Short film research, Archie by Dani

Archie http://www.virginmediashorts.co.uk/film/2346/archie
Daniel John Williams
Virgin Media Shorts

Archie is a film about a young boy who desperately wants to but a bow and arrow, he works hard to earn the money and throughout the seasons visits the shop to gaze at his desired toy, he finally saves up enough money, however some things are more important.

Certain themes of desire are explored yet Athrough the eyes of a young boy, his decision at the end of the film is surprising at his age, that he understands themes and issues of giving and he clearly knows the opposite between what it means to want something and to need something.


Representation

-  The homeless man perched outside the toy shop is present throughout the film and each of the seasons, which is especially effective when we see the clearly difference between social class; rich and poor, shown through aspects of mise en scene such as props like the umbrella.

-  The representation of social class is significant in this film achieving the right effect, it is not just a lower class family juxtaposed against the homeless man, it is an upper middle class mother and son, shown through the use of costume such as the mothers flower dress and his woolen sweatshirt. This reinforces the dramatic difference between the two main characters, the young boy and the homeless man and therefore creates an automatic distance between the two characters, however even as a young child we see him break this distance. Even at that age he somewhat understands the basic principles of social class and can quite literally see the effect it has on others and the state in which some people are forced to live. 

-  Right from the start of the film when the young boy first see's the homeless man, we can see a sense of pain on his face as he stares into the man's eyes, he understands him and see's something in him that you would perhaps not expect a child to see. His complete lack of selfishness at the end reinforces ideas of how mature he is for his age and his character development is evident, this is not a stereotype of a typical young boy, breaking the stereotypes makes this a positive representation.

Narrative

-  The film is structured by seasons which is relatively uncommon for a short film due to the length of time available, however works well as it is possible to convey the sense of time that has passed in just a two minute short film. The story is constructed in chronological order, as we see the months past we also see the development in character, as well as the weather which is a key indicator in portraying seasons.

-  Towards the end of the film, we see the young boy staring less into the toy shop window and more into the eyes of the homeless man, these shots reinforce his gradual understanding until his actions at the end of the film.

-  The repetition of costume is significant to the outcome of the story, as it shows how far the young boy has come, for example the first time we see him in his Robin Hood style costume, it is when he first see's and decides he wants the toy; the start of his journey and when he goes back to buy it, a whole year has passed and the change in him is reinforced.


Genre

-  On Virgin Media Shorts, this film is categorised as family, yet it is not clear what the true genre of this film is, as once again it has aspects of many different genres such as drama, although all in all there isn't really one. The film resists being categorised into a specific genre due to the fact that it is a short film and it is hard to capture a genre in such a short space of time.

Audience

-  The demographic, as with the genre for this short film is not clear, due to the fact that it has a wide target audience, as I believe this film can be enjoyed by anyone that watches it, no matter what the age or gender. Obviously, the older you are, the more you are able to fully, understand the main themes explored, yet overall everyone has the capability to enjoy this film. 

-  It is obvious why the audience would be pleased by this film due to the cute young boy and the good nature and kindness that he shows towards the homeless man, not only that but he also shows a great amount of modesty, as he gives his money when the man is asleep, he doesn't even want any thanks, just believes that this man is more deserving and needs the money a lot more than he does, giving the story the ability to please such a wide demographic. 



Media Language

-  The structure of the film would not be possible without the use of mise en scene and therefore plays a key part in the representation of character and time. Props such as the umbrella and the costume wore by each of the characters makes differentiation between season clear, however the homeless man never changes his clothes no matter what season. He isn't able to have an umbrella, the only aspect of his character that changes across the seasons is his mood, made apparent by his guitar and facial expression in the summer.

-  The time period in which this film is set is apparent through the use of costume, props and location, however explores very modern ideas and issues throughout, creating a sense of contrast which is one of the reasons it is so successful. 

-  Even with the lack of dialogue, an awful lot is communicated to the audience through the use of non- diegetic sound, camera work and props for example. The non-diegetic soundtrack is relatively high pitched and conveys a sense of the child's innocence and lack of understanding yet throughout the film, we see the young boy 'Archie' break these conventions. 


- The use of camera angles, shots and movement is key in achieving the desired outcome of this film, for example the use of an eye line match helps to convey Archie's desire for this bow and arrow, it reinforces how much he wants it, that and how hard he has worked for the money, combine to add to the effect of the ending. The slow zoom also reinforces and adds to this desired outcome and effect it has on the audience. As well as this, the use of a shot reverse shot is used to convey the way he looks at the homeless man and the connection they have without any dialogue.


Themes, Issues and Ideologies

- The main theme running throughout this short film is desire, a young child's desire for a new toy, such a desire as this would appear uncontrollable especially to a child. He has worked hard and saved up every last penny until finally he has enough money for his bow and arrow yet when he decides to give his money to the homeless man instead, it shows his knowledge and understanding of the difference between want and need; this is an issue explored throughout this film.