Research into Short Film - Bait

Summary

A boy and his father are living alone. The boy makes his lunch (bait) as the father gets ready for a job interview. They leave the house and get the bus from Newcastle to Durham. Then they enter a cafe and the boy waits for his father while the father has his interview, which initially the father said he would only be 10 minutes but the way the film is shot, the audience get the impression that the boy is waiting a lot longer than 10 minutes. During the time the father is gone, a drunk comes in and the boy gives him the "bait". The father realises this on his return and attempts to get the bait back by fighting the drunk. However, the father realises why his son gave the drunk the food, it was because the drunk was worse off than them. The father lets the drunk have the bait and also gives him the rest of his spare change including their bus fare, the father then walks over 10 miles back to their home carrying his son on his shoulders. This is a positive end as it highlights the moral of the story, that there are always people worse off and people should show kindness to try and help them as best they can, the film also highlights a aspect of the strong will and goodness in humanity.

Analysis


There are only a few edits throughout the film but all are very effective in building the plot and foreshadowing the future events. At the end of scene 1 the screen fades to black which shows a skip in time but also there are negative connotations with the colour being black and also the duration of the screen being black, the colour black in the film represents the harshness of the society they live in and also the frailties between the father and sons relationship when they are apart, when the screen goes black, it stays that way for a few seconds which implies that there will be a long stretch of negativity ahead. Todorov's theory will also come into play here as the audience can determine that the disturbance will soon commence to liven up the story and so the equilibrium can be restored afterwards. When the boy is sitting in the cafe there is a clever piece of editing, as the camera shows the boy looking at his father walking away through the window, the camera flicks to the boy and back again as a point of view shot. The window glass conveys the boys segregation from the rest of the world and the audience can really empathise with the boy as it is shown from his perspective, so the audience experience the boys isolation as he experiences it, this could be a usual feeling the boy has when not with his father as he is fully reliant on his father.

In terms of the mise en scene there is quiet a lot to pick up on. In the opening scene there is a huge emphasis on the money jar as the camera angle shows there isn't a lot of money in the jar, the director also takes thought on the condition of the house and keeps this in mind when he is creating the setting and atmosphere. Both of these portray the poor conditions of their lives and the poverty they are enduring, this also shows the significance of how important it is for the father to do well in his interview as the family looks like it desperately needs a steady income of money. Another thing that is gained from the opening scene is that straight away the single parent scenario is portrayed to the audience as there is no sight or mention of a mother throughout the duration of the film. Throughout the film there is a keen focus on the "bait", an interpretation of this could be that the "bait" represents the boy's relationship with his father, in the sense that when the "bait" is around, their relationship is positive. However when the "bait" is lost, it highlights a gap of emptiness in each of their lives. The "bait" is purely a materialistic thing for them as it has no real baring after the fight which shows the importance of food when there isn't much money but also shows that company is more important as the relationship between them both is what prevails at the end of the film and the "bait" has gone to the drunk as that is the priority in his life as he has nobody else to consider.

In terms of sound there is only a limit on effective diagetic sound throughout the film, important sounds are the constant praising of the son from the dad, which is establishing their relationship. Also the most effective diagetic sound is that of the coins rattling in the jar which shows the lack of wealth the family has had to endure. On the other hand the non-diagetic sound plays a massive part in the suspense and development of the plot. For instance, at the beginning of the second scene, the harmonious music reflects the calm and settled relationship. When the drunk enters the cafe there is a sudden change in the music, as it gets more tense which implies the danger and threat the tramp presents towards the boy who, when the camera is on him has more calm and relaxed music which shows the stark contrast between good and bad, showing the differences between both. The music then changes again when his father returns which portrays  the hope and positive nature the father has on his sons life.

Throughout the film there are constant low angle shots cast at the father which shows the film is directed from the child's point of view, this shows he idolises his father and he is the biggest role model in his life. Throughout the film there are close-ups of the two of them in the same shots, which implies the the closeness and bond between them. As time goes on while the father is in his interview, there is a shot of the cafe that suddenly becomes empty which shows how long the father is taking and a sad mood is portrayed by the way the camera has close-ups of the boys face, by the expressions on his face the audience can clearly feel the lonliness and vulnerability of the boy when he is without his father.

To conclude, there is a significant use of effective filming techniques throughout, these effect the feeling and mood of the story, which builds up the tension and also introduces important themes of poverty and loneliness. The camera angles are specifically important as they show the emotions of the main characters, especially the close up of the boys face where the audience see his true feelings expressed through his facial expressions. The edits are also effective as there is a emphasis on time as the camera jumps from boy to where his father is when he is in the cafe shows the commitment and willingness the boy has towards his father, the black screen at the end of the first scene shows the time factor that the boy puts into their relationship, as the key focus is on the "bait" which is the only thing that the father and son have in between them. In the mise en scene there is two main focuses, that of the "bait" which is the central focus throughout the plot as it is the only thing that both the father and son have a true connection with apart from money, which is also a running theme throughout the film as there is always a importance of how much money the father has and also how necessary it is for them both to live. The non-diagetic sound is key as it involves the music which sets tones of seriousness, sadness, happiness and gloominess all throughout the film, it is able to set these tones with the style and tempo of the music which is discreetly layered into the background, the audience would find it difficult to notice the music unless they were analysing the film or distinctively searching for the non-diagetic sound, this is a clever filming technique from the director as he subliminally sets the mood, which is a lot harder to do than if you were to set the mood with obvious techniques, such as through speech or body language.