Each response should be about 100 words. 1. The Three-Act Structure After review
Each response should be about 100 words.
1. The Three-Act Structure
After reviewing the concept of the Three-Act Structure, how would you define or describe each of the three acts in Far from Heaven? What sequences of action occur in each act?
2. take another look at the long take from Damien Chazelle’s Academy Award-winning film, La La Land, which was released in 2016. The film is set in Los Angeles, California, and this is the opening shot in the film. While the scene from the film (See the link below) is a great example of a long take, it also utilizes the concept of editing within the camera. What are some of the different types of shots that you can identify in the clip? Since this is the opening scene in the movie, what do you think you as an audience member are being prepared for in terms of the film’s story?
3. take another look at Zhang Yimou’s The Great Wall (2016), starring Matt Damon, Jing Tian, Pedro Pascal, Willem Dafoe, and Andy Lau. In terms of editing, what are some of the different types of match cuts that you see employed in this scene from the movie? In particular, how does the camera movement in this scene integrate with these match cuts?
In terms of special effects, how do you think that the filmmakers created the Tao Tie, the alien monsters in the film?
Please find the link to scene from The Great Wall: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DefILRrX77
4. take another look – or, more accurately, another listen – to the Inciting Moment from Far from Heaven. However, I want you to listen to the use of sound in this scene.
Let me explain. When I was a graduate student in theatre studying directing, one of my favorite instructors said that it was important for a director to take a moment in the rehearsal process to listen to the actors rehearsing.
So, let’s try this experiment. Play the scene – the link is below – but close your eyes and listen to how sound is used in the scene and how your sense of hearing is engaged. If possible, listen to the scene with headphone or earbuds. What impressions do you experience? Does listening activate your recollection of what happens in the scene? Don’t cheat and look at the scene! Focus on listening!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l84trT4b6yEt
5. After watching Sherlock Jr., which was directed by and stars Buster Keaton, write a few sentences in response to ONE of the questions below.
In your opinion, how does the plot or story of Sherlock Jr. as a movie fit into the Three-Act Structure? How would you describe each of the three acts of the movie with one sentence describing each act?
What are some of the different shots from close-ups to long shots, types of camera angles, etc., that you noticed in the film? Describe in a few words a scene in which Keaton uses editing-within-the camera or special effects.
In the big chase scene, when Sherlock Jr. is riding on the handlebars of the motorcycle, how does Keaton explore the concepts of surprise and suspense? Describe your reaction to this scene.
6. Choose ONE of the questions below in response to Woody Allen’s The Purple Rose of Cairo:
In The Purple Rose of Cairo, how does Woody Allen explore the concept of fantasy vs. reality?
In The Purple Rose of Cairo, how does going to the movies function as a means of escape for Cecilia, played by Mia Farrow?
In what ways does Woody Allen use the convention of repetition in The Purple Rose of Cairo? What plot elements or specific shots are repeated?
In what ways does the director use surprise in the plot structure of The Purple Rose of Cairo?
7. Discuss how Maya Deren’s experimental film, A Study for Choreography for Camera (1945), challenges the conventional expectations of story and narrative, invites individual interpretation, and/or challenges orthodox notions of what a movie can show and how it can be shown?
The link to the film is below:
8. After watching Seabiscuit – written and directed by Gary Ross and starring Jeff Bridges, Chris Cooper, and Tobey Maguire – respond in your own words to ONE of the questions below.
The story duration and the plot duration for Seabiscuit occur over a period of time from ranging from 1910-1940. What are some of the editing techniques that writer/director Gary Ross employs to develop this narrative? Cite specific examples from the film.
While the film’s story and plot durations span a period of time over 30 years, Seabiscuit is primarily set in the 1930s. How does the director and his design team re-create this time period through the development of the film’s mise-en-scene? Consult your notes on the definition of this term and cite specific examples from the film.