The main topic I wanted to address in this tutorial was the location, as Amber and Sebastiane both said they were concerned the location was too obvious. I originally wanted to use a realistic asylum cell setting; however Sebastiane thought this may be too dominant and therefore make the viewer think it is reality, when in fact She has admitted herself to a mental asylum in her mind. Sebastiane suggested I looked at theatre director and visual artist, Robert Wilson, as he uses minimalistic back drops for his performances to give an abstract, non descriptive look.
We discussed using an everyday location as it would look more intimidating if She is being controlled and feels trapped in a relatable location. We were inspired by Robert Wilson to strip back the detail and extra objects to give a minimalist, abstract look. By not making it obvious to the viewer that She is in a mental asylum allows different interpretations and unanswered questions, capturing the viewers' interest. I am envisioning a studio set up because the back drop can be easily changed and controlled and the empty space will create an abstract and unnatural look. This artificial space, with a relatable table situation, suggests the setting is in She's subconscious. I think this will put more emphasis on the model's emotion and body movement to reveal the narrative because the background will be so bare and non descriptive.
Sebastiane suggested directly the asylum staff/society figure to stand round and watch She, for example She could be working at her table and then the haunting figure could either stand in one spot about watch her or walk around as if the figure is guarding her escape. This would immediately translate to the audience that She is being controlled and feels trapped by this authoritative, intimidating figure, representing her fear towards society. I could use this in the opening scene where She is at her most vulnerable, tied up in black netted bandages.
Sebastiane re-enforced to me the importance of lighting to achieve a certain mood or message. This is especially apparent if I use a more abstract, non descriptive background as the location won't necessarily reflect the narrative directly. Robert Wilson uses harsh shadows and dramatic lighting angles to create silhouettes, abstract shapes and pools of light for things to exist in which I think make his minimalistic set designs more detailed and abstract. Sebastiane suggested I focused more on a few small details to evoke meaning, than focusing on the big picture to create a realistic location.
I showed Sebastiane my asylum staff/society styling and he immediately said it reminded him of a Yoda from Star Wars, however I think he meant Darth Vader because Yoda is a green, furry animal with big ears. I did not gain any inspiration from Darth Vader when creating my styling so it is just a coincidence that they both wear all black, with some flowing material on the body and with their identities concealed. Sabastiane suggested I made the figure that represented society in She's reality and the asylum stuff in She's subconcious more realistic to counter balance with the avant-garde styling of She. He suggested I used styling that looked close to dental and healthcare uniforms to represent their medical authority. I think this would have worked if the figures only represented asylum staff; however I also want them to represent society in She's reality. I want the haunting figure to look intimidating and powerful and even though I understand some people are intimidated by medical staff, I don't think it reflects the same fear as the unknown. The phantom figure has its identity completely hidden by the suffocating hood to conjure up the fear of the unknown. I may experiment with combining the medical uniform body and the intimidating hood to combine the realistic with the abstract as I do think Sebastiane's idea of counterpoint styling would look effective.
I mentioned how I am using my Instagram account to gain interest by showing the projects progression, which he agreed was important; however he said I could be more relaxed with it and not put pressure on myself to post on specific days but to instead post when I have a genuine progression. I still want to roughly follow my plan, but I won't worry if I miss a day or two.
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