Mood Board

How does the opening of Essex boys use metaphorical spaces to create meaning?

 In this shot the bar like reflections of light on the glass presents Billy (the shown character) as being entrapped, the image also foreshadows Billy's future ending up in prison, connoting eternal conflict on the other side of the justice system. Though the other character in the background is barely shown it displays a power imbalance, with one character relaxed and slouching in the back and the other tense and focused.

The bleak expanse of the marshes connotes a metaphorical space of emptiness and loneliness, with a grey colour pallet arraying a melancholic location. The location of the mashes also insinuates a place of danger in the view that their are many deaths which happen in this land setting, this shows that within the region Essex's morality is reflected through the uses of the rejected land. Furthermore, the vanishing lines create different angles giving a disorientation of view and exaggerating the expanse of the marshes.

The onscreen vanishing point of this shot outlines the near coming of Essex, the for coming location. The bleak, grey colour pallet connotes the entering of the mundane setting of Essex Furthermore, the entering of the dismal sky shows the inevitable route to sorrowing events the anti-hero is about to face. Changing his morality for the worst, with the shot as a whole being a metaphor for Billy leaving his previous life behind, entering new life with no good and crime.

  
The claustrophobic space within this shot connotes that the character as being trapped within the upcoming events, having no option but to participate in them.

Se7en Conventions of Noir

Within my own production I could use conventions from se7en, such as the ticking metronome and the busy urban city sounds. Techniques such as these establish the environment the film is set in furthermore, with both contrasting sounds connotes the relationship the character has to his environment. The character Detective Summersets is surrounded with unease and chaos of the noise around him, trying to block out the madness with the metronome. The clever uses of sound used to establish the characters relationship to their environment could be an influence to the opening of my own production.

How does the sewer scene in The Third Man use mis en scene to create meaning?



In this shot matrices are used to create a sense of entrapment with the use of high angles and diagonal lines connoting the loss power and perpetuating a sense of fear. The winding of the staircase suggests disorientation and confusion, this could be a metaphor for power and how the character is desperately trying to escape. 

                              

The extreme long shot emphasises the isolation within the sewer, this arrays a common theme in film noir of a male anti-hero character, foreshadowing the isolation and secrecy within post war society. The character in the shot is displayed as small in comparison to the surroundings, this exaggerates the characters vulnerability to what he is hiding from. 



     

   

Matrices are also used in this image, with the use of diagonal lines creating confusion. The geometry encloses the character into the setting creating a maze like setting, causing a metaphorical claustrophobia being stuck in the space. Furthermore, the large shadow emphasises the protagonists evil side being the character which absorbs the most space within the shot.

     

 




In one of the final shots of the sewer scene chiaroscuro is used to silhouette the character, to present their darker side however still surrounding the character through a tunnel of darkness. The stable onscreen vanishing point brings a concluded end to the manic action previous.

Media A-S Preliminary Task

For our preliminary task, we had the task to film under brief of continuity. The task involved editing a character opening the door, crossing a room and sitting down opposite another character, with whom he/she then exchange a couple of lines of dialogue. We had to embody all the features of the brief into a short film.

Planning
Before we could start filming we needed to plan our film including where it would take place, the script and the different types of shots we would use. To begin with we looked around the school to find a suitable filming place in which we could set our scene. Once we had decided a to film we went back to the class room to start planning our floor plan and storyboard, this would ensure we knew what shots we were going to do and also ensure we didn't break the 180 degree rule which was crucial to the task. Drawing out the floor plan helped us decide on the shots we were going to use which benefited us greatly when creating our storyboard. The storyboard gave us clarity of our scenes, it ensured we were sticking to the brief as well as using a variety of shots and angles to make the film more interesting.  We also decided on our scrip we had chosen to use which was from the film 'Mean Girls'. Choosing the scrip early on gave us time to edit any of it which needed adjusting and also gave us time to rehearse it. During the filming we made sure to look back at our plan to remind us of the shots we were aiming to use and what action we were supposed to be filming in each clip. Each stage of the planning helped us film a smoother and more organised film however, the additional planning we could've used was to rehearse the whole film through at least once, with or without filming. This would've helped us make sure we had continuity throughout the entire film.

Techniques

In our film we used a variety of techniques, during previous lessons we looked at a range of techniques we could incorporate into our piece to make it more interesting. Throughout the whole film we made sure we stuck to the 180 degree rule. This rule made sure the film made sense, and is as crucial for the viewers to follow to enable them to understand     where everything was in the different scenes. During the cross over between the walking scene and the dialogue between the two characters we used an extreme close up of the opening of the door, this gives the impression that there could be some sort of significance to what is inside the door and gives slight curiosity to the shot. This technique is used in Breaking Bad on the first episode when there is multiple extreme close ups on significant objects/ things which give more information about the character. Though they have different purposes the camera shot gives the focused object a purpose. In the fist shot we used a long/high angled shot, this abled us to set the scene of the school place which suited our school based movie script. We also used a birds eye shot to make the film more interesting, we used this when passing over an object between the two characters. This shot was inspired by Coffee and Cigarettes, aiming to look directly onto the scene and changing the focus of the scene giving it more depth. While editing we had to cut our scenes to show continuity, we incorporated a quick dip to black once during the filming to make one of the change of scenes smoother otherwise it would've look disjointed to the previous and after shots. To finish our short film we used a fade to black to show a definitive ending, this technique is a traditional ending to films and programmes, which inspired us to use it to show a professional end.

The use of close-ups in these shots draws the attention to the subjects

We used a birds-eye shot to add variety of camera angles, this was inspired by a shot in the film  cigarettes and coffee

Main Learning Points

I have learnt a variety of key learning points from this task all of which will be valuable in my thriller project later in the year. The practical aspects which I will refer to are some of the simplest things such as using the camera, such as learning how to zoom and focus. These skills will be crucial when creating my thriller piece as I would've already practised the techniques to make the camera work a higher standard. Understanding how to use and open the editing software was one of the main practical aspects which was key to learn. This has abled me to know the basics within editing such as importing clips, how to add in and outputs and how to export clips, these skills will allow me to use the programme efficiently.  The planning aspect of the task showed me how important it is to have clear ideas before filming. By working in a group, creating a storyboard and floor plan allowed us to have a more professional outcome, instead of spontaneously forming ideas during filming. Though planning improved our piece majorly some aspects of our piece didn't go as smooth as I wished. For example the audio in the clips weren't smooth and had to be edited to make piece more continuous than originally. This also goes for the camera work as there was slight camera movement in some shot where it shouldn't've been, making it look less smooth and skilful.  Throughout the project we constantly referred back to the 180 degree rule, as this technical aspect of film making is key to establishing film to make sense. This technical aspect will have an impact later in the year as it will show my understanding on its importance in making a well-made piece. During class, we learnt techniques such as how to shoot someone walking, from texts such as peaky Blinders and Saturday Night fever. These texts showed us how to establish a character before showing the character as a whole. This will be compelling to use in my thriller piece as it will result in my piece being professional and enticing for the audience. In the future I will widen the use of techniques I've learnt and incorporate more into my task to discover more of my ability. For example, my piece we didn't use advance technique when shooting the conversation, which made it look less professional and disabled a wider use of editing tools we could've used.

'How does the director of Peaky Blinders use camera angles and mise en scene to establish expectation and character? Editied: 21.10.16

'How does the director of Peaky Blinders use camera angles and mise en scene to establish expectation and character?

The use of shallow focus on the overall shot allows the camera to focus on the three main characters which are presented. Rule of thirds is used to reinforce the characters power and determination, furthermore, the use of lead room also helps creates the sense of determination, it creates dynamic and reveals the charactrs importance. The colour paette of this shot is a hellish orange colour which resembles violence and anger, the costume in contrast is a dismal grey which is forboding and is in contrast to the setting, causing the characters to stand out.

A range of techniques are used in this shot to show the power of the group. The straight on show reinforces the number of people approaching and the point of the characters walking directly though the puddle shows their authorities in the scene and how nothing can disrupt their fortitude. The puddle in the shot also foreshadows aggressive behaviour, the puddle which was once calm is shown being disrupted by the militant like group. The darkness of the character’s costume reveals the formality of the characters and furthermore portrays the groups sombre personalities. 

In this image only the reflection of the characters is shown, the low angled shot makes the shot seem distorted, enabling the viewers to see the characters in focus. The low angled wide shot emphasises the vast number of people approaching, the slow revealing shot accentuates the appearance of the gang. Again, the dark clothed characters imply a sense of danger and mystery. The fire being a prop conveys an impression of hell and the character’s menace.

The still balance of the camerawork in this shot creates the sense of power for the characters by showing the characters with complete control over the shot. The movement of the characters walking closer so the camera show their authority. It shows the men are bringing some kind of disorder to he scene when breaking into the shot with the splashing of the puddle. Also implying  a gang like culture by disruption which gives the audience the expectation that they are a violent and powerful group.

How do directors use cinematography, mise en scene, sound and editing to establish character?

Introduction

Hi, I'm Timiah and this my A- Level media blog.