ABSTRACT
Expanding on the concepts established in the preceding chapter, story development in a more visually oriented, less script-based sense is explored here. Branching Out looks at the first, independent-leaning projects of the now-established Tonko House (helmed by Pixar alum Daisuke Tsutsumi and Robert Kondo) – specifically The Dam Keeper whose story and visual development are crucially entwined. Nightmare Worlds examines a more stream-of-consciousness approach through its breakdown of the often-spontaneous development of UK filmmaker Robert Morgan’s BAFTA-nominated independent stop-motion short Bobby Yeah. Idea Generation looks to US director Kirsten Lepore who shares an array of personal processes to kickstart effective story ideas, while Returning to the Scene explores revisiting ideas that have been shelved but may warrant a second look through the case study of Robert Grieves’s Sausage. The final section of the chapter, Pleasing Abstractions, looks at the work of Steven Woloshen in discussing experimental film approaches that eschew all traditions of scripted storytelling.
