https://youtu.be/SemMqKWS0bI?si=aZNBPGcSJUEt339z
The short video above might seem like a simple first glance at high school life but, it follows a group of students; me, Paige, and Courtney by capturing the moments of laughter, interaction, and silent contemplation. Yet, beneath the surface of this short video, there is a deeper story of friendship and communication. We came up with the idea of using visual choices to convey a bigger message through body language and camera shot choice. The meaning behind the video is to show how jealously can be perceived through a video and set of camera shots. To summarize the video, Courtney and Paige are best friends but, Paige is also equally friends with me as with Courtney which makes Courtney feel a sense of jealousy and the urgency to feel superior and be closer friends with Paige then me. At the middle of the video Courtney decides to send a negative message in the group chat which leads to an argument that results in all three of us arguing and then leaving Courtney behind in the end.
Our first choice of camera shot was a Low Angle Shot of Courtney and Paige, laughing and talking together. The meaning behind including this image draws attention to both Courtney's and Paige's emotions, while also showing them at a superior level, which is why a low angle shot was used.
Our second shot was the Rule of Thirds shot of Paige to place her where the intersections fall in the frame which is broken up into thirds. This helped create a sense of tension and sense of balance that is more interesting than a centered shot.
Our third shot was a Close Up. It showed Courtney's emotions through her facial expressions. In this image it is seen how disgusted and disapproving Courtney is.
Our fourth shot, features an Over The Shoulder shot. We used this shot multiple times to get a better interaction with the characters to allow the audience to see what is going on. Additionally, this shot places the audience in a third perspective and helps set the mood of the scene without including dialogue.
Our fifth shot is a Medium Shot of Paige walking past Courtney to come up to be instead of her. Paige walked right past Courtney as Courtney thought Paige was waving at her but instead she waved at me. This shot is taken from waist up on our character to allow the audience to read body language and facial expression.
Our sixth shot is an Extreme Close up of Courtney's eyes. This shows anger and madness which helps the audience see her emotions better.
Our seventh shot is an Aerial Shot of Courtney putting an "X" over me in the picture. This shot looks down on Courtney from above. The key purpose of the shot is to establish the setting and show the audience what Courtney is doing while she is relaxed and to guide the audience to see a point we are trying to make through a picture.
Our eighth shot is a High Angle Shot. It is looking down on me while I receive the picture. The Angel Shot positioned the camera so the audience can see that we are looking down on me while I open the picture. This shows me having a state of feeling less powerful and vulnerable.
The ninth shot we used was a Double/Two shot. It features Paige and Courtney and enables the audience to see their body language and interaction with each other. In this image, they are laughing and look happy.
Our last shot is a POV shot. This shot shows my point of view of Courtney and Paige through my eyes. This helps our audience feel closer to me.
After creating the short video to convey our word we got feedback on what needs to be improved and what we did good on. Our video ended up being 1 minute and 49 seconds. One thing we could have changed is reducing the length of the video. We could have done this by adding shorter scenes while conveying the same message to our audience by using the same exact camera shots. Another thing we could have improved on is adding a bigger variety of shots. We used 13 different shots but some were seen more than once which could have been avoided if we used a larger selection. Lastly, we could have split the scene where Courtney is editing the picture into two different scenes. One would still be the aerial shot of Courtney, and the other one would be a close up of Courtney's face to show her emotion, and that she is laughing while creating this image. This would significantly decrease the length of the scene to help the video flow smoother and show a stronger connection to the overall message being conveyed.
On the other hand, some things my group did good on when creating our video was showing the strong emotions through the close up's and camera shot choices. Additionally, by having a few scenes with the POV/Over the shoulder shot it made it easier to make the audience feel a certain way towards each character when watching the short video. During each shot that we took, we had a good camera angel to benefit the overall video in a more favorable way. The shots were steady and not blurred to easily make the essence of the video very straightforward, effortless, and flush.
In conclusion, our short video went beyond just showing everyday moments between friends-it revealed how jealousy and miscommunication can affect relationships. By carefully choosing camera angles and short types, we are able to express emotions without relying heavily on dialogue, allowing the audience to clearly understand the message. Even though there were areas we could improve, such as shortening certain scenes and adding more variety of shots, the video was successful in portraying strong emotions and telling a deeper story. Overall, this project helped us learn how the film techniques can shape the audience's perspective and bring a simple storyline to life in a meaningful way.
