by Jeff Kitchen
Cause: Apollo takes Hutchings aside and tells him about this new tax shelter that Uruguay has put in place. Hutchings thinks it might work for them.
Cause: Apollo shows up at the office with Hutchings. Cutter, to his surprise, learns that they’re old acquaintances: Apollo is a retired ambassador from Uruguay.
Cause: Cutter and Shallott begin the complex and illegal work of bringing St. Nick’s hidden illicit assets into the system so they can be deposited into the reserve fund that allows the bank to do business. They’re having difficulties doing it.
Cause: Shallott introduces Cutter as his assistant and convinces St. Nick and Hutchings that he’s loyal, reliable, and indispensible. They agree.
Cause: Shallott explains to Cutter that St. Nick’s part in the deal is to post the reserve fund required by law to start a bank. To do that, St. Nick has to bring illegal assets in from hiding, which makes him vulnerable. Cutter reluctantly agrees to work on it.
Cause: Shallott tells Cutter that Senator Hutchings came to him because he needed a crooked bank examiner to help set up a bank fronted by St. Nick. The bank will take advantage of a banking law loophole that Hutchings slipped into a congressional bill.
Cause: Shallott says he has a once-in-a-lifetime chance to destroy St. Nick. He’s waited years for just such an opportunity, because St. Nick killed his only family in the world when he poisoned an entire Kentucky town over a racehorse cheating incident.
Cause: Cutter reluctantly goes with Apollo and is introduced to Shallott.
Cause: Apollo tells Mischa the story about when Cutter stole the Rolling Stones’ limo, and Mischa is fascinated and in awe. Cutter caves in and agrees to go with Apollo, because he can’t let Mischa learn more of his past, knowing that it will tilt Mischa into a life of crime.
Cause: Cutter won’t have anything to do with Apollo, no matter what, even though he utterly despises St. Nick.
Cause: Apollo springs himself on Cutter from out of the blue, pretending to be a sex offender who has just moved into the neighborhood. He threatens Cutter with blackmail if he doesn’t join him on a job to destroy St. Nick.
Cause: Cutter has just had a fight with his wife because he’s unhappy and she knows he’s itching for the old life, even though he swears he isn’t.
Cause: Cutter opens the community center he helped organize and reconstruct, and to his surprise he’s depressed when the ceremony is over. He takes antidepressants, and Margarita sees him in this slump.
Cause: Cutter is a solid, churchgoing family man, a good husband, and an upright role model to his estranged son. The family heads off to the grand opening of a community center.
The eleven causes in the Act I section of cause and effect for the overall script are expanded here to twenty-three Causes for Act I alone. I thought Act I through further and visualized the next level of detail, inventing some of it on the spot. I’m still free from too much detail—just enough for a little more of the story to come into focus. Notice as well that I am grooming, revising, rethinking, and developing the plot as I go. I’m not a slave to what I already had—that was just a rough map. If it still works, that’s fine, but if I stumble onto something new, then I’ll run with it.
Proposition, Plot for Act I
The next step is to employ Proposition, Plot for Act I. The Initial Act of Aggression for the act will naturally be different from that for the whole script, because we’re working with a smaller unit of the script. The proportion, however, is much the same for this Proposition, Plot as it was for the whole script: the set-up about one-quarter to one-third of the way into the act, the touch-off about two-thirds to three-quarters of the way through, and the section called “Plot” constituting the last third or quarter of the act (see diagram in chapter 7).
Protagonist
Antagonist
Initial Act of Aggression
Apollo appears, blackmails Cutter into this revenge scam on St. Nick, and takes him to meet Shallott, who explains the job.
Justified Retaliation
Cutter threatens Apollo and Shallott, saying this has to work or he’ll have their heads.
Aggravation of the Issue
St. Nick gets paranoid and accuses Cutter of lying about the handling of the Uruguayan tax shelter.
Precipitating Act
Cutter stands up fiercely to St. Nick, saying that he is not a liar and will not be called one.
Central Dramatic Question
Will Cutter make St. Nick back down, or will St. Nick throw him out or even kill him?
St. Nick flips out at Cutter and wants to kill him, but manages to cool down a bit.
Cutter panics, sure that he’s just ruined his revenge scam, then eavesdrops on St. Nick and Hutchings in their secure room.
St. Nick and Hutchings talk about their plan to use government-guaranteed agricultural loans. St. Nick says Cutter has guts and that he’s going to promote him.
Cutter and Apollo decide to put their original plan on hold; Cutter’s promotion gives them more opportunity to take down St. Nick for good.
Since St. Nick, the central antagonist, is not in the mix yet, Apollo plays the role of antagonist in the Initial Act of Aggression. As for the Justified Retaliation, I just invented this one because Cutter didn’t have much in the way of retaliation except trying to refuse—not a strong enough action for a protagonist. In other words the tool did its job, suggesting that something stronger was required, and I came up with some conflict on the fly.
DIVIDING THE ACT INTO SEQUENCES
Dividing an act into sequences mirrors the process of dividing a script into acts. Look for natural breaks in the action and determine if they really are acceptable dividing lines. Remember that there are generally two to five sequences in an act (see chapter 7). A sequence, in turn, usually consists of two to five scenes. Looking at the reverse cause and effect for Act I, I find four sequences, separated by lines in the diagram below:
First we have (1) the opening sequence, with Cutter doing good works around town and then arguing with his wife. Then we’ve got (2) the appearance of Apollo and the meeting with Shallott. Next is (3) Cutter going to work at the bank with Shallott, up through the point where the IRS challenges the Uruguayan tax deal. Finally, there is (4) the fight between Cutter and St. Nick, consisting of the overheard plan and Cutter reporting back to Apollo. I’ll apply Sequence, Proposition, Plot for the sequence (2) the appearance of Apollo, which is set off in bold in the above diagram.
SEQUENCE, PROPOSITION, PLOT FOR ACT I, SEQUENCE 2
Again I’ll be referring to the cause and effect I’ve just prepared, this time from the Sequence 2 section of the act level (reproduced below). I’ll use it as a map as I expand the detail and think through the particulars of the sequence. Remember also to check the section of Proposition, Plot that’s pertinent to this sequence for actions that should be included as well. There will tend to be incidents in the cause and effect that aren’t in Proposition, Plot, and vice versa. You need to incorporate the full set of actions from the act level into the cause and effect for Sequence 2.
Cause: Shallott explains to Cutter that St. Nick’s part in the deal is to post the reserve fund required by law to start a bank. To do that, St. Nick has to bring illegal assets in from hiding, which makes him vulnerable. Cutter reluctantly agrees to work on it.
Cause: Shallott tells Cutter that Senator Hutchings came to him because he needed a crooked bank examiner to help set up a bank fronted by St. Nick. The bank will take advantage of a banking law loophole that Hutchings slipped into a congressional bill.
Cause: Shallott says he has a once-in-a-lifetime chance to destroy St. Nick. He’s waited years for just such an opportunity, because St. Nick killed his only family in the world when he poisoned a Kentucky town over a racehorse cheating incident.
Cause: Cutter reluctantly goes with Apollo and is introduced to Shallott.
Cause: Apollo tells Mischa the story about when Cutter stole
the Rolling Stones’ limo, and Mischa is fascinated and in awe. Cutter caves in and agrees to go with Apollo, because he can’t let Mischa learn more of his past, knowing that it will tilt Mischa into a life of crime.
Cause: Cutter won’t have anything to do with Apollo, no matter what, even though he utterly despises St. Nick.
Cause: Apollo springs himself on Cutter from out of the blue, pretending to be a sex offender who has just moved into the neighborhood. He threatens Cutter with blackmail if he doesn’t join him on a job to destroy St. Nick.
Reverse Cause and Effect for Act I, Sequence 2
Now, constantly referring to the reverse cause and effect above, we’ll go back through this sequence section again and develop yet more detail.
What’s the Object of this Sequence? Cutter agrees to do the job, but doesn’t trust Apollo.
What’s the Final Effect that demonstrates this Object on-screen with real actors? Cutter reluctantly agrees, saying he hates St. Nick’s guts, but threatens Apollo and Shallott that this better be airtight or he’ll come after them—if St. Nick doesn’t kill them first.
Immediate Cause: Shallott tells Cutter that Senator Hutchings came to him in need of a crooked bank examiner. Shallott’s job is to help St. Nick bring money out of hiding in order to fill a federally required reserve fund. St. Nick is only vulnerable now, but will soon be untouchable. Shallott says that Cutter’s special skills are absolutely indispensable in taking down St. Nick.
Cause: Shallott explains that Hutchings slipped a loophole into a law that could make him fabulously wealthy if only he owned a bank. So he got his old friend, St. Nick—who’s anxious to go legit—to buy the bank, with the senator as a silent partner. This was Shallott’s way in.
Cause: Shallott says St. Nick killed his only family, a severely retarded brother, years ago when he wiped out an entire town in Kentucky over a fixed horse race gone wrong. Shallott had worked with Senator Hutchings, and learned that Hutchings did business with St. Nick, so Shallott stayed tight with Hutchings, hoping for the chance someday to avenge his brother.
Cause: Apollo takes Cutter to meet Shallott, who has a once-in-a-lifetime golden opportunity to wipe out St. Nick and absolutely must take this chance.
Cause: Cutter caves in and agrees to listen to Apollo’s plan.
Cause: Mischa shows up, and Apollo tells him the story of Cutter hijacking he Rolling Stones in their limousine, and of the legendary rampage the Stones still remember as the single best party they’d ever been to. Mischa is thrilled.
Cause: Cutter says he doesn’t trust Apollo and will not help him—period.
Cause: If Cutter doesn’t help him, Apollo threatens to tell the police about an unsolved crime Cutter committed. Cutter knows that if Apollo turns him in it’ll be his third strike, and he’ll go to jail for life.
Cause: Apollo claims he has hit on the perfect way to absolutely devastate St. Nick—a savage criminal who betrayed and murdered Frenchy, their best buddy from prison—and make a fortune in the process. Cutter is moved, but still refuses to have anything to do with the plan.
Cause: Cutter answers the door to find a new neighbor, who says he’s a registered sex offender required by law to inform the neighborhood. Cutter tries to be civil, but the guy breaks out laughing—and it turns out to be his old cellmate, Apollo.
Look at how much more detail we’re bringing out on this pass. We’re getting down to the full particulars of exactly what’s happening in this sequence. Notice how I’m actually describing each cause in more detail as I flesh out the specifics, and how I’m creating this as I go—it’s definitely not script analysis, as it was in Chapter 7. Notice that the Initial Act of Aggression for Act I (Cutter threatens Apollo and Shallott) is built into the cause and effect as the Final Effect for Sequence 2.
Proposition, Plot for Act I, Sequence 2
One of the things I notice now is that the level of conflict in this sequence could be higher. When starting to use Proposition, I orient myself by asking, “Does this particular sequence build to a fight that erupts two-thirds or three-quarters of the way through? Is there a fight or isn’t there? If there is, then what’s the fight?” Proposition, Plot is a conflict map, and my job is to set up a conflict and touch it off in order to get the viewers on the edge of their seats. If there isn’t any conflict, then I can invent it; any kind of opposition can add Dramatic Action to an act, a sequence, or a scene.
When I look for a possible Precipitating Act for this sequence, I find that Cutter doesn’t take much of an action that touches off the fight to the finish. He resists Apollo at the beginning and at the end, but there isn’t a real confrontation—not enough tension to grip the audience. The reverse cause and effect shows that this sequence was all just Shallott explaining things. They’re interesting things, but they’re only narrative; more conflict would make this sequence much more dramatic. In other words, this sequence is mere Story, not Drama. I need a strong display from Cutter at the point of the Precipitating Act. He shouldn’t go meekly along, but should be fighting harder for his life. It’s fairly routine to use Sequence, Proposition, Plot to up the amperage of an entire sequence—to create conflict where the tool points out that it could be.
Now I’ll map out Proposition, Plot for Act I, Sequence 2.
Protagonist
Antagonist
Initial Act of Aggression
Apollo shows up with a way to destroy St. Nick, and blackmails Cutter by telling Mischa about when Cutter stole the Rolling Stones’ limo.
Justified Retaliation
Cutter refuses to have anything to do with Apollo and tries to force him to stop telling Mischa the story.
Aggravation of the Issue
Apollo takes Cutter to Shallott, who explains the opportunity to destroy St. Nick and demands Cutter’s help.
Precipitating Act
Cutter gets furious and tells them St. Nick is so treacherous that they’ll get all their families killed.
Central Dramatic Question
Will Cutter get rid of Shallott and Apollo, or will they somehow drag him into this job?
Shallott says that St. Nick already did kill his family, and he wants revenge.
Cutter says he hates St. Nick’s guts, too, but he just cannot do the job.
Shallott explains that St. Nick is only vulnerable for a limited time and that the scam won’t work without Cutter.
Cutter reluctantly agrees, but says he’ll kill them both if things go wrong.
Do you see how Proposition, Plot enhanced this sequence dramatically? This scene now has Dramatic Action; it went from mere Story to actual Drama.
Cutter and Shallott are at each other’s throats. They’re acting more like desperate criminals than accountants or wimps, and the actors now have so much more to do than merely relay information to the audience. This is a great example of how to dramatize exposition (facts that the audience needs to know). It’s a gripping, actable scene that will get the audience’s attention. This sequence just became stageworthy.
As you work your way down the levels of the structure, from the overall script to each act to each sequence and finally to each scene, doing Sequence, Proposition, Plot for each level, you are constantly grooming each unit. It gives you a chance to keep developing your material as you go—changing, revising, and refining. You’re not just robotically using this process; you’re an artist who takes the opportunities this tool affords to improve your material on every pass.
DIVIDING THE SEQUENCES INTO SCENES
Next I’ll go through Sequence, Proposition, Plot for two scenes in this sequence, which will make them coherent and compelling. These scenes are nested inside the sequence, which is itself tight and dramatic. The sequence is part of the act, which is solid and gripping, and the act is part of the whole script, which has a compelling and coherent structure. Each smaller unit holds up dramatically but is also a mechanical piece of a larger unit so that, presumably, if any of the p
arts are removed, then the whole will no longer function.
Below is a view of the reverse cause and effect for the sequence, divided by lines into three scenes:
At first I thought the section that I’m working with might constitute one scene, but it turned out to be two (set in bold in the diagram above). In the first, Apollo is introduced, and in the next, Mischa is learning about his dad’s past.
SEQUENCE, PROPOSITION, PLOT FOR ACT I, SEQUENCE 2, SCENE 1
I’ll work my way back through the section below (as well as taking from Proposition, Plot), thinking it through in more detail and using it to build the reverse cause and effect for Scene 1.
Cause: Cutter says he doesn’t trust Apollo and will not help him—period. Cause: If Cutter doesn’t help him, Apollo threatens to tell the police about an unsolved crime Cutter committed. Cutter knows that if Apollo turns him in it’ll be his third strike, meaning he’ll go to jail for life.
Cause: Apollo claims he has hit on the perfect way to absolutely devastate St. Nick—a savage criminal who betrayed and murdered Frenchy, their best buddy from prison—and make a fortune in the process. Cutter is moved, but still refuses to have anything to do with the plan.
Cause: Cutter answers the door to find a new neighbor, who says he’s a registered sex offender required by law to inform the neighborhood. Cutter tries to be civil, but the guy breaks out laughing—and it turns out to be his old cellmate, Apollo.