I had already inherited some knowledge of Mise-en-scene, J and L-cuts and other parts of cinematography having studied Film Studies, at the Belfast Met, so It was nice to get a refresher on those things. However, I also learned a lot of new stuff in this module, such as an in depth look at the hero’s journey and the various actors that play a role in it, such as the threshold guardian, the shadow, the shapeshifter, and the trickster.

When I was working with the rest of my group on my presentation, I found watching the short to be quite insightful and taught me well about how the short parodies both nature documentaries and Formula one races, with its usage of various techniques and camera angles throughout.

It was also interesting to point out the different designs of the Gazelle and the Cheetah, how the Cheetah is designed to be more sleek and focused than the googly eyed, awkward looking Gazelle. I also quite funny and subversive in regards to the story beats, such as when it was revealed the Cheetah needed to go to the toilet and beat the Gazelle to it. looking into the lighting and camera aspects of the short was also quite insightful.

Overall, I found the short to be fascinating in its execution, and the way it subverts the viewers expectations with how the cheetah, rather than killing the Gazelle, uses it as a ledge to jump over it to get to the toilet.

I also found the subversion of expectations  quite fascinating, as I researched how subverting expectations can be tricky to pull off and can ruin a work if not done correctly, but there are examples of subverting expectations that have greatly enhanced a work, as discussed in this document.

Notable Characteristics of Subversive Literature With Examples – Penlighten

I looked at some highlights for this years Formula One Race as well as some Nature Documentaries that showed the comparisons more clearly in the short.

Race Highlights | 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix – YouTube

Cheetah chases wildebeest | The Hunt – BBC One – YouTube

In addition, I have come to realise that Formula One and Nature documentaries are similar in their use of camerawork with Bird’s eye views and focuses on points of interest.

My peers and I were able to clearly decide who was going to analyse and do each part of the short, with I choosing to work on the camerawork of the short. We then sent off our parts to the group pleader to put in a final presentation with all our parts combined.

I worked on the cinematography of the short, and found looking at what camera angles and shots are used, whenever or not the camera breaks the 180 degree rule, and the zoom outs and perspective views to be quite insightful, though a little tricky to get the names right.

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