Syd Field

:"This article is about the screenwriting guru; for information on the British comedian, see Sid Field."Syd Field is an American writer who has become one of the most popular screenwriting gurus in the movie industry. Field has written several books on the subject of screenwriting, and occasionally holds workshops that help aspiring screenwriters to produce the kinds of screenplays that will sell in Hollywood. Field's ideas about what makes a good script have become very influential on Hollywood film producers, who have increasingly used his ideas on structure as a guideline to a proposed screenplay's potential.

The Paradigm

Field's most important contribution has been his articulation of the ideal "three act structure". In this structure, a film must begin with about half an hour of 'setup' information before the protagonist experiences a 'turning point' that gives him or her a goal that must be achieved. Approximately half the movie's running time must then be taken up with the protagonist's struggle to achieve his or her goal: this is the 'Confrontation' period. Field also refers, sometimes, to the 'Midpoint', a more subtle turning point that should happen in the middle (approximately at page 60 of a written screenplay) of the Confrontation, which is often an apparently devastating reversal of the protagonist's fortune. The final quarter of the film depicts a climactic struggle by the protagonist to finally achieve (or not achieve) his or her goal and the aftermath of this struggle.

In 1999 the German media scientist, movie maker and game developer Dr. Michael Bhatty expanded the Field-paradigm in the media science thesis (Interaktives Story Telling, 1999) for narrative role-playing and computer games, combining it with Christopher Vogler's Hero's Journey and defining the chaos paradigm.

Criticism

While Field's structures have helped many screenwriters to tailor their ideas to the Hollywood model, his rigorous demands (sometimes stipulating that the first turning point must happen in exactly the 27th minute of the filmFact|date=April 2008) have been accused of stifling innovation and experimentation, and it is said that many studio executives have now become reluctant to consider a screenplay that does not perfectly match the three-act structureFact|date=November 2007. Field himself, however, does not consider his guidelines for screenplay structure (or his 'paradigm') to be so rigid.

2005—2007

In addition to his occasional workshops, Syd Field currently teaches screenwriting at the Master of Professional Writing Program at the University of Southern California

Field is also included in the screenwriting software program Final Draft under the section "Ask the Expert" which gives help on writing screenplays.

In Jan 2007, Field began a series of interview webcasts with screenwriters called "Screenplay Series with Syd Field". The project will attempt to give a voice to the generally silent, creative force behind today's films - the screenwriters. The series will focus on writers and films whose work is current, relevant and challenging. Interviews will cover a broad range of topics surrounding a particular film & the specific writer's career. The event will take place via: [http://www.screenplay-series.com/]

Films Field has consulted on

* "White Palace" (1990)
* "" (1991)
* "City of Joy" (1992)

Published books

*"Screenplay" (1979)
*"The Screenwriter's Workbook" (1984)
*"Selling a Screenplay: The Screenwriter's Guide to Hollywood" (1989)
*"Four Screenplays: Studies in the American Screenplay" (1994)
*"The Screenwriter's Problem Solver: How To Recognize, Identify, and Define Screenwriting Problems" (1998)
*"Going to the Movies: A Personal Journey Through Four Decades of Modern Film" (2001)
*"The Definitive Guide to Screenwriting" (2003)

Filmography

Directing, writing and production

External links

*imdb name|id=0276055|name=Syd Field
* http://www.writersguild.org.uk/public/008_Featurearticl/032_SydField.html Syd Field interview by Jamie Sherry