The Pickle In this structure, the protagonist finds himself in a predicament (often caused by his own negligence or poor judgment), which he must solve or escape from. In many cases, a beat-the-clock scenario is involved. The Sorcerer's Apprentice is a classic example. Others include Top Gum, Locomotion and Coffee Love (see Figure 26).

The Parody
This structure is a parody of a documentary, television commercial, or any other existing property. Creature Comforts and Fishman are fine examples.

[Figure 27] A character dreaming of a better, happier, safer, or more interesting time or place can make for a poignant and entertaining animated short.

I Wish…
In this structure, the protagonist yearns for (or remembers) a happier or more exciting time or situation. Examples in shorts include Comics Trip, Le Deserteur and Red's Dream from Pixar (see Figure 27).

The Rescue
In this structure, someone (or a group of characters) shows up and saves the day. Bunkie & Booboo and La Morte de Tau are two examples. If a character rescues himself, the story either falls under the escape or pickle category.

The Journey
There are two types of journey structures:

• External. This type of journey involves an expedition, often in the hopes of finding a better place to live. Horses on Mars is a fine example.
• Internal. This is a journey of self-discovery or growth. Often an actual geographical quest is the backdrop. PDI's classic Locomotion contains a quickly realized internal journey.

[Figure 28] Animated shorts with unique and captivating imagery in motion and an intentional absence of significant story elements are known as fine arts films, such as Au Petite Mort from Little Fluffy Clouds.

Fine Arts
This structure consists of a non-narrative series of imagery and movement, almost always set to music. This is not a true "story"; however, if the imagery is significantly unique or interesting, it can be an extremely engaging and memorable piece. Examples include Garden of the Metal and Au Petit Mort (see Figure 28).

If you are planning to write a short story of more narrative complexity than a single-beat gag, a simple monologue or a fine arts piece, make sure your plot elements are clear, significant, interesting, and well structured. The setup must spark the audience's interest. The protagonist's goal must be worthy and difficult to achieve to make success triumphant or failure tragic. The main opposing force must be powerful enough to make the challenge interesting. The occasional roadblocks along the journey must be more than simply trivial distractions; otherwise, they won't contribute anything to the action. The ending must be satisfying and logical, and at least some element of your story must be particularly unique or there won't be any reason for anyone to watch your film (and thus there will be no reason for you to enter the production phase).

Keeping it Short
Strive to keep your film as short as possible without compromising flow and clarity. The shorter your story, the simpler it will be to produce as a film and the easier it will be to keep your audience engaged. Here are a few thoughts to keep in mind while developing your story that should help keep things short and sweet:

• Give yourself a target length and structure your story based on a general idea of your available schedule and budget. For instance, if you have limited time and money, a single-beat gag, surprise scenario reveal or fine arts film is a safe bet because such structures can be effectively delivered in less than a minute. A six-minute film can probably contain a fairly full hero's journey, relationship arc or perhaps even a plot twist or two. A 15-minute film will afford you enough screen time for more complex story structures.
• Hit the ground running. It is often a good idea to cut to the chase as soon as possible. Start your story in the midst of an action and explain (or don't explain) later. In a feature film, the audience expects to be interested and entertained for 90 minutes or more. After the first several minutes, the viewers will begin asking questions about the story. Who are these people? What are the era and locale? Where is this story going? Is this supposed to be funny or scary? If these questions are not sufficiently addressed, confusion or boredom will set in. In a short story, however, it's all over by the time the audience starts asking such questions. Therefore, the short story writer has a decided advantage because it is often quite acceptable to leave out exposition and simply deliver compelling action with a climax or a punch line. This is especially true with animated shorts, in which the audience can expect to be taken into a fantastical or perhaps abstract world without any real explanation (see Figure 29). If you write a short animation script about a chimpanzee police officer, you can pretty much expect that your audience will buy into this scenario for at least a few minutes before they start questioning the reality of the situation. This grace period offers you an excellent opportunity to explore the farthest reaches of your imagination without worrying too much about having to explain everything.