Director's Intent: Evoking Childhood

Steven Olson

TMA 285

1/12/16

Director’s Intent: Evoking Childhood

1.  What is the story of this scene in two or three sentences?  In other words, what happens in the scene?  In this scene, an unseen protagonist (film is from his POV) practices piano, reads books, and watches movies as an escape from the unpleasant things in his life.  This includes mundane things, such as spilling honey on the ground and being yelled at by his mother, to the more serious and personal, such as getting bullied by neighbor kids.  But no matter what happens to our protagonist, he still has music and stories to escape from the unpleasantness of life.

2.  What is the purpose of the scene?  The purpose of the scene is to contrast some of the unpleasant aspects of childhood with the more whimsical, escapist elements of childhood.  I want to show that no matter what bad things happen to us, there is always a place that we can go in order to find joy.

3.  What is the emotion I want to communicate?  I want to communicate feelings of relief after building tension throughout.  I want to focus on the hope and simple joy that comes from some of the more escapist and fantastical elements of childhood, as well as the pain and simple suffering of the more negative aspects of growing up.  Hopefully, the film will bring relief to those who watch it.
    
4.  Why is the scene personal to me? What previous experience does it remind me of? Why do I need to make this scene? This scene is personal to me because my own childhood was pleasant enough because when I found something that I loved, it filled me with such joy that I was able to filter out some of the more negative memories of my childhood, such as getting bullied and teased by the neighbor kids or getting in trouble with my parents.  This scene draws on some very specific memories of mine, such as the time that I woke up at 4 am to watch cartoons and I accidentally spilled a huge jug of honey on the floor while trying to make cereal.  The other scenes are more of a combination of memories, such as all of the piano that I played as a kid, as well as some of the teasing I endured.  I need to make this scene so that I can better reconcile the positive and negative aspects of my childhood. 

5.  What, specifically, must the audience understand narratively and feel at the end of the scene?  How do you intend to make sure this happens?  By the end, the audience must understand that even though childhood has its unpleasant moments, there are still enough pleasant moments and activities that we can look back on fondly.  I intend to make sure this happens by associating the music played throughout with the happier moments of the film, and contrasting visually between the lighter and darker moments of the story.

6.  What two visual elements will help you communicate the emotion of the scene?  Two elements that I want to utilize are space and movement.  In moments of great tension, I want the camera movement be a little shakier, more frantic, to illustrate the mood of the protagonist.  I also want the camera to move slower (or even stay still) during moments of peace and joy.  If the mood is claustrophobic, I want the space to feel confined with actions happening close to the camera to simulate uneasiness.  This should work for my film since it is mostly POV. I also want to use a wide lens for certain shots to enhance the space and create a sense of loneliness and abandonment for the protagonist. 

7.  What are some potential obstacles to creating a successful scene?  How can you be prepared to overcome these?  One obstacle will involve shooting outside.  I have a couple of exterior shots planned, and bad weather or planning can make these shots difficult to shoot.  However, I plan on shooting on a Friday morning, so hopefully there will be enough light to shoot the scene and the weather doesn’t interfere.  Another obstacle will be finding actors for my film.  Luckily, this scene doesn’t require any dialogue, so I will only need to find people who take direction well and aren’t afraid to be on camera.  Another obstacle would involve equipment breaking or missing equipment that we need.  To avoid this, I have talked with Sariah to figure out exactly what we’ll need for the shots so that we don’t miss anything.  I also intend on returning the equipment as soon as possible to decrease the risk of the equipment breaking.