Narrative structure: Vladimir Propp's Narrative theory

Who was Vladamir Propp?

He was a literary critic who founded the idea that a certain type of character was to be used in a narrative structure.

He believed that in a narrative there are eight different character types. These are:

- The villain

- The helper (aids the hero during or after their mission)

- The dispatcher (sends hero on a mission)

- The princess or prize

- Her father - (Rewards hero for his effort)

- The doner (someone who provides an essential objects) 

- False hero

- Hero/Victim

  

Narrative structure: Linear and Non-Linear

Linear
Linear narratives normally follow a chronological order of events within a story. These are stories which start at the beginning, follow through to the middle and finish at the end. Some stories in films build tension such as horror films. Therefore, using the linear narrative structure will be the most suitable.
EXAMPLE:  The Purge

For our opening, we plan to making the narrative linear to ensure that the audience can follow the plot easily and understand what is happening throughout. Also, we wish to build as much tension and suspense as we can, therefore, a linear narrative supports us in doing so.

Non-Linear
This structure is when the events in the story does not follow chronological order. Therefore, the story moves about in time throughout the film. This means that the beginning of the film, starts by showing the end. This is a good structure to use when you want to create dramatic irony. This is when the audience is aware of the outcome but the characters are not.
EXAMPLE: The Killing

Horror film budgets

The horror genre category in the movie business are generally the most profitable and the cheapest to make. Horror films are made with low budgets due to the lack of special effects needed. For example; 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' left people terrified with just a man with a murderous power tool and it only cost $140,000 to make, gaining $26 million in return. Therefore, it makes the genre ideal for taking small risks and it is likely to gain large profits. Many new filmmakers and producers tend to be involved in the horror genre first to gain a successful reputation. For example, 'Paranormal Activity 4' only cost $5 million to make and made a huge profit of $135 million domestically and overseas.

Narrative structure: Levi-Strauss

Claude Levi-Strauss was a french anthropologist and ethnologist (28th November 1908 - 30th October 2009) who came up with the 'Binary Opposition Theory'.
He created the idea of binary opposition with the idea that every story unconsciously reflects the values, myths and beliefs of a culture. The binary opposition is a pair of related terms of concepts that are opposite in meaning. He came to the conclusion that we make sense of the world, people and events by using binary opposites. He was influenced by several leading media theorists including Saussure Jakobson, Mauss etc.

Examples of binary opposites are:

• Good vs Evil
• Rich and Poor 
• Boy and Girl
• Peace and War
• Protagonist and Antagonist
• Pretty and Ugly 
• Young and Old