Week 3: Story Beats and Treatment

Story beats:

• We are introduced to Prancer and his herd
• Prancer sees something that interests him and he decides to pursue it
• He realizes that he has wandered off alone and has been left behind
• He decides to move forward and discovers new things
• By following his instincts he finds his way to meet back up with his herd

Treatment:

Prancer is a reindeer migrating North with his herd whose greatest weakness is his curiosity. One day while following a well-travelled migration route his curiosity finally gets the better of him, pulling him off-course in pursuit of something that looks much more interesting. One distraction leads to another, and before he realizes it his herd has left him far behind. Without anyone to guide him Prancer is too inexperienced to follow the migration path himself. Rather than giving up he decides to move forward and follow his instincts on the path that initially attracted his attention. Even though he's alone, he enjoys the beauty and fun of the things he finds. Ultimately his faith in himself pays off, as he meets back up with his herd and is able to share his discoveries with the other reindeer.

The key to avoiding cliches in this story will be in drawing from personal experience and avoiding a reductionist approach. I want to make sure that it captures the unique voice that comes with this specific story I’m trying to create. By alternatining between focusing on the basic message and focusing on imaginative details I hope to end up with a film that feels new rather than derivative.