Director's Statement of Intent: Shot for Shot

1.      What is the story of this scene in two or three sentences? In other words, what happens in the scene? 

Truman has recently been questioning his reality and suffered a breakdown after (basically) kidnapping his wife to go on a road trip.  His wife tries to calm him down, but tension only rises to the point where she uses a potato peeler to protect herself from her unstable husband.  While fighting, she accidentally breaks character and speaks to an unseen third party, causing Truman to freak out and threaten her, until his friend Marlon shows up to diffuse the situation.

2.      What is purpose of this scene in the larger story? (Or, if there is not a larger story, invent the purpose of this scene.)

This is the moment in the film where Truman and Meryl’s relationship (and their entire marriage) is finally revealed to be a sham.  Their relationship breaks down, just as Truman’s own perception of his world has been breaking down.  She also accidentally confirms his beliefs that his reality is not real and is being manipulated by unseen forces, which fuels his actions for the rest of the movie. 

3.      What is the emotion I want to communicate? 

I want to communicate Truman’s frustration at the realization that his marriage and reality are falling apart, and I want to communicate Meryl’s fear of Truman and concern for her own safety.

4.      Why is this scene personal to me? What previous personal experiences does it remind me of? Why do I need to make this scene?

I strongly believe in the importance of free will and choice.  I also believe strongly in the importance of honesty.  One of my biggest pet peeves is when people lie to me or try to trick me (which is funny because I love acting, which is essentially lying for entertainment).  This movie encapsulates both of these things that I love.  The film is all about the importance of free will and the harm that everyone’s deceptions and lies cause to Truman.  It shows that humans should choose freedom even in the face of the unknown and dangerous, rather than remain coddled in a pleasant but controlling environment.  This scene in particular shows Truman confronting his wife about the lies that have been prevalent all throughout their marriage, and their confrontation solidifies his conviction that his reality is not real, which leads him down the path to discovering how to free himself from this world and regain his free will and agency.

5.      What, specifically, must the audience understand narratively and feel at the end of this scene? How do you intend to make sure this will happen?

Honestly, this is probably the most difficult part, since the scene doesn’t make a whole lot of sense out of context.  For example, when the wife slips into “commercial mode”, the audience understands what is happening because we have seen this strange behavior before.  Without the context of the rest of the film, this moment will seem random and out of place.  However, I think that it is important for the audience to know that they are having marital troubles, Truman is feeling particularly paranoid, and his wife genuinely becomes afraid of him and fears for her safety.  They need to know that Truman regrets his actions at the end of the scene and realizes that his life is falling apart.  The audience must feel bad for both Truman, who is suffering a massive breakdown, and his wife, who is in physical danger.  I intend to make this happen by casting actors who can portray all of these complex emotions and sticking closely to the framing and composition of the original film.

6.      What two visual elements (line, shape, space, tone, color, rhythm, movement) will you use to help communicate the emotion of the scene?

Two visual elements that I wish to utilize are movement and color.  There is a clear difference in saturation between the first half that takes place in the kitchen and the second half which occurs in the darker living room.  This contrast emphasizes the escalating nature of their fight and the darkness creeping into Truman’s life.  Movement also plays a key role.  When they circle each other in the kitchen, the camera keeps them in the center frame at all times, which makes it seem like they’re standing still and the world is spinning around them, which further emphasizes how their world is falling apart (and in Truman’s case, the world does revolve around him, in a way).

7.      What are some potential obstacles to creating a successful scene? How can you be prepared to overcome these?

Location location location.  In order for this scene to work, I need to find a large enough kitchen/dining room area that has a ceiling high enough for the high angle shots, and enough space for the actors to walk around and perform.  Most of the apartments that I know don’t have kitchens large enough to film in, so I will have to do some serious scouting to find a house that matches the space as closely as possible (the living room scene should be easier, since it mostly requires a door with windows next to it).  Also, several of the shots require parts of the frame to be obscured or blacked out completely (the button cam shots, for example), which I will either learn to do in post, or I will work with Lauren to see how we can achieve the effect in camera.  I’m also a little scared about knowing what lenses to use in what shot, so I will by talking things over with Lauren, my DP, and seeing which lenses will best replicate the shots that we need.

8.  What is the first image of the scene?  What is the last image of the scene?
The first image is of Meryl standing in front of the island in the kitchen, facing Truman and pleading for him to get help.  The last image is of Marlon holding Meryl in front of the doorway, comforting her and assuring her that everything is going to be okay.