Chapter 3: Narrative Form Flashcards
Narrative Form
a type of filmic organization in which the parts relate to one another through a series of casually related events taking place in time and space
Narrative
a chain of events linked by cause and effect and occurring in time and space
What makes up a narrative?
change and stability, cause and effect, time and space
-(needs to have connectivity)
Story
the chain of events in chronological order; the viewer’s imaginary construction of all the events in a narrative
Plot
in a narrative film, all the events that are directly presented to us, including their causal relations, chronological order, duration, frequency, and spatial locations
What is the relationship between plot and story?
the filmmakers have built the plot from the story, but viewers build the story from the plot
What is the function of the plot?
guides the viewer in building up a sense of all the relevant events, both the ones explicitly presented and those that must be inferred
Diegesis
the total world of the story action
Nondiegetic elements
material that lies outside the story world
ex) credits
Character Traits
attitudes, skills, habits, tastes, psychological drives, and any other qualities that distinguish them
What does an open-ended plot do?
encourages the viewer to ponder possible outcomes
Temporal Duration
how long a story unfolds based on the film’s plot
What is the relationship between story duration, screen duration, and plot duration?
- story duration leads to plot duration
- the filmmaker can manipulate screen duration independently of the overall story and plot duration
- screen duration can expand or compress story duration
Temporal Duration
how often we hear or see an event
Screen Space
the visible space within the frame
What is the function of openings?
- provides a basis for what is to come and initiates us into the narrative
- raises our expectations by setting up a specific range of possible causes for what we see
Setup
the first quarter or so of a film’s plot
“In Media Res”
the film opens with a series of actions that have already started
Exposition
the portion of the plot that lays out the backstory and the initial situation
What is associated with development sections?
as a film’s plot proceeds, the causes and effects create patterns of development
Goal-Oriented Plot
a character takes steps to achieve an object or condition
Deadline
a specific duration for the action
Climax
the plot will typically resolve its casual issues by bringing the development to a high point
here, action is presented as having a narrow range of possible outcomes
Narration
the plot’s way of distributing story information to achieve specific effects; the moment-by-moment process that guides viewers in building the story out of the plot
Unrestricted Narration
we know, see, and hear more than any of the characters can
Omniscient Narration
all-knowing
Restricted Narration
we do not see, hear, or know anything that the main character doesn’t
can create greater curiosity and surprise for the viewer
Objective Narration
a plot confines us wholly to information about what characters say and do
POV Shot
a shot taken with the camera placed approximately where the character’s eyes would be, showing what the character would see; usually cut in before or after a shot of the character looking
Sound Perspective
hearing sounds as a character would
Perceptual Subjectivity
when a plot gives us access to what characters see and hear
ex) POV shot
Mental Subjectivity
beyond the character’s senses and into their mind
Narrator
some specific agent who purports to be telling us the story
Aspects of the Classical Hollywood Cinema:
- individual characters making things happen
- the story centers on personal psychological causes
- the protagonist has a goal, and the narrative will develop toward achieving that goal
- an opposition creates conflict- something the protagonist must overcome
- the plot traces a process of change
- strong degree of closure at the end
