The main idea behind making the Robin was to make a
Christmas film that could be watched at anytime of the year. Keeping that in
mind when creating the story pretty much ruled out any reference to Father Christmas,
snow and sleigh bells.
So what was both Christmassy and non-Christmassy at the
same time? Well, I always see robins flapping about the garden, quickly diving
towards the bird table, nibbling on their sacred seed ball and then being
startled away by anything from the neighbour’s cat to a butterfly.
And that’s where the story came from. A hungry robin, whose
survival was dependant upon eating seeds left out by humans, couldn’t eat
because of two stubborn pigeons were blocking his way. And just how far would
this robin go to ensure he’s well fed?
I
had just finished reading Michael Hauge’s book ‘Writing Screenplays That Sell’ and was intrigued by the way he broke down many successful screenplays into a
very simple formula. Keeping that in mind, writing the script was easy because I
knew who the characters were, what had to happen when, and what had to happen
in the end. And the result is a screenplay, a single page in length, which I’m
actually quite pleased with.
You can find out more about Michael Hauge at his website
www.storymastery.com
