{"id":585,"date":"2020-11-26T15:11:03","date_gmt":"2020-11-26T15:11:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jerichowriters.com\/?p=585"},"modified":"2023-03-24T16:27:29","modified_gmt":"2023-03-24T16:27:29","slug":"screenwriting-structure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jerichowriters.com\/screenwriting-structure\/","title":{"rendered":"Screenwriting Structure: Our Top Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s what sends screenwriters into frenzied anxiety attacks, rapidly losing the will to live, but Structure can seem a whole lot less terrifying once you realise that all it really means is the way your story unfolds. Think of it not as some rigid template you have to squeeze your story into, but the way the emotional needs and actions of your characters<\/a> are shaping and driving the story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep remembering that the aim of structure is to draw your audience into an intense emotional engagement with the story and keep them totally absorbed throughout. Think of it as the story breathing \u2013 ever-developing sequences of tension and release which keep depth-charging the emotions of the audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having a flexible outline of pivotal events can help. A story needs something to get it going, moments that are turning points which force the character in new directions (often an emotional revelation, not just surface action), a climax and a resolution (which can be ambiguous or open-ended).Some pointers for shaping the story:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watch A Film<\/a> Once, Then The Same Film Backwards<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The idea is to trace how the narrative thread is not just shaped but layered. You\u2019re looking for how the whole story is paced, moments or scenes where you\u2019re given breathing space to absorb what\u2019s happening and so on. You\u2019re looking out for moments that move the story forward in ways that layer and interweave. Make notes as you keep hitting the pause button. Starting from the final frame:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Be aware of how each scene has been prepared for in previous scenes. You\u2019re following the thread backwards. Try to keep in mind the overall thread \u2013 something in scene 20 may have been foreshadowed in scene 2. Make a note of what it is in each scene that is driving the story. Is what\u2019s happening now more interesting than before? How is conflict being developed? Look out for moments where you\u2019re registering meaning through the ways in which the story is being orchestrated not just in terms of plot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watching backwards is a terrific way to see how not just actions, but symbolic resonances, unspoken feelings, visual metaphors, subtext, dialogue<\/a>, subtext are all structuring the story<\/a>. (Silence can be structure.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n