Examples of Camera techniques

Shots:

Master shot- A shot thats often a long shot, usually placed at the beginning of a scene to establish the general location of the action to follow.

Close up- Usually a shot zoomed into of just a human head or an object that size

Mid- shot- Usually includes the human figure from the waste up

Long shot- Where the human figure would be insignificant relative to its surroundings

Wide shot- Where most of the scene is in shot

Ariel shot- A shot taken from an airborne device, looking down on the scene

Point of view shot- A shot which shows the image of a specific point of view of a character in the film

Over the shoulder shot- It is taken from behind the shoulder, where the shoulder can partly be seen of the person looking at something else.

over the shoulder

  
Angle:                          

High angle- The camera is higher then its subject

Low angle- The camera is lower then its subject 

Canted angle- A camera angle which is deliberately slanted to one side

canted angle

low angle

Movement:

Pan- A shot in which the camera is made to pivot left or right on its horizontal axis while filming

Tilt- A shot in which the camera is made to pivot up or down on its vertical axis while filming

Zoom- Magnifies the centre of the image

Reverse Zoom- De-magnifies the centre of the image

Sound and Mise-en-Scene

Different types of sound

Diegetic- The sound the actors can hear, that is in the room of the sound

Non- Diegetic- Sound that the actors can't hear e.g. background music

Synchronous- Sound that matches the action e.g. sound effects

Asynchronous- Sound that doesn't match the action e.g. voice over

Contrapuntal-Sound that contrasts with the action on the screen


Mise-en-Scene

mise-en-Scene literally means everything that is within the scene

Costume
Lighting
Actors
Make Up 
Props
Setting

Examples of editing techniques

Montage- Quick cuts edited together to condense time

Jump cut- It is a 30degree jump in the action, generally used in a conversation or an action film

Slow motion- Slows dow time

Wipe transition- Wipes across the transition

Freeze frame- Can be used to introduce a non diegetic voice over, introduces character importance.

Fast motion- Speeds up time

Continuity editing 

Eye line match- When we see through  a characters eyes what they are looking at

Shot reverse shot- Shows a conversation and cuts between the people talking

Flashback- Enables us to see things that happened in the past

Match on action- Enables us to see movement

Pace of the scene- Slow pace focus on dialogue, fast pace is used in action scenes

Camera time- the amount of time the camera spends on a character dictates their importance

Dissolves- Where one scene over laps the other and it fades into the next scene

Cutting on action- Cutting from one shot to the next

Kuleshov effect- You insert something in the middle of the scene to create a meaning

Fade in/fade out- Fading to or from black

Sound bridge- Can link two scenes together

How to make a sweded film

What is a sweded film?

-A sweded film is an amateur recreation of a famous film using limited resources and technology e.g. a mobile phone.

-The films are usually very short and use cheap and fake props to mimic the ones used in the movie.

Here is a good example of a charlie and the chocolate factory seeded film, which is very short and uses little resources to recreate the film.

Analysis of My own Sweded film-Titanic

Our sweded film was a very short recreation of 3 famous scenes of Titanic, using very cheap and amateur props to help.

Scene 1- was a recreation of the romantic scene between jack and Rose on the edge of the boat looking over the water. We use two male actors to play the roles as that is all we had at are disposal. We also used the famous titanic music to make the scene relate more to the film.

Scene 2- It was the boat crashing into the iceberg. We used the steps as the iceberg, the blue mats as the water and the mat holder with wheels as the boat. These are all very cheap and not a great representation of the real scene but it was the most accurate recreation we could make with the props we had and the time we had. It could be improved if the people that were visible in the background weren't there and if there was talking in the background as well.

Scene 3- Is the famous last scene that Jack and Rose were together. The ice berg in the last scene is now the material the Rose used to survive and Jack is in the water which is again the blue mat. It could be improved if the actor playing Rose didn't fall in the water as well to make it a more accurate representation of what happened.

Analysis of how sound, camera and miss-en-scen is used in Kill Bill

In the first sequence we see the bride being buried alive. We as viewers believe that she is going to die as we hear the synchronous and diegetic sounds of the nails going into the coffin. This represents her hope being extinguished, as all the nails are finally hammered in and it becomes completely pitch black and this loss of light again is implying the loss of hope of the bride. Both the darkness and the nails being hammered in are emphasising her claustrophobia, which is making uncomfortable viewing as we try to imagine what it is like to be trapped in a enclosed space. The diegetic sound of the soil being poured onto the coffin is also having a similar effect showing her hope is crashing down on her and even if she was to break through the coffin she has to get past the soil making her chances of escaping even slimmer. The emphasis on the synchronous sound of heavy breathing is also representing her panic that it could even be her last breaths. There is non-diegetic music that gets faster, the music is hopeless and not motivational implying that she has given up hope of escaping and that she has almost resigned to the fact that this is where she will die. Furthermore, the sound of the crickets in the background reinforces the isolation of the scene and suggesting that thee is no one out there that could come to her rescue as it is in an extremely remote location. There is a flicking sound of the torch which could represent her faint hopes and if the torch her one bit of faint hope goes out, it would connote that she really has lost all hope of survival. The faint light symbolises that her life is hanging in the balance and at this moment she doesn't think it is in her control she is just waiting for the inevitable which is similar to the inevitability of the light going out, which really adds to the tension of the scene.

 This all changes in the second sequence where we can see that she has found now belief and hope by the change in lighting, sound, camera and editing. Firstly the non-diegetic music is now more upbeat and as her escape comes closer the music speeds up this connotes her growth in belief that she could potentially escape. In contrast to the first sequence her heartbeat goes from heavy and panicked to calm and steady which is represented by the drums. This implies that she is now fully focuses on her escape as she is now cam instead of panicked stricken where she could not begin to think she could survive. Also the lighting completely significantly changed from darkness and a glimmer of light from a torch to the whole coffin being very light, this clearly re-emphasises the change in mood that her life is now in her hands and that her chances of survival aren't zero anymore which was represented by darkness and the new light shows us that she can and will escape the coffin. The fear and loss of hope from the darkness in sequence one is now in clear contrast to the hope and belief represented by the light in sequence two. In the second sequence the camera angle is also used to help us see her hope and her increased chances of escaping. During the first sequence we saw the bride closed in with almost no space to move, clearly implying that it was impossible for the bride to escape and made it very uncomfortable to watch because it makes you feel claustrophobic. But this completely changes in the second sequence where a high angle looking down from head to her feet makes the coffin look dramatically bigger and now the bride has space to move her legs and arms. This removes the feeling of claustrophobia and connotes that she can escape as she can free her legs and move her arms now to help free herself. Her focus has now fully turned to escaping unlike the first sequence where she didn't believe, an editing technique of eye line match along with the upbeat non-diegetic music shows she is completely focused on trying to free her feet. This help the viewers to believe she can escape as it is clear the bride herself believes she can and is dong everything she can to survive. Furthermore, a close up of the bride highlights her determination as she is sweating and gritting her teeth, signs she is doing everything she possibly can. As the brides escape gets closer the non-diegetic music becomes triumphant the coffin gets lighter indicating that the end is near and she will be free soon. Lastly, as soon as the bride has escaped the coffin and popped her head through the soil the music stops, suggesting the mission has been completed, but also she is now in a remote location that she most likely doesn't know here it is and the sound of silence indicates that she has now embarked on a new challenge and the triumphant music might have Come to early.

The 180 degree rule

The 180 degree rule is a guideline used in film making. the main purpose of this rule is to keep the audience orientated as to where everything is in the scene. In a conversation a line between the two actors will be drawn straight across them. All camera must remain on one side of the 180 degrees to ensure the actors are facing each other in the conversation and remain on the same side of the scene. The first character is always frame right of the second character, who is frame left of the first. The camera jumping over the line is called jumping the line.

analysis of the opening sequence of Skyfall- How is gender represented.

Gender is represented both positively and stereotypically in the opening sequence of sky fall through camera, sound, editing and miss-en-scene. At the start of scene 1 a tracking shot is following James bond showing he in charge and the one in power which is stereotypical that the man is the one who leads. The non deistic music which builds the tension adds to make Bond the main hero. Furthermore the diegetic sound of M talking telling bond to leave agent Robson to die represents her as heartless and cold in contrast to bond where a shot reverse shot of bond looking at agent Robson shows his soft side as he didn't want to leave him. Bond is now seen as caring and the audience begin to like bond even more and makes his hero status even more relevant while M is seen as the cold one with no feelings. Money Penny then picks Bond up in a car as soon as he leaves the building implying Bond is the boss and she is the assistant which is stereotypical that the female is as siting the male hero in less violent roles such as driving. Bond is operating the weapons while Money Penny is driving again this is stereotypical that the male does the violent and action part while the female does the driving and helping Bond save the day. A wide shot that shows deep focus makes it clear that M is in charge of everyone in her office. Although she is in charge and clearly has power which is counter typical but like Money penny her role is less violent and all about helping Bond, the office could symbolise a kitchen which is stereotypical that the women stays there while the man goes out and does the work. While driving the dialogue shows that Bond is being patronising to Money Penny about her driving reinforcing typical stereotypes that women can't drive. An eye line match of bond looking at the other car, shows he is thinking about how they could get out of trouble which reinforces Bond's intelligence and how he is the one who really is being heroic. Followed by Bond grabbing the steering wheel off Money Penny again showing how he doesn't trust Money Penny's driving skills which is stereotypical also that he is the main hero and that he will take the lead to make sure he saves the day and is most action films the man is the one who makes the heroic moves and stills the limelight. After Bond gets out the car and starts shooting showing he is the hero and how the male should be the one who does the violent and dangerous parts while Money Penny representing the females waits in the car implying that the women shouldn't be doing the dangerous roles and agin is stereotypical of an action film that the man is the main hero and saviour. A medium shot of M makes her look manly and cross cutting between M in her office and Bond's motorcycle chase, shows M is instructing while Bond is doing what she says which is a counter type of gender but also gender stereotypical as Bond is taking part in the action while M is stuck in the office with a backseat role. A point of view shot of Bond and the non diegetic sound of music in the motorcycle chase again shows bond to be heroic. Throughout the opening sequence of sky fall, many gender stereotype are represented. Bond is the one who is at the centre of the violence and does the heroic acts which is stereotypical that the male is the lead and the intelligent hero that the audience can attach themselves to. In contrast to M who is straight away seen as heartless and cold and her manly looks makes it hard to form an attachment with her. Although she is telling Bond what to do and is the boos which is a gender counter type she is only seen in the office while Bond is out doing the main work which is stereotypical of the women staying home while the man works. Lastly Money Penny is gender stereotypical as she is assisting bond throughout by doing the easy jobs such as driving and even that she can't do well which is a gender stereotype as well.

Drive- poster analysis

- A low angle of the man in the poster signifies that he is the main character and has the power in the film as the low angle makes him look bigger and more powerful.

-The background looks like a main road but it is completely empty and isolated, the remote location makes the movie very mysterious.

- The man is holding a hammer which connotes that he is committing a crime or taking part in violence. Also he is wearing gloves which might mean he doesn't want finger prints on the weapon and could connote he might be committing a more serious crime.

- He also has one hand in his pocket which could mean he is hiding something also adds to the mystery of the film.

-The title of the film suggests it is an action film and is also quite contrasting with the poster itself as there is no cars driving in the poster so it is interesting to fin out why the movie is called 'drive'.

the name 'Ryan Gosling' is in bold right above the title as he is a famous actor and bring a larger audience.

- The main actor is wearing gold, has a nice watch and has his jumper not all the way zipped all this and his confident stance the way he is looking forward with his hand in his pocket shows he is very confident of himself and not worried about being caught.

Children of men- poster analysis

-The main colours of the posters background is blue and grey which are associated with sic-fi films, this gives us a clear indication of the genre.

-There is a red eye which resembles a women's uterus with an unborn baby inside, this links with with the tagline 'no child has been born for 18 years',

- the red writing implies that the film will involve danger and death, the red colour of the eye with the unborn baby inside tell us that the existence of children and babies are in a lot of danger. The tagline ' no child has been born for 18 years' tells us exactly this and how the human race is in danger.

- The glass is smashed this connotes, violence, crime and chaos all things that could feature in this film.

- We know that the film is set in the future as the date '2027'' is in bold at the top. The fact that the actor is gazing straight into the camera shows that the future is unknown which make the movie mysterious.

-The broken glass is almost shaped as a heart which could symbolise the loos of love in the world and maybe the loneliness and isolation of the man in the poster.

- the fact that the man is staring into the camera is the main focus of the poster implies he is the man that has to save mankind and that all hope lies on his shoulders.

- all three tag lines ' The last days of the human race', 'No child has been born for 18 years' and ' He must protect our only hope'. This gives us the overall story line of the movie, the way it is phrased and set out is very intriguing and when someone reads in on the poster it makes it very tough to not go and want to see what happens in the film.

Sherlock Holmes- Poster Analysis

- First of all the lead actors name is in the title which emphasises his importance to the film and his role.

- The old fashioned costume and Victorian setting gives us an indication of the era its set in.

- The prison background shows that the film will involve crime and mystery also the fact that the poster is made to look like a prison and only the 2 men are not in prison also implies that they are detectives and seeking to do good, while the characters in the prison background are the evil ones.

- The tagline 'nothing escapes them' re-emphasises that this film is about crime and how the two men are the ones trying to solve the mystery.

- Only two men at the front have any colour on them. Signifying their importance to the film and the fact there are people behind them with no colour could portray the fact that the men have the authority and power over them.

-Their clothes are very smart and demonstrate their roles as detectives. Also one of the men are wearing big black hat which is quite stereotypical of an old fashioned detective.

-The colours of the poster are dark and blue, sepia- faded which adds to the mystery to show not everything is clear.

- Also the poster tells us the film is set in London and gives a clue '221b' which gives something for viewers to look out for in the film giving excitement and anticipation.

Pulp Fiction- Poster Analysis

-The women in the poster is wearing a seductive dress which is used to attract and entice the male audience. Also demonstrates the typical clothing that women had to wear to attract male attention.

-The list of actors are written clearly on the poset where it is easily visible, this is because some of the actors include, John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson who are big names and attract a wider audience.

- The gun shows that there will be violence and the red lipstick on the women shows that she could be dangerous. the smoking along with the gun shows a hardness of the film.

- Further more the dark lighting on the poster connotes violence and mystery

About myself

Hello my name is Ethan Rand,  I am a student at JFS and I am studying Media studies, psychology, history and economics. The main reason why i decided to study media was because i am very excited to be creative and make a thriller and a music video of my own. Furthermore, I am also extremely interested in the productions of films and what goes into making the perfect finished film. My favourite films are deepwater horizon especially because of the huge explosion scene on the oil ranch, also Rocky 1 and Jerry Maguire.