Week 03 – Narrative structure

Narrative Structure: Key Aspects of Storytelling

Strategies for Story Development:

• Focus on building narrative resolution through events that engage the audience.
• A successful narrative presents a chain of events that engage the audience and conclude satisfactorily.

Character-Based Narrative:

• Requires appealing and convincingly performed characters.
• Directors must create this appeal and extract compelling performances to communicate the story.

Three-Part Story (Aristotle):

1. Beginning: Exposition and conflict
2. Middle: Rising action and climax
3. End: Falling action and resolution

Five-Act Structure:

1. Act 1 – Exposition: Introduces setting, time, place, characters, and conflict.
2. Act 2 – Rising Action: Leads to the climax, with complications and obstacles for the protagonist.
3. Act 3 – Climax: The turning point with the highest suspense.
4. Act 4 – Falling Action: Concludes the story, revealing and wrapping up details and plot twists.
5. Act 5 – Resolution: Final outcome, revealing the entire plot. The protagonist overcomes challenges, lessons are learned, hope returns, or the antagonist prevails.

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Editing

Definition and Process:

• Editing is the primary means of building a chain of shots and scenes into a complete film.
• Each edit ends one shot and begins another.
• In live-action film, editing usually occurs after filming is completed.
• In narrative animation, editors work closely with the director and story supervisor once storyboards are complete.

Purposes of Editing:

• To place one shot next to another
• To create narrative progression
• To transition between scenes
• To provide additional detail (e.g., close-ups)
• To indicate narrative effects (e.g., reaction shots)
• To offer the best view of action for the viewer
• The moment of the edit is called the ‘shot transition’

3 Golden Rules of Editing:

• Edits should be invisible to the eye, creating an effect rather than being noticed.
• The storyteller should maintain suspense and not let the audience get ahead.
• The audience should be participants, not just spectators.

Types of Editing:

1. Long Takes:
   • An alternative to frequent cuts, providing continuous action without interruption.
2. Montage Editing:
   • Combines shots to generate shock, strange juxtapositions, or new ideas.
3. Continuity Editing:
   • The standard form, creating a smooth flow so the story takes priority over the mechanics of storytelling.
   • Cuts are mostly unnoticed, focusing attention on characters and story.

Common Editing Transitions:

• Cut: Direct transition from one shot to another.
• Fade In/Fade Out: Transition to/from a black screen.
• Dissolve: One shot gradually replaces another.
• Wipe: One shot replaces another with a moving boundary line.
• Unusual Alternatives: Older techniques like the iris transition.

Achieving Continuity:

• Graphic Relations: Visual similarity between shots.
• Rhythmic Relations: Timing and pacing between shots.
• Spatial Relations: Maintaining consistent space and geography.
• Temporal Relations: Consistent timing and chronological order.