Wednesday 9 January 2013

Storytelling Unit: Idea Blast and First draft synopsis

Burglar

Pet Shop

Helium Balloon

I really feel like i've fallen on my feet here, the ideas started flowing well.

Here is a breakdown of where my thoughts have led me.

Burglary is a no brainer, I wondered however of any burglars motivation for breaking and entering into a pet shop.

- Is the thief so inept that he breaks in by mistake?
- Does he break in to prevent apprehension by the authorities?
- Is the thief interested in purloining a specific, rare breed animal?
- Does the thief originate from the pet shop? Could it be a cat burglar? (pun intended)

Then there is the question of the balloon. An object not normally associated with a Pet Shop.

- If the burglar was in fact a kitty or even a smaller animal it could be that they use a balloon as a means of transport or escape.
- Perhaps a balloon could be introduced as a means of giving the burglar their comeuppance.
- Perhaps it is the Pet Shop itself that is the object of the thief's desire. Leading to an impressive robbery in the style of Disney Pixar's 'UP'.

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A burglar successfully breaks into a speciality Pet Shop with the intention of capturing a rare and exotic animal for resale. A bird would be suitable a McGuffin.

A motivation shot once inside clearly informs the audience of the thief's intention. He is unaware however that his every move is being watched by the shops animal inhabitants.

He gets agonisingly close to his prize when all hell breaks loose. I like the idea of his assailants creating unease through background movement, suddenly and violently attacking him whilst remaining hidden to the camera, similar to the pygmies in 'The Mummy Returns' or the prehistoric birds in '10,000 B.C.'

I think this could effectively create drama and comedy by concentrating on the Thief's reaction. His gathering awareness of his peril and injury, could if correctly scripted be very entertaining.

The territorial and protective creatures could leave him trussed up with balloons for the police or a very confused shop assistant to find.


2 comments:

  1. perhaps an animal could be made into a helium balloon? Like a fish, or a frog? Maybe you introduce another character - the pet-shop owner, and perhaps set up a roadrunner/coyote dynamic, whereby the burglar is after the macguffin animal, but the shopkeeper outwits the thief in increasingly elaborate ways? Or, to borrow another cartoon dynamic - maybe this is a Tweety-pie and Sylvester riff - your literal cat-burglar. In loony tunes logic land, stuff like a canister of helium can be delivered from ACME in a trice!

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