'Echo' analysis

'Echo' analysis

'Echo' is a 2011 short film directed by Lewis Arnold and is about seventeen minutes long.

 The story of 'Echo' was inspired by the writer of the short film, James Walker's experience with a girl in covent garden who was running a similiar con to the main character, Caroline.

The narrative of 'Echo' is one of a cyclical nature, as the title of the short film suggests, it deals with how events, especially very emotionally impactful events in life can echo on through time and potentially repeat themselves in the future. The cyclical narrative of the film is best embodied in how the film's first and final scenes are almost word for word identical, however the way the viewer interprets these two scenes will be completely different because of the context that has been granted throughout the duration of the film and this is the genius of 'Echo'. This short film is uncharacteristically long when compared to the other set short films we have looked at however it still follows some of the other conventions of these other short films including minimal characters and a single plotline. One major area in which 'Echo' differs from other short films is that it is more of a character study than most short films that as described in the 'What is a short film?' post usually focus on a single concept independent of character. The film feautures some conventions of traditional narratives including some twists in the middle act of the film when it is revealed that Caroline is actually running a scam and then that the events that play out are actually based on things that really happened to her with the death of her father. This then leads into the ending of the film which leaves some ambiguity as it is subtly hinted the ending may be depicting the events that really happened to Caroline and hence the catlayst and beginning that set up the events that catch up to her in the course of the film cycling back around to the beginning of 'Echo'.

 One of the narrative techniques used to convey the meaning of the narrative of 'Echo' include cinematography and shot composition. The first shot of the film is a low angle long shot showing Caroline among a crowd of people however she is postioned in the centre of the frame conveying to the audience that she is the protagonist of the narrative. As Caroline recieves the call and becomes more distraught the shot types switch to close ups and extreme close ups that focus on her face and emotion allowing the viewer to empathise with her character. After Caroline returns home she sits in the garden and watches her family through the window. The camera is positioned on the other side of a fence to Caroline, the window and fence show the barrier between Caroline and her family as well as the rest of society that she has created in her own self imposed isolation. The colours in the film are also very drab and cold to reflect the dire viewpoint of Caroline.

As a characer study, the view point that 'Echo' attempts to convey is that of Caroline, she appears in every scene and is clearly the character the viewer is originally aligned with and meant to sympathise with. Throughout the film more information is revealed that reinterprets the opening scene for the viewer and presents a more complex character of Caroline who appears to be suffering from trauma as a result of the tragic death of her father which leads her to repeat the situation over and over again, a symptom of trauma. The film seems to be portraying the destructive ways in which the effect of trauma take place.

I really liked this film and hope to give the characters in my short film screenplay at least some of the complexity exhibited in the character of Caroline.