In Week 3, the class focused on film language and how meaning is created through cinematic choices rather than only through story content. This week helped me understand films not just as narratives, but as constructed visual and sensory experiences.
One key thing I learned is that a film can be understood on different levels of meaning. Simply describing what happens in a film is not the same as analysing it. Meaning can be communicated explicitly through dialogue and actions, but it can also be implied through character development, visual composition, editing, sound, and the overall atmosphere of a scene. This made me realise that many important ideas in film are not stated directly, but are suggested through how the film is made.
We also discussed different approaches to analysing films, such as focusing on visual form, narrative structure, or the broader context in which a film is created. Looking at camera movement, framing, lighting, sound, and editing helped me see how these elements influence how the audience feels and interprets a scene. Film language guides the viewer’s attention and emotional response, often without the viewer being fully aware of it.
This week was especially useful for my own animation and visual work. As someone working with moving images, understanding film language helps me think more carefully about how meaning can be built through visual decisions. Instead of only thinking about what happens in a scene, I now pay more attention to how shots are composed and how technical choices affect storytelling. This perspective will be important for future projects, particularly when planning storyboards and cinematic sequences.
This week, the class focused on visual composition, especially the use of proportion and the basic elements and principles of art. These topics helped me better understand how images are structured and how viewers read a visual frame.
In class, we learned about the golden ratio and how it can be used in composition. Rather than being only a mathematical idea, the golden ratio works as a visual guideline that helps create balance and guide the viewer’s eye naturally. Through this, I began to realise that the placement of the main subject, the distribution of empty space, and the position of visual focus all affect how comfortable or clear an image feels.
We also studied the Elements of Art and Principles of Art. Elements such as line, shape, colour, value, space, and texture form the basic structure of an image, while principles like balance, proportion, rhythm, emphasis, and movement explain how these elements are organised. Learning these concepts made it easier for me to analyse why some images feel clear and effective, rather than relying only on intuition.
This week’s learning is especially helpful for my animation and 3D work. When designing storyboards, framing shots, or arranging objects in a scene, I can now think more clearly about proportion and visual hierarchy. These foundations give me more confidence when making visual decisions and will support more complex visual storytelling in later projects.
In the first week of the unit Design for Animation, Narrative Structures & Film Language, the class mainly focused on understanding the purpose of the course and how research will be developed over time. Instead of choosing a final topic straight away, we were encouraged to think about possible research directions and what kinds of questions we are interested in exploring.
I started by reflecting on my own animation background and what I want to improve during this course. At this stage, I am particularly interested in how visual elements, such as lighting and environment, can influence storytelling and audience experience. This made me realise that film and animation language is not only about technique, but also about how meaning and emotion are communicated.
We also discussed how animation can be used to engage with broader social and cultural ideas through visual choices. This week helped me understand that research does not need to be fixed at the beginning. Developing clear questions and exploring ideas gradually is an important part of the process.
The Witch’s Scene: The scene design of the witch making the poisoned apple is highly consistent with the storyline. The overall atmosphere leans dark, fully reflecting the witch’s sinister and treacherous personality. Set in a castle-like environment, the spatial structure and lighting create a mysterious and dangerous vibe. The set also incorporates many classic witch elements, such as potion cauldrons and vials. These details enhance the character image, allowing the audience to feel an “evil” aura at first glance. The design of the poisoned apple also echoes the overall visual style, achieving great unity in both visuals and emotion for the entire scene.
Snow White’s Scene: In contrast, Snow White’s scene is bright, warm, and vivid with fairy-tale charm. It exudes a lighthearted and joyful feeling, forming a sharp contrast with the witch’s dark setting. The design of her cottage and the rural scenery is full of life, presenting a pure and beautiful world. This strong contrast not only highlights the differences between the characters but also intensifies the story’s dramatic conflict, enabling the audience to more intuitively perceive the opposition between good and evil, light and darkness.
2.Costume, Hair & Make Up
In this clip, both the princess and the witch have extremely classic images. Snow White has a fair complexion, rosy lips, and a round, clean facial shape that looks particularly innocent. Her hair is dark, short, and curly, neatly framing her face, paired with a red bow headband—this look instantly evokes her naive and kind personality. Her costume colors are also vivid: a blue top, a yellow skirt, and red accents. This combination of high-saturation colors gives a warm and bright feeling, perfectly matching the image of the “kind princess” in fairy tales. The overall styling makes her appear both pure and full of vitality.
The witch’s look is completely the opposite. She wears a dark, large cloak made of thick, dull fabric, creating an eerie and cold vibe overall. Her hair is grayish-white, hanging loosely and looking dry and messy. For her makeup, her skin tone is pale gray, with obvious wrinkles covering her face, a long and pointed nose, and deep-set eye sockets—all of which convey her elderly and sinister temperament. The overall styling perfectly embodies the classic “witch” image and forms a sharp contrast with Snow White’s bright and pure look.
3.Facial Expressions & Body Language
In this clip, the witch’s facial expressions and body language are highly exaggerated. She makes large, dramatic movements and often performs sinister, eerie actions—such as sniffing out the Seven Dwarves’ scent with her nose or teasing her pet with the poisoned apple. These details reinforce her cunning and vicious nature.
When speaking or acting, her expressions shift drastically—her eye and mouth movements are sharp and distinct. Overall, she exudes an exaggerated yet slightly comical vibe, a stylistic choice that perfectly highlights her evil essence and the dramatic tension of the scene.
In contrast, Snow White’s movements are gentle and elegant, with delicate, soft body language that reflects her kind and innocent personality. Her demeanor carries an air of grace and good breeding, making her feel warm and approachable.
4.Lighting and Colour
In terms of lighting and color, the witch’s scene is overall dark-toned, using rich yet dull colors such as olive green and dark gray, with dim lighting. These designs create a gloomy and mysterious atmosphere, reflecting the witch’s sinister and dangerous nature.
In contrast, Snow White’s scene features bright and brisk colors, with brighter lighting. These designs evoke a warm and fairy-tale-like atmosphere, reflecting her kind and innocent qualities.
5.Positioning of characters/objects within the frame
Shot of Poisoned Apple Production: In the shot, the poisoned apple is positioned at the exact center. A hand extends from the top of the frame, suspending it in the green potion. The central composition makes the poisoned apple the visual focal point, emphasizing its core status in the scene. The surrounding potion spreads radially, suggesting that danger is diffusing, and meanwhile, it reflects the crucial production stage of the witch’s evil plan.
Shot of the Witch at the Window: The witch almost fills the entire window frame, with her hands resting on the windowsill, her head leaning forward, and her eyes fixed outside the frame. The window frame confines her within the shot, implying both her act of peering and her presence as a threat. The full-frame composition heightens the sense of oppression, highlighting her aggressiveness, and forms a sharp contrast with the bright environment outside the window.
Shot of the Animal : Various animals—squirrels, rabbits, deer, and raccoons—are scattered in different corners of the frame. Some peek out from containers, while others gather on the ground, forming a loose group. This layout simulates the random distribution of animals in a natural environment, creating a lifelike and vibrant atmosphere. At the same time, it depicts their role as observers, laying the groundwork for the subsequent plot.
6.What role does the shot choice (Cinematography) play in the scene.
Shot selection guides the audience’s attention through composition, shot size, angle, and movement, highlighting key characters or props to help the audience understand the plot and character intentions. Meanwhile, it can convey the psychological states and personality traits of characters, create specific emotional atmospheres, and support the development of the narrative.
Research Activity 2
Can you describe the mise-en-scene in this picture? How are the characters placed in the frame? Description of Mise-en-scène
Setting
The scene is set in a bedroom. The bed, items beside the bed, slippers, and a suitcase clearly indicate that this is a private space. The lighting is soft, with a slightly dull tone, creating an atmosphere that prompts introspection.
Costumes
The male character wears a dark blazer, a light-colored shirt, and khaki pants, featuring a formal and understated style. The female character is dressed in a red jacket, a patterned top, and a blue skirt, with her arms crossed, conveying a sense of wariness or restraint.
Props
The slippers on the floor, the suitcase, and the bed itself are prominent props. Together, they create a domestic, intimate yet slightly distant spatial feeling.
Character Placement
The two characters are positioned side by side on the bed, seemingly engaging in a conversation or, conversely, having no interaction at all. The woman has her arms crossed, while the man, though relaxed, appears detached. The bed and the characters are centrally framed, directing the audience’s attention to their state and making them the visual focal point of the scene.
Research Activity 3
1. Description of the Character Relationship
The two characters are most likely in a master-servant relationship: the lady on the left corresponds to the “master” identity, while the lady on the right leans more towards the “servant” role, with a clear hierarchical difference reflected in their states.
2. Basis for Judging the Relationship
The judgment is mainly based on the dual contrast of clothing styles, expressions, and overall states:
In terms of clothing styles, the lady on the left is dressed in bright, glamorous, and exquisitely designed attire that exudes elegance. In contrast, the lady on the right wears formal and neat clothing with a simple and practical style, which is more in line with the work attire of servants in mansions, without redundant decorations—creating a distinct contrast between their clothing styles.
Regarding expressions and states, the lady on the left appears relaxed and at ease with a calm demeanor that suggests control over the situation. Meanwhile, the lady on the right has a serious expression, behaves cautiously and restrainedly, and shows obvious reserve and deference. This difference in states also aligns with the identity positioning and interaction mode between a master and a servant.
3.
Lighting: The lighting on the maid on the right is soft with a slight backlight effect, blurring her outline and relatively weakening her presence. In contrast, the lighting on the mistress is more concentrated and clear—this not only highlights her image but also gives her greater visual weight in the frame. Rather than deliberately emphasizing dominance, it naturally elevates her core status through the contrast in lighting.
Composition: The mistress is positioned at the central core of the frame. This layout immediately draws the audience’s attention, making her the visual focal point.
Spatial Setting: Details in the scene clearly indicate this is a private space. The setting of an intimate environment guides the audience to associate it with “a master and servant interacting in a private domain,” adding contextual depth to the presentation of their hierarchical relationship.
