Lin Yuxin(3035854321)
The foyer always shows the first impression of a place because the first inner part people reach of a place is the foyer, the general style of the foyer can be representative of the whole area. As a card of a place, foyers always represent the general vibe of the environment. In this case, many managers of the place would create a peaceful and warm atmosphere through friendly interaction, such as greeting.
However, since the covid-19 has started, the restriction on entering and exiting has become quite strict. A new system of inspection was set in every foyer to avoid the infection of covid-19, and most of our behaviors are under the management. The intention of these rules is to make people stay safe and have a better life; however, the rules begin to rule people as time goes by because the executors gradually become numb, and the restrained people become tired of such rules, causing conflicts and fights. The foyer, which is used to carry warm greetings, now contains many negative emotions, and people have become more indifferent to the management. But do we reflect such negative changes, and how can people behave positively under the management and return to the original purpose? I use two small stories with different endings to show the phenomenon, and the main elements causing the different endings are “understanding and patience” while fulfilling their responsibility. The rules and management are not the culprits; the way people deal with them in the city is the critical factor. Let’s manage regulations instead of being controlled by rules. Management can also be warm.
When I received the space of the foyer, I began to consider two crucial elements the characteristics and its dynamic changes. In order to find out these two factors, I firstly searched online for the traits of foyers. Then, I began to visit different foyers to observe the interaction of people and the foyer. In most places I visited, one thing in common is that people prepare their phones to scan the green code or show the NAT. It seems disciplined, but some common emotions are caught: annoyance and impatience of restrained people, perfunctoriness and impatience of executors. The dynamic changes are found in the system of inspection. After visiting places by myself, I interviewed 20 people to ask about the changes and characteristics of foyers and the experiences of passing the inspected system in the foyer. And I collected some keywords of the attributes of the foyer: greeting and welcome. In addition, many people shared their bad memories after setting the inspected system for covid-19 in the foyer, and the two stories in the video are from their sharing. After collecting materials from observation and interview, I made a draft of the video structure and synopsis of small stories.
In the video, I used a tracking shot which means the camera follows the movement of the subject in both stories. In the clip of the birthday celebration, the camera firstly shows the front face of the character in order to point out the emotion of happiness. Then the camera moves backward to capture the movement of the character, making the scene clear. The audience can feel more involved as the camera, which is like the audience’s view, follows the activity of the subject. In the clip of working, the camera follows backward initially and is shaky. The character is in a hurry to work, so the shaky movement of the camera can correspond to the state of the character, accentuating the urgency of the atmosphere. Moreover, the two clips are full shots, and the shooting process is complete without cutting so that the stories would be more fluent and holistic. Furthermore, the camera gets closer to the subjective at the end of birthday clip. The close-up shot is intended to capture the detailed emotion of the character, to emphasize the negative outcome.
The main structure of the video is the internal contrast of two stories, same circumstances with different endings. And the causes of the different endings are the theme the video intends to convey: the rules are not barriers; the way of managing rules is the culprit.
Link: https://youtu.be/XDJ9Qe5m5Xw
References:
Blain Brown. “Cinematography: Theory and Practice image making for Cinematographers”. Directors & Videographers, 2002
Mercado, Gustavo. “The Filmmaker’s Eye: Learning (and Breaking) the Rules of Cinematic Composition”. Focal Press, 2010
Dirks, Tim. Film Terms Glossary. “Film Terms Glossary: pan (or panning shot, or panoramic shot)“. 2007
Fischer, John. “Enhancing the Viewer’s Hockey Experience with Isolated Cameras on Players”. inlouwetrust.com. Vox Media, Inc. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
“Long Shot, Medium Shot, Close-Up”. releasing.net. Retrieved 2016-11-16.
I think your point of view is very original, which tells that the city is actually under a management system. I can understand the meaning you want to convey more intuitively through your video. This makes the abstract concept come alive, and the combination of city and film is probably like this.
Your video is impressive. The use of narrative shows what happens in the foyer during an epidemic and the camera language allows for a very realistic display of the impatience of the people in the film. It corresponds very well to the theme of the management city.
The story script also reflects the rules and management system, which your essay illustrates better.
The use of storytelling to film the foyer and the anti-epidemic policy is unique.
You have captured some crucial phenomena that happened during Covid. Your topic is also very specific and the narrative is clearly presented in an entertaining way. Yet, it seems that there is not sufficient research on the site/ issue. Similar issues also happen in other sites (restaurants/ shops). How does the space impact people’s communication during Covid?