Preliminary Task Evaluation

The original idea was a Mafia-inspired storyline of an exchange of money between Al casino, head of an illegal money-making team and Paulie, an old friend who borrowed money just at the wrong time. The first thing we did was write a treatment which was decided and written amongst the group and then jobs were dealt out. One person did the storyboard, the call sheet and shot brief. This worked well as it meant the jobs were distributed between everyone equally and so the workload was relatively light and everyone had a chance to influence what they were doing with their own ideas. If we worked together again there is little I would do differently as we all got on and completed the work well. Having shot the scenes, it perhaps would have been better if we had taken more footage so we had more to play this as we had to re-shoot some bits to compensate for lack of varied footage.

In terms of production paperwork, the most useful to me was the storyboard as it acted as a visual aid to the kind of shot we needed to go for as well as shape an idea of the atmosphere and mise-en-scene we wanted to create in our clip. The call sheet was off little use for this task but I believe it would hold more importance on a bigger project that needed strict organisation. Overall though it was useful getting ideas down in a structured way so as to get a framework for what the clip was supposed to be like.

I drew the storyboard which was the fundamental basis for how each shot looked in the clip. I wanted everything to look relatively streamline and structured to reflect the clean cut appearance of Al Casino and to make the whole thing more stressful for the already fumbling Paulie. The storyboard, and therefore the basis for each frame, did evolve during editing as shots that were at first decided to be still became zooming in shots. We stuck to the treatment though as we felt this was a sturdy background that went well with the script and lent itself well to the characters. 

 

I think that for a first try our production conveyed promising skill in regards to camera placement and editing. Our editing cuts are smooth, despite some bits in my opinion being too quick and jumpy, but that is a matter of opinion and the clip viewed objectively is well edited and shot. The lighting also turned out to be extremely good and it gave a warmth to the production without a washed out or shadowed effect. This is due to our knowledge of white balance and the importance of using it so the picture is clear as possible. 

News Corp

News Corp

8 Shot Story

Colour giesha and the ogre

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Treatment

In a fictional land where most things are black and white, 'Colour Geisha's' hold the last reserves of colour known to man. Ogre's try to steal the Geisha's colour and it is known that these women are always under threat from the beasts from the mountains. One unprotected Giesha bathes in a place she thinks is safe when a rogue ogre comes to take her colour, signified by her red flower cap. He steals her hat and the Geisha is killed. Without the control of the graceful Geisha's the colour cannot be controlled and once in the hands of the Ogre, the colour bleeds out into the land in an artificial and garish way.

Mildred Pierce Clip- Analysis of scene.

Mildred Pierce Fight Scene

The colours in this scene are of course white, grey and black. Mildred and Veda’s black dresses stand out amongst the backdrop of the white walls and so the viewer acknowledges these women are the focal points of this scene. The black also signifies strength and power, which is fitting with this scene as the women are having a stand off; they cannot fade into the greys and whites of the background because this would not be in keeping with the striking and feisty nature of their argument. The high contrast lighting also accents these tones and makes the black areas seem darker and more shadowed whilst brightening the whites to an almost washed out appearance. This makes the women’s faces appear pearly white, radiant and flawless so that despite their argument they are still feminine. Their femininity could not be lost sight off as this would have been something the audience of the time would expect, ladylike women.

The lighting also makes the contrast between the women’s black dresses and their ghost-white faces more striking and therefore makes them and the scene appear more dramatic. This gives a stunned effect to everything, nothing is calm about this high contrast lighting and so the audience is set up for an unsettling scene. Despite the colour black giving both women a dominant and almost aggressive feline quality, it is clear that Mildred is the more dominant of the two. Ignoring the fact that Mildred is Veda’s mother and therefore would be perceived as more authoritative anyway, the camera movement and angles imply from the get go that Mildred holds more superiority regardless of her maternal status. At the start of the scene the camera follows Mildred as she moves and not Veda. This suggests that the audience should be following her rather then Veda. Even at the beginning the camera does not follow

Veda sitting up on the sofa, but it pans out to reveal Mildred in the shot. Furthermore the first non-establishing shot is a mid shot of Mildred where she stands directly in the centre, her black dress cementing her to the middle and drawing the viewer in. Whilst the argument gets more heated and the camera swaps between the two characters using shot reverse shot, the camera angle behind Mildred’s shoulder is low angle so we are looking down at Veda. Similarly, whilst behind Veda the camera is high angle so that we are looking up at Mildred, iterating further her command over Veda. Toward the end of the scene, when Veda runs away, the camera stays behind Mildred; the viewer is under Mildred’s control, we see Mildred’s back as Veda gets further away; she gets smaller with her distance and her weakness compared to Mildred is again conveyed. Mildred’s strength is only further shown by her black figure standing strongly in front of the viewer in the foreground.

There is non-diegetic sound throughout this scene and the music is used as a tension builder. The music seems to be rising as they argue and heightens the sense of a forthcoming thunderous climax in the audience. We anticipate this crescendo but the music seems to quieten when Veda begins to raise her voice. Diegetic sound is used here as its own tension builder; her rising voice is not dissimilar to the effect the rising music had on the scene. It is as if we are waiting for the scene to burst as the music does. The music too seems to back the idea of Mildred’s supremacy to Veda as when Mildred moves hurriedly towards Veda on the stairs, the music gets louder. This adds force to Mildred’s movement that was not given to Veda. 

Mildred Pierce

Mildred Pierce Clip

In this clip the women appear elegant and feminine with their neatly pinned and curled hair, rouged lips and delicate eye make up. This shows that the women conform to the Male Gaze because men would have wanted the women to have dainty faces, without hint of aggression or dominance which, at the time, would have appeared un 'ladylike'. Despite this the women are wearing slick black dresses, Mildreds character especially looks dominant with her padded shouldered blazer which gives her a broad and powerful appearance. The dresses are not skin tight or suggestive but are rather boxy, connoting strength rather then stereotypical female grace. This contradicts the idea of men wanting women to seem yeildable under their power.

The idea of giving a women a masculine guise could perhaps be fetishistic, a man may find it exciting and attractive for a women to appear dominant whilst still having threads of feminity in her character. This certainly applies to the women in the clip as despite the clothing Veda still wears a white flower signifying innocence and purity. Moreover, in their argument they are ascerting strength through words as well as appearance, whilst still maintaining ladylike compositions because they do not have a full on brawl. If this were men having a hostile argument we could assume they'd be physically fighting each other but these two women do not and the only physical act is a slap, this again is associated with women and is seen as quite a 'soft' act of aggression. Men would think less of another man if he slapt his offender rather then punched and so even this act of violence is subject to the male gaze because it is confined to maintaining an aspect of womenly 'classiness' as if anything more then a slap would be too messy and too untasteful. This perpetuating of the male "ideal women" draws from the book, The Feminine Mystique that speaks of how women are ultimately tunnelled in to a certain framework that, despite wanting to break out, will still be presented as inherently female within a media text or in society.

Nigella Lawson View

Nigella lawson

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Conforming Horror Still

My horror still is slightly blurred and you can only just make out a black, shadowed figure in the centre, next to the banister. The blurred effect on the image creates a sense of delirium; nothing is as what it seems. The colours are dark and gloomy, almost depressing and signify melancholy and sadness. These are all things you find in a horror.

The cloaked figure is what really makes this a horror though because you can't quite make it out, it is elusive and therefore unpredictable. This makes it disconcerting and will make the viewer feel uneasy. This shot could easily be from a part in a film where someone has become dazed, the audience is watching through the eyes of the protagonist, and in the confusion they see a foreboding silhouette which cannot quite be grasped and therefore cannot quite be escaped.

Yves Saint Laurent Perfume Advert

In this advert the model is stereotypically attractive with the strong black eye shadow with seductive red lipstick. This make-up shouts confidence and power, her hair slicked back also shows this along with the masculine suit she is wearing. The model does not appear to be feminine but despite this the advert has still been made to hint at women sexuality. Her blazer is low cut, showing her breasts slightly and she appears to be undoing the button. The fact that the women is provocative and sexy could be a selling point for this perfume; a lot of women would envy these traits.

The lighting in the background is extremely bright, making the model's black outline stand out even more and further enforcing her power and dominance. The lights could also signify show biz and fast living; glamour. These things are desires of a lot of women and it seems that if you purchase this perfume, you will be getting a taste of this lifestyle. The colours are also quite flirtatious whilst still having an air of power about them. The red and pink are feminine and connote lust whilst the black maintains the sense of dominance and class so the model does not appear too out of taste with what she is doing (undoing her already low-cut blazer).

The model is also in the centre of the shot and her eyes lye directly in the top middle third which is where the viewer will usually look first. This shows that the advert is supposed to hold attention and the models direct address again iterates her confidence. It is a mid shot at perhaps a slightly low angle; we look up at her in awe. It is framed so the black of her blazer seems an extension of the black border, making it look slick and symmetrical. The border also looks like a polaroid picture which could suggest further the idea of show biz and being in the lime light.

The typography of "elle" is also very feminine and flirtatious with the informal and care-free swirls. The use of French is also used to perhaps add a foreign touch to make everything appear more mysterious and sexy. The tag line, "elle, the new fragrance" is also in lower case. Again this is very informal and shows this perfume is for a night out of being a confident and liberated women.

Subverting and Conforming Perfume Adverts

Subverting and Conforming Adverts

Charity Adverts

Charity adverts

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Camera Angles

Camera Angle powerpoint

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How I used the media!

Today I again watched some of the news in the morning and then listened to music on my way to school. Now I am using the internet whilst watching TV.

How I used the media!

Yesterday I woke up and watched the News and listened to my Ipod on the way to post 16. Throughout the day I didn't use much else media until I got home where I watched some TV for about 20 minutes when I decided to go on the internet to buy some things online.