Deconstruction of short film

1. {
Deconstruction of the
short film; I Miss
You
Emily Capon

2. A young male and female meet at a party for the first time (typical first shot/
romance story line) as suggested from the first minute in signifying that these are
the main characters as we have met them from the first shot onwards. The plot of
the film is based upon the journey that these two people have in their relationship
known as the honey moon period, however after 3 minutes in (half way point)
this begins to change . As we have a continuous voice over from the leading male
role he tells their relationship in a story format and the mood of the story
becomes more dark and emotional as he starts to explain why their relationship
came to an end.
Plot/Story Line
The short film I will be deconstructing, is I Miss You. I Miss you was published online
in September 2014 by the short film company Beyond Tomorrow Films.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4F5oD
7G40ng

3. In the first scene we establish the location of
where we first meet the main characters
situated at a party which is inferred by the
loud “dance” music (ambient sound) We
believe this therefore means he is young
due to the attire he is wearing showing he
is youthful as well as smoking ,drinking
and at a party. The camera is positioned at a
medium shot within a pull focus
consequently pulling the character into
focus displaying that he is the main subject
In this shot we see both main characters placed
together initially showing the typical boy meets girl
shot over a youthful situation being sharing alcohol
which is the item that brings the characters together.
As an audience we recognise that the characters share
intimate feelings for each other due to their posture
and their facial expressions. The camera is in a deep
focus giving the connotation that everything in the
shot is as important as each other. Non diegetic sound
occurs as backing music showing the emotional side
to the story. Furthermore having a narrator being the
male character who takes us on his journey
throughout the relationship like he is speaking
towards the leading lady. The audience does not hear
any speech between the characters therefore is reliant
upon the narrator and the characters posture and
expressions.

4. We establish that the characters are situated at a
cinema due to the lighting and the Mise- En-
Scene of the shot, typically showing that the
couple are in a relationship. The characters are the
only objects in shot therefore are believed to be the
most important throughout this scene and
signifies that the characters share an emotional
attachment towards each other and are in there
own world. Although the scene shows happiness
the backing music is emotional and slow which
fits into the theme and pace of the film,
additonally the narrator is expressing his feelings
towards his Girl friend suggesting that they are no
longer together and is pleading for her love once
again. The camera pans down horizontally into a
medium shot.
This shot pans down from a medium shot
to a close up of the main characters hold
hands which connotes that the characters
seek comfort and company. However the
shot is the opposition of what the narrator
is speaking about therefore he is reminisce
on the time they spent together and their
relationship. Everything in shot is in focus
as well as the pop corn which signifies they
are at the cinemas therefore suggesting the
characters liked to go and enjoy leisure
activities together.

5. In both of these shots the characters are
appeared to be in a romantic setting in
which the camera pans from right to
left. This suggests that the narrator is
recalling on his favourite memories
with his girlfriend, such as their first
kiss which is showed below. The
audience feels empathy towards the
male character due to narrating and
expressing his feelings, the backing
music is continuous and non diegetic.
The camera is positioned at a long shot
of the characters sat upon a pier and
smoothly captures their first kiss from
behind the characters which suggests
the male character has respect for the
female character as we are seeing the
memories from his perspective. The
background is a soft focus which
connotes that the situation is emotional
and romantic.

6. The camera pans vertically from the bottom
to top in a deep focus. Showing that the topic
is based around a board game in which both
characters are seen to be competitive and
having a fun due to the facial expressions
and postures. The Mise- en- Scene suggests
that the characters live together as they are
both comfortable in their environment and
around each other. The backing music
continues as well as the narrating in which
the mood starts to become more emotional in
which we reach the halfway point of the film
known as the issue which is then expressed
further into the short film.
Although the sound is synchronous and matches to
the pace of mood of the film the shots are uplifting
and happy again signifying that the main character
is looking back onto their relationship in a
meaningful and emotional way. The characters here
are shown to be enjoying each others company
while the main character is looking towards the
female in a loving and passionate way as he tries to
make her laugh suggesting that he wants her to be
happy. Everything in this shot is in focus which
represents that every object is just as important for
example the sofa represents the comfort between
the characters and the window suggest light
meaning the mood is happy and uplifting.

7. Sunsets are known to be romantic , however
due to the sun setting this suggests that their
relationship is ending also due to the
asynchronous sound from the narrator in
which the uplifting mood of the story and
reminiscing on old memories comes to an end.
This shot is a pull focus upon the sun which
adds the shadow effect across the skyline and
the couple. The dark lighting upon the couple
signifies that the couple were at breaking point
within this shot but still trying to keep their
relationship alive.
At 3.44 minutes in we meet the half
way point in which it all starts to go
down hill, as we see here a black screen
and the stopping of the background
music changes the mood dramatically in
which the audience feels empathy for
the male lead.

8. The happy shots starts disappear and we
start to see the relationship through the
breakup period, here we see the female
character leaving the house and getting in
her car which suggests she is upset with
him as the male character follows her to
her car. This is shown through a
medium/longshot which allows all the key
aspects to be presented especially the gap
between the couple.
The males loneliness has been exhibited
in a loose frame which shows the
unsettled and heart broken mood in
which is also shown through his body
posture as he is sunk into the sofa, this
allows the audience to feel the same as he
is feeling, as he is narrating the story it
suggests that he is reading the audience
his letter like the male character knows
the audience. The music is sad which sets
the mood for the shot.

9. This shot has a pull focus upon his
fingers typing on the key board
which suggests we meet the male
character in the present day after the
breakup, this infers that the story he
has been telling is actually a letter
which he is sending to his Ex
girlfriend whom is the female role.
The non diegetic sound/ backing
music is still continuous in the
emotional and sad genre whereas
the asynchronous/narrator speech
is now caught up to the pace of the
typing on the computer.

10. In these two shots the male character
is hesitant on whether he proceeds into
Sending the letter to his ex girlfriend. As
we see the cursor move towards the ‘send’
the audience is wanting him to send the
letter to her in hope for them to get back
together, however once the cursor moves
towards ‘x’ the audience feels sympathy
and is fact understanding towards the fact
that they have gone their separate ways,
but he is wanting to express his feelings
towards her and show that he will always
be grateful for what they had and he is
supportive.

11. This is the last shot in which pans out
from a medium shot to an extreme
long shot of the male character looking
upset and depressed over the break up
of his girlfriend the narrative speech
has stopped while the non diegetic
sound becomes loud and cuts towards
the titles. The brightness of the
computer suggests that the letter
would be his last hope in enable to get
in contact with his ex girlfriend again
however deciding it was the wrong
decision to make. The dark lighting
compares to the mood of the scene and
adds a dramatic effect to the last shot
we see of the story.