From Classical Drama to Modern Cinema: A Storytelling Lesson for Students of Film and Business

Freytag’s dramatic model remains a useful tool for understanding how stories move from conflict to resolution. Although it was developed through the study of classical drama, its logic can still be seen in many forms of #modern_cinema, screenwriting, production planning, and audience engagement. This article examines how Freytag’s technique helps film students and business students understand the relationship between #story_structure, emotional rhythm, cultural value, and the film market. Using a qualitative conceptual method, the article connects Freytag’s model with selected ideas from Bourdieu, #world_systems_theory, and institutional isomorphism. The analysis shows that dramatic structure is not only a literary tool. It is also a practical language used by writers, producers, directors, investors, and audiences to organize expectations. The article concludes that Freytag’s model remains valuable because it offers students a bridge between #classical_literature and #modern_screenwriting while also helping them understand how creative ideas become cultural and business products.

Keywords: Freytag, dramatic structure, cinema, film business, screenwriting, Bourdieu, world-systems theory, institutional isomorphism, storytelling, cultural production

1. Introduction

Cinema is often described as a modern art, but many of its strongest storytelling principles are older than film itself. Before cameras, editing software, streaming platforms, and global film markets, theatre and literature had already developed methods for organizing human conflict, emotional movement, and resolution. One of the most influential models is Gustav Freytag’s dramatic structure, often remembered through the movement from exposition to rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.

For students, Freytag’s model is more than a historical diagram. It is a clear way to understand why some stories feel complete, why some scenes create tension, and why audiences remain emotionally engaged. In #film_business, this structure also has practical value. Producers, script consultants, directors, marketing teams, and investors often need to understand how a story develops before they decide whether a project can reach an audience.

The aim of this article is to examine how Freytag’s technique continues to guide modern cinema and the film industry. The article does not claim that all films follow the model strictly. Many films adapt, challenge, or break classical structure. However, even when films move away from the model, they often do so with awareness of its basic logic. The expectation of #rising_conflict, emotional turning points, and meaningful resolution remains central to how many audiences read a film.

For SIU Swiss International University VBNN, this topic is useful for students because it connects #literature, #media_studies, #business_education, and #creative_industries. It shows that storytelling is not only an artistic skill. It is also a form of cultural knowledge, professional communication, and strategic thinking.

2. Background and Theoretical Framework

2.1 Freytag’s dramatic model

Gustav Freytag developed his dramatic model in the nineteenth century through the study of drama. His structure is often presented as a pyramid. The story begins with exposition, where the world, characters, and situation are introduced. It then moves into rising action, where conflict grows. The climax represents the highest point of tension or decision. Falling action follows as the consequences become clear. Finally, the story reaches catastrophe, resolution, or closure.

In modern teaching, this model is often simplified, but its educational value remains strong. It gives students a visual and logical way to understand #narrative_design. In screenwriting, the model helps explain why a film cannot rely only on interesting characters or beautiful images. A film also needs movement. The audience needs to feel that something is changing, that choices matter, and that the ending grows from the story rather than arriving by accident.

2.2 Bourdieu and cultural production

Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of cultural production helps explain why storytelling models become important in the creative industries. Bourdieu argued that cultural fields are shaped by relationships between artists, institutions, critics, audiences, and forms of capital. In the film world, a screenplay is not judged only by artistic originality. It is also judged through #cultural_capital, professional reputation, market expectations, awards culture, audience habits, and production feasibility.

Freytag’s model can therefore be understood as part of the shared language of the film field. Writers may use it to design a story. Producers may use it to evaluate whether a script has emotional momentum. Teachers may use it to train students. Audiences may not name the model, but they often respond to its effects. In this sense, Freytag’s structure becomes a form of professional and cultural knowledge.

2.3 World-systems theory and global cinema

#World_systems_theory is useful for understanding how stories move across global markets. Film is not produced and received equally everywhere. Some markets have stronger financial power, distribution systems, and media visibility. Other markets may have rich storytelling traditions but less access to global circulation.

Freytag’s model travels well because it gives a recognizable structure to stories across different contexts. This does not mean that all cultures tell stories in the same way. Rather, it means that certain patterns of conflict, tension, and resolution can support international communication. For students of #global_cinema, this is important because film business today often depends on stories that can be understood across borders while still respecting local identity and cultural detail.

2.4 Institutional isomorphism in the film industry

Institutional isomorphism refers to the tendency of organizations within a field to become more similar over time. In the film industry, this can happen when studios, production companies, streaming platforms, film schools, and script development systems adopt similar expectations about what a “good” story should contain.

Freytag’s model supports this process because it offers a stable framework for judging narrative development. Script readers, teachers, producers, and development executives may not always use the same terminology, but they often ask similar questions: Is the conflict clear? Does the tension rise? Is there a turning point? Does the ending feel earned? These questions reflect the continued influence of #dramatic_structure in professional practice.

3. Method

This article uses a qualitative conceptual method. It does not present statistical data or interview findings. Instead, it examines Freytag’s dramatic model through selected theoretical perspectives from #literary_studies, #film_studies, and #creative_business.

The method follows three steps. First, the article identifies the main components of Freytag’s structure and explains their relevance to cinema. Second, it connects the model with Bourdieu’s theory of cultural production, #world_systems_theory, and institutional isomorphism. Third, it analyzes how the model remains useful for students who wish to understand both the creative and business sides of film.

This approach is suitable because the article aims to build an educational argument rather than test a narrow empirical hypothesis. It treats Freytag’s model as a practical and theoretical bridge between classical drama and modern film production.

4. Analysis

4.1 Exposition as audience orientation

In classical drama, exposition introduces the audience to the main situation. In cinema, exposition remains essential, but it is often delivered through images, dialogue, sound, setting, and editing. A film may not explain everything directly, but it still needs to give the audience enough information to enter the story.

For the film business, strong exposition has practical importance. Viewers decide quickly whether they understand and care about a film. In a crowded media environment, weak orientation can make audiences lose interest. Clear exposition does not mean simple or predictable storytelling. It means that the film gives the audience a meaningful path into its world.

For students, this is an important lesson. A story does not begin only with an event. It begins with a relationship between the film and the audience. The first scenes establish trust, curiosity, and emotional direction. This is why #screenwriting education often pays close attention to openings.

4.2 Rising action as emotional investment

Rising action is one of the most powerful parts of Freytag’s model. It creates movement by increasing pressure. The central character faces obstacles, choices become more difficult, and the audience begins to invest emotionally in the outcome.

In modern cinema, rising action can appear in many genres. In a drama, it may involve moral conflict. In a thriller, it may involve danger. In a business film, it may involve ambition, risk, or leadership. In a family story, it may involve personal change. The surface changes, but the basic principle remains: tension must develop.

From Bourdieu’s perspective, rising action also helps create symbolic value. A film that manages tension well can gain recognition as serious, moving, entertaining, or artistically strong. This recognition may later become #cultural_capital through reviews, awards, classroom discussion, or professional reputation.

4.3 Climax as decision and transformation

The climax is often misunderstood as only the most dramatic or loudest moment in a story. In Freytag’s model, it is better understood as the point of highest consequence. It is where the central conflict reaches a decisive moment. Something must be chosen, lost, revealed, or transformed.

In film, the climax often carries both artistic and commercial weight. A strong climax can make a film memorable. It gives the audience a reason to discuss, recommend, or revisit the film. For producers and distributors, this matters because audience memory is part of a film’s long-term value.

For students, the climax teaches that stories need meaningful pressure. A climax should not feel forced. It should grow from the characters, the conflict, and the earlier scenes. This is one reason why Freytag’s model remains useful in #film_education. It helps students see the connection between structure and emotional truth.

4.4 Falling action and the management of consequence

After the climax, the story must deal with consequences. Falling action gives the audience time to understand what has changed. In some modern films, this section is short. In others, it is slow and reflective. In both cases, it helps the story avoid sudden closure.

The film business often focuses heavily on openings and climaxes, but endings are equally important. A weak ending can reduce the audience’s overall satisfaction. A strong falling action can deepen meaning and give emotional balance. It can also support repeat viewing, discussion, and long-term cultural value.

Institutional isomorphism can be seen here because many professional script systems expect a film to provide some form of consequence. Even open endings usually need emotional or thematic purpose. The audience may not receive all answers, but it should feel that the film has respected its own internal logic.

4.5 Resolution as meaning, not only closure

Resolution does not always mean happiness or complete explanation. In modern cinema, resolution can be open, symbolic, quiet, or complex. What matters is that the story reaches a meaningful state. The audience should understand why the journey mattered.

This is especially important for students because it moves the discussion beyond formula. Freytag’s model should not be taught as a mechanical rule. It should be taught as a way of thinking about #meaning_making. A film may break the model, but it still needs to create a meaningful experience.

In the global film market, resolution can also affect how stories travel. Some audiences prefer clear closure. Others may appreciate ambiguity. A skilled filmmaker understands these expectations and makes careful choices. This shows that #narrative_strategy is both creative and cultural.

5. Findings

The analysis leads to five main findings.

First, Freytag’s model remains useful because it provides a simple but flexible language for understanding story movement. It helps students see how tension grows and how emotional engagement is built.

Second, the model supports communication between creative and business roles in film. Writers, producers, directors, teachers, and script readers can use the structure to discuss whether a story has direction, pressure, and resolution.

Third, Freytag’s technique continues to matter because audiences still respond to conflict, turning points, and meaningful endings. Modern films may change the order or style of these elements, but they rarely ignore them completely.

Fourth, Bourdieu’s theory shows that dramatic structure is part of cultural production. Knowing how to use story structure can become a form of #professional_capital for students and practitioners in the creative industries.

Fifth, #world_systems_theory and institutional isomorphism help explain why certain story structures become widely recognized across global cinema and film education. Freytag’s model remains strong because it is teachable, adaptable, and useful across different professional settings.

6. Conclusion

Freytag’s dramatic model remains relevant because it explains a basic truth about storytelling: audiences need movement, tension, and meaning. From classical drama to modern cinema, stories often work by introducing a situation, increasing conflict, reaching a decisive moment, showing consequences, and offering some form of resolution.

For students, this model is not only a historical concept. It is a practical tool for reading films, writing scripts, understanding audience engagement, and analyzing the #film_business. It also helps students connect literature, cinema, culture, and management. This interdisciplinary value makes Freytag’s technique especially useful in modern education.

The strongest lesson is that structure does not kill creativity. Good structure can support creativity by giving emotion a clear path. Modern filmmakers may adapt or challenge Freytag’s model, but its central idea remains alive: a story becomes powerful when conflict develops with purpose and resolution carries meaning.

For SIU Swiss International University VBNN, this topic offers students a valuable example of how classical knowledge can remain useful in modern professional life. The future of cinema will continue to change through technology, platforms, and global audiences, but the human need for meaningful stories will remain central.

References

• Bordwell, D. (1985). Narration in the Fiction Film. University of Wisconsin Press.

• Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgement of Taste. Harvard University Press.

• Bourdieu, P. (1993). The Field of Cultural Production: Essays on Art and Literature. Columbia University Press.

• DiMaggio, P. J., & Powell, W. W. (1983). The iron cage revisited: Institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields. American Sociological Review, 48(2), 147–160.

• Field, S. (2005). Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting. Delta.

• Freytag, G. (1894). Freytag’s Technique of the Drama: An Exposition of Dramatic Composition and Art. Scott, Foresman and Company.

• McKee, R. (1997). Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting. ReganBooks.

• Thompson, K. (1999). Storytelling in the New Hollywood: Understanding Classical Narrative Technique. Harvard University Press.

• Wallerstein, I. (1974). The Modern World-System I: Capitalist Agriculture and the Origins of the European World-Economy in the Sixteenth Century. Academic Press.

• Wasko, J. (2003). How Hollywood Works. SAGE Publications.

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