Development of Ideas and Structure in Moving Image.

STORY DEVELOPMENT: THREE ACT STRUCTURE

The three-act structure is present not only in the film industry, but also in stories, theatre, etc. It is the base of the story, dividing a screenplay into a three parts called the Setup, the Confrontation and the Resolution. It is perceived as the storytelling law as it is the most logical approach to writing a story or screenplay.

I will explain the three-act structure by analyzing it within the animated film Megamind, released in 2010.

Part 1: the Setup.

The Setup introduces us to the different characters, their relationship to one another, in their normal setting. Here we have an ongoing rivalry between Good (Metro Man) and Evil (Megamind), with Metro Man continuously defeating Megamind following a repetitive and routine pattern and the television reporter Roxy, constantly kidnapped by Megamind. Roxy despises Megamind and praises Metro Man.

Finally, he defeats Metro Man, and takes over the city. Now purposeless, Megamind decides to create a new hero.

Part 2: the Confrontation.

The Confrontation denotes a disturbance in the stability of the situation.

Megamind develops feelings for Roxy and discovers he doesn’t HAVE to be bad.

Megamind and his right hand man Minion have a falling out because of Megamind’s weakness for Roxy who makes him good instead of evil.

Roxy discovers Megamind’s deception and trickery to seduce her by hiding his identity.

Cal who was chosen to be the Hero turns evil and terrorizes the city.

This creates a turn of events, as Megamind is now in the position of the Hero as opposed to the start of the film, where he was in fact the villain of the story. He must stop Cal and save the city.

Part 3: The Resolution.

The Resolution is as the name suggests, the resolution of the story and the overcoming of all the obstacles from the second part. The third part leaves the protagonist and the other characters with a different and improved perception of who they really are.

Megamind stops the villain, Roxy sees the good in him and they are united, and he becomes a symbol of Good.

FUTURE FILM: DIGITAL STORYTELLING

For a TV series, a game or a film to be successful, word of mouth will just not do the trick. These days, the point is basically to plaster the series, film or game everywhere on order to “seduce” as many as possible. That is the spark, and then it spreads like wildfire. The series True Blood is the perfect example. It is a series involving many mythical creatures, but it is not appealing solely to fantasy freaks. Many elements have been incorporated in order to touch a vast audience. There’s violence, blood, romance, comedy, sex.

 It is not just for women, not just for men, but for both. The advertizing and the use of different platforms allow this large diverse public to discover the series; evidently, different websites devoted to it were put in place. However, documentaries were produced, appealing posters. A comic book was also created later based on the series, thus attracting perhaps comic readers who wouldn’t have known about it otherwise. Now, the series is an immense success, and word of mouth becomes obsolete.

The Internet, magazines, comic books, and television; their combination touches all kinds of audiences, guaranteeing an engaged audience.