Save the Cat: The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need

Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting That You’ll Ever Need, published in 2005, is the best-selling book about screenwriting. Snyder, a successful Hollywood screenwriter, consultant, and author, wrote the nonfiction craft book to help would-be screenwriters develop and structure their movie ideas in order to achieve box office success. The title comes from his shorthand description of a scene that should aim to make the audience view the protagonist as likeable, an important element for success. By analyzing the deeper story archetypes and pacing the “beats” of the film, Snyder offers a formula for creating and packaging a film idea that is quickly understandable to studio executives and resonant with a broad base of moviegoers.

This study guide refers to the 2005 Michael Wiese Productions edition.

Summary

From the outset, Snyder asserts that Save the Cat! differs from other books on screenwriting in its use and explanation of the language and business of movie-making, its author’s credentials in the field, and its focus on what makes money. He contends that unless a movie can connect with viewers’ emotions, it will fail, either in sales or in getting made in the first place.