Use of camera in film

Camera shots

A camera shot is the amount of space that is seen in one shot. Camera shots are used to demonstrate different things within a film, camera shots can emphasise how we see something, for example if a camera shot is low down looking up at someone it can show dominance in the bigger character as it would make them seem bigger. This shows that camera shots are very important within film. There are lots of different camera shots frequently being used in film.

1.Extreme long shots: This kind of shot often contains a lot of landscape, this shot is generally used as an establishing shot at the beginning of a film or in order to set a new location within the film. Another name for this shot is an establishing shot, however it is more commonly known as an extreme long shot.

2.Long shots: This shot contains less landscape than an extreme long shot and tends to give the viewer a more detailed setting of the film, for example a long shot may show buildings where the film may take place.

 

 3.Full shot: This contains a full view of the characters, you tend to be able to see the costumes, their facial expressions and body language, from this shot the audience can see the relationships between characters, get a feel for how old the characters are and also the type of personality the character will have.

 

 



 



4.Mid shot: From this camera angle we can see the characters from the waist up. From this shot we get to see the characters facial expressions more clearly which gives us an insight into what they are thinking/doing. We can also see interaction with other characters more clearly.

5. Close-up: A close up only contains one characters face, in this you cannot see their body, because of this it means the audience can see the characters facial expressions and emotions very easily making it easier for the audience to understand what the character is feeling.

 

 

6.Extreme close-up: This shot can contain one part of a characters face or an object. This type of shot can make the mood of the film very intense, so this type of shot is very often used in horror films to make it scarier for the audience.

 

 

 

Camera angles

 

Camera angles are very different to camera shots, a camera angle is used to position the audience so they can see the relationships between characters. This can be very important as the camera angle can make the audience view a character completely different, so if done badly the audience could perceive a character to be small and timid whereas they could be big and menacing.

 

 

1.Birds eye angle: This angle is from directly above the scene/characters, this camera angle is very often used at the beginning of a film or to establish the scene. This shot is also used with the extreme long shot to add for effect.



 

 

2. High angle: A high angle looks down on a character, this is to make the characters look small and vulnerable. Angles like this are used in films to make it easier for the viewer to understand the point of view of another character e.g. A bully looking down on a smaller, younger kid.

3. Eye-level angle: This angle is used to put the audience on the same level as the character, this can be used to show conversation between two different characters. This type of angle is also used to make the viewers feel more comfortable with the character.

 

 

 

4. Low angle: This is a camera angle which looks up at the character, this has the opposite effect of which the high angle does, this shot makes a character look powerful and dominant. This effect makes the audience feel vulnerable.

 

 

 

 

Camera movement

 

 

Camera movement is the way in which the camera is being moved when filmed, the movement of the camera can create many different effects for the viewer. There are a few different types of camera movements which are done within film. I will now explain these.

 

 

1. Crane shot: This shot is filmed by using a crane, at the top of which is a cameraman and camera, this is used to make the shot go up and down smoothly without any bumps. The effect that it can give is often used at the end of films or scenes.



 

2. Tracking shot: A tracking shot is filmed on top of a short piece of track, the reason this is done is to keep the flow of the camera smooth. This sort of shot is used for things such as filming rooms, this can give the audience a tour of the room which is also very smooth.


 





 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

Use of sound in film

Sound within film is just as important nowadays to the viewer as what they are seeing on the screen. Sounds in film influence the way the audience perceives a character, or the way in which something is happening. For example if there was no sound and someone saw a character they would have a hard job depicting what they were saying, with the use of sound the audience can find out what sort of charcter this person is and then judge them off what they are saying. Within film there are 3 main types of sound, these are sound effects, dialogue and music.

  Sound effects: Sound effects within a flm are sounds which are made artificially, this does not include speech or music. An example of sound effects within a film is the sound of shooting guns. Most of the time when a film is being filmed the prop guns being used do not actually make a sound, so to make the film more realistic they add sound effects to make it sound like the gun is shooting. This sort of sound effect is synchronous. A synchronous sound effect is a sound which is seen on screen, like a gun being shot, or door being slammed. These sounds are used to help make a film more realistic and to emphasise what the audience are seeing on the screen. The opposite of a synchronous sound effect is a asynchronous sound effect. These sounds are sounds which cannot be seen on screen but are still happening. For example this could be a helicopter flying past a characters house, you wouldn't be able to see it but you would still know that it is happening. The reason this is used in film is because it can add to the realism of a film, hearing background noises such as these makes a film more realistic and therefore offers a better film experience for the audience.



This is an example of a asynchronous sound which cannot be seen on screen but you still know its happening.

Dialogue: Dialogue within a film is a conversation with two or more people,this can be anything from an argument between two people to a massive conference with hundreds of people. Dialogue in film is very important, if the dialogue is done wrong or badly then it can make a good film awful but then again if dialogue is done well then it has the capability of making a bad film good. Dialogue is used to show what a character is feeling and what they want, if the dialogue is good then it can help the audience make a connection with the character and feel what they are feeling. This sort of experience can enhance the film for the audience and make it seem better and more realistic.

This clip is from the film 'Pineapple express', in this clip we see a conversation between James Franco and Seth Rogen, James Franco is playing a drug dealer while Seth Rogen is playing a salesmen who has come to buy some drugs. We can tell what sort of characters they are from the way that they are talking, for example we can see that they are good friends with each other due to the fact they are chatting and laughing a lot. Around 2 minutes into the film Seth goes to leave and James Franco says something in a sad tone, this shows that he was upset so the dialogue in this instance was showing us that he did not want Seth to leave. This 4 minute clip shows the importance of what dialogue can tell and audience and how it can make you feel what the characters are feeling.


Music: Music is a combination of sounds, generally made from a musical instrument or a persons voice put together in order to make an effect. Music within film is very important, if music is used wrongly then it can make a scene feel very different to how it should. For example if someone has just passed away and people are crying there should not be happy music on because this would confuse the audience and make it seem like its not sad, whereas if a different style of music was played, something slow and sad then this would help the audience connect with the characters and would put them in a more sad mood. Music can not only be used to show the mood of a scene in film but it can also help build suspense. In a horror film for example, if there is about to be a murder music could be played to enhance the fact that this is going to happen and make the audience more scared.

Use of narration

Narration is the use or action of telling a story. so for example, there could be a voiceover speaking throughout the whole film telling you what is happening, if this were the case then the film would be a narrative, as it is dictated by the narrator. There are many very popular films which use narration within them. in this blog I will give examples of films using narration and write a brief reason as to why they may have used it and how this helps us understand the film.

My first example of use of narration within films is the hugely successful 'Forest Gump'. The film is based in America and revolves around a boy named 'Forest Gump', this film tells the story of this mans life and the challenges he has faced all told to us by the use of narration. The film starts fairly happy and then moves onto a more depressing tone nearer the end of the film. The way that they have used narration within this film is by using Forest to tell his story to random people he meets, while he is telling the story they show footage of him at the time, doing what he is explaining in the story he is telling. This works very well as not only are we being told what happened in his life we are also being shown it at the same time. The reason why they may have chosen to use narration in this film is because it makes it easier for us to understand and also attaches us to it more because we can see the person telling the story and what he will become by the end of it, this gives us a sense of realism to the story.

A second example where narration is used within a film is 'Stand by me'. This is a film of four boys journey to find a dead body in order to get in the newspapers and become famous, although they have difficulties on the way. The way in which they narate this film is presented by two characters talking to one another in their vehicles, both men are middle aged. 'Geordie' is the one telling the story and from this the film is the narrated and shown to us. One reason why they might have chosen to use narrative to tell the story is because it gives a good ending to the film, it gives the audience a insight into what the future was like for the boys who were looking for the dead body and how they ended up living their lives. they may have thought this was a better way to end it than finishing it when the boys were all still very young.

A third film which using narration is 'Big Fish, this film revolves around a father which is dying and his son who has never appreciated the stories, legends and myths which his father told, by the end of the film the son finally understands why his father told these myths however then his father dies. The film narrative is done by the father, he is the one who is telling stories of his life and then the film shows us these stories as he tell them. The stories are very far fetched and things happen which surely can't be reality. The impact this gives us is very good, it makes us see the whole life of the father with detail.

From writing about these 3 film examples i have realised that most films which use narrative are all about telling someones life story from when they are older, either about to die.

Love actually radio scene remake - By Emily and Jake

For this task Emily and I had to recreate a short scene from the film 'Love actually', in this scene we see a radio dj talking to an ex-heroine addict who is now wanting a number 1 christmas song. In our remake we have Grace Newman and Ollie tucker playing the roles. We filmed it in a arts office as it was the closest thing to a radio set we could find and i think it worked out well. However if we were to do ths again we would try to find a music studio to record it in and it would have made the set much better. overall i am happy with how this turned out.

Initial ideas, plots, characters etc for my own film opening.

So far i have found it difficult to come up with ideas for my own film opening, however after brainstorming i do have a few ideas which i may or may not use when it comes to the final filming. The plot i propose is going to be quite rural, in the countryside with not many people about. I would start the film off in by filming a car driving along a road from a distance and then finally going in to the car to hear the passengers speaking. There would be four males in the car, or two males and two females, i am yet to decide, and also what they will be talking about is still undecided. where they would go while driving would be an abandoned house or barn, and then i would end the opening on them opening the door to the house, leaving it on a cliff hanger.

How much is revealed about the storyline, characters etc in film openings?

The film opening is the first section of a film that you see, in this section you meet the main characters, the set for the film is shown and you tend to know roughly what sort of genre the film is going to be.

Within the film opening we find out lots of different information about the characters and the storyline. We find out who the main characters are and a bit of background information about them. For example in the film spiderman 3 we find out that the main character is Peter Parker (spiderman), we find out how his relationships are with people such as his girlfriend and his rival Harry with a fair bit of detail. We also get to see where they are living and the type of lifestyle that they live, for example we know Peter is a journalist and his girlfriend is an actress in a New York theater which seemed to be very upper class. We tend to find in films this is what most of the film openings tell you about characters, it gives you a background information on the characters.

In the opening of a film we also find out the beginning of the story line, so once again using spiderman 3 as an example, i will explain what we find out about the storyline in the film opening. In spiderman 3 we first 3 Peter walking through the streets of New York city watching himself on a big screen. This straight away tell us that the film will be set in New York. Also in the same film sequence we see Peter watching himself as Spiderman swinging from building to building, this tells us that the story is going to be full of action. Further into the film opening Peter goes into the theatre to watch his girlfriend perform, we also see that Harry is also in there watching the performance. Once the play is over we find out both Harry and Peter has bought Peters girlfriend flowers showing that Harry may have feelings for her, and then finally we see Peter running after Harry but Harry shrugs him off and shows that there is tension between the two, telling us they could be enemies further down the story. so overall the film opening tells us lots of detail about the storyline, it tells us what characters will get on with each other, where the film is set and also what sort of story it will be.

Film opening examples and analysis

A film opening is designed to set the theme for the rest of a film, in the opening the viewer meets the main characters, finds out what genre the film is and knows the background of the characters.

The first film opening i am going to analyse is from the film 'Spiderman 3'. In this film opening we meet the main characters, these being Peter Parker who we find out is actually spiderman, his girlfriend who is an actress at a theatre and Peters enemy in the film Harry. Within the opening scene we are also shown a clip of spiderman swinging through the streets of New York which shows that the film is going to be an action. Later on in the film opening we see Peter chase after Harry to try and apologise for his fathers death however Harry ignores this and drive off, just before this scene we fid out Harry has bought Peters girlfriend a huge bunch of flowers showing his love for her.

The second film opening which i am going to analyse is from the film pineapple express. The opening of the film starts off in black and white and it is showing a secret lab which is developing the growth of marijuana, in this black and white scene we also see someone smoking marijuana and giving feedback on it, there are lots of funny remarks being made which hints that hints that this film is going to be a comedy. After this it goes to present day to the life of a salesmen called Garth, straight away we see him smoking more marijuana and then he drives to see his girlfriend who is still at high school. While they meet they straight awya have an argument which is showing their relationship may not be that strong. The final thing we see in this film opening is some high school boys talking to Garths girlfriend and we see that he feels threatened by them and that possibly his girlfriend may prefer them to him. In conclusion we find out in this film opening that the film is a comedy about marijuana and possibly Garths and his girlfriends relationship.