Research: Editing Ms Begum

Editing

Editing is where it involves the selection and combining of shots into sequences, and ultimately creating a finished motion picture. This I always portrayed if it is fast paced as a quick cut or ‘montage’. The length of each shot determines the pace of the film and helps determine the mood

There are many examples of different types of cuts that can be used in many ways and portray different things.

·         Straight cut

A straight cut is when one shot moves into another shot in an edit. It is putting together two pieces of film to maintain continuity of action, to change scenes, or to insert other relevant material into the film narrative. This way it doesn’t confuse the audience and they are able to follow the plot.

 

 

·         Fade to black

 

Fade to black editing is when one shot goes/moves into another and there is a black filter in between. This type of editing is usually used to signal a beginning or end of a film or a scene. For example in the silent house trailer they use fade to black in key sections to keep the audience guessing.

 

 

·         Wipe cut

A wipe cut is a transition from one shot to another, where a moving line or pattern reveals the new shot. This example isnt from a thriller film but it does show a good example of a wipe cut.

 

 

·         Dissolve cut

 

Dissolve is a term used to describe a transition effect in which one video is gradually fads out while another image simultaneously replaces the original one in other words when one shot disintegrates into another.

 

 

·         Reaction shot

 

A reaction shot is a portrayal of a person’s response to an event or to a statement of a previous shot made by another. Reaction shots also let the audience react to the scene as before a reaction shot there is usually a build-up in tension.

 

·         Montage

A montage is the speed of editing, where shots are quickly juxtaposed together to create excitement  The process or technique of selecting, editing, and piecing together separate sections of film to form a continuous scene showing the character’s movement or action.

·         Slow paced editing

Slow pace editing is when clips are put together at a slower pace and this is to create suspense. Slow pace editing is used so the audience can follow the plot of the thriller but it is also used to signal that something is going to happen

·         Fast paced editing

Fast pace editing is when clips are put together at a fast pace and this is to create tension and thrill. Fast pace editing usually comes after a scene of slow pace editing to emphasize the fact that something bad has happened and the character is in trouble. a perfect example of the slow and fast paced editing is the shower scene from Psycho. The slow pace is the build up to the murder and the fast pace is the incident happening. 

 

 

·         180 rule

The 180° rule is a basic guideline in film making that states that the camera has started filming two characters in the same scene either on the right or left it should stay on the side for the whole conversation unless you actually show in the edit the camera moving from the right to the left side and vice versa. This example shows a great example of the 180 rule and that you have to show the camera moving from left to right.

·         Shot reverse

A shot reverse is mostly used in films where a conversation is taking place and it is when one shot quickly follows another. This technique are usually used in conversations, interregation and interviews. This example is an interregation between Batman and the Joker shows a great example of shot reverse and the 180 rule and that you have to show the camera moving from left to right.

 

 

·         Jump cut

A jump cut is a drastic camera movement that is noticeable to the eye to the point that you could say the frame almost ‘jumps’ from one position to another. This example shows a sequence where a man is getting a gun but they show this as 3 different frames.

Conclusion

The lesson in editing has opened my eyes in what edits and cut are best to use in a thriller opener for example a wipe cut would not be the best cut to use whereas a fade to black cut would be.

 

 

 

 

Research: Sound Ms Begum

Sound

Sounds are used in films to create understanding for the audience and to create more meaning about the character and their emotions. Sounds are also used to create a response from the audience. In my opinion sound is the most important convention when it comes to making a successful thriller film as sound does not just emphasises a characters emotion but also it psychologically determines the audiences view on the situation in the film and make use fell emotion as well.

Examples of sounds include:

·         Diegetic Sound

Diegetic sound is sound which is part of the film world in other words it is sound that other characters would be able to hear in the film for example a scream or the radio or the television

·         Non-diegetic Sound

Non-diegetic sound is sound which is not part of the film world in other words sound that the characters cannot hear and is not part of the imaginary world of the story for example a soundtrack that has been added to the scene. Non-diegetic sounds are used mainly to move from one scene to another or more specifically it is used to create tension in a thriller film to get the audience scared.

 

Trailers always use both of these types of sounds to intrigue the audience for example Dream House. The diegetic sounds are the characters talking and screaming and the non-diegetic sound is the piano being played in the background.

 

·         On Screen Sound

On screen sound is similar to diegetic sound. It is sound you can see what character or object it is coming from for example in quantum of solace chase scene you can see that the reeving and the skid noises are coming from the cars and the bullet shots are coming from the guns.

 

 

·         Off Screen Sound

Off screen sound is the opposite. It is sound that is there but you cannot see where it is coming from. It is existing or occurring sounds outside the frame of a movie or television screen for example if the camera is on you and you are downstairs and someone is calling you from upstairs or if there is a scream in the background.

 

·         Parallel Sound

Parallel sound is when the sound you hear in a film is what is expect in other words it describes the condition where audio and visual effects match for example you would for example you would expect to hear children playing in a park engines reeving at formula 1.

 

·         Contrapuntal sound

Contrapuntal sound is when the sound does not match the expectations of what you are viewing therefore creating confusion and arousing curiosity among the audience for example in the classic thriller Jaws the sound of the children playing at the beach is suddenly interrupted by the non-diegetic, increasing pace sound to alert the audience that something is not right.

 

 

 

Conclusion

The research on sound has really helped to decide how to portray the sound in the thriller opener. It has given an insight on what types of sound would work and in what places to put them.

 

Research: Mise en Scene: Lighting Ms Heath

Lighting

Lighting is one of the five elements of Mise en Scene. The definition of lighting is the way light falls upon a face,object etc., especially in pictures and films. Lighting helps to convey moods and atmosphere in a scene/film. It can also be used to guide the audience's attention to a particular object, person, emotion or gesture. Lighting can be also used to cast shadows, silhouettes and to build suspense and tension.
 

There are 3 main lighting positions:

·         Under lighting

 

Under lighting is the approach of lighting a subject from a point below the subjects in the scene. This tends to have a distorting effect on the character or object and is often use in films to do with horror. This is a classic example of under lighting where the boy has the torch under his head usually used to tell ghost stories around the campfire. If you used a different type of lighting like top lighting it will not create as much tension.

 

·         Top lighting

 

 

 

Top lighting is when the upper areas of a subject are lit by a source generating from above it. This type of lighting tends to highlight the features of a character or object. It is often used to create a glamorous look in a character. This example show a ball being illuminated by using top lighting. Because of top lighting we can see the writing on it (Tachikara) which we may of not seen if we used back or under lighting.

 

 

·         Back lighting
 

 

 

Back lighting refers to the process of illuminating the person or object from the back to create shadows. If little of no back light is used silhouettes are created. This technique is very effective in horror and thriller films because you are unable to see the character which creates more suspense because in a film scene you may know what a cerain character did but you don’t know who actually done it.

 

Lighting is usually adjusted to suit the scenery. There are 3 main examples of this

·         Low key lighting

Low key lighting is illumination that creates strong contrast between light and dark areas of the shot, with deep shadows and little fill light. Low key lighting produced dark images with minimal lighting and rich in black tones. this is a good example as it is a scene that displayes low level light which leaves a small glow in the background which gives it an eerie effect.

 

·         High key lighting

 

 

 

High key lighting is a style of lighting found in comedies, musicals, and other upbeat films, in which the fill light eliminates dark shadows cast by the key light, producing an image that is brightly and evenly lit. high key lighting can be used to show a characters feature just like this example of the joker. the lighting is used in this way just to show how grusome of a character he is.

 

·         Natural lighting

 

 

Natural lighting is where there is no added lighting effect. It is where you use the light provided by Mother Nature e.g. The Sun. the picture above is the perfect example of this as she is on the rock face in broad daylight and they are not using any additional light to protray this.

The Moon In The Gutter

The moon in the gutter has a scene that shows a perfect example of lighting effects it has a mix of low level lighting, and back lighting that along with dramatic sound and quick cuts portrays this to be a typical conventional thriller scene.

 

Conclusion

This lesson in lighting has helped me it has shown me in a variety of ways how important lighting is when it comes to lighting. It has shown me that each type of lighting can be used for different genres. For example in horror films you would use low level lighting and in romance films you would use high key lighting. And finally it has given me hints on what types of lighting I would use in my thriller opener and where to use them.

Research: Cinematography Ms Begum

What is Cinematography?

Cinematography is in general the art or technique of motion-picture photography. It is looking at the way the camera shot is framed, the angle it is taken in and the movement of the camera. All these things give the audience a different representation of the character or scenery and allow the audience to respond in different way for example an establishing shot of an abandoned warehouse would get the audience to respond in an anxious and scared way.

When it comes to filming there are 3 main elements of cinematography:

·         Camera shots/sizes

These shots each have their own way of portray a character or scenery

·         Camera angles

Camera angles are use to portray the superiority or inferiority of the characters in the film

·         Camera movements

Camera movements are use to specifically accompany what the character is doing

Camera shots:

·         Establishing shot (ES) or (XLS)

Establishing shots also known as extreme long shot are use to take a photo of the scenery or a building. Extreme long shots are pretty much the same except it focuses on the characters and the scenery around them. You usually get an establishing shot at the beginning of the film or if the film changes scene to introduce the area.

·         Long shot (LS)

A long shot shows the whole character. It is used mainly to show what the character is wearing and what they are holding. It is usually to show a character posing or to show the full extent of the actions of the character. A long shot is used to stress the environment or setting of a scene.

·         Medium long shot (MLS)

A medium long shot is used for similar properties as a long shot except the shot is taken from either the knees or the thighs upward. This gives you the opportunity to show some of the environment, but also allow multiple people to easily interact.

·         Medium shot (MS)

 

The medium shot is the most common shot used in movies. The benefits of using medium shots are that they allow you to have more than one character in the frame at a time. Another benefit of the medium shot is that it allows you to capture body language which the close up doesn't allow you to capture. However, the medium shot is close enough that you still have access to the facial expressions of the actor.

·         Medium close up (MCU)

 

The medium close up is half way between a mid shot and a close up. This shot shows the face more clearly, without getting uncomfortably close. A character shows emotion more than in just the face. They have body language too. The MCU is good because it allows the actor to show emotion in more than just the face.

·         Close up (CU)

 

 

A close up usually means a close up of a persons face. A close-up of a person emphasizes their emotional state. Whereas a mid-shot or wide-shot is more appropriate for delivering facts and general information, a close-up exaggerates facial expressions which convey emotion. The viewer is drawn into the subject's personal space and shares their feelings. This famous shower scene from Psycho is a perfect example. Here you can clearly see on her facial expression that she is terrified and that make the audience feel scared for her. around about this time dramatic and fast pace sound would be played to build up tension in the scene.

·         Extreme close up (ECU)

 

 

The extreme close up (or ECU) gets right in and shows extreme detail. You would normally need a specific reason to get this close. It is too close to show general reactions or emotion except in very dramatic scenes. It can be also used to show iconography or to zoom in on what the character is doing e.g. writing a death threat.

Camera angles:

·         High angle

 

High angles make the object photographed seem smaller, and less significant (or scary) or less superior. The object or character often gets swallowed up by their setting. They become part of a wider picture. For example a hero sizing up to a hugh villan.

 

·         Low angle

 

 

 

These increase height and give a sense of speeded motion. Low angles help give a sense of confusion to a viewer, of powerlessness within the action of a scene. The background of a low angle shot will tend to be just sky or ceiling, the lack of detail about the setting adding to the disorientation of the viewer. The added height of the object may make it inspire fear and insecurity in the viewer, who is psychologically dominated by the figure on the screen.

Camera movements:

·         Panning shot 

 

Panning is a camera movement technique that involves moving the camera horizontally to the right or left. With this technique you can scan round the whole room in that scene. You can do the pan shot hand held but using a tripod will be much more stable for example you would use a pan shot if you were to scan the area for something.

·         Tilt shot

 

 

 

The tilt shot is similar to the pan shot, but the tilt shot moves vertically instead of horizontally. Like the pan shot, the tilt shot can be done hand held or with a tripod For example, imagine being at the bottom of a building and then tilting the camera upwards to capture the entire building structure

 

·         Crane shots

 

 

A crane is a large, heavy piece of equipment, but is a useful way of moving a camera - it can move up, down, left, right, swooping in on action or moving diagonally out of it. This is very useful if you want to get a large overhead view of the setting or if you want to follow something over greater distances instead of using a tracking or a dolly shot.

 

·         Zoom shot

 

Zooming means a shot which moves closer to, or away from, the subject using the lens rather than moving the whole camera in or out. It means altering the focal length of the lens to give the illusion of moving closer to or further away from the action. Zooming is effectively magnifying a part of the image either to zoom in on what they are doing or on a facial expression.
this example demonstrates it well. It is the earth being zoomed in.

·         Point of view

 

A point of view shot (also known as a POV shot) is a shot that shows a view from the subject's perspective. It is a short film scene that shows what a character is looking at. It is usually established by being positioned between a shot of a character looking at something, and a shot showing the character's reaction. It is usually edited in such a way that it is obvious whose POV. You see this technique use alot in first person video games as the example above shows.

·         Over the shoulder

 

 

This shot is framed from behind a person who is looking at the subject. The person facing the subject should usually occupy about 1/3 of the frame. This shot helps to establish the position of each person, and get the feel of looking at one person from the other's point of view. It's common to cut between these shots during a conversation, alternating the view between the different speakers. This example is from a scene in the Dark Knight. You can clearly see the joker over batmans shoulder.



There are plenty of other camera shots, angles and movement that i havent gone over for example:

 

·     Two shot

·         Aerial shot

·         Dolly shot etc.

The video below will show you these shots and many others.

 

Conclusion


This lesson has really helped me as it has shown me many different types of camera shots, angles and movement. Furthermore it has given me ideas on what camera shots are conventional for a thriller film and what shots i may want to use for our thriller opener.