Craft
them. My client is a lot closer to the mark than he realises: having extraneous information about that main character, meaning the
a beginning, middle and end is actually just a simple way of structure of a spec feels top heavy.
viewing the three acts. He has unconsciously structured the way Some writers will understand that the beginning of a script
he sees his own story, because that is what we do in order to decode must start with a bang rather than a whimper and structure will
the type of story we are watching. be pretty tight for Act One. This then begins to flounder after the
When I read a script, I am sometimes unable to decode the story first turning point when they underestimate how long Act Two is
it is telling. It is not that I do not get it, full stop: I might realise and they have used up their best stuff already; effectively they are
that characters in the story have to fight vampires, get married or unable to take it to the next level. Sometimes this happens around
travel into space, I can get the gist. What I am unable to the midpoint instead or they create an abrupt resolution when
understand is why characters are doing the things they do in the they tie up their loose ends too quickly.
plot. There may be some exciting scenes or cool dialogue, but Other times scenes will seem very long and lack focus: why does
character motivation is an issue because what they are doing does a protagonist stop to buy something? Why does she or he call in
not seem to push the story forward—the whole point of the movie. on a relative? Often these scenes meander and seem to do little to
Character and plot (therefore structure) are inextricably linked: advance the story, making the protagonist seem passive. Sometimes
if your protagonist does not obviously want something, it is writers will make the point they are attempting to reveal character,
difficult to drive your story forward and this often boils down to a yet this can be done when protagonists are following the plot
structural problem. The reason is simple: if a writer does not set directly as well (thus ensuring good structure). If a protagonist
up why a protagonist wants something, regardless of how exciting, buys coffee and there is a bomb outside the coffee shop as in
intriguing or moving subsequent scenes are, there is a missing Children of Men, the audience can see what type of world he
element. In essence, the story cannot resolve properly. The character’s lives in, which in turn feeds in to what happens next in the story
goal is something that drives the notion of structure and in turn when he is abducted. Similarly, a movie like Juno reveals traits
feeds directly into character, yet those same writers who believe and attributes of even its secondary characters every chance it gets,
character is all-important can reject structure. Pretty ironic, for never pausing for a moment from pushing the story forward.
they effectively sabotage themselves. Being a symbiotic relationship it is difficult to have one without
Sometimes a writer will try and combat this issue of character the other, character or plot. Yet, a well-handled plot via tight
motivation by giving the reader a real insight into the protagonist: structure can give you good characterisation, for it can make your
every trait that makes the lead who they are will be put under the protagonist appear less passive, making them work towards a
microscope in the hope that this will give some clue in the story specific goal. On the other hand, good characterisation does not
later why they do what they do. Yet this too is unsuccessful, for it necessarily give you good structure—and it is good structure that
means delaying the beginning of the story as the writer examines contributes to a more satisfying read. ■
THE OKTOBERFEST
Join us and celebrate
the release of
one night of science fiction, fantasy, scary movies and animé!
FRIDAY 3 OCTOBER 2008
www.moviescopemag.com 69
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