Star Wars: Visions Memories 04

Hi team! We made it to Part 4!

This is a post about working with Will Collins, Paul Young, and the Lucasfilm team, and about how the right collaboration can make a creative process truly joyful. Because that's exactly what it was when we worked up the script for what would become Screecher's Reach.

It's the way collaboration should be, but isn't always.

It's the “yes and...” of improv along with a safe, non-judgemental atmosphere, where everyone comes with possible solutions, not problems. It's so easy to be the person to plant doubts, to say something won't work. Easy and often unhelpful. But when you come at something not saying “that won't work” but instead asking “okay, how can we make that work, or how can this work better?”, you build a true creative process that leads to bigger and better ideas.

When we started really working the story of Screecher's Reach based on that initial pitch, even though Will and I would be the writers, it was always three of us talking. As director, Paul was at the core of everything, as he should be. And if you know Paul Young from Cartoon Saloon, you'll know that he is so full of heart. He feels things deeply. That's incredible when approaching story. So Will and I would be able to come at things with the minds and hearts of writers but we would always look to Paul for the soul. He would ultimately have to bring it to the screen. 

So we worked very closely together. We all trusted each other.

And that trust quickly expanded out to our Lucasfilm team too. I can't name them all but I do need to recognise James Waugh, Josh Rimes and Jacqui Lopez who are always amazing to work with. We quickly became friends and everyone enjoyed chatting and catching up. We would get really helpful notes from James and Josh and we trusted their knowledge and insight. And if we ever came back with “well, sure, but we kind of see it this way instead”, they would trust us too. 

Trust isn't handing the other person total authority. Because that often means there is no real trust on the other side. Trust is really listening to everyone. Valuing that point of view and, together, coming to the best decision for the story. It's not a democracy. It's not about how many people believe one thing. It's certainly not a free for all, about who is the loudest voice in the room. It's not about compromising everything to get the most middle of the road solution to keep everyone happy. It's about respecting everyone and the process and coming in with a desire to solve problems, not create them. 

This was how Paul, Will and myself worked and it was so good. 

When it came to the writing itself and it was more just Will and me, that's how it continued. We would pass lines and pages back and forth and excite each other and prompt each other to go further, to push for better. We interrogated every line in that story again and again in a way I don't think I've had the time for on any other thing I've made. And it was all the better for it. 

Will and myself managed to find one voice by inspiring each other, and by always looking to Paul as our north star. 

So that's how a collaboration should be. 

And the script turned out really well. It all fell into place. Except for those 247 versions of the opening that we just couldn't crack. More on that and the parts that didn't make it in. Soon...