Ben Frahm

Master Cat Ben Frahm is a screenwriter who was a member of Blake Snyder’s Writers Group and consulted on How to Train Your Dragon. Ben is co-writer of the feature Maybe A Love Story for Warner Bros International, premiering this summer. He is a professor of screenwriting at Syracuse University and also teaches the Save the Cat! online beat sheet workshops and our New York City Weekend Intensive. “If this is your first time selling a script, take some advice from Ben Frahm. Ben has a true gift for concept.” –– Blake Snyder, Save the Cat!® Strikes Back – More Trouble for Writers to Get Into… and Out Of.

About the Beats, Tips and Tactics

Best of Ben Frahm: Keep the Beats Simple!

Don’t get caught up in the minutia of a scene.

Ben Frahm, July 13, 2018 1 3 min read

About the Beats, Tips and Tactics, Tools

Billy Ray’s “Simple Emotional Journey”

Map your hero’s emotional journey with plot points.

Ben Frahm, June 1, 2018 1 3 min read

About the Beats, Tips and Tactics

Why Audiences of All Ages Respond to Primal Themes

How to make your stories resonate.

Ben Frahm, June 9, 2017 1 3 min read

Beat Sheets, Golden Fleece

Fury Beat Sheet

The breakdown of David Ayer’s captivating motion picture.

Ben Frahm, October 31, 2014 1 6 min read

Beat Sheets, Dude With A Problem

Gone Girl Beat Sheet

The hit movie asks primal questions of a marriage.

Ben Frahm, October 15, 2014 11 9 min read

About the Beats, Tips and Tactics

2 + 2 = 5?

Thanks to Ben Frahm, who leads our Beat Sheet Workshops in New York City, for this helpful tip to avoid a deadly “bump” in logic. What’s one of the most common symptoms of a first draft or a first stab at cracking the 15 beats?…

Ben Frahm, May 2, 2014 2 2 min read

Beat Sheets, Buddy Love

Her Beat Sheet

How the A and B Stories both look at love in this Oscar®-nominated screenplay.

Ben Frahm, February 28, 2014 16 7 min read

Beat Sheets, Dude With A Problem

All Is Lost Beat Sheet

Thanks to Master Cat! Ben Frahm for this breakdown that was certain to include the “All Is Lost” beat (but does not include a B Story): Written and Directed by: J.C. Chandor Genre: Dude with a Problem: Innocent Hero, Sudden Event, Life-or-Death Battle Sub-Genre: Nature…

Ben Frahm, December 20, 2013 6 6 min read

Beat Sheets, Dude With A Problem

Gravity Beat Sheet

Thanks to Master Cat! Ben Frahm for this weighty breakdown. Written by: Alfonso Cuarón and Jonás Cuarón (Script Collaborator, uncredited: George Clooney) Directed by: Alfonso Cuarón Genre: DUDE WITH A PROBLEM: INNOCENT HERO, SUDDEN EVENT, LIFE OR DEATH BATTLE Sub-Genre: NATURE PROBLEM. Opening Image: — BEEPING…

Ben Frahm, November 8, 2013 7 9 min read

Tips and Tactics