Interview with Stroyteller/Filmmaker Tim Benson Part 2

 Welcome back, Timothy Benson. Let's continue with part 2 of your interview.

Can you give an example of this technique from one of your stories?

Sure, okay. Let me see....I observe a group of children jumping around in a bounce house at a b-day party (a couple of my children included therein). This bounce house floor kinda looks like giant bubbles woven together. Those bubbles actually remind me of giant larva. Then my mind jumps to...Kids jumping on giant larva? Then...Why are there giant larva in a nest on the forest floor? How did they get there? This sole image (and resultant questions) was the catalyst that started churning my imagination and spawned a complete story about three middle schoolers who race to save a city under siege after a greedy extermination company's genetic experimentation goes horribly wrong. Yes, Giant Mutant insects! Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs meets Arachnophobia. This is my sci-fi/adventure screenplay, HATCHED, which came about because I stopped at the bounce house. 

You are so blessed with an amazing imagination. It's amazing that you can start developing a story idea from something as common as a bounce house.

How did you get into animation?

My ventures into animation came about through my compulsion to see my stories animated on the screen. Trying to sell animation feature speculative screenplays to Hollywood proved difficult...ummm...almost impossible.....okay, no luck yet, I’m still trying!! The big studios don’t buy, they cultivate stories from within. The smaller studios want you to bring production dollars with your script. My agent couldn’t get any traction. I was frustrated. No one was interested in HOOKED. How could that be? 

There were so many times I thought about giving up, or considered writing for live action, or in a different genre, but THEN came my watershed moment. A notion occurred to me: 

What if I wrote, produced and directed my OWN short animated film? It could be a pathway to break into the animation world. A means to becoming a “produced” writer. And a way to share my vision for the screen with the world. I was all in. 

It's amazing when we get those intuitions that change everything, isn't it? You must've been elated.

Thank you for participating in the second part of our interview, Tim. It's such fun learning more about you and your career.

You're welcome, Deanie. It's been a pleasure.

for more on Tim's work,  please visit this link:

www.storygiantfilms.com/cupcakes 

copyright 2018: Deanie Humphrys-Dunne

Interview with storyteller/ filmmaker Tim Benson-part 1

Hi everyone, today I'm delighted to be interviewing storyteller and filmmaker, Timothy Benson. Welcome, Tim and thank you for spending time with me today. Let's get on with the interview so we can learn about your adventures and your plans.

When did you know you wanted to become a storyteller/filmmaker? 

I’ve been a storyteller since a very young age - possibly since being able to form coherent sentences. [laughs] I enjoyed reading as a boy and getting lost in stories. I thrived on movies and was especially drawn to animated films where ANYTHING could be realized on the screen. 

As a child, I enjoyed telling stories live in front of people - stories like the day a bull chased me through the forest & I almost died, or how exactly the escape hatch worked on my tree house, or the day I found a complete dinosaur skeleton deep in the woods behind my house. Yup, true story! Kids were all ears when I stood up to tell a tale. They said I had a knack for storytelling  and they wanted more. 

Wow, that's amazing, Tim. I love to hear about storytellers who can use their talents in wondrous ways.I can imagine your audience was mesmerized by your stories.

When did you actively start writing?

While I loved storytelling and animation as a boy, in my later teens I was steered towards a career path in the sciences. I went to college...Got a job...Had a family (five children)...Traveled the world. A full and wonderful life for sure. But there was absolutely something missing. 

Fast forward to my early forties...THIS, is when I found my true voice as a writer. It all started with a story concept of a little boy and his dream to catch a LEGENDARY fish in his small town lake. It was a story that weaved back and forth between the human and fish worlds. I could envision the story so vividly on the SCREEN - an animated film. This story, titled HOOKED, became my first screenplay. A screenplay that has collected over two dozen international writing awards & numerous Best Screenplay honors.

It's incredible that you wove your tale in different directions and it became a screenplay that was honored mulitple times. You must be so proud.

What has happened since HOOKED?

Since completing HOOKED, I haven’t been able to turn off the stories. Twenty years of untold stories were ready to make their way into the world. This was really the start of my creative journey and my pursuit of seeing my stories realized on the screen. 

I"m so excited to hear that HOOKED unleashed all of those stories. It seems you will have an endless stream of them. We are all blessed you will be sharing many adventures with us.

How do you get ideas for your stories? 

I get most of my ideas from my own childhood experiences, or through simple observation of the world around me. I keep a story journal where I record interesting thoughts/ideas for future consideration and development.

But first and foremost, most of my stories begin with one single image or thought. Then, the story gets built out around that one image or idea. The image might relate to the inciting incident; it could be part of the final climax, but it could also be a scene buried deep in the mid-point of Act II. 

Keep getting those ideas, Tim. That's all the time we have today, but we will continue this interview soon.

Thank you for interviewing me today, Deanie. I'm thrilled to be sharing part of my life story with you. Looking forward to our next chat.

For more on Tim's work:

www.storygiantfilms.com/cupcakes