I was watching the movie The Big Short … it was a well written script.
If you win the Oscar it’s got to be good. At least within the screenwriting categories.
For the sake of length of this post I am just going to focus on the inciting incident.
I’ve never seen it, I will merely point to the following from imdb “Three separate but parallel stories”… You’ve chosen an ensemble piece for your example. You might not be looking at standard structure.
Also, the screenplay was adapted from a book. So, half of the work was already complete before the screenwriters started.
“I went back to refresh my knowledge of inciting incidents and every one seems to agree that it is a point that changes the world the characters are in, changes their coarse, etc, etc, blah, blah...oh and Google says that it is also exciting.”
Listening to google is your first mistake. An inciting incident can be as bland as a telegram telling you grandma is dying. It gives the character a choice in a direction. Sometimes they set right off, other times they balk till something else happens that makes them choose that path. Usually up till the inciting incident we see them in their environment.
Last night I watched Friends with Benefits. It opens with a guy from the West Coast being dumped and a girl from the East coast being dumped (set up these two will end up living happily ever after). She’s a head hunter who brings him to NY for a job interview, which he gets. But, she has to convince him to stay and accept the job. He does. They become friends. Then they become friends with benefits. That plot point happens at roughly the 30 minute mark. So what’s the inciting incident?
“That is what stood out to me...oh and that takes place on page 35”
That sounds like the plot point (turning point) that ends Act One and opens Act Two. Just like the friends giving each other benefits.
“From this little study what I learned is that the inciting incident can most definitely happen on page 17, without a doubt, but if it comes later due to needing more setup and context for your story then that is fine too, or how about sooner? Sure.”
17 is within the range where the inciting incident should occur. If the inciting incident happens on page 35 you have problems. Because then you have 34 pages of set up.
“I did identify tools that were used in The Big Short that were consistent with other scripts like The Fugitive”
You will see the same tools in most every movie. Some do it well and others don’t. The people that do it really well usually have hits. The filmmakers that don’t, 99% of the time will have a flop.
“Fortunately for all of us artists, there aren't really facts when it comes to art.”
Of course there are, if you want to play a guitar solo, you need a guitar. If you want to play in the key of C, you have to play within the key of C.
If you want to paint, you should have some sort of paint. Can you substitute paint for different forms of dishwashing detergent and other materials? Sure. But, why?
“Is a black dot painted on a white piece of canvas art?”
As a person who shops exclusively in antique stores, the walls are covered in “art” that no one wants. When was the last time you went into a store and saw an original Dali for $10? Anyone can slop paint on a canvas. That doesn’t make these people “artists”.
Art is subjective and what one person thinks is genius another may hate it with a passion.
Some of my favorite semi-modern films no one has even heard of… “10 Items or Less” with Morgan Freeman and Paz Vega. “Camille” with Sienna Miller. “May” would absolutely suck except for the brilliant performance by Angela Bettis as the title character. All these films have one thing in common STRUCTURE.
“Knowing how to balance between your "creative flow" where the "brilliant" happens”
Brilliant doesn’t just happen. Tarantino didn’t just write Resevoir Dogs. Kurt Cobain (who I hate) didn’t just sing out of key, Lynch didn’t just write or shoot haphazardly, they all had specific vision. A vision that no one else has ever had. If you have that, then do it.
“ Structures created as a sort of shortcut to all so that the writer does not have to think as hard.”
Working a story into structure makes it that much harder.
“I sometimes will spend days making lists and ideas, reworking scenarios, researching my outlines, etc. just to figure out if a character needs to go through a door or stay put. The more I do it the faster I can figure out what my characters should or should not do.”
It doesn’t matter what you the writer needs, it’s what the character would do. If the character doesn’t dictate their actions, then you’re on the wrong path.
Having a growth mindset is key in learning to grow in your art as opposed to a fixed mindset. Don't let your mindset keep you from getting better.
This last statement IMO is your way of saying I inhibit my creativity because I stand by structure. You couldn’t be more wrong. Because honestly, I’d put up my insane psyche against all of you. Every human being I’ve come in contact with thinks I’m wholly unique. There is only one me. I am the walking definition of the word individual. But, by having 6 strings on my guitar, and being mindful of what structure is to screenwriting, I’m that much better at playing and writing.
When you learn to follow the simple basic form of structure, you will understand why. You’ll see that your screenplay might suck, but it’s in the ball park. If you lack structure you’re in the sandbox.
The biggest rookie mistake in screenwriting is exposition. The characters explain the story instead of showing it. That is damn hard to overcome. Most will quit before they get past this.
The next step is using structure properly. Show don’t tell, catalyst/inciting incident, turning points, having at least one subplot. This is the easy part. There isn’t much there, yet you’re literally arguing against it.
The next step after that, I'm not up to that point. Very few have mastered that. Two people that did are Robert Riskin and Thea Von Harbou. She wrote many of Fritz Lang's early masterpieces, including Metropolis.
