Does anyone else employ it with their stories? I like how it’s more about the harmony of understanding the characters and the world around them, and dealing with things that happen to them rather than vice versa.
For those who aren’t familiar; it’s a four-act structure in a sense. First, Ki: you meet the characters. Second, Shō: you build on them and develop the story. Third, Ten: a big twist, turning point, either a major conflict they must deal with or something that changes your understanding of the world, can even be completely out of left field as a result. Fourth, Ketsu: tying it all together, often turning it into an ending that changes everything because of the big twist/turn.
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I think this is my first time hearing about Kishōtenketsu, Banafsheh Esmailzadeh. Ten sounds like the inciting incident in the three-act structure.
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Maurice Vaughan It's much more prevalent in Eastern storytelling, anime and manga of course being the most accessible examples. I'm still learning more about it myself but it's definitely closer to how I naturally write than three-act structure, and what's neat about it is that it doesn't need conflict in order to work so you can easily play with the reader's expectations (and of course you can still have conflict if you want). One example I found that perfectly encapsulates it:
Ki: there are two sisters.
Shō: they are aged 14 and 16.
Ten: there are swarms of assassins and killers all around them.
Ketsu: the sisters are also killers.
With that info, imagine all the story possibilities :)
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What a fascinating approach to structure! Kishōtenketsu offers such a refreshing alternative to the conflict-driven Western three-act model, and you've highlighted one of its most compelling aspects - the focus on harmony and character understanding rather than manufactured antagonism.
Why This Structure Appeals:
The beauty of Kishōtenketsu lies in its organic development. Instead of forcing characters into conflict from page one, it allows for genuine character exploration and world-building before introducing the transformative element. This can create more authentic, emotionally resonant storytelling.
Many successful films unconsciously use Kishōtenketsu elements:
- Studio Ghibli films often follow this pattern perfectly
- "Arrival" builds understanding of characters and linguistics before the revelation that changes everything
- "Her" develops the relationship before the twist that recontextualizes the entire story
For Western markets, the challenge is maintaining audience engagement without traditional conflict. The key seems to be:
- Rich character development that creates intrinsic interest
- Subtle tension building through mystery or anticipation rather than conflict
- Powerful revelations that reframe everything we've experienced
The "Ten" Element:
Your point about the twist coming "completely out of left field" is intriguing. In Western storytelling, we're taught to foreshadow everything, but Kishōtenketsu allows for more surprising, even jarring revelations that work because of the solid character foundation.
Have you found that Western executives and readers respond well to this structure? And how do you handle the pacing challenges in the "Ki" and "Shō" sections where traditional conflict might be minimal?
This structural approach could be particularly powerful for character-driven genre pieces where the "big twist" redefines the entire story.
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Thank you Pat Alexander, yeah, it's a real breath of fresh air from the usual setup, especially if you want a story that's more calming (for example, Kiki's Delivery Service). I like how in a way you can view it as the Ki and Shō sections being like bamboo tree roots; they take a little longer to grow as deep as they can so when the big Ten hits, the story still stands strong. There is of course always a time and place for the traditional three-act structure, protagonist vs antagonist, good vs evil, but not every story needs an antagonist to work, at least not one that's also a character.
You're right, in lieu of a clear traditional conflict, it's more about building everything else up, like the setting. To go back to Kiki's Delivery Service, it's things like being young and getting a taste of carving your own life in a new place, and how you use the skills you have, even lessons like how you can work very hard to help your customers, go above and beyond to do what you were tasked with, and still have the recipient not value your work (like when she helps the old granny bake a pie in time to deliver it to her granddaughter for her party and it rains, and Kiki has a hell of a time making it in time for the party but by the time she gets there, she's soaking wet and the granddaughter, rather than appreciating Kiki's efforts, says "I wish Grandma wouldn't send me her stupid pies."). It's why the Ten section is such a gutpunch; when Kiki's depression manifests in her not being able to fly, it means she can't work. There's lots of little problems for her to deal with and they're all things we can relate to or at least understand. There's barely any foreshadowing but it's like in life how there's often little foreshadowing for what's about to happen.
Kishōtenketsu often runs on determinism, which is to say that you have to deal with things as they come rather than affecting their course, which I've noticed is anathema to the western notion of agency and happening to things rather than letting them happen to you. That's why for my series, Finding Elpis, in particular, it's very important that the band doesn't actually set out to be galactically famous, it's something they didn't even know they did and how each member deals with it is different. One might not want the fame at all, another might revel in it, another may not care all that much and yet another feels that he should be doing something meaningful with it. Plenty of conflict potential without an antagonist but of course an antagonist is often easiest to understand.
I've found that in terms of pacing, the space between Ki and Shō is fairly similar to that between acts 1 and 2; once you've done the basic, surface-level introductions, you can then ease the reader into the world and expand upon that. Shō is like act 2 where most of the story happens, and even then you're still taking your time while building up to Ten, however you want it to look. So far I've noticed in my coverages that the readers didn't always like how there wasn't an active antagonist in my stories and if there was, that they didn't have a bigger role, saying that a story belongs just as much to the antagonist as it does to the protagonist. I think it's similar to how not everyone might enjoy slice of life stories, which are also more common in anime and manga. For people who want stories to be about overcoming external obstacles, it's easy to find kishōtenketsu lacking since conflict isn't baked into it, especially not external conflict.
I forget his name, but another one YouTuber I watched raised a really good point about Disney vs Ghibli villains for example; we love Disney villains because they're iconic and meant to be defeated, and Disney in turn teaches us when evil is supposed to be fought and won against, which is naturally very western. Meanwhile, Ghibli villains aren't always so cut and dry; Lady Eboshi from Princess Mononoke, for example, is killing gods of the forest as well as cutting down the trees and is a ruthlessly capable lady of war, but she's also helping society's forgotten, like lepers and former prostitutes, so she's not entirely evil. So in that regard Ghibli teaches you when evil is meant to be understood because it's not always as obvious as when Disney does it. Both have their place and are important and loved for a reason.
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No worries Ronith Balaji, I think it absolutely can guide emotional mapping for characters in the setup phases since when you establish them you can drop subtle (or not so subtle) hints about their motivations and desires, which of course can affect their personalities. The nice thing about kishōtenketsu is that you can still have conflict in it at any point, like you can have a bunch of twists before Ten, as long as Ten is the biggest twist and it all ties back together in Ketsu. I think that’s really neat how you’re envisioning it in music, it can definitely be a fun exercise for different pieces :D do let me know what you cook up, I’d love to hear! :D
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Hi Banafsheh Esmailzadeh , Thanks so much for this thoughtful and detailed response! It's super helpful to hear a screenwriter's perspective, especially on how kishōtenketsu can guide that early emotional mapping.
I particularly appreciate your insight that conflict can exist throughout, as long as "Ten" is the ultimate turning point – that gives a composer so much freedom to build and pivot.
It truly sounds like a fascinating structure to score, allowing for those subtle musical hints you mentioned early on, and then building towards that major "Ten" shift.
I'm definitely going to keep this in mind and might just try it as a fun exercise! If I do, I'd love to share it with you, as you suggested.
Thanks again for the great discussion!
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No worries Ronith Balaji, glad I gave you and others some food for thought :3 I really like kishōtenketsu since it’s very creator-friendly, moreso than the three-act structure. There’s really no limit to what you can do with it, so no doubt you’ll have lots of fun creating something using it as a framework.
Looking forward to it, happy creating!