F.A.M.M. PROJECT
FUTURE ARTISTS & MEDIA MAKERS: Mise-en-scène
February 3rd- March 24th, 2021
Wednesdays: 4:30- 5:30 pm
Teens -8th Grade +
In this 8-week virtual class participants will learn about mise-en-scène, the visual language that filmmakers use to translate stories to the screen.
Mise-en-scène is a French term meaning “everything arranged in the shot”. This fun and interactive class will give participants the vocabulary, and the opportunity to explore all of the elements Mise-en-scène through hands-on activities at home. The class will introduce students to the techniques that are used in filmmaking such as composition, framing, lighting, and camera movements, and to jobs in the industry that make it all happen. Established and emerging filmmakers and directors will also be joining the class as guest artists, to share their vision and give valuable advice to inspire our Future Artist and Media Makers. The class will be led by Chip Jackson, filmmaker & OA’s Director of Workforce Innovation and Shannon Castleman, arts educator & OA’s Executive Director, with help from Jonah Hodari, our program assistant. For more information about the class contact: chip@oakwoodarts.org
WEEK 6: SOUND
Last week was our last mise en scene class. We took a look at our last element which was sound. Sound is one of the most important and interesting elements of mise en scene. We all notice it while watching film and television, but it's one of the most difficult to pinpoint because it’s invisible and you can't touch it.
In our last class we interviewed sound mixer Marlowe Taylor. Marlowe is a 30 year veteran in the sound department, who most recently mixed the sound for feature films such as 2021 releases “Judas and The Black Messiah'' and “The Marksman” and is currently working here in Richmond on the set of The Walking Dead: World Beyond.
We also reviewed the different elements that we've been learning the past 8 weeks and the jobs that go with them. These include Set dressing, Props, Lighting, Depth of Space, Photography, Composition, Rhythm & Movement, Camera & Editing, Costume, Hair Makeup and Sound. Each week we had homework assignments where the students played the roles of the crew members that matched the elements for that week.
WEEK 5: CINEMATOGRAPHY
We spent week 6 discussing cinematography and the many considerations that are made by Directors of Photography when they choose how to frame shots. We discussed how camera positioning can communicate different points of view of the characters. We also spent some time looking at movie posters and asked our students to play the role of the Still Photographer. They had to take a photo of characters we assigned them from Black Panther, carefully considering the best angle of view to communicate to their audience how we should see that character.
This week the industry professional we interviewed was our director of workforce Innovation and Chip Jackson who is also a Stills Photographer on the set of Walking Dead: World Beyond. He discussed his duties as a stills photographer, the importance of composition along with some of the tools he uses and what a day looks like for him on set.
Week #4: Lighting & Character
In last week’s Mise en Scène FAMM class, we explored lighting and how it conveys mood on camera. Who controls the lighting on set? That would be a job for the gaffer, the chief lighting technician on set. The gaffer's job is to work closely with the director of photography and run a team of lighting technicians to execute the production’s lighting plan.
As part of this lesson, our participants played the role of the gaffer by adjusting their lighting on our Zoom call to change the mood of their “character.”
This week also included an interview by Chip with Wade Tyree, a IATSE International Representative with 18 years experience in film and television. Wade has had many roles in G&E departments, from best boy to gaffer, working on movies and shows such as Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Homeland (TV Series) and War of the Worlds (2005) to name a few. We are thankful Wade was able to take time out of his schedule to share with us a firsthand account of the gaffer's job on set and explain the importance of lighting characters in a scene.
WEEK #3: BLOCKING & MOVEMENT
This week we looked at blocking and camera movement and learned about all the tools directors use to frame actors during the scene. For this week's assignment, our class took on the role of Director, Grip, and/or Actor. Using their cell phones and ipads, they created a dialog between two characters showing both perspectives of the conversation.
Their assignment was to record three 5 second film clips to show how two characters interact from different angles.
Chip Jackson then interviewed Kenny Morton who is a frequent speaker in Oakwood Arts programs. Kenny has been working in film and television for many years and helped us to understand the different types of grips there are in his department, as well as some of the techniques he uses while getting shots with different characters engaged in dialogue.
Kenneth Morton is currently the Key Rigging Grip on AMC’s series World Beyond. Kenny started in the business in 1992 working as a security guard for the superhero comedy film Meteor Man. He began his career in the grip department in 1997 on the film Contact. Since then Kenny has worked on more than 50 productions in a variety of positions such as key grip, dolly grip, and rigging grip.
Week#2 Show & Tell
We had our third Mise en scène class yesterday. For this week's class we played the roles of set decorator and the prop master. Our assignment for this week was to prepare for a show & tell for a script page from the movie “Loving”. Before a movie starts filming the prop master and the set decorator do what is called a “show & tell” for the director & the production designer. The students chose a job and presented either their prop choice, or they dressed the set based on the scene from the script using the tools they had at home such as the kitchen table, cell phone, and laptops.
This week, Chip Jackson spoke Patrick Storey the Prop Master from the movie “Loving”. Patrick shared with us some of his experiences working on the film as well as how many of his decisions were made when picking props for particular scenes, along with the challenge that comes with making movies from certain periods.
Patrick Storey began his film career in 1995 as a set dresser working in commercials, television, and feature films. He is a Prop Master whose credits include Loving, Scream which is slated for release in 2022, Homeland, The Peanut Butter Falcon, and Wildlife, which screened and won awards at Sundance Film Festival, Toronto Film Festival, and Cannes Film Festival. Currently, he is The Prop Master on AMC’s Walking Dead World Beyond being shot right here in RVA.
Week #1 : Location, Location, Location!
Our Mise-en-Scène class met for the second time yesterday.
For their first Mise-en-Scène assignment, students played the roles of Producer & Location Manager, choosing their own locations for a scene from the movie Christine (2016). After breaking down a page from the film's script, they used a room in their homes to stage the locations where the scene would’ve been shot if they were the Location Manager.
Christine (2016) Directed by: Antonio Campos
Our program assistant Jonah Hadari then interviewed one of the film’s producers, Melody Roscher, to learn more about creative choices made by the filmmakers regarding Christine's overall look as well as the location choice for this particular scene.
Melody Roscher (producer/director) has worked on a variety of feature film, television, music video, and commercial productions. Her feature work has traveled the globe at Cannes, Sundance, Toronto, BFI, and most major international film festivals. Her television work has shown on HBO and IFC, and she was nominated for the Independent Spirit Piaget Producer's Award in 2017.
YOUR ASSIGNMENT: Choose a scene from your favorite movie that takes place in a different time period, then imagine that it takes place in the present. What location would you suggest to the filmmakers for your favorite scene if you were a location manager?