Media conventions

Media conventions

• 1.
  Media conventions In shortfilms I have seen
• 2.
  Using sound insteadof speech  In a short film called ‘Identity’, there is little dialogue, but instead the short film is shown through sound effects. There is a sound effect of a school bell to support what we are seeing that they are in a school. Also, a sound effect is used to show how she is going back in time, using a rewind effect to show what just happened was in the past and to show that we will now find out why it happened. The score is quiet when the girl is in the bathroom of the school, as is the character, and mysterious which also represents the character as she is wearing a mask which is covering her identity. The score builds tension and this shows that something is about to happen, the music then also gets lighter as she goes to take off the mask, once the mask is taken off, the score is light and peaceful, it shows that the girl is more relaxed and happy within herself. As she walks through the school without her mask on at the end the score is more positive and shows how the girl has achieved something, the score has a magical feeling about it, this shows the girl revealing her true identity has done something out of the ordinary.  Another short film that uses sound instead of speech is ‘la luna’. This is a pixar film and so instead of dialogue, the characters use the sterotypical grumble type of talk but you can understand what is being said through their body language. The score has a magical, positive feeling to it when the moon comes up, to show how the boy feels, he is amazed to see the moon so close and he also gasps to show his astonishment, this is used well to show his feelings because it means he does not have to say anything to express his feelings.
• 3.
  No climax  Themajority of short films have a climax as the beginning is leading up to something but in ‘dead meat’ there is no climax, the wife asks the husband to prepare a meal for her and her parents, he just about does this, but because the way he got his meal included getting a dead rabbit out of the road, when he serves it to his in-laws, an event is expected such as them noticing what it is or them not liking the food, however this does not happen and the short film ends, this is a clever way of ending the short film because the audience may think they can predict what is coming with a climax of the in-laws not enjoying the food but this does not happen and it tricks a lot of people. The reason for there not being a climax could be because it is a comedy, in action or thriller films there would ideally need to be a climax otherwise there isn’t much story to the film and it is hard to make a short film without a climax but in this film is it done well. If I were to produce a comedy I would definitely consider using this as it is a very clever convention.
• 4.
  Climax  A climaxwas used as a convention in ‘Amy’s torch’ which is a horror, other conventions are used well such as eerie music, lighting and fast cutting rates to build tension, however I do not think the climax was good. The story is that a little girl believes there is a monster under her bed, with this story it can go one of two predictable ways, simply there is a monster under her bed or there is not, I believe that the story they chose has too much of a predictable ending, as this is a problem with horror’s, they are often predictable. Normally with horror’s there is a climax, and if there was not a monster under the bed then it would be an anti- climax and it would not really be a very weak scary short film as there would be nothing scary within it, so this lead to the obvious assumption that there was a monster under the bed. I have learned from this film that horror is a very difficult genre to do and I would like to stay clear of making one, and if I did then I would think of more creative ways to present a more subtle climax.
• 5.
  Juxtaposition  Juxtaposition isa very clever convention but very hard to do well. In ‘love field’ it is used very well, we are made to believe that there is a woman in pain through a close up of a tissue with blood on it and through sound of her crying, and we also see her foot shaking and clenching, it seems like this woman is in a lot of danger and could be dying. Score makes the mood very tense and this builds up to a man stabbing something in the ground next to the woman, and the ambient sound of a crow. The connotations of crow are death, crows are black and also that connotates death, so the woman is clearly thought to be dead. The man is made to look suspicious through several shots, for example, a close up of him opening the boot of his car where he takes out a bin bag, score continues once again and this creates a creepy, scary atmosphere. This builds tension as it seems the score is leading towards the man disposing of the dead woman’s body, however, we then see the woman passing the man a new born baby, this has contrasted ideas between the woman being dead to now her being alive and giving a new life. The audience are led to believe one thing that doesn’t happen and then something else happens that they did not think of. The man who was made out to be a killer was clearly helping the woman and so he was also made out to be something he is not. I would definitely consider using juxtaposition in a short film because it is a very clever convention and when used well it is very effective.
• 6.
  Close ups  Closeups are a good convention to show how characters are feeling through their facial expressions. I watched ‘elevator’ which is a comedy and a lot of close ups are used. Close ups can also be used of objects to show what the character is looking at, here the close up is of a sign saying that the maximum weight is 2000lbs. From the man’s facial expressions he is clearly worried about the size of the people in the lift, and close ups of people in the lift are used and then a close up of the mans phone as he predicts how much each person weighs and puts it into the calculator. Another close up is used of the calculator adds up to 2001lbs and then see the sign again. This is a good convention and I would strongly consider using it as it clearly shows the characters thoughts and feelings and is a great way to express them using objects and facial expressions.
• 7.
  Narration  A narratorcan be used as a convention as they can tell the story as it is being shown, it backs up what we are seeing, in ‘late bloomer’ the narrator is telling his own story, so we are seeing him and hearing him tell his personal experience. This is a comedy and the narration is of a dramatic, embarrassing event in the man’s life and so it is told very dramatically and it is exaggerated a lot, this adds to the humour and is very effective as it is told well. I would consider using this convention as it is a good way of backing up the visuals and a good way to tell the story, I would just ensure that the narrator’s tone of voice matches and suits the genre that I am doing.