AO2 & AO4 Mis-en-scene research

Mis-en-scene research

What is mis-en-scene?

A gathering of different aspects of frame that are put together to create a scene. These aspects include;

Setting : The features within the frame that function to depict space, place, and time period.

The setting in my opening sequence can be established with a long shot of a room or the streets of a city. It provides the audience an understanding of where the film is going to take place and what possible events can happen.

Props: those objects within the setting that function within the ongoing action for example a cork board, this prop is used to show the murderers plan of who he is going to murder next. It adapts to the stereotypical conventions of a murder film.

Costume and Make-Up: The clothing and attire of characters says a lot about the characters they are playing. Costume and make-up can express character situation or mood.  For example, in my opening sequence, I will strive to use costume In order to create conflicted characters where the victim (Lady G) comes from a very wealthy family and the murderer who comes from a lower class status. Lady G is seen to wear fur coats and expensive heals, whereas the murderer wears black on black and is expressed to be less wealthy than Lady G.

Make-Up: This is applied to figures to construct their characters. They portray a stronger image of the character and emphasize certain things in the character that wouldn’t be as obvious if they weren’t wearing make-up.

Lighting: Light by which objects within the frame can be seen.

Some scenes in my opening sequence will be darker than others, this will help create contrast between each shot. It also helps set the mood. If a room is dark, it creates a sense of suspicion or tension, whereas if it had more light, more things are seen and more details in the shot are visible to the audience. Specific Lighting can create shapes of objects by creating highlights and shadows.

There are four characteristics to lighting:

Quality: This is the harshness of the light. It could be soft light or hard light. There will be softer light in the scenes of the murderer and harder light in the scenes of Lady G.

Direction: Where the source of light is coming from. Front, back, side, top, and under. In certain scenes where the murder is dominant, most of the light will come from above him to create shadows on his face so that it is harder to identify who the murderer is.

Source: How many points of light illuminate an object.

Color: The type of light: invisible white, soft yellow, or tinted through filters and gels.

Figure movement and Expression (Acting): The physical performance of character, including gestures, expressions, and actions. These allow the actors to express thoughts and feelings . There is a close up of the victims face, however she displays no emotion or facial expressions which ultimately suggest that she is dead.