Short film research

I am analysing a short film that has the drama genre characteristics in order to gather ideas on how to construct my short film via camera angles and learning how to build up tension. The short film I am analysing is 'omnibus' by Sam Karmann. Omnibus is a black comedy about a man on a non-stop train desparately trying to convince first the conductor and then the driver to let him off at an intermediate station so as his life does not unravel. It is a 1992 short film so I am referring to historical context aswell as contemporary in my research. 

The opening scene is very clever as just by showing writing on the floor it is all mise en scene therefore REAL, not just digital title, this in my opinion makes the film look like it has high production value and looks very well made and crafted. The fact it is on the street via the iconic cobbles and the luxurious French style writing sets the theme of the film as real life.

The canted camera angle allows more cobbles to appear in the scene this further shows the setting as the uneven sides of the cobbles are captured enhancing the reality. 

The camera then pans to a man walking on the cobbles to show a train station accompanied by train noises in a low angle position, this one scene sets the setting just by a moving angle and diagetic sound. 

The camera executes the zoom technique excellently as a way of building tension. The train stations clock is zoomed in on, making time of importance to the audience and the character. 

The varied amount of shot sizes continues as a extreme long shot is used which captures the weather which in turn reflects the mood and tone of this film.

The dis-equilibrium comes when the train stops are changed on the same day and no one informed the main character, this portrayed through close up of facial expressions and dialogue.

The transitions are very quick and smooth this in my opinion could be changed to further increase tension as soap operas create tension by having multiple storyline that they can switch to, to keep the audience hooked and the storyline lasting longer for further tension. 

All of the dis-equilibrium happens on the train and is portrayed through close ups of the faces of the characters involved getting reactions and expression filed faces to pull at the heart strings of the audience. 

Tension is built by the fact that the audience know that the main character needs to get off the train but they don't know how, the driver and the main character seem to know whats going on but the audience do not. 

The threat of death is a threat that could happen as the main character will do anything to get off the moving train. 

A countdown is an obvious way to create tension as the audience know when something big is going to happen but they don't know what, this keeps them gripped and addicted to watching. The music at this point is very quick and high pitched, building up the tension.

There is a twist in this short film as the main character gets off the train safely to the audiences relief and shares an emotion thank you to the driver who helped him, the audience connect with this lovely moment as they feel sympathy for the main character after pouring out his heart on the train so the audience know his problems, however, the twist is that someone pulls him back on the train, shocking the audience. 

Sound

The sound in this film is one of the main tension builders alongside of the eerie camera shots. The fast rhythm and dark undertones create huge tension whilst the scene is quite still, putting the audience on edge. 

The music reflects the time frame in which a major event will happen as the beats increase in frequency until the event. 

Tom Zanetti - Darlin' (Lorenzo, Ko Kane & Zanetti Mix) [SIC RECORDS]

Double Trouble & Lorenzo - Is that Marijuana

House music rave song example

London Grammar - If You Wait (Calibre Remix)

Drum and bass rave music example

Genre research for my project - Youth Culture Drama

I have chosen to produce a short film based on relating to people my age. Therefore my characters, props, locations, narrative must be real life in order to relate and be credible with my audience.
I chose to do a film on youth culture as to deviate away from the generic typical horror genre A-Level film.

Other films that are based on youth culture such as Kidulthood are filled with gangs and weapons, this is not what I want my film to consist of as I want it to be as realistic and relatable as possible. The characters are very gang cultured and the film concentrates on relating to gang culture and not youth culture of the majority, for example the main character is black ethnicity and walks around with a baseball bat and a gun, most of the youth culture is not involved in gangs therefore my film is not going to be generic or copy cat, but relatable.

 The characters in my film aren't going to be the stereotypical idea of the older generations view on the term 'youth culture' as this involves anti-social behaviour and crime. My film will involve characters who are street and are apparent in the rave/drug scene, normal young people who get dragged into it and the turmoil it can cause.
 For example, characters in Kidulthood are straight from the south London estates and adopt the chav look and lifestyle whereas my characters will be self sustained as they work during the week then go rave on the weekend and take drugs, they wear expensive clothing like Stone island, Tommy Hilfiger, Burberry, Ralph polo sport, retro/vintage clothing is essential in youth culture of today. My short film will shine a negative light on drugs in youth culture by a hardhitting story line, however in order to hit home, the audience need to be able to relate, therefore I have to make it as real life as possible by including all the props and character styles.

This is my friend Harriett who I took pictures of, she is the perfect person to illustrate youth culture as her style of dress and her attitude to life fits in perfectly with my youth culture portrayal. She goes out almost every weekend doing whatever she wants, she doesn't wear make up, very naturally pretty, wearing in this picture an oversized vintage shirt over a girly crop top with a Ralph polo bag, in the midst of the rave.
This is the type of youth culture I will be involved in when making my film, unlike the stereotypical kidulthood culture which most people would expect, like the generic young chav;

The lifestyle of my audience is based around living for the weekend when they can go to raves and take drugs and socialise, these pictures that I took whilst I was out in a rave typify my audience and character types within the film in the environment, clothing and atmosphere sense;

This is the typical clothing of the characters in cultured youth.

The mise en scene in my short film needs to capture the culture of the rave, I can do this by capturing the lights and atmosphere of the setting using different camera shots to set the scene and be in and amongst the rave.

The locations that will signify the youth culture in my film, I will be filming in places like Digbeth in Birmingham where the underground scene is huge. Events with big name djs such as this event;

The under ground scene has never really been portrayed in films so I don't really have any other film to compare mine to, however, my short film will be a drama, based on youth culture, therefore I can analyse dramas in order to see how the camera effects the audience and the tension it creates.

Dramas.

The boy in the striped pyjamas is a drama film that is based of real life events in history just like my film is a drama based on real life youth culture. The way this film creates drama can help me enormously in creating drama in my film via camera shots and sounds. One particular camera technique which I liked in creating drama in this film was at the climax of the film, the camera shots lasted a second long, transitioning very quickly, being the driving force of the fast heartbeats of the audience and the build of tension is huge. It is very effective and I plan to use the same technique in the climax of my film.

My drama needs to engage the audience by having an interesting narrative that has verisimilitude to the audience, giving space for debates about policing, criminality and social and cultural issues.
My drama needs to add the question of morality into the audiences mind and also play on the innocence and guilt gauge of the audiences mind.

The integration of drama in youth culture will be very exciting as there are many possibilities for a story line/ narrative.

What features of a drama appeal to my audience? 

I asked a selection of 15-24 year olds as to what appeals to them about a drama and three main elements kept cropping up;

-The intense nature of emotions
-Twists that captivate
-Good acting

This research shows that my audience males and females aged 15-24 do watch dramas however not as much as comedy's and thrillers, however, a verisimilitude drama would improve already high viewing figures as it a more relatable drama.

Locations 

The locations I will film my youth culture drama will need to be a real place where youth culture exists, to capture the true reality. The locations I am contemplating are warehouses in digbeth, Birmingham and Bristol. 

Rainbow warehouse, Digbeth, Birmingham 

Motion, Bristol 

Narrative styles of short films and codes and conventions

I have noticed in my research of short films that the narrative of short films are very unique and weird, it could be to play on the escapism reason why people watch short films as the storyline is so far fetched and out of this world. The short films I have researched also leave mystery for the audience together with unexplainable plots such as a huge hole in the back of a man's head with a talking maggot inside. These weird, unrealistic storylines do not have a moral behind them, which in my own opinion is a downfall of short films and possibly the reason why short films aren't very well known.
A life changing event is usually the starting point for the story to begin, so if I decided to make a short film I will have to think of a life altering factor that would impact on my characters life. Also I am going to actually relate to my audience which differs from the weird unreal convention of a short film. Therefore the life altering event will impact on the audience as well as it could happen to them/already happened to them, as my research suggests a short film on youth culture which can teach valuable lessons is something that would get a big audience viewing.

Codes and conventions of short films

Length

Usually between two mins and 20 mins, anything shorter than a feature film.

Niche Audience

Short films have a lot smaller and niche audience than mainstream due to the creative nature, length and simple storyline. Although largely accessible, many are not aware of short film. This is laregly due to popularity decreasing through the 30’s onwards, and the limited access in mainstream forms such as prime time television and cinema. Short film also varies in genre and style and will appeal to a much more specific audience.

Emotion

Short films are used to convey a strong emotion to the viewer whether this is laughter, pleasure, sadness or anger, sometimes making comments on morals or society in the process. Short films can be a lot more powerful in this way as it is easy to make something appear differently to how it is or to get the audience thinking about a particualr topic without having the time to make up their minds while watching, leaving them to contemplate after the film has finished. There will also usually be a stronger connection to the characters as they are shown closely throughout, with the creativity allowing for more humour and pleasure.

Characters

Only usually one main character with a couple of add ons, to gain that audience actor relationship in a small amount of time.

Online distribution

Unlike mainstream film, short films are laregly accessable for free through the internet. There are many sites who distribute short films online from independent to established sites such as the BBC. This is the easiest and most effective way for short film to reach audiences as they are very rarely shown at cinemas or on television. DVDs can be brought with selections of short films on, however, they are most widely accessed over the web. As short film is based much more on creativity and expression rather than mainstream and profit, it is much more important for the film maker to reach a wide audience and distribute films to them for free.

Opposition to mainstream

All of these codes and conventions laregly make short film in opposition to mainstream. They hold a very different format and style to each other and short film will usually try to give audiences a different outlet of film to the mainstream

Codes and conventions of  'Trainspotting'

Trainspotting (1996) is the film that is most similar to my short film idea so by taking apart the conventions of it I can learn from how the film is directed and the effect particular shots have.  

There are close-ups of heroin being heated on a spoon and sucked into a syringe, detail of the tying of tourniquets around arms in order to raise veins for easier injection and, in the strongest scene, an extreme close-up of a needle puncturing the lead character’s skin. We also see characters taking ecstasy and smoking marijuana.

Trainspotting was submitted for cinema release on November 20 1995 and examiner reports from that date describe it as a ‘darkly comic and at times savage account of a group of heroin addicts’, stating that ‘the absence of a moralising tone allows for some of the highs as well as the lows to be given space’. Therefore an 18 age rating was given to this film.

Narrative theories

This is a presentation I have made using emaze. It just briefly out lines the narrative theories of Todorov, Levi-strauss and Vladimir Propp;

http://app.emaze.com/@AOCOQCTR/narrative-theories 

 

 

 

Further expansion of these theories.

Todorov (example)

The Shawshank redemption is typical in demonstrating this theory as at the start Andy Dufresne is a hot shot banker with a beautiful wife, he really did have the world in his hands. 

The disruption of this equilibrium comes as Andy is wrongly imprisoned for killing his wife and her lover for two life sentences.

The recognition of this disruption came when Andy was in prison, he was raped until he got a group of friends.

A young offender came into the same prison and he had some information about the murder of Andys wife and her real killer, but the warden of the prison was corrupt and wanted Andy to stay in the prison as he was valuable. So he shot the young offender.

The new equilibrium came when Andy escaped from prison after digging a tunnel for many years and took all the wardens money with him, fleeing the live on an island with his best mate.

 

 

 

 Levi-strauss (example)

Green Street hooligans (2005), Pete was killed by a vengeful Tommy hatcher as Pete's brothers gang killed Tommie's son - good vs evil.

 

Taken (2008) - A retired CIA agent travels across Europe and relies on his old skills to save his estranged daughter, who has been kidnapped while on a trip to Paris. Good vs evil.

 

 Vladimir Propp (example)

Shrek (2001) - Hero is shrek, villain is Lord Farquad, donor is Lord Farquad, helper is Donkey, princess Fiona is the reward, Lord Farquad takes the plaudits. 

An ogre, in order to regain his swamp, travels along with an annoying donkey in order to bring a princess to a scheming lord, wishing himself King.