Hi, I'm Georgia, I'm the channel manager at SoulPancake,
and today we are going to talk about how to develop your ideas
into compelling stories or formats.
Brainstorming can be the hardest part of the creative process.
There are so many great videos on YouTube,
and it can be really hard and intimidating to know how to stand out.
One of the coolest things about SoulPancake is,
anytime someone comes to us or ask us to brainstorm an idea for a video,
we get everybody in a room together,
and we all sit there and we write every single idea that we come up with,
on a whiteboard.
We always say like, no talking about what your constraints are,
when you´re first throwing your ideas out.
We try really to just focus on getting all of our ideas on the board,
no matter how crazy they are,
and we throw out some ridiculously crazy ideas.
The next step is narrowing down your list,
into doable story ideas.
So often times when you´re brainstorming an idea, you know,
you come up with something that´s really crazy,
like we want to build an LED dance floor,
and there´s just no way that you have access to an LED dance floor,
or a budget to build one.
So what we try to do then, is to really work together as a team,
to come up with creative solutions.
So, maybe you can´t build an LED dance floor,
but it´s possible to get a disco ball,
and that still gives you the same effect.
So we try and kinda work backwards, from our crazy ideas,
and say, ok we can´t do that, but here´s what we can do,
and here´s how we can make it, you know, special regardless.
And then we actually go through and pick which ideas we like the most,
and we star them.
Usually we start by starring, you know, three to four ideas,
that will then flesh out into log lines,
or, kind of, you know, three sentence summaries.
And then we decide whether or not we wanna move forward
with fleshing that idea out even further.
In the next part, we´re going to talk about developing your story.
The people in your video, or characters you write,
can be a great starting point for story ideas.
Look, I personally enjoy doing impressions,
but do you know how many people think I´m some sort of trained monkey,
here to perform for them, at will?
It´s annoying.
Could you say that as Colin Farrell?
What?
I mean, say I´m amazing, but say it as Colin Farrell?
Amber you are bloody amazing, true that.
Oh my god, yes.
Now do Matthew McConaughey.
You know, I usually like to start thinking about a character,
by thinking about, you know, what it is that they want,
and what´s stopping them from getting it.
And also just, who are they, you know,
what makes them unique.
Are they really nervous and kind of shaking their leg all the time,
what little quirks do they have, that really make them relatable.
Kind of, what journey are they going to go on,
is usually where I begin.
This one makes me think of like, a rocker,
so I feel like they have been partying all night, or dancing,
or something chic.
A masquerade?
I don´t know. If I was doing an interpretive dance, I would maybe choose to wear that.
Anyone who kind of wants to disguise themselves,
because they´re kind of nervous,
but they´re also an interpretive dancer.
This is definitely some sort of bird.
It looks a little bit evil,
I don´t know if that´s just the way the eyes are,
but, ehm...
We identify with people and characters who are faced with issues that are familiar to us.
You don´t have to write it all out now,
but think about what is going to happen in your story,
by identifying the main problem or question, your character or person may be facing.
So what would keep your audience on the edge of their seats,
if they were watching your story unfold?
The key is creating tension between what the character wants and how they are going to get it.
Or not get it.
So we´ll know what will happen next.
In SoulPancakes' narrative series "The Impression Guys",
Jim and Ross are extremely talented celebrity impressionists.
But they wanna quit doing impressions to become serious dramatic actors.
The problem is, the only work they can get is doing impressions.
So it makes it hard to quit.
In the first episode of the series, they come up with a 12-step program
to stop doing impressions.
That brings us right into the action, or the plot of the story.
Since your viewers can click away at any time,
you need to give them a reason to keep on watching.
So the first episode we did of "Science of Happiness",
is called "An experiment in gratitude".
And the idea really came about
by us knowing, that we wanted to produce a series about happiness,
that really asks this question, what makes people happier,
and what we´re doing is really taking exercises in positive psychology,
and bringing real people in to kind of "test them".
We´re asking them to write someone they are grateful for a letter.
The real turning point came when we asked them to call that person right then, on camera.
I don´t know her number by heart, this is awful.
That´s fine. I don´t know my mom's number by heart.
Hi, sweetheart! Hey, how are you doing?
You got a second? Where are you at? The hotel?
I am, I´m at the hotel.
You scared me when you asked if I had a second to talk.
Oh, no, I´m on this, I´m on like this little TV show,
and they told me to talk about the person that influenced me the most.
And I picked you, and they´re making me call you, they´re making me call you.
Oh, wonderful!
We really figured out how to give the audience one tangible thing that they could take away from it,
which was, be grateful, because it will make you happier.
A surprise twist like that keeps your story moving forward, in an engaging way.
It keeps the people on screen relatable,
and the audience wanting to watch more.
In the last part we'll talk about revising your story ideas,
to figure audience interest.
We share videos for a variety of reasons.
Typically because they make us feel something,
or they teach us something new.
Maybe a video makes you laugh or makes you cry or shocks you.
Who is your audience and would they click on this video to watch it?
Going even further, would they watch the entire video,
and then wanna share it?
Keep in mind, that your audience is going to feel most connected,
when they see a familiar face.
So, if you´re introducing a new character or personality,
provide some context.
Using your audience as a sounding board for new ideas
is a great way to keep them engaged,
and build a community around your videos.
Now that you´ve thought about your audience,
it´s time to make sure you´re going to be happy telling this story in a video too.
Making a video takes a lot of time and patience,
and you need to love the process of making it.
If you wanna learn more about how to turn your story into a great video,
make sure to watch more Creator Academy videos, right here.
And if you wanna see some SoulPancake videos,
click here.
Thanks for watching!