Francis Alys analysis
Throughout the video, I see a lot of wide shots being used. The illusion of continuity is caused by the usage of shots that are similar. I also, noticed that a lot of the shots have people moving in the same direction which is creating the effect that these are going on and on or are continuous. The usage of color is very natural, kind of bland. And only in a few shots you have something that has some sort of color that pops out for example there is a part where there is a man carrying balloons. When I seen this it made me think about how even in their circumstances there is ocasional ''brightness'' in the video that could symbolize the joy these people experience regardless of the chaos that is going around them. Even the joy of the children playing their simple game, running in the grimy, clay looking colored streets filled with trash shows how happiness can be found in even the worse condition or simplicity. In this video we get access to these kids everyday life and how much they are just like us. We get a snippet of there life playing games and them indulging in childhood and the liberation/freedom that it can bring. They aren't thinking about what's going on around them in that moment instead they are just focused on the having fun. which i think that something that a lot of people in the western world can learn from these kids. The sound in the video is pretty minimal but I think that dialogue is't necessary to tell a story or get your point across. The sounds you can hear is children laughing or having fun. I think the media sometimes depicts foreigners that are people of color as animalistic sometimes and through this lens we see that they are human just like us, smile just like us, and not everything is always so chaotic. That joy can be found lying beneath anywhere.
You're hitting on some important points, particularly that Alys is interested in creating an impression of a day-in-the-life documentary. There is certainly an undertone of the violence and political unrest in the country, but the filmmaker focuses our attention on something entirely unexpected to western audiences: children playing a game. In this way, what is "real" or documentarian about the film, and what is "unreal" or constructed? Your analysis scratches the surface of this question, but does not get into the details of shot types and editing choices that contribute to the illusion of continuity (attendance in class for these sorts of conversations would help your understanding). You make a wonderful point about color, however, and it's worth exploring further. The pop of color at the point in the film in which the balloons pass by is an intentional tip to the viewer: What we see should not be taken for granted, that it is a highly constructed and stylized illusion. Each shot is staged and organized within the storyboard to create the illusion of fluid action as the children move throughout the city. The balloons are too pronounced, too perfect, to be regarded as happenstance. This highly intentional formal choice contributes to the overall concept and message.
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