Research: Mise en scene: Body language and Facial expression

Body language & facial expressions

Body language is the way the character acts, moves or is positioned in the film or towards the audience. Things to consider when looking for body language are the characters movement whether it’s their whole body or just a part of the body like a hand, the levels they are using whether they are crouching or standing tall and proud and finally and if any prop is included because the reason they are in a position could be due a particular prop involved. Body language helps the audience identify what the character is meant to be representing.

                                

Facial expressions are the emotions the character portrays in the film or to the audience. The use of emotive language can be effective when it comes to finding out how each character is feeling. It could also tell a bit about the character personal life even if the character itself doesn't show or tell the audience about it.

A few examples to describe different types of body language and facial expressions:

This facial expression shows a man putting real effort into pulling the chain. You can tell he is putting real effort in by the strain on his face and the tension he is exerting on his face.

This facial expression is created to strike fear among the other characters as well as the audience. When you first look at it, it creates a reaction from the audience that is meant to scare them.

The body language of this character makes you suggest that he is ready for a fight. you can tell this by the fact that his stance is that of martial arts along with the position of his hands.

The body language and facial expression this character is a calm  but a little stressed. The reason why i felt he was calm was because of the way he was sitting. His arms are rested on the table and his shirt is unbuttoned. The reason why i feel that he is stressed is his facial expressions. His face tells me that he looks drained. Furthermore excluding his face there is a glass of alcohol on his table which makes me suggest that he is trying to drink his troubles away.

Overall, my understanding of facial expressions and body language has improved dramatically and has helped me to guide the actors we are going to use in our thriller trailer so they are able to portray the characters better.