In Week 2, we learned about basic story structure and how to build a clear narrative. The main idea was that a story is not just a list of events. It should show cause and effect. The slides explained that we should not connect story beats with “and then,” but with “therefore” or “but.” Story -Basic
This helped me understand that every action in a story should create a consequence.
We also learned that stories are built, not imagined randomly. Story -Basic
A good story is a sequence of meaning, not just things happening. The character should lead the story. Events should happen because of the character’s choices, personality, and flaws.
Another important idea was that conflict creates drama. A story begins when desire meets obstacle. Story -Basic
There can be internal conflict (inside the character) or external conflict (from the outside world). This made me think more carefully about what my character wants and why they cannot get it.
We also practiced the SWBST method:
Somebody → Wanted → But → So → Then. Story -Basic
This structure helped me organize my ideas clearly and check if my story makes logical sense.
Overall, this week helped me understand that storytelling is about character, motivation, and consequence. Simple structures like SWBST are very helpful for me to think clearly and build stronger stories.
This week we completed several assignments that helped us understand story and cinematography more deeply. We did a cinematography analysis where we studied shots from a film and focused on camera movement and composition. By analysing framing and camera techniques, we tried to understand the director’s intention and how visual choices create meaning, emotion, and tension. This helped me realise that every shot is carefully designed and not random. We also created a previs project called “Hunter to Prey,” which shows the transformation of a hunter becoming the hunted. In this project, we had to design the camera movement and shot progression to clearly show the shift of power. Through this process, I explored different ways to use camera language to support narrative change. These assignments helped me connect theory with practice and understand how visual storytelling works in a more practical way.
