The Role Tone Plays in Film A SIMPLE

The Role Tone Plays in Film A SIMPLE DISCUSSION FOR A NOT SO SIMPLE CONCEPT

WHAT IS TONE? • Difficult to define • Related to mood and style, but there is more to it than that. • Best analogy? A film’s tone is essentially its “flavour” • How it makes us feel and how it achieves that effect on us.

7 MAIN ELEMENTS THAT AFFECT TONE • Cinematography • Lighting • Editing • Writing • Performances (Acting) • Music • Colour Scheme

QUICK CASE STUDY • James Cameron avoided making tonal mistakes in “Titanic” by testing the film with sample audiences before releasing it. Specifically, there was a scene in which Lovejoy (Hockley’s valet) chases Jack and Rose with a gun. It is a protracted scene in which Lovejoy pursues the couple while the ship is sinking, firing shots at them in the First Class dining room while seawater swirls around them. A gun chase on the Titanic? It was tonally incongruous, and the test audiences made it abundantly clear. Cameron cut the whole scene.

“Mixing tones in a film is like putting ice cream on meat. ”

TONALITY AND YOU AS A FILMMAKER • The tone of the film is its overall flavour • Controlling tone is one the most advanced skills a filmmaker can master • You must understand the tone of your movie before you start. You cannot begin pre-production without envision the tone first…as it will affect every decision you make • Having decided the tone. . you must stick with it (tonal consistency) • Tonal consistency does not mean that you cannot have light moments in serious films (and vice versa).