Script Analysis: “Nightcrawler” — Part 3: Sequences
Reading scripts. Absolutely critical to learn the craft of screenwriting. The focus of this weekly series is a deep structural and thematic analysis of each script we read. Our daily schedule:
Monday: Scene-By-Scene Breakdown
Tuesday: Major Plot Points
Wednesday: Sequences
Thursday: Themes
Friday: Takeaways
Today: Sequences.
A sequence is simply a collection of scenes in a screenplay that have their own narrative arc and they have been around since the earliest days of cinema. Arising from this is something known as the sequence approach. Here is a description from Wikipedia:
The sequence approach to screenwriting, sometimes known as “eight-sequence structure”, is a system developed by Frank Daniel, while he was the head of the Graduate Screenwriting Program at USC. It is based in part on the fact that, in the early days of cinema, technical matters forced screenwriters to divide their stories into sequences, each the length of a reel (about ten minutes).
The sequence approach mimics that early style. The story is broken up into eight 10–15 minute sequences. The sequences serve as “mini-movies”, each with their own compressed three-act structure. The first two sequences combine to form the film’s first act. The next four create the film’s second act. The final two sequences complete the resolution and denouement of the story. Each sequence’s resolution creates the situation which sets up the next sequence.
That’s too formulaic for my tastes. Some screenplays may have eight sequences. Some may have two or three times that many. We should never let a formula control where our stories want to go. That can restrict our creativity and lead to formulaic writing. Nevertheless the idea of a sequence has considerable merit:
• Working with sequences breaks down crafting and writing a script into smaller, manageable parts.
• Each sequence has its own beginning, middle, and end which can help to give the story a solid structure.
• With each sequence flowing directly into the next, a writer can give their script a strong narrative push.
When analyzing a script, there are multiple benefits in identifying its sequences:
• We can identify these mini-stories and see how well they track — beginning, middle, end.
• We can track the transitions into and out of them, one sequence to the next.
• We can explore how the sequences influence the pace of the narrative.
An indicator of sequences are the plot points: When a plot point happens, that generally marks the end of a sequence, building to a significant climax that spins the plot in a new direction.
This week: Nightcrawler. You may download a PDF of the script — free and legal — here.
For Part 1, to read the Scene-By-Scene Breakdown, go here.
For Part 2, to read the Major Plot Points, go here.
Written by Dan Gilroy.
IMDb Plot Summary: When Louis Bloom, a driven man desperate for work, muscles into the world of L.A. crime journalism, he blurs the line between observer and participant to become the star of his own story.
Writing Exercise: Go through the scene-by-scene breakdown and identify the sequences.
Here is something you can do: Imagine each sequence as a runner in a relay race and as an individual sequence ends, it ‘hands off’ the baton to the next sequence. This is how we create a sense of narrative flow. So look at the sequences as articulated above: How does each one ‘hand off’ the story’s momentum to the next sequence?
Tomorrow we consider the script’s themes.
UPDATE: In comments on yesterday’s post, Paul Graunke did a terrific job spotlighting the major plot points in the script for Nightcrawler. I am reproducing his analysis here:
Here’s my short list of major plot points:
Inciting Incident (page 7): Lou happens upon a freeway car accident, watches free-lance video operator Joe Loder shoot the scene to sell to the TV station making the best offer. Lou gets the idea of becoming a free-lance video operator.
Pivot into 2nd Act(page 25): After some initial failures, Lou finally sells a video clip to a Nina Romina, the news director of a bottom-feeding TV station and hires an assistant, Rick. Thus is raised the dramatic question: can Lou go legit, succeed in the unpredictable and cut-throat world of free-lance video journalism?
“B” Story Development (page 46): Lou manipulates Nina into breaking her rule of never mixing the professional with personal and dine with him.
Mid-Point (page 56): Lou tampers with Joe Loder’s van, leading to a traffic accident that eliminates his major (and hostile) competition.
More Success (page 73): Because the main character is an anti-hero, a sociopath, there is no reversal of fortune or Big Setback for the main character. Rather, by “ethically challenging” means, Lou gets his biggest scoop so far, the murder scene in an upscale residential enclave.
Escalating Jeopardy (page 81): After misleading the police to keep them off the scent, Lou hunts down the murderers himself to stage and record another sensational news story.
Success Again (page 98): Lou gets his sensational news story by more “ethically challenging” means that entails others paying for his success with their lives including his partner, Rick.
Facing Down the Final Threat (page 103): Lou is interrogated by a detective who doesn’t believe his alibi but doesn’t have the evidence to charge him with a crime.
Denouement (page 107): The final answer to the dramatic question is “Yes.” Lou is now a successful, independent, legit businessman. He expands his operation with a 2nd unit and they head out into the night to scavenge the streets for stories.
We can very easily use these plot points as beginning and end points of the script’s major sequences.
Thanks, Paul!
REQUEST: We have some incredible scripts in the GITS library which we have yet to analyze including Saving Mr. Banks and many more.
I am looking for volunteers to read a script and provide a scene-by-scene breakdown for it to be used as part of our weekly series. What do you get? Beyond your name being noted here, my thanks, and some creative juju, hopefully you will learn something about story structure and develop another skill set which is super helpful in learning and practicing the craft.
The latest volunteers:
12 Years a Slave — Farzin Farzam
Birdman — Doc Kane
Dallas Buyers Club — Devin Dingler
Frozen — Doc Kane
Gone Girl — Ashley
Looper — Michael Perkins
Nebraska — David Joyner
Nightcrawler — Marija Nielsen
The Wolf of Wall Street — Paul Graunke
Thanks, all!
To see examples of scene-by-scene breakdowns, go here. Part of the goal is to create a library of breakdowns for writers to have at their disposal for research and learning.
You may see the scripts we can use for the series — free and legal — by going here.
To date, we have analyzed 47 movie scripts, a great resource for screenwriters. To see those analyses, go here.
Thanks to any of you who will rise to the occasion and take on a scene-by-scene breakdown.
And for those of you who have volunteered, please send me your scene-by-scene breakdown as soon as possible!
Circling back to where we started, reading scripts is hugely important. Analyzing them even more so. If you want to work in Hollywood as a writer, you need to develop your critical analytical skills. This is one way to do that.
So seize this opportunity and join in the conversation!
I hope to see you in comments about this week’s script: Nightcrawler.
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