ABOUT SAVE THE CAT!
MISSION
Based on the best-selling books of screenwriter Blake Snyder, Save the Cat!® provides a remarkable, versatile set of tools to help writers reach their full artistic potential.
Using Blake’s acclaimed ideas and methods since 2006, our Beat Sheet Workshop has helped hundreds of writers create the titles, loglines, and critical story beats which became the foundation of their screenplays and novels. In 2017, we introduced our Online Beat Sheet Workshops.
In addition to our workshops, we offer screenwriters and novelists expert feedback and analysis based on the Save the Cat! methodology.
Our books, story structure software, digital courses, and iPhone, iPad, and Android apps teach you everything you need to master the Save the Cat! principles.
BLAKE SNYDER BIO
“The theories Blake touches upon are undeniable, universal truths of human storytelling, and he did us all a huge and lasting favor by putting them in a digestible form that people can immediately use and rely upon.” — Dean DeBlois, Writer/Director: How to Train Your Dragon 2, How to Train Your Dragon, Lilo & Stitch.
In his 20-year career as a screenwriter and producer, Blake Snyder sold dozens of scripts, including co-writing Blank Check, which became a hit for Disney, and Nuclear Family for Steven Spielberg — both million-dollar sales. Named “one of Hollywood’s most successful spec screenwriters,” Blake sold his last screenplay in 2009, three months before his death.
His book, Save the Cat!® The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need, was published in May, 2005, and is now in its 24th printing.
In fact, it turned out not to be “the last book on screenwriting you’ll ever need,” as the eagerly awaited sequel, Save the Cat!® Goes to the Movies: The Screenwriter’s Guide to Every Story Ever Told, was published in October, 2007. Blake’s third book, Save the Cat!® Strikes Back: More Trouble for Screenwriters to Get Into… And Out Of, was published in November, 2009.
Blake’s method has become the “secret weapon” of many development executives, managers, and producers for its precise, easy, and honest appraisal of what it takes to write and develop meaningful stories. Save the Cat!® The Last Story Structure Software You’ll Ever Need and the Save the Cat! apps have codified his principles.
Blake taught at Chapman, UCLA, Vanderbilt, and the Beijing Film Academy. His books are the basis of screenwriting classes at many major universities internationally. The writers he mentored continue to teach his principles in Save the Cat!® workshops and consultations.
Blake was a member of the Writers Guild of America, west.
Blake passed away suddenly on August 4, 2009, but he lives on in his films and his books, in the advice that will never grow old, with the spirit that will continue to thrive and inspire. His story resonates with all who loved him, and your stories will resonate thanks to his love for you.
How to Train Your Dragon (DreamWorks, 2010) was dedicated to Blake.
MASTER CATS
Save the Cat!® instructors, whom we affectionately refer to as Master Cats, are accomplished writers, many of whom were mentored by Blake Snyder and worked closely with him to develop and teach our popular In-Person Beat Sheet Screenwriting Workshops. The Master Cats also teach our Online Beat Sheet Screenwriting Workshops and consult on scripts and novels.
Ben Frahm
A screenwriter who sold “Dr. Sensitive” to Universal, Ben was a member of Blake Snyder’s Writers Group, and consulted on How to Train Your Dragon. Ben had 2 produced credits in 2016: co-writer of the feature The Discreet Pleasures of Rejection for Warner Bros International and co-writer of the TV series (Des)encontros for Sony TV International. He is Assistant Teaching Professor, Syracuse University: Newhouse and teaches both our New York City in-person workshops and our online workshops. “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. See Ben’s beat sheets and blogs.
Naomi Beaty
A screenwriter and script consultant, Naomi has written projects for producers in the U.S., Taiwan, and Australia, and consulted on the 2016 Raindance Film Festival “Indie Film of the Year” winner, Selling Isobel. Earlier, Naomi worked on the other side of the development desk at Madonna and Guy Oseary’s Maverick Films. Naomi was also an editor of Save the Cat!® Goes to the Indies, hosts many of the Save the Cat!® podcasts, and teaches both our Los Angeles in-person workshops and our online workshops. “I am also thrilled to thank Naomi Beaty, brilliant researcher and writer, and the one person I can email at 3:00 a.m. to ask who said what when in nearly ANY movie!” — Blake Snyder, Save the Cat!® Goes to the Movies. See Naomi’s beat sheets and blogs.
Alvaro Rodriguez
The creator and writer of Seis Manos, Netflix’s first original anime series set in Mexico, Al is now writing for Showtime’s Rust starring Jeff Daniels. Al has also written for NBC’s Chicago Fire and for the television series From Dusk Till Dawn. Al’s film credits include Machete and The Last Rampage. He attended the beat sheet workshop and master class taught by Blake Snyder, and has conducted beat sheet workshops in Austin and San Antonio. Additionally, he has made several appearances on the Austin Film Festival television show On Story on PBS. See Alvaro’s beat sheets and blogs.
Jessica Brody
The author of the best-selling Save the Cat!® Writes a Novel has written more than 15 books for teens, tweens, and adults including Sky Without Stars, The Geography of Lost Things, The Chaos of Standing Still, and A Week of Mondays. She also writes books for the Descendants: School of Secrets series, based on the hit Disney Channel original movie, Descendants. Her books have been translated and published in over 23 countries and Unremembered and 52 Reasons to Hate My Father are currently in development as major motion pictures. See Jessica’s beat sheets and blogs.
Cory Milles
Teaching writing for over a decade, Cory’s Young Adult novels seek to capture the power of story to transform his readers. When he’s not writing, teaching, or listening to his collection of movie scores, he can usually be found reading more on the craft of writing. He is an editor of Save the Cat!® Goes to the Indies and the author of the Young Adult novels New Miller’s Grove, Legacy, Paradox and Redemption and is featured in the book LOST Thought: Leading Thinkers Discuss LOST. See Cory’s beat sheets and blogs.
Salva Rubio
Blake’s student, this member of the Spanish Film Academy is a screenwriter and novelist who applies his mentor’s principles to 50 independent, European and cult films in Save the Cat!® Goes to the Indies – The Screenwriters Guide to 50 Films from the Masters. Salva is the co-writer of the animated feature film Deep, and the author of Zingara: Finding Jim Morrison; Monet, Nomad of Light; and The Photographer of Mauthausen. Salva is an associate member of the Writers Guild of America, West and one of the first Spanish writers to be accepted in their Animation Writers Caucus (AWC). See Salva’s beat sheets and blogs.
Don Roff
Don Roff has written nearly 20 books, primarily of a scary nature, for children and adults. His bestselling books include Werewolf Tales, Terrifying Tales, Ghost Hauntings: America’s Most Haunted Places published by Scholastic, as well as Zombies: A Record of the Year of Infection published by Chronicle Books/Simon & Schuster UK, and Snowblind from Brambleberry Books (currently in pre-production for an adapted film). Roff served in the 3rd Ranger Battalion in Fort Benning, Georgia. He currently lives in the Pacific Northwest. His darkly humorous and suspenseful radio anthology, Darkside Drive, is available as a podcast on iTunes. See Don’s beat sheets.