Sunday 28 September 2014

IH: Technical Analysis

Sam Smith - I'm Not The Only One




 Shot Number

 Time
Camera
Mise-en-scene
1
00:00 - 00:11
Long, wide shot of the house which acts as an establishing shot, the camera is on a steadicam moving forwards
High-key lighting, typical suburban house, establishes the location of the narrative
2
00:12 - 00:21
Steadicam, mid shot of the couple kissing and preparing to leave
High-key soft lighting, sharply dressed man and the woman is wearing some sort of elegant (so far unseen) dress
3
00:22 - 00:31
Steadicam close up of the woman leaving the house after the man, 
She looks at him with a loving expression, she is dressed like a bride
4
00:32 - 00:36
A mid shot of the lady, which turns into a long shot of the car, steadicam, rack focus to reveal car
She waves, connoting love and fondness, as he drives off in his expensive-looking car
5
00:37 - 00:41
Close up, steadicam shot of the woman as she watches her partner drive off
Her previously loving, devoted expression melts away into a cold look which unsettles the viewer, as if her previous warmth was a sham
6
00:42 - 00:49
Steadicam close up of her face as she turns around,  following her movements toward the house, shallow depth of field places focus on her
Her cold expression continues as she sullenly walks back towards the house, her body language suggesting sadness and deep thought, which creates intrigue
7
00:50 - 00:53
Steadicam close up of the reverse shot of the previous one, following her into the house
As she enters the house she leans on the door frame as if in need of support, again suggesting sadness
8
00:54 - 00:56
Steadicam close up of the woman walking through the house with the camera follows her movements
She is looking at her possessions with a sort of sad distaste, as if she has learnt something that changes how she views them
9
00:57 - 00:59
Reverse shot
We see that she owns a pool, which combined with her clothes, their house and their car suggests they are very wealthy
10
00:59 - 01:01
A steadicam close up of the man this time, following his movements. The shot is in every way similar to the previous shot sequence
We see the man walking through a dark corridor which is highly suspicous as it had previously been insinuated that he was going to work or some other such appointment
11
01:02 - 01:05
A steadicam mid/long shot of the woman kneeling by the pool
She is drinking a glass of wine, which is unusual given the early time this is set in, suggesting she is upset enough to resort to alcohol
12
01:06 - 01:08
A jump cut to a steadicam close up of the womans face as she kneels by the pool
The jump cut creates a jarring feeling and suggests negative emotions 
13
01:08 - 01:11
Continued shot 10
The juxtaposition of the man walking through the dark corridor and the woman crying suggests some sort of connection, i.e. wherever he is going is the source of her sadness
14
01:12 - 01:16
A steadicam close up of the woman lying on the floor as she removes her wedding ring
The removal of the wedding ring is a symbolic process as it suggests she is relinquishing her love for him or their marriage
15
01:17 - 01:21
A wider version of shot 10
The man is now clearly searching for something or someone in the bar, perhaps this will reveal the source of her sadness
16
01:22 - 01:25
A handicam close up shot that is static
She is visibly struggling to breathe, as if the pain of whatever she is going through is killing her. Furthermore her makeup is smeared which connotes prolonged crying and a lack of care for ones self (due to total misery)
17
01:26 - 1:29
A stationary, steadicam close up of the woman turning around
The woman turns around with a seductive smile, which seems very odd as it is inferred that she is smiling at the man (although we dont know if thats so or why)
18
01:30 - 01:32
A stationary, steadicam close up of the man smiling
The mans wide, lecherous smile disgusts the audience as we realise he has been cheating on his wife, and she knew all along. This is furthered by the way he stares at her lips, a signifier for lust
19
01:33 - 01:31
Static long steadicam shot of the two getting close
The mistress lays her hand on his shoulder and smiles brightly, confirming any doubts that they are having an affair (as opposed to being relatives etc)
20
01:32 - 01:35
Static steadicam close up of the wifes hand as she drives somewhere
We see she has removed her wedding ring, which symbolizes how she has shed her love for her husband
21
01:36 - 01:40
Static steadicam extreme close up of the wifes eyes as she wipes away tears and makeup
The raw emotion in her eyes is palpable in this shot, and inspires sadness in the audience
22
01:40 - 01:45
Static steadicam close over the shoulder shot of the couple drinking shots
The two are well dressed in fine clothes suggesting they are wealthy, and the soft warm lighting on their faces creates a sense of intimacy
23
01:46 - 01:48
Static steadicam close up of the woman as she gags on her strong drink
Her expression shows distaste at the drink, so she is clearly a relatable, real person as opposed to the heartless mistress we take her for originally
24
01:48 - 01:50
Static steadicam close up as she shakes away the drinks flavour and laughs with the man
The husband is drinking even more than her, suggesting he might need the numbness of alcohol to dull the guilt he feels about his actions
25
01:51 - 01:56
Steadicam close up of Sam Smith, the camera sways and moves sideways (panning slightly)
We finally see the singer performing (this is the performance element of the video) which creates para-social intimacy
26
01:56 - 01:59
Wide angle tripod shot of the wife as she drives home from the alcohol shop
Again she is driving somewhere but we don't know precisely where
27
02:00 - 02:02
Steadicam close up over the shoulder shot of the husband, the camera sways with them as they dance
We see in his non-verbal language (particularly facial expression) that he feels guilty about his abhorrent actions
28
02:02 - 02:07
Steadicam close up of the wife driving home
Her smeared make up reminds us of her depression and the lighting suggests innocence and vulnerability
29
02:07 - 02:09
Static close up of the couple as they kiss 
This is the first time we see the man engage in outright cheating and it repulses the audience 
30
 02:12 - 02:17
Steadicam medium shot which follows the wife 
We see he rows of bottles which we instantly associate with alcohol, which is confirmed when she emerges drinking from a bottle of wine before even paying for it 
31
 02:18 - 02:20
Steadicam mid shot which follows the couple as they playfully walk away 
They are both clearly happy and lustful and his treachery as the husband disgusts the audience 

Points of Interest

  • This is both a narrative and performance based video
  • The narrative side creates repeatability and establishes a meta-narrative of Sam Smith
  • The performance side creates para-social intimacy
  • The unanswered questions about why she took him back etc create repeatability

Technical Points

  • The footage is always shot using a steadicam which creates a sense of perpetual motion, which is a convention of popular music videos. From this I suggest we shoot very little if any of our music video with some sort of motion rig. It is also worth noting that this can be used to create a sense of pace.
  • Only soft lighting is ever used in this video, which is something I don't necessarily agree with. From research I have conducted I have learnt that hard lighting i.e high contrast, well defined lighting, can have a large effect on how the footage is interpreted, for example it can make someone appear angry or strong.
  • Slow motion is used extensively which I like as it gives the scene a sense of dreamlike gracefulness.
  • Depth of field is used to create a more visually impressive shot which places focus on the subject of the frame as it excludes the background from the shot.

1 comment:

  1. Highly confident technical analysis here Isaac. Your comments in the reflection are interesting - use more technical terms where possible

    ReplyDelete