The 22 rules of storytelling, according to Pixar
11 June 2012
From io9:
On Twitter, Pixar storyboard artist Emma Coats has compiled nuggets of narrative wisdom she’s received working for the animation studio over the years.
. . . .
#1: You admire a character for trying more than for their successes.
#2: You gotta keep in mind what’s interesting to you as an audience, not what’s fun to do as a writer. They can be v. different.
. . . .
#9: When you’re stuck, make a list of what WOULDN’T happen next. Lots of times the material to get you unstuck will show up.
. . . .
#19: Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating.
Link to the rest at io9 and thanks to Elizabeth for the tip.
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Great article, and some interesting comments. Pixar are the only studio whose movies I almost always want to see because their stories are so well written.
Ever tried Studio Ghibli? Hayao Miyazaki is, for my money, THE best storyteller alive today in any form of media.
#1: If there’s enough trying, then the successes are awesome as well. Case in point: Lin BeiFong, from The Legend of Korra, especially in “And the Winner Is…”
Of course, that’s visual more than written.
You’re awesome for using Legend of Korra as a reference.
Thank you! (It just sprang to mind, when “awesome” was the keyword!
)
I don’t know, I’m wincing at “you gotta” in number 2 when nothing else is written in folksy “real talk” voice but in standard written English. It’s jarring when people do that.
Oops. Number three — “til.” That’s not a word. Also she uses “v.” instead of “very.” Why not clean up your personal scribbled list before publishing it?
Bear in mind, these were originally tweets, thus the abbreviatons.