Save the cat!

“One of the most comprehensive and insightful how-to’s out there.

Save the Cat! is a must-read for both the novice and the professional

screenwriter.”

— Todd Black, Producer, The Weather Man, S.W.A.T,

Alex and Emma, Antwone Fisher

“Want to know how to be a successful writer in Hollywood? The

answers are here. Blake Snyder has written an insider’s book that’s

informative — and funny, too.”

— David Hoberman, Producer, The Shaggy Dog (2005),

Raising Helen, Walking Tall, Bringing Down the House, Monk

(TV)

“This just may be the BEST book you’ll ever need, or read, on the

subject of how to break into the big screen big time. Snyder is a

working, selling writer himself, so he gives the reader a true inside

glimpse into what it’s like, what it takes, and what to expect on the

long road to screenwriting stardom. Many screenwriting how-to tomes

are written by guys and gals who have few or no real studio credits, so

with this book you can be sure you are getting the info direct from the

source of a successful member of the Hollywood elite. This is no

doubt the one book that will do more to help you achieve success and

get your two-brad-bound puppy through the door than any other I’ve

read so far. And believe me, folks, I’ve read them all.”

— Marie Jones, www.AbsoluteWrite.com

“You’d have to look far and wide to find a better book to help you

achieve your goals. Quite simply one of the most practical guides to

writing mainstream spec scripts on the market.”

— Screentalk Magazine

“Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat! could also be called Save the

Screenwriter!, because that’s exactly what it will do: Save the

screenwriter time, save the screenwriter frustration, and save the

screenwriter’s sanity. Blake takes you behind the scenes and into the

decision-makers’ offices as he explains how the Hollywood system

works and what writers should do and expect as they journey through

the perilous maze of Hollywood.”

— Andy Cohen, Literary Manager/Producer; President,

Grade A Entertainment

“Shockingly informative, stunningly funny — I wish I’d had Save

the Cat! to read when I was just starting out. It would have saved time,

tears, and trees.”

— Susan Jansen, Writer-Producer, The Lizzie McGuire

Movie, Maybe This Time (TV), Boy Meets World (TV);

Writer, Home Improvement (TV)

“Save the Cat! offers the insight and knowledge needed to write

and sell screenplays in today’s competitive marketplace. Fun, fresh,

and informative. Way to go, Blake!”

— Valarie Phillips, Head of Motion Picture Literary,

Paradigm Agency

“Blake is one of the brightest and most original thinkers in

screenwriting today. His how-to approach is Grade-A, rock-solid

advice.”

— Craig Baumgarten, Producer, Peter Pan, Shattered Glass

“As an executive I always looked for a way to fix an existing

screenplay. And now, as a producer, I need a way to conceptualize as

quickly and efficiently as possible — and Blake Snyder’s insightful

book is it!”

— Kathryn Sommer Parry, Producer, The Marine (2005);

Development Executive, Basic Instinct, Rambo, Terminator 2,

Chaplin, 12 Monkeys, I Spy

“Imagine what would happen in a town where more writers

approached screenwriting the way Blake suggests? My weekend read

would dramatically improve, both in sellable/producible content and in

discovering new writers who understand the craft of storytelling and

can be hired on assignment for ideas we already have in house. Save

the Cat! is like a Berlitz guide to interpreting the secret language of

every studio exec and producer in town. Once you learn to think like

the people with the checkbook, you’re one step closer to success.”

— From the Foreword by Sheila Hanahan Taylor,

Vice President, Development at Zide/Perry Entertainment

Published by Michael Wiese Productions

11288 Ventura Blvd., Suite 621

Studio City, CA 91604

tel. (818) 379-8799

fax (818) 986-3408

[email protected]

www.mwp.com

Cover Design: Michael Wiese Productions

Book Layout: Gina Mansfield

Editor: Brett Jay Markel

Printed by McNaughton & Gunn, Inc., Saline, Michigan

Manufactured in the United States of America

© 2005 Blake Snyder

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or

by any means without permission in writing from the publisher, except for the

inclusion of brief quotations in a review.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Snyder, Blake, 1957-

Save the cat! : the last book on screenwriting you’ll ever need /

Blake Snyder.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 1-932907-00-9

1. Motion picture plays–Technique. 2. Motion picture authorship. I. Title: Last

book on screenwriting you’ll ever need. II. Title.

PN1996.S65 2005

808.2’3–dc22

2004009134

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD

The official stamp of approval of the Save the Cat method from Sheila

Hanahan Taylor, producer and development executive for Zide/Perry

(American Pie, Final Destination, Hellboy)

INTRODUCTION

Why another screenwriting book? — Some background on the author

and the reason for the book — And what does the phrase “Save the

Cat” mean anyway?

CHAPTER ONE: WHAT IS IT?

The importance of “the idea” — What is a “logline” and what are the

four requirements to creating a better one? — What is “high concept”

and why is it still relevant? — Test pitching your movie for fun and

profit — Plus five games to jump-start your idea-creating skills.

CHAPTER TWO: GIVE ME THE SAME THING… ONLY

DIFFERENT!

All about genre — The 10 genres that every movie ever made can be

categorized by — How genre is important to you and your movie —

Plus ways to peg every movie’s type.

CHAPTER THREE: IT’S ABOUT A GUY WHO…

The subject is the hero — Why the hero must serve the idea — How

to adjust the hero to make your movie idea work better — The myth

of casting your movie — Jungian archetypes and why we need ’em.

CHAPTER FOUR: LET’S BEAT IT OUT!

The beats of a movie as defined by the official “Blake Snyder Beat

Sheet” a.k.a. the BS2 — An in-depth discussion of each of the 15

beats found in a successful movie as found in the BS2 — How the

beats apply to Miss Congeniality.

CHAPTER FIVE: BUILDING THE PERFECT BEAST

Putting it up on the board — Sectioning off four horizontal rows, one

for each section of the movie — 40 index cards and 40 only! —

Troubleshooting based on the layout — How a screenplay is like a

business plan and how you can create one that sells.

CHAPTER SIX: THE IMMUTABLE LAWS OF

SCREENPLAY PHYSICS

Common sense rules of screenwriting based on experience in the

trenches of Hollywood, such as: Save the Cat, The Pope in the Pool,

Double Mumbo Jumbo, Laying Pipe, Too Much Marzipan a.k.a. Black

Vet, Watch Out for That Glacier!, and Covenant of the Arc.

CHAPTER SEVEN: WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS

PICTURE?

Despite everything, you’ve written 110 pages of nada — How to get

back on track by using 6 fast double-checks on your work: The Hero

Leads; Make The Bad Guy Badder; Turn, Turn, Turn; The Emotional

Color Wheel; “Hi How Are You I’m Fine;” Take A Step Back — all

ironclad and proven rules for script repair.

CHAPTER EIGHT: FINAL FADE IN

Before you send your script out, how can you smooth the way? —

Marketing ideas for both the newbie and the established professional

that will help you get your script sold and made — Plus personal

examples.

GLOSSARY

From A to Z, a review of every slangy STC expression and

Hollywood-inside-the-310-area-code term.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Of the many people who helped make this book a reality, I would first

of all like to thank my friend and mentor, B. J. Markel, for both giving me

wise counsel about the entertainment business and doing such a patient and

sterling job in the editing of this book. I would also like to thank Ken Lee

for his continuing support and enthusiasm, and Gina Mansfield, a true

collaborator and artist. And most of all, I want to thank Michael Wiese,

who has created such a winning brand of books about every aspect of the

film industry, and is also one of its most proactive and successful

participants. Finally, thanks for the encouragement I received from the gang

“in and out of these rooms,” especially Marin, Melanie, Rich, Lee, Lisa,

Zed, Zak, Eric, Jake, and Wendell. Trudge on!

FOREWORD

By Sheila Hanahan Taylor, Producer at Zide/Perry Entertainment,

whose films include the American Pie trilogy, Hellboy, Cats and Dogs,

Final Destination, Final Destination 2; Associate Professor, UCLA

Producer’s Program.

With the turn of EVERY page of this book, I found myself using all of

Blake Snyder’s tools, hints, and ideas to double-and triple-check my own

projects that are set up and in development at studios all over town! I love

the idea that Blake has written a book that everyone can use — from the

novice to the practicing producer. How often does that happen?!

I also found myself trying to come up with a way I could politely refer

Save the Cat! to a number of repped, produced writers who could use a

little goose from its tactics. Imagine what would happen in a town where

more writers approached screenwriting the way Blake suggests? My

weekend read would dramatically improve, both in sellable/produceable

content and in discovering new writers who understand the craft of

storytelling and can be hired on assignment for ideas we already have in

house. (On second thought, are you SURE you want this published, Blake?

It might beef up the competition!) I’ve been searching for a book that

masterfully uses the kind of “successful” examples studio heads use (Miss

Congeniality, Die Hard, Legally Blonde, Signs) and peeks behind the

curtain to explain them on all fronts — genre, plot, structure, marketing,

casting — in a way that rookies and pros alike will understand and

hopefully put to use. Save the Cat! is like a Berlitz guide to interpreting the

secret language of every studio exec and producer in town. Once you learn

to think like the people with the checkbook, you’re one step closer to

success.

I’m not exaggerating when I say at Zide/Perry — one of the premier

homes for breaking new screenwriters and launching careers — we

recommend every single one of Blake’s strategies… from watching movies

in the appropriate genre and breaking down all their key elements, to asking

what the poster/who the cast is, to showing how using similar films as a

benchmark is just good storytelling. When I picked up Save the Cat! it was

like Blake had been in our offices for the last six years, hearing our words

and recording them in a master bible.

Experience shows that following the steps in Save the Cat! works. I can

name dozens of writers/producers who have launched their careers using

the philosophy described on these pages! It’s invaluable. Thank God, Blake

has taken the time to put it all down in one efficient and witty place. And

just like good exposition, the breezy writing here makes the instruction and

insight sneak up on you. Before you know it, you’ve read the whole thing,

learned a ton, and are still inspired to tackle your next project.

Because this book explores the craft of screenwriting starting from the

business side of things, I consider it both essential and revolutionary. Save

the Cat! takes into account both halves of the whole, for the route to

success in this business is to strike a balance between art and commerce,

and this book has done exactly that!

Just like my invaluable collection of classic, great scripts, Save the Cat!

is a book to have on the shelf, right next to Syd Field’s. I would absolutely

revisit it whenever I find myself wanting a quick refresher course on

commercial screenplay structure and strategy.

A final word: After reading dozens of how-to books, this is the FIRST

book on screenwriting/the business that I’ve EVER asked the co-chairs at

UCLA to consider making required reading. In fact, Save the Cat! is, to me,

a must-read for anyone who is even remotely interested in being in the

game.

INTRODUCTION

Another book on screenwriting!?

I’m sure that’s what many of you are thinking.

And to an extent, you’re right. There are lots of good screenwriting

how-to’s out there. And if you want to see where it all began, look to the

master, Syd Field, who started it all and taught everybody.

There are other really good books and courses, too, many of which I’ve

sampled.

I like Viki King’s book with the improbable title of How to Write a

Movie in 21 Days. Improbable, yes, but I’ve done it — and sold the script I

wrote, too.

I also value Joseph Campbell’s work. Hero With A Thousand Faces

remains the best book about storytelling ever.

And of course I have a soft spot for Robert McKee — for the value of

his class performance if nothing else. McKee is like John Houseman in The

Paper Chase, and if you’re an aspiring screenwriter, you have to take at

least one seminar from him. It’s too great a piece of theater to miss.

Finally, for anyone who’s watched lots of movies and seen enough bad

ones to think “I can do THAT!” you may assume you don’t need a “how-to￾write-a-screenplay” book at all.

So why this one?

Why now?

And why can I tell you things you’ve never heard anywhere else that

will make a difference in your script?

To begin with, what I’ve never seen out there is a book on screenwriting

that “talks the way we talk.” As a working professional in the entertainment

industry, since I was eight doing voice work for my Dad, I’m used to a

certain slangy shorthand when it comes to discussing the business. These

books are all so academic! So sterile. They treat the movies with waaaaaay

too much awe and respect — they’re just movies! — and I think that gets in

the way. Wouldn’t it be nice if a book about how to write a screenplay used

the kind of shorthand that screenwriters and movie executives use?

Secondly, and this is no slight against anyone, but I think it would be

nice if the guy writing the book on how to write a screenplay had actually

sold something! Don’t you think? And this is an area where I feel

particularly qualified. I have been a working screenwriter for 20 years and

made millions of dollars doing it. I’ve sold lots of high concept, bidding

war, spec screenplays. I’ve even had a couple made.

I’ve gotten script notes from Steven Spielberg, Michael Eisner, Jeffrey

Katzenberg, Paul Maslansky, David Permut, David Kirschner, Joe Wizan,

Todd Black, Craig Baumgarten, Ivan Reitman, and John Landis. And I’ve

received the collective wisdom of many others — less famous but equally

wise — that we all use, and like, and base our screenplays on.

Thirdly, wouldn’t it be a bonus if the guy writing the how-to had

actually used this method in the trenches by teaching others, who actually

go on to sell scripts?

Well, that’s me, too.

I’ve had a long track record of working with other screenwriters. I’ve

taught my method and shortcuts to some of the most successful in the

business. I’ve helped make them better screenwriters. It’s because my

approach to the task is practical, based on common sense — and mostly

because it works.

And lastly, I think it would be good if a screenwriting book told you the

truth about your chances of selling. There are tons of seminars and

screenwriting programs out there that seem designed to encourage people