Emma Coats在 Pixar學到的 22條故事法則

22 #storybasics I’ve picked up in my time at Pixar
我在Pixar學到的22條故事法則

Here they are, a mix of things learned from directors & coworkers at Pixar, listening to writers & directors talk about their craft, and via trial and error in the making of my own films.
以下是我從Pixar的導演和同事身上，以及聆聽編劇講故事，和自己創作過程中所學到的心得整理。
(譯註：括號中的文字為譯者補充，未必作者原意，有錯誤煩請指正，謝謝。)

#1: You admire a character for trying more than for their successes.
#1:你敬佩認同一個角色是因為他能不斷自我挑戰，有所成長。

#2: You gotta keep in mind what’s interesting to you as an audience, not what’s fun to do as a writer. They can be v. different.
#2:要記得自己作為一個觀眾時什麼是有趣的，而不是從一味的從創作的有趣出發，兩者大不同。(避免陷入自我感覺良好)

#3: Trying for theme is important, but you won’t see what the story is actually about til you’re at the end of it. Now rewrite.
#3:緊扣主題非常重要，但是你永遠不知道故事會如何發展，直到你完成它。現在，馬上重新檢查你的故事！

#4: Once upon a time there was ___. Every day, ___. One day ___. Because of that, ___. Because of that, ___. Until finally ___.
#4:從前從前...，每天...，有一天...，由於...，然後...，因此...，直到最後...。
(不要陳腔濫調，不要流水帳。)
(結構學的重要，雖然每部作品的結構，大同小異，但空白的部分，可以千變萬化。 感謝 Joe Chiang 補充。)

#5: Simplify. Focus. Combine characters. Hop over detours. You’ll feel like you’re losing valuable stuff but it sets you free.
#5:簡化聚焦(不要一次討論太多事物)、融合角色(去除非必要角色或角色個性)、截彎取直(刪減支線劇情和零碎橋段)，這些刪減過程會讓你感覺好像失去了很多珍貴事物，但同時也會令你更自由自在。

#6: What is your character good at, comfortable with? Throw the polar opposite at them. Challenge them. How do they deal?
#6:你的角色擅長什麼？喜歡什麼？把他們從赤道丟到北極去，給他們磨練，然後看看他們將如何面對？

#7: Come up with your ending before you figure out your middle. Seriously. Endings are hard, get yours working up front.
#7:在填滿中間情節前先構思好你的結局！說真的，結局很難，所以更需要先規劃好。

#8: Finish your story, let go even if it’s not perfect. In an ideal world you have both, but move on. Do better next time.
#8:完成比完美更重要，該放手的時候就放手吧！在理想世界裡你可以兩者兼得，但是現實是你還有下一個案子要進行，然後期許自己能做得更好。

#9: When you’re stuck, make a list of what WOULDN’T happen next. Lots of times the material to get you unstuck will show up.
#9:當你故事卡關時，列出一張你認為「絕不可能發生」的事件列表，解決卡關的要素往往就藏在其中。

#10: Pull apart the stories you like. What you like in them is a part of you; you’ve got to recognize it before you can use it.
#10:把故事中你最喜歡的部分抽掉！要知道你的偏好都是你個人的一部分，你必須釐清這個(偏心的)部分，然後才能好好地運用你的喜好。

#11: Putting it on paper lets you start fixing it. If it stays in your head, a perfect idea, you’ll never share it with anyone.
#11:假如有個完美點子一直只能待在你的腦袋瓜裡，那它永遠不可能被實現。把它寫下來！你才能進行下一步。

#12: Discount the 1st thing that comes to mind. And the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th – get the obvious out of the way. Surprise yourself.
#12:愈早出現在腦中的點子愈要打折扣，以此列推，千萬要避免平淡無奇，試著讓自己不斷地被驚喜。

#13: Give your characters opinions. Passive/malleable might seem likable to you as you write, but it’s poison to the audience.
#13:角色要有個性，充滿主見！被動消極、人云亦云對你來說也許是很好的人格特質，但是對觀眾來說就是毒藥(無趣)。

#14: Why must you tell THIS story? What’s the belief burning within you that your story feeds off of? That’s the heart of it.
#14:為什麼你非這個故事不可？這個故事燃起你心中一把火的火種是什麼？找出來，因為這就是你故事的核心所在！

#15: If you were your character, in this situation, how would you feel? Honesty lends credibility to unbelievable situations.
#15:設想你變成你的角色，在某某狀況下你會有什麼感受？你必須將自己丟進這樣不可置信的情境中，感同身受。

#16: What are the stakes? Give us reason to root for the character. What happens if they don’t succeed? Stack the odds against.
#16:利害關係是什麼？告訴我們角色被什麼驅動著？如過他們失敗了會怎樣？身為造物主的你必須全盤瞭解！

#17: No work is ever wasted. If it’s not working, let go and move on - it’ll come back around to be useful later.
#17:沒有什麼事是白費工夫！暫時看不到效果就先跳過，很多事往往之後會串在一起發生作用。(請參考 Steve Jobs的演講)

#18: You have to know yourself: the difference between doing your best & fussing. Story is testing, not refining.
#18:你必須瞭解自己：區別出完美主義與鑽牛角尖的差別。故事的旅程是不斷地多方試驗，而非在同一個點上不停打轉。

#19: Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating.
#19:以「巧合」讓角色陷入危機是很棒的手法；但是，以「巧合」讓角色脫困就是作弊。(為了脫困而脫困，亂開外掛，錯誤的運用天降神兵Deus ex machina的作法)

#20: Exercise: take the building blocks of a movie you dislike. How d’you rearrange them into what you DO like?
#20:習作：找一部你不喜歡的電影，看看你能否將它的故事劇情排列組合成你滿意的模樣？

#21: You gotta identify with your situation/characters, can’t just write ‘cool’. What would make YOU act that way?
#21:你必須完全了解你所設計的的情境和角色，不能只是看起來或寫起來很「酷」而已，要知道動機為何？(每個鏡頭都是特寫鏡頭，凡事都有其意義)

#22: What’s the essence of your story? Most economical telling of it? If you know that, you can build out from there.
#22:你故事的本質是什麼？最精簡的說法為何？假如你能瞭解，那你就能從這出發！

You can find more stuff I talk about on twitter as @lawnrocket - film and storytelling mostly. I try to keep the what-I-ate-for-lunch posts to a minimum.
你們能在我的twitter @lawnrocket找到更多關於電影與故事版的文章。我會儘量把流水帳的文章減到最少。

作者簡介：

Emma Coats  目前在Pixar擔任storyboard artist，工作之餘醉心於短片創作，最近剛導演完成一部實拍短片Sweetpea。


原文出處，翻譯有議，歡迎討論！