Pre-production: Save the Cat Beat Sheet

 

-Save the Cat 4 Beats

 Save the cat beat sheet is a tool to help filmmaker, with the progress of their movie. It follows the characters, themes, and the overall set up of the movie. With this tool it helps with the opening scene and the shots that come with it. My teammates developed it, we each took and section. Then work on it, and later on discuss the section we worked on. We develop it so it can help my teammates and I, because it will cause the filmmaking process to be easier.

 It let us and especially me to know what scene we will work on during production. So, the beat of the opening is on the sheet. For beat one it is the opening image, it sets the mood of the film and the problem the character will encounter. Beat two is the theme of the film, it is the truth that I want to be reveal in the film. Because every story has a message, and I'm playing on showing it through the film. This leads to beat three, the set and our character/s. It is mostly the world that the character lives in and the life show lives. The character we follow in the world it is important, because we get the characters looks and the interest the character likes. Now beat four, our hook/catalyst. The life changing events that will affect the character, it is when the opening ends and the rest of the film will follow that event.  

 

Student names: Tatiana Medina, Trish Alexis, Matthew Gomez, Sofia Alseco          Class period: 3		Date: 01/27/2025
Each student's responsibility should be documented below as individual and group efforts.
Team-mate 1: Trish Alexis --> Director  Team-mate 2: Sofia Alseco --> Main character/ editor  Team-mate 3: Matthew Gomez --> Secondary actor/ cameraman  Team-mate 4: Tatiana Medina: --> Props manager/ cameraman		Group Efforts:
What is the Save the Cat Beat and how did you use it?
Save the Cat Beat is a story structure that breaks down a narrative into 15 key plot points called “beats” which is basically a blueprint to help writers create properly paced films using critical turning points.
Title of the Film:	He Follows	Genre: Psychological Thriller
Production company	Clairvoyance Ent.
Theme	Stalking, isolation, and insecurity
Define continuity:  The idea that a sequence of shots should feel like a single shot with a smooth flow and consistent details.
Description or Synapsis of Film
A lonely girl named Violet struggles with many insecurities, and she has never been the type of girl to get attention, until one day, she stays in the library way too late that get her kick out. Then she walks home by herself,and someone is following her. Then she gets home and writes in her journal, while writing she talks to herself. She hears a knock on the door, and walks to it. She opens it to see a letter on the ground, and reads it to see that someone is stalking her.
Conventions of a Film Opening and Narrative Structure
Film Opening Conventions: Document the conventions of a film opening. E.g., Production company, titles, etc.
What is Exposition and list techniques used to establish the world of a film?
Exposition: The introduction of a story where the audience learns about the characters, setting, and any other background information. Techniques used to establish exposition include introducing characters through dialogue, using opening title cards, incorporating props of significant meaning, and more.
List examples of Exposition in the Film Opening:
The library is empty, the voice over of what she is writing in her journal, her interest in history and poetry.
The Save the Cat Beat Structure and the narrative continuity of the opening.
Beat I: The Opening Image	A visual image that represents the central struggle & tone of the story.   A snapshot of the main character's problem before the adventure begins.   It sets the tone, mood, genre, and setting of the movie.
Document the setting, location (inside-outside), genre, theme, tone, the mood of the film. It includes narrative devices such as text, voice-over, etc.	List 3 adjectives to describe the setting of the film.  Empty, gloomy, emersed  List 2 feelings that you would want your audience to film.  Sympathetic and isolated  What is the setting of the opening image?   In the opening image, the setting location is Nook at piper high school  The time of day is Mid afternoon  Indoor or outdoor: Indoor  List five strong mise en scene elements you will use to illustrate and support the genre and feelings.  The main character wears baggy and dark colored clothing and will have simplistic makeup. There will be darker lighting and ambiance sound. Props such as books, journals, backpack, headphones, and a lip balm will be incorporated which signifies that she is a isolated history fan.  List narrative devices you will use to expose audiences to the back story/exposition of the film.  The main character Violet, is introduced immediately, grabbing a book.
Beat II: Theme Stated	It is the central theme or premise of the film. The message, the truth you want to reveal by the end of your screenplay.   A secondary character poses a question or statement to the main character to reveal the theme. The Stalker character is there to be the antagonist   What is your story about in a larger sense or the big picture? Larger sense   What is the purpose or reason for the movie? The reason of the film to show how stalking affects a person, especially one who is lonely.   What is the problem the main character is faced with? The main charter is facing the problem of stalking   What does the main character have to accomplish? To find away to deal with this stalker
Describe Beat II	Violet is walking home in a dark and vacant  neighborhood to show how the main character feels alone and to set the tona as dark and moody. The main character walking down the neighborhood alone at dark builds tension and promotes the thriller genre.
Beat III: The Set-Up	Introduction of the main characters in the film and an expansion of the opening image.   Present the main character's world as it is, and what is missing in their life revealed.
Describe Beat III	What is the name of your main character? Violet   List 3 adjectives to describe  who they are. Quiet, alone, and daydreamer  Who do they represent? Race, gender, sexuality, social group, social class, etc. She is a teenager girl, who is Hispanic.  List two moral viewpoints they believe in. E.g., Family, Friendship, It okay to lie, cheat and steal, get good grades or go home, and do whatever it. Going through life one day at a time, and feeling alone in the world  List two interests of your main character and list 2 ways you will illustrate them.  Reading and journaling   Eg sports, academics, music, art, reading, spending time with friends, bullying, money, fun, etc.
Beat IV: Catalyst/ Hook	A life-changing event that causes a significant change in the main character's life. When she picks up the letter, and realizes she is getting stalked and it changes her life because now she has to be watching over her shoulders at all times.  • A moment where the opportunity to go on a journey is presented to the main character. When she picks up the letter  • Life as it is, is changing. Due to her having someone watching over her every move  The reason you watch the rest of the movie is the sound, characters' actions, eye-catching props, and mise en scene, which symbolize meaning and support the genre. The letter, and her clothing symbolize she is lonely.
Describe Beat IV	The person following her home rings her doorbell, attaching a creepy and threatening note with the main characters personal lipstick, which makes the main character scared about who the person is, and why they have personal item, starting the main conflict.

-Reflection

What I learn from the sheet, is that it is the best when it comes to planning out the film opening. Especially for me, because having things organize help with the filming of the film to be easier and things will flow with that much of a problem. Since my teammates use word for the assignment, with the applications it allows my teammates and I to share it with each other. With it work on separate devices with not conflict. With the amount of time I put on word, I would say that I'm intermediate. Because I know how to use the application with efficiency and with no problem. With it being my level, I plan my movie with the beats, themes, and character behavior. 

- Work-Cited

(No date) Character development: Definition + advice for writers | backstage. Available at: https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/character-development-for-writers-76109/ (Accessed: 04 February 2025).