But for them to compel an audience, you must also endow them with a deep passion for something…anything. We care because they care.

Change always comes with a price.

Characters must be in danger of destruction, but they must also have a chance at construction as well.

Pixar films often feature two main antagonists—one benevolent and one malicious—Buzz/Sid, Princess/Hopper, Jessie/Stinky Pete, Boo/Randall, and so on. Ratatouille has three main antagonists: One evil (Skinner), one benevolent (Linguini) and a third, Anton Ego. Ego isn’t malicious the way Skinner and Muntz are, but I wouldn’t call him benevolent... See more

Pixar films often feature two main antagonists—one benevolent and one malicious—Buzz/Sid, Princess/Hopper, Jessie/Stinky Pete, Boo/Randall, and so on. Ratatouille has three main antagonists: One evil (Skinner), one benevolent (Linguini) and a third, Anton Ego. Ego isn’t malicious the way Skinner and Muntz are, but I wouldn’t call him benevolent

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A good ending must make sense without being predictable.

Don’t Abuse Structure This structure, and probably any other one, can easily be abused. A blunt and technical insertion of an element into your story will only make your script worse. This isn’t a to-do list where you must check off items. These are useful elements to be implemented with care. Don’t force a “bonding process” into your script if it... See more

Movie characters should have flaws, but among those flaws you’ll almost never find defeatism. The characters in Pixar’s films never give up. They will look death in the eye; they will conquer their deepest fears; they will change and adapt, if doing so offers a chance for them to get what they want. This is part of why Pixar’s films are so

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In Chapter 1, we explored how every moment in Ratatouille pertains to its core idea. This is true of all Pixar’s films. They each feel like a complex mechanism, in which all parts work together efficiently. Where nothing is missing, nothing is redundant, and every element has a function.