Project 2 (of 3) From Script to Screen

Submission deadline: Friday February 20th 2015

Content:
Animation is the most technical of mediums. Every dot, line, colour and
movement as to be consciously put down with a given end in view. An idea that is
fuzzy in the script stage will certainly be fuzzy on screen The bulk of the
creative work be it script, design, dialogue or music, is conceived and finalised
before the first frame is animated.
Simple viewing is hard writing
Stan Hayward, Scriptwriting For Animation

When I started writing that story, I didnt know there was going to be a
Ph.D. with a wooden leg in it. I merely found myself one morning writing a
description of two women I knew something about, and before I realized it, I had
equipped one of them with a daughter with a wooden leg. I bought in the Bible
salesman, but I had no idea what I was going to do with him. I didnt know he was
going to steal that wooden leg until ten or twelve lines before he did it, but when I
found out that this was what was going to happen, I realised it was inevitable.
Flannery OConner, Writing Short Stories

The job of a scriptwriter for an animation is to take an idea and craft it into a
working plan that is ready to go into production; this plan is called a storyboard and it is
arrived at in several stages, beginning with the idea or basic narrative concept. The
premise is given an outline, wherein the key-points of action, structure, and characters
are defined and rough sketches produced. The outline is developed further at the
treatment stage, as key scenes/sequences are linked and motivated by a storyline. The
treatment is visualised as a storyboard.
A storyboard is a visual interpretation of a script conveying essential information
regarding scale, positions, relationships between images, direction of movement, angles
of view, continuity, mood, gesture, action, and special effects. It is crucial that
storyboard artists understand the techniques of directing and editing; There are a
lot of successful storyboard artists out there who are just strong story people, and they
get their message across, but they arent necessarily the strongest draftsmen out

RCAA4003: Storytelling & Commission /Project 2 From Script To Screen 2014/15

there understanding story and understanding camera are the main things for a
storyboard artist to know.1
Storyboards serve two purposes: first, they allow a filmmaker to previsualise and
refine their ideas; secondly, they serve as the clearest language by which the entire
production team may collaborate coherently and efficiently; for instance; when each
shot is boarded in advance, only the exact shots are needed to cover the scene, thus
excising the need for surplus footage (and the resources, time and money so implied).
Similarly, when a scene is fully-boarded, the director/production designer may realise
that only one section of a set is required (as opposed to constructing an entire set
needlessly).
Through the development of an original three-act story idea for a one
minute animation (from initial premise to computer-generated pre-vizualisation via
storyboarding), this unit requires you to engage creatively - and efficiently - with
the challenges of crafting successful time-based narratives.
AIMS
The aims of this unit are:
A1

to develop awareness and understanding of pre-visualisation and narrative

structure.

A2

to promote an understanding of commissioned work

A3

to develop the ability to engage in research that supports conceptual ideas.

A4

to develop communication strategies for clients and audiences and take

responsibility for project-management.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
On satisfactory completion of the unit you will be able to:
LO1

understand the creative application of time-based narrative structures.

LO2

practice creative story development and techniques relating to pre-visualisation.

LO3

employ research methods to support development of concepts.

LO4

synthesise creative and technical skills in response to the demands of a

commissioned brief.

ASSESSMENT REQUIREMENTS

1
2

Tim Burgard, storyboard artist on The Day After Tomorrow and Scorpion King.
For example of animatic visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BknHApJ6e0&feature=related

RCAA4003: Storytelling & Commission /Project 2 From Script To Screen 2014/15

In response to the three story components given you at the time of briefing, you are
asked to pre-produce an original one minute animation.
Your preproduction is to be submitted in 2 parts;
1) Pre-Viz, to include:
a) 2d animatic with soundtrack & transitions.2
b) Maya pre-viz with soundtrack & transitions.3
2) An Art Of publication, to include:
a) concept art: environment design
b) concept art: character design
c) concept art : prop design
d) production art: environment
e) production art: prop
f) production art: character4
g) Final presentation storyboards
h) Final script5
You are asked to produce a comprehensive blog archiving and annotating your creative
development during the duration of the unit. You should use the blog to reflect critically
upon your own creative practice and the wider cultural and thematic context of the unit.
Important! Your blog must include:
1)

Your final CG Pre-Viz.

2)

Your final Animatic.

3)

Your Art Of publication (as Scribd Presentation)6

4)

Final Storyboards.

5)

Final script.

6)

Draft scripts/story development to include:

a) The Development
b) The Treatment
c) The Step Outline
d) The Premise

For example of animatic visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BknHApJ6e0&feature=related

For example of Pre-Vis visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYLLnOSjc9Y
4
For examples of character/model sheets visit http://animationarchive.net/Model%20Sheets/index.php
5
For example of script visit http://www.dailyscript.com/scripts/toy_story.html
6
For instructions see http://ucarochester-cgartsandanimation.blogspot.com/2010/12/scribd.html
3

RCAA4003: Storytelling & Commission /Project 2 From Script To Screen 2014/15

e) The Logline
f) Character Biographies
7)

Preparatory Storyboards.

8)

Final concept art for character/environment/props.

9)

Supporting artwork for character/environment/props.

10)

Supporting research for character/environment/props.

11)

Influence maps for character/environment/props.

12)

Your film reviews for the Cutting Edge Film series. Please note in
addition to and support of your own critique, your reviews must include a
minimum of 3 quotations from 3 different published reviews7 + poster art +
supporting stills. Please note - Harvard Method must be used for all
quotations and all illustrations to be referenced correctly.8 Reviews are
to include bibliography and illustration list.

13)

Your Creative Partnership archived.

14)

Your like-for-like storyboard segment.

15)

Your submission disc artwork.

Your submission disc must include a pdf archive of your project blog: visit
http://ucarochester-cgartsandanimation.blogspot.com/2010/09/how-to-turn-yourblog-into-pdf-document.html

Some good online sources for film criticism and reviews include:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film
http://www.bfi.org.uk
http://www.metacritic.com
http://www.rottentomatoes.com
http://www.empireonline.com
http://www.filmreference.com
http://www.kamera.co.uk
http://twitchfilm.net
8
Follow this link for how to reference conventions for all kinds of sources.
http://community.ucreative.ac.uk/article/25881/Referencing-specific-sources-of-information/

RCAA4003: Storytelling & Commission /Project 2 From Script To Screen 2014/15

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
CRITERION

MAPS TO LEARNING
OUTCOME

Knowledge of:
time-based narrative structures
Understanding through application of:
creative and editorial skills required for story
development and pre-visualisation.
Understanding through application of:
research skills and conceptual ideas.
Technical and applied skills through:
the creative use of software packages
Technical and applied skills through:
management, communication and
professionalism.

LO1
LO2
LO3
LO4
LO4

REFERENCE MATERIAL
Essential
Author
Begleiter, M

Date
2010

Beiman, N

2007

Buckland, W
Glebas, F

2008
2009

Levy, D

2009

Milic, L

2006

Levy, D

2009

Milic, L

2006

Mckee, R

1999

Talon, D.S

2007

Title & publication details

From word to image: storyboarding and the filmmaking
process, (Michael Wiese Productions)
Prepare to board! Creating story and characters for
animated features and shorts. (Focal)
Film studies, (Hodder Headline)
Directing the story: professional storytelling and
storyboarding techniques for live action and
animation,(Focal Press)
Animation development: from pitch to production.
(Allworth Press)
The animation producer's handbook. (Open University
Press)
Animation development: from pitch to production.
(Allworth Press)
The animation producer's handbook. (Open University
Press)
Story: substance, structure, style, and the principles of
screenwriting, (Methuen)
Panel discussions : design in sequential art storytelling,
(Talon, TwoMorrows Publishing)

Recommended
Author
Bayley, S

Date
2008

Title & publication details

Life's a pitch: how to sell yourself and your brilliant ideas.

RCAA4003: Storytelling & Commission /Project 2 From Script To Screen 2014/15

Cristiano, G

2008

Dancyger, K

2011

Fraioli, J. O

2000

Hahn, D

2008

Hart, J

2007

Levy, D
Marx, C
Sullivan, K

2010
2010
2008

Truby, J

2008

Tumminello, W
Wright, J

2005
2005

(Corgi)
The storyboard design course: the ultimate guide for
artists, directors, producers and scriptwriters, (Thames &
Hudson)
The technique of film and video editing: history, theory,
and practice 3rd ed., (Focal Press)
Storyboarding 101: a crash course in professional
storyboarding, (Michael Wiese)
The alchemy of animation: making an animated film in
the modern age.(Disney)
The art of the storyboard: storyboarding for film, TV, and
animation, (Focal Press)
Directing animation. (Allworth Press)
Write your way into animation and games. (Focal)
Ideas for the animated short: finding and building
stories. (Focal)
The anatomy of story: 22 steps to becoming a master
storyteller.(Faber & Faber)
Exploring storyboarding, (Delmar Learning)
Animation writing and development: from script
development to pitch, (Focal Press)

RCAA4003: Storytelling & Commission /Project 2 From Script To Screen 2014/15