First Shoot: Recreation of a Film Scene
TASK 1
For our first shoot under Cinematic we were asked to, in pairs, recreate a still from a film of our choice. At first we picked different shots to the ones below however we weren't able to take those due to location complications. The ones on the left are the original stills from a film, The Gallows, that we tried to recreate.
We booked a normal kit lense and two LED lights. We had some trouble trying to recreate the exact lighting and also using the same props and costume. Another factor that we realised wasn't matching with the original was the positioning of our model. In the second she should be facing the camera however our model is looking away.
For the editing I used photoshop's 'Hue and saturation' and experimenting with Brightness and Contrast and Levels.
For me the shoot was unsuccessful, I wasn't happy with the results and also the editing didn't work the way I had hoped. I believe the reason it wasn't a successful shoot was because we weren't very well organised or prepared. However as this was the first shoot for Cinematic, I believe I can learn from the mistakes and improve on the next shoot especially because this is a new project and it will take some practice understanding the composition and other filming/photography rules for this certain theme.
Originals from our shoot before editing.
Genres Analysis
Second task for Cinematic was to choose 3 different film genres and pick significant films from those certain genres with stills from the film that portray the five elements of mise-en-scene.
Sci/Fi - Inception
Setting and Props: Inception is based around people's subconscious and being able to manipulate it so the scene here, and many others like it that appear, are essential to the film to be able to deliver the spectacle to the audience. The attention to detail to the props visible onto the folding buildings is strong for example the vehicles and lamp posts are all visible to reach the expectations of the viewer of a Sci/fi film.
Costume, Hair and Makeup and Positioning of Characters and Objects within the Frame: The costume of those visible in this sequence shows their status, these men are dressed in smart clothing indicating that their rich businessmen especially because they seem to be sitting in a private jet. The positioning of these characters shows their hierarchy of importance, even though the character in the middle is in focus and his full body is in shot, his expression focused on the first character shows that the one in front is just as important. The last character is clearly the least important in the shot as his body is hidden behind and mostly out of focus,
Lighting and Colour: The hand is clear and visible as its movement is what wants to be captured when it drops from the arm rest when the character has fallen asleep/unconscious. The tube is also clear and sharply focused informing the audience of the cause of the unconsciousness.
Horror/Comedy - Shaun of The Dead
Positioning of Characters and Lighting and Colour: The positioning of the characters shows that they're listening, with disinterest, to to the figure on the left, however they all have a very lazy demeanour a much like a zombie which the film is based around. They're deadpan expressions further support that.
The colours are intentionally like that so that the reds stand out to signify the colours of blood which is a constant throughout the film.
Facial Expressions and Body Language: As its a comedy horror film its very ironic. One of the main themes is the ignorance and disconnection of people where its shot in London and thats why its takes so long for the main protagonist to realise that the people around them are not behaving normally. This shot is a perfect example of that, the main character is lost and focused on his own agenda not caring about potential zombies around him.
Lighting and Colour and Positioning: This shot is a perfect comedy horror film still, they're expressions represent the comedy aspect, whilst the lighting and positioning of the character in the middle represents the horror part. The dark alley with the silhouette and smoke create the atmosphere in which a viewer knows they're watching something scary.
Historic Drama - Spotlight
Costume, Hair and Makeup and Lighting and Colour: These are all journalists that work in the newsroom, they're costume is smart, hair and makeup simplistic reminding us of the time its set in early 2000's, the lighting and colour adds to that, its intentionally made more grey and dull to reflect the mood of the film.
Facial Expressions and Setting and Props: The expression makes her seem worried and curious and as she's portrayed as a journalist the notebook in her hand shows that she's in the middle of a case and its most likely why she's stressed and looking back to whatever she's trying to get answers from. The setting shows that she's in a neighbourhood near a school possibly as the school bus behind is visible.
Positioning of Character and Body Language: This seems like he's a powerful man looking over the city however for me it seems as if he's more vulnerable as the bright city seems more powerful and a couple of buildings are taller than him making him seem small. Also he appears to to seem tired with sleeves rolled up, shoulders slouched, his bed messy and the dark room all reflect how he feels at the moment.
MISE-EN-SCENE ANALYSIS : INSIDIOUS
The Mise-En-Scene in a film is the visual aspects of a film, how it portrays a story to an audience and how it manipulates them to feel things that would otherwise not be apparent. Mise-En-Scene includes five elements which are Setting and props, Costume, hair and makeup, Facial expression and body language, Lighting and colour and the Positioning of characters and objects within the frame. All these influence a viewers ideas of the film.
One way that a director can make sure to thrill a audience is using a normal background and props that you would see in your own home, like the plants and lamp, they all exist in the frame to make us connect and relate to the film in contrast to the events that are to unfold. In this particular case it is a family home which differs from the usual scene of a thriller film.It is a normal family home that a family live in.
Throughout the film Insidious there are frequent light and dark contrasts that happen. An example is when the woman is retelling her story of when she went into the boys bedroom and sees the demon in the corner by the light of a table lamp. Only the back light is on so many places have dark patches then others have light patches this creates shadows. This is significantly important in Thriller films as often shadows are used to emphasis fear and the unknown and not being able to see which is a fear for many people.
The look and costume of the characters is not as traditional as other thriller but the director does it for a reason. In Insidious the look of the people is very normal for example the man is wearing a shirt the girl is wearing a jumper. This is to try to make the characters more believable as if they were a part of the audience and to normalize them as much as possible, this makes it easier to connect with the characters and therefore care about them.
Facial expression and body language is also a key aspect in mise en scene.They can convey meaning and emotions without saying them and it is very prominent throughout the scene.When the woman is talking to the others around the table she is opening up her body and we can see she is trying to help them understand.Then when the head pops out she closes up as she is terrified and we didn't need the sounds to see what is was.
This relates back to the thriller genre as it does exactly what it is meant to do which is make it that little bit more unsettling due to the audiences familiarity with the scene.Although it still is not the same as an example of a normal thriller scene would be in a warehouse or an alley which the audience will find unsettling but hard to relate to. This really makes things more scary as the scene is familiar with your own surroundings and this makes the film seem more real than at an unknown set and the audience can relate to the characters in the scene.
This is stereotypical of the thriller genre as it builds suspense and excitement with the unknown of what will happen next,this is a crucial part of the film as it otherwise would not be as scary as it is.The shadows also give us a sense that something bad will happen even before we get into the room,so the audience is already prepared for either a scary or gory scene.
Also it again makes it more scary as it brings familiarity toward the scene. Also it contrasts again with the unusual events happening to the main character so when things happen they make it seem a small amount more unsettling. This keeps people entertained and holds the suspense built up by the rest of the scene while still making it believable.
This helps the audience connect with the characters as when she is open we feel sorry for her and she is open.When she is huddled and closed we can tell she is frighted and shocked.This can help the audience feel sympathy for the characters or make them dislike the character.
Genre Experiments
These experiments are inspired but the cinematic elements from the film Insidious and its genre; Horror/Thriller. Focusing on lighting, position, camera angle, costume and location.
Director's Research
Stanley Kubrick: His films, which frequently mix incisive political messages with disturbing character relationships and iconic horror imagery, are simultaneously artful and raw. Its clear how much he loves his geometric framing. It's as if he's trapping the character in the geometric shapes of the set. He rarely added camera instructions in the script, preferring to handle that after a scene is created, as the visual part of film-making came easiest to him.
For this particular experiment I was focusing mainly on the lighting and and positioning of the camera and the character. This was very simple to do with the help of a LED light and a dark room. With the f number of 4.2 and exposure of 1/125. I was only trying to focus on trying to capture the mood and lighting of a horror film and how it focuses the facial expressions in clarity.
This was more of a recreation inspired one of the stills from the film. It was about getting the character in the right expression and lighting. I don't think it was as successful as it could've been, the lighting wasn't right and the photos could be more focused, however i think the photos still show some of the same cinematic elements such as the costume and positioniong.
This experiment was inspired by the location used in many films from this genre. They're typically locations like hallways in a house or school where they use leading lines to make the hallway look even more extended. With shadows or a silhouette at one of the ends. I think this was a successful experiment.
Quentin Tarantino: His style is more about him as a screenwriter than as a director. Theres alot of extensive dialogue. Tarantino movies revel in absurdity. There is a very interesting scene in Pulp Fiction: Bruce Willis picks up an automatic and points it at John Travolta ( emerging from loo). The two look at each other. Nothing happens. They look at each other some more. Still nothing happens. Then all of sudden the toaster pops out a very burnt toast with a very audible click. Bruce Willis pulls the trigger. The question is "Would he have pulled the trigger if the toaster had not broken the trance?" Probably not.
Kubrick’s choice of movie genres was far from orthodox for a respectable director at the time. Space Opera. Horror. Anti-Utopian Sci-Fi. Apocalypse comedy. He even came close to adapting the Lord of the Rings. It’s all well and good for Ridley Scott to do this kind of thing in the 80s and 90s, but an artistic sci-fi movie in the 1960s? That was nothing short of revolutionary.
And of course, this is Tarantino’s trademark as well. His own generation’s idea of pulp: trashy crime dramas, and he’s turning it, in his own way, into pure cinematic art.
The way Tarantino works with the camera, when he’s at his best, surpasses pretty much anything other block-busting directors currently achieve. “Impeccable” is a word often bandied about when describing his work in Kill Bill, Pulp Fiction and Django. The way he plays with angles, lights and sets – much the same as with Kubrick.
Both directors have their famous trademark shots: Kubrick’s point perspective, Tarantino’s “looking up”. Both like to set their scenes like paintings. And Tarantino of course wouldn’t be himself if he didn’t sometime quotes Kubrick’s scenes verbatim (parts of Django are straight out Barry Lyndon).
Blurb
Genre: Thriller.
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After finding a young girl murdered and left in the woods, Detective Terry is possessed by the need to discover the truth and reason behind the terrible deed that has been committed. As the investigation deepens, detective Terry seems to become an accessory to the crime, realising he will have to find his own demons if he hopes to uncover the truth.
Target Audience: As the audience for a normal thriller/crime film, depending on the intensity of the film, is usually around 15+, the target audience for mine is the same age restriction.
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First Shoot: Scene 1: For the first shoot the scene revolves around the detective discovering the body of a young girl. For this shoot I used a 50mm lens and a wide lens. I also had and LED light just incase of low lighting. I also needed to purchase some essentials for the shoot: a coat, a hat, and some paint. This clothes would contribute to making my model look more like his detective character and the paint would be used to make the bloodied wound on my other model's neck. The location is based in a trek park and I shot the photos in parts surrounded by trees to make it seem more like a woodsy area.
Second Shoot: Scene 2: For the next scene the story follows the detective as he's sitting on a park bench whilst feeling as if he's being watched, suspicious he gets up to move only to discover he's being followed. I shot this scene again on the 50mm on aperture priority, the iso as it was getting dark.
The scenes I created were a mixture of inspiration coming from my earlier recreations and the director analysis. My recreations were based around a dark horror and my film is based on a dark thriller. I studied films like Shutter Island, Taken and Gone Girl to understand the rules of lighting and composition. One problem I faced was that during the shoot for majority of my photos I didn't consider the black block lines that I would need to add later on when editing, this caused some of my photos to have essential parts to be hidden behind the black lines.
I did measure the length and width of my black lines to make sure they were an equal size on every photo. For the editing part, there wasn't much that I felt like I had to do, I edited more of the close up shots like the faces and hands. I did over the shoulder shots a couple of times to show a different perspective and to emphasise the mystery of the situation. My intentions for this shoot were to create the atmosphere of enigma and show the cinematic appearance of a film.