Secret ingredient #4: A universal theme

- [Jessica] Hey there, welcome back…to the four secret ingredients of a high-concept idea.…So, we've covered the fish out of water,…the looming conflict, and the hook,…and now we finally reached the fourth secret ingredient,…a universal theme.…Now, let's be honest, how many of you hear the word theme…and start to panic and have horrible flashbacks…of your 11th grade English teacher…making you stand up in front of the entire class…and recite the theme of the Grapes of Wrath while all…of your classmates laugh at you?…Oh, just me?…Okay, then, moving on.…Well, before you get too freaked out,…let me tell you that the theme I'm referring…to here is probably not the one you were taught…in high school or college.…

This is a different kind of theme.…This is high concept theme, somethings that's found…in nearly every successful high-concept book…or movie out there.…Here's the basic definition of the universal theme…we're going to talk about in this lecture.…The universal theme is a universal or relatable lesson…that the main character must learn by the end of the story.…