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No Film School has published some of Pixar’s tips for creating memorable characters.
From Woody to Nemo, Pixar’s characters have a unique way of sticking with you, whether it’s due to their hilarious banter or heartbreaking humanity. But what is it that makes them so memorable? StudioBinder offers up an explanation in this interesting video:
The video mentions 4 rules but personally, I would sum it up in 3:
- They all have a clear want,
- They all have an unconscious need, and
- They all have character arcs.
They all have a clear want
Woody wants to be Andy’s favorite toy. Bob Parr wants to be Mr. Incredible again. Joy wants to make Riley happy. These are all examples of a character’s external “want“, and all characters have them. It’s what drives them to do what they do throughout the movie.
Or so it seems. Because they also have an unconscious “need.”
They all have an unconscious need
Pixar characters are flawed individuals that require growth in order to address said flaws. The thing that is required for this growth to occur is the character’s “need.”
Crucially, their true internal goals are in direct opposition to their wants. Example: Marlin’s internal goal is to prevent harm, but his external want, to keep Nemo safe and alive, is actually the very thing harming him and keeping him from truly living. He needs to let go and allow Nemo to be in harm’s way in order to give him a life worth living.
This tension between want and need is what drives the character and fuels the character arc.
They all have character arcs
This is the structure that brings it all together: the wants and the needs.
What our story does is put characters through trials and tests, most of which they fail, in order to teach them the lesson they’ve needed to solve their problem. In the process, they grow. At the end of the movie, we find our characters in a very different place. Marlin has learned to let go. In doing so, he has also regained his confidence, which had been shattered when he had lost Coral and the eggs.
Not everyone is so lucky, of course. Whether the character learns the lesson and grows and solves their problem is another story. Villains, for example, rarely let themselves grow – and that’s usually what makes them villains in the first place.
StoryBinder provides a nice rubric in case you want to study this a little further:
- Super Happy Ending: Bob Parr learns teamwork (need) and gets to be a superhero again (want). (The Incredibles)
- Bittersweet Ending (Hero): Carl doesn’t get to live in his house forever (want), but he learns he can create new memories with new friends (need). (Up)
- Bittersweet Ending (Villain): Buddy gets to be a superhero (want) but doesn’t learn to value human (or super) life (need). (The Incredibles)
- Super Sad Ending: Charles Muntz doesn’t let go of his bitterness toward the National Explorer’s Society (need), and his murderous pride keeps him from capturing Kevin (want). (Up)
Developing memorable characters is one of the most difficult things you’ll ever have to do as a writer. Hopefully, this will help. Happy writing!
Read the full post on No Film School.
beetleypete said:
No doubt these are solid tips for character development. However, I really dislike Pixar, and yearn for a return to real ‘cartoons’. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Well, that’s an interesting thing to say! Now I’m curious as to what you dislike about them.
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beetleypete said:
They don’t feel like ‘cartoons’. They seem too weird to me, almost like they have digitized real people and animals. I like cartoons to be drawn and animated, old-school. ‘Betty Boop’, ‘The Flinstones’, ‘Dumbo’, ‘Snow White’, etc. I know I’m in a small minority, but I have never been comfortable with Pixar. 🙂
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Thanks for the insight!
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wilfredbooks said:
Thanks for this interesting glimpse into the thinking that lies behind the characters we see in these productions, something we probably rarely consider, but which makes all the difference between their being credible or superficial. Cheers, Jon.
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
I’m amazed by the character depth in many modern cartoons. In my time, we’d be happy if the mouse had second thoughts before dropping the anvil on the cat!
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V.M.Sang said:
The ultimate thing is that, like real lfe, they are all flawed characters. It’s how the grow (or don’t) that makes them memorable.
A perfect charater is just as irritating as a perfect person, so we should make our characters flawed.
My mother used to say “she’s a lovely person; kind, understanding, sympathetic, clever and beautiful. I hate her.”
I try to remember that in my characters.
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Lol – gotta love your mom 😀
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LoseWeightWithAng said:
It’s interesting to see the process that they go through to create characters. It’s good to see that they intend to have characters with flaws, that’s what makes them relatable and real.
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Absolutely! No flaws, no fun 🙂
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Chris The Story Reading Ape said:
Reblogged this on Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog.
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jowensauthor said:
Reblogged this on Jeanne Owens, author.
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coldhandboyack said:
I love this post. Authors tend to make things complicated and it’s nice to see something presented so distinctly.
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
You’re so right; we need to watch out not to overcomplicate things!
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Don Massenzio said:
Reblogged this on Author Don Massenzio and commented:
Check out this great post from Nicholas Rossis via his blog titled: Create Memorable Characters the Pixar Way
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Michelle Morrison said:
Good advice. I love the Pixar movies. 🙂
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
Same here! Thank you, Michelle 🙂
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Sunayna Prasad said:
These are very good observations about Pixar characters. Yes, the arcs, needs, and wants are super important. I also admire the techniques of happy, bittersweet, and sad endings. Out of these samples, which is your favorite?
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Nicholas C. Rossis said:
That’s a tough one, actually! I loved Up, and found the opening scene particularly poignant. But they’re all pretty good!
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