Research for short film;

In this post I will be looking at 3 short films and analysing how they are similar and how they are different, these are the 3 short films I will be looking at;

Short film 1 - Silent Things - http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p00kmy38

Short film 2 - Echoes - http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p004pw7r

Short film 3 - Flushed - http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p004qk6j

All three of these films use real people, rather than cartoons or models. They are, however unusual, all based on real life situations and problems. The first two are drama's and have a very serious theme throughout and highlight some serious problems in society, the third, is a comedy and mocking a situation that some people may find themselves in. The first uses very little speech, which could be the director's way of helping us understand the two main characters, who are autistic and see the world in a different way and by cutting out general speech it allows the audience to get inside the two autistic characters' head creating a very different feel to other films. It also gives the film a much more serious tone to it, which is where it is similar to my second short film, which does have digetic speech, but uses long silences, with little non-digetic sounds as well, to add tension and also make the film have a serious tone. The third film however, uses continual digetic sounds which gives it a much more upbeat, cheerful atmoshpere to suit the genre of the film. The first film has gentle, natural lighting, as most of the film is set on the beach. I think the setting of this film is perfect, as the beach is a very calm and serene place and the natural lighting reflects the very childlike characteristics of autistic people. In the second film the lighting is very dim and shadowy, which instantly gives the film the dark and gloomy feel that best suits the topic of the film. In the third film the lighting is very bright and artificial, perhaps reflecting how over the top the situation is. In all three films, there are many close-up shots of the faces of the main characters, in the first two to show the thoughts and feelings of these characters through their facial expressions, that they many not be able to express in any other way. In the third film, to over exaggerate how the boy is feeling which creates the comedy factor. The first two films are 12-13 minutes long, but the third is only 5 minutes long, this could be because dramas where the director is essentially trying to get a point across to the audience, and need the audience to be able to relate and empathis with the main character, need much longer to be able to develop that relationship between character and audience. Whereas in the comedy, the main emphasis is on the comical situation, not the character necessarily.