As someone who's both obsessed with the Spider-Verse movies and a soundtrack geek, I would have LOVED this kind of lesson in high school english, and will probably end up doing the exercises just for fun XD. This movie has such powerful storytelling, and you reminded me how helpful it can be to turn back to stories i love when I'm struggling to create my own.
I also really like your idea of doing the "Medium comparison. Have students consider how different media would allow for different motifs to be shown". One of my favourite details I've seen pointed out is the action/non-dialogue writing for the big "What's Up Danger" scene:
"The camera is UPSIDE DOWN. Miles isn't falling through frame. He's RISING."
I think this is such a great example of how effective and equally important action writing can be to support themes and bring in motifs. Here it supports the journey motif, with the falling/rising (including the rise and fall of the three notes) and the themes of overcoming fear and accepting your unique abilities.
Thanks for reading! The movie really is SO GOOD. I love that idea of him rising. One of my favorite insights regarding the visual elements of the film is around 11:20 in the video where visually we see Miles doing the opposite of what he did when he was failing to use his powers. The care that was put into the movie just shines through the details.
My 13-year-old Spidey superfan, music lovin', story-making/writing son (aka my creativity BFF) and I really enjoyed watching the video and discussing afterwards. This is a fantastic activity.
Also, an aside: Many claim that "Paddington 2" is a perfect movie. And, without question, "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" is worthy of this proclamation, too. This motif exercise is just one of the many reasons why.
I’m so happy to hear that you guys looked at this together! The movie really is so good, and I’m glad there are cool people on the internet taking time to make videos/breakdowns like this one on the score. So insightful.
As someone who's both obsessed with the Spider-Verse movies and a soundtrack geek, I would have LOVED this kind of lesson in high school english, and will probably end up doing the exercises just for fun XD. This movie has such powerful storytelling, and you reminded me how helpful it can be to turn back to stories i love when I'm struggling to create my own.
I also really like your idea of doing the "Medium comparison. Have students consider how different media would allow for different motifs to be shown". One of my favourite details I've seen pointed out is the action/non-dialogue writing for the big "What's Up Danger" scene:
"The camera is UPSIDE DOWN. Miles isn't falling through frame. He's RISING."
I think this is such a great example of how effective and equally important action writing can be to support themes and bring in motifs. Here it supports the journey motif, with the falling/rising (including the rise and fall of the three notes) and the themes of overcoming fear and accepting your unique abilities.
Thanks for the great lesson!
Thanks for reading! The movie really is SO GOOD. I love that idea of him rising. One of my favorite insights regarding the visual elements of the film is around 11:20 in the video where visually we see Miles doing the opposite of what he did when he was failing to use his powers. The care that was put into the movie just shines through the details.
My 13-year-old Spidey superfan, music lovin', story-making/writing son (aka my creativity BFF) and I really enjoyed watching the video and discussing afterwards. This is a fantastic activity.
Also, an aside: Many claim that "Paddington 2" is a perfect movie. And, without question, "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" is worthy of this proclamation, too. This motif exercise is just one of the many reasons why.
I’m so happy to hear that you guys looked at this together! The movie really is so good, and I’m glad there are cool people on the internet taking time to make videos/breakdowns like this one on the score. So insightful.
And I'm glad there are cool teachers like you putting these lessons together. 😃