CLOSE READING BY ISABELLA AND SHANIA

THE HUNGER GAMES

PLOT OF THE HUNGER GAMES The Hunger Games is set in a dystopian world where the nation of Panem is split into 12 districts. Each year a male and a female from each district are put forward to enter the Hunger Games, a fight to the death, until one person remains. When Katniss's younger sister is put forward for the games, Katniss volunteers. They are then trapped in a arena controlled by the capitol, forced to kill the other tributes or be killed. 24 tributes go into arena and only one can come out. This all changes because of young love.

PLOT OF THE SEQUENCE In this sequence of the film, Effie calls out Prim's name for the games. Katniss Everden (Prim's older sister) volunteers to replace Prim in the games. Effie calls out Peeta Mellark's name for the games after Katniss has volunteered. When Katniss sees Peeta, she remembers somthing that happened between them a long time ago. The sequence ends with them shaking hands on stage.

FLASHBACK EDITING One of the main editing technique used in this sequence is flashback. It shows Peeta being pushed out of his bakery by his mother then looking over at Katniss. This scene may only last for a few seconds but it is effective because is tells the audience that it will be important later in the film, as the flashback is cut off sharply. The rest of the flashback is used later in the film when Katniss has been with Peeta longer. The director's intention of cutting the flashback then placing it in a different spot throughout the film was to show that as Katniss is spending more time with Peeta, more of the memory is coming back. When Katniss first sees Peeta at the reaping, she remembers seeing him before. This is effective also because it shows that Katniss is a big part of Peeta's life as he has always cared about her, whereas Katniss only remembers when she sees him, showing that this was not that important to her. The flashback creates a dark atmosphere as it is raining and cold, shown effectively by the sound and lighting.

FLASHBACK EDITING Mise en Scene is used effectively in this flashback to help the audience understand the background of the two main characters. Peeta's costume is one of a bakery's son, which gives the impression that his background has been better than Katniss's because he does not have to hunt for food. Katniss's body language shows that she is tired from hunting for food and she is ready to give up. Peeta looks distraught because he has authority in this situation, this can be shown through a low angle point of view shot from Katniss. Peeta's distraught and Katniss' tiredness is reflected in the blue lighting as blue symbolises cold, dark and emptiness. Peeta decides to help Katniss, knowing the consequences, because he loves her. The flashback is set outside Peeta's bakery which he where he lives, whereas Katniss is outside under a tree because she is always away from home. Peeta is trapped within his bakery, due to his controlling mother but in contrast Katniss has control over her family. The directors intention of using this setting, lighting and costuming was to show the audience that the two characters came from completely different backgrounds. The audience can gather from this flashback, that Peeta has always loved Katniss.

COSTUMING MISE EN SCENE The costuming in this sequence is important because it shows the audience the differences between the capitol and the districts. District 12 wear their best clothing for the reaping as it is a formal event. Their best clothing is mostly dull clothes and of the same designs. Effie wears very colourful extravagant clothing which is a complete contrast to what the districts wear. From this the audience can understand that the main characters (Peeta and Katniss) have come from a poor background. The costuming creates a believable atmosphere because it fits in with the dirty and old buildings in the background of the sequence. The atmosphere of the sequence is tense because everybody is waiting, however Effie's costume opposes the tense atmosphere because she is wearing bright and happy clothing. Effie is from the capitol, so she has no idea about what each district are faced with causing her to be oblivious. Her costume reflect her poor understanding of the districts and their problems.

COSTUMING MISE EN SCENE The costuming works with camera movement and shots to emphasise the contrast between the capitol and the districts. A tracking shot is used to follow the main characters (Prim and Katniss) to show their dull costuming and how they fit in with the setting (old, not looked after mine town). The setting shows clearly that Effie does not fit in because she is from the capitol therefore wearing ridiculous clothing. Effie's costume and makeup is shown through a series of close and mid shots which make her stand out from the rest of the district. The dull clothing of district 12 combines with the natural lighting and diegetic sound to make the scene more believable to the audience. The costuming of the districts can be related to by the audience because it is realistic whereas Effie's costume is not realistic as it is out of the ordinary and stands out. Costuming combines with the diegetic sound and natural lighting to create a tense atmosphere, but Effie's costume however adds a falseness to the atmosphere because of her extreme costume. The directors intention of using powerful costuming was to show the contrast between the capitol and the districts.

DIEGETIC SOUND SOUND The main sound type used in this is diegetic. Diegetic sounds is used in this scene to make the audience understand what it feels to be in the crowd; making them feel a part of the movie. Diegetic sound creates a believable effect as it makes you feel that you are a part of the district 12 crowd and you are listening to everything happening in the scene. When Katniss volunteers as tribute you are able to hear this very clearly as she is screaming. She is very worried as you can hear from her tone, this helps the audience understand that her life is about to change. The diegetic sounds creates a believable atmosphere. The sound works with the natural lighting to make the scene feel more real. Sound and lighting work together to create the atmosphere by reflecting on one another as the in shot sound works with the type of lighting being used, which is the lighting you would get if you were filming a non production movie. This creates the mood for the scene as the lighting is bright and sunny and there is the sound of gravel being stood on slowly. This makes it seem like it should be a happy scene when in fact it is really sad as two people are getting sent off to fight to the death. Effie sounds posh and cheerful which opposes the effect created by the tense diegetic sound.

IN SHOT SOUND SOUND The sound and camera shots work together to portray Effie. You can hear happiness in her voice when she is speaking to the crowd and a close up is used to show her smiling. Effie makes it seem like the hunger games aren't a big deal, as if it's a fun game. She is from the capitol and therefore the games don't effect her and this is reflected in her behavior. Her cheery tone of voice shows she is excited when Katniss volunteers, showing she is a person who cares more about herself than others. Sound and camera shots work together to get the audience’s attention as the camera follows Prim, Effie, and Katniss with short shots switching between them Diegetic sound is used with the camera shots, which makes the audience connect to the characters because they are actually hearing what is going on. This gets the audience to understand a little bit about the characters such as Katniss when yells out to volunteer, Prim when she screams as she is taken away by Gale and Effie because she is happy about the games being on for another year. It shows how much Prim and Katniss love each other and how Effie enjoys the games. The information communicated in this scene is that the characters love each other and care for one another but also that they are scared. Diegetic sound is used to show emotions.

HANDHELD CAMERA WORK One of the main camera work used in this sequence is handheld. The camera moves around a lot which gives the effect that the viewers are watching the sequence from the crowd member's point of view. It creates this effect because it is handheld rather than on a dolly. Being handheld causes the camera more around a lot more then it more on a dolly making it more believable to the audience that this is really happening. The handheld movement follows the main characters (Peeta, Effie, Katniss, Prim and their mother) with closeup shots to shot body language. The main characters have been effected by the reaping, so they feel scared and nervous. This is shown by the handheld shots which follow them.

HANDHELD CAMERA WORK Other film techniques were used in conjunction with the handheld camera movement to make the sequence more believable. The natural lightning combined with the in shot sounds creates a tense atmosphere. The audience can hear the pauses between the main characters taking and their movements throughout this sequence. The in shot sound also adds to the tense atmosphere because the characters are scared and nervous as they have been effected by the games. In this sequence, many different camera shots are put together to give the audience a better look at the character's reaction to the reaping. Combined with the handheld camera movement, it also creates a tense atmosphere. Mise en Scene works with handheld movement because together it makes the sequence more believable. As the handheld camera moves around the crowd, you can see the costumes. District 12 wear dull clothing, symbolising poorness, where Effie wears brighter clothing showing she is rich. With believable costuming, the scene becomes more real for the audience to connect to.

DIRECTOR'S INTENTION The directors intention of using handheld camera movement was to make the scene more believable, as if the audience is watching from a crowd members point of view. The director's intention of using diegetic sound was also to make the scene more believable because you can hear the characters talking and what they are doing in the scene. The director used the flashback to show the character's different backgrounds and how that influences them later in the film. The sharp ending of the flashback shows that more is to come later in the film, meaning this part of the flashback must be important. The directors intention of using the costuming effectively was to show the contrast between the rich (the capitol) and the poor (the districts). It helps the audience relalise that the games only effect the districts as the capitol are oblivious to it and it's effects.

ATMOSPHERE The flashback in this scene creates a dark and cold atmosphere because of the blue lighting and diegetic sound of rain. The atmosphere is also created by the mood of the main characters (Peeta and Katniss) as they are both distressed. The costuming, handheld camera movement and diegetic sounds all work together to create a tense atmosphere. Diegetic sounds sounds the pauses and tenseness in the character's voices and their actions, this makes the scene more tense. The handheld camera movement makes the scene more believable because it shows what's happening from a crowd members point of view. It adds to the tense atmosphere because it shows the characters being effected. Combined, the film techniques work together to create a believable effect and a tense atmosphere.

THE END BY ISABELLA AND SHANIA