Evaluation of Prelim Task

Our final prelim video: The Transaction

1. I worked with Odelia, Jess and Robbie. We decided that Odelia and jess would alternate primarily on the camera and sound while Robbie and I were to act, with us both doing our close-ups of each other for the experience of using a camera.

2. We spent time planning our sequence by writing a storyboard which included camera positioning and frame types. We also wrote down a script and shooting list. This was planned so that we knew the amount of filming we would do with each camera position to avoid time wasting in the editing suite. We wanted to make sure that our continuity worked well, so our storyboard was assessed to make sure that the frames would run smoothly from one to the next.

Storyboard:

Script and Shooting Schedule 

Theories:

Barthes – Narrative Codes; Enigma – you aren’t sure what is happening at first, but the acting suggests a dodgy deal is going to be made, action,

Levi-Strauss – Binary opposites; buyer vs. seller, boy vs. girl,

Continuity – narrative flow – we made sure that the events flowed in an order that made sense. Our shots were edited so that they flowed successfully from one to another.

Match-on-action

180* rule

Shot-reverse-shot

3. We used a camera with a microphone attached to record high quality sound. There were headphones attached to the camera and microphone so the person wearing them could identify the sound that was actually being picked up by the microphone. There were 3 settings on the microphone: shotgun, ambience and wide which helped vary the sound picked up. We used a clapperboard to illustrate the shots about to be performed which was useful when editing. We also had a clipboard with our script, shooting list and storyboard on.

4. When planning, factors we had to take into account were:

·         The space we had available to shoot in

·         The time we would have to film and edit

·         The actors available

When shooting, factors we had to take into account were:

·         the background noise

·         the different room that we had to use instead of our planned room

·         a computer was in the frame so we had to move it

When editing, factors we had to take into account were:

·         the continuity techniques

5. Our sequence was more successful than we thought it would be. The continuity in some of our shots was perfect, but the other frame changes still worked well. People found the video funny, so our plot was successfully relayed to the audience.  

In hindsight, we would have made sure that there was no background noise before we chose our place. The noise was slight in our video, but still took attention away from the action. We also broke the 180* rule a few times, so if we had the chance to redo, that would have been corrected. Another problem that we found out post-filming was that there was a colour difference in the close ups to the rest of the video. We were able to change the colour slightly but the colouring was still off slightly. Another continuity error was my legs, and how they were positioned. The first time you see them, my right leg is over my left, and then the second time my left is over my right. Fortunately, this time the error was very minor, but given the chance that would have been rectified.

6. From this task I have learnt that the location of shooting needs to be planned in advance to suit the scene that you wish to create. I have also learnt how to use the editing software, an experience I had not had previously. Some of the equipment used was also new to me so it was useful to find out how to use them so I can implement that into the rest of the course. I also got a chance to understand the care that an actor has to take when mimicking their actions to make sure that no mistakes are made. This will all be significant in completing the rest of my foundation coursework because I now understand how the software works and wont have to waste time having it all explained to me when I am faced with a more stressful and time consuming task. I now also know to be aware of the positioning of actors and props when filming to avoid continuity errors.

Barthes Narrative Codes

The Exorcism of Emily Rose

1. Identify the key actions within the opening - what kinds of actions are included and how is the narrative moved forward?

·         middle aged/old man arrives at a house in the middle of nowhere

·         he is a medical examiner

·         a priest exits and a police officer lets the examiner into a bedroom, closing the door behind them

·         Examiner tells everyone that a girl – ‘Emily Rose’ – may not have died of natural causes.

·         The priest thinks he sees something outside.

·         The priest is then arrested.

2.  Identify the enigma codes within the opening - what kinds of questions are posed and how is the audience meant to read these codes?

1.       The house is in the middle of nowhere

2.       The man is a medical examiner

3.       A priest and police officer are present

4.       A girl has died – maybe of unnatural causes

5.       The priest thinks he sees something outside

1.       Connotes – loneliness, isolation, danger, lack of resources,

2.       Connotes – an accident has happened e.g. a death, something serious

3.       Connotes – illegal actions; murder? Support was needed, reference to the church – how are they involved?

4.       Connotes – murder, supernatural activity,

5.       Connotes – supernatural forces, murderer still there? Something is being hidden

3.  Identify key characters and think about what they represent in the opening

·         Medical examiner – represents something wrong with situation – illegal behaviour – murderer

·         Woman – anonymous character – lack of information – representative of public?

·         Priest – represents church – with officer – corruption within church?

·         Officer – representative of law as a whole, law will be involved in plot

4. Interpret the cultural codes in the opening.  What kind of knowledge is being drawn on? ; Social/historical/political/art and culture etc.  Highlight the 3 most important references in the opening that help with audience understanding.

People widely understand that isolation increases risks, so the setting is based on this conception to portray the theme. The snow adds to the ambiguity, and snow is associated with the cold and potential accidents.

The characters all act very quiet, unsure and upset, which shows that something has gone terribly wrong. This portrayal of emotion is therefore the knowledge that the audience will draw upon to decide upon the mood and genre of the film.

The use of the priest will show a link to Christianity – this will be understood as to being a portrayal of normality – Christianity being common for many people in suburban America’s lives.

6. Identify key themes and analyse how they are presented visually/technically.

Key themes:

The supernatural – the moment the priest thinks he sees something outside but then it disappears, the medical examiner’s indication towards an unnatural death

Horror – the setting: bleak, isolated, winter; the death of a character; the lack of communication and noise; the soundtrack of screaming and foreboding music with the credits

Hidden truths – unsure of what the priest sees outside the window, not allowed to see into the bedroom

Continuity Research

The movie I have chosen is Scream.  The genre is quickly defined as a black comedy – the title presentation tells us that it’s horror with the name itself as well as the sound clips played as it appears on screen: screaming, a phone ringing, the sound of a knife scraping etc. Also the first scene is a classic teen horror setting, but there is humour when the protagonist starts having a normal conversation with the killer and acting how she conventionally wouldn’t. When the conversation between the girl and guy turns weird, we then realise that the genre definitely incorporates horror, which is cemented when the boyfriend of the protagonist is seen strapped to a chair and beaten, outside.

The scene is built up through different camera shots that reinforce the setting and show how desolate the protagonist is and how powerful the antagonist is; for example the pan over the outside of the house.

There are lots of uses of close ups and mid shots. These help portray the genre, but the collaboration of the camera distances and following of the character around her house also show continuity as we see the viewpoint of the protagonist and sometimes antagonist. The protagonist’s viewpoint uses lots of close ups as I mentioned earlier, and this contrasts with the antagonists viewpoint and the shots associated with them. They involve pans and long distance shots, so together these contrasting shots show the varying level of both the antagonist and protagonist’s understanding of the situation. This adds to the continuity as we are able to suspend our belief as it is expected that the antagonist has a wider knowledge of a murder situation.

Continuity is shown with the cross cutting of the girl and her popcorn on the stove. As she gets nearer to her impending doom the popcorn also reaches a climatic state, expanding in its packet and threatening to burst.  The close ups of the popcorn add to the tension and the use of Barthes’ symbolic code simplifies the story by showing the tension rising and the inevitability of the protagonist’s death.

DYM HW feedback

Good work, Eva. You are using your technical examples well to support your points, which shows good understanding of film language. Don't forget to consider lighting and the sound track aswell as camera shots/movment. Well done.

Strauss' Theory of Binary Opposition

Harold and Maude

What is the genre of the film? How are the genre-signifiers introduced?

The genre is a comedy, black in some areas, and the signifiers are introduced after a rather long introduction where we see the bottom half of a young man preparing for something. When the music starts, we see glimpses of his face, which shows that the tune is linked to him and his actions. Therefore when the preparation eventually leads to the man putting a noose around his neck and hanging himself in front of a woman on the telephone, the mood is still kept light by the cheerful music, which clashes with the dark theme being portrayed. The first proper dialogue between characters also hints at a dark comedy, as the woman has no particular reaction to the situation other than to say as she is leaving: “Dinner at 8 Harold, and do try to be a little more vivacious”. This line cements the comic themes within the film. The binary opposition shown most obviously would be the comedy with the death and the reaction to the situation’s presumed reaction. The music also contrasts with the furnishings in that it is very light and happy while the furnishings are very bleak and devoid of much colour.

Who are the main characters and how are they opposed?

The main two characters that we are introduced to are the boy that initially tries to hang himself and the woman that was on the telephone. By the end of the opening sequence, we are aware that they are mother and son. The two characters are very different; firstly by the initial physical attributes, but also their reactions and actions in social situations. The boy seems fascinated with death, and the woman enjoys the company of others and of life. She makes jokes and is very chatty while he remains reclusive and silent. They obviously have a tense relationship, as is show at 6.45 mins the first lines of each character also show their differences; the woman’s jokey: “Dinner at 8 Harold, and do try to be a little more vivacious”, while the boys much more morbid: “I go to funerals.”

What are the main themes of the film and how are they introduced?

The main themes of the film are comedy, as is shown by the dialogue and reactions to suicide and death, and death itself; a contrast to the comedy, but portrayed with comic value. the multiple suicide setups that the boy creates become absurd, and we learn to not take them seriously through the repetitious nature of them.

How is the narrative organised to show conflict?

The narrative is organised to show conflict largely by the use of binary opposition. The boy and woman are complete opposites which shows a fractured, tense relationship; the boy is fascinated by death which will socially conflict with most other people; the boy’s suicide re-enactments are obviously a cry for help or change, so to achieve help or change, a greater conflict will have to occur to change the equilibrium that is socially and mentally abnormal.

Todorov's Theory of Equilibrium

Austin powers: Gold member

Who are the agents: the protagonist (the main hero who propels the narrative forward) and antagonist (opposing agent)?

Protagonist: Austin powers

Antagonist: anonymous assassin and Doctor Evil

 Describe the Equilibrium. How is it represented? What kind of camera shots can you identify? (e.g establishing shots to create a sense of space or use of CUs/cutaways to emphasise particular objects/characters faces). Pick out 2 or 3 examples. Describe the mise-en-scene: what meanings to the props/costumes/lighting/framing carry?

The equilibrium is shown through a movie within the movie documenting the protagonist’s life. The scene after the ‘movie’ then shows us an insight into more of the protagonist’s life, he is surrounded by girls and everyone is happy. There is then a dance/ song scene which shows the common mindset of the protagonist, and the colours show the spoofy-ness of the film. We then cut to a different place, where the colour scheme is dark and drab and we then establish the equilibrium for the antagonist. There are many camera shots, mid shots and long shots are common, and the camera uses a number of different techniques to follow the protagonist around, such as the two tracks and crab, and a close up of a puddle is used that the protagonist jumps into.

Is the Disruption or Disequilibrium introduced or hinted at? (e.g the serial killer in "Seven" is introduced in the title sequence).
4. Are there any visual/verbal/aural clues that hint at what the hero's journey might be? (e.g having to solve the murders within a time-limit of seven days in "Seven")

The disruption is hinted at by the dialogue in the scene with the antagonist as well as the music that he is introduced into. The antagonist’s new ‘evil idea’ is the disequilibrium into the protagonist’s life, but not the antagonist himself as he has always been a constant in the protagonist’s life. The hints of the hero’s journey are the antagonist’s aural description of his ‘evil plan’.

From your knowledge of the film, how will the equilibrium be restored and what will be the new equilibrium?

The equilibrium will be the reconciliation of the protagonist and antagonist as they discover that they are brothers separated at birth. The new equilibrium will be the protagonist and antagonist being friends, while the antagonist's son, who was good throughout the story, turning evil and vowing revenge. 

Continuity Basic Theory

 General Film Making Techniques:

1.       Camera – for variety and continuity

i)        close up range

ii)       mid range

iii)     long range

iv)     over the shoulder shot

2.       Camera Movement – to create the effect of physical movement

3.       Editing – to allow selection and rejection of material

i)        able to achieve required length

ii)       allow removal of mistakes

iii)     alter events and/or their portrayal

iv)     establish style

Continuity Editing –Suture: when the audience is ‘sewn’ into the narrative

Continuity Techniques:

1.       180* rule

2.       30* rule – moving the camera between set up to avoid jumps

3.       Use of shot order – distances edited together for a smooth narrative

4.       Cuts and dissolves for rhythm and pace and/or time and space

5.       Eye line matching

6.       Matched cut

7.       Match on action

8.       Shot-reverse shot

9.       Cross cutting – often quick, e.g. chase scenes

10.   Parallel  ^ (same as)

11.   Significant difference in time and space

12.   Edit in a parallel manner – action happens simultaneously

Transitions: used to knit clips together e.g. cuts, fades, dissolves and wipes

Non-linear editing:  user able to edit in any order and re-edit any number of times

Storyboarding

Some reasons that storyboarding is an essential part of the film making process:

• 
  
  Helps the film director visualise the flow of camera shots
• 
  
  Easier to see whether ideas will work on screen
• 
  
  Breaks down complicated action/ special effects/ complicated camera moves so that they can be clearly seen, discussed and planned
• 
  
  No misunderstandings or individual interpretations can be taken from it

‘P’ is for ‘Psycho’ storyboard

Q1. What is happening in the opening sequence of the film?

There is an introduction to the antagonist or antihero who is bandaging and washing their hands after some kind of untold violence, most probably a murder, which involved a struggle. As the scene ends, there is the suggested murder of the young boy that disrupts the scene at frame 9.

The main character is identified through a shot of some of their personal possessions; watch, photo, wallet etc., and by other shots that are progressively insightful into the character’s personality and behaviour. We can tell that the main character in the opening sequence is the ‘bad guy’ through the camera and lighting techniques. When we first see the character the camera is at a low angle and tilts up from his legs to his top half. This implies he has power and is in control. The close up of the bloodied plughole adds to the tension and tells the viewer that the main character uses violence to establish his powerful role. We establish that the film genre is crime/ thriller by the instantaneous sighting of blood, a gun and a murder. The props (gun, bandages) imply further violence as does the introduction of the stranger into the same room as the ‘bad guy’.

Frame 11 highlights the main character’s power by focusing on an extreme close up of his eyes and implying a violent/ negative past by the shot being under lit with shadows. The last frame being of darkness, and the two gun shots reinforce this and set up the viewer for the rest of the film.

Q2. How is the narrative flow established?

The narrative flow is established through sound, camerawork, lighting and mise-en-scene.  The first frame is a mid shot that zooms in. This, along with the lighting, implies that the viewer is being invited into the story as a passive audience. The low key lighting establishes a distance between the viewer and characters, and set the mood for the upcoming scene.

The next six frames are a continuation of this inclusiveness; we are being given information continuously about the main character throughout these frames. This is done in stages. First we are shown the legs of the character in frame two. The slow tilt at a low angle join frames two and three gives us a sense of having the character revealed to us. The slow revealing of the character establishes that they are going to be a main focal point in the story.

The fourth frame uses a very slow pan from a high angle over the probable possessions of the main character. The speed and angle infer that we are being laid out part of the character’s life, and that the information being given to us will be integral to the plot line later on in the story.

Frames 5,6 and 7 all show the violent theme of the film and main character; blood-> bandage-> fist show that the character is commonly  faced with violence, and is well equipped with dealing with it. This establishes the strength of the character, and the use of the close ups also show the precision and familiarity the character has with his current situation.

Frame eight and nine show a disruption; the variation in the speed of the character's movements from a previous slow and steady pace into ‘blurs quickly’ shows us that the disruption is shocking to the main character. Frames 10, 11 and 12 show his quick and effective removal of the disruption. The first dialogue is also established here, and it comes from the main character, enforcing his power and dominance within the film. The last two frames also set the scene for the rest of the film, so the ‘fading to black’ lighting direction followed by shots is conclusive to the opening sequence but leaves the viewer unaware of the motives of the main character and the future of the plot. This is effective in bridging the gap between the opening sequence and the main film.

Q3. If you were directing this sequence what aspects of the storyboard would you like to change?

If I was directing this sequence, then depending on how i wanted the main character's personality to turn out to be, I my increase the time and detail spent on the cleaning and bandaging of his injury. I would do this if I wanted one of the main character’s defining traits to be precision in his work.

If I was going to make the character incredibly powerful and violent then I would probably remove his injury and replace it with him simply cleaning someone else’s blood off his hands. This still doesn’t give him a ‘leader’ status though, as a violent leader would employ/ be acquaintances with hit men etc. To suit this idea I would probably change the character in this scene into an annonymous hit man who then reported back to the main character via a phone call, the framing being a big close up on one side of his face, shadowed, as he simply says into a mobile, “it’s done”, or something similar.

Film Opening Analysis

Girl, Interrupted opening sequence up to 2:55 minutes

The film opening I am analysing is Girl, Interrupted; a drama set in the 1960s and based on an autobiography by Susanna Kaysen. The beginning of the film starts in a dark cellar-like place with 3 known women sitting awkwardly and silently, followed by a contrast in lighting as a door is opened and light shine on some bars as some men walk in. The film is about a woman’s 18 month stay at a mental hospital in America.

The first scene remains silent for half a minute, allowing the audience to understand the scene and grasp the setting before the protagonist starts narrating. The 3 women are sitting in a type of cellar and are surrounded by pipes. There is also a cat in the room with them. The setting is very cramped and suggests that the characters feel trapped in more ways than one. The close ups on the character’s faces imply that you should be aware of who they are as they are important in the film. The credits are very simple and scrawled. This messy handwriting style rules out possible genres such as chick-flick, and implies reality and facts as shown in many dramas.

The scene is interposed by another one with the action of pushing the protagonist onto a hospital trolley. This quick transition from one scene to another helps portray the genre – the quick developments and setting of a hospital radiate drama, and also puts the viewer right in on the action. There doesn’t seem to be equilibrium for very long as the date and time flick back and forth. At the beginning when the characters are in the cellar, there is a sense of equilibrium, but also the use of close ups and pans give a sense of unease to the situation and hint at a disruption. The introduction of the narration, people entering the cellar and scene change to a hospital so quickly destroys the equilibrium that there is barely time to establish it. The contrast in movement accentuates this as the actions start out quite passive and then go straight into action. This disruption is hinted at through the narrative, but the action is quite fast paced in the sense that each point made is quickly followed by another; the narrative suggesting a disruption is immediately followed by the disruption.

The visual clues given as to the character’s journey include the characters shown; they all look slightly deranged or upset, apart from the protagonist. This contrast asks the question: will the protagonist reach one of these states of mind; is that what lies in store for her? Or is she the stronger character, and is that what sets her apart from the others? Either way, she is surrounded by these people, so this suggests that that is something she will continue to be surrounded with throughout the movie, but maybe on a more personal level. the additional use of a tilted frame and big close up on the hospital bed so her face is the correct way up on screen implies that she has a disjointed view on the norm, and hints that she has deeper mental problems.

Her voice over in the very first opening scene hints that she is facing some mental problems with the mention of, “maybe I was just crazy”. The use of past tense shows us that this is a memory, and therefore that the voice is her as a ‘third person limited narrator’ as the narrator already knows the outcome of her own story, but is limited in the knowledge of others, unless it ran parallel with her own. This disjointed protagonist, the one that narrates the story and the one that acts within it helps add to the confusion, and shows that her ‘journey’ is very complex.

The equilibrium is restored when the protagonist realises who she is, and who those around her really are, and then she is able to get an informed look on herself, and realise what she has done, and what she needs to do to move on. This happens at the end of the film, so the ‘journey’ that she goes on is one of self-discovery.

Analysis of Still

1) Describe your shot and identify in what way it could be described as representing your chosen genre

The shot we took was a medium close up of a white male behind bars staring fearfully to the upper left of the frame at an unseen ‘being’. In the background there are some steps leading up to a closed wooden door. The characters hands are placed so that they are on either side of the still and we can just see his fingers gripping the bars. This denotes that the character is trapped and vulnerable, highlighting the genre; horror/thriller. The fear portrayed in the character’s eyes and the bars trapping him help enforce the genre along with the use of shadowing on the characters face. This implies that the character is good but has a secret or dark past. the positioning of the character in the lower half of the frame denotes that the character is a victim and does not have much power within the situation. The tilting of the head away from the right side of the frame shows a waryness towards the unseen area that the character is looking at which creates suspense and helps illustrate the genre.The colouring helps express the genre as it is night vision. This colour alteration technique can be associated to other horror/thriller films, such as The Blair Witch Project and Sin City.

2) What did you actually do to achieve the effect?

The still is a partially low angle shot which enables the door in the background to be seen. This helps add a mysterious mood to the still as we don't know what is behind it. It is a focal point as well, showing that it has some significance to the shot. The handheld lighting was coming from where the character is looking, so it illuminates the whites of his eyes and also causes a shadow to fall over half of his face. This helps impose the genre upon the viewer, and adds an atmosphere to the shot.

3) Identify what is successful about your shot

The lighting is successful as it helps create a thriller/ horror mood, and the shadows this creates also adds to the mystery of the character. The character’s facial expression creates suspense as we know that they are looking at something that will impact on the movie in a negative way. The shot angle being slightly off helps add to the effect because it implies that the whole scene is on edge. The amount of white in the eye is also successful as it connotes fear and tension.

4) What would you do differently in hindsight?

In hindsight, We would probably have experimented with different colouring, e.g. black and white or colour. This would have probably changed the mood, the black and white tones would have made the shot more horror based; the night vision used gives the still more depth and connotes a thriler genre as it adds mystery to the still and will induce the question of why it is in night vision, and whether we are seeing the character through the "evil" character's eyes.