In a previous post, I shared some questions that Hollywood script readers ask in order to tell whether the big idea of a story will work. In this post, we look at the questions that apply to the plot and structure of your script:
1. Does the first scene grab our attention?
Often this can be done with a strong visual image or an unusual action. What question will be in the audience's mind when they watch the first scene or two? It doesn't have to be something epic. For instance, if we see a child crying, we immediately wonder why.
2. Do the first couple of scenes make it clear whose story this will be--and is it someone we can relate to?
Occasionally it may work to start with someone other than the protagonist, but usually that's who we want to see first or at least very soon.
Your protagonist doesn't have to be likable, but they DO have to be interesting and we have to be able to relate to them in some way. For instance, the first scenes in the classic, The Godfather, introduces us to the title character on the day of his daughter's wedding. We may not be able to relate to him in his role as a mobster, but everybody can relate to him as a doting father.
3. Does your protagonist have a strong goal? What's at stake?
Not every story has to be life-or-death, but it has to feel that way to your protagonist. For a nerdy kid, winning the contest to be Prom King can feel as important and desperate as a rock climber's quest to save their life as they hang from a cliff.
The goal should be one to which the audience can relate, and If there's no strong consequence if the protagonist fails, we won't care.
4. Does the story feature a series of obstacles that get in the way of the character's goal?
Sometimes there's a villain who is trying to thwart your protagonist, but the obstacle can also be a force of nature (fire, floods, meteors), or aliens, or something else. If the main obstacle is internal (like an addiction) you have to figure out how to represent it externally (or write a novel instead).
5. Do the obstacles escalate?
Each new hurdle should be harder than the last, otherwise there's no sense of momentum. If the obstacles could occur in any order the events will feel random rather than motivated. As much as possible, keep them linked by cause and effect.
For example, let's say your story is about a poor couple that wants to get married. One obstacle is that her parents are opposed. They throw a few roadblocks in the couple's way, but the lovers get in a car and leave town.
They think they're in the clear when suddenly they hear a police siren. The police arrest the guy for stealing his own car because the young woman's father reported it as his stolen car.
While he's in jail waiting for the mistake to be corrected, the guy meets a sympathetic guard who says his brother in another city will hire him if he goes there. What the guy doesn't know is that the guard is corrupt and has hidden something illegal in the guy's possessions when they're returned to him. Of course, this leads to more danger. It's not the greatest story but the point is that you can see the logical chain of cause and effect.
Naturally, there should be variations in pacing. At times your protagonist should seem to be winning--only to encounter an even bigger obstacle.
6. Are there surprises along the way?
Audiences have seen a lot of movies. If they're consistently one step ahead of the plot, they''ll get bored. The surprises have to make sense in the context of the story, rather than being arbitrary.
7. Is the ending logical yet unpredictable--and a consequence of the actions of your protagonist?
If the ending comes out of the blue--for instance, as a result of the actions of a peripheral character--the audience will feel cheated.
The same is true if your ending depends on coincidence. A good rule of thumb is, "You can use coincidence to get your characters into trouble, but not out of trouble."
Sometimes you can't get around the ending being predictable: it's not likely that Lex Luther will succeed in killing Superman, for example. In that case, you have to come up with a surprise in how the ending comes about.
