Progress Plan

This lesson i have filled the rest of the group in on more details of the idea, helping Chris and Matthew think of useable techniques of their micro-elements. I have also done some research into what demographic our film will appeal to and have looked into location permission to figure out where we can film, but i'll have to do more research on this outside of Sixth Form.

Target audience.

Our target audience will be between 14 and 30, the reason for this is that this age range are the most likely in the UK to be exposed to drug culture, this means they can potentially relate more to the content than other demographics could.

Seeing as our idea contains quite dramatic themes but also moments on surreal comedy I think the mindset of our potential audience are mainly comedy watchers, though the heavy involvement of drama would open the doors to a more drama favouring audience.

Group meeting outcome.

The group i am working with includes; myself, Tarik Ahmed, Matthew Regan and Chris Heath.
We are progressing ahead with my idea. Our involvement in the project will be:
Me - Cinematography
Matthew - mise-en-scene
Tarik - Sound
Chris - Editing.
I will also be taking on the role of director, organising the group and overseeing everyones contribution and advising.

Mark Scheme

Idea's developed

I have changed my idea as i feel it may have been too ambitious as Editing is not the micro element I want to focus on, but it would have been fundamental to the narrative, so im no longer pursuing that idea.
My new idea is a kind of "drugs in the cold light of day" idea, it would be a short film around 3-5 minutes long this would follow an individual who is clearly on drugs and will show the disparencies between what he sees/feels and what is actually happening. This would be good for my micro element as i can use a variety of different types of shot in order to represent the different perspectives, this would allow me to show a lot of range and demonstrate different skills.
I will hopefully be working on it with a group, but I need to establish who to work with and whose idea to use and make sure i can do cinematography.

initial idea for a practical piece

inspiration comes from a music video from a song called "Luv Deluxe" and the idea of the butterfly effect showing different outcomes from one situation.

my idea is a short film, shows a sequence of a guy with his girlfriend and when she leaves the room he gets a text hinting that he's cheated on her. Girlfriend then walks back into the room.
He tells her, apologises, pleads with her to stay and she leaves.
*reverse the sequence to just after Girlfriend walks back into the room*
He hides his phone, she sees this and grabs the phone, she goes mad - arguement - she leaves.
*reverse the sequence to just after girlfriend walks back into the room*
he deletes the message and doesn't tell her, everything is fine, she happily leaves and we see boyfriend..... (not sure yet)

Coursework - micro elements - First Draft

Explain how two Micro-Elements of film construct meaning and provoke response in a film extract from 'The Watchmen'

This essay will be analysing how elements of 'mise-en-scene' and 'editing' create meaning to an audience focusing on a particular scene from a film.

The scene in question is the opening scene from 'The Watchmen' and takes place from 02:30 to 04:42 in the film.

The setting in which the scene takes place is a large penthouse apartment high up in the city, notably the height conveys that the apartment is detatched from the ‘normality’ of the city; leaving the audience aware of the isolation of the location. The fact it is a ‘penthouse’ conveys a sense of luxury, allowing the audience to connote that the character in the scene holds significant wealth. The apartment is exceptionally dark, to the point that almost everything appears either blue or grey. The only sources of light are a small television set and the street lighting from the city which can be seen through the glass windows, the lighting created is incredibly soft and almost unnoticeable. The lack of warm lighting and colours in comparison to a typical superhero movie invokes a sombre, serious atmosphere, connoting that there something extremely negative expected in the scene.

The apartment is large and only contains a minimal amount of furniture, the furniture contains glass elements with the intention of making the location appear more spacious so coupled with the small amount of furniture it gives the apartment an empty feel, signifying to the audience that the occupant is quite isolated, which is important for helping to invoke a feeling of helplessness during the attack that takes place.

At 03:00 the door to the apartment is kicked in revealing an intruder whose identity is unknown at this stage. The sequence was shown in slow motion, emphasising the suddenness of the incident. Visible splinters are shown from the impact on the door. The fact that splinters from the door are visible would show the force the intruder was using, making the audience aware this intruder is capable of extreme violence. The slow motion also conveys the sheer speed of the incident, almost as if it would be too quick to fully comprehend in real time, invoking fear in the audience. The editing emphasises the force of the attack, connoting to the audience that this is no mere petty criminal but a much more dangerous person. This inference by the audience makes them aware that this is a very significant moment and creates a feeling of dread and/or tension among the audience.

At 03:05 the intruder is shown, he is wearing all black clothing with only the lower half of his face exposed. The colour black emphasises that the intruder is menacing is significant in creating a sense of dread in the audience. The costume is best described as a way to keep anonymity for the wearer. There is no lighting on the exposed part of the face so to the audience there is no way of discerning his identity. The combination of full black clothing and lack of lighting used by the director is very effective at creating a feeling of mystery for the audience. By going to lengths to disguise the intruder from the audience means that the viewer can connote that his identity is important, which adds a large degree of suspense/tension for the audience.

At 03:07 the occupant of the apartment, named 'The Comedian' is seen facing towards the intruder using a close-up shot, the notable thing is his calm expression, this allows the audience to denote that The Comedian knows the identity of the intruder, and holds significance in the film. The Comedian looks almost unmoved despite the incident taking place. The suggestion from this is that The Comedian was expecting this to happen, for the audience this creates a climactic feeling, connoting that the incident had been in the making for a while, despite not knowing the reasoning behind the attack. This creates an adrenaline-like feeling for the audience.

From 03:31 to 04:10 The Comedian and the intruder engage in a physical exchange. Throughout this sequence a variety of different editing methods are used. On several occasions overlapping editing is used through slow motion, this editing method was chosen in order to attract the audience’s attention to the certain details on The Comedian face. This is significant in conveying the pain The Comedian is experiencing and invoking fear in the audience. In other segments of the sequence there are rhythmic considerations in which there are a lot of fast cuts, synonymous with typical action edits, where the sequence is cut to different angles and perspectives on a secondly basis. The use of both these types of edits in the same sequence is typical of the director Zack Snyder and this juxtaposition conveys a sense that the action is happening at a rapid pace to the audience which is important to invoke a feeling of excitement.

The use of props is very significant in presenting meaning to the audience during this scene. The earliest example is at 03:12 when the camera zooms in on a silenced firearm on top of a hustler magazine in slow motion. The slow motion is used to give the audience more time to fully see the objects which is important in order for the viewers to infer meaning of the film. The props themselves raise questions, the presence of an adult magazine suggests to the audience that the Comedian isn't simply an ‘innocent old man’ being attacked, but perhaps isn't "a good guy.” This view is only solidified by the firearm on top of it. The fact The Comedian has a pistol, already equipped with a silencer, at an arms length away conveys to the audience that he is also a dangerous man, capable of violence. To the audience this may cause confusion as it very untypical of superhero action films to have scenes in which two seemingly "bad guys" are actually fighting each other, but this inference is done in order to provoke more excitement for the audience.

However, the most significant prop is a small button on The Comedians robe of a yellow smiley face. This is ironic considering the tone of the scene, this demonstration of irony almost satirises the scene/violence, invoking excitement in the audience and potentially intriguing them. This prop is important in creating meaning in several ways. The first occasion it attracts focus is at 04:47 when The Comedian is bleeding and a drop of blood falls onto the button. In this sequence the camera, in slow motion, tracks the drop of blood running on the button in a single shot. This sequence stands out for two key reasons; Firstly, the button is the only example of bright colour during the entire scene and this juxtaposition between the button and the rest of the scene means that the audience can connote that this button has significant value to the film. The effect of this is to create a cryptic feeling. Overlapping editing was used again, this is yet another juxtaposition that further solidifies the possibility this was done to bring the button to attention so the audience would be conveyed a cryptic, mysterious feeling.

The last part of the scene occurs between 05:04 and 05:19. This sequence shows The Comedian being thrown out of the window to his death. For the full 15 seconds it is fully slow motion/overlapping editing and done with a single shot. What the audience can connote from this is that this sequence signifies the end of the fight/scene and the probability of The Comedians death. During this the camera shows the comedian falling to the ground but before impact can be seen, the yellow button that was attached to his robe is seen also falling and in fact blocks the camera view of impact and replacing it with the blood stained button. This conveys several things to the audience, the sight of The Comedians button is a definite symbol that shows he is dead, without the camera needing to show it. The audience also has further evidence for their previous connotation that this button holds some degree of importance and solidifies the inference of mystery created in this scene.

This essay has focused on how both ‘Editing’ and ‘Mise-en-Scene’ are used to create meaning and provoke reactions from the audience. The two micro-elements not only set up the rest of the film, but set it apart from the synonymous superhero genre. The Juxtaposition between The Watchmen and other superhero films is demonstrated in this scene through the lack of significant colour and the irony of The Comedians button. The use of the button during such a disturbing scene creates a sinister irony, almost satirising the violence of superhero films, setting itself apart in the genre. The audience uses this to modify their expectations of the film. The undertones of violence and death, coupled with said juxtaposition between the elements helps to present characteristics of horror, which in turn emphasise the unique alignment of The Watchmen in the superhero genre.

This scene has shown the extent to which these micro-elements can be used, from the use of a yellow button to the rhythmic considerations of editing, ‘The Watchmen’ has used ‘Mise-en-Scene’ and ‘Editing’ successfully to affect the audience and create meaning in scenes and the significance of these affects in the overall impression of the film