Dưới đây là bài viết của tác giả David W. Warfield về 17 bước trong việc phát triển cấu trúc kịch bản phim nói riêng hay là của một câu chuyện nói chung. Mà đúng là xem phim nhiều thấy phim nào cũng dựa trên một formula như này thật, chỉ có điều là theo các cách khác nhau thôi. Mặc dù các nhà biên kịch đình đám như anh Phan Đăng Di hay Bùi Thạc Chuyên có khẳng định ngày hôm qua trong buổi hội thảo là cứ viết thôi, theo con tim thôi, chẳng có công thức gì, blah blah nhưng rõ ràng là vẫn tồn tại một mẫu chung nhất định nào đó chứ.
Cấu trúc này là cái khung xây dựng dựa trên 3 Acts, 5 Points và 8 Sequences đã nói ở bài trước, thể hiện rằng các yếu tố này kết hợp với nhau như thế nào. Có ví dụ minh họa từ Hollywood rất hay.
STORY STRUCTURE IN 17 STEPS
This is not a gimmick! This
is a way of analyzing Story Structure that can help you organize your ideas
into an effective dramatic form. Rough page counts are given to offer a
sense of positioning. It’s not prudent to attempt to “force” your story/
outline to fit every step, but as you examine films of similar genre to your
own, and develop your story, you’ll probably find that most or all of the steps
are there or should be there. Sometimes they overlap, or two of the steps
are combined into one. The important thing is that you examine your story
closely with these steps in mind. The process will probably generate some
great ideas.
ACT I – THE SET UP
1) POINT
OF ATTACK Page 1 – Not only where to start the story (at its latest
possible point in the life of the protagonist) but also what is a really cool,
compelling, intriguing first thing you see when the movie starts? The first 5 pages also must
often establish the status quo, the “normal” balance of the protagonist’s life.
The Fugitive starts with a murder. The Town starts with a bank heist.
2) WHAT IS
THIS MOVIE ABOUT? Pages 3-6 - Right off the top you want to deliver a signal of what the story is
about, what is the genre and tone. Who is the main character? What is
his/her problem? The Theme of the story is SUBTEXT, portrayed in subtle
or not so subtle moments. For example, Inception sets up the thematic emotional
spine of loss and yearning right off the top. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance
Kid, the theme of obsolescence is established immediately. In 13 Going on 30,
the theme of personal integrity vs. social pressure is set up in the very early
pages. In a supernatural or ghost story, the possibility of supernatural story
events must be established from the start. In some films (Paranormal Activity),
this is merely a matter of a creepy credit sequence accompanied by a creepy
title. In others, a scary prologue or opening scene sets the supernatural tone
and signals what genre we’re in. More than anything, the opening
communicates to the audience who the central character is—the protagonist—and
what problem or desire he or she is facing.
3) THE
HOOK Pages 1-10 – Within
the first ten pages we have set up the theme, tone, the Protagonist, and what
his/her problem is. By page ten we have delivered the HOOK: The hook is the
great scene or important event or the inciting incident or a set piece that
makes the reader want to keep reading.
4)
INCITING INCIDENT Pages 5 -15 - Why is today different than
any other day? (in the life of the Protagonist.) This question
must be answered by the act break, and the sooner the better in the
Thriller. In The Town, the true inciting incident is Boy Meets Girl, and
that happens a few minutes in, in the opening bank heist. The inciting incident may be
identical to the hook. It may occur in the first scene. It is
occasionally identical with the first turning point or act break, but more
often (and perhaps more effectively) it occurs in this page range. In Crazy
Heart, the inciting incident and the end of Act I are identical: Alcoholic Boy
Meets Girl. In The Fugitive, the inciting incident plays out in the first
moments: the wife is murdered. In Wedding Crashers, it’s more subtle: a girl
tells the hero he is a jerk. He knows she’s right, and decides to change
his life. The key to
Inciting Incident is the answer to the question, “Why is today different than
any other day?”
5) CALL TO
ACTION Pages 15 – 25 – The set up so far has delivered a character
and a problem: Now we must pose: What is at stake and what will the
protagonist do about it? One character will argue that the protagonist
should not take a particular action in response to the problem. Perhaps the
protagonist will be a RELUCTANT HERO and refuse the call to action initially. The pros and cons, risks and
rewards associated with a dilemma—a very difficult pair of choices—is
presented. Should I stay or should I go?
6) TURNING
POINT I Page 25 – 30 – This is the first Act Break, a
turning point usually involving a major decision by the Protagonist. After
crossing this line the Hero is thrust into a world that is new, risky, strange,
and in everyway different from the status quo established so far in Act I.
By now the Dramatic
Question has been clearly posed to the audience: Will the hero outsmart
the cops? Will Clarice catch Buffalo Bill? Will Marlin rescue Nemo? What
will happen to Juno’s baby? Will the crashers do one last wedding? How will the
boy win the girl?
ACT II – COMPLICATIONS AND OBSTACLES
7) FIRST
ATTEMPT TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM Pages 25 – 40 – Whatever the problem is, the Hero will attempt to solve
it by the EASIEST and most RATIONAL method possible. What if you
saw a newspaper headline, “Man Cuts Off Own Arm Due To Bee Sting.” When we get a
bee sting, we don’t cut off our arm—that’s crazy, an over–reaction. First
the man tries an over-the-counter ointment, but let’s say the sting gets
infected. He then goes to the doctor, but the doctor is a quack and prescribes
the wrong antibiotic. On the way to see a specialist, he gets stuck in a
snowstorm. He gets lost in the woods and develops gangrene. To save his life,
he cuts off his own arm. Now we can accept the headline! Since I made up
that silly example something related really happened. Now there is a
movie called 127 Hours. The protagonist is forced to cut
off his own arm. But let’s see how he logically and emotionally came to
that grim conclusion. It was not his first choice! This beat is about
proving the problem can’t be solved by a simple logical method, and is a kind
of set up for the complications and obstacles to come. In My Cousin Vinnie,
Vinnie tries to explain to the judge that it is all a misunderstanding.
In North by Northwest, the hero takes the police to the house where he was
drugged and abducted, to prove his wild story and expose the bad guys. In both examples, the results
are not what the protagonist expected: the first attempt to solve the problem
leads to a bigger problem. Great obstacles and complications ensue.
8) SUBPLOT SET UP Pages 30 – 40 –
Some character or situation distinct from the “A Story” has been set up or
hinted at in Act I. Now we go to that subplot and get it up on its
feet. In Sunset Boulevard, Joe Gillis runs into Betty Schaefer at a party
and the key subplot relationship is formed. Note that the Subplot character(s) and problems are
developed over a minimum of three beats (scenes), because the subplot also has
3-act structure. The subplot will eventually intersect with and impact the “A
Story,” and the protagonist, in a meaningful way. There may be more than
one subplot – A “B” Story, “C” Story, etc. In Eternal Sunshine of the
Spotless Mind, the “B Story” is about the doctor’s assistant and office
receptionist—they are having an affair. This subplot will intersect with
the “A Story “ in Act III in a way that profoundly affects the
protagonists. In The Town, the main subplot has to do with Doug’s druggie
ex girlfriend. The subplot intersects with the “A” story near the end of
Act 2 when the resentful ex tips the FBI off to the stadium heist.
9)
COMPLICATIONS AND SET PIECE Pages 40 -55 – The first attempt to solve the problem only results in
making the problem bigger or worse. In Sunset Boulevard, Joe Gillis
walks out on Norma Desmond on New Year’s Eve. Her resulting attempted suicide
serves to draw Joe in deeper, a complication he ultimately can’t unravel. In
North by Northwest, Thornhill goes to the UN to try and solve the mystery of
his abduction: he becomes indirectly involved in, and falsely accused of, the
murder of a dignitary. Now he’s wanted by the police! The Crop
Duster Sequence provides our set piece: A set piece is a Big Scene—a memorable
scene that’s FUN for the audience. The train/ bus wreck in The Fugitive.
The big urban chase scene in The Town, or just about any crime thriller. Don’t
forget to entertain, amaze, shock, or terrify you audience once in a
while! Even comedies have the set piece or “memorable scene.” Think Meg
Ryan at the restaurant in When Harry Met Sally.
10)
MID-POINT – PASSIVE to ACTIVE- Pages 50 – 60 – short-lived victory for the Hero Complications and Obstacles continue to escalate,
increasing dramatic tension and raising the stakes. Most stories find the
Hero moving from a more passive to a more active relationship to the
antagonistic forces in the story. It’s sort of an “I’m mad as hell
and I’m not going to take it any more” transition. You see this very often in
stories, regardless of genre. In Silence of the Lambs, Clarice tricks
Hannibal by presenting him with a phony offer of a transfer to an island prison
were he can walk on the beach one week out of the year. Previous to this,
Hannibal has totally manipulated her, now the tables are turned. In The
Fugitive the hero infiltrates a hospital prosthetics ward and gets the clues he
needs to identify the real killer. In The Town, the hero decides to leave
the gang and run away with the girl: to take charge of his life.
11) THE
VILLAIN IS MORE POWERFUL THAN THE HERO Pages 55 – 75 The
mid-point will present only a short-lived victory for the protagonist. After
the story reaches that first plateau of dramatic action, The Stakes are raised
and the antagonistic forces strike back. The hero fights the good fight
for his/ her goal, but the antagonist is always more powerful (be it mentally,
physically, psychologically, or economically). Even in an internal conflict
story where the antagonist is say, addiction, the addiction may overpower the
hero during this section. This is well-demonstrated in Walk the Line, or
Jesus’s Son, or Crazy Heart, for example. The villain arrays his forces against
the hero and moves in for what looks like a certain victory over the forces of
good. The Hero will (usually) ultimately win, but by the power of his/
her higher principles—not by his/ her brains, guns, or wealth.
12) THE
SUBPLOTS THICKEN 55 -75 – This section will also see the increasing development of the “B Story”/
subplots. Often it is not apparent what the subplot and associated
characters have to do with the “A” story in the first half – but by now the
developing subplot has its own complications and increasing tension, and will
tend to point to or have an intersection with the “A” story. In the example
from the Eternal Sunshine “B Story,” the office secretary acts on her crush for
the doctor, and he plays along with it. In The Town, the FBI agent
confronts the druggie ex-girlfriend. In Sunset Boulevard, Joe and Betty
fall in love.
13)
DRAMATIC QUESTION ANSWERED, AND/OR THE DARKEST HOUR Pages 75 – 90 – These pages lead up to Turning
Point II. This is perhaps the most identifiable and structurally important beat
in the story. The writer may make great strides by asking, “What is the
worst possible thing that can happen to my hero?” and MAKING THAT HAPPEN in
this section. This is the end of Act II, often the Darkest Hour when All Hope
Seems Lost. But, as the mid-point so often represents a
short-lived victory for the Hero, the end of Act II often represents a short-lived defeat.
As common as this powerful structural component is, it doesn’t always work this
way. Almost as often, the
end of Act II presents the Answer to the Dramatic Question. That is, the
mystery is solved. The killer is caught. The conspiracy is
unraveled. Note that this is not happening at the climax, it’s happening
at the end of Act II.
I see many stories that try to delay the answer to the Dramatic Question till
the end, stories that would be far more potent if the Dramatic Question were answered
at the end of Act II. And, as the heading suggests, very often the End of Act
II represents BOTH the Answer to the Dramatic Question AND the Darkest Hour,
When All Hope is Lost for the hero. Examine any film you
are familiar with, or one of similar genre and tone to a story you are working
on, to test this principle. Example: In Seven, at the end
of Act II the Serial Killer comes to the police station and turns himself
in! Mystery solved! Dramatic Question (will the detectives stop the
Serial Killer?) answered. Story over? Not quite… In Wedding Crashers, the
hero’s sins are exposed (by the antagonist fiancé) and the girl he loves now
hates him: she’s sure to marry the fiancé!
In the examples given, it may be the Darkest
Hour, or the Dramatic Question may be answered, but it is not the End of the
Story. This means that the writer crafts an ACT III that poses a new Dramatic
Question, and/or dramatizes how the Protagonist fights his way out of the what
seems like certain defeat, gains redemption, or wins his True Love.
14)
PERSONAL CRISES Pages 85 – 90 – The Hero faces the ultimate emotional challenge.
When all seems lost, will the hero have the strength to carry on? Will
she give up? Die? Quit? Somehow he/she must dig deeper than ever
before for the resolve to push through and confront the antagonist.
ACT III – CLIMAX and RESOLUTION
15) RUN UP
TO THE CLIMAX Pages 90 -100 – Act III is about Pure Cinema. There’s no room
for exposition or explanation now – the Hero must take action to overcome the
last obstacles, against all odds, and the ever-increasing stakes, if he/she
should fail. We want FUN, we want EMOTION, dramatic ACTION, we want a SET
PIECE. Also, the carefully cultivated subplot may come into play for its
subordinate climax during these pages. The Hero has figured out how to solve the problem and is
now racing to prevent a catastrophe – be it an internal, emotional one,
or World War III.
16) THE
CLIMAX Pages 95-108 – This
is the “Obligatory Scene,” where the Protagonist confronts the Antagonist in a
final life-and-death struggle of good vs. evil. This goes for love
stories, or any other genre. There’s not necessarily a struggle of good vs.
evil in a love story obviously, but the forces that kept the lovers apart have
their final clash here, and the lovers either win or lose. If your protagonist
or antagonist is not present in the climax, there is probably something
seriously wrong with your story/ structure. In the less common instance
where the Dramatic Question is not answered at the end of Act II, it is
answered here.After the Climax, your story is OVER, except for resolution.
17)
RESOLUTION The last few minutes, or seconds. By definition, everything that occurs after the
Climax is Resolution. Most effective stories have very brief resolutions. If
the writer is left with pages of explanation, “loose ends” to tie up, or
additional actions to play out after the climax, there is probably something
flawed in the story/ structure. The writer seeks to design the story in
a way that all vital
questions are answered by the culmination of the climax. Often a
minor or “comic relief” detail is left to be resolved at the very end, and on
very rare occasions, the original Dramatic Question is answered only in the
last moment of the story (as in Citizen Kane). Much more often, the resolution
provides a brief “coming down” period to emotionally center the audience to the
idea that ORDER HAS BEEN
RESTORED in the world of the protagonist. We see that the Hero is
okay, will live happily ever after, or whatever beat is necessary to provide
closure. The Kids Are All Right has an unusually long Resolution
sequence. The Climax comes when Protagonist Nic tells off the interloping
sperm-doner Antagonist Paul. But a number of emotional wounds must be
credibly healed, and these beats must be carefully dramatized to arrive at the
satisfying ending this drama demands. More often, the resolution of a story is
a matter of seconds, rather than minutes.
The End of Act II: The
Darkest Hour and/or Dramatic Question answered.
I want to emphasize the END OF ACT II as the most important structural
component in the story, from the writer’s standpoint. If the writer has
this key step in the story worked out, the rest of the outline will probably
fall into place much more easily.
This is the most important structural anchor for you to examine in your
story. It can be very productive for you to imagine WHAT IS THE WORST THING
THAT CAN HAPPEN TO MY PROTAGONIST, and place that thing at the end of Act II.
But hold that thought, and add the and/or option that the Main Tension, the
original Dramatic Question, is answered/ resolved at the end of Act II.
Even if neither seems to fit your particular story, if you apply this principle
you will have illuminated what does fit, and probably generated a number of
powerful ideas in the process.
The end of Act II in Seven is
a stunner: the killer turns himself in.
In Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, the end
of Act II is devastating for Mary, Howard and Stan. For the protagonist Joel,
he must relive the most horrible moment of his childhood, and then in turn
accept the loss of his final memories of his loved-one, Clem. Finding
Nemo exhibits both aspects of the principle at the end of Act II. But
note that this is not a cookie-cutter or formulaic trope at work, but rather a
deep structural form that defines the emotional fulcrum of the story. The end of Act II sets up Act
III, and points to an inevitable CLIMAX.
If you find that in your story there is no such
beat at the end of Act II, (that is, the worst that can happen to your hero, a
“darkest hour” when all seems lost, AND/OR the problem set up in ACT I is
solved, the Dramatic Question answered), you would be well served by creating
such a beat. Very few stories benefit from delaying the answer to the original
Dramatic Question till the end. Example: in Seven, the Dramatic Question set up
in Act I is, “Will the detectives catch the serial killer?” The answer is
given at the end of Act II when the killer shows up at the police station and
turns himself in! Story over? No! But look at what a great twist it
provides. And, by the end of Act II the audience is getting kind of bored with
the original Dramatic Question, or impatient with the cops. What’s taking them
so long? Why can’t they find this killer? Are they stupid? Often, the
writer is starting to run out of ideas trying to delay the capture of the
killer (or whatever) and finds it almost impossible to keep that Dramatic
Question going all the way till the end. Same goes for The Fugitive. At
the end of Act II, the protagonist knows exactly who killed his wife. ACT
III is about how he exposes the killer and gets justice. Or Wedding
Crashers. Will the girl find out he is an imposter? Yes!
This component doesn’t apply to all stories—so
turn to the other: The end
of Act II represents the WORST THAT CAN HAPPEN to the hero. His/her
Darkest Hour. You will find very few (if any) good films that don’t
deliver one or both of these structural beats at the end of Act II. If
you don’t have it, make it happen, or provide an incredibly convincing reason
why you shouldn’t. Don’t think of it as a formulaic, use it as a thought
exercise to come up with great ideas. If you make a list of what you
consider to be 10 of the best films ever, I promise you will find these
elements in play at the end of Act II. Are these top -10 great films formulaic
or unoriginal? Of course not, because Story Structure has no more to do with
originality than your skeleton has to do with your personality. As William Goldman
has famously said, Story IS Structure.
Copyright © David W. Warfield 2011
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