short films analysis
About a girl
About a girl is a social realism short film about film set in 2001 about a girl (obviously) and her family and friends who live on a council estate and are quite deprived, this short film and fish tank are very similar following a young girl who wants to become famous and make a living from there talent as a singer/ dancer and they use this dream to escape there current living situation. However About a girl is allot more explicit than Fish tank and has a larger cliff hanger, which in my opinion is good as it makes the audience want more. The dark and explicit turn when she throws the baby in the river shifts the tone of the project from a girl who dreams to one day to become famous to a girl who dreams to escape the harsh and cruel reality she lives in, this scene also adds a layer of sadness to her stories when she is reminiscing on the way to the canal thinking of better times and not focusing on the present. I like the social realism of this film, how it cuts between her walking along the canal and her thinking back on her memories such as being with her mum or her dad, even her friends. All the lighting in this film is natural and the camera movement is hand held to add to the realism.
Connect
Connect is unique, it is shot like an episode of back mirror, begins as social realism and then becomes what could be described as fantasy as it is what the Girl in the video is fantasising about while she listens to these different genres of music. The short film begins in a compact and crowded area (bus stop) but our main character is instantly distinguishable because all the other people in the shot are out of focus. as the film starts the camera is hand held but when the main character gets on the bus the camera becomes steady and it becomes more apparent that even though the films set in a realistic environment the plot of the film will be the main characters interpretation of the world around her. The lighting of this film is all unnatural as it is set at night and the light sources can be seen on the bus. The project also helps distinguish reality from fantasy is by the use of slow motion. I also like the multiple extreme close up shots inside the bus as it helps build the atmosphere inside the bus and helps us understand the scotophobic and mundane situation which through are main characters eyes is a dream world thanks to the medium of music. Some aspects I would like to incorporate from this film into my project are, the extreme close of the surrounding area, I feel that it helps build an interesting atmosphere for the audience as it expands there knowledge and interest of the filming location, noticing small details which would be unseeable otherwise.
Wasp
Wasp is a "kitchen sink drama" a popular genre in the United Kingdom which has been around since post world war 2. Wasp is set in a council estate the same as "About a girl" or "Fishtank" and this setting is one which I would like to replicate in my film, The reason Fishtank and Wasp are so similar is because they are both directed by the same person Andrea Arnold, and they both focus on similar issues, depravity and how a large amount of the british public live in. The film starts with the children following their mother out of there flat while being established by handheld mid shots, shots like these can increase the realism of a film because they look more natural, this is also an aspect i would wish to incorporate into my project, all the lighting and audio in this scene are also natural with no Non-diegetic sound once again adding to the verisimilitude of the film. Also a really strange detail which I noticed is that none of the main characters speak until until the title card is shown leaving the audience watching in uncomfortable silence.
The first scene after the title card is a confrontation between the mother who we followed in silence at the beginning and another mother who we have not yet met but will continue to appear throughout the film, it begins with a long shot of are protagonist knocking on the other mothers door and grabbing her hair, what follows is a confusing and fast pace line up of different close ups as the parents fight with the children shouting obscenities at each other and the parents ending with the other mother swiftly threatening to call social services which to a family in this sort of living situation with 4 children, I like the threat of an unseen and ever present threat in this film because it is a completely possible threat which could have an effect any moment keeping the viewer on edge.
Also a key factor in this story is neglect, as the children are neglected while the mother goes and spends time with a man, the children are left out in the cold with no food resorting to eating food off the floor which someone drops. This continues until the mother is shouted out of her love making with this man to attend to her child who has just had a wasp in there mouth due to all the carelessness of the mother's actions. However when Danny Dier sees the neglected children he becomes empathetic and takes them out for food showing character development as all we have seen of this character is him being selfish and making the mother pay for drinks which she could barely afford.
The Gunfighter
The gunfighter is a comedic short film which would be hard to replicate as it takes a unique twist on the genre of the old western shooters which were popularised by films such as Jango, it changes the iconic voice over trope and makes it into a funny and clever scenario where all the people in the main setting of this short film a bar can hear it leading to a comedic showdown in the bar. The short film is far from realistic with no verisimilitude or natural lighting, the film is meant to be a parody of an over saturated genre of film. all the sound is diegetic including the narrator, the lighting seems to be unnatural and filmed in a studio lot, also the camera is static and not hand held like the other skins.
About a girl is a social realism short film about film set in 2001 about a girl (obviously) and her family and friends who live on a council estate and are quite deprived, this short film and fish tank are very similar following a young girl who wants to become famous and make a living from there talent as a singer/ dancer and they use this dream to escape there current living situation. However About a girl is allot more explicit than Fish tank and has a larger cliff hanger, which in my opinion is good as it makes the audience want more. The dark and explicit turn when she throws the baby in the river shifts the tone of the project from a girl who dreams to one day to become famous to a girl who dreams to escape the harsh and cruel reality she lives in, this scene also adds a layer of sadness to her stories when she is reminiscing on the way to the canal thinking of better times and not focusing on the present. I like the social realism of this film, how it cuts between her walking along the canal and her thinking back on her memories such as being with her mum or her dad, even her friends. All the lighting in this film is natural and the camera movement is hand held to add to the realism.
Connect
Connect is unique, it is shot like an episode of back mirror, begins as social realism and then becomes what could be described as fantasy as it is what the Girl in the video is fantasising about while she listens to these different genres of music. The short film begins in a compact and crowded area (bus stop) but our main character is instantly distinguishable because all the other people in the shot are out of focus. as the film starts the camera is hand held but when the main character gets on the bus the camera becomes steady and it becomes more apparent that even though the films set in a realistic environment the plot of the film will be the main characters interpretation of the world around her. The lighting of this film is all unnatural as it is set at night and the light sources can be seen on the bus. The project also helps distinguish reality from fantasy is by the use of slow motion. I also like the multiple extreme close up shots inside the bus as it helps build the atmosphere inside the bus and helps us understand the scotophobic and mundane situation which through are main characters eyes is a dream world thanks to the medium of music. Some aspects I would like to incorporate from this film into my project are, the extreme close of the surrounding area, I feel that it helps build an interesting atmosphere for the audience as it expands there knowledge and interest of the filming location, noticing small details which would be unseeable otherwise.
Wasp
Wasp is a "kitchen sink drama" a popular genre in the United Kingdom which has been around since post world war 2. Wasp is set in a council estate the same as "About a girl" or "Fishtank" and this setting is one which I would like to replicate in my film, The reason Fishtank and Wasp are so similar is because they are both directed by the same person Andrea Arnold, and they both focus on similar issues, depravity and how a large amount of the british public live in. The film starts with the children following their mother out of there flat while being established by handheld mid shots, shots like these can increase the realism of a film because they look more natural, this is also an aspect i would wish to incorporate into my project, all the lighting and audio in this scene are also natural with no Non-diegetic sound once again adding to the verisimilitude of the film. Also a really strange detail which I noticed is that none of the main characters speak until until the title card is shown leaving the audience watching in uncomfortable silence.
The first scene after the title card is a confrontation between the mother who we followed in silence at the beginning and another mother who we have not yet met but will continue to appear throughout the film, it begins with a long shot of are protagonist knocking on the other mothers door and grabbing her hair, what follows is a confusing and fast pace line up of different close ups as the parents fight with the children shouting obscenities at each other and the parents ending with the other mother swiftly threatening to call social services which to a family in this sort of living situation with 4 children, I like the threat of an unseen and ever present threat in this film because it is a completely possible threat which could have an effect any moment keeping the viewer on edge.
Also a key factor in this story is neglect, as the children are neglected while the mother goes and spends time with a man, the children are left out in the cold with no food resorting to eating food off the floor which someone drops. This continues until the mother is shouted out of her love making with this man to attend to her child who has just had a wasp in there mouth due to all the carelessness of the mother's actions. However when Danny Dier sees the neglected children he becomes empathetic and takes them out for food showing character development as all we have seen of this character is him being selfish and making the mother pay for drinks which she could barely afford.
The Gunfighter
The gunfighter is a comedic short film which would be hard to replicate as it takes a unique twist on the genre of the old western shooters which were popularised by films such as Jango, it changes the iconic voice over trope and makes it into a funny and clever scenario where all the people in the main setting of this short film a bar can hear it leading to a comedic showdown in the bar. The short film is far from realistic with no verisimilitude or natural lighting, the film is meant to be a parody of an over saturated genre of film. all the sound is diegetic including the narrator, the lighting seems to be unnatural and filmed in a studio lot, also the camera is static and not hand held like the other skins.
Comments
Post a Comment