One of my all-time favorite videos, the Longest Way 1.0, combines my favorite subjects: epic journeys, growth and change.
Christoph Rehage’s original video inspired many other copycat beard and face timelapses. But what makes his story unique and compelling, particularly to 9.5 million other people? Let’s dissect his story.
According to Stillmotion’s Muse, a great story is comprised of a strong protagonist, conflict and six essential plot points: 1) the Hook, 2) the Ask, 3) the Acceptance, 4) Hurdles, 5) the Answer and 6) the Jab.
1. Act 1
The hook (the opening that grabs and holds our viewers’ attention): an epic journey on foot from Beijing to Germany, over mountains and scorching deserts. How enthralling is that?? And don’t forget the haunting melody. (:01)
The Ask (the challenge that our protagonist faces): Our protagonist will undertake an epic journey and walk from Beijing to Germany (:01)
Conflict (also called the unanswered question): Did our protagonist complete his journey? (:01) What did he look like after his walk? (:11) What was he missing? (:15)
The protagonist (our hero, the one we are rooting for): we get a first look at our clean-cut protagonist’s face at :40.
2. Act 2
The Acceptance (when our protagonist accepts the Ask or the challenge): our hero starts his journey, clean-shaven and beardless on November 9, 2007 at 10 am. (:46) We get a sense of the immensity of his journey as he walks through China, as we witness his beard grow, his face age and are shown glimpses of other people and places through his timelapse.
Hurdles (obstacles blocking our protagonist’s goal): Our protagonist counts off the kilometers he’s walked–1,000 km (1:04), 2,000 km (1:44), 3,000 km (2:14), 4,000 km (3:03)–each thousand kilometer a testament to his determination and adventurous spirit.
3. Act 3
The Answer (the resolution to the Ask): Our protagonist completes his journey on November 13, 2008 at 4,646 km (3:32), a changed man. He is grateful to love “for saving” him. (4:35)
The Jab (the purpose of the story): “Who was this person? Was it really me?” (3:36) Our hero was deeply changed–not just physically–after his journey.
In the end, our protagonist’s journey transformed him, as all great journeys, stories–and timelapses–should.