To provide insight on a pilot’s life. To show how also private owners benefit from this.
2. Contacts:
- My dad’s boss Andy.
- Two other pilots that I will search for via Andy. He has pilot friends.
- My friend’s dad works at the airport as a mechanic. I will as to see if I can have access to the airport to film tar mak activity.
The Airplane that my dad's boss has. I think it might
be a variation. The exact model is a PA-32R Saratoga.
3. Interview Questions:
a. How has being a pilot affected the way you live life? The relationship you might have with your family and even your happiness/sadness?
b. Is there a connection amongst other pilots? What is it about aviation that pulls you and other pilots together? Is there some sort of club you are a part of?
c. What airplane do you fly? How does it suite your needs?
i. Which aircraft is ideal for long distance travel?
ii. Which aircraft is ideal for short distance travel?
iii. Which aircraft is ideal for city to city?
d. What problems have you encountered as a pilot in regards to your aircraft/in regards to your personal life?
e. I WILL HAVE MORE QUESTIONS ONCE ANDY GIVES ME THE MODEL NUMBER FOR HIS NEW AIRPLANE (it’s some sort of piper instead of a Cesna).
I could also have questions for the dad that would give me access to the airport. Such as simple questions that might enforce what the pilots will say in the interview.
4. Shot list:
- Whatever B-Roll is shot on day of shooting.
- I plan to get access to the side of the runway and film airplanes taking off/ landing.
- Filming general taxiing from outside the aircraft.
- B-Roll of the general flight I would be part taking in.
- Interview will be at desk, in front of an airplane, inside the airplane (for the piper).
- Try and get simple B-Roll of the interviewees in their daily lives.
5. General flow
- This will be determined by what the content of the interviews are.
6. The Script (does not seem likely yet because I am still trying to put the pieces together).
Intro: Something about how the pilots love flying. Maybe a ‘in the prequel of ‘air adventure’ we took a look at Andy’s EXPERIENCE with the Cesna. This documentary aims to examine the LIVES of the pilots this time and in more detail”.
Closing: Some sort of awesome quote that one of the interviewees might say. Like the last one I did, Andy said “I wouldn’t have missed it for the world”.
7. Production Schedule
- None yet because I am still wondering about the details.
- This week planning to establish contact with everyone. Start shooting either Thursday after school or Saturday and Sunday.
"30 minutes after this picture was
taken, this man was murdered"
The principle subject of this documentary is a story of a British military unit that goes to war in Afghanistan for the first time in their lives. They are lead by a Lieutenant who has had prior experience, yet, as their new commander, everyone is a little worried they won't work in unison that well. Sure enough, as they go out to raid a Taliban weapons bunker, they find nothing and end up walking into a trap. They have been ambushed. In this ambush, they loose a British soldier. The Lieutenant in the documentary rights to the mother a detailed letter in order to shed light on what happened that day. In the end, he becomes a teacher of war. He attempts to dissuade people as he speaks about the British soldier that was murdered on that weapons bunker raid. "30 minutes after this picture was taken, this man was murdered by the Taliban."
The principle purpose of this documentary is to display the horrors of war. It takes a certain type of character to enter a battle zone where you put your life in jeopardy. I believe that in the end, if someone is still convinced to go to war even after all of the dissuasion, then they are mentally fit to go to battle and serve their country.
I believe the intended audience for this documentary is anyone that seems mature enough to handle the content. It is uncensored footage that uses vulgar language and themes of death and violence are present. It is the kind of documentary where they should put "viewer discretion is advised".
The documentary aims to be as realistic as possible. Staying true to the story is an absolute necessity in order to have any justice for the men who served in Afghanistan. The documentary consist of interviews from the parents of the fallen soldier and interviews of the soldiers who were ambushed on that day. Additionally, the documentary introduced primarily how the war on terror is the first war to be largely documented as it is being recorded by everyone. Soldiers are bringing their own cameras to the front lines. And that is what the lieutenant of this documentary did. His uncensored real life footage and un edited was used as the B-Roll for this documentary. Interviews from the people who were there, along with legitimate footage, the documentary was successful in staying true to the story... as far as I know.
K.I.A. British Soldier
Dead Taliban
Because the footage is not professional, there is no judging on what should have been filmed and what should not have. The Lieutenant probably had the camera strapped onto his helmet and let it record his whole day every day. Editors cut out a lot in order to condense time but it most likely kept the key moments that were meant to convey the message that war brings. That is, war brings death. In relation to what should have been filmed or not, I believe that first person perspective on a situation is fair to the aim of this documentary. Additionally, The camera, although uncensored, refrained from filming directly at the dead British soldier. This was most likely unintentional yet it was necessary to show respect for the fallen comrade. However, we later see how the British soldiers yearned for revenge and end up killing a Taliban. They are more than willing to film the Taliban's dead body in order to send a message. The British can be a menacing and a threat to the war on terror. The pose a threat to the Taliban because they are capable of killing their men, which could lead one step closer to ending the insurgency.
As mentioned, the documentary is merely interviews with the soldiers and an amateur footage of the event itself. The sound you hear comes from the sound of the footage for whatever was recorded.
There really is no intended effect of the film that has been used in this documentary. Everything is meant to be interpreted literally. Therefore, there is no need for complex and fancy camera work. As a result, the plain old amateur footage is sufficient along with basic stationary interview shots.
The documentary does NOT record seemingly spontaneous dialogue or interaction between two or more participants engaged in conversation action.
The Lieutenant
As I mentioned, the documentary accounts for the first person. This is essential as the producers for this film were trying to get a point across. There is a question, if you won't believe the people who were in war, then who can you believe? That is why this documentary is important as it reaches the front line (in a sense) of the soldiers and their experiences and exploits the realities of harsh combat. I don't believe the intent of the directors of this film was to dissuade war completely. This is in part because I think it was the Lieutenant who said that war may be a bad thing but it is necessary. He states that war can either have good results or bad results. Its all circumstantial. Overall, I believe that the purpose for this documentary was to capture one aspect of war, as this is only a fraction of what could be even harsher realities. He merely wants to show what are the results of war, and relies on the audience to make their own feelings about it. However, with the interviews and B-Roll, the director helps to "guide" the audience to a certain opinion.
The Visual used to depict
their situation against the Taliban
Although it is not a matter of getting a point across, the documentary does incorporate a visual to describe the situation in which the British soldiers are in. When the documentary went into details about the raid, a digital recreation of the location was made. The purpose for this was to help the audience facilitate the understanding of the situation. Although the narrator could have simply said the soldiers were boxed in, the visual was more detailed and showed how the Taliban could flank the British and come around and box them in. It was pretty important in the end to understanding what the soldiers went through.
The film is very linear in story. I believe this documentary is very effective in communicating its message. As I have mentioned, in order for this documentary to be successful, the first person accounting was necessary in creating an image.
Pudovkins concept of constructive editing revolves around the shots in a sequence. First, he said that each shot should make a new point; this is important for a film in order to develop the plot. If each shot did not make a new point, then there would be random scenes that don't relate to the film and would make the audience feel awkward --- they will know if something is wrong and will feel awkward. Overall, he believed that by juxtaposing shots would create new meaning.
The Kuleshov effect is another editing idea used in films on a regular basis. What it is, is that its when two shots are put together in order to create a new meaning. A relationship is established between two items people etc. An example of this is when you have a shot of a sweaty man and the sun. You understand he is hot. Or you could have the same sweaty man and then a different shot of a women. You might infer that he is nervous and to afraid to talk to her.
Eisentstein had a different idea than Pudovkin. Contrastingly he believed that instead of each shot making its own new point that they should be contributing to one and another. Montage is several shots that have to do with the same concept. In the Odessa Steps sequence, everyone is being shot down. Each shot has its own thing to talk about yet they are incomplete. No one knows why people are running but we later see they are running from guns.
In "The Man With the Movie Camera" there is no set plot line. For me it is infuriating to watch because I am bored out of my mind. A lot of shots are put together. One long continuous take after another. This trait of realistic editing is very slow. It allows time for the audience to absorb information and develop their own meaning. Also, the montage is being done here where several shots are put together to create meaning. There was a time frame in this film where there were several people laying down on the streets because they are probably poor. The kuleshov effect if used because there are several shots of average city life in this setting (who knows where) and accompanied by these poor souls on the ground. With this relationship we can establish the poverty in this village/ town etc. and notice its decline. Everything is very dull too. and there is not much to notice about this film except for its simplicity. This film does not follow Eisentsteinian criteria because each shot has its own meaning. They are not incomplete and they could get away to being their own meaning as individual clips. Overall, this film is simplistic and does not contribute anything significant except for one overall definition of that town.
The plot in this film is very interesting. A child gets his bike stolen and his father tries to get it back for him. Ironically, the father ends up trying to steal one to get a bike back to his son. This film clearly uses the kuleshov effect throughout the beginning sequence of this clip. We know the backstory that he is trying to get the bike back for his son but he resorts to stealing. The kuleshov effect occurs when there is a large group of bikes in front of him. His stare shows a want for it and the bikes show what he wants. Then he looks at the bike in the allyway. He tries to make the decision which bike to take. The isolated one where no one can see him, or out in public. Basically, I believe that this clip uses Eisentinian editing because each shot helps to develop the character (this adult man person). We see shots of his son, allowing us to feel for his love for him. We see he wants to get a bike for him etc. Overall, I feel that the kuleshov effect help sto develop a character. Its a way to contribute to the plot and that is why this films is Eisenstenian.
Realist films use sequence shots to tell the story. They are continuous takes for one recording of time and in realist films, these sequences last uncomfortably long. They never have any edits or cuts at all because directors want the audience to decide for themselves what they want to focus on. Early cinema started with long shots taken in one lengthy take. With this technique for filming, directors could only make simple stories.
There is not much to explain except for the fact that there are several long takes. There is no fancy editing therefore it is up to the audience with how they want to interpret the movie as it goes on. realism tries to make it as real as possible. These long take show how this man is just walking about, we see the normal nature of humans and how they behave. Cutting like Close Ups don't affect the way we understand someone.
Classicism
Classicism is an editing technique directors want in their films to create a more complicated sequence of events. It tries to show fluidity of an event without literally showing every single step (from point A to B). By condensing actions without leaving anything essential out, an editor can make a film that establishes a clear cause and effect relationship. Also, classicism in editing interprets and action by emphasizing certain details over others (e.g. with the use of close ups etc.). Overall, a director wants this because he or she wants the audience to focus on certain aspects of a film in order to show the one meaning a director is trying to get across.
As you can see in this scene, cuts in the editing identify specific things that are going on. The director clearly wants to show a cause and effect with at first a shot of the RPG then the propeller of the helicopter. This is clearly not good because we can establish (like a kuleshov effect) that the propeller will be destroyed. Its manipulation in editing this way, with different cuts that make this scene classic.
Formalism
Formalism is a style of editing where the director intends to manipulate space and time. This technique creates several emotions within the audience, yet it creates a clear narrative. Certain elements create formalism such as the thematic montage where several shots are connected vie a theme. Also, abstract cutting is a purely formalistic and just completely manipulates the senses. Shots are more concerned with the duration of the shot rather than the actual film.
Requiem for a Dream is an example of formalism (the first 30 seconds):
As you can see in the first 30 seconds, several things are highlighted. The eyes dilating and overall manipulation of time with quick cuts. What would probably take about a minute to get drugs and light them or I really don't know does not compare with how this style manipulates time. Instead of real time, it is condensed into a short time span of about 5 seconds.
10 Themes for Step Outline: Backstory: Charlie is our main character. He has been a single child all his life. All he ever longed for was some company. His parents proposed to get him a pet but when they went to the animal shelter, they had discovered he was pretty much allergic to any animal. The parents decided then to adopt so that Charlie could have his company. Character: Charlie is a tall kid for his age. He enjoys dressing up nice and tends to be gloomy because no one talks to him. Goal: His first goal is to get some company. However, when he decides that his new sibling is no good for him (because the adopted child will become one of the people that makes fun of him) his new goal will be to kill him. Mood: The mood is very gloomy in a sense. You can imagine Charlie and the Chocolate factory (the new one) and relate the sad and poor atmosphere Charlie (from the movie) is in. Later on in this production, I will change the mood from gloomy to frightful. Obstacle: Charlie's obstacle is to get his new sibling (we will call him Logan) into a forest at night so that he can kill him with no witnesses. Relationship: Charlie's relationship with Logan is good at first but then progresses to become very sour. As shown by Logan's behavior towards Charlie ass he begins to make fun of him as well. Setting: The settings that will take place will be in a park (around a swing set), in a forest-like region, and a home (living room type of setting). Unknown: It's unknown that Logan will turn on Charlie by making fun of him and its unknown that Charlie will begin plotting his death. Time: The time of day is progressing from day to day to night time. Discovery: The discovery in this production will be when Logan realizes he made a huge mistake that he made fun of Charlie. Also, he discovers that Charlie is out to get him but its to late to run because he is trapped in a forest. STEP OUTLINE
Charlie is on a swing set watching other kids play until they all leave and its around 7 o'clock. At this time he goes home all by himself. Plays with a toy all by himself when he gets home.
At dinner table tells his parents he wishes he had some company or a friend because everyone teases him. FLASH BACKS to several instances when he was made fun of.
VOICE OVER --> "As Charlie asked he got his wish. The next day he and his parents went to an animal shelter to pick out a pet. Unfortunately for Charlie, he was allergic..." Charlie sneezes.
VOICE OVER --> "For the rest of the day, Charlie sat on the couch with nothing to do but to mope. Little did he know, that his parents went to an adoption agency so that he could have a brother."
His parents walk in the door and tell Charlie to meet his new brother Logan. They say hi and smile at each other.
The next day they go to the park and play on the swing set. Logan has already made friends and he begins to make fun of Charlie with his new friends.
When they are both home they face off and Logan tells Charlie its no big deal, he is "just trying to fit in".
Logan continues his teasing for a few more days until Charlie snaps (he doesn't show it though).
Even though Logan makes fun of Charlie in public, their relationship SEEMS decent back at home
Back at home Charlie invites Logan to play a game at night in the forest. The goal is to collect all 8 papers.
Whoever collects the most papers wins. After a few minutes they get seperated.
Logan begins to get worried as he is alone. He keeps running into the papers and each one says something like "you made a terrible choice" or "ure going to be the one hurting".
When he finds the last paper, he turns around and sees Charlie with a knife... THE END.
Characterization is the process of creating a character a character including words, actions, thoughts, appearances, and other people's thoughts about them.
The character I will be focusing on is Johnny Depp. He has played in many movies such as Edward Scissor Hands, The Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, and Alice in Wonderland. For this particular post, I will be taking a look at Johnny Depp and his role in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory as he plays the role of Willy Wonka. Like any of Johnny's films, he plays (it seems) a socially awkward individual; yet, is funny and comedic to the audience. In Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Wonka sends out five golden tickets around the world in hopes find a successor or an heir. His journey in finding this sole individual begins when they all enter Willy Wonka's factory (see video).
Actor Johnny Depp
Initially, we notice Wonka's unusual wardrobe. He wears a burgundy coat, a top hat with unusual curves, and walks around with a cane even though he does not have leg problems. This interesting choice in clothing demonstrates his character's uniqueness in a more visual manner. Canes represent power, proving Wonka's authority in the factory. The top hat and coat allude to United States President Abraham Lincoln. These connections draw similar conclusions about Wonka's power. However, it is the color choice that the director chooses in order to distance Wonka from the other characters. Wonka's body language is more visible on his facial expressions (especially in this scene). Children are around him, he seem uncomfortable every time they talk to him. This can be seen by his body language as every time Veruka, Violet, or Augustus come to talk to him, Wonka retracts his body away from them and adjusts his mouth awkwardly. It is difficult to describe facial expression, but with Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka, we see each time that he puts on a worried visage. Another aspect to Willy Wonka's character is his persona. We get a sense of his persona with each interaction with the kids. Violet is the first child to approach Wonka and introduces herself. Wonka demonstrates his personality in the way he answers her: "I don't care." We can already tell that Wonka is focused on the tour and the audience can infer that there is a reason to Wonka's madness. He continues by saying "you seem confident and confidence is key" --- kind of a way to prove to the audience that he really might have something planned. After, Veruka introduces herself and Wonka responds: "I always thought Veruka was the name of some type of wart". This demonstrates Wonka's comedic aspect and kind of highlights the whole experience that should be within the factory; that experience being "fun". Augustus is the third child to approach Wonka and Wonka responds sarcastically saying: "I never knew we had so much in common". Although he can be cheerful, he knows his place in the factory and recognizes his authority and aims to use sarcasm to distance himself from Augustus as he was distanced from his father.
After the introductions amongst the characters, Willy Wonka's goals are pretty much clear. Once everyone is settled in, he tries to get the tour moving along. Wonka's intensions become more apparent throughout the movie. He presents each kid with a challenge (essentially) to see how rotten or spoiled they are. He believes that his factory should be run by the purest of souls and for some reason believes that this "pure" kid can only be found through these strange situations. (I guess thats just the power of fiction.) Overall, at the end of the movie, we see that Charlie is the only kid left and is selected to be Wonka's heir to the factory. However, Wonka faces some obstacles in his mission to finding an heir. The director uses flashbacks to demonstrate Wonka's awkwardness but also the reason for his dislike of families. At the beginning of the movie, he couldn't even say the word "parents" because his dad treated him unfairly. The distancing from Wonka's dad allowed for room for Wonka to mature on his own yet lack the understanding of families. This hinders his goals for finding an heir becausee Charlie would only accept becoming the heir if his family could come along. At first, Wonka is reluctant. But when Charlie helped to reunite Wonka and his dad, Wonka saw the warmth that came with a family. Wonka was able to achieve his goal after he had removed the obstacle he had created for himself.
Sony has come out with dozens of new cameras, each featuring some sort of full frame sensor. This is exciting for camera enthusiasts because they will be getting more detail in their images -- with more detail in an image, you can get a higher resolution. In the post, the author mentioned that even though he likes the quality of an image, he prefers to have something pocket sized to carry around everywhere (unlike the NEX VG900 [look at image]). For this, he mentions the RX1 which is just small enough to carry around. Lastly, another camera came out called the Sony NEX6 and what it can do is edit videos within the camera and when your done, you can upload it to the internet. To me all these names mean nothing to me, however, I am beginning to understand what kind of developments camera engineers are working on.
Project Imagin8ion, a collaboration between Canon and Ron Howard, is the first ever user-generated photo contest that invited consumers to inspire a Hollywood production. Ron Howard chose the winning 8 photographs, setting the stage for his latest production "when you find me." Directed by Bryce Dallas Howard.
"When You Find Me" directed by Bryce Dallas Howard plays out the memories of two sisters of when their mother died. From inferring, we can understand the mother died of cancer, and from there we observe as the older sister is trying to make her younger sister understand the concept of death. Despite her efforts, the younger sister believes she can see her mother in heaven by taking a spaceship. When the scene comes, we see its just a run down airplane that is missing its wings and tail. The memories in the film are intertwined with the present situation as the two sisters reunite to talk about that night. The younger sister mentions that when she went into the "spaceship" she saw their mom and spoke with her. From there, the film begins to wrap up the story.
10 themes in the film: Backstory This image is an example of "backstory" because the film begins and ends with this shot (pretty much). Throughout the film, the history in this shot will be explained through the memories of the younger sister. At the beginning of the film the audience is pretty confused as to what is happening with this shot. The whole film is pretty much an explanation as to what this scene means. It can be described as heaven; this is where the little girl meets up with her mother.
Character This is screenshot from the film is an example of "character" because it contains a little girl. This little girl is the younger one of the two sisters. She is dressed in some sort of costume and is playing a game with her sister getting ready to be caught. This little girl is a character because her costume characterizes her. The vibrant colors and random horse toy shows she is sporadic. This is essential to notice when she runs away into the graveyard later in the film.
Goal This screenshot exemplifies the theme of "goal" because it shows the younger sister's ambition to find her mom and speak with her one last time. The older explains that the mom is in heaven (she explains its in outer-space). She then proceeds to say that you can only get there with a spaceship. The younger sister is mad to realize how impossible it is to reach her mother. It is night time when she is explained this. When she falls asleep, she dreams how she will accomplish her goal to reach her mother.
Mood
This is an example of "mood" because of the colors and the feelings someone in the audience would feel when watching this scene. First off, the colors in this scene are a mizxture of blue, gray, black, and whites. These color are deathly colors; thus, making the viewer a little melancholy. But also, these colors are relaxing and match the feel of a mother's embrace on her little daughters back. The younger daughter and mother in this scene hold each other one last time in this "vision" (i guess) before the mother's spirit goes away for ever.
Obstacle
When anything or anyone is in the characters way, this scene shows both. The two siters are hustling somewhere but only the younger sister knows where she is going. The older sister is just following along to protect her as well as try and stop the younger sister and trying to get her back to the house. This is the first obstacle the younger sister faces. The second obstacle the little sister faces is the giant gate that is blocking her path into the cemetery. Its obviously really tall and the little girl cant make it over. Luckily for the little sister, the older sister gives her a boost and she climbs over. That is how the younger sister overcomes two obstacles.
Relationship This "relationship" between the two sisters in the movie (as adult, you know in the future) is unique to the film. They shared an experience together that was pretty long. They played in the morning to catch each other, they were given a ride to the hospital where their cancerous mother was laying, they witnessed her die, they went back home, discussed when mom would come back home etc.. Throughout their whole lives (as we see near the end of the film) they have carried this memory closely to themselves. This memory retains their relationship.
Setting This location or environment is a setting near the end of the film where the two sisters have reunited after so many years (after their mothers death). We can clearly distinguish that its a graveyard, with tombstones and (i guess) ugly trees. This scene is where the older sister tricks the younger sister into a ride back home when in fact she is bringing her to a "pit stop" to their mothers grave. The death bring out emotions in people, and this is when the older sister lets out her feelings and tells the truth. Yet, from the truth, she still does not seem to find closure from the younger sisters "vision".
Unknown
This time in the film can be considered "unknown" because it is very mysterious. The younger sister has finally found her "spaceship" so we are wondering what she is going to do with it. When we see the panel light up, an audience member is definitely shocked and does not know what to expect. It is only at the end of the film do we really know what happened. At that time, the twist in this film is that she actually saw her mother and had a conversation with her.
Time This is an example of "time" because it clearly shows the sun already up. It is (i think) the morning after the sister's mother's death and the two girls are sitting outside pondering. Either that, or its the same sun, or the same morning, of the day the mother died of cancer. This sun shows the time of day as well as when the mother died.
Canon has a new film project supported by director Ron Howard that identifies 10 key themes tied to storytelling: https://www.longliveimagination.com/themes/main
Theme: BACKSTORY The theme "backstory" is defined as a history that promotes fuller understanding of whatever narrative. The shot itself is taken in a portrait position in an extreme long shot. If we rotated the image we notice that there is a lot of landscape in the picture proving the lens to be wide angled with a short focal length. There is depth to this picture because the water is the foreground, the individuals are the middle ground and the sun and sky present themselves as the background -- Allowing for a great depth of field. The sun is also a visual vector because it is positioned in the shot where a human looks at a picture first; also, it is large and dominant. Additionally, the f-stop is probably from 8-22 in order to not let to much light enter the lens. Because the horizon is flat when the picture is taken the mood is very calming.
Theme: CHARACTER
The theme "character" is defined as an image that can contain anything or anyone. This picture is taken in a portrait position with a full body shot (I guess). Rotating the image would show what kind of lens we have -- narrow angled with a narrow vista in order to magnify the subject. Additionally, the shot has deep focus because everything in the image is in focus. In majority, a lot of visual vectors in the picture help to "characterize" who the subject is. On the top of her head we notice a feathery object then her black dress and finally her violin. The commonality in these items is that they are all black. We might assume she likes music, birds and even has had some death occur around her. The depth of field in this shot evokes some power because of the slant. The slant allows for the lines on the wall to become diagonals and creating depth of field.
Theme: GOAL
The theme "goal" is defined as whatever a character might be pursuing. This particular shot is taken in portrait and when you rotate it back to landscape you can see that it might be just a normal view. The guitar and the subject are both lined up on the intersecting points (in relation to the rule of thirds). This keeps the shot even all around. Based on the straight horizontal floor boards the mood is calm. The coloring is changed to sepia so for me it is hard to judge aperture-wise the amount of exposure. Its a simple shot with the rug as our foreground, the guitar and subject in the middle ground and the door in the background. Because the back of the subject is somewhat cut off as well as the door, the space in the picture can seem somewhat expanded allowing for the shot to not feel like a box.
Theme: MOOD
The theme "mood" is defined as how an image conveys atmosphere, tone or emotion. This picture is taken in portrait orientation and has a narrow vista. This narrow vista allows for the subject (the dog) to be large and dominant in the picture. There is depth in the picture with the curtains in the foreground, the dog in the middle ground, and the rest of the white wall in the background. The white wall adds an interesting feel to the picture. The dog itself seems calm yet the diagonal wall adds a dynamic mood which conflicts with what the dog might be feeling. The shot is a full shot of the dog and also gives enough head room for the subject so that it does not seem that the dog's head is being cut off. Along the top edges, the lens seems a little overexposed at an f-stop of about 2.8-8 where the light from outside completely leaves a blank trace where it hits. Lastly, everything is in focus suggesting deep focus in the camera.
Theme: OBSTACLE
The theme "obstacle" is defined as anyone or anything in the character's way. This image is taken in an orientation defined as portrait with a narrow vista and I think long lens. What is dominant in this picture is the hand. More importantly, is the rope that leads to the top of the cliff. The camera is placed slightly off of the rope to create a powerful dynamic feel. This is done by placing the rope on the z-axis so that we move to a somewhat 2D picture to a more personal and involved picture to the viewer.. The picture has a great depth of field, everything is in focus. The foreground is the hand, the middle ground is the rocks kinda blending into the fore and background. Lastly, the background is the sky. A simple image but very captivating.
Theme: RELATIONSHIP
The theme "relationship" is define as a relationship or connection between anyone or anything. This picture is in a landscape orientation with a normal vista and normal angle on the lens. Because the animals are not squished together in the picture it is just like seeing this with the naked eye. From foreground to middle ground to background we see a horse and its owner, more horses, then the trees in the background. The shot is a little underexposed because there are some parts of the horses that are too dark. Also, the horse in the very back is practically black and invisible. Its as if the f-stop is at 2.8 when it should be around 1.4.
Theme: SETTING
The theme "setting" is defined as any location or environment. This location is shot in a normal vista normal angle lens and is colored in sepia. The trees are lined along the z-axis allowing a great sense of depth in the picture. From foreground all the way to the background trees are lined up. Everything in the picture is in focus meaning that there is deep focus. The shot seems a little overexposed with an f-stop at maybe 8-16. Additionally, in relation to the rule of thirds, the items are lined up well enough to keep balance in the shot.
Theme: the UNKNOWN
The theme "the unknown" is defined as anything that could be unsuspecting or that has a twist. The picture is taken in a portrait position with a normal view and angle in my opinion. We notice the lining of the cement is goes from one edge to the other diagonally adding some sense of depth. The focus in the picture is all around, meaning everything is in focus --> great depth of field. The child is placed along the z-axis; additionally, the camera is slightly off of the subject continually adding to this 3D effect where the viewer feels apart of it. To me, the hand seems like a powerful visual vector and I feel more compelled to look at the hand rather than the child because it is so intriguing and "unknown". The lighting in the shot is perfect because you are getting the light from the sun (and the sun is not directly going into the lens).
Theme: TIME
The theme "time" is defined as anything that represents the time of day or within history. Right away we notice selective focus in the image. The foreground is clearly visible and we can make out the details while the background the middle and background are completely blurred. In order to get this effect, the camera had to have had a long lens and be zoomed in.This is a selective shallow focus and shows how this piece of wood is the dominant item in the frame. Speaking of frame, it is also lined up with the rule of thirds rule. The shots exposure is balanced with an f-stop of 4-8.
THE TENTH THEME WILL BE AVAILABLE AT A LATER DATE. CHECK BACK SOON.
This film review is done on the short film "This Way Up" directed by Adam Foulkes and Alan Smith.
The short is a story about two caretakers that need to deliver an old ladies body to her final resting place. Uniquely about this film is that the two caretakers find themselves in a predicament where their car is smashed by a giant boulder. The short consists of this plot while accompanied by a series of comedic obstacles that that aim to prevent the caretakers from reaching their delivery deadline.
The two caretakers are headed towards an unknown destination.
1) To my knowledge, this film is not adapted from another work but an original idea from directors Adam Foulkes and Alan Smith. It's an animated film and revolves around two main characters (the caretakers) and some minor characters. At the beginning of the plot, we notice two englishmen with their top hats as they drive away in their car. As an audience we have no idea what to expect from the characters being introduced. As a result, we rely on "mis en scene" so that we can further understand our characters. For example, at the beginning of the short, there is an englishman in a funeral car waiting for his coworker. During this time, we can notice a sign on the building that says "funeral homes". As a result, we know they are involved with funerals. Also, gloomy gray colors and crooked trees already bring an eery tone to the plot. In addition, when a shot finally reveals the faces of the englishmen we notice the wrinkles on their faces and a very pale and gray facade. Finally, their black outfit suggests mourning. Overall, with this "mis en scene" the audiences understands a melancholic atmosphere and attempts to adjust their emotions to interpret more expected "sadness" throughout the short.
The minor characters in the short film help to characterize our caretakers. When the caretakers finally arrive at their destination to pick up a corpse and coffin we can see a picture of an old lady. Needless to say, this implies that there is a dead old lady in the coffin. It is the moment that the two caretakers pick up the coffin and begin to bring it away that we understand the true nature of their existence in the short. From here on out, the audience understands that the plot will revolve around the caretakers and delivering the coffin to the cemetery.
The caretakers have arrived to pick up the coffin with a dead old lady inside it.
2) The key to animated films (especially short ones) is to make the characters not talk. With today's technology not everyone has access to "Avatar" style animations where every movement in the muscle is believable. For low budget shorts the key factor is to prevent your animations from talking. "This Way Up" utilizes other methods for making the characters seem believable to the audience. For example, the caretakers in the film uses sounds like humming for simple approvals and grunts for disprovals. Also, by simple actions such as shutting off the radio can quickly send a message to the audience that the older caretaker is annoyed with the younger caretaker and his shenanigans (e.g. rolling the window up and down). Another example is when the two caretakers find themselves in a seesaw position on the edge of a cliff. The younger caretaker is on the cliff side while the old man caretaker is on the edge side. So far throughout this short, the old man has been characterized as serious and poker-faced. For me at least, I was astonished to see an actual feeling of worry expressed on the old man's facade. Overall, even though a character does not use complex or simple dialogue in film, it does not hinder the directors ability to instruct his actors to convey meaning through their body language.
3) Actors in this short are definitely appropriately cast because it is an animation. When it comes to animations, the sky is the limit in creating characters that match a directors specific quota. As mentioned before, the characters are designed in a way to symbolize what death is. Death is gray (saddening), wrinkly (old and ugly/not wanted), and clothed in black (black being a representation of evil and all that is dark and evil). Our two main characters, the caretakers, fit the exact description of this quota, and because of this, there is no confusion as to what an audience should be feeling or experiencing with this short.
The end shot of the short when the two caretakers finally deliver the coffin.
4) Although the animated short film is overall comedic, there is an important theme that shouldn't be ignored. The caretakers have a job delivering coffins to cemeteries and they need to meet the deadlines for it. The message that the director is trying to relay to the audience, through the journey that the two caretakers undergo, is that one must stay true to their responsibilities. We see this message through the acting of the characters: the old man continually waiting for the younger caretaker to ready himself up to continue the job (this occurred when they first picked up the coffin and the younger caretaker hit the vase and almost knocked it over). We also see this them occur when the audience is first introduced to this skeleton with a red coat on that is supposed to be a different version of Hades (Hades representing hell). Hades' job was to fairy souls across to the after life via the styx river. In "This Way Up" we noticed an archetypal scene from Hades' mission where the grandma is in her coffin floating down the stream that ultimately leads to a waterfall. Overall, after experiencing the journey with the caretakers, the theme of staying true to your responsibilities shows reward in the end: where the younger caretaker earns a hug from the more stern and older caretaker.
The caretakers travers the mountains in their car in order to get to their destination.
5) The setting for each scene is appropriate to the overall plot that occurs in the story. Not very complicated. The caretakers are driving on a gloomy day to whatever destination. Naturally, that scene would take place in a car. And throughout the movie, the caretakers traverse terrain that is appropriate to the actual mountain setting. However the setting in each scene is important in order to maintain the mood of the plot going. What is different about this short film is that it blends together the comedic aspect of the characters behaviors while at the same time achieving a depressing setting. This combo makes it interesting to watch the short film. I believe what this allows is for the possibility to change the atmosphere in the movie smoothly without disturbing the flow of the sequence.
6) The Cinematography, just like any other aspect in this short film is dull and boring. What this means is that the same standards shots are used repetativly: long shot, medium shots etc. What these shots also have in common is that they are all stationary meaning that there isn't even a single tracking shot. In relation to color, everything is similar in relation to the mood it provides. The background, objects in middle ground, and foreground all revolve around dark shade of color. For example, the trees were dark green, the gray's were shaded darker than usual, and burgundy was used instead of natural red. Overall, what this short animated film has been able to do was create a comedic interest (thanks to the acting) in a very somber environment.
7) The soundtrack is effective because it uses the same style throughout the entire animated short film. The sound of the violin is predominant throughout the sequence and is generally the only thing that plays during the short. Even though the violin is repeated several times, it works because we rely on the sound to foreshadow what comes next. In "This Way Up" the violin is a sound that represents suspicion or a build up to something that should not necessarily happen. If the sound of the violin plays constantly and the audience interprets it as a build up then the audience will be curious to see what will happen next. This overpowering use of the sound of the violin helps the director in attracting the attention of his audience. The director wants his audience to watch every frame of his short.
The younger caretaker executes a plan to hitch a ride after their mode of transportation got smashed by a large boulder.
8) The camera angles in the film are used effectively. It is overall a simplistic plot that does not require nurturing. What is meant by nurturing is that in order to get the message across from the original story, a director does not need to rely on fancy camera work nor special effects. Overall, the camera angles are used effectively because the audience can follow the story and the "mis en scene" without loosing track of the story line.
9) No special effects.
10) Symbols are mentioned throughout the entire post.
There is a dead person on the ground in the backyard of a home.
Several characters stand idly by as they mourn the loss of their close friend.
A mom, girlfriend, brother, and best friend all stand and watch. The mom says “Oh god, why not me?” the girlfriend says “NO! GOD!” the brother says “I will never forget ya man.”
The best friend walks up to the cadaver slowly. He slowly goes down to his knees and places his hand on his shoulder. His eyes are burning with passion and says “Don’t worry man, i’ve already started my journey for the dragon balls.”
The best friend turns his head towards the crowd of relatives behind him and begins to walk away into the crowd and out of the scene.
The guy on the floor slowly starts to re-wake (awaken?) and whispers to the best friend “Its okay, it was only a nerf gun~!”
The best friend turns head swiftly to the guy on the floor.
Best friend walks up quickly to the best friend on the floor and and SLAPS him once so that he is knocked out.
Points his finger at friend and says “you’re supposed to be unconscious!”
The scene fades to black and we find ourselves at a bench. The best friend is meeting with someone at the bench looking very suspicious.
The mysterious man has the dragon balls all in the suit case. The balls get handed off and do a silly handshake.
The scene fades to black and comes back to the backyard. The best friend is walking in the backyard and finds that no one is there.
Looks inside the house and sees that the “dead” guy is no longer on the floor and instead inside eating at the dinner table.
Best friend walks in and says “didn’t i just--, but i thought--” The mom interrupts and says “he was feeling perfectly fine until you slapped him in the face like a little girl. So i brought him inside for some soup :)”
Best friend dumbfounded. “I have the dragon balls in my car. I was going to resurrect you... how could you rob me of my only chance to bring you back to life! you’re a terrible friend i hate you! (takes out gun)” now you’ll pay!”
Dude says “ i know whats the matter. you want a nerf gun battle.:
best friend “yes”
dude “lets go! let the war begin”
dodges behind chairs as fire is exchanged and neither side is hit.
girlfriend walks into the fray as the two are seen with on the floor barely able to support themselves
Girlfriend says, “you two seem to be out of bullets. You know how we settle a tie....”
The two instantly jump up and pick up swords and charge towards each other and drop the swords right before they meet up with each other and play rock paper scissors.
they tie again and again.
The girlfriend walks up and punches both of them.
She grabs a gun of her own and says I never actually liked you.
