Broken Frontier

Remember that the four sequences that comprise the second act are progressively more complicated attempts to answer the dramatic question. But that’s not all they are. In fact, each of the sequences also has their own special purpose.

Sequence C’s special purpose, you’ll recall, was to be the first attempt to answer the dramatic question. Sequence D is the second attempt, that’s true, but it also includes what is known as the first culmination. Sometimes also referred to as the midway turning point, the first culmination is a glimpse of the answer to the dramatic question. In other words, it is a glimpse of the actual resolution, or, in some cases, its mirror opposite. (We’re going to see this again in the second culmination at the end of Sequence F, but there it will actually be the answer to the dramatic question.)

Another way to think of the first culmination is as an unsatisfying ending. Let’s take a look at an example so you can see what I mean.

In Toy Story, the first culmination occurs in Pizza Planet. Woody and Buzz are together. They have survived their ride in the delivery truck. They have made it inside and are about to get into Andy’s sister’s stroller. If they are successful, the movie might very well be over. Woody would be a hero for getting Buzz back home safely. But it wouldn’t be a very satisfactory ending. I suspect we in the audience would feel cheated in some way. Not just because the movie is only half over (this moment happens about 40 minutes in), but because this ending doesn’t feel full enough. It seems like half an ending. That’s because it doesn’t completely answer the dramatic question. Which, in the case of Toy Story, is, “Will Woody be able to regain his spot as Andy’s favorite toy?” This ending resolves the conflict with Buzz, but Woody would still find himself dealing with his jealousy. This is why it is so important to make sure you have a solid dramatic question and to make sure that you are allowing it to drive your story. In the hands of weaker storytellers, questions are asked that are not answered and this leads to audience dissatisfaction.

Meanwhile, back at Pizza Planet, what really happens is that Woody turns around to get Buzz onto the stroller and finds that Buzz is gone (a wonderful reversal). Technically, Woody could simply save himself and hop on the stroller and go back home. Without Buzz around, he would likely even become Andy’s favorite toy again. But the audience would hate his cheating guts. Not good. So Woody has to give up the chance to get on the stroller and go after Buzz. He discovers him inside the machine with the aliens. Just when we think it can’t get any worse, along comes Sid who wins both Woody and Buzz and takes them home to “play.”

Now is also a good time to mention that another name for this moment is the point of no return. That’s because the characters should have, at this point in the story, passed beyond any opportunity to simply go back to the way things were. This example from Toy Story certainly meets this criterion. Even if Buzz and Woody wanted to go back on the stroller, they can’t once they’ve been caught by Sid. The only way out is to go forward, a sure sign of a good story.

In The Truman Show, the midpoint is when Truman crosses the bridge. In Gladiator, it’s when Maximus arrives in Rome and commits to being a gladiator so that he can destroy Commodus. In Erin Brokovich, it’s when they file the lawsuit. In Titanic, it’s when Jack makes love with Rose. (And here is a great example of the midpoint serving as the opposite of the ending. Jack and Rose are together in the most intimate fashion; at the end of the movie, they are, of course, separated by death.)

As you can see, these are defining moments in these stories. This isn’t just another attempt to answer the dramatic question, it’s one that takes the story much higher than it has been before. To be sure, it will go higher still, but part of the trick of the best storytelling is to make each stage progressively more complicated and exciting without making it feel inorganic.

Take a look at a few of your favorite films and see if you can identify the first culmination. Pay special attention to what glimpse of the ending it is giving you. Is it a glimpse of the actual ending? Or its mirror opposite? Consider also the way those midpoints you define also serve as the points of no return. When you’ve got a few, share them in the Forum.

Until next time, keep writing.

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For those of you both inclined and in the financial position to do so, I highly recommend the purchase of the two best books about the sequence approach to screenwriting: Screenwriting: The Sequence Approach, by Paul Gulino, and The Tools of Screenwriting, A Writer’s Guide to the Craft and Elements of a Screenplay, by David Howard.