There's a frequent perception that script readers base all their evaluations on the tenets discussed in Blake Snyder's "Save the Cat." So is there any truth to this? Hear what the Bitter puppet has to say.
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
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Great question. I was wondering about this myself. But don't some agencies actually require (or recommend) a "beat sheet"? I'm having this problem myself, as I find very few of my specs come close to a Save The Cat model The three act structure still is in focus of course, but when I wondered what the hoopla over the Snyder model was, my heart was troubled.
ReplyDeleteI started to rewrite/restructure one of my specs to meet this guide but I wound up sacrificing some of the things that most of my peers liked (from workshop hubs like Talentville and such) and long story short I found out that this Beat Sheet thing wasn't really working for me unless I started a whole new script blank page first.
But what's bugging me more is that if the Snyder model is used a lot in hit films then (and this is my opinion) would critics and audiences soon catch on if they haven't already done so?
On Twitter I asked the pros to weigh in on if producers/reps have ever given them notes using "Save the Cat" beat sheets as examples. The vast majority of working pros said this doesn't happen. The few writers who said it DID happen appear to be newer writers who might very well be working with people who have no business being managers and agents.
DeleteCheck out this old post that points out that Snyder basically is just giving new names to some very old models of story structure.
Don't worry about audiences catching on. Joseph Campbell identified the Monomyth in 1949 and no one seems to have had their enjoyment of STAR WARS and other epics ruined by it.
When is Scriptshadow going to review Toby is Now Following You? I'm so excited.
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