Write Your Way Into Animation and Games Write Your Way Into Animation and Games Create a Writing Career in Animation and Games Christy Marx AMSTERDAM • BOSTON • HEIDELBERG • LONDON NEW YORK • OXFORD • PARIS • SAN DIEGO SAN FRANCISCO • SINGAPORE • SYDNEY • TOKYO Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier 30 Corporate Drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803, USA Linacre House, Jordan Hill, Oxford OX2 8DP, UK © 2010 Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, elec- tronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. 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In using such information or methods they should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility. To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or editors, assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instruc- tions, or ideas contained in the material herein. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Marx, Christy. Write your way into animation and games : create a writing career in animation and games / Christy Marx. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-240-81343-1 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Animated films--Authorship. 2. Video games--Authorship I. Title. PN1996.M444 2010 808.2’3--dc22 2009049947 British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN: 978-0-240-81343-1 For information on all Focal Press publications visit our website at www.elsevierdirect.com 10 11 12 13 14 5 4 3 2 1 Printed in the United States of America B978-0-240-81343-1.00030-3, 00030 Contents PART 1 l WRITING FOR ANIMATION Introduction ............................................................................................................................................1 SECTION 1 l The First Things You Need to Know 5 CHAPTER 1 Animation Terminology.............................................................7 CHAPTER 2 The Basics .................................................................................29 CHAPTER 3 Basic Animation Writing Structure .........................................61 CHAPTER 4 Developing Characters ............................................................67 SECTION 2 l Widening Your Perspective 83 CHAPTER 5 Animation Comedy and Gag Writing .......................................85 CHAPTER 6 The Animated Feature ............................................................ 99 SECTION 3 l Opening the Doors 107 v CHAPTER 7 The Pitch ................................................................................ 109 CHAPTER 8 Breaking and Entering ............................................................115 CHAPTER 9 Agents, Networking, and Finding Work ............................... 135 PART 2 l WRITING FOR GAMES Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 139 SECTION 1 l The First Things You Need to Know 143 CHAPTER 10 Writing vs. Design ..................................................................145 CHAPTER 11 Interactivity and Its Effects .................................................. 177 CHAPTER 12 Old Tools/New Tools ............................................................. 191 CHAPTER 13 Interactive Media and the Writer .........................................209 CHAPTER 14 Creating a Work of Digital Storytelling: The Development Process ...........................................................227 SECTION 2 l Interactive Narrative 249 CHAPTER 15 The Script Format .................................................................. 251 CHAPTER 16 Script and Proposal Formatting ...........................................271 CONTENTS CHAPTER 17 Interactive Multimedia Narrative and Linear Narrative .... 293 CHAPTER 18 The Elements of Interactive Multimedia Narrative ............ 303 SECTION 3 l Widening Your Perspective— Serious Games 321 CHAPTER 19 Designing Simulation Stories from Tacit Knowledge..........323 CHAPTER 20 Simulation Stories and Free Play ......................................... 331 CHAPTER 21 Experience Management ..................................................... 339 CHAPTER 22 Back Story and Free Play ..................................................... 347 CHAPTER 23 Stories in State-of-the-Art Serious Games ..........................353 SECTION 4 l Opening the Doors 355 CHAPTER 24 Working as a Digital Storyteller ...........................................357 CHAPTER 25 Creating Your Own Showcase ............................................... 371 CHAPTER 26 Breaking and Entering .......................................................... 383 The multimedia components for this book can be found by vi visiting the companion Web site: http://booksite.focalpress. com/companion/Marx/Your-Way/ PART 1 Writing for Animation INTRODUCTION Audiovisual storytelling has a long, well-developed history. As far back as the earliest known prehistoric times, human beings have communicated the essence of story through the use of pictures and sound: whether it’s cave paint- ings of the hunt, a poet proclaiming the epic adventures of Odysseus, Greek actors performing tragedy or comedy in an open amphitheatre, or through modern times where this primal form of storytelling is expressed on a digital “stage” through television, film, computers and other gadgets. To write for the fields of animation and games, we must master the craft of using words to create images and sounds in the mind of the reader. It’s a form of storytelling that is both entirely new and essentially ancient. The words we write when working in animation or games aren’t intended for the final audience but are interpreted and expressed through the talents of many contributors: concept artists, animators, actors, directors, programmers, game designers, world designers, composers, and others. If you thrive on this sort of collaborative creative effort, you’ll enjoy working in animation or games. PART 1 Writing for Animation First, you must learn your craft and be prepared for whatever opportunities come your way, and that’s what this book is designed to do. The authors in this book will present you with a variety of information, experience, and viewpoints. If you like what you read of their contributing chapters, you can seek out their complete books to expand your knowledge and expertise. In the first half of the book, we’ll cover writing for animation. Today, animation is thriving as never before. Television series come in a variety of flavors and styles, ranging from comedy to action, with material for kids and for adults. Increasing numbers of animated features are being released theatrically or as direct-to-video DVDs. There’s an international movement for independent animation production that is rich and varied, representing many cultures. Finally, there is the no-holds-barred frontier of the Internet where (for better or worse) anyone can create and post a work of animated storytelling. There are many paths available for the writer who loves the animation medium. In this half of the book, we’ll cover topics such as these: ● Terminology ● Script formats ● Television series ● Features ● Developing characters ● Creating pitch bibles ● Writing comedy 2 ● Making a pitch ● How to find work ● Agents and networking Two authors share their many years of experience in developing, producing, and writing animation. Christy Marx, Writing for Animation, Comics and Games (ISBN-13: 978-0-240- 80582-5) Christy Marx has spent nearly 30 years developing, story editing, and writing animation series and features. Her experience spans working on 65 half-hour shows for syndication through to network television. She created the cult favor- ite animation series Jem and the Holograms, along with developing, story edit- ing, or writing dozens of animation series such as Zorro: Generation Z, Conan, X-Men: Evolution, Beast Wars, G.I. Joe, ReBoot, War Planets (Shadow Raiders), Spider-Man, He-Man, Bucky O’Hare, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. She was awarded the WGA/Animation Writers Caucus Award for making outstand- ing contributions to the profession of the animation writer. She contributed Chapters 1, 2,and 8 to this book. You can learn more about Christy Marx by going to www.christymarx.com. Jean Ann Wright, Animation Writing and Development: