A COMPILATION OF MY INVESTIGATIONS:

‘The Scene in Cinema’ has been a challenging course that has involved research, practice and investigation. From the beginning we set out to produce and analyse scenes with an underlying focus on shot coverage.The term ‘shot coverage’ became the catalyst for our tasks this semester. Each week we were prescribed different class exercises which saw us constantly filming and working from scripts in an attempt to produce scenes. At the end of each week we reflected on the class exercises in our blog and wrote about the naturally occurring epiphanies that we had. I found that this helped me in creating a consistent flow of ideas and discoveries which had me constantly thinking about cinema. From this, I began thinking about the goals and desires that I wanted to achieve from this course.

Within my initial reflections I found that it was best to keep it simple when filming a scene. A simple approach to an exercise and a direct focus would allow for a well-executed scene. The simple approach was achieved by purely focussing on shot coverage and creating restrictions with the camera such as only being able to film on the tripod. I enjoyed not being burdened with performance, lighting, continuity and narrative when having a direct focus on shot coverage. Keeping this simplicity in mind, I learnt the importance of being able to take risks with the camera. Being experimental with shot coverage and the approach to given exercises was essential.

Through further reflections in my blog I discovered the importance of using filmmaking as a research tool. I realised that I needed to constantly practice with the camera if I wanted to get better at producing a scene. We filmed a 3-6 shot scene (the ‘stairs’ scene) and filmed from scripts in class as part of our research by practice. After rotating roles within these tasks I was able to experience directing, acting, camera operating, booming and assisting.  Most importantly, I learnt that when directing I needed to be certain of my vision before shooting. I needed to know how I was going communicate with the crew and actors whilst still being able to leave room for experimentation and improvisation. At this point I started to see a shift in my methods of working from previous years at University (within Film-TV 1 & 2). The focus at that time was to work collaboratively in a team. The focus now is to be an individual in exploring my own methods of working in cinema.

To further my research by practice I filmed the ‘Crossword’ scene at home which came from a script that I selected in class. This allowed me to experiment and improvise, I was filming to edit. Through this, I was able to achieve dynamic coverage, giving me more options in edit suite. I pre-visualised this scene, researched shots that I liked and wrote some notes before filming.

As part of our individual research we were to find our own scenes from films, analyse and deconstruct them. The first scene I chose was the opening interrogation scene from ‘Scarface’. I selected this scene because it used dynamic shot coverage in such a confined space. I felt that it paralleled with our class exercises because we were working within the constraints of the classroom for most of our scenes. Every few days, I was writing methods of working in my blog which was helpful in developing my own ideas, planning and pre-production for the practical investigations that I was going to undertake in later weeks. In essence, the analysis of  ‘found scenes’ and the methods of working helped to further my understanding of shot coverage and what it is that makes an effective scene.

Originally, my aim this semester was to create a successful scene with an overall focus on composition and shot coverage. I intended to create a scene of my own, with my own style and script. I wanted my scene to be personal, I wanted to be an auteur. I thought that my own style would be evident in how I direct and through the artistic selections that I make. I intended to explore the meaning of shots and symbolism within my work.

As week 7 approached we had a solid understanding of what we wanted to individually explore for the remainder of semester. After having written my methods of working in my blog I became particularly interested in the visual style of a scene. I aimed for my following investigations to have a visual focus. I intended on creating a scene with little dialogue, conveying information through the image. For my proposal to the class I set out to investigate how I could use shot coverage to produce a distinctive, personal and aesthetic scene. In my proposal I suggested that my approach to the scene would centralise around visual style such as the mise en scene, the shot construction, and the framing. I wanted to discover my own distinct style of filming. I set out to analyse scenes that have a distinct visual style, including film art and surrealist film. I aimed to use the camera as a research tool, experimenting with and without a tripod and attempting to film a scene several different times as part of my research by practice. I also wanted to have a personal creative vision. I wanted to tell the story through the visuals and not let dialogue or conventional script lead the way.

My investigations from week 7 onwards saw me continuing my methods of working, analysing scenes, researching terms and practising with the camera. I eliminated the idea of having my own distinct visual style and was centralising my investigations on visual literacy and visual meaning in film. I did four separate shoots with a focus on shot coverage and composition. I filmed a differentiation of the same scene each time trying to adjust aspects of visual style to see what effect it had on the depiction of narrative and meaning. In my first shoot/investigation I focussed on composition and shot coverage in a daytime setting. I shot chronologically from a script written by a friend however the script was not the focus of the scene. The second shoot/investigation I trialled at night, using available lights. I didn’t shoot this chronologically, I was just practising randomly with the camera trying to create visuals that were symbolic or meaningful. As part of this investigation I trialled a quick test with handheld camera to see the effect that it has on the visual meaning of the shots. The third shoot/investigation I had the character moving around the space, incorporating the bedroom scene in order to be more dynamic with the shot coverage and composition. The fourth shoot/investigation was set out to be my final shoot, I used an Ex3 camera in comparison to the DSLR I used in the previous shoots. I also incorporated a dedo light to see its visual effect on depicting the narrative and meaning.

After completely these investigations, reflecting and researching in my blog, my overarching question and statement for this semester became:

How can filmic visuals be used to create a meaningful scene and depict narrative? I sought to understand and apply elements of cinematic visual style to a scene, with a focus on shot coverage and composition.

Overall, the scenes I have created attempt to use visual style to depict narrative and meaning without using a conventional script. I focused on the visuals aspects of shot coverage and composition to tell my story. Within my ‘Screener’, I have edited together scenes that I have shot with a focus on shot coverage, composition, framing and visual language. I have split screen the beginnings of my work with the end results to compare them.

SCREENER:

As a result of my own research, investigations and methods of working I have discovered the ways in which shot coverage and composition can be employed to explore the importance of cinematic visuals and the integral role they play in depicting narrative and meaning. Ultimately, this semester has furthered my understanding of cinema in a way which has allowed me to focus on the shot construction, visual style and composition of a scene. The course has been extremely useful in helping me to achieve my own individual goals and unique methods of working. I intend to keep on exploring and practising with the camera to further investigate shot coverage for my future projects.

Thanks Paul and Robin for a great semester!