How Do You Tell a Story?
by Richard Owens
It’s a question I’ve been asking myself and many, many other people for a great many years. And that question is usually followed by a few more. What makes a great story great? How do you make people care about something as much as you do? How do you express emotion visually? Orally? Through the written word? Those inquiries didn’t sound quite so formal at eight years-old, but they were asked.
My medium of choice for storytelling as a child, teenager and then young adult was writing. Weaned on Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, I told the kinds of stories I loved the most the easiest way I knew how: writing them down.
But towards my later college years I was lucky enough to land a dream internship that introduced me to the world of film production. It was particularly difficult at first, adapting to something I had little experience in. But I leaned on my ability as a writer and learned as quickly as I could. It was at this point that I had a profound personal revelation: stories are universal, regardless of medium. It’s about creating a connection with another human being, and if you’re lucky, with many, many people. I stopped agonizing over whether I wanted to be a writer or a filmmaker or a photographer or a podcaster. I saw myself as a storyteller.
So what am I doing at JTWO? I’m 25 after all, a little older than most people taking internships. But I promise I’m not the Van Wilder of interns. I’m taking the next step on a road that I hope leads to becoming a better storyteller. I’ve fallen in love with filmmaking over the past couple of years and JTWO is a place where I see myself taking the next step forward. As a filmmaker and a storyteller.
This project was created as part of the JTWO [INC]ubator Project. A semester long internship program built from the ground up to give young filmmakers, content creators, and all around hungry for a challenge individuals a place to stretch their creative minds while preparing them for the road ahead.