The feedback that I got for my first animatic was good however, there is a lot of room for improvement. Each three proposals were strong but the strongest were the narrative and documentary. My narrative project can be improved by using the documentary story to help solve the issue of knife crime by keeping it more subtle and showing the things that might provoke someone to pick up a knife. Therefore I will choose a more metaphorical route of showing knife crime in a less serious way for example creating the tension without showing someone actually being stabbed. This will allow the narrative to be less predictive. Character design was also considered strong as it approaches stereotypes and shows the character as the main focus.
The Feedback that I got from my first feedback session was that my film was interesting as the glitch created a perception of a camera. This felt like you was being watched by a camera and this made the audience aware of the screen. This also represents technology however the idea of the glitch could be evolved further if I made the glitch pattern change instead of keeping It at the same pace. The colours used also gave a nostalgic feel as it created a VHS look as it also created a sense of time. Within my feedback session I was told the reverse scenes which are then led by nature was interesting as it shows a contrast between urban and natural environments this created an interesting atmosphere for the audience.
Mise-en-scène is described as ‘the splendour of the audio-visual palettes that help establish film worlds’. I agree with this statement by Sean Redmond as it is a way of engaging the audience through production design, colour and lighting. In this article it describes how certain aspects of Mise-en-scène affects the mood of the audience. For example the effect of lighting can set the scene as it ‘determines what is illuminated and what is left in shadow’. This can affect the audience’s mood for example in a horror film the dark scenes and shadows create atmosphere for the audience which brings tension to the scene. Another factor of Mise-en-scène is the colour aesthetic in a film. Colour within a film can occur multiple times to foreshadow or create an emotional effect on the audience. ‘A colour motif can also define/ follow a character’ I also agree with this statement as the colour of a character clothes can define the characters personality for example dark colours can show anger or evilness. However, characters with brighter clothes are happy and tend to be the hero of the story. Mise-en-scène helps bring mood and feelings to the audience as it is argued that it helps ‘the viewers entire sensorium’ which allows the audience to connect with the film more.
Martha Alderson argues that ‘The most powerful way to reach an audience is through the characters’ emotions’. I also agree with this view as the character is the main focus in a story and when the character feels emotion so should the audience as they should bond with the character. This is important due to the fact that if the audience does not feel a bond towards the main character the ‘audience will ultimately detach from the film’. This means that the film becomes less interesting for the audience and therefore I would agree with Alderson in this case. However, both Remond and Alderson share similar thoughts that the audience should feel included in the film. This is juxtaposed through the way in which this happens i.e. through the character themselves or through Mise-en-scène. ‘Character Emotional Development symbolizes the character’s emotional transformation at the overall story level’ When the character does go through emotional development this can affect the audience in a way if there has been a bond created between the character and the audience. Without an emotional attachment to the character this can make the audience feel less interested in the film. This shows the importance of having the emotions of the characters as this helps the audience attach to the character making the story more interesting.
Maureen Furniss argues that the ‘audience generally remember characters the most, but background art greatly impacts the viewer’s perception and cannot be overlooked’. I agree with Furniss view in this chapter as both background and character is important in setting the mood and tone of the story and to create an atmosphere for the audience. This book also talks about how characters personality is created through Mise-en-scène this is important due to the fact that when an audience feels a connection with the character it is more likely that the audience will feel more engaged with the character. If the character stands out to the target audience it ‘increases a viewer’s comfort level and loyalty, and makes him or her more likely to return for additional episodes’. This relates to both Martha Aldersons and Sean Redmonds view as Mise-en-scène creates an atmosphere for the setting and personality of the character due to what they are wearing and what they are surrounded by affecting the characters mood or personality. This can affect the audience as it creates a character in which they can relate to or feel attached to which draws more people to watch the film or movie as it becomes more interesting to the viewer. Another topic that was discussed in this book was the effect of colour on the audience. For example warm tones and cool tones. ‘ Warm colours might subtly suggest danger of blood and heat or fire, but cool colours are more familiar in … nature’. This quote shows that depending on the colour scheme of the scene or characters clothes can affect the kind of tone the film is portraying. For example in horror films dark gloomy colours suggests danger whereas bright and vibrant colours suggest a more happy tone.
Logan Baker explains how colour affects the audience and how certain colours have symbolism. For example the colour red can symbolise danger, anger and violence. I chose this article as it shows what colour symbolizes and why they are important to use within a film. This is relevant as it relates to Sean Redmond as it explains further how colours can portray characters or surroundings.
Lauren McGrail explain each area of how Mise-en-scène helps further explain the surroundings of a character and the mood which is set. For example the setting can reveal more about a character as it can reveal the characters mood or state of mind. I chose this article as it can help me go into further detail about specific section of Mise-en-scène such as setting, lighting and depth of space. This is relevant to my work as it goes into more depth on how each section of Mise-en-scène helps set the mood for the story.
Constantin Preda explains different areas of Mise-en-scène such as composition, Production design and film texture. I chose this article as it helps to go into further detail about other areas of Mise-en-scène. For example composition is used during the storyboarding phase to help frame shots in a more interesting way for the audience. This is relevant to my work as it shows other aspects such composition which helps engage the audience.
Within this article written by Alex Ferrari the section which I felt was most useful was costume design as it relates to Sean Redmond as he talks about how costumes can mimic the personality and emotions of the character. I chose this article as it helps to further develop Sean Redmonds idea. This is relevant to my work as costume design can affect the audience as it foreshadows what the character personality may be like.
Gabe Moura’s article talks about how certain shots can manipulate the audience view on aspects of the film. This article goes in depth how each shot can create different atmospheres for the audience. I chose this article as it shows how certain shots have different effects. For example full shots are to show a character’s entrance. This is relevant to my work as it shows how effective certain shots like a close up shot is more effective than full shots to show facial expression.
Julia Smith’s article explains how settings and costume effect the audience and the story. For example, if the setting is bright the character will tend to be happy. Also costume design allows the audience to further understand the character which relates to Alex Ferrari’s point. I chose this at was useful to understand further how both settings and costume design help understand a character’s traits and personality. This is relevant as it will help me expand on Alex Ferrari’s points.
The scene is set on a stormy day with a young man shaking in fear because of the choice he made that will change his life forever. He is standing in a dark alleyway with his hands covered in blood and a shadow of a body lying on the floor. It then cuts to a normal day with the same boy walking towards his friend who is hooded. There is no obvious dialog here which sounds like mumble however one sentence that stands out when you hear the hooded character say ‘Make sure you bring the knife, he thinks he can disrespect us’. It then cuts to the scene of the young man walking home going crazy as he is engulfed with thoughts. As he reaches his house the character walks to the kitchen draw it then splits into two screens of the same shot. This is to show two possible realities on the left the young man takes the knife and walk away. On the right the young boy closes the draw and walks away the film then fades away.
For the first experimentation technique I used stop motion however I used putty to create my stop motion. This was done to push the boundaries of stop motion similarly done by Wallace R. Booth. Putty pushes the boundaries of stop motion as it forms into something new each time it is moved. Therefore the body of the putty changes each time a new picture is taken and you can also see the creator’s hand prints within the putty which makes it more authentic. I plan to push this technique through my film as I will use the putty to create metaphors instead of going with a more forward approach. Therefore I used the metaphor of a rose to represent life and when the rose gets pulled apart it is the metaphor of life being taken away.
For my second experimentation technique I used rotoscoping however I used traditional paper animation to rotoscope. This was done to push the boundaries as I wanted to show that I can have two options to use rotoscoping either through traditional paper animation or 2D animation. I got my inspiration from Max Fleischer as he used an outline to create a simple character however i used a minimalistic style as I only choose the outline of the character however I may add more details. I plan to push this technique further through my film as I like the fluidity of the man walking as it was detailed and looked smooth which is the style I think would fit with my theme.
For my third and final experimentation technique I used was parallax. This was done to push boundaries as I wanted to make certain scenes look more interesting through camera movements. This can be seen as I made a close up going through an alleyway of buildings. I got my inspiration from Walt Disney as they used multiplane cameras to create a parallax shot which makes a scene look more interesting. I plan to push this technique further through my film as this style will work well with the 2D design I think it will fit with the aesthetics of the film.
I decided to make a film about Knife crime as it is a popular topic in media due to the fact that crime rates are rising. It is also a recurring tragedy that happens in the area that I am from. Living in an area which is surrounded by knife crime it feels very unsafe it affects everyone and not just one specific person and this fear can hold you back from your daily life. This topic will bring awareness to youths as I will be interviewing someone who has been previously been stabbed and is currently trying to raise awareness on knife crime too. This will show youths that doing these actions this will make life harder and hopefully prevent more knife crime in the future. This aspect of social reality is particularly challenging commonly held ideas as it will hopefully send a positive influence for people to make a change. I will explore this subject/ issue by interviewing someone who has been previously stabbed and has witnessed many fatal murders that have been caused by knife crime. To produce the materials for my film I will record this person and ask relevant questions to produce an accurate depiction of what knife crime can do and ways we can change to help prevent more knife crimes from happening. I will also use my research to create questions that I can then ask the interviewee. To achieve the look for this documentary I will be using dark colours to create a dark atmosphere. To achieve this aesthetic I want to have a dark watercolour effect which will be done either through paintings or by using TV paint or photoshop to animate.
