Comments on: Structure: Juno

By: ozzywood

ozzywood — Tue, 01 May 2012 00:34:00 +0000

In reply to Justahappykid. I think you are absolutely right. Nice! Thank you.

By: Justahappykid

Justahappykid — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 17:08:00 +0000

I think the inciting incident occurs when the protester talks to Juno about her unborn baby. After this, she goes in the clinic (debates internally), but leaves. She tells her best friend she’s keeping the baby. ACT II either starts when they look into parents wanting to adopt, tell her parents or actually go the Loring’s house.

By: Brett Stanning

Brett Stanning — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 01:27:32 +0000

Hey story Dude,
Sorry it took so long to get back to you re: your feedback on my feedback of “Juno”. I still think the protagonist’s action is the turning point. Intention does not change the world. Action does. The decision to change something is not visible to an audience. Especially within a visual medium like film. The action is visible and the action creates the new circumstances from which the story can change. I believe the big turning points act one and two turning points ARE the act breaks for once someone takes that action the second act starts. The first act turning point sits neither in the first nor second act but in the space between them. Catalysts and Inciting Incidents often do not come from the protagonist’s actions but once the character decides to act they create the first act turning point and every turning point after than, like clockwork… at least in any good film.
BS

By: Graham Gall

Graham Gall — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 02:10:28 +0000

Absolutely agree! It took me while to sit down and watch this most engaging film. Great screenplay that exemplifies all that Karel teaches.

By: storydude

storydude — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 15:50:20 +0000

Brett, I really like your analysis and you hit the nail on the head when you say that I don’t look at the actions of the protagonist as the turning points.

From experience, I like to focus on the combination of EVENT + ACTION as the two essential components of a plot point. First we have the trigger event that motivates the action, then we have the action itself.

Therefore when we see the first action of the
protagonist to achieve the story’s main objective, I will place this in Act Two. The logic behind this: any further action also belongs in that same act.

It would be inconsistent in my view to place the FIRST action with a specific goal in Act One and the SECOND action with the same goal in Act Two.

The DECISION moment lies in between. In most of my analyses, you’ll find that I place the act break right after the decision moment if we can locate it.

I am aware that this viewpoint may be different from other people’s but I have found that it works very well in story development.

Upon re-reading my breakdown above, I believe I need to amend it:

PP2: 70.00 Juno drives off, pulls over, cries.

When Juno writes the note, she has already made up her mind: she’s still in. This means she’s past the ‘lowest point’ of PP2 and effectively Act Three has started.

By: Brett Stanning

Brett Stanning — Sat, 09 May 2009 03:48:08 +0000

Hi.

I strongly disagree with your view of the Inciting Incident. The discovery of the pregnancy is the catalyst of the story and many many films start with some sort of catalytic event in the first few pages.

So the “setup”… “the ordinary world” of this film… is that a teenage girl is pregnant and does not know what to do.

The “inciting incident” on page 15 is Juno when calls to procure a hasty abortion. She then “refuses the call” when she visits the clinic and has a panic attack.

On page 24 Juno decides to adopt the baby out to Mark and Vanessa and she commits to the journey at the “first act turning point” or “break into two” by breaking the news to her family that she is indeed pregnant and intends to adopt the baby out on page 25.

The “second act story” is about a girl preparing to adopt out her child and all the mess of that world.

The “Midpoint” of that story is when Juno has a one on one visit with Mark and the seed of teenage lust is planted in his mind. That “midpoint” leads to the “all is lost moment or pinch two” where Mark busts a move and Juno and tells her he is going to leave Vanessa.

The second act turning point happens after Mark and Vanessa have decided to split and Juno writes the note for Vanessa that reads, “If you’re still in, I’m still in”

The analysis you have written can be criticized from one point and that is that you have ignored the actions of the protagonist as the turning points. The protagonist turns the story. Juno causes everything to happen from the inception “it wasn’t Bleeker’s idea” all the way through to the end when she gives Vanessa the baby even though she is now a broken family.

A good way to break down the turning points of a script is to look for them on the right pages. page 12-15 inciting incident, page 25 first act turning point. Page 50 midpoint and so on. And remember… if the protagonist didn’t to it, it’s probably not the turning point you think it is.