Wednesday 30 November 2011

Image analysis from Thelma and Louise (Ridley Scott) 1991



Location:Filmed in a car park(conventional thriller setting),which gives the audience a sense of realism therefore making the scene more intence.Another thriller where the setting of a car park is exploited for a sense of realism,is the first fight scene in Fight Club directed by David Fincher.

Characters:The dominant woman (femme fatale) holding a gun up to the face of the less powerful man.This goes against the normal female stereotype and shows that she has the greatest power than anyone in the shot.This is very similar to Uma Thurman's character in Kill Bill 1 and 2.

Lighting:Non ambient,Which creates suspense and fear.If ambient lighting was used, the shot wouldn't look as sinister.

Camera Angle:A medium close up is used so the audience can see the divide in power.One side the deviant woman with power,the other, the helpless man.The audience can also establish facial expressions.

Another reason the medium close up is used is that it makes the audience feel they are almost in the shot,as it's very 'in your face' thereofre making it more intense to watch .Once again this type of shot is used in Fight Club with the gun in mouth shot.This also shows the divide in power and even looks more menacing as a low angle tilt shot is used.

Monday 28 November 2011

Practice Camera Shots
Worms eye shot-Gives a character status
Over shoulder shot-Seeing things from the charcters point of view


Low angle tilt shot-Great shot to display menace and status
Birds Eye -A high shot which works well to establish setting

Thursday 17 November 2011


Preliminary task
Shooting the preliminary task proved to be a lot harder than my group initially thought it would be.Sticking to the 180 degree rule became my groups main concern, and this took a few practice shots to nail it.


Continuity errors were also a concern.As it is seen in the final film,my clothing is different as unfortunately my group could not finish the shooting in one lesson.

What made Animal Kingdom a marketing success ?

Although Animal Kingdom was independantly made film,it had an astonishing marketing success.Firstly the film has a fantastic trailor which sells everything about the movie in a few minutes.The plot of the film is sold exceptionally well which is very appealing too the audience.The trailor also has a very famouse soundtrack Air Supply 'All out of love'.The song itself makes the trailor very poignant .

Social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter also made the film a marketing success.The sites were utilized to spread the word about the film and how brilliant it was.

Wednesday 2 November 2011

'Witness' scene analysis-how Peter Weir Utilises thriller conventions.

At the beggining of the scene,the audience hears the soundtrack that has an eerie /spooky effect on the scene.It's especially effective when the young boy is looking up at the angel whilst the panning camera shot is used,as it builds suspense .The next shot the audience sees,is the relatively long shot of the mother and son sitting down in the station.The choice of shot utilises the thriller genre by showing how alone therefore vulnerable they are to any potential danger.Also in this shot we notice the vanishing point.
The vanishing point is the door too the toilet which the boy approaches.Vanishing points in thrillers tend too be where a significant turning point occurs,For example in witness,The murder takes place in the toilet.

When the boy walks into the toilet there is a slight low angle shot on the man already in the toilet,this represents the difference in power between the two characters .The colour scheme of the toilet utilises the thriller genre due too the bleak dark colours.Just before the murder takes place, the audience notices the enigma ,it is a man who's face isn't shown throughout the whole of the murder scene.This conforms too the thriller genre.Soon as the man gets attacked,Another soundtrack is played,it's very frantic and adds too the suspense and struggle of the killing.


When one of the two killers draws a knife out of his pocket.There is a close up of his hand holding the knife,This adds menace to the clip and frightens the audience.


The iconic shot of the young boy looking through the parting of the toilet door is fantastic at building suspense and anticipation.The parting of the door is just enough that he could be seen by the killers, which from the audiences perspective makes the boy very vulnerable.
How are new technologies affecting the ways in which we consume films?
In recent years, the ways in which we consume films have changed dramatically due to the rapid introduction of new technology. The competition in the film market is constantly increasing so new ideas and concepts are being brought out all the time (HD, 3D…) to keep up with the demands. This new technology has had a positive effect in terms of captivating audiences and making money .Cinemas are now changing because of new technology. The amount of multiplex cinema screens in the last 10 have slowly risen due to the popularity of CG and 3D effects, obviously these effects can not be in every single film, therefore more screens are available to cater various audiences.  The steady increase of cinema screens has come from the massive demand to watch films on very large screens with new technologies e.g 3D. Although the number of cinemas has increased, more people are choosing to stay at home to watch films in the comfort of their own home, this could be due to people having less money to spend in the cinema due to the recession .Cinemas have tried to work around this and appeal too the general public by having more comfortable seats, big clear screen which allows the customers to experience the film in the best way possible getting the most for their money.
The internet is another factor that is affecting the way in which we consume films. Things such as online streaming and illegal downloads are easily accessible, therefore a lot of people may consider watching a film that is currently at the cinema in the comfort of their own home illegally for instead of going to their local cinema and paying. Result from the survey also shows when it comes to accessing media through internet is most common in the age group 16-24 year olds.
The age of the individual also changes the way in which we consume films, the older generation of people ages 55+ are sticking to their televisions still when it comes to watching films. Statistics also show that 21.7% of people are recording films onto their televisions and a big 27.8% of people are choosing to watch live television. It could be that the younger generation can be more knowledgeable when it comes to technology as that is what they have been brought up with it, and older people like to be more traditional as they have not had much experience with the use of the internet or computers.
New technology could also be affecting the rental DVD/VIDEO/BLU-RAY market. Since 2001 there has been a steady decline in rentals. In 2001 DVD rentals made 494 million pounds, whereas in 2010 they only made 183 million pounds. This could be due too people wanting to go too the cinema and see these films in 3D.The profitability of rentals peaked in 2004 and has never regained since.
Sites such as BBC I-Player and YouTube that provide videos on demand have also greatly influenced the way in which we consume films. According to a survey there is a steady positive trend in TV based VOD. Although online VOD is growing more rapidly. This is due to them being more accessible and higher quality computers. The total VOD market in 2001 made 44.1 million pounds and in 2010 it made 159.4 million pounds.
All in All new technology has completely changed the way in which we consume films. Cinemas have had too change, and it’s now the internet that has become one of the, if the most popular way in which we consume films. As it is easily accessible and doesn’t cost a penny. The only hindrance is,people may be watching films illegally

Kill Bill 1 opening scene analysis

Tarrantino's Kill Bill has an exceedingly well made opening scene.At the the beginning of the scene there is a soundbridge,these work incredibly well in films particulary thrillers,as they build up anticipation and suspense as it cuts too the next shot.Then we have the dieagetic sounds,the first one we hear is the brides heavy breathing.Which shows the audience the womens fear and distress towards Bill.The second dieagetic sound we hear is the footsteps of Bill.This creates anticipation as the footsteps become louder and louder as he approaches the bride.The establishing camera shot of the whole scene is the close up of the brides face.The camera shot only changes once in the whole scene , its a tracking shot of Bills feet as he approaches the bride.When the camera cuts back too the close up of the brides face.It establishes the realtionship between the two characters,and portrays the difference in power.The close up shot of the brides face is fantastic when connecting with audience,as it makes you sympathise with her.You can really see the pain and suffering she is enduring.Anohter reason why the close up shot is brilliant,is because we never get too see the face of Bill,therefore an enigma is created.This creates a fear of the unknown and portrays Bill as a mysterious figure.We then have the brilliant shot of Bills hankachief rubbing the brides face.We instantly notice 'Bill' is written on the hankachief,this shows the audience that Bill is an arrogant man with a sense of 'Cheap wealth' about him.At the end of the scene we have the climax of the gun shot , that conforms to the thriller genre.

The whole scene is filmed with a Noir lighting.This is done for many reasons.Firsly too pay tribute too the classic 1940's/50's thrillers.Secondly the whole scene is a flash back,and lastly it creates a sense of coldness and brutallity.