I chose to analysis this film because of many reasons. Firstly I really enjoyed watching this short film as it brought a humorous side to short film which differs from some of the short film I’ve watched in the pass which include dark elements and are more serious. Another reason why I chose this short film is because it’s such a simple idea and so well executed. Despite the humorous side to the film, it does portray a deeper message which is not to be greedy and karma can hit you anytime.
The films duration is “02’49” so it’s a very short film but has a strong but basic idea which is shown well through camera angles and shot. There are many close ups of the male when he discovers the black hole which shows his facial expression which is curious expression which then turns into a cunning facial expression which tells the audience that he understands the power he now possessed. Another shot of the man when he gets the snicker bar, the way he bites into it gives the impression to the audience that the guy dopey and by the end of the film it shows karma which leaves a message that power given to the wrong person can be devastating and given great power comes great responsibility. Although the man seems like a snobby I personally find him likable because although it shows he was greedy, many people watching the film can almost imagine themselves in that same position and asks themselves whether they would do the same thing. The film is at a steady pace which helps keep the audience entertained throughout the video and I personally feel the duration and pace of the short film is one of the main reasons why the short film is a huge success. The lighting is low key and seems dull throughout and sets the atmosphere that he is staying light after work and very board and wants a quick escape which is what exactly happens.
Shooting process must have been short but the editing and the effects of the black must have been the most consuming part. It’s in one location and a simple idea which inspires me to make short film that can be easily as a effective J . Overall the film is a enjoyable watch and I defiantly recommend a watch!
The short film starts off with the title of the film; ‘About a girl’. From the title we can gather some idea of the film might be based around. The font is in a mobile phone text style. So the audience immediately makes a link between a teenage girl and a mobile phone. So the audience gets the impression that the girl included in the film is maybe in her teens. The first shot is a ciliate of a girl figure practicing dance moves singing to Brittney Spears. So immediately this shot relates to the title of the film because the title is ‘About a girl’ and the girl still remains a mystery so this gets the audience intrigued to find out her identity. The fact she is practicing dance move brings a innocent element to the girl and gathers she wants to be a pop star.
When the main character appears and her identity is revealed the audiences get a first impression from her which is parallel to what the audience thinks of her in the first shot. The girl isn’t sophisticated we gather this impression through the way she speaks and dressed. She thinks being a singer is the highest position because she says ‘If Jesus was alive he would be a singer’. From the location and background we can tell she’s from a poor background and hasn’t been raised well because she swears a lot. In flashbacks we see that she doesn’t have a good relationship with her mother and family in general and her parents are divorced.
The film is shot in a documentary style which adds a lot of realism to the film and creates a realistic atmosphere throughout the film. The camera seems to be hand held which emphasizes the documentary style but also adds a British gritty look to it.
In the first opening 2 minutes of the film we as an audience gather a lot of background information about her and also get a sense of what type of character she is. She reveals her age and makes it out she’s old enough to be independent this shows that she is naive and is at a young teenage stage where she wants to be all grown up. She also makes a lot of witty remarks about her family and their ambitions like their ambitions are so out of reach and in fact hers dreams of being a pop star is realistic. So when her family says things to her she never believes it and wants to question everything this implies that maybe she was lied to a lot growing up. Often she plays on the audience perception of the situation because she says that her dad buys her drink and packet of crisps after his football match so the audience think that her and her dad bond afterwards but in fact dad buys her a drink and crisps and seats her outside the pub whilst his inside spending time with his friends.
The girl constantly practise her dance moves and singing. The singing and dancing is her way to escape from reality. She is very ambitious about her career and what she wants to be. Every time the camera cuts, she changes subject or topic which makes her seem very chatty. She thinks the highlife in things we see as ordinary or average things. For example she says when she makes it big she going to be drinking the best drinks in the world WKD. So it shows that she is less unfortunate. The audience also realise how bad the relationship is between the mother and daughter when she says she would leave her mother behind if she ever got famous. It seems throughout the film she refers to her dad a lot more positively over her mother despite this the dad doesn’t seem to show much interest in her. Throughout the film it is set in a dark grey location that creates a dull atmosphere. Throughout the short film there isn’t any music which makes add a realistic element to the film. The only soundtrack is her singing ‘Britney Spears – Stronger’ which is a significant song and relates a lot to the narrative.
The shock ending where she throws the dead baby into the river is a really horrific scene and the way she is so calm is very disturbing. Throughout the film you feel for her and her character grows on you and you start to like her and then all these feeling about the character suddenly change which puts the audience in an awkward position. She actually makes a joke when she throws the baby which is dark humour that makes the ending even darker. The lighting changes from dark to light when she throws away the baby that may represent her getting rid of a problem or the baby was a burden and stop the girl pursuing her dream of become a pop star. The baby was thrown away in a plastic bag which represents the baby was disposable a like a plastic bag.
Rubber Johnny was a very interesting short film. I personally felt it had a scary element to it but was still humorous at the same time. Throughout the film I was confused on what the narrative was because there is no dialogue and it was so fast pace I couldn’t keep up with it. The night vision effect the director Chris Cunningham uses is effective and makes the footage seem real. A point was raised in class that it’s more like a music video than a short film. I can see where there coming from because I thought that at first because the music is so heavily involved and there are music video where there is a narrative so I see there point. But I would still label it as a short film because there is a constant interruption with the storyline with the music. Rubber Johnny is a prime example on how experimental a short film can be. It also shows you can have one location and still make a successful short film. Overall I find ‘Rubber Johnny’ a interesting short film and was film effective in many different ways. I also think it's a good film to discuss with your friends because the response is so mixed.
We started of the lesson by using the first 5 minutes to recap on last lesson. After re-capping we watched a short film titled ‘Rubber Johnny’ and shared our thoughts as a group. ‘Rubber Johnny’ was a prime example on how experimental a short film can be, the class overall had mixed opinions and discussed good and bad points about the short film. We also watched a interview by ‘Rubber Johnny’ which gave us a little insight of what the short film is about which changed some people’s opinions about the film first and also made the films narrative more clearer for people to understand. We also watched last year’s short films to give us some idea and inspiration for when we start our short film. We watched ‘Prey’ which was about illegal cab services which is a issue that is on the rise so was very relevant and had a message in the narrative. Next we watched another short film made by last year 13s. We watched ‘The tale of the lady and the cake’ which was about a woman baking a cake for her husband’s birthday but then ends up eating it. This was an interesting a short film and shows how simple an idea can be and still engage you and portray a story in the space of 5 minutes. The last example we watched was titled ‘One two many’ which is a very comical short film that works very well and was modern and appealing to our age group. The idea itself is very simple and seems too simple but they executed the idea well on screen and the idea worked surprising well. I really enjoyed it!
For our next tasked was to pick a short film I enjoyed personally and analysis the codes and conventions of it and talk about good and bad points.
After sharing our opinions on last year’s work, we watched a short film titled ‘About a girl’. Mrs. Mathews frequently stopped the film throughout and we as a class added thoughts and opinions about all elements about the film. This allowed us to be analytical about the film. Overall the film was a very shocking story that shocked us all with the twist and the end of the short film. This was a prime example on how a short film can make you feel many different emotions in the space of 8 – 12 minutes whilst mainstream long film takes 2 – 3 hours to accomplish the same impact.
I found this short film very compelling that kept me watching throughout. The film shows an insight story of a bouncer. The storyline is particularly worked well because a bouncer’s job is a role that is always overlooked so by showing a insight of a typical life of a bouncer which adds depth to that job role and character. The structure and editing techniques helps tell the story effectively. Throughout the film uses voice-over and freezing the footage helped break down the story and enables us as an audience to know the exact feelings or what’s going through the bouncers mind at that particular moment. Despite the deep story-line the dialogue is humorous and shows a more funny and gentle side to a bouncer who is typically known for being cold-hearted and tough. There is a great twist at the end that left me in shock. ‘Bouncer’ is a must watch!
‘Horny’ was a very interesting short film that caused a lot of mixed opinions from our class. I personally found the film very humorous and entertaining and entertaining. ‘Horny’ was a great example of the beauty of how different and controversial a short film can be. It took an everyday location; a train station, a place where everyone is to themselves and so personal and flipped that whole element. So in ‘Horny’ train station is a place where socialising is non-existent suddenly everything becomes so personal.
Although I found the film humorous at times it put me in a very awkward position as it makes everything traditionally private public.
Throughout the film it also plays with the audience perception and plays with society’s characters roles and behaviour. For example ‘A granny’ where expected to find this whole situation disgusting but in ‘Horny’ finds it amusing and joins in with the joke. Overall the film is a terrific short film as it puts you through different emotions in the space of 6 minutes.
Today was our first video production lesson. We started the lesson by going through the brief for this unit. Mrs. Mathews broke down the brief to assure everyone was clear about what was needed to be done during this unit. The brief had a new look and a more simple layout which made it even easier to break down and understand. After everyone was clear about the brief we as a class brainstormed our thoughts about ‘short film’. As a class we came up with many ideas based around the idea of short film. This task assured that everyone understood the basic principles and everyone was at the same level of knowledge before we moved on. Next we watched a few examples of short film.
We watched ‘Horny’ which of the DVD – Tube tales. After we watched ‘Horny’ we discussed our thoughts on the film. The film itself was very controversial so there was mixed opinion from student to student. We also watched another short film titled ‘Bouncer’. Like ‘Horny’ we discussed what we liked and discussed camera techniques and editing techniques that were effective that helped progress or tell the story. Next task was discussing the similarities and differences between ‘short films’ and ‘long mainstream films’ and Mrs. Mathews went around the class to each student to share a difference or similarity there thought of. Next we looked at quotes from short film directors ‘Catherine Des Forges’ and ‘Gareth Evens’. For each quote we broke down what they meant and see how they could help us when planning for our short films.
