Preliminary task: Show 'A' entering a room from a corridor and opening the door. Inside the room 'B' is sitting down. Without saying anything, 'A' gives a piece of paper to 'B'.'B' reads it and reacts. 'A' displays some kind of emotion and leaves.
Our group consisted of myself, Amber Holt, George Jackson and Ben Bowen. We decided to make our preliminary task a comedy, trying out editing, use of sound and shot types. This will be our first try at having a go with a camera, so planning is very important. I have created a basic story board, including shots we will use, music and a basic outline of what will be in the frame.
Paramount pictures are an American film production and distribution company that first begun in 1912, one of the first situated in Hollywood, created by the Hungarian Adolph Kukor. He tried to appeal to the working class immigrants as he felt that this was an open place within the film industry. With in relation to ‘Alfred Hitchcock’ Paramount produced some of his more famous film including ‘Rear Window’, ‘The Trouble with Harry’, ‘The Man Who Knew Too Much’, Vertigo’ and of course ‘Psycho’.
Paramount Pictures - (1912 - recent)
They have gone on to create thousands of film within all types of genres, including in more resent years ‘Mean Girls’, the ‘Shrek’ series and ‘Paranormal Activity’ amongst many others.
Alfred Hitchcock was one of the most influential film directors of all time, earning him the nick name 'the master of suspense'. Born in humble beginnings as the son of a greengrocer, he then went on to design sets for a film studio in London (1920). However he did not get the chance to start directing until 1923 when the director of 'Always Tell Your Wife' fell ill, pleased with his work on the film the studio gave him the importunate to work on his first film 'Number 23'. Unfortunately this fell through before completion as the studio closed its British operations. Hitchcock was then hired by 'Micheal Balcon' as assistant director for the company later to be known as 'Gainsborough Pictures'. He directing career finally came with the importunate to direct the German/ British collaboration 'The Pleasure Garden (1925)'. His directing talents could finally be seen out right, going on to produce over 50 years of cinematic magic.
Trivia
- In a lot of his films he liked to create shadows on the walls to add tension and suspense
- He hated to shoot on location, he much preferred to shoot in a studio so he could have the optimum control over lighting and other factors
- He liked to use major starts within his films so that the audience would be familiar with the character, therefore he did not have to divulge in character development and concentrate on the ins and outs of the plot
- He often would make the audience empathize with the villainous character of the plot
- He loved to used usual subjective point of view shots
Daryl went the through the opening of 'The Grudge' following a female character before she gets attacked by the grudge. Here are some of my favorite points..
- the credits at the beginning our consumed by swirling blackness - he referred this to the actual 'Grudge' and how it devours its victims
- throughout the opening the lighting is dim - even when the shot is based in the town - dark lighting promotes the mystery and eeriness
- within the shot of the high angles of her barriers can be seen between her and the viewer i.e. stair banisters - gives the impression that she is trapped/ no escape
- I felt the shot above was a particularly memorable shot - as she walks towards the camera she begins to block out the light from the window - again the idea of consumption, the shot traps the audience in the situation as well as the character, isolation
- When in the attic - before facing the grudge, she encounters cobwebs - the idea of a spider catching their prey - she will become the prey of 'The Grudge'
low angled long shot
- She is consumed by darkness once with in the attic where she uses a lighter to create light - the flame is flickering - which creates tension and the impression that she is shaking with fear - helps the audience live through her terror
Georgia, Catherine, Akshay and Emma - 'Silent Hill' directed by Christophe Gans
In the opening of 'Silent Hill' we watch a mother and fathers journey to find their sleep walking daughter, it is set in the dead of night. Within Akshay, Emma, Catherine and Georgia's presentation I picked out a few points..
- The non-diegetic instrumental sound that the title opens with is slow and eerie - hinting the genre of horror, also dust/ ash is fall relating to the fires further through the film - the audience already gets the feel of destruction
- The opening begins with a low angled close up of a women - showing her to be a main character/ protagonist and importance within the film
- the time set adds mystery - darkness fills each shot, fear of what is beyond your sight
- We cut from the mothers progress to long shots of the child 'Sharon' who is nearing the edge of a waterfall - the long shot indicated her isolation and her lack of control
- The young child is wearing light blue pajamas - showing her innocence, also relates to her mother who is wearing light blue shorts - showing their connection
- The closer to the child the mother gets the music accompaniment grows in volume - synchronous sound matches the tension/ action
Ben, Dom, Toby and George - 'Silence Of the Lambs' directed by Jonathan Demme
Ben, Dom, Toby and George concentrated on two opening sections within the film 'Silence of the Lambs'. Their sections went through the opening credits with the background scenes of 'Agent Starling' running an assault course. The second section they chose was of the first meeting between 'Dr Lecter' and 'Starling' set in the underground holdings of the asylum. Here are some points made..
First Section
- The credits open with the shot of a knarled tree with fog in the backround - the fog could indicte how not everything is obvious, which is a theme through out the film
- The camera then follows 'Starling' in a tracking shot - giving the impression that she is bening folowed, sets tome for the film - pyschological thriller
-It is set in the woods - gives an eerie impression - dank lighting, gives the impression that she is alone, someone is ust beyond eye sight
- Dramatic orcestrail music is used - adds drama, minor key - draker tont to film
- Physical exercise - indicates her strength of character/ determination
Second Section
- The camera is obstructed by bars/ barriers - indicating she has no way out/ setting herself up
- Red lighting is used - representing danger/ going into hell (i.e. where the prisoners are)
- Dank lighting - shadows giving an eerie sense
point of view - long shot
- Long shot of the chair - representing her isolation / she is very much alone in this situation
- Metal bars separate her and the prisoners - violent and abusive - barriers indicating the differences between herself and the prisoners
- Hannibal in control of emotions - more threatening/ dangerous
- Clear glass separates them - she is able to let him in - representing them to be more similar than the other prisoners
- He has the sense of control - he is in the light/ and she in darkness
As a group (Hannah, Abbie and myself) we were asked to looking into existing films withing the horror genre, taking particular notice of their openings. We chose to look at the opening of 'Hide and Seek' directed by 'John Polson. Taking note of the effects of the camera angles and movement, sound, editing and mise-en-scene. This task was to help us explore ways in which the industry could create thrills and hopefully give us ideas in how to create the effect ourselves. We created a annotated version of the opening, which we presented to the class alongside our additional spoken notes and findings.
*myself far right in green dress, Abbie far right in grey and Hannah far left in blue
Below is the annotated version of the opening we produced...
As a task we were asked to find an image within film, a magazine or an original picture you had taken yourself - and then analyse the use of camera angle and their connotations. This was to help us understand how the industry uses certain ways of displaying a subject to stimulate the right emotions within their audience, also it will be useful knowledge when we start to create the basic story board for our short film.
I chose an image which i find particularly powerful, i feel it really gives you an insight to the character. It is taken from one of my all time favorites 'Shawshank Redemption'.
final shot in the escape sequence - 'birds eye view'
- light fills his figure, hardly any of him is in shadow/ shows the purity of his character - pure of heart
- natural weather- the rain indicates his release back to nature and a real way of life
- shots main lighting is from the flash of lightning - maybe representing the danger he has gone through to escape
- looking down on the character as though the view is 'heaven' - gives the sense that the audience helped set him free
- no barriers within the shot/ just water in an open space - water showing his new flow of life, without restraint
- his arms are stretched to the heavens - the stretch showing his freedom, his body and mind is no longer trapped
In class we looked at the different types of camera angles used within film and photography, we then went into the grounds taking examples of each shot that we looked at in basic form..
here are some of my favorites..
'birds eye view' shot
- quite an unnerving shot, gives the impression that she is scared and lost
-gives the impression that she is being watched perhaps, close to danger/ close camera angle
'over shoulder' shot
- gives the impression that he is lonely/ maybe searching for something
- use of open landscape within the background/ suggesting maybe looking for freedom
- dark cloths maybe represents his repression
'two shot'
- gives an uncomfortable feeling to the audience/ barriers between them
- use of tables may suggest that there are things blocking their friendship
- clear divide between them/ parts of their faces cut out of the shot, perhaps showing that they are missing something or part of themselves
In our first lesson we looked though our course guidelines, giving us an idea of what is to come. We then focused on 'connotation and denotation' and their importance when analysing media texts.
Denotation - the explicit or direct meaning rather than by suggestion (exactly what you see).
Connotation - A description of value, meaning or ideology associated with a media text. (why ?).
We were then asked to look at an advert finding the 'connotation and denotation' of the mise-en-scene. I chose to analysis one on the classic Levi adverts from the 1980's.
I looked at four specific areas, location, costumes, props and lighting. It was interesting to see how older adverts had the same effect and very common ideas on how to sell to the public as we do these days. This advert centers on the idea that sex appeal will sell, which is a very well used theme within the market today.
Location
- laundrette/ 1950's amercia - retro to relate to the selling point that these are levi's 'orignal' shrink to fit jeans
- working class - anybody can wear them, you don't have to be wealth to look 'this good'.
Costumes
- main male/ dark colours, tight fitting t-shirt - bad boy/rebel image, appealing - also shows its relation to the younger generation
- females/ light colours, whites and pale colours - image of purity perhaps
Props
- the use of the stones in the washer- ironic as they are advertising the style of 'stone washed jeans'
- fan/ steam through the shot - adds heat, tension
Lighting
- dank lighting used on male, leaving face in shadow- adds to the mystery of the character, creating this rebel image again appealing sexually
- females remain in the light- showing they have not be corrupted yet, but this man is a temptation
Extras
- the use of red is a theme through out the advert, ie. the red on the young boys hats, adverts through out the luandrette - linking to the iconic red 'levi' label which is shown at the end
- there are may close up shots of the jeans - show casing them, advertising there appeal
- main character through out the advert, attracts everyones attention which are main female based, advertises that if you wear these jeans and portray this image you will have women lusting after you
- two shot image of the older man and the main character - shows the juxtaposition between the two men, highlighting the appeal of the main character
