In 1978, the band Sweet put out one of the last of their 13 top-20 hits and the last to reach the top-10. Their hits included notable songs like “Ballroom Blitz”, “Fox on the Run” and “Teenage Rampage”. This particular song was called “Love Is Like Oxygen”, and the chorus went as follows:
Love is like oxygen.
You get too much you get too high.
Not enough and you’re gonna die.
Love makes you high.
I bring this up because I was reminded about it by a recent client. I had not worked with this client before, and she was referred to me by regular client. She submitted her script to me, and it was and early draft that needed quite a bit of work. She paid for Advanced Studio Notes, so I was able to give her several pages of notes to describe and help her fix the biggest issues in her script.
I told her that it was unclear where Act I ended. It could have been in two possible places, and one was way too late (around page 42) and the other was way too early (around page 20), and that she needed to determine what the main character wanted, and where the main character’s adventure began. I went on to comment that there was also no clear act break between Act II and Act III. In fact, I couldn’t find any act break at all. I told her that, especially when writing a spec script when you’re an unknown writer and you’r hoping to either sell the script or use it as a calling card to get writing jobs, you need to make sure that Act I comes to an end as close as possible to page 30 and Act II needs to come to an end as close as possible to page 90.
She emailed me back thanking me for the notes, and asked about the structure, and was “my way” the only way, or could their be variations? I thought about that a lille bit, and the thought that came to mind is that this isn’t “my way”, it’s “the way”. This is the way that screenplays are written, and this is the way you need to write them, especially as an unknown writer, if you want to sell your script or get hired.
Here’s how you need to think about it. You’re a writer. That means you’re a creative person. You don’t like boundaries like rules about structure to limit your creativity. You want to tell a good story the way you want to tell it, and that may not conform to a typical 3-Act structure. Or, you feel as though you’ve mastered 3-Act structure already, and if filmmakers like Stanley Kubrick and Albert Hitchcock could make movies that didn’t conform exactly to the 3-Act structure, then why can’t you?
Here’s why. It’s hard to get a script to conform to 3-Act structure, and it’s even harder to write a good screenplay that doesn’t.
If you, as an unknown writer, submit a screenplay to an agency or to a production company or studio that does not conform to standard 3-Act structure, they’re more likely to think you don’t know what you’re doing than to think that you’re a brilliant writer who is pushing the boundaries of the rules. Again, because you’re not as likely to write a good script if it doesn’t fit the structure. But even if you have, no one is going to take a chance on you because you’re an unknown. Kubrick and Hitchcock were able to get away with it later in their careers because they had proven track records and studios executives were likely to give them a lot more leeway and freedom because they had earned it by making several exceptional films earlier in their careers.
How does any of that relate back to the song by Sweet? As a writer, you don’t want to lose your creativity. Structure is like oxygen to a screenplay. Without enough structure, your screenplay will lack direction, it will lack focus and it will lack a spine. However, you don’t want to be so concerned about the structure that you lose all of your creativity. No one is going to crucify you if Act I ends on page 25, or if Act II ends on page 92. There is some flexibility in there, and the thing that you’re trying most to do is to tell a good story. The first key to any writing exercise is to make sure that your story is good. If you have a strong idea, a good story will take care of itself structurally.
The moral of the story is to be mindful of the rules and how important they are, but do not let them stifle you. In a way, the structure sets you free, because it gives you the building block upon which to place your story’s key events. Don’t be afraid of story structure, and don’t think of it as restrictive. Use it to your advantage to tell more exceptional stories.
When you have a block, thinking about story structure, and where certain events should happen in a screenplay can actually spawn new ideas and greater creativity.
Monument Script Services can help you if you’re struggling with issues of structure, or other types of issues on your script. Check out the link below to see if any of our services meet your needs.