Storytelling Through Motion Pictures and Text - A Research Paper

Movements, not just of pictures, but also of characters over time and through space, tell a story different from a story told with text in various aspects. There is a common say, that Facts bore, stories sell, pictures and involvement of characters tell a story differently because of stories in texts while stories told visually engage and sell. Film or moving pictures enhance visualization of concepts more clearly than text.

That one should not rely much on words to tell a story is probably the oldest and the most important unwritten rule in the film industry. This perception can be borrowed to support the view that film engages more than text does while at the same time improves comprehension of context. Charles Chaplin or Burster Keaton movies allude to the opinion that: when you sit and watch a film for some time, it is easier to understand everything in an interactive manner that is much different from the experience found in reading texts (Edgar-Hunt, et al. 17). Reading a book could be boring. Just as vivid imagery depends on the authors textual presentation of ideas, the visual presentation of characters dictates how the story is understood.

The use of pictures and characters in a film, as well as their mobility across time and space, brings out the context and focus on the use of just a few on-screen words. That is unlike text. When a person follows a character with a camera and the person enters an office building, dressed in a suit and sits in a cubicle, everyone would probably assume that is their place of work. In this instance, the power of the sixth sense is applicable as it is playing with context. The advantage of context when it comes to the use of pictures and characters is that you get to choose the colors, the font, and filters as they set expectations for your audience.

The ability to show contrast and creation of conflict when it comes to the use of pictures and characters in storytelling tell a story differently from a text. This is because the audience will not be interested if in a story there is no conflict. With no conflict, theres no story. For example, in a circus show, someone is put in danger only to come out triumphant and build on the publics perception that Volvos are safe cars. This idea can be termed as a very brilliant idea for those watching, but might not be clear enough for those reading this from a textual interface (Lobruto).

Moving pictures or film accord the characters the ability to reveal hidden things as the audience is taken to a different dimension that they never get to see every day. Visual storytelling beats textual storytelling here as one can describe what it is like to go behind the curtains, by letting the audience to see it. People are usually too busy and have been exposed to way too much information through textual media, so pictures and characters tend to tell them where to focus, right and clear. For example, the use of the rule of thirds in photography or film guides the eye naturally to a focal point. If one can tell a story in 10seconds, then there is no need to do it in a minute i.e. Keep It Short and Sweet, Stupid (KISSS) (Lobruto).

The ability to keep up with movements favors the use of motion pictures and characters than the utilization of a text where the character may transform, and this is depicted through tracking. That incorporates a surprise element in movies as events are presented in a way no one had before by turning around some conventions of storytelling. Film surprises the audience thus engaging them, a feat that is uncommon in texts (Orgeron, et al. 27).

In conclusion, the movements of characters in motion pictures or film have profound impacts on learning through enhancement of understanding and visualization. It incorporates invokes interest unlike stories told from texts. A story is broken down into the simplest form thus a connection of cause and effect, unlike text which takes time to connect the dots.

Works cited

Edgar-Hunt, Robert, John Marland, and Steven Rawle. The Language of Film. London: Fairchild Books AVA, 2015. Print.

LoBrutto, Vincent. Becoming Film Literate: The Art and Craft of Motion Pictures. Westport, Conn: Praeger, 2005. Print.

Orgeron, Devin, Marsha Gordon, and Dan Streible. Learning with the Lights Off: Educational Film in the United States. New York: Oxford University Press, 2012. Internet resource.