Directors Analysis:
- The initial shot of grass is a symbol of the main theme, freedom, in the film. The grass symbolises freedom as it is the setting in which both our characters aspire to be. This shot introduces this theme to the audience and provokes thought into what it could mean to the characters we present. The non-diagetic sound of the old rolling camera gives the sense of the time this activity has been going on.
- The opening shot of Joel (close up) immediately establishes to the audience the central character in the story. He draws a picture. This unknowingly introduces the second character 'Lucy' as a fictional person or an imagination. This also establishes the narrative of the story and sets the scene for the rest of the opening.
- These opening shots are a chance to display match-on-action. We use a part where Joel picks up a pencil and the next shot when he is colouring in. This gives us the means to create a continuity sequence.
- We also use the 180 degree rule in the opening. The camera flips to both sides of Joel's face, yet doesn't look at him head on, this means we can look from behind and to the side without braking the 180 degree rule.
- The establishing shot of Lucy standing in the field introduces the dream-like aspect of the film.
- We also use match-on-action in this shot as it goes back to Joel, who is drawing the same scene. For this we had to match Lucy's costume, hair and setting to the one in the picture. This also repeats for the swing shots.
- Field - to create the psychological aspect of our film, we had to show that Lucy is trapped in Joel's imagination/drawings. For this, it was important that all our shots of the field, the camera would be in the same position. This creates a 'picture frame' effect of that where it seems she cannot leave that setting. It was important in this shot to use a tripod to keep the camera still and in the same place so we could edit the shots so she was in different places at once.
- These following shots; shot of Lucy skipping, pan of the wall and insert shot of Lucy running; continues to establish the story and makes it clear that Joel is in control, and that this has been evolving for some time. It also adds an element of confusion, which makes the audience wonder what Lucy is running from - Ties to our target audience (the thinking person-ell)
- The close up of Joel scribbling lead to the climax of our movie. To show this we layered different scratching sounds on top of each other and increase in volume to create tension. The theme music and drone also increased in volume. We increased the speed in cross-cutting between the scratching close ups and Lucy to make sure the audience clocked the relevance of the pictures and create an urgency. (shots of Lucy) - Instead of the shot conventionally getting closer to the action as tension intensifies, we decided to move further away. This is to create the idea that she is fading.
- Joel slams his hand down on the table. This is directly followed by a silence and a long-shot of an empty swing. To emphasise the silence, we added an isolated creak of the swing. This contrast between the fast and busy shots and this empty scene creates an eery atmosphere.
- Although, obviously, this disappearance is caused by the boy, Joel, we contrast these hateful feelings towards him with a high angle shot, making him seem vulnerable and childlike. This creates an uneasy feel as the audience are confused with the persona of the boy that has been shown throughout the film. In this clip the voice over also becomes diagetic as you can directly see Joel speaking. By attaching him to the voice heard throughout the clip we revealed his control over the entire story.