Do you see the line where the sky meets the sea? Does it call you? If you haven’t been living under a rock, you’ll recognize these lines from the 2016 animated Disney film Moana. But I’m not so interested in the movie — I care about the people behind it. And no, I’m not talking about the Broadway star and lyrical genius Lin Manuel-Miranda. Instead, I want to focus on Aaron and Jordan Kandell, fellow alumni of my high school, and screenwriters for Moana.
The pair are twin brothers from Honolulu, Hawai’i, who knew from the second grade that they wanted to write. More than that, they wanted to do it together, just like they did everything else. They are clearly a high-Q group, working most closely with each other but obviously having to expand to editors, directors, actors, and many other people involved in film production.
The two relate their collaboration process, one that they deem “two bodies, one brain.” After writing the entire story together, one takes the reins in what they’ve named ‘lead climbing.’ Essentially, ‘lead climbing’ is the first stab at a scene, a few pages, an act, or even the entire screenplay. The second is ‘on belay,’ meaning he follows behind the lead climber, polishing what’s been written and making sure his twin is staying on the right track. It is a remarkable process, and they explicitly deny playing to their writing strengths. Rather, they work together, letting one fill in the weaknesses of the other and vice versa.
This creative collaboration process is what sets the Kandells apart from other screenwriters and creative writers. The two know each other inside and out, grew up inseparable — and are to this day. A classmate of theirs (as our high school was a K-12 school, and the brothers spent all thirteen years of pre-secondary education there) remembers them being known in youth as “the twins” — one entity, inextricable from one another. Having that kind of relationship with one’s creative partner makes for incredible collaboration.
The other aspect of their creativity that sets them apart is that they tell stories that matter, and “no story is closer to your heart than the story of the place you were born and raised.” Hence, Moana. Even though the brothers are not native Hawaiian themselves, growing up in Hawaii, becoming fully immersed in the culture is inevitable, and they wanted to tell the stories of the place they grew up. This, in my opinion, is a kind of expertise — an important aspect of creativity. Although it is not 10,000 hours dedicated specifically to a specific craft, it is years of growing up in a place and constantly being exposed to its culture. This knowledge set them apart from other screenwriters being considered for Moana. They knew already what Oscar-winner candidates would never be able to fully grasp. And countless times, this expertise aided their creative process. They continually guided Disney in the right direction, trying their best to steer it away from cultural appropriation and offensive choices. And, Moana, as I’m sure you know, was a raging success.
One thing I remember from the Kandells' homecoming to my high school was their emphasis on how much hard work and effort it took for them to finally get recognition. After graduating from the University of Southern California (both on full ride scholarships) with a major in creative writing and a minor in film, the pair had to write for four years in LA “on spec,” or without pay, before making a sale. What got them through it? Their love for writing — intrinsic motivation, if you will. They lived paycheck to paycheck, but they loved what they did. And I remember them telling us that that is what it takes to be successful. You can’t have a Plan B. All your marbles need to go into what you really want to do, or you’ll grow complacent and fall on the backup. If the backup doesn’t exist, you’re forced to make Plan A work, because you don’t have a choice. The technical lecture they gave on what it takes to write a good storyboard has faded from my memory with the years gone by (unfortunately, as I am now also a creative writing major), but that piece of advice has stuck with me. I hope it sticks with you.
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It is so cool that they went to your alma mater! Their collaboration process is really intriguing, especially their "lead climbing" and "on belay" processes of writing. It is really unique, and you can see how it allows for them to cover up for each other's weaknesses and accentuate their respective strengths. Very cool.
ReplyDeleteThis was a really interesting post! Moana is one of my favorite Disney princesses, and is a testament to how well the writers are able to collaborate and bring the story to life in such an amazing way. I also appreciate how you when out of your way to highlight the Kendall's as a dup who don't receive a lot of attention, it is easy to talk about Lin Manuel Miranda, and how creative and far reaching his work is, but it's equally as important to mention other integral characters to success that he was a part of.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a great post, especially because we often focus on people like Lin Manuel Miranda and forget to talk about creatives who aren't the main face of a project. Your connections to intrinsic motivation and 10,000 hours of practice were insightful and helped me tie this specific information into my class knowledge. The section about Plan A and Plan B was intriguing because we are taught to always have some kind of safety net, and the twins' advice goes absolutely against that. While their talent is definitely what made Moana great, I wonder if there are a lot of people out there who are equally as talented but were just never in the right place at the right time?
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this post. Similar to Mereya, I feel we always focus on big names within projects rather than focusing on actual creatives within the process. It reminds me of our lecture with Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. We're talking about people who influenced the product so much that the product would not be even slightly close to what it is now and we still gloss over them because of the person up front. Thank you for sharing. Very cool!
ReplyDeleteIt was great to learn more about the work(ers) behind a blockbuster of some beautiful music and stories like Moana! It makes me wonder about the sheer number and fame of musical duos - Oscar and Hammerstein, Justin Paul and Benj Pasek, even Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz - and how their methods for work could be like or unlike those of the brothers. It makes me wonder even more if there's a factor or two behind this. I think it's neat to consider their shared lifetimes as writers (since childhood) and Hawai'ians (but not Native) an exercise of abilities outside the ten thousand hours idea. Now was a nice time for to hear to hear about the no-plan-b idea and focus on dedication to set ends.
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