Shadowing J.J. Abrams

Summary

J. J. Abrams uses an unopened box of magic tricks to explore why mystery matters to his storytelling. The box connects him with his grandfather, who encouraged curiosity and supplied tools for making things. Its unopened state represents possibility rather than a missing answer. Abrams applies that idea to writing, suspense, character and filmmaking technology, arguing that both unanswered questions and the human material beneath a spectacle can draw an audience into a story.

Key points, in order

1. Memories of dismantling objects, learning crafts and receiving a camera explain how his grandfather nurtured his interest in creating. The mystery box preserves that relationship as well as the anticipation of what might be inside.
2. He describes the rapid creation of the Lost pilot and treats a blank page as another box of possibilities. A chain of questions can sustain a story, while withholding information leaves room for the audience's imagination.
3. Examples from Jaws, E.T. and Die Hard distinguish memorable spectacle from the characters and emotional problems supporting it. Abrams argues that copying a monster or action sequence misses what gives such films their effect.
4. More accessible equipment expands who can make films. Yet his final production example uses a simple substitution of an actor's hand, illustrating that inventive problem-solving still matters alongside sophisticated technology.

Five useful phrases to practise

Choose a caption line to open Repeat mode. Listen, then say it after the speaker.

1. 5:36 And I realize that mystery is the catalyst for imagination.
2. 7:55 I realize that that blank page is a magic box, you know?
3. 9:20 You know, doing that intentionally is much more engaging.
4. 12:32 You know, if you rip something off -- rip off the character.
5. 17:40 So you don't need the greatest technology to do things that can work in movies.

Based on the video’s captions. Original video: The mystery box | JJ Abrams · TED.

Everyday phrases from this video

• you know
• I mean
• a lot of
• over there
• hold on

• Level: B2
• Accent: American
• Length: 18 min · 267 lines to practise
• Speed: about 179 words a minute (faster than most talks)
• Words: about 3,150; the talk asks 27 questions
• Timing: Sada measures how far behind the speaker you are on every line

What to focus on in this talk

Start with his explanation of the box, then try the passages about how a story raises questions.

What this talk trains

J.J. Abrams speaks for about 18 minutes: roughly 3,150 words in 267 caption lines. The pace eases off as the talk goes on, from about 202 words a minute in the first quarter to 176 in the last. Overall it is faster than 53 of the other 66 talks on Sada. Its sentences average 10.2 words, no longer than the middle of the library (14.3), and 12.5% of its words fall outside the 3,000 most common English words (library middle: 12.9%). It asks 27 questions, so there is plenty of question intonation to copy. Phrases that fast speech often shortens come up again and again: “sort of” (9 times) and “kind of” (8 times).

Lines from across the talk, and what each one trains

One line from each quarter of the talk. Press a line to open it in Sada, ready to record. “Linking” marks words that run together: a word ending in a consonant sound joins the vowel that starts the next one.

1. 3:29 And it let me make things, which, to me, was sort of the dream.

   “sort of”: fast speech often shortens it to “sorta”. Listen for whether the speaker does here. Linking: say “And it”, “sort of” without a break between the words.

2. 8:21 It basically says, what are you going to write worthy of me?

   “going to”: fast speech often shortens it to “gonna” when a verb follows. Listen for whether the speaker does here. A question: listen to where the voice rises or falls at the end, and copy it.

3. 12:15 Come on! So you think of "Jaws" -- so that's the kind of stuff that,

   “kind of”: fast speech often shortens it to “kinda”. Listen for whether the speaker does here. Linking: say “think of”, “kind of” without a break between the words.

4. 14:16 The most incredible sort of mystery, I think, is now the question of what comes next.

   “sort of”: fast speech often shortens it to “sorta”. Listen for whether the speaker does here. Linking: say “most incredible”, “sort of”, “question of” without a break between the words.

Words that keep coming up

Words outside the 3,000 most common English words that J.J. Abrams uses more than once. The number is how often each is said. Look up any you don’t know, then press it to practise the line where it first comes up.

• mystery ×18
• grandfather ×9
• realized ×6
• nose ×5
• apart ×4
• obsessed ×4
• shark ×4
• hurt ×4

How the pace changes through the talk

The fastest minute starts at 5:39 (about 241 words a minute): practise that minute once the rest feels easy. The slowest starts at 15:21 (about 101): a good minute to warm up with.

Measured from the caption timing, so the numbers are close, not exact.

How the talk opens: press any line to practise it

1. 0:12 Here's my thing.
2. 0:14 Hold on. There I go. Hey.
3. 0:18 I want to start today -- talk about the structure of a polypeptide.
4. 0:23 I get a lot of people asking me, in terms of "Lost," you know, "What the hell's that island?"
5. 0:29 You know, it's usually followed by, "No, seriously, what the hell is that island?"
6. 0:34 Why so many mysteries?

How to practise this talk

1. Warm up on the slowest minute (from 15:21) or on the opening lines above.
2. Then take the chosen lines above one at a time: a shortened phrase, linked words, a question.
3. On each line, press Record and say it after J.J. Abrams (Repeat) or along with them (Shadow), then open Compare and go again until every word is green.
4. Save the fastest minute (from 5:39, about 241 words a minute) for last.
5. At one minute a day you finish the whole talk in about 18 days, and Sada shows your first try against your latest.

More talks to practise

• Amy Cuddy — Your Body Language May Shape Who You Are (B2 · 178 words a minute · same level)
• Malcolm Gladwell — Choice, Happiness and Spaghetti Sauce (B2 · 177 words a minute · same level)
• Derek Sivers — How to Start a Movement (B1 · 182 words a minute · same accent)
• Susan Cain — The Power of Introverts (B2 · 176 words a minute · same accent)

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