Scriptnotes Podcast 724 - Introductions with Joachim Trier
Feb 10, 2026
Joachim Trier, Norwegian writer-director behind The Worst Person in the World, talks craft and character lighting. He describes collaborating with Eskil Vogt, shaping ideas into structure, and opening a story with tone-setting contrasts. Conversations cover introducing a lead through extremes, editing choices that trim setup, and how endings inform the middle.
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Siblings Sparked The Whole Project
- The initial idea centered on sibling mirroring and family mysteries about identity and memory.
- After months of exploring, they expanded to include the father's point of view and a polyphonic structure.
Novelistic Feel In Cinematic Form
- Trier seeks a 'novelistic' feeling in film: cinematic set pieces plus psychological ambiguity.
- He aims to evoke thematic thinking through character-driven moments without being explicit.
Names Signal Dramatic Weight
- Naming on the page signals relative importance; minor characters stay generic to avoid distracting the reader.
- That small discipline guides focus and helps actors/directors prioritize during production.
