Storytelling With Heart & The Geniuses At Stillmotion

Here at Genius House, we’ve got that “post-workshop” buzz where you just want to bottle every bit of insight and inspiration gleaned and keep it going forever. Our week began with the Stillmotion ‘Storytelling with Heart’ experience, which included the Dallas premiere of a moving documentary called #standwithme, a daylong workshop, and an actual collaborative film shoot with the filmmakers. Being able to watch, learn, and execute right along with this team of talented and approachable people was remarkable to say the least. The Stillmotion team’s openness and sincere belief in collaboration over competition is a culture we will keep close to our hearts and include in our guiding principles. I am so thankful that Adam stumbled across this intimate learning opportunity (on Twitter btw), as it had only 40 seats that filled quickly. And I am glad that I made the decision to attend, despite my reservations being more of a social media marketing person than a film person.

While I did learn a lot from the technical video production subject matter, the overarching storytelling with heart theme applied beautifully to content marketing, social media, and the fundamentals of running a business (with heart). In the spirit of openness, here are a few takeaways that apply to both film and social content:

Storytelling is how we connect. Listening to the heart is where you find the story.

• Film: Characters have complexity, conflict and stories that make them up.
• Social: Brands, people behind them, and customers have these attributes and stories to tell. Social media has numerous opportunities to tell them.

Every story can be remarkable. Attitude, approach and environment (which we can control) can unearth them.

• Film: Interviewing should be an easy conversation, like coffee with a friend.
• Social: Bring humanity to every social media post and interaction. Spark genuine conversation and let customers engage with you there.

Think about the goal and not the problem.

• Film & Social: Creativity is born from constraint. What resources DO you have?

Be strategic and plan to be spontaneous.

• Film: Develop “filter” keywords ahead of time and predict what might happen next. This will enable you to capture the story at the spur-of-the moment.
• Social: Predict what timely topics will arise. Be a step ahead with scheduled content and prepared responses that focus on specific keywords.
• Film & Social: Arm yourself with the tools that will make these possible.

Create your own reality.

• Film, Social AND life in general: Choose your own keywords and filter your choices based upon what inspires you, what you love, what types of stories you love.

Whether the discussing a character, relevance, or impact, a recurring Stillmotion notion was authenticity. I cannot think of a better word that should be at the core of storytelling as well as social media. If you are going to tell a story, listen to a story, be moved by a story, it has to be real. Don’t force your agenda. Listen.

Here’s where you can find out more about these actual geniuses: http://www.storytellingwithheart.com