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My overview of the 3 Act system based on info form the Screenwriter's Bible as I remember it (it isn't in front of me).
Act One consists of the exposition part of the story and contains two major plot points. It should contain most, if not all, of the characters in the story and make it so the world is setup and you can concentrate of filling out the plot from here on. In a 90 page script, this portion takes about 20 pages. When you watch movies, pay attention. The act usually ends about 20 minutes in regardless of length of the finished picture.
When the story begins, life is in balance and everything is good..almost. Some part of the character is incomplete or flawed, but the main character doesn't usually know this. As they see their life, it is what it is and will stay that way.
Point 1 - Catalyst - this is something that occurs during the first act that sends the character to the next point. It is not life changing, and the main character can turn back to their normal life right now.
Point 2 - The Big Event - This is the end of act one. This event forever changes the main character and he cannot ever go back to what there was before. It launches the character into the heart of the story where all the good stuff happens. If you were to lay out your character and think, "what is the worst thing that can happen", the answer is usually a big event. Sometimes, the catalyst and the big event are the same thing.
Act Two - the story takes a turn and your maiun character has something to do. Some kind of goal to accomplish. It could be anything and is totally based on the type of story you have. At this point, though, the ultimate goal is rarely know. It might be, but it often isn't. In a 90 page script, this makes up about 50 pages with the pinch somewhere around the 25th page, or about page 45.
Point 3 - The Pinch - Something happens to turn the story closer to the climax, the ultimate goal. Often, the main character discovers something important that leads them further to where they need to go. In a two act play or musical, this is where the intermission goes.
Point 4 - Crisis - It's decision time. The main character is forced to decide something critical to the success or failure of the story. Sometimes, there isn't a decision and this point flows on past dragging the character with it. Usually, there is. Do you go left or right? Left, the safe path will take you home and nothing happens and we have a boring story. Right is more dangerous, it's more exciting, and you will grow from it, but there might be consequences. This decision drives us into the third act and closes the second.
Act Three - this is where it all comes down to the end. The main character has changed or is changing to make the best of whatever he has been thrust into. This is the final 20 pages of that 90 page script.
Point 5 - Climax - This is where we've been aiming for. This is the goal. This is where the two powers meet and clash and duel until only one is left standing, hopefully our hero. The main character is forced to us everything he has learned on this journey to come out on top, but it won't and shouldn't be easy for him.
Point 6 - The Realization - After all is said and done, we are left with one burning question: what was the point? What did the character learn from this journey. What did we get out of all this. This is the big payoff. This is what the audience came for. Did the boy get his girl? Of course. Did the stable boy become a knight and vanquish the giant, proving his strength to become king? Of course he did. Whatever you were trying to say, this is where you say it. Wizard of Oz has the most blatent of Resolutions when they ask Dorothy, "What did you learn, Dorothy?" I always joke in Star Trek The Next Generation, it's the part where they said, "You see, Wesley..."
There it is. A movie in a nutshell. Start with these 6 points, and the movie will start to write itself...plotwise. The characters are on you. Now go write one, for crying out loud.
I almost always start with those 6 points. For some projects, like Fempiror 3, I write the major plot points for the main character, and then subplot points for the other main characters.
The supporting characters do not run the main plot, however, they have intersecting plots and goals as well. So I figure out what those characters plots are using this basic system.
Sometimes they don't have some of the points, but if they do, think of how much better story you have if not only the main character, but the supporting characters all go thru life changing events - if all the subplots are all three-acted.
George gives a pretty thorough treatment. If you don't have the patience for that, I heard it like this (somewhere...):
Act 1: Get your hero up a tree.
Act 2: Throw rocks at him.
Act 3: Get him down.
An additional thing I read recently on this topic also struck me as something to think about. Each individual SCENE should contain roughly the same structure; a set up, complications, and a resolution, with conflict of some sort between the characters involved every step of the way.
The one thing that is disputable about what you said is that act 1 usually ends at page 20 no matter the length but I've had a review on my feature script that basically told me my first act which ended around page 20 wasn't long enough, so I went back did it again made it about 27 pages for act 1 and they thought it was much better.
But thanks for sharing that thorough info because that'll help a lot because in the past people haven't been to helpful on the 3 act structure.
That's the usually part. It usually ends around page 20, but not always.
The end of the first act of The Fellowship of the Ring comes around 45 minutes (when Frodo accepts the Ring from Gandalf). Harry Potter and the Sorceror's (Philosopher's) Stone, however ends right around the 20 minute mark (when Harry leaves with Hagrid). In Fempiror 1, David gets thumped on Page 21 (of the story) and Act 1 officially ends two pages later in a 141 page script.
It all depends on how much setup is required to tell the story. It's Act One's only purpose for living. Setup the story as thoroughly as possible, and the other two acts run with that info. If you can do it thoroughly in 20 pages, rock on, but if it takes longer, so be it. The idea is to get through the setup as quickly as possible and get on with the story.
Personally I enjoy longer films and scripts so the longer you can drag something on and keep it interesting (LOTR 3 Films) Than do it. Yours is there as well but not as long, though it may come down in time based on the way it's filmed.
Some film companies would ask you to cut it down to make it the average 90 minutes but doing that you'd be forced to cut out it's soul. They did it to Peter Jackson, but I hope they've learned that the longer the film in some cases the better the end result.
Fortunately for us, PJ came out with those extended editions to get our experience back to what it should be. If I ever get a decent computer that can handle it, I want to take my DVDs with the deleted scenes and cut them back into the movies and then burn a home DVD to watch the scene within the movies to get the full experience. I think it would be fun.
To go with what was being talked about i got this program from somebody on this website a year or so ago that you type your story, characters, descriptions, all that kinda stuff into it and you can basically build a story into this program.
I tried it but it wasn't doing what I wanted but that's something for people to look in to, the name may have been Dramatica Pro. That could help build a solid story because it asks you so many questions, some you may not have even thought to ask.
That sounds like a lot of fun to just play with sometime. I googled it and came up with http://www.dramatica.com. It might help if you get stuck somewhere perhaps.
It costs money though but I think they give you a trial version, I'm not sure how I got it free than so long ago.
It's not the greatest software so anyone who buys it is a sucker, but again everything has its good parts and bad parts... The bad is that it asks you endless questions and when you're done it just basically tells you back what you just told it.
I guess some people could find it helpful because it does ask the questions that you may not have thought to answer.
There is a fully functional demo version, but you can't save. Might be fun to play with, though, if you get stuck or whatever. I want to try it out sometime just to mess around and see what comes out.
But yeah, it's like $250 for the full version that saves and exports and everything. That's a little steep for a program that probably just asks you the same questions you can get out the The Screenwriter's Bible for under $20.
Here you go... this is how I was tought to write or well... basically in a round about way stick to something of this formula.
------------------------ ACT-1
Set up
1-30 pages
Plot point 1 should come at about 25th to 27th page
ACT-2
Confrontation
30-90 pages
Plost point 2 should come at about 85 to 90 pages in
ACT-3
resolution
90-120 pages
----------------------
That's the screenplay "structure" if you will. It's not etched in stone. This is how I write a feature length and if someone else wants to post their way that'd be ok too. I don't believe they have one set rule, but this is what works for me and it works for a lot of writers I know.
I do, however, write shorts mainly and that is a different formula altogether.
Just find the content, man. If you're writing the script it must interest you, right? If it interest you then you must have several talking points of interest about the script, right?
Just write plots down on word pad... List them in acts.
For instance...
ACT-1
this will happen this will happen This will happen This will happen This will happen So forth and so on and so on and so forth
Plot point 1 - This will happen that'll throw it off into --
ACT-2
This will happen This will happen This will happen This will happen So forth and so on and so on and so forth
Plot point 2 - This happens and thros us into --
ACT-3
This happens This happens This happens & this happens Then the end comes
-----------------
Just find enough content, maybe even too much, to fill in the acts as listed above. Set up situations. Don't worry if they make sense with your story, you're looking for conent at 1st and then on your second draft weed out the stuff that doesn't matter or work. Just make sure you have a structure, some continuity and some point and direction to go in.
I think you aren't trying hard enough. I believe if you follow that set up you'll do good... Or maybe not even that set up just get a system down that works... this one works for me.
Spotted a link to this from another thread and thought it deserved a bump up.
This great info for the new writer or someone who is stuck. Though some people may disagree with the notion of a 3 act structure, every story has a beginning, middle and end. It's up to you to fill in the rest!!!
So, a question for debate sake. I'm interested in what other people think/reply:
"Do horror movies follow the 3 act structure? How strong is character development in horror scripts?"
Depends on the movie. The 3 act structure is a guide, not a law. There's also the cases of movies that aren't so good, and should we accept them or except them from the question?
I think horror movies SHOULD have the same level of character development as a drama, but some of the target audience of those movies does not want to wait for a character to get developed before they get hacked (thank you very much FT13).
However, some of the more current movies that have made impacts did have both of these. Scream, for example, is a horror movie that did have a 3 act structure and character development. Whatever people feel like its shortcomings were, we did feel something when the various characters were killed. Now the depth might not be to the extent of a drama, but we got to know them well enough, especially for the type of movie it was.
Scream's 3 acts were pretty straightforward. The catalyst of the film was the entire teaser which chronicled the death of Casey. Act one ends when Sydney sees ghostface for the first time. The pinch was when Billy was thrown in jail, but she got called anyway. The party marked the third act (should Sydney go or not?). And of course, the climax was the revelation of whodunit and the bloody scene in the kitchen. It was extremely textbook, but worked very well and rebirthed the monster-slasher revolution of the 90's.
A Nightmare on Elm Street also had some solid development to it. The fewer characters die, the more opportunity you have to develop them. Each plot point in the 3 act structure after the catalyst has a death to accentuate it. Teaser was the catalyst. Tina's death was the end of act one. The Pinch was Nancy encountering Freddy as he killed Rod. The third act was instituted when Glen died and Nancy decided to face off with Freddy. Climax is the big house chase when Nancy burns Freddy up. Realization is when Nancy turns her back on Freddy in her mother's bedroom.
So, some of the better movies of the genre do have these elements. But at the same time, gorehounds don't care. Some movies are made for the gorehounds who want the hack n slash just like porn fanatics just want the sex and who cares about the plot, they're just going to fast forward until they see boobies again. I know some people who loved the DVD setup of the Matrix Reloaded. They skipped to the next action scene once the dialogue began. We work hard to bring plot and character into genres that they traditionally get left out of, but there will always be those who just fast forward to the next death to see how cool it is.
Yeah, I agree with you George. Not every movie traditionally follows the 3-act structure, but I also believe the horror genre should have some character development in the script. Remember, good characters create good conflict.
I write and will continue to write like this in all my movies, including horror. Wether or not the producer/director chooses to use the character development is a different story!
This is probably the best overview of the 3 act structure I've read. Plotting out my story beats under each of these headings helped me tighten up the stucture of my last script. It also helped me find the beats I was missing.
ACT ONE
THE CONDITION OF THE ACTION
SETUP: CHARACTER WITH A PROBLEM
Establishes who the main character is and what the character’s internal and external problems are. Also establishes the setting, period, tone, style and point of view of the story.
CATALYST:
The SETUP: CHARACTER WITH A PROBLEM sequence usually contains the CATALYST which is the first hint of what the main dilemma will be because of the first, usually innocuous, moment where the plot begins to act on the character and launch the story.
NEW OPPORTUNITY / PREDICAMENT:
Establishes a new problem which steers the story in a new direction and hints at bigger obstacles to come as the hero struggles to deal with the new disruption to his life.
CAUSE OF THE ACTION
INCITING INCIDENT:
The NEW OPPORTUNITY / PREDICAMENT sequence usually contains the INCITING INCIDENT which is the first significant event where the plot overtly acts on the character and completely disrupts and alters the characters life. The Inciting Incident contains the roots of the cause of the action.
TURNING POINT: POINT OF ATTACK:
An event caused by the antagonist that forces the character to take new action and defines the POINT OF ATTACK where the character "attacks" the problem and creates the ACTION that is the unfolding drama.
This redefines the hero’s general wants/needs into a specific goal and sends the story in a new direction.
The POINT OF ATTACK is an action taken by the hero which raises the Major Dramatic Question that is the primary concern of the plot.
ACT TWO
THE ACTION
PROGRESS: NEW HIGHER OBSTACLES:
The hero makes progress toward their goal. There are new conflicts and higher obstacles introduced that places the character’s success in doubt.
MOVING FORWARD METAPHORE: ARC DEFINITION:
The PROGRESS: NEW HIGHER OBSTACLES sequence usually contains the MOVING FORWARD METAPHORE: ARC DEFINITION which contains overtones about the character’s growth and hints at the outcome of the story.
POINT OF NO RETURN:
The POINT OF NO RETURN is a point in the story where the hero is confronted with an obstacle that is so large that if he continues he will risk so much that he will be unable to go back to the relative safety he was in before and must follow his new path to its inevitable conclusion. It’s a point of decision and action that defines a very low point in the story where any hope of success for the character seems small and the answer to the MDQ is in doubt.
POST POINT OF NO RETURN:
A beat immediately after the POINT OF NO RETURN that doesn’t necessarily advance the story but it does illustrate the character’s change because of the PONR. This beat is usually an up beat to contrast the down beat of the PONR.
COMPLICATIONS, HIGHER STAKES AND SUBPLOTS:
The goal is harder to achieve than the hero thought and is tested more than he ever expected. Subplots develop and further complicate the hero’s path to his goals and raise the stakes.
CULMINATION TOWARD THE MAIN PLOT:
The conclusion of one dramatic tension and the start of a new one. The hero moves inexorably closer to his goal and discovers new info and better understanding of the nature of the opposition before him. The antagonist is aware of the hero’s actions and takes actions to prevent the hero from learning the truth about the conflict and obstacles the hero is trying to overcome. The focus shifts from subplots to the main plot.
TURNING POINT: ALL HOPE IS LOST:
The greatest set back of the story for the hero. It appears as if achieving the goal is impossible but the hero has no choice but to try because he will have an even worse fate should he abandon his quest now. The hero’s internal needs/flaws are confronted defining the hero’s arc. The hero discovers a hidden truth about the nature of the obstacle and conflict to his goal which sets a new path for the hero that will lead to an inevitable conclusion and answer the MDQ.
ACT THREE
RESULT OF THE ACTION
FINAL PUSH TOWARD THE MAIN PLOT:
The intensification of the hero’s quest for his goal that will result in getting something new or different from what he originally set out to achieve. The actions of the hero set into motion events that contain the answers to the MDQ and the roots of the result of the action.
FINAL CONFRONTATION:
The hero has reached the end of the path that has brought him to his goal. The only thing standing in his way is one obstacle that is greater and unlike any faced before. In this moment the hero must finally confront his internal flaws/needs and be changed in order to achieve the external goals and finally answer the MDQ.
DENOUMENT AND RESOLUTION:
The final outcome of the story and how the hero’s life has been changed because of it.
that was great thanks i needed help because i'm thinking of making a script i've got the plot but didn't know how to push the story along and that helped alot thanks
George gives a pretty thorough treatment. If you don't have the patience for that, I heard it like this (somewhere...):
Act 1: Get your hero up a tree.
Act 2: Throw rocks at him.
Act 3: Get him down.
An additional thing I read recently on this topic also struck me as something to think about. Each individual SCENE should contain roughly the same structure; a set up, complications, and a resolution, with conflict of some sort between the characters involved every step of the way.
I like this! I also believe that whenever possible you should start a scene in the middle. If two people are having a conversation in a diner assume that they have been there a while and didpensed all the small talk. Begin the conversation in the middle and let the dialog reveal what may have already been discussed.
I like this! I also believe that whenever possible you should start a scene in the middle. If two people are having a conversation in a diner assume that they have been there a while and didpensed all the small talk. Begin the conversation in the middle and let the dialog reveal what may have already been discussed.
This is what’s usually summed up with the general rule, “Arrive late, leave early.”
I was always taught the three act structure could be broken up into eight sequences, two in act one:
1. Inciting incedent: What sets everything in motion. Seen above in Martin's post. 2. Beginning of the journey: The character starts the journey. By the end of act one, all of the main characters have either been introduced or at least mentioned. Any guns in act three are introduced by now.
Then there are four in Act Two:
3. My teacher didn't name this past "getting the band together." 4. The character continues their journey, but at the end, we hit the mid-movie plot point that turns everything around. 5. The character has to deal with the new information and obstacles. 6. Ends with your crisis point. In a comedy, i.e. happy ending, this is where your character looks like they are not going to succeed and they are about to give up. IN a tragedy, they've got it all, but they need just a little more, leading to their later downfall.
Then the last two in Act Three:
7. The too easy solution. The character comes up with a solution that's just too easy to work well, because if it was that easy, we wouldn;t have needed act two. 8. Denoument: The character does the hardest thing they have to do to succeed, or in a tragedy, make that final attempt to overreach and fail, losing everything.
And as in the above Bert quote, all sequences should have the three act structure built into them. When done right, they could be a mini-movie of their own. Or part of a movie serial.
This is an excellent thread. It's really late so I'll be coming back tomorrow.
I want to add that in novel format, one is always looking to write:
Goal Conflict Disaster
Reaction Dilemma Decision
Lather, rinse and repeat... and the order might instead begin with disaster when things aren't so hunky-dory rather than showing "the normal world" first.
Conflict is the big player though and it's important to try and weave this into everything if we can. Even the choosing of a chocolate bar can be something major if we do it right.
In the reaction time, it's important to give the audience a time to feel what the character feels. Allow them to grieve if necessary or weigh the options--whatever it is, but this is just as important as anything else.
Then comes the time of the dilemma: when nothing looks good.
There's never a good option--that's the deal with storytelling. Well, it's probably the deal in life too. But somehow, the character has to choose and the audience, reader or viewer needs to be part of the internal dialogue, or, if it's played out with other characters... that can be a whole new interesting take on things.
However it's done though, it's an important part of the emotional experience--that link between the makers of the story and those witnessing it.
Even in a thriller format, when reactions may be more reflexive if there isn't much time to do much rational thought; still, the audience needs time to assimilate, and this is all part of pacing and structure.
Not an easy thing to master.
Working within the guidlines of a three act structure is probably a good thing to do despite my suspicions that there are many more ways to construct a good script.
Intuition tells me that things aren't always paint by number; yet the best way to learn is with a bit of a map and the three act structure is just that.
it's been 17 years since George posted this, and here i am 17 years later learning from it even after long gone of george, its's his legacy he left behind in his words "Remember that this whole thing is like a diary; it's just for you. No one else will probably ever see anything in here, but the fact that it exists will shine through like a blinding light once your screenplay is done. I've got stuff written about characters and situations in some scripts that never come out, but the fact that it's there somehow makes the character more real." and that's it,Some script never come out, but the fact that it's there somehow makes the character more real Hope My contribution will also be there when i'll be long gone God Bless Earth
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