The document summarizes key elements of the mise-en-scène in the film 'Promise'. It describes the settings of the home, school and prom used to portray meanings. It then characterizes the main characters Ellie, Sam and Dave and how they represent illness, youth and reality. Props like Ellie's dress, medical equipment and technology are discussed. Finally, it covers the use of lighting and color manipulation to emphasize different tones throughout the story.

1.  Setting
 Characterisatio
n
 Props
 Lighting and
colour
MISE EN SCENE IN
‘PROMISE’

2. The Home
In film, the home setting is used as a place of sanctuary and serenity. By this, I
most films depict a home set as safety from the outside or contrastingly danger
from what's inside ( generally used in horror/supernatural movies. As my film
focuses on romance and drama the home setting portrays a feel of safety and
shelter from the outside and is an extended metaphor for Ellie’s vulnerable
state.
The School
A portrayal of a school set is often used to depict again contrasting ideas about
youth and what it entails to be young at the period of time the product is based
on. Films like ‘17 Again’ and ‘Mean Girls’ give the connotation of teenage life
being a struggle for power and the real focus on the importance of image as a
teenager. Therefore, by using this setting as part of our film we incorporate the
age of our protagonists and are able to identify the importance of public image
in a teenagers world.
The Prom
The prom is key event, often linked with teenage fiction movies as they signify
the coming of age and often exist in the conclusion of these films. By including
the prom we are highlighting Ellie’s seclusion from her teenage life and how her
illness has affected her. We aimed to keep the décor subtle as this would allow
more focus to be on Ellie and Jacob, therefore keeping the idea of prom being
about Ellie’s last dance.
SETTINGS

3. Ellie
Even in our initial thoughts stage we knew we wanted our protagonist to be
female as we felt this would make the film more emotional. The use of a
sensitive and vulnerable female character who is empowered by the
affection of a male is conventional of filmic narratives, however we wanted
to continuously display Ellie as strong, charismatic and fierce to challenge
the characteristics of female characters.
Sam
Sam becomes Ellie’s symbol of hope that she could again be a normal
teenager. Although we as the audience know this will unlikely be the case,
Sam is a persistent theme of youth and innocence and how when the young
are faced with the toughest of circumstances they cannot face it in an adult
manner.
Dave
Dave, Ellie’s father, acts as an image or realism in the story. Despite the love
story between Ellie and Sam Dave consistently tries to bring Ellie back down
to the facts of her state. Therefore, he can be seen as a dislikeable character
in the beginning. It is towards the end of the film that we see a shift in
Dave’s approach to Ellie’s care and we adjust to sympathise with her
concerned and lonely character.
CHARACTERISATION

4. The dress
The prom dress is a key signifier in displaying Ellie's youth. By having the dress in Ellie's
bedroom and in the lounge when her and Sam are conversing, it would represent the way
Ellie is holding on to her teenage years as much as she possibly can. She desires to be a
normal teenager and to be able to be excited for the prom but she knows it is impossible
with her condition.
Medical equipment
The use of medical equipment simply helps create the mise en scene of illness. By
showing a nurse putting together a vaccination and using filming technique to make it
appear like Ellie has had an injection will add realism to our narrative, thus making it
easier for our audience to connect with the plot. If the audience saw no signs of illness
other than the words the actors spoke it would be very difficult to engage them in a
believable storyline , so by adding these props it helps create that aspect of realism.
Technology
The use of an Apple MacBook is conventional in teen films as seen in The Fault in Our
Stars, and as this was cinematography we were aiming to follow this cinematography. We
also use mobile phones to connect the actors on one occasion. Ellie is holding the phone
and the audience can hear the typing sounds, but the text appears in bubbles down her
right hand side that have previously been edited in photoshop. This makes it easier to
show the conversation between the pair rather than having to designate a different shot
to zooming in on the messages. This method is quicker, more informative and more
importantly looks realistic as there isn't a pause in time for the audience to read the
messages.
PROPS

5. Lighting
Our lighting was already limited due to most of the film being filmed in a
house. We tried to avoid using natural lighting of lighting already fixed in
the room as these often gave quite a white or yellow tone to the film. Also
in scenes that were far too dark there was often not enough of the two to
light up the scene. We stuck to using artificial lighting or if the shot was
meant to be during the day a small amount of natural lighting as this gave it
a more real look.
Colour
Using the colour correction tools on Edius 7 and sometimes the camera
settings we were able to manipulate the colour settings to really emphasise
brightness and darkness throughout the story. The opening sequence used
quite bright colours as we are able to depict a content equilibrium. Thus,
towards the centre of the narrative we are able to depict a disequilibrium
with dark coloured costumes and less lighting. In the final scene, there is
emphasis on colours like red to show the final feeling of passion. Also with
the final shot of a burning fire, it signifies the spark of a new relationship/
bond.
LIGHTING AND COLOUR