For the task of deconstructing a film in order to understand how different aspects contributed to its meaning, its representation, its audience, the genre its trying to represent and its related codes and conventions I selected a few movie scenes and short films to help guide me in understanding.
The first short film that i selected for my deconstruction task is 'Inside', directed by Trevor Sands.It is a 5 minutes and 8 seconds long film. The short film starts with the music which is a thriller and mysterious type of music playing while the title of the film comes at the right middle of the screen. The title starts in a manner that the words appear to be coming out of each others and expanding to the opposite direction. The font is plain simple white colored font against a black background. Just by hearing the music that is playing and by reading the title and seeing how it emerges one can assume that the genre of the film is suspense and to some extent drama.
Shots and Angles
The short film starts with a scene where the camera remains static in one position and direction and has a shallow depth of field. As the subject moves closer to the camera he becomes clearer. The next shot is a high angle view, long shot where one character-the nurse helps the other character-the patient to get on his feet. A over the shoulder medium close up shot follows.
As the characters move along the corridor a long shot is shown that at first has a slight low angle but as the characters move along the corridor, further away from the camera it slightly tilts upwards but this tilt upwards is the whole camera moving upwards.Two very important element of the short film are shown as the characters move along the corridor.One element is as the characters moving in one direction another character comes from a different direction. He seem to be in normal clothes carrying a folder, the identity of this character is not know as of yet but the reason why he might have been shown is that he might play a part later in the short film.As the characters move in the corridor a medium close up shot is shown of all the 3 characters but the camera is seen to be panning left to right (as well as tilting up and down in one shot-the girls shot) to show the four new and different characters who suddenly appear at the side of the patient and then dissapear just as soon as the camera pans.
In this scene the shot is a long take where the camera is panning and revolving around the female to give the view of the whole frame.A series of medium close shots, long shots , cowboy shots follow. In certain shots we scan also see the 180 degree rule applied.
In one scene a slight low angle is shown of the character with all the other characters standing around him in a circle, all talking at the same time. The low angle used here shows the characters weakness and despair as how he feels a victim to all the other characters that surround him.various close up shots are shown of all the different characters all talking at the same time.
Dialogues and sounds
Dailouges and sounds were a very important part of this short film. The music used had a huge element of suspense and it was a dark type of music, not upbeat or funky but with a very serious and mysterious tone. The dialogues( the digetic and the non-digetics sound-the voice overlay of different characters was heard as walking through the corridor) were integral to the short film for they represented the main concept of the story that was that the person had multiple personality disorder and heard voices of different characters. Also the scene where the characters speak simultaneously with the victim or main characters further reinforced the image of the victims disorder and how at different points they take over his personality and speak through him.
Mise-en-scene
The location becomes clear in the first few scenes because the mise-en-scene plays a very important part here. The characters all wear plain white clothes which are usually worn by people in medical centers. the location is also a closed solitary compartment that has a door that has to be unlocked to gain entrance. The dialogue 'lets go, the doctor wants to see u' tells the viewers immediately that this is definitely nothing but a mental asylum. Also as they move from the room into the corridor the digetic sounds heard at the back of people menacing laughter and moaning further reinforces the image of the location.
Lighting
The lights used in this entire location were usually low key slighting but the contrast is set as high and with fine grains in order to give a more dreamy but classy look. in the corridors the subjects again and again enters and exits the light illuminated parts of the corridor. The main source of light in the interview room is the bright light right above the table. A very important light scene was however when the women stands up furiously and yells at everyone to stay quiet. as all the charters dissapear and only the women and the victim are left in the room and there is a sudden decrease in the victims anxiety and he feels relief. This relief is show as a light which source is unknown shines from outside and sweeps the whole room from left to right giving a impression of like washing away traces of the past and bring something new.
Props
They are an integral part of any scene and helps in setting the meaning associate with the scene for example in the scene where the victim being interviewed we see that he is strapped to the chair by the hand in order to prevent movement which indicates that his disorder is such that he can cause himself and others harm.
Costume also contribute to understanding the scene, the identities of the characters and the link of it to the location. The white medical nurse and doctors lab coat and patient customs worn by the character reinforces the image of it being a hospital type setting or a asylum.
Face expression and Body language play a very important part in any film. It helps in conveying 50 percent of what the character is doing or saying. For this short film it was very important because the patient had to show severe distress and anxiety by this face expressions and the ability to show different personalities while maintaining one posture is a difficult task to do but in order to convey the message of being a victim of multiple personality disorder it was an integral part of the film, to have meaningful and accurate face expression and body language.
This is a scene from the film 'The Nanny Diaries' . its genre is drama with an element of comedy and romance. The scene I choose is of Annie's Graduation.
The scene starts with a panning shot from left to right which is also a wide close up shot of different peoples faces. the camera pans until it stops on a subject face, obviously Annie.All the different people as well as our subjects wear robes with graduation hats which makes it clear what the setting is as well as the event.
The camera stops on our subjects face where there is a cut away shot to show the stage that is showed in a medium full shot. the shot cuts back to Annie's face that shows her face expressions to be tensed but some what happy as well.there is eye line match between these two shots. As her name is announced and she gets up there is a fast tilt up that goes diagonally from right to left and as she makes her way to the stage the camera follows her. its a medium close shot with a continuous adult view angle of the camera maintained.
the props inculdes things such as robes, hats, chairs, the shields and awards given away etc and the colour used are fresh and vibarant colors which creates a light but happy environment.
the lighting used throughout the scene is natural daylight which give a every fresh and healthy feel to the whole scene. if additional light is used it has been diffused considerably.
a medium close shot of her mum shows only her standing and clapping with excitement which shows how proud she feels of her daughter. there is good leading room and sufficient head room given.
The next shot which is a long shot of Annie's, as she is climbing up the stairs of the stage the camera tilts up diagonally from left to right slightly at a low angle.
Until she falls that it becomes wide close up shot of Annie's face that shows the expression of embarrassment. as she gets up the previous close up shot of her moms face-after she falls-of embarrassment and worry for her daughter changes into a wide close up of her smiling proudly at her daughter.
The last shot is when Annie mentions her moms occupation, a macro shot of her moms nurse shoes is shown.
The main prop in this scene is the nurses shoes which might be because they play a very important part later in the film when grayer gets sick and her mom finds out Annie's original job.Also that Annie lied to her.
The next scene is again from the movie 'the nanny daiaries'.
The scene that I chose for my analysis is the conversation being held between the mother and the daughter after the graduation ceremony. The location is a diner where they celebrate. This shows that they belong to an average family who has to work hard in order to earn a living. The location is in a diner in new jersey.
The scene starts with a macro shot of Annie opening her gift with which the camera tilts up slowly and it shows a close up shot of Annie.
Excitement can be guessed from her face expression.the camera moves ups from the insert shot to annies face that is a wide close up. The next following shots in the entire scene are shot revese shots following the 180 degree rule(with over the shoulder shots). All these shot reverse shots show a close up of the 2 character sitting on the table.
As Annie opens her gift her face expression change from excitement to confusion . This might show that what she got was not what she would have liked to have shot reverse shot, her moms expressions are excited when Annie unwraps the gift but as she views her gift her mum has a defensive face expression while she explains the reason for buying the gift. Its a close up shot.
the next scenes that follows consist of more shot reverse shot and are basically consisting of dialogues and expressions. annie dicusses with hedr mom that she wants to try out her options of jobs. that maybe she is not meant for the business world but how her mum gets annoyed by this and argues back.
Dull colored clothes and simple hair style suggests life style that is not full of luxuries. The entire shots are adult angel. High key lighting has been used. The main key light is natural light like sunlight but much diffused lights. White reflectors have been used to add light to the other part of the face where the light is nor reaching and the face is comparatively darker.
The main prop in this scene is the gift wrapped business suit because it is used in later scene at how she is uncomfortable wearing it and how her friend teases her with snide comments about it.
The first short film that i selected for my deconstruction task is 'Inside', directed by Trevor Sands.It is a 5 minutes and 8 seconds long film. The short film starts with the music which is a thriller and mysterious type of music playing while the title of the film comes at the right middle of the screen. The title starts in a manner that the words appear to be coming out of each others and expanding to the opposite direction. The font is plain simple white colored font against a black background. Just by hearing the music that is playing and by reading the title and seeing how it emerges one can assume that the genre of the film is suspense and to some extent drama.
Shots and Angles
The short film starts with a scene where the camera remains static in one position and direction and has a shallow depth of field. As the subject moves closer to the camera he becomes clearer. The next shot is a high angle view, long shot where one character-the nurse helps the other character-the patient to get on his feet. A over the shoulder medium close up shot follows.
As the characters move along the corridor a long shot is shown that at first has a slight low angle but as the characters move along the corridor, further away from the camera it slightly tilts upwards but this tilt upwards is the whole camera moving upwards.Two very important element of the short film are shown as the characters move along the corridor.One element is as the characters moving in one direction another character comes from a different direction. He seem to be in normal clothes carrying a folder, the identity of this character is not know as of yet but the reason why he might have been shown is that he might play a part later in the short film.As the characters move in the corridor a medium close up shot is shown of all the 3 characters but the camera is seen to be panning left to right (as well as tilting up and down in one shot-the girls shot) to show the four new and different characters who suddenly appear at the side of the patient and then dissapear just as soon as the camera pans.
In this scene the shot is a long take where the camera is panning and revolving around the female to give the view of the whole frame.A series of medium close shots, long shots , cowboy shots follow. In certain shots we scan also see the 180 degree rule applied.
In one scene a slight low angle is shown of the character with all the other characters standing around him in a circle, all talking at the same time. The low angle used here shows the characters weakness and despair as how he feels a victim to all the other characters that surround him.various close up shots are shown of all the different characters all talking at the same time.
Dialogues and sounds
Dailouges and sounds were a very important part of this short film. The music used had a huge element of suspense and it was a dark type of music, not upbeat or funky but with a very serious and mysterious tone. The dialogues( the digetic and the non-digetics sound-the voice overlay of different characters was heard as walking through the corridor) were integral to the short film for they represented the main concept of the story that was that the person had multiple personality disorder and heard voices of different characters. Also the scene where the characters speak simultaneously with the victim or main characters further reinforced the image of the victims disorder and how at different points they take over his personality and speak through him.
Mise-en-scene
The location becomes clear in the first few scenes because the mise-en-scene plays a very important part here. The characters all wear plain white clothes which are usually worn by people in medical centers. the location is also a closed solitary compartment that has a door that has to be unlocked to gain entrance. The dialogue 'lets go, the doctor wants to see u' tells the viewers immediately that this is definitely nothing but a mental asylum. Also as they move from the room into the corridor the digetic sounds heard at the back of people menacing laughter and moaning further reinforces the image of the location.
Lighting
The lights used in this entire location were usually low key slighting but the contrast is set as high and with fine grains in order to give a more dreamy but classy look. in the corridors the subjects again and again enters and exits the light illuminated parts of the corridor. The main source of light in the interview room is the bright light right above the table. A very important light scene was however when the women stands up furiously and yells at everyone to stay quiet. as all the charters dissapear and only the women and the victim are left in the room and there is a sudden decrease in the victims anxiety and he feels relief. This relief is show as a light which source is unknown shines from outside and sweeps the whole room from left to right giving a impression of like washing away traces of the past and bring something new.
Props
They are an integral part of any scene and helps in setting the meaning associate with the scene for example in the scene where the victim being interviewed we see that he is strapped to the chair by the hand in order to prevent movement which indicates that his disorder is such that he can cause himself and others harm.
Costume also contribute to understanding the scene, the identities of the characters and the link of it to the location. The white medical nurse and doctors lab coat and patient customs worn by the character reinforces the image of it being a hospital type setting or a asylum.
Face expression and Body language play a very important part in any film. It helps in conveying 50 percent of what the character is doing or saying. For this short film it was very important because the patient had to show severe distress and anxiety by this face expressions and the ability to show different personalities while maintaining one posture is a difficult task to do but in order to convey the message of being a victim of multiple personality disorder it was an integral part of the film, to have meaningful and accurate face expression and body language.
This is a scene from the film 'The Nanny Diaries' . its genre is drama with an element of comedy and romance. The scene I choose is of Annie's Graduation.
The scene starts with a panning shot from left to right which is also a wide close up shot of different peoples faces. the camera pans until it stops on a subject face, obviously Annie.All the different people as well as our subjects wear robes with graduation hats which makes it clear what the setting is as well as the event.
The camera stops on our subjects face where there is a cut away shot to show the stage that is showed in a medium full shot. the shot cuts back to Annie's face that shows her face expressions to be tensed but some what happy as well.there is eye line match between these two shots. As her name is announced and she gets up there is a fast tilt up that goes diagonally from right to left and as she makes her way to the stage the camera follows her. its a medium close shot with a continuous adult view angle of the camera maintained.
the props inculdes things such as robes, hats, chairs, the shields and awards given away etc and the colour used are fresh and vibarant colors which creates a light but happy environment.
the lighting used throughout the scene is natural daylight which give a every fresh and healthy feel to the whole scene. if additional light is used it has been diffused considerably.
a medium close shot of her mum shows only her standing and clapping with excitement which shows how proud she feels of her daughter. there is good leading room and sufficient head room given.
The next shot which is a long shot of Annie's, as she is climbing up the stairs of the stage the camera tilts up diagonally from left to right slightly at a low angle.
Until she falls that it becomes wide close up shot of Annie's face that shows the expression of embarrassment. as she gets up the previous close up shot of her moms face-after she falls-of embarrassment and worry for her daughter changes into a wide close up of her smiling proudly at her daughter.
The last shot is when Annie mentions her moms occupation, a macro shot of her moms nurse shoes is shown.
The main prop in this scene is the nurses shoes which might be because they play a very important part later in the film when grayer gets sick and her mom finds out Annie's original job.Also that Annie lied to her.
The next scene is again from the movie 'the nanny daiaries'.
The scene that I chose for my analysis is the conversation being held between the mother and the daughter after the graduation ceremony. The location is a diner where they celebrate. This shows that they belong to an average family who has to work hard in order to earn a living. The location is in a diner in new jersey.
Excitement can be guessed from her face expression.the camera moves ups from the insert shot to annies face that is a wide close up. The next following shots in the entire scene are shot revese shots following the 180 degree rule(with over the shoulder shots). All these shot reverse shots show a close up of the 2 character sitting on the table.
As Annie opens her gift her face expression change from excitement to confusion . This might show that what she got was not what she would have liked to have shot reverse shot, her moms expressions are excited when Annie unwraps the gift but as she views her gift her mum has a defensive face expression while she explains the reason for buying the gift. Its a close up shot.
the next scenes that follows consist of more shot reverse shot and are basically consisting of dialogues and expressions. annie dicusses with hedr mom that she wants to try out her options of jobs. that maybe she is not meant for the business world but how her mum gets annoyed by this and argues back.
Dull colored clothes and simple hair style suggests life style that is not full of luxuries. The entire shots are adult angel. High key lighting has been used. The main key light is natural light like sunlight but much diffused lights. White reflectors have been used to add light to the other part of the face where the light is nor reaching and the face is comparatively darker.
The main prop in this scene is the gift wrapped business suit because it is used in later scene at how she is uncomfortable wearing it and how her friend teases her with snide comments about it.
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