Pixar’s Plotting Techniques For Structure And Purpose

The Story Spine structure: Once upon a time there was [blank]. Every day, [blank]. One day [blank]. Because of that, [blank]. Until finally [bank].

A story’s purpose: find why you want to tell this story, what belief of yours fueled that story, what does it teach and its purpose. Stories with a purpose that you are passionate about have a bigger impact.

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6 Rules of Great Storytelling (As Told by Pixar)

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TOPICS IN THIS IDEA

Communication

Pixar’s Rules of Storytelling Applied to Product Managers & UX Designers

Emma Coats tweeted a series of basic storytelling tips while she was at Pixar. They became known as "Pixar's 22 Rules of Storytelling." She shared the valuable lessons from arguably the greatest storytellers of our generation, Pixar. Emma's learnings from her days at Pixar inspired me to reflect on mine as a product person, and a storyteller.

uxmag.com

The most powerful person in the world is the story teller. The storyteller sets the vision, values and agenda of an enti..."

Steve Jobs

Storytelling Is Everything

Whether it's telling inspiring stories to customers or delivering a presentation to executives and the board of directors, being a good storyteller helps us make the leap from Good to Great.

Product managers and designers can benefit tremendously by great storytelling, and so can anyone who is working with product design.

Purpose

Instead of selling products, we need to focus on their purpose and what good it does for the end-user. Focus on the need of the customer and design the product around it.

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Vanessa

@vanessaw752

Social Media Storytelling Formulas: 11 Quick-Fire Ways to Create Your Stories

Legendary marketer, Seth Godin, describes marketing as "the art of telling a story that resonates with your audience and then spreads." If you look at some of the biggest brands around, you might notice that they are often amazing storytellers.

buffer.com

Three-Act storytelling structure

One of the oldest and most straightforward storytelling formulas:

Setup: Set the scene and introduce the character(s)
Confrontation or “Rising action” : Present a p...

Five-Act storytelling structure

Also known as Freytag’s Pyramid:

Exposition: Introduce important background information
Rising action: Tell a series of events to build up to the climax
Climax: Turn the story around (usually the most exciting part of the story)
Falling action: Continue the action from the climax
Dénouement: Ending the story with a resolution.

Before – After – Bridge storytelling formula

Before: Describe the world with Problem A.
After: Imagine what it’d be like having Problem A solved.
Bridge: Here’s how to get there.

Set the stage of a problem that your target audience is likely to experience ( a problem that your company solves). Describe a world where that problem didn’t exist. Explain how to get there or present the solution (i.e. your product or service).

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Addison I.

@addison_ii548

The 22 rules of storytelling, according to Pixar

On Twitter, Pixar storyboard artist Emma Coats has compiled nuggets of narrative wisdom she's received working for the animation studio over the years. It's some sage stuff, although there's nothing here about defending yourself from your childhood toys when they inevitably come to life with murder in their hearts.

io9.gizmodo.com

Rules of storytelling, according to Pixar

Emphasize trying more than success.
Having an initial theme while writing is important but don’t get too attached to it.
Cutting things out

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