Reflections on shot

The genre is connoted by the focus on key props in the shot; specifically the player and the hoop.  High-key lighting is used as it is rare that low-key lighting is used in the Sport genre of film. Different features of the shot present the hoop as a challenge that the player must overcome. These include the top angle shot type and the focal images being the player and the hoop. The angle makes the hoop appear above the player, representing a challenge for the player. By leaving the shot empty besides the player and hoop, it makes the shot more dramatic as there is nothing else to draw the audience’s attention away from the scene.

In order to achieve these effects, the primary factor was the framing of the shot. The top-angle draws the audience’s attention to the player making the shot and the hoop; his target. These two objects are made the only things to focus on in the shot, which adds more tension and suspense on whether the player can make the shot.

The aim of this shot was to make the audience imagine a game which comes down to one last shot. The focus of the shot is meant to denote this, as the shot is left empty to narrow the viewer’s attention to the player and the hoop.

I feel as though the successful features of this shot are the clear connotations of genre and the flexibility around the identity of the player. By keeping the identity of the player unknown, the audience is able to use their imagination to create an identity for them; possibly one similar to their own.

However, if I were to take the shot again, I would make sure there was not as much empty space on the left. By tightening the framing a little bit more, it would feel as though the audience are more involved in the shot.