This is a screenshot of my Bins in Premiere Pro for my Film Studies piece "want", i imported all of my records into premiere pro and placed them into 4 bins so that access to the clips would be quick and concise, rather than searching my SD card looking for one particular clip.
The bins are labelled as
Joe Footage (all recorded footage of subject one)
AJ Footage (all recorded footage of subject two)
Misc Footage (footage that was not of the subjects, essentially filler footage)
Alternative colours (the reversed colours shots of subject one and two, there are only a couple of these shots, so rather than them be lost in the subject folders, i placed them in there own)
Health and safety was a key issue when filming the Bristol promotional, the fact that we were in a city which non of us were familiar with only added to the possible issues we would run into.
To maintain our safety whilst filming in this unfamiliar location, we grouped into teams of three or four, this was done not only to have more people filming at any given time, but also the additional benefit of safety in numbers. If we ever were to find ourselves in a dangerous situation we would have the support of the rest of our groups to rely on. Filming in groups also helps us to locate our filming locations.
Groups also help us to transport and protect our equipment, carrying hundreds of pounds worth of equipment brings its own risks, but being in a group means that whilst two or three of us are filming, the other can keep our unused equipment safe.
Loose wires and equipment also raises issues in regards to health and safety, during Filming it was sometimes necessary to lay our wires and cables, this created a danger of a pedestrian or indeed ourselves tripping over the wires and injuring ourselves. If a member of the team were to fall over some of the equipment this might not be such a big issue, but if a member of the public were to trip on our equipment than this would be much more serious. To remedy this we used tape to secure all of our equipment together, minimising the area which an accident could occur, we also had a member of out team stand next to the wires to warn anybody who passed by of there presence.
We also tried to avoid public locations during peak hours, at peak times of the day the presence of the public is to large to film, not only for access to locations to film, but also as a health and safety risk. Filming in these locations in these locations during these times would increase the risk of injury on the the equipment.
A shot reverse shot (or more commonly known as a counter shot) is a editing technique typically used when a character within the frame is talking or looking at something or someone out side of the frame, the edit will then show the parallel of the other character or object, looking back at the first subject. From this the viewer will assume that the two are looking at each other.
180 degree rule -
The 180 degree rule is a cinematography guide that explains how two characters in one scene should always maintain the same left right visual relationship to each other. Doing so means that the audience won't become disorientated by the space of the scene. If the camera were to pass over this invisible axis, it becomes a reverse angle.
30 degree rule -
The thirty degree rule is a cinematography guideline which states that the camera should move by a minimum of 30 degrees between successive shots of the same subject, failing to do so could potentially make the edit appear as a jump cut, which would confuse and disorientate the audience.
Cut in -
A cut in shot is the interruption of a continuous filmed shot by inserting a view of something else. Following this the scene would usually be followed by a cut back to the original shot. The cut in is typically only on screen for 2-3 seconds, but this can vary due to the films stylistic choices.
Cross cutting/ Parallel editing
Cross- cutting is an editing technique used in film to establish action that is happening at the same time, but outside of the current scene. During a cross cut away from one scene to another, this suggests that the two actions are happening at the same time, just in different spaces.
Establishing shot
An establishing shot is a shot that typically sets the location, time, and setting of a scene by showing important figures and objects. It is generally a long or extreme long shot at the beginning of a scene and gives more weight to a scene of films atmosphere.
Match on action
Match on action is a film editing choice where the film cuts from one shot to another view of the first shots action.
Kuleshov effect
The Kuleshov effect is a mental effect originally demonstrated by Lev Kuleshov, he explains how viewers derive different emotional responses from two sequential shots rather than a single shot in isolation.
From the Clients feedback i know that changes need to be made to improve the quality of the final piece, the fact that four out of the six check boxes are only marked good proves this.
Communication between me and the client should have been constant, with me providing him updates and drafts over the course of the production. The only contact i had with my client was at the initial meeting and when i handed him the final piece, if i were to re-do this piece i would have set up meetings throughout the production, showing him the progress made throughout the week, and if not meetings than emails providing him the drafts.
The safety aspect is always tricky to do sensibly and responsibly, during the filming in Bristol, we set out in groups of three or four, whilst i could maintain responsibility for my group, there was very little i could do for the others. However if i were to re do this then i would have sat down with the full team and gone over safety precautions with everyone.
Incorporating the clients ideas was tricky as i was essentially given free reign over the content of the piece, the only brief i was given was to provide a 1 minute cut and a full cut, which i provided. In hindsight i should have shown and explained all of my ideas in detail rather than the explanation i gave.
An example of how i have organised my footage and audio for my Promotional video is within the communal HNC One Drive account. Following our return from Bistol, we all unloaded our footage onto this One Drive so that we will all have access to everything we recorded. I reviewed each piece of footage within the folder and titled it so that i would know what each clip when it came to use them. This proved invaluable when machining my Promotional video, as without these labels i would have potentially spent hours going over every clip.
My promotional video proved to be quite challenging, shot types, colour grading, camera techniques and lighting varied across the clips due to the fact that the entire HNC contributed to this piece. For example, one persons aperture might be slightly higher than it needed to be, on its own this wouldn't necessarily be an issue, but directly after it there might be a clip where the aperture is higher than it needed to be. This creates a contrast in quality that is hard not to notice, whilst this is a flaw in the work it would prove to be very hard to fix, each location required its own camera settings, its own lighting settings and so on.The only way i could imagine this being fixed if i were to recreate the piece would be if a small group of people filmed everything, rather than a large group which assisted me in this piece.
The fact that this piece was cut to music also raises issues with its quality, due to the fact that the music within the video is fairly fast paced, with rapid, consistent beats upon which i used as a template for my editing, the final piece could perhaps be to rapid for viewers, the audience only has a few seconds or two to interpret and appreciate the images they are seeing. whilst this is an issue, i believe that this is still true to my original plan for the video.The rapid pace and the frantic editing only justifies my idea of representing the fast pace, grimy and essentially human aspect of Bristol and our time there.
Another issue with the final piece is the inclusion of the vox pop, specifically the transition into it, i reduced the volume of the music slowly so it blended into the audio of the vox pop, I lowered the audio about a second to quickly, resulting in an obvious disconnect between the music and the audio if the vox pop. If i were to re-do this piece id extend the transition to about half a second longer, so the transition from both audios is smoother.
After showing the piece to the client he was pleased with the final piece, but also highlighted some issues within that he would like to be corrected. He explained that whilst the song did give the piece a certain energy and vibrancy, it could potentially turn off some potential HNC applicants due to its more chaotic and intimidating music. Whilst i can clearly see how this would impact with HNC applicants, i believe that this song still fits perfectly, and is an accurate representation of my time at Bristol.
After our initial meeting my client explained that he didn't want to put to many limitations on my vision for the promotional video, he wanted me to have full creative control over the video. He explained that a promotional video for next years HNC should come from from someone who has experienced it. The only limitations and requests he gave me, is that he wanted a one minute version for use on the colleges instagram, and a full version which should be around 3 minutes.
immediately i began to think of ideas for the piece, i want to create a piece that not only shows my experience on the trip, but also highlights the creativity that the HNC has to offer.
I wanted to make this promotional video personal, i wanted to create a piece that not only showcased what the HNC has to offer, but our own individual talents. This film will be a showcase of our own individual talents. This piece is essentially a showcase of what this years HNC has to offer, This piece will rely entirely on the strength of the footage captured by myself and the my fellow Hnc.
I want this film to personal, in my previous post of the analysis of promotional videos for cities, i mentioned how impersonal it was, how the images shown to the audience didn't capture how intimate a city could be, these videos always show the clean, the aesthetic version of a city, yet they negate the rugged, the dirt, the underbelly of a city, the version of the city we see. The piece i want to make will alter this, i want to show the audience the true nature of this city, its beauty, its pride, its fear and its condition. If this film is for the next years HNC then how better to showcase it then my version of the city.
I wanted to set this piece to some music, something to set the tone for the raw starkness of the piece i wanted to make. I have some friends who form the band "Brown Brogues", they gave my vocal conformation that i could use there song "Split Disk", For me this song is a perfect representation of my experience within the trip, Overwhelmed with possibilities yet nervous of the outcome.
The piece will be edited to the music, which i hope will interest and intrigue the audience into asking my clients about the HNC. I will include links to the college and the course itself at the end of the piece
As the majority of the film will rely on the footage created by those who were with me during our time at bristol, it will be incredibly hard to create a consistent style through the film, but, different styles throughout the film will only highlight the various talents the HNC has to offer, however if the audience can tell that various artists took part in the filming of this piece than that only seven to nightlight the unique talent the HNC caters to.
The theory Goodwin puts forth states that there are 5 key aspects of a music video;
-Thought through beat (seeing what the lyrics mean in the viewers audience)
-Relationship between the song and visuals
- Narrative and performance of the song
-Technical aspect of a music video
-Star image (protagonist)
Thought through beat
The first of this step according to Goodwin is to analyse the music structure understanding the chorus and verses.
The second step is to ensure that the voice of the artist is unique compared ti others and should give the person a for of identification that can be related to the star image or singer
The third step is the story if the artist, the message which he is trying to expand and tell within the song. the final aim is to establish the artist as a story teller. And the music video can aid this by showing us the visual representation of the vocals in the song
Relation between the music and visuals
There are three ways visuals are used to promote a song;
Illustrate,
Music videos use certain images and camera shots to illustrate or expand on he meaning of lyrics of the song.
Disjuncture,
In this situation, the meaning of the song is completely ignored in favour of a more abstract visual aesthetic.
Amplify,
This is when images and camera shots are manipulated and shown repeatedly through out the music video.
Relation between the music and visuals
Andrew believed that a music video can promote a song by the way it analyses and visualises the lyrics. this can either be done extremely literally or not at all. for example, if the lyrics in the song say JUMP!, than the actors on screen could jump.
The first music video i analysed was "No surprises" by Radiohead, the band from which made my chosen film "National Anthem"
The first thin we notice when watching the video is its simplicity, The entire video is a static close up, with no variation in shots or camera angles, whilst at first this would seem like a negative, we quickly realise that it perfectly captures the songs melodic, fairytale sound.
If we analyse the lyrics of the song, we understand that it is essential the story of a man who commits suicide by C02 inhalation, and the visual aesthetic captures this perfectly.
Water fills what appears to be a glass helmet around the subjects head, as the water rises the subjects head becomes distorted and magnified. Whats interesting about this is the fact that no camera techniques or editing choices were used, this was all physically done. By using physical techniques that dont rely on a camera, the video immediately connects with the audience, as this is so different to essentially every music video, its almost eerie static camera mimics the audience, unmoving, a fly on the wall as we watch this subjects helmet slowly fill with water.
The lighting of the video is also worth mentioning, rather than a clear source of light, the video is lit up by almost entirely coloured l.e.d lights, the result of which is that only certain parts of the screen are lit up, further distorting and shadowing the subject, its only half way into the song where tungsten lights outlining the glass helmet are turned on, white washing the subject. The use of these lights create an almost cold calculated atmosphere to the video, which does indeed represent the lyrics of the song.
If i were to incorporate anything from this video into mine, it would be how simplistic and experimental the visual aesthetic is in the film, however i will have to analyse the lyrics in the song in more detail before committing to any visual style.
This music video is entirely different to the previous piece is analysed earlier, the purpose of the piece is to push a political message onto the audience, it does this by creating a literal map of mass shootings that took place in America in 2017.
Due to the fact that this is an animation rather than a recorded piece of live footage, it is never the less interesting to analyse. If we pay attention the drum beat of the song, we can se that every flash on the map is timed perfectly so that it corresponds with a drum beat, i found this particularly interesting, the idea of cutting to music or atleast using the main beat of the song as a guidance point to work my editing around. Doing this means that the pace of my video feels natural and free flowing, rather than having violent cuts throughout the piece which would distract the audience from the song itself.
This song by Rage Against The Machine almost exclusively features footage of news reports, political rallies and protests which all portray the corruption in government.
The found footage in this film at first seems to be completely unrelated to the story, the opening shot is of a 1960's B movie, however as the song progresses we gradually understand the use of this footage and how it relates to the songs message. the music video does show a live performance from the band, whilst this is visually interesting and breaks up the monotony of the video it is not crucial to the song.
The use of political figures contrasted against the seedier underbelly of the power creates a violent opposition between what we are presented with in media, against what actually happens when these people are in power.
The idea of showcasing the political unrest and struggle we face everyday is deeply interesting, i feel that this subject could be perfect for an experimental music video, both literally and metaphorically. I intend to use this subject as the basis for my piece.
i conducted some initial research into music video productions so that i would have a developed understanding of what makes a music video successful when it came to creating my piece. I analysed the theories of Carol Vernallis and Andrew Goodwin and applied them to music videos which were of the same genre as my chosen song. Collecting these findings will in no doubt give me a more solid foundation to begin effectively planning my piece. Vernallis and Goodwins theory will help me to develop a more expansive understanding of the various styles of music videos, there editing techniques that they use in there own work.
My first step was to apply the theories put forth by Goodwin and Vernallis to a selection of music videos, from the same genre as my chosen song, to videos from other genres of music. Doing so will help me to produce reliable results, as exploring only one genre of music video will severely limit my findings. Accompanying this i conducted an analysis of the other aspects of the video's, camera shots, editing choices, mise en scene, and how they impact the video itself.
I also created a short survey or questionnaire which allowed me to gather primary date alongside the secondary evidence recorded in analysis of the music videos. The survey results rely heavily on the participants personal choices and preferences, and some clear trends were obviously highlighted.
Above are the questions i featured in my questionnaire, i wanted to ask the participants what the favourite genre of music was, and from there, analyse what the enjoy from a music video from each genre. The data i find here will directly influence my music video.
The Date
A week after i published and shared my survey i went back to check how many participants completed my survey. 23 people had completed my survey, whilst this isn't exactly enough participants to call my data 100 percent reliable, i think it will give me a strong enough average to expand upon.
(Q1 What age range do you fall under?)
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(Q2 What is you're preferred genre of music?)
(Q3 What is you're preferred style of video)
(Q4 Do you think the songs creators should be featured within the video)
(Q5 Should the visuals on screen be a direct representation of the lyrics in the song)
(Q6 Where do you most commonly listen to music)
(Q7 On which platform do you most commonly watch music videos)
(Q8 Which of these are more important?)
The data i received from my questionnaire provides me with a deeper insight into an audiences personal opinions on what makes a music video appealing to them, and provides me with a deeper insight into what i should incorporate in my my music video, and what genre i should explore for the unit.
After choosing and analysing several music videos revolving around my chosen genre (Indie), I created a basic outline plan of what i intended to create for the unit. I sat down with a focus group with my HNC classmates (all in the same age demographic, with there own personal tastes on music videos).
After showing them my plan i received various suggestions of how i could improve the video, one of the most important suggestions i took from the group focus was that the visual aesthetic of the video would have to be experimental, due to the cryptic nature of the song itself, attempting to create a narrative for it would be extremely difficult, and would lean more to the unintelligible rather than the "open to interpretation" that resonated with the questionnaire participants. Another suggestion put forth by the focus group was that the song was extremely long (6;43 second), and should be cut down slightly. At first i disagreed with this but after discussion i realised that by cutting the song down i would be following the experimental style both visually and with audio.
The research i conducted for my music video has proved invaluable, the primary research has shown me exactly what resonates with audiences, what styles to take with my editing techniques and what Music services they use to watch music videos.
And my secondary research provided me with an expansive list of re occurring traits that flow through my chosen genre.
When making my music video, my number one priority was to capture the meaning behind the original songs lyrics, the distrust and paranoia, the rising anxiety of social unrest of the individual. This piece was made with the disorientation of the audience in mind, the rapid succession of the images and clips are here to confuse those who watch it.
I wanted to contrast the society we are told to believe in, the utopian, clean, problem free society we see in mainstream media against what we actually live in, the almost dystopian, filthy, paranoia filled we inhabit. The lyrics of the original song speak of a man who has been awoken to the rising social tension around him, whilst not visible, he can sense it. This music video is a physical representation of what he sees.
As mentioned earlier, the video follows a compare and contrast formula, i show the world as shown to us, the impeccable politicians, cold and calculated in there image, against how the general populace sees them, precise and deliberate, surgical with there words and essentially, heartless. The piece is very literate with its metaphors, but for such a meaningful subject matter, i felt that this was the only way to represent it.
The video starts with a static shot of a Tv playing feedback of an old Vhs. This was filmed myself, the purpose of which was to show the foreshadowing of the video itself, how all of the clips shown after are products of the media, lies and exaggerations force-fed to us by the media to lull us into a state of complacency, this also gives the benefit more intellectual weight when i contrast the two versions of the clips against each other.
Every clip i use in this piece (excluding my own) was ripped and downloaded from youtube, this prove to be awkward to do however as every clip varied in quality, the more professional shots such as the speeches given by politicians are well shot and of high quality, whereas footage recorded on an individuals phone such as the grenfell fire video was recorded hastily and therefore, lacking in quality.
For every shot i showcase in my video i created a reverse for them, i manipulate the RGB tones and disrupt the placement of the multiple levels of colour of the video, the result of which produces this ethereal, corrupted visual effect, this was intended to be a representation of how the individual in my analysis of the lyrics see's the world, the distortion intended to be a visual representation of how the society around him refuses to see or even acknowledge the world around them. After this i went frame by frame of footage which clearly shows peoples face, and added Black lines across the eyes and mouth of the subjects, this was incredibly time inducing as every single frame had to be manipulated, i couldn't reuse the lines i used previously, as the individuals of the footage were constantly moving, meaning that the placement of the lines would have been altered. 5 seconds of footage would take 20 minutes to manipulate.
The lines over the eyes of people in the video was intended to be a representation of the individuals recognition of the world around him, anyone showcased in the media is presented as a two dimension individual, there motives and methods dont matter, only them and there actions. This works for both ways, a political figure is presented as a crusader for progress, no matter what there opinion, and a protester in the street is presented as a blight on society, a tool for destruction. I wanted to show the audience that we are all fighting for a cause, we may not agree with each other, we may fight each other, but at its essence, we fight, and we fight for ourselves.
At the halfway point in the music video my own recorded footage is shown, i filmed an abandoned industrial complex just outside of Nuneaton, in the 80's the complex was a hub of industrial might, now it means nothing, a once proud and defined building is now derelict. This was intended to be a visual metaphor for social unrest with our society, how issues and criticisms are spotlighted, then fade forever with no change being granted.
After the halfway point i begin to reverse the footage, i made sure that the cuts were ever so slightly off the beat of the music, this was in order to install paranoia with the audience, to make them feel the disruption to the established formula of the video, just as the individual in my analysis of the lyrics feels. I also begin to fade in tv static as the song progresses, subtlety at first, but then dramatically, and with great intensity. the reversal of the footage and the static of the tv as intended to be a metaphorical and technical representation of a supernova, how under great intensity, everything collapses upon itself. This is obviously a metaphor for how under social tension, at some point a boiling point is hit, upon which total and grand civil unrest, anarchy is met.
Due to the fact that my piece was so time intensive, i had very little time to make fine adjustments to my piece, the cuts on some sections are slightly off compared to the beats of the song, with more time i would have gone over these and altered them so they are set perfectly against the audio. The fact that i used found footage for the majority of my piece disrupted my own filming, no matter i tried i found that all my footage was violently different to the majority of the film, the contrast between found footage and own footage was blatant, and went against my ideas of blending the two seamlessly, with more time id record more footage and select footage which fit perfectly, rather than settling on footage that was only passable.
My chosen song to use for my unit 36 music video is "National Anthem" by RadioHead. I wanted to make a music video for this particular song as not only is it by one of my favourite groups, but also because the song is robust enough for me to create whatever i wish. The song doesn't currently have an official music video for it, which means that i can comfortably create my own video without subconsciously confirming to themes and motifs put forth in an official video.
To start my planning i analysed the songs lyrics, i wanted to have a better understanding of the song, its atmosphere, its tone, its themes and so forth, the challenge with doing this for this particular song and even Radiohead in general is that there lyrics are extremely vague, with multiple interpretations coming from multiple viewings, overtime i would listen to the song to try and create an interpretation my opinion would change.
my conclusion for the analysis was that it was a metaphor for an individuals paranoia and fear of the society around him, he can sense the rising social and cultural unrest around him, a tinderbox waiting for a spark to set it all off.
trying to visualise a music video for this interpretation of the song wasn't that difficult, the concept immediately came up with was that the video should be a representation of the world around the individual, to compare and contrast how he sees the world around him. The utopian lie that we were all promised against what we truly live in.
Analysis of Lyrics
StoryBoard
The song itself is extremely repetitive in its sound, with an exact constant drumbeat that runs throughout it, i knew i could use to my advantage by using the constant drumbeat as a guide for my footage, the gaps between every beat would show the contrast between my idea of a utopian society and and the violence and cruelty of our world.
The idea of showing the contrast between the two worlds is a very broad topic, meaning that actually recording my own footage would be almost impossible, collecting all the footage would take months or even years to complete, to work around this i thought that using found footage would be much simpler and effective. However this in itself brings forth more problems,
can i insure that all footage is of a high quality?
will the camera work in all the clips be to a high standard?
these are all questions that i will ask myself when gathering footage
I also want to have a key unique style that runs throughout my piece, not only to break up the what would be bland footage collected from youtube and other services, but also to highlight the hatred and fear that the individual in my interpretation would be experiencing.
Proof of concept
A few months prior to my music video planning i was experimenting with premier pro for a personal project i was working on, upon reviewing the final piece of my project i realised the manipulation of the RGB layers of the footage created this distorted, warped and eerie effect to the video. i thought about applying this technique to my music video ( the idea being that the the distortion created by the technique would expand upon my themes of social and cultural unrest, fear and paranoia).
Moodboard
recorded footage
due to the broad nature of my piece, how it relies on found footage so much and how the film essentially relies on it so much, i found myself questioning how my recorded footage would add to it. i spent hours writing plans and storyboards trying to create a perfect place to interject my filming into it.
i realised that any work i create would always seem obvious and pre-planned, therefore i had the idea to film my experiences in a foreign place, to explore how daily life in a foreign country compares to life in my country.
Carol Vernallis is a professor of film and media studies at Stanford, she is most known for her Theories surrounding music editing. Vernallis's theory is based around 4 key components that all relate to how a music video feels, its connotations atmosphere and tone for example. these concepts are:
-Narrative
-Editing
- camera movement and Faming
-Diegesis
Vernallis suggests that a music video is a visual response to the narrative of the lyrics. therfore whatever we see on screen is a representation, either literal or abstract of what the lyrics in the song put forth. However, Vernallis then explains how the narrative may not be completed and can be partial, with the video appearing disjointed, disconnected and appear in fragment, rather than a continuous. A music video always has something driving it forward, this doesn't necessarily mean the narrative, it could the music itself or the lyrics within the song, or any other element of the video.
However if the video is left incomplete, whether technical or narratively, it can lead to the creation of enigma codes within the video, raising the viewers curiosity and intrigue. Although the video may have a theme or narrative that runs throughout it, it is most likely displayed in a montage style, rather than in one clear focus.
Vernalis also states that a clear convention of music video editing is that the video may disrupt the traditional conventions of continuity editing. the editing may also be bought to the foreground, for the viewer to see, for it to become visible rather than the traditional style of continuity editing. This essentially means that the video will have a style od editing running throughout it which is distinctive for the video, we may see;
-Jump Cuts
-Breaks Of The 30' Degree Rule
-Cutting With The Lyrics
-Extreme Changes In Pace
-Juxtaposed Frames
-Graphic Matches
Vernallis's theory also tells us that establishing shots are one of the key camera features of a music video and are used frequently throughout a music video and also the camera may move in time with the lyrics, extreme shots are also known as master shots and are extremely common.
My final piece fall my film studies unit is a short experimental film called "Lack", which revolves around the theory put forward by Jacques Lacan. Lacan's theory is the hypothesis that from birth we amercing a vital part of us, what is missing is forever unknown to the individual, yet we constantly seek out something that would fill our lack, sub consciously and consciously.
With this in mind i began planning my Film, due to the nature of this theory, i wanted this film to feel personal and intimate yet have an atmosphere of coldness. The most effective way to portray this was to focus on something that was incredibly personal to myself, for this i chose to have my girlfriend be the focus of the film. Knowing that having something so personal to focus would mean that not only would i put more emotion and heart into the final piece, but that the theory i would apply to it would be even more effective.
The film is heavily inspired by Chris Markers "la jette", i loved how the film used still images rather than film itself, which added another layer of uncertainty and mysteriousness to its atmosphere, when planning this piece i concluded that the use of still images rather than film would give my piece more gravitas and impact when viewed, this stylistic choice would also challenge the audience as it would be so far from what they know as film.
The film itself opens with rapid white scratches over a black background, this is very little to talk about as we are essentially watching a black screen, i wanted the audience to immediately feel intrigued and confused when watching my film, by giving away nothing at the start of the film i have created interest.
The scene immediately cuts to a static mid shot of my girlfriend and another subject sitting exactly parallel to her on a sofa, the rapid white scratches from the previous shot now consume her face, destroying any identity she may have, in this scene she is no more than a body, devoid of identity.
The white scratches that cover her face in this shot were intended to be a representation of how this subject has or feels as if she lacks identity, which would be lacanian lack. The subject believes that she doesn't know who she is, what she stands for, what she wants to be. whether or not she was born with this lack, or if it evolved over time is unclear. During post production i added a filter over the shot to reduce it to monotone black and white, not only was this a stylistic choice, but also a representation of how laconian lack whether sub consciously or consciously, muddles and distorts the individuals reality.
every shot following this are still images, everyone has been manipulated and distorted to further the representation of lacanain lack, the images i took don't necessarily have any analytical weight behind them, they are simply candid shots of her daily life. Its what i do to the final images that express laconian lack. I added motion blur to the photos, resulting in images that look corrupted, sinister yet fluid, a further expression of how the lack within ourselves is destructive and tormenting, yet beautiful and liberating at the same time. I say liberating because i believe on our endless search for something to fill the void within us all, we discover more about ourselves, we discover new ways to surprise ourselves, and this is liberating.
for the audio i read a passage from Lewis C Carol's "Alice In Wonderland", the passage follows as,
'Dear, dear! How queer everything is today! And yesterday things went on just as usual. I wonder if I’ve been changed in the night? Let me think: was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I am not the same, the next question is, “’Who in the world am I?’ Ah, that’s the great puzzle.' An analysis of this passage tells us that Alice is suffering from a crisis of identity. "i wonder if I've changed in the night" shows us this. I thought using a passage from Alice In Wonderland would fit perfectly in with a lacanian film. Due to the films intimate nature, and avant guarde basis, several issues made themselves apparent during filming. If changes were made they would be as follows; due to heavy overcast and weather restrictions all of my filming had to take place indoors, resulting in a selection of stills that were all fairly repetitive, if i were to re-do this piece i would have like to film in multiple environments. The audio i used could have also be managed better, i have very little experience with audio equipment outside the built in microphone on my camera, meaning that the audio for the piece changed in quality over the run time. If re-shoots were to be made i would record the audio again but in a studio, rather than a classroom with background noise. In conclusion im extreamly happy with the final piece, i feel that it meets all the criteria set before me and accurately portrays a lacanian lack in a analytical and clinical manner, whilst maintaining all of its personality.
For my contextual studies final piece i wanted to create a short piece that highlighted the technical aspects that made the new wave moment so inspirational. focusing on camera techniques and editing rather than narrative and characters. It was my intention to accurately portray these techniques within a film of my creation, and explore how they all affect the film in there own way.
The film opens with a static close up of an individual lighting a cigarette, i wanted the very first shot of my film to be a perfect representation of the New Wave, and the subtlest most stylistic option for me atleast was to have this smoking shot, in essentially every New Wave film we see characters drenched in cigarette smoke, most notably Godard's film "Breathless", in which the protagonist is constantly smoking, almost to comical effect. by incorporating this i hoped t set the tone of the film instantly, a love letter to the French New Wave.
After this i incorporated rapid successive jump cuts of the subject driving her car, in the context of the New Wave, jump cuts were not only used to represent the passing of time, but also as a tool to criticise the mainstream, jump cuts were used throughout conversations and scenes that normaly would never feature jump cuts. for my film i saw rapid jumpiest in unusual scenes as a ,method of not only demonstration and representing time, but also as a tool to to connect the audience to the protagonist, the passage of time not only shows the audience the degradation of the protagonist, but emotionally connects the two due to said degradation.
During this scene i spliced shots of the road the individual drove on in-between the footage of her driving, this was done to give a sense of location to the film, and to brake up the repetition of the film. showing footage of the location we filmed in also gives us the added benefit of showing the audience the environment the protagonist lives in, giving a more in depth look at the protagonist without resorting to hefty exposition. This technique also stems from the French New Wave, the camera would almost linger on shots of the streets of Paris highlighting the environment the people live in, and how they have essentially became a product of said environment.
the next shot is of my subject walking through a car park, just like the previous scene i use jump cuts throughout the scene, to spend up the pace of the film and to further represent the passage of time. the camera has jagged movements never resting still for a moment. i chose to use a handheld camera rather than one on a steady rig or a dolly as it gives the audience the impression that they are simply a fly on the wall, an outside observer looking into the intimate and personal world of the subject. This is similar to how cameras were used in the New Wave. due to the cheapness and guerrilla filmmaking, expensive cameras used in hollywood films were unavailable yo the filmmakers of the new wave, so cheaper handheld cameras were used in there absence. There use of which provides a similar emotional response as to my film.
The following shot is a static close of the subjects face as she walks around a shopping centre, the camera in this scene was suspended on a make shift dolly which she than proceed to push around the centre. I placed the camera this way to provide he audience with an unflinching view of the subject, as a method of expanding on the emotional connection between subject and audience. Similarly to the previous scene, the makeshift dolly is a further representation to guerrilla film making during the New Wave, limited budget meant that professional was almost impossible to come by, the Filmmakers would resort to makeshift tripods, dolly' and other equipment currently used today. the make shift dolly i used for this shot was again another way for me to use techniques used in the New Wave.
If i were to re-shoot or re-do this piece there are several changes and corrections that i would like to make, due to time restrictions i wasn't able to create a more fleshed out narrative, whilst i like the quaintness and intimate nature of my final piece, i feel that creating a story with motifs and dialogue using themes present throughout all New Wave films would have been a better choice in order to capture the essence of the New Wave.
another aspect that bothers is me is that some shots of the individual in the shopping centre are slightly out of focus, there is no explanation for why this is, i simply made a mistake with the focusing, if i had the choice i would go back and reshoot these scenes.
During some of the car journey scenes, we can see grain throughout the frame, due to filming at night i had to increase the ISO to make up for the loss of light, doing so resulted in heavy grain. if i were to reshoot i would have a light source in the car itself, providing more light for the lens meaning that i wouldn't have to increase the iso to make up for the loss of quality.
In conclusion i am happy with my final piece, i feel that it not only accuratly represents the essence of the New Wave, but also highlights and recreates environments and techniques that made the New Wave so.
When shooting footage for my unit 30 camera and lighting, i need to make sure that all health and safety regulations are met and maintained. there are numerous ways to ensure that this is followed at all times.
Firstly i can ensure that any loose cables, whether it be directly from the camera or from a wall outlet, looses cables that trail across the floor could potentially mean that a member of the team, or any individual passing the area we are filming in could trip and hurt themselves.
most of our recording was done outside due to the quality control of our recordings. so me and my group meticulously searched areas in search of a location that would not only result in the best recording locations, but also in practical locations. would it be safe for me and my group to film? would there be a present risk in filming in this location? and does recording in this location provide a risk to any individuals walking past our filming?.
most of our recordings took place at the King Edwards College, thankfully, most of the ground was gritted already due to it being a public location. so the area's we filmed in were always properly maintained.
This scene within 2007's transformers conforms to all the points put forward in Mulveys male gaze.
The scene opens with a tracking mid shot of the Cars engine, the camera lingers over the engine (reminiscent of kennith angers scorpio rising), this shot also fits into mulveys male gaze theory, creating the possibility that the male gaze is not only about sexualising and objectifying women, but also objectifying other things a male finds pleasure in. The camera then cuts to a panning mid shot, with the focal point of the shot being Megan fox, she is postured suggestively over the car, with her hands raised on the hood of the car. As Shia La Beouf points towards Megan Fox, so does the camera. This conforms to the idea that not only does the camera linger on the curves of the woman, but also that the woman is only present to satisfy the males need.
The camera again cuts to another mid shot of Megan fox, This time leaning directly over the cars engine, her stomach and cleavage exposed.the cameras movments for this scene are very subtle, yet non the less conform the the male gaze, if you look closely that the camera traces the curves of her body, first from top frame, megan fox's cleavage, down to her waist and back, then down her legs. the fact that the camera movement is so subtle only adds to mulveys theory that the male gaze is so deeply routed in modern film that it can almost be considered subliminal.
Laura Mulvey is a British film theorist and avant garde film maker, her work explored a feminist approach towards film, often analysing and scrutinising film with psychoanalysis.
Laura Mulvey identified that Film fascinates its audience, it engages our emotions emotionally, intellectually and sometimes spiritually, Mulvey used psychoanalysis to discover where and ho the fascination of film is reinforced by pre existing patterns of fascination already at work within the individual subject (essentially the spectator). As a prominont feminist she believed that Film can and should be used as a political weapon.
Mulberry hypothesised that the Hollywood/mainstream/narrative cinema manipulates visual pleasure to directly influence the audience, according to her theory it "codes the erotic into the language of the dominant patriarchal order" A key aspect of her theory is the presence of scopophilia, which means pleasure in looking (this was first created by Sigmund Freud in "three essays" in 1905). In freud original piece he explains how scopophilia is when we or the individual gets sexual pleasure from looking at other people, however mulvey also noted that in Freuds three essays, he said that people feel guilty when getting pleasure in this way. From here Mulvey suggested that cinema was the ideal place to get scopophilic pleasure because;
. The people in the film aren't aware that the spectator or individual is watching (therefore removing the guilt associated when receiving sexual pleasure from looking at other people)
.No-one else can see the spectator getting pleasure from viewing others as traditionally, a Cinema or theatre is dark, and that all others will be watching the screen
Mulvey argued that cinema essentially provides voyeuristic pleasure (pleasure from watching others who dont know there being watched).
Mulvey and Lacan
Mulvey expanded on Lacans concept of The Mirror stage and the childs development of self and other by explaing the importance of seeing yourself visually reflected in film. This means that when we see a character on the screen that either looks, reminds, or acts like us, we identify with it, and seeing such a representation reinforces our sense of self and worth.
Mulveys conclusions
According to Mulvey, most mainstream hollywood films are made by male filmmakers for a male audience, and that female filmmakers were often shunned, left only to create in the avaunt Guarde scenes. This results in active male characters (protagonists of the film which use the narrative forward, so that the audience are encouraged to identify with them), whereas female characters are usually passive (prizes for the male characters, objects of desire that men fight for, characters that dont act or think for themselves)
Male Gaze
In Mulveys 1975 'Visual pleasure and Narrative cinema", she coined the term the male gaze, which is when the audience regardless of gender or sexuality is put into the perspective of a heterosexual male, for example, in a shot the camera might trace alongside the curves of a woman body, putting the viewer in the eyes of a heterosexual male.
However, it may only be classified as a male gaze if it uses certain camera techniques, editing techniques or audio cues. Such as:
.slow motion when viewing the curves of a woman
.deliberate camera moments
.cut aways
This theory suggests that the male gaze denies women human identity,relegating them to the status of objects to be admired for physical pleasure and nothing more. the theory also suggests that women can only watch a film from a secondary perspective and only view themselves from a mans perspective. Regardless of this, the presence of a woman in mainstream film texts is vital, often a female character in a film has no real importance herself, it is how she makes the male characters within the text fact or feel that is of importance, essentially, the female only exists in relation to the male.
At its core Enemy is a film about fear, the story follows a man named Adam, who discovers he has an exact doppelgänger, who lives a complete opposite life to him. Whilst Adam is mild mannered and essentially timid, his doppelgänger is the opposite, aggressive and confident. The film explores the relationship between the two, there opposing lives and the relationships they are involved in.
Within a few minutes of watching it becomes clear that the film is an exploration of Adam subconscious, whilst were never explicitly told that this is the case we can se it clearly through the mise en scene, camera techniques and even the narrative itself.
One scene that perfectly represents the lacan theory is the initial meeting between adam and his doppelgänger. Up to this point in the film Adam knows what he wants, he wants to meet his doppelgänger, this is the desire that he believes will fill his lack, as he walks to the motel door he is in centre frame, he is in control of the situation. A prostitute passes him clutching onto a room key, the camera suddenly cuts to a wide shot focussed on the top of her suspenders, we see in the background that Adam is still there, walking past her, however this time rather than being in focus and centre framed, he is to the left, the camera blurs him so we can only vaguely make out that this indeed adam. We can view this as an extension of our protagonists conscious, Upon seeing the prostitute and her Stockings, Adam is suddenly conflicted, is meeting his doppolganger truly what he wants?, or is he simply chasing his primal urge for sex?, If one was to watch the film in its entirety than this would easily be compatible with the Lacanian lack throughout the film, but as we are only analysing one scene, we shall ignore this.
The next key scene following this is the initial meeting between Adam and his doppelgänger. the two stand opposite each other, the camera remains completely still, simply observing the two, in an almost clinical manner. the camera for this scene can perhaps mimic the audiences perception and spectatorship of the film, simply an observer into this individuals mind, powerless to have any interaction within it.
The two show each other there hands, they comment on how similar they are. the doppelgänger than asks Adam if he has a scar on his chest from when he was a child, this freaks Adam out and he hurriedly leaves the room. We can perceive this as Adam realising that perhaps the doppelgänger is exactly what he has been lacking, the doppelgänger is a confident, assertive and bold figure, everything that Adam is not (Adam being obedient, withdrawn and almost afraid). The same goes in reverse, Even though the doppelgänger has a seemingly comfy home life, with a pregnant wife and a relatively wealthy standard of living, his fear of commitment means that he is always seeking a way out of this comfy home life, ( numerous references to his affair throughout the film).
Lack is a Avent Guarde short inspired by the unique aesthetics and visual narrative of 1962's La Jetee. The story explores lacan's theory of intrinsic lack within the individual through still images and use of abstract audio, resulting in a short that challenges the physical form of film itself and simultaneously, representing the Lack within us all.
