ACT 1 CHECKLIST
Is your Main Hero orphaned in some way?
Did you clearly define your Main Hero’s flaw?
Does your Main Hero have a redeeming quality (kind to animals, children, or elderly people, or highly skilled at something)?
Have you clearly defined who all your archetypes will be?
Have you introduced the Inciting Incident around Minute 12 (Page 12 of your screenplay)?
Have you clearly defined your theme? Do all your archetypes represent a different angle to the theme? Does your dialogue reflect the theme?
THE QUEST
Your Main Hero is going to enter a new world that will be disorienting and will test his flaw in escalating conflicts. Despite his floundering, he commits to a plan of action to achieve his goal. Soon after, he battles his flaw as he attempts to figure out who his allies and enemies are in this strange new domain.
The Quest usually kicks in between Minutes 29 to 35 (try to land it on Minute 30 for tighter storytelling).
Here are the Quests for our case studies:
SKYFALL
Mallory sends Bond back into the field to “find the list.” (Minute 33)
THE AVENGERS
The aircraft carrier launches. The Avengers set off to find the Tesseract. (Minute 33)
THE HANGOVER
Stu and the guys set out to figure out “what the hell is going on.” (Minute 30)
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
John agrees to help the Department of Defense crack Russian codes. (Minute 35)
THE CONJURING
Carolyn finds out the evil entity wants her family dead. She wants to save her family from harm (this affects the Main Hero Lorraine who will have to confront the entity and her fear of them). (Minute 34)
GONE GIRL
Nick goes on a quest to find out what Amy’s third clue means — the clue he hides from the detectives. (Minute 31)
ACT 2
The Quest’s Escalating Complications
MINUTE 31
DISTRESS SIGNAL
Hero sees/hears something that distresses him
Distress drops by for a visit. And since movies are sight and sound, the hero either sees or hears something that distresses him, which sends out a Distress Signal to our proxy-audience. The Distress Signal happens over and over in blockbusters, like in Raiders of the Lost Ark when Indy sees the red-hot poker moving toward Marion’s face, or in Jaws when Brody sees the mutilated body, or in Die Hard when John sees that Hans is about to shoot Takagi.
SKYFALL
Bond sees Mallory enter, the man who could fire him.
THE AVENGERS
The Chitauri leader warns Loki (the hero in this scene) not to fail.
THE HANGOVER
The guys see Doug’s mattress speared on a roof statue.
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
John sees one of his female students addressing the window/noise issue — an issue he failed to resolve on his own.
THE CONJURING
Christine sees her door moving.
GONE GIRL
Nick reads Amy’s Clue Three that he hid from the detectives.
MINUTE 32
ANXIETY AMP
Sought-after truth or object is revealed and causes great anxiety
“Be careful what you wish for” applies during the Anxiety Amp. In Minute 32, the revelation the hero sought after is found and amps up his anxiety (and the audience’s anxiety). In Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indy and the Nazi’s shoot at each other over the medallion. In Jaws, an anxious Hooper says, “This was no boat accident, it was a shark!”
SKYFALL
Bond wonders if he passed the tests.
THE AVENGERS
Learning that he can’t hide if he fails amps Loki’s anxiety.
THE HANGOVER
Phil turns on the cop car light. Stu panics.
John wanted to know who “Big Brother” was. He’s about to find out.
THE CONJURING
Christine sees someone standing behind the door.
GONE GIRL
Nick slams his fist on the horn after reading Amy’s Clue Three.
MINUTE 33
OMINOUS OH NO
Hero sees/does/hears something ominous
The definition of the Ominous Oh No is: The foreshadowing of evil or tragic developments; potentially harmful or having an injurious effect. Seeing, hearing, or doing something ominous seem to be the most popular ways to relay this menacing feeling to the audience during Minute 33 . . .
SKYFALL
Mallory tells Bond: “Don’t cock it up.”
THE AVENGERS
Steve Rogers sees that the aircraft carrier is doing something strange.
THE HANGOVER
The doctor tells the guys that they came in with concussions, bruised ribs, and were “whacked out of their minds.”
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
Parcher leads John toward the “abandoned building.”
THE CONJURING
Christine tells Nancy: “It’s (the ghost is) standing right behind you.”
GONE GIRL
Amy tells Nick that her parents need all her trust fund money. They’re broke.
MINUTE 34
FRIEND EFFECT
Ally’s behavior impacts the hero
On page 34 of your script, the ally does something that directly affects your hero. This is either expressed in words or deeds, like when Goose tells Maverick he hopes they graduate Top Gun, or in Star Wars when Obi-Wan talks about the Dark Side, which troubles Luke. Here’s how our case studies apply the Friend Effect to either test or help the hero . . .
SKYFALL
M tells Bond, with confidence: “You are ready for this.”
THE AVENGERS
“Is this a submarine?” Rogers asks. “No,” Banner replies, “this is much worse.”
THE HANGOVER
The doctor informs Stu and Phil that they were given a date rape drug.
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
Parcher tells John: “What I’m about to tell you could lead to imprisonment.”
THE CONJURING
Carolyn tells Roger: “(the demon) wants my family dead.”
GONE GIRL
Amy sees that Nick is playing videogames instead of working, and points it out to him.
MINUTE 35
BAIT AND SWITCH
Seems like this new world is positive, but is it really?
The Bait and Switch affects the audience because things seem hunky-dory, peachy keen, aces up, but then there’s a dark undercurrent that keeps them off balance. For example, in The Matrix, Neo is welcomed to the real world (+), but he’s stuck with hundreds of acupuncture needles (–).
SKYFALL
After M just told Bond that he’s ready (+), Tanner says privately to M: “Did he (Bond) pass the test?” M: “He didn’t.” (-)
THE AVENGERS
Suspicious Banner says to Fury: “Thank you for asking nicely (+). How long am I staying?” (-)
THE HANGOVER
The guys learn from the doctor that they just came from a wedding (+), but whose? (-)
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
Parcher tells John that he’s the best natural code breaker he’s ever seen (+), but the job will be dangerous (-).
THE CONJURING
GONE GIRL
Nick sees that the whole community is helping to find Amy (+), but some look at him with accusing eyes (-).
MINUTE 36
HIDE AND SEEK
Main object of desire stays hidden
This minute entices the audience with something I spoke about earlier; something that goes back to our childhood: Hide and Seek. Your friends hid and you searched for them. We desired to discover where they were hidden. Magicians manipulate this same desire in their tricks. They make an object or an audience member disappear. The audience wa
its in anticipation until he brings the object, or audience member, back. Top-notch screenwriters perform the same prestidigitation during Minute 36.
SKYFALL
Q keeps Bond’s ticket and gun hidden in his jacket pockets.
THE AVENGERS
Coulson says they are: “sweeping every accessible camera on the planet” for the Tesseract.
THE HANGOVER
The chapel owner recognizes the guys, but why were they there the night before? And where’s Doug?
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
The Russian codes are hidden somewhere in the periodicals.
THE CONJURING
Carolyn goes looking for who is hiding and clapping.
GONE GIRL
Nick spots Amy’s former boyfriend, but he disappears before he can talk to him.
MINUTE 37
OVER HIS HEAD
Hero or ally realizes he may be in over his head
How many times have we found ourselves Over Our Heads in life? We immediately flail our arms and kick our feet to reach the water’s surface before we drown. We can feel this way in a new job, relationship, or in any number of unfamiliar situations. So it is for our hero and audience during this minute.
SKYFALL
After young, computer-savvy Q leaves, Bond says sarcastically to himself: “Brave new world” (he may be over his head in this new youth-oriented MI6).
THE AVENGERS
Fury says to Steve Rogers: “You’re up.” Rogers takes a hesitant breath (he may be in over his head in this new situation).
THE HANGOVER
Stunned Stu discovers that he married a stranger (he’s engaged to someone else).
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
Parcher plants radium in John’s arm. “So what am I now,” John asks with concern, “a spy?”
THE CONJURING
Carolyn notices that something knocked her family’s photos off the wall.
GONE GIRL
Nick’s fan turns on him after he asks her to delete their selfie together.
MINUTE 38
POSITIVE RECONNECT
Hero reconnects with ally in a positive way
We all need positive reinforcement from our friends; so does the hero. But the Positive Reconnect is the screenwriter’s way of luring the audience into a false sense of security. Deep down we know the good times can’t last. Something bad will interrupt the hero again, but we don’t know exactly when, which creates anticipation.
SKYFALL
MI6 gives Bond his flight number. They still have confidence in him.
THE AVENGERS
Steve Rogers looks at his Captain America suit. He’s ready for action.
THE HANGOVER
Phil tells Stu that the girl he married might know where Doug is.
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
Alicia says she solved John’s equation.
THE CONJURING
Carolyn turns on the light (her ally in this situation).
GONE GIRL
Amy’s mother apologizes to Nick after scolding him.
MINUTE 39
NEW JOURNEY BOND
Hero bonds further with main ally on new journey
In the previous minute, the hero reconnected with the ally in a positive way, but now, to keep the story moving forward, there must be a new journey that propels them into action, like in Knocked Up when Ben and Alison agree to keep the baby, or in Pulp Fiction when Vincent drinks Mia’s shake while she looks at him with desire (they are starting a new journey together as possible lovers). The hero may bond with inanimate objects as well, like James Bond does with his new Walther PPK in Skyfall, or Carolyn does with the lights in The Conjuring.
SKYFALL
Bond and his new Walther PPK follow the enemy agent in Singapore.
THE AVENGERS
Loki (the hero in this scene) turns into his true self and is ready to rule the world.
THE HANGOVER
Alan tells Stu he’ll help him burn the cop car and all the evidence.
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
Alicia asks John out on a date.
THE CONJURING
Carolyn turns on more lights as she explores who is clapping.
GONE GIRL
Margo and Nick discuss what to do about people’s perception of him.
MINUTE 40
ALLY’S WORLD
We learn more about the ally and their world
During this minute, the focus is taken off the hero and we get a glimpse into the ally’s world. Since the ally is key in the hero’s life, we need to let the audience know them a little better. There are a number of reasons for this. The writer wants us to: 1) like the ally (so we approve of the hero being with them); 2) fear for the ally (to understand what the hero goes through if the ally is put into danger); 3) understand what the ally is capable of (which will play out later in the story); 4) have a clearer understanding of the ally and their world (so we know what the hero is dealing with).
SKYFALL
Bond activates his hand-coded Walther PPK that only he can shoot.
THE AVENGERS
Loki’s scepter (his ally) can blow up police cars.
THE HANGOVER
Alan says, to everyone’s shock: “It would be so cool if I could breastfeed.”
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
Alicia tells John that she’s a painter.
THE CONJURING
The basement light (Carolyn’s ally) reveals that there’s something alive down there.
GONE GIRL
Margo wishes their mom was here.
MINUTE 41
THORNY ROSE
Things may seem kinda rosy, but there’s still ugliness out there
During this minute we feel a moment of positive relief for the hero (the rose), but then he’s immediately pricked with a thorn — a problem he must solve. In Jaws, Hooper interrupts the lovely dinner (rose) to tell Brody that the shark is still out there (thorn). In Juno, Mark composes lucrative music for commercials (rose), but Juno calls him a sellout (thorn).
SKYFALL
As Bond follows the enemy agent into the luxurious building (rose), he passes the security guards that the agent has killed (thorn).
THE AVENGERS
Loki tells the people that their lives will be better if they follow him (rose), but then he raises his scepter to kill an old man (thorn).
THE HANGOVER
While Stu tells Melissa over the phone that things are fine (rose), a stranger bashes their windshield (thorn).
A BEAUTIFUL MIND
John is having fun on his date (rose), but he sees men watching him (thorn).
THE CONJURING
The oldest daughter was sleeping soundly (rose), but is awakened by Cindy banging her head against the wall (thorn).
GONE GIRL
Nick and Amy move to Missouri (rose), but she wishes he would have asked first (thorn).