The short film that we created for our AS level Media Studies coursework is called Origin.
The film opens with scenery shots and an eerie shot of a hand in the water. The genre, drama/horror, is established immediately. As we meet Meabh, the genre is further established. The setting is an important piece of information to show that a film is a drama. Usually they are set in real life, relatable locations, such as Bloody Bridge in Newcastle, Co. Down. For the Northern Irish viewers this is relatable and a sense of inclusion is formed already. At the heart of a drama is conflict. This is only an opening for a film so we aren't aware of what exactly the conflict is but we can see that Meabh has been subject to mistreatment by someone/some people by the dark bruising on her arms and face. Dramas are usually interlaced with other genres too, in this case a historical horror.
Time is something that we tried to portray throughout with the use of interchanging positions of shots. By the time Meabh goes to move, she is drier than she was and this is something that we tried to use to show the passing of time. Had we continued with the film instead of making an opening, we would have incorporated flash backs to give context however in this opening sequence we decided not to. With a 360 degree shot, completely encircling Meabh at one point, we tried to show the passing of time along with the anguish that she feels as she herself has flashbacks which we are only aware of because of the noises we overlayed.
Barthe's idea of media texts being string that can be unravelled in different ways is applicable to this piece as well. This is an open text, it can be interpreted in many different ways. As the producer, I wanted the idea to be that Meabh had been drowned and was waking up many years later and her confusion to show this. We researched witch trials from the 1700's in Ireland and wanted this to be suggested throughout. However, someone else could potentially watch it and not take it to be that Meabh was awakening after 300 years. They could see her as a lost child, or an escaped prisoner. It is in this way that the text is open.
Todorov's theory of equilibrium is applicable to this piece. In the beginning we are shown a calm day in Newcastle, with various shots of the water and scenery surrounding. The equilibrium is disrupted and changed to disequilibrium when Meabh bursts out of the water. This disequilibrium is extended until the very end with the slow shot of the house. The assumption there is that Meabh is familiar with her surroundings but is confused.
Another theory that is applicable is Claude Levi Strauss's idea of binary opposites. In this short, the obvious binary opposites are past and present. Meabh is suddenly awake in the present but she is completely absorbed in the past. She's confused and is trying to tell past from present.
The fabula of the film is Meabh's terror and anguish when trying to understand where she is and how she got there but the syuzhet is Meabh running to the location and the flashbacks incorporated.
Freytag's Pyramid is applicable to this film. The exposition, which sets the scene, is the scenery shots, showing the location. The inciting incident, which puts everything else into motion, is Meabh emerging from the water. Next is the rising action, where Meabh is crawling across the rocks, trying to get her bearings. The climax is the next part of Freytag's pyramid. This is when Meabh reaches her house. The 360 degree shot is the most climactic and shows Meabh's utter confusion. The falling action is when Meabh is getting flashbacks, she is remembering things. Lastly, the denouement is the last shot of the house. It's difficult to apply the pyramid to the opening of a film because the end is not really the end.
In short, narrative is the most important part of film. It helps us to understand what is going on. This open text has many thoeries that are applicable to it including Strauss's binary opposite theory, Todorov's equilibrium theory and Barthe's theory.
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