Film Structure - Film 1

The film structure I will use for my research in to films is the 'Three-act structure'. It is a model used in writing and evaluating modern storytelling, which divides a screenplay into 3 parts: the setup, the confrontation and the resolution.

The diagram above gives the idea about what the 3 acts consist of and when they happen.

Act 1 (Setup) - introduces the main characters and sets up the conflict that is the story of the film. The end of the act shows something significant that happens, which changes the courses of the story.

Act 2 (Confrontation) - explores the consequences of the catalytic moment. It asks the questions 'What  happens?', 'What complications arise?', 'How does it affect the characters?' and 'What are the possible outcomes?'.

Act 3 (Resolution) - resolves the story and tells us the outcome. It must tie-up all the loose ends and should ensure that we understand what the story is about.


I will research 2 films and I will include my own structure for my own film The first film I will research is the 2005 thriller film 'Flightplan'  

FLIGHTPLAN:

This film tells the story of a middle-aged woman, who goes on holiday to New York with her 6 year old daughter. However, the child goes missing somehow and the protagonist goes on a hunt around the airplane to find the missing girl.

Here is the storyline: 

Act 1 - The beginning of the film introduces the main characters of the film: Kyle Pratt (Jodie Foster) and her daughter Julia Pratt (Marlene Lawston). This tells the rest of the act by where they are set. It sets at a train station, then Kyle's house and then finally at the airport. The protagonists then board the plane, with the daughter sitting next to the window. Then comes the catalytic moment when Kyle and Julia falls asleep; Kyle then wakes up and finds out that Julia had gone missing. This is the plot point of the story, which changes the atmosphere rapidly.

Act 2 - The main part of the film is when Kyle goes in search for her missing daughter, who had disappeared without a trace.

Kyle suddenly panics more and more, as the cabin crew doesn't believe her about what she is trying to tell them about her mussing daughter. This follows by a scene of bloody violence, which is the catalytic moment of this act. This is the longest moment of the film, lasting about an hour. This makes the viewer think what will the outcome be and will she find her daughter. Will it all be resolved?

Act 3 - The film concludes when Kyle finds her daughter unconscious at the front of the plane. She carries her out and are taken away in a van for safety. Finally, the film ends with Julia saying 'Are we there yet?' referring to the holiday.