Script Analysis: “Arrival” — Part 1: Scene By Scene

Breakdown

Read the script for the hit science fiction movie and analyze it all this week.

Reading scripts. Absolutely critical to learn the craft of screenwriting. The focus of this bi-weekly
series is a deep structural and thematic analysis of each script we read. Our daily schedule:

Monday: Scene-By-Scene Breakdown

Tuesday: Plot
Wednesday: Characters
Thursday: Themes
Friday: Dialogue
Saturday: Takeaways

Today: Scene-By-Scene Breakdown. Here is my take on this exercise from a previous series of
posts — How To Read A Screenplay:

After a first pass, it’s time to crack open the script for a deeper analysis and you can do
that by creating a scene-by-scene breakdown. It is precisely what it sounds like: A list of all
the scenes in the script accompanied by a brief description of the events that transpire.

For purposes of this exercise, I have a slightly different take on scene. Here I am looking
not just for individual scenes per se, but a scene or set of scenes that comprise one event or
a continuous piece of action. Admittedly this is subjective and there is no right or wrong,
the point is simply to break down the script into a series of parts which you then can use
dig into the script’s structure and themes.

The value of this exercise:

 We pare down the story to its most constituent parts: Scenes.

 By doing this, we consciously explore the structure of the narrative.

 A scene-by-scene breakdown creates a foundation for even deeper analysis of the story.

This week: Arrival. You can download a PDF of the script here.

Screenplay by Eric Heisserer, short story by Ted Chiang.

IMDb plot summary: When 12 mysterious spacecraft appear around the world, linguistics
professor Louise Banks is tasked with interpreting the language of the apparent alien visitors.

Arrival
Scene by Scene Breakdown
by Ashish Chand
gointothestory.blcklst.com

Pg. 1–3 Louise Banks stands outside of her secluded lake house, taking in her
surroundings with a glass of wine. A voice, which we can assume to be hers, muses on
memory and time. The décor of her house indicates her bookish and academic nature, with
an interest in foreign languages. A question appears on the glass: “Do you want to make a
baby?” Louise shifts through flashbacks of her daughter’s short life, from birth to death,
possibly by cancer.

Pg. 3–7 Louise drives to work. It is clearly a different period in her life from the intro,
possibly after her child has died. She works at a university. It is strangely quiet for a
regular day at a university, and fighter jets periodically fly overhead, which cause concern
for Louise. A large group of students is gathered around a television, hinting that
something major and out of the ordinary is happening. She teaches Advanced Linguistics,
showing that her interest in foreign languages is actually expertise. She begins her lecture,
only to find out that the classroom is empty except for a few students. A student interrupts
the lecture and asks Louise to turn on the news. The news anchor reports in a panic about
the landing of a UFO in Montana and other locations around the world. Louise dismisses
class. The activity around campus makes sense to her now. She leaves work in a panic,
along with most everyone else.

Pg. 7–10 Louise heads home. She is on the phone with her mom, talking about the same
thing everyone else is talking about. The conversation shifts to her well being, and Louise
stares sadly at her spare bedroom. She watches news coverage of the alien landing, alone
with a bottle of wine. She goes to sleep with the news on, because it’s that kind of news.

Pg. 10–15 Louise attempts to go on with her life in a normal fashion, but life has stopped
for everyone else, and no one shows up to her classes. She sits in her office and is
approached by a military officer, Colonel Weber. Weber reveals her prior experience and
clearance with the military as the reason for his visit. This also reveals that not only is she
an expert in her field, but she is THE expert in her field. Colonel Weber wants Louise to
translate the alien sounds for him, but she explains it’s not as simple as he wants it to be,
and that her services will require direct contact, not just an audio recording. Weber rejects
her terms and indicates that he’s going to her academic rival, but Louise leaves Weber with
an opening and something to think about.

Pg. 15–18 A helicopter fast approaches Louise’s house as she sleeps. Weber has returned
to Louise, acknowledges that she knows more than her rival, and offering her the job. She
quickly packs her things and boards the helicopter. Inside she meets Ian Donnelly, a
physicist who has also been recruited by Weber. He instantly challenges her expertise by
reading aloud from her book and dismisses her expertise as nonsense. She quickly
recovers.

Pg. 18–24 Louise, Ian and Weber approach the landing site. A large crowd of people
swarms around the military blockade that is set up around the alien ship. From Louise’s
point of view, the ship is massive and awe inspiring. Weber quickly brings Ian and Louise
up to speed. They learn that the ship has been dubbed The Shell, due to its appearance. At
the base camp, they meet Captain Marks and learn more about the highly advanced nature
of the alien ship. Louise and Ian both undergo a series of medical tests and receive
precautionary shots. Following their medical exam, they are introduced the to the base’s
operation and intel center, where government operatives communicate with the other
landing sites throughout the world, revealed to be 12 in total. Agent Halpern is speaking to
an Australian scientist on one of the monitors about the atmospheric differences inside the
alien ship. Ian gets to apply his scientific knowledge to clarify the confusion. Weber escorts
Louise and Ian to the science tent, where people are trying to analyze the alien speech
patterns. Following the tour, an alarm indicates that it is time to enter the alien ship.
Louise and Ian put on hazmat suits and prepare for the encounter.

Pg. 24- 26 Louise and Ian are loaded into the back of a pickup truck and are driven to the
Shell. It looks so much bigger now they’re actually headed toward it. They reach the
entrance to the ship, which is floating 20 feet in the air. The surface of the ship appears to
absorb light, darkening the immediate area around it. Military personnel are preparing
equipment for the next encounter. A scissor lift is in place to carry people up to the floating
entrance. Louise and Ian join Colonel Weber, Captain Marks, and a small science team of
two on the scissor lift. Louise is nervous, breathing heavily, shaking. The scissor lift carries
them 20 feet up. They all start feeling around for something, and Ian’s hand finds a hole,
which opens up wide. The lift enters through the hole.

Pg. 26–27 Inside the tunnel, the team turns on their flashlights. Louise is still disconcerted
by the experience, while Ian is completely fascinated. One of the scientists throws a
glowstick in the air, which moves up and to the side, landing against the wall,
demonstrating a shift in gravity within the ship. The scientists jump upward and land
sideways on the same wall. Louise looks like she is out of her element, but Ian eagerly
jumps. Louise expresses her doubt to Colonel Weber, who patiently and calmly helps her
jump towards the others. He knows he needs her to be at 100%. She lands, catches her feet
and breath, and walks on her own.

Pg. 27–30 Inside the interview chamber, Weber, Marks and the science team sets up a
variety of recording equipment and detection tools, including a canary in a cage. This has
become normal and routine for them. Louise and Ian are awestruck and breathing heavily.
A transparent wall divides the room in two, with the opposite side being enveloped in some
sort of fog or gas. Weber informs Louise that the aliens will arrive soon. Louise questions
the use of the hazmat suits. The aliens enter their side of the room. They appear to be
terrestrial octopi and move about in the fog in a swimming motion. Weber reminds Louise
that this is her session. The scientists monitor and announce changes in the atmospheric
readings. Louise greets the aliens with no response. She tries again and gets a strange,
alien noise in response. This is completely unlike anything she’s ever experienced before.
Weber asks for an assessment, but Louise is at a loss. Panic overtakes her.

Pg. 30–33 Back at the base, Louise appears visibly stressed from her interaction with the
aliens. Ian is still his excited, confident self until he vomits seconds later. Weber reassures
Louise that she did fine, and tells her to figure something out before she goes in next time.
In the communication room, Halpern has a briefing with the Australian scientist that
yields no new information. Ian and Weber wait on Louise to get ready for their next
session. She’s not ready to go back, but she doesn’t want a repeat of the last encounter, but
she doesn’t have any new ideas, until she sees the whiteboard hanging on the wall. She
informs Weber of her plan to try communicating via writing.

Pg. 33–34 Louise attempts to teach the aliens that her species is called “human,” by
writing the word on the white board, and then gesturing towards the rest of the people in
the interview chamber. The aliens respond by displaying “writing” of their own on the
transparent partition, and making the sounds they associate with the symbol.

Pg. 35–42 After the session, Weber confronts Louise over her methods. He relents after
Louise tells him a story about kangaroos got their name in order to illustrate the
importance of avoiding misinterpretation. She tells Ian that the story isn’t true, but she
needed to make her point. Elsewhere on the base, people work to decipher the alien symbol.
Agent Halpern consults with a British scientist over the monitor regarding their progress.
Louise studies the alien symbol, a logogram, while she monitors progress from the other
sites. She makes notes the symbol, dividing it into twelve pieces. As she studies it, she
experiences a flashback of her daughter and quickly snaps out of it. People throughout the
base watch different sources of coverage of the landing. A young soldier, Private Lasky,
watches a right wing shock jock rant about the aliens, successfully stirring up fear and
anger. Scientists watch news reports of riots somewhere in the world, related to the
landing. Louise meets with Weber and Ian, who is talking to the British scientist on the
monitor. Halpern briefs Weber on rising tensions regarding the landing at the India and
Pakistan border. Weber introduces Louise and Ian to Halpern, and then reviews Louise’s
agenda for the day. He again expresses concern over her basic approach, insisting that she
needs to get more specific and to ask them why they are on Earth. Louise again
demonstrates that she is the expert on how to communicate by explaining that the question
isn’t as simple as he thinks it is. Ian backs her up, and gives the aliens the name of
“heptapod.” Louise and Ian suit up for their next session.

Pg. 42–45 In the interview chamber, Louise tries to teach the aliens her name. She
realizes that she isn’t making any progress. She takes her suit off and instructs Ian to do
the same, believing that it will be helpful if the aliens know what they look like. It works.
The aliens share the symbols for their names in return. Ian names them Abbott and
Costello. Louise approaches the barrier and puts her hand on it. The rest of the team tenses
up, but Abbott returns the gesture. Back at the base, Weber, Dr. Kettler, and Agent Halpern
convene to discuss Louise’s action and agree to let them proceed without suits from now on,
based on their progress.

Pg. 45A-47 A montage cutting between shots of Louise and Ian each leading sessions and
analyzing data is shown. They have a friendly competition going, with Louise using
language and Ian using science. As they progress with their interactions, footage of the
growing public tensions around the world is shown on monitors in Louise’s tent.
Pg. 47–53 Weber tells Louise to teach the word for “weapon” to the heptapods. She
refuses, but Ian agrees. Weber insists that she’s capable of doing it properly. Louise turns
on Ian, but Ian reassures that he’s on her side. In the interview chamber, Louise teaches
them the word using a hunting knife as a visual aid. Weber presses her to ask the
heptapods why they are on Earth, but Abbott and Costello cut the session short. Louise calls
out desperately, asking Weber’s question. Louise shows that she’s capable of writing in
their language freehand. Abbott tells her that they are here to “offer weapon.” This sends a
panic through the base, where Weber, Halpern, Ian, and Louise evaluate their next steps.
Weber acts as mediator as Halpern expresses concern over the possibility that the aliens
are hostile, while Louise and Ian advocate for further clarification. Halpern reminds
Louise that the other countries are having different responses to the alien use of the word
“weapon,” particularly General Shang of China, aka “Big Domino.” Louise realizes that he
is right. Halpern tells Louise that they have to consider the idea that the aliens might be
trying to get the different nations to fight amongst each other. During their conversation,
they see other nations start to panic over the video monitors. At one site, the alien ship is
attacked and China, Russia, and several other nations cut their video feeds. Louise runs
over to her monitor to share what she learned, but her screen blacks out. Halpern tells
Louise that the only way to de-escalate the situation is to find out exactly what “offer
weapon” means.

Pg. 53–57 Louise studies the heptapod logograms trying to decipher them. As she does
this, she slips into another flashback of her daughter, where she is teaching her words
similar to the ones she is learning in the heptapod language. In the flashback, Hannah
shows Louise a drawing of her and her husband holding a book called “Mommy and
Daddy Save the World.” She snaps out of the memory. Weber suspects that Louise may be
exhausting herself and asks Ian if he can proceed without her if needed. In the medical tent,
Dr. Kettler examines Louise to make sure she is OK.

Pg. 57–61 The military presence around the base has grown. Private Lasky finds other
soldiers who share his hostile distrust of the alien ship. Ian and Louise watch Lasky and
some soldiers load AV boxes into the alien ship. They have a conversation about their pasts
and how it relates to their present situation. Ian doesn’t tell her what Weber said to him
about removing Louise from the interview sessions if necessary.

Pg. 61–66 Louise and Ian prepare for their next session. Captain Marks tells them they
have to wear respirators from now on. Louise leads the interview, but must clear things
with Marks before proceeding. Louise starts to realize the heptapod language has no clear
beginning or end and asks Abbott and Costello to see the process of them writing so she can
see how they form thoughts. He does so with two hands at opposite ends, causing Louise
and Ian to realize that the heptapods think in nonlinear terms. Louise writes a question in
their language freehand about predictability. Ian realizes that he’s not following what she’s
saying and that Louise understands way more of their language than he thought they did.
Abbott tells them to “Solve.” Louise asks “Solve what?” Abbott answers verbally and Louise
understands. Abbott then shows them the symbols for humanity at the end of its timeline.

Pg. 66–74 The team heads back to the base, discussing what transpired. Louise shifts into
a flashback of Hannah. Private Lasky eyes her suspiciously. At the base, Louise and Ian
discuss the riddle in terms of population dynamics. They hold hands and share a tender
moment before Louise snaps out of it and pulls away. Weber calls Ian to join him in the
Operations Tent. Louise shifts into another flashback of Hannah, this time at the point
where she is dying. She shifts back to the present, as a TV monitor shows an interview with
a woman who is unable to accept the existence of the aliens. Louise wakes up later in her
new private housing on the base. Weber and Ian enter her room and express concern that
she is becoming too immersed in the heptapod language, because she knows more of it than
the rest of the team. Weber shows Louise that she signed her name for her latest
prescription for headache in a circle, and tells her that she did so with her left hand, even
though she is right handed. Weber tells Louise that Ian will be taking over the interviews
and that she is to take a break. Weber tells her it’s because he can’t afford to lose her. She
reacts angrily.

Pg. 74–78 Ian studies the footage from the last session with a team of scientists with no
headway. Weber seeks out Louise and asks her to translate an intercepted communication
in Mandarin regarding the Chinese encounters with the heptapods. Louise deduces that
that the Chinese delegation is speaking to the heptapods in terms of Mahjong and explains
to Weber why this is a bad thing, that they’re only teaching the aliens that they think in
terms of victory and defeat. Later, Ian seeks out Louise as she works alone. He expresses
concern for Louise. As they fight, Ian has a revelation about the heptapod language, which
effectively ends their fight. He realizes that from the alien perspective, humanity’s timeline
isn’t ending, but beginning. Ian realizes the heptapods are presenting them with a choice to
either use what they are offering to begin a new era or end everything with a stupid
decision.

Pg. 78–81 Ian races to the alien ship with Louise in tow. The military staff is reluctant to
let Louise go in, but Ian insists. Halpern chases after them. Louise notices Private Lasky
acting suspiciously. Ian and Louise enter the interview chamber. Abbott is agitated and
asks Louise to “solve” again. Abbott invites Louise to write on the barrier. She says that she
can’t do it with both hands. Abbott helps her out by writing form the other end. As they
complete the sentence together, Louise shifts into a flashback of Hannah as a baby. She has
solved it. The heptapods begin uploading a huge volume of data. Weber confirms that they
are receiving it. Abbott then tells Louise and Ian that they have to leave immediately. Ian
hears a beeping sound, revealing a bag with C4 explosives set against the barrier,
revealing the source of Abbott’s agitation. The gravity in the chamber shifts, sending Ian
and Louise back into the tunnel. Louise looks back to see Abbott giving a gesture of
goodbye. The explosives go off as Louise shifts into another flashback.

Pg. 81–94 (Note: Pages 83–88 are omitted.) Louise wakes up in the medical tent. She has
received medical treatment. Dr. Kettler tells her she has a concussion and tells her that Ian
suffered some minor injuries, but is OK. It has been two hours since the explosion. Kettler
explains that a couple of soldiers (likely Private Lasky and his accomplice) acted on their
own, reacting to sensationalist television coverage, and that Halpern shot them in
response. He then tells her that the base is being evacuated out of fear of retaliation from
the aliens. Louise rushes to find Ian. Ian is in the science tent with Weber, going over the
newly acquired data. Louise tells Weber that they have to go back into the ship and tell
them what happened. Outside, the alien ship rises high into the sky and stops, hovering.
Later that evening, Louise and Ian try to analyze the data. As they do, Louise shifts into
another flashback of Hannah, where Hannah asks what the term for a competition where
both sides end up happy is. Louise shifts back to the present and Ian shares his latest
revelation regarding the way heptapods perceive time, and that they only have 1/12 of the
data.

Pg. 94–99 Louise and Ian rush to tell Weber that they’ve discovered they only have a
piece of the whole. Halpern disagrees, still approaching this from competitive point of
view. Louise insists they need to work together with the other sites and share their
information. Halpern tells her that the rest of the nations are panicking and refusing to
share anything. Louise insists that the aliens are forcing humanity to work together so they
can properly use the gift from the aliens. Halpern reluctantly sees that she has a point. Ian
suggests they share their data with the other sites, calling it a non zero sum game. These
words cause Louise to shift into another flashback, where she provides Hannah with this
term as the answer to a question she asked in a previous flashback. Louise shifts back to the
present, and Weber is amazed that Louise can stand up to the CIA like she did. She learns
that she successfully convinced Halpern to follow her suggestion of sharing their
information with the other sites. Halpern tells Louise that most of them are blacked out and
they are physically going to the other sites, but that it might be too late to avert global war.
Ian suggests they go back into the ship. Weber reminds him that the ship is too far
overhead for them to go back in. As they argue, Louise has a vision of an unknown space
where she is weightless and wearing a breathing mask. She snaps out of it and the men are
still arguing. They look around and see that Louise has left the room.

Pg. 99–103 Weber, Ian, and Halpern rush outside. They find a vehicle missing. Ian looks
through binoculars to see a cylinder descend from the ship to pick up Louise. She steps
inside and it lifts back toward the ship. She puts on a breathing mask as gas fills the
cylinder. She steps out and realizes she is on the heptapods’ side of the barrier, in their
atmosphere. Costello approaches her through the mist. He informs her that Abbott has
died, and that he chose to save Louise and Ian. Louise asks Costello to send a message to
the other landing sites. She asks again why they have come to Earth. Now that she is able
to communicate freely with them, he presents her with a huge series of logograms, which
she understands. He tells her that humanity will help the heptapods in a big way in three
thousand years, and that they are returning the favor by helping humanity now. She asks
how they can know the past and the future, and figures out that the answer is time.
Costello presents her with another symbol that causes her to shift into another flashback.
She shifts back and reads the symbol as “There is no linear time.” As she reads this, Costello
sends her back, knowing that she understands, or that she will understand soon.

Pg. 104–107 Louise lands back on the ground and the ship rotates in place. Ian and
Weber, along with a team from the base, rush to pick her up. They head back to the base.
The ship rises above the clouds. Captain Marks tells Weber that the base is to be evacuated
immediately, due to something that General Shang from China is planning. Ian helps
Louise walk to the tents and Louise has another flashback. She is telling Hannah that she
told her dad something he didn’t want to hear, implying that she told him that Hannah was
going to die of a rare disease, without actually telling Hannah what she told him. Louise
snaps back to the present and tells Ian that she just remembered why her husband left her.
Ian expresses shock to learn that she was once married.

Pg. 107–109 In the science tent, Halpern watches as soldiers take everything down.
Louise enters and starts working. Ian protests, but Louise silences him and shifts into a
flashback where she is holding advance copies of a book called “The Universal Language”
which has 12 chapters. Hannah’s drawing from an earlier flashback is on the wall. She
shifts back to the present and reveals to Ian that she can read the alien language. Weber
interrupts to tell them they have to evacuate. Weber’s military focus is at the forefront of
his mind right now and is only concerned with survival now. Louise tells Weber that she’s
figured it out, that learning the alien language causes you to perceive time in a nonlinear
fashion. Weber is unimpressed and tells Ian to get her on a helicopter.

Pg. 109–111 Louise turns around and finds herself at a fancy party dressed in a fancy
gown. She looks around and sees a hall decorated with the flags from 12 countries. General
Shang approaches her. He tells her that he only came to meet her and tells her that she was
responsible for a unification, having called him on his private number and changing his
mind about something. He shows her his phone with the number and tells her what she
said to him in her ear.

Pg. 111–113 Louise finds herself back in Montana, about to get into a helicopter. She
realizes that she just had a memory of the future and runs back toward the base, with Ian
following. In the Operations tent, Halpern supervises the evacuation when someone tells
him that a satellite phone on the base has been detected calling China. Louise runs through
the halls, dialing the number that General Shang gave her. Shang answers. Halpern learns
that it is his phone being used to make the call and sends a team out to find it. Louise
speaks to Shang in Mandarin and recounts what Future Shang told her. Halpern locates
her as she does this and pulls a gun on her, but Ian puts himself between Halpern and
Louise. Louise tells Shang that his wife spoke to her in a dream and told her that “war
doesn’t make winners, only widows.” Ian tells her that she can’t stop what’s happening. She
responds by telling him that she just did. Word starts to come in over the comm lines that
China is standing down. Ian asks her what she did. She tells him that she repeated what
Shang’s wife told him before she passed away, and that she knew because he will tell her in
the future. They all head to the communication room where Shang appears on the
monitors looking shaken. He tells the monitors that he is standing down and sharing their
portion of information. The other monitors start to reconnect.

Pg. 113–115 Louise is overcome by what has just happened. She tries to explain it to Ian,
but can’t find the right words. Ian tells Louise that the experience has caused him to see life
differently and that meeting her was the most surprising thing that’s ever happened to
him. They share an intense kiss, and Louise shifts into a flashback. Hannah is asking about
her name, and Louise explains that it is special because it reads the same forward and
backward. Ian enters the room, revealing that he is Louise’s husband and Hannah’s father,
and that the flashbacks have been flash forwards.

Pg. 116–116A Weber drops Louise off at her house. He doesn’t ask her to explain herself,
but praises her in his military way. She heads in to her house. The musings on memory and
time from the beginning are revealed to be Louise telling Hannah the story of not only her
life, but the continuing story of humanity. A series of flashbacks shows Hannah’s artwork,
along with Louise teaching a class on the heptapod language.

Pg. 116A-118 Ian and Louise are dressed up, celebrating with a bottle of wine. Louise
looks as she does in the flashbacks. The question from the first scene appears on the glass:
“Do you want to make a baby?” She continues musing on memory, knowledge, and choice.
She flashes again through memories of Hannah’s short life from birth to death. She touches
the question on the glass, and Ian asks her again. She replies “yes.” Louise smiles, and lets a
tear fall down her cheek.

Writing Exercise: I encourage you to read the script, but short of that, if you’ve seen the movie, go
through this scene-by-scene breakdown. What stands out to you about it from a structural
standpoint?

Who knows. If we generate a vibrant discussion, maybe my friend screenwriter Eric Heisserer
will chime in along the way this week!
Major kudos to Ashish Chand for doing this week’s scene-by-scene breakdown.

To download a PDF of the breakdown for Arrival, go here.

I am looking for volunteers to read a script and provide a scene-by-scene breakdown for it to be
used as part of our weekly series. What do you get out from it? Beyond your name being noted
here, my personal thanks, and some creative juju sent your way, hopefully you will learn
something about story structure and develop another skill set which is super helpful in learning
and practicing the craft.