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Cineview community resources · Free download

Free Story Structure Template

Start with what your character wants. Use this free story structure template to connect their choices to the next event, then test whether the ending answers the question your opening raises.

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No sign-up required. The Word file is editable in Microsoft Word and Apple Pages.

See the film example ↓
First page of the blank free story structure template

Your worksheet, ready to use

How to use your free worksheet

Step 1

Define one central question

Write a question the audience can understand, such as whether the character can achieve a goal or repair a relationship.

Step 2

Connect decisions to consequences

Give each major event a cause. A character’s action, a resistance or a discovery should change what they do next.

Step 3

Test the ending

Read the opening and ending together. Check what changed and whether you prepared the audience for that outcome.

Structure in practice · Film spoilers

Jurassic Park (1993)

Original Cineview planning framework. Film mapping is Cineview’s interpretation; spoilers follow.

Jurassic Park (1993) mapped to story structure; full text breakdown follows
Original Cineview teaching visual. The text below also makes the example readable without the image.

Character and goal

Grant and Sattler visit Hammond’s dinosaur park.

Try it in your story: Who drives the story, and what do they want?

Disruption

The park’s systems fail during the storm.

Try it in your story: What makes the current situation impossible to ignore?

Escalation

Separated visitors must survive escaped dinosaurs.

Try it in your story: How do earlier choices create harder problems?

Decisive action

The group reunites and tries to escape the raptors.

Try it in your story: What action brings the central conflict to a head?

Changed situation

The survivors leave the island; control has proved fragile.

Try it in your story: What has changed, and how does the ending answer the opening?

Reference: StudioBinder — Three act structure and Jurassic Park

Watch and compare

11 Ways To Structure A Screenplay

Reference video from Film Courage. Compare its approach with the worksheet and decide what serves your own story.

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Watch on YouTube ↗

Before you start

Can I use this for a short film?

Yes. Adapt the number of beats and the space you give each stage to your film. You do not need to copy feature-length page counts.

Can I edit the template in Apple Pages?

Yes. Download the Word file and open the .docx document in Apple Pages. The download is a Word document, rather than a native .pages file.

Does this structure guarantee a successful story?

No. Use it to test choices, consequences and character change. You can combine or depart from models when your story requires it.

Explore another approach

From planning to production

Bring your next scene to Cineview Studios

When your script becomes a shooting plan, explore our film studio hire options, infinity cove studio and equipment list. Contact the studio to discuss the space and equipment your production needs.

Share with your crew

Send this free resource to a colleague, your production team or a WhatsApp group.

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Use and attribution

You may adapt our original worksheets for your own production planning. Keep the website credit when sharing an unchanged template. These educational resources are not legal, financial or safety advice. Film titles, story frameworks and third-party videos belong to their respective rights holders. Cineview Studios is not affiliated with those publishers, and inclusion does not imply endorsement.

References are provided so you can compare approaches and form your own view. Check the rights to any photographs, scripts, music or other material you put in a production. Protect personal information when sharing crew and cast documents.

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