Freelance thief becomes a freelance TV cameraman.

Rating: 8/10 (3 October 2016)

The Three Acts:
The initial tableaux: It's night time in Los Angeles, and Louis Bloom is out acquiring copper wire, chain link fence, and manhole covers to sell to a scrap operator. That is, he steals these materials from insufficiently secure sites. He also listens to audio courses on entrepreneurship as he cruises the city looking for weakness. He's not above beating the hell out of a security guard in order to get free of him, but more to steal his pricey watch.
Louis is clearly looking for something more monetarily rewarding. By chance he stops at a recent auto accident that might get worse if the car explodes before the CHP can get the driver out of the car. A freelance TV film crew (Joe Loder and his assistant) show up, as if on cue, and start filming. Louis starts the process of learning new skills. He observes the handling of the situation that involves cops, aggressive reporters, victim(s), the excitement of jeopardy, straight up corruption, electronic surveillance, and the hungry market of TV news. When he sees the incident on TV at home the next morning, he's hooked.
Delineation of conflicts: There is competition among the freelance film camera crews (stringers), especially those who film crime oriented events for television. Louis enters that competition. He catches the attention of a morning news director at an LA TV station, Nina Romina. His relationship with her is stormy, but they both gain from it. As his success grows (better car, better camera, better access), Louis becomes impatient for more success. He moves incrementally from pure observer to active participant in the crime scenes. The jostling with other stringers continues, and his self-created legal jeopardy increases.
Resolution: Character issues lead to consequences, but where do those consequences land?