The chronological sequence of all events in a film narrative, structured in three acts with a 25%-50%-25% screen time ratio.
A film story is typically structured into three acts with a ratio of 25%-50%-25% of the total runtime. The first plot point typically occurs after 17-30 minutes, the second after 85-95 minutes in a 120-minute feature film. The story encompasses all time levels: the story time (Story Time), the discourse time (Discourse Time), and the screen time (Screen Time). Subplots usually make up 15-30% of the total story and run parallel to the main plot.
Aristotle defined the basic structure of dramatic narratives with a beginning, middle, and end in his "Poetics" in 335 BC. In 1863, Gustav Freytag developed the five-act drama schema with exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and catastrophe. Syd Field established the three-act structure for Hollywood films with "Screenplay" in 1979. In 1997, Robert McKee refined story analysis by incorporating psychological and sociological dimensions.
"Citizen Kane" (1941) tells the story of Charles Foster Kane through multiple flashbacks, with the chronological story spanning 76 years but only occupying 119 minutes of runtime. "Pulp Fiction" (1994) fragments the linear story into seven non-chronological segments. "Memento" (2000) reverses the narrative direction: the story runs forward, the plot backward. Modern blockbusters like Marvel films use "Hero's Journey" structures with 12-17 defined stages according to Joseph Campbell.
Story fundamentally differs from Plot: while the story encompasses all events chronologically, the plot only shows selected scenes in a specific order. The Treatment focuses on the core story without dialogue details, the Exposé reduces it to 1-2 pages. Subject refers to the central theme, Premise to the basic assumption of the story. In series, the Bible replaces the classic story structure with long-term character arcs over multiple seasons.
Ich plane meine Kameraführung anhand der emotionalen Kurve der Geschichte - in Akt I verwende ich statischere Einstellungen für die Etablierung, in Akt II dynamischere Bewegungen für steigende Spannung. Die Story-Beats bestimmen meine Lichtkonzepte: Wendepunkte erfordern oft drastische Lichtwechsel, Rückblenden andere Farbtemperaturen.
Ich entwickle die Geschichte in Beats und verwende die Drei-Akt-Struktur als Gerüst, nicht als Korsett - jeder Plot Point muss emotional und visuell unterscheidbar sein. Die Backstory der Charaktere beeinflusst meine Regieanweisungen, auch wenn sie nie gezeigt wird, denn die Schauspieler müssen die komplette Geschichte ihrer Figuren verstehen.
Ich kalkuliere Budgets anhand der Story-Komplexität: Multiple Zeitebenen bedeuten verschiedene Kostüm-/Maskenbilder, Rückblenden erfordern zusätzliche Locations oder Set-Umbauten. Eine klare Drei-Akt-Struktur erleichtert die Finanzierung, da Investoren das Schema verstehen - experimentelle Erzählformen erhöhen das Vermarktungsrisiko um 15-25%.
1. Was beschreibt „Geschichte" am besten?
2. Zu welchem Department gehört „Geschichte"?
3. Wie viele verschiedene Fachperspektiven bietet dieser Eintrag?
The Lexikon is part of the Filmfarm ecosystem — alongside budgeting (FilmBalance), an industry magazine (FilmCircus) and crew networking (FilmCall, CrewMesh). One shared vocabulary for the whole production.