Research and Planning: 'Eight' {[Charlea]}

Eight 1998---Charlea
1.The whole film was narrated and told through an eight year old boy called Johnathan. You hear his voice the whole way through the film, however you do also hear his mothers in one section, however it is not to the audiance it is just to the little boy 'Johnathan what are you doing?'. It is set in an urban area by a beach, this means that the audience can relate to it because his not from a rich family his a working class kid, also some of the audience would be able to recognige and relate to the surroundings. The home made liverpool t-shirt that the boy wears is very symbolic as it shows his secrecy, but also his passion for the sport at his team. However it also shows how much him mum disagrees with any mention of football, John has to secretly make his own shirt. This was a very powerful use of mise en scene. The theme and issue behind the piece (As it was based on the tradgic Hillsbury insodent) is more about football rioting (not that Hillsbury was a riot) and how it's gone too far. The piece was stuctured mainly around the boy Jonhathan, him just playing talking to the camera, being with his friend Terry, and on the beach. You could tell through the characterisation on the mum, though she wasn't in it long that she was a very nervous and aprehencive character, wouldn't really let Johnathan take risks, and be free to express his love for football because it would be too much of a painful memeroy for her.

2.One thing that inspired me about this film was the boy talking directly to the audience to tell the story the entire film. Slight changes as the story developed, you would hear the boy keep changing his mine on what his Dad was and what he was into before the boy was born. The conventions they used for social realism, one was when the boys were on the beach the boys made there own football pitch out of trash, goals as well, showing they havn't got enough money themselves to by goals, also in the scholl scenes you could tell it wasn't a privet school and that he was in state education. Also for the working class in Liverpool having the short film about a football tradagy fits perfectly as footbal is a very sociable and key part of there community. It was inspiering as it fitted well with the surroundings and also having the lead practically narrative his own movments on the film made it more personal, also made the boy more isolated and alone which you can tell the film maker wanted to achieve.

3.It fits the format as it has an establishing shot to show the audience where they are, also it immidently introduceses the main character to you. 'I am Johnathan and i am eight'. With this format you can be alot more blunt with what you are saying, you don't have to drag it out for the audience, you have a slight more right to use a bit more shocking statments 'My dad's dead' It's very blunt and straight to the audience. The symbolioc use of the beach and the sunset for the ending was beautiful as you could see it was the only place the boy could be free the live out his football fantasys and be with his dad in spirt, as if his Dad was the sunset watching over him. The way they ordered the film, by overlapping the beach scene with other shots worked well, as it always came back to the solid grounding of the beach, were the boys feels most free to express himself. Haveing the ending there ropunded the film well. You almost got to be in the boys life for a day seeing him in school, round his friends at home and at the beach gave you a personal insight to how the boy lives his everyday life. It made it easier for charactetr relations to develop, i would use this in our film as it makes it more personal top the audience to be abole to relate to the character, feeling like they know them more by the end of the film. It was slightly disjointed by the sound bridging they used to join all the scenes together, however it did make the link that they were all part of the film. Also the way the little boy was in everyscene linked the film together nicley to.

4. They used a sound bridge of a boy talking and telling a story over the film to link all the scenes together. Also the clever use on non-diegetic sound, as if the boy is watching himself in some scenes and talking over the top. It did make it slightly confusing in the beggining as you were no 100% sure if it was narration or actually him talking. Once you figure it out you can see it works well together and the narration complments the scene, sort of the boys thoughts. The do have diagetic scenes were the boy is talking to the audience but the other actors can hear what is being said, a good example is when the boy is talking to the audience, and says somthing about his friend and the friend reacts to the comment.

5. The film take the position of the boy, the whole time the main focus is on Johnathan, it shows his obssesion with football, and how he longs for his dad. The social group mainly represanted is a working class, focus around a child. The film does issolate the character and draw most of the attention on him. Turning him into the drive for this film. The is a typical eight with a passion for football and wanting to be like his father. Only the snag is that he can't because his dad is dead.