February 10, 2025

Exploring “Didi” Through Subtxt: A Thematic Breakdown with Muse

There’s something magical about seeing a story’s thematic core come to life—not just through its characters and plot, but through the deeper psychological and emotional undercurrents that shape it. That’s exactly what happened when we uploaded a thematic analysis of Didi into Subtxt and let Muse do its thing.

And let me tell you: it was a revelation.

A New Way to Approach Story Analysis

One of the most exciting parts of using Muse is how it lets you start with a Storyform before diving into a discussion about the film itself. Instead of reverse-engineering themes from a finished script, you can generate the Storyform first and then watch as Muse constructs a detailed, insightful analysis—one that perfectly aligns with the film’s narrative and thematic elements.

That’s exactly what happened with Didi.

(And if you haven’t seen the film yet—written and directed by Sean Wang, a Sundance favorite from 2024—we highly recommend you do. It’s a heartfelt, hilarious, and deeply resonant coming-of-age story that absolutely deserves your time.)

Step 1: Generating the Storyform

It all started with a simple request:

"Was thinking of putting up the Storyform for Didi, can you show me what it would like: relinquished, be-er, dopamine, decision, success good, os concern becoming, mc pivotal Avoid"

Of course, we had a bit of an upper-hand knowing what Aspects were being explored in the subtext of the story (all those terms listed at the end of our request), which you can learn more about through Subtxt...

But the important part is what Muse came back with.

Muse processed the input and built a complete Storyform for the film, aligning it with the following narrative choices:

Main Character Resolve: Relinquished
MC Pivotal Element: Avoid
Narrative Alignment: Dopamine
Story Driver: Decision
Story Outcome: Success
Story Judgment: Good
OS Concern: Becoming

At first, it misplaced a key element (putting the MC in Environmental rather than Attitudinal, as it should for a Be-er), but a quick adjustment fixed it. Once locked in, Muse saved the Storyform to the story and carried over the current conversation into the analysis—keeping everything organized and accessible.

Step 2: Letting Muse Construct the Four Throughlines

Here’s where things got really interesting.

With just the Storyform in place, Muse generated a detailed thematic breakdown of Didi—without even knowing what the film was about! Simply by following the narrative structure, it perfectly described the core struggles and themes of the movie, from adolescent identity crises to shifting friendships to family pressures.

Here’s what Muse generated, aligning each Throughline with the film’s thematic DNA:

Muse

Sure thing! Let’s flesh out the four Throughline Perspectives for "Didi" while keeping it aligned with the updated Storyform. Here's what I imagine based on the dynamics and themes you've shared:

Objective Story (OS) Throughline: Cognitive Processing — Becoming

The Objective Story focuses on the challenges of adolescence and the mental adjustments required to transition from one phase of identity to another. This is a story about navigating self-image, academic expectations, and the subtle (yet seismic) shifts in how the world perceives you. It’s about becoming someone new—whether that’s the person you want to be, or the person others expect you to be. The collective struggle here is learning how to adapt, as everyone from parents to teachers to students wrestles with the conceptualization of growth and maturity.

Main Character (MC) Throughline: Attitudinal Framing — Subconscious

Chris struggles with deeply rooted feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt, stemming from a need to avoid failure at all costs. Chris is the kind of person who internalizes everything—replaying moments in their head, questioning their choices, and agonizing over their instincts. The drive to avoid emotional discomfort and maintain a sense of self-worth constantly collides with the raw, unfiltered feelings of adolescence. Chris must confront and pursue clarity about who they are, despite their aversion to emotional vulnerability.

Obstacle Character (OC) Throughline: Environmental Framing — Future

Chris's mom represents the weight of expectations and the lingering sense of a predetermined path. From her perspective, the future is something to plan for and secure, and she views Chris’s struggles as obstacles to overcome rather than experiences to embrace. This creates a push-pull dynamic where she reinforces Chris's avoidance tendencies while also challenging them to reconsider their emotional framing. Her unwavering belief in considering the future keeps her in sharp contrast with Chris’s tendency to recoil from emotional clarity.

Relationship Story (RS) Throughline: Physical Processing — Obtaining

Here’s where the magic of friendship groups comes into play, much like Inside Out 2. The relationship story centers on Chris’s evolving connections with their friend groups, moving from middle school into high school. It’s about obtaining a sense of belonging and connection, but also about the friction between self-interest and altruism within these groups. Do you cling to old friendships out of loyalty, or let them go to make space for new ones? The physical reality of doing things together—hanging out, studying, sharing experiences—becomes the tangible manifestation of the deeper emotional shifts happening beneath the surface.

This structure offers plenty of room to explore identity, emotional growth, and relationships in a layered, dynamic way. It aligns beautifully with the Storyform’s focus on Dopamine-driven motivation and the Main Character’s journey of relinquishing avoidance in favor of emotional clarity.

Let me know if this feels right or if you’d like to tweak anything before locking it in! 😊

The Unexpected Surprise: Muse’s Ability to Adapt

What made this analysis even more impressive was how adaptable Muse was. After the initial analysis, when more details about Didi’s actual plot were added, Muse went back and refined everything, integrating specific events from the film into the thematic framework.

Muse wasn’t just parroting back the Storyform—it was using it as a foundation to explore the film’s meaning in a deep and insightful way.

Unlocking New Ways to Use Subtxt

This process opened up an entirely new way to engage with stories in Subtxt:

✅ Start with the Storyform, then explore your story’s thematic layers.
✅ Let Muse generate a detailed analysis before you even write the script.
✅ Compare multiple Storyforms side by side to explore different interpretations.
✅ Use Muse as a story coach, refining your themes and structure with each iteration.

And if Didi is any indication, this is just the beginning.

Imagine what’s possible for your own stories when you let Muse do the heavy lifting—revealing not just what your story is about, but what it truly means.

So, what will you learn about storytelling next? 🎬✨