Robert Ausura Writing

For 25 years I've hammered on the importance of telling a story in every film, speech, presentation and video. In the past ten years, I've applied the same sledge to multimedia productions. "No matter what your subject," I have said and written repeatedly, "the writer's job is to craft it into a story."

Recently, I've encountered more resistance than usual:

"This subject matter is too important to make a story out of," one association client said.
"The story idea in your treatment is dazzling," a producer said (dazzling!) in a voice mail message, "but the client budgeted for plain vanilla, and I'm a little nervous about asking them for more money. I'd love to shoot it, but. . . "
Finally, a note on the cover letter of a fax: "We all really liked your mystery story approach to the video, but our boss thinks it's too cute." (Cute!)

I admit that the recent crop of naysayers has forced me to reassess my grip on reality. Is storytelling really so important? Is it really so much more effective that it's worth the extra time, effort and cost to write and produce?

Yes. Here's why:

Audiences are the focus of every project, and audiences love stories. Stories entertain and therefore command attention. They give audiences a context for understanding and remembering what you're trying to tell them. (See the most successful TV commercials.)
Stories are fun to write and produce. They excite and challenge those of us who "do" films, videos, speeches, and multimedia projects. They are different. They get us involved. They stimulate us to do our best work. (See the most successful TV commercials.)
Stories are the best-selling, most sought-after format in the market. When done well, they project a "high-end" image that impresses the client and the client's clients with an impact that justifies the extra cost. (See the most successful TV commercials.)

I apologize to others like me who do long-form scripting and production. Using solely "the most successful TV commercials" as examples of why stories work best might seem a slight. But let's face it, TV advertisements are the most concise and recognizable stories in our culture. The compact metaphorical style of the best commercials is proof of the power of good storytelling. Most other examples few are familiar with.

So let me repeat: No matter what your subject, the writer's job is to craft it into a story. And I'm sticking to it.