Short Term 12: Mark’s rap song (00:39 – 2:20)

Short Term 12 is in my top 10 favorite movies of all time. It’s a beautifully acted, directed and written film that has so much heart, and one that I never fail to love every time I watch it. The film follows Grace (Brie Larson) and Mason (John Gallagher Jr) in a few weeks of their life as social workers in a short term foster care facility for damaged children. This shot takes place from a scene in which one of the kids, Mark (Keith Stanfield), uses his music to communicate his emotional damage from his mums abuse him as a kid and his hatred for his lack of a normal life.

 

Camera

Director Destin Daniel Cretton clearly uses a short focal length in the beginning of the shot, allowing Mark’s notebook to be the subject of the frame. This perfectly symbolizes that lack of material possessions that each of the kids have compared to normal children in the US, whilst also demonstrating that the notebook and the lyrics written on it is the only true important thing in Mark’s life. The fact that his arms and the notebook are in focus in the frame allows his character to appear bonded to the lyrics on the page, a perfect illustration of the connection he feels to his music.

There is also quite a large amount of wobble used in this shot and for the film in general. Whilst some may find it distracting I think the use of handheld camera here allows what we are seeing to appear so much more authentic. We as the audience are seeing humanity and emotions stripped down to it’s rawest possible form.

I also love how actor Keith Stanfield is in focus whilst the rest of the frame is blurred in a short focal length. It demonstrates his own characters isolation from the world around him, whilst simultaneously demonstrating his focus and concentration when performing the song.

It almost appears as if he isn’t in the room, and as if he is instead transported back to the troubled childhood that he is describing in the lyrics.

Finally, there is also a slow track or zoom (it’s hard to tell which) used throughout the shot. As Mark’s emotions become more and more intense throughout the song, the audience is brought closer and closer into his world and his emotions. I have never felt more connected to a character in any film than I have to Mark in this scene. Did I mention I love this movie?

 

Lighting

The glint on the bindings of the notebook suggests that the key light is a soft light being directed from the back right of the frame. A directed backlight is sourced from the window in the back of the frame, and works with the short focal length to separate Stanfield from the rest of the frame. We see spots of brightness across Mark’s body, and this illuminates him as a figure of humanity and emotion, whilst also drawing in audience focus.

 

Sound

The use of sound is incredibly minimalistic in this shot and I think it works really well to the films advantage. There is nothing to distract the audience from the confronting ideas in Mark’s song. Sometimes less is more and I think this is a perfect example of that. The drumbeats are isolated and loud, creating an uncomfortably intensity that reiterates the confronting nature of what Mark’s lyrics describe. This is a raw scene of a young boy describing his abusive upbringing, and I think the film is intelligent and respectful to the content by isolating it and allowing it to be the focus of the shot.

 

What I can take into my own activities:

I mentioned in my experiment outline that I would hope to use a minimal location and this shot is a perfect example of how that can work. It’s also made me consider playing live music in a shot instead of adding it as a non-diegetic soundtrack. If someone was to play guitar/any other instrument live in a shot, it could make everything appear a lot more intense powerful, and allow the subjects in the shot to be a lot more connected to the music.