Film Spotting 1

--------------Film Driven<p>

1. Icon: Lion's roar or NBC motto<p>

2. Under the credits<p>

3. Theme: an overarching theme<p>

4. Song: An actual song (with lyrics) or musical quote<p>

5. Transition: during travel and fades, etc.<p>

-

--------------Plot Driven<p>

6. Mood: providing the general mood<p>

7. Foreshadow: Portends a mood to come next<p>

8. Accompaniment: Matching the action roughly<p>

9. Mickey Mousing: Matching action exactly<p>

10. Onomatopoeia: sounds like what it is (Foley?)<p>

--------------Character Driven<p>

11. Music connects with activities<p>

12. Leitmotiv: Music connects with characters<p><br>

Other questions to consider:<p>

Music under/over dialog?<p>

Important moments of silence?<p>

Role of other types of sound?<p>

Particular point of arrival?<p>

Music of a consistent style?<p>

Balance of music to film as a whole?<p>

Music have its own life or belong to the film?<p>

Here is a sample of what I will want in each spot in your analysis papers this first time (due at the mid-term) in two formats: (1) the subjects I want included, and (2) an example in real terms.

Music: (a) dynamics - loud or soft;

(b) orchestration - what type of instruments are playing - woodwind, brass (both "wind" instrument types if that's all you can determine), string, percussion, guitars, drums, voices, etc.,

(c) rhythm - fast/slow, simple/complex, etc.

(d) pitch - major/minor, scales/leaps, melody/harmony/both. Etc.

Relationship of Music to Film:

any aspect of the film with which the music seems to associate as in

(a) one shot to the next - cuts, dissolves, wipes, establishing shots, voice over, etc.

(b) direct association - stingers, Mickey Mouses, etc.

(c) any relationships between characters (themes) or plot, as in foreshadowing,

(d) relationship between diegetic music and the regular score,

(e) see questions at bottom of analysis sheet for more on this category;

Other roles of music in film?

(a) see previous analysis slidefor types of usage;

(b) role of preceding lack of music;

(c) relationships between a spot in one section of the film and another earlier on (*very* important!!!);

(d) diegetic music.

Actual Example of single spot:

18:56-20:22 - (6 7 9) music begins loud (full orchestra jarring us awake after no music for 5 minutes), very fast dance rhythm, melody with harmony accompanying the moving train establishing shot; music changes at 19:04 to soft, strings only, slow rhythm, harmony as shot dissolves to dining car interior; music changes again at 19:24 to fast, brass, "growling" foreshadowing of danger as the villain enters the dining car and then ends with a stinger as our hero sees the villain for the first time: closeup of eyes only; at 19:39 the score fades as diegetic rock music appears briefly (5") from a radio on screen; this dissolves to the music in last part of scene which resembles that at the beginning of film under credits!

Full spotting example

XXX is a film created in CCCC, directed by YYYY and composed by ZZZZ. The music in the film is plot driven and contains some reoccurring themes.

1. Introduction 00:00:00-0:01:05 Chimes, dark theme. Meter: 2

2. 00:01:05-00:00:57 Firemen sliding down to fire truck. Music is fast paced with 2 meter, like marching. Tempo speeds up with the speed of the truck. Horns and chimes.

3. 00:03:38-00:06:13 Music begins when they men turn on a light (stinger). Horns, dramatic and suspenseful, chimes, dark. 3 meter which evolves into 2 meter building up to AAAA burning pile of books.

4. 00:06:13-00:07:45 Music is somewhat drowned out by the sound of the fire but then speeds up to intense 2 meter with percussion. Then fades back to slow tempo 2 meter with chimes while he finishes burning the pile of books.

5. 00:07:45-00:13:30 chimes 3 meter, then strings begin when scene cuts from a moving railway car to a close up of a woman sitting in the rail car, she and AAAA begin to start a conversation.

6. 00:16:22-00:19:48 2 meter with chimes, much like the sound of a clock (tick-tock).

7. 00:19:48-00:20:16 slow/sad (minor) piano

8. 00:20:16-00:24:09 scene cuts to firemen on truck with same theme as beginning. 2 meter, intense, tempo speeds up with the speed of the truck.

9. 00:24:09-00:25:53 slow, eerie while AAAA goes to captain’s office. Sad/minor then evolves into faster 2 meter as he watches an argument with the captain and one of his piers. Music stops when door closes.

10. 00:27:36-00:27:46 2 and 4 meter with strings, as the captain shows AAAA his own identification photos.

11. 00:28:02-00:28:25 AAAA finds BBBB (wife) on the floor when he arrives at home. Slow, 2 meter, minor, full orchestra.

12. 00:29:45-00:30:10

2 meter chimes/full. AAAA searches for the pills his wife has taken. Music becomes deeper and more intense as they tell him that the doctors are on their way.

13. 00:30:42-00:31:36 very slow, sad(minor), 2 meter as AAAA waits for his wife to be saved. Chimes/full.

14. 00:31:49-00:31:54 chimes with different notes, 4 meter, fast and major.

15. 00:33:10-00:34:58 2 meter full with a slow tempo. Then changes to happy or major while AAAA and his wife start to kiss. Then changes to chimes as scene cuts to AAAA in the railway car.

16. 00:35:28-00:36:18 full, 2/possibly 4 meter, medium. Then fades back to chimes.

17. 00:36:57-00:38:21 slow/sad(minor) strings with 2 and 4 meter, dark theme as AAAA reads.

18. 00:38:21-00:38:38 Music changes to fast paced/suspenseful and dark as AAAA walks to the fire station.

19. 00:39:48-00:40:50 suspenseful theme returns as AAAA goes down to the basement of the fire station. 2 meter, same theme used for the speeding truck.

20. 00:41:51-00:43:13 eerie and slow(minor, full with 2 meter. Then speeds up as the firemen break open the collection of books.

21. 00:47:29-00:48:49 2 meter, very fast tempo with chimes and strings as the fire men begin to spray books with lighter fluid and try to get the woman to leave her house.

22. 00:49:37-00:50:35 music begins when the match hits the books and flames appear. 2 meter with chimes/brass/strings. Suspenseful theme dark, medium and minor as the fire burns.

23. 00:51:48-00:52:53 soft strings, slow with 2 meter as AAAA hides the book that he took from the woman’s house. The music gradually becomes lower.

24. 00:54:50-00:56:20 slow/minor/strings. As AAAA begins to read a novel aloud to BBBB and her friends.

25. 00:57:24-00:59:08 horns, 2 meter, chimes. AAAA has a haunting dream, tempos speeds up as he pictures the woman he met on the railway as the woman in the fire.

26. 1:00:28-1:00:44 soft piano keys begin to play as the woman escapes from her house to avoid the firemen. Chimes/eerie and suspenseful theme.

27. 1:02:12-1:02:50

full, 4 meter. Slow/sad(minor) theme as AAAA approaches the home of the

woman he met on the railway. 28. 1:03:18-1:03:31

2 meter with chimes as AAAA looks at the television antennas on top of the

house. 29. 1:04:11-1:05:11

music starts as AAAA goes into fire station. Full/slow and dark. 3 meter as he breaks into the office of his chief, the music gradually becomes deeper and more intense.

30. 1:05:53-1:06:40 3 meter, suspenseful with chimes, strings and horns as AAAA’s chief returns to his offices to find AAAA stealing files.

31. 1:07:51-1:08:47 Stinger, music begins as AAAA falls to the ground. Soft chimes, dark and slow with a 2 meter.

32. 1:08:47-1:09:35 cut to AAAA’s wife (BBBB) music lightens with a 2 meter, then darkens again as she drops something into the box at the fire station.

33. 1:09:35-1:11:47 music speeds up when scene cuts to the railway. 2 meter with horns and strings as AAAA finds the woman again on the railway.

34. 1:15:27-1:16:00 AAAA and the woman part ways. 2 meter, full and dark. Slows down as scene cuts to BBBB packing her things.

35. 1:16:47-1:17:57 fire truck leaves the station. Reoccurring theme 2 meter, speed of tempo increases with speed of the truck.

36. 1:18:10-1:18:20 slow/sad (minor). AAAA runs in to BBBB leaving their home.

37. 1:20:25-1:21:26 AAAA is forced to burn his collection of books. Chimes/horns/strings. 2 meter sad and dark (minor).

38. 1:21:51-1:22:46 Chief draws a gun on AAAA (stinger). Chimes, horns and strings as AAAA lights the house on fire with the chief in it.

39. 1:23:54-1:24:34 AAAA begins to run away from his town, 2 meter fast and major. Horns and strings then fade to a high-pitched sound as he hides in a boat.

40. 1:25:13-1:26:49 2 meter, dark with chimes. Music becomes slower and note become more drawn out as AAAA follows the railway and comes across the book people.

41. 1:30:53-1:32:42 strings/happy (major). 4 meter as scene cuts to the woman he met on the railway and the man explains how the book people live.

42. 1:34:31-1:34:58

soft chimes, as the snow falls on the home of the book people. Major with 2

meter. 43. 1:35:14-end

minor, 2 meter with strings. Music becomes louder as the film ends and the book people recite their books.