Mediatheque

On the 25th June 2010 we as a class went to the BFI Mediatheque in Waterloo where we are able to search through the BFI film archive, searching specifically for 'Silent Movies'. Whilst riffling through, i watched a few clips and movies prior the 'talkies' era of the late 1920s.

East Is East (1921)

A silent film written and starring Henry Edwards alongside leading lady Florence Turner. It is a early day rags to riches story, allowing us to gently follow Turner as she inherits a fortune and slowly loses all trace of her previous lifestyle and friends. Edward uses lingering shots of the English countryside which adds greatly to the films flow. Whilst watching I also noticed how Edwards uses long takes and hardly any major or dramatic camera movements. This could be because as there is no dialogue, the audience have to consume as much visual information without movement or distraction, so we understand the storyline. Unfortunately i was unable to find a clip online of this brilliant and heartwarming film, but our trip to the BFI was worth it and would suggest you take a 'look-see'


Cottage on the Dartmoor (1929)

Directed by Anthony Asquith, the film follows a barbers assistant's infatuation with a female customer and as she received more and more male attention his jealousy grows, reaching a murderous end which leads to his imprisonment. The first scene is of the present day where the barber has escaped from prison to take revenge on the woman. At this point it is unclear of what she had done to him so we are taken back via flashback to see. The director used a traditional pianist ,and at times strings or a full orchestra, to follow the flow of the story as it changed so did the music, which made it extremely tense. Since there was no dialogue, we were able to know that something bad was coming up due to the parallel non-diegetic sound.

National Gallery

On the 25th June 2010 we as a class went to the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, here we were led to various paintings which each had strong, vivid images and cleverly hidden messages within them. This tour was taken to help us convey our hidden meanings subtly through our silent films.
On the National Gallery website i was able to find accurate descriptions of the paintings :

1. The Ambassadors
HANS HOLBEIN

"This picture memorialises two wealthy, educated and powerful young men. On the left is Jean de Dinteville, aged 29, French ambassador to England in 1533. To the right stands his friend, Georges de Selve, aged 25, bishop of Lavaur, who acted on several occasions as ambassador to the Emperor, the Venetian Republic and the Holy See. The picture is in a tradition showing learned men with books and instruments. The objects on the upper shelf include a celestial globe, a portable sundial and various other instruments used for understanding the heavens and measuring time. Among the objects on the lower shelf is a lute, a case of flutes, a hymn book, a book of arithmetic and a terrestrial globe.

Certain details could be interpreted as references to contemporary religious divisions. The broken lute string, for example, may signify religious discord, while the Lutheran hymn book may be a plea for Christian harmony.

In the foreground is the distorted image of a skull, a symbol of mortality. When seen from a point to the right of the picture the distortion is corrected."

2. An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump

JOSEPH WRIGHT OF DERBY 1768

"A travelling scientist is shown demonstrating the formation of a vacuum by withdrawing air from a flask containing a white cockatoo, though common birds like sparrows would normally have been used. Air pumps were developed in the 17th century and were relatively familiar by Wright's day. The artist's subject is not scientific invention, but a human drama in a night-time setting.

The bird will die if the demonstrator continues to deprive it of oxygen, and Wright leaves us in doubt as to whether or not the cockatoo will be reprieved. The painting reveals a wide range of individual reactions, from the frightened children, through the reflective philosopher, the excited interest of the youth on the left, to the indifferent young lovers concerned only with each other.

The figures are dramatically lit by a single candle, while in the window the moon appears. On the table in front of the candle is a glass containing a skull."

3. The Family of Darius before Alexander 1565-7,

PAOLO VERONESE

"The story illustrates the mistake made by the family of Darius, the defeated Persian Emperor, in identifying Alexander after the Battle of Issus.

Alexander and his friend Hephaestion visited Darius's tent; the mother of Darius, misled by Hephaestion's splendour and bearing, offered him the obeisance due to the victorious monarch; Alexander forgave her."

Silence

The notion of 'Silence' has always fascinated me as i have constantly wondered how or even if it can be obtained. I specifically love the fact that by just sitting within it, you can feel a wide range of emotions, depending on your environment or state of mind.

For example:

• If really tired or stressed, some may find silence calming or relaxing as it is often used to fall into a state of meditation.
• If with a stranger (on a date) and it suddenly goes silent, it can feel awkward.
• If there is nothing to do, activity wise, many sit in silence due to their boredom
• If being chased or hiding form someone, the silence can cause tension and fear.

You see it is amazing how something so fragile and perishable by a single breath, can be so powerful to evoke a tremendous range of emotions.
Whilst researching I remembered an exercise on Nintendo Wii Fit called Zazen in which you have to balance on the Wii Balance Board to keep the flame alight, but there are a range of sound effects used to either calm or make you uneasy so you with shake the flame and extinguish it. Below is a clip of the game so you can understand fully.



I chose this clip/game as I feel it captures the range of emotions evoked by silence perfectly as the creaking makes you feel nervous, whilst the lotus sounds make you feel calming. Yet it is the silence in between each sound where you feel the uneasiness, as you are unsure of what will happen next.