The Hero's Journey: Shrek

       Although this film isn't as straight forward as other Hero Journey films, I still felt that it had very strong elements of one.


1. Ordinary world - In Shrek the ordinary world is his main comfort zone and place of sanctuary, his swamp.

2. Call to Adventure - Shrek's call to adventure is his need to go and ask Lord Farquaad for his land back after his comfort is promptly disturbed by fairytail creatures Farquaad exiled there.

Alternatively it could be the task Farquaad gave Shrek when he got to Duloc (Free princess Fiona from the castle)

3. Refusal to the call - His refusal was not directly to the cause but was to undergoing this adventure with Donkey who eventually persuades him to let him tag along.

Or it could be when Shrek literally turned down Lord Farquaads task until he offered him his swamp back

4. Meeting the Mentor -  When Shrek met donkey, who claimed to know where Duloc and therefore where Farquaad was. Donkey also claimed to know how to get to the castle where the princess was.

5. Crossing the Threshold - When Shrek and Donkey left the swamp and started their adventure to Duloc

Or when they left Duloc to go and free the princess from the castle.

6. Tests, Allies and Enemies - Shrek meeting Donkey, Shrek and Donkey defeating wrestlers at Duloc, Dragon, Lord Farquaad

7. Approach - Saving Princess Fiona from the castle

8. The Ordeal, Death & Rebirth - After freeing Fiona Shrek falls in love and attains a new perspective on life and how he views the world.

9. The Reward, Seizing the sword - Handing Fiona over to Farquaad and receiving his swamp back.

10. The Road back - Shrek leaves friendship with Donkey and returns back to his swamp which is now vacant again

11. Ressurection - Donkey returns to Shrek's swamp and persuades him to go back to Duloc for Fiona with the help of Dragon who was freed from her confinement and followed Donkey.

12. Return with Elixir - Shrek and Donkey return to the swamp with Fiona and they celebrate their love and get married.

Narrative: First Ideas

First Idea

The first idea I've come up with is of a fish sitting in his house in an armchair when he looks at a photo frame on a wall beside him. 

• He gets up to straighten it. 
• when he sits down the frame slides even more out of place. 
• He gets up a second time to fix it. 
• Yet again when he sits down it goes even more out of place. 
• He gets up a third time, straightens the frame, then sits down again. 
• He sighs out of relief and the whole wall collapses to reveal the undersea environment.

Second Idea

This idea has a similar concept to the first but instead involves a crab (with human features) that is admiring his car that he had just finished polishing.

• He gives the car a final scrub with a cloth he is holding 
• When he stands back to admire it again the bumper falls off
• He scrambles to fix it back on but when he does, the tail light drops off
• He runs to the rear of the car to force it back on but then the front wheel comes loose and rolls down a hill
• As he is about to run after it the car falls apart altogether

         Although these are quick ideas I haven't yet pitched to my group members, I have started looking at influences and would like to use Bikini Bottom from Spongebob as a reference in terms of its underwater yet human-like environment and characters.

Narrative Brief: Quote and Location

           
             After the brief today we established the groups we will be working with for this project. My group, group 7 will be me, Lisa, Rhys and Kyle working on an animated short with a location and phrase that were picked by Rhys at random.



The location for our short is:

'Under the sea'



and the phrase or message behind our short will be:

"If it aint broke don't fix it"