Orson Welles and his cinematographer Gregg Toland masterfully collaborated to create unique shots that were unconventionally in Hollywood at the time.  

For example, their use of the deep focus technique allowed subjects close and far away in the camera to remain in focus (deep depth of field), as a result staging could be cleverly crafted in a way that highlights struggle/power imbalance as seen in one of the films earlier scenes where Kane is clearly visible tiny outside the window symbolic of  the way in which he is being ‘trapped’ into Mr. Thatcher’s guardianship and the fact he’s too inferior to have a say. 

Additionally, Citizen Kane makes use of long/extended takes, as the scene above demonstrates through its long tracking shot from window to table. However, during the time of production there was no Steadicam therefore furniture and props had to be moved/separated around the camera to give the illusion the camera is tracking forwards/backwards through this static setting. 

Citizen Kanes use of lighting, particularly chiaroscuro works to help reflect the plot, influencing the feel of the end production. This expressionistic lighting (influence of German expressionism) fits into a movie such as this as it centred around the mystery of “Rosebud”, with the use of shadows implying themes of immorality, loneliness, and insignificance but light to portray clarity and morality, whilst split lighting/partial shadows are suggestive of moral ambiguity/divide or a power imbalance etc.  

Furthermore, Citizen Kane is famous for its use of low angle shots, therefore the sets required ceilings. This was uncommon at the time as most movies didn’t have ceilings because that’s where lights and microphones were situated, so the ceilings in the movie were constructed of cloth to allow microphones to still be placed overhead. Welles also made a hole in the floor of the set to place the camera. The use of low angles dramatically affects the look and feel as it enhances Kanes confidence, dominance/superiority and his overwhelming power (over characters). 

Description: Screenwriters write and develop screenplays for movies and TV shows, either by adapting pre-existing stories or based on an original idea. These screenplays are supposed to embody the emotions of the characters, the settings and the main meanings a scene is meant to portray; writers often collaborate with actors, directors and producers to achieve the best fitting screenplay which encompasses all participants’ ideas and aims. This often means a writer will draft and redraft their screenplays multiple times before deciding on the final outcome. Screenwriters can also be commissioned by producers or studios to create a certain screenplay.

What are screenwriters good at?

• Knowledge of screenwriting: understand all the key features of a screenplay and know how to improve and amend one.
• Creativity: write well and innovatively, express your ideas effectively in screenplay-form.
• Arts knowledge: a deep and wide knowledge of all genres of art, so as to be able to source ideas from a range of sources and understand cultural contexts.
• Watching film and TV drama: passion for the genre and a understanding of the industry.

Inspirational Practitioner: The Coen Brothers

The brothers usually base their screenplays on desolate and lonely, although picturesque, landscapes which often reflects personal issues each character portrays. A lot of their narratives feature the idea of luck or very unlikely situations the characters have to navigate. The Coen’s introduce the poignant landscapes as a part of the characters personalities, usually demonstrated through distinctive regional accents which are intertwined into the dialogues; for example, ‘Fargo’ features a rural dialect based on that spoken in Minnesota, said to be a combination of Scandinavian, German and Irish dialects from the 19th century. The ‘Fargo’ screenplay features this dialect heavily to implicate the toll such a rural and desolate area can have on the characters, causing a lot of their moments of anger and sadness to be intensified.

Key Light – The key light is the brightest light. Generally it is placed at a 45 degree angle.

Fill Light – The fill light is used to fill the shadows created by the key light. It should be positioned on the opposite side of the key light. The fill light should be dimmer then the key light.

Back Light – The back light is used to created a ring of light around the subject to create contrast. The backlight is positioned behind the subject.

Chiaroscuro Lighting -A high-contrast lighting technique. Chiaroscuro uses a low key lighting setup, where a key light is used as the sole light source to achieve dark backgrounds with starkly lit subjects.

https://jerseyedu-my.sharepoint.com/:v:/g/personal/c_waters13_hautlieu_sch_je/EUAiv5C_GrVNlWodW9CepLwBWkjfyCAPpljXI9iMeCZJhg?e=fpqmuQ