Rachael saunders

The conversation piece – Stewart - 2009
This seems to me to have the genre of comedy, although, it is hard to tell as we never actually hear the voices of the people speaking, just their mouths moving and different sounds of music matching each syllable. However, there is something slightly amusing about this short film, so therefore i think that the genre would be comedy.
Sound is an important part of this short film because the whole thing seems to be based on the music being played and the different notes.
I didn't find this as interesting as i have found the other short films, because i didn't really understand what was going on. Although, i found it clever how the different sounds matched the two people speaking, i wouldn't use this in my own short film because i think it has more clarity if the audience are able to hear and understand what the actors are saying.


Mix tape – Luke Snellin
The genre for this short film, i think is social realism. With the accents clearly being typical British accents and the street the young boy is walking down to get to the young girls house, seems to be quite clear that it is in the UK.

I liked this short film because it managed to fit quite a detailed story into such a short time, of under three minutes. I think that i would like to use this style because it wouldn't leave the audience asking what had happened.

I think that the sound had a very important part to play in this film because of the actual title of the film 'Mixtape.' I liked how the music worked, when the boy was walking down the street to the girls house, the choice of song worked really well and the abrupt stop when the lady answered the front door. The music chosen in films is always important, and even more so in a short film. I liked how the song at the end at first seemed to be a diagetic sound, but when the boy and girl start singing, it becomes a non-diagetic sound. This is something i would like to use in a film as i think it worked really well.

I wasn't very sure about the themes and issues of this film, however, i think that it had quite a romantic genre, so therefore it may have been about someone's first love. I think that the audience is positioned to really like the young boy, and have slight sympathy for him because he seems slightly nervous about giving the girl the mixtape.



Lou Lou lives here. Director Hazel Grian!
Genres and styles used
There seems to be a slight thriller aspect to this short film, along with a sense of mystery, with the uncertainty of what is happening and what is going to happen next. When the girl is running through the woods, you can hear her breathing which adds to the feeling that something bad is going to happen, us, as the audience, are just unsure of what it's going to be. There is a dark style used, to make this seem almost, scary. The audience are left wondering what has happened at the end, when there is a transition, when the girl changes into the dog and we are no longer sure who the man actually is - at first we think he is someone chasing the girl to possibly hurt her, which adds to the thriller aspect, but then, when there is a dog, rather than a girl, we are left wondering if he is the dogs owner - adding to the mystery aspect. The mise en scene used helps to clarify the location of this short film, because it shows the typical British countryside, with the woodland area and the country lanes. There is also the gate at the end, which has the sign on it saying "Beware, Lou Lou lives here" A lot of dog owners have signs which say "Beware of the dog." The themes and issues of this film may be about children staying safe, and not going out alone. However, because of the transition when she turns into a dog, the themes and issues are left unclear to the audience.

I found that the film was set with quite a dark style, which made it seem even more eerie. It was set in black and white too, which made it seem like the camera was the dogs eyes, which i found quite clever.

I think that this film only works well because it uses the short film narrative. If this was a film which was to last two hours or more, it wouldn't be as much of a mystery. If my group decides to do a thriller or mystery when making our short film, i will watch this film again, to get some ideas on how to make it work and give the wanted effect.

The sound used in this film helped me to understand what was going on, as i didn't find the transition very clear. The breathing didn't seemed very heavy - like a dogs and the barking, you could also hear the footsteps and by the speed they were going, it was clear that it was a dog. I think that the sound made this short film seem even more sinister.

I found that the film's subject matter was confusing, i watched it twice, but, i was still left unsure as to what the writer was trying to say. This could have been about how children shouldn't be out on their own, as it isn't safe. But, then, this doesn't explain the transition into a dog. I think that this is why it works as a mystery, because so many questions are left without answers and this makes the audience think about the meaning even more.

Joyride – Jim Gillespie – 1995
Identify the genre/s or style/s used
The genre used for joyride is thriller. The lighting is dark, a man is driving down a road, when he sees the body of a man lying in the middle of the road. Already, by this point in the film it is clear to the audience that the film is going to be a thriller. During the film, however, it becomes clear that the film also has aspects of action and violence in it, when the victim knocked out by another man and wakes to find himself locked in the boot of a car. There is more violence throughout the film, with the victim desperately trying to escape the car and his kidnappers, this shows the aspects of the action genre. Although we don't always see the violence as it happens, we can always hear when there is something bad going on, so sound is used well to add to the thriller effect. The themes and issues of this film is Joy-riding, with the victim being tricked into getting out his car and ending up being locked in the boot of his own car and his fate left unknown, as the two kidnappers drive him away somewhere.


How does this film use genre/style conventions uniquely?
The film tends to use different tactics to shock and surprise the audience. Both the audience and the main character (the victim) don't always know what is going to happen next and seem surprised by each of the events as they unfold. I found that the moments of the film when I wasn't able to see what was going on, when the police officers get murdered, were the most interesting. The reason I thought this is because we expect this to be the ending of the film, however there is even more violence instead and this adds to the shock elements of the film. The audience are left wondering if the victim is going to get out of this alive or whether he is facing the same fate as the two people who attempted to rescue him. At the beginning of the film, when the victim sees the man lying on the floor, there is suspense, as the audience aren't sure whether or not the man is dead or if he is going to suddenly stand up, this leaves the audience wanted to know what's going to happen next, adding to the thriller genre, the audience are on the 'edge of their seats.'