This document discusses narrative structure through the lens of time in film. It defines key concepts like story time, discourse time, and different types of time manipulation including summary, ellipsis, scene, stretch, flashback, and flashforward. Examples are provided to illustrate how each type of time manipulation can be used to either create a linear or non-linear narrative structure. The goal is to understand how time is edited and represented in film to effectively communicate the story through narrative.

1. FILM NARRATIVE PART 2
L/O:
-to understand the role in time in narrative
-to know (and give evidence of) how to identify and
discuss narrative in a clip

2. Starter
• Think of the film slumdog millionaire we watched
• Write a short/quick response as to how the film has
• 1) Conventional linear narrative structure
• 2) Unconventional non-linear narrative structure

3. Key words
• Time
• Story Time
• Discourse Time
Summary
Ellipsis
Scene
Stretch
Flashback
Flash-forward

4. Time
How is time edited? How is time shown and/or manipulated to communicate a
narrative?
• How is time shown/represented?
• Is there a manipulation of time? How? Why?
TYPES OF TIME
• STORY TIME: time of the events (ex a film over 50 years ….)
• DISCOURSE TIME: time taken to narrate the event (how long to tell the
story? i.e. 2 hours )

5. More types of time
MORE TYPES OF
TIME
COMMENTS
Example
Summary
-discourse shorter than story
A film takes place over 50 years but shown in 2
hours
Ellipsis
-establishing discourse time rather
than story
-shot 1: man out of bed….
-shot 2: man in shower…..
-shot 3: man getting dressed….
-shot 4: man driving to work.
30 secs total to communicate a few hours = The
audience can fill in the gaps (…)
Scene
-story and discourse time are equal (to
show realism (real time)
Soap opera which shows a scene in 5 minutes
which is actually 5 mins
Stretch
-discourse is longer than story
Scene in race where it is in slow motion to show
a runner winning and to capture the emotion
Flashback
-character has a flash back (which is a
thought or memory in the past)
(using slow motion)
-flashbacks are often in dull colours, black and
white and altered light (to make it different than
real time)
-causes non linear narrative as you
are changing order of time
Flash-forward
-when audience are shown the future
scenes or events (often to give clues)
-causes non linear narrative as you
are changing order of time
In hunger games, Kat is thinking about Peeta at
dinner table, she has a flashback and audience
see her thoughts of her sitting outside the bakery
and Peeta throwing her bread

6. In your work….think about…..
• What is story time length?
• What is discourse time length?
• Identify all types of time being represented:
• Summary
• Ellipsis
• Scene
• Stretch
• Flashback or flash-forward