Short Film Analysis

Loan is a short film approximately 6 minutes long. It was produce by MGG Films and is their debut short film about why you should be careful who you lend money from. This initially appealed to me as the overall theme is based around lending money and the whole idea of lending it off someone or to someone you can’t trust. This relates to our film as the loan shark doesn’t tell Destiny the truth about who she will have to kill, ultimately getting her to agree to killing someone for the money, when really she has to kill herself. Although this short film is based in only one scene, there are many shots that we want to incorporate into our film and in this example they are kept simple and easy to get ideas from. There are two main characters, in which one is a leader and the other is more vulnerable and seen as desperate. This is also true in our short film, as Destiny is in desperate need of money, whilst the Loan Shark is always one step ahead. These characters may help the audience to relate to this film, making it memorable.

These medium long-shots of the man knocking on the door and the man cooking establish that the discussion is in someone’s kitchen. During the film there are only the ambient sounds of the door knocking and so on, and the dialogue spoken between the characters. This makes the audience focus on what is being said. The editing has mainly cross cutting between the characters, until nearer the end when shots last longer on the man standing up, shouting at the man sitting down. Our film is also most likely to have simple editing because of the conversations we have including with Maddy and the loan shark.

These medium close ups show the characters facial expressions. The character sat down looks upset, which we find out later that he wants to borrow money of the man standing up. The man in the background is happy to see the man and smiles, unknowing of what he wants to ask him. This also shows signs of leadership from the man standing above him, this makes him look down at the other characters, showing that he is inferior. This may be due to the difference in who is the wealthiest.

  

The scene where the man sits down across the table from him, is the scene we want to incorporate into our film. The loan shark meets up with Destiny in his office, where they are also separated by a table. The shot reverse shots between the characters looks film like and shows the characters emotions whilst they are speaking. Also, as the man gets up thinking he is joking, it doesn’t change shots, it stays on the close up to show the reactions of the man who was nervous to tell him.

 

 

This side angle shows the characters frustration in what he’s hearing. This shot could be used in our film, as Destiny refuses the loan sharks offer at first. The loan shark doesn’t appreciate this as he wants her to go through with the deal. Therefore, it would look good if he stood up and stared out of the window whilst he spoke to her, not looking directly at her.

The man seated, stays where he is, which keeps him lower than the man standing up. This shot shows him standing over him, looking down at him angrily. The man seated, doesn’t say a word as he is scared of saying something wrong. This perspective needs to be used in our film to show that the loan shark is of higher status that our main character, Destiny.

The man asks the other man to leave and never come back to his house again, the medium shot shows that he has turned his back to him and has refused to help him. This is a good finishing shot as it sums up what has happened and shows his angry he is at him for lending the money off someone else.