“Finding Nemo deleted scene” by San Diego Shooter is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
| Cue | Notes |
| -storytelling is joke-telling, every part of your story leads to the end | |
| -Seems simple enough but how do we do this most effectively in only 1-3 minutes? | -Make me care, stories should make an audience care |
| -Stories should make you a promise that it is going to lead somewhere, A well-told promise is like a pebble in a slingshot, propels you to the end | |
| -How much should we directly withhold from our audience? | -Storytelling without dialogue, audiences want to “work for their meal”, The absence of information is what we look for |
| -Unifying theory of 2+2, don’t give the audience 4 give them 2+2 | |
| -What’s the difference in terms of our stories? | -Stories are inevitable if they are good but not predictable |
| -All characters have a spine that drives them in their actions | |
| -If things go static, stories die “Drama is anticipation mingled with uncertainty” | |
| -The audience should feel the tension, they should want to know what is going to happen | |
| -What rules do our films follow? | -Storytelling has guidelines, not hard fast rules |
| -A strong theme is always running through a well-told story | |
| -Can we actually do this in our short films? | -Can you invoke wonder? The best stories infuse wonder |
| -Use what you know, draw from it express values you personally feel | |
There are lots of important elements to a good story and they all revolve around the experience you grant the audience with your art. There are not harsh rules, but softer guidelines, but other than that your job is to invoke wonder, to grab interest, to express a strong theme. Among these rules, a few important storytellings ideals shone through, such as “give your audience 2+2, not 4” which implies that we should let our audience figure things out to invoke a more memorable and interactive experience,