Typology of Plots in Ukrainian Audiovisual Art of the Independence Period according to Norman Friedman’s Classification

Author

Suprun-Zhyvodrova Anastasiia

the 4th year postgraduate student at M. Rylskyi Institute of Art Studies, Folkloristics and Ethnology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, a director, a producer (Kyiv, Ukraine).

ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1633-6417

Typology of Plots in Ukrainian Audiovisual Art of the Independence Period according to Norman Friedman’s Classification

Abstract

In contemporary film studies, plot typology emerges as an effective analytical tool that enables the identification of dramaturgical models and the tracing of the artistic specificity of national audiovisual art. Plot analysis provides an opportunity to reconstruct the historical and socio-cultural context of an audiovisual work creation, as well as to understand how it reflects collective traumas, value orientations, and social patterns of behavior. At the same time, it outlines audience demand by capturing plot models those gain popularity and correspond to the relevant needs of the time. The purpose of the submitted article is to analyze the plots of Ukrainian cinema of the independence era, drawing upon the classical classification proposed by American scholar Norman Friedman, who has identified fourteen fundamental types. The research material includes both feature and documentary films, where the plot typology is considered as an indicator of the sociocultural processes in the period of independence. During the period from 1991 till 2025 the Ukrainian film process demonstrates considerable diversity of plot models, among which the dominant ones are action plots, tragic and pathetic narratives, as well as plots of maturation and trial. Their actualization is determined by the culture’s need to comprehend historical traumas, social transformations and existential challenges, while simultaneously preserving universal archetypes of human experience those resonate with the viewer request.

Keywords

plot, Ukrainian cinema, N. Friedman’s typology, narrative, narrative theory.

References

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