Homework for Wednesday, Feb 20th:

Come to class with the following:

• Index cards! *3x5 or 4x6 is fine. Just make sure you have at least one blank side to draw on. We will be recreating our storytelling exercise today!
• Pencils, pens for inking, some type of additional media for coloring on index cards.
• A pack of thumbtacks for yourself!  A small pack of 30 is fine.
• Three ideas for films you would like to create! (Draw some rough sketches to speed up your workflow in class on wednesday! If you want to do our exercise for each story, feel free! We will continue developing tomorrow!)
• Your lightpad for seeing through your art!

Watch the following video This video provides some additional notes on storytelling methods!

Speaker: Kent Osborne
Talk: Bringing Adventure Time to Life
(providing insight to Cartoon Network's storyboarding and writing development practices.)

NOTES FROM CLASS ARE WRITTEN BELOW, INCLUDING STEPS TO REPLICATE OUR CLASS EXERCISE!

SHORT-FORMAT ANIMATED FILM PRODUCTION

• Animated short: Usually 7 minutes or less.
• Most for students: 1-3 minutes.
• Question: What do you create? And who are you creating it for?
• There IS an audience out there for the kind of content “I” want to create. I just have to bring it to them.
• VISIBILITY! (ideas, intent, and artistry!)
• Ask yourself: What is the purpose of my art (animated film) for…
• My portfolio and professional stuff
• The art itself
• For “me”?

STORY DEVELOPMENT!

• “script-based” story development and “storyboard-based”.
• both methods can have “story structure” applied to them.
• Story structure: The framework behind your story. Story Structure is designed to help make your story more interesting!
• Examples:
• Three Act Structure: “Television format, the most commonly used form of storytelling on TV.” (beginning, the middle, and the end).
• Nine-Act Structure:  Three Big Acts of a Movie, composed of little tiny “three acts”
• FIVE ACT STRUCTURE: Commonly used in plays. Focuses on introducing the world, characters, problems, challenges, and solutions in that order.
• TWO ACT STRUCTURE: Commonly used for time skips, or setting the stage of important events in ACT 1, and presenting the fallout of those events in ACT 2.
• SHORT FILMS: You want to get their attention in the FIRST, THREE SECONDS.

WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF YOUR STORY?

 THE ENDING!

• Why? The ending, resolves the story, and leaves the lasting impression on your audience! If you know what your ending should be, you can BUILD BACKWARDS from it to the beginning of your story!

NOTE: USING THREE ACT STRUCTURE TO MAKE LONGER FORMAT CONTENT

• Strategies:
• Sweeping Narratives:  Short stories that build to an epic conclusion
• Isolated Events:  Episodes that can be watched in any order that covers that character’s life in moments

IN CLASS STORYTELLING EXERCISE: ( Get 12 sticky notes in front of you, and then answer these 4 questions in your notes)

• who is your character?
• what does your character want right now?
• Does your character get it? Yes or no?
• How do they react?

Then! Using your sticky notes (thus forth called panels), create the following! (time limits are in parenthesis)

• Panel 1: Draw your character! (2 minutes)
• On the back of panel 1: Draw what your character wants! Starting with a desire keeps your story character focused and makes it easier to construct your narrative!
• Panel 2: Draw the ending to your story! (2 minutes!)
• As a reminder, the story does not have to focus on the need. it just needs to wrap up using the elements you have established!
• Panel 3: Draw the beginning to your story! (2 minutes!)
• Figure out a way to set up the final events that take place. If we end “here,” where do we begin?
• Panel 4:  Draw an event that takes place in-between the beginning and end of your story! (3 minutes!)
• Do you draw an interesting struggle that takes place? Do you draw a scene that becomes the climax of your story? Or something that leads us into the events that takes place?
• Panel 5 and 6: At the same time, draw two events that flesh out your story, between the beginning and ending. (4 minutes, divided up as you choose between two panels)
• What is currently missing from the story to have it flow better?  Do you want to add any interesting plot twists? Or have some additional event that raises the stakes of the situations?
• Panel 7:  Add a final panel. This panel can go anywhere. (3 minutes)
• This panel can be used to give more motive to the beginning of the story, or the ending, or flesh out some events within. You can also erase and change some of the events you have already drawn.
• Once done, take panels 2-7, lay them out in order, and look at the events!  See if the story is coherent and flows well, and show it to others!  Make notes on ideas that would make the story easier.