More Story Ideas

Last night I had some more ideas towards a story. These are below. I will also post the handwritten story Ive written at some point too. I also know that these do need work.


1. Owner is working on desk doing stock takes on a computer or something and also eating a ham sandwich. A cat REMUS strolls along the desk and meows but the owner ignores, he tries again but is still ignored. He tries rubbing himself on the owner but she pushes REMUS away. REMUS looks around and spots the keys so swipes them onto the floor. The owner growns and gives REMUS a dirty look. As she bends down she is still holding the sandwich up. REMUS sneaks up and slowly puts his mouth over it. Owner now has the keys and looks up, they exchange glances. REMUS then bites the sandwich and runs off leaving a cloud shape of himself (like in the old cartoons). Owner looks shocked and shouts OI! she then grumbles, rolls her eyes and carries on working.
To the right of the screen you see REMUS licking his lips looking all proud. He meows and owner gives him an annoyed sideways glance and carries on. She finishes the sandwich and turns around to put the wrapper in the bin. While her back is turned REMUS runs up, rips her papers and attacks the keyboard. The computer makes lots of crazy noises. Owner looks back and is horrified. REMUS sits and meows at the owner.

2. Cat acting as if not noticed butty. loses balance and falls in tank. Panics comes out all soaked. Owner laughs. Cat walks away as if nothing has happened, head held high.


These are things cats actually do and the cat is the star. They are also similar to Simon's Cat which is my aim. They aren't so much stories as happenings or real experiences though. My ideas are also lacking some anthropomorphism. Maybe he could grab something off the desk and smash something. I don't know.


The end of the first one is like the below short by Simon's Cat but I actually thought of that because Remus did it to me when I was working on my dissertation. Proved hard to work out my notes with scratches going through it.

Idea for how to get unstuck with a story idea!

Just thought of a great way of getting ideas. I posted on a cat forum asking for any ideas for my story. This is a good idea as the idea of the story is for it to relate to cat owners and if the ideas come from them then its pretty likely it will :)

Below is the link to the forum post.

pet forums - cat chat - animated cat story help



Jay kindly looked at the stories on here and really helped seeing why my stories don't feel right. He reckons it just needs adapting so that the cat is the centre of attention and that my mum is atm with the fish tank being the main focus.
The cat is kinda a sidekick to it all.

Its true and that is probably whats wrong so I'm going to wait for more responses from my forum post and write some more but with the cat being the main focus this time. Thanks again Jay!

Ideas from questionnaire answers

The one that has really made me think and come up with a new idea is the one about the story ideas. I love both and so far the results show 50:50. This is why I have come up with a new idea. Mix the two! Who says that the fish shop owner can't live above the shop! Then episodes could have the cat in the shop or in the flat above. I really like this idea but when the flat is first introduced the cat will have to go up the stairs to show the audience it is still part of the shop and the cat hasn't just appeared in a home.

Remus the Cat as mini episodes

On Monday one of my lecturers, John Kelly suggested that I do lots of short animations like little episodes. I imagined this similar to the short happenings in the Simon's Cat Book and each being set in a different place. ie. Lounge, Kitchen, Bathroom, Garden.

I like this idea and might actually go along with it. Seen as Remus does something that is funny or could be made funny everyday! It also means I can carry on making as many animations about him as I want and make it like a mini series.

Naughty Remus Story idea

Remus goes to the end of the sofa and pads his feet to jump. He jumps on mirror thinking there is a shelf or ledge but it is just a frame. He ends up going splat into the mirror and falling to the floor. He gets up and acts like nothing happened like a cat does. He could then wash himself or just walk off all proud until Bob(guy characters name at the mo) looks away and then Remus carries on being naughty. Also, When he jumped the cat nip that was on the top of the mirror could fall and land in his toy box!

This little idea has comedy = the thinking the mirror has a shelf and going splat. The cat owners joke = acting like nothing happened when cat embarressed itself. It also has a way of the cat nip sensibly ending up in the toybox because who would put a thin plastic bag of it in a cats toy box!

Image is example from 'Simon's Cat - Let me In' of cat splatting. Although Remus would be doing it to a mirror so you would only really see his back. Would also test my perspectives :s

Little Red Riding Hood Animations

more about "Little Red Riding Hood: As Told by Ro...", posted with vodpod
I'm not a fan of the animation but I like the idea of using Roald Dahl's version as I'm a big fan of his, I love the rhyming especially.

more about "Simsala Grimm Little Red Riding Hood ...", posted with vodpod
This is one of my favourite of the examples I found. I've never heard of the Simsala Grimm Animations but the style and humour is the kind I like and would be interested in doing. Although I would prefer to just have the story of Red Riding Hood and not have characters that are like narrators in this animation.




Click to see Red Riding Hood Video

I love how the animation looks, the voice over and the sinister feel and twist they put on it although its a bit too odd and off track for me.




Click here for Old Disney Little Red Riding Hood Animated Cartoon

I love Disney but this animation was just a bit too unstructured and crazy for my liking although I do like some things they did such as Grandma being on the duvet. The voices are quite annoying too.




Little Red Riding Hood - Kung Fu - The best bloopers are a click away

I like how Red Riding Hood fights back. With my idea being a cat as lil red and a dog as the wolf I can imagine it being quite a fun idea if I did roughly the same idea. I hate the commentary though.





This made me laugh but it is a bit odd and i think a bit stretched out. I don't think I would do anything like this as I would like to stick to the story.

more about "Little Red Riding Hood as told in the...", posted with vodpod
This is quite an interesting twist and is interesting but no where near what I am planning or would like to do.




On youtube there are lots of videos people have made with the song by 'Bowling for Soup - Lil Red Riding Hood' This one was the one I thought had the best editing and is actually quite a good match and tribute. It gave me the idea that I could make my animation based on this song. It's not too long and if I got the cutting right it could turn out good. My only problems so far is that if I did this I might not be able to enter it in any competitions and would have to get permission to use the song.



This is another video with the song over the top and is Betty Boop footage from "Dizzy Red Riding Hood" (1931). This song is by Sam the Sham and the Pharoahs (1966) though. Bowling for Soup did a remake.

Story Idea - Anthropomorphism version of 'Red Riding Hood'

I've been dreaming about new stories for my animated short. Forgotten a few purly because my notebook was downstairs and by the time i got there the dream had gone. I hate when that happens.
Any way, one that I remember and thought was an interesting idea was a anthropomorphism version of a Fairy Tale such as 'Red Riding Hood'. Instead of the girl it could be a kitten and the granny could be an old cat, the wolf could stay a wolf or change to be a dog. I imagined it in a very Ghibli kind of style.
An idea I came up with later with the fairy tale story in mind was making it into a modern version or like in a modern cats life type of way, kind of reminds me of Tom Kitten from the Beatrix Potter books.
My idea is that the kitten catches a mouse or his/her mum gives the kitten a mouse and tells the kitten to take it to its grannys garden/house. Off the kitten goes and could meet challenges or other animals on the way.
The bit with the gran and the wolf would happen but it may have to be a clothed type of anthropomorphism because of the dog/wolf dressing as the granny to trick red riding hood. Unless I can come up with a good way of twisting it without clothes. Maybe the dog could have the same colour fur as granny and just pin his big ears so they look smaller and point up and maybe curl his tail because the granny's does... something like that. Any way, as far as I can think the story pretty much carries on and finishes as the original.

The only problem I have with this is the fact that fairy tales have been done over and over. I like the idea of oringinality or a twist of an original thats not been done before. If I found out that nothing like my idea has been done then I would be happier about doing it as my animation.

Short idea based on happenings with Remus

For where this idea came fom you need to look at my Remus blog. I've loved the idea of doing an animation with the feel of 'Simons Cat' and I feel what I have wrote below has that feeling.

Blue text is Remus' actions and red is mine.



Remus the naughty cat


I'm working on laptop and eating a ham sandwich at the same time.

Remus stalks around the sofa, hiding, popping his out in various places. He then runs to his toy box and knocks it over.

I look up and awwww grrrr and roll eyes but go back to work.

The whole time Remus is looking Innocent but as soon as he sees I am looking away he grabs the Cat Nip bag and carries it to under the stool and rips it open.

I look up just as it happens.

Remus is eating it and smacking it (his pupils go big during eating).

I run to him yelling.

Remus runs off.

I get there go awwww as bending down and try to pick up the spilt catnip.

While doing this Remus comes back and starts jumping and rolling in it again and getting in the way.

Once only crumbs are left I go back to work.

Remus carries on messing the crumbs until he notices I'm eating my sandwich. He sneaks up and sits on the arm of the sofa.

I look at him and move the sandwich away.

He sneaks around the back and meows at me and looks at sandwich.

I shake head and move it back to my left side.

He waits till I'm not looking and goes behind me.

I look around think hes gone.

He then sneaks back to my left and he reaches to my sandwich in my left hand and licks my sandwich!

I look and then look away but suddenly shoot my head back and snatch my sandwich back.

Remus still has his tongue out during this but the jumps off the sofa as I wave my hand and look angry. He runs to the other side of the sofa and hides at the back of it.

I've been watching this but as he looks calm, I go back to eating my sandwich and working on laptop.

Remus suddenly pops his head up and does the glare he does when hes going to attack me on the stairs but then stops and meerkats to scope the room. He looks up and sees the string at the top of the curtain. (Zoom in as he notices it). He then goes back to the stairs stalk pose, wiggles his bum and shoots up the curtain as he's reaching...

I jump up and grab him and put him on the floor and finger wag him, he goes for my finger so I growl. I then fix the top of the corner and turn around to find him finishing my sandwich! I awwww and fall to sit down flopped on the sofa. Looking defeated.

He looks at me and pulls out one of his toy mice and puts it on the plate and slides it to me with a big grin.

My mouth drops and just turn eyes to camera and roll my eyes.

Some stories on Cat's that I found

I have been looking around on forums for peoples favourites and using search engines for stories. The ones below are some I like the sound of. Some are books though so would have to either get them from the library or buy them. One thing I'm dissappointed in is that none of them are funny and I got my heart a bit set on that. I will keep looking though.

Gobbolino the Witch's Cat by Ursula Moray Williams
Why was I ever born a witch's kitten? Why - oh, why?" With his bright blue eyes and sparky magic whiskers, no one could mistake Gobbolino for a kitchen cat, but that's just what he longs to be. So, while his sister Sootica learns how to ride a broomstick and turn mice into toads, Gobbolino sets off to find a nice warm fire and a family to care for him. He has many adventures along the way and makes many friends, until he finally finds the home he dreams of. First published in 1942, Gobbolino the Witch's Cat continues to delight children - a true modern classic.

Catkin by Antonia Barber
Told in folkloric cadence, Barber's story is about the rescue of baby Carrie, who was switched for a changeling by the Little People. The hero of the tale is a multitalented cat called Catkin, so named because he was "...so small that he could sit in comfort on the palm of a man's hand." Because Carrie was stolen while in Catkin's care, the furry fellow risks all to venture into the enchanted land inside the hill. There, of course, he answers three riddles, the last of which frees Carrie but also binds him to that land forever. Posed with a final dilemma, the Lord of the Little People seeks guidance from the Wise Woman; her solution is to have the child and cat spend each winter in the underground realm and return to their own land each spring.

Slinky Malinki by Lynley Dodd
There are a few books on Slinky Malinki. He is one of the cats in one of the author's previous books, "Hairy Maclary Scattercat" - a feline character to match the canine Maclary. It features the adventures of the stalking and lurking adventurous cat Slinky Malinki who is a common cat during the day but becomes a thief as night falls. Written for pre-school children, with rhythmic, rhyming text. It has become a best-selling bedtime story book in New Zealand.

Winnie the Witch by Korky Paul and Valerie Thomas
Winnie the Witch has a problem. Everything in her house is black. The carpets are black, the chairs are black, the bed is black with black sheets, the pictures on the walls are black and there is even a black bath. Winnie likes it that way. But Wilbur the cat is also black and, when he closes his eyes, Winnie can’t see him against all the other blacks in the house. After she’s stepped on him just once too often,Winnie decides that a little magic will do the trick. ABRACADABRA! and Wilbur has a red head, a yellow body, a pink tail, blue whiskers and four purple paws. Poor Wilbur! Even the birds laugh at him when he tries to hide up in a tree. Luckily,Winnie thinks of a new trick that can put everything right!

Remus Blog

I just created a new blog to record all the naughty or funny things that involve my cat, Remus. He is a Bengal Cat and was born 14th May 2009. This is to give me ideas for a short that I am hoping will be the similar type of stories to the Simon's Cat shorts just with 3D characters, hand-drawn backgrounds and involve my own characters, the cat being Remus. The link to my new blog is below.

http://naughtyremus.blogspot.com/

Ideas changed

I have changed my list of ideas as I kind of fell out with my Bikers idea. My favourites at the moment are Ideas 2 and 4, mainly because of them being my ideas. Idea 3 feels like its missing something and needs work. Idea 1 is at the bottom at the moment because its already been done but I'm keeping it in my options as I love the stories and like the idea of making one in my own style.

IDEA 1
A Just So Stories remake.

IDEA 2
A hungry cat short like my idea in first year about 'The Fish Shop Cat'

IDEA 3
Get rid of it! The one about Matt putting a spider out and then him having a nasty surprise and wanting something put out himself.

IDEA 4
Pretty morphing Animation.

Life Drawings

Here are some Life Drawings of my Bengal kitten, Remus to help me with designing my cat character. I love how Bengals have a wild look about them because they have Asian Leopard Cats in their ancestry. Remus is about 5 generations from one. Because of this I am considering having the cat in my short be a Bengal.



Here are some photos of Remus to compare my drawings to :)

Get rid of it storyboard

This is a quick thumbnail storyboard I did for my idea called 'Get rid of it'. Sorry if my writings hard to read. Its only the first part of it but its just to help me decide on which of my ideas to do.

You can click on the image to see a bigger version.

Idea - Possible pretty animation

I couldn't sleep last night so was sleepily trying to think of more ideas. I looked out the window and suddenly my mums cat jumped up. This made me come up with a little idea.

A person could be curled up looking out a window and suddenly a bird flies by. The person watches it and then the camera follows the bird, sometimes looking as if the bird as well. I imagined leaves flying around too a bit like in the Disney's Pocahontas. It then flies towards the floor as if to land and turns into a cat. It then follows the cat with the same kind of feel. It then changes into various animals experiancing their lives. It then could come back to the person at the window and a tear drops followed to the floor and the person could be in a prison or in a wheelchair or something like that to show how they cant do those things.

I imagined painting backgrounds sort of like the russian dog animation I posted earlier but then have the animals in 3D but maybe distort them a bit after. Like animate them and then do a painted type effect in after effects or photoshop after. Might make it look really unusual and new and maybe a bit weird.

I thought I could do a lot of experiments with it too. Like when the animals change they could transform or maybe change in a puff of smoke or you could just see the shadows change.

Ideas so far

IDEA 1
A Just So Stories remake.

IDEA 2
A hungry cat short like my idea in first year about 'The Fish Shop Cat'

IDEA 3
The Bikers. An animation mainly about 3 bikers with a South Park type of rude humour and short commical moments.

IDEA 4
Get rid of it! The one about Matt putting a spider out and then him having a nasty surprise and wanting something put out himself.

Oh another idea - Get rid of it!

I live with a guy called Matt and he is forever getting rid of spiders for me. So it could start with me screaming and runs in. Theres a giant spider at the top of the stairs. He then slumps back to the kitchen and grabs a glass and puts it out.

(This happened the other day).

Matt walks into the hall and makes a gasp. I turn and look and hes just pointing at the top of the stairs. I panic and tell him oh my god theres another huge spider get rid of it.etc. He just starts saying making noises and telling me to look theres something there. I daren't move to look just incase its a nasty trick.
Suddenly I hear small taps down the stairs and shuffle back on the sofa further away. Suddenly a little cats head pops round the wall and meows (its a local cat that likes to sneak into our house when our backs are turned). I relax and zoom forward to stroke it and matt cowers away. The cat moves to him, arches its back and meows. He shouts and begs me to remove it, i'm too buys laughing so he attempts to get it outside by telling it and it just comes more in the room, he runs outside and calls, it comes but stops in the door so hes now outside and the cats in the doorway. He then comes back with the cat following and threatens to never remove spiders again if I don't remove the cat so I do.


I thought that if I cut bits out and change a few things it would be a great litle short. Its got few characters, comedy, is short and would be fun to make.

Idea based on a dream - The Bikers

I had a dream the other night that was set like an animated series. It had a very south park feel and even had titles!

It was called 'The Bikers' and the characters looked like a mix of my original sprite of Matt mixed with the south park characters. It started with 3 guys who were my mates, Matt, Chris and Dan. They were talking about some random stuff about bikes and girls when suddenly Gwil walks in and they offend him loads with welsh jokes and stuff. My memory goes foggy then and I can't remember what happened next but I remember a bit further on where the 3 blokes are walking to town. On the way Dan really needs the loo but are no where near any so he hangs his bum off a bridge while the others hold his legs. It then cut to Ben who was kayaking down the river below, whistling to himself. Suddenly there is a groan and ben looks up and then splat.
Thats all I can remember but I woke up giggling to myself for quite a while.

I just liked the south park feel, mixed with bikers, comedy and rudeness. Yeah, I can be a bit imature even in my dreams. I thought that I could tinker with my dream and make it into a short film. Thats why I thought I should put it on here so I won't totally forget about it and can think about it. Possibly ad ideas to it.

Idea - Cat , The Fish Shop Cat? - Simon's Cat

I have been thinking about what I would enjoy to do and I decided that I want to do something with animals or an animal. Cats are my favourite animal. Making a short with a cat would make it easier as cats are always around and studying their movements would be easier than some animals. Cats is also one of my obsessions and if you know what its like to have Asperger Syndrome and an obsession you will know it takes over everything and you know as much as you can about that subject. This would make me fully interested in my project and more likely to keep up my blog and research.

Already there is a 'Just So Story' about a cat called ‘The Cat that Walked by Himself’ but I have been thinking about coming up with my own story. I really like the ‘Simon's Cat’ animations and was thinking about doing something similar. One of the Simon's Cat animations is below.



I could even go back to my idea in first year about the fish shop cat who tries to get his food tin open.

My first idea - Just So Stories

When I was young I was very fond of the Just So Stories such as 'How the Leopard got his spots' and 'The Elephant's Child' and 'The Cat that walked by Himself' by Rudyard Kipling.
I thought that I could make one of these stories into an animated short.

If I choose to do this for my project, I plan to: -

* Read all the stories again.
* See if any have already been made as an animation.
* If it has been done before; watch them and review them. My likes and dislikes or any ideas they give me for my work.
* Look at similar animations and different styles of animation.
* Choose which story I would like to animate.
* If the story involves animals; study them at the zoo, in books and on the internet.
* Do sketches and designs of characters, sets.etc.
* Create walk cycles and test animations.
* Create a script
* Create a storyboard
* Create an animatic
* Animate the story
* Add sound and music
* Get feedback from people
* Make any changes

This can be a rough plan for any other idea that I come up with as well.