MEST2: Brief

I'd really like to work on a type of Modern noir, in the style of a 60's detective black and white movie. This would be really interesting to work with, as we can play around with the plot line very easily and also manipulate the tone in terms of serious or comedic. If we were to go with a serious tone, we could go down the direction of something loosely based around the style of Sin City which is basically a movie which shows modern noir very well and also helps to emphasise the style of a comic book graphic novel.

If we were able to work with this idea we could actually very easily work with a variety of the topics and utilise the different topics into one, such as urban life/secret/friendship and maybe even romance. I think this will have to depend greatly on our overall idea of the plot line.

In terms of the plot line, we can work on the detective narrative and create something that I believe will leave the audience amazed, this will have to be done by creating a variety of enigma codes and eventually through the big reveal we can have a huge plot twist. I think this would work very well in terms our general idea of secrets which helps to link with the detective narrative, and generally becomes a mystery, thriller or who-dun-it type of movie.

The Equation - Link/Evaluation

The Equation

Evaluation

Our production got an A-

Brief:
Although our brief was a very simple and generic task of a character walking into the room and talking to another character across the table. I believe that we were able to go one step further and create something that was a lot more detailed and expanded than the original brief. Our production consisted of a hostage character being interrogated and tortured by a Mafia style gangster. Our main idea was started from that and we decided to use the famous Reservoir Dog torture scene as inspiration.

Planning:
In terms of planning, I think our group worked exceptionally well as we were able to efficiently finish the shot list, storyboard, script in a couple of days after it was tasked. We had initially decided to finish the planning a couple of days before the deadline and didn't want to be in the position where we would be working on it the day or night before. This was effectively done as we had a lot of communication between us as a group and we had quickly split the work load between us all. This helped to create a smooth and efficient work flow which in the end was very helpful especially when it came to our filming as we had essentially got a very solid idea together and were able to go through with it with confidence.

Strengths:
There were quite a lot of different areas where our production was strong, one of the strengths was the point of view shot that we had of the hostage, where we only saw the interrogating character. This helped to easily suture the audience and create a sense of hostile intimidation as it looked like the character was actually threatening the audience. This was very effective and all thanks to our amazing actor Izaaz who through his performance was really able to bring out the menacing personality of the character that we wanted to portray. We also made the production look very realistic through the use of make-up, iconic prop and stereotypical costume, the simple use of a dark attire and red tie was able to give the sense of the Mafia style boss of the character. There were also a lot of good camera work and framing, such as the pan from the close up of the hands and feet tied to the medium shot of Izaaz taking off his jacket. Also, the non diegetic sounds in the background were also parallel to the plot and theme and we were also able to put in the small idea of contrapuntal through the scene where the bodyguard was listening to contrapuntal music. Something that I personally am very proud of is the editing cut used at 1:40 when Izaaz takes off the scarf and it cuts to another shot from a different angle but the cut is heavily dependent on the scarf across the frame and uses it as a wipe. This technique I'm very proud of as I have always wanted to do this type of technique and learnt it from watching my favourite movies of Edgar Wright who is one of my favourite directors. Finally, we were also able to create a lot of enigma and action codes such as Izaaz cracking his knuckles, taking his jacket off and taking his ring off. The use of close ups and silence in the beginning helped to slow down the pace and create tension which I think was very effective.

Weaknesses:
Although, I personally I am very proud of this production, I still am adamant that it could have been improved and made thoroughly better. One of the main weaknesses was the breaking of the 180 degree rule. This was very disorientating to the audience and I think is something that we need to work on much more and worry about in our future productions as it is a convention that is very heavily used and impacts the audience a lot. Another weakness was that our violence, although was very clear through the use of prop and make up, it wasn't very clear through the actions as the punches thrown seemed weak and fake as there was little to no reaction from the victim. Finally, another factor that could have been improved was the audio levels and the intensity of the lighting. As we filmed on different days, we had trouble with keeping the lighting consistent which is definitely something we can work on, also the audio levels were inconsistent as the microphone would generally pick up a lot of the surrounding static noises which we could work on in post-production and reduce it manually. 

Film Language test learner response

WWW: Some original, fluent writing, using terminology well
EBI: Re-do Q1 doesn't focus enough on mise-en-scene (CLAMPS)



Mise-en-scene
What does the mise-en-scene suggest about the characters and events in the film? [12 marks]

The mise-en-scene shows the first character presented is sitting down slumping and this could suggest how he has given up. Through the use of costume and make up, we clearly see that Keaton is made up to look utterly defeated and beaten up. Furthermore, through the same use of costume, we see that the killer is shown in a long black over coat with a hat which is a classic "ominous" costume used in the noir genre.

Through the use of props such as the gun, the shots of ships and several dead bodies, we are presented with the classic iconography of the stereotypical gangster and crime genre. This helps the audience to easily understand the atmosphere and plot as it uses conventions from the specific genre.

The lighting is also very effective as there is the use of low key lighting which is again typical of the genre and suggests the thrilling nature and atmosphere of the characters and events. This use of lighting is further used as the killer is always in a silhouette which helps to hide his intentions and also his identity.

Finally, another way the mise-en-scene shows suggestions about the characters events is through the use of the actor's movements, as we see very slow and deliberate movements from the killer which shows that he controls the pace of the narrative and has immediate power of Keaton. Also because Keaton doesn't move and is always in either a close up or medium shot, this suggests how he is trapped in both the setting and frame and that his death is inevitable. 

Preliminary - Planning

Group: Mandev, Ladan, Rashida, Sunny

Script

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DgD9M2XEBpGV9ATj8p-fyq0aQ97guIlP8exSSw3UeDE/

Shot list

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mJ6D6bFnGw6_CBpdAdQLKJCoQE_PHJIXPUvujN6VX_k/

Storyboard

https://docs.google.com/document/d/19OcWuU9eRNXq2rmLzD_BICmW2GMUD4EaRvY-e8QcYyU/

Media awards

Labrat

Mise en scene

The mise-en-scene is very important and used effectively in this production. We see a young teenager in front of the camera narrating his story in the past tense in normal teenage clothing in the form of a video diary, as if we are watching his personal "vlogs". This helps us the audience to identify with him very easily and as the narrative develops makes his retelling much more personal and intimate with the audience, effectively suturing us into the narrative with great ease.

The teenager then changes his costume to a stereotypical lab coat which is a great use of iconography and prop to highlight the importance and significance of chemistry in the narrative as we then go on to see a variety of shots of chemistry props.

Through the mise-en-scene, we the audience are immediately able to identify the atmosphere and genre of the production which is a serious drama.

Cinematography

The cinematography is also well used as there are a variety of close ups such as the close ups of the character and the props when he is in the chemistry lab. This helps to easily show the focus of these objects from the character's point of view and also again sutures the audience into presenting their entire focus on the objects. Through the use of close ups on the character we are able to easily see his emotions through the actor's facial expressions and makes the production a lot more emotional and easy to relate to.

There are also a variety of medium shots which are used to establish the setting and as in the frame the medium shots, there is a balance between the focus of the character and setting. This is very effective as also a transition between close ups but more importantly it shows the character's emotions through the actor's actions, such as when he is reading in the library but throws away the book which shows the audience his sense of frustration.

Editing

The beginning of the narrative used a lot of continuity editing to easily display the seamless flow of the narrative to the audience. However, near the end this editing turned into a sort of montage sequence of shots of the chemical props and condensed the events of a long period of time (like an experiment) in a short amount of time. This montage showed the audience an idea of a type of opening sequence to their production and helped to added a sense of grandeur.

The most commonly used cuts and transitions in this production were simple straight cuts. The simplicity was used very effectively and makes the narrative flow seamlessly. There was also the use of fade outs and fades in which helped to signify the idea of a flashback and added a certain uniqueness to the narrative as we saw shots of the past whilst the character narrated from the present.

Sound

There were a variety of diegetic and non diegetic sound used in this production. For example, there was the use of diegetic sounds of the birds overlaying the shots of trees helped to set the setting and calm atmosphere. This was then followed by non-diegetic music which was also soft, calm and peaceful. However, the use of these two created a contrapuntal mood and atmosphere as we see a lot of frustration and emotional anguish in the character which is completely opposite to the music used which although does create a serious mood, it is unusual to see calming music behind this narrative, which is very effective in grabbing the audience's attention.

Trace

Mise en scene

The mise-en-scene is also used effectively in this production. We first see the variety of establishing shots of London to immediately help set the setting and the location of the narrative. We then see a medium shot panning shot of a mysterious body lying down in a cramped space. This helps to set the genre of mystery and drama to the narrative and immediately creates a variety of enigma codes for the audience to try and solve. The process of adding these enigma codes sutures the audience into the narrative. The shot then changes to show a medium shot of two young teenagers sitting and talking. There is the use of iconography and props such as the mobile phones which help the audience to identify with the idea of youth. There is also another variety of props used to signify this youthful cast such as skateboards and hoodies and cigarettes, which could essentially connote to the idea of violence and rebellion.

Through the mise-en-scene, we the audience are immediately able to identify the atmosphere and genre of the production which is a serious and mysterious drama.

Cinematography

The cinematography is also well used as there are a variety of medium shots and tracking shots. The tracking shots help to keep the characters and actors in focus and centre of the frame, it is this focus that helps to keep the audience's attention to the narrative and characters. There are also a variety of medium shots which are used to establish the setting and as in the frame the medium shots, there is a balance between the focus of the character and setting. We see a lot of establishing shots used which is effective especially in the Las Vegas scenes, as we see a lot of different iconic settings and locations to a certain culture and location. This helps the audience to identify much more easier to the settings.

Editing

The beginning of the narrative used a lot of continuity editing to easily display the seamless flow of the establishing shots to the audience. The most commonly used cuts and transitions in this production were simple straight cuts. The simplicity was used very effectively and makes the narrative flow seamlessly. 

What was unique about the editing in this production was that there were also the use of cut to black, this was especially effective when the cut imitated the idea of one of the character covering the body's face, and was shown through the fact that the actor covered the camera. 

The opening sequence used to introduce the characters was also unique as this was in the form of a montage. The montage sequence started off with a blur off and introduced each character with a close up and edit of their shot. There was also the use of multiple quick cuts which was parallel to the music and again helped to create the sense of urgency and haste.

Sound

There were a variety of diegetic and non diegetic sound used in this production. For example, there was the use of diegetic sounds of the dialogue between the two characters, what's unusual is that there is no diegetic sound used to overlay the establishing shots as there is complete silence. However, this could also be effective in the sense that it creates a "deafening silence" and keeps the audience guessing and expecting something. 

This was then followed by non-diegetic music which was very fast and with loud sounds. The use of this created a parallel mood and atmosphere as we see a lot of movement from the two characters which helps to immediately establish the idea of haste and urgency. Finally, the production finishes with diegetic classic swing music in the Las Vegas scene which is again parallel to the setting and "juke box diner" feel.