Voice over & narrative

Learning objective: to analyse the use of voice over & narrative in Slomo
Success criteria:
1. I can define key words
2. I can explain how the narration/voice over develops significant ideas in Slomo
3. I can analyse the emotional impact of the narration for the main character and for the audience

Do now:
Write definitions for the following words: voice over, narration, storytelling, perspective & emotional impact.

Next step:
1. Find three scenes in Slomo where the narration is important.
2. Screenshot three frames and insert into your document.
3. For each frame, describe what the narrator is saying and how (tone of voice).  Use quotes as well as paraphrasing.
4. For each frame, explain how the narration develops an important idea in the film.

Camera work: a check list for analysing a film

Learning objective: to analyse the use of camera work to show the transformation in John Kitchin's world view

Success criteria:
1. I can identify a wide range of camera techniques used in the film Slomo.
2. I can describe specific uses of specific camera techniques in the film Slomo
3. I can explain the effect of the technique for each specific example
4. I can analyse how the audience is invited to respond to specific examples of camera techniques

Checklist for writing about camera techniques

• Identify technique
• Describe how it is used
• Explain the effect
• Analyse how the audience is invited to respond
• Link to two techniques to show combined effect
• Make sure your analysis shows understanding of the important ideas in the film

Exemplar to help with analysing camera work:

Extreme close up of a roller blade.  It is upside down as the camera focuses on the blade as the skater's foot is lifted up in the air.  The effect of the roller blade being in the air without sight of the rest of the body is that the blade is like a bird, moving freely through the air.  The background also reinforces the idea of freedom, as it is a beautiful beach.  This invites us to think of being relaxed (the beach) and powerful (the blade moving through the air).

Another technique which reinforces the idea of freedom through a simple life is the music, which is slow and simple, just the sound of a triangle being struck.

Camera work in Slomo

Learning objective: to analyse the use of lighting to show the transformation in John Kitchin's world view
Success criteria:
1. I can identify a wide range of camera techniques used in the film Slomo.
2. I can describe specific uses of specific camera techniques in the film Slomo
3. I can explain the effect of the technique for each specific example
4. I can analyse how the audience is invited to respond to specific examples of camera techniques

Do now: make a list of all the camera techniques in Slomo.

This resource will help with identifying camera techniques.

Symbols & symbolism in Slomo

Learning objective: To analyse the use of symbols and symbolism in Slomo.
Success criteria:
1. We can describe three symbols in Slomo.
2. We can explain what each symbol tells us about John Kitchin's transformation.
3. We can make links between the symbols in Slomo and symbols in our own life.

Wednesday:
Checklist to help us analyse a film, focusing on the use of symbol:

1. Identify the symbol
2. Describe how it is used
3. Explain what it tells us about John Kitchin 
4. Analyse: what other techniques are used with it?
5. Analyse: how are we (the audience) invited to respond?
6. Analyse: what does it teach us?
7. Analyse: how does it link to other symbols in the film?

Analysing SLOMO

LO: To analyse the change in one man’s view of life in slowmo

SC: 1) We can describe the life the main character had before his change and after his change.

      2) We can explain how symbols are used to show a life falling apart.

      3) We can analyse the role of lighting in developing the idea of change and transformation.

The K Road Stories series

Learning objective: to analyse the message in a range of films
Success criteria:
1. We can identify aspects of a film
2. We can describe aspects in each film
3. We can analyse the message in each film

Yesterday, we looked at "Broke" and "A Load of Trouble" and made a table of notes on the aspects of film used to tell the story in "Broke."

Today we are working on paragraph responses to "Broke."
1. Describe the main character, using at least three specific examples from the film.
2. Explain how the main character changes as a result of the fight with the beggar.
3. Analyse: what is the message in this film, and how is it shown to us?

Fritters

Yesterday we looked closely at the exemplars for the 2.10 close viewing assessment, and made connections between the exemplars and the work we have done on Day Trip.  The 3492 reports on Day Trip have all been submitted (unless you have an extension authorised) and we are now focusing on building our skills analysing other short films, in preparation for our assessment.

Today we are going to look at the short film Fritters and practise writing paragraphs about how the ideas are developed in this film.  We are building our skills to be more and more independent in our analysis of how ideas are developed in a film.

Wednesday: we have described what happens in Fritters, and now we are identifying a significant idea in Fritters.  We are sharing our significant ideas on this padlet.

Thursday: We are explaining how the significant idea is developed.  To do this, we need to choose specific scenes or specific techniques, and look at what the director has done to develop the idea.  We need to think about what we (the audience) is invited to think in each scene.

Bringing our work together into report form

Learning objective: to create a report on the significant ideas in 'Day Trip,' with discussion of how verbal and visual techniques are used to create and develop ideas.
Success criteria:
1. I can collate my paragraph writing on 'Day Trip' into one place.
2. I can identify two visual and two verbal techniques which I have analysed  - and finish this if I haven't so far.
3. I can create a conclusion showing my understanding of the important messages (significant ideas) in 'Day Trip'.

Checklist:
Have you written about:
1. The hero cycle in 'Day Trip'
2. The opening scene
3. The dairy scene and the power of silence
4. The first tunnel scene
5. The second tunnel scene
6. The pub scene - taking his clothes off
7. The pub scene - making new friends
8. The final scene
9. The overall message (significant idea) in 'Day Trip'

Model paragraph:

• Describe the technique (with specific examples).
• Explain the effect of the technique (again, very specifically).
• Explain how this example and technique develop a significant idea.
• Explain how the audience is invited to respond.

Showing how film techniques are used to develop a significant idea

Learning objective: we are learning to analyse how film techniques are used to develop an idea.
Success criteria:
1. We can identify a significant idea
2. We can describe the film techniques used
3. We can analyse how the techniques develop the idea

We are now getting close to our film analysis assessment.  In the assessment, each student will identify one or more significant ideas in the film, and choose a scene to closely analyse how the idea is developed.

One idea we have agreed on in Day Trip is that in the first tunnel scene, Willy is disconnected and isolated from everyone around him.

We have identified the following techniques from the tunnel scene:

• shot types - close up
• slow motion
• music
• lighting
• acting - facial expression + gesture
• use of silence
• setting
• costume

We are now going to write paragraphs analysing how these techniques develop the idea of Willy's disconnection from the world around him.

Some useful sentence starters include:

(insert technique) is used to emphasise that....

I think the director chose this technique to focus our attention on...

The audience is invited to sympathise with...

The tunnel scenes compared

Early in the film, Willy goes through the tunnel from the train station out into Wellington itself, ready to catch the ferry.  On his way home, he goes back through the tunnel.  When we contrast the two journeys through the tunnel, we can see significant differences.

	Who do we see beside Willy?  How do they react to him?	What sounds are in the scene?  What effect do the sounds have?
Going through the tunnel the first time
Going through the tunnel the second time
Why has the director chosen to show Willy going through a tunnel, rather than outside? What is suggested about Willy’s relationship with the tohunga in the second tunnel scene?

Costume, colour & identity

Describe the way that costume and colour help create a distinct identity for the bowls players in the film 'Day Trip.'

Describe the way that costume and colour help create a distinct identity for the gang members in the film 'Day Trip.'

Each decision in a film is very deliberate.  Every movement, every prop and every piece of clothing is chosen for a specific reason.  This includes the choice to have a group of bowls players wearing their uniforms in the pub which Willy goes to.

Task: explain why you think the director has chosen to have a group of bowls players in the pub when Willy arrives.

Gather your ideas on this padlet.

Showing the development of a character over time

Willy (the main character) changes over time and one way we can see this is in the way he interacts with other people.

Option one: write three SEXY paragraphs.  For each paragraph, choose a location, describe how Willy interacts with people at this location and explain what this shows us about Willy at this moment.  Three suggested locations: dairy, pub, ganghouse

Option two: create a timeline of all the locations in "Day Trip" and underneath each location, describe how Willy interacts (or doesn't interact) with people.

Focus on main character (Willy)

In Day Trip, the main character has no name, and he never speaks.

Instead, he communicates by...

His identity comes from...


The effect of him never talking is....  [when you find evidence of him talking, explain what is going on there and what is important about that]

Day Trip: the dairy scene

Learning objective: We are learning to analyse the effect of the main character on the children and the dairy owner.
Success criteria:
1. We can describe the events in the dairy
2. We can explain the effect of the techniques used in the dairy scene
3. We can identify the director's purpose and evaluate her success

Day Trip & film techniques: building our toolkit

Learning objective: to write extended explanations of the role of lighting, mis-en-scene and symbolism in "Day Trip."

Lighting:

• the use of light and shade in a scene
• used to set the mood of a scene, e.g. bright light for happy scenes, and shade and darkness for scary or sad scenes.
• directional lighting puts a focus on a particular person or object
• can have a filter on the lens - green filter makes the scene unnatural-looking; pink filter makes the scene look gory

Click on to this padlet to write your ideas about the lighting in the opening scene of "Day Trip."

Film techniques

Today we are building our film techniques tool box.  Each student needs to read and view the very useful Empire resource: Film Studies 101: the 30 camera shots every film fan needs to know.  As you read the definitions and watch the examples, I then want you to make a table which has the shots you are confident to identify and explain in one column, and those you are not sure of in the other.