Before creating anything, inspiration is a vital part. I have looked at a variety of short films to get my inspiration.
The first short film that really stood out was 'Validation', a film about a man who made everyone happy by complimenting everyone. He then meets a lady who's forgotten how to smile and tries everything to make her happy. He fails to make her smile and gets disheartened...However it ends with him finding her again after making her mum smile. They then get together. Although I like the message of the short film I don't think it would be an easy film to replicate. It would also be difficult to implement genre theory. It is filmed in black and white with natural lighting used throughout. I'm unsure the reason for using black and white as it is often used in horror to intensify an eerie atmosphere. It also helps to highlight the high contrast lighting often used in the horror genre. Perhaps it is used in validation to highlight the mellow, complimentary lighting used. This highlights tranquillity and calm. It also prevents audiences being distracted by the surroundings as the black and white effect helps to focus the attention on the characters. There are no dramatic events that occur during this film as it focuses around people’s emotions. Therefore, a lot of close-up shots are used to convey the characters emotions to the audience. This is one aspect of the film that I hope to implement into my own. Using close-ups in my film will be important in establishing how the characters are feeling so that audience connect with characters and understand the atmosphere of the film. The film is a professional production including a number of creditable actors. It was entered into a number of short film competitions. It is probably directed at a mature audience although it is suitable for audiences of all ages. It could be aired on the majority of television channels although it would likely be shown to a mainstream audience due to its large appeal.
Here is a link to the short film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbk980jV7AoThe next short film that inspired me was 'New Boy' about an African child and his first day at a new school in Ireland. I appreciated the film for the camera work such as a match cut at 6:46 and several cutaways used at poignant times during the film, showing school back in his native culture. They help show the contrast in the boy’s emotions and the difficulty of joining a new school. Although I will try to implement some of the films techniques I was more interested at looking into the thriller/horror genres.
Here is a link to the short film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdeioVndUhs
The most influential short film I’ve seen is ‘Lovefield’. I loved the idea of using typical conventions of one genre to make the audience think one thing and it to be quite different. In this case the short film uses sound, editing and props that would be associated with the horror genre. Lovefield makes you think that a woman is being attacked when she is actually giving birth. When creating my short film I would also like to play with audiences associations with genre conventions to create a suprising ending. The film begins with a long take tilting slowly downwards. The peaceful, silent landscape signifies equilibrium, yet evokes an uneasy atmosphere. Although natural lighting is used, the film has been de-saturated to create an eerie atmosphere. Repetitive high-pitched notes played in a consistent rhythm have strong connotations with the horror genre. Non-diegetic sounds of a high-pitched violin are used in Lovefield to intensify the eerie atmosphere. The film tilts from the cornfield to a rusty creaking sign, blowing in the wind. It also connotes how rural the area is. This evokes feelings of unease from the audience. A crow situated on the sign breaks the equilibrium. As it squawks, the camera slowly tilts down through the corn and pans across the field floor. The film uses strong visual signifiers such as blood and a knife cutting into the soil to signify brutality. The apparent victim is pictured through close ups of their foot. The close up shows the foot twitching slowly then becoming motionless. This signifies that the apparent victim has been killed. The non-diegetic sounds enhance the visuals, intensifying up to the point of the foot becoming motionless where the slow draining noises suddenly cease. The dissonant shot of the knife plunging into the soil cuts the silence. The hand is covered in blood which further enhances the audiences assumptions. They presume the male character shown looking shifty to be the murderer. Tracking shots show the antagonist to run away from the scene. The short film uses sound to heighten the drama and connote the panic of the murderer. The relentless squawking highlights the disequilibrium. Material is taken from his car as he steps back towards the victim. Sound is once again used to play along with genre conventions as it intensifies. The audience presume that he is covering up the body as material is placed over the lens. However, the twist at the end of the film is that the POV shot is of the baby. Mellow music, in stark contrast to the rest of the film now enters the scene as the film becomes saturated. I love the way in which the film transformed from the horror to romance genre. The continued enigmas throughout the film keep the audiences intrigued and enthralled. Mathieu Ratthe, an amateur filmmaker, produced Lovefield. It was likely aimed at a mature audience interested in horror. It appears to have been created specifically for a short film competition. It is rare for short film to be shown on television but I could see it being shown on a segment of the culture show as they often discuss avante garde artists and post modernism which this film fits into. Here is a link to the short film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4meeZifCVro
Another influential film I've seen is Jane Eyre. I liked the cinematography and the way it managed to build up tension without dialogue for large periods of the film. I also liked the opening scene as the cinematography creates a cold dark atmosphere of the woods using dim, foggy lighting. It's shown me how important lighting and colour effects the atmosphere of a film. Psycho links to this as I liked the use of black and white cinematography during the film. It links strongly to horror films and could be used in my short film to connote the horror genre. One part of psycho that i appreciated was the match cut of the drain to her eye. It was a great piece of editing. I love the way in which it Hitchcock used the transition to connote the life draining from her, like the blood slowly swirling down the drain. Here is a link to the infamous Psycho shower scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VP5jEAP3K4 match cut at 2:52
'The Insane' like Lovefield, has a twist at the end. This is something I would like to do in my short film. It begins with a POV shot fading in and out, slowly walking towards a creepy character. The POV shot is filmed with a handheld camera to signify this. Low key lighting enhances the eeriness of the situation. Fast cuts are used zooming into the antagonist as he flings the butcher knife threateningly towards the POV character. In self defence, the main character is depicted to attack the antagonist using a shot of his shadow effectively. As the plot continues we realise that the whole city is full of mutants. This mutant, zombie like theme that the film covers is fairly unrealistic so didn't engage me in the same way as Lovefield. Much of the film focuses on these fight scenes, which I feel doesn't often work in horrors. I usually prefer signified brutality. However the implicit visual brutality used in this film is justified due to the themes it is covering; horror, psychological thriller and psychopathic, hallucinogenic individuals. Later in the film a news report depicting the protagonist as a murderer is shown. We then see all the brutal murders from the mutants’ point of view. I would like to use this element when filming. We then realise that the main character is delusional. I am thinking of making a film that has elements of both horror and psychological thriller, using twists. It appears to be an amateur production entered for a filming competition. If it was to be shown on television I would think it would enter into a niche market and be shown after the watershed.
The most influential short film I’ve seen is ‘Lovefield’. I loved the idea of using typical conventions of one genre to make the audience think one thing and it to be quite different. In this case the short film uses sound, editing and props that would be associated with the horror genre. Lovefield makes you think that a woman is being attacked when she is actually giving birth. When creating my short film I would also like to play with audiences associations with genre conventions to create a suprising ending. The film begins with a long take tilting slowly downwards. The peaceful, silent landscape signifies equilibrium, yet evokes an uneasy atmosphere. Although natural lighting is used, the film has been de-saturated to create an eerie atmosphere. Repetitive high-pitched notes played in a consistent rhythm have strong connotations with the horror genre. Non-diegetic sounds of a high-pitched violin are used in Lovefield to intensify the eerie atmosphere. The film tilts from the cornfield to a rusty creaking sign, blowing in the wind. It also connotes how rural the area is. This evokes feelings of unease from the audience. A crow situated on the sign breaks the equilibrium. As it squawks, the camera slowly tilts down through the corn and pans across the field floor. The film uses strong visual signifiers such as blood and a knife cutting into the soil to signify brutality. The apparent victim is pictured through close ups of their foot. The close up shows the foot twitching slowly then becoming motionless. This signifies that the apparent victim has been killed. The non-diegetic sounds enhance the visuals, intensifying up to the point of the foot becoming motionless where the slow draining noises suddenly cease. The dissonant shot of the knife plunging into the soil cuts the silence. The hand is covered in blood which further enhances the audiences assumptions. They presume the male character shown looking shifty to be the murderer. Tracking shots show the antagonist to run away from the scene. The short film uses sound to heighten the drama and connote the panic of the murderer. The relentless squawking highlights the disequilibrium. Material is taken from his car as he steps back towards the victim. Sound is once again used to play along with genre conventions as it intensifies. The audience presume that he is covering up the body as material is placed over the lens. However, the twist at the end of the film is that the POV shot is of the baby. Mellow music, in stark contrast to the rest of the film now enters the scene as the film becomes saturated. I love the way in which the film transformed from the horror to romance genre. The continued enigmas throughout the film keep the audiences intrigued and enthralled. Mathieu Ratthe, an amateur filmmaker, produced Lovefield. It was likely aimed at a mature audience interested in horror. It appears to have been created specifically for a short film competition. It is rare for short film to be shown on television but I could see it being shown on a segment of the culture show as they often discuss avante garde artists and post modernism which this film fits into.
Another influential film I've seen is Jane Eyre. I liked the cinematography and the way it managed to build up tension without dialogue for large periods of the film. I also liked the opening scene as the cinematography creates a cold dark atmosphere of the woods using dim, foggy lighting. It's shown me how important lighting and colour effects the atmosphere of a film. Psycho links to this as I liked the use of black and white cinematography during the film. It links strongly to horror films and could be used in my short film to connote the horror genre. One part of psycho that i appreciated was the match cut of the drain to her eye. It was a great piece of editing. I love the way in which it Hitchcock used the transition to connote the life draining from her, like the blood slowly swirling down the drain. Here is a link to the infamous Psycho shower scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VP5jEAP3K4 match cut at 2:52
'The Insane' like Lovefield, has a twist at the end. This is something I would like to do in my short film. It begins with a POV shot fading in and out, slowly walking towards a creepy character. The POV shot is filmed with a handheld camera to signify this. Low key lighting enhances the eeriness of the situation. Fast cuts are used zooming into the antagonist as he flings the butcher knife threateningly towards the POV character. In self defence, the main character is depicted to attack the antagonist using a shot of his shadow effectively. As the plot continues we realise that the whole city is full of mutants. This mutant, zombie like theme that the film covers is fairly unrealistic so didn't engage me in the same way as Lovefield. Much of the film focuses on these fight scenes, which I feel doesn't often work in horrors. I usually prefer signified brutality. However the implicit visual brutality used in this film is justified due to the themes it is covering; horror, psychological thriller and psychopathic, hallucinogenic individuals. Later in the film a news report depicting the protagonist as a murderer is shown. We then see all the brutal murders from the mutants’ point of view. I would like to use this element when filming. We then realise that the main character is delusional. I am thinking of making a film that has elements of both horror and psychological thriller, using twists. It appears to be an amateur production entered for a filming competition. If it was to be shown on television I would think it would enter into a niche market and be shown after the watershed.One piece of inspiration gained from short films such as ‘Lovefield’ and ‘The Insane’ is that dialogue isn’t the focus of the film. A convention of short films is the minimal dialogue used. I found that sound, mise en scene and camera shots can be used to provide the narrative. In my psychological thriller, I will focus on these three areas as my film won’t be including any professional actors. Focusing on the other areas will keep the professionalism of the film, where I would feel that large amounts of dialogue could ruin the films narrative. When filming a physiological thriller, camera shots such as POV shots and close up can be used to show how the characters feeling. Sound and lighting are vital in establishing the films atmosphere at the start. Using low key lighting and repetitive high percussive sounds can be used to create an unsettling atmosphere.
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