One Minute Film Evaluation: The Imitation Game

One Minute Film

Inspiration

For our One Minute Film challenge, we decided to recreate an interrogation scene from a film of our choosing. Our first initial idea was to recreate a one minute version of "The Dark Knight" Joker interrogation scene but we opted instead to try out something narrative driven. So we that, we turned our attention to the interrogation scene of "Imitation Game" where Alan Turing was being questioned about his sexuality. We incorporated elements such as flashbacks and montages, directly from the film along with some cinematography from Dark Knight to recreate our own version of The Imitation Game.

Filming

To create our One Minute Film, we had only had a video camera, tripod and smartphone to work with. We used such locations such as a meeting room to film the actual interrogation and another, smaller, crowded office with lots of files in shelves for recreating certain moments in the film for the montage. In the meeting room, we had two actors sit opposite each other in an oval shaped table to create distance and the coldness of the interrogation scene. We positioned our camera, stacked on a tripod on the table itself to film low angle and close up shots of each actor during their conversation. In the smaller office, we had the camera stood outside for shots when someone entered and inside directly behind two actors at a desk with an over-the-shoulder shot.

To record our audio properly-since sound does not capture well on our camera-, we only had a smartphone to work with, therefore limiting opportunists for certain sound design choices. An example of this would be the inability of deepening our voices for some of the narration and to make line sound more serious as intended originally. I only wish we had more knowledge with the editing software so we would be able to manipulate sounds in order for it to nicely compliment the footage and also the ability to add tints to the footage-specifically Amber-to overall achieve the authentic feeling of the film. Although for the most part, we really had no major difficulties working with the shooting equipment we had.

Verdict

Working as a four man group has been quite efficient. Despite me being absent form many brainstorming sessions due to a very bad-timed cold, I was able to catch up with the group as they were helpful in getting me up to speed on current progress. We did things very democratically, coming up with different solutions and deciding by the majority. This enabled us to make quick, efficient choices, resulting in the imminent completion of filming, leaving us with plentiful time to edit.

Overall, to conclude our 1 minute remake of "The Imitation Game", I particularly found the background soundtrack and edited narration sequences to be quite fitting as they contribute to conveying an authentic 1940's era. However, I would have liked it if we experimented with even more camera angles, particularly more close-ups to build to tension as illustrated by the official trailer.

Analysis of Micro-Elements from Pilot Episode of "Breaking Bad" series

Micro-Elements Analysis: 

Breaking Bad Pilot 

Micro-elements are subtle nuances in films and tv shows that serve to subconscious influence the viewers perception of what they see. These can include a wide variety to techniques, including the use of color palettes to establish mood, the careful placement of objects to emphasize themes or foreshadow future plot developments, and subtle changes in the actor's demeanor (hesitations, shifts in body language) that hint at their internal psychological conflicts. "Breaking Bad" tells the story of a middle-class Chemistry teacher who is diagnosed with terminal cancer and turn to drug dealing to provide a nest egg for his family. The pilot episode contains a variety of micro-elements that highlight Walter White's desperate situation and hint at his potential for change.   

In this opening clip, we are introduced to Walter White, a high school chemistry teacher with a fairly miserable life and two struggling jobs. We are able to see that Walter is struggling as in his chemistry class, he has barely any students paying attention and enters a dispute with one of the students. This shows Walter’s lack of control over his class and also his life as we further explore more details. Later in the clip, we see Walter working another job as a cashier at a car wash, where Walt’s manager tells him to clean the cars due to a shortage in workers. This unfortunate turn of events aggravates Walter as he is forced to scrub the wheels of a car. Thing get worse as one of the disobedient students, Chad along with his girlfriend, run into Walt, calling him out and taking picture. On his way home, Walt drives through the neighborhood when conveniently, he discovers the the right storage compartment of his car had malfunctioned. Walt then attempts several times to seal it tight but to no avail.

Deeper meaning

This extract from the Breaking Bad’s pilot mainly serves to convey the extent of control Walter White has over his life. This lack of control is seen throughout the extract multiple times. During Walter’s lecture he explains to a student that what Chemistry actually is, and demonstrates his point by utilizing different colored gasses to adjust the intensity of the flame given out from a Bunsen burner. The use of color connotations in this scene greatly contributes to the effectiveness of mise-en-scene. There are three gas containers: Yellow, Green and Blue. The are all used to ignite the flame which is Red. Fire is often associated with passion, which is cleverly done by the director to let the audience know about Walt’s true-and literally burning-passion for chemistry. Another Micro-Element used in this scene is the camera angle. Here, a low angle shot is utilized to establish a moment where Walter is in control and slowly pans up when Chad disobeys him to illustrate a transition of power until eventually the next scene is played and the camera is back at normal height, ultimately limiting Walt’s power. These Micro-Elements are also identifiable at the car wash when Walter washes an orange sports car. The fact that the car is orange and a sports model, serves to contrast Walter’s pathetic, monotonous life with the car’s-metaphorically- luxurious, and fun lifestyle. It also puts Walter in his place as someone of a lower class as the camera is positioned equally/above him as he is kneeling. Finally, in the final scene of the clip, an over the shoulder shot is utilized as Walter is attempting to properly close shut the storage compartment whilst driving home. The shot creates a brief, minor moment of tension as it closes up to Walt’s heated facial expression giving of an atmosphere of frustration. The audience are able to anticipate whether Walt would eventually snap due to an amount of overwhelming irritation or would end up disastrously crashing his vehicle from the multitasking and the camera not providing a proper view of the road, therefore building up quite some tension.

A Detailed Analysis of Micheal Mann's 1995 "Heat" Shootout

As a director, Michael Mann adopts an extremely formal approach to camerawork, creating scenes with a clear sense of place and kinetic motion. The famous heist scene in his classic 1995 film "Heat" is representative of his formalist and controlled style. In this scene, he depicts a bank robbery gone totally off the rails, where the robbers have an epic shootout with the cops on the street of LA in broad daylight. Although this scene contains a huge amount of chaotic action, Mann's tight camerawork controls the flow of movement, giving it a sense of fluidity that mirrors the professionalism and steely calm of both the criminals and the police trying to stop them.    


Establishing Shot

This shot establishes the setting of where the heist will take place as Neil McCauley (Robert DeNiro) makes his way into the bank in order to initiate the plan. This shot creates tension by underscoring the inclosed space for the characters and gives the audience a sense of layout. The audience are able to anticipate what happens next...

Bird’s Eye View Shot

This shot creates a sense of foreboding and we are able to track Chris Shiherlis (Val Kilmer) as he moves through the bank. The audience is given an omniscient perspective of the robbery, and the intricate series of moves of the carefully-planned heist. 

Worm’s Eye Shot

This shout establishes the beginning of the journey of the money with McCauley’s (DeNiro’s) team through the streets. From this shot onwards the camera primarily follows the three bags of money even after the team split up. The audience is given an “In your face feel” as the money slides towards the camera.

Two-Shot

Michael Mann utilized this two shot to show McCauley and Shihirles (DeNiro and Kilmer) calmly making their way out of the bank with the money as they make for the getaway car. This shot serves to isolate the two robbers from everyone else and continues to follow the three bags of money.

POV Shot

This shot is from the point of one of the robbers in the back seat, presumably Michael Cheritto (Tom Sizemore) witnessing the driver getting shot through the windshield. This was done to give the audience a sense of urgency, putting them in the front row seat for a special occasion, being one of the character’s deaths. Interestingly, this scene could also be foreshadowing Cheritto’s death.

Over-The-Shoulder Shot

This shot puts the audience in the perspective of Shiherlis (Kilmer) as he is fending off the police and providing cover fire for his fellow teammates to escape with the money. This shot further engages the audience with the Shiherlis as we follow his actions and stay weary as he could get hit any moment.

Low Angle Shot

The low angle shot is used here to show McCauley (DeNiro) desperately hurrying to help up his partner and friend Shiherlis (Kilmer) from a gunshot wound. This was done on purpose to show McCauley has power over Shiherlis in this certain situation but also figuratively establishes his powerful position as team leader and that is made clear by Mann using the camera to compare him to the height of the building behind.

Closeup Shot

This final shot from the last few seconds of the scene depicts Lieutenant Vincent Hanna’s (Al Pacino) reaction and thoughts after successfully saving the young girl from Cheritto (Sizemore) and gunning him down. The camera is closed up for the audience to be able to see Hanna’s facial expression after delivering the final blow.

AS Media Studies Terminology List

CAMERA SHOTS

Aerial Shot – A camera shot taken from an overhead position. Often used as an establishing shot.

Close Up – A head and shoulders shot often used to show expressions/emotions of a character. Also can be a shot of an object, filmed from close to the object or zoomed in to it, that reveals detail.

Extreme Close Up – A shot where a part of a face or body of a character fills the whole frame/dominates the frame. Also can be a shot of an object where only a small part of it dominates the frame.

Establishing Shot – A shot that establishes a scene, often giving their viewer information about where the scene is set. Can be a close up shot (of a sign etc) but is often a wide/long shot and usually appears at the beginning of a scene.

Medium Shot – the framing of a subject from waist up.

Two Shot – A shot of two characters, possible engaging in conversation. Usually to signify/establish some sort of relationship

Point-Of-View Shot (POV) – Shows a view from the subject’s perspective. This shot is usually edited so that the viewer is aware who’s point of view it is.

Over the Shoulder Shot – looking from behind a character’s shoulder, at a subject. The character facing the subject usually occupies 1/3 of the frame but it depends on what meaning the director wants to create (for example, if the subject is an inferior character, the character facing them may take up more of the frame to emphaise this)

Overhead Shot – a type of camera shot in which the camera is positioned above the character, action or object being filmed.

Reaction Shot – a shot that shows the reaction of a character either to another character or an event within the sequence.

CAMERA ANGLES

Camera Angle – the position of the camera in relation to the subject of a shot. The camera might be at a high angle, a low angle or at eye level with what is being filmed.

High Angle – A camera angle that looks down upon a subject or object. Often used to make the subject or object appear small or vulnerable.

Low Angle – A camera angle that looks up at a subject or object. Often used to make the subject/object appear powerful/dominant.

Canted framing (or oblique) – camera angle that makes what is shot appear to be skewed or tilted.

CAMERA MOVEMENT

Pan – Where the camera pivots horizontally, either from right to left or left to right to reveal a set or setting. This can be used to give the viewer a panoramic view. Sometimes used to establish a scene.

Track - a shot where the camera follows a subject/object. The tracking shot can include smooth movements forward, backward, along the side of the subject, or on a curve but cannot include complex movement around a subject. ‘Track’ refers to rails in which a wheeled platform (which has the camera on it) sits on in order to carry out smooth movement.

Crane – A crane shot is sometimes used to signify the end of a scene/ programm /film. The effect is achieved by the camera being put onto a crane that can move upward.

Steadicam - A steadicam is a stabilising mount for a camera which mechanically isolates the operator's movement from the camera, allowing a very smooth shot even when the operator is moving quickly over an uneven surface. Informally, the word may also be used to refer to the combination of the mount and camera.

Tilt - where a camera scans a set or setting vertically (otherwise similar to a pan).

Zoom – Using a zoom lens to appear to be moving closer to (zoom in) or further away from (zoom out) a subject/object when in fact the camera may not move (so, strictly not camera movement). Can be used for dramatic effect.

Sound

Diegetic Sound – sound that can be heard by the characters within a scene/ sound part of the imaginary world.

Non-diegetic Sound – sound that the characters cannot hear and is not part of the imaginary world of the story. This includes a musical soundtrack or a voice-over (however this excludes a narration by a character within the story – referred to as an internal monologue and is dietetic).

Score – The musical component of a program’s soundtrack, usually composed specifically for the scene.

Sound Effects – sounds that are added to a film during the post-production stage.

Editing

Editing – the stage in the film-making process in which sound and images are organised into an overall narrative.

Continuity Editing – the most common type of editing, which aims to create a sense of reality and time moving forward. Also nick named invisible editing referring to how the technique does not draw attention to the editing process.

Jump Cut – An abrupt, disorientating transitional device in the middle of a continuous shot in which the action is noticeably advanced in time and/or cut between two similar shots, usually done to create discontinuity for artistic effect.

Credits – the information at the beginning and end of a film, which gives details of cast and crew etc.

Cross Cutting – the editing technique of alternating, interweaving, or interspersing one narrative action (scene, sequence or event) with another – usually in different locations or places, thus combining the two: this editing technique usually suggests Parallel action (that takes place simultaneously). Often used to dramatically build tension and/or suspense in chase scenes or to compare two different scenes. Also known as inter-cutting or parallel editing

Cutaways – A brief shot that momentarily interrupts continuous action by briefly inserting another related action. Object, or person (sometimes not part of the principle scene or main action), followed by a cutback to the original shot.

Freeze Frame – the effect of seemingly stopping a film in order to focus in on one event or element.

Eye-line Match – a type of edit which cuts from one character to what that character has been looking at.

Flashback – a scene or moment in a film in which the audience is shown an event that happened earlier in the film’s narrative.

Graphic Match – an edit effect in which two different objects of the same shape are dissolved from one into the other.

Juxtaposition – the placement of two (often opposed) images on either side of an edit to create an effect.

Linear Narrative – a style of storytelling in which events happen chronologically.

Montage Editing – the juxtaposition of seemingly unconnected images in order to create meaning.

Parallel Editing – a type of editing in which events in two locations are cut together, in order to imply a connection between the two sets of events.

Visual Effects - visual effects are usually used to alter previously-filmed elements by adding, removing or enhancing objects within the scene.

Match on Action - A shot that emphasizes continuity of space and time by matching the action of the preceding shot with the continuation of the action. (For example a shot of a door opening after a shot of a close up of a character’s hand turning a door handle)

Mise en Scene

Mise en scene – a French term, which literally means ‘put into the frame’. When analyzing a sequence the term refers to everything you see in the frame:

props, eg in a police drama this could mean a gun or a badge, also can mean iconography

costume, the color and style of the actor/subject can have important connotations and denotations about their character, role within narrative, etc.

lighting, the harshness or softness of light has differing effects on representing the mood of a scene.

color, if you've studied psychology then you'll understand what each color signifies.  The colors used in popular branding are significant in determine their identifiable, ie 'the golden arches' but also says a lot about a person or company's ideology.

Makeup - we're not just talking about a bit of slap here, this can refer to masks, prosthetic and special effects.

Other important terms used in analysis of TV/Film:

Artificial Light – A source of light created by lighting equipment, rather than from natural sources.

Convention – a frequently used element which becomes standard.

Disequilibrium – the period of instability and insecurity in a film’s narrative.

Enigma – the question or mystery that is posed within a film’s narrative.

Equilibrium – a state of peace and calm, which often exists at the beginning of a film’s narrative.

Framing – the selection of elements such as characters, setting and iconography that appear within a shot.

Genre – a system of film identification, in which films that have the same elements are grouped together.

Iconography – the objects within a film that are used to evoke particular meanings

Intertextuality – reference within a film to another film, media product, work of literature or piece of artwork.

Mise en scene – a French term, which literally means ‘put into the frame’. When analyzing a sequence the term refers to everything you see in the frame (props, costume, lighting, color, makeup etc.)

Narrative – a story that is created in a constructed format (eg. A program) that describes a series of fictional or non-fictional events.