Our reality and environment consciously or subconsciously affects each of our characters in unique ways.

Much like in our own personal lives, where we grew up can say a lot about us!

The economic, political, and ideological forces of our society or the world at large make an immense impact on individuals.

This can also be applied to world-building in film, television, and animation. The place our characters live in influences their journey, story, and behavior.

Hence, world-building should be carefully considered when we create our stories.

With that in mind, I'm here to share with you 9 world-building tips, using one of the best current animated projects around, Arcane. Let's go!

TIP#1: START SMALL

When we start learning how to build worlds for our story. It's normal to get excited to the extent we want to talk about every single place in detail about the world you created.

First of all, you'll need to start small by picking a particular city, state, or empire you want your story to take place.

Avoid the temptation to start talking about your surrounding kingdoms in depth. This can confuse your audience, and they will have difficulty knowing the "major focus territory" of your story.

I'm going to be using the Netflix amazing animated series Arcane as a case study for this article to make my explanation clearer.

Arcane Case Study I:

The Arcane story is situated in a city called Piltover.

Piltover is divided into two parts (the upper class and the Undercity).

The characters in the story are a mixture of the two parts, therefore, establishing diversity without us leaving for another city for the story to progress.

Though, we got a glimpse of another empire - the Noxian Empire. The writers did not tell us everything about the Noxian Empire. This was done to prevent the audience from losing focus on Piltover, the major world in the story. It also added to the mystery and created anticipation for the following season.

Robert McKee had something very profound to say about this: "The irony of the setting versus the story is this: The larger the world, the more diluted the knowledge of the writer, therefore the fewer his creative choices and the more cliched the story. The smaller the world, the more complete the knowledge of the writer, therefore the greater his creative choices. Result: a fully original story and victory in the war of cliche."

TIP#2: THE WORLD SETTING

Let's talk about the setting. This pertains to the period, duration, location, and level of conflict in your world.

Arcane Case Study II:

Period - Historical - 19th century (Steampunk/ Victorian futurism)

Duration - The story covered Years (as we see in the growth of characters)

Location - Piltover and Undercity (Zaun)

Level of Conflict - Social conflict between the upper class of Piltover and the Zaunites (Undercity), which led to political, economic, ideological, biological, and psychological differences and conflict between the two groups and also internal character conflict.

TIP#3: KEEP THE RULES AND LAWS OF YOUR WORLD CONSISTENT

What are the laws or governing systems of your world? Is it magic, physics, monsters, or a world filled with knights and dragons?

Arcane Case Study III:

Piltover has a governing system, unlike the Undercity, where there is disorder due to the absence of governmental authority.

Also, Piltover is a magical and scientific world and this was kept consistent throughout the season - various characters made use of inventions made out of magic and scientific research.

TIP#4: RESEARCH

Research involves taking the time and effort to get to the root of your imaginative concepts and making sure they sound grounded and established in your fictional
universe.

If you have a knack for telling fantasy, historical, and horror stories - to make your work feel great and grounded, researching those topics, reading history books, books on government, science, biology, geography, and the like will make your world solid.

Enjoy the fun of researching and fuelling your creative minds at the same time.

TIP#5: WORLD DESIGN / CULTURE

World design encompasses almost everything in your world, namely:- the style of dressing, automobiles, inventions, and animals used and seen in the world.

Arcane Case Study IV:

The world design and art of the Arcane show are mind-blowing!

It mixed different art styles, inspirations, and influences.

First of all, we get this Steampunk vibe from Piltover. The Police are also groomed in Steampunk attire - a style of dressing that looks old and futuristic at the same time.

Then, there's the Victorian fashion style worn by the Elites/Councillors, which is also worn by Piltover citizens at large.

We also get this Punk influence from Zaun.

Contemporary fashion styles from Vi and Jinx.

The 19th-century Art Nouveau style was also incorporated into the show.

TIP#6: THE UNIQUE IMPRESSION

Getting that unique quality or touch in your audience involves the way you make good use of the previous above points.

You want to achieve a look that leaves your audience in awe and amazement. They will just keep thinking about how on Earth you or together with your team can make such a unique world.

There are many Animated films that carry that "unique impression."

Arcane is one of them. The world design speaks for itself. Disney's Zootopia world-building is magnificent. You can tell that the writers spent a huge amount of time crafting that world. The Attack on Titan anime series is a good example. Everything in the world was carefully planned, from the invention, weapons, mode of transportation, warfare, etc.

TIP#7: WORLD BUILDING SHOULD ENHANCE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT AND DRIVE

THE PLOT FORWARD

When creating your world, pay close attention to how the way your world is designed in relation to the characters and plot of your story. Let's get back to our

Arcane Case Study V:

Piltover is divided into two groups - the upper class (Piltover) and the Undercity (Zaun).

How does this simple division contribute to the stories and characters? This division results in tension and conflicts between the two factions. Therefore, "conflict" is already established in the story.

How are the characters affected?

The characters are all fighting for a course. Viktor and Jayce want magic to foster the growth of Piltover. They have to face external and internal conflicts that reveal their true individualities.

Jinx craved acceptance. The conflict between Zaun and Piltover fully fleshed out the character "Jinx." She changed from someone who was considered weak to someone who gave birth to more conflicts in the world of Arcane.

These are just a few character examples from the show. Time will fail me if I should list them all.

TIP#8: TAKE INSPIRATION

Writers inspire other writers to write.

You can take inspiration from your favorite authors, movies, and shows. Nature and traveling to see the world around you can also inspire your world.

Even personal experiences can serve as an inspiring tool in your work.

TIP#9: PLACE RESTRICTIONS - YOUR WORLD ISN'T PERFECT

Your story will lack depth if your world is perfect. If your world is perfect, what is the need of writing a story anyway?

The real world we live in is not perfect. It is full of so many flaws.

What can aid you in creating your imperfect world that will add depth to your story?

Restrictions. Yes, restrictions!

Arcane Case Study VI:

How did they place restrictions in the world of Arcane?

Hex Tech is an invention purposely created to foster the growth of Piltover. Hex Tech can be wielded as a weapon that can cause damage to civilizations when used by someone with evil intent.

Not only that, Hex Tech has not been fully understood by its creators, limiting how they can further use it for the better good. We saw just a few "experimentation gone wrong" scenes, making the world look real. No scientist has arrived at an invention without making a mistake. Even writers have scrapped and done over plot ideas before arriving at the story they wanted to achieve.

The world of Arcane is a reflection of our world itself.

Their government is not flawless either. They don't meet or answer every need of their citizens, especially that of the Undercity.

Limitations and flaws make us believable. If our world is perfect and easy-going, no one will be interested in our story.

World-building is an interesting skill a writer will not want to miss.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on World-building

Let's hear your thoughts in the comments below!

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