I am currently reading about stories - what they are and how they are put together, their structures and specific elements. 'Professional Storyboarding' (Paez & Jew) has a good, simplified chapter on this. So -
Gestures create actions,
actions create beats,
beats create shots,
shots create scenes,
scenes create sequences,
sequences create acts,
acts create the story (p90)
More specifically, I like the simple definitions, which help me to understand what a story IS;
A progression from point A to point B (p87)
This obviously implies change, and in the context of visual storytelling ie films, this often means a change of circumstances in a character, or protagonist, thus, a visual story can be defined as;
The emotional journey of a character in their pursuit of going from point A to point B (p88)
In terms of the basic elements as listed above, a new one for me is 'beats'. These are actions that describe a single thought. An example might be a character picking up a cup and throwing it at a wall, the single thought being 'I hate him!'. And we can 'drill down' beyond this to see each action as a number of gestures.
When I worked with Jim Brook in Cheltenham, helping him produce a film based on the Oedipus myth for his PhD, it was all about gesture, and its place in duration. I've just picked up a copy of Henri Bergson's 'Time and Free Will' in the Red cross charity shop in Caernarfon, which is where all that duration stuff in Deleuze comes from.
Anyway, back to the story....
More definitions;
Motivation - The driving force inside the protagonist, created by an 'object of desire'.
Character - The infusion of human nature into the story.
Conflict - This creates the interest/drama in the story. Could be internal, personal (between friends?), or extra-personal (societal).
The antagonist - The personification of the force working against the protagonist. The nemesis.
The inciting incident - The event that starts the ball rolling, unbalancing the protagonist.
Plot - The action of the story, usually external conflict.
Climax - The point of maximum emotional intensity or conflict.
Resolution - The epilogue, the point where the audience takes stock and reflects on the emotional journey.
Theme - The big idea: The character's relationship with the world at large.
