Unit 11 film evaluation

Psychoanalytical film evaluation

To begin this unit I researched Laura Mulvey's gaze theory, Sigmund Freud's theory of personality, and Jacques Lacan's lack theory. I found this research very interesting as I had not studied these theorists much beforehand (except Mulvey). I found that the theories of Mulvey and Lacan fascinated me the most, as I had perviously studied Mulvey and understood her theory to a great degree, and Lacan's theories of desire and self reflection interested me. I then began to develop my ideas and plan for my own short film, in addition to my visual ideas to represent these theories.

After deciding to base my film around Lacan's lack theory, I began the planning for my film by researching its theorist, French phychoanalyst Jacques Lacan. He theorised that people who are missing something significant within their lives become increasingly obsessed with a particular thing until it becomes all that they desire. I also looked at Lacan's theory of the mirror stage, where he believed that infants between 6-18 months see a reflection of themselves and recognise their themselves, typically becoming very interested and devoted in exploring the connection between their bodies and images. I may use aspects of this theory in my film, and use more features associated with Lacan e.g. a reflection in a mirror. To aid my research I studied a doccumentary (Grizzly Man, 2005, Herzog) following the life and death of Timothy Treadwell, a nature enthusiast who became infatuated by grizzly bears. I also noted another doccumentary (Married to the Eiffel Tower, 2008, Piotrowska), which interacts with objectum sexuality women, who have an emotional and romantic desire towards inanimate objects. I found a common theme in both documentaries where all participants revealed a disturbing past. After my research period and understanding of the theory, I began to make note of the techniques used in these documentaries and how they were used effectively, such as shallow depth of field, long takes, slow narrative and non-diegetic instrumental sound. I found this planning helpful and very effective, as I feel that in the past unit my planning was not as thorough.

I thought a lot about different technical aspects including shot types, camera angles, lighting, sound and locations. I also considered how I would edit my film together to relate to my chosen theorist and  convey the theory in such a way that was effective to its audience, constructing meaning and atmosphere. I wanted to cleverly construct my shots to give significant subliminal meaning, whether that be through shadow, reflection or hidden meaning. I wanted to link specific shot types to The Machinist (2004, Anderson), as I studied the film and became very familiar with the hidden meaning. The main character within the narrative is constantly looking in mirrors, often through split images suggesting that his personality is split. His infatuation with looking in a mirror relates to Lacan's mirror stage theory, which I aimed to adapt and re-create. I deciced that I wanted to shoot in a busy environment, and then in rural/studio locations to oppose each other. I also wanted my film to be based around loneliness and a lack of human interaction/companionship.

I planned the places where I wanted to shoot and the techniques that I wanted to use, and then shot in each location, including a busy city environment, a rural scene and a studio location. I reviewed my clips and in post-production (Premiere Pro) and began to edit. I realised I had effective shot types showing Lacan's theory and had kept to my brief, which I found very useful as this gave me guidance whilst filming. I re-shot parts of my film as I felt that some parts needed improving and re-shooting. I used a mixture of slow motion and a fast motion via time-lapse, close-ups, shallow depth of field, framing and lonely locations.
I used a song composed by Thomas Newman titled Any Other Name. The song is instrumental and slow paced, giving a sense of loneliness and isolation. I feel that using a song instead of diegetic sound works effectively, as the lack of diegetic sound allows the audience to see/hear that the main character is alone, and has a lack. I originally planned to use diegetic sound, but whilst editing discovered that an already existing song works more effectively.
If I were to conduct/improve the unit again, I would have filmed a greater amount in less time, as I re-filmed a few days prior to the deadline. I feel that I planned more thoroughly than my recent films, which helped me in using techniques relating better to the theory/my brief. Although I am pleased with the final result of my film and this unit, and feel that I have improved since my previous units and will continue to do so.
I feel that an audience would take a preferred reading to my short film, as the techniques that I have used, portray a strong sense of isolation and loneliness, which is commonly used in other media texts with the same or a similar narrative. Originally I wanted to include subliminal messages, similar to The Machinist, but I felt that this would complicate my narrative slightly, as I then decided to create a blatant message showing a lack of social interaction.

During this unit, I have developed my unserstanding of psychoanalytical film and how theories can influence film and give them meaning. An example of this would be The Machinist, which I watched passively until researching, understanding and then applying Freud/Lacan's theory to. Personally, once understanding the theories, the films and doccumentaries that I analysed became more enjoyable to watch, as I was able to understand subliminal clues and meanings within. The unit has furthered my interest in psychoanalytical film theory, and I would now be interested in extending my knowledge of the topic.