Scene 1 - Screw by Nick Knight
Screw is a fashion film by filmmaker Raquel Couceiro, directed by Nick Knight and styled by Katy England. This is my main inspiration for the filming and editing of the first scene where She is introduced. Riccardo Tisci, an Italian fashion designer for Givinchy, was inspired by religion and imprisonment for his SS16 collection. He looked into what sort of posters they had on the walls or other objects men in prisons liked to have in their cells to give them comfort, examples being Jesus and beautiful girls.
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| Screenshot from Screw (2017). |
In the opening scenes and throughout there are a variety close-ups of objects, body parts and shadows that are ambiguous, only showing small sections of the scene. I was originally inspired by the introduction of Insanitarium (2008), by Jeff Buhler, with the close-ups of all the equipment; however these close-ups in Screw show a lot less of each object, leaving the viewer to their own interpretation. Some of these close-ups are made blurry and out of focus, adding to the mystery of the unknown. The setting or model in my film will not be initially obvious as I want the viewer to have unanswered questions to keep them engaged. The majority of shots are taken with a still camera and then possibly edited for a fuzzing effect; however sometimes the camera wavers as if it isn't being held steady, like the person filming has lost concentration. In my film I want this to reflect how She feels like there is always someone watching her, with a negative, judging opinion to force on her.
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| Screenshot from Screw (2017). |
Some clips are edited to vigorously shake to mirror the electrical buzzing noise, possibly representing an electric shock or lost signal. The sound and visual compliment each other so seamlessly to create a believable image, like a security camera is filming the model but there is a malfunction. I want to incorporate this in my first scene to suggest there is someone watching and recording She, to reflect her feeling of always being judged. This could also be interpreted as the electric shocks asylum staff gave their patients in the Victorian era as they thought it would cure their mental illness, to reflect that She has admitted herself to a mental asylum as she feels abnormal and ostracised by society.
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| Screenshot from Screw (2017). |
There is a counting clock at the bottom of the screen in a couple clips which immediately made me question why it was there, was there someone filming him, was it a security camera or was it counting down his time remaining? I also asked myself, did they know if they were being filmed or if they were part of an experiment that was unknown to them. I want to include this in my film as it led me to ask myself so many questions which kept me intrigued and engaged in the film. In my film it will emphasise the possibility that someone is watching over She, making her feel like she is trapped under society's control.
- The Devil Inside by William Brent Bell
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| Screenshot from The Devil Inside (2012). |
To emphasise how She feels like she doesn't belong in society and is looked at a freak, she will be shown in a contorted state, scrunching and twisting her body into uncomfortable positions. Bonnie Morgan is the contortionist in The Devil Inside and she uses her body to reveal the other-worldly creature that is controlling her every move. Her positions are disturbing and shocking, giving her an animalistic, inhuman look. I want my model to experiment with putting her body in awkward and uncomfortable positions to emphasise that she feels like a freak within society. My model isn't a contortionist; however she is flexible so I hope we can create a similar effect.
I will experiment with the above possibilities when filming my educational fashion film to make the footage feel avant-garde and ambiguous, but to also hint that someone is watching She, reflecting her emotions towards discrimination.
Scene 2 - The Chase by Kukula
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| Screenshot of The Chase by Kukula (2017). |
I was inspired by the flashbacks in The Chase by Kukula, as the haunting style of the film captured the model's memories in a chilling, yet emotional way, allowing the viewer to interpret and unravel the truth. The flashbacks are distinguished by their ethereal feel, with blurring and layering effects to give a distorted look. I am using whispering sounds to separate the flashbacks from the present so I want the flashback footage to mirror the same unsettling, ambiguous feel. In my original storyboard I wanted to show She's disturbing memories in an obvious way to give clear indications of her experiences; however I want to include more close-ups and blurred editing to give a haunting feel that can be interpreted in different ways, either to further intrigue the viewer or make it relate to them.
- In Absentia (remake)
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Screenshot of In Absentia
(AnimationOrDeath, 2013). |
The image above is a screenshot of Lynn Campbell's lighting recreation of In Absentia by Quay Brothers. I could not access the original film without having to buy a DVD; however I gained inspiration from this extract. The girl's hands almost look like creatures as they scurry across the page in an animalistic way; this looks exaggerated by sped up editing. The hands are kept close together and confined in one space, reflecting her anxiety to relax. Her hand movements look very cautious and hesitant, like she is nervous of revealing herself or doing something wrong, reflecting She's trapped state as she feels controlled by society. The closeup of her hands draw all the attention to the detail of her movements, letting her hands reveal her emotions. I want to incorporate the same use of closeups of the hands as she scribbles down her haunting nightmares to emphasise her hand gestures to portray her anxious emotions. The model in this clip never reveals what she is drawing, leaving the viewer to imagine and interpret freely. I will do a combination of She drawing under her hand, like in the clip above, as if she is trying to hide what she's drawing; however as the clip goes She may reveal what she's drawing to show elements of her nightmares, but without making them obvious. The model in The Chase, above, revealed a clear image of what she was drawing and matched it with her flashback; however I found this concluded the story and therefore didn't leave me thinking about it once it had finished. I want my viewers to still be interpreting and questioning possibilities after watching my film to keep the film alive.
References:
KNIGHT, N., 2017. Screw [viewed 9th March 2017]. Available from: http://showstudio.com/project/screw/fashion_film
The Devil Inside, 2012[film]. Directed by William Brent Bell. USA: Paramount Home Entertainment
KUKULA, 2017. The Chase [viewed 12th March 2017]. Available from: http://showstudio.com/project/the_chase
ANIMATIONALORDEATH, 2013. In Absentia [viewed 12th March 2017]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1Ww4O0-sJk
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