Continuing from Part I and Part 2 of Andrew Stanton's TED talk synopses, here are more insights and his story commandment:
12. A major threshold is passed when one matures enough to acknowledge what drives you and to take the wheel and steer it. Parents learn who their children are, the children learn who they are and the parents learn who they are.
13. That's why change is fundamental in story. If stories remain static then they die because life isn't static.
14. Drama is anticipation mingled with uncertainty.
15. Has the story made the audience wonder what will happen next on the short-term and wonder how it will conclude in the long-term? Are there honest conflicts with truth that creates doubt in what the outcome might be?
16. Storytelling has guidelines, not hard-fast rules.
17. We're all willing to live life conditionally but if the conditions aren't met, all bets are off.
18. A strong theme always runs through every well-told story. The theme in "Lawrence of Arabia" is his attempt to figure out his place in the world. Everything in the film supports this theme.
19. The strongest element every story should have but is rarely used: the filmmaker's invoking of WONDER.
20. Use what you know, draw from it. Capture a truth from your experience. Express values you feel deep in your core.
The Greatest Story Commandment: MAKE ME CARE, emotionally, aesthetically, intellectually.