Analysis (Genre)
- This short film is set within a surburb of West London. The genre for this film I would say is a Comedy or Comedy Drama. The family house is set right below the Heathrow flightpath.
- This comedy is all about one small toy plane which eventually paralyses the man in the picture above. Various semantic codes such as the toy plane, the terraced housing, the glass of spirit all give us the audience an idea into what sort of family this is.
- The use of Steve Neale's 'Repetition and Variation' by creating new ideas is apparent in this film. The use of cartoon drawings to establish the journey of the toy plane from Max's mouth to hitting his Dad, Bertie, on the head is not just comical but very clever.
- The journey of the toy plane out of the big aircraft is one of the funniest moments of the film. A ECU is used of the plane as it eventually finds itself to Bertie's forehead and paralysing him completely.
- A flashback has been used from the beginning scene to 2 years before hand when the inident happened. This editing technique allows the viewers to see what life was like for Bertie 2 years ago. At the very end of the piece we return to the hospital bed, with him in a bad condition. A trophy which reads 'The End' is of a toy plane, the object which injured Bertie.
Analysis (Audience)
- This short film is about a young boy who has a passion for music. The title 'Mixtape' tells us that the genre of music is perhaps from years ago. The film is set in a suburban area of perhaps a town or city, with flats being the most common type of accomodation in that street.
- The audience for this short film I would say is 12-16 year olds. Although the genre of music is from around 20-30 years ago, the friendship or romance between the young boy and Lily would appeal to younger viewers.
- This film would be suitable for CBBC as a short clip before a news programme, for instance. Younger viewers would watch most of their films/programmes on TV, so I would put this as a suitable platform for this clip.
- We know that the young boy and girl are neighbours which becomes clearer when the girl starts singing. A LS is used to show the boy leaning against his bedroom wall to hear the girl singing. We can also tell frm this that they have a strong friendship and perhaps romance is on the horizon.
- Personally, I really like this film and there is no suprise there as it has been nominated for a BAFTA award.
- This film is fairly recent, set in 2009 and has been widely regarded as one of the best short films of director, Luke Snellin's career.
Actors
- Ben is played by Bill Milner
- Lily is played by Charlotte Beaumont
- Lily's Mum is played by Kate Miles
Source: IMDb
Analysis (Representation)
- This film is set in either Cornwall or Devon. The setting is on a beach with cliffs in the background, and the time of year is Spring.
- Disability is a reccuring theme throughout this film. We know that the male character has Asperges Syndrome while the girl in the picture below has either the same condition or another related illness.
- Both characters are seen to be isolated in one way or another. The MCU above shows the girl looking on at the beach. She says very little throughout the film and we have no idea of her relationship to either the male character and his friend.
- Asperges Syndrome affects peoples ability to socialise and communicate with other people. They have limited interests and this is apparent from the beginning. The male character is around 20 years of age and is seen flying a kite. This is perhaps childish behaviour, another trait of his illness.
- Power and Status is very unclear in this film. With only three main characters involved, it is hard to tell who has a greater status. However, the friend of the male character, is a girl who isn't disabled. She has plans of catching a ferry to France. We can tell from this that she is sophisticated and very mature for her age.
- As the setting changes to the boarding of the ferry, we get to witness the male characters illness and how this affects his life. The image below shows him being questioned by police. He is vividly distressed and frustrated and the use of dark colour and a LS allow the audience to step into his shoes.
- Towards the end of the film, we again see the male character isolated. Here he is trying to amend his kite. Later on the other disabled character walks in. There is litle communication between them and we have no understanding of why she is there. That is perhaps a way the director has used these two in particular to show that they are affected by a disorder.
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Actors
- Charlotte is played by Antonia Campbell-Hughes
- Amy is played by Georgia Groome
- Jake is played by Andrew Scott
Source: IMDb
Analysis (Media language)
- Sound is represented very well in this short film. Although there is no dialogue, a drowning sound effect is used to portray this spooky, eerie atmosphere inside the room. The room below, looks like an office, and this is reiterated later on as we find out the main character is wearing a suit.
- The image above, shows the title of the film almost inside the black hole. The frame looks like a hole as it is shaped like a circle. The use of colour in particular the dark, spooky feel we get as soon as we see the first frame.
- The main character is male and the oly character we see in the film. He is around 30 years of age and is seen wearing a white shirt and tie.
- A MLS is used in this frame so the audience can see the character itself and determine what sort of character he is. The editing pace is slow in this film which perhaps tells us the character isn't under any real pressure at all. All we can tell is the black hole provides a route for grabbing objects such as a cup and a snickers bar from the vending machine. We are told very little about the situation that the character is in and where he needs to go.
- Below, shows us that the black hole can be used as a prop to take objects behind it. The camera angle in this frame is a MS so that we can see everything clearly in the image.
- The frame below shows the main character looking directly into the hole to search for something. A MCU is used at this point so we can gather the character's facial expression and body language. We can then tell from this whether the character has got something significant or not.
- A point in this film where we have a good understanding of the situation is when the man reaches through the blackhole to grab some money. It looks as if there is a washing machine behind the black hole which he then steps into.
Analysis (Narrative)
- We believe that this film is a thriller. To show this, we hear loud screams from a woman lying on the floor which suggests some form of attack on her by the male antagonist. We know that it is a woman due to the feminine foot and leg of the person. The foot, below, seems dirty which suggests this person may have walked or even run bare foot, which implies that there is a sense of rush involved.
- It is understood that this short film is a thriller as the use of a crow (MES) is the signal of death. We then feel that somebody will die, but are shocked when the ending isn't what we think it should have been.
- This is an example of Narrative, the order in which the story is presented. The structure of this non linear. Although there aren't flashbacks, the story ends in an unexpected manner. It ends with the so called 'antagonist' holding a baby in his arms, which is also an example of Unrestricted Narration, as we expected a crime.
- A semantic code during this clip, the crow, is a clear indication that something bad will happen. A crow is a sign of death and the audience expect some kind of murder is imminent.
- Furthermore, the male antagonist is seen to have a skull tatoo on his right arm. This semantic code again reiterates this theme of horror.
- The Equilibrium in this piece is the countryside, in which is remote, and there are some cries of a crow. The Disruption occurs as the knife is placed in the ground beside the womans leg.
- The Confrontation is when the male antagonist runs away trying to find his car, in which he takes out a blanket, another semantic code.
- The Resolution is the male antagonist holding the baby. The New Equilibrium is then set, which is of joy and happiness.
Actors
- Babies mother is played by Bianca Gervais
- The 'villain' turned 'hero' is played by Pierre Lebeau
Source: IMDb
'Never Forget'
- This short film is set within a city showing the breakdown of a relationship on Valentines Day.
- Below is the back of our female protagonist, wearing a smart suit jacket. This indicates that she is very professional and is reasonably wealthy. We cannot tell her age from this image but we assume that there is a large age gap between the couple.
- The setting is related to a city night life. The female has had to lie to her partner/husband on the phone telling him where she was on the previous night. Here, many flashbacks are used of her actually out clubbing. We see her with another man and know that she is cheating on her partner. The pace quickens at this point to show her dancing and enjoying herself away from her partner.
- Her partner, the male protagonist is seen, again to be reasonably wealthy. His costume is a smart black suit with a red bow tie indicating that this is a special occasion. Below, we see him arranging his cufflinks, a sign of professionalism and taking pride in his appearance on a special evening.
- To the right, is the man himself on the phone to his partner saying 'Good night last night?', in which she lies by saying 'Chinese takeaway and a bottle of wine'. In this image we can see the background of the river and buildings lit up in the backdrop.
'About a Girl'
- Stacey, 13, speaks very fast, this shows her lack of education, she perhaps has not attended school. Her accent is also northern (Yorkshire) and she wears a basic puffer jacket.
- This entire film is set within a council estate on the suburbs of Manchester. Stacey has a desire of living in London. Housing is predominantly terraced, one of the cheapest housing available.
- There is a very small use of lighting. This lack of quality lighting emphasises the dark, derelict area in which she lives. The area is heavily poverty stricken.
- Her attitude is evident right from the start. She frequently sings to herself, in particular, Britney Spears' songs.
- Later on in the piece we find out she is pregnant. She carries this baby in a bag whilst walking and then throws this into the canal.
- These long takes enable viewers to see and hear how she feels about her. She says 'No room for a piano', a MCU is used at this point. This dialogue explains that she lives in a small terraced house which is perhaps rather crowded and she wants to move out.
