How to Setup a Camera

Children of Men Analysis using Mise-en-Scene and Sound

The poster of Children of Men

Children on Men is about a dystopian future where everything is as bad as it can be. It is directed by  Alfonso Cuaron and is a Sci-Fi film. It is set In 2027, after 18 years of global human infertility, civilisation is about to collapse as humanity faces the reality of extinction. 

The camera is crucial when introducing the main character as it follows him using a tracking shot out of the cafe. On top of this, the man is also central in the cafe scene, barging through the crowd so we automatically know he is the main character, this reflects his spectacular acting throughout this film.

The costume of the man is very rugged and has loose change which he pays for his coffee with, this backs up his tramp look. Additionally, he has very dull coloured clothing on which contrasts with the buses that are high tech and he is just completely the opposite. He could also be perceived as an alcoholic as he pours whisky into his morning coffee from a flask. This looks like a normal day to day activity for him as he was eager to stop where he first could to put the whiskey in. The clip we watched shows no make up. 

There is mixed elements of lighting throughout the clip. There is some elements of light to show the future and how high-tech and cool it would be to live like that in the future. On the other hand there is also a lot of darkness to show how boring the lives of the people are especially as the plot of the film is about having no kids.

I think London is a good place to have this movie set in because it is familiar as a city to many people. Subsequently the scene looks very realistic even with the addition of the dystopian future objects like the bus with movies on the side.

The sound in Children of Men shows the kind of character he is. As he walks into the coffee shop to order his drink, he is the only person to speak over the news which shows his disinterest to the world around him, this may connote that he is already a bit drunk. The actor is followed by white noise, whilst the crying people and followed by classical music to associate him with negative things. Furthermore, the classical music also acts as a trigger for our emotions which should be sad a sympathetic. There are lots of diegetic sounds like the motorbikes, the news reader and the coffee machines. There is also non diegetic music like the classical music. Finally the noise of the explosion creates white noise that acts as a sound bridge linking one scene to the next. This mean the explosion has affected him emotionally and shows the film from the main characters perspective.

Analysis of the Mise-en-Scene in Scream

The costume of the caller 

Imagine being in a house, away from civilisation. No one around, no neighbours, no family in the house, just you! Ring ring, ring ring. The first time a creepy man calls what what you do? Then if he phoned back within 5 seconds of hanging up, would you be calm and flirt over the phone? Then if he phoned up for the third time, would you start to get slightly worried? Finally the fourth time, where he decides to death threat you and hold your boyfriend hostage in you garden. Would you stay on the phone? POP...POP...POP!

Scream is directed by Wes Craven. The setting comes across to the viewer as spooky. There is a house in the middle of a woodland area with no other houses around. We see this when a crane shot is done from over the trees and the sound effect of crickets is played to show the quietness of the area. This automatically creates a sense of danger for the girl in the house. This is also shown when she is the only one in the house as no one answers the phone and there is no ambient noise from people upstairs or in the other room. When she puts the phone down this shows juxtaposition that she is on her own. In the house, the knives on the counter that she fiddles with whilst on the phone to the caller shows that she is probably going to be killed in the end with this knife. The popcorn that she is cooking on the counter creates suspense as the popping gets faster and faster the more times the man calls. This leads on to the different music and noises that are made.

There is a soundbridge from the title to when we first see the girl, it is a scream to show that something bad is going to happen and it also associates with the title of the film and portrays mystery. The heavy, loud music relates to heart beat and is played just before the phone is answered to show not only how the character is feeling but how we should also feel and creating suspense. Additionally, the piano that is being heard creates the feeling that the viewer should be scared and builds up tension. There is also soft music that is heard that builds up in tempo and dramatic music that changes with the tone of the mans voice. This makes us feel scared.

Moreover, there are many camera angles used for different purposes. A tracking shot is used to follow the girl around the house from room to room. This is done to show that she is alone and vulnerable. A crane shot is used and zoomed in on the house to show isolation. Subsequently a fast zoom is used to show the fear on her face when the caller says something no girl home alone in an isolated area wants to hear. Aswell as the camera angle determinating our emotions, the lighting also makes a huge difference. When is it darker in the house, it is going to be more scarier as it builds suspense. There is only light when she turns the light on her boyfriend, which hints he will be okay in the end but the house still in darkness means she on the other hand will not be. 

The costumes in scream give off lots of hints about what will happen. The main character who is blonde has that colour hair for a reason, which is that in a horror film when a girl is blonde, the audience know that she will automatically be killed. The scary character has a white mask and a black cloak which shows he wants to cover himself up. His mask is very unrealistic and looks like it's be stretched out which makes the character seem much more scary. The blonde girl when acting is very good. At first she is flirting with a random man on the phone and telling him she doesn't have a boyfriend maybe she could be perceived as dishonest. When the suspense starts to build up, the fear is actually shown in her face. 

The blonde girl cooking her popcorn.

About Me

     Hi my name is Billie Alexander. I am 16 years old. I previously studied Geography, French, Art, Maths, Double science, English and JS for my GCSE'S and i am continuing with Geography and Art and additionally Media and Psychology for my A-levels. I am interested in studying media as i have made movies from a young age with my friends on iMovie and video stars ranging from remaking tv shows to making music videos. I have always been interested in film and TV. Lastly my dad owns a media company and i think it looks really fun so would like to learn how to make films, camera angles and what the music should make the viewer feel.

     My favourite genre of films is rom-com or thriller because I find them the most interesting to watch. My favourite actors are Adam Sandler and Liam Neeson. I find Sandler a very funny character in every film he is in and like the genre Neeson is in. My favourite actress is Jennifer Aniston as she mainly stars in rom coms and i find her acting to be very realistic. My favourite film is Taken and the sequel Taken 2 follows on really well to make a twist on the original story. I also like A Cinderella Story which is a rom com. My favourite TV show is Pretty Little Liars and The Vampire Diaries as they are very eventful every programme and always end with the audience wanting to know whats going to happen.

Jennifer Anniston and Adam Sandler

Pretty Little Liars