Steven, I agree.

Steven, I agree. And as an adjunct point to the original post, I suspect that a majority of scripts which hit the Act One end between 35–45 do not need that much time to “get going.” I always recommend to writers with that type of page count situation to first go back and make sure everything needs to be there. I’ll bet I could trim 10–15 pages from those scripts and make them a much better read.

That said, I don’t think we should be letter-bound by specific page number for this or that to happen. To me, they best serve as touchstones, not rigid rules (I am talking about movie scripts, not television scripts).

All I’m saying is if a story really needs to extend to 30 or even 35 for what would be considered the Act One end … and the writer has gone through those pages and tightened, tightened, tightened … and every scene is essential … and every line of every scene is essential … and that this is the only way to convey the story’s setup … and a reader is entertained throughout … that may be what the script needs to be.

But as your experience suggests, most scripts with long first acts are simply scripts in need of tightening — the writer embracing the need for efficient writing.

Screenwriting Mantra; Minimum words. Maximum impact.