Balancing Mise en Scène

1) Stills from existing media that demonstrate aspects of Mise en scène

a. A still image from The Dark Knight, 2008, shows how contrast guides the viewer’s attention.

 

The Joker's colors stand out against Batman's dark outfit. The scene depicts Batman appearing behind the Joker as he begins the interrogation; the Joker's interesting make-up and clothing choices give the impression that he isn't serious, but Batman's single-color costume shows that he is serious.

b. A still image from Blade Runner, 1982, shows how color guides the viewer’s attention.

The scene shows Officer K walking through the ruins of Las Vegas. The background's colors are warm but not too bright, highlighting the darker figure of Officer K, which draws the viewer's attention. He's in the middle and the only figure in the scene which also helps to draw the viewer's attention to him.

c. A still image from Child's Play, 1988, shows how size guides the viewer’s attention.

In this scene, Andy's mother is suspicious that Chucky is alive, so she tries to communicate with him, which leads her to hold him in her arms. This highlights the size gap between them as she holds him and fights him. He may look innocent and vulnerable at first, but later on, this is a wrong guess, as he can overpower her.

d. A still image from The Silence of the Lambs, 1991, shows how frontality guides the viewer’s attention.

In this scene, Lester moves closer to the camera while he speaks to Clarice, but it also provides a sense that he is talking with the audience, which draws the viewer's attention.

2) Stills I created that demonstrate aspects of Mise en scène

a. A still showing how contrast is used to guide the viewer’s attention.

The white towels stand out against the black background because they are the opposing colors. Also, the viewer's attention is drawn to one of the towels because it contains blue lines, while the other papers are all white.

b. A still showing how color is used to guide the viewer’s attention.

In this still, we clearly see the difference in color between their clothing, with one notable exception of the red sweater. The color difference between the two black outfits and the red one draws the viewer's attention.

c. A still showing how size is used to guide the viewer’s attention.

I try to capture the feeling of what the little girl's point of view could be like in this still. I position myself in front of her so that she isn't facing the camera, but the camera angle is adjusted to give the impression that she would see me that way.

d. A still showing how frontality is used to guide the viewer’s attention.

Because the woman is facing the camera directly, we can sense how she is interacting with the audience. And due to her opening her eyes widely we are automatically attracted to her even more.

3) Reflection

I had a lot of trouble with the still photos I took, but the color and contrast shots were the hardest for me since I couldn't seem to get the contrast picture I was truly going for. The color still background didn't really help much because of the colors, which appeared to highlight the wall more than the person in red, but I think it was still able to convey the idea. I think I could have performed better and with a different background, but the people's time was really problematic. Also, I think the contrast still I took was great since both the neutral backdrop and the blue lines helped draw the viewer's attention. I think I may have based my frontality too much on the example I offered from The Silence of the Lambs, even now I'm not sure if the frontality still is good enough. Both are almost similar and to be honest, I shot the image without noticing it. The size still was perfect, and I felt like I was able to express exactly what I wanted. It was difficult to position the camera properly since the young girl wasn't quite the size I was going for, so I had to get her on her knees. Overall, though, I believe that the contrast and color still managed to properly convey their technique, I believe I should focus more on the color in both images going forward and as I do so I should do better on the focuse of the camera also.