Save the Cat rankings

Asteroid City script analysis

Asteroid City script - Save the Cat beat sheet analysis

In Asteroid City, a dysfunctional family and a band of curious teenagers converge in a desert town during Asteroid Day, where an alien encounter upends their routines. As threats of quarantine and personal grief mount, mentor relationships and family bonds are tested. Ultimately, the community’s resilience and the characters’ inner growth lead to a bittersweet resolution.

50 Save the Cat fit score 30% analysis confidence / 46 parsed scenes

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1

Opening Image

Scene 1 / Page 1 / 1% target

25%

Introduces the play-within-a-film framing and sets the stylized tone.

Curtain rises on a desert bus-stop halfway between Parched Gulch and Arid Plains.
2

Theme Stated

Scene 8 / 5% target

30%

Woodrow’s question about radio pulses hints at trusting curiosity.

What do those pulses indicate?
3

Set-Up

Scenes 3-5 / 10% target

25%

Augie and his children arrive with a broken car and learn their mother is dead, establishing family stakes.

4

Catalyst

Scene 7 / 12% target

30%

The Asteroid Day ceremony brings military-science spectacle and public attention to the town.

Welcome! From the United States Military-science Research and Experimentation Division (in conjunction with the Larkings Foundation). We salute...
5

Debate

Scene 12 / 20% target

25%

The girls attempt a ritual to resurrect their mother, questioning belief versus reality.

6

Break into Two

Scene 14 / 25% target

30%

An alien spacecraft’s arrival escalates the story into a new world of mystery.

The alien stole the asteroid.
7

B Story

Scene 37 / 30% target

35%

Dr. Hickenlooper mentors Woodrow, solidifying the emotional subplot.

Your curiosity is your most important asset. Trust it.
8

Fun and Games

Scene 30 / 40% target

30%

Students improvise a console to reach the alien, showcasing playful ingenuity.

That's true -- if he even has a planet, by the way! He might be nomadic?
9

Midpoint

Scene 39 / 50% target

35%

Quarantine ends and the alien returns the meteorite, a surprising reversal.

As you know, the "Asteroid Day" itinerary had to be suspended last week due to the factual reality...
10

Bad Guys Close In

Scene 20 / 65% target

30%

General Gibson enacts a national security emergency, heightening external pressure.

I've just informed the president. He authorized me to read and implement the provisions of National Security Emergency...
11

All Is Lost

Scene 36 / 75% target

25%

Teenagers are confronted over stolen equipment, seeming to trap their efforts.

Who's responsible for stealing my radio telescope, my signal-processing receiver, and my entire spectrographical monitoring network?
12

Dark Night of the Soul

Scene 37 / 80% target

30%

Woodrow grieves his mother and questions his purpose before rejoining the quest.

13

Break into Three

Scene 40 / 85% target

25%

Back in the rehearsal frame, the actor reconsiders the play’s meaning, pivoting to resolution.

Technically, but General Gibson just started the scene where the president doesn't accept his resignation. I've got six-and-a-half...
14

Finale

Scene 46 / 95% target

30%

The family shares breakfast and celebrates Woodrow’s scholarship, restoring hopeful normalcy.

Last night. General Gibson slipped it to me in line at the communal showers. I think he just...
15

Final Image

Scene 45 / 99% target

25%

They bury the mother’s ashes, bookending grief with acceptance.