After pairing up with each other, me and Serena started off by brainstorming ideas and contemplating which theme to choose. Deciding on “home,” we put together a mood board of how we want the film to look like and we created a sample storyboard, on which we expanded quite a lot on as we developed the idea into the main figure’s room becoming her mind space. Our discussions helped us come to a consensus on how our film should come along. Following this, we created a shot list laying out our specific ideas and we started filming.
“colours of absence” explores the contrast between what a home looks like to others from the outside as to how it might actually feel like to a person. The idea of a family and home are inherently considered warm and happy; however, that might not be the case for everyone. We took this as our initial idea and intended to depict an image that would reflect how a person might also feel loneliness and discomfort in their home. We aimed for a rather dark lighting which would convey the main figure’s turmoil, as well as replicate an image of “the mind.” Our film also encompasses colour theory – with the use of complementary colours we intended to express her conflicting feelings which contrast with what people see of her from the outside.
For cinematography, we used a mix of stationary and shaky shots with the intention of expressing a contrast between the stable-looking life on the outside and chaotic reality. For instance, the spilled coffee was intentionally shot with hand-held camera to communicate the falling apart of the home, when we used stable shots in the library to express how “normal” her life looks from the outside.
Towards the end, I got the idea to use a blurry shot and film a family together, which I intended to express the “blurry,” assumptive image society has of people from the outside. Following this I had the idea to only use lighting only on the main figure to put a spotlight on her isolation. We also aimed to use some symbolism with the coffee cup we particularly used a single, white/basic coffee cup which is cold (not steaming) to express her loneliness. In the end of the movie, we used a steaming cup to fog the camera lens, which implies that she might be building a new family that radiates warmth: an optimistic ending.
During our editing sessions we focused mainly on transitions, fade-ins and outs, and speed. We intended to utilize editing to express the scenes in which she is in her room like her mind-space, which is muddled, confusing, hallucinating. With low-shutter speed and layering, I think we successfully managed to create this sort of image.
Lastly, for sound design we mainly stuck to the concept of creating a contrast. Hence why we used a bit of silence and ambient sound together. We also tried to mumble the audio for the scene where the family is sat together.
Overall, I am rather proud of our work. I think our use of colour and editing was most successful as they really deliver our main idea. Though, I think we could have added more complexity to sound. We had a few ideas on using the piano to make a score, however our time management hindered us, and we couldn’t do it, which I regret a lot. I think if there were a next time, I would definitely take the time to delve deeper into audio work.
