1. Using what you are learning about camera shots, choose 3 specific camera shots that really helped tell the story. You may examine single frames or shot that feature camera movement, but you should be examining 3 different shots from different moments throughout the film, not shots from the same scene. As you are analyzing these shots, treat them like paintings (that may or may not feature motion) and examine all elements of the shot including type of shot, the shot’s composition (paying special attention to how actors and/or objects are placed in frames), the shot’s angle, the shot’s color palette, and how the shot is lit.
For EACH of your three examples:
Identify the shot size, composition, and angle
Explain why you believe the shot is visually successful.
Discuss what you believe the shot tells us about the characters, their relationships, and/or the story.
(For example: In the scene where Norma mistakes Joe for the man who would procure a coffin for her dead friend, Joe recognizes her from her days as a silent star. He remarks that she used to be big. She replies, “I am big. It’s the pictures that got small.” It’s a single and a close up. As Norma’s body shifts, the camera captures her from an angle just below eye level. This gives the viewer the illusion that they are looking up at her ever so slightly. She takes up most of the frame so you as she say that she is big, she is literally big in the frame. A wider shot wouldn’t have had nearly the same impact.)
2. Using what you’ve learned about mise en scene, choose 3 different examples of mise en scene from the film that you believe are successful. Think about locations, set dressing, props, lighting choices, sound effects, score, or costumes. Be extremely specific and detailed in your writing. Choose a specific prop or a particular costume, rather than speaking generally about all the costumes or props. For your examples, you do not need to choose three examples from the same “category” of mise en scene. You may choose one sound effect, one set, and one specific moment of lighting (or any other combination), but please be sure you have three different examples.
REMEMBER: DO NOT write about acting. Acting is NOT Mise en Scene.
(For example: Norma’s home is populated with an unhealthy and possibly obsessive number of pictures of her former self. It’s also in a state of decay from the dust and cobwebs to the unkept yard. When she looks in a mirror, she doesn’t see herself or her reflection. She sees the glamor photos. The photos suggest not only her unwillingness to accept her aging (at a time in Hollywood when aging was career ending) but also her unwillingness to accept that she has been forgotten as an actress, as a star. It seems fitting that any guest in her home could not feasibly forget who she WAS. She’s made sure of that. The photos could be seen as a time capsule of her career as a silent film actress when she was “big,” but even the pictures cannot fully capture her former glory. In a way, they are a shrine…to herself…to her former self.)
3. What personal significance does this film have for you? (Think outside the box. Look at the relationships between the characters. Look at the themes that film is exploring.)
4. What was the story of the film? Was there anything that surprised you? Was the story presented in a clever or interesting way? Why or why not?
5. This film is revered by critics. Do you agree or disagree? Why? What about it has stood the test of time (if anything)? How is it still relevant? Why? Do you believe it has inspired or influenced any other films that you’ve seen?
DO NOT use the examples I’ve used here in your journal! Please remember that there is a big difference between a scene and a shot. A scene is an entire series of shots. So, when I ask you about a specific shot, you need to make sure you notice when the camera cuts to a different shot, and are only using ONE shot, not talking about the whole scene. Make sure that you’re paying careful attention to when the camera is cutting, when shots are changing, and when scenes are changing.
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