Story Background and Theory

1. Story Backgroundand Theory

2. As human beings, we live in story all of the time • When constructing story, we are trying to communicate with a mass audience. • When we construct story, we are moving not just an individual, butan audience. The goal then becomes to make the personal universal. • Before we can begin getting ideas, developing characters, or building stories, we need tounderstand the background of story and how that background lays the foundation for whatwe want to make: a story for an animated short film.

3. What Is a Story? • Screenwriter Karl Iglesias has a very simple and clear definition of story: “A story hassomeone who wants something badly and is having trouble getting it.” • The three primary elements necessary for a story: • 1. Character. This is whom the story is about and through whose eyes the story is told. • 2. Goal. This is the physical object the character wants to obtain: the princess, thetreasure, the girl, the boon, the bounty, the recognition, and so on. • 3. Conflict. Conflict is what is between the character and his goal. There are three forms of conflict: • • Character vs. Character • • Character vs. Environment • • Character vs. Self

4. Conflicts create problems, obstacles, and dilemmas that place the character in some formof danger or jeopardy, either physically, mentally or spiritually.

5. The other elements of story include: • Location. Stories take place in a space. Location is the place, time period, or atmosphere that supports the story. • Inciting Moment. In every story, the world of the character is normal until somethingunexpected happens. This unexpected event begins the story. • Story Question. The inciting moment will set up questions in the mind of the audiencethat must be answered by the end of the story. • Theme. Stories have meaning to the character and to the audience. The theme orconcept is the underlying larger idea that the animation communicates. It is the deepermeaning of the story. Common themes include man prevails against nature, technologyadvances against man, and love conquers all. • Need. In order for the story to have meaning to the character, he or she needs to learnsomething to achieve the goal. • Arc. When a character learns—or doesn’t learn—there will be what is called an emotionalarc or change in the character. • Ending/Resolution. The ending is what must be given to the viewer to bring emotionalrelief and answer all of the questions of the story. The ending must transform the audience or the character.

6. Why Do All Stories Seem the Same? • Nearly every story told, every feature fi lm produced,follows the same structure and formula with similar characters, themes, and conflicts.

7. The lights dim. In the first 20 minutes of a movie, a hero will be introduced. He will havesome fl aw that makes him human—just like us. Something unexpected will happen thatthrows his world into chaos. For the next hour or so, our hero will go through a series oftrials, aided by friends and challenged by foes, trying to restore order to his world. In thelast 20 minutes our hero will be crushed, only to rally for one final showdown against hischallenger. He succeeds or fails—usually succeeds. We all celebrate. • This is the basic story. Where did it come from?

8. The Universal Story • All of these stories followed a three-act structure that had first been defined by Aristotle nearly 2,300 years ago  calledthis structure Plot. • Plot was not just the sequence of eventsin a story, but also the emotions that were necessary to move the audience through the story.

9. In the first act, pity and empathy must be established for the hero so that the audience caresabout the character and will engage in his pursuit. • Then, the second act is the scene of sufferingand challenge, creating fear and tension surrounding the hero and his challenges. • Inthe final act, fear and tension are released by catharsis, the emotional release that allowsfor closure to end the story.

10. Joseph Campbell, an American mythology professor, writer, and orator.  found was that there were universalimages and characters that existed in one story shared by all cultures through all timeperiods. • He called it the monomyth—the one story, the universal story.

11. The monomyth: • Introduce the Hero. The hero is the character through whom the story is told. The herois having an ordinary day in his ordinary world. • The Hero Has a Flaw. The audience needs to empathize with the hero and engage inhis pursuit of success. So the hero is not perfect. He suffers from pride or passion, oran error or impediment that will eventually lead to his downfall or success. • Unexpected Event. Something happens to change the hero’s ordinary world. • Call to Adventure. The hero needs to accomplish a goal (save a princess,retrieve a treasure, collect a boon, and so forth). Often the hero is reluctant toanswer the call. It is here that he meets with mentors, friends, and allies that encourage him. • The Quest. The hero leaves his world in pursuit of the goal. He faces test, trials, temptations,enemies, and challenges until he achieves his goal. • The Return. The hero returns expecting rewards. • The Crisis. Something is wrong. The hero is at his lowest moment. • The Showdown. The hero must face one last challenge, usually of life and death againsthis greatest foe. He must use all that he has learned on his quest to succeed. • The Resolution. In movies this is usually a happy ending. The hero succeeds and we all celebrate.

16. Disney movies have long been constructed for a collective audience, sitting in a darkenedtheater that shares the experience of the hero. • Disney films have driven home the opportunityof the individual to succeed and that, above all, it is personal success that we celebrate. • InDisney films there is a clear hero who fights a clear villain. • Nearly all of the classic Disneymovies are excellent case studies of the Hero’s Journey.

17. Pixar films follow every aspect of thestructure except that of the Hero • If we define the hero as the one who succeeds and whose successwe celebrate, then this changes the dynamics when we look at a Pixar film.

18. For example, in Finding Nemo, it is Marlin’s quest to find Nemo. But Marlin fails. He begins to return home withouthis son. It is Nemo who brings himself home and it is Dory’s role is to reunite Nemowithhis dad. • At different times, Gill is the hero, and then Dory is the hero—each character hasa unique purpose that, in the true Andy Warhol 15-minutes-of-fame theory, allows him orher to be the hero of his or her own part of the story.

19. Character Archetypes • An archetype is defined as a pervasive ideaor image that serves as an original model from which copies are made. • The hero is a baseline that can be a superhero, Mr. Incredible; an ogre, Shrek;a girl, Mulan; a woolly mammoth, Manfred, and so on. • Archetypesdivided the individual into four parts or psyches: the self, the shadow,the male, and the female.

28. Exercise: • 1. What is your favorite feature film? Watch it carefully while you track plot points against theHero’s Journey. Observe the characters and figure out which archetypal role they fulfill.

29. Universal Conflicts • Conflict is the situation or problem that is getting in the way of the character’s goal. It is a dilemmathat creates tension for the character. It is something that puts the character in jeopardy.

32. Universal Themes • Stories have meanings. They are not just a series of events. They communicate somethingto us that is larger than the story itself. The meaning or dominant idea of the story is called the theme.

34. Originality in Story • If there are limited themes, conflicts, structures, and character types, what makes each story unique? • what is unique is a compelling character and emotionally driven sequence of events. • Each character will react to events in a different way. Observinghow someone else reacts to problems, different from how we, as an audience member might,is concurrently educational and compelling. It gives us a reason to watch.

35. The other thing that makes a unique story is character desire • Often what we want or desire is not what we need. Therefore,conflict in story can be about desire vs. need. Desire is often unrealistic. It is complicatedby greed, pride, ambition, fear, laziness, apathy, and so forth. To be successful, charactersmust overcome desire and learn what they need.

36. Making the Long Story Short: The Difference between Features and Shorts • So how many characters, conflicts, themes, locations, and props should a short have?

37. The inciting moment, the moment when something unexpected happens for the character, usually occurs within the first 10–15 seconds of the film. • An example is found in Eric Drobile’sThe Animator and the Seat when the chair begins to massage the animator’s shoulders. • In A Great Big Robotfrom Outer Space Ate My Homework, we enter the film after the alien has eaten the homeworkand when the boy is rushing to relate this event to his teacher.

38. In the short, the character will arc, which means she will change emotionally from the beginningto the end of the piece. But he doesn’t always learn, make big decisions or even succeed. • Remember our most basic definitionof a story: a character wants something badly and ishaving trouble getting it. When you are looking for ideas, this is the basis of what you are looking for

39. This will translate into the following structure: • A character wants something badly • Something happens that moves him to action • He meets with conflict • Things gets worse until the character is in crisis • He nearly loses all • Learns a lesson • Makes a hard choice • In order to succeed

40. Building Better Content

41. The Rules of the Playground • Rule #1: Story Is King • It is through story that your character is revealed and that you communicate with your audience.Without story, all you have is technique. • Rule #2: Keep It Simple • What types of stories work for the short? • • Simple single situations • • One conflict that intensifies • • A single memorable moment • • Slices of life • • Demonstrations of personality

42. Rule #3: Know Your Concept, Theme, or Meaning • The concept statement is one sentence. For the short, that sentence needs to be simple andclear. It needs to have a viewpoint. There is little time in the short to present an unbiased and balanced commentary. • Rule #4: Avoid Cliché • A cliché is a concept, character, symbol, or plot device that has been so overused that it has lost its originality.

43. Rule #5: Create a Memorable Character • Shrek, Hogarth, Nemo, Woody, Howl—we remember them all. Why? • Rule #6: Emotion Drives Action • A story is defined by the character. More specifically, it is defined by how the characterreacts to the situation he is in. • Rule #7: Show, Don’t Tell • This is a golden rule of both literature and film. “Telling” means the use of exposition ordescription without engaging the emotional or sensory experiences of the character. Showingmeans to make clearly evident, by the appearance, behavior, action, or reaction, the emotional experience of the character.

44. Rule #8: Create Conflict • Conflict = Drama. • Rule #9: Know Your Ending • You can’t really tell your story until you know the ending • Rule #10: Entertain Your Audience • Audiences are entertained when they are visually, intellectually, and emotionally engaged. • Rule #11: Use Humor • Rule #12: Do Something You Like

45. Idea • When you have nothing . . . Sometimes we just don’t think we have a place to start. • Start with Yourself • Ask Why? • Pixar, Monsters, Inc • Go into the World and Watch • Create Some Innocent Trouble • Read the Newspaper • Look at Art • Make an Adaptation of Another Story • Parody a Current Story or Event • Create a Competition, Play with Status • Combine Unlike Things Together