Script Analysis and Breakdown
From a director’s point of view
The film director has a unique way of looking at the film script and breaking it down. For the director the script is not a literary document but rather a tool, a guide, leading to the creation of a motion picture.
In this two-day seminar, Mark Travis takes a well know script and step-by-step takes the students through a detailed analysis of story, character, arcs and themes. In a well-designed process each scene is broken down into its basic elements of objectives, obstacles, core actions, raison d’etre and arc. A wide range of choices is discovered and discussed with the understanding that there is no right answer, no correct choice, and only personal vision.
Topics and areas covered include:
- What is the story REALLY about?
- The director’s personal connection with the story.
- The definition of protagonist.
- The Inciting Incident.
- The Obligatory Scene
- Character Arcs
- Relationship Arcs
- The role of Obstacles in defining characters
- The Three Act Structure
- Turning Points and Adjustments
- The Emotional Graph of each character
- The Audience’s Journey
- Closure and resolution
- Themes and symbols
Number of students: As many as you like (usually 50-60)
Number of days: 2