The 3-Act Paradigm at Work: Almost Famous
written by Cameron Crowe
Almost Famous, which won an Oscar for best screenplay, is a gentle coming-of-age comedy set against the rock music of the 70s, solidly structured in 3 acts.
Structural Analysis
- Hook (1 min.)
- Our protagonist's mother, a wannabe rock music critic, believes pop music leads to sex and drugs.
- Complication (7 min.)
- His sister, running away at 18, leaves him all her rock records.
- Call to Action (13, 19 min.)
- A couple years later, our protagonist gets his first big assignment to review a band and is taken in by a new band, Stillwater.
- Act One Plot Point (34 min.)
- He goes on the road with Stillwater.
- Midpoint Plot Point (58, 59 min.)
- He has to go home to take high school exams and graduate. "You are home," says Penny, the road "band aide" he's fallen in love with. He gets an assignment from Rolling Stone.
- Act Two Plot Point (84-6, 103 min.)
- He loses Penny, who loves a band member and tries to overdose when rejected. His Rolling Stone article is denied by the band and turned down.
- Climax and Resolution (112-4 min.)
- A band member tells the truth, and Rolling Stone belatedly publishes his story. His family eats dinner together in peace for the first time.
MODULE 4:
SCREENWRIGHT: the craft of screenwriting
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