City of god

What is the importance of mise-en-scene and or sound in creating meaning and generating response in the films that you have studied?

I think that the mise-en-scene is really important in the film City of god. I think that the importance of mise-en-scene is apparent in one of the starting and ending scenes. in this scene it shows the character Lil-dice sat with the tender trio, Goose, Clipper and Shaggy, in this scene lil-dice is sat at the top of a pile of bricks this is an important aspect of the mise-en-scene because these bricks, to me, represent the building blocks to the city of god and because of Lil-dices positioning on these blocks it not only shows his power over the tender trio but also fore shadows what is going to come, that he will have the power over the city of god, also in this scene there is a lot of light and there is a clear sky, this could mean that there is hope for the future. Later in the film after his friend Benny dies, (his best friend and good influence) the mise-en-scene shows him with his back agains a wall made of the initial building blocks that he sat on, this shows meaning to me because it is almost like he is on top of the city ruling over it, but also means that he has completely turned his back on the City, like he doesn't really care about it anymore. The sky and the whole look of the film is an awful lot darker as well, this could mean that there isn't hope anymore and just shows the recurring motif that no matter what you do you can't escape from it.

Another scene that really emphasises the importance of mine-en-scene in this film is, "The story of the apartment." The beginning of this scene shows a very well furnished, well decorated apartment filled with food, owned by a woman,"Dona zelia" selling drugs to support her family at this time it was the early 60s when women had more power, there is a static camera used, i think that this is used to make the deterioration of the apartment more apparent, this montage sequence is the first one that you see in the film and because of its use of cross dissolves, i think that it was used to show the progression of time and shows you how long it takes for the apartment to deteriorate, later in the sequence there becomes less furniture, the wallpaper is replaced with nude posters of woman and instead of a bread knife on the cloth covered table, there is a meat cleaver sticking out of it, to me it just shows how quickly things can escalate in the city of god. Also in this scene you see the slow deterioration of domestication, to me it shows the animalistic nature of the people who live there, you can't domesticate a wild animal and as the take continues you can see the the people taking over get more and more malicious. I think that this scene in a way portrays what happens throughout the whole film, things slowly get worse and worse until it is almost unliveable.

Research catalogue

Dysfunctional families are a common theme in Steven Spielberg's films, does this make him an auteur?

Item 1- 'E.T.'(film)-1982

This is my focus film, for me this defines Steven Spielberg as an auteur. It backs up my idea of how he uses dysfunctional families in his work, a lot of the things that happened in his childhood are reflected in this film. There is a divorced family in e.t. just like in Spielberg's childhood, dysfunctional families are a common theme within Spielberg's films and I think that this theme is very apparent in 'E.T.'

Item 2- 'A.I.' (film)-2001

I picked this because it shows again the use of dysfunctional families, this wasn't originally Spielberg's but you can tell that the film is his, and I think that the narrative shows his presence as an auteur. Throughout the main protagonist is trying to be reunited with his family that is now dysfunctional, this is a recurring theme in a lot of Spielberg's films and that's why I think that this film backs up my theory.

Item 3- 'The Colour Purple', (film)-1985

This film is really helpful because it not only repeats the theme and backs up my theory, the story is of a woman who has to live in a dysfunctional family and how she overcomes this. It was Spielberg's first serious film which I think helped to define him as an auteur because he then later went on to make such films as Schindler's list.

Item 4- Spielberg A Retrospective, Richard Schicknel (book)

I found the information in this book to be really useful it explains a lot about his life and the relation between his personal life and his films which really helps me to make connections and backs up the theory that Spielberg is an auteur, I found that the most useful was page 1 and the chapter The Colour Purple. I will be using quotes from this in my presentation script.

Item 5- Pocket Essentials Steven Spielberg, James Clarke(book)

I found that the most helpful part of the book was the chapter 'To Fly', starting from page 40 to page 43. it was helpful because the information in this chapter backed up my ideas of Spielberg being an auteur, it has lots of information about his film e.t. which in my opinion is the most useful film for backing up my argument of him being an auteur, because of its representation of dysfunctional families. I didn't find the rest of this book that helpful but I will use quotes from other sections of this book in my presentation script.

Item 6- Steven and Stanley. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qW5RJz6YvpI (interview)

In this interview there are a lot of helpful quotations that will be useful for me to use with in my presentation script, it also discusses how Spielberg made A.I. his own even though it was originally Stanley Kubrick's, this backs up my argument that Spielberg is an auteur.

Item 7- A Cinema Of Loneliness by Robert Kolker, (book)

I found this book helpful, in the book it shows analysed photographs of scenes from my focus films. This is helpful because it shows how he uses different shots to express family problems, and this relates to my question by telling me that he does use dysfunctional families.

Item 8- http://www.theyshootpictures.com/spielbergsteven.htm (article)

I found this article relatively helpful, some of the content in this article backs up my question and helps me to argue my point. I found one particular quote that states that Spielberg does use dysfunctional families with in a lot of his films, this quote will be used in my presentation script.

Item 9- Steven Spielberg on his 29 films, from Duel to bridge if spies- telegraph- (picture gallery.)

Although this doesn't necessarily help me answer my proposal a lot of the quotes that are found on this slide show will be helpful for my presentation script, because I can use the pictures from the slide on the projector.

Item 10-A. I and Spielberg 1- (article)

I think that this can be helpful because there are points in here that argue for and against reasons why Spielberg made his films the way that he did. This is useful to me because I can use some of the ideas from this article to back up my point of view.

Item 11- http://sensesofcinema.com/2006/great-directors/spielberg/ (article)

This is incredibly useful; the article discusses what makes Spielberg an auteur. A section in this article is from the perspective of John Baxter who is one of Spielberg's biographers. He has a huge insight as to why Spielberg makes films the way that he does. I think that it will be really helpful to use quotes from him in my presentation script.

Item 12- http://time.com/3544502/spielberg-movies/ (documentary/ article)

The first paragraph of this article is really good, it completely backs up my ideas that he uses dysfunctional families in his films and that this makes him an auteur. This article explains lots of different ways that Spielberg is an auteur but this specific paragraph is really useful to me as I will and can use it in my presentation script to prove my opinion.

Item 13- Spielberg- 'The Culture Show' BBC2 (documentary) 2006

The documentary discusses lots of different films that Spielberg has made, although it does talk about my films completely. Spielberg mentions details about my focus films and also other films he has made that have a similar theme to the ones I have chosen to discuss. Spielberg also discusses how he represents family in his work. This will be really useful when I come to write my presentation script as it has really good quotes relevant to my question. Spielberg also relates my focus film to his real life, this is really helpful because it proves my argument.

Item 14- 'Teach Yourself Film Studies' by Warren Buckland (2010)

This book discusses what makes a director an auteur, it is extremely helpful to me as it goes into detail about what makes someone an auteur. It has information that I can use to back up my argument and it also has lots of useful quotes that I will use in my presentation script.

Item 15 - Rejected items.

'Schindler's List'- I was going to use this film as an example however I thought that The Colour Purple was a little more appropriate as it was his first serious film and I think that it was more useful to answer my question than Schindler's List.

The Passions and Techniques of Spielberg. (an analysis by Steven Benedict)- I did find this useful but I don't think that it helps answer my question and therefore I rejected it. The analysis does talk about what Spielberg did production wise but didn't go into much detail to why he did something, it didn't discuss the relation of his films to his own life.

Steven Spielberg by Paul Bullock (article the director’s chair)- I think that this was helpful, it explains why he might make the films the way he does and it does ink to his childhood however I don't think that this helps answer my question of whether his use of dysfunctional families makes him an auteur.

Steven Spielberg's techniques and themes by Steven Benedict- Although I found this you tube video helpful because it did back up my idea that Seven Spielberg is an auteur, it showed it in a way that wouldn't be helpful in answering my question. It highlighted how his religious and spiritual themes made him an auteur were as I think that dysfunctional families do have a big part in it also.

A2 presentation script: Spielberg

Dysfunctional families are a common theme in Stephen Spielberg’s films, does this make him an auteur?

projector: Images of Steven Spielberg (item 9), and question shown underneath.

speaker: An auteur is a film director who influences their films so much that they rank as their author. "Directors who show a consistency in style and theme are called auteur's." (item 14) In my personal opinion I think that Spielberg’s experiences throughout his life really affect the way in which he directs his films, I think that he put a lot of what happened in his personal family life into his work, this is what I found out...

speaker: The first film that I thought really emphasised a dysfunctional family was E.T. In this film there shows a family without a dad and it seems that E.T. comes along as a father figure for Elliot, " E.T. becomes a surrogate father and friend to Elliot whose father in the story has divorced his mother." This quote backs up my idea a lot,"(item 5) when he was young his parents divorced he still included the divorce in his film E.T. which makes me think more that he is an auteur. (item 1) "Steven Spielberg’s films tend to convey a certain “heaviness” with regard to adult life but joy and belief with regard to the children. He is at his most effective in his films that focus on childhood, such as E.T. (item 8) because I know that this kind of thing happened when he was a child it makes me think that because he put his own life experiences into his films that he is an auteur.

projector: Phone home scene (item 1)

speaker: In this scene you can see E.T. learning to talk English and asking to phone home, this scene makes me think that E.T really wants to be with his family, this also makes me think of when Spielberg was younger, “the films drama is driven largely by the main characters faith and desire to return home.” This is significant to me because when Steven Spielberg was young he moved around a lot with his dad’s job, and perhaps when he was young all he wanted to do was return home after moving to so many different places. However, it also says that E.T. was a substitute to a dad or a friend, this could be Spielberg’s way of saying that Elliot wanted his dad to come home, because of this it really makes you think that Spielberg is putting his own life into this film, which I think makes him an auteur. (item 5) This scene to me really portrays the connection between Spielberg's life and Elliot's life the film, making me think that he is an auteur.

projector: Elliot cuts his finger scene. (item 1)

speaker: In this scene you can see Elliot cutting his finger and e.t healing it, but what stand out the most for me in the scene is that Elliot's mom is Reading Peter Pan in the background. For me this is important because the story of Peter Pan is about a lost boy from a different world who take on the role of a father to the lost boys, I think that this is significant because I can’t see the same thing with E.T. and Elliot. This relates to my opinion that Spielberg is an auteur because he was away from home when he was a child, much like E.T. or Elliot. (item 1) “For me e.t was both the quintessential story of my childhood and at the same time the end of my childhood, it gave me the courage, based on its success, to start more adult subjects. E.T. gave me a free pass to fail." this quote really makes me believe that he is an auteur, because he actually states that he put his own life into this film. E.T. was a great experience for me because I wanted to be a dad after making it. I wasn’t a father and I kind of became a father to those three kids." this quote really does suggest that he put his life into this film and made it completely his own, I think that he got so connected to his own story that it changed him and I really believe that this backs up my opinion. (item 4)

projector: E.T. Leaving Earth scene. (item 1)

speaker: In this scene E. T’s family come back to take him home, which to me is a really important scene in the film as you can really see the connection between the life of Spielberg and the characters, what I mean by this is that in the film all E.T wanted to do was go home and be with his family, just like Spielberg when he was living with his father. All he wanted to do was go home and be with his family, (item 4) because of the way that Spielberg has put himself into this film, it really shows that he is an auteur.

Another film that shows Spielberg's use of dysfunctional family's is A.I. (Artificial intelligence) Having researched this film I have found that the original idea for A.I. was by Stanley Kubrick. Before he passed away he had been talking to Spielberg about the ideas that he had for the film and he had asked him to direct it. When Kubrick passed away, he did, I think that this is one of his more personal films, the whole theme of being loved and the feeling of belonging, when he started to produce the film he didn’t change any of the story but really put himself into it. (item 6)

projector: Imprinting on David scene (item 2)

speaker: I think that this scene is significant because it really shows a dysfunctional family, almost at its worst, the family is replacing their dying son with a robot and this scene where David imprints on the mother sets that in stone. Although Spielberg didn't include his own life experiences into this scene I do however think that it really emphasises how dysfunctional this family, which makes me think that my opinion of him being an auteur is correct because of his frequent repetition of style, by this I mean his continuous use of dysfunctional families. (item 2)

projector: Abandoning David scene (item 2)

speaker: This scene however differs from the previous one that I showed, in this scene David is being abandoned by his Mother rather than being destroyed. This scene makes me think of Spielberg's life. When Spielberg left with his father he felt abandoned by his mother, (item 6) this shows to me that my idea is correct. Spielberg put himself into this film with his use of dysfunctional families, I think that this shows he is an auteur. “I basically learnt to put more of my own experiences into my films for my characters in my pictures, I’m encouraged". this is quote of him admitting that he puts himself into his films which really backs up my theory and almost proves it. In A.I. his whole plan changed because not only did he have to use his own style of directing, in the sense that he wanted to put some of his own experiences into the film, he also felt that he had to use Stanley Kubrick’s style. For example using Stanley’s favourite lens in most of his shots when he was directing the film. Even thought when you watch it you can see a lot a Kubrick’s style you can tell that it’s a Spielberg film and I think that his ability to do that truly shows that he is an auteur. (item 6)

projector: Teddy and David trapped under the Ferris wheel scene (item 2)

In this scene it shows Teddy and David trapped and then saved by aliens. The ending of A.I. for Kubrick was that David and teddy were trapped under the Ferris wheel in the sea, he wanted them to be trapped until their batteries ran out and then the credits would role. However, this did not happen, there is a lot of controversy about the ending because Spielberg put his own idea and twist into the film and added aliens to the end. Because of this fact I can’t help but think that he wanted to put more of himself into the film rather than making it a Kubrick film. (item 10) This makes him an auteur because even though it wasn’t entirely his film he still wanted to put himself into it. (item 6) In the end David got to spend one more day with his mother, the dream to be part of a functional family and to be loved came true, this to me relates to Spielberg's life making me think that he is an auteur.

Another example of a Spielberg film that includes dysfunctional families is The Colour Purple, (item 3)

projector: Celie and Nattie are split scene (item 3)

speaker: For me this is one of the most powerful scenes for showing dysfunction in families. Although this only relates to Spielberg slightly as he wasn't forced from his family, it does show a really, truly dysfunctional family at an extreme. I have used this film as one of my examples because this is the first serious film that Spielberg made. (item 4) By serious I mean the story is really hard hitting and emotional. This film to me really shows that he is an auteur because it doesn't matter what the genre of the film is, it still shows the same consistency in theme. (item 3) (item 14)

projector: "I don’t think that I could have made Schindler's List or empire of the sun without the colour purple, that would have been impossible I didn’t have the maturity, the craft and the emotional information. “(quote) (item 4)

speaker: This quote to me, (although I don’t think there is any relation between the film and Steven Spielberg’s childhood other than dysfunctional families) makes me think that Steven Spielberg is an auteur. Because of the severity of the plot of The Colour Purple I think that this film helped him to be an auteur because of the amazing films that he was mature enough to make after the production of The Colour Purple. (item 4) I think the fact that this film is almost entirely based on really dysfunctional family’s really helps me to answer my question. This film was one a Spielberg’s most emotional pictures, and I believe that he would have really had to think about his own family life and what was bad about it and then think about how much worse it could have been. I think that’s why Spielberg was the author to this film, he used it to mature himself, he made this film apart of himself which in my opinion makes him an auteur.

projector: Celie is reunited with her children scene (item 3)

speaker: This scene reminds me a lot of my focus scene because it has the same kind of ending. that ending being that E.T. goes home and is reunited with his family. This is just like the ending of The Colour Purple, this makes me think that Spielberg is an auteur because of the similarities in style and in themes. (item 14) It is so alike his other films even though has a completely different story and I think that his use of dysfunctional families in these films makes him an auteur.

projector: photographs from the book "cinema of loneliness". (item 7)

projector: photographs from Duel to bridge if spies- telegraph (item 9)

conclusion: " Hardly a single one of my films isn’t based on something that happened in my childhood."(item 4) This proves my argument, Spielberg himself has said that he uses his own experiences as a child in his film. I think that proves that he is an auteur. Going back to my original question, Dysfunctional families are a common theme in Stephen Spielberg’s films, does this make him an auteur? Yes, I believe it does, he puts parts of himself into all of his films and makes them his own, because of his consistency in style and theme, (item 14) I think that this makes him an auteur.

Molly Ryan