Thanks David, that means a lot to me to receive such encouraging feedback, I'm glad you enjoyed it! I would say that 'Myth in the Movies' is a really practical guide to seeing how certain movies use the structure, but it’s also a companion piece so you should begin with Christopher Vogler’s ‘The Writer’s Journey’ which lays out the concepts of the Hero’s Journey. I would recommend that in parallel with Jung’s ‘Man and his Symbols’ and any Joseph Campbell or Mircea Eliade (maybe ‘The Myth of the Eternal Return’) for a deeper sense of where the ideas developed. Stuart said he is working on an update to the book so maybe it's worth waiting for the new edition and just getting the older version at a library in the meantime. It’s hard to explain exactly how I think about this topic but essentially I believe it’s true on an inner (maybe spiritual) level and that’s why it’s so effective in storytelling, even if it might not be demonstrable in modern psychology. I go into some more examples of universal mythology in my recent episode on Spielberg’s ‘Artificial Intelligence’ when talking about Pinocchio.
Regarding screenplays, I live near LA so I usually go to the Writer’s Guild Library but obviously that isn’t an option for most people, but I believe lots of screenplays are being shared at Scott Meyer’s ‘Go Into The Story’ and on Reddit’s screenwriting forum.
Regarding time stamps and show notes - great idea. Because the episodes are so long I’ve been averse to getting show notes due to the time/cost but as I expand the podcast (you’ll see I’m in a big process of reinvention right now) I’ll keep this in mind.
