Editing - The Street (complete groups task)

By: Nathan on 02:48

Cuts

• Jump Cuts: There is a jump cut used at 6 seconds to allow the audience to focus on the two characters and to let them know that this is where the action is going to take place. The change not being smooth indicates to the audience that this is not going to end well and there will be a bad outcome to the scene. There are a lot of jump cuts used throughout the conversation between the three men. This is used so that we are able to see the facial expressions of all the men when they are talking. One of the men looks comfortable with the scarring of Nick whilst the other does not. This may be used to show how people react differently to disability. The audience are made to want to be like the man who is comfortable with it so may be influenced to change their attitude if they act like the man who is not comfortable with the scarring. There is a jump cut which shows the back of Nick. This shows how people with a disability often turn their back on society as a result of the stereotypes which they have to deal with on a daily basis. 

• Cut: The scene cuts to Nick walking up the road. This suggests that disability is a long, uphill battle that people have to deal with. It shows how people with a disability do not find it easy because of how people act towards and around them.

• Matched Cuts: There is a matched cut which shows the man standing behind the shop door. This shot is used to link to two scenes together and to let the audience understand that these characters know each other. By the man standing behind the door, this may be used to show that he is scared to go and talk to the disabled character as he does not know what to say so it looks as though he is hiding away. There is a matched cut used to show the relationship between the two men and how they should be seen to be similar. However, the bar in the window of the van acts a physical fraction between the pair and shows how their relationship has changed between the two man as result of the scarring. There are matched cuts used in the scene when Nick is helping the women to pick up her shopping. The matched cuts are used to show the relationship between the shots. This changed from the view from a distance to his view of him helping pick up the woman's shopping.

• Motivated Cut: There is a motivated cut which allows the audience to see the disabled characters face. This allows the audience to see his scarring for the first time and understand what the situation is about. This shot is used to shock the audience as they did not see this side of the characters face before. This negatively highlights the scarring as the shots makes it feel as though it is secretive and should not be talked about.

• Cutting Rhythm: Whilst nick is with the women, the cutting slows down and stays on Nick's face for a little while. This may be used to show how people can sometimes just stare at people who have a disability as they may find it unusual or interesting. It shows how society does not find disability normal and people are not used to scarring. There is then fast pace cutting which is used between the conversation between the two characters. The fast pace is used to show the anger building in Nick and his frustration to the fact that he is scarred. It can also show how quickly the woman has to think in order to defend herself and defend the reason she screamed at the view of Nick. This shows how people are normally not comfortable in the presence of disabled people as they do not understand the disability or because of the fact that people with a disability are not treated as though they are the same as people who do not have a disability. 

Shots

• Reaction Shots:There is a reaction shot which includes Nick telling the other character to 'fuck off'. This is used to show the anger of Nick at the fact that he would not be on the same pay if he were to return to the job that he had before he became scarred. This is used to show how disabled people are not seen to be as important as people without a disability and are not valued as much as. There is a reaction shot which is used to show the horrified look on the woman's face as she looks up at Nick. This is used to show that she is scared by the scarring on Nicks face and how she does not find it normal. This represents the parts of society which  are scared by disability and do not see disabled people to be normal.

• Super Imposition Shot: There is a super imposition shot which shows the metal fence with Nick in the background. As Nick is the person who is behind the fence, this may be used to show that people with a disability feel trapped as a result and feel as though they are a prisoner in their own body. As he is also blurry this may also be used to show how disabled people are often forgotten about and not seen to be important.

Other

• Change in POV: Whilst Nick is in the office, there are a lot of shots used which all show the audience the scene from different points of view. This may be used to show how different people see disabled people differently, some people see the disability as that is all the person is whilst others do not see the disability and see the actual person. These cuts also happen quite quickly which may be used to show the anger within the disabled person. 

• Change in Location: There is a rapid change in location from Nick being outside to in a office. This may be used to show how people with a disability do not like to hang around in one place as they do not want to be seen by society. This scene changes from outside, in a crowded place, to inside where there are not a lot of people. This may be used to show how people with a disability hide away from society and do not like to be seen. 

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Representation of sexuality in Queer as Folk

By: Nathan on 07:00

First of all in the clip we see the main character walking through the school corridor. He does not appear to be highlighted or singled out in between other characters walking around the shot. This could be representative of how his general appearance does not differentiate him from the other students at the school showing that at first many people can't even tell wether a person is gay or not, thus putting across the idea to the audience that physically, gay people are no different to straight people.
The camera then moves forward in a POV type shot towards another male character. The movement is slow and could be representative that the homosexual boy is shy and reluctant when communicating with others, he immediately feels judged due of his sexuality; this could further link to how he has been treated in the past, thus giving the representation that many gay people are feel unwanted or even bullied because of who they are.
The homosexual male is shown to be smirking a little as he talks about his boyfriend. He could be attempting to make the other character jealous, this is clearly working as the other characters reaction is aggressive at best and he storms away from the scenario. This happens after a speed up in the editing of the shots between them increases in speed signifies the increase in tension/conflict between the two characters. His smile is instantly taken away but he still seems to be happy that his attempts to cause jealousy worked. This links to representation of sexuality as it represents how sometimes sexuality is utilised to create jealousy/conflict between people due to the use of common misconceptions associated with the topic as a whole.

Next a new scene is shown and a straight woman is talking about her sex life with a group of people at an event of some kind. She gives a lot of details and nobody else in the room/conversation react to what she is representative how as a straight woman she doesn’t feel judged/alienated because is it usually perceived as being the 'norm'. She is also shown amongst many other people in the shot which further represents how she is part of the crowd and doesn't  stand out or being an object or curiosity like a homosexual person could be.
 A very camp gay character is also sat at the table with the female is portrayed to have a strong accent that is very feminine in the tone and style in which he speaks. He is holding a cigarette delicately, pursing his lips when he blows out the smoke and is wearing an eye-catching animal print shirt. These are all points that add to the typical stereotype of a camp homosexual man as he acts, speaks and dresses very feminine. Many of the shots of this character are of him alone or only with a few others, this represents the opposite of my last point as instead of being shown to be ‘normal’ he is segregated from others in the scene and made to look different or abnormal from other heterosexual people.
Another male character that is sat at the table represents the typical butch heterosexual character that is often represented in TV dramas. His clothing is formal, masculine and typically worn by men, he is also shown to be slouching and acting like a typical man through butch actions and having a deep voice.
 The two gay characters are walking down a street pavement, the gay man although seeming to be very confident in his posture and loud speaking is shown to be lower than the other man, this shows how because of his obvious sexuality it makes him regarded lower than people that may seem more heterosexual than others. It could also show how although trying to put on a front of being confident and out there, he is actually shy and maybe even secretly anxious about how people perceive and judge him.
 A shot is shown of the family, including the two gay males, sat together at a table with the little girls back to the audience. This could be because homosexuality and even sexuality in general is not perceived to be a topic that is appropriate for children to be discussing with parents at a very young age. The little girls face is not shown to the audience showing how she is segregated from the topic of sexuality as a whole, homosexuality is seen as a taboo topic that can be seen as unnatural, many traditional parents don’t want their children to be subject of homosexuality in case of influences, as if gay people are something to be scared of.
The feminine acting man speaks with a high tone in his voice; he speaks very quickly and seems to have a lot of energy and motivation for subjects he’s talking about. He is talking with lots of enthusiasm about acting in theatres and pantomime plays which is commonly a hobby associated with gay men as it’s seen as very energetic and feminine. He also wears tight costume adding to how the mise-en-scene makes him look like a show-off and trying to get attention from other men, this is also a common misconception and stereotype of gay men especially- the need for constant attention.
There are many stereotypes and uncivilised ideas that are associated with adding humour to those who are gay through props and even common saying that certain characters say. This next scene shows the camp man eating a sausage from a fork; this is represented as being humorous to the audience as the sausage simply associates with the male phallic symbol. Audiences can react to this in different ways as they can see it as light hearted humour or actually not very tasteful stereotypes. This represents to sexuality because it gives an impression of the gay man as being desperate or even animalistic because of the manner in which he eats the food type.
There is a mid-shot in the kitchen which shows the mother of one of the homosexual boys talking to her son with her back facing him. This may at first seem harmless to an audience as she is busy washing up and carrying out daily tasks however if you look into it more deeply it has a very strong meaning representing her as someone who turns her back on her son because of her sons sexuality. This is a very strong stereotype and representation that is associated with gay men; that their families often disown them or feel that they have failed as parents because their children are deemed unnatural because they are homosexual.

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