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The Mechanics of Storytelling

The Mechanics of Storytelling

Ezra Justin Lee

In this podcast, Ezra Justin Lee talks with different storytellers about their creative process— the mechanics and the techniques.
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Top 10 The Mechanics of Storytelling Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The Mechanics of Storytelling episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The Mechanics of Storytelling for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The Mechanics of Storytelling episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

The Mechanics of Storytelling - Storyboarding with Bobby Rubio, Director of Pixar Short "Float"
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01/18/21 • 33 min

  • ORIGIN STORY: "How did you get started with storyboarding for animation?" (2:29)
  • Bobby talks about his creative process. (12:30)
  • Taking feedback from others but staying true to your story’s vision. (14:44)
  • Thinking about Asian heritage when Assistant Director for “Avatar: The Last Airbender”. (23:10)
  • “How do you access or experience the divine?”(30:05)
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The Mechanics of Storytelling - Asian Representation in Hollywood with Nancy Wang Yuen, Sociologist
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02/08/21 • 41 min

  • How Nancy became interested in sociology, racial justice, and more equitable racial representation in Hollywood (3:10)
  • Nancy’s first experience seeing positive Asian representation in film (5:55)
  • Importance of racial representation and mental health amongst youth (8:33)
  • Asians perpetually being portrayed as the outsider and "noble immigrant" (10:15)
  • Becoming creators of our own storytellers, creators and content producers (16:25)
  • The role of regulation and policy in improving diversity and representation in TV and film (25:15)
  • Why the current system in Hollywood is difficult to change (29:30)
  • “What encouragements would you offer to Asian/BIPOC actors and creatives in the industry now?” (31:00)
  • Spiritual question: “How do the spiritual and moral dimensions come together in your work, research, and fight for racial justice in Hollywood?” (34:10)

You can connect with Nancy:

Connect with us or drop us a line on Instagram (@mostpodcast): http://instagram.com/mostpodcast

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  • Daniel talks about the “Untitled Goose Game” he’s playing on Nintendo Switch (1:30)
  • Origin: Daniel’s upbringing and origin story (2:40)
  • On fame: Is it difficult to be well-known? (10:00)
  • Daniel talks about his transition and how it’s influenced his work (11:20)
  • Technique: Daniel discusses his technique in comedy and writing (18:20)
  • Drawing unexpected but feasible associations/comparisons for comedic effect (23:48)
  • Comedy as natural talent vs. learned skill/technique (26:06)
  • Daniel’s upcoming book (29:25)
  • Random personal question time: “Where do you go after you die?” (31:50)
  • Ezra’s happiest moment and the movie Melancholia (33:30)

Pre-order Daniel’s upcoming book Something That May Shock and Discredit You here. See Daniel’s Instagram here!

You can also subscribe to Daniel’s hilarious and fun newsletter The Shatner Chatner and/or check out The Toast (which Daniel co-founded).

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  • Toni’s origin story (1:20)
  • Arguing in the writers’ room (3:58)
  • Toni’s professional journey: becoming a creative producer (6:44)
  • Getting ideas for stories (11:51)
  • Difference in stories for TV and film (16:26)
  • Getting audience to connect with characters through universally relatable desires or scenarios (22:55)
  • Writing for dialogue and character-to-character relationship (27:07)
  • Writing characters into and out of seemingly inescapable situations (32:27)
  • Character psychology profiles: Mapping out characters’ psychologies, wants, and fears (34:09)
  • Making character actions believable by tying in aspects of their psychological profile (36:00)
  • Common pitfalls in the writing room (39:00)

You can find Toni's Instagram here.

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The Mechanics of Storytelling - Crafting Instagram Web Comics with Filmmaker & Web Comic Artist Elisa Oh
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08/01/19 • 35 min

  • Coming up with ideas for Instagram Web Comics based on personal life experiences
  • Structuring each comic strip’s leadup and punchline (comedy time!)
  • Storyboarding — writing out the content/dialogue/action panel-by-panel
  • Planning/Storyboarding before actually drawing out each panel
  • Finding the funny/comedy through trial and error
  • Good stories connect people

You can find Elisa's web comics here.

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The Mechanics of Storytelling - Making a Comedy YouTube Webseries with Robert M. Lee
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07/22/19 • 40 min

  • Coming up with an idea for Comedic YouTube Web Series
  • General approach/process involved with writing the script
  • Three-act Structure
  • Thinking about character psychology and goals
  • Production logistics: Planning, budgeting, venue-scouting, scheduling
  • Difference between Writer, Director, Producer, and Editor roles

You can find the YouTube Web Series comedy "Low Key" here.

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The Mechanics of Storytelling - Performing on Broadway with Catherine Ricafort McCreary
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05/18/21 • 51 min

  • Catherine’s origin story (6:45)
  • Catherine’s first equity job (15:00)
  • Catherine’s Broadway debut in “Mamma Mia!” (18:10)
  • Hundreds of hours of training, practice, and injury to perform (26:43)
  • Catherine starts the “Artists Who Code” organization (38:20)
  • Spiritual question: What theatre superstition/ritual have you been able to bring into your day-to-day life? (46:35)

Connect with our podcast:

https://www.instagram.com/mostpodcast

Connect with Catherine:

https://www.instagram.com/cattricafort/

Artists Who Code:

http://artistswhocode.com/

https://www.instagram.com/artistswhocode/

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The Mechanics of Storytelling - Screenwriting with Ross Hartmann, Writer and Creative Director of Kiingo
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10/12/20 • 55 min

  • ORIGIN STORY: How Ross got into storytelling, screenwriting, etc. (3:50)
  • Combining TECH AND STORYTELLING: How writers can use tech to enable better writing or overcoming writer’s block (5:35)
  • How to make a story interesting (drama) and meaningful (theme)? (12:30)
  • What makes a great story? (13:50)
  • Using “dramatic questions” — or questions that make the audience want to know what the answer is— to retain audience interest and to push forward a story (18:30)
  • Importance of theme (24:00)
  • Is exploration of moral questions necessary for a great story? (31:20)
  • What is your process of getting your ideas to paper — how you actually start writing the script itself?(43:10)
  • Snowflake method of writing (46:00)
  • Ross, what is the meaning of life?! (51:30)

Preorder Ross's upcoming book "The Structure of Story" here: https://kiingo.co/preorder

More about Kiingo here: https://kiingo.com/

Connect with Kiingo on Instagram here: instagram.com/kiingocreative/

Connect with Ross on Instagram: instagram.com/ross_hartmann

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The Mechanics of Storytelling - Voiceover Acting with Edward Hong (AKA the Cinnabon Monster)
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03/08/21 • 51 min

  • How Edward got into voiceover acting (4:40)
  • Edward’s act of social activism: creating a directory of Asian American and BIPOC voiceover actors (8:30)
  • How casting works (12:35)
  • Role preparation tips for beginner voiceover actors (19:30)
  • Sound equipment you need to get started as voiceover actor (25:09)
  • Challenges of dubbing work (27:48)
  • Is racism and stereotyping still an issue for voiceover actors of color in Hollywood? (37:10)
  • Spiritual Question: How do you get through the suffering and rejection attendant to being an actor? (42:18)
  • Our first bloopers this podcast! (50:40)

Connect with Edward Hong on social media:

Connect with us or drop us a line on Instagram (@mostpodcast): http://instagram.com/mostpodcast

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Keywords:

podcast, Asian American BIPOC representation, voiceover acting technique process, dubbing, animation, commercials, Hollywood, TV Film Theatre performance, storytelling

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The Mechanics of Storytelling - Improv Comedy with Donald Chang, Producer of UCB's "Asian AF" Show in NYC
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05/04/20 • 40 min

  • How Donald got into improvisational (“improv”) comedy and acting (1:15)
  • Improv as a way to break out of his shell (4:00)
  • How you become the producer for the Asian AF show at Upright Citizens Brigade New York? (7:25)
  • Do you improv differently when your audience is mostly Asian? (11:45)
  • Basic technique to improv comedy (14:20)
  • As an improv actor/partner, what are you trying to achieve in each improv skit? (20:15)
  • How you know when the skit is over/ending! (20:50)
  • What goes through Donald’s mind as he performs improv (23:35)
  • Even in improv, audiences want to see interesting relationships between people (25:00)
  • Being afraid of being yourself and improv as a way for repressed adults to return to a place of childhood playfulness (26:30)
  • What NOT to do when doing improv(29:00)
  • How improv will help you in your life (33:40)
  • Doing improv in a way where you’re not worrying about saying the wrong (even if morally wrong) thing (34:11)
  • Why do you think there’s suffering in the world? (36:45)

Connect with Donald Chang's Instagram at http://instagram.com/donaldkchang

Learn more about UCB's Asian AF show (and about upcoming performances) at https://www.asianafshow.com/

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FAQ

How many episodes does The Mechanics of Storytelling have?

The Mechanics of Storytelling currently has 27 episodes available.

What topics does The Mechanics of Storytelling cover?

The podcast is about Stories, Learning, Asian American, Film Interviews, Interview Podcast, Screenwriting, Interview, How To, Storytelling, Podcast, Podcasts, Education, Interviews and Tv & Film.

What is the most popular episode on The Mechanics of Storytelling?

The episode title 'Performing on Broadway with Catherine Ricafort McCreary' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on The Mechanics of Storytelling?

The average episode length on The Mechanics of Storytelling is 44 minutes.

How often are episodes of The Mechanics of Storytelling released?

Episodes of The Mechanics of Storytelling are typically released every 15 days, 4 hours.

When was the first episode of The Mechanics of Storytelling?

The first episode of The Mechanics of Storytelling was released on Jul 22, 2019.

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