The intention of this film was that of recreating a differing sensation that is associated with changing relationships and to offer a wide range of viewpoints of characters and events that take place within the relationship. The story was titled a short history of love (2012). The story is basically about two protagonists and their relationship and the idea of a universal relationship that incorporates a wider sense of emotions and involvement.
Most of the content is about the relationship of the two protagonists. A scene where either of them is not available shows the stage at which their emotions were present at that stage of their relationship. Through dialogue this gives the viewer a chance to decide which character’s viewpoints the scene represented if it was not for both of them or neither. The pattern or style used was that of intimacy and classical romance thereby keeping in line with the theme of this film which was, “a short history of love.” Although the shooting style was in line to follow the stylistic qualities of each individual’s interfaces they have maintained a style consistent in giving their project an identity (In Nash, In Hight, In Summerhayes, & Palgrave Connect (Online service) 2014). It does not have the transitions between the interfaces clunky that eliminates distinctive transitions that are unique to the interfaces. They have used the intimacy perspective of the characters because they wanted to show the way the two protagonists or couples see themselves. I think the sound is used in the film as a unifying factor. Also giving a feeling of continuity in the film by having one soundtrack playing in the background. This made the project cohesive and less linear.
The project thumbnails and interfaces are related with the intent to engage the viewer with the sensations involved with every stage in the relationship. The thumbnails where chosen to match with the interfaces and have been made sure that their sizing and placement is consistent with their content (In Nash, In Hight, In Summerhayes, & Palgrave Connect (Online service) 2014).
The layout of the film is intended to trigger an emotion or an idea as the interfaces show that falling and being in love are connected in the placement of the interfaces. An interface depicting a stage in the relationship showing the two protagonists being on separate paths relationship wise has only a few thumbnails. They are however of different sizes and are scattered in a random fashion around the screen. This was done to show the protagonists in different stages of being, influencing and being influenced mostly by their relationship. This included the feelings that the two characters had for each other and also their conflicting self- views. The term “they are” also is successfully broadened to stand for more than just the status of the protagonist’s relationship but for a range of elements. They range from their state of emotions to the direction of their thoughts. The story is narrative driven so a high level of linearity is maintained (In Nash, In Hight, In Summerhayes, & Palgrave Connect (Online service) 2014).
In keeping with the time line of the relationship it is show the flux back and forth in between the strength to weakness. It allows the user to continue forward as well as rewind and visit earlier stages. The producer chose a progression of the narrative without being the one to control the pace or the direction the user would want to take. None of the interface in the project contains a text that explains the relationship between the thumbnails/videos or the gaps that are between the interfaces. No text is required because it wasn’t required to demonstrate the structure and the pattern of the videos. (In Nash, In Hight, In Summerhayes, & Palgrave Connect (Online service). 2014)
Each individual will reinterpret the film in his or her unique way. They made sure that their project only depicts a loose interpretation of a relationship ensuring that the user will come up with the meaning in order to turn the project into a full story that is easy to follow. They also ensured that only a part of the relationship is told while the rest is told via unreliable narration. The user gets the opportunity to decide on which videos are biased and the direction which they lead the project. The user can even choose to be an omniscient narrator by selecting the sections that are of utmost importance than others. Since the project is non-linear with the capacity to travel in any direction throughout time, the user will be able to edit the project by arranging the clips in a certain pattern thus shifting the balance of cause and effect. He or she can as well decide to actively change the order in which the clips follow each other as well as in their own personal capacity as he delivers the meaning from them. The user cannot order these clips manually but can view them as linear or non-linear.
Word Counts: 836
References
In Nash, K., In Hight, C., In Summerhayes, C., & Palgrave Connect (Online service). (2014). New documentary ecologies: Emerging platforms, practices and discourses
