The Soul of Good Character Design

(keyboard keys tapping) - [Narrator] Hi, I'm Michael. This is "Lessons from the Screenplay". Two fundamental elements of character design are want and need. What the character wants usually drives the story forward, but it's often through the character's need that a story expresses its theme and creates an emotional impact. In Pixar's "Soul" these aspects of story structure are right on the surface, because the protagonist is so preoccupied with pursuing a goal that he ignores the joy to be found along the way. So today I want to explore how the film creates the arc of the protagonist, Joe, to examine how it makes the audience deeply empathize with his want, while subtly signaling what he actually needs, and to reveal how Joe's finally understanding his need creates one of the most emotional scenes in the film. Let's take a look at "Soul". (soft instrumental music)

(lively jazz music) - One, two, three, four. Stay on the beat. - [Narrator] As the film begins, the thing Joe wants is quickly made clear. We see Joe's struggles as a middle school band teacher... (clack) as well as his talent and passion for music. (moving piano music) Joe is dissatisfied with his life and longs to be a professional musician. The inciting incident of the film makes his want even more specific. Joe gets the opportunity of a lifetime, the chance to play with jazz legend Dorothea Williams. - Wow! I would die a happy man if I could perform with Dorothea Williams. - [Curly] Well, this could be your lucky day. - [Narrator] He nails the audition and is set to play the gig of his life, but then something quite frustrating happens: he dies. (Joe shouts)

- [Narrator] This crystallizes his want. - No, no, no, no. Listen. I have a gig tonight. I can't die now! - [Narrator] Joe wants to escape death, return to his body, and play the gig that will change his life. - I'm not dying today, not when my life just started. - [Narrator] But in order for the audience to identify with Joe, we have to want him to get what he wants. The film uses a few techniques to show us how happy music makes Joe. When he plays and goes into "the zone," beautiful visuals and sound design convey how he feels. The characters around Joe are also impressed by his musical ability... - Joe Gardner, where have you been? - [Narrator] Clearly communicating that he's talented. And once Joe is in the Great Before, we get a glimpse of how much rejection he has faced in pursuit of his dream. - Sorry, Joe. - [Man] We're looking for something different. - [Narrator] But what makes "Soul" special is that Joe's want is something that is culturally accepted as being worthy of pursuit. Our culture tends to assign value based on achievement, and most of us have probably thought at some point, "If I could just accomplish this one thing, then I would be happy. " So the film not only uses tried-and-true filmmaking techniques to help us identify with Joe, but also gives him a culturally-encouraged want, something we might by default assume is indeed a good and worthwhile thing to pursue. And this brilliant choice ultimately makes the film's themes even more powerful, once Joe realizes his need.

(soft instrumental music) There's a great summary of the relationship between need and want in K. M. Weiland's book, "Creating Character Arcs. " "Your character will spend most of the story pursuing an outer, plot-related goal related to the Thing He Wants. But what the story is really about, on a deeper level, is his growth into a place where he, first subconsciously, then consciously, recognizes and pursues his inner goal, the Thing He Needs. " So how does Joe come to recognize and pursue the thing he needs? This is where Joe's antagonist, or opponent if you want to use a softer word, 22, comes in. - I'm gonna make you wish you never died. - [Narrator] As a soul who has never been to Earth nor ever been in a body... - I'm in a body? - Why are you in my body? - [Narrator] The experience of living is entirely new to 22. (gasps) - Don't worry, it's okay. Just keep walking. (jake hammer rattling) (shouts) - [Narrator] At first, being stuck in Joe's body is overwhelming, but around the midpoint of the story, 22 starts getting into this whole living thing. Meanwhile, Joe, who is stuck in the body of a cat, watches as 22's complete lack of interest in jazz creates new opportunities for human connection. - It is nice to talk to you about something other than jazz, Joe. - Huh. How come we never talked about your life before? - You never asked. But I'm glad you did this time. - [Narrator] 22 delights in living life moment by moment, appreciating the things Joe overlooks as he continues to pursue the thing he wants. This hints at Joe's need: to realize that attaching his purpose in life to accomplishing a singular goal prevents him from actually living. Although Joe starts to become conscious of his need at the midpoint, this need is actually present from the start of the film, in ways we may have even been blind to because we were swept up in Joe's culturally-encouraged pursuit of his want. In that same first scene where Joe struggles as a teacher, we also see that he experiences joy watching just one of his students falling in love with music. In the second scene, Joe's mother points out all the things he doesn't seem to appreciate about teaching music. - And lord knows we need more teachers in this world. And just think, playing music will finally be your real career! - [Narrator] And if we revisit Joe's lines when he is faced with the Great Beyond, we see that they reveal his subconscious awareness of his need. - I'm not dying today. Not when my life just started. - [Narrator] Deep down, Joe knows that he hasn't really been living his life, but instead waiting for some magical future that will mark when his life really starts. Joe's need is present subconsciously from the start of the film, and while he begins to recognize it consciously at the midpoint, how does he finally accept it? In the final stages of a positive change arc, the story must force the character to confront their need, at the crisis. (soft instrumental music)

A protagonist can end a story having gotten what they want, what they need, or both, or neither. In most quote-unquote happy endings, the protagonist gets what they want and what they need. In "Groundhog Day", spoiler warning, Phil gets what he needs when he learns how to be truly selfless, and in doing so becomes worthy of the thing he wants: the affection of his love interest, Rita. Check out our video on "Groundhog Day". In more bittersweet endings, the protagonist sacrifices the thing they originally wanted for the thing they need. In "Children of Men", spoiler warning, Theo just wants to make some money and maintain his apathy toward the future of humanity. But in the end, he realizes that the thing he needs is to reawaken his passion and to fight for humanity, and he makes the ultimate sacrifice to that end. Check out our video on "Children of Men". "Soul" does something interesting. The film makes Joe realize his need by giving him exactly what he wants. By the end of the second act, Joe is back in his body and manages to make it to his gig with Dorothea Williams, though it's clear he still hasn't embraced his need. - Get ready Joe Gardner. Your life is about to start. He plays the show and absolutely kills it, receiving a standing ovation. (audience cheering) - Welcome to the quartet, teach. - [Narrator] Joe has finally gotten everything he has ever wanted, so he's confused when he finds himself feeling lost. - What's wrong, Teach? - It's just I've been waiting on this day for... my entire life. I thought I'd feel different. - [Narrator] This conversation with Dorothea is what finally prepares Joe to fully recognize his need, and it does this in two ways. On the Spotify podcast "Soul" Stories, "Soul"'s co-writer and director Pete Docter recounts a story told to him by Trent Reznor, who co-scored the film and is the driving creative force behind the band Nine Inch Nails. - [Pete Docter] He said, "I felt as a musician, boy, if I could someday just play a stadium show, that would mean that I've made it. He said somehow he felt that it would fix him and make everything make sense. And what happened was, instead, he plays the show, it's great, and everybody has lives and they went home. And he's left there going, "Wait, I thought that was supposed to be the thing that put it all in place, and it didn't. " And it was because of that story of waiting backstage for people that we put in, remember, Kemp, we put in that the thing with the subway. - [Narrator] "The thing with the subway" is a reference to earlier in the film, when Joe associates riding the subway with monotony and dissatisfaction in life, and he imagines a future when he won't have to be concerned with such things. - Every day the same thing, day in and day out. But once I get on that stage tonight, all my troubles are going to be fixed. You're gonna see a brand-new Joe Gardner. - [Narrator] But after playing the gig of his life, he realizes that even his dream job is still a job. - So... (chuckles) what happens next? - We come back tomorrow night and do it all again. - [Narrator] Immediately after this interaction, we see Joe ending his day by riding the subway home, just like everyone else. The second way the conversation with Dorothea prepares Joe to recognize his need is through the story she tells him, which succinctly summarizes the problem with Joe's want. - I heard this story about a fish. He swims up to this older fish and says, "I'm trying to find this thing they call the ocean. " "The ocean? " says the older fish, "That's what you're in right now. " "This? " says the young fish, "This is water. What I want is the ocean. " (soft piano music) See you tomorrow. - [Narrator] After getting what he wants and hearing this story, Joe now understands the theme at the heart of the film: attaching your purpose in life to a goal will not bring you permanent happiness even if you achieve it, and in the meantime you'll miss out on all the life happening around you. Armed with this knowledge, Joe returns home, remembers the joy 22 found in all the little things in life, and finally gets what he needs. - So, what do you think you'll do? How are you gonna spend your life? - I'm not sure. But I do know... I'm gonna live every minute of it. (gentle instrumental music) - "Soul" clearly demonstrates the importance of a character's want and a character's need. By making the thing Joe wants something that our culture often encourages us to want as well, the movie teaches a valuable life lesson that we unfortunately hear very rarely. If we decide that our lives won't really begin, won't really have a purpose, until we achieve a singular goal, then we may miss out on all the life happening around us, in this very moment.

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed our video on "Soul". I have a question for you. I'm thinking about putting together a video essayist roundtable that would premiere on Nebula, and I want to know from you guys: Who are some video essayists you'd love to see be a part of the conversation, and what are some topics that you'd want us to talk about? Let me know in the comments below. If you're unfamiliar with Nebula, it's a streaming service created by a group of educational YouTubers where we don't have to worry about the algorithm and we can experiment with new kinds of content. It features some of the best creators on YouTube, and all the content there is ad-free, Plus, there are things called Nebula Originals, content made exclusively for Nebula. If you're interested in signing up for Nebula, we've done something to sweeten the deal. If you sign up for CuriosityStream, not only do you get their thousands of amazing documentaries, you also get Nebula for free. So, for example, you could, on CuriosityStream, check out "The Science of Cute", a documentary about how and why we perceive cuteness that features tons of adorable imagery. And then also check out, on Nebula, Tom Scott torturing some YouTubers or Real Engineering's series on the logistics of D-Day, which is really fascinating. And if you use the link in the description below, you get 26% off an annual plan; so, that's both CuriosityStream and Nebula, for less than $15 a year. So head to link in the description below to sign up for CuriosityStream and get Nebula for free. Thank you, CuriosityStream, for sponsoring this video. If you haven't, this is also a great time to check out our podcast, "Beyond the Screenplay", where each week the team and I do a conversational deep-dive analysis into a different film. The link to our episode on "Soul" is in the description below. Thank you as always to the patrons for making this channel possible, and thank you for watching.