Scene Analysis Paper – Editing and Sound

I have provided the shot for you: you may find the shot on Canvas in the module for this assignment. Your task in this essay assignment is to develop an original claim about the scene, and support that claim with visual and audio evidence from the scene itself, accurately using terminology from the course while providing this evidence. The purpose of this paper is to let you put what you’ve learned about cinema thus far and apply that content to a close reading. You will demonstrate your understanding of the course content through correct usage of medium-specific terminology that both accurately describes the scene and provides evidence for your analytical claim. Your claim may address the spectatorial effect of the shot, the political content of the shot, the shot’s relationship to the rest of the film, or any other insight you are able to extract from the shot’s construction. In this assignment you will be expected to use the terminology of editing and film sound as we have discussed it so far in class. You are also permitted to talk about the mise-en-scene, cinematography, and narrative form – in fact, doing so will be necessary to accurately describe the visual contents of the scene. However, you are expected to focus on editing and sound in your argumentation. Failure to use proper terminology will have a negative impact on your grade for this assignment; however, do not simply use the entire page count on describing the scene. The scene that you have been assigned for this assignment is several minutes long, and your page count is highly limited: part of the purpose of this assignment is to develop the skill of identifying and describing aspects of film with precision, describing what you need to describe in order to develop your argument. The details from the scene that you cite should be related to the argument you are making; in turn, your argument should be rigorous enough that you do not have to willfully omit details or misrepresent the content of the shot in order to make your argument function. The following are questions which may guide your essay. You should not feel obligated to answer all of them, or any of them, but consider them prompts if you are having difficulty formulating a thesis statement: How does this scene play with the idea of ‘suturing’ (as discussed in the Week 4 Chion reading) of image and audio in the cinema? How does this scene play with, and possibly subvert, the binaries of simultaneous/nonsimultaneous sound? Or synchronized/nonsynchronized sound?How does this scene link Harry Caul’s perceptual and mental subjectivity to the apparatus of the cinema through the use of diegetic sound?How are the conventions of continuity editing used in this sequence to tie two spaces (Harry’s compound and Union square) together? How does the scene complicate the juxtaposition of those two spaces? You may refer to readings that have been assigned in class for this assignment, but you are not permitted to use/cite sources from outside of this course. The goal of this assignment is for you to develop your own unique argument, not to repeat an argument that has been made in a publication or video outside of this class. Remember to craft an effective thesis statement, with a sentence structure that explains both what the shot does and provides a glimpse into how it does it. Remember that your thesis statement should be as specific as possible, and that the formal techniques that you identify should be cited in support of your thesis. A rubric for the grading of the assignment has been provided, which you can also find in the canvas module for this assignment. It is a modified version of the general FMS rubric. This is a short assignment: the required length of this paper is 2.5-3 pages, in Times New Roman 12 pt font, 1 inch margins, double spaced. Please do not exceed 4 pages on this assignment. Do not use screenshots – the expectation is that you will use precise terminology and clear descriptions.

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