Slap

SLAP - BAFTA Nominated Short Film from Nick Rowland on Vimeo.

'Slap' tackles contemporary controversial subject matter, confronting the audience and there prejudicial views on masculinity within the 21st century. The film is set in the north of England, stereo-typically known for it deeply rooted views on traditional masculinity. Men are expected to act in a certain way - manly. Some of these traditional traits include: being straight; providing for the family; partaking in sporting activities;  chasing girls and suppressing emotions and feelings in order to appear strong. 

The main protagonist 'Connor', played by 'Peaky Blinders' star Joe Cole, is a vulnerable character who struggles in finding his true identity. Trapped within a community that look down upon LGBTQ+ members, Connor escapes to his room where he alters his appearance to seem more female - an adopted apparel which he clearly feels more comfortable adopting.

Through the majority of the film, the pallet is heavily grey pale. When there is colour it is often of a darker shade - the pallet represents the dismal lifestyle Connor lives. Whether it be living day to day in a monotonous estate, or suppressing his identity or possible alternative sexual orientation, it is clear he is not happy.

My favourite part of this  film, certainly most influential, comes as the climatic ending of the film. Connor appears to lose control, like an animal, he lashes out and viciously attacks his sparring partner. There is only non-diegetic grunge rock playing - forcing us to only be able imagine what sort of sounds are being created throughout the fracas.

Moving forward this film may encourage me to present social themes withing my short-film, whilst putting care and attention into the colours that I use within the mise-en-scene.   

Over

This is an intriguing film, because of the polarising effect that it has on its audience. Personally I Love the use of the Long take, because it allows the audience to get a much greater immersive connection with whatever is happening on screen. These shots have the potential to create some of the most memorable scenes within cinema, however within this film, it is over exerted beyond the realms of tolerability . 

On the other hand, It made the film long winded and somewhat boring, this impression is the shattered by the climax of the film, however it is somewhat of a struggle to get to the end of the film. Perhaps this is just my ignorance, perhaps it is meant to be a challenging watch - mimicking the struggle of the man who succumbs to am untimely death - derived from an act of desperation. After all, it is undeniable that the body crashing down to the earth came as a surprise - however with my short film, I shall increase the pacing,  through the application of long takes with dynamic camera movement and tension delivered through dialogue.

Tzvetan Todorov

Tzvetan Todorov's narrative theory suggests that all narratives follow a three part structure where they begin with equilibrium, where everything is balanced, progress as something comes along to disrupt that equilibrium, and finally reach a resolution, when equilibrium is restored.

This is a generalised narrative structure, entirely applicable to my short-film, I shall bear it in mind as I begin brainstorming and writing. I intend on centring my film around three men, who find themselves plagued by an issue. Perhaps this will take the form of a stolen object/dead body. 

My plan is to establish the characters; introduce the issue; present a solution.

Vladimir Propp

Vladimir Propp was a Soviet folklorist and scholar who analysed the basic plot components of Russian folk tales to identify their simplest irreducible narrative elements. Over his time, he also developed a list of characters that would be a common occurrence within folk tales this list includes:

1. The villain — an evil character that creates struggles for the hero.
2. The dispatcher — any character who illustrates the need for the hero's quest and sends the hero off. This often overlaps with the princess's father.
3. The helper — a typically magical entity that comes to help the hero in their quest.
4. The princess or prize, and often her father — the hero deserves her throughout the story but is unable to marry her as a consequence of some evil or injustice, perhaps the work of the villain. The hero's journey is often ended when he marries the princess, which constitutes the villain's defeat.
5. The donor — a character that prepares the hero or gives the hero some magical object, sometimes after testing them.
6. The hero — the character who reacts to the dispatcher and donor characters, thwarts the villain, resolves any lacking or wronghoods and weds the princess.
7. The false hero — a Miles Gloriosus figure who takes credit for the hero's actions or tries to marry the princess.

- Wikipedia 

Propp also goes into an extensive list of narrative developments, which mainly centre around 'a hero' and his struggle to complete his quest. Personally, I don't think I can directly apply his work to my short film - as I don't plan on making a tale, nor do I plan on making a long winded tale. I want to create a simple piece (narrative  speaking) which retains an interesting subject matter with equally impressive technical capability.  

Operator - Caroline Bartleet

Personally, I found this film to be one of the most intriguing and engaging short films that I have seen so far. On the surface, this is a aesthetically simplistic film, due to its minimal application of micro-elements - specifically in terms of cinematography and editing. Nevertheless, the film does put an incredible focus through the utilisation of sound. The film paints visual imagery within the mind of the audience through the application of audience. Moreover, it aids  in accumulating a bubbling tension, which nurtured and cultivated until the very end of the film.

The film follows a police phone operator receiving a call from Gemma - a scared women battling a fire within her home. The film picks up tension as the call progresses, the fire grows and the stakes are raised (the child is trapped upstairs). There are stark contrasting moments within this film. There are moments were there are erratic violent screams and shouts, juxtaposed by the presence of periodic silence.

There was a heavy use of close up shots within the film, which was an interesting visual representation of how claustrophobic Gemma must be as she struggles against her burning house for the sake of the child.

The juxtaposition between Gemma and the operator was also engaging. The operator was calm, professional and sympathetic, whilst the mother was frightened and frantic. The Operator represented the strong natural woman instincts, whereas Gemma is representing the power that women possess within - only brought out when their child is in danger.

I believe this film will encourage me to create imagery through the application of sound. I may achieve this by presenting minimal information on the screen, but have a dynamic sound design that can set setting tone and mood/

Tight Jeans

Tight Jeans is an eight minute long short film directed by UK's Director/ Writer Destiny Ekaragha. The film is a social commentary presenting to it's audience the attitude of three young black men, in contemporary London society. The film explores the nature of male friendships - centring the narrative around the stereotypical behaviour exhibited by young black men waiting for their friend.

The relationship and 'banter' of the three friends is somewhat reminiscent of the three corner men from Spike Lee's 'Do the Right Thing'. What they are saying is not what is important, what is important however, is how they interact with each other, and how they form an interestingly dynamic relationship. Each of the character's personalities have a unique edge - offering satisfactory moments of comedic indulgence.

One interesting thing to note, is that the camera was very rarely stationary, the camera moved with the conversation, mimicking the smooth flow of the conversation - firmly reinforcing the proposal that the three men are tight knit friends. 

Another link can be made between Destiny Ekaragha's 'Tight Jeans and Spike Lee's 'Do The Right Thing'. Specifically, one can draw comparisons between the use of text  styles within the opening sequence. Both directors had chosen to use colourful text, which conveys their ethnic heritage. This makes the film seems more personal- as if they are inviting we the audience into their own private world. A cultural shift. 

Another interesting feature of the film is the choice of clothing that Destiny chooses for her characters. They are bright and vibrant - a contrast to the bleak background. Perhaps this is a portrayal of how boring this country is, if we lack diversity, or perhaps this is just a method of gravitating the audiences attention towards the characters. Furthermore, it makes each of the characters distinct - begging us to take an interest in them.

'Echo' Directed by Lewis Arnold and Written by James Walker

National Film and Television Short Film: 'Echo' is an 18 minute short film Directed by Lewis Arnold and written by James Walker.

The film presents the story of a young girl who publicly portrays her grief about her father's death, in order to earn some money off of sympathetic pedestrians. At first we the audience are lead to judge her at face value, however there is more to the story then what first meets the eye.

The premise of the film, narrative speaking, is on the surface a simple concept, however as we delve deeper into the story we get is more complex layering of a plethora of emotions and motives.This is best displayed during the short film's ending, one which is riddled with interesting ambiguity. One interpretation of the ending could be that the audience is taken back in time to when she actually received word of her father's passing in public. This makes the narrative non-linear, only adding to the engagement of the piece. Alternatively, one can see this as a linear piece, which still retains an interesting motive within the film which can be linked to the title of the film.When we think of echoes, we often think in the traditional sense of the word - sound which travels through the air, hitting an object and returning to the source only audibly quieter. The film may mix this concept through the characters emotions. The passing of her father naturally causes her a monumental amount of grief, however, her repetitive use of the con allows her to re experience the emotions that she felt once first hearing the news of her father's passing. This can be seen as a form of mental self harm, but more importantly it can also be seen as a recreational use of her emotions to desensitise herself to the memory of her father's passing, in turn giving her hope that one day she can get over the vulnerability; the uselessness and helplessness she must've helped once she had heard that her father had been involved in an accident.

Within the film, there is an interesting use of representation. One such case, is when the girl can be seen playing with her lighter throughout the film. This is a brilliant representation of the metaphor 'playing with fire', which the girl seems to be doing, by conning people out in public. Not only does this action pose a threat to her physically, by living through the traumatic events of the past she is doing harm to a psyche, which is one reason as to why the relationship with the rest of her family has deteriorated.

There is a striking juxtaposition within the film that is presented through the editing of the film,most noticeably seen when comparing the opening to the ending.Despite a few similarities, such as the voyeurism style (filming people without them noticing)  and repetition of narrative concept (the corn), the scenes are completely different in terms of pacing.During the beginning of the film, the crew shoot at a distance, long takes or implemented as well as handheld shots, in order to sustain the audiences focus on the interaction between the girl and the stranger. At the end of the film, this is contrasted by the implementation of shorter takes and jarring jump cuts, combined with the claustrophobic nature of the close-ups. This shifts the audiences focus not towards the relationship between the girl and the stranger as had been done previously, instead we are given an intrusive insight into the perturbed mind of a young grieving girl - looking to make sense and order within her life.

The strongest indicator that this is a British short film, is the utilisation of a heavily adopted grey palette, creating a sense of a repetitive mundane life style. Furthermore, it has a profound impact on the film, as it allows us to have an insight in how the girl views the world, a cold grey miserable place now that her father has left her.