Story Development

In the book "In the Blink of An Eye," by Walter Murch, the author talks about his theory that we blink to edit the film of our lives. Each new blink is a new thought/chapter of our own personal stories. I really like this idea and the more time I spend digging deeper regarding into shot, the more I realise the story-telling opportunities in character animation.

Matt said tonight that bringing a character to life is like orchestrating a composition. I am a big Michael Jackson fan. The reason I mention this now, is I admire his ambition as a performer. Together with his producer, Quincey Jones, he saw creating a song as painting. Each little 'paintstroke' is brung together and layered to create a composition. To learn and be inspired, he also wasn't afraid to study and learn from the teachers of the past.

This is something I admire in Glen Keane too. When asked to name one shot that made me want to pursue a career as an animator, I pointed to the Beast's transformation. You can clearly see the inspirations from traditional artists like Michaelangeo, brought to life in this masterpiece of animation.

Moving back to my shot, as mentioned above,  each new blink is a new thought/chapter of our own personal stories. What story is being captured from the lives of Frank and Elsie? The lyrics are as follows:

Elsie:
What would you do with a brain if you had one?

Frank:
I would not be just a nuffin'
My head all full of stuffin'
My heart all full of pain
And my head I'd be scratchin'
While my thoughts were busy hatchin'
If I only had a brain

The questions I need to answer are as follows (courtesy of Tony Chau's blog,
Life in Animation:

• How does the character really feel about what they're saying?
• How do they feel about the situation?
• What is the character thinking at each moment and how does it progress throughout the shot?
• How does the character feel and think about those around him?

If each blink shows a new chapter of thought, they can be used to divide the shot to give strength and purpose.

Wow, I may be rambling, so let's begin...
(to be continued)