THE TONE OF MY SHORT FILM
The tone of a film refers to a filmmaker’s point of view about their film’s subject matter, conveyed through techniques such as cinematography, camera movement, editing, music, and dialogue.
As the topic is very specific and special to me I wanted to keep the tone of my short film quite calm and sentimental as I look back on what I’ve experienced in my life and my childhood especially. Having to continuously move at a young age can be difficult and tough on a person, but it has taught me life lessons that have been so beneficial and helped me grow to be the person I am today which wouldn’t have been the case if I didn’t live the life I have lived.
The music used in the background is “July” by Noah Cyrus. Although the song is originally meant to convey a story of her heartbreak and leaving a toxic relationship, it is such a powerful and vulnerable song and while I was listening to the song, some of the lyrics really related to me. “You know I, I’m afraid of change” and “I’ll pack my bags and get on the road”. I felt like the actual music itself without the lyrics was very strong and made me feel with the music to add to the tone of my short film.
The fast-paced technique used in the montage was to display short clips of significant moments that have occurred in my life in recent times to symbolise the excitement my life has to offer me and to build suspense about what is to come next.
MISE-EN-SCENE
“The Storyteller’s intention behind any image is delivered through a combination of its content and its form.”, says a prominent theorist. (Directing: film techniques and aesthetics, Michael Rabiger, 2020)
At the beginning of my short film, I wanted the lighting to represent the tone and emotion that I had in mind to match my story. I went for a dark purple and blue colour as these colours signify loneliness, sadness and frustration. I also made sure to film it in the nighttime as to me the low-key lighting symbolises ‘dark’ emotions, meaning emptiness, unhappiness, and the unknown. This all goes along with my story as I’m talking about not knowing where I would end up next.
At 0.22 seconds, the video shows a view of London and I’m trying to use a lower-angled shot as I want to portray London as being more powerful and intimidating, enhancing the power dynamic of the story. I want the viewers to view me as being weak as the voiceover also says “all the experiences a country has given me” pointing towards England and what it has offered me. However, the bigger meaning is that I like to reflect on anywhere I may be living and feel weak and upset that I have to leave the place I have settled in.
The scene in which I open the door, leave, and then the door closes behind me at 0.29 seconds. This is to display how while I’m leaving the place and not looking back, the place will always be there with all the memories I have created in it. It can also show that I am leaving and the life I lived there will never change as I will never be able to erase my past and this place is a big part of what I have experienced. The bright light on the other side of the door contrasts with the lower lighting inside the room and can also signify peacefulness, joy and contentment which shows that wherever I may go next will be a new and exciting journey to explore.
Starting from 0.34, I added a montage to my short film and the reason for this is I wanted to show a ‘highlight reel’ of my life after moving. In my voiceover, I start talking about how important people are in life and different places I’ve experienced and in the montage, it shows short clips of important times I hold dear to me to look back on and reminisce the good times in life. This makes the video more significant and shows that even though moving can be difficult the people you meet along the way make it worth it and make the place you go to very important and holds many amazing memories.
VOICEOVER
Below is the script of my voiceover that is displayed in my video:
I wanted to add a voiceover to explain what the purpose of the video is and the message that I am trying to convey. I wanted to also add the lesson I’ve learned about my past in moving and how amazing it has been because of everything I’ve experienced and the people I have met along the way.