La La Land
Aspiring actress serves lattes to movie stars in between auditions and jazz musician Sebastian scrapes by playing cocktail-party gigs in dingy bars. But as success mounts, they are faced with decisions that fray the fragile fabric of their love affair, and the dreams they worked so hard to maintain in each other threaten to rip them apart.
Despite a mid-range budget of $30.0M, La La Land became a commercial juggernaut, earning $509.2M worldwide—a remarkable 1597% return.
6 Oscars. 242 wins & 307 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
La La Land (2016) exemplifies deliberately positioned dramatic framework, characteristic of Damien Chazelle's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 2 hours and 9 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.2, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Mia sits in traffic on the LA freeway, rehearsing lines for an audition in her car. The opening musical number "Another Day of Sun" shows dreamers stuck in gridlock, establishing LA as a city of aspiring artists caught between dreams and reality.. Structural examination shows that this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 15 minutes when Mia tries to talk to Sebastian after his passionate piano performance at the restaurant, but he brushes past her rudely, having just been fired. This first hostile encounter disrupts both their isolated routines and plants the seed of their future connection.. At 11% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 32 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This illustrates the protagonist's commitment to Sebastian takes Mia to a jazz club to show her the music he loves, then they visit the Griffith Observatory. In the planetarium, they dance among the stars in "Planetarium" - a magical moment where they both choose to open their hearts and begin a real relationship., moving from reaction to action.
At 65 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Structural examination shows that this crucial beat Keith (John Legend) offers Sebastian a job in his successful fusion band "The Messengers." Sebastian accepts, seeing it as a path to financial stability for his club dream. This false victory seems like progress but actually begins pulling him away from pure jazz and from Mia., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 96 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Mia's one-woman show is a disaster - barely anyone attends, including a key casting director who walks out. Devastated and humiliated, Mia gives up on acting entirely and moves back to Boulder City, Nevada. Her dream dies, and with it, her relationship with Sebastian., indicates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 103 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. Sebastian finds Mia and tells her about the audition. He reminds her of her talent and passion, giving her the courage to try one more time. "I'm always gonna love you," he says. This moment of synthesis combines their love with renewed artistic integrity - they can give each other the courage to pursue dreams even if they can't be together., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
La La Land's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs proven narrative structure principles that track dramatic progression. By mapping La La Land against these established plot points, we can identify how Damien Chazelle utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish La La Land within the comedy genre.
Damien Chazelle's Structural Approach
Among the 4 Damien Chazelle films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.2, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. La La Land represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Damien Chazelle filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional comedy films include The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, The Bad Guys and Lake Placid. For more Damien Chazelle analyses, see First Man, Whiplash and Babylon.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Mia sits in traffic on the LA freeway, rehearsing lines for an audition in her car. The opening musical number "Another Day of Sun" shows dreamers stuck in gridlock, establishing LA as a city of aspiring artists caught between dreams and reality.
Theme
Sebastian's sister Laura tells him: "Maybe you should let them decide what they want to hear." This encapsulates the central tension between artistic purity and commercial compromise that will define both protagonists' journeys.
Worldbuilding
Mia works as a barista on the Warner Bros. lot, attending auditions that go nowhere. Sebastian is a jazz pianist fired from a restaurant gig for playing his own setlist. Both are struggling artists in LA, frustrated and alone, pursuing dreams that seem increasingly out of reach.
Disruption
Mia tries to talk to Sebastian after his passionate piano performance at the restaurant, but he brushes past her rudely, having just been fired. This first hostile encounter disrupts both their isolated routines and plants the seed of their future connection.
Resistance
Mia and Sebastian keep running into each other at parties and around LA. Sebastian crashes Mia's poolside gathering playing in an 80s cover band (humiliating for him). They debate about music and dreams. The "A Lovely Night" number shows them resisting their growing attraction while dancing against the LA skyline.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Sebastian takes Mia to a jazz club to show her the music he loves, then they visit the Griffith Observatory. In the planetarium, they dance among the stars in "Planetarium" - a magical moment where they both choose to open their hearts and begin a real relationship.
Mirror World
Mia and Sebastian's relationship blossoms through the "Summer Montage" - movie screenings, beach trips, jazz clubs. Their romance becomes the vehicle through which both confront the central question: Can you achieve your dreams without compromising who you are? They inspire each other artistically.
Premise
Mia and Sebastian support each other's dreams. Sebastian encourages Mia to write her one-woman show. Mia pushes Sebastian to pursue his jazz club dream. They explore LA together, living the promise of the premise: two artists in love, inspiring each other toward greatness. "City of Stars" captures this magical summer.
Midpoint
Keith (John Legend) offers Sebastian a job in his successful fusion band "The Messengers." Sebastian accepts, seeing it as a path to financial stability for his club dream. This false victory seems like progress but actually begins pulling him away from pure jazz and from Mia.
Opposition
Sebastian tours with The Messengers, playing music he doesn't love but achieving commercial success. Mia prepares her one-woman show alone. They drift apart - he misses her play's opening night due to a photo shoot. A bitter fight erupts where she accuses him of selling out and he dismisses her show. The relationship crumbles under the weight of compromise and ambition.
Collapse
Mia's one-woman show is a disaster - barely anyone attends, including a key casting director who walks out. Devastated and humiliated, Mia gives up on acting entirely and moves back to Boulder City, Nevada. Her dream dies, and with it, her relationship with Sebastian.
Crisis
Mia lives at home with her parents, broken and resigned to a normal life. Sebastian learns about a callback for Mia from a major casting director who saw her show. He drives to Boulder City to find her, processing his own failures and the cost of their choices.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Sebastian finds Mia and tells her about the audition. He reminds her of her talent and passion, giving her the courage to try one more time. "I'm always gonna love you," he says. This moment of synthesis combines their love with renewed artistic integrity - they can give each other the courage to pursue dreams even if they can't be together.
Synthesis
Mia performs "The Fools Who Dream" audition, a raw tribute to dreamers and her aunt who inspired her. She gets the part - a film shooting in Paris. Five years pass: Mia is a famous actress, married with a child. She stumbles into "Seb's," Sebastian's jazz club - he achieved his dream too. A fantasy sequence shows the life they could have had together, before reality returns.
Transformation
Mia and Sebastian exchange a final look and bittersweet smile across Seb's jazz club before she leaves with her husband. The closing image mirrors the opening: they're still dreamers in LA, but transformed. Both achieved their dreams by inspiring each other, even though love was the price. The smile says: no regrets.