Quick look into codes and conventions in one particular short film

Lovefield – short film by Mathieu Ratthe

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4meeZifCVro

I have decided to look briefly into the beginning of this film to get an idea for some forms and conventions used in 'professional' short films.




Before the film starts we see the directors iconic logo that is recurrent in all of his short films, creating a recognisable symbol, so that when viewers watch movies produced by him they instantly know that it is his work.

The establishing shot sets the scene of the film well, showing a long shot of a harvest field with the title of the short movie ‘Lovefield’ coming into shot. The sound of the wind we can hear adds to the verisimilitude, making the scene more realistic to the audience. The array of shots used of crops along with a stereotypical scary soundtrack in the background creates a tense feeling, suggesting that something frightening is about to happen. The ‘boom’ sound followed by the creaking of the road sign are also well know features associated with unnerving situations. The crow is a common feature used in Mathieu Ratthe’s films, so helps symbolise his products. Quicker editing between shots of the crops and the crow adds to the tension in the film. We then hear the distinct sound of a telephone line that has been cut off or disconnected, with the camera shots getting still focusing on the crops but aiming the angle closer to the bottom of the harvest and to the floor. The volume of the telephone sound then increases whilst the image zooms out, indicating that it is getting closer to where the sound of the telephone is coming from. The telephone is then revealed and we assume it is alone, until the camera zooms further out and we are systematically shown other items such as loose money and a coat. A piercing sound can then be heard, which soon becomes obvious that it is someone crying, bringing many presently unanswered questions to the audience. The sudden hand coming into shot followed by a louder cry suggests that the person crying is doing so in despair or possibly pain. We can assume the cries come from a woman, as we stereotype that women have a higher pitched cry than men, and as the camera continues to move out we see something covered in blood followed by the woman’s foot also sprayed in blood. We see the foot clench and shake as we continue to hear cries. The non-digetic, scary sounding, music gets continually louder until it comes to a sudden stop and the foot in shot stops moving. The next bit was created to make the viewer jump or possibly scream with fear as we see a hand suddenly and quickly travel into shot with a knife in hand that is stabbed into the ground. Both the hand and knife, following the earlier theme, are covered in blood, which can add to the fear of the audience and you could assume the person holding the knife has used to harm the woman who was earlier in the film crying. By vertically tracking the camera up the side of the man, instead of giving us a shot of the whole of him straight away, adds a sense of anxiety, waiting to see who the new character in the short film is. The tattoo on the side of the man’s arm, showing a skull, has connotations of a tough character who could be a rogue or just not a very nice person. The bloodcurdling music plays again as we see the man frantically look around where he is standing, in the crops. This indicates that something frightening could be about to happen and now we have had a more personal interaction with a character in this short film we can start to feel more involved with what is happening.