Continuity Task 1 (BLK)

In my video Characters A and B are in a classroom whilst character C enters the classroom from the hallway. Once character C is in the classroom, he loses his balance and falls flat on his face. After character C composes himself, character A is seen in a shocked state.

We attempted to create a 'narrative flow' by first having a two shot of characters A and B in a classroom as an establishing shot. We then attempted to create a cross cutting shot in shot two when character C is outside of the classroom in the hall way leading up to it. This is so that the audience could tell that the two pieces of action were happening simultaneously and will eventually combine. In shot 3 we then crossed back to inside the classroom with both character A and the classroom door visible. This use of a master shot was to show the geographic space and show the characters interacting in the same place. We attempted to have a match on action shot in shot 3 to increase continuity by having footage of character c walking towards the classroom door so that the cut from the previous shot was not too harsh. In shot 4, when character C eventually falls over, we decided to pan across this room to follow this action as we felt it was more fluid. At the end of shot 4 character C has fallen over and has his books scattered around him. Although we changed the angle and framing of the next shot, we attempted to keep good continuity by trying to keep character C as still as possible so that he appeared in the same position in the next shot. In the final shot we had a reaction shot of character A as we felt that it made the scene more naturalistic as people would expect a reaction if there were other people in the room.

We were unable to achieve full continuity as it is very difficult to achieve this without editing any of the footage taken. Although we attempted to be as precise as possible, delays in starting or stopping the filming of shots resulted in a video that was not perfectly continuous. Despite this, I do think that our video had a good narrative flow as it flowed well enough for the audience to be able to understand the clip. In hindsight, I would change the length that some shots were shot at in order to improve the narrative flow and tell the story more effectively. For example, I would cut down the first shot by a large amount (roughly 6 seconds) as it is only an establishing shot and is able to meet its purpose of setting the scene in very little time. In shot 2 I would start character C off frame so that when he begins walking there is no long pause. This would help the scene seem more naturalistic. In the 3rd shot I would cut some of the footage at the beginning so that character C starts the scene already close to the classroom door in order to achieve a much more precise match on action shot. Character A would also react to character c entering the room by looking up at him in order to increase the naturalistic aspects of the scene. I would also reconsider the framing of shot 4 as although the Low Angle shot provides diversity in shot types; it makes a very apparent jump in the positioning of the camera which hinders the narrative flow. In shot 4 I would also include a trip hazard for character C to fall over so that his accident looked more realistic. Although we tried to prevent this, there is an apparent jump cut between shots 4 and 5 as character c appears to move positions slightly after he falls. If I could do this task again I would ensure that the actor stayed perfectly still in order to prevent this jump cut. Another change that I would make would be to swap around shots 5 and 6 in order to prevent the delay in reaction from character A. This would make for a more believable scenario and would increase the narrative flow of the video. 

My Film Still Analysis (BLK)

The iconography of my chosen shot could be described as signifying my chosen genre of Horror/Thriller as the vague nature of the shot forces the audience to question where the hand is coming from and why it is there. This air of mystery helps to suggest my genre as the audience experience the 'fear of the unknown'.  The fact that only the hand of the being can be seen in this shot also encourages this as it makes it less personal as so little details are known about whoever's hand it is. Lacking information is typical within genres such as thrillers as it helps to increase the surprise felt by the audience later on in the story. The curled fingers also help to suggest my genre as they distort the shape of the hand, making it appear abnormal and therefore scarier. The format of my shot also creates a disturbing feel as the angled positioning is unsettling as the lines  within the background are not parallel, foreshadowing the unnatural and un-composed  nature of the film.

 Within our shot we only included a hand to arouse suspicion and make the audience question the motive of the hand. To achieve this effect we ensured that the iconography of the shot had high key lighting so that a shadow would form around it. This would further connote our genre as it intensifies the sense of darkness within the shot. 

Through this shot I was attempting to communicate a sense of mystery and fear because of the unknown origin of the hand. I wanted the audience to question things such as ‘who’s hand is it?’, ‘where has it come from?’and ‘where is it going?’. These questions will then wok to emphasise the thrill of the film as the details are revealed later on in the movie.

 I think that the lighting of my shot was successful as we were able to achieve a very effective shadow of the hand. I also think that the angle at which our shot was framed was successful as we were able to make an irregular composition of the shot through the use of different perspectives. The LA shot also helps to create the illusion that something is coming toward you. 

In hindsight, we would insure that we used a model that did not have nail varnish on as the bright colours are not fitting with our very dark genre. These bright colours could alter the dominant reading of the shot by our audience as the bright colours could possibly connote happiness or femininity rather than fear.