improve storyteling

[dlevanchuk]

Hey, so I was reading on how to make a good screenplay, create good shots, proper lightning, editing, etc.
But what about this : how to improve my story telling? Is story telling a combination of everything from above mentioned list, or there is something more to it?

 

[danjama]

Hey, so I was reading on how to make a good screenplay, create good shots, proper lightning, editing, etc.
But what about this : how to improve my story telling? Is story telling a combination of everything from above mentioned list, or there is something more to it?

The above list can only be considered complimentary to good storytelling. IMO, story comes above all else, and it is an art - as demanding and rewarding as any other art.

You should go to your local book store/library/amazon and pick up some books. I really found "Writing Movies" by the Gotham Writers Workshop to be useful and fun to read. Very easy to follow. Others will recommend "Story" by Mckee, but I haven't read it myself (plan to).

Story-telling is a craft. Some of the main things to consider are structure, plot-points, character development/arcs, perspective and language. All of these things are sewn seemlessly into every scene of every movie you watch (it starts with the script), and you need to learn to do the same if you want to make movies.

 

[Cracker Funk]

Is story telling a combination of everything from above mentioned list, or there is something more to it?

Sort of a vague question, because "storytelling" is a vague term, but I'll take a stab at it. The answer is "yes", it's a combination of everything involved in a movie.

I think most people on this forum would agree that it all starts with a solid screenplay. This cannot be overlooked. I mean, really, that's your story.

If you have a solid screenplay (story), now the question is -- how do you tell it? Your favorite joke can be told by ten different people in ten completely different ways. It's all about the delivery, right? Same thing with filmmaking. Give the same screenplay to ten different directors, and you'll get ten completely different versions of the same story. The tools that each director uses, from shot-selection, to pacing, to music, to lighting, to SFX, to acting direction, to foley work, to a million different possibilities -- that's the "telling" part of the "storytelling".

 

[Papertwinproductions]

"Story-telling". It's a loose term, that, as shown by my good man CF, can be disected into the process-in this case concerning film- allowing it to take on a number of forms.

You can learn to tell the story, you can learn to adapt the story to screen, to a novel, to a screenplay. Can you be taught how to discover a story, be that a creative slip of the imagination or an exciting, inspiring documentary... in the first instance? No, i believe you can't.

It's a gift than has to be moulded, that will excel when crafted. But does it materialize prior to this, and be manufactured from thin air? I don't believe so.

You're a storyteller, or you're not.