# Move a scene. See what the story now needs. > Reorder seven scenes, trace audience and character knowledge, and download a checklist for missing setups. A free screenwriting revision exercise. Moving a reveal can change suspense. Moving a setup can leave a character acting on information they do not have. Reorder seven scene cards, inspect what changed, and take a repair checklist into your next revision. Try two moves 1. 1 Move The duplicate key after The quiet question A reveal moves. Nothing breaks, but the audience now learns about the key after Mara’s question. 2. 2 Move The flooded depot before The night porter A setup goes missing. Mara reaches a depot nobody has told her about, and the map draws a red line. Story map Each line runs from the scene that sets something up to the scene that needs it. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 No scene needs something before it is set up Read firstRead last - Set up in time - Needed before it is set up - Only the audience learns it 1. ## 1. The claim ticket Mara finds a ticket for locker 19 among her late brother’s papers. She decides to collect what he left. Needs Nothing from earlier Sets up - Mara knows locker 19 2. ## 2. The night porter Ivo tells Mara the lockers were emptied after a flood. He gives her the off-site depot address. Needs - Mara knows locker 19 Sets up - Mara knows the depot 3. ## 3. The duplicate key Alone, Ivo hides a duplicate key in his cuff. The audience learns he has kept access. Needs Nothing from earlier Sets up - Audience knows Ivo has a key 4. ## 4. The flooded depot At the depot, Mara finds the locker empty except for a dry strip of red thread. Needs - Mara knows the depot Sets up - Mara has the red thread 5. ## 5. The torn cuff At the station, Mara notices red thread hanging from Ivo’s torn cuff. She remembers it, without yet knowing its significance. Needs - Mara knows locker 19 Sets up - Mara remembers Ivo’s torn cuff 6. ## 6. The quiet question Mara asks Ivo to name the depot clerk. She is testing her suspicion while pretending not to have one. Needs - Mara has the red thread - Mara remembers Ivo’s torn cuff Sets up - Ivo knows Mara is testing him 7. ## 7. The returned envelope After being tested, Ivo returns the envelope. Mara opens it, deciding to hear the recording her brother left. Needs - Ivo knows Mara is testing him Sets up - Mara has the envelope What the new order needs ## All declared setups arrive in time 6 of 6 setups in time Now read for motivation, continuity and the feeling you want. Meeting these dependencies does not make one order artistically better. ### Audience knows ≠ character knows - Audience sees the key scene 3 - Mara questions Ivo scene 6 The audience sees Ivo’s duplicate key before Mara questions him. That can make his answers feel evasive. In both orders, Mara has not seen him hide the key. Her suspicion depends on the thread and the torn cuff. Your repair checklist [Download checklist](data:text/plain;charset=utf-8,Scene-order%20repair%20checklist%0AOriginal%20teaching%20example.%20Declared%20dependencies%20only%3B%20no%20quality%20score.%0A%0A1.%20The%20claim%20ticket%0ANo%20missing%20declared%20prerequisite.%0AAudience-only%20knowledge%3A%20none%20declared%0ACharacter%20knowledge%20%2F%20possession%3A%20Mara%20knows%20locker%2019%0A%0A2.%20The%20night%20porter%0ANo%20missing%20declared%20prerequisite.%0AAudience-only%20knowledge%3A%20none%20declared%0ACharacter%20knowledge%20%2F%20possession%3A%20Mara%20knows%20locker%2019%3B%20Mara%20knows%20the%20depot%0A%0A3.%20The%20duplicate%20key%0ANo%20missing%20declared%20prerequisite.%0AAudience-only%20knowledge%3A%20Audience%20knows%20Ivo%20has%20a%20key%0ACharacter%20knowledge%20%2F%20possession%3A%20Mara%20knows%20locker%2019%3B%20Mara%20knows%20the%20depot%0A%0A4.%20The%20flooded%20depot%0ANo%20missing%20declared%20prerequisite.%0AAudience-only%20knowledge%3A%20Audience%20knows%20Ivo%20has%20a%20key%0ACharacter%20knowledge%20%2F%20possession%3A%20Mara%20knows%20locker%2019%3B%20Mara%20knows%20the%20depot%3B%20Mara%20has%20the%20red%20thread%0A%0A5.%20The%20torn%20cuff%0ANo%20missing%20declared%20prerequisite.%0AAudience-only%20knowledge%3A%20Audience%20knows%20Ivo%20has%20a%20key%0ACharacter%20knowledge%20%2F%20possession%3A%20Mara%20knows%20locker%2019%3B%20Mara%20knows%20the%20depot%3B%20Mara%20has%20the%20red%20thread%3B%20Mara%20remembers%20Ivo%E2%80%99s%20torn%20cuff%0A%0A6.%20The%20quiet%20question%0ANo%20missing%20declared%20prerequisite.%0AAudience-only%20knowledge%3A%20Audience%20knows%20Ivo%20has%20a%20key%0ACharacter%20knowledge%20%2F%20possession%3A%20Mara%20knows%20locker%2019%3B%20Mara%20knows%20the%20depot%3B%20Mara%20has%20the%20red%20thread%3B%20Mara%20remembers%20Ivo%E2%80%99s%20torn%20cuff%3B%20Ivo%20knows%20Mara%20is%20testing%20him%0A%0A7.%20The%20returned%20envelope%0ANo%20missing%20declared%20prerequisite.%0AAudience-only%20knowledge%3A%20Audience%20knows%20Ivo%20has%20a%20key%0ACharacter%20knowledge%20%2F%20possession%3A%20Mara%20knows%20locker%2019%3B%20Mara%20knows%20the%20depot%3B%20Mara%20has%20the%20red%20thread%3B%20Mara%20remembers%20Ivo%E2%80%99s%20torn%20cuff%3B%20Ivo%20knows%20Mara%20is%20testing%20him%3B%20Mara%20has%20the%20envelope%0A%0A%5B%20%5D%20Read%20the%20new%20sequence%20for%20motivation%2C%20continuity%20and%20intended%20suspense.) If your browser blocks the download, select and copy the checklist above. ## Use the same pass on your own draft 1. 1 Before moving a scene, write down what the audience knows, what each character knows, and who has each important object. 2. 2 After the move, trace each fact to the scene that establishes it. Mark missing setups without assuming every gap is a mistake. 3. 3 Read the sequence aloud. Decide whether the new order creates the suspense, surprise or confusion you intended. **How this exercise checks an order** These are original teaching cards, not extracts from a film. The checker reads only their declared requirements and reveals, in order. A scene’s requirements are checked before its reveals are added; an unmet requirement does not suppress later explicit reveals. Audience-only facts never satisfy character requirements. This cannot detect every continuity problem, interpret flashbacks or grade a story. For the difference between scene size and sequence, try the [pacing arrangement exercise](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/screenplay-pacing#scene-rhythm-exercise). ## Keep the original. Try the new order in Plot. Name a save point, make a draft line for the experiment, and compare the changes before choosing the version to keep. [Start writing free](https://app.inkwell.software/signup) [Explore save points and draft lines](https://www.inkwell.software/resources/guides/first-save-point) --- Canonical page: