Hide and Seek

In this blog post I will completing a textual analysis of an existing A2 media short film called Hide and Seek, a film about a young girl who gets in a box, and to her surprise, goes back in time. Watch the film below:

Mise-en-scene 


This film is set in a very life-like and normal everyday setting, someones back garden. For decades the garden has always been apart of most houses and it works as the perfect location in this film as one minute its a garden behind a modern day house that is the setting for a family get together on a sunny day and then the next, the garden plays host to a family from the time period of 1939 to 1945 (WW2 references are rife in this film). The garden setting works because it makes the film so much more realistic, simple and easy to make. If the director had chosen the house as the setting, the decor and maybe even the layout of the house would have been changed in between the two time periods, making it easier for continuity errors and small mistakes like seeing a 50" flatscreen TV in the sitting room of house from the 1940s. 

Editing

The editing in this film works well. Slow-paced editing has been put to use and it makes the film flow and it makes it feel relaxed, and this certainly helps the film to fit in with the adventurous yet relaxing genre that this film falls in to. 

Camera work

Looking at the camera shots and angles, there is an extensive use of close up shots of the girl as she goes on her adventure back in time. This use of close up shots helps us the get a sense of joy and excitement that the girl is experiencing as she goes back in time and discovers new sights, sounds and people.

Sound

When the film is set in the modern day at the beginning and at the end of the film, modern-music in the form of Robbie Williams is played in the background; this is non-diegetic music. This music helps create a feeling of happiness and excitement, as the girl explores the garden and finds the woven crate that she climbs into. However, when the girl steps out into the 1940s, you can hear old jazz-swing music playing in the background, the kind of music you would hear off an old gramophone record from that time period. This music is also uplifting and creates a sense of enjoyment and happiness once again, but it also, most importantly, sets the time period.

'Stranded' - Alex La Riviere

For this post, I will analysing another existing A2 Media short film, this film being 'Stranded', a thriller produced by Alex La Riviere. I would say its one of the weaker existing A2 Media short films that I've seen, but its still a good example to look at to get a sense of the other films out there. Well what is this film about? Its about 3 girls who drive out into the middle of nowhere and then end up with their car breaking down on them. One by one, all 3 girls are taken away by a mysterious hooded murderer. 

      I will textually analyse this film by looking at the sound, editing and camera work. First of all you can watch this film below. 

Editing

To reflect the intensity of the situation, quick-cut editing is used when the 2nd victim is attacked (at about 3:35). The girl is calling for her friend as she has gone missing and as soon as she turns around she meets her fate in the form of the hooded murderer as the screen goes black. This use of the quick cut edit reflects the brutal and sudden nature of the murder; as well as the girl being caught by surprise, we are also caught by surprise, leaving us on the edge of our seats.

Camera work

At the beginning of the film, a number of extreme wide shots are used to set the scene. This use of this type of shot establishes the location of the 3 girls, as well as showing the size of the landscape and also highlighting that they are in the middle of nowhere and they are very lost. When the the 3rd girl is attacked at the end of the film, a medium close up shot is used and it is filmed from the back of car on the inside and it shows the murderer and the shocked looking girl, before it cuts to black. 

Sound

When the driving girl gets out of the car and goes off to get a signal for her mobile phone, dark and eerie non-diegetic sound begins to play in the background, making the viewing audience feel like something dreadful is going to occur. This background music leaves you feeling tense and makes your mind think scary thoughts. This is typical of most horror and psychological thriller films and in this film I would say it is not as effective but it is still there and therefore it makes it fit in with the genre.

Mise-en-scene

This film is set in the English countryside, and its supposed to look like its in the middle of nowhere but unfortunately in this film, there are plenty of sign posts and houses dotted around that the director of this film has clearly not seen, anyway, this remote location certainly reflects the feeling of loneliness and helplessness of the 3 girls who are stuck in the 'middle of nowhere'; I didn't know there were houses there to be honest, but I could be wrong. 

Editing Styles

In this post I will be looking at different editing styles that can be adopted in film; fast paced editing and slow paced editing. Lets begin by establishing the difference between these two styles. Fast paced editing is where you have lots of cuts and shots do not last any longer than 5 seconds, whereas slow paced editing is where you have fewer cuts and as a result the shots are more drawn out. 

Fast-paced editing

Fast-paced editing is editing which uses many cuts and the shots do not last long. This editing style is often used in action films which require fast paced editing to add to the intensity of a situation thats unfolding on screen. These kinds of situations include a rapid car chase or scene in which the hero and villain are exchanging gunfire. Below is an example of fast-paced editing. This use of fast-paced editing and upbeat music make our hearts race faster and leaves us on the edge of our seats.

Slow-paced editing

This type of editing is evident in films when there are very few cuts used between shots, instead there are just prolonged sequences. Slow-paced editing is usually seen in romance films, where the feelings of love and the gentle scenes are accompanied by long and slow shots with very few cuts. Below is an example of slow-paced editing from the film 'Titanic'. In this scene, DiCaprio cooly waits in the first class dining suite and he waits for Rose. It could be suggested that the slow-paced editing reflects Jack and Rose's endless love for each other.

Audience Research

Here is my finished audience research video. In this video I asked 5 horror film fans some questions about horror films and I shared my idea with these people, getting some helpful feedback about it. The first question I asked was: what would you expect to see in a horror film?  This question highlighted the key features of horror films, which I could include in my film to make it fit in with the genre and make it more appealing to other horror movie fans. The second question I asked was: what do you think of my idea? Before watching the video below, please be sure to read about my idea in some of past blog posts. Before filming, I shared my idea with the 5 people and then I filmed their responses. Each person I shared my idea with gave some very good comments as well as constructive criticism. The third and final question I asked was: would you watch the finished product? Everyone said that they would happily watch my film and this gives me confidence that they will enjoy my finished film. 

Here it is:

Audience Research - ON THE WAY

I am currently editing my audience research video and it will be released later today!

Comedy - Short film analysis

In this post I will be analysing a comedy short called 'This is It' by Alexander Engel. Its a cleverly made film about two friends who begin renting a new apartment, and its a compilation of all the questions asked within the house over time. 

Sound 

Throughout the film there is no non-diegetic sound, apart from the music played at the end of it. The only sound you can hear is the sound that is being made on screen; the diegetic sound. The most notable diegetic sound that you can hear is the voices of the characters and this keeps the film life-like and very funny. 

Editing

The scenes are edited together so that its funny. Certain scenes follow other scenes that make it hilarious. For example, at the ending when one of the characters is selling his room, an awkward scene follows and then it cuts back to the man who rips the cheque off to break the awkward silence. 

Camerawork

There is a heavy use of medium wide shots so that you can see every character and their surroundings. This works well because you can see the character asking the question and then you can see why they are asking the question, and the questions are often very whimsical.

 You can watch the film on the page above, but the link to this page is:

http://www.shortoftheweek.com/2014/12/04/this-is-it/

Stop Motion

I admire stop motion because it requires a lot of time and effort to produce a whole video. Meticulous planning and detail is required to ensure that stop motion looks good. In this post, I will be looking at what stop motion is, how it is done, famous stop motion artists, and finally, some good examples of short films that use stop motion. 

To the left is an incredibly accurate definition of what stop motion is! 



What is stop motion? 
Stop motion is an animation technique to make a physically manipulated object or persona appear to move on its own. The object is moved in small increments between individually photographed frames, creating the illusion of movement when the series of frames is played as a continuous sequence. Usually small figurines with moveable joints or clay models are used so that they can be moved slightly and easily. However, sometimes humans, household appliances and other things or used for comedic purposes. 

Famous Stop Motion Animator
The most well known stop motion animator of all time is Jan Švankmajer. He is a Czeck film maker who is famous for creating stop motion anime films such as Alice in 1988, Faust in 1994, and Little Otik in 2000. He has inspired many other screenwriters to create stop-motion animation. 

Good examples of stop motion
Yep you guessed; its time to look at short films that showcase excellent examples of stop motion! There are some animators that spend an incredible amount of time on their animations and they turn out to be extremely impressive. Here are my top 5 stop motion short films:

1) Jason and the Argonauts - Ray Harryhausen

2) The Machine - Rob Shaw

A2 Short Film Analysis

Over the next 3 blog posts, I will be analysing 3 different short films mpoo ade by other A2 media studies students. In this update, I will be analysing an excellent short film called 'Networked' by Jack Thompson. Before you begin reading my textual analysis, you can watch this well-made film below:



What is this film about?

This film is about a teenager who comes home from school with his friends. He gets home and goes onto his computer. He receives a message from a facebook friend that has an attachment to a page, that which you like, you will die. The teenager likes the page out of curiosity, thinking that its a joke. He then dies, and at the end he is joined by two other friends that have died before him; the teenager forwards to message to other friends and the deaths continue. Its said to be inspired by Simon Hynd's 2002 Short;' Virus'.

Camera Work

In the opening of the film we see lots of shots of the teenager, as he gets back to his house. There are a number of wide shots used to show the surrounding area of the teenager, but the shot is partially covered by something, and this gives us the idea that someone is watching him throughout the whole film because they are watching him from a distance, covered by something to avoid detection. An excellent shot that gives us this idea is the shot of the boy's face from behind the screen as he browses facebook. It gives us a really strong impression that someone or something is watching him and is going to cause trouble. 

Editing

In the scene when the teenager is using facebook, there is a heavy use of quick cuts between the behind the screen close up and shot from the side of the room; that looks like the viewpoint of something sinister watching him. This use of quick cuts between these two shots cause us to feel like the tension is ramping up. The speed of the cuts between the two shots reflects the intensity of the situation. 

Sound 

There is a constant background non-diegetic sound that plays through out the whole film. This constant noise represents the idea that there is something lurking around the teenager and its always there; its never going to go away. This sound gets progressively louder until the boy is attacked by the unknown force. 

Narrative Theory

Narrative is the way in which a story is told in both fictional and non-fictional media texts. It is the basis of all films and TV shows, and over the years there has been various theories that have been put forward by people that believe in differing ways on how to tell a story. These people can be labelled as 'narrative theorists'. In this post I will be looking at the different narrative theories and seeing their uses in film. 

Theory 1 - Vladmir Propp :

Propp was a Russian critic and literary theorist. This man analysed over 100 Russian fairytales in 1920s and this deepened his understanding of the ways in which stories are told; this would aid Propp in the development of his own ideas on narrative theory. Propp believed that it was possible to classify the characters and their actions into clearly defined roles and functions. Propp believes that these are the roles that should be filled by characters:

• The hero - A character seeking to save something/someone or discover something.
• The villain - A character who opposes the hero and attempts to stop him/her.
• The donor - Someone who aids the hero with advice or a magic object. 
• The dispatcher - This character sends the hero on the 'mission'.
• The false hero - Someone who falsely assumes the role of the hero.
• The helper - Someone who sticks by the hero and assists him/her.
• The princess - The 'reward' for the hero. She often needs protection against villian.
• The princess's father - The typical father who cares for the princess when she is in need. 

Films that fit in with Propp's theory include Star Wars. However, there are some films that defy it completely, Tarantino's 'Pulp Fiction' being a prime example.

Theory 2 - Roland Barthes 

Roland Barthes was a French semiologist, someone who studies signs and symbols and their use or interpretation. Barthes suggested that narrative works five different codes which activate the reader to make sense of it. Below are Barthes' codes:

• Action - A narrative device by which a resolution is produced through action.
• Enigma - This teases the audience by presenting a puzzle or riddle to be solved. This often works to delay the story's ending. 
• Symoblic - Connotation to a story or a moral.
• Semic - An opposite against a story or a moral. 
• Cultural - A narrative device which the audience can recognise as being part of a culture.

Theory 3 - Claude Levi-Strauss

Claude Levi-Strauss was a social anthropologist, someone who studies the following aspects of human kind: the comparative study of human societies and cultures (and their development) and the science of human zoology, evolution and ecology. This man examined how stories unconsciously reflect the values, beliefs and myths of a culture. Levi-Strauss believed that stories are usually expressed in the form of 'binary opposites'.So what are these binary opposites? They are a conflict between two qualities or terms, for example in a Western films you have these binary opposites: 

• Homesteads // Native Americans
• Christians // Pagans
• Domestic // Savage
• Weak // Strong
• Garden // Wilderness
• Guns // Bow and arrows

In action films you would have these binary opposites:

• Secret service (e.g MI5) // Criminal organisation
• Secret agent // Criminal ringleader

THIS LIST COULD GO ON FOR A VERY LONG TIME... (lets move on)

Theory 4 - Tzvetan Todorov 

Todorov was a Bulgarian literary theorist who believed that most narratives start with a state of equilibrium, a state in which life is normal and the protagonist is happy. Then, this state of normality is disrupted by an outside force, which has to be fought against in order to return to state of equilibrium once again. Most love films use this way of telling a story. For example a man and a woman meet, then something splits them up, and then in the end they get back together. 

THE MAN (Todorov)

 

Silent Film

What is silent film? 

A silent film is a film with no synchronised recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent film, entertainment is provided by muted gestures, mime and title cards. 

Sound in silent film:

In the majority of silent films, music is played to express the feelings and thoughts of characters, and it is also used to set the tone of a scene. For example, if there is a chase scene through a busy street, upbeat music played to reflect the chaos in the situation. However, on the other hand there may be a scene where someone finds out some bad news. The music over this scene will be emotional and slow. Below is a clip of silent comedy film made in 1928. I have made some points about the sound in this film. 

• In the opening scene of the film when the family awaken, jolly and uplifting music is played to reflect the start of a new day. Its the typical day break soundtrack.
• Notice the music playing when the dad is in the kitchen, attempting to cook. Once again, its quite jolly music and it adds to the hilarity of the situation, in which the dad cannot be doing anything to help! 

Sound - 'Breaking the 4th wall'

You have probably seen an example of 'breaking the 4th wall' in a film or TV show in the past, but what does 'breaking the 4th wall' mean? On a film set, there are 4 walls, the back wall, the two side walls and the imaginary wall; the wall from where the viewing audience view the film. Any time a character turns to the camera and addresses the viewing audience, he/she is breaking the so called '4th wall', the wall that separates him/her from the audience. An easier way to say this is that the character on screen notices his fictional presence. Below you can see a still from the Wolf of Wall Street. Notice how the character is in the fictional world around him, but he is looking at and talking to the camera, therefore addressing the audience and breaking the 4th wall.

Another example of breaking the 4th wall is evident in the comedy TV show 'Miranda' (my least favourite TV show ever). In this show, in every show she addresses the viewing audience, sharing her thoughts and feelings about whats happening in the episode that you're watching. Below is a youtube video of the top 10 'breaking the 4th walls' in film. 

Sound - Dialogue

Dialogue in film; this may sound like quite a monotonous subject, but if when you think about it, dialogue is an essential part of film. First of all we must establish the purpose of dialogue in film; dialogue serves to tell the story that is unfolding in a film and it expresses feelings and motivations of the characters. It is a big challenge to write realistic and effective dialogue, and film makers often require years of failed attempts and poorly written scripts to finally master the perfect chemistry that dialogues require to engage the audience and push the story forward. It is true that the ideal film dialogue consists of 3 essential elements. 

1) The first aspect of the perfect dialogue is that it keeps the story going. By this I mean that any conversation, comment, or speech has to elaborate on the plot, or reveal something about a character that shocks and surprises the viewing audience. 

2) The second aspect of the ideal dialogue is that it is subtle and clever. Films are supposed the be an artistic and creative expression. The viewing audience do not want to hear mundane dialogue that goes on and on. The challenge for any screenwriter is that they have to produce a realistic dialogue sound clever and unique. It is good if you have dialogue that does not spell out everything that is happening on screen, the viewing audience like to be left with clues so they can piece ideas together in their own minds, making the film more engaging and exciting. 

3) The third and final aspect of the perfect dialogue is that it is witty or comic. The viewers of movies and TV shows love to laugh, but making them do this is not an easy task. It is key that comic dialogue is kept up with a character's personality. Creating the right situation in which he or she makes the audience laugh is challenging as well because as mentioned in the first aspect of the perfect dialogue, any dialogue also has to move the story forward by either furthering the plot or giving something away about the character. This is evident in many films and TV shows because you never see characters stop and tell jokes to one another. The jokes made must have some narrative value. 

A great example of dialogue in film is from the 1973 film 'The Exorcist', just before the exorcism is performed, the mother of the possessed girl tries to relax Father Merrin (the guy carrying out the exorcism) by giving him some tea. The mother then asks if Father Merrin would like some bourbon in his tea, but he declines, saying that his doctor would not approve, there is a pause followed by Father Merrin saying that "but thank God my will is weak." So from this we learn that he declines at first and then he accepts the tea with bourbon. 

Why is this section of dialogue good?

This section of dialogue is clever and unique because it reveals two things about Father Merrin. Firstly, he is weak, and secondly he is worried about the exorcism he is about to conduct. If Father Merrin had simply answered "yes" to the offer of bourbon, the dialogue would have been boring. However, if he had just said: "I am weak and I am afraid", the dialogue would be too obvious or "on the nose". With his colourful line of of dialogue, the audience is therefore engaged and given a chance to participate with the film. 

Is voiceover narration necessary in short films?

In this post I will be coming to a conclusion on whether narration in short films is necessary or not. To begin with I will have to weigh up the positives and negatives of narration in short films.

• A narrator's voice over can aid in telling the story during a film, instead of relying on visuals and the character's dialogue.
• A narrator's voice over makes it easier for the viewing audience to digest whats happening on screen.
• A voice over from a narrator can share the inner-thoughts of a character. This is commonly used on the film 'American Psycho', when the lead character thinks about his actions on screen. 

• A narrator's voice is sometimes quite bad when its not used in the right part of a film, or the narrator's voice is not engaging. 
• A voiceover can sometimes give the viewing audience to much to digest.

OVERALL, I would argue that voice over narration is essential in short films. It makes them more interesting and it makes up for the shortage of titles in a short film. There is more film and less titles, so a narrator's voice over would work nicely with whats on screen. 

Narration in short films

In this post I will be looking at a small selection of two short films that showcase the use of narration excellently. The first film is called 'Voice Over', a film festival and online hit short directed by Martin Rosete. The clearly agitated narrator informs you that the astronaut on the screen is you, and you’re in trouble. You’ve crash-landed and your pressurised suit will only keep you alive for a limited amount of time. However, before your air runs out, you’re taken away to a totally different scenario. Then, with a similar race against time counting down, it happens again. The narrator is the key part of this film and it works really well. This film is definitely worth a watch.





The second film that uses narration excellently is a short film called 'The Gunfighter', an award-winning short film directed by Eric Kissack. This film is a brilliantly made comedy short that is about a narrator that tells the story of a lonesome cowboy who walks into a saloon. However, there is a twist; the so called 'gunslinger' can hear this narrator, and so can everyone else in the saloon. This narrator gives away everyones inner thoughts and it is very well thought through, and well made. Give this a watch.



Importance of dialect

With narration in film, it is vital that the voiceover is able to heard clearly and therefore easy to listen to while hearing and seeing whats going on in the film. A voiceover that is quiet and hard to make out will distract the viewing audience as they will have to work harder to make out what the narrator is saying instead of focusing on whats happening on screen. 

Film Treatment - Drama

I would make a shocking drama film about a teenager who pursues a career in music, putting his education into jeopardy. The character would be called Jake, a guy from a young age who is inspired by the likes of Foo Fighters, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Weezer and Smashing Pumpkins. He comes from a wealthy upbringing, and his parents are both doctors. Jake's mother puts a lot of pressure on Jake to succeed educationally, and pursue a career in medical science, but Jake just wants to be a front man of a grunge band, and play loads of gigs. Jake's father secretly admires Jake's dream and encourages his son. This leads to Jake's parents splitting up, and Jake's father becomes a bitter alcoholic, dying from his drinking. Jake becomes depressed and even more angry at his mother, he leaves to live with friends. While away from home, Jake to decides to write and record an album in a week as way of as taking his mind off what is happening at home. He gives his album to friends and 1 year later it is heard by Dave Grohl, front man of the Foo Fighters. Dave allows Jake to be signed to a major record label, and within weeks, Jake and his band begin to gig and become increasingly famous. However, during writing a sequel album, Jake receives a letter from his uncle informing him that his mother 'died of a broken heart' due to Jake leaving home and forgetting about her. All the memories come flowing back into Jake's mind and this causes him to become depressed again. He begins to perform badly and within a few months him and his band are kicked off the record label. 
    The final scene shows Jake in his room where he grew up. He is about to overdose on drugs, as he looks at a portrait of him and his parents. He apologises aloud to his parents and himself, and takes the lethal overdose while flashbacks from his past appear on the screen. 

Film Treatment - Comedy Genre

If I was to make a comedy short film I would make a film following a group of sixth form students that go to Reading festival. The film would allow the viewers to see the journey of the lads that are 'on tour', seeing the ups and downs of their trip. There is some funny stuff that happens at Reading, and making a film about 4 typical lads going there would be brilliant. 

Film Treatment - Romance Genre

If I was to produce a romance film, I would go with the following storyline:

A teenage boy and a teenage girl meet at the local independent record store, and as they are browsing through heaps of old records, they both end up coming to the same box of records. They are both working their way to the middle of the box, and they take no notice of each other until they both come across the record at the middle of the box, the record that they're both looking for. They both grab it, touching hands, and they slowly look up at eachother. Love at first sight. The girl, embarrassed, quickly wisks away her hand and apologises, but the boy remains calm and gives up the record. They begin talking about their favourite bands together, and they quickly bond. The boy gets the girls number and he invites her out for coffee. Over the next few dates, they bond even more, getting to know each other really well. This will all be in a time lapse, showing them going to gigs, walking around their local town, sitting at home listening to records, out having coffee and so on. One thing they find out about each other is that they are both in bands themselves, and they are from rival bands that are both from the same town. They discover that in a few weeks there is a local band competition and both the bands have entered. The boy's band is full of rude, arrogant and selfish guys, whereas the girl's band is made up of more genuinely nice characters. The boy begins to bond with the girl's band and he begins to have thoughts about leaving his current band, to be with the girl as well as playing in the band with her. The boy's band is ruthless with other bands, and when they find out that the boy is dating the girl, they are very harsh and they threaten to kick him out after the local band showdown.
        Its the night of the showdown, and the boys band are the penultimate band on stage, however, when they get on stage, the boy is not there and they become increasingly angry, until they are kicked off stage and out of the venue for being offensive towards the staff members and crowd at the venue. At the end, the girl's band come on stage, and near the end of the song, the boy comes on with his guitar and plays the best guitar solo ever. This wins the competition for the band, the boy asks the girl to be his girlfriend and he remains in the band. They grow old together and at the end of the film, they are seen playing at the same local band contest 50 years on, playing the same song in the same band. 

I am terrible at writing love stories.