Unit 3: Assignment Brief

 

Short Model Movie Analysis

Short Model Movie Analysis

To begin this short narrative video I was going to use an establishing/master shot as my first scene, this would have helped demonstrate the geography, time of day and scale of environment. However, when shooting the video we included an establishing shot of our green screen, although when editing the video we couldn't add a background into the green-screen as the opacity wasn't strong enough to get the full image. Thus being why I couldn't use a backdrop that fitted the style and genre of the film. 

For the first shot I used an over the shoulder shot, the main protagonist being in shot and the villain in a dirty two shot. However, the footage when editing came out blurry, not giving the best quality to work with. The dialogue of the scene starts with the villain (side of shoulder), giving the audience the impression they are possibly on his side of watching from afar.

For the second shot in the short narrative, I used a close up of the characters side profile, this works well, corresponding to the 180 degree rule, as the audience can keep track of which direction each character is looking and can keep the story flowing smoothly.

For my third shot I again used an over the shoulder, however when filming this shot I now recognise in editing it did not fit an over the shoulder as it was too high up the characters body. As well as this the background stops behind the villain, as you can see a part of a set, making it a nearly unusable shot.

For the fourth shot I used an extreme close up of the character; at this moment in the audio the villain is left alone in a room, the single shot giving the impression of loneliness and emphasises the fact he is the only one in the room, to go further you could interpret the character is inside his head, thinking while the camera is on him. I feel this shot worked well in correlation to the narrative as well as the cinlmphatography, it being a clean, balanced and un-blurred shot.

My fifth shot was a medium shot, demonstrating the character from chest to head, as well as using only a small part of the screen in the footage as the character is central to the left, leaving speaking room in the right corner. 

At this point I introduced my protagonist into the narrative, using a single clean close up of the character, as well as a medium close up to transition onto the next scene. I feel this worked well as it followed the 180 degree rule and kept the narrative flowing smoothly.

This shot was used as a worms eye view of the villain, at a point where the character may have felt big and monstrous towards the protagonist, using this technique of demonstrating the villain in this way helped portray this through the narrative. 

These two shots included are medium fulls, portraying the character in full from his head to waist. This helped the audience gain insight onto the fashion, composition and body stance of the character.

I used this shot as a medium full shot/cowboy shot but instead having the characters looking directly at each other. This I feel creates more tension within the scene and makes the audience feel uncomfortable by the closeness of the characters, not letting there be any room left in the shot.

When editing the video I cut down the footage to fit the dialogue, as well as cutting out any mistakes of blurred, angled or uneven scenes. As well in editing I attempted to imbed a environment background that would suit the dialogue (eg, a interrogation room, prison, police station, etc) unfortunately the opacity of the green screen in the footage was not strong enough and would not allow a backdrop to be used. Furthermore, when filming the short video I made sure the white balance was on, on the camera so I could achieve the lighting I wanted. I feel the use of varied camera angles worked well in correlation to the narrative, however, some of the footage could be improved by not being blurry or in and out of focus next time. I could have improved my composition by using more shots that fit well within the narrative, making it clear which character is speaking and who the villain and hero are. I felt I followed the rule of thirds within the short film, nearly always giving each character speaking/breathing room so the footage didn't come across as uncomfortable or crowded. In most shots I left space for head room, however when coming to editing I realised that the top of the heads were cut off/not included. I sequenced the footage to fit the dialogue, creating smash cuts when a character starting talking or cutting to/from a character when there was dramatic speech or movement. 

180° Rule

 180° Rule 

The 180 Rule is a basic guideline regarding the on-screen spatial relationship between a character and another character or object within a scene. By keeping the camera on one side of an imaginary axis between two characters, the first character is always frame right of the second character. Moving the camera over the axis is called jumping the line or crossing the line; breaking the 180-degree rule by shooting on all sides is known as shooting in the round. 

To create this short film we used a A58 Camera and used the 180 degree rule, following our instructions to keep the camera on one side of an imaginary axis between two characters, keeping the character in the right frame. For the first shot we used an over the shoulder but the camera is almost looking up at the shoulder, making the two characters seam taller. This shot was a great use of exposure and demonstrated the features of the models without light overpowering the shot. 

The second shot was again an over the shoulder, although this time in a closer shot nearer to the second character; this was however was not a great use of exposure as the camera was in manual focus and so the light emitting overpowered the shot as well as the closest object being in full resolution whereas the rest was slightly blurred.

The next sequence of shots we were asked to create a stream of a moments of character walking, for the first shot we used a high angle shot to demonstrate a character coming up a set of stairs; the model getting closer and closer to the camera to cut to the next shot. 

For the next shot we made a mistake and didn't use the 180° as the character was on the other side of the screen; to fix this, in editing we flipped the shot uses a filter in Final Cut Pro that does this. 

This shot was a worms eye view of the character moving across a set of benches, the upper body not being visible but only the feet to give a clear view to the audience to where the character is going.

The next shot switches to an eye level view of the character, the cameraman walking backwards as the model walks forwards to create an illusion of time passing. 

The final shot in the short film, is from an above angle, the camera man showing the model walking from above; the audience seeing the back of the models head giving an ominous display of what may happen next.

Shot Sizes

Shot Sizes

A camera shot is composed of the series of frames that are shot uninterrupted from the moment the camera starts rolling until it stops. By combining different shots, angles and camera movements, the film makers are able to emphasise, ideas and movement for each scene. Shot types are important as it creates a visual story for the audience, letting them easily follow a narrative through compelling camera work; the shots I have demonstrated below are some of the most commonly used shots in film.

Establishing Shot 

This is one of the most common shots to open film with, it is wide enough to show geography of setting, time off day, scale of environment and character(s). This shot gives the first impression of a setting/person as well as can mark a transition to new location. This is used to open a film/show to establish the setting and demonstrate the mood following the rest of the film.

Master Shot

A wide shot follows after an establishing shot, it demonstrates the geography of location the character is in as well as captures the scene in its entirety. Its purpose is to amplify and emphasise the mood, tone and atmosphere of the film, as it is normally one of the first or second things you see beginning a film. 

Wide Shot

A wide shot, also called a long shot or a full shot, is a shot that shows the subject within their surrounding environment. A wide shot tells the audience who is in the scene, where the scene is set, and when the scene takes place. The characters are normally far from the camera to show the scale of the subject. This can be commonly used when characters are lost/scared within the narrative of the film, this is needed to establish distance and depth between characters.

Full Shot

A Full Shot may cover a conversation until an important point (or high moment) is being reached, and then either the Zoom or Close-Up will come into play or a Pull Back to a Long Shot, to reveal a bigger picture. After the climactic moment, a return to the Full Shot might be utilised. The shot demonstrates a head to foot angle of the character, including their posture and wardrobe, thus making a statement on a characters physicality.

Medium Full Shot/Cowboy shot

Medium shots are favoured in sequences where dialogues or a small group of people are acting, as they give the viewer a partial view of the background, such as when the shot is 'cutting the person in half' and also show the subjects' facial expressions in the context of their body language. The top of the subjects head to waist is shown on camera, not fully letting the audience see the one character on screen; this can sometimes be used when a character in said film is being confident or confrontational.

Medium Shot

A medium shot (MS), or waist shot is captured at a medium distance from the subject. It is used for dialogue scenes, but also depict body language and more of the setting. Oftentimes it will frame multiple subjects as well as a portion of the background and space in general. This is one of the most popular shots used in film, this is because it is also a neutral shot within film. This shot is similar to how we interact with people, making it easy to read on screen for the audience. Moreover, this shot demonstrates the character being above the waist but ends just below the head.

Medium Close up

The idea of a medium close-up shot is that you can still easily register the actor's emotions and facial expressions while also retaining some of the background. A medium close-up is often used when a scene needs to be covered with standard coverage that doesn't shock the viewer. The shot shows the character from mid chest to just below the head, the shot reduces action and gets intimate with the subject.

Close Up

Close-up shots signal to the audience that something is important, and this can be a prop or reaction, but often it is best when the subject or object has a significant influence on the story and the viewers understanding of your story. This shot demonstrates a characters emotion to the audience, showing thoughts and feelings; this type of shot is normally on eye level. 

Extreme Close Up

The extreme close-up shot is traditionally used in film to allow the viewer to enter the character's intimate space, revealing certain characteristics and emotions that would otherwise go unnoticed from afar. It demonstrates an isolated specific area such as the eyes, nose, ears, mouth; this insert shot highlights something crucial to the audience and narrative thus being one of the greatest tools for emphasise.

 

Listening to a music video

Visualise - When listening to the song without looking at the visuals on the screen, I imagined a night club setting with flashing lights and dancing people. I did this because of its seemingly disco/DJ genre, with repetitive sounds and no words as well as the occasional beat drop.

Images - I visualised a night club when listening to the music video, flashing cinema-photography of dancing people, a DJ on stage, a bar and alcohol. These images came to mind seemingly as if they were cutting on the beat, knowingly that the visuals would change in a match cut whenever the beat changed too high or low base.

Colour - When listening to the song I visualised flashing iridescent lights in a night club, contrasted to a dark atmosphere filled with people. 

Singer - As there were no lyrics in the song i simply imagined a DJ on top of a stage.

Transforming visuals into a music video - 

When listening to the song multiple times I imagined a clear setting of a nightclub, a medium sized area buzzing with different people. The style I feel would be a DJ/techno like genre within a dark atmosphere only lit with flashing iridescent lights coming from above. My audience would be able to see the dancing people, possibly choose one to be a main character that leads us throughout the nighclub/night from a POV shot. This would entail showing the audience the singer and band playing, giving clear visuals of this throughout. The music video could take the audience on a specific persons night out, demonstrating the highs and lows of a city life, it could demonstrate the dangers and highlights of a night out, possibly from a women's perspective contrasted to a males and how these are very much different in this situation. To satisfy an specific audiences pleasure, the target audience maybe being teens/young adults who enjoy the night life, the visuals could include alcohol, drugs, relationships, night clubs, etc. I could include intertextuality from other music videos of references of other artists or genres that fit the theme of the music video and lyrics.

The Effects Model

The concept of the music video is how Madonna, the artist, describes herself, the song is about a 'passionate young girl so in love with God that it is almost as though He were the male figure in her life'. The narrative of the music video revolves around a young teenage girl who is completely enticed with God, seemingly obsessed and devoting herself to someone who she feels is in physical reality. As well as this, the music video features themes of rape, depictions of religion that arn't typically stereotypical and sexual imagery. Madonna said herself that she was blamed that the video was controversial for simply "because I kissed a black saint and danced in front of burning crosses!" The performance in the music video is very narrative based and revolves around the artist as well as some of the controversial themes within the video.Madonnas song is a pop rock song and incorporates gospel music. It features background vocals from a choir and also a rock guitar. The lyrics contain liturgical words, but they have dual meanings of sexual innuendo and religion. "Like a Prayer" was acclaimed by critics and was a worldwide success.

In early 2018 there was a parody of the Madonna song, written in context of the struggle of University classes. Using the music video as a base and reference to create a popular song; 'like a prayer' themes are used throughout such as the cinema-photography, lighting, settings and characters. There was references of homage in the music video fo the themes displayed throughout the narrative were closely related to religion and christianity. The repeated religious imagery of crosses, Jesus on the cross, white outfits and church settings invoke this. However, there was no use of pastiche.

The purpose of the music video was to demonstrate to an audience to show the more provocative side of the artist, Madonna, than anything shed done before. As well as this she wanted to address racism by having the music video show a mixed-race couple being shit by the Ku Klux Klan. However, she laster settled on another theme in keeping with the songs religious connotations. Although this type of media was used for enjoyment it was also to expose and raise awareness for the false accusations of people of colour by the police simply because of their race. The video shows Madonna witnessing a young woman being robbed and murdered by a group of men, but isn't able to help. A black man walking down the alley also sees the incident and helps the woman, but the murderers run away.
The police mistakenly suspect the black man of being the killer and arrest him. Madonna flees the scene and escapes to a church. There, she sees a caged statue of saint who resembles the black man. Madonna then lies down on a pew and has a dream in which she is falling through space. A woman, representing power and strength, catches her. She tells Madonna to do what is right and sends her back up. Still dreaming, she returns to the statue, which transforms into the black man she had seen earlier. He kisses her forehead and leaves the church, as she picks up a knife and cuts her hands. After seeing scenes of Madonna singing in front of burning crosses, erotic scenes are shown between her and the saint, and the singer being surrounded by a choir inside the church. Madonna wakes up, goes to the jail and tells the police that she had witnessed the crime and that the black man is innocent; and he is released.

Religious groups worldwide including the Vatican, immediately protested the video, saying that it showed blasphemous use of Christian imagery.
They called for the national boycott of Pepsi (after she performed it in a Pepsi commercial) and PepsiCo's subsidiaries, including KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. Pepsi explained the differences between their advert and Madonna's artistic opinions in the video, and later gave in to the protests and cancelled the campaign. Pope John Paul II also got involved, and encouraged fans to boycott the singer in Italy altogether. There is a censored version of the song, although the lyrics never showcase any blasphemy, a separate copy of the music video has been made that cuts out more extreme controversial parts of the music video.

The artists target audience has always been the young generation and teenagers who love rock and dance music. The price penetration strategies and Madonna image has worked well to gain her name and money. The music video could influence them to stand up for others in times of need (eg the blamed black man who tried to help  the girl) as well as religious/christian influence as this is a large aspect/theme of the music video. There are forms of intertextuality within the music video with the repeated references to Jesus and religion; this was shown through imagery fo the cross, Jesus on a cross, white clothing, etc. Overall, I have a positive outlook on the music video, the themes at the time being somewhat shocking are now normal in our generation; i enjoyed the cinema-photography and strong imagery throughout.

Uses and Gratfication

 Uses and Gratification

Childish Gambino - 'This is America'

Surveillance {learn something new}:

Within 'Donald Glovers' video, 'This is America', the target audience of young male/female ethnic teens from 13-22 are given insight on the problems in America of racism and Police brutality. This inform's the audience of the reality of being a black American and conveys the prejudice reality they have to face. This as well allows people who are not ethnic (white American) to step into the shoes of someone who faces these problems and gives them insight on how the world unfairly works against them. The music video is used well to meet the audiences needs in terms of the 'uses and gratification theory', by fulfilling being able to learn something new, create a personal relationship and identity as well as it being a form of escapism. 

Personal Relationships

This video creates a personal relationship towards the target audience and artist, allowing the audience to relate and or sympathise with the message behind the music video. Again this creates something for a common interested audience to talk about what one another (eg "have you seen the new Childish Gambino music video?"). Within the music video, 'This is America', by 'Childish Gambino', an audience member can generate a personal relationship with the artist or themes in music video. The impactful and some would say controversial music video, allows relationships to grow when talking about the music video, sharing ideas, thoughts and opinions on the topics of the music video.

Personal Identity

One could interpret that a certain audience takes a part of the music video towards their own personal identity; taking a dance, voice/sound, action, etc. This gives evidence that the target audience understands and likes the music video enough to change their own personality to be like a certain character, theme, etc. Ways they could do this is to maybe change their hair colour, clothes, makeup, etc. Within the music video, 'This is America', the audience can relate to the characters and themes in the music video; an audience member maybe being an ethic American can relate or find a sense of community within the themes and problems talked about in the music video. Thus possibly taking a dance or certain style of clothing inspired from the music video into their own personal style or identity.

Escapism

This form of media involves 'escapism', letting an audience for a certain amount of time change their environment, mindset, who they are, etc. This media allows an audience to step outside of their own world and reality, to be somewhere they either enjoy or find exciting. When talking about the music video 'This is America', the context of the 'escapism' changes, a theme of brutality and discrimination is involved, something no one would want to experience, however, the music video allows a type of audience perceive this reality, allowing sympathy to be given to those who have to face it.