So what happens before Act 1?

Act 1 is the first third of a movie. The beginning of Act 1 is also the opening of that movie. But before you can start something, you have to know where to begin.

I am currently beginning preparations for my film opening. The film of which I have decided will be a drama. But before I can start making a drama, I need to know how to begin.

One drama I took an interest to was the award-winning Parasite (2019).


The film is opened with a shot of the setting lasting for few seconds and then panning down to one of the main characters. The rest of the characters are introduced through the use of a conflict (Wi-Fi signal not being found) and their means of fixing it. A rather lighthearted score is playing through the scene, but soon fades away and diegetic sound of the world takes over as more conflict for the family is introduced in the form of financial troubles and interpersonal battles.

What I have taken away from this opening that can be implemented in my opening are:
-Use of music to set tone or tone shifts
-Introduce characters through interactions as it allows us to see who they are rather than being told
-The use of a daily routine sequence also helps world-building and setting development

Another film opening I studied was the opening for Nightcrawler (2014).  This movie revolves around the journey of Lou Bloom, a hopeful videographer who will stop at nothing to get his big break in the news world no matter the costs. Contrast to Parasite, Nightcrawler opts to begin the story by establishing the world. The film opens with several still, wide shots of a city during a full moon night. The city is shown to be empty with very little shots of people and the shots being almost completely engulfed in darkness with the only sign of light being from dim street lights or buildings. These establishing shots help to build the world in which the movie will take place; a dark, desolate urban environment. Without a single glimpse of the main character, audiences can already feel a sense of solidarity in the night. This helps to set the tone for who the main character is: a hungry wolf hunting in the night.

What I have taken away from this opening:
-Begin by world building
-Having the setting coincide with the main character
-Still shots=still world
-Use of lighting can convey emotion
-Opening with living-subjects is different than with non-living