MODULE 3 Reading Theater and Film as Visual Artworks

UNIT 2 Analyzing and Evaluating Film as a Visual Art

Characteristics of Film

1. Films are like novels or short stories. Films tell a story.

2. Film has different genres: romance, historical, detective, thriller, action, horror, and
science fiction.
3. Films can also be sub-grouped: action, comedy, tragedy, dram, western and war.
4. Films teach more than what we feel to be able to create a special atmosphere,
feeling or emotions.
5. Films give details in sounds, music, lighting, camera angles and editing.

Elements of Film

Film analysis involves looking into the film content and film forn. Film content
includes what the film is presenting; film form refers to how the is presented.

Film Information
Title of the film | Year of the film/ release date | Names of actors and actresses |
Director | Genre

Genre has a huge influence on the film’s content and form. Though, film
genres are ever expanding.
main genre: romance, historical, detective, thriller, war, horror science
fiction
sub-category: action, comedy, tragedy, drama, western and war

1. Literary design consists of the story ideas and the script. The story ideas include the
characters and their actions in the story, the setting of the story, the setting of the
story, and any background story or subtext.

Setting Plot
Where and when does the story How is the plot structured? How are
take place? the events sequenced?

✔ Is it set in the past, present or ✔ Is there more than one plot?

future? ✔ Is it linear or chronological or is it
✔ Is it set in a realistic or fictional presented using flashbacks?
environment?
 ✔ Is the setting consistent from the ✔ Does it have a clear conclusion or
start to the end of the story? an ambiguous (open-ended)
conclusion?
Conflict
What is the main problem of the protagonist? What is the tension that is the
heart of the film?

✔ Is the protagonist facing a problem with himself (internal: man vs.

himself)?
✔ Is the protagonist facing a problem with other characters or the
environment (external: man vs. man; man vs. nature)?
Characterization Images
What are the visual
How are the characters described?
representation of
✔ Does the protagonist have a few traits or things we see in the
many traits? film?

✔ Does the protagonist undergo change in or

does he remain the same till the end?

Theme Point of View

What is the universal
What is the point of view of the film?
idea or truth that is
shown in the film? ✔ Is the story told by the protagonist, an off-screen
narrator, or none of the characters?

2. Visual design consists of what we see on screen/inside the frame, a very broad
category of components: performance, blocking, lighting, costume, set, and
props. Some of the components are the same with theater; one difference is on
lighting. Below are some lighting techniques used in film.

Lighting: communicates mood, sets the scene and the subject

key lighting
▪ the brightest light hitting the front or side part of the subject; the most
prominent light in a frame
fill lighting
▪ the light that counters the key light usually at an angle of 60 degrees;
the light that fills in the shadows
back lighting
▪ the edge light to the rear portion of the subject to add contour; the light
usually shoots down from a high angle

Source: nofilmschool.com

brightness or darkness of lighting

high key/soft lighting

▪ characterized by heightening the key light and using fill lights generously
to make the scene bright and open
low key/hard lighting

▪ characterized by having fewer light source and a lot of shadows with

sharp contrasts between dark and light

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, 2019

high key/soft lighting

 Source: nofilmschool.com

source of lighting

natural lighting

▪ using and modifying the natural light such as the sun and the moon that
is already available at the location
motivated lighting

▪ using lamps, light bulbs, lanterns or flashlights around the set can be
used to light a scene

The Notebook, 2004

natural lighting
Source: nofilmschool.com

3. Cinematography deals with the choices that are made for the camera – the
placement of the camera toward the subject, the lens choice, the camera
movement. The director can choose from a number of shots to amplify emotions
and movements. Listed next are the basics.

Camera Frame: how much of the subject is seen in the frame

close up shot
▪ subject’s face and/or neck is seen; facial expressions are emphasized
long shot
▪ entire subject and set is shown; actor’s space in the setting is focused on
medium shot
▪ actor can be seen from the waist up; gestures are emphasized
 The Martian, 2015

long shot
Source: studiobinder.com

Camera Angle: where the camera is positioned in reference to the subject

low/superior angle shot

▪ subject is filmed from below; subject seems larger and more powerful
high/inferior angle shot
▪ subject is filmed from above; subject seems smaller and weaker
eye level angle shot
▪ camera is positioned evenly with the subject; neutral perspective

The Empire Strikes Back, 1980

low/superior angle shot

Source: studiobinder.com

Camera Movement: how the camera follows the subject

pan

▪ camera stays stationary, but moves left to right on a fixed point

tilt

▪ camera stays stationary, but moves up and down on a fixed point

 zoom

▪ focus of a stationary camera changes within a shot; making the object

appear closer or farther away
dolly

▪ camera moves on a dolly, in a person’s hands, in a helicopter or in

whatever way to follow the subject

Visit this link to see some examples:

https://youtu.be/GbnYBmqBbKA

4. Sound design deals with the sound components, what we hear in the film.
Dialogue editing, sound effects and music contribute to the story.

Sound: where the source of the sound is

diegetic

▪ source of the sound is seen within the frame

example: tweeting sound from a bird; the bird is seen in the frame

non-diegetic

▪ source of the sound is not seen within the frame

example: tick-tocking sound from a clock; no clock is seen in the frame

5. Editing is the sequencing of the shots in the film. Editors decide on the order and
the duration of the shots, the visual transitions from scene to scene, and visual
effects. Listed below are some of the basics.

Duration: how long a single take is

long take

▪ a take wherein the camera rolls for 90 seconds of more depending on

the film
▪ gives more time for the audience to take in the scene

short take
 ▪ a take that is fast-paced; a take that shifts to the next quickly

▪ creates rapid, energetic feel and can be used to create suspense

Visit this link to see an example of a long take:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9AEYFYPYTM

Transition: how a single take is linked to another

cut

▪ joining two shots together without any transition effect

fade

▪ (out) when the shot on a screen shifts to black, white, or some other
color or (in) when a color shifts to a shot
dissolve

▪ when a shot slowly fades away while the next shot fades in

Tools for Reading Film

Film as a visual artwork contains various features that can bring more value to
the film. Below are tools or technique to take a closer look at film by Bill Boyd.

● making predictions ● looking for patterns

● freeze frame ● generic translation
● shots in sequence ● evaluating
● making comparisons

© Bill Boyd, The Literary Adviser

Making predictions

One of the things we do as readers of any kind of text, is that we immediately start
making predictions about the content, the message, the audience, the writer’s
aims and so on, and we do this by making inferences from the evidence in front of
us. If you are reading a poem, short story or a novel, you might talk about the title,
the cover, the blurb and the illustrations if there are any. We discuss the sort of text
we are about to read.
We can use the same kinds of activities before viewing a film, and at various points
in the text. This can be done using the cover of the DVD, or a trailer, or the opening
of the film. At key points in the text the Freeze Frame or Shots-in-Sequence  tools
can be used to discuss what might happen next, or how it might end. As we
improve their skills, and become more aware of the conventions of genre and
narrative, we become more confident in weighing up likely and unlikely outcomes,
and in identifying the textual evidence for our predictions.

Typical Questions

● What do you think this might be about?

● What kind of film do you think this might be?
● What do you think will the characters do next?
● How do you think this will end?
● What do you think might happen in the sequel?

Freeze frame

Typical Questions

Using the pause button on the

media player allows us to focus
on particular shots in the text
(and also to appreciate that
each shot is made up of a series
of still images). By examining
such things as the angle,
distance and movement of the
camera, and the use of lighting
and colour, we can learn how
every element of a visual image
can carry meaning, and how
visual images can be ‘read’ like
any other text.
● What or who can you see in this shot? What
difference would it make if it were composed
differently?
● Where is the camera in this shot?
● Does it move or is it fixed?
● What impression does that create?
● What can you tell about the time and setting
from the colour in this shot?
● What can you tell about the characters from
the background or setting?
● What can you tell about the relationship
between the characters from the camera
angles in this sequence?

Shots in sequence
This tool is used along with Freeze Frame to focus on a particular sequence of shots
in a moving image text. We may estimate the number of shots after viewing a short
sequence, or to note each change in shot, location or sound. We can come to
appreciate that the number, sequence and duration of shots in a moving image
text are created in the editing process, and that screen time and story time are
usually different.

This tool can also be used to examine shot transitions (e.g. cut, dissolve, fade) and
how the type of transition affects the meaning. The types of transitions used and
the length of shots help determine pace, and contribute to the meaning. Sound
transitions do not always coincide with shot transitions: in dramatic texts they often
anticipate them to create suspense or alter the mood.

Typical Questions

● What does each shot tell you? What doesn’t it tell you? What questions does it
make you ask, what does it make you want to know?
● Do we follow continuous time through the sequence? Or do we miss bits out,
and shorten the timescale? Or do we stretch it even?
● What differences in camera angle, camera distance from subject, camera
movement are there between one shot and the next?
● Do the sound transitions coincide with the shot transitions or are they different?
What effect does this have?

Making comparisons
Typical Questions

When we read a text we are constantly (and

● Does this remind me of
sub-consciously) making associations between what
anything in my own
we are reading and other experiences: other things
life? How did I/would I
behave/react in similar we have read/seen/heard/watched, and our own
circumstances? real-life experiences. Or, to put that another way, we
● Does this remind me of are drawing on our prior learning.
anything I have
read/seen/heard/watc
hed before? How are We should develop our skills on linking the explicit and
they similar? How are explore those aspects of the text which are most likely
they different? to elicit the comparisons. It is also important to explore
the notion that, while viewing the text will often be a
 shared experience, our reactions to it may be quite
different, depending on the associations we make.
Looking for patterns
By comparing and contrasting texts we
have read, we, as sophisticated readers,
begin to show a deeper understanding of
genre, or of the work of a particular writer,
director, culture or historical period.
Identifying recurring motifs within a text can
help illuminate the text as a whole, and you
can look for them in the soundtrack, the
images, and in story events.
Patterns can be found in elements of the
plot, or the repeated use of a certain colour
or symbol, of types of lighting, of camera
angles, shots or movements, of shot
sequences or transitions. They can also be
found in the soundtrack of course, in
particular musical motifs or instruments, or
sound effects.
Using Freeze Frame or Shots in
Sequence can also make us more aware of
patterns, by separating the shots in a
sequence and looking in detail at narration.
Typical Questions
● Can you see anything in the
movie which appears more than
once?
● Do you notice any patterns
among the images, or in the way
they are filmed? (e.g. camera
angle, distance, movement.)
● Are there any recurring actions?
● Are there any recurring
ideas/themes/messages in the
film?
● Did the length of the shots get
shorter or longer at any point in
the sequence? Is there a pattern
here? If so, what effect does it
have on the viewer?
● What kind of story is this? How do
we know? (Introduce concept of
‘genre’ when appropriate) What
would you expect to happen in
this kind of story?
Generic translation

Visualisation, or the interpretation of a printed text into internal images, is a natural

process for trained readers, but the link needs to be made explicit for a developing
reader. Asking ourselves to draw a character or a scene from a printed text allows
us to present their unique interpretation of the text. Using graphic organisers such as
Mind-Maps can be a very effective way of making sense of a text, summarising key
elements, committing to memory or sharing with others, while storyboards or
comic-book software make the creation of narrative easier and more fun.

In the same way, we can often develop a better understanding of moving image
texts by ‘translating’ them into a print genre such as a poem, short story, diary entry
or newspaper item, or by adapting and ‘audio-visualising’ a short written text into a
storyboard.

You may try any of the following activities:

● Take a short written text (story
openings can be good) and
‘audio-visualise’ it on a storyboard.
● Draw a mind-map showing the main
elements of the text.
● Storyboard the beginning of a sequel
to the text.
● Write the front page article for your
local newspaper the day after the
events portrayed in the film.
● Make a PowerPoint presentation to
convey as effectively as possible
what you have learned from a
moving image text.
● Make a Podcast radio trailer for a film
you have watched.

Evaluating

This tool will be used to a greater or lesser extent on every text, and it is one aspect
of reading which rarely has to be encouraged. When engaged in this strategy,
therefore, it is the quality of the discussion and the use of open questions which will
determine the quality of the outcome. It is also important that in any evaluation,
the criteria for success are shared and agreed, and these will usually be related to
audience and purpose. An appropriate vocabulary needs to be developed over
time.
 Typical Questions

● What was the author’s purpose here and to what extent did he/she achieve it?
● What is the writer’s or filmmaker’s (as opposed to the character’s) point of view?
● Was the ending credible? Satisfying? True to the rest of the story? Why?
● Was this more or less successful than similar texts with the same purpose?
● How could you have made the film better?

Film Theories for Film Analysis

Film theory is a set of scholarly approaches within the academic discipline of

cinema studies that question the essentialism of cinema and provides conceptual
frameworks for understanding film's relationship to reality, the other arts, individual
viewers, and society at large. (The Routledge Encyclopedia of Film Theory)

The following are some of the major film theories which you might have
encountered in literature and politics: