Pre-Production: Save the Cat Beat Structure and Exposition of Film

 Introduction

Hey all! Today's blog is all about the Save the Cat Beat Structure and Exposition of Film. First, what is the Exposition of film?

Exposition in a film is the way background information is shared in a film. There are 5 ways you can use an exposition:

• Dialogue
• Narration
• Mise-en-scene
• Text or title cards
• Flashback

How we used exposition in our film opening

In our film opening, we decided to go the traditional route and use dialogue to introduce the background information. In scene 2, Mercedes is having a conversation with Lizzy about Christine. They talk about how she's crazy and how she stole a bracelet from her. Although the background information doesn't seem like much, it's still introducing the characters and what the conflict is. 

What is the Save the Cat Beat Structure? This structure does not talk about saving cats (joke....) but it talks about the critical moments in a media product and lays out what needs to happen in each act. 

Screenwriters use beats to create momentum within their film. So, what is a beat? A beat is a moment that pushes the story further 

How we researched the Save The Cat Beat Structure

Beat 1: The Opening Image	The film opening of white noise began with Jack Gladney’s Suburban, an upper middle-class family staring blankly at a grocery store in front of them, before entering. Upon going inside, they were met with random dances amongst shoppers around them, which caused them to dance, too.
Beat 2: Theme-stated  A reoccurring theme that “White Noise,” makes is stressing the overstimulating, repetitive, yet unpredictable state of the world, and this film captures the feeling of uncertainty through the spontaneous motions of the film’s characters.
Beat 3: Set-Up  The main character, Jack Gladney is shown in full focus after a full minute into the opening, as the Gladney family walked towards the checkout line, after dancing simultaneously. At (0:46-0:52), Jack Gladney is shown wrapping his arms around his wife’s shoulders and smiling and shows his comfort and unawareness/ disassociation to the world around him, or that he masks his internal emotions, as he frequently switches from blank expressions to giddy grins instantly throughout the film opening.

Reflection

In conclusion, the Save the Cat Beat Structure and Exposition of Film are important parts of a film. It introduces characters, sets up plot points that engage the viewer, it introduces the setting and also provides context for each scene. Without these two elements in a film opening, it would be empty. There would be no plot points that propel us forward, or any background information. So the audience would just be confused and bored at the same time! That would not leave your audience very satisfied. Anyways, Thanks for reading! P is logging off..