Analysis of Short Films; One

Playground



Iconography
- Woman collects key rings; memento for her killings
- Man collects bracelets; yet again a memento for his killings
- Woman puts on her bracelet; success on murdering and surviving the attempted murder

Mise-en-scene
- Props include; car, shovel, cigarettes, key rings, bracelets
- Lighting is mainly dark to create a dark atmosphere, some lights are used to show the characters profiles (headlights beam on to the man showing the hole he dug - significant due to him being a highlight in the scene occurring and making him seem more vulnerable as he is easily seen)
- Setting is in the focus of the man (dark background, see only half of his face) while he is explaining his life such as his mother, others include beside the road when the woman gets in the car and when the man is digging/getting murdered, another is when they are both in the car talking
- Weather is clear, dry - wet when the man is digging (raining) which creates a more dark atmosphere for the murders
- The man wears glasses most of the time, wears a coat, shirt and jumper, all normal clothing in todays society
- The woman wears a coat and boots

Narrative
- Key features would mainly be the woman and man conversing and then the attempted murder (and the actual murder). Usually main focuses in thrillers
- The audience would expect the woman to be the one murdered (especially as she is the one considered weak - says her age, admits she has no family) but theres a twist, the man is the one getting murdered

Sound
- Diegetic sounds include the man talking to the camera, him talking to the woman and vice versa, the cars engine/doors, using the shovel for digging/filling and killing
- Non-diegetic sounds include the buzzing hum, beating and people (children) singing which gets louder

Camera
- Cuts between the two characters talking and when the man is talking to the camera (shows face then mouth), cuts are the most common feature in camera
- Crab between the rear headlights and the woman getting in the car and the hill towards the car
- Low angle of car (showing headlights, it moving towards the camera) and the man digging which changes when the woman is filling up the hole - represents power
- High angle of woman getting cigarettes - showing her vulnerability
- Close ups of the characters profiles and key objects such as the shovel
- Mid shot of the man digging - showing the hole
- Fade after the murder to the man talking about luck
- Tilting when the woman walks away from the hole

Message
- It is difficult to understand but the message that the short film tries to portray is do not hitchhike due to there being dangers and what goes around, comes around - the man murders but then he gets murdered as well