analyzing a contemporary American film

8: THE 3-ACT PARADIGM DC222: CLASSICAL HOLLYWOOD FILM STRUCTURE

A WHOLE IS THAT WHICH HAS A BEGINNING, MIDDLE, AND END.

Aristotle from “Poetics” ca. 335 BCE

3-ACT PARADIGM

3 ACT PARADIGM

1. Beginning

2. Middle

3. End

3 Act Paradigm of American Screenwriting

3-ACT PARADIGM

SYD FIELD’S “SCREENPLAY: THE FOUNDATIONS OF SCREENWRITING”

▸ Field, 1935-2013, was a writer and a development reader in Hollywood.

▸ Published “Screenplay” in 1979 identifying what he believed to be key aspects of successful screenplays

▸ Hugely popular book, adopted throughout Hollywood during the 80s and 90s.

3 Act Paradigm of American Screenwriting

3-ACT PARADIGM

ACT I: THE SET-UP

▸ Also known as the Exposition.

▸ Audience learns about the world and its people.

▸ Establish where and when we are, and any special rules about the place.

▸ Meet the main characters (or most of them, at least).

▸ Witness the current state of affairs.

▸ Introduce the problem.

MINUTES 1 - 30

3-ACT PARADIGM

ACT II: THE CONFRONTATION

▸ Also known as the Rising Action or Complicating Action.

▸ Protagonist pursues the goal.

▸ Increasingly difficult obstacles or dire situations.

▸ Mounting sense of crisis leading to an “all is lost” moment.

▸ Includes the climax of the conflict.

MINUTES 31-90

3-ACT PARADIGM

ACT III: THE RESOLUTION

▸ Also known as the Denouement.

▸ The climax is complete and the conflict resolved.

▸ Any loose plot elements are wrapped up.

▸ A new state of affairs is established.

▸ Usually very brief in Hollywood cinema.

MINUTES 91+

THE REVENANT (2015) - ALEJANDRO GONZALES IÑÁRRITU

3-ACT PARADIGM

KEY SCENES ▸ Major “plot points” throughout and between the 3 acts.

▸ 1. The Inciting Incident - when the problem first appears.

▸ Usually 10 to 15 minutes into the film.

▸ 2. The Lock or Point of No Return - when the main character is committed to the conflict and can’t go back.

▸ Approx. 30 minutes in, shifts from Act 1 to Act 2.

▸ 3. The Midpoint or Reversal - moment when the main character’s initial methods fail or produce a false victory or the conflict otherwise intensifies

▸ Approx. 60 minutes in, midway through Act 2.

▸ 4. The Climax - then the conflict finally comes to a head. A final show down occurs between the protagonist and antagonist leading to a resolution.

▸ Approx. 90 minutes in, shifts from Act 2 to Act 3.

3-ACT PARADIGM

KEY SCENES IN “IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT” ▸ 1. The Inciting Incident - when the problem first appears.

▸ Virgil Tibbs is mistakenly arrested for the murder of Phillip Colbert.

▸ 2. The Lock or Point of No Return - when the main character is committed to the conflict and can’t go back.

▸ Tibbs clears another wrongly-suspected man and Colbert’s widow threatens to pull the factory from town if the crime isn’t solved.

▸ 3. The Midpoint or Reversal - moment when the main character’s initial methods fail or produce a false victory or the conflict otherwise intensifies.

▸ Gillespie pleads with Tibbs at the train station not to leave town.

▸ 4. The Climax - then the conflict finally comes to a head. A final show down occurs between the protagonist and antagonist leading to a resolution.

▸ Tibbs confronts Delores/Ralph and the lynch mob at the same time, the crime solved and Tibbs is safe.