Accident Sequence Analysis

In media, my group and I were given the task of creating a short film in which an accident takes place. In order to do this, we chose two members of our group to be actors and came up with a story for our accident sequence. During this activity we were not allowed to re-take shots, the purpose being to get us to plan our shots beforehand.

In order to make our sequence believable, we used techniques such as the use of a long shot in order to establish the distance between the two characters and set the scene. We then moved onto mid shots and followed by a close-up of the character who gets punched as he slides down the wall. This helped as it meant that we did not confuse the audience by switching from a long shot to a close-up immediately whilst also avoiding the jump cuts that would occur if we were to keep the camera in a similar position.

We used a point of view shot as the victim slides down the wall, which shows how the scene looks from the attacker's point of view, so this shot ended high angle. This juxtaposed with the next shot, which was in the point of view of the victim as he was on the floor, meaning it was low angle.

In addition, we matched the action from the shot in which the victim gets punched to the shot where he slides down the wall, which means he hit the same point of the wall at the end of the first shot as he was at the beginning of the second. It is also shown by the fact that the two actors are in the same place in relation to their surroundings unless they physically step elsewhere to change their position. This helps to improve the continuity and makes the scene continuous.

However, we did not stick to the 180 degree rule when we filmed the shot of the attacker saying "what are you doing?" This meant that he came in from the right side, but was on the left side. This may be disorientating for the audience and spoils the illusion of the two facing each other as the audience is then unsure of the position of the attacker.

If we were to re-shoot this sequence, I would focus on the 180 degree rule, meaning I would not shoot from the other side of the actors after I have chosen the side in the establishing shot in the beginning, which would improve the continuity and make the cuts seem "invisible".