Film Evaluation – Blood Powder
The task I was set for my Film Studies evaluation was to create an imagined sequence no longer than 5 minutes long. It will be aimed at the demographic of young adults, older teenagers, a mainstream audience (18-25 years of age, those of which are old enough to view explicit content, to a range of older mid 20’s as around 24 is the age that tests have proven people to stop attending the cinema as often)as it will include acts of violence. Because I chose to research U.S crime genre from my film presentation I also then decided to use the 1940’s style crime genre as inspiration for my short film. The imagined film is named “Blood Powder” which is a play on the words blood diamonds that are sold in Africa and other countries. It refers to cocaine and the amount of bloodshed that was caused over the drug. Especially in America
To do this I drafted up a script, aims and context and a synopsis. I also created character with realistic Sicilian names, Enzi Scoletta (Protagonist) and Joe Venti (Associate). These were posted on my blogger account I also made where I would post my progress throughout the year. Such as when I filmed and edited etc. I also posted the props and costumes I would need where research into the subject was required. After reading articles on the godfather and pulp fiction, also watching the DVD’s I concluded I would need skinny ties that contrasted with the shirts e.g. A white tie on a black shirt which I used for Joe Venti, the protagonists associate.
Mise-en-scene was what I was mainly focusing on in my sequence. I paid special detail on historical accuracy when it came to filming. I made sure no modern cars were driving past the shots when filming outside. Also using my own house enabled me to present vintage furniture and props because of the era it was built. In shots there are vinyl records. The scene where the drug dealer chooses a record was used because we know the actual music is non-diagetic. The dealer playing a record gives a sense or realism when the audience wonder why he doesn’t hear Enzi’s footsteps when he enters the home. Other ways the dealers subdued state was emphasises was the bottles of old liquor on the side table, these were common in 1940’s crime homes even when the alcohol ban was in effect. It was when most people drank at home in secret. However there were various difficulties regarding props. The original script required Enzi to confront the dealer with a gun and make him beg for his life. This would be to test our sutured allegiance with Enzi as a protagonist as we would have seen him in a negative light. However as I was unable to acquire a realistic looking hand gun I was forced to change the script around to a murder via “sneak and choke” tactic. This is rich with dramatic irony and suspense. The emotional tension of this was a fair trade for the brutal piece of shocking cinema I had previously planned.
In terms of sound, I procured two very stylistically different tracks of the same mafia genre. One for the beginning of the sequence which would set the tone for the sequence. It involved a lone violin accompanied by a piano score in order to lightly provide ambiance without engaging the audience too much. It is also typically used in movies such as The Godfather trilogies. The second included a hip hop version of a violin score, for a more contemporary essence. This would be phonetically pleasing to the mainstream audience which I have aimed this film towards.
In terms of editing I encompassed the dissolve tool to what I believe a good effect. Most notably the hallway scene where the drug dealer enters his own house after being attacked by the duo. There are white flashes and dissolved transitions between shots not for a more fluid scene but to show the distorted vision and confusion one normally would experience after a head injury. To which in typically 1940’s alpha male fashion the dealer retires to his chair to recover with a drink. The original Narration was to be used to present the narrative. However due to my inability to procure a voice actor who could produce a plausible Sicilian American accent. And also the fact that the music volume could not be consistent I decided to go with a purely visual narrative. Therefore the narrative was scrapped.
When I went for audience feedback I the people I asked found the music score complimented the genre and shots witch comments such as “The old music establishes the time period well” and “The change in music styles added extra tempo and foreshadowed the murder to come”. These were the exact desired effects I was aiming for. When asked if the story line was easy to follow a lot of people did not understand the letter scene, because they did not know what was written, This is because I only presented the letter at a far distance and removed the narration. I absolved this predicament by placing a silent-movie-type title screen that displayed the words sent to Enzi. This was able keep audiences on track with the plot. My third and final question was to ask the audience if they thought the POV shots had an emotional effect on on the audience in terms of feeling pity for the dealer in the exchange scene. There were some desirable comments to this question where they would simply agree or give comments such as “Yes because it builds empathy for the dealer and fear of Enzi” however one suggested that they felt allegiance for the dealer after being put in his shoes as prior to that he had done nothing to deserve Enzi and Joe attacking him. If I were to do the same scene again in the future it would have to include POV shots from Enzi’s point of view instead, and giving the dealer undesirable traits.
