Sequences
A book that is particularly strong on discussing screenplay structure from
the point of view of sequences is Screenplay: Writing the Picture
by Robin U. Russin and William Missouri Downs. [REF]
This book breaks two films down into their sequences, including the scene
breakdown under each sequence, for a full step outline. These films
are Field of Dreams and Ship of Love. (Also see sequences in E.T. and
sequences in Frankenweenie.)
It is helpful to study these sequence breakdowns. Russin and Downs suggest
giving each sequence a catchy title within the context of the story. This
approach goes from the larger to the smaller units of organization.
Sequences in Field of Dreams
Step outline of Act One
- "How I Moved to Iowa and Learned to Love Baseball."
- "The Voice."
- "Building the Baseball Field."
- "Waiting for Shoeless Joe."
- "The Brother-in-Law."
- "The Second Message."
- "Finding Terence Mann."
- "Meeting Terence Mann."
- "The Search for Moonlight Graham."
- "Why Ray Regrets His Relationship with His Father."
- "Moonlight Graham Gets His Wish."
- "The Climax" (playing catch with father).
Sequences in Sea of Love
- "The Protagonist."
- "The Murder."
- "A New Partner and a Plan."
- "The Plan Set into Action."
- "The Red Herring."
- "Falling in Love with the Suspect."
- "He Begins to Doubt Her."
- "The Climax: True Killer Revealed."
- "The Catharsis: They Live Happily Ever After."
With this method, organizing the story seems less inhibiting since one
needs "only" to come up with the major sequence steps (probably in the
range of 8 to 14 in number), under which the individual scenes will fall
to complete the step outline.
This is another way to organize a story "on the run" during a busy life.
Carry around a dozen or so index cards and jot down your major sequence
steps during coffee breaks, lunch breaks, or dead moments of the day.
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