The juxtaposition between the first half and second half gave the video a disturbing tone that still feels jarring as I’m writing this.
It seemed like you were contrasting the casual movements of the body in a social environment with the tenser movement of the body performing labor. This in turn showed to me the different capabilities of the human body and its influence on others – during the restaurant scene, my guard was down and I felt comfortable; but the transition into the second half and the sudden change was disturbing and almost agitating. Good stuff!
POSITIVES:
-I love the extreme close ups of the face poorly because it made me so uncomfortable.
-Sound/music was really well done. I think if it was especially shown with the saw getting faster that would have been ever more unsettling. I thought that was where it was going. But the tension there is so palpable, I feel like you could really do so much with that if you decided to go further with it.
-The ending was fantastic to me. I think it was sudden enough to not be expected, but also hinted at so that I didn’t feel blindsided. All that tension really snapped there and I felt it.
CONSTRUCTIVE:
-I feel as though that transition from the first into the second half could be a bit less sudden. Maybe if it was hinted at with body language as the film progressed, that sudden change in music/noise would have felt less jarring to me. But then again, the jarring nature of it does work well too.
-You guys did a great job showing nervous body language in the second half. It could definitely be furthered by possible shaky hands or accidentally dropping cutlery/dish. I feel like maybe I’m just asking for more of that nervous energy to heighten the tension 🙂
I love the dynamic atmosphere that was represented by the shots – I truly felt that. The close up shots of everyone’s faces, hands and feet really showed the subtle movements, along with the social setting as noted in the above statement (although the facial close ups were so uncomfortable to me hfdjkshk). Also, the tensions drastically changes makes me tingle a little bit – the dramatic element heightens the experience of discomfort, changing the tone of the video from normal to an intense murder-esque vibe. You guys done a really good job! 🙂
That was an e x p e r i e n c e ! I loved the sudden switch mid-way where everything became eery and tense. The audio was a key element there, but the colour grading and the choreography itself (the saw, the butter knife, the scratching of legs/knees under the table)… all of these things gave my heart cause to thud at a faster rate. I’m curious about what the second, more chaotic half of the video has to say about the more settled opening. Does it reinforce the contrast of bad and good, dream and nightmare?
Love the glimpse of ordinary life turning quickly sour. I sensed a rift on its way, just from the framing choices and the camera’s interaction with the choreographers. Well done guys!
Again I feel like we’re on the same wavelength with our approach to the “dance film” & focusing on mundane/intricate movements – and yet this one is different again. I love that the focus in on this small group of people, a singular setting, with the purpose of eating/catching up. It seems to borrow conventional techniques (establishing shots, reverse shots for conversations) but gets in closer to really point out the nitty gritty movements in the interaction. I feel like these techniques give a narrative feel to it – but of course there is no plot. The “purpose” you’ve set up when watching this is to notice how each person behaves, moves, and communicates. Only suggestion is to play around with more neutral lighting. Otherwise neat 🙂
It feels like a multiple observation of movement and gestures positioned within the mundane, everyday occurrences. There’s a voyeuristic, therefore a viewer complicit exposition in the first part as the eating and drinking a quite a revealing, personal moments. I’d love some actual eating shots, movements of mouths, etc. That would make it a party. Small, intimate gestures, observations of tiny movements help think of this as a meditation on ‘dance’. Latter part of the piece has a very different energy and this really helps with engaging in the dynamic of the film, it is an interesting paradox to explore further. It has an almost violent, jarring narrative following the ‘around the table’ opening and changes the story, the dynamic. Quite a powerful storytelling device. You guys have certainly managed to successfully transpose the energy that dance film generally explores as well as engendering an emotive response from the viewer. The piece has both a quiet simplicity and the unnerving energy that follows. Well done.
I loved how atmosphere was something you really focused on in this piece. The close up shots really immersed me into the film and thus the atmosphere, and made that shift even more jarring (pairing it with the clouds going over the sun the first time I watched it actually sent a shiver up my spine). I’m still not entirely sure what the story behind that shift is, maybe comparing a comfortable setting with an uncomfortable during the working scenes? Regardless of the plot, it was still enjoyable to watch in an unsettling way, great job guys!
Well done on the experimentation here. I agree with the other comments around the transition: interesting potential but think the idea could be explored further; particularly because the focus in the second half is less on the body, and more on the consequences of something the body is doing. I think you’re playing with some interesting techniques, but not cohesive enough for me to navigate what you’re actually trying to achieve. It would be interesting to have a sense of what your overall vision was, and to talk about how you could go further towards achieving it. Does it have a title? Title’s can be very helpful in framing a more abstract work!
The contrast between the textures of the first and second half of the piece was really quite jarring and had me on the edge of my seat. The transition was quite unexpected and spectacular.
The background chatter really gives it a sense of atmosphere and that is topped off with the music. The close ups in the second half convey a drastically different narrative compared to those in the first. Loved that ending.
I loved the atmosphere and the close shots in this. I think you guys really managed to nail each and every moment and at the same time, managed to make us feel really immersed in what we were watching. The shift was interesting and I enjoyed it, I think it’s what really made this work so well. Great job guys.
I enjoyed the use of simple images and sound; I always believe that less is more. I liked how the film started out slow then gained a faster pace as it went on, it suited the uncomfortable nature of the film! I enjoy when a film makes me feel.
On the other hand, I believe a more steady hand on the camera and control over focus could have benefited the piece.
Good job 🙂
It was great to see the finer details of the human face in the fidgety close-ups. You notice the muscles used to perform the action. It’d be interesting to see some of these close-ups play side by side to each other (e.g. eyes blinking and lips moving).
The second part could do with more cohesion. The wood cutting took me out the lunch setting and into a different, more hostile environment. Perhaps, the diegetic sounds of these actions could carry over without their visual counterparts. Wow, sound definitely played an imperative role in creating tension 🙂
Even though I’m still hungry by the end of the video (mmmmm… pizza) I think you guys really captured the experience of anixiety really well! The framing and colour grading of the first half compared to the second really twisted the ‘dance’ of interaction and socialisation into a thinly-veiled set of coping mechanism explored during the sensory-nightmare of the second. Very well-shot and -edited, great job!
Well done guys I thought this was a really interesting film. This really captured the sensory overload of being out in public that some people get. I thought the contrast between the first part and second was really interesting and I read it as a comparison between a relaxing cafe experience, and someone with social anxiety. I felt like I wanted to see the character of the person with anxiety; in the first part an external perspective and the second an inner perspective. I agree with the others that the wood cutting took me out of the cafe setting and was a bit confusing at first. I like the idea of using the diegetic sound like Mya said. I also thought incorporating the sounds of the cafe at increased volume and with specific focus could be interesting.
Great job guys!
The juxtaposition between the first half and second half gave the video a disturbing tone that still feels jarring as I’m writing this.
It seemed like you were contrasting the casual movements of the body in a social environment with the tenser movement of the body performing labor. This in turn showed to me the different capabilities of the human body and its influence on others – during the restaurant scene, my guard was down and I felt comfortable; but the transition into the second half and the sudden change was disturbing and almost agitating. Good stuff!
POSITIVES:
-I love the extreme close ups of the face poorly because it made me so uncomfortable.
-Sound/music was really well done. I think if it was especially shown with the saw getting faster that would have been ever more unsettling. I thought that was where it was going. But the tension there is so palpable, I feel like you could really do so much with that if you decided to go further with it.
-The ending was fantastic to me. I think it was sudden enough to not be expected, but also hinted at so that I didn’t feel blindsided. All that tension really snapped there and I felt it.
CONSTRUCTIVE:
-I feel as though that transition from the first into the second half could be a bit less sudden. Maybe if it was hinted at with body language as the film progressed, that sudden change in music/noise would have felt less jarring to me. But then again, the jarring nature of it does work well too.
-You guys did a great job showing nervous body language in the second half. It could definitely be furthered by possible shaky hands or accidentally dropping cutlery/dish. I feel like maybe I’m just asking for more of that nervous energy to heighten the tension 🙂
[MAN WATCHING THIS MADE ME REALLY HUNGRY, THANKS]
I love the dynamic atmosphere that was represented by the shots – I truly felt that. The close up shots of everyone’s faces, hands and feet really showed the subtle movements, along with the social setting as noted in the above statement (although the facial close ups were so uncomfortable to me hfdjkshk). Also, the tensions drastically changes makes me tingle a little bit – the dramatic element heightens the experience of discomfort, changing the tone of the video from normal to an intense murder-esque vibe. You guys done a really good job! 🙂
That was an e x p e r i e n c e ! I loved the sudden switch mid-way where everything became eery and tense. The audio was a key element there, but the colour grading and the choreography itself (the saw, the butter knife, the scratching of legs/knees under the table)… all of these things gave my heart cause to thud at a faster rate. I’m curious about what the second, more chaotic half of the video has to say about the more settled opening. Does it reinforce the contrast of bad and good, dream and nightmare?
Love the glimpse of ordinary life turning quickly sour. I sensed a rift on its way, just from the framing choices and the camera’s interaction with the choreographers. Well done guys!
Again I feel like we’re on the same wavelength with our approach to the “dance film” & focusing on mundane/intricate movements – and yet this one is different again. I love that the focus in on this small group of people, a singular setting, with the purpose of eating/catching up. It seems to borrow conventional techniques (establishing shots, reverse shots for conversations) but gets in closer to really point out the nitty gritty movements in the interaction. I feel like these techniques give a narrative feel to it – but of course there is no plot. The “purpose” you’ve set up when watching this is to notice how each person behaves, moves, and communicates. Only suggestion is to play around with more neutral lighting. Otherwise neat 🙂
It feels like a multiple observation of movement and gestures positioned within the mundane, everyday occurrences. There’s a voyeuristic, therefore a viewer complicit exposition in the first part as the eating and drinking a quite a revealing, personal moments. I’d love some actual eating shots, movements of mouths, etc. That would make it a party. Small, intimate gestures, observations of tiny movements help think of this as a meditation on ‘dance’. Latter part of the piece has a very different energy and this really helps with engaging in the dynamic of the film, it is an interesting paradox to explore further. It has an almost violent, jarring narrative following the ‘around the table’ opening and changes the story, the dynamic. Quite a powerful storytelling device. You guys have certainly managed to successfully transpose the energy that dance film generally explores as well as engendering an emotive response from the viewer. The piece has both a quiet simplicity and the unnerving energy that follows. Well done.
I loved how atmosphere was something you really focused on in this piece. The close up shots really immersed me into the film and thus the atmosphere, and made that shift even more jarring (pairing it with the clouds going over the sun the first time I watched it actually sent a shiver up my spine). I’m still not entirely sure what the story behind that shift is, maybe comparing a comfortable setting with an uncomfortable during the working scenes? Regardless of the plot, it was still enjoyable to watch in an unsettling way, great job guys!
Well done on the experimentation here. I agree with the other comments around the transition: interesting potential but think the idea could be explored further; particularly because the focus in the second half is less on the body, and more on the consequences of something the body is doing. I think you’re playing with some interesting techniques, but not cohesive enough for me to navigate what you’re actually trying to achieve. It would be interesting to have a sense of what your overall vision was, and to talk about how you could go further towards achieving it. Does it have a title? Title’s can be very helpful in framing a more abstract work!
The contrast between the textures of the first and second half of the piece was really quite jarring and had me on the edge of my seat. The transition was quite unexpected and spectacular.
The background chatter really gives it a sense of atmosphere and that is topped off with the music. The close ups in the second half convey a drastically different narrative compared to those in the first. Loved that ending.
.
I loved the atmosphere and the close shots in this. I think you guys really managed to nail each and every moment and at the same time, managed to make us feel really immersed in what we were watching. The shift was interesting and I enjoyed it, I think it’s what really made this work so well. Great job guys.
I enjoyed the use of simple images and sound; I always believe that less is more. I liked how the film started out slow then gained a faster pace as it went on, it suited the uncomfortable nature of the film! I enjoy when a film makes me feel.
On the other hand, I believe a more steady hand on the camera and control over focus could have benefited the piece.
Good job 🙂
It was great to see the finer details of the human face in the fidgety close-ups. You notice the muscles used to perform the action. It’d be interesting to see some of these close-ups play side by side to each other (e.g. eyes blinking and lips moving).
The second part could do with more cohesion. The wood cutting took me out the lunch setting and into a different, more hostile environment. Perhaps, the diegetic sounds of these actions could carry over without their visual counterparts. Wow, sound definitely played an imperative role in creating tension 🙂
Even though I’m still hungry by the end of the video (mmmmm… pizza) I think you guys really captured the experience of anixiety really well! The framing and colour grading of the first half compared to the second really twisted the ‘dance’ of interaction and socialisation into a thinly-veiled set of coping mechanism explored during the sensory-nightmare of the second. Very well-shot and -edited, great job!
Well done guys I thought this was a really interesting film. This really captured the sensory overload of being out in public that some people get. I thought the contrast between the first part and second was really interesting and I read it as a comparison between a relaxing cafe experience, and someone with social anxiety. I felt like I wanted to see the character of the person with anxiety; in the first part an external perspective and the second an inner perspective. I agree with the others that the wood cutting took me out of the cafe setting and was a bit confusing at first. I like the idea of using the diegetic sound like Mya said. I also thought incorporating the sounds of the cafe at increased volume and with specific focus could be interesting.