Thanks, Fae. I'm glad to hear the joy is back. I'm sure PRISM 2 will rock! One of the things that comes through very clearly in many of these "Making of" videos is how much the people involved enjoy their work, despite all the problems. Okay, get back there and type faster!

denise

Thanks, Christopher. I'm not familiar with "The Last Samurai" but it sounds like something I need to check out. My hat's off to you -- historical novels are a lot of work. Endless details! And the line about "They're like mini workshops . . . " is excellent. If I ever redo this essay for another audience I plan on stealing it.
Thanks!

Got it in one, Jack. Yeah, watching storyboarding in progress can be very interesting. I just watched a session, for the "Star Trek" reboot I think, that really helped me work out the details of the climax of my WIP. I was dealing with issues like,"Wait, he can't be in the parking lot; hes on the roof." It was great to see how others handled similar issues. Come to think of it, it was good to see that others had the same sort of issues.

I just finished "The Last Samurai." My WIP takes place in Japan (though later in 1945 and the present, not the 1860s). I want to better understand the historical evolutions of the Japanese culture. While many people dissed the movie in its day, I found it fascinating. ("They" even joked about it while I was Japan last summer.). The special features are even more revealing and enlightening.

As authors, we need to tap into all types of storytelling to tell OUR stories the best we can. Your post today is a great reinforcement of that idea. Many thanks.

Ralph Kramden? I did watch the SW8 trailers and also enjoyed the storyboard discussion. A great example of the importance of serious plot revision.