Author: bridgett medeiros

I’ve included two small clips from the series ‘Black Mirror’ and the first episode of its third season, Nosedive. The entire episode is well worth the watch, but as it’s a 50 minute long sequence I didn’t want to post the full thing. The story follows Lacie in a society where people are given merit by ratings given through encounters and experiences. These ratings, visible to everyone through contact lenses and on a 5-star scale, allow the more elite members rights and access to certain services, while a lower rating leads to restriction and scorn. Lacie, rated on a 4.2 average, is looking to reach a 4.5 in order to move into a new, luxurious apartment, and takes any measure to gain respect to boost her up. Both clips take place at the start of the episode, setting the scene for the premise. The first clip, though short, has a huge influence and connection to my film – it depicts Lacie looking in the mirror, working on her laugh to sound more appealing. She picks apart how she must act for the day, stressing how much someone’s appearance and demeanor really matters.

The second clip is a step further, revealing others’ ratings at a local cafe, showing the effort put in to have a perfect-looking lifestyle. Lacie painstakingly takes a bite out of a biscuit to make it look pristine for a picture. The light, breezy pastels and soothing music lead us to believe everything is fine, and at this point in the episode, that’s very true. It almost feels like everyday life for us.

Most of the story is relevant to my film. I want to focus on how a simple daily routine affects people – as simple as looking in the mirror and getting ready to go out. As simple as feeling self-conscious in public, fretting over what others think of you. My own film opens with a shot similar to the first clip – a look in the mirror and the concern of how you’re perceived.

While Nosedive is rooted in the dark side of technology, it’s all a paralleled message. What is more, from the start, I wanted to have a colorful and bright film, just as Nosedive has. The pastels draw us in, the score relaxes us. The entire cinematography shapes a film. That to me is important, and what leaves a viewer with a lasting impression. Nosedive itself sticks out from the other episodes of ‘Black Mirror’ because it is brighter while the others are based in a dark color scheme. I don’t want to distract from the message of my film, I’d just like to visually enhance it to make it more desirable to watch.

The discography of Marina and the Diamonds does not shy away from addressing difficult topics, from assault to societal bigotry to emotional detachment. We as people listen to music that makes us feel something or connects to us in some way, and I particularly stick to Marina Diamandis’ work. This particular song, I Am  Not a Robot, is written in mind of the people who have pain and struggles hidden down under their surface but manage to keep a cool facade.

Throughout the entire music video, Diamandis is covered in different things, from shimmery glitter to superhero-like facepaint to rhinestones around her eyes and mouth, only at the end wiping it all off to reveal a naked face. It is a relatively simple video, but the message is in the facial expression and makeup (and, of course, the lyrics) and there are a few reasons why I’ve drawn inspiration from it.

The first is the idea of a cover over the face. My video focuses on a person who wears makeup which doesn’t allow them to feel natural, it is unnatural and obvious. I have always liked the idea of finding a creative way to obstruct a face to talk about beauty standards or issues. Just as Diamandis uses paint and glitter to make a point, I want to use cake, and at the end of my commercial have the person wiping it all off to reveal someone happier.

The second point is the overall message for the film. While Diamandis is singing about emotional detachment, and I am sending a message about feeling comfortable in your own skin, there is an overlap I think is very important, and that’s about being comfortable with who you are and not trying to hide behind something.

The last point is the feeling of the film. Diamandis’ chorus is cheerful and light for a not so happy topic, but this way it does not leave the listener feeling depressed. I have a background audio track that similarly keeps the commercial in an atmosphere of playfulness, so the viewer will not be distraught. By taking a subject and working it to be enjoyable to watch, while still getting the message across, you find a way to keep the viewer watching. As I’ve said before, I want to edit my film brightly, I do not want it to be an overly serious commercial picking apart the faults with the beauty industry, but to find a creative and fun way to point out a flaw.

Wes Anderson is exceptionally well known for his quirky, atmospheric films with their elaborate score (usually composed by Alexandre Desplat), cozy editing, odd story-lines, and general understanding of capturing the time period the film is set in. The entire film’s aesthetic can be conveyed through a title sequence alone, as displayed in his 2012 piece Moonrise Kingdom. Everything here pulls the sequence together from the choice of font to Benjamin Britten’s classical piece to the costumes to the editing. But it is almost odd, as Benjamin Britten’s piece “The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, Op. 34” is powerful and almost menacing, and the opening scene is very mundane. We see an average house, average games being played, average chores being completed, but a constant: a girl – Suzy – looking out of the average house with binoculars. It is left unclear, purposefully, what exactly she is looking for, as it ensures the audience wants to keep watching.

I personally love how silent the film starts, with only a distant, muffled sound of rain and then a few footsteps. It’s something I want to do for my own film, start with silence and then have some sound and then cue music and a voiceover. Anderson knows that a story needs style to complete it, which is how he accomplishes such atmospheric works. Moonrise Kingdom in particular inspires me, not because I am trying to create something from a different time period or a time sequence, but because it shows me all the aspects I must consider when constructing my own film. I want to choose the right music to convey a tone, I want to have the right voice to set a feeling, I want to edit the colors to match the product and message, the words to make sense. It all must come together cohesively. As Anderson proves, words can be useful but aren’t necessary to get attention.

The idea for my film came across rather abstractly – I knew I was interested in a commercial for a cosmetics brand, but there was no concrete idea for what exactly. I tend to find a lot of inspiration in music, because the melodies of a song create a feeling and image in my head. Melanie Martinez’s album “Cry Baby” focuses on the character Cry Baby, a sort of childlike embodiment of the singer facing her current issues and concerns. The entire album has a whimsical feel to it while tackling very serious matters, such as abusive familial relationships and the harms of modern societal beauty standards. ‘Mrs. Potato Head’ in particular is difficult to watch: it is centered around a young infatuated couple, both attractive and happy. The man presents the woman with a slip for a facelift appointment, assuring her it will be an improvement. Driven by either love or insecurity, the woman follows through, enduring a surgery stuffing her chest, plumping her lifts, and altering her face. The visuals are haunting, if not a bit uncomfortable, as you witness the surgeon carve and peel off her skin, leaving her blotchy, misshapen, and deeply depressed. The man leaves her, disgusted by her new appearance (which he paid for), and quickly replaces her.

My film is not so serious as this, but the music video struck a chord with me. I wanted to capture a modern problem and am hoping to incorporate a childlike whimsy to filming. It’s too easy to provide a message about “loving the real you,” it’s about creating media that sticks with viewers so they remember the visuals and connect it with the message. Part of what makes Melanie Martinez so memorable is how she forces her audience to watch very harsh realities in a childlike way – it is jarring, in fact. Adult situations are, clearly, meant for adults, and by styling it to be colorful and cute, we as an audience squirm. But it sticks, and it works. Storytelling, I  believe, is less efficient if it’s easy to put together, and I’m hoping to create something like that, even if it is less cynical than Martinez’s work.

With my budget, I know I cannot uphold the atmosphere I would like, with brighter colors and decorations, but I am hoping to edit my film to have a somewhat similar feel to ‘Mrs. Potato Head.’ I love how there are some very dull and dreary scenes, but it all has the same feeling. The bright atmosphere tricks you into thinking everything will be happy, and if I can incorporate that, I’d be very pleased.