Beginning, Middle, End

Beginning, Middle and End

In a screenplay, just like your plot, a well-structured scene will have a beginning, middle and end.

Beginning

You must establish who the protagonist of the scene is and what they want. Except for the first time we meet a character, this is done BEFORE the scene starts. This is what we know about the character from the previous scenes, and specifically the very last scene that character was in.

Middle

There needs to be a complication. Otherwise, there is no scene. The protagonist wants something. And there is someone or something that won’t let them obtain it. That’s the complication, which is the scene equivalent of the end of Act I.

The protagonist then begins to execute different approaches to getting what they want. They will try to appeal to their antagonist with logic, emotion, seduction, threats — whatever is available to them.

In a good scene, the antagonist will have an equally strong reason for not wanting the protagonist to obtain their goal. The antagonist will reject, deny, avoid, manipulate — do whatever is possible — to deny the protagonist.

When the protagonist of the scene has run out of options, they will be desperate. This is the equivalent of the lowest moment.

End

This seeming-defeat forces the protagonist of the scene to change tactics. This change of tactics leads to the climax and resolution of the scene.

In all great drama, nothing changes without sacrifice. This can be someone’s life, a prized possession, a shameful secret, a deeply held emotion or anything else of profound value to a character.

In a good scene, the protagonist of the scene resorts to something unexpected or beyond their limits. Does the character resort to violence beyond their sense of propriety? Does the character expose themselves emotionally? Do they reveal a shameful secret? Do they confront a truth about themselves they would rather not admit?

The choices are endless. Whichever the protagonist chooses in order to triumph and how that character reacts to their choice — surprise, regret, horror, resignation — will reveal something about their character to the…