Prelim Task + Evaluation

Here is the film I was a part of for the prelim task.

 https://youtu.be/eZXn22dUb3k?t=1

This short film involves a detective and an accused murderer. Thankfully, my acting was not the focus of this task. Instead, the use of the camera was the main asset that we had to use effectively.

The film begins with a shot of the detectives feet as she enters through the door. This creates a small sense of mystery, as we can only see the feet of this person and we don't know who they are.
This camera shot is a medium close-up that nobody wants to see. The fact that the face is nearly the only thing on screen means that any viewer can focus on and see the actors facial expressions clearly. The actor opens his eyes in this shot, clearly in response to the detective entering the room. The fact that his facial expression doesn't change indicates that the detectives entrance doesn't please him.
This is a close up shot of the detective sitting down in the chair. This emphasises the action of sitting down, and perhaps stresses that the detective is getting down to business.
 The camera then shows the two actors staring each-other down silently. The murderer shifts in his chair slightly, emphasising the tense situation.
The camera then focuses on the detectives hand and eyes to draw attention to the clicking of the pen and her looking up at the killer.
This close-up of the killers face shows movement that indicates that the killer is uncomfortable with the interrogation. (This is perfectly understandable, considering the tense circumstances.)
The detective is shown at a slightly-tilted angle with the camera facing up at her face. This angle creates a slight, subtle effect of her towering over the viewers (not by much, but it's still there) giving her a slight air of superiority.
From here until the end of the film, it's mostly close-up shots of the actors faces, emphasising their conversation. (The fact that their conversation is the only thing happening subtly emphasises the conversation in itself.)

In conclusion, I would say that the camera work with our short film did a good job emphasising key aspects of the film, such as a characters tension or entrance, facial expressions, and exasperation. I believe that applying some of these camera techniques to a film with little background details can draw attention away from them, allowing for a fun re-watching experience.

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