Short Film Analysis

 

MANSYON

A short film Mansyon (2005) written and directed by Joel Ruiz, it is a story of two middle aged couples, a housemaid, Dolores, and gardener, Ambo; they are responsible for cleaning the house while the owners are away. 

In the first scene, the mansion was represented as the setting and aura, followed by the authoritative and meticulous owner. The shot was showing the blocking-over-the shoulder, invading the space (tension) between the couples. The couple was also wearing uniforms as their identity and purpose. 

Next, the shots were medium shot, exposing that they have nothing to do–just plain couples complying on their duties, during the first weeks. The housemaid stays inside the house, peeking at her husband, busy with gardening, plainly observing their life. 

Meanwhile, Dolores was in a worm-eye shot, about to bend down, cleaning the carpet and saw the red elongated bottle, a perfume. The color of the perfume dominates the whole room; revealing the pivotal symbol in the story. Repeated instances occurred as the perfume is being stared with curiosity and temptation; a hidden desire in the life she wanted to be. 

The story takes a turn from a spray of perfume. The fragrance proclaims the lifestyle that they were deprived of.The story goes on similar scenes, medium shots and presenting the routine of couples. Until it pauses when Dolores turns on the flat screen tv, and a facial cream commercial catches her attention, expresses the luxury, then an over-the-shoulder shot, focusing on the Dolores face reflected on the television. Dolores is slowly drifting through her life at night and trying on–using the furniture in daylight.  Then one-time her husband, Ambo saw her using the treadmill and came into thinking of influence from Dolores. There are nights sleeping in king-sized bed and silk sheets compared to a shared single bed. The couples were very happy. Uncovering and running around the furniture. The red silk robe was worn by Dolores when she accepted a package as Elena Manalo, that is the cue of living the dream as owners while the real owners are away; same meaning for the perfume and red silk robe. 

However, no matter how big the mansion is, or luxury it is, the house seemed to be sad and plain. Some extreme close-ups of the couples are in vignettes, expressing boundaries.  Adding the color gradient and palette of the film as a short glimpse of dream. Dolores still has this peeking on windows, observing her husband; as a reminder of the reality they have. Until at the end of the story, after being caught when the real Elena Manalo arrived and shoo-ed the couples away, they still wore bright red clothing, and a spray of perfume as last grasps of dream they had. The last shot was close-up, Dolores in the center as the scene became dreamy and Ambo was being fascinated by the scent of the life they had. 

The film stirs the audience's emotions and one can sympathize with the couple as this was the closest they could get to living out her dreams. 

RUWEDA

A short film–hyperlink Ruweda 2012, directed by Hannah Espina. The film is about the cost of a person's luck. Mananalo ako o mananalo ka? The concept is based on the adage that there is no such thing as a free lunch, which means that anything that is freely given to an individual is actually paid for by someone else. And only one person can be lucky that night and the rest will experience the opposite. 

The setting of the story was in town carnival, and the pivotal symbols are the toss coin game and wheel, and engagement ring.  In the engagement ring, it hyperlinks the people around the carnival. The wheel expresses the circular movement of life; the spinning motion of the rides and their life, even the Ferris Wheel turns fast, captivating chances rather than memories. Toss coin game shows and the lottery as a quick-fix for poverty, the concept of luck or "swerte" plays a big role in the lives of the people. The pickpocket's stolen engagement ring spun the three characters like a wheel, producing a cycle of luck: from a drunk guy who thought of placing a bet, to a man waiting for his love to gift her an engagement ring, a pickpocket who wanted to steal from social depression, and the luck to a drunk man who founds out a ring from an unfortunate hurrying pickpocket who was shortly hit by cars, and the same for the man who'd completely lost the the ring instead of a happy memory beyond the carnival’s fun games.

The scenes were shot in metric montage, with the musical beats as the scenes were fast paced and hazy as the characters' emotions and situation.  Non-Linear editing of storytelling which enables the uncovering of characters' situations. The film lighting was in blinding carnival lights, as the world revolves around your feet and the 3 characters are mesmerized by their current situations, tension was evidently shown through the camera movement and lights, expressing the audience would feel the same emotions. 

The clothing of the characters expresses their social status. One drunk man, wearing ragged clothes and a lop-sided cap, hazed about the cost of one peso coin, but only a chance, drowning in social depression. Pickpocket man, actually siblings together, planning to steal the engagement ring, wearing class a clothing and mix match accessories, shows an unaligned lifestyle and is deprived of life. A man wearing polo and slack, representing an office worker or living in the middle class. 

The cinematography is clear and well-executed in achieving its compact-fast paced memory recalls approach of the concept, there is no unity of continuity which deepens the attack of its content, and the vision as well as its treatment established an expression of wonder and built instances of world’s part of reality.