Story Story Stor - Animating with Blender: How to Create Short Animations from Start to Finish - page 14

The late author, Roger Zelazny, a prolifi c writer of short stories, once said that his short stories were born
either from a plot , a character , or an image . Sometimes an idea for a character is so resonant that you fi nd
yourself wanting to put him or her into every story line you can think of. Other times, the plot will come
fi rst—a situation of interest that you just can't shake. And then, in a way that is probably already familiar to you
as a digital still artist, a single image grabs you—a framed picture of a situation and characters in action. Any of
these can be used to begin the story building process, but the best fi nished products will include all three.
Plot versus Character
In many weaker stories, the plot defi nes the character . Much more diffi cult to do, though, is to
have the characters drive the plot. Your characters will be put in different situations (though in
a typical short animation there is probably only enough time to deal with one major situation),
and the details of their character should cause them to act in certain ways. Those actions will
have consequences, which will cause other characters (possibly) to make choices, until a con-
clusion is reached. If you fi nd that you have a plot before you have characters, make sure that
the characters you eventually settle on fi t the decisions they seem to make that drive the plot.
For example, if your plot requires someone to make clever, perceptive deductions for the action
to progress, don't choose a “school bully” to fi ll that role. It wouldn't fi t. If you choose an appro-
priate character, it may suggest other details that help you strengthen and continue the story.
Be careful, too, with a “plot-fi rst” story that there will in fact be a character that can fi t the role. If your
plot requires a character to react with extreme anger in several situations, then to be instantly happy
and then instantly sad, you may have a problem. There are not many believable characters that
would act that way (although a few spring to mind), making it tough to create an engaging story.
However, if you created the characters before the plot, the choices that they make will often
lead the plot in directions you had never intended. This is actually okay and will often lead to a
stronger story in the end. Remember, character drives plot , while at the same time a well con-
structed plot will help a character to change in return.
A well developed short story that is appropriate for animation will also include a hook , a theme , and a turn
(sometimes called a “twist”). We'll discuss each of these, as well as the previous three elements, as we look at
how the story for The Beast evolved.
NOTE
Plot, character, and an image: while the animation and mechanics of the story will make your
project watchable , taking the time to get these three right will make it memorable .
The story for The Beast was originally presented to me by a friend, Tom Musgrove. In its initial stage, it looked
something like this:
“There is a baby who is left watching TV. The family cat is nearby. The baby is very bad (hence the nickname
'The Beast') and battles the cat, unintentionally wrecking the house in the process.”