Un Chien Andalou - Silent Short Film

Composition Rules & Surrealist Film
Looking into more of Dali's work in Berlin, I discovered a French silent film he collaborated on with director Luis Buñuel called 'Un Chien Andalou' (1929). I was intrigued by the idea of a surrealist artist putting his ideas into film and wanted to see if any of the elements I had been looking at came into play here, even when Dali was so against following 'the rules' of aesthetics. Interestingly, although the actual story line of the film was very odd, nothing like anything I have seen before, I did notice many uses of the frame that following the rules of a well composed mise-en-scene. Foreground, mid-ground and background are all well established, as well as close ups of characters to describe expression and dynamic use of the composition of a setting. I recorded the things that stood out to me most through drawing in my sketchbook.

Rhetoric of the Image - Roland Barthes

I made notes over a PDF I found of 'The Rhetoric of the Image' by Roland Barthes, which holds some key ideas around the theme of imagery, linking to what I have been researching around composition - print annotated copy.

Pg. 1
The messages found within images are told in many different 'languages', so can be interpreted in a variety of ways. The semiology is dependent on the reader, which is a personal and subjective thing - linking to fantasies.

Pg.2
The importance and addition of words in relation to an image, they add further meaning to interpretations. However, images hold a multitude of signs hidden within them.

Pg.3
The very positioning of the objects within an image holds a message - composition.

Pg. 4
There are multiple functions of an image, when reading into the composition. Picture books - images can tell a narrative within them. The link between words and images, certain 'rules' are followed.

Pg. 5
Cinema evokes a tone and feelings through the consideration of aesthetics within scenes. The addition of language gives deeper meaning, however an image is more immediate and universally understood.

Pg. 6
Film uses dialogue to add deeper meaning, as well as action. To provide more detail, an image is more engaging to an audience. Images tell a different story to language.

Female Protagonists - Articles

Vulture - What this year's Oscars race means for female protagonists (2017)

http://www.vulture.com/2017/02/oscars-2017-finally-a-great-year-for-female-protagonists.html

'For only the third time ever, three films with a female lead or co-lead — Hidden Figures, Arrival, and La La Land — are among those nominated for Best Picture.'

'Even more disheartening, it’s been 14 years since the last time a true female-led movie won, 2003’s Chicago, and that victory was less about the movie’s characters than director Rob Marshall’s lavish adaptation of the 1975 stage production. It’s part of a long trend.'

'When the Oscars do reward female-driven films, it’s often in a musical — the biggest spate of such winners happened in the 1960s, when West Side Story, My Fair Lady, and The Sound of Music all triumphed — more good news La La Land (not that it needs it).'

The Hollywood Reporter - Hollywood's 50 favourite female characters

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/50-best-female-characters-entertainment-industry-survey-results-951483

Top 10

1. Hermione Granger - Harry Potter
2. Princess Leia - Star Wars
3. Buffy Summers - Buffy the Vampire Slayer
4. Miranda Priestly - The Devil Wears Prada
5. Dana Sully - The X Files
6. Liz Lemon - 30 Rock
7. Leslie Knope - Parks and Recreation
8. Daenerys Targaryen - Game of Thrones
9. Elle Woods - Legally Blonde
10. Mary Poppins - Mary Poppins

The Female Protagonist - My thoughts
I want to start exploring the aesthetic elements of films containing female protagonists, including the 'mise-en-scène' elements, compositions, colours, etc. I think it would be interesting to see if there are any differences between films portraying a male or female protagonist. At the same time, I want to continue researching around wordless narrative - describing purely the visual, with the theme of female portrayal in mind.

Amélie - Colour Study

Colour & Tone

The colours used in 'Amélie' help to set the tone throughout the film. It has a nostalgic feel to it, especially as we follow Amélie from her childhood. The scenes I chose to colour swatch all have similar greens, browns, reds and oranges. For some reason, I have never really thought about film in terms of colour before. The exercise of colour picking made me think more about the impact it can have on an audience and how evident it is throughout the telling of a story. The absence of colour, as with 'The Passion of Joan of Arc' lends itself more to interpretation. As the topic of the film is already very sombre, although there was no option at the time to include colour I think the addition of black & white filming helps to highlight this bleakness.

Warmer Tones - Reflection of Story

The second set of scenes I chose to colour swatch carry similar tones to the first set. However, I noticed that in the latter parts of the film there are warmer colours added in proportion to the greens, etc. This could be a reflection of where we are in relation to the story. The last scene in particular has an orangey hue, where Amélie is happy and content.

Research Trip - Dali Exhibition, Berlin

I recently spent a few days in Berlin and whilst I was there I decided to go to the Dali exhibition. Taking the tour I realised that a lot of what was talked about was evident within the work coincided with the research I am looking at in regards to composition and visual symbolism within imagery. 

Process - Breaking the Rules

Something that stood out to me a lot was the way in which Dali knew the 'rules' of art/print and decided to break them anyway. He didn't like how long the process of print was in the beginning of his career, as he worked very spontaneously. However, he did end up using a lot of print work in his practice, although his methods were extremely unusual. Dali introduced things like shoot ink with a gun at his canvas, using rhino horn to paint with and exploding bombs to engrave his etching plates. 

Composition
One of the most obvious elements within Dali's work is his use of dynamic and interesting compositions. My favourite was the second image. The figure in the foreground in contrast to the background is what initially drew me to the image, there is a sense of action and separation from the figures in the background - almost like a performance. Stylistically, it is very simple, but the use of a darker colour in the foreground makes you want to look closer into the frame. A theme found within Dali's work includes this kind of composition, it is sometimes confusing to interpret but makes you look closer, the story told in the image could be understood in many different ways - it is subjective.

Symbolism & Hidden Meanings
Illusions are perhaps one of the things Dali's work is best known for, the 10th image demonstrates this well. The two faces of a man and a woman can be seen either side of the goblet. As well as illusions, Dali liked to put hidden symbols in his work - things that either contain more of a context to the overall image or something that is personal to Dali himself, eg. the moustache. As I am researching into readability of images, semiotics is very important. Why a symbol or motif is included can still be interpreted in many different ways, therefore one image can tell many stories. Looking closely at Dali's work is very important in order to try and interpret the meaning, in the second image a smaller army is hidden below the head of the figure - this could easily have been overlooked, but adds more context to someone who is not familiar with the original narrative of Don Quixote.

Tristan & Iseult/Isolde

Taking the tour of the exhibition it was pointed out that Dali often played around with the depictions of men and women. For example, when portraying Tristan from the famous story of 'Tristan & Iseult' or 'Tristan & Isolde' (film, opera, etc), he is shown as a strong masculine figure, wielding a sword against the dragon. However, in the second image after Tristan is wounded he is depicted in a very feminine way. His long hair and prominent eyelashes, as well as the general body shape of the figure, contribute to this idea. Portraying a vulnerable Tristan in this way may be a reflection on how women are seen as a whole, associated with being a damsel-in-distress.

Action/Movement
Another thing that struck me about Dali's work is the way he describes action in different ways. Repetition of a figure is sometimes used within his work, as in the first image, to highlight a continuous movement. Other images depict this in a scenic way, using line of sight and layering of composition to hold the gaze of an audience. Process and use of inks, as seen in the fourth image, also contributes to the expression of motion.