Preliminary Task: Evaluation

Evaluation

Produce a 30 second clip to exhibit a scene with the manipulation of basic film production techniques (lighting, sound, editing etc.) as well as employment of match-on-action, the 180-degree rule and shot/reverse shots. The narrative of the scene should include a character opening a door and sitting down opposite another character with whom they exchange a couple of lines of dialogue with.

The plot of our short film was an innocent girl stumbles across a lost purse and decides to take it as her own, as a consequence of this it causes her to fall into the hands of a shifty con artist who uses her innocence to his advantage and for hid criminal activities.

In order for us to actually get to filming we first had to plan out how and what we were going to do. This included story boarding which would allow us later on when filming to visually see and recreate what we had planned and what to include mise-en-scene. We also it had to create a narrative to ensure that we knew fully what the story line was and how we could create this visually. This was basically like a guideline for us to follow during filming and even editing. This allowed us to bring the story to life as effectively as possible. As well as a general narrative there was a brief script that was also created to allow for the actors to memorise and deliver their dialogue effectively. Each of these pre-production aspects were taken on individually by each member of our group which allowed for the work to be concentrated on wholly on that part of the production and produce and effective piece that will allow us to create the best final product possible.

The main strengths of our piece were the narrative and the music. The narrative was strong and projected clearly to the audience which allowed for them to follow the film and enjoy it. The music allowed for the audience to know that there would be an ultimate pinnacle to the film as it slowly built the atmosphere of suspense without the use of dialogue in the film which complemented the situation well and gave it a blockbuster feel. This was achieved very easily with royalty free music from the internet. Another strength of our film was the cinematography, there was a variety of shots and unique shots for each scene which allowed for audience to be constantly engaged with the film therefore making it easier for them to get fully indulged in the narrative of the film. The use of shots such as panning shots allowed for more suspense to be built as the audience is waiting for the subject to be revealed. Another effective shot was the handheld shot of the antagonist running towards the protagonist. This evoked fear in the audience as it was very realistic and felt as if they were there too.

There were several weaknesses within our film; they included the focus of the camera, the unintentional change of moods and the jumpy transitions. The focus of the camera was a difficult aspect that we struggled to combat during filming. This was down to the fact that we were fairly inexperienced with the 50ml lens that we were using which a strong focus and depth of field which was hard to deal with. An example of this in our film was when there was a shot of the antagonist looking at the purse, there seemed to be more focus on the radiator in the shot which could’ve caused distraction and confusion to the audience. This is a mistake that we will strive to avoid in our final production but the use of this happening in this task allows for us to increase the production value of our final piece. Furthermore, another weakness in our film was when the protagonist was thrown into the room. This was done in a comedic manner which slightly diluted the dramatic atmosphere that we were trying to create. All of these weaknesses will definitely be improved or avoided when it comes to our final production.

Film Language: Editing

                              Editing Task

What makes this sequence such an effective scene is the editing and its inclusivity of other aspects of film language. The most prominent use of editing used in this scene is the pacing, which is what makes it so impressive. The fact that it can change the pace constantly between two characters and so fast is how it is so distinctive and its overall use of juxtaposition in this scene. In the sequence, we visit the two type of people in the slums, the hoodlums and the normal citizens. The director has made sure that he does not only convey their differences and personality's through the acting but it also portrayed through the editing which is done through the pacing of the scene. When we are with the hoodlums all diegetic sound is drowned out by the non-diegetic samba, which is then complimented by all the constant fast paced cuts close-up cuts. All of this leads to create quite a bustling atmosphere which is quite overwhelming for the audience and creates the idea that these group of characters are the type that lead a fast pace life and live in the moment which is true. Not only are there many cuts close and in between but for the first minute of the sequence there is only close-ups or extreme close-up shots of the hoodlums. The change in pace when we focus on the normal citizens is fast and noticeable, as when we cut to them there is purely diegetic sound of the surroundings and the two boys talking there is also less cuts far and in between. There is also a smaller number of close-ups and mostly just medium close-ups and long shots. All of this creates the idea to the audience that these two boys are the opposite of the hoodlums but they just live in the same area, but it also makes the audience wonder why the hoodlums do what they do and why the two boys do what they do. The immediate slowing of pace when the two groups of characters collide makes all the fast pace scene before more noticeable but it also creates enigma in the audience into what will happen next and why it the scene has slowed down. All of this is an effective use of pacing which makes the scene very distinctive. 

Another aspect of editing that makes this scene distinctive is the effective use of jump cuts as one of its transitions. There is an abundance of straight cuts in this sequence which is what makes it so distinctive as the straight cuts are used well in the fast pace context as it is not too much for the audience to take in but still gets the idea of change across. The straight cuts are used in two different ways in this sequence, sometimes to create speed and confusion and sometimes to just simply change shot. However, the director takes this idea of creating confusion and having high pace another step with the use of jump cuts. The most noticeable jump cut in this sequence is when one of the hoodlums stop a bystander and start harassing, the director keeps it on one constant sideways long shot but cuts it many times and has both characters in different positions in the shot. This conveys to the audience that everything is spontaneous in this situation and how the whole situation feel jumbled. All of this makes for the sequence to be effective as it not only uses one shot to create the bustling pace.

The final few things that make this sequence such an effective piece of editing is its use of juxtaposition and continuity editing. In this case the most important use of juxtaposition is when the two character 'collide'. The director allows us to see this with the slowdown in pace and the difference between the two the characters, as the hoodlums are yelling and laughing and the two boys are silent and shocked in the face of them. They also use the eye line of the characters to see people reaction, as it looks like the boys are expecting a different reaction then they receive. Furthermore, the use of the police running in the face of the hoodlums is another use of juxtaposition as when the police arrive and the hoodlums stand the ground the audience would expect the police to fire too but they leave. This is effective in showing the audience how the slums function and building the narrative, as well as this to end the sequence they utilize a flashback as a use of continuity editing. This is all used to make this sequence a very distinctive piece of editing.