Episode 35: Let's talk about Inside Out
Over the next few weeks, Fable and the Verbivore will be discussing Pixar storytelling. Today, we dive into the Pixar movie Inside Out and the details that the creators used to emotionally connect with their audience.
The Verbivore opens up the conversation, by digging into the thought that director Pete Docter had which led to the creation of this story, some of the brainstorming that went into the design phase of the project, and a walk that helped him figure out why the story wasn’t working.
The conversation turns to the unique dual character journey structure that flips back and fourth between Riley and Joy, elements that the storytellers use to invest the viewer within Riley and Joy’s journeys, and that they hide in plain sight the central conflicts for both of these characters within the movie’s dialogue.
Since this is film, we discuss elements of screenplay writing and how they visually show moments that emotionally resonate rather than telling it. We also discuss how subtle choices made by the voice actor Richard Kind help make some of Bing Bong’s moments feel authentic.
We hope that you enjoy this episode and that you are staying safe! Keep creating and putting your unique voice out there!
Into the woods,
Fable & The Verbivore
Notes:
The Verbivore mentioned some of the story of how Inside Out came to be in the intro to this episode. Pete Docter, the director of Inside Out has done many interviews where he discusses the origin of the story idea, the brainstorming, and the hike that helped him reframe and salvage the story when it fell apart. Here are a couple of the many videos, podcast episodes and articles that helped in preparation for this episode:
NY Times Article ‘Inside Out,’ Pixar’s New Movie From Pete Docter, Goes Inside the Mind
Collider Interview ‘Inside Out’ Director Pete Docter Explains Why They Kept Bing Bong Under Wraps
The Frame interview How a Father's Day stroll helped Pixar's Pete Docter crack the code for 'Inside Out'
The Science of Happiness Episode 5: Walk Outside with Inside Out’s Pete Docter
Fable talked Pixar’s 22 Rules of Storytelling. This list is located in many places online, but here us one link to one copy of the list.
Books Mentioned:
Pixar Storytelling: Rules for Effective Storytelling Based on Pixar's Greatest Films 1st Edition by Dean Movshovitz
Hunted by Meagan Spooner
Music from: https://filmmusic.io
’Friendly day’ by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)
Licence: CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)