10 Things
I HATE
About YOU
A Masterclass in Economical Storytelling

The film’s close (and clever) relationship with its soundtrack is signalled
from the start, as the visuals begin in synch with the music. After the
count-in, the sketch of the Seattle skyline begins with the first beat of
the song.
Question: is the music diegetic or non-diegetic?

Opening (Establishing) shot of the Seattle skyline. This shot begins the
economical storytelling - it immediately starts to pan/crane across to
the street scene in which we are introduced to the first of the main
characters. This opening scene/shot is perfectly timed!
Main title font is in a scratch-style, reminiscent of exercise book
scribbling.

Director Gil Junger doesn’t waste a shot in this opening sequence.
Camera cranes across the neighbourhood. Sign in foreground indicates
crossing. Boys in bottom right hand corner are typical students.

We’re still on the same shot as the camera picks up the preppy girls in the VW
Golf convertible. This is when we realise that the soundtrack music is in fact
coming from the girls’ car (diegetic). Notice Kat’s beat-up car appearing in
the background.
Question: what famous (film noir) thriller opens with a long crane shot
featuring a car and pedestrians on a busy street?

Still on the first shot, the camera now begins to pan across to Kat’s car from
whence we hear the appropriate “Bad Reputation” by Joan Jett, which drowns
out the music from the VW. Note that this music is still diegetic (i.e. coming
from within the film - you could also call it production-based sound).

We see Kat in her car, who looks across at the preppy girls with disdain. This is
the end of the opening shot. Kat’s car is invading the space of the VW:
intimidating.
We’ve learned that we’re in Seattle; that we’re probably on our way to school;
that there are different “tribes” who like different music; that Kat is an outsider
whose clunky car shows that she’s from a less well-off family; and that she doesn’t
give a damn about her bad reputation!

Our first cut is back to the preppy girls, who all look away from Kat
simultaneously. This shows their unwillingness to engage with her; also that they’re
intimidated by her. Their expressions show that she has sucked the fun out of
their day.
The cut to this shot further underlines the fact that Kat is “cut off” from society.

A medium close-up on Kat as she stares them down.

Crane shot hoists up and away from the scene as Kat gets away first from
the crossing. Kat’s superiority has been shown in several ways. Her music
drowned out the girls’ music. The girls look away from her when she stares
at them. And she pulls away first. Kat also gets the first close-up of the film.

We cut away to yet another crane shot. This one starting at the feet of the
boys playing hockey (note that they’re also playing at the end of the film,
neatly framing the narrative) and then lifting up to show an establishing shot
of Padua High...

Before Kat has even spoken a line, we learn a lot about her character. Here
she tears the prom poster from the wall, underlining her outsider status, and
her bitter attitude towards all the rituals of high school life.

We’re now introduced to our second major character, Cameron, who is being
inducted into the school. Cameron’s outsider status allows the audience to learn
about the school very quickly, as he’s shown around by Michael in the following
scene. The pattern of character introductions is: Female lead; followed by male
supporting; followed by male lead; followed by female supporting.
A close-up on Ms Perky’s PowerBook shows her working on her steamy
novel. Ms Perky, the guidance counsellor, always has her mind on other things.
The presence of distracted adult characters in High School Comedies is
quite common. It’s both a recurrent theme in the genre and a way into the film
for an older audience.

Ms. Perky stands up to address Cameron, allowing her (and us) to look
down on him. The camera will shortly adopt her approximate position when
looking at Cameron. Note also that the subtle camera movement doubles
her movement around the desk.

Cameron’s reaction shot to Ms Perky’s outrageous (and uncaring)
attitude offers subtle character cues. We’re looking down on him from
approximately Ms Perky’s position. But looking down on him also
indicates his character’s minor status. Note the difference when Patrick
Verona enters the office.
Note also that we’re still in the title sequence - and yet we’re well
along in understanding the story and characters.

Enter Patrick Verona, who happens to be taller than Cameron and can also
look down on him. Note also his intimidating body language, which echoes
the way Kat intimidated the girls in the opening shot.

Cameron has to look away from Verona, just as the preppy girls in the
VW had to look away from Kat.

Verona remains standing in Ms Perky’s office, so she can’t look down on
him. The camera is at his eye level (or just slightly below), indicating his
higher status in the film.

Note that we are still in the title sequence as Michael, the AV geek, introduces
himself to Cameron. This begins another lovely and economical piece of
storytelling, as the director uses long steadicam shots to introduce us to the
school (and other characters).
Question: what shortcuts to character are being used by the costume/prop
departments here?

The steadicam operator walks (backward) ahead of the two boys as
they move down the corridor. The camera operator would probably be
flanked/guided by grips, who hold equipment/cables out of shot.

This first, shorter, steadicam shot ends with the insults thrown by the
“cool kids” at Michael the geek with his new friend. Again, the cut is
used to underline the way in which these characters are “cut off” from
the mainstream.

We now continue with steadicam, this time an exterior shot. The two actors
trace a path followed/tracked by the steadicam in another long, complex shot.
Extras and minor characters move in and out of shot, the actors say their lines
and hit their marks, and the film crew manage to stay out of the way. Again, we’re
learning all about the society of the school in a very short amount of screen time.
10 Things I Hate About You wears its technical brilliance lightly.

Imagine directing this shot, which continues as Michael introduces all
the minor tribes in the school.
Exercise: sketch on a piece of paper the movement of the main actors
and of the camera/sound crew.

The (non-diegetic) soundtrack music changes to a swell of strings as
Bianca enters. We cut to this view of her. Again, the cut emphasises an
idea of social distance (Cameron now yearns and pines for Bianca, who
is beyond his reach).

As we move back to a lengthy and complex steadicam shot, we learn (a)
that Bianca is shallow and preppy and (b) that she is beyond Cameron’s
reach, not least because her father won’t let her date until her sister
does.

The two pairs of actors move in and out of shot as their dialogue takes over.
We’re at the end of our opening sequence. We’ve met 4 main characters,
we know the setting, and we know something about school life/tribes. We’ve
also had the hook of the plot (no dating till your older sister dates), which is
straight out of Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shew.

The boys stop walking and watch Bianca walk away. On the soundtrack,
we hear the bell ring, signalling the end of the intro, and the beginning of
class. This technique is an example of sound from the next scene leaking
into the previous scene as part of the transition.

You could call this a Master Shot, or another kind of Establishing Shot.
A high, wide angle on the classroom, giving us an overview of the layout. The
subsequent shots follow an internal consistency based on what we see now,
so that our sense of this space is not violated.

So this angle on Kat, for example, shows her relationship to the other
students. Camera is on her level, showing Joey’s point of view.

We look up at Mr Morgan, as if we were students in the class.

We look at Joey on the same level that we look at Kat, but
(deliberately) not from her point of view.

When Patrick Verona strolls in, we look up at him (again he doesn’t sit
in this scene), this time from Kat’s point of view. In other words,
Kat is not interested in Joey, but she is interested in Verona. Kat’s
viewpoint is thus a privileged one, not shared by everybody.

Review
• List some of the techniques and conventions used as shortcuts to
character and story in the first five minutes of this film.
• What techniques does the director use to tell the story as
economically as possible? Consider how the following are used:
• Types of camera shot/movement
• Use of music (diegetic and non-diegetic)
• Editing techniques
• Props/Costumes
• What production problems might you encounter if you tried to use
similar techniques?
• Exercise: create an annotated storyboard for this opening sequence.