Camera Angles

In this blog post, I will be looking at camera angles. There are 5 key camera angles and they are as follows: 

• Worm's eye view
• Low view
• Neutral view
• High view
• Bird's eye view

Here is a diagram of these 5 vital camera angles, just to make it clear:

So lets start from the bottom and work our way upwards. 

1) Worm's Eye View   

A worm's-eye view is a view of an object from below, as though the observer were a worm, the opposite of a bird's-eye view. A worm's eye view is used commonly for third perspective, with one vanishing point on top, one on the left, and one on the right. Directors use the worm's eye view to get some detail of the subject and this angle is used to make the viewing audience feel small in some cases. 

2) Low-Angle Shot

A low-angle shot, is a shot from a camera angle positioned low on the vertical axis, anywhere below the eye line, looking up. The effect of the low-angle shot is that it makes the subject look strong and powerful. The image on the left shows the final scene from Tarantino's 'Inglorious Bastards'. This angle makes the two characters look in a position of power and authority. 

3) Neutral View

This shot is when the camera is level or looking straight on with the subject. A neutral view angle has little to no psychological effect on the viewer. As you can see in the image on the left, the viewing audience is level with everything on the screen, giving them a sense of balance and normality. 

4) High-angle shot

A high-angle shot is a shot in which the camera is physically higher than the subject and is looking down upon the subject. The high angle shot can make the subject look small or weak or vulnerable. This angle works well in horror movies, when characters are made to look helpless and vulnerable. On the left, you can see James Bond looking in a vulnerable position, he is displayed to look in trouble and not a in a controlled situation. 

5) Bird's Eye View

This angle is used to set a scene, and display the whereabouts of a character in a setting. It is often used as an establishing shot, because the viewing audience can see where the character is. 

Camera Shots

In this blog post I will be looking at the most vital and most widely used camera shots. 

Extreme close up 

Extreme Close Up 
The extreme close up shot is used to reveal very small details in the scene. For example, it may be used to reveal horror in a subject's face. It may show a character screaming, as she or he screams. It might also be used in a romance film to show the emotion on a character's face during an intimate moment between two characters on the screen. It may also be used in a detective/mystery film to show some detail that a detective has picked up on a clue. 

Close up shot

Close Up 
This kind of shot is used to reveal detail in a character's face. If you are shooting the character from the shoulders up (shoulders not being shown), this can easily be identified as a close up shot. They are the most commonly used shots in film, as they can be simply used to display emotion in a characters face, but not as much detail as the extreme close up. These shots are used in all genres, whether its in horror films, romantic films or documentary films. 

Head and shoulder shot

Head and shoulders 
The head and shoulders shot is used mostly in news broadcasts. If you imagine yourself watching the 10 o'clock news, you will realise that this shot reveals enough detail to see the subject's lips move and the expression on his or her face. I have seen this shot used a lot in James Bond films. Imagine a shot when Bond climbs out of his Aston Martin, and looks around at his surrounding area, wearing his aviators. This shot shows detail on the face of the subject, but shows the background. 

Bust Shot

Bust Shot
The 'bust shot' shows your subject from above the knees to above the head. It is often used when the subject of the shot is doing something that requires the audience to see some detail. An example of this shot is evident in Saving Private Ryan, when the soldiers are walking across an open field, and Tom Hanks stops to read a map, while looking around at his surroundings. You can see the look on his face, and you can see that he is reading a map, while seeing the background setting. 

Medium Shot

Medium Shot
The medium shot is from just below the waist to above the head, as you can see from the image on the left. There is more headroom than in the bust shot. This shot is used if the person is animated with their hand movements. This shot is used in many films. For example, if you are watching a thriller film, this shot might show a secret agent walking down a corridor, doing something with his hands as he walks, like pulling out a weapon for example. 

Medium Long Shot

Medium Long Shot
In this shot, you can view the subject from the knees up, and you can see the detail of the surrounding setting. With the medium long shot, you can still see expression on the character's face, while taking in the information from what is going around the person. This shot is effective in a film where a character is walking into a new setting. You can see the character walking, you can see the facial expression of the character and you can also pay attention to all the things going on around the character. 

Long Shot

Long Shot
This shot is very useful for a character that is walking or moving. In this shot, you can see the whole character, as well as the setting that surrounds them. A classic example of this shot is in the mockumentary film; Borat. When we are introduced to the town where Borat lives, and we are introduced to the people who live there, there is a long shot of Borat walking, being followed by the townspeople, while he speaks about the film you are about to watch. You can focus on him, as well as everything going on around him. 

Extra Long Shot

Extra Long Shot
Also known as the establishing shot. This extra long shot gives the viewing audience some perspective as to where the subject is. This is very important if the subject is moving to a new location or a different time period. It lets the viewing audience know where the filming is taking place. As you can see in the image on the left, my mum is in the conservatory, but where? This shot allows us to see the location where the room she is in is located, in a house. 

Over Shoulder Shot

Over Shoulder Shot
The over the shoulder shot reveals one subject as seen from over the shoulder of another subject. It simulates a view of the subject as from a second pair of eyes, which are situated behind the character. This shot is often used in conversations between two people where the director wants to focus on the person speaking. Usually these shots are head shots (close-ups of the speaker). These shots are often used in documentaries when the documentary maker/presenter is having an interview with someone who is related with the documentary question.

Textual Analysis - Vicky and Sam (Romance)

In this post I will be executing a textual analysis of a classic Romance film called 'Vicky and Sam'. The film is about two young people meeting in a video store, then falling in love over their passion for film. While Vicky and Sam fall in love, three film makers sit in a diner discussing a plot for their own film, as they do this, the story they are telling is being replicated to the word by Vicky and Sam. In many ways, in terms of sound, editing, mise-en-scene and camera work, this film is a classic love film. I will begin with looking at the muse-en-scene of the film. For example, in most of the shots in the montage that shows the two characters being very much in love, the lighting is quite low-key and this is typical of a romance film because low-key lighting represents a mood of love and relaxation. 

Sound 
The use of non-diegetic music allows the viewing audience to share the emotions felt by the two characters, Vicky and Sam. The music is typical music that you would expect to hear in a romance film, as its played by an orchestra and its in a major key, meaning it sounds joyful and happy. 

Editing
Like in every love film ever made, there is a montage of shots of the couple doing things together like getting coffee, sharing their first kiss, and playing around on the bus in each others arms. This montage allows the viewing audience to get a glimpse of what the couple has been up to over a long period of time, but the audience see little pieces of their time together, summing up what the couple have done over the space of weeks into under 30 seconds. 

Camerawork
When the two characters are in the video store, both of them are shown on either side of the bookcase using a medium long shot. There is a shot of Sam looking at films, and then there is a shot of Vicky sorting through DVDs. Both these shots represent that the two characters are made for each other because of mutual love for film. After this, when they spot each other through the shelves, there are some close up shots of both Vicky and Sam as they walk towards the end of the isle of films. They stare at each other curiously, as you can see below:

Watch the film below! I recommend. 

               

Get off my land

Here is the link to the short film that I analysed in my last post!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p00gs4yj

Get Off My Land - Textual Analysis

In this blog post, I will be doing a textual analysis of a professionally made short film called: 'Get Off My Land', a film about two walkers who encounter a farmer that wants more than just the people to get off his land, he wants their lives, and he takes them. I will look at the sound, camera work, editing and mise-en-scene of the film. 

 In terms of sound, there is no non-diegetic sound added to the film in the post-production process, and this adds to the simplicity of the film that makes it so good. The only sound is the sound that is 'visible' on screen, this of course being the diegetic sound. At the beginning of the film, all you can hear is the sound of the characters walking along and scaling the fence, while the female character waits and sighs in a disappointed manner. This use of only diegetic sound makes the film seem more life-like; you feel like you are there, listening to the background noise of the countryside and hearing the two characters. Also, the use of only diegetic sound represents how where they are walking is really remote area, and they are all alone. 

Now I will look at the editing in this short film. At the beginning, numerous shots from different locations are shown, showing the able female and the male character who is represented in a way that shows him as someone who clearly does not enjoy long country walks. For example, when the woman climbs over the fence, she walks on and then stops, turning back towards back to the direction fence. The man shakes the fence and mumbles, as it cuts to the woman looking extremely disappointed. These cuts between the two characters show the contrast between them. 

Lets move on to camera work. When the man is shot after challenging the farmer to fight for the land, there is a close up shot of the woman's face which is covered in the blood of the man that has just been murdered by the farmer. As the farmer walks off, the woman begins to weep excessively, while the camera is focused on her face. Eventually, there is an extreme wide shot of the a tree line. You can faintly hear a gunshot, and all you can see are some birds flying away, due to the shock of the gunshot. Another example of the camera work is when the man and the farmer are discussing how the land they are standing on came to be in ownership of the farmer. As they talk, there is a medium close up shot of each character, showing the emotions upon each of the character's faces.

Finally I shall look at the mise-en-scene of the short film. Location wise, the film is chilling because an event like this could happen in real life in that exact kind of rural location. Looking at costume, all the characters are wearing normal every day clothes. This means that the film appeals to anyone because it shows it can happen to anyone who goes out for a walk in the countryside. Scary stuff. 

Film names

I am thinking about names for my film and I have came up with a few ideas. One name I came up with is Instinct, as in my film it is human instinct to believe that the dog is under the bed licking the girl's hand, but in a matter of fact, it's the escaped serial killer. 

My Beast Friend

Here is my textual analysis of a professionally made short film titled 'My Beast Friend', a film about Ed who has a fully grown man in the form of a cat, but he is the only one who can see the cat in this form. Everyone else seems to see him as a normal cat, but he is far from normal! I would class this as a comedy and I will not textually analyse this film. Looking at sound, there is only dialogue, and the added sound of a purring cat when the girl picks the cat up. This adds to the hilarity of the situation because the woman hears the cat as a normal cat, but Ed, the male character, hears the cat as a grumpy Scottish man. Looking at the camerawork, when all the characters are talking at the same time, the mid-shot is used to get all the characters in the shot, and this allows the viewer to feel like they are in the room with the characters. Also, close up shots are used to show the expression of the cat's face multiple times during the clip. This highlights the hilarity of the cat, as you can clearly see whiskers that are hand drawn on his face. Looking at editing, like a usual comedy short film, there are straight cuts between shots and the shot lengths are quite long, there are no quick cuts between shots, and this is typical of a comedy short film. At the end, before the cat swears, the image is cut, along with the sound, and the credits roll. This abrupt ending of the cat's dialogue makes the film very funny, because we can all guess what the cat is going to say anyway! Finally I will look at the mise-en-scene. The cat costume worn by the grumpy Scottish man is effective and it adds a significant degree of comedic value to the film. Location wise, the film is shot in one space and this is typical of any comedy production. For example, in Peep show the main location is Mark and Jeremy's flat, in the Inbetweeners its in the school, and in this short film, the main location is Ed's hallway. 

Watch this excellent film below. Enjoy!

Spider

In this blog post I will be analysing a short film called 'Spider', a dark film about a dispute between a couple which is resolved and then their process of making up is abruptly ended when the woman is hit by a car. You can watch this short film at the bottom of this post. 
I will be analysing the sound, camera work, editing and mise-en-scene of this film. 

Starting with sound, in the first few minutes of the film, only diegetic sound is used when the couple is sitting in the car having a conversation, which has obviously followed a heated argument between the two people. You can hear character's dialogue and the sound of objects in the car such as the indicator when she signals to turn into the garage and the handbrake that she puts on when she comes to a stop at the garage. For the duration of this time, you can hear the typical background noise of a busy road, full of cars travelling in different directions. This use of only diegetic sound adds to the sense of realism, and you do feel as if you are sitting in the car with the couple. You are not left with the traditional non-diegetic background music. In the scene where the man throws the toy spider at the girl and she jumps into the road, being hit by the car, there is no non-diegetic sound for a while and the background noise continues, but the use of no non-diegetic sound adds to the harrowing silence in which the male character looks on to the road in shock at his partner. However, when he gets out of the car and begins to realise whats happening, non-diegetic music is played. This music is dark and harrowing, matching the situation that he is now in. In addition to this, as he walks towards the body of his partner, the screen goes black for a moment while the sound of an ambulance plays loud and clearly over the top, giving us time ourselves to recover from the shock of what just happened. This use of the ambulance sound just adds more panic to the situation, making it more intense, and therefore more engaging for the audience to watch. 

Moving onwards, I will look at the camera work in the film. At the beginning of the film when the two characters are talking, the camera is in the back of the car filming the couple. When one character talks, there is an over the shoulder close up shot of them as they speak. Equally, when each character waits to hear what the other person has to say, the same shot is used to show the reaction of the character. So filming from the back seat of the car allows the viewing audience to feel like they are there in the car, witnessing and hearing this couple as they talk. The use of the close up and over the shoulder shots allow the audience to see the expression of different emotions upon the faces of the two characters, and allows the viewing audience to share the same emotions. For example, when the woman says: "You always take it to far", we can see the face of the man who looks puzzled and we can see the expression of confusion on his face. This makes us ask questions such as: what is the woman talking about, or what did the man say to provoke this statement?

In terms of editing, I will look at the scene when the paramedics are attempting to revive the female character who was hit by the car. When this is going on, there are straight cuts between shots of the calm ambulance crew attempting to save the life of the injured woman and the man (who threw the spider) who is clearly in a distressed state. This order of shots between the man and the ambulance crew shows the contrast in emotions that are flooding the situation. To add to this, the transitions between shots occur rapidly, which adds to the intensity of the situation and mimics the fast rate at which the ambulance crew is working at to save the life of the injured woman.

When looking at mise-en-scene we must look at lighting, costumes, props and location. In terms of lighting, throughout the whole film, the lighting is high-key and this adds to the realism of the film as the film being shot outside in the sunlight during a busy day makes it real because it its a reconstruction of a life-like event, that could easily happen. In terms of costume, props and location, the film is just made more realistic because the costumes are normal costumes that you see everyday, the props are everyday things (e.g. flowers, chocolates and a card), and finally the location is a busy street side, which is very effective place to shoot this film because it makes it life-like.

Watch the this film below! WARNING: I don't recommend this if you are squeamish.

Pros and cons of the Drama genre

Here are my advantages and disadvantages of a short film in the Drama genre:

Drama - Conventions of the Drama genre

What are the conventions of the drama genre, you may ask? Look below! 

• Often drama films portray journeys of character development.
• Intense social interaction.
• Exhibits life-like situations with relatable characters, settings and story lines.
• Aims to move the audience emotionally.
• The heart of drama is conflict. Break ups and arguments are common.
• Drama pieces are structured with climaxes and anti-climaxes to keep the audience emotionally attached and the tension on going.
• There is always a form of realisation at the end. For example, a couple might fall out and they get back together. A really creative example there. 

Genre - Pros and Cons of Comedy

In this post I will be looking at the pros and cons of a short film in the comedy genre. Lets begin with the PROS shall we? 

• No complex costumes, locations, or props will be required.
• Low-budget.
• Shorter amount of time in which you have to engage your audience.
• Comedy shorts are popular with busy people, who may want a slice of comedy, but don't have any time to sit down and watch a feature-length comedy film.
• There will be more comedy in a short space of time. A short film only lasts up to 30 minutes usually; therefore you need to cram in as much comedy as possible!
• More refined comedy. This is because if there is less time to present jokes, fewer jokes will have to be used, but they will be stronger jokes, instead of having many average jokes spread over 1-2 hours in a feature length film.
• Short, sweet and straight to the point. 
• There will be no need for a character backstory because there is simply not enough time to do this. Therefore, characters will be presented in a certain way which allows viewing audiences to easily relate to a character within minutes. 

Inevitably, there are some CONS of short films in the comedy genre:

• Some people may be left feeling like they haven't seen the whole story.
• The jokes/comedy has to be excellent in order to engage the audience rapidly in the short window of time available to you. 
• Theres not a lot of time to fit in a funny and effective storyline, it must be straight to the point, and sometimes this can be hard to pull off. 

Audience Research Update - COMING SOON

Early next week I will begin releasing my audience research series, with several episodes featuring questions I asked people in my school about my film idea! 

Ancillary Task - Film Poster Analysis

Below is an image I created, highlighting the key features of a film poster.

Types of Comedy

There are different comedy sub-genres, which are often quite popular, especially 'dark humour'. Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity which exceeds the boundaries of common sense. Dark humour is humour that makes light of subject matter usually considered controversial. Finally, wordplay is a literary technique and a form of wit in which the words that are used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. 

Charlie Chaplin; slapstick comedy star.

Genre - Conventions of the Comedy Genre

The comedy genre is arguably the most popular genre in the media market, as many classic films have been made in this genre. Classics include the 'carry on' films, Hot Fuzz and others like Mr Bean's holiday. In these post I will look at the conventions of the comedy genre:

• Set in social settings such as schools, cafes, offices or restaurants.
• The camerawork must be naturalistic and the characters must be filmed in a way that no one comes across as a more significant character.
• Diegetic sound, like the dialogue, must be loud and clear so that it can be heard and people can hear the jokes. 
• Non-diegetic music can be used to add to the comedic value of a scene.
• The lighting must be bright or just natural light must be used in order to create a realistic setting/environment.
• Bright and 'happy' colours are used to add to the light hearted nature of the comedy.
• Props are important in comedy, especially in the slapstick comedy genre. For example, the famous walking stick used by Charlie Chaplin. 
• In terms of character types, usually idiotic characters are used in contrast with the normal characters, and this clearly indicates the contrast of personalities present and emphasises the stupidity of the folly character.
• Often, an over-intelligent character is used to add comedy in the form of social awkwardness, which is very funny when executed well. A classic example of this character would be Dr. Sheldon Cooper in The Big Bang Theory.
• Saracsm is often used by characters for added comedy. This is used extensively in The Inbetweeners and Peep Show.

Ancillary Task - Film Posters

As you may already know, for our ancillary task, we have to produce a film poster and a magazine review for our film. In this post I will be looking at the conventions of film posters. We see film posters everywhere, advertising the latest films, but what makes them stand out? There are 8 conventions, essential to any film poster:

1) There must be a focal picture that will catch people's attention.
2) The title of the film should be clearly displayed in large and eye-catching font.
3) The poster should clearly define the genre of the film being advertised. 
4) The poster should be designed to attract the largest audience possible. 
5) The poster should include a small review or rating.
6) There could be titles that the production company has released before.
7) The poster must include information on the director or the production company at the bottom of the poster.
8) The poster should give a clear indication of when the film is being released. 
9) Overall, the poster must be eye-catching and captivating to the audience.

Below is a classic example of a film poster:

Location Research

Prior to shooting my film, I did some research into where I wanted to shoot my film. I chose to shoot the film in and around Spooner Row; a secluded village in the Norfolk countryside where I currently live myself. This is the place where the main character comes back to from uni to visit her parents. I really feel that this location was perfect to shoot my film because its pretty much in the middle of nowhere, miles from anything; therefore I thought this would be a suitable location because it adds to how alone and isolated the lead character is, as she is already on her own with an 'unexpected guest'. This location looks chilling, dark and secluded, making it an ideal location to open my short film. Below are some pictures of the village, and certain places where I intend to shoot the film. When I took these photos the weather made the place look a little more dark and eerie.

The house where I will shoot the film.

The main part of the film will be shot entirely in my own house. This house is like every other and I think a house is always a good place for a horror film to be set because when horror strikes in the comfort of your own home, the fear factor of the film is dramatically heightened. If you think of your favourite horror film, theres bound to be a scene in that film where supernatural happenings occur in a character's home. This increases the horror of a film because if you are watching something scary happening in someone else's house, your mind begins to think thoughts such as: 'what if that happened to me, in my home?!'. So this is why I have chosen to use my house as the main film location because it always makes a horror film more realistic and therefore more scary. Below are some images of my house in which I will be shooting my film:

This is the kitchen, the first room in the house where we see Lucy.

The remainder of the film will be shot in the bedroom, which is pictured below. Notice the gap under the bed, this play the vital part in the film (look at my film idea to know why, its a long story). 

The final scene will take place in the bathroom, where the horror will reach its peak and the main character finds out what was really under the bed.

The bathroom, which will be covered in blood. Scary stuff.

Overall, the location that I have chosen is the ideal and most suitable place to shoot my film, I have came to this conclusion for a number of reasons. Firstly, the home setting of the film means that it fits in with the horror genre. Secondly, the secluded setting of Spooner Row means that the film is set in a very quiet and eerie village. Thirdly and finally, the bed that I will use for the film is perfect because you can see someone hiding under that and scaring people. Anyway, thanks for reading, have a good day!

Toast

Here is the short mockumentary film, titled 'Toast'. This is a film about bread being a real life addictive drug. It is very funny, and a very good example of a mockumentary done well.

Genre - Mockumentary

Below is a presentation I made about the mockumentary genre. Enjoy. 

Genre - Documentary (Part 4)

In this blog post I will be doing a textual analysis of a documentary film. The short film I have chosen is called 'Searching for Sugar Man'. 

'Searching for Sugar Man' is a documentary that follows two fans from Cape Town as they set out to discover what has become of the musician Sixto Rodriguez who was wildly popular in South Africa but largely unknown in his own country, the U.S. In this answer I will analyse the camera work, editing, lighting, sound and mise-en-scene of this film. 
    
Beginning with camera work, every time you are seeing a person talk on screen, the camera is always aimed at the waist and above, and this of course is a medium close up shot, for example when the music producer is talking about his pain of not finding the so called 'Sugar man', and he plays some music, only the top half of his body is being filmed, and this is typical of most documentary films when people are being interviewed. A convention of the documentary genre is the use of interviews from people who are involved or have an in depth knowledge on the documentary subject, and this use of the medium close up shot works well as it shows the facial expression and emotion of the person being interviewed. This is effective in the music producer interview because we can feel the pain he is experiencing when he talks about how much he misses the man he once knew very well. Now I will look at editing, and in this extract of the documentary, and there is a part when there is archive footage, edited together with set-up footage , footage shot when the documentary maker is talking to the man at the beginning, and a non-diegetic voiceover playing over the top. This mash up of different shots and the use of non-diegetic sound makes this a typical documentary. The use of archive footage is a typical feature of many documentaries, as it adds more information from other sources that the documentary maker cannot get across himself, and it adds strength to an argument. In addition, set-up footage is another convention of the documentary genre, and in this extract, there is a classic example. When the voice over talks about meeting up with another person on the hunt for the 'Sugar man' in a coffee shop, shots on screen are edited in showing the actions of the two men meeting, as the voiceover tells the story.

Moving onwards, I will look now look at lighting in this documentary extract. In the interview scene with the music producer, light is shone on the interviewee from the side to fully highlight the facial expressions of the person being interviewed. This is typical of a documentary interview scene. However, usually a 3 point lighting system is used and this fully exposes the facial expression and emotions of your subject as well as isolates them from the background and hides unwanted shadows. The 3 point lighting system is the professional standard and it’s used by nearly all documentary film makers. Your back light creates a nice highlight around your subject’s hair, shoulders and face that help separate them from the background. The key light is the main lighting source casting directional lighting and shadows on the subject’s face and body. The last light in this setup is called the fill light. The fill light is a softer light that helps fill unsightly shadows created by the key light.

 Now I will look at sound in this documentary extract. At the beginning of the extract when the man is walking around looking for his atlas, there is non-diegetic music being played as he hunts. This music is upbeat but it has a steady rhythm, and the music gives a sense of adventure; and of course this music reflects the whole journey of trying to find the atlas, and then looking on the atlas to find the possible whereabouts of the 'Sugar Man' in Dearborn, Detroit. This is typical of a conventional documentary because sound coveys emotion and then the picture on screen coveys the valuable information. 

  Finally I shall look at the miss-en-scene of this documentary extract. If you don't know what mise-en-scene is, its the The arrangement of everything that appears in the framing,     

actors, lighting, décor, props, costume. In this documentary extract, the actors used are the actual people that are involved with the subject in question, so this aspect of mise-en-scene means that this documentary is a typical one. 

Overall, this documentary extract fits in with the codes and conventions of the documentary genre, making it a strong example of a traditional documentary.

A guide to writing an excellent textual analysis!

Have you been ever stuck when it comes to putting together a textual analysis of a short film? Well with this guide, you will never be stuck again!

What is a 'textual analysis'?

Textual analysis of film requires observing and questioning all the elements that create meaning within the piece, such as acting, directing, lighting, cinematography, mise en scene, etc. Besides noticing the individual elements that create a film’s meaning, textual analysis also involves understanding how the film fits into the larger context of its social, historical, cultural and political environment. So textual analysis also requires researching a film’s genre, audience as well as its historical, institutional, and socio-cultural significance. It’s only in combining both that we can create a thorough understanding of the film.

How to execute a 'textual analysis'

First of all, start by reading the question thoroughly, engraining the task in your head so you can be thinking about the question while you watch the clip; make sure you take some notes while you do this. After this, begin typing up/writing up your textual analysis and stick to this basic structure:

I. Genre and Audience-

1. What tradition or genre is it in?
2. What are the features determining genre?
3. What other work might it be connected to?
4. Who made this? Why?
5. What can we tell about its’ creators?
6. How does it fit within the director’s other work?
a. Does it share significant narrative or thematic concerns?
b. Does it share particular visual or technical elements?
7. What is the film’s theme?
8. What is the target audience? How does it address its audience?

II. Historical and Institutional Factors-

1. What are the institutional factors that may be important?
a. as a production of a specific producer (i.e. Walt Disney), institution (Disney Studios), specific economic factors (Studio Film), or a political background? (U.S. politics 1959)
2. What is the film’s historical significance?
a. as a document of its time?
b. as a part of history of film?

III. Socio-cultural context

1. What is the film’s socio-cultural context?
c. as a work from a specific country?
d. As a work from a specific culture?
e. As a work representing a specific part of its society?
f. As a work made for a specific audience?
g. As a work made for a specific reason?

IV. Narrative

1. How is this film constructed according to narrative/story being told?
2. Is the narrative organized by plot or time sequence, or some other way?
3. Does the film use other principles than narrative sequence as a structure (for instance, an argument?
4. What is the nature of our engagement with the story or characters?

V. Film Language and Representation

1. How are characters and issues represented?
2. What is the style and effect of acting and performance?
3. How is meaning created by camera angles, shots, and camera movement?
4. How is meaning created by editing and sequencing?
5. How is meaning created by lighting, shade and color?
6. How is meaning created by sound and music?
7. How is meaning created by location and set design?
8. Does the film make use of symbols, metaphors, or allegories? Share are they and how do they work within the context of the film?
9. How is meaning created by technical elements such as production design, mise en scene, composition, special effects (matte paintings, models or animation, computer generated images….etc.)

http://understandingfilm.wikifoundry.com/page/1.+Textual+Analysis