Research: Mise en Scene: Lighting & Colour - Mrs. Quinlan

Why is lighting and colour important?

Lighting and colour are part of the Mise En Scene. Lighting is important because it helps to convey mood and atmosphere through the scene. It can be used to guide the audience's attention to a particular object, person or emotion which is really significant in the scene as it add meaning and different audience response. Also it allows the spectators interpret which character is playing which role such as protagonist, antagonist or victim. Similarly, colour is important because it gives meaning to the character or objects. This makes the audience recognize if the character is the protagonist or the antagonist as it can give different interpretation on the scene. Lighting is categorised into  two class which are:

Angle - the position of the light

Type - the way the light is used (dark, light)

LIGHTING:

Angle:

Top lighting comes from the top which glamorized the character as the light looks like that is coming from heaven, therefore make her seen the good character. Also is used to highlights the features of the character to make her look holy and attractive, which makes the audience feel in favor towards the character because they seem to be more trustworthy. Furthermore, in this still frame the female protagonist is highlighted with top key lighting which expose her in danger, making the audience feel worried for her safety. This is conventional to a thriller movie as the female protagonist is always portrayed as vulnerable

Under lighting comes from above making the character seen evil and dangerous as it creates shadows in the face. Also it highlights the figure making the character facial expression look scary and creepy as the light comes from above which have a distorting effect. Moreover, under lighting disfigures the character's facial which makes the audience question who they are. In this frame, the female antagonist is portrayed with under lighting making her looking unattractive, which makes the viewers distance theme self as they connote the darkness to something negative. This is conventional for a thriller movie because the antagonist will always seen harmful and negative.

Back lighting comes from the back, to make the scene look mysterious and create the character's silhouette appear to make the audience feel scared as the lights comes from behind. Also the back lighting allows the audience feel vulnerable and exposed as they cannot identify the character's identity, therefore making them feel insecure. The back lighting creates a fearful response from the audience as they are oblivious of the surrounding. This is conventional to a thriller movie because it creates a mysterious atmosphere and make the audience feel uncomfortable.


Type: 

High key lighting on characters

Low key lighting on characters

High key lighting on setting

Low key lighting on setting

High key lighting is used to make the character seen innocent, brave, or courageous. This highlights his good intention and positive attitude, also the setting will be more comfortable to the audience as they won't expect something disturbing to happens as the high key lighting create a mood of positiveness. This make the audience feel safe and secure as the high key lighting connotes to kindness and warmth.

Low key lighting is used to make the character seen vicious and dangerous, also it make the scene look unsettling as something undesirable might happen. This is mainly used to make the audience depict a sense of danger and make them feel frightened and uncomfortable.

COLOURS:

We need to talk about Kevin

Red -  The red colour can imply into two different meaning such good or evil. Essentially red can connote to love and passion towards someone which makes the audience feel safe and comfortable. However, sometimes the red colour connote to danger, death or blood. For example, in the still frame the audience are unsure if the colour red can connote to blood or tomatoes, as it shows a crowd of people that look like they are fighting brutally, or perhaps they are in hell, which make the audience feel scared and pity for those characters. This is a conventional colour for a thriller genre as in convey feeling such as fear, danger and death.

Paranormal Activity 4

Gloomy green - The green colour usually connote to hope and nature which allow the audience to feel secure and serene. However in this thriller-horror image the gloomy green colour suggest supernatural and danger which makes the audience have a fearful response. This is because in this still frame we can see the image of a kid, which make the audience feel worried for his safety, as the green colour connote to toxic and harm. This is a conventional colour for a thriller genre as it convey emotions such as fear and terror.

Skayfall

Yellow/Orange - The yellow-orange colour usually connote to fire and destruction. For example in the image above we can see that a forest is ignite with fire, which makes the audience deduce that is dangerous and harmful. Also it makes the character look dominant and powerful, as he is near the fire and concern of the consequences that will fallow if  an explosion will happen. This is a conventional colour for an action-thriller movie as the theme of death and the action of explosion is conventional for this type of genre.

The Purge

Navy Blue - The navy blue colour suggest mystery and darkness, this is because it's an intense colour. In this frame above, we can assume that something negative will happen, making the viewer feel exposed as they do not know what to expect. Moreover, this is typical colour used in thriller movie, to convey meritoriousness and danger, making the viewer feel vulnerable and confuse.

THE MOON IN THE GUTTER SCENE ANALYSIS:

The scene begins with an establishing shot of the red cloudy sky and an eerie soundtrack. This immediately makes the audience have a fearful response as the red colour connotes to danger and blood, making the viewer assume that something negative will happen. Moreover, the shot dissolve, introducing the new section of the scene. Here we can see a panning shot used to show the street. The location in portrayed with low key lighting and a blue-navy atmosphere, which connotes mysteriousness as the audience does not yet know what will happen next. As the scene proceed, a low angle in establish showing a woman walking on the street. The character is dressed in white, connoting her innocence and fragile persona, also she is presented with top key lighting suggesting that she is exposed, and an easy target for the antagonist to kill. This allow the audience have a clear understanding that this character is the female victim. As she keeps walking, the top key lighting change colour, from white to red, which makes the audience presume that she will be in danger making the viewer feel worried for her safety. Furthermore, another character is introduced. His identity is not fully identified which makes the audience feel curious as they want to know who is the character. However, from his black trouser and brown shoes the audience can immediately infer that he is the antagonist, this is because the colour black connotes to danger and death, which makes the spectators feel scared. Additionally, as the scene develops, we can see that the female victim is kidnapped from the unknown character which makes the audience feel frustrated for the female victim's life. As she begins to run we can see that the alley is portrayed with low key lighting, making the audience deduce that she will be in serious trouble. The scene is dissolved, introducing the bright moon shining in the dark sky, which foreshadows the female's life. In addition, a panning shot is utilize to show the victim's end. Here the clothes of the female character are ripped and covered with spot of blood in her white dress. This alludes that the victim is been brutally raped and killed, which builds a sense of disgusts toward the antagonist. Also from the lake of blood dripping out of the body of the female victim, we can see that it's reflecting the moon. This makes the audience emphasise the brutal murder of female's life. The scene ends with the red cloudy sky, which connote to the victim's blood.This makes the audience feel pity for her as she looked innocent and vulnerable. Also a tilt shot is applied, discovering the antagonist's identity. His clothes are black, which makes the audience aware of his evil and psychopath persona which is conventional to a thriller opening as the theme of death and rape is presented.


Conclusion:

In resolution I am more capable to make a decent opening thriller after this research because I understand more the use of colour and lighting. For my opening I intentionally want to use dark and dull colour, and as angle back and under lighting to make the scene look scary and conventional to a thriller opening. The colour of clothes that my character will wear will be white and light blue to represents his good intentions and masculinity. Whereas, my antagonist will only wear black clothing to demonstrate his evil persona and attitude, which is also conventional for a thriller genre.