Resources for articulating and communicating your story.
A film pitch will often involve running through the main beats of the story – and a beat sheet can help to crystalize the events of the story, for the storyteller as well as the audience. Jason Hellerman has provided No Film School a bunch of resources, including a beat sheet template:
- The First Frame
- The World Of The Story
- Protagonist Introduction
- Character Traits
- The Emotional Hurdle
- The Physical Hurdle
- The Reason Forward
- The Decision to Try
- Why We’re Here
- Antics and Escapades
- Consequences and Casualties
- The Final Straw
- Rock Bottom
- The Bounce Back
- Triumphs
- The Final Frame
Save The Cat!
Blake Snyder‘s Save The Cat! Beat Sheet offers a guide “for storytelling fundamentals and mechanics of plot and character transformation”. Jessica Brody demonstrates how the model, designed for an entire story, can also be used to structure scenes or chapters within a story:
Never “And Then…”
There’s always the basic, fundamental check-in answer to the question, “Is my story working?” in this lesson from South Park‘s Trey Parker and Matt Stone:
Midpoint
Further Viewing
StudioBinder breaks down into beats the stories of films such as Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Interstellar (2014) and Parasite (2020):
“It’s only through writing scripts that you learn specifics about the structure of film,” says director Akira Kurosawa. “All you need is a paper and pen.” (via Screencraft):
Film Courage asked a host of screenwriters for their tips to compile their 22 Most Common Screenwriting Mistakes:
Michael Arndt, screenwriter of Little Miss Sunshine (2006) and Toy Story 3 (2010), delivers a 90-minute script structure masterclass:
With your structure defined, it’s time to write – and, crucially, to format correctly: