Save the Cat!
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Act I · Establish the story
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01 Opening ImageA glimpse of life before the change.
What typically happens
An opening moment gives us a feel for the protagonist’s world, their current way of living, and the film’s tone. It can reveal a contradiction: someone looks in control but is isolated, or seems powerless but quietly resists. It does not need to explain the whole backstory.
What it does for the story
Establishes a starting point that the ending can echo or contrast with.
A question to consider
What could we see your character doing that tells us who they are before the story changes them?
02 Theme StatedAn early hint at the question underneath the plot.
What typically happens
A line, interaction, or situation raises an idea the protagonist does not fully understand yet. This might concern trust, belonging, responsibility, or another tension the film will explore. It need not be an obvious speech, and the speaker need not have the final answer.
What it does for the story
Points toward an emotional or moral question that later choices will test.
A question to consider
What belief might the story challenge—and how could that question arise naturally?
03 Set-UpThe everyday world, its relationships, and its fault lines.
What typically happens
We learn what the protagonist wants, how they approach problems, and what is missing or unsustainable in their life. Important relationships, pressures, and details are introduced through action. This is usually a stretch of scenes, not a single event; it can overlap the opening image and thematic hint.
What it does for the story
Gives the coming disruption something meaningful to disrupt.
A question to consider
What seems normal to your character that an audience might recognize as a problem?
04 CatalystSomething interrupts the existing pattern.
What typically happens
An event, discovery, arrival, loss, or opportunity disturbs the protagonist’s ordinary life. It creates a problem or possibility they cannot comfortably ignore. The catalyst is the disruption itself, not necessarily the character’s decision to pursue the main story.
What it does for the story
Sets the central story in motion; roughly corresponds to an inciting incident.
A question to consider
What happens that makes continuing as before difficult?
05 DebateResistance, uncertainty, and the cost of acting.
What typically happens
The protagonist weighs what to do, resists the disruption, tries an easier solution, or prepares to respond. The debate can happen through behavior rather than conversation. We see reasons to act and reasons not to, so the eventual commitment carries weight.
What it does for the story
Clarifies what the protagonist risks by entering the main conflict.
A question to consider
Why would your character hesitate, and what makes staying put harder?
Act II · Test and complicate
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06 Break into TwoCrossing into the central conflict.
What typically happens
The protagonist commits to a course of action or crosses a threshold into a different situation. This may be a literal new place, a new relationship, or a change in rules and obligations. Even when circumstances force the transition, their response should reveal something important about them.
What it does for the story
Moves the story from its setup into sustained pursuit; roughly the Act I turning point.
A question to consider
What choice or threshold makes this new phase of the story real?
07 B StoryA second thread that deepens the main one.
What typically happens
A relationship or secondary storyline develops alongside the central pursuit. It often gives the protagonist another way to encounter the film’s theme. It need not be a romance, and it may involve someone already introduced rather than a new character.
What it does for the story
Provides an emotional counterpoint whose lessons or tensions can matter to the main conflict.
A question to consider
Who or what brings out a different side of the protagonist than the main goal does?
08 Fun and GamesExplore what makes this particular premise compelling.
What typically happens
The story spends time on the distinctive situations its premise makes possible: attempts, discoveries, confrontations, successes, and mistakes. Despite the name, this section can be frightening, painful, or dark. The protagonist is trying their initial strategy, and we see what it can and cannot accomplish.
What it does for the story
Delivers the experience that drew the audience to the premise while building consequences.
A question to consider
What scenes could only happen in this story—and what changes because of them?
09 MidpointA turn that changes the meaning of the pursuit.
What typically happens
A major development shifts the stakes, the protagonist’s understanding, or the direction of the conflict. It is often an apparent success with hidden costs or a defeat that demands a new response. A revelation, deadline, or commitment can serve this function; a surprise alone is not enough.
What it does for the story
Reorients the second half so the story does not simply repeat the first half’s attempts.
A question to consider
What happens that makes the original plan inadequate or changes what winning would mean?
10 Bad Guys Close InPressure builds from outside and within.
What typically happens
Consequences accumulate after the midpoint. Opposition becomes more effective, relationships strain, and the protagonist’s habits may make matters worse. The “bad guys” can be institutions, circumstances, competing needs, or internal conflict—not necessarily literal villains.
What it does for the story
Narrows the protagonist’s options and exposes the cost of their current approach.
A question to consider
How can each attempt to fix the problem create a harder choice?
11 All Is LostAn apparent defeat that breaks the old approach.
What typically happens
The protagonist suffers a setback that seems to destroy the goal, a crucial relationship, or their sense of who they are. Something they relied on no longer works. A loss may be literal or symbolic; this beat does not require a death or a spectacle.
What it does for the story
Makes continuing with the same strategy feel impossible.
A question to consider
What could be lost that would force your character to confront what has not been working?
12 Dark Night of the SoulLiving with the loss long enough to learn from it.
What typically happens
The protagonist reacts to the apparent defeat: grief, doubt, shame, reflection, or a quiet encounter may follow. They begin to recognize something they could not see before. This can be brief, but the next move needs an emotional or causal foundation rather than an unexplained burst of confidence.
What it does for the story
Connects the low point to a possible change in understanding.
A question to consider
What can your character finally admit once the old plan has failed?
Act III · Resolve and reveal the change
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13 Break into ThreeA new approach becomes possible.
What typically happens
An insight, discovery, or decision supplies a way forward. What the protagonist has learned—sometimes through the secondary storyline—changes how they will face the central problem. The solution should grow from the story rather than arrive as unrelated luck.
What it does for the story
Turns reflection into action; roughly the Act II turning point.
A question to consider
What will the character do differently now, and why are they able to choose it?
14 FinalePut the new approach through its hardest test.
What typically happens
The protagonist acts on the new plan and faces the central conflict at its most consequential. Further obstacles can test whether the change is real. The finale may span several scenes: preparation, confrontation, a decisive choice, and its immediate consequences. Its resolution can be triumphant, tragic, or ambiguous.
What it does for the story
Pays off the central pursuit and brings the character’s choices into contact with the theme. The climax typically sits within this sequence.
A question to consider
What final choice or action demonstrates whether your character has changed?
15 Final ImageAn ending that lets us feel the difference.
What typically happens
A closing moment shows life after the decisive events. It may echo the opening through a place, action, relationship, or visual detail, now carrying a different meaning. The change can be hopeful, troubling, or incomplete; not every loose end needs a verbal explanation.
What it does for the story
Leaves the audience with a felt sense of the outcome, often as part of the resolution.
A question to consider
What could the audience see at the end that would mean something different than it did at the beginning?