The result of my test(An investigate of my film work Friendship)

After I finish my film work Friendship, my tutor Julius suggests me to do a test for it. So I design an investigation of my audience. 25 audiences complete my investigation, they give their opinion to my work, and they give some good suggestions for me.

This is some questionnaires of the test, about 18, everybody signed on it：(And I do others online by personal):

Then, I study on these questionnaires one by one. And I got some result. Firstly,100% people understand the story of the film. That makes me very happy. Secondly, I will use some charts to show the answer of my questionnaires.

This is the first question's answer. The question is: What is the director wants to talk about do you think? According to the chart, we can see two people select "friendship", 5 people choose "hypocritical", 7 people choose "human nature" and 9 people choose people's inner world. Actually, I give five options for this question. But nobody chooses the fifth option: others.

There are about 2～3 people choose more than one option. When I write the screenplay, I want to tell a story to satirize some friendships. I didn't design these options for this question. After testing my film, I realized how audience thinks about my work. That will help me to improve my work indeed.

Did people sometimes think one way and act another thing in real life? My answer is Yes. Because I did. However, not everyone thinks they have done it. There are three people think they never did this. But we still can see 90% people did. So these audiences will identify with the emotion in the film. Actually, another three people can understand, too. 

So I ask them: when you did it, how did you show your emotion changing? That's a question hard to answer because a few people can remember that. I still got some results. The first one is facial expression. That is a really important point. The second one is to stop talking. Yes, I will do that as well. And the third one is nothing. That is very normal because it's our inner world, we need to hide it instead of expressing it. But nothing is very hard to show in the film～～

The last chart shows the audience prefers which way to show character's emotion in the film. I give four options for this question. And most people prefer voice-over and music. About 20% people like body language, and only 10% people choose subtitle. The interesting thing is there are a few people give other answers. That will be very good suggestions for me. 

So, the result of my test is almost people can understand my work and they like the voice-over in the film. I consider that voice-over, body language and music can be combined to show the character's emotion. That will be more effective. I will do more research on the facial expression and people's habit. And I'm sure I will try to use it in my future work.

Film analysis-DUEL: character's inner world

Duel is the first film by Steven Spielberg. Nowadays, Steven is one of the most famous directors in the world. 40 years ago, he shot this film and becomes famous overnight. It is a film with a simple story. We even cannot see the villain's face in the film. However, the story still very interesting because of director's outstanding skills.

Actually, this film has two editions. One is for cinema, nearly 130 minutes. Another one is for TV, only 75 minutes. At that time, filmmakers are worried about the audience would not like this film because of the simple story. So they cut many parts from the first edition. But in my opinion, the 130 minutes edition is very brilliant. Here, I will choose a part from the first edition to analyze.

At last two blogs, I try to analyze how to show animal character's emotion in the film. I find several different useful ways. Before watched this movie, I thought maybe use subtitle is also a good method. So I studied on it and shot an experimental film, Can Story. When I watched this film, I realized maybe subtitle is not the only way. Because voice-over is a good way to show character's emotion as well, no matter human character or animal character. 

Let watch a part of Duel first:

In this part, we can see the main character come into a restaurant and he finds the man who wants to kill him is sitting here as well. However, our leading man never saw his face, so he has to guess who is the trucker. He peeked everyone in the restaurant, and he wants to judge. In the beginning, he becalmed himself because he wants to solve this misunderstanding. Then, he finds a man like the trucker. He changed his emotion here. After that, he was thinking how to talk with the man. And then, he makes a decision, he needs to talk. Unfortunately, that man is not the trucker.

We can hear a lot of voice-over here. These voices are come from character's inner world. Other characters can't hear these voices, but the audience can. That's exactly what director wants. Audience would think with the main character when they heard these voice-over. They also did not know who is the trucker. They will guess as well. That is suspense effect.

Through use of the voice-over, the director makes the audience thinking with character successful. Of course, audience can understand the character's emotion this time.  After watching this film, I write the Friendship's screenplay and I decide try to use voice-over to show the character's emotion in my film. 

Film analysis - Eight Below: different ways, same purpose

Of course, body language is not the only way to present animal's emotion in the film. Through watched the Eight Below, I find several different ways to show animal character's emotion.  

Another way to show character's emotion in the film is music. As everyone knows, different type music will give us a different feeling. Even there is no picture in front of audiences, music also can make people moving or existing. When director edits music and picture together, the effect is remarkable. Let's watch this part:

In this scene, I believe every audience is worried about the injured dog. He lies on the snow because of his legs have folded. Everyone in this team come to him and stands around him. This moment, the music is slow and deliberate. After this scene, this poor dog has been dead in the snow. Actually, everybody knows that he cannot survive in the future, but we still worried. We also know that is a film, the dog hasn't been dead in the real world, but the music makes the others look very sadly. 

The third way to show animal character's emotion in the film is event(emergency). Let's watch the example again:

On this occasion, these dogs suffered a big trouble——compete with a seal for food. The seal is bigger, powerful fierce and cruel. 

When the dog found the food, he looks very happy and he is interesting in the food. However, when the seal rushed out, the dog has been terrified. His emotion changed from happy to nervous. That was happened in one second. At that moment, I think every audience has been scared. And everyone is worried about the dog.

Why we know the dog is terrified? Because human and animal's brain will make a response when they encounter something dangers. In a way, we can feel the dog's feeling at that time. The emergency event can bring the audience into the story, of course they can understand what is character's emotion in the story.

Anyway, in these three part of film, we can hear the music all the time. And we can see the body language all the time. The emergency event is a good way that we can't use all the time. Different ways, same purpose. The purpose is to show the character's emotion better in the film.

Film analysis - Eight Below: How to show animal character's emotion in film?

Eight Below is a very impressiveness movie. The story is about how eight dogs survived in harsh South Pole without human's help. South Pole's winter is totally terrible, however, these dogs still survived depend on their intelligent and honest character. When they find their master comes back, they are exciting and never blame. After watching this movie, I do believe the dog is human's friend.

Now, I will analyze the emotion in this film. Because this is a film about animals, I can study how to show animal's emotion by it.

1. Body language

Body language always to be an important way to show character's emotion in the film. Even in the normal film, human actors also will use body language to present emotion, specifically angry and excited. Naturally, this method can be used on animal characters. 

However, animal's body language is different from human's. How to make the audience understand animal's body language? That will be a problem. Let's watch a segment of Eight Below here:

In this part, we can see three dogs use their body language because of the food. They can't speak. Audiences didn't know what is this body language meaning. But we still can understand. Why? 

I consider there are two reasons: The scene and the general knowledge. In this scene, we know they are eating. What will happen when they are eating? Eating, sharing or seizing food. According to our general knowledge, we know the dog's body language is about these three things. Then, the first dog's emotion is unwillingness, and the second dog's emotion is willing to share. They use body language let the audience know their attitude and emotion.

The screenplay and poster of CAN STORY

Screenplay - CAN STORY

EXT. DAY. STREET

There is a big square. Many people walk across it.

CAN

(subtitle+arrow)

I’m a CAN.  Why am I here?

The can have been kicked by several people. They even hadn’t realized they kicked it.

CAN

(subtitle)

The story is not very long.

EXT. DAY. STREET

A man chooses some coins and buys a can from the vending machine. 

CAN

That’s 27 minutes 46 seconds ago...

The CAN can see the man’s hand. It has been taken.The man drinks it on the road. After he finishes drinking, the man just throws it on the street.

CAN

(subtitle)

I’m painful and sadly this moment.

I’m helpless just like a baby.

The can still been kicked again and again.

CAN

(subtitle)

Ignore me. Kick me.

Nobody cares about my feeling.

Until...

Suddenly, a shoe appeared and crushed the can. Then, a girl’s hand appeared and take the can up. She throw the can into the dustbin.

CAN

(subtitle)

This time, nobody will hurts me again.

 fade out

Subtitle: Please care for our environment and do not maltreat rubbish.

THE  END

An experiment: short ad "CAN STORY"

This is a short story, only 1.5 minutes, about a can. I'm director and screenwriter. Firstly, this experiment is about my study in PGD phase. I want to explore how to present a can's emotion change in the film. Though shoot this film, I learned a lot of. Here, I try to use the way of music+subtitle to show the emotion. 

I worked on this film with my classmates Gao Chen and Yuanxiao Zhang. Thanks for them. And very thanks for Larry's help as well.

To join the film festival is an other reason we shoot this film. Though it is very short, it's impressive to everyone because of the character's hard experience. I will write the screenplay of this film in the next blog. And I will analysis it in my PGD presentation.

Hope you like it.

Test question of my short film work [Friendship]

An investigate of my film work FRIENDSHIP

Author: Tianchi Wang (Tiki)

1. Can you understand the story?            Yes(     ) / No(     )

2. What is the director wants to talk about do you think?   

 (     )

A. Friendship  B. People’s inner world  C. Human nature  D. Hypocritical 

E.Others:_____________________________________________________

3. People in this film always think one way and act another. Have you did it?     Yes(     ) / No (     )

4. If did, how did you show your emotion changing when you did it?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. Which way do you prefer to present character’s emotion in the film?(     )

A. Voiceover   B. Subtitle(just like I did in the CAN STORY)      

6. Sometimes people got some emotion they don’t want to let other know. In the movie, I can present it by voiceover and subtitle. Do you have any other way to present it in the movie?

__________________________________________________

                                                  Thank you for your help~

                                     Signature:____________________

The man from earth —— emotion change based on story develop

This film impressed me deeply. It is a science fiction film. However, in one moment, I think I believe it. And after watch the movie, I still think about it for few days. Though this is not a film with high investment, the story or the idea impressed me. At the same time, I think director use the plot to show how character's emotion changing perfectly.  

The story is about a man who live on this planet for 14000 years ago. He never dead, and he is 35 years old forever. He studied many language and forgot them when new languages appeared. Every ten years or so, when people started to notice that he doesn't age, he moved on. He think he is a Con-magnon. He never told this to others before, but this time he told it to some professors who worked with him in Hafer.

These professor can not believe him of course. Then, they asked many professional question. He answered all of them.

The  painting looks like a Van Gogh's work. He said that is. At that time, he is a farmer, he always draw picture with Van Gogh. And he told others he had studied with Buddha. Buddha is a special people that makes him very fascinated. Buddha thought he is different but never asked him like he knows everything has reason. Then, he went to the mediterranean sea area, and he think he can follow the lead of Buddha, so he create christianity. Yes, he is Jesus...

Many things happened on this man. Something he can remember, something he can't. How ever that may be, professors can not find the flaw of his talk. They think it is a joke at the beginning. Then, they start to thinking. In the end, they had to believe it even if they don't want to.

In this film, directing skills is limited. Without specially good effect, grandiose scenes,  famous stars, special shot technology. There are not voice-over, subtitle and poetic dialog to present character's emotion. But we still can see emotion changing in the film clearly. Why?

I believe the secret is the story. Very different and gifted idea of story. Every few minutes, director will gives audiences some surprises. Live 14000 years, we surprised, character emotion also change to surprise. Painting with Van Gogh, talk with Copernicus, think with Newton, study follow Buddha...One by one, a lot of unfamiliar ideas come up, that makes character's emotion changed.

To conclusion, I consider that good idea(story or plot) also can help director present character's emotion change in the movie. I will try to do it if it's possible in the future.

Film Analysis - Wong Kar-Wai's film world(The Grandmaster)

This is Wong Kar-Wai's new film —— The Grandmaster. The story is not only about a Kung Fu Master, but also include a Kung Fu world. This time, Wong Kar-Wai just like a painter, he had drawn a large and beautiful picture of Chinese Kung Fu society.

This is a very "long" film. It is 130 minutes. But Wong Kar-Wai prepare it for 10 years. 10 years ago, he decide to film this movie and start to meditate the structure and story. After 7 years, there are about 5 films had been made with the same subject matter. Wong Kar-Wai finds he is the first one decide to film this theme, however, he may be the last one to film this theme. That means he needs to do better than early film.

In this 7 years, he has found the actors. He has required these actors to study different type of Kung Fu 5 years ago. A famous actors, Chang chen, even has gained the first prize of Chinese Bajiquan competition in 3 years because of this movie. But Wong Kar-Wai still hasn't begin his shot work.

Until 2009, Wong Kar-Wai finally decide to start. This time, he worked more careful and patient. He shot many pictures again and again. A lot of famous actors need to come to the film studio several times because of one scene.

Though the actor, Chang chen, study the Kong Fu Bajiquan very hardly, director Wong Kar-Wai only give him a few minutes in the film. That makes fans of Chang chen very angry. But this is Wong Kar-Wai's style. He often shoot a lot, use a little. He prepare 10 year for the film, the film is only 130 minutes. This prove he is a director who has stringent specification.

Just as in the past, Wong Kar-Wai arranged a large number of poetic things in the movie. Special poetic dialog. It help director to present character's emotion changing again. I can translate some here(forgive my poor translate):

1.All encounter in the world, are the long-awaited reunion.

2.If I say my life has no regret, that is not my heartfelt wishes. If it is really no regrets, how hollow life it is!

3.I select live in my years.

4.Meet you at my best time, that's my luck. Unfortunately, I have no more time.

5.The secret of man and wife is the sound of silence.

...

These poetic words make audience very infatuated. At the same time, they understand the character's inner world.

Film Analysis - Wong Kar-Wai's film world(Happy Together)

Wong Kar-wai, BBS (born 17 July 1956) is a Hong Kong Second Wave filmmaker, internationally renowned as an auteur for his visually unique, highly stylised, emotionally resonant work, including Days of Being Wild (1990), Ashes of Time (1994), Chungking Express (1994), Fallen Angels (1995), Happy Together (1997), 2046 (2004) and The Grandmaster (2013). His film In the Mood for Love (2000), starring Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung, garnered widespread critical acclaim. Wong's films frequently feature protagonists who yearn for romance in the midst of a knowingly brief life and scenes that can often be described as sketchy, digressive, exhilarating, and containing vivid imagery.

                                 ——Film History: An Introduction (3rd ed. ed.)

Wong Kar-wai is a very famous Chinese director. I don't want to introduce him too much, this is Wikipedia's introduction: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wong_Kar-wai   audiences can know him from the website.

The film I want analysis, or I should say study here, is Happy Together(1997). It's a story about two gay lovers live abroad. It is a very simple story, this film's Chinese name means: spring scenery has burst into bloom. Wong Kaer-Wai has gained the Best Director Award of Cannes Film Festival in 1997.

These two man love each other very deeply. They always decide to do something exhilarating together. However, because of their different character,they thought other side is suspicious. They were quarreling with each other usually...

There always have many emotion changing in Wong Kar-Wai's film. He use the way of voice-over and subtitle to show the emotion of character, too. In the other hand, he has a lot of other methods to show character's emotion(include inner world emotion) in his film. As I observed, the most important and useful two methods are:

1. Poetic

Not only poetic characters in the film, but also poetic dialogue, heading, subheading, subtitle, character's action, film scenes, voice-over, music, even weather that day.

Wong Kar-Wai just like a poet. In his eyes, everything can be poetic. Maybe the character's emotion has changed. Wong Kar-Wai did not show the character's changing. He just filmed the cataract for 40 seconds with a special music. After watch 40 seconds "poem", some audiences will love this director's filming skill, someone will stand up and leave cinema straightway.

2. Special picture

The pictures in Wong Kar-Wai's film always very beautiful. However, it's different with other directors. I believe Wong Kar-Wai has a very high requirement to his cameraman. He prefer to use handheld shooting, so cameraman need to stand and hold the camera all the time. He prefer to use full length shot, so cameraman often need to change the focus on the moving character.

He is a very stringent director. His film always work several years, many pictures will be cut if he don't like. Just like the picture above, we cannot find it in the movie because director think it's not useful to story...

Film review - AMOUR

Before I talk about AMOUR, I need to say it is an excellent and outstanding film. Let's look at the awards got:

·Academy Award - Best Foreign Language Film

·Cannes Film Festival - The Palme d'Or

·Golden Globes, USA - Best Foreign Language Film

·César Awards, France - Best picture - Best Actor - Best Actress - Best director

...

Needless to say, AMOUR is a wonderful cinematographic work. I think I don't want to prove it again here. I want to talk about this film because I want to learn some skills from it. Special director skills of presenting character's emotion.

AMOUR looks like a very simple film. Two old people with only a few other characters. Simple scene. Old topic(death and love). However, I notice that there are many imagery of pictures in the film. These pictures are arranged by director deliberately. Actually, they are all pregnant with meaning. It can help audiences to understand the inner world of characters.

Example 1:

After the concert, they come back to home. The old man finds there's a thief came to their house and broke the door. He remembers he has three to four friends' house had been stolen. He thinks a thief come to their house is sooner or later.

Actually, "thief" here also means "disease" and "death". In the next few minutes of film, the old man go to join an old friend's funeral. Already three to five old friend has been dead, just like "be stolen". Director wants to present character's idea through use "thief" story. I believe in this part, director wants to tell us, the old man knows birth and old age, sickness and death are the law of life. What he can do is accepted and face it. Even it's very cruel.

Example 2:

This scene is the old man's dream. A nightmare. In the beginning of the dream, everything is normal. He is brushing teeth. Suddenly, he heard someone knock on the door. He doesn't know who and he asked. But no one answers.(When we face in predicament, predicament never talks to us) So he opens the door and he finds the lift is on the fritz.(Just like the later life, trouble unceasing) Then, he goes to the corridor and he finds his feet are stepping in the water.(Water should not appear in the corridor. If it appeared, that's mean pipe broke. Water here means the old man is in the trouble, and he cannot find the direction, he must deal with trouble alone)  Unexpectedly, a hand come out to cover up his mouth from the back of his head, every audience had been scared at the moment, but what's that mean? Just a bad dream? I consider this hand is the force majeure of the old man's life.

Someone knocks the door, he has to open the door. His wife sick, he has to care for her. However, he still doesn't know whether his wife will get well. Just like he doesn't who knocked. Death and disease are the force majeure, he cannot fight with the hand in his dream, because he is an old man step in the water.

Photography Work-Yangzhou China (Part III)

Chinese poem said: I journeyed south to Yangzhou in March, a time when flowers were blooming. That's because Yangzhou is very beautiful in March. There's a kind of flower called rare flower will burst forth in March and it just remains a few weeks.

The West Lake in Hangzhou is one of the most famous scenic spots in China. Slender West Lake in Yangzhou compare with the West Lake is totally different. Slender West Lake is a very small part of The Grand Canal. There are many old structures in it and more than 30 little bridges cross the lake.

This is an old street in the city. The buildings around the street is characteristic architecture in Yangzhou.

There are a large numbers of personal gardens in this city as well. Because there are many rich businessmen stay here. So they built their personal garden here. However, these things happened in Qing dynasty. Nowadays, these gardens are belong  to the country.

Another poem said: Even you have a golden hill and a silver hill, Yangzhou just like a stove, it can cost all of your property.

This is traditional Yangzhou dramatic——ship dramatic.

Photography Work-Yangzhou China (Part II)

Lushi ancient messuages, a very big messuage established by a successful salter. Nowadays, it had been transformed to a top quality restaurant.

Chinese ancient messuages always has tall wall and small doors. Tall wall is on guard for thieves. Small door means money can not be divulged.

This is 7 cephali disc of Lushi ancient messuages restaurant. Include: asparagus, duck egg,  edible tree fungus, wine-soaked shrimp, fried bean curd...

This a light refreshments before main dish. It's "oil-grilled turnip cake". Very popular food in China.

This is a very, very, very special dish. It is a fish. However, it's not an ordinary fish. It's swellfish (rabbit fish/globefish). This kind of fish is toxic because they don't want to be attacked. But theirs' meat is very delicious. In the ancient China, many people want to eat this fish. Many of them die because of the toxic.

There are many clever Chinese chefs can cooked it and take the toxic out. But sometimes they will failed. So if we want to eat swellfish, chef who cooked it needs to eat it first. 

This time, chef has succeed. Because I had eaten this delicious food and hasn't die.

A duck cake made by rice and duck.

 Fish ball soup.

Braising finless eel.

Photography Work-Yangzhou China (Part I)

Yangzhou, an age-old city in the east of China. In past 800 years, Yangzhou is one of the biggest city in the China because of the "The Grand Canal from Beijing to Hangzhou". It is a canal built in Sui Dynasty. Every businessman should stay in Yangzhou if they want to cross over the Grand Canal. They bring many funding and jewelleries to here.

There are two famous things in Yangzhou. One is beauties. Another is Huaiyang cuisine. This time, I have found many famous Huaiyang cuisine restaurants and tasted their famous dishes.

This is "steamed stuffed bun" and "fried dumpling". The teamed stuffed bun can be worth mentioning. It's called "Wuding bun". There are five ingredients inside include:diced chicken, diced meat,diced bamboo shoot, diced shrimp and diced holothurian. It is said Qianlong Emperor (1711-1899) tasted it and thought it's very delicious.

Yangzhou Silk Tofu, the most famous dish of Huaiyang cuisine.

This is wonton cooked with noodles. Inside of wonton is shrimp.

The small steamed bun in Yangzhou is different to others in China. It's a little sweet and there are many crab roes inside.

Soup steamed bun, it hasn't got a real English name. It is bigger than the small steamed bun and there are cooking liquor in it.

Guess what is it? Ha, it's duck. However, it's not duck's meat. It's duck's web! Believe me, it is a very delicious dish in China. And in this restaurant, chef had take out the bones of the duck. So people do not need to care about the bone. Just enjoy webs～～

Sautéed Shelled Shrimp

Vegetarians' "chicken"

This is also one of the most famous dish of Huaiyang cuisine——"pork meat patties". We call it "heads of lions". There are also many crab roes in it.

This soup is "Wensi tofu soup". Look at the tofu inside. Chef of Yangzhou can cut it to be very thin silks just like a line.