Act 2

Only a little bit over a week to plan out your screenplay and get ready before it begins. I kinda wish it was a month later because I was just starting to get into my novel, but this will be fun. A good kick in the pants, then hopefully I’ll already be writing one next year when this comes around. Knowing my personality I’ll probably put aside whatever I am in the middle of again and go for it anyway.

7) B Story (p30) - Usually a love story if it involves the main characters. A romance starts to develop or it can be a whole new set of characters coming into action that we didn’t know about before. In Red Water there are suddenly some gangsters looking for some treasure where the sharks are killing everyone. In Frankenfish it is the rich guys coming to hunt the freak fish. They are often the opposite of the main characters. The bad guys, or just good guys doing the same thing for a different reason. This gives you the chance to explore your theme in a more balanced way. You can show more sides to how people see your idea.

8) Fun and Games (p30-55) - This is getting to know the characters better as they explore the problem they are having to overcome. They are on their way to the quest. In an action film there are some minor action scenes, but nothing too much. We don’t raise the stakes yet. Everyone is testing the waters to see where things are. In a creature feature they are trying to work out what the creature is, why it is doing it, how it got there, same in a horror film. In a romance film they are starting to get to know each other, they are having a few dates, humorous things go wrong. It is purely your premise. Read over what you wrote again and you will know the kinds of things happening in this sequence.

9) Midpoint (p55) - Notice that we are using a 110p final length, and this is half way. If we were aiming for 120 pages we’re now at p60, if we are writing the usual horror type film we are now at around p43 since they are much shorter. Red Eye was only 76mins. This is where there is an emotional peak, or trough. If things are good then the world is going to collapse nearer the end, if things are bad then they are going to get better. The stakes are raised. In a romantic comedy they will often start to really get together here making them really happy, in a creature feature they may find out a way to escape and stop bickering with each other as they head off for it. Where things were circling and moving into position now things are speeding up and stuff is happening.

10) Bad Guys Close In (p55-75) - The bad guys are regrouping and starting to come back. The hero begins to doubt or the team start to really fight as things go wrong. Minor characters start to get picked off in horror films. If you think of storm clouds gathering then you get the picture.

11) All is Lost (p75) - The route of escape is closed. The boat is destroyed, whatever. If the middle was a positive then this is a negative. Someone we thought was invincible might die to show they’re all fair game, this is where the mentor dies so the hero can realise his full potential. They say you don’t change until you hit rock bottom, for the hero this is rock bottom. The old ways die and it is time to fight back against whatever is going on. In a romance she may find out he only got with her on a dare or something corny like that.

12) Dark Night Of The Soul (p75-85) - Is not necessarily 10 pages long, the All is Lost comes into this but at some point the hero must pick himself up and move on. This is just before that. This is where things seem most lost and hopeless for the hero. How he copes with rock bottom and decides he can fight on.

13) Break into Act Three (p85) - And here is 3/4 of the way through your script, meaning it’s time to head into the end sequences. Your B story which has been developing in the background, and the hero’s attempts to find a solution all collide to make a plan for the hero to start to win again. The hero is losing against the goal, but his internal need comes through and he decides to fight on. You can see Arnie pulling out the maps and detailing his plan as he straps huge guns all over himself ready to run in to battle. The solution is at hand and we are ready for things to happen. The guy may realise that he loves the girl and although commitment terrifies him it doesn’t matter because she is the girl of his dreams.