4 Hour Film Challenge

4 Hour Film Challenge - Behind the Door (version 2)

Brief: To create a horror film short 

Planning 

We decided to work on the feedback we had from our previous video "Behind the Door" as we had already attempted a horror short and therefore thought it would be more beneficial to reflect and improve upon the first video rather than come up with a new concept. Our aim this time is to make sure that we do not break the 180 degree rule and improved on the lighting and overall narrative of the film. 

Evaluation 

One of the comments we had as feedback about the first "Behind The Door" film was that there wasn't enough development of the scene where the character walks in to the room and therefore this affected the match on action and building of tension for the "jump scare" at the end of the clip. To improve this we decided to reshoot the entire first scene where the character goes in to the first room to ensure we had good match on action and didn't break the 180 degree rule and to improve the lighting set up of the shot inside of the room so it doesn't appear too disorientating for the audience to follow. I think we were able to do this effectively as the film still follows good match on action so the overall continuity of the film was greatly improved from last week. As well as this we were able to include more shot types than in the first film for instance we added a close up, long shots (of the word 'HELP' appearing in the wardrobe/cupboard and  reaction shots of the character to the ghoul character that we also included in our reinvention of the first film. 

I think we were successful in developing the narrative with the introduction of the ghoul character standing at the end of the corridor. This gives the audience a glimpse of what the character is about to experience and along with the scary sound effects it is successful in building tension and achieves a jump scare ending which follows the conventions of horror which was the brief that we were given. 

A disadvantage of re-filming the first film is that the character is wearing different clothes in the clips we added therefore this affects the continuity element of the film. To prevent this from happening again we would make sure we have a discussion before filming to ensure that errors like that are cleared up. 

Another disadvantage is that we could have developed the narrative even more by showing a reaction shot of what the character is seeing when the ghoul opens the door as this could have been a good opportunity for an even bigger jump scare. Or again we could play around with different lighting to see what affect it would have on the overall appearance of the film because we only used low key lighting. 

Health and Safety

Health and Safety

There are many health and safety concerns to consider when using camera equipment, this makes planning a fundamental process for any shoot. Planning aims to eliminate the risk of causing harm to others because it takes it to account what the risks are and what needs to be done to prevent them from happening. Some of the risks that may be identified include trip hazards from working in low lit environments or electric shock from water damaged equipment e.g wires being exposed.   The media industry is often times an incredibly fast paced environment therefore hazards will always present themselves to all individuals involved in the shooting process whether this be a camera crew or just simply the camera person and their subject. Carrying out a risk assessment is good practice and should involve something which resembles the following simple three step process:  1. identify hazards 2. evaluate the risks 3. identify measures to control to the risk  The benefits of doing this are not only to prevent harm to others but it is also a good use of time as it allows more time for practical work without any other distractions.  The pictures below are taken from a shoot I did for my French New Wave film. Two of my friends volunteered to be the subjects of my shoot and as this was being led entirely by myself it meant that I was responsible for directing them throughout every shot while keeping their safety in mind throughout the process. The photo in the left illustrates a low-lit environment which we were shooting in which was achieved by using entirely natural lighting. During this shot it was important that I identified any hazards such as uneven path or obstacles in the way of the path before starting to film. The shot involves both subjects walking towards the camera looking around at eye level meaning that they would not necessarily notice things that obstruct their path so before I could shoot this, I had to check the pathway to be aware of any obstacles and also make my subjects aware so they could avoid having any accidents involving this.

https://movingimageeducation.org/create-films/production/the-production-department/health-and-safety

Contextual - New Wave Film

New Wave Film

 

New Wave Film Brief 

In my New Wave film I want to illustrate my understanding of the French New Wave conducted from the research I undertook for my contextual studies unit. I have decided that since I focused on the Godard aesthetic for the French New Wave, that I would try and reproduce some of the conventions he demonstrates through his films. In particular I have taken a lot of inspiration from the film A Bout de Souffle (1960) in terms of style and sound whilst also incorporating features from other Godard films in an attempt to make it representative of the French New Wave from Godard's perspective. 

The main thing that I want to keep consistent throughout is the sense of realism as this is a key convention that Godard maintains throughout his New Wave films. To do this I will be shooting with just a handheld camera without the use of tripod to give it a documentary style feel which will maintain the verisimilitude that I am trying to achieve. I will also being using ambient lighting to keep the filming more simple and to give it the "off the cuff" appearance but I would like to play around with colour when it comes to editing such as changing some clips to black and white to replicate the stark contrasts in Godard films which appear almost random in selection. 

I think I can be quite creative with the direction I have chosen because I'm not restricted with the sorts of things I film because of the versatility of the mise-en-scene within Godard films. For instance things such as filming in different locations and with different subjects would appear amateurish to most because it affects the continuity of a film but because this was applauded in the French New Wave it means that I can be more flexible with where and what I choose to shoot. 

I would also like to incorporate diegetic and non-diegetic sound to my film as this another favoured feature of New Wave cinema. 

Planning

I will be using a DSLR camera to shoot my New Wave film to maintain a sense of verisimilitude which can be achieved through the use of a camera alone as it gives the idea of the camera being to a director what a pen is to an author - Auteur theory. 

I have decided that I don't want their to be necessarily be a narrative for my film as I think it will be interesting to attempt storytelling through the use of images alone which relates to the Godard aesthetic as his main focus was on the mode of storytelling rather than complexity of the plot. Despite this, I may include quotations to overlay certain clips if I find them to be effective as Godard often includes themes of existentialism and he was heavily influenced by poetry and literature therefore this would be a successful way of incorporating this aspect in to my film. 

Quote ideas:

Existentialism quotes - 
"Seeking what is true is not seeking what is desirable."   
"I rebel; therefore I exist." by Albert Camus - ties in well to Godard rebelling against mainstream cinema 

Godard quotes - 
“He who jumps into the void owes no explanation to those who stand and watch.” 
"Every edit is a lie." 
"Cinema is the most beautiful fraud in the world." 
"Art attracts us only by what it reveals of our most secret self." 

Before shooting I have researched the weather forecast for Coventry which is where I will be shooting for my New Wave film. As it was very likely that it was going to rain during my visit to Coventry I made sure that I was dressed appropriately for being outside in the rain as well as thinking about how I can ensure that the camera stays dry and doesn't get any water damage. I will carry the camera bag around with me and when I'm not using the camera I will replace the lens cap and keep it in the bag so it stays dry. When I am shooting I will be cautious of any rain getting on the lens as it can cause permanent water damage and staining on the lens therefore I will keep it covered as much as possible and be wary of surroundings so if the rain suddenly gets really heavy it will become unsuitable to shoot until it gets lighter and more manageable. This means that I may keep having to take breaks to allow the rain to get lighter throughout the day therefore I need to make sure I am making good use of the time that I am shooting to ensure I get all the footage that I need for my New Wave film.  

Evaluation of New Wave film 

A strength of my new wave film is that I think I definitely stuck to the conventions of the French New Wave quite well in terms of the appearance of the film. For example I began my film with a long shot which places the camera right in the midst of the "action" rather than starting with an establishing shot such as birds eye view which establishes the setting of the film. This is similar to A Bout de Souffle by Jean-Luc Godard as his film begins with an extreme close up which was seen as breaking the conventions of cinema as films usually began with an opening sequence. I think this long shot also establishes the camera as being the observer which is similar to the documentary style of Godard and captures "off the cuff" moments that demonstrate the verisimilitude of the French New Wave. I think this shot also establishes a sense of distance between the viewer and and what they are seeing as it's almost like they are observing from somewhere relatively nearby but not in the centre of the shot. 

Another way that I stuck to the conventions of the French New Wave is with the use of sound and colour. For instance the film begins with the cheerful French song "La Madrague" by Brigitte Bardot and the pace maintains a steady pace until the song changes when the shot of the train is reversed and the following clip is sped up to match the increasing pace/tone of the new song "Theme d'amour" by Martial Solal which is used the A Bout de Souffle. By using a song from Breathless it reinforces the idea of the film being inspired by Godard and the viewer is more likely to be aware of what they are viewing in relation to what they know about Godard and his style of filmmaking within the New Wave.

Throughout the film the images change from colour to black and white almost at random much like in a Godard film to engage the viewer in responding to what they are seeing. I also included Godard quotes to flash on to the screen in some clips to add a poetic element to the film because of Godard's influence of poetry and literature. I wanted the quotes to appear as quickly as they vanish because it's almost like if you blinked your eye you would miss it therefore informing the viewer to be active in responding to the film and paying attention to every single detail to understand their purpose. 

I also think I tried to use a range of shot types such as canted angle, tracking,  pan, close up, medium, long etc. I also included an example of breaking the fourth wall when one of the characters turns to the camera and gestures for them to come closer and then points at something they are looking at, this breaks the conventions of mainstream cinema as there are clear boundaries between the roles of actor and director and there isn't always much room for experimentation with this. 

The disadvantages of my New Wave film are that some of the shots don't always fit the pace of the song which can give it a jagged appearance. For instance the long shot of the two characters walking which has been reversed doesn't appear like it has worked properly or perhaps I could have changed the speed/duration of the shot so that it fits the pace of the song at the time it appears. Also the two shot towards the end of the film make the film appear jagged because of the jump cuts and I don't think it necessarily fits well again with the audio however this could be argued as another demonstration of the French New Wave as jump cuts were very commonly used and especially by Godard. Another disadvantage is that some shots appear quite shaky due to the fact that I shot everything handheld. Although I tried to fix this by using the "warp stabilizer" tool, it didn't always correct it, therefore some shots don't appear as smooth in transition whereas others ones do which affects the overall appearance of the film. 

Contextual Research - Godard: French New Wave

Auteur Study: Jean Luc Godard

Jean-Luc Godard was born in Paris on December 3, 1930, the second of four children in a bourgeois Franco-Swiss family. His father was a doctor who owned a private clinic, and his mother came from a preeminent family of Swiss bankers. During World War II Godard became a naturalized citizen of Switzerland and attended school in Nyons (Switzerland). His parents divorced in 1948, at which time he returned to Paris to attend the Lycée Rohmer. In 1949 he studied at the Sorbonne to prepare for a degree in ethnology. However, it was during this time that he began attending with François Truffaut, Jacques Rivette, and Éric Rohmer.

In 1950 Godard, with Rivette and Rohmer, founded "Gazette du cinéma", which published five issues between May and November. He wrote a number of articles for the journal, often using the pseudonym "Hans Lucas". After Godard worked on and financed two films by Rivette and Rohmer, Godard's family cut off their financial support in 1951, and he resorted to a Bohemian lifestyle that included stealing food and money when necessary. In January 1952 he began writing film criticism for "Les cahiers du cinéma". Later that year he traveled to North and South America with his father and attempted to make his first film (of which only a tracking shot from a car was ever accomplished).

In 1953 he returned to Paris briefly before securing a job as a construction worker on a dam project in Switzerland. With the money from the job, he made a short film in 1954 about the building of the dam called Operation Concrete (1958) ("Operation Concrete"). Later that year his mother was killed in a motor scooter accident in Switzerland. In 1956 Godard began writing again for "Les cahiers du cinéma" as well as for the journal "Arts". In 1957 Godard worked as the press attache for "Artistes Associés", and made his first French film, All the Boys Are Called Patrick (1959) (aka "Charlotte et Véronique").

In 1958 he shot Charlotte and Her Boyfriend (1960) ("Charlotte and Her Boyfriend"), his homage to Jean Cocteau. Later that year he took unused footage of a flood in Paris shot by Truffaut and edited it into a film called A Story of Water (1961) ("A Story of Water"), which was an homage to Mack Sennett. In 1959 he worked with Truffaut on the weekly publication "Temps de Paris". Godard wrote a gossip column for the journal, but also spent much time writing scenarios for films and a body of critical writings which placed him firmly in the forefront of the "nouvelle vague" aesthetic, precursing the French New Wave.

It was also in that year Godard began work on Breathless (1960) ("Breathless"). In 1960 he married Anna Karina in Switzerland. In April and May he shot Le Petit Soldat (1963) in Geneva and was preparing the film for a fall release in Paris. However, French censors banned it due to its references to the Algerian war, and it was not shown until 1963. In March 1960 Breathless (1960) premiered in Paris. It was hugely successful both with the film critics and at the box office, and became a landmark film in the French New Wave with its references to American cinema, its jagged editing and overall romantic/cinephilia approach to filmmaking. The film propelled the popularity of male lead Jean-Paul Belmondo with European audiences.

In 1961 Godard shot Une Femme est une Femme (1961), his first film using color widescreen stock. Later that year he participated in the collective effort to remake the film The Seven Deadly Sins (1962), which was heralded as an important project in artistic collaboration. In 1962 Godard shot Vivre Sa Vie (1962) in Paris, his first commercial success since "À bout de souffle". Later that year he shot a segment entitled "Le Nouveau Monde" for the collective film Ro.Go.Pa.G. (1963), another important work in the history of collaborative multiple-authored art.

In 1963 Godard completed a film in homage to Jean Vigo entitled The Soldiers (1963), which was a resounding failure with the public and stirred furious controversy with film critics. Also that year he worked on a couple of collective films: The World's Most Beautiful Swindlers (1964) (from which Godard's sequence was later cut) and Six in Paris (1965). In 1964 Godard and his wife Anna Karina formed their own production company, Anouchka Films. They shot a film called Une Femme Mariée (1964), which censors forced them to re-edit due to a topless sunbathing scene shot by Jacques Rozier. The censors also made Godard change the title to "Une femme marié" so as to not give the impression that this "scandalous" woman was the typical French wife. Later in the year, two French television programs were produced in devotion to Godard's work.

In the spring of 1965 Godard shot Alphaville (1965) in Paris; in the summer he shot Pierrot le Fou (1965) in Paris and the south of France. Shortly thereafter he and Anna Karina separated. Following their divorce, Godard shot Made in U.S.A (1966), "Deux ou trois choses que je sais d'elle (1966)", "L'amour en l'an 2000" (1966) (a sequel to "Alphaville" shot as a sketch for the collective film "L'amour travers les ages" (1966)).

In 1967 Godard shot La Chinoise (1967) in Paris with Anne Wiazemsky, who was the granddaughter of French novelist François Mauriac. During the making of the film Godard and Wiazemsky were married in Paris. Later in the year he was prevented from traveling to North Vietnam for the shooting of a sequence for the collective film Far from Vietnam(1967). He instead shot the sequence in Paris, entitled "Camera-Oeil". Also during 1967 Godard participated (as the only Frenchman) on an Italian collective film called Love and Anger (1969).

In 1968 Godard was commissioned by French television to make Le Gai Savoir (1969). However, television producers were so outraged by the product Godard produced that they refused to show it. In May of that year Henri Langlois was fired by the head of the French Jean-Pierre Gorin to form the Dziga-Vertov group, infuriating Godard. He became increasingly concerned with socialist solutions to an idealist cinema, especially in providing the proletariat with the means of production and distribution. Along with other militantly political filmmakers in the Dziga-Vertov group, Godard published a series of 'Ciné-Tracts' outlining these viewpoints. In the summer of 1968 Godard traveled to New York City and Berkeley, California, to shoot the film "One American Movie", which was never completed. In September he made a trip to Canada to start another film called "Communication(s)", which also went unfinished, and then made a visit to Cuba before returning to France.

In 1969 Godard traveled to England, where he made the film British Sounds (1970) for BBC Weekend Television, but the network later refused to show it. In the late spring he traveled with the Dziga-Vertov group to Prague to secretly shoot the film "Pravda". Later that year he shot Struggle in Italy (1971) ("Struggle for Italy") for Italian television. It was never shown, either.

In 1970 Godard traveled to Lebanon to shoot a film for the Palestinian Liberation Organization entitled "Jusque à la victoire" (1970) ("Until Victory"). Later that year he traveled to dozens of American universities trying to raise money for the film. In spite of his efforts, it was never released.

(website reference: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000419/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm)

Research on Film 2

Alphaville – Jean Luc Godard notes 

Characters often look directly in to the camera when talking to each other or reciting monologues - breaking the fourth wall

Anna Karina’s character asks Lemmy Caution “what is that?’ when the subject of love is brought in to coversation  

Mise en scene – emphasis on the city of Alphaville  

“yes but all we have in life is the present. No one has lived in the past and no one will live in the future” - Anna Karina’s character Natasha von Braun is a “seductress” and also happens to be the daughter of the scientist responsible for Alphaville – relates to the sci-fi theme of the of the film  

The music throughout the film seems very out of place and disturbing and adds to the darkness and mystery of Alphaville 

Robotic beeping noise used throughout  

No all action/violence is shown, sometime it is just implied, Lemmy pulls a knife on a man and pulls him in to a room, the guy doesn’t come back out of the room when Lemmy exits therefore it is implied that Lemmy killed him  

Lemmy's character is always seen wearing a hat and trench coat which is a common convention of the mystery/action genre – appears like the uniform of a detective, always has a very distinct seriousness to his face - reinforces his position and motive in the film to remain a secret agent and eliminate the creator of Alphaville and the super computer Alpha 60, every shot of him is sure to be accompanied by suspenseful music 

Alpha 60 is a super computer that is “150 light years ahead” - immediately after this is said the equation “e - mc2” is flashed on to the screen, at this point this flashes in to the shot three times very quickly and briefly – enough to notice but also could easily be missed in the blink of an eye but this is repeated throughout the film - relates to sci-fi genre

Alphaville is a technological society  

Use of creative shadows – characters push a light bulb in a scene which creates the appearance of interesting shadows and creates a distinct contrast between them and the mise en scene of the shot  

Women are used as sexual objects – they dote on the men e.g taking off their jackets and tending to their every needs and appear happy to do so - is this how Godard views the future of France ?  

The equation e = mc2 is repeated throughout the film – when the man and a “seductress” are in the room with Lemmy the equation appears once again, this time on a poster just before Lemmy's friend "mysteriously" dies in the company of a seductress

“I’m fine thanks don’t mention it” is a phrase repeated by female characters throughout the film ? - appears almost robotic  

The deep voice of the narrator appears omniscient – this is revealed to be the computer  Alpha 60 “I, Alpha 60”  

Use of pictures – drawings  

Phrases are often repeated 5/6 times after they are said such as “pretty sphinx”  

“nord” (translates to north) appears as a neon sign and is flashed in scene numerous times

Lemmy observes a “ceremony” where people are being shot for doing something which is deemed unacceptable under Alphaville’s rules; a man is condemned to death because he wept when his wife died – comments on fragile masculinity ? 

When Lemmy is being attacked by the security guards for trying to speak to the professor we see Lemmy being pushed from side to side – gives the appearance of multiple people hitting him around – again, here the violence is implied but not directly shown 

Someone asks Anna Karina's character “are you crying?” to which she replies “no because that is forbidden” - reinforces the idea that emotions are forbidden under Alpha 60 rule 

Alpha 60 asks “Do you know what turns darkness in to light?”  Lemmy replies “poetry” - this is a comment directly from Godard about his passion for poetry – follows the auetur theory  

Alphaville - dystopian technological dictatorship, people live purely by logic, devoid of emotion on the command of the computer Alpha 60

George Orwell's 1984 novel contains a dystopian society very similar to that of Alphaville, means to limit the freedom of speech of all citizens 

Entire film was shot in Paris using natural darkness without a lighting studio - visually very dark 

political oppression from totalitarian societies 

Lemmy's character is seen constantly using his camera to take photos of things which is seen as unusual in Alphaville - a place where people do not live in the past or future and only know words that are accepted under the rule of Alpha 60

The violence in Alphaville does not reflect what the audience see or hear - while someone is being killed we see women in swimsuits and while Agent Caution is fighting in his hotel room we hear happy classical music 

Anna Karina's character Natasha represents the light in the dark depths of Alphaville - one of the elements that oppose the theme of the darkness and oppression 

The conversations that take place between Natasha von Braun and Agent Caution demonstrate breaking the fourth wall which makes it appear unsettling and unusual and also makes us more intrigued by her character as this is a contrast to the rest of film 

Use of negative footage illustrates how Lemmy has flipped Alphaville and what appeared dark now appears light which visually is very easy to acknowledge from the sharp white picture created from the negative footage - white signifies the freedom from the oppression of Alpha 60

Godard's answer to the bleak and corrupt world of Alphaville is poetry, the power of personal expression and creativity which was not present in the futuristic city in Paris 

Alphaville's use of location shooting and buildings situates us not in an unrealistic future but one that is a very realistic view of what the present could look like 

Alphaville has heavy references to pop culture and eroticism that would be very familiar to the viewer -  Godard is expressing a bitterness towards the future of France as well as for mankind which stems from the dehumanisation of individuals which was a very relevant concern for France at the time as it was facing an identity crisis in the 60's and 70's, individuals were very concerned about their future as well as many questions being raised about the rise of global technology in computing 

Godard shows optimism for the future as she is shown finally speaking freely from the rule of Alpa 60 while driving away from Alphaville and hopefully moving on to a better life 

Questions remain throughout - what is love? is it right to question our own existence? 

(video below used as reference)