Presentation Assignment
2/10/2023
Given our first real assignment now, we have been put into groups of three and fours where from there we decided on a film to present, and the question we were going to answer in relation to any scene we please as an individual.
Working alongside Blake, Harry and Kai, I will be focusing on the editing and how it brings meaning into the film of our choice. Blake will be doing the same for cinematography, Mis-En-Scene for Harry leaving Kai with the sound.
Coming together to decide, rather than going with something well known and accidentally choosing the same title as one of the other groups, we agreed to instead dive into the deep end and pick out a film none of us have seen leaving us blank on what to expect.
For that film, the 1986 comedy, 'Down by Law' was our choice. Being about a prison escape essentially, out of the options of what none of us had seen, this one grabbed our attentions most.
Having until the 31st of this month to submit something, I will update this blog with anything and everything relevant as we work on our presentation together.
9/10/2023
With the film watched now, I was intending to just sit and watch the film letting myself get to know what it is and what to expect. But I couldn't help myself and did make a few notes:
- Editing is continuous, story is unfolding naturally.
- For every shot in the film, it is one long shot no cuts or fancy cinematography tricks.
- In the prison cell, every new shot is a time lapse showing how long the two have been there.
- Black and white.
- With the long shots, it allows us to get personal and uncomfortable with the characters through the silent gaps.
- Cut to black transitions are the only transitions used.
- As the boat is on sinking and the three are stood watching, the camera is in a higher up angle looking down on the characters, highlighting their defeat.
- As Roberto is cooking the rabbit, the camera cuts between the three characters doing their own thing, in their own worlds until they bump back into each other. Creating delusion.
- The film is basically 'A way out' without the betrayal, and 'Escape plan' without the plan.
Watching this on the fifth, it did allow me to ask a question about the assessment the following day. In the brief it states we must choose a scene to talk about being impossible to fit the entire movie into five minutes, but not exactly having a full scene I could talk about when it comes to the editing, it was answered that I could chop it up and talk about the multiple sections, as long as I can get it all out in five minutes of course.
10/10/2023
A tip made today for when it comes to the presentation;
- Remember terminology.
- How is the camera displayed?
- Analyse/Interpret how these stylistic choices affect the overall meaning of the film.
Just finished our lecture, my group have arranged to meet up in the next half an hour or so to figure out what we are doing, and how we are doing it.
Besides that for now, each week we have been focussing on one of the four elements we are having to talk about, and next week will be 'editing'. So with that, I will get what I can done between now and then but after that session I will make sure to rewatch 'Down by Law' and see what final notes I can gather. With this time around I will be able to catch things I hadn't noticed in the first watch.
With them now, here are some notes made from looking into the behind the scenes.
- The film was deliberately slow-paced to allow the audience to immerse with the characters worlds.
- The film won a best cinematography award at the Venice Film Festival.
22/10/2023
Learning about editing in last weeks reading the screen session and only just getting my hands on my film books yesterday, I will be using the new-found information to help strengthen my views and points in the upcoming presentation.
Since last weeks notes are still freshly in mind, I will rewrite them here and link what I can to the film before making a start on the books allowing me to focus on enough at a time.
- Tension editing.
- Rhythmic relations.
- Spatial relations.
- Temporal relations.
- Graphical relations.
- 180 system.
- Shot reverse shot.
- Eyeline match.
- Cross-cutting.
Although I do have my chosen sequence, I will rewatch the title whilst thinking more about the techniques we focussed on for Bonnie and Clyde, and create new, fresher notes in order to strengthen my presentation, as said.
UPDATE
The film has now been rewatched, and I am pleased to say the notes I have been are definitely an improvement compared to my first watch.
Before I get onto that, I have also made a start on scripting and getting together exactly what it is I want to talk about over on a word document that will be embedded once it is ready.
Back to the notes:
The opening sequence has spatial editing with the camera continuously panning to the left, revealing multiple environments up until we meet Jack in his humble abode.
Graphic relation is used in our introduction for both Jack and Zack as we see them getting into bed with their partners who were both asleep, with both shots ending as the girl opens her eyes dramatically followed by the music tuning back in.
Maybe a combination of spatial and graphical, after we first meet Jack, the sequence repeats only panning to the right this time until we find Zack.
Repeating once more, the sequence pans left again until the screen fades to black allowing the credits to pop up with the music disappearing, allowing us to hear the sirens and dogs barking the same audio used for the escape scene.
There is no use of tension editing, instead we sit in one spot and watch the actions take place. The first example I have of this is Zack arguing with his girlfriend, Laurette. And when I say arguing, that is just Laurette having a go at Zack whilst he sits and takes the abuse. But through that scene where she is throwing things and begins smacking him, the camera sits still, as if we're sitting on the bed with Zack, watching these events take place.
We are sharing the experience with the characters.
The shots linger going for a "minimalist approach." https://youtu.be/whuF4dxKpio?si=KggT494gAHzBtGKm Independent world, sad, emotional and beautiful filmmaking. (Got a little distracted from the film and found a YouTube video explaining the directors style as such.)
After Zack has been kicked out of the house, he begins singing "It's a sad and beautiful world" where we also first meet Roberto and he quotes it back to Zack. And that, as found in the video above, is exactly what Jim Jarmusch aims to capture.
Cross-cutting between Zack and Jack getting on with their lives before both are arrested.
Temporal - in the prison cell, each shot would last a few minutes before cutting to the next. For when it did, the shot after would be a time jump implicitly showing us how long they have been there. Additionally with the chalk lines increasing for each shot.
As Roberto is thrown into the jail, we are given an excruciatingly long and uncomfortable scene creating a more personal and awkward scene as the Italian inmate attempts to make conversation. Again, the camera stays in place as if we are sat there with them, feeling the awkward tension.
A small temporal one, in that same shot neither Zack nor Jack speaks to Roberto, but in shot B he walks up to Zack addressing him by the other inmates name and doing the same to Jack for Zacks name.
The ice scream sequence adds tension onto how long they have been stuck in that cell for, creating madness.
"The film is less about the escape but the relationships of the escapees." Temporal as the escape isn't shown with detail. The are let out the cell to go outside in shot A, then shot B they are running through the sewers.
As Roberto is left alone claiming he cannot swim, the only tension built is the noises growing louder from the dogs barking just as the Italian is ready to give himself in before Zack comes back for him.
Temporal, the inmates are back on land, dry and resting.
Where the three characters find the boat house, the camera slowly pans with them as if we are sneaking in with them.
Temporal, shot A they are standing around the sinking boat early in the day, shot B it is late at night, Roberto is missing with Jack and Zack beginning to fight.
Following that, cross-cutting is used going between the three characters as they become oblivious, storming off talking to themselves in their own worlds.
At the dinner table of Nikoletta's, with the camera placement it is as if we are sat with them.
At the end, as they are saying their goodbyes, for the first time Roberto addresses the two by their correct names, first try.
Now to focus more on the scene itself I will be talking about.
25/10/2023
Using the notes made, here is a flat plan of my presentation:
Just being a base for how I will be presenting my question, the text has been moved over onto the official slides with adjustments being made to strengthen my topic as I type this.
27/10/2023
Clearly being unable to use the script word for word, I have however, made a second draft where I made it longer finding more things to talk about to fill out the five minutes. With the same restriction, again I won't be using it in the real presentation but it has gave me a stronger base for layering out my slideshows which for the text itself, has been shortened into one sentenced bullet points so once I see the note on the screen, I will know what I am talking about thinking about the script.
30/10/2023
With the deadline approaching, me and Blake had spent our last day making sure we had everything in place followed by more rehearsals in preparation of tomorrow. Happy with what we've got, here is the final product:
And with that, a big good luck to myself and my group for tomorrow.
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