Paper 2, Practice #2

11/17/20

notes:

Camera focusses on people talking… shows what is in the mind of person… focuses on face, blurs background…in mind again….

Office, dull colors… over the shoulder back and forth by who is talking…full view of all three…. flashbacks… medium shots of Elliot and Angela talking…. Opposite said than thought…. camera follows as other walks away…

Camera shot reveals full office… more dull colors… therapy?.... in mind again… physiologist… he is a hacker…suspicious previous partner…. flashes back and forth by who is talking…. speaking now…. Camera flashes by what he is talking about… posters, objects, etc… Thought he was speaking to her, but it was all in his mind….

response:

The Clip follows Elliot on was is perceived as a ‘normal day.’ Camera angles follow him around while also displaying his conversations with others and the conversation in his head (thoughts).

The clip seems to be an introduction, or beginning, to an episode. A short take, which lasts about ten seconds, introduces Elliot by an eyeline match, showing people talking then slowly blurring the background until only he is focused on. The colors are dull and background actors are diverse, some wear expensive-looking suits while others appear homeless. The main character wears a sweatshirt with the hood over his head, showing only the front of his face.

The office scene comes next. Elliot does not seem to look the part of a businessman; however, we soon find out that he works as some type of computer person. The camera immediately switches in the direction of the sound of Elliot’s name. A long shot reveals Elliot walking towards the voice for about two seconds before it switches over to reveal a second office and two people arguing, one the boss, and the other Angela, an apparent coworker. This area is brighter, as there re windows surroundings office. The boss stops arguing to give Elliot a file, which appears to be the work he must do that day. Shot reverse shots and switching over the shoulder shots focus on who is talking, before a medium shot displays all three characters at the same time. As Elliot and Angela exit the office, a dolly, or perhaps a handheld camera, is used to capture the front view of the characters walking away from boss’ office, yet it stays focused on Elliot’s un-readable expression. Angela stops, and the camera shifts to her in a medium shot. As the characters conversate, more shot reverse shots and over the shoulder shots are used. Finally, When Elliot walks away to get to work, his face is followed until out of frame, and then the camera snaps back to the character who was talking to him. Throughout the scene ambient sound is used instead of incidental music to create more reality.

The next scene seems to take place in a therapy office. First, we only see a medium/close shot of Elliot, and when the physiologist begins to talk, the shot expands to the whole room. The colors are dull, and the mood of the room is plain. Most of the scene focuses on Elliot, but switches to a shot of the phycologist’s face when she speaks. His facial expressions are concentrated on because we Elliot does not actually speak out loud in this scene. Instead, we hear his thoughts. The actor had to speak the line and it had to be added in later. When Elliot tells what is wrong with society, clips are shown in compliance to what he is talking about. In the end, we realize that Elliot had not been talking that whole time, and it was just his thoughts.