Week Four: Level 5 theory Major project and EP planning

1. What are you going to investigate?

The influence of visual language and devices on narrative

2. What is the test content you are going to use for your experiment?

A narrative situation informed by my own sketchbook observational notes - university mouse & hotel mouse narratives

3. What are your communication objectives for the test content? What do you want people to think or feel when they see it?

Initially I want the viewer to be intrigued a little afraid, uneasy, curious, to see abstract shapes, shadows, close ups,

Then they ought to be charmed when the reason for the movement in the shadows is revealed,

Followed by concern for the mouse, will she make it safely?

4. Starting reference point:

North by Northwest storyboard/film

What is it? Identify and define your reference/starting point/example of work

A storyboard for a film, a spy thriller, mistaken identity, Alfred Hitchcock

What does it make you think?

I am intrigued, it's odd, a man waiting in the middle of nowhere, why is he there? What will happen next? He appears fairly relaxed, how long has he been there already? There is an air of mystery.

What does it make you understand?

Something's not right, the stranger mentions that the crop dusting aeroplane is dusting where there are no crops, why!? When the plane chases the hero there is fear, panic, the need to escape, the only place to hide is a corn field, but this is feeble protection.

What does it make you feel?

Anxious, tense, perplexed, concerned for the hero who appears nonchalant, rather than confused & scared. What is he thinking?

What is the general intent? E.g. To amuse/entertain/record and understand/intrigue, mystify, puzzle, fascinate/inform/educate/question, explore, challenge/satirise/investigate/horrify, frighten, disgust/thrill, excite/distract, transport, transcend

The general intent is to entertain, intrigue, interest & thrill.

How does it work?

You will investigate this visually.

Languages – Mechanisms of communication./Surrealism/ Humour/ nonsense/ Abstraction, decorative, pattern./ metaphor/conceptual/symbolic/ montage/juxtaposition/ emulation /documentary, reportage/ interactivity/ realism/ anthropomorphism

The hero is on a road running through rural farmland, he is wearing a suit, shirt and tie. He has an air of confidence about him, his body language suggests he is waiting, hands in pockets, facial expression. He is out of place, it is surreal. Another man appears apparently directly from a cornfield, also suited, he comments on a bi-plane crop dusting where there are no crops, before getting on a bus which stops 

Aspects of production / Composition/ Viewpoint / people/gesture/expression/performance Character/ / Simplification/stylisation / Scale . Narrative structure/sequence/ Time colour / place/context/background / 3d elements, made objects / platform- – Layout.

My intent: To create a sense of intrigue and fear, anticipation of an impending danger, followed by relief, joy, hope with realisation. Using this narrative:

The Early Morning Mouse

Early in the morning, blink and you will miss her

Is the early morning mouse, scampering through the tiniest shadowy corners of the university corridors, before the cleaning ladies come and vacuum up the crumbs

The all nighters on their way home do not see her in their sleepy haze although they sense that they are being watched.

And they are...she watches tentatively, hopefully, that any morsel might tumble from their laps, a speck of the midnight snacks long forgotten fuelling words on the page. Crumbs that will feed a mouse's family for another day, another night until the next early morning...blink and you will miss her.

Evaluation

I think I achieved a certain level of curiosity at the beginning with the use of abstract long shots and close-ups. Fear and anxiety...mmm...no...concern for the protagonist, yes. Perhaps a sense of worry when the cleaning lady arrives too. North by Northwest has a man out of place - I have not addressed this in my experiment, mainly as I did not fully understand the task at first. More simple than I thought (which is often the case!). However, I have learned from this and will endeavour to emulate more accurately when commencing the practice as research for my Final Major Project.