Saturday, December 6, 2008

Pan Shot

Panning has nothing to do with cooking (ha ha!). A Pan Shot is when the camera is stationary (in one, fixed place) and it turns from either right to left or left to right and sort of scans or pans the horizon.

Usually the camera is following a moving object and that object is kept in the middle of the frame.

Many times this shot is used when the director wants to follow the action. When you see a pan shot, imagine the camera did NOT follow the action and instead the action moved passed the camera and out of the frame. How would it change the feeling or mood of the scene? It is very insteresting to consider.

Friday, December 5, 2008

Student Focus

Debora has what we call "an easy smile." She is able to smile about any situation, but not in a way that overpowers anyone else's ability to smile. It is just there on her face even when it isn't.

Debora is very laid back, but knows when to kick it in gear if the heat is on. She is a sweet girl who has a good understanding of the world around her and knows that time will pass no matter what happens, so she takes everything that happens in an easy way.

Here is Debora! The queen of serene!

What does your name mean?:I actually never knew the meaning of my name. I asked to my parents but they don't know it either.

Why did your parents name you this?: They wanted my name to start with the letter D because my grandmother's(mother's mother) name starts with D. My sister's name starts with J and my other grandmother's name starts with J also. Even though they don't know the meaning of Debora, they said that they gave me that name because they liked how it sounds.

Place of Birth: İstanbul-Avrupa Hastanesi

Why were you born here?: The doctor who gave the birth of my sister at Amerikan Hastanesi, transferred to Avrupa Hastanesi. My mother was pleased with his job the last time, so he wanted him to give my birth too.

What will you do for a living after university?: I haven't decided yet. I have a couple of ideas in my mind. Music and concerts are things that I enjoy the most in life so, I might work in a concert organization company and then have my own company. I also might work in my father's job. He has a textile company and sells shirts to brands all around the world, so he goes to meetings in different countries. I'm good at changing people's minds and make them buy the product so I think I might do that job too.

Age:15

What hobbies do you have?: Listening to music and discovering new artists, snowboarding, wake boarding, going to gym, running by the sea. I also used to play tennis a lot but I stopped playing after I hurt my knee.

Where do you want to go to school: I want to go to NYU because I like big cities and also it's a good university. If I don't get accepted to a good school in New York, I'll study at London because I also think that it's a good place to go to university. If non of these happen I would prefer staying at Istanbul because it's one of my favorite places in the world.

Brothers or sisters?: I have one sister. Her name is Jennifer. She graduated from Koç School 2 years ago. Now, she's a student at Parsons School of Design, in New York. I visited her last holiday but I still miss her a lot because without her the house is very quiet.

Embarrassing moment: Two or three weeks ago our car stopped by the petrol station near our school. I was in a hurry and also hungry so I ran to the market to buy something to eat. When I was about to enter the market I slipped and fell on my butt. I fell so badly that I could remember the moment which I was in the air. Because, the floor was wet my skirt became wet too. My butt hurt so much that I couldn't sleep on it for a week.

What are you doing and where are you at 8pm at night?: I am walking on my way home from my pilates lesson. Sometimes I might be sitting in my room waiting for my mother to come home. At 8pm I might also be eating dinner with my parents, at home.

Favorite movie: I have a couple of favourite movies - Crush, Troy and The Kite Runner are the ones which are in my mind right now.

World’s worst problem: Poverty, Education and Global Warming.

Who is your hero?: Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, of course. Without him we wouldn't have a modern life and there wouldn't be Turkey. He fought for us and saved our land.

Biggest decision you are thinking about right now: It's being a FM or TM. Even though I have time to decide, it's really important for my grades next year. I have to decide weather Science or Turkish is better for me. I have to discover which one I like the most.

One word that describes you: ''MOODY.'' I can't control it.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Bird's Eye Shot

What would it look like if you were a bird? That is how a bird's eye shot works. The camera is pretending it is a "bird" peering down on the scene.

Tell me if there is a scene in SBM that is shot this way. Where is it in the film?

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Close Up

"Get ready for your CLOSE UP!"

Getting ready for a close up is a common phrase that sometimes comes up in American culture and it relates to movie making. A close-up is to show the details of a scene or a severe reaction to something where the actor's reaction is necessary for the scene to move along.

This is where the acting and make-up have to be good. If either are off, a smart audience will know it. Pay attention to when close-ups are used in SBM and what they are used for.

Click here for more of an explanation of "Close Up."

Monday, December 1, 2008

Tracking Shot

These are the most fun to me. I love imagining a guy with a camera on a track, following the characters as they are acting out a portion of the scene. It is like having someone follow you around with a camera.

I always try to pay attention to a film and notice the tracking shots, so I can laugh to myself about how the actors are being "followed" or tracked in the scene.

Click here for more of a description.

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Establishing Shot

Pay attention during certain parts of the film when you are shown something on the screen just to orient the viewer. An establishing shot sets up where the scene is taking place or where the characters are in a scene before it happens. It is sort of like how at the beginning of a novel, the author will describe the scene first before adding the characters (a very common storytelling technique).

For a film, it is more about letting the viewer know where the characters are in the scene before it happens.

Click here to find out more.