them, then by teaching them to take their own pho-
tographs. She works to convince the sex workers to
allow her greater access to their children. As the
children’s talents emerge, she takes them on photo-
taking expeditions to the beach and the zoo, and
eventually stages a series of public exhibitions of
their work. As the children grow in confidence and
ability, the sequence of events builds to a conclusion
that engaged and gratified mainstream audiences,
as well as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences, which awarded the film an Oscar for Best
Documentary Film. Those documentary filmmak-
ers who strive to avoid influencing the events they
record still exert a great deal of narrative influence
during the editing process.
Even experimental, or avant-garde, movies,
most of which endeavor to break from the formulas
and conventions of more mainstream narrative and
documentary films, employ narrative according to
our most general definition of the concept, despite
being more concerned with innovation and experi-
mentation than accessibility and entertainment.
The complex process of making movies discour-
ages purely random constructions; filmmakers68 CHAPTER 3TYPES OF MOVIES
One thing leads to anotherThe most elemental way of
looking at narrative is as a cinematic structure that arranges
events in a cause-and-effect sequence. This causality is the
basic organizing structure of most movie narratives. Consider
the principal events in one of the best-known movies of all
time: Star Wars(1977; director: George Lucas): A starship is
boarded by repressive Empire forces. The princess passenger
records a plea for help on an android, which escapes to a
desert planet. The roving android is captured by scavenging
Jawas, who sell it to the farm family of Luke Skywalker, who
discovers the message, which sends him in search of Obi-Wan
Kenobi, who teaches him the way of the Force and
accompanies him on a mission to rescue the princess. One
event leads to another and another and another. Decisions
are made, which lead to actions, which have consequences,
which motivate reactions, which cause subsequent decisions,
actions, and consequences. And so it goes. The viewer
engages with this logical progression, anticipating probable
developments, dreading some and hoping for others.1 23 45