Film Worksheet

Art Education 1600

Art and Music since 1945

For this assignment, you are to see a film this semester and fill out your worksheet. In a nutshell, your job is to use the skills you learned for the Art Worksheet, but now you will have to consider combinations of sound and moving images, which will complicate the task in different ways.

Step 1 Select a Film

Selecting a film to watch may seem as simple as picking a movie with favorite actors or a genre you like (science fiction, super heroes, detective mysteries, romance). Selecting a movie, however, with enough interesting content to write about is another matter. In addition to having a plot, as most movies do, there have to be other complexities involved. Because you cannot always know this when you buy your ticket, you should read reviews beforehand. Two kinds of reviews can be helpful. First, professional critics, who have seen many movies, write from a well-informed point of view, but theirs is just one point of view. Many critics address mainstream audiences or small niche audiences with a particular interest. Other critics may specialize in one film genre or the other. Whatever the case, they can tell you a lot about the plot and depth of a film, but there is more to consider.

Beyond the perspective of Professional critic, there are other voices from moviegoers, like yourselves, who have seen films you are interested in and they often post their responses on blogs and theater websites. These reviews are not from professionals, but can be just as valid, so long as they tell why they feel the way they do about one movie or another. Both kinds of critics can be helpful as you narrow your choice of a film to write about. In the end, you still have to pick a film on the list you feel like writing about. Think of this task as a challenge to yourself.

State the title of the film you chose:

Citations and References

If you decide you use ideas from the film reviews you read, whether from a professional critic or anyone else, write the name of the source here, so it will be easy to put in your reference list (bibliography).

REMEMBER

1. The film you select must be one that you view personally. You must see a film that is in theaters this semester and you must see it in a theater. Even if you choose an older film made in 1945 or later, we want you to see the film in a theater. At a theater, you see and feel the effects of the sound and moving images that are crucial to every film. When shown on television or even played from a DVD on a cutting edge five-channel system, the experience is not the same as going to a theatre.

2. In order to connect cultural and social ideas we discuss in class, you should choose a film that has enough substance to write about. It will help you to look at reviews as you choose your film. To help you choose a film for this assignment, you will find some guidelines below.

3. Before you attend the film, look over the Film Worksheet so you know what to look for while in the theater. You probably won't take notes during the film, but you can make your notes afterward, if you find a place where you can concentrate, you will be surprised at how much you will recall about the film and your experience viewing it.

Step 2 Complete the Worksheet

Here are several questions that will help you organize information about your film viewing experience for your Worksheet. Write detailed notes for each answer so you have something to weave into logical paragraphs.

Step2.1: Tell about your theater attendance as a social event
Social interaction is important in the making of an art form, and it is also important for the audience. All of these factors influence overall enjoyment of a film. Analyze and describe the environmental conditions and how your circumstances affected your perception of the film.

* How did you feel about the audience when you walked into the theatre? Did you notice anyone in particular? Did they see you; and how did you feel about that?

* Did you go to the movie alone or with someone?

* When did you go to the film, the middle of the week when you had no homework? A rainy day?Over the weekend?Spur of the moment?

* Was it opening night?

* What was the mood of the crowd?

* Did you fit in?

* Were you comfortable?

Type your response below in 200 words:

Step 2.2 The film and you.

An important part of film critique is how the director holds the audience's attention

Pulp Fiction, the director manipulates the pace of the film, switching between 1) scenes where two characters have a long conversation and the camera is still and 2) lots of action fast camera work. When the film slows down you become aware of how long even one minute your time in the theatre can seem, but when the pace picks up, time is compressed and you don't notice the minutes passing. Changes like this are how the director keeps your attention.

Another example: Some television shows set the scene with colored lighting and music that ‘rocks,' which is very unlikely in, say, a forensic lab. Yet these theatrics hold our attention and we like believing these things are possible.

All this content that plays with your attention span (and your imagination) helps you forget where you are. Every piece of equipment from the huge screen, to the sound system supports the director's attempts to take you into their world. This is, in fact, one of the reasons we require you to attend a theatre.

So, how do you think the director pulled you into the world of the film? Were there surprises that kept your attention? Were effects overstated? Were they tiresome or ridiculous?

Type your response below

Step 2.3 Analyse the film technically

To help you pick out aspects of the film that you can analyze, read this table and include the vocabulary and examples in your responses.

FRAMEWORK FOR ANALYZING FILM (http://www.frankwbaker.com/filmframework.htm)

Literary Aspects

* Narrative (the story, story line, what the story line is based on; binary oppositions; disruption of an equilibrium and how a new equilibrium sets in).

* Characters (heroes, villains, helpers, main characters, supporting characters, and how characters function and contribute to our understanding of the story).

* Setting (physical environment in which filming occurs, indoor or outdoor setting, its significance).

* Theme (general statement about the subject).

* Signs (anything perceptible that has significance beyond its usual function or meaning; an object, a sound, a person, an act, a color).

* Genre (romance, comedy, suspense, a combination of different genres).Dramatic Aspects

* Acting (the performance of actors, whether it is convincing or not).

* Costumes (formal clothes, informal clothes, their color, and their contribution to the film).

* Make-up (style, color, whether it is exaggerated or plain, the effect it creates, colors).Cinematic Aspects

* Camera angles, movements, and positions (low camera angle, high camera angle, close-up, extreme close-up, tilted camera, and how these affect our understanding).

* Sound and vision (sound effects, soundtrack music, visual effects).

* Lighting (illumination in a scene).
From the list above pick at least two aspects from each category (Literary, Dramatic, and Cinematic) and tell in the three responses, below, how they were used in the film:

1. Literary Aspects - Type your response here in 100 words

2. Dramatic Aspects - Type your response here in 100 words

3. Cinematic Aspects - Type your response here in 100 words

Step 2.4

Interpret the film and tell the significance of the film and its audience.

Enter responses after each question, below, each in 100 words. Include examples from step 2.3.

1. Who is telling the story? Why is it being told? Does it appear to have a purpose?

(media agencies, authorial voice, influences from marketing, economics, ideology)

2. How is it experienced? Who 'consumes' it, where and in what way?
(Readers and media audiences- private and public experience, narrative structures [how parts are assembled into one narrative])

3. How is it made?
(What film technologies? One-time story? Part of a sequence of films? Does it have an audience following (i.e., Trekies that follow Star Trek)?

4. How does it construct meaning?
(Film language and written language-expectations of audiences and readers, codes and conventions. Are there symbols we see throughout, but are never put into words? Body language? Other visuals or sounds other than words)

5. How does it represent its subject- especially with reference to period?
(Representation, use of stereotypes, representation of the past. Does it ridicule or glorify a stereotype? Is the setting or are characters exaggerated? Diminished?)