This is my induction task essay where i describe how the accumulation of micro and macro elements can help to create a “Good Film”

Film’s can be deconstructed into macro and micro elements; Macro elements include genre, message and value, representation, narrative, style, authorship and theme. Micro elements include editing, cinematography, mise-en-scene and sound. In order for a film to be successful, these key elements must be well thought out.

For example with micro elements cinematography plays a large part, this includes camera angles and lighting and how scenes are captured to portray  the narrative as well as possible. Additionally, sound is very important, in general it is the sound in the movie that makes it seem real, whether it is a bone breaking or a wave crashing, if the sound is believable it will be more successful; with an audience.

Not only that but editing is also an important micro element. Whether it is the combination of scenes using transitions, the colour correction of a sunset or the c.g.i, editing is very important in turning a raw, unprocessed recording into a film.

Finally mise-en-scene, mise-en-scene is the arrangement of everything in a scene. For example, the setting of a scene can tell what kind of an experience one will have in it or how it can affect someone / something. If the scene is in the desert, you will expect it to be hot etc. Another part of mise-en-scene is costume, whether or not someone fits into the scene will reveal how they impact the community and how they may feel. A fancy person in a poor town will stand out and cause a sense of discomfort. There are many other attributes and elements of mise-en-scene but in general it is the amalgamation of elements in the scene that will help convey the narrative.

Next is macro elements, there are many macro elements so i will explain them briefly.

Firstly: Genre

The genre of a film is a way of categorising the film so that it can be advertised to different audiences. Different people prefer different genres and therefore it is all personal preference.

Secondly: message and value.

Many great films are great because of the messages that are portrayed and the values the characters are seen to have. This way the audience can relate to the characters but they may also learn a thing or two from the implicit or explicit messages in the film. These messages can be used to improve the community or to convey certain ideals.

Thirdly: representation

Representation is important because they are specific decisions directors make to create a unique story and directors can choose whether to represent stereotypes normally or abnormally so that their film may differ from other films.

Additionally narrative is important

Narrative is the story or plot of a film, it can be fictional or non-fictional. Good narratives have a beginning, middle, and end and show development to create differentiation.

Conjointly, style must be acknowledged.

Style is the way the film is presented to express ideas with a  different or interesting approach

Furthermore,

Authorship is an interesting macro element that helps make a film good.

Authorship is the state of writing, creating or causing. Ideally a good authorship would have a clear explanation to events in the film so that viewers may understand and yet also help the audience recognise the author by their style.

Finally: Theme

Theme in a film is all about having a basic idea that the plot and narrative runs off, different ideas can be conveyed in different genres by having separate themes. For example horror genre can have happy themes or scary themes. Themes can be more complicated than simple feelings and can relate to current world affairs. And in general are a way for producers to talk about similar ideas in an  alternate way. Therefore it is also similar to style. There is no such thing as a good theme and in fact, what makes a film good is how a producer or character conjoins a theme to a plot or idea so it may be portrayed in a desired way.

Spike lee believes that only a person who has experienced events or has relation to the events can direct a film based on these events.

For example Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino) is a film about slavery but spike lee says he simply won’t watch it because it was directed by a white man. Django Unchained has won all of these awards but spike lee still believes it isn’t a good film and not worth his time.

The composition of this shot seems to be using an effective symmetry , with elements of the costume and lighting highlighting the main characters and giving the audience a presumption of what is going on. The use of the soldiers and their placement make the appearance the characters have triumphed, which is relative to the narrative.

The Low Key Lighting exemplifies the narrative with the lighting representing the tribulation in the antagonist, Darth Vader. This is further identified with the subtle use of lighting under the feet of the antagonist, which can be argued as a form of symbolic representation on the narrative as a whole.

In this instance, costume differentiates the protagonists from their conflict, especially with the lightsaber’s colouring, which does aesthetically effect the shot and the scene as a whole considering the fast pace of the scene.

The use of set design in this shot illuminates the surroundings of the characters in focus, and aids to maintain the verisimilitude, which is especially imperative in regards to the genre of the film being Sci-Fi and being made in the 1970s.

The backdrop has more than sufficient detail and creates the sense  of conflict with the Stormtroopers, adding layering of narrative within the scene.

Spike Lees view says that to tell a story around a political or racial view point you must belong to the group of people the story is about.

For example, a middle class white woman, in lees eyes, can not tell a story about working class black men. As she wouldn’t understand the struggles and hardships.

Do I agree?

• To an extent, as although I believe they could tell the story in. a possibly successful way, they wouldn’t be able to tell the story with as much meaning and understanding as someone who comes from the same background as the characters he is telling a story about as if they come from the same background, then they will have special insight into how day to day life is for the characters of the story, in turn making the story more realisitic and relatable  to the target audience.

I think that this scene from Fantastic Mister Fox is a good example of Color in Mise-En-Scene because the limited color pallet reflects the atmosphere. It shows the Autumn setting in the film

Film: Fantastic Mister Fox

Director: Wes Anderson

Year: 2009

I think that a good example of hair and make up in film is the Joker from Dark Night Rises

I think that this is good because the appearance of the Joker perfectly reflects the character in the movie, chaotic and unorganized but also able to be scary.

Film: Dark Knight Rise

Director: Christoper Nolan

Year: 2008

Guardians of the Galaxy (James Gunn, 2014) uses character placement very well, In many photos you can see Chris Pratt’s “Star Lord” in the foreground, this aligns the focus onto him and reveals his status as the leader of the group.