allegory of the hare and the tortoise
If you’re new to this story, I’ve included an image below from a free children’s fable book. But here’s a refresher for our viewers.
This is the story of a turtle who lives a quiet and humble life in the forest. There is a rabbit who lives in the same forest and does everything quickly. The rabbit boasts that he can beat anyone in the forest in a competition. One day, the tortoise gets tired of the hare’s boasting and claims that he can get somewhere faster than the hare.
They decided to have a race. When starting the route, the rabbit gains an early lead, but the lead is too large and becomes distracting. Eventually the rabbit will sit and take a nap. The tortoise never went off course, caught up with the hare, overtook him, and won the race.
When the rabbit wakes up, he realizes that he has lost his way. Although rabbits are fast, they are lazy and easily distracted.
The turtle won not because he was the fastest, but because he paced himself and kept his eye on the prize.
moral? Slow and steady wins the race.
Aesop’s The Hare and the TortoiseCredit: Read.Gov
The Hare and the Tortoise for filmmakers
I’ve written before about the rejection we see in Hollywood, and I think we need to reset our focus every time a script or project fails. I just heard some frustrating news, but instead of tweeting or throwing a tantrum about it, I’m reading Aesop’s Fables.
why?
Because when it comes to writing, directing, producing, and all the other subtleties of film and television, one adage holds true…
Slow and steady wins the race.
Now, I can’t promise you that this business will be a meritocracy. Or maybe you could become Steven Spielberg if you keep going, but a certain amount of stubbornness, mixed with the ability to learn and work hard, can get you farther in Hollywood than you think. I think so.
You see, we hear a lot about prodigies who are hot right out of the gate. Someone who has famous parents, or sells a ton of screenplays overnight, or an indie darling who makes the jump to directing a franchise for a big-name studio.
But in reality, most of the people who work in Hollywood are just workers. People who have succeeded by following the path of the tortoise.
They put their heads down, weathered the storm, and just kept working until they crossed the finish line.
As the saying goes, Hollywood is a marathon, not a sprint. I know a lot of people who start out hot and then fade away. I think I’ve talked about it here before, but my former managers and agents are no longer in the industry. As surprising as it may seem, I somehow outlived them.
And even though there are new reps and projects that excites me, I’m still on the path to success and just working hard. I’m doing this because I know there’s no clear finish line in Hollywood.
In Hollywood, you’re always on a turtle journey. If you try to be a rabbit, you’ll burn out quickly. Instead, the writer, director, and producer’s way of life is simply to keep moving forward, over and over again, even through hills, sleet, snow, fire, coronavirus, and everything else that comes with it. You will never cross the line of success forever.
There’s just a marathon to run and run and run.
I hope one of these posts helps you along the way.
Much of what we talk about at No Film School about screenwriting has been compiled into a new e-book. It also helps you create a 10-week writing plan to actually finish your screenplay.
