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Investigation 11/22: Three Act Structure

While some people may not realize it, most films have their plot broken up into three parts using the Three Act Structure. At first, you may think that the term "three act structure" is a fancy way of describing the beginning, middle, and end of a film, it actually goes more in-depth than it seems. Each of the three acts has it's own themes and ideas that are best showcased during this point in the film. In order to best explain each act and it's purpose, I will go through them one by one.

Act 1

The first act in a film is primarily used to establish the world of the film. This includes describing the characters of the film, their goals and aspirations, their traits and the setting of the film. The first act also commonly includes or foreshadows the beginning of the plot and what is to follow in the other two acts. While all three acts within the three act structure are extremely important to the film at large, the first act might be the most important. If the first act does not do a proper job of establishing the concepts of the film or fails to capture the attention of the audience, it decreases the enjoyability of the rest of the film. One example of properly establishing your concepts within the first act would have to be Shrek. The film begins with a storybook being read which establishes the background knowledge needed to begin the plot. Following this, the audience is introduced to Shrek and more characters shortly there after. Each introductory scene works to establish the characters and their roles within the story in a clear but comedic way.

Act 2

The second act in a film is likely the most challenging portion of the film to work properly. Act 2 is typically the longest act in the film as it contains all the content following the introduction but prior to the final climax of the film. The most important function of the second act, however, is to raise the stakes of the plot and to hit the audience with a reason to think "what's going to happen next. Going back to Shrek, by the end of the second act, the audience watches as Shrek is driven away from Fiona and Donkey and begins to revert back to his mindset from the beginning of the film. After watching the relationships between these characters develop throughout the second act, it hits hard to see them break away from each other as the film reaches it's emotional low point. Despite, whatever hard hitting action occurs in a film's second act, it almost always is reverted as we reach the third act.

Act 3

The third and final act of the three act structure is the most impactful point of the film. Act 3 contains the resolution of the plot while also giving closure to the character arcs that were established in Act 1 and developed in Act 2. The length of the third act typically varies from film to film. Films like Avengers: Endgame have a huge, lengthy final battle to serve as its third act while other films like Psycho seem to have a very short third act that ends the plot and gives closure on the characters. Shrek, seems to lean closer to the latter as it's third act involves the reveal surrounding Fiona, a short final confrontation, and the wedding finale which gives closure on the main characters. Without a proper final act, the audience will likely leave the film disappointed, believing that the plot or characters did not seem to be resolved.

Closing Remarks

The three act structure is a critical part of a filmmaker's toolkit. No matter what the film is about, the three act structure structures it in a way that is easy for the audience to understand and that clearly demonstrates the ideas and concepts that are put forth by the filmmaker. In the past, I have not put too much thought into using the three act structure when writing my films. However, now I know how using it can keep my film from falling apart.

Work Log

  • 11/16 - Planned out specifics for final shooting day
  • 11/17 - Football Practice Recording (No Project Work)
  • 11/18 - Eagle Scout Conference (No Project Work)
  • 11/19 - Experimented with new chroma keying ideas
  • 11/20 - Organized Mini-THON documentary ideas and work
  • 11/21 - Shot finale scenes
  • 11/22 - Edited and color graded footage from yesterday
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