I’m living a Teenage Dream











Monday 12 October 2009

Preliminary Task

Our Preliminary task must involve filming and editing also a subject opening a door , crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character with whom she/he then exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. It must also demonstrate match on action and shot in a 180 degree rule.

Storyboard of Preliminary Task

Scene 1 - Teacher walking towards door
Camera movement- Tracing Shot

Scene 2 - Teacher opening door
Camera movement- Close up

Scene 3- Teacher walking though corridor to classroom door
Camera movement- Low angle shot


Scene 4 - Teacher looks though classroom door window to see child asleep upon table
Camera movement- Over the shoulder


Scene 5 - Looking though outside window to see teacher and child in classroom
Camera movement- Eye level


Scene 6- Teacher sits down and asks pupil what they are doing in the classroom
Camera movement- Aerial Shot

Music Video Analysis - Jesus of Suburbia by Greenday

The opening of the video starts with a big close up camera angle upon the subject 'The Boy' of the music video. This slowly fades into a extreme close up from his nose to mouth, he is smoking during this. This camera angle is used so that the audience considerate upon the facial expression of the boy which is of dismissal and suggests to the audience he couldn't care less. The lighting of the 1st scene is very dark which contrasts with his heavy dark eye make-up and clothing which together with the smoking reflect the 'punk' image.
The next few seconds are filled with sharp quick scenes all from different camera movements: Tracking , Hand-held camera and Aerial shoot from the ceiling of the boys bed room. This include scenes of sex, partying and drug taking. I believe the camera movements which are all used reflect a humans movements and feelings after taking drugs, This allows the audience to believe they are in the head of the subject. the music has a strong beat and lots of powerful chords which also reflects the partying which is taking place.
The scene which follow show the boy walking, the camera is tracking him as almost showing the subjects paranoia from the drugs however it is shot in normal daylight. I believe this was done to show that neither the partying the boy is struggling to find a reason other then partying to exist for.
Then the tempo of the music dies down to a almost reggae beat we are shown the soft side of the subject as his love interest is introducted . There are many close ups of the couples facing each other showing affection . I also believe the girl's bright red hair is symbolic of the impact she has made on his dark world and how she has bought colour and life into it . Her hair could also symbolise danger which is later revealed.
We also see the same scene where the camera tracks him from the opposite side of the supermarket however compared with last time when he was on his own the girl is now walking opposite to him. This highlights to the audience how she is filling an empty void in his life. The lighting is also brighter now the girl has been introducted suggesting he is now emotionally more happier than before.
Playing the supermarket scene again on tracker without the girl shows she has disappeared from his life. The lighting then dramatically changes flashing from light to dark while on a close up of the boy's face , this suggests to the audience that without the girl he is slowly returning into his depressed and lonely state of mind.
The section within the song called 'I Don't Care! ' sees the flashes of light to dark increasing with the speed of the music increasing also, showing the subject is completely losing control of his life and emotions. The camera is also angled pointing upwards ( worms eye view) in a head-to-shoulder view creating a strange look which reflects his emotions. By the end of this section his bedroom is completely in darkness.
The Last section , called 'Dearly Beloved' sees once again the tempo of the music has slowed and the lighting us now alot lighter. The camera now focus upon his bedroom walls and friends and many punk culture related drawings, which is the brightness seem normal. The audience now start to see the boy is con siding life. This is shown though the smooth fixed camera movements which were once hand held and jerky.
After a while the tempo picks up into almost a heartbeat rhyme and the darkness returns and stronger flashes appear when theheartbeat rhyme fades into a solid rock beat, showing anger and wrath the boy has inside him.
The closing frames are the boy saying goodbye to his mother. It is shot in a normal way however it has a black/grey colouring to it, To me reflects the emotion of the mother and son and highlights the sadness within the moment.
The final scene is filmed by the camera being panned across the rest of the punk's faces in natural light. I believe this is to show the audience behind every single young adults faces there is a similar story of love and lonelyness.
Finally there is a flashback scene of many of the frames throughout the music video mostly centralising around the girl till the camera zooms out. This creates the effect that the audience have just watched the boys memories and thoughts leaving the audience feeling sorry for the troubled buy.

Thursday 8 October 2009

Camera Techniques

In media we have been learning about camera angles. Television and Film used different camera angles to create emotion depending upon the scene. We have been learning about the effect of these techniques.

Long Shot (LS) - a shot which shows all or most of a fairly large subject. This shot allows the audience to see the subject well and see the whole of the subject.
  • Extreme Long Shot (ELS) - The camera is at the furthest possible distance from the subject. This creates a feeling of loneliness and the scene becomes to feel quite eerie.
  • Medium Long Shot (MLS) - When the subject is an actor or actress the lower frame line cuts off their feet at the ankle. Documentaries favour this shot as it keep with the social circumstance instead of the audience's eye being drawn to the individual

Establishing Shot - This is the opening or sequence which is frequently a ELS as it helps set the scene of the the piece using the environment.

Medium Shot (MS) - This is where the actor or actress is an equal distance from the edges of the frame, For example the lower frame passes though the waist therefore there is room for the actor to use hang gestures.

Close-up (CU) - A picture which shows a small part of the scene such as a characters face so that it fills the entire frame . This is used to make the audience focus upon the expression of the character, normally used to portray extreme emotions

  • Medium Close-Up (MCU) - Head to Shoulders
  • Big Close-up (BCU) - Forehead to Chin

Camera Angles

Shot Angles are usually used to show the relationship of power to the character, they also add interest to the piece so that the audience remain involved by using a wide range of shots , For example if you have a character with a large amount of power they should be filmed from a low angle shot , to make them look larger and look as if they are towering over the rest of the subjects. Below I have listed a range of shit angles:

High Angle Shot - The camera is above a person , looking down on them

Low Angle Shot - The camera is below a person , looking up at them

Flat Angle Shot - The camera is looking straight at the person

Birds-eye Shot - The camera is directly above the action

Shot Movements

Steady Cam - The camera is carried by the cameraman , allowing the camera to move freely this portrays a feeling of experiencing the film as if you were the subject and was used though out 'The Blair Witch Project'.

Dolly Cam - The camera moves across the scene smoothly upon larger tracks this is how most movies are shot

Pan - The Camera remains in the same spot , but fixed upon the Central point and rotates smoothly around the point to film the scene.

Tilt - The camera stays in one place and moves vertically from high to low Angle or low to high

Track - The camera moves along following the action within the scene. This movement is also very smooth.

Zoom - The camera zooms in or out to make things seem larger or smaller. This is used to force the audience to focus upon a point.

Mise-en-scene

Mise-en-scene

This term means costume and setting of the subjects within the film. From what the character wears we can tell a lot about the character therefore Mise-en-scene is an important technique used when planning a film, From the setting we can also tell what kind of environment the film is set in for instant whether the subject is wealthy or poor and what time period the film is set in. This also contributes to the overall feel of the film.
Denotation is a keyword within Mise-en-scene which means what the audience can physically see and Connotation which means the extra meaning behind the denotation image for example: A man could hold out his hand towards a women , which she takes hold of . This is the denoted action whereas the connotation meaning is that the couple feel affectionate toward each other.