By Yu-Chun (Tiffany) Kuo
What is the best way to spend your weekend? Walking your dog? Playing pickleball with friends? Curling up at home with a good film. Or maybe consider to create your own video? Videos have been greatly dominated our lives in today’s digital era and people nowadays often prefer watching videos over reading long text. But have you ever wondered what makes a film truly great? How does one scene move us to tears. What is the way to make people “feel”? Having a compelling story is essential but there are A LOT more to consider behind the scenes.
While studying Digital Video at Northeastern University, I clearly remember one of the project in the Video production class was to shoot a short film that tells a story without any sound. That’s when I discovered some key elements that make a video truly powerful in communicating emotion.
1. Colors
La La Land: Example of complementary color in film(purple vs yellow)
2. Lighting
Light and shadow play a significant role in visual storytelling. Simply adjust the position and angle of the light source can turn a simple scene dramatic. For example, light coming from the front has minimal shadow creates a harmony feeling, while side light such as Rembrandt lighting brings more emotion to the screen. Different directions of light, distances of light, and intensity of light (soft vs hard) all serve different purpose that build different atmosphere to the story.
3. Framing
The magic of framing includes shot size, camera angle, and composition.
Imagine shooting a lonely man—what’s the first visual that comes to mind? Perhaps a man sitting alone on a beach, captured from a long distance. Why? The reason is that a wide or long shot emphasizes isolation. By placing the subject small enough in the screen, the camera visually communicates his loneliness.
Common camera angles such as high angle, low angle, bird’s-eye, and over-the-shoulder all create distinct effects on screen. Shooting from a high angle makes a character or object seem small, weak, or vulnerable, whereas shooting at a lower angle can be used to express authority’s power and dominant status. There isn’t a best angle in filmmaking; it all depends on the emotion the director wants to convey and let the audience feel.
Just like what we see in Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper, da Vinci uses leading lines to draw the viewer’s attention to Jesus. The same composition principle applies to videography La La Land: Example of complementary color in film(purple vs yellow) and photography. Filmmakers and photographers can also guide the audience’s eyes to the subject and lead them into the story and the character’s journey.
