AS Media Mise-en-scene Source Of Inspiration

Mise-en-scene Source Of Inspiration 

Brief

Based on our survey, many people would like to see several props in our urban drama. Props are used to convey the character and also the conditions they live in, as well as the location. Below are some examples where mise-en-scene is carefully planned to portray the character in dramas, specifically characters stereotypical in urban dramas.

Research and Planning

From my editing practical, I used the clip of Lieutenant Dan in "Forrest Gump". In this clip, he is drunk and angry about his disability. In this scene, the emphasis on his alcoholism is shown through him scavenging through empty beer bottles. The fact that all of this is in the chosen location of his apartment presents the idea that perhaps he drinks at home as comfort. The empty bottles are not thrown away maybe to show that they are recently empty or he doesn't care about the state.

Above: Mid shot.

Similar mise-en-scene is used in urban dramas like "Shameless" where the character Frank is represented as a disrespectful, modern working class father, rather than a struggling, wheel chair bound man like Lieutenant Dan. The location used is also very different as "Shameless US" uses run down urban areas and Frank is commonly seen in a bar due to his alcoholism. There are scenes in the show where Frank is even too drunk to return home and sleeps on the streets, disrespecting the urban town and people's property. While Dan was abusing alcohol more privately presenting the idea that he drinks to help with his sadness and anger about being unable to use his legs.

In our film we would like to highlight the issues around homelessness. As urban dramas are character driven, we can change the meaning behind the story through the character. In the example of "Shameless", Frank is an older, stubborn and reckless modern working class character that is stereotypically shown in urban dramas to represent the modern working class as disrespectful. Especially, when Frank is also a father as well as a drug addict.

As analysed in our survey, instead of developing this stereotype, we would like to use a younger character, which would be more vulnerable and therefore make the audience feel pity for them. In the short film "DIFFeRENCE", attached below, the younger homeless man is attacked viciously.

The character has very little to begin with including just a blanket and cardboard for insulation and not even the necessities like food. Yet, this minimal amount of props means he has no property to survive let alone comfort himself, this means he has no defence against the attackers and, consequently, we feel even more sorry for him.

On the other hand, one thing in common between these different representations of homeless people is that their costumes are both similar. Characters usually wear heavy clothes like coats, hats and trousers to insulate themselves. These are usually worn and dirty, as shown by brown colours, holes and dirt.

The dirtiness of older, alcoholic characters like Frank and Lieutenant Dan are developed not only by extra props like beer bottles, but also by the actor having a long, unkempt beard and hair, yellowing fingernails and teeth. Although younger characters still have longer and unwashed hair, the characters seem to make some sort of effort to keep it maintained, as stereotypically they still maintain some sort of respect unlike the disrespectful older men shown through Frank, showing their insecurity and level of self worth. It also subverts the stereotypical homeless costume portrayed by older, disrespectful characters like Frank.

Personal Comments

In our film opening we could use a young actor with fairly little possessions like in "DIFFeRENCE' to show how much of an easy target the character is and therefore, create sympathy. This could be further developed if we use a young female actress, stereotypically seen as weaker. This is why we shall use Emma to play the protagonist.

If we were to use a sentimental item it could further develop the audience's pity for the character.  As a group, we decided to perhaps use a locket and leave the person in the locket unidentified to create ambiguity.

Another way to add pity is to set the scene during Christmas time. The cold and snow would develop the audience's concern for the character, but also seeing happy families passing the isolated character would emphasis how alone the protagonist is and further create sympathy. This would link with the supposed family photo in the locket.

Yet, I think adding this Christmas theme would appear to cheesy and more like an advert. We could include scenes of the character at family places instead like a park etc. The idea of family issues came from the responses of our survey.