the frame, is rooted in story, tension, and emotion. Even the inclusion of unexpected character beats within the action, moments of vulnerability and humanity, gives the sequence weight beyond spectacle.

This idea of intention, clarity, and emotional connection carries directly into something I talk about all the time when it comes to pitching your work. Because just like a great sequence needs purpose behind every shot, a great pitch needs purpose behind every word.

One of the biggest mistakes I see is that writers jump into the story before grounding the person they are pitching. You have to remember, you are not pitching to a machine. You are pitching to a human being. And before they can invest in your story, they need to understand what they are hearing and why it matters. That means starting with clarity: What is the title? What is the genre? Is it a feature or a series?

You would be surprised how many pitches get all the way to the end, and the person listening is still trying to figure out what they just heard. Once you establish that, you have an opportunity to do something even more important: you create a human connection.

If your concept allows for it, you can open with something relatable. A universal question, a shared experience, something that makes the person on the other side lean in and say, “I understand this. I feel this.” That connection is what pulls them into the story.

From there, everything else needs to be tight, focused, and intentional.

• Who is your protagonist?
• What is the central conflict?
• What is the inciting incident that sets everything in motion?
• What are the obstacles standing in their way?

You can introduce a few supporting characters, but only in the context of how they impact the main character’s journey. Are they helping? Are they getting in the way? Are they raising the stakes?

That’s it. You do not need to explain every beat. You do not need to walk someone through your outline. The goal of your pitch is not to tell the entire story. The goal is to get them to read the script.

And the way you do that is the same way Bauman and his team built that car chase sequence, by focusing on what actually creates engagement, tension, and emotion.

When you’re sharing your work, whether it’s a pitch, a script, or even a conversation, what do you find most challenging: clearly explaining your idea, or making that emotional connection that pulls people in? Let’s talk about it in the comments.

As always, here at Stage 32, we love sharing stories and knowledge with our fellow film fans. Know someone who would love this content? Share it with them. You can keep up with all of our videos by subscribing to the Stage 32 YouTube Channel. For more inspirational, educational, and motivational content on all things entertainment industry, follow me on Instagram and X @rbwalksintoabar.

Wishing you a very happy, healthy, and creative Sunday.

Cheers,

RB

Variety | How 'One Battle After Another' Shot the Car Chase Scene Like a Gritty '70s Film

RBWalksIntoABar | What Beats Should Be in Your Pitch?

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