Story and Structure - The Three Acts.

Story and Structure
Part 1: The Three Acts.



Try and remember the last good film/story you've seen or read.
What really moved you about it? What made it brilliant? Was it the characters? The narrative? The imagination?

What about the a film you saw that was disappointing?
Was it boring? Did you feel disconnected to the characters? Were you unconvinced?

Surely there isn't a formula for a perfect story, is there?
Well the short answer is no, but there is many ways of studying how to get close to it...

With the more you learn about story and structure, you will soon realize why exactly you loved one story, and disliked the other. These experiences will help you with your own work, and help you become a better writer. This contains aspects on screenwriting, but consists of the same foundations for ever great story told.


The Three Act Structure.
( The Shark Structure.)

This is the 101 of screenwriting. This is something every writer should
know. In fact studios toss out thousands of scripts that do not follow this structure. This is the bones of your story, what you'll be molding on.

So what is it? Well, anyone will tell you a story consists of a beginning, middle and an end. But doesn't necessarily have to follow that order... But I'll get back to that.

I found one article that explained it as the 'Shark' structure. I found this quite a helpful example to explain the three act structure.

The Head -
It comes first... It bites you,
pulls you in, and makes you comfortable
for the next process...

The Body-
This is where digestion takes place.
what was, starts to change, things happen.

The Tail-
There's only one place where this can go next.
The out come! The result, the end product. The resolve.

You're probably thinking, what on earth is he talking about? Sharks? Am I meant to excrete the viewer? No no. Take those parts of the shark again, as Act 1, Act 2 and Act 3. Act 1, the head is about 1/4 of the story. Act 2 is 2/4's long, its the biggest part. Act 3 is the last 1/4.

Within Act 1, you grab the audience's attention with something interesting... Pull them in, make them want to bother continuing! This is where you're going to establish what is needed. Who are the characters? What is their everyday life like? Is there already conflicts? What about the setting? Your audience will be asking these questions . Your job as a writer is answer these. Act 1, is an insight to the already existing world you've created, the audience is now familiar with these characters and setting and are ready for the next stage...

Act 2 is where things start to change, digest if you will. Something takes your characters or setting of its natural, everyday life and throws in into something new, something worth telling a story about. This is where they take their journey, whether it be personal or physical. What/whom do they affect? What perils to they face? What is in threat? What motivates them? By the end of Act 2 there is a pivotal moment that will ultimately affect the outcome at the end.
Your characters are going to go through a beating before they get to Act 3...

This is the climax of your story. They've gone through hell and back to this moment, now there is no turning back. All the events of your story has lead up to this defining moment. This is Act 3.
Wills he overcome her drug addiction and take the new job? Or fall into despair? Will he defeat the villain and save the world? If you've thickened out your characters nicely, your audience should be on the edge of their seats waiting for this moment. Act 2 has laid down all these threats to build up to one big one. If there is no conflict, nothing on the stakes, be it personal or epic, your audience won't feel much for what's going to happen... Did he defeat the villain? What did he learn? What was the moral? Where the other characters affects? For the better or worse? What was the out come?
This doesn't apply to all stories, but to the classical form of writing, many prefer to have all their questions answered by the end of the film, all ends tied. And they lived happily ever after...

I've decided to use one of my personal favorite films as an example, which I feel many of you know and can relate to. Hopefully the following will help you make sense of what you've just read. This story took place a long time ago in a galaxy far far away...

Three act structure example - Star Wars.




Act 1.

We open with a massive starship chasing another,
A grand opening of action, pulling the audience in!
But wait... Storm troops flood the rebel ship and capture a princess. A Dark Lord commands his troops to search the ship, The princess sends a message...

What have we learned in that space of time?
There is a civil war going on in outer space.
From what we gather there is a main villian,
and a female protagonist. Two comical droids seem
to be caught in the middle of this battle and escape...
So much has been establish. Meanwhile...

A young farmer named Luke Skywalker aids
his aunt and uncle on a desert planet. They purchase the droids
sent by the princess. They befriend Luke. Luke expresses how he wishes to leave to join a starfleet academy, but is being held back by his Uncle...

What now? We know Luke is like any teenager. This is his everyday life. This is the principle of act 1. introducing the setting and the characters.

One of the droids goes missing in search for an 'Obi-wan'.
Luke searches for the droid but is attacked by wild Sand People.
He is rescued by Ben Kenobi who takes him back to his place and opens up his plan to Luke, his past, common ground. The pair then discover the Empire was looking for the droids, which resulted in the death of his aunt and uncle.

This is the perfect set up to begin Act 2. Luke has been brought out of his natural, everyday life when he got dragged into this civil war. This have changed. The journey begins. There is no turning back.





Act 2

Luke and Ben look for a way to take them to the planet Alderaan.
This is where they encounter the charming Han Solo and his Co-pilot, just after some conflicts with the locals at the bar...
They make a hasty take off once the Empire catches up with them.

Act 2 gives you freedom for the ups and downs of your story.
Luke now has personal conflict with the cocky Han Solo. The wise wizard that is his guidance and reason, and finally the droids that provide comic relief. Things seem to be piling onto our main character Luke Skywalker. The world around him is evolving.

They reach an asteroid field... The planet has been destroyed.
They are pulled into a giant space station. The hive of the Empire.
The princess is being kept prisoner... A new journey unfolds, They take on the fortress and rescue the princess, and with the faith of Obi-wan's assistance, try to escape. Obi-wan and Vader's old conflicts come together, and the Dark lord defeats Kenobi. The rest just manage to escape with the plans to the grand space station ...

Wow... That's a lot! Act 2 is made up of little short stories that accumulate into one, for the following act. The characters have lost and risked a lot through this journey, risking their lives. The cost has been set up. The characters have gone through hell to get to this point. This is the turning point that we've been waiting for. Only one thing remains - Destroy the Death Star. Luke is fully involved now, Where he is now wouldn't of been possible without him and the other characters. Will he be able to destroy it? What will his friends do? What if they loose? So much is at stake to this point, the chances of winning are slim, but there is hope...





Act 3.

Luke faces the Death Star, with the squadron of fighter pilots behind him. The odds seem to narrow with each downed pilot, one by one they drop. Now Vader joins the space fight, a formidable pilot and enemy. It narrows down to just Luke, with seconds to go, against Vader who closes in on him. There isn't another chance, as the space station soon has its target on the planet where the Rebel forces remain. Suddenly Han sweeps in and takes out the enemy pilots. Luke takes his chances with the words of Kenobi and fires...The Death Star is destroyed, Luke has destroyed the evil, and saved the planet. Han has overcome his selfish ways and aided for the better. Kenobi inspired Luke that made the shot possible, and Leia was the motivation for the will of Luke. The trio are awarded with medals for their duty, and they live happily ever after...

The ends have been tied, Han did over come his ways unexpectedly. Luke did save the day. This is where the audience should feel most pleased. The questions have been answered and unexpectedly, against all odds for the better. Each character has come out a better person. They have grown through the story, and shaped their environment for the better. We had been rooting for these characters the whole time, even in the face of certain defeat, it's the faith that keeps us on the edge of our seats. This is where Act 3 rewards us for our faith...





End Note
Well I hope you've all learned something from this brief
look at structure. With the examples given, you can try destructing
all your favorite films/stories at where the acts begin and end, re-ask yourself the questions, and understand now how they were answered.
With the more you do this, you can relate it to your own work, and see if your questions are answered.

If this doesn't get taken down... and is at least slightly
popular, I hope to continue with these threads. There is so much to
writing, and I will continue enjoying to teach and learn more about the art of writing.

-Fergus.

wow thats very helpful thank you and you used one of my favorite movies as an example!

Originally Posted by candc32

wow thats very helpful thank you and you used one of my favorite movies as an example!

Thank you very much!!
It would been a lot less appealing if I used
a film no one knew of, wouldn't it?

Can you try telling me where act 3 happens in another film?

LOTR: ROTK
after the ghosts lift the siege of Minas Tirith and the coalition of men and elves attack the black gate to draw the gaze of the great eye so Frodo can toss the ring in the fires of mount doom.

Originally Posted by candc32

LOTR: ROTK
after the ghosts lift the siege of Minas Tirith and the coalition of men and elves attack the black gate to draw the gaze of the great eye so Frodo can toss the ring in the fires of mount doom.

Spot on!

I think this is a really awesome guide you have here, fergus. I like the fact that you've used a well-known example most people would know about while keeping the guide simple and to the point. Beyond the aspect of screenwriting, I think this is a great resource for anyone who just needs to know the basic structure of a story.

Do continue to post guides, sir! ^^

Originally Posted by Veyrael

I think this is a really awesome guide you have here, fergus. I like the fact that you've used a well-known example most people would know about while keeping the guide simple and to the point. Beyond the aspect of screenwriting, I think this is a great resource for anyone who just needs to know the basic structure of a story.

Do continue to post guides, sir! ^^

Oh you darling,
Now, I just might =]

Yeah, I find its a shame don't know about things like these,
and start to doubt their ability, when writing can be easier to handle than some expect.