Glossary → General

Setup

Act 1 of a screenplay, where the characters, world, and central conflict are established. Also refers to the first part of a joke or plant-and-payoff.
The first 25 pages are the setup — we meet the detective, learn about the case, and see what is at stake.

Related Terms

Act
A major division of a screenplay. Most feature films follow ...
 Inciting Incident
The event that sets the story in motion and disrupts the pro...
 Three-Act Structure
The most common screenplay structure: Act 1 (Setup), Act 2 (...

More Terms

Set Piece Script Supervisor Scene Heading Shooting Script Showrunner Sides

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