Film Study

Faith Is Believing In Something When It Is Beyond All Reason To Believe

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“Signs” by Night Shyamalan

mise-en-scene: the arrangement of scenery and properties to represent the place where a play or movie is enacted.

1. What are the first images in the film (often while the credits are rolling), and what do they tell you.

2. Where and when is the film set and how do you know this?

3. Do the objects and props in the setting, whether natural ones (like rivers and trees) or artificial ones (like paintings and buildings), have a special significance that relates to the characters or story?

Sound and music: Diegetic sound:  Sound whose source is visible on the screen or whose source is implied to be present by the action of the film: voices of characters sounds made by objects in the story music represented as coming from instruments in the story space ( = source music) Diegetic sound is any sound presented as originated from source within the film's world. Digetic sound can be either on screen or off screen depending on whatever its source is within the frame or outside the frame.

Non-diegetic sound: sound whose source is neither visible on the screen nor has been implied to be present in the action: narrator's commentary, sound effects which is added for the dramatic effect or mood music Non-diegetic sound is represented as coming from the a source outside story space.

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The distinction between diegetic or non-diegetic sound depends on our understanding of the conventions of film viewing and listening.  We know of that certain sounds are represented as coming from the story world, while others are  represented as coming from outside the space of the story events.  A play with diegetic and non-diegetic conventions can be used to create ambiguity (horror), or to surprise the audience (comedy).

4. Find an example of Non-digetic sound? Why was this convention used? Be sure to describe the scene.

5. Find an example of Diegetic sound. Why was this convention used? Be sure to describe the scene.

The use of different shots can influence the meaning which an audience will interpret:Close-up shot: An image in which the distance between the subject and the point of view is very short, as in a "close-up of a person's face." It is considered the director's chief way of directing our vision and of emphasizing a detail. A close up may be used to show tension.

6. Find a close-up shot. Explain why it was used; be sure to describe the scene.

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High angle shot: The camera is placed higher than the subject, often suggesting a God's-eye view of helpless and vulnerable people.

7. Find an example of a High angle shot. Why this type of a shot used?

Pan shot: The camera is mounted on a non-moving base and films while pivoting on its axis along the line of the horizon from left to right to right to left.

8. Identify an example of a Pan Shot:

9. Track Shot: a camera shot taken from a moving dolly. Identify an example of a track shot.

Complete the following chart.Question: Example: When and where does this occur in the

film? Please describe the scene.

Camera movement: (Zoom in/Zoom out)

Find an example of a (Zoom in/Zoom out) shot in the film.

Editing: Dissolve

Can you find an example of dissolve in the film?

1 – PanHow: Move the camera horizontally left or right. Ideally, you should use a tripod for a smooth effect. To be a great "panner", practice the shot several times at several speeds before you feel comfortable with it. Why: To follow a subject or show the distance between two objects. Pan shots also work great for panoramic views such as a shot from a mountaintop to the valley below. Rule: Always start on a still shot, began the pan, and finish on a still shot. Practice first. Look at the scene as the pan reaches the middle portion between the beginning and end of the scene. If there is nothing worth seeing,

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then the pan isn't worth shooting.2 – ZoomZoom: when the camera is manipulated from the least to the greatest magnification or greatest to least magnification.

3 – DissolveDissolve- A method of making a transition from one shot to another by briefly superimposing one image upon another and then allowing the first image to disappear. A dissolve is a stronger form of transition than a cut and indicates a distinct separation in action.

Theme-- Themes or what the movie is "about" become the foundation for a film analysis since they point to the main ideas in a movie. Asking the following questions can help you understand a film's theme:

Who are the central characters?

What do they represent in themselves and in relation to each other? The importance of individuality in society?

How do their actions create a story with some meanings or constellation of meanings?

Does the story emphasize the benefits of change or endurance?

What kind of life or what actions does the film wish you to value or criticize, and why?

How does the movie make you feel at the end? Happy? Depressed? Confused? And why?

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Conventions of the Horror Film: the monster (Aliens) is the repressed horrors or fears we have within ourselves and within society.

Suspense: How does the director Night Shyamalan build suspense in the movie Signs?

1. Through Music: a. Films and television shows often incorporate music. Music can be used in

order to:i. Evoke a period of history

ii. Describe what the characters are feelingiii. Heighten suspenseiv. Bring new musicians and music groups to the public’s attentionv. Guide the audience’s mood

If a director would like to heighten suspense they use music to put the audience on the edge of their seats before the scary stuff even begins.

Find two scenes in the movie “Signs” where the author uses this technique to put the audience on the edge of their seats even before any scary stuff even happens.

Describe the Scene How is Suspense Created Did the Music put you on the edge of your seat? Why or why not?

1.

2.

Point of View: sometimes called “over the shoulder shot”- the camera takes on the perspective of the character’s eyes.

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A Reaction Point of View shot:

It is usually established by being positioned between a shot of a character looking at something, and a shot showing the character's reaction.

“Reaction Point of View” is used to enhance the fear of the unknown in the movie “Signs”, find an example in the film: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Iconography

Iconography is the representation of an idea through an image:

Iconography is an important aspect of genre. We expect to see certain objects on screen when we see a particular genre, for example, in a Western, dusty lonely roads, saloon bars, cowboy hats and horses, jails, sheriffs badges, guns, etc.; in a modern horror film, we expect young girls, ‘normal’ objects, use of dark and light and suspense.

The best example of iconography in the film is the house. What idea does the house communicate to the audience?

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Symbols

In the film “Signs” the focus on water is a symbol of purity. Find three examples in the film where the director focuses on water. How do these scenes symbolize purity?

Description of Scene How does the scene symbolize purity?

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In the film “The Open Spaces Between Characters”, “The Repetition of Family Portraits” and “The Empty Chairs” are all symbols of “The Loss of Wife and Mother”. Find an example of one of these three symbols and write a brief description of the scene.

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What does the repetition of the cross symbolize?

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The loss of belief is emphasized through the use of fades. Find an example of a “fade” in the film. Why does the scene emphasize the loss of belief?

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The fact that aliens blend into the background suggests that evil is camouflaged in the familiar. In our modern day society is evil camouflaged in the familiar? If so, provide an example.

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Light and Shadow

Graham’s internal struggles are most strongly illustrated through the use of light and shadow. Find two examples in the film where Graham is struggling internally. Is the scene dark or light? Are there any shadows?

Description of the scene Description of the light and shadows

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Analyze the Alien Shot on the Roof:

Bo Tells Graham, “She doesn’t answer me either,” Graham’s emotional state is emphasized by what type of a shot? Describe the shot.

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What object in the film foreshadows the Alien Invasion?

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