In this extract, disability is represented quite stereo-typically. Character Billy has a mental disability and it's represented by many micro elements, one of which being, sound. There is use of diegetic dialogue by Billy when talking to Detective Frost and his dad. Billy speaks very calmly and gentle, he also uses very simplistic words and short sentences indicating that he's very childlike and therefore innocent.
Another use of micro element is editing, whilst Detective Frost questions Billy about where he was during the time his friend went missing, the editing techniques used signifies the importance of the conversation. Long takes were used to set a slow pace, calmer and relaxing scene. Billy, once again, reacts very slow and gentle, almost as if he was clueless to what was going on. We as viewers would feel sympathy for him as we'd agree that he was clueless and innocent.
Another micro element that was used was cinematography. This represented disability very well because of the clear camera shots that were used, for example: at the beginning of the extract we see Billy in the forest wandering around, there was a use of 'Over the shoulder shot' which made the viewers see police with flash lights looking for someone. Although Billy runs, he is outnumbered by the police and they caught him easily.
Mise-en-scene also helped represent disability in this extract as Billy had cuts and grazes all over his cheeks and forehead. This connotes that he as a character is someone who is very vulnerable and weak, he needs someone to be paying attention to him at all times so he doesn't get hurt. This invites audience to sympathies for Billy as he can't do much to help himself.
Another example of sound being represented by disability is how Billy raised his voice more and more when Detective Frost starts to suspect his suspicious behavior, he shouts "I wasn't with Trisha!" which made viewers see a different side of Billy. This connotes that Billy's getting impatient and annoyed at the accusations being made of him hurting Trisha.
The shot reverse shot was used in editing during the questioning, this helped viewers see the differences between Detective Frost and Billy. Billy first gave an impression of being innocent and gentle, although his attitude gradually heated up towards the end of the conversation. We can also see Detective Frost feeling frustrated of Billy's comebacks, denying that he was with Trisha even though there were witnesses that saw him with her.
Also, the body language in the use of mise-en-scene helped represent Billy's disability. At the beginning of the questioning when Detective Frost starts asking him laid back questions, Billy would answer them with confidence, however, once Detective Frost mentioned that there were witnesses who saw Billy with Trisha before she went missing, his body language switched to slightly more negative. He would avoid eye contact with Detective Frost keeping his eyes on the ground and starts getting fidgety. This allows the viewer to think suspiciously of Billy.
Tuesday, 27 November 2012
Tuesday, 23 October 2012
se7en.
In this essay I will analyse the film Se7en and the aspects that makes this film a thriller genre. I will discuss the audience, narrative, genre and representation which are all shown by the use of mise-en-scene, sound, cinematograhy and editing.
The film Se7en was directed by David Fincher, and released on September 22nd, 1995. David Fincher is also known for directing other films such as 'Fight Club' and 'The curious case of Benjamin Button.' This means he is well known which helps promote the success of the film because of his previous experiences. This film was distributed by New Line Cinema, which is an independant instituition that has made other films such as 'Final Destination 3' and 'The Notebook.' This movie has a budget of $33,000,000 and produced a gross of $316,400,000 worldwide. Se7en has a use of many well known actors such as Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman, this would have an effect as they would have brought in a wider audience.
Seeing as Se7en is a thriller, the primarily target of the audience would be the fans of the thriller genre. This would make the target market mainstream. The target market would also be fans of Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman and David Fincher, furthermore, the audience could be people who can relate to David Mills and William Somerset as their jobs are to be detectives. However, the primary target audience is more likely to be men as the male gender is significant in this media text. Detective Mills has a wife who he loves very much and would do anything for, some of the male audience could relate to this, although the secondary target audience would be females who are attracted to Brad Pitt. Primarily the target age for this audience is middle ages, partly because the film is rated 18 but also because of most the actors played in the movie are played by adults who has a job and a family. There wouldn't be a specific ethnic target as the protagonist, Detective Mills and Somerset are both of different race.
Se7en follows a linear narrative, there are only four stages of this film, although some can argue that there are really only two as there isn't really an equilibrium at the beginning or the end of the movie as nothing is ever stable or calm, however they did solve the case of finding out who the murderer was. This film links to the thriller genre because of the mise-en-scene and the narrative devices that are being used. For example: The props used in the title sequence gives away the genre of the movie. At the very beginning of the title sequence, we get shown an extreme close up of an open hand book which the pages are being turned, this could connote that this is the opening of the story. It then cuts to a black and white picture of two crooked hands with a red line going between them, this red line could represent the danger and death in the theme of this film. Later on in the title sequence, we then see the character cutting out the word 'God', which could be another theme of the film as it has to do with something religious. All of these small glimpses of what the character is doing creates enigma as it leaves the audience wondering what they are doing, and why. The director also uses different techniques of editing, one of which, where it jumps from shot to shot, this is used so that the audience can get a rough idea about what the movie is without revealing everything leaving the audience wanting to know what all the props such as the blades are used for, as it resembles death or pain. A non diagetic sound is then heard, which is of creaking to create an uncomfortable atmosphere. The sounds also sound sharp and dangerous like it was done by the instruments used by the character (the blade). This once again, relates to the theme of death or pain.
During the 'chase scene', the director uses mise-en-scene to build up mystery. The antagonist's identity is kept hidde, this is an enigma code of a thriller. As the identity is hidden, it creates a sense of the theatre of mind for the audience. The audience doesn't know who the antagonist is or what they look like, the costume of the character is evident, dressed in black which connotes death, evil and mystery. The director uses cinematography, a steadi-cam shot in this scene which makes the audience feel like they're part of the movie. As the scene is fast paced and tense, the audience can feel the suspense David Fincher is trying to create. During this scene, incidental music is played and diagetic sounds of a woman screaming, this increases more tension. This is then followed by a surprised gun shot, the prop being the gun itself is a convention of a thriller. The scene contrains low key lighting which strengthens the mystery of who the antagonist is. In this particular scene, Detective Somerset is represented a calm and sensible character as he doesn't go straight into the chase. Whereas Detective Mills is represented as agressive, determined and impatient as he chases the antagonist straight away. An example of mise-en-scene is Mills's performance, he presents himself as confident and strong, however in reality he's weak and vulnerable. The fact that the chase is set in a busy everyday location adds to the idea of realism. Also, the weather reflects on the mood of the movie, as it constantly rains which makes it seem sad and depressing.
In the 'ending scene' cinematography shows that all three main characters are involved in this scene. The weather has changed to a much positive and brighter vibe, as there is no more rain and only sunshine. Whilst they are in the car, different sides of each characters are shown which creates confusing for the audience. For example: Mills aggresively pics on Doe, this could suggest that Mills could be a mix between protaginist and antagonist in this movie. It is another convention of a thriller when the protagonist is used as a red herring, Mills gets annoyed by this though Doe carries on manipulating him. This represents that Doe has control over Mills. When Doe says to Detective Mills that he has a souvenir, a low angle shot is used, this enhances that in this scene Doe is superior to Mills. Mills as this point is at rage, and continuosly questions Detective Somerset "Whats in the box?" which is an example of verbal codes as well as theatre of the mind. During Mills questioning, he raises the gun to the antagonist's head, this is an exaple of visual codes, and it's shown through his body language. When Mills has the gun against Doe's head, it's shot in a low angle which now shows that Mills is superior to Doe.
A narrative convention is used when we see a different side of the character, which is when Detective Somerset slaps Doe. Throughout the whole film the audience would have learned that the two detectives are binary opposites towards each other as Somerset is calm, experienced and old, where as Mills is aggressive, a rookie and young. Cinematography creates anticipation as the close up of the box is shown, however the audience cannot see what's inside the box which creates suspense, this is an example of theatre of the mind, which is another convention of a thriller.
To conclude, thrillers maintain surprising evens and se7en abides by this. However, there are some unconventional aspects of a thriller, for example the 'Chase Scene' is a convention of an action movie which goes against the typical conventions of a thriller. Typical conventions of a thriller would include: Red herring, theatre of the mind, cheap surprises and sounds that gives tension. The use of mise-en-scene creates a mysterious mood which gives away to the genre, the use of cinematography develops the narrative device and the use of sound effects boosts the audience's emotions. It is clear from my analysis that the aspects combines in this movie is to make this film a genre a thriller. David Fincher's message about this film is to show how dangerous and unexpected society can be with all the crimes commited by many unexpected people, it tells us that we live in a dangerous society and Fincher is trying to make the audience think about the 'Seven deadly sins' that they have commited.
The film Se7en was directed by David Fincher, and released on September 22nd, 1995. David Fincher is also known for directing other films such as 'Fight Club' and 'The curious case of Benjamin Button.' This means he is well known which helps promote the success of the film because of his previous experiences. This film was distributed by New Line Cinema, which is an independant instituition that has made other films such as 'Final Destination 3' and 'The Notebook.' This movie has a budget of $33,000,000 and produced a gross of $316,400,000 worldwide. Se7en has a use of many well known actors such as Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman, this would have an effect as they would have brought in a wider audience.
Seeing as Se7en is a thriller, the primarily target of the audience would be the fans of the thriller genre. This would make the target market mainstream. The target market would also be fans of Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman and David Fincher, furthermore, the audience could be people who can relate to David Mills and William Somerset as their jobs are to be detectives. However, the primary target audience is more likely to be men as the male gender is significant in this media text. Detective Mills has a wife who he loves very much and would do anything for, some of the male audience could relate to this, although the secondary target audience would be females who are attracted to Brad Pitt. Primarily the target age for this audience is middle ages, partly because the film is rated 18 but also because of most the actors played in the movie are played by adults who has a job and a family. There wouldn't be a specific ethnic target as the protagonist, Detective Mills and Somerset are both of different race.
Se7en follows a linear narrative, there are only four stages of this film, although some can argue that there are really only two as there isn't really an equilibrium at the beginning or the end of the movie as nothing is ever stable or calm, however they did solve the case of finding out who the murderer was. This film links to the thriller genre because of the mise-en-scene and the narrative devices that are being used. For example: The props used in the title sequence gives away the genre of the movie. At the very beginning of the title sequence, we get shown an extreme close up of an open hand book which the pages are being turned, this could connote that this is the opening of the story. It then cuts to a black and white picture of two crooked hands with a red line going between them, this red line could represent the danger and death in the theme of this film. Later on in the title sequence, we then see the character cutting out the word 'God', which could be another theme of the film as it has to do with something religious. All of these small glimpses of what the character is doing creates enigma as it leaves the audience wondering what they are doing, and why. The director also uses different techniques of editing, one of which, where it jumps from shot to shot, this is used so that the audience can get a rough idea about what the movie is without revealing everything leaving the audience wanting to know what all the props such as the blades are used for, as it resembles death or pain. A non diagetic sound is then heard, which is of creaking to create an uncomfortable atmosphere. The sounds also sound sharp and dangerous like it was done by the instruments used by the character (the blade). This once again, relates to the theme of death or pain.
During the 'chase scene', the director uses mise-en-scene to build up mystery. The antagonist's identity is kept hidde, this is an enigma code of a thriller. As the identity is hidden, it creates a sense of the theatre of mind for the audience. The audience doesn't know who the antagonist is or what they look like, the costume of the character is evident, dressed in black which connotes death, evil and mystery. The director uses cinematography, a steadi-cam shot in this scene which makes the audience feel like they're part of the movie. As the scene is fast paced and tense, the audience can feel the suspense David Fincher is trying to create. During this scene, incidental music is played and diagetic sounds of a woman screaming, this increases more tension. This is then followed by a surprised gun shot, the prop being the gun itself is a convention of a thriller. The scene contrains low key lighting which strengthens the mystery of who the antagonist is. In this particular scene, Detective Somerset is represented a calm and sensible character as he doesn't go straight into the chase. Whereas Detective Mills is represented as agressive, determined and impatient as he chases the antagonist straight away. An example of mise-en-scene is Mills's performance, he presents himself as confident and strong, however in reality he's weak and vulnerable. The fact that the chase is set in a busy everyday location adds to the idea of realism. Also, the weather reflects on the mood of the movie, as it constantly rains which makes it seem sad and depressing.
In the 'ending scene' cinematography shows that all three main characters are involved in this scene. The weather has changed to a much positive and brighter vibe, as there is no more rain and only sunshine. Whilst they are in the car, different sides of each characters are shown which creates confusing for the audience. For example: Mills aggresively pics on Doe, this could suggest that Mills could be a mix between protaginist and antagonist in this movie. It is another convention of a thriller when the protagonist is used as a red herring, Mills gets annoyed by this though Doe carries on manipulating him. This represents that Doe has control over Mills. When Doe says to Detective Mills that he has a souvenir, a low angle shot is used, this enhances that in this scene Doe is superior to Mills. Mills as this point is at rage, and continuosly questions Detective Somerset "Whats in the box?" which is an example of verbal codes as well as theatre of the mind. During Mills questioning, he raises the gun to the antagonist's head, this is an exaple of visual codes, and it's shown through his body language. When Mills has the gun against Doe's head, it's shot in a low angle which now shows that Mills is superior to Doe.
A narrative convention is used when we see a different side of the character, which is when Detective Somerset slaps Doe. Throughout the whole film the audience would have learned that the two detectives are binary opposites towards each other as Somerset is calm, experienced and old, where as Mills is aggressive, a rookie and young. Cinematography creates anticipation as the close up of the box is shown, however the audience cannot see what's inside the box which creates suspense, this is an example of theatre of the mind, which is another convention of a thriller.
To conclude, thrillers maintain surprising evens and se7en abides by this. However, there are some unconventional aspects of a thriller, for example the 'Chase Scene' is a convention of an action movie which goes against the typical conventions of a thriller. Typical conventions of a thriller would include: Red herring, theatre of the mind, cheap surprises and sounds that gives tension. The use of mise-en-scene creates a mysterious mood which gives away to the genre, the use of cinematography develops the narrative device and the use of sound effects boosts the audience's emotions. It is clear from my analysis that the aspects combines in this movie is to make this film a genre a thriller. David Fincher's message about this film is to show how dangerous and unexpected society can be with all the crimes commited by many unexpected people, it tells us that we live in a dangerous society and Fincher is trying to make the audience think about the 'Seven deadly sins' that they have commited.
Friday, 19 October 2012
preliminary task
Our brief was to make a short media artefact thatdemonstrated we understood continuity techniques. The continuity techniquesthat we had to demonstrate were match-on-action, 180 degrees rule, shotreverse, dialogue and open and cross the room. We used these techniques in ourvideo to practice them to show that we understand how to use them.
During our production, there were a few challenges that wehad to overcome, such as during the pre production, there were problems oflosing the story board, which made us lose time as we had to do it again,although it didn’t take too long. There were no problems organizing the propsand costume as we wore our own clothes and got a useful prop from the dramaapartment. However, the setting was a problem as the first room we were usingto film in had to be used so we had to change location, and as for the secondroom we was filming in had odd lighting, it shows this by seeing one scenelighter than a different scene. This caused a problem for filming as it didn’tmake the scene look as serious as it should have, there were also problems withthe acting as there was some laughter and accidentally looking into the camera.Also, the actors weren’t sure when to start acting as the director wasn’tgiving proper instructions/directions. Thankfully, there were no problems withtechnology or organizations.
Monday, 17 September 2012
Camera shots.
 |
This is an example of a two shot which involves in two people having a conversation. The effect of this shot type would be to show who's in the shot and who's talking.  This is an example of a high angle shot, the effect is |
Sunday, 16 September 2012
Media Consumption.
Media consumption is the sum of information and entertainment taken in by an individual or group. It includes many activities such as interacting with new media, reading books or magazine; watching television or films; listening to the radio and so on.
We all use many different kinds of media every day, it would include little things that you would do as a daily routine, such as using your mobile phone, listening to the radio, watching tv and even surfing the internet.
One of the many things that I do which involves Media would be watching films, either on television or the internet. I would usually prefer to watch horror films, or sometimes comedy, depending on the mood. One of my favorite horror films to watch would be 'Nightmare on Elm Street'. This film is a hybrid as it has three different genres, which includes Horror, Mystery and Thriller.
This is the film poster of 'Nightmare on Elm Street 2010'. This poster tells a viewer how to feel as it's dark and mysterious. The dark red text reads the title of the film which seems creepy and gives off that it's a horror film, as well as the image of the two main characters. Another one of the many things I enjoy doing whilst using media would be listening to music, either on my phone, YouTube or iTunes. YouTube is a video-sharing website which allow users to upload, listen and share videos. I listen to many type of music genres, some would be mainstream however some would be subcultures, such as the music genre 'Dubstep'.
This is an album cover of an artist who belongs in the 'Dubstep' genre, this album is suitable for the genre because it presents what the album may sound. It looks sharp and straightforward, although somewhat violent but yet calm. The red text reads 'Skrillex' which is the name of the artist and 'Bangarang' which is the album's name. This artist would be very familiar to those who listen to 'Dubstep', but would be completely unknown to the mainstream world. The third example of what I do which includes Media would be reading magazines. I occasionally read gossip magazines for entertainment. This would include in reading magazines such as Heat, Ok!, Hello, etc.. The purpose of gossip magazines are to promote yet expose at the same time, a celebrity.
This is a cover of an Ok! magazine which the 'Kardashian Sisters' are on the front page of. The big and bold yellow texts which says "My Dream Wedding" (emphasis on wedding as it's in capitals) captures the audience's attention and makes them more interested in knowing more of 'Khloe Kardashian's' wedding. The last example of another thing I use/do which includes Media is generally using my iPhone. The iPhone contains a lot of different medias as it allows you to download all kinds of different apps. The app store contains about 500,000 apps, which has different categories either to do with social networking, watching tv, reading magazines, etc.
Three of the many common apps downloaded on the iPhone would be Facebook, Whatsapp and Instagram. The big social networking sites where you can chat, upload pictures, comment and like them. Although each of them has different target audiences, the apps aren't all that different from each other, as long as you like to socialize, they are made for everybody.
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