Characters Strengths | English

Following the settings blog post we started learning about how characters are developed in a film. 

1. Identify characters strengths in Katniss, Peeta and a character of your choice.

Include:

• How is the character strength portrayed in the story?
• Why is it an important character strength 

Passion Project Reflection | Wānanga

For the past few weeks, we have been doing our passion projects. This was a time where we would focus on things/topics that we are passionate about, we could do a project of our choice of a project that is offered by a teacher. I chose to do a project on Forensic Science which was run by a teacher. Passion Projects ran from late Term 3 till week 2 of Term 4, over that time period we had the time to research, learn and create something to share, after that we had to do a reflection of what we did.

What did you do for your project?

• I did research on different types of techniques used in Forensic Science. 
• Studied different types of blood spatter.

What did you find hard about this?

• I found it hard to find something to study because there are a lot of topics but only a short period of time.
• We didn't have the tools to do the experiments we wanted to do so we had to change our plans and do something that we could do in a week. 

What is the most important thing that I learned during the passion projects?

• I learned about something that I was interested in and something that I think I would use in my further studies.

Here is a little presentation I created to show what we did for the project.

Workshop #5 : Music | English

Tempo - speed of the music - fast/slow/moderate

Dynamics - volume - how loud or quiet it is

Key - major - happy sound, minor - sad sound 

Rue's Death : How is music used to create an atmosphere - Depressing/Sad/Mournful

Minor, tempo - slow, dynamics - quiet, gets louder as Katniss raises her salute and District 11 riots. 

What happened?

    - Rue is killed, Katniss tries to give her body the closest to a burial that she can. 

Colour/Lightning 

    - white flowers (stands out) - innocent and pure (symbol) - Rue has never killed anyone, kind, compassionate, victim.

    -  natural lighting, greens. 

Shots/Angles 

    - medium close-up - Rue and Katniss - see their emotions and facial expressions - anguish 

    - high angle - weak and vulnerable - Rue is an innocent and blameless victim.

Effect of Viewer 

    - atmosphere of remorse/intense sadness, as the volume increases it builds the intensity of the emotions - we see emotions are contagious - hope. 

Directors Purpose 

    - feel Katniss's emotions at that moment - remorse, anger, helplessness, acceptance, rebellion 

    - Symbol of the 3 finger salute is a sign of defiance and anger towards the game makers. - you will not take my humanity, also a symbol of unification with those who have lost loved ones to the games.  

Paragraph: 

Music is used to create an atmosphere of sorrow and remorse in Rue's death scene. In this scene we see Katniss dealing with the slaughter of her young friend Rue. For example, the tempo is slow, the dynamics are quiet and the key is minor to reflect the emotional rollercoaster that Katniss is experiencing. Like the music, Katniss moves slowly and methodically to cover Rue's body in white flowers. As she finishes, the music builds in volume, showing the increasing intensity of her anger and grief towards the Capitol. This makes us understand the pain experienced by the families of the tributes when they are killed each year. This was done to enable the viewer to feel the characters' emotions. This worked well with the use of white flowers to symbolise Rue's innocence and purity and the high angle shot making her weak and vulnerable. Combined with other music we are shown that Rue is a victim of the cruelty of the Capitol. 

Settings | English

What am I learning?

• I am learning to understand the importance of setting to a film.

How does this work show my learning?

• I have created a digital poster to show the important settings that were shown in the movie. 

What am I wondering as a result of this learning? 

• I am not wondering anything as of now. 

Workshop #4 | English

Atmosphere - feeling/mad set in the scene. 

Mood - the way we feel/emotional response 

Location - the area it is set. 

1. District 12 

    

What is happening - Katniss is jogging through the District 

Types of colour/lighting - 

    cold colours - more grey undertones

    dull colours - nothing stands out - blue/grey shades 

    natural colours - palette - greens, browns, grey, black 

    Lighting - cold, dull, natural 

Viewer effect - not welcoming, unpleasant, run-down, dirty, poor 

Directors purpose - shows how unpleasant it is to live in the districts, underprivileged, a good comparison for Capitol.

Other Techniques - setting - dirt roads, houses derelict, old-fashioned transport- wagons, no electricity.

2. The Capitol 

What is happening - The citizens of the capital are awaiting the arrival of the tributes. 

Types of colour/lighting 

- colours  

    cold - white undertone 

- lighting 

    cold (white) artificial, bright 

- palette 

    setting - white/metallics 

    costumes - bright, vibrant, colourful  

Viewer effect - these people are privileged, they are celebrating, they are more advanced.

Directors Purpose - makes us sympathise with the tribute - they have lots and the districts have none, don't like them because they seem over the top and arrogant. 

Other Techniques - 

-costume 

    rich, extravagant, flaunting, over the top 

- settings 

    rich, modern, technologically advanced, clean, new. 

3. The Control Room 

What is happening - People are manipulating the arena via computer.  

Types of colour/lighting 

- colour palette 

    blue/white/dark grey

- colour 

    cold (blue/white) bright - especially white shirt, artificial lighting/colour - cyan/holographic 

Viewer effect - make us feel they are smart but unsafe, 

Directors Purpose - make us feel like they are mindless drones detached from reality 

Other Techniques - 

costume - white lab coats - feels like an experiment

settings - no clutter, lots of techs, only focused on the job. 

Ōtautahi | Social Studies

For the last weeks of the term, we have been learning about Canterbury/Ōtautahi, the history, the places and their significance. Our task was to answer some questions and create a presentation about them. 

 

Reflection:

I think I did a very good job in completing my work, although I didn't finish in the time I expected to finish. I think I can do better next time. 

Workshop 3: Costume | English

1. The Reaping Scene - District 12 

• The children of the district have gathered together for the reaping to select the tributes. 
• Boys: shirts, buttoned collars, shorts, pants, white, colourless, faded, dull, overwashed. 
• Girls: dresses, shirts and skirts.
• Best clothes, probably worn once a year, worn out, colourless, faded. 
• Viewer Effect: we feel sorry for the people, they seem powerless, they live in poor conditions. 
• Directors Purpose: shows us how bad their conditions are, wants us to see them as weak, unprepared, hopeless. 
• Other Techniques: high angle with the faded coloured makes them seem weak, vulnerable, helpless. 

2. The Capitol - Arriving in the city. 

• Katniss and Peeta have arrived by Train in the Capitol.
• The clothes are extravagant!
  
• over the top
• colourful
• vibrant 
• accessories - hats/earrings/make-up/wigs/shoes/bags/dogs
• new - like only worn once, 'fashionable', access to good quality fabrics patterns. 
• Viewer Effect: makes them seem higher rank, privilege, relaxed, we don't like them - an attitude of entitlement, clueless 
• Directors Purpose: shows themes of imbalance of power and rich vs poor. 
• Other Techniques: the setting is crowded, people are happy, buildings are modern, big, well-kept. - Shows that Capitol is privileged 

3. The Countdown - Cornucopia 

• The tributes have just arrived n the arena and are waiting to start the games. 
• Costumes: survival gear, browns, black, dark colours, jackets, pants, t-shirts.
• Designed to look good, to be practical, lightweight. 
• Viewer effect: the tributes looked prepared, fit, athletic. 
• Director Purpose: they are going to die, the outfits are just for the audience (the Capitols) makes it seem more pageant like.
• Other Technique: silence - worried excited to see what happens, anxious, builds tension, makes the audience focus.