Settings

Settings
   Settings are always important in films as they can reflect what is going on in a scene or what a character feels. 'A picture can tell a thousand words' as the saying goes. This is on top of the obvious sense of realism a good setting gives and the excitement a viewer may get by being taken to an unimaginable new location.

Scary Forest

The opening shot from 'The Book of Eli'

   The scary forest setting is good as it creates an aura of mystery and illusion. This can easily work in a darker themed post apocalyptic movie.
   This setting is used to great effect in the opening scene of The Book of Eli (right). The scene takes place in some dark and misty woods. This is pathetic fallacy showing the scary mystery surrounding the film. As such, it starts to form the enigma of the film. The woods represent how humanity is living in the dark ages, away from man made cities. The setting also induces paranoia as the trees start to blend together in illusion and the light starts playing tricks. It is a good setting to demonstrate how the character survives on his own by primitive hunting methods. This setting is appealing to me personally as it is an easy and accessible setting for me to film.

Abandoned City

From WALL-E

This setting is used all the time to show the failure of the pinnacle of humankind. The setting can be beautiful, eerie, and full of hidden treasures. The setting has been used in countless times in Post Apocalyptic films such as 'WALL-E' and 'I Am Legend'. In 'WALL-E' the cities are wastelands full of junk. This illustrates how global warming and abusing the environment have led to the global extinction. In 'IAL' the cities are overgrown and part of the wild. This gives us the impression that nature has taken over.

Dark, Underground, Scary Place...

   This type of setting could be a hidden bunker, hideout, or even just a basement as in 'The Divide' (left). It shows that the characters in the setting are hiding, isolated, and scared. The setting is a very confined and claustrophobic place so when this setting is used, the characters often end up falling out and arguing. As such, this setting can be used to create tension and foreboding.



The Countryside 

   This is used very often in lower budget PA films such as mine. It shows a lack of civilisation and having to live in the wild. It could also be used to show that no where is safe from the bad guy(s). It also adds to mystery as the viewer wonders what has happened in the cities. Any characters in this setting seem lonely and isolated. This setting is good because it can be used as the setting for a character's journey, allowing them to reach other settings, situations, and characters.


Abandoned Warehouse

   This is dark and scary with connotations of death and danger as we ask ourselves "why is it abandoned?". This setting is often used as a home or camp for the character(s). Like the forest, this can also be used to instill paranoia as characters could hear doors squeaking or see something behind a pillar out of the corner of their eye.