Writing the Short Film, 3rd Edition

16

The Experimental Narrative

Experimental narrative should not be confused with the more specifically nonnarrative experimental film or video. The experimental film or video is often entirely taken up with an issue of style. In the extreme (in more than one Norman McLaren film, for example), the film can concern itself with the variations of movements of abstract lines or shapes. In McLaren’s films, line or shape give a visual dimension to an abstract musical piece. The narrative intention is at best remote; more often in such work, it is not even a factor. In the experimental narrative, in contrast, narrative intention does have a role. However, the form or the style of the piece is as important as—in some cases more important than—the narrative. ...