THE 3 PARTS OF AN INTERVIEW (WITH EXAMPLE) - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The parts of an interview are the presentation, the body and the closing. These are the aspects that form the structure of this journalistic format, used as an investigative tool and technique. This breakdown must always have the same structure to be considered a correct interview.

An interview is a set of questions that a journalist asks a person considered important by a community and who, according to their criteria, can make an important contribution in that area. Basically it is someone with knowledge on the subject to question and who, thanks to the information he has, deserves to be heard.

In the interview, an exchange of thoughts and opinions is carried out and can be done in a more formal and serious way (structured interview), or through a spontaneous and free conversation (unstructured interview) as long as it remains in the expected discursive line.

The interview is used to obtain information on a topic, obtain more information on a topic, inquire about a news item, among other things.

Interviews are also often used in companies or companies as a method to better understand certain habits, professional life and other characteristics of applicants for a job and a specific position in your company.

Main parts of an interview

As mentioned at the beginning, the interview has a format that must be followed at all times, regardless of whether the interview is structured or unstructured. Nor does it matter if it is journalistic or carried out for other purposes, such as labor, psychological or research.

The interviews consist of three main parts, and as in the stories, these are: beginning or presentation of the interview, the body or development of the interview and finally, the closing. Next, we go on to explain each of these parts:

0- Preparation

Although it is not considered a part of the interview, preparation is usually one of the busiest phases for the interviewer. He needs to gather information about the person to be interviewed in order to best address the questions.

It must be adapted to an adapted language, appropriate questions, choose a context (moment in which the interviewee is current, agree on the place of the interview, time, duration, etc.), as well as prepare the tools to record the interview (tape recorder, camera, printed questions, etc).

1- Start or presentation of the interview

As its name suggests, it is the moment when the interview begins. If it is journalistic, in this part a short summary should be made about the subject to be discussed and mention a little about the life, work or profession of the interviewee.

In case the interview is for work, just before the presentation and with the intention of breaking the ice, the person is greeted.

At the beginning, comments are usually made that, depending on the dynamics of the company or company, can be important and decisive for obtaining the job.

2- Body or development of the interview

Referring to both the journalistic interview and the job interview, in this part the questions must be asked, with the intention of obtaining the answers.

At all times it is important to choose accurate, concise and important questions. They must be transcendental and always contribute to what you want to know. Avoid falling into banalities and, although the dynamics can be fluid and enjoyable, you should never lose your way or the objective of what you want to achieve. On the other hand, the interviewer keep in mind that the questions must be respectful.

In the case of the job interview, right at this moment is when important questions will be asked such as academic training, personal data, work experience, knowledge, skills, extracurricular activities, among other questions that the interviewer-recruiter considers pertinent.

3- Conclusion or closing of the interview

In this part of the interview, the questions are concluded and, in journalistic cases, the interviewer concludes with a comment or reflection on the subject (in case he considers it necessary or has something to limit) and can once again emphasize on the life of the interviewee and a brief summary of what was discussed and mentioned in the interview.

Job interviews are frequently concluded with some job questions from the interviewee and, once this step is completed, both parties proceed to say goodbye. The most common is that the company remains to communicate the results later.

Example of an interview

In the following example, a sample of a journalistic interview will be carried out, which will contain each of the parts mentioned throughout this article.

Interview with the actor of the film La la land: Ryan Gosling

By Juan Pérez. Reporter for: "Boom!"

Interview with renowned actor Ryan Gosling, for his latest appearance in Lalaland, a film nominated for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts Award.

Last Saturday, our writing team was granted an interview by Ryan Gosling, an actor in different films, and regarding the film Lalaland: City of Star he answered us the following:

-Juan Pérez: This morning we have the opportunity to interview Ryan Gosling, actor in Lalaland: City of Stars, so that he can answer us and give us a detail about his experience in this film.

Good morning, Mr. Gosling. It's a pleasure to have you here and we'd like you to tell us a bit about your acting experience in Lalaland: City of Stars.

- Ryan Gosling: Hi Juan. Thank you for the interview. The experience for me was truly rewarding and challenging. I have never participated in a musical before and it is always beautiful to innovate as people and seek new challenges.

-Juan Pérez: I understand that there was an irregular situation at the Oscars, where Lalaland was announced as the winner of the Best Picture of 2017 and, seconds later, they reported that it was a mistake. Actually the award was for Moonlight!

-Ryan Gosling: Look, we enjoy making the movie and that's the important thing. Of course we were excited when we won the award for Best Film because, in some way, it is a recognition of the work and effort made. However, we know that Moonlight is an excellent movie and we do not doubt that they deserve it.

- Juan Pérez: Finally, and with this, we will conclude the interview. How many weeks was this film shot in?

- Ryan Gosling: Well, it was a total of 52 weeks of hard work to bring Lalaland: City of Stars to fruition.

- Juan Pérez: Well, let's hope they have the best of luck in the next films and continue to produce quality content.

- Ryan Gosling: On the contrary, thanks to you and "Boom!" for making this interview possible.

Below is a recent interview with Quentin Tarantino:

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