In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
1. In this establishing shot, we see the silhouette of a person sat in a derelict room. This shot does not show the face of the character, he is hidden by the darkness of the scene. This is stereotypical of a drama or thriller, directors often obscure the face of the characters to get viewers to focus more on the characters surroundings.
2. This shot is a visual representation of the title 'Short Wires'. There is a very shallow depth of field, common practice in modern film. These loose wires are hanging from a broken light on the ceiling. The wires are a safety hazard and give the audience the idea that the title is implying that there is a theme of danger or liability.
3. The shattered glass in this shot represents the storyline of the film. It suggests that, like in most films, there is a problem and something has been broken. The mesh in the glass appears to be holding the shards together which may imply the support of other characters coming later on in the film.
4. An old but comforting house is shown. A sweeping light effect is used to suggest change or that the house has somehow been wiped away. The audience are fed the idea that this is the character reminiscing on his life, for example where he used to live. Film openings are often made to give you a preview of what direction the whole story will take, I have included this house in an attempt to give this depth to my opening.
5. This sense of reminiscing can also be seen in this shot, it is a mid shot showing both the character neck down and a piano, suggesting that perhaps the piano was an instrumental past-time. This is also a shot with a title. The actors name appears alongside his body and drifts outwards. It is common for the actors name to appear as their character does, allowing the viewer to make the link between the story and reality.
6. This is a clear shot of the protagonist. He is a young man in his mid to late teens. He is smoking a cigarette, cigarettes are often associated with coping with stress. They are also detrimental to your health, this implies that the character has lost hope and no longer cares. Lots of smokers are looking to give up smoking, overcoming this could link with overcoming greater things later on the film.
7. This is a shot stereotypical of a melancholy film. We can see what appear to be childhood photographs, the photographs are covered by sparks and this suggests they are being burned. With old photographs, they are often one of copies which if lost, or burned, cannot be replaced.
8. In this shot, my character is walking out of frame. This suggests to the audience that he is entering the shadows, we do not know where he is heading. This technique of taking the character off screen is often used in film to build suspense as the audience want to know where they have gone!
9. This is the final shot in my opening sequence, it is also the main film title shot. The title is centred to the person sitting behind it. The main title in most films is centred, this is to draw the attention of the audience and often get them thinking about the title of the film. The title can contain clues as to events in the story, for example my title 'Short Wires' may suggest events of short temperedness.
