Shane Meadows - I admire Shane Meadows because I enjoy the genre he makes, which is British Drama and I like the cinema verite style. I also like the fact that all of his movies are British. My favourite film of his is 'This is England'. This is because I like the fact this film contains a social realist narrative and it is distinctively British. This genre in particular interests me. I have enjoyed watching 'This is England '86' because I enjoyed seeing how Shane Meadows took the characters from the film and used them in the TV series.
Guy Ritchie
Guy Ritchie - I also admire Guy Ritchie because once again I like the genre he specifies in, which is British gangster movies. I enjoy the comic scenes that are included in his movies. This is one of the reasons i admire him. I was a fan of 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels', which i felt was the best of the British Gangster Movies of that period. Since then i have watched every film that Guy Ritchie has Directed and particularly enjoyed his most recent film 'Sherlock Holmes' because I particularly enjoyed the voice over technique used throughout the film. The high production values show that he has come a long way since the very low budget production of 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels'.
Kathryn Bigelow
Kathryn Bigelow- I admire Kathryn Bigelow because I enjoyed watching Hurtlocker and like the style she films it in and I like the fact that there is not one particular main character and the main character keeps changing. This is because it keeps me locked into the film and gives me more concentrate on. I admire the fact that she is a female director and is the first female to win an oscar for her film 'Hurtlocker'.
The Black Hole is made by Philip Sansom and Olly Williams. The story is of a man working in an office using the photocopying machine when it becomes faulty. It then prints out a piece of paper with a black circle on it. He comes to discover that the circle is in fact a hole. He then puts the hole up to the vending machine, steals a chocolate. He catches eye of an important room, walks in sticks the hold onto the safe with cello tape, grabs the money. Then lets greed get to the better of him and climbs into the safe when the hole falls off the safe, resulting in him being stuck in there.
The dull, blue tint to the picture makes the office setting seem boring, dull and tiring to be there. The fact that there is no music placed in the background and it is just of the photocopier gives the dull, uninteresting feel. The mysterious sound effect used for when he enters his hand into the black hole makes it seem mysterious and out of the ordinary.
I enjoyed watching this short film because i like the comic side to it, I also like the moral of the story and the way it is being portrayed. I like the character that has been created because although i cannot relate to him being in a boring office job, I like how he plays the character.
The short film Lovefield is made by Mathieu Ratthe. The story is of a woman driving down a road, when she pulls up on the side of the road because her waters break. A man driving a tractor spots her, and helps her deliver the baby, the police/ambulance arrive.
The narrative of the film is that it is set in a corn field and there is a woman lying down, her feet are all muddy and there is a bloody cloth on the floor. A man then slams a knife into the ground, runs to her car and gets out a plastic bag and walks back to the person on the floor. After a fews second of silence a baby starts to cry. The camera tracks out into a wide shot to reveal the actual scene, the police/ambulance then arrive.
At the beginning, the film includes all of the characteristics of a horror, for example, there is a dull tinge to the picture, the music is very mysterious, the crow noise is a typical convention of a horror movie and the point of view shot in the car.
When the baby is revealed the conventions of a horror movie suddenly change to the conventions of a feel good movie, for example, the tone of the picture becomes very bright and full of sunlight beaming down on the corn. The music changes to a slow instrumental soft tone.
I enjoyed watching the short film 'Lovefield' because i like the use of binary opposites. I like the suspense and the use of all of the conventions of a horror film. The message given at the beginning of the short film is death, but when the story changes the message portrayed is birth.
Maybe One Day is made by Chris Cottam. The story is of a man waking up in the morning, gets ready for work and starts walking to work. While all of this is going on, there is a voice over stating all facts about his morning. For example, he mentions that it takes 12 steps to get from his bed to his bathroom. While walking to work he starts to question what he is doing with his life and what is meeting him at the top 'or is it just a good view'. He then turns around and starts to run in the opposite direction. He talks about leaving and saying goodbye to the city and hello to the country. He talks about going on his own quest. He then goes to sleep with a smile on his face.
In the beginning of the short film once again there is a blue, dull tint to the picture. The voice of the voice over is very dull and monotone and there is no continuous music playing, just tiny, little fills.
When he has a sudden change of heart and is running through the field, the lighting is very high-key lighting and upbeat. The voice has a lot more meaning in it and more interesting. The music becomes more powerful and moving it symbols him going on a journey.
I enjoyed watching this short story because i like the message portrayed in it. The fact his life is extremely boring and repetitive and nothing changed, he wants to make a change but never has the bravery to. However, half way through the film he turns around and starts running in the opposite direction. To me, this means he is making a change and setting himself free.
What is 'Cinema Verite'? - a movie that shows ordinary people in actual activities without being controlled by a director. It is a style of documentary film making.
What is 'avant-gare film'? - Experimental film. A range of filmmaking styles that are generally quite different from mainstream commercial and documentary filmmaking.
What is 'film noir'? - a cinematic term used to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas. Associated with low-key black and white visual style.
What is 'French new wave' about? - Filmmaking style that uses long scenes that get aggressively cut at random places, usually a chunk in the middle, like montage editing.
