The
function of Act I is to “set-up” the film: to provide information about the main characters, the setting(布景), the tone气氛), problems, conflicts, the love interest, and the timescale of the film. Central to the set-up is the presentation of the hero/protagonist. Act I will also give enough information to allow the audience to know the genre to which the film belongs, and thus to know roughly what to expect of it. In Act I we also expect to find a hook, a key line, an incident, and a turning point.
The Classic Three-Act Linear Structure

The majority of Hollywood films employ the classic three-act linear structure (or a variation of it). The structure was firstly codified(整理) by Syd Field, but has since been elaborated and reinterpreted by a number of scriptwriters and theorists. By no means all films will adhere to this structure，and those that do will do so flexibly. Nevertheless, most Hollywood scriptwriters(编剧) are familiar with the structure and acknowledge its importance.
The Classic Three-Act Linear Structure
Act
Act I
Time Function
0-30 mins
Set-up Confrontation冲突和斗争)
Act II 30-90 mins Development (Conflict and Act III
90-120 mins Resolution(结局) and Denouement （尾声）来自Narrative

Narrative refers to the way that a story is told. It is principally concerned with the way that events are organized in time and space---the way in which the scriptwriter and director take the raw elements of a story and arrange them in the most attractive and interesting way. Hollywood has developed its own set of informal principles to guide the creation of film narratives; it has also evolved a relatively welldefined structure for their organization.
ACT I The Set-Up
after the inciting incident, the protagonist will be driven by a new motivation to pursue a new goal. The protagonist may not take immediate action on account of the inciting incident, but will nevertheless begin a process of reflection that will lead eventually to action. Turning point 1 The role of the turning point is to catapult( 猛力推出 ) the story in a new direction by setting up some kind of crisis for the protagonist to negotiate. The turning point differs from the inciting incident in that it is associated with some decisive actions taken by the protagonist that dramatically raises the stakes( 冒 更 大 的 风 险 ) and increases the danger level.
Narrative
Narrative,
story, and plot are the basic terms used when analyzing the narrative structure of a film. Although they are sometimes used interchangeably, they also have more precise meanings that can help us to draw some useful distinctions. David Bordwell and Kristin Thomas in Film Art--An Introduction《电影艺术入门》define them as follows:
Inciting Incident(引发性事件) Incident that disturbs life of protagonist Turning Point 1 Point of No Return
105-120 mins Resolution/Denouement
ACT I The Set-Up
Chapter 3 Narrative 叙述
Narrative

This chapter attempts to : Define the basic terms used to analyze narratives--Narrative, Story, and Plot. Describe the commonly used the Classic Three-Act Linear Structure (经典三幕式直线结构). Describe other Alternative Narrative Structures---the episodic structure and the “Hero’s Journey” structure. Describe the varieties of subplot.
ACT I The Set-Up



The Hook The hook is the intriguing episode that grabs the attention and sparks the curiosity of the viewer. It could take the form of a confrontation between strongly contrasting characters; it could present ordinary people doing extraordinary things (or vice versa), or it could pose a question. The Key Line The key line poses the question that the film as a whole will explore, The key line points out the theme of the film. Inciting Incident The Inciting Incident is scene that presents the protagonist with a problem that disturbs the normality and predictability of life. Before the inciting incident, the protagonist has been living life as normal;
Narrative



Narrative A chain of events in cause-effect relationships(因果 关系) occurring in time and space. Story All the events that we see and hear, plus all those that we infer or assume to have occurred, arranged in their presumed causal relations, chronological order, duration, frequency, and spatial locations. Plot All the events that are directly presented to us, including their causal relations, chronological order, duration, frequency, and spatial locations. The key distinction is that between story and plot: Story is the viewer’s imaginary construction of all the events in the narratives---whether presented to us or not---while plot is the film’s actual presentation of certain events in the narrative.