FILM APPRECIATION/CRITICISM/AUDIENCE COMPOSITION/CLASSIFICATION OF FILMS/SCREENPLAY

FILM APPRECIATION

FILM CRITICISM/AUDIENCE COMPOSITION/CLASSIFICATION OF FIRMS/SCREENPLAY

BY

EGURIASE S, M. OKAKA

When we study a movie for example and come out with cogent points of our own which may be going into the writer’s mind or having a better picture of his or her thoughts or intentions, aims or objects or goals of a story we can talk clearly of appreciating such work. Film Appreciation involves criticism of a work of art. Before we can criticize any work of art we must first take some vital points into consideration:

·        Plot

·        Characterization

·        Theme / thought

·        Diction or Language

·        Suspense- Suspense heightens anticipation or hope.

·        Action / Mood

·        Music / Sounds

·        Tempo / Rhythm / Pace

·        sequencing

·        Audience

·        Visual effects

·        Spectacle etc.

      The above listed items are also the parameters for judging or appreciating a film or criticizing it.

THREE POINTS WHICH CRTICISM REST ON:

Film Appreciation rest on three critical points and they are also referred to as the fundamentals of film appreciation:

·        Locate – Say what is good in the film and why it is good.

·        Locate – Say what is bad in the film and why it is bad and how it can be better.

·        Add your own candid suggestion.

AUDIENCE

We have different types of audience and films are always directed towards the diver’s type. Film makers always have the various types of audience in mind when making films. Audience is essential to the production of any film or play because any film produced is made for a target audience. A target audience is a group of persons a film maker have in mind when producing a film and the message is directed at them. But what an audience is, and what we really know about them?

We can differentiate the audience from the spectator by simply defining a spectator as an individual watching any production while the audience is a collection of individuals or spectators watching a production or sharing or spectating an experience.

When seeking to understand the audience we have to consider who watches films; how, where and when they are watched;

·        How many people watched the film and what do they do after watching.

·        How  does it rob off on their lives

·        What roles do films play in our lives?

·        How do we actually watch films and with who?

·        How do we use and talk about our film experience e.g. How do we use it to educate, entertain, argue etc.?

There is a need to appropriately understand composition e.g. People understand film differently. We cannot treat audience as a single monolithic mass (everybody is the same) The audience is heterogeneous and can contain many people from various groups. Parts of the consequence of this are the fact that:

·        Different films are enjoyed or hated by different people at different times.

·        Films are watched widely in different circumstances, e.g. in cinemas, homes, on TV, DVD, over the internet, on airplanes or alone in a cave.

Audiences have been categorized in two main ways:

·        Demographic: This is where groups are segmented according to class: gender, age, family, nation, ethnicity, religion, political allegiance, region, urban or rural, or the educated etc.

·        Psychological: This where the audience are categorize in terms of needs and desires such as the desire to be rich.

CLASSIFICATIONS OF FILMS

This is the classifications of films according to type. The word Genre means type it is a French word used to classify films. Film genres as the case may be, have existed since the early days of cinema. Films were frequently categorized as being:

·        Crimes- (Historical films)

·        Romance

·        Comedy

·        Fantasy-  (Scientific fictions)

·        Actualities- (Documentary films)

·        Western films- (Cowboy’s films) etc.

However with the identification of new genres; the description given to the different particular type of film has frequently changed classification of films into Genres. It helps the film industry organize production and marketing in terms of target audience with specific target audience in mind, suitable props, actors, and location would be used. Also films are prompted as being of a particular type. An audience in turn uses the marketing description as film guide to what to expect.

Nowadays, most production ends up being assigned to one Genre or the other. In all cases what makes a genre possible is the existence of common elements across a range of production. An important term in Genre analysis is “convention” meaning the way in which something is done or usually done. Because certain films are done taking the usual way or convention which recognize similarities with other films. Such similarities between them and consequently describe them as belonging to a particular genre.

If repetition is a key requirement for the identification of a particular Genre no two is different.  When watching a film we become aware not only of how it is similar to other films but also of how it differs. Genres exist not only because there is repetition across a number of film or range. The demarcation of films by genres emphasizes difference between types.

It has been noted that genre have had importance for both film industry and audience during the formative years of the cinema  and this has been the case even as the industry established itself further.

SCREENPLAY

Screenplay is the interpretation of shots. That is the camera tells the story to the audience or viewers as the case may be. Through the shots the audience can get the true picture of the story told by the camera.

A screenplay is judge not on the basis of how well it is. A good plot must be easy to follow and also have a beginning, middle, and an end. The plot is always centered on the theme.

When talking about plot you talk about the beginning middle and the end not more than ten sentences. When narrating a film say whether it is easy to understand or follow and if it has suspense. Then illustrate it in one sentence. Are all the plots revolved?

Go over to talk about the character for examples if you say the baby is intelligent show us an example where the baby shows it.

Before you talk of the plot the first thing that comes to mind is the “Theme” The theme of a play or film is tied to the plot.

Technical details include sound effect, music, sequence and picture quality. There are special effects which include entertaining Action and Dialogue.  If it is a family film the tempo will be slow when the film is action packed the tempo will be fast.

Spectacle is more of drama than screenplay. It is more of stage drama. The key concept in film sequencing is TO SHOW NOT TO TELL. Horror films use shots and sound to tell story.

Visuals in films can be refer to as those things we see in the film that brings or talk more about the film, like the beautiful landscape, waterfall, River, the sun, moon, trees etc. visual effects refers to the things in the film which make the characters look extra-ordinary. Examples are montage films where people can fly (Batman) or films where fire comes out of the character’s eyes.

SEQUENCING ACTION / BUILDING AN ACTION

Montage is a series of picture shots that establishes an idea. It is crafted in such a way that the pictures come rapidly to first establish an idea. Example could be seen in all stations identification logo and picture shows; is a typical example. The shots should not necessary be related but you can also have a montage that is related.

Sequencing of shots is very important in the film and what is important is to show the shots and not to show the dialogue. The key concept is to SHOW NOT TO TELL. In modern movies show in sequencing and not tell.

MUSIC / SOUNDS EFFECT

It refers to all patterns of Music / sounds in a film production which ordinarily is the ingredient that further promotes the film production. These sounds could include relevant atmospheric sounds, night sounds, village sounds, etc. These sounds can interprets the film further or push it further.

By

Egurise S. M. Okaka