Secrets of screenplay structure

340 Pages·36.408 MB·English

by  Cowgill, Linda J.

A LONE EAGLE SCREENWRITI NC GUIDE
structure
HOW TO RECOGNIZE AND EMULATE
FRAMEWOR
THE STRUCTURAL
OF GREAT FILMS
m
Linda Cowgill
J.
Author of WRITING SHORT FILMS
Digitized by the Internet Archive
2010
in
http://www.archive.org/details/secretsofscreenpOOcowg
,Se>
Secrets
of
Screenplay
Structure
HOW TO RECOGNIZE AND EMULATE
THE STRUCTURAL FRAMEWORKS
OF GREAT FILMS
LINDA COWCILL
J.
sill!!
lone eagle
pii11milc to i««i *J
LosAngeles,CA
SECRETS OF SCREENPLAY STRUCTURE
Howto RecognizeandEmulatethe StructuralFrameworksofGreatFilms
Copyright©1999 byLinda Cowgill
f.
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedorutilizedinanyformor
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EditedbyJannaWongHealy
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Cowgill, Linda
J.
Secretsofscreenplaystructure/byLinda]. Cowgill.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN 1-58065-004-X
—
1. Motionpictureauthorship. 2. Motionpictureplays Technique.
I. Title.
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"Every good idea and all creative work are the offspring
of the imagination, and have their source in what one is
pleased to call infantile fantasy."
—
C. G. Jung
For David and Clea
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thisbookwouldnothavebeenpossiblewithoutthehelp ofmany
people who, it is my pleasure, to thank here. Many thanks to:
Joan Singleton and Jeff Black of Lone Eagle Publishing, for
giving me the opportunity to add my two-cents to the
screenwritingtextbookmarket; andJannaWongHealy, forhelp-
ful comments and editing.
Pat Oliver, of Loyola Marymount University, LA, for allow-
ing me the chance to explore my ideas with a graduate seminar
on story structure; and Rick Hadley, also of Loyola Marymount,
for encouraging me to pursue the class and lending needed sup-
port once it was put on the schedule; Karen Hama, forhelp deci-
phering Aristotle.
Andrew Laskos for the film discussions and your incredible
movie memory. Geoff Grode for your fact finding and for start-
ing me on this path at AFI Richard DeBaun for helping me pre-
;
parefora teachingcareer,- Steve Sharonforyourfilm discussions
and encouragement; Paul Erhman for insightful comments and
allowingme to tryout my theorieswithyourwork; Glen Benest
and Bill Bleich, formovie discussions andyour lists offavorites;
and Cary Vhugen and Chris Tragos for having such vast video
collections to lend; and Greg Caruso at 20/20.
Many, many thanks to my graduate students at Loyola
MarymountUniversitywhoinspiredme toput theseideas down
on paper.
Most of all, I have to thank myhusband David DeCrane and
mydaughterCleaDeCrane, whohaveputupwith all this. With-
out his encouragement and love, perceptive comments and edi-
torial abilities, and my daughter's understanding and love, none
of this would have been worth doing.

CONTENTS
Acknowledgments v
Introduction xi
:
Chapter 1
The Essence of Dramatic Structure 1
Linear Understanding 3
Chapter 2
The Three-part Nature of Screenplay Structure 5
Study Film: Witness
—
Act One The Set-up 5
—
Act Two The Confrontation 9
—
Act Three The Solution 21
Special Notes 25
Chapter 3
Five Key Focal Points 28
Study Film: Risky Business
Screenplay Models 28
The Structure of Film Segments 30
—
Act One The Set-up 33
—
Act Two The Confrontation 35
—
Act Three The Solution 39
Special Notes 41
Chapter 4
Characterization's Relationship to Structure 44
Study Film: Casablanca
What Characters Want and Need 45
Character Development 48
The Character Arc's Relationship to Plot Structure 50
The Moral Dimension 60
Special Notes 62
vii
SECRETS OFSCREENPLAYSTRUCTURE
Chapter 5
Theme's Relationship to Structure 64
Study Film: The Piano
How Theme Relates to Plot Structure 65
Thematic Unity in Terms of Climax 69
The "Message in the Bottle" 74
Special Notes 75
Chapter 6
The Structure of Plotting 77
Study Film: Chinatown
Story and Plot 78
The Role of Conflict 80
The Principles of Action 85
Special Notes 93
Chapter 7
Review 95
Study Film: Quiz Show
The Characters: What They Want and
What They Need 95
Primary Movements 98
Overall Structure 99
Thematic Unity 105
Special Notes 107
Chapter 8
The Structure of Subplots 108
Study Film: Tootsie
The Relationship Between the
Main Plot and Subplot 109
The Structure of Subplots 110
Subplots and Character Transformation 115
Special Notes 121
Chapter 9
Structure and the Ensemble Film 123
Study Films: Diner, Parenthood,
The Best Years of Our Lives, Grand Hotel
Dramatic Unity 124
The Act Two and Three Climaxes 131
viii