How to tell a story
How to tell a story.
Stories are the birthplace of language. Some stories are good, some stories are fantastic, but some stories deliverer such a deep affirmation and connection that they can cross the barriers of time.We are born for stories. Make a promise that the story is worth the viewers time.
Start with the message, make me care. Every storytelling exercise should begin by asking: Who is my audience, what is the medium and what is the message I want to share with them? Each decision about your story should flow from those questions. “What is the core moral that I’m trying to implant and How can I boil that down to a compelling single statement?” First settle on your ultimate message; then you can figure out the best way to illustrate it.
Stories are the birthplace of language. Some stories are good, some stories are fantastic, but some stories deliverer such a deep affirmation and connection that they can cross the barriers of time.We are born for stories. Make a promise that the story is worth the viewers time.
Start with the message, make me care. Every storytelling exercise should begin by asking: Who is my audience, what is the medium and what is the message I want to share with them? Each decision about your story should flow from those questions. “What is the core moral that I’m trying to implant and How can I boil that down to a compelling single statement?” First settle on your ultimate message; then you can figure out the best way to illustrate it.
The unifying theory of 2+2. Since we're all natural problem solvers, it brings us great satisfaction to solve problems put in front of us. Contrary to what it might seem, we actually like to work for results rather than be given them, and this goes for watching films, too. Audiences don't tend to enjoy films with a lot of exposition and over-explanation or over-simplification of plot and character motive, because it takes the fun out of putting the pieces together themselves; it denies them the chance to engage in the story, to participate in it, which, in the end, doesn't inspire them to care. Make the audience put things together. Don't give them four, give them two plus two. The elements you provide and the order you place them in is crucial to whether you succeed or fail at engaging the audience. Editors and screenwriters have known this all along. It's the invisible application that holds our attention to story. I don't mean to make it sound like this is an actual exact science, it's not. That's what's so special about stories, they're not a widget, they aren't exact. Stories are inevitable, if they're good, but they're not predictable.
Highlight a struggle. A story without a challenge simply isn’t very interesting. Good storytellers understand that a story needs conflict. Is there a competitor that needs to be bested? A challenge that needs to be overcome? A resistant individual that needs to be transformed? Don’t be afraid to suggest the road ahead will be difficult. We actually like to be told it’s going to be hard, this is going to be tough. But if we all pull together and hang in there, we’ll achieve something amazing. A well-crafted story embedded with that kind of a rallying cry means you don’t have to demand change or effort, people will become your partners in change because they want to be part of the journey.
Keep it simple. Not every story you tell has to be a surprising, edge-of-your-seat epic. Some of the most successful and memorable stories are relatively simple and straightforward. Don’t let needless details to detract from your core message. Work from the principle that less is more. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is putting in too much detail of the wrong kind. Don’t tell your audience what day of the week it was, for instance, or what shoes you were wearing if it doesn’t advance the story in an artful way. But transporting your audience with a few interesting, well-placed details can help immerse your viewers and drive home your message.
The hero's Journey. The Hero’s Journey is a pattern of narrative identified by the American scholar Joseph Campbell that appears in drama, storytelling, myth, religious ritual, and psychological development. It describes the typical adventure of the archetype known as The Hero, the person who goes out and achieves great deeds on behalf of the group, tribe, or civilization.http://www.thewritersjourney.com/hero's_journey.htm
Pixar's 22 Storytelling tips. When Pixar storyboard artist Emma Coats tweeted out 22 storytelling tips, something interesting happened. It was as if the curtain was lifted to reveal the heart of a mysterious, magical, and inspiring player in film making, and many screenwriters, treated this small collection of advice as a sacred lost book of the storytelling. Stephan Vladimir Bugaj, who has spent 12 years writing and developing stories at Pixar, has now shared his eBook in which he expounds on each tip. Check out the short version below:http://nofilmschool.com/2013/12/pixars-22-rules-of-storytelling-free-ebook
Ted Talks. Filmmaker Andrew Stanton shares what he knows about storytelling — starting at the end and working back to the beginning.https://www.ted.com/talks/andrew_stanton_the_clues_to_a_great_story#t-325791
Characters and Placement. An invisible tread that connects characters within a theme, how the details at the start follow through into the finish. Ultimately revealing something that the view can relate too as well as the characters. Typically a story is about change, how sets of characters interact, invoking a believable truth whilst infusing wonder and anticipation.
A story should be so enjoyable you don't want to prove it wrong.
Highlight a struggle. A story without a challenge simply isn’t very interesting. Good storytellers understand that a story needs conflict. Is there a competitor that needs to be bested? A challenge that needs to be overcome? A resistant individual that needs to be transformed? Don’t be afraid to suggest the road ahead will be difficult. We actually like to be told it’s going to be hard, this is going to be tough. But if we all pull together and hang in there, we’ll achieve something amazing. A well-crafted story embedded with that kind of a rallying cry means you don’t have to demand change or effort, people will become your partners in change because they want to be part of the journey.
Keep it simple. Not every story you tell has to be a surprising, edge-of-your-seat epic. Some of the most successful and memorable stories are relatively simple and straightforward. Don’t let needless details to detract from your core message. Work from the principle that less is more. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is putting in too much detail of the wrong kind. Don’t tell your audience what day of the week it was, for instance, or what shoes you were wearing if it doesn’t advance the story in an artful way. But transporting your audience with a few interesting, well-placed details can help immerse your viewers and drive home your message.
The hero's Journey. The Hero’s Journey is a pattern of narrative identified by the American scholar Joseph Campbell that appears in drama, storytelling, myth, religious ritual, and psychological development. It describes the typical adventure of the archetype known as The Hero, the person who goes out and achieves great deeds on behalf of the group, tribe, or civilization.http://www.thewritersjourney.com/hero's_journey.htm
Pixar's 22 Storytelling tips. When Pixar storyboard artist Emma Coats tweeted out 22 storytelling tips, something interesting happened. It was as if the curtain was lifted to reveal the heart of a mysterious, magical, and inspiring player in film making, and many screenwriters, treated this small collection of advice as a sacred lost book of the storytelling. Stephan Vladimir Bugaj, who has spent 12 years writing and developing stories at Pixar, has now shared his eBook in which he expounds on each tip. Check out the short version below:http://nofilmschool.com/2013/12/pixars-22-rules-of-storytelling-free-ebook
Ted Talks. Filmmaker Andrew Stanton shares what he knows about storytelling — starting at the end and working back to the beginning.https://www.ted.com/talks/andrew_stanton_the_clues_to_a_great_story#t-325791
Characters and Placement. An invisible tread that connects characters within a theme, how the details at the start follow through into the finish. Ultimately revealing something that the view can relate too as well as the characters. Typically a story is about change, how sets of characters interact, invoking a believable truth whilst infusing wonder and anticipation.
A story should be so enjoyable you don't want to prove it wrong.
