Narrative Structure

A narrative is the story line of the film.

There are two types of narrative structure:
Linear-  Its a structure which is in chronological order, it has a beginning,middle and end.
Nonlinear- Does not always start from the beginning, it usually jumps around the timeline of events.

Todorov and his equilibrium theory:
The equilibrium theory says that all narratives follow a three part structure:
Beginning                 Middle                     End    
Equilibrium               Dis-equilibrium      New equilibrium 

Key terms: 

Generic Convention- The ingredients of the genre 

Audience expectation- When a film uses generic conventions an audience then creates an expectation of what they will experience

Repertoire of the elements- When the ingredients of the genre are repeated over time they form the basis of audience expectations.