The 3-Act Paradigm at Work: Before and After

written by Ted Tally


Before and After is a family drama about an over-protective father who destroys evidence to prevent his son from being charged with murder but in so doing brings tension and danger to his entire family.

Structural Analysis

  1. Hook (2, 4 min.)
    • After images of Americana in winter, we see a dead body in the snow (2 min.). A narrative voice-over (the daughter) tells us, "Your whole life can change in a second" and this is what happened to her family.
  2. Complication (8-9 min.)
    • The police chief comes looking for Jacob, the son, who was the last to be seen with the murdered girl.
  3. Call to Action (11, 17 min.)
    • The father refuses to cooperate with the police chief (11 min.), in order to protect his son. When he finds bloody gloves in the trunk of the son's car, he burns the evidence (17 min.).
  4. Act One Plot Point (25-7 min.)
    • The father tells his wife about finding and destroying the evidence. She wants to tell the truth to the police. He convinces her it's too late, their charade must be carried through in order to protect their son.
  5. Midpoint Plot Point (57-62 min.)
    • Jacob, the son, tells his parents what really happened: he killed her during a fight but it was an accident.
  6. Act Two Plot Point (89, 94 min.)
    • The wife tells the truth to the grand jury. Jacob disappears. The family is totally torn apart.
  7. Climax and Resolution (95-102 min.)
    • Jacob turns himself in. He never realized how much his father loves him, how much his father is willing to sacrifice for him. The only reason Jacob serves time, however, is for destroying evidence. The father also serves time. Both sentences are short, but the family is never the same again.

MODULE 4: SCREENWRIGHT: the craft of screenwriting

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