After we presented our final idea to the class we had a talk and decided that it would be better if we changed the idea of our short film. This was because although we had the idea planned out perfectly in our head we could not explain it to the class. Therefore, we thought it would be difficult to actually create the film if we can't even explain what it is about. Our new idea is a lot stronger and we feel as thought it would give us a better outcome in the end.
Our new idea is based upon the short film 'Alone', there will be a young boy who is all alone and is unsure why that is. We see how his days plan out and it is accompinied by a voiceover narrating his thoughts. Throughout the film you will see hints as to why he is all alone. At the end it is revealed that he passed away in a car crash and is in the after life.
The colouring in the film is interesting as it is quite clearly highly saturated and warm while the two characters are happy. When it is clear that they have broken up the film is showning this, the colouring turns very dull and cold to represent their emotions and the atmosphere and mood of the characters which should reflect onto the audience.
Camera Angles-
Most of the film involves many two shots and mid shots. This is because when the couple are happy and in a relationship they are equals in all scenes and this comes across to the audience through the use of once shot. Having netural angles also add to this effect. To characters are to be seen as one.
Long shots are also used within the film, This shot is effective in displaying how lonely the boy is now she has left him. This shot is actually a tracking shot in the film itself and gets further and further away from him. The emptiness and dullness that surronds him in this shot magnifies the atmosphere and emotion that he is feeling.
Sound-
There is no dialouge between the two characters yet visually their connection is still strong and displayed to the audience effectively. The whole film is aided by a letter from the boy to his ex-girlfriend. The fact that the film maker didn't have any sound or dialogue made the film seem so much more proffesional.
Editing-
Within this short film there isn't any transitions they have just used cuts to go between locations. They have used a match on action shot when the boy hands over the flowers and this is very tightly edited that it doesn't even make us think that it is a change of camera direction.
The first scene shows a man sitting at a computer desk in an office. He then receives a phone call from a panicked woman, asking him to come home. The man is then shown waking up in a bed, with the previous scene having only been a dram. A voiceover is then used throughout the film to inform the audience of the context and storyline. The voiceover informs the audience that an apocalyptic event has occured and the protagonist is the only person left alive. The narrative follows the man as he gets ready to go out to get supplies. He finds a house and collects some stuff and walks back to the house he started in. However, on his way back a light turns on in a house he walks past. This means he is not as alone as he thinks.
Enigma Codes:
Enigma codes are raised frequently throughout this short film to allow the audience to engage with the film and its narrative. Enigma codes are raised at the beginning of this short film in reference to the identity and the significance of the man shown at a desk in an office due to the normality of the scene, the audience wonders why he is being shown. This feeling of normaility is then shattered with the phone call which raises enigma codes as to the identity and relevance of the wonan calling.
Characters:
The man-
The man is immediatley established as the protagonist through the inital long amount of screen time he gets in the first scene of the film. This positions the audience to engage with the character. This film's narrtive follows the man's experiences, which is then established through the use of his voiceover, which reinforces him as the protagonist. The voiceover additionally encourages the audience to engage and realte to the man as it creates the feeling that he is directly talking to them. Due to the concept and theme of this film, it is suggested that the man is the only character, which is later disproved at the end of the short film. The man's life is represented as boring and repetitive through the use of close-ups to focus the audience on the boring activites the man does each day. This postions the audience to develop the same feelings of the man.
The woman-
The true identity of the woman is never revealed throughout the entirety of the film, but the audience can establish that she is probably the man's partner/wife.
Locations:
Office- This location is only used within the first scene when the protagonist is first introduced, and is used to establish its normality. Ambient office sounds can be heard which increases the locations normality.
First House- This location is first introduced by using an extreme close up shot of the man's face as he wakes up suddenly from a dream, which reveals little of the location.
Town- The film is set in a small American etate and the protagonist is seen wandering around the abandoned town in search of supplies. This location is crucial to establishing and highlighting the fact that he is alone as no other people are seen on the estate. Long, wide angled shots and tracking shots of the man walking through the streets are used when this location is first introduced to establish and show the extent of the protagonist's isloation.
Second House- The second house is introduced as the man searches for supplies in a nearby house on the estate. The man is shown searching and finding the hidden key to the house, which suggests that this location is new to the character as well as the audience. This intesifies the audience's engagement and relation with the character, as their knowledge of the location is the same.
Editing:
A fade from black transition is used right at the beginning of this short film to immediately set a gentle, calm tone to the scene. This calm tone is later changed with the phone call. A rumbling sound is used in conjunction the quick transition between the first office scene and bedroom scene, which suggests that something has changed between the two scenes.
A filter and fade effect are used on the flashback shots of the man driving and walking along a bridge. This establishes these shots as flashbacks/memories, which correlates with the voiceover, and the fade effect signifies the haziness of the memories which suggests that the apocalyptic event happend a long while ago.
A jump cut is used when the man walks along a deserted road, which keeps the audience engaged despite the boring action. I think this is an effective technique in a short film due to the restricted duration.
A time lapse is used later on in the film to show the man collecting supplies out of the garge, which shows time passing in an effective way that keeps the audience engaged.
Sound:
In the first scene ambient office sounds are used to set the scne, which helps the audience engage with the film.The sounds create a peaceful, ordinary equilibrium of an office, which is then disturbed by the phone ringing. This immediatley suggests the phone call has a significane and shows a change in the tone of the film. An ambulence siren can be heared down the phone, which produces negative connotations.
During the transition between the office scene and the next scene a rumbling soundbridge is used to suggest that something is about to happen. The man's heavy breathing as he wakes up portrays characters distress.
The protagonist's continual voiceover is then used throughout the film as to give the audience context and to inform them of the story. The voiceover portrays the character's isolation as it presents hin as talking to himself or the audience. This engages the audience with the character and also allows them to immerse themselves in the story. The monotone sound of the mans voice suggests his sadness his feeling of repetitiveness in terms of his life after the apocalypse.
Today we presented
our pitch using Google Slides with the ‘Presenter View’ this meant that our
class mates could ask questions live during the presentation. After we had
finished the pitch we answered all the questions that where sent in from our
peers. There was a range of questions asked which we answered. Here are some of
the questions and how we responded to them.
In
response to this question we said that the climax of our film would be when the
boy grabs the knife and attempts to stab the ‘intruder’. At this point we
realises that the ‘intruder’ isn’t an actual intruder it is his dad. However,
he cannot see that it is his dad and therefore goes ahead trying to stab him.
The
audience would be 15+ as the short film would be too scary for the younger audience.
It will have explicit language and scenes of gore which may distress younger
viewers. We also didn’t want to exclude the people aged 15-18 so therefore have
kept it as a 15 to open it up to them.
There will
be a voice over throughout of the voices that the boy will be hearing in his
head. As the majority of the film will be filmed as his point of view it will
be clear to understand that it is the boy who is talking.
‘Lights
out’ is a short horror film that consists of the stereotypical conventions of
horror films. An innocent woman is walking around her house when she notices a
silhouette of a woman in the corner of her eye once she turns the light out.
She then flickers the light on and off and as she does so the women gets closer
and closer.
Whilst
she tries to ignore the fact that there is a woman in her house she convinces
herself that the silhouette is not real and attempts to go to sleep. She pulls
the covers towards her head as a form of security however she is not safe. She
then tries to turn the light on, however the light does not turn on. As she
becomes more scared she pulls the covers over her head so she cannot see the
rest of her room. Once she thinks it is safe, she pulls away the cover from her
head and looks around the room. As she thinks it is clear from the woman she
relaxes until she sees the woman is beside her bedside light.
Characters:
The
audience know from the conventional horror stereotypes that the short film is
going to be a horror. Firstly, the protagonist is a woman, which automatically
makes her more vulnerable to the unknown. Also, the woman is alone in her flat,
which makes her more defenceless.
Locations:
There
is only one location throughout the film, which is he woman’s flat. The use of
a domestic location means that the audience can associate with the woman on a
wider scale. This makes the film scarier on a personal level as the audience
feel like they are there. The location also makes the woman more vulnerable
because it is isolated and she is alone in her flat. It is also a convention of
a horror film because there are not many places she can hide.
Sounds:
The
sound is important within the horror genre to make a tense atmosphere. The non-diegetic
sounds throughout the short film builds adrenaline for the audience because
they know if something is about to jump out at them or not. Horror films also
use the sound of silence to build up tension. The sounds used are striking and
loud when the audience meet this silhouette.
Camera Angles:
The
long shot at the beginning of the extract makes the woman appear isolated and
alone. This makes her look very vulnerable which is convention of horror films.
This long shot establishes the character and the location.
The
over-the-shoulder shot makes the audience feel as though they are experiencing
the short film first-hand as they can see everything the character can see. When
the woman is under the covers in her bed, the camera is hand-geld. This makes
the audience feel as though they are actually there because the camera is
slightly shaking, making the whole experience realistic.
Editing:
When
the woman sees the silhouette the duration of the shots were long so it builds
up the suspense. As he pace quickens the duration of the shots get shorter to
frighten the audience to build the momentum about what is about to happen.
Another technique is low lighting. There are many scenes within the film that
are dimly lit so that the audience cannot see everything that is going on.
There are only
two characters used throughout the short film. The protagonist is the first
character to be introduced to the audience. He is represented as an average
person, making him relatable for the audience. The audience is drawn to him
from the start with the long takes of him walking down the street. The
protagonist is represented as isolated, as he is the only one walking the
streets that late at night, which creates a mysterious atmosphere.
The craziness of
the antagonist is enhanced through the low-key lighting, and the mystery at the
start of not being able to see the whole of his face. The audience also becomes
more tense as there are close ups used of the protagonist, meaning the viewer
can sense the panic. The long shots and medium shots of the antagonist means
the viewer can sense the character is threatening.
The way he moves
in the scene shows that he is a strange and unusual character. He is also
represented as mysterious, as he is introduced walking from the dark shadows
into the light of the streetlamp, so it is unclear to the audience who he is
and whether he is aggressive or not, this builds up the suspense, especially
with the sound effects of the footsteps creeping up on the protagonist.
Locations:
The only location
used throughout is a street; it creates an eerie and gloomy atmosphere. The
isolated road, with no one driving past, shows that no one can save him from
the antagonist. This enhances the panic among the audience. The use of the
opposite side of the off the road as him, he feels threatened and unsafe. It
shows the clear contrast between being safe and not.
When the
antagonist turns off the main street and enters the next road, it is completely
pitch black, suggesting there is no hope left. The use of the antagonist
reappearing at the end suggest he can’t escape his fate. The antagonist uses
the atmosphere of the location to enhance his creepy characteristics, to make
the audience fell uneasy and tense.
Editing Techniques:
The eye line
match used when the protagonist notices the antagonist builds suspense among
the audience. As they are already placed in a gloomy atmosphere and are unaware
of the events that are going to occur. The shot/reverse/shot, between the two
characters, show the reaction to the antagonist and enforces what emotions the
audience should be feeling in their position. When the protagonist notices him
he stays calm, however he begins to look increasing concerned, which raises an
unsettling feeling amongst the audience.
The continuous
cuts between the shots show that the antagonist is constantly focused on the
protagonist, which raises the suspense, as the audience don’t know what he is
going to do to him. It also represents the realisation the character has that
the antagonist is behind him.
The long take
used after the dialogue, ‘what the hell do you want?’ shows the antagonist
facing him, however he turns to walk away. This long take enhances the
nervousness of the audience, relating to the panic of the protagonist. There is
also a long take on the protagonist’s reaction to this, which shows him looking
down and then walking away as well, this encourages the audience to feel tense
and suspense is raised as the viewer would expect a jump scare from the shot.
Sound:
The non-diegetic
sound used at the start of the shot reinforces the eerie and gloomy atmosphere.
The silence with just diegetic sound of his footsteps also shows how the
protagonist is lonely and isolated on the street with no one to help him.
When he notices
the antagonist, all you can hear are footsteps from the character. The
percussion beat used when the protagonist spots the antagonist on the other
aide of the road signifies the immediate sock experienced by the character, creating
a sense of panic. The constant ambient sound of the wind in the background
emphasises the silence.
In the long take
of the antagonist, the sound becomes more intense, with the high and low
pitches being interspersed with each other to build tension among the audience.
This sound also becomes more suspenseful, as the silence before hand makes it
more sudden and unsettling. When the sound stops, the audiences becomes more
anxious that something might happen. The dialogue ‘what the hell do you want?’
emphasises the protagonist being scared, which causes suspense to be built. The
silence then turns back to the walking footsteps after the dialogue is used to
enhance this tension. This makes the audience feel slightly relieved as they
feel the antagonist is leaving. These footsteps could represent the
protagonist’s heartbeat slowing down, and when the antagonist turns back and
chases him the change in the tempo with these fast paced footsteps could be the
heartbeat increasing.
Hello
my name is Bethany Bradley and I am currently studying Media Studies as part of
my A2 course. For the brief we have to create a short film production which
consists of any genre and has to have a total film length of 5 minutes. Along
with the short film, we have to choose two of the three different briefs given
to us which are: Film Poster, Magazine Review and Radio Advert. I have chosen
to do a Film Poster and a Magazine Review.
