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Toonz
Animation India Creative Director Atul Rao and IDC Animation
head Prof Shilpa Ranade at FRAMES session on 'Scriptwriting
for animation'
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One
of the most critical aspects of film making, be it live action or
animation is the story and the script. Sharing the art of scriptwriting
for animation with the audience at FRAMES 05 session on 'Scripwriting
for animation' were Toonz Animation India's Atul Rao and IDC's Prof
Shilpa Ranade.
Both
the experts approach to the craft of scripwriting were as different
as chalk and cheese. While Atul is a self confessed lover of popular
mainstream animated fare such as Spongebob, Prof Shilpa introduced
viewers to story telling through animation within our cultural framework
in the contemporary and traditional context. Professor Shilpa informed
the audience about projects such as Kunjikavvu (Story telling
through mural paintings of kerala), Living Waters (Digital
Miniatures) and The Goddess of river Mahi (Story telling
in an interactive format).
Atul
Rao spoke about 2 different kinds of stories, one being plot driven
while the other being character driven stories. He also informed
about the various storylengths currently prevalent in animation.
Here's
some pointers from Atul
Main
Character
- What
does the character want and why can't she/he have it?
- Character's
history
- Character's
Ghost
- Character's
Traits
Supporting
characters
- Relationships
- potential for conflict
- Sidekicks
-
Opposing characters
(The character has a desire and the opposing character is always
an obstacle)
Story Checklist
Jeopardy
- What's at stake
- Inner
jeopardy - Character flaw, conflict
- Outer
jeopardy - (Spine) - Tangible Goal
- Theme
- Statement about life
Throughline
A statement that ties the story together that may be reflected in
dialogue
Animation production considerations
- Limit
locations (Re Use)
- Limit
new characters (use existing characters as much as possible)
* The
script should observe both, possibilities and limitations of the
specific animation mediums such as CGI, Stop Motion, Traditional
animation, Flash.
PLOT
STRUCTURE
ACT1
- Introduce
Character situation - normalcy
- Inciting
incident
- Character
Journey begins
- 1st
plot point (twist) cliff hanger
ACT
2
- Quick
resolve of cliff hanger
- Solve
problem and frills
- Outer
story jeopardy develops
- 2nd
plot point (Twist) bigger cliff hanger (Jeopardy is hieghtened)
ACT
3
Resolve cliff hanger
Internal
jeopardy is realised (Worst fears come true)
Main
character low point (Moment of inspiration)
New
twist in character plot (Leads to climax)
Climax
driven by jeopardy - Everything hangs in balance
- Resolution
Scene
structure
Each character within a scene has a point of view. All dialogue
will reflect those points of view in relation to plot/Character
structures
- Characters
interact with environment
Purposes of the scene
- Push
the plot forward
- Develop
character relationship
- End
scene with a coma, not conclusive with a small ironicn twist
DIALOGUE
Make
each line count. Good dialogue should have a minimum of two purposes.
Reflect on character, plot and motivation.
Setting
up Jokes (In Comedy)
Ironic
dialogue (Play against theme and character
Catch
Phrases - Cartoon characters often have catch phrases (Difficult
to do)
Once
you have finished writing your first draft, rewrite it... again
....and again..... and again.... and again.... until your deadline
arrives.
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