Scenes: Dramatic Purpose

From the 8Percent Grid: "Every scene has a specific dramatic purpose that advances the story and/or character. There are no redundant scenes."

Amateur scripts often have redundant scenes, scenes that say the exact same thing that four or five other scenes said.

Example: the wrong way.
A script I just read had four scenes in a row that showed the protagonist is a pussy hound. We don't need four scenes to show us that, just one interesting scene.

Example: the right way.
American Gangster opens with four scenes about protagonist Frank Lucas. Each scene has a distinct dramatic purpose, different than the others.

To avoid this problem:
- Know the dramatic purpose of each scene.
- This dramatic purpose can be a singular or multi-part. For example, it can reveal character, advance the story, give exposition, be funny, be interesting, setup a later scene..., or preferably a combination.
- Make sure that the dramatic purposes aren't redundant.