Film Segmentation

69 Principles of Film Form [n order to analyze a film's pattern of development, it is usually a good idea to make a segmelltation. A segmentation is simply a written outline of the film that breaks it into its major and minor parts, with the parts marked by consecutive num­ bers or letters. If a narrative film has 40 scenes, then we can label each scene with a number running from 1 to 40. It may be useful to divide some parts further (for example, scenes 6a and 6b). Segmenting a film enables us not only to notice simi­ larities and differences among parts but also to plot the overall progression of the form. Following is a segmentation for The Wizard oj Oz. (In segmenting films, we'll label the opening credits with a "C," the end title with an "E," and all other seg­ ments with numbers.) THE WIZARD OF OZ: PLOT SEGMENTATION