The document provides an analysis of three short films: 'Other Side of the Box,' 'Kalley's Last Review,' and 'Crook$,' focusing on their unique storytelling techniques and cinematography. 'Other Side of the Box' uses suspense and dramatic irony through camera angles to enhance horror, while 'Kalley's Last Review' contrasts calm presentation with disturbing visuals to create unease. In 'Crook$,' humor emerges from character interactions and juxtaposed moods, showcasing effective comedy techniques, and the author reflects on how these insights will inform their own filmmaking endeavors.

1. Short film
analysis

2. -other side of the box
-Caleb J Phillips
Caleb J Phillips short film ‘other side of the box’ is a horror which tells the story of a
mysterious box gifted to a man named ben by his strange brother-in-law Shawn.
The box at first seemingly contains nothing but after Shawn leaves in a rush, it is
revealed that the box has a large void in it which is home to a creepy human-like
entity that can only move if nobody is looking at it however unbeknownst to Ben
and the audience, it is only him who can stop the entity from moving which is a big
plot twist when it was revealed because it is know that bens wife Rachel has been
left alone to watch the box while ben tries to track down Shawn. Ben rushes back
home to find Rachel is not in the house however the box is missing and there is a
sound coming from the basement. He slowly creeps downstairs to find out the
entity has escaped the box and there is even more of them creeping down the
stairs which means he is trapped. The film ends with hm looking away and the
entity turning if the light and ending on a cliff hanger.

3. -Shots and angles-
Here they have used a shallow focus shot to reveal the blurred image of the mysterious
entity to add a level dramatic irony to the scene in the fact that the audience knows that
the entity is there, but Ben does not so this shot which in turn creates a level of suspense
for the scene
Here they have used a close-up blurry shot to instil a sense of panic and being overwhelmed, as the blurriness of
the shot and the closeness of the silhouettes make it hard for you to process all the information on the screen
with how fast the shot appears on screen. This is an effective way that the director has used to build suspense
and fear in the audience and character. What he has played of here is the use of people's natural fear of the
unknown.
This shot is particularly impactful as it is just a still shot of the man in the box with nothing else, the angle, lighting and overall
creepiness of this still shot is used to instil a sense of unease and dread in the audience. Even this shot is only on screen for a
few seconds, the constant flicking back between this shot and the shot of ben and his wife contrasts the stillness of this shot
with ben and his wife’s fearful and panicking voices. This contrast further emphasises the unnaturalness of the man in the box. I
believe this shot is uses very well and does a good job of presenting the entity as terrifying without having it move or even be
fully seen. In fact, it may be the partial submersion of the entity which further plays of people's natural fear of the unknown,
making them fill in the blanks of what is there in the box.

4. -Kalley's last review
- ALTER
Kalley’s last review is a short horror film that is shot like a beauty product review
vlog, it is filmed in a way which could lead the audience into believing its real
which could add an extra effective layer of horror if you didn’t know that it was a
short film. This short, directed by a well know film company called ‘ALTER’ who
make videos for YouTube as well as other platforms. It tells the story of a woman
named Kalley who receives a chemical face mask from a beauty company
named SOUS so she can review it but when she applies the mask, it eventually
burns away her skin and throughout the video we see her skin slowly get more
and more red until her skin starts peeling off. But at the end of the video, it is
revealed that there was never a company named SOUS and kalley had
purchased a DIY packaging making kit as well as a type of acid that will burn your
skin. So, it is left as a major reveal that kalley had done this to herself weather it
was intentional or not.

5. -What makes it unsettling?-
The misse-en-scene of this short film makes it disturbing, but it's also boosted in freakiness by the
calm way it is filmed, throughout the whole video Kalley remains calm and seemingly professional
even though her skin was slowly peeling away. This calm and collected way of presenting the video
makes it seem unnatural, as that isn’t the typical response you would expect from someone who's
skin was having that reaction, which leads the viewer to question whether she was expecting this to
happen to her or if she is just trying to remain calm, so the video doesn’t get ruined and either way it
presents an unsettling video for the viewers to watch. The video is filmed in a vlog-style YouTube
video to make it seem like any other Make-up review that you would find on YouTube, this means that
in terms of ‘technical skill’ or camera work, there isn’t much to talk about as it is just a single head on
shot of her face throughout most of the video; however, towards the end of the video, Kalley is
showing the effects of the skincare product while doing her regular daily activities, these clips are
filmed as if she is just walking around and filming them on her phone which further ads to the illusion
that this is just a regular beauty Youtuber and not a horror short film. Other than those two examples,
I don’t think there is any more to mention in terms of technical skill. Overall, I think ALTER have
created a great horror short and have excelled in making an unsettling visual image for the viewers to
see.

6. -Crook$
-Locustgarden
This comedy short was made by the YouTube channel Locustgarden who is a LA
based filmmaker who specialises in short horror films but in this instance has
made a comedy. This short tells the story of two criminals preparing to and then
robbing a convenience store in the hopes to make some money. When they
enter the store, they held, who they presumed to be, the store cashier at
gunpoint and told him to empty the register of all the money. However, the find
out that the man at the counter is another robber who had already taken all the
money and presumably killed the real clerk. They leave the store in fear but later
return to try and steal the money off him. They then get him drunk on the store's
beer before knocking him out and taking the money for one of the girl's sick dog
named ‘Heisenberg’.

7. The creators used many different camera angles and film techniques
to create a compelling and visually sound short film. Firstly, in the
opening conversation they use a ‘Medium two shot’ which is the typical
shot used when showing a conversation, this shot clearly shows the
conversation and makes it clear who is talking and what the dynamic
between the characters is. This two shot is occasionally interrupted by
a ‘single close up’ showing just one characters face, this is to put
emphasis on something about the character, weather that be an
emotion or something important that they are saying. The final shot I
would like to mention is the mask reveal, were our two main
characters run out of the shop after robbing the fake cashier. In this
scene, it is revealed that the man at the counter was another robber all
along, which is excellently shown by the extended shot as he reveals
his secret identity by pulling down his mask after the two girls leave.
This show does well at being a subtle yet impactful reveal for the
audience. Overall, I think the creators did a good job of using a wide
variety of angles and camera techniques to properly convey emotion
and cinematic moments.
- How did they shoot it? -

8. -How did they make it funny?-
Here the floss pick is used as a comedic distraction and interruption to an otherwise serious scene. It's used when
the first woman is contemplating whether she should go through with the robbery, when her friend asks if she
wants to use the floss before they do it. If you are watching the video, the comment is something you would
initially brush but it later comes back when the first friend says ‘I don’t know if I can do this’ obviously referring to
the plot to rob the store, but her friend buts in saying ‘it's not that hard’ referring to the floss, here a subversion of
expectation is used to add a layer of comedy because it completely changes the mood of the conversation by
making it seem like a misunderstanding between the pair.
This scene is made funny by the juxtaposition between moods in the two shots, at
first you see the three criminals having a good time and enjoying themselves then it
switches to the shot of the store worker tied up in the corner. This creates a comedic
moment because the fact the criminals are just casually enjoying themselves makes
the other shot seem less serious and scary, whereas if they were being serious and
confrontational rather than laughing and having fun, the scene would be intimidating
rather than comedic.

9. -Evaluation-
Throughout my research process I have looked at three short films, two
horror and the last one more comedic, in my analysis and research I have
learned what goes into a good short film. This knowledge will help me make
a good short film if that is what I eventually make, if instead I choose to
make a documentary, this research will still help me in deciding how to get
more cinematic shots for it or how to make scenes more serious or more
comedic if needed. However, if I do decide to make a short film then this
research will greatly aid me in my planning for it as I have learned many
useful cinematography skills and how to build tension and create comedy in
otherwise serious moments. In summary I think this research will be helpful
whether I decide to make a short film or a documentary.