Telling stories

Image from Wikimedia commons

The first film I directed starred Emmy Award winner Guy Pearce. To be fair, my friends Ben and Phil might also have some claim to the role of director but it was my Dad's camera, so I have always felt entitled to take credit. We shot the film in Super 8 in the back yard of my family home. Apart from Guy, this epic also starred our aging family dog, an overweight, corgi-beagle cross with limited mobility and no obedience training.

The film was called "Killer Dog" and followed the complex relationship between man and dog as it was developed over the 2 minutes shooting time that our pocket money allowed. Guy ran from the dog. The dog chased him (after a fashion). Close shot of the dog salivating. Wide shot of dog attacking Guy. Close shot of Guy on the ground with arm buried in a hole we had dug in the lawn (mother not impressed). Further close shot of previous night's roast lamb shank protruding from Guy's sleeve with considerable quantities of tomato sauce. Sound track taken from "Jaws". Film ends.

I was thinking about the film this week during training sessions with Jerry Maraia from Columbia University Teachers' College. Jerry spent the week skilling us up on Reader's Workshop techniques and helping us think about the effective teaching of reading and writing in our Middle School English classes.

One key technique in "Workshop" is the use of a "teaching point" and one key professional practice is the development of these teaching points. My students, I feel, often struggle with knowing where to begin and end their writing. Once started, their stories sometimes feel like a runaway train that will run on endlessly giving the reader no sense that they will ever be able to get off.

As kids, our early attempts at film-making taught us a useful lesson about shaping stories. The cost of film reels meant that we had only a few minutes to play with and editing was a difficult process that literally involved cutting and pasting strips of film together. The cost and effort involved meant that we spent a lot of time thinking about what we wanted our final film to look like. Planning was careful and we needed a clear and dramatic story.

"See it like a movie in your head" is a common piece of advice teachers give young writers. But it also helpful to think of that movie as shot in Super 8 - short and requiring some careful thought before you begin.

And one last piece of advice I could give: it's helpful if you can get Guy Pearce to act your main role because he provides a great hook into your writing.

(If you happen to read this, Guy, the film may still be in the cupboard at my parent's place and you'd be welcome to it)