Meg Magee: "The Camera" by Peter Lewis is a creatively produced and intriguing film, that continuously keeps the audience guessing. The beginning of the film captured my attention immediately. I thought that the main character's entrance into the house was especially ingenious. You see a girl walking toward a house, then the camera tilts down to feature the girl's feet as she walks up the stairs. Next, you see her feet reach the door. The camera angle changes again and cuts to the girl's hand turning the doorknob. At this point the screen goes blank, the title of the film appears, and the scene reopens. However, this time the camera is on the inside of the door. This creates a sense that we were one with the subject in the beginning but now, once she has entered the house, we are watching her. This feeling that we are watching the girl continues throughout the rest of the film. There is a lot of over the shoulder shots which further enforce this feeling. Especially, when the girl takes her first polaroid and sees a boy in the picture that is not there in real life. The over the shoulder shots after the first polaroid give off a creepy vibe, as if the ghost of the boy is watching her from behind as well. The feeling of the film changes once she realizes the boy is not harmful but, we still have the same perspective. We watch her from the point she walks into the house until the film ends. All in all this film was extremely well done and very creative with how the mood and perspective was switched seamlessly throughout the film.
Sarah Clarke: Peter Lewis's "The Camera" explores the hopes that humanity has about the afterlife and the occult. Through his camera work and ambiguity behind the story, it keeps the audience guessing over what will happen in throughout the film. Following the main character, we see how she reacts in the entire situation after finding a benevolent lingering spirit. As Lewis's camera sees her traveling through this journey, a few things stand out in particular. The audience is always posed as a viewer and an outsider. We are watching her travel through the house. It does not appear to me that we are involved at all. Through the house, when she "sees" the spirit with her camera, we are always watching her reaction instead of exploring the space the spirit occupies. The entire scene, though creepy to others, is actually quite calming since the character is just experiencing something out of the ordinary. With the genuine shot composition of most of the shots, we always see the girl framed in such a way that she is somewhat included in the scenery but also on the outside. She is typically framed in doorways, mirrors, even between beds. Even though she is interacting with the house, it is obvious that she doesn't belong there. So she is an ambiguity of the house shown through the shot composition that Lewis has incorporated.
Molly Hochwalt: Peter Lewis’s short film “The Camera” follows the brief narrative of a girl’s journey with a mystical polaroid camera. I found this film to be exceedingly pleasing to watch as it had me hooked from the very beginning. The use of depth of field and focus in this film brought a very direct focus to the film. It was easy for the viewer to pay attention to exactly what they should, at exactly the right moment. The angles that were used throughout this film also added greatly to the feeling of the film. The position of the camera on the scenes and character made it feel as though you were following the character through the house. It also made it feel as though both the viewer and girl in this film felt like outsiders within the house. The transitions between the flash of the polaroid and the photos taken were very smooth and added to the overall easy flow of the film. Overall, this film gives a feeling of guidance throughout the piece. The viewer is being cautiously led through a house by a girl who is at first apprehensive about what she has discovered. The close up shots of the girl dispersed throughout the piece allow you to see the change in her as she goes from nervous to enraptured by her situation, in such a way that when the film ends you feel closure with the girl in the final scene. This film was a joy to watch and had many good compositional aspects.
Anthony Reed: I really enjoyed this film! Peter Lewis did an amazing job of creating a warm emotion even with no narrative at all. The choice of lighting combined with the soft music give you a sense of a peaceful wondering curiosity. The medium and close-up shots of the actress was impactful to me because her soft expressions complimented the rest of the elements of the film. The color grading really made the blueness of her eyes pop that really draw you in. I also noticed how the use of close-ups of her feet walking up the steps and her hand opening the door for example made very good transitions. All together I think this was a great short film that succeeded making the viewer feel exactly what it intended. Even after the man suddenly appeared in her pictures like a ghost, you never felt like she was in any danger. This could've been a whole different movie if the shots and music were darkened even with the same exact scenes.
Alex Cherry: Peter Lewis’ “The Camera” gives the phrase “less is more” a whole new meaning. The film lacks some major components which allow it to truly express a sense of longing, mystery, and open interpretation. Firstly, the characters in the film are entirely anonymous. The viewer knows nothing about the main character other than the fact that she has short brown hair and that she’s wearing a tank top and a long skirt. There is nothing that tells the viewer why she is there or what her motivation is, but motivation and purpose aren’t necessary, as the focus on the film is simply on the events as they unfold. By keeping the main character a mystery, the viewer can more openly identify with her and interpret her reactions individually. Secondly, and similarly to the character’s anonymity, there is no dialogue. Not only are the characters kept anonymous through their actions, but also through their lack of words. Because the main character does not speak, the viewer is capable of imagining different thoughts that might be going through her head that even the director or writer may not have thought of. The air of mystery is what allows this film to shine. Is the boy in the pictures a ghost? What about the girl? By not knowing, and by answers not being provided through the lack of dialogue and the anonymous characters, the viewer is able to interpret and discern whatever details they wish.
Louis Lartigue: The Camera by Peter Lewis is a short film that depicts a young girl’s discovery of a polaroid camera in an abandoned beach house that reveals a mysterious boy that can only be seen by the pictures she takes. The female lead is alone throughout the film and no dialogue is ever spoken leaving the delivery of the narrative dependent on the camera work and physical story telling. Peter Lewis is able to do this with angles and cuts that establish setting, plot points, and the actor’s actions and reactions to her surroundings. Each shot compliments the last and allows the narrative to move fluently throughout the film. Lewis effectively shows the audience what the girl is thinking and what she is trying to accomplish by using close ups of her face, the pictures she takes, the camera, and other relevant objects that have an impact on where the story goes. The pacing of the cuts between shots and the tempo of the music play an important part to the narrative as well. As the girl meanders around the beach the cut between shots are slow along with slow piano music. However as she discovers that her pictures are capturing more than just the present the cuts and music increase in frequency and with the increasing tempo of the music, the curiosity of the girl is shared by the audience. As the girl loses track of the stranger the tempo of cuts and music increase and allows the audience to experiences the franticness of the scene with the character. Lewis effectively creates a shared experience with the characters and audience.
Cameron Panhans: Peter Lewis' short film "The Camera" is an intriguing work that draws in its viewers from start to finish. One of the primary techniques utilized to accomplish this is depth of field. Throughout the film, Lewis very carefully uses depth of field to draw his audience to what he wants them to believe is important. In the over the shoulder shot of the girl looking at this seemingly abandoned house (1:02), the house is exclusively in focus while the girl and the grass in front of the house are not. This signifies to the viewer both the importance and the isolation of this house that the girl has come upon. The proceeding shots of the girl walking up the steps of the house also features a narrow depth of field focused on the girls feet, visually separating them from the steps. The close up of the Polaroid camera that the girl finds later in the film (3:31) is another great example of drawing attention to significant objects through the use of depth of field. The front of the camera and the photograph that comes out are clear in focus while the entirety of the surroundings are blurry. This extremely narrow depth of field allows Lewis to point his viewers' eyes to the camera and the camera only. Throughout this short film the depth of field that Peter Lewis uses in his shots enables his to create a visually appealing film that draws in and mystifies its viewers.
Phillip Spain: The Camera, a short film by Peter Lewis, is an incredibly interesting film due largely because it has so much meaning hidden behind a relatively straight-forward approach. The film doesn't hold your hand through its story, and instead of devoting precious time to individual details, it instead focuses on the overall atmosphere of the film, allowing the audience to decipher the film's meaning themselves based on the general feel and tone of the film. The tone itself is the key aspect of the film, because if it had been done with different music and reactions from the protagonist, the film could have easily felt more like a horror film, but instead resulted in a charming, touching film about coping with loss and remembering loved ones. The critical juncture that determined the tone of the film was when the character first sees the boy in the photo she just took. This was the moment that, depending on the character's reaction to seeing this, determined how the rest of the film would play out. But instead of the protagonist seeming shocked or scared, she seemed happy and smiled, and went out of her way to take more pictures joyfully, guiding the audience and revealing the overall tone of the film.
Caroline Builta: "The Camera", a brief narrative film by Peter Lewis, is incredibly compelling because of his simplistic shot style. Towards the beginning of the film, the protagonist is framed largely in the center of the screen. These shots make the character seem as though she is in control of the story and of each of her choices. However, as the story progresses, and she discovers the camera and the mysterious boy, the way she is framed changes. She becomes more and more off-kilter, symbolizing that she is no longer the only part of the story - the dead space is a metaphor for the mysterious boy that she is chasing. Towards the end of the film, as she is running on the beach, her body actually veers partially off-screen. She is no longer in control, and Lewis expertly knows how to visually convey that. The score was imperative to this film as well - it easily could have taken an incredibly dark vibe, like a horror film, but instead it kept it longing and somewhat upbeat. It veered towards sad, however, it was never scary, and the score, the lighting, and the framing were all imperative to creating this mood.
From the opening shot Peter Lewis captured the audiences's attention with a series of shots and music that matches up perfectly. Lewis transition between each shot is very fluent. Although the shots were amazing the concept of the actress going to get the camera from the empty box was very odd. That may have been because of the lack of background information. That was one confusing aspect of the film. The overall concept of the film was interesting as the film went on the shots really began to capture the emotions on her face once she didn't see the guy in the pictures anymore. The film displayed many different emotions as it came to its resolution. The super tight shots allowed the audience to see the true emotion of the actress. As the background music picked up in tempo reaching the climax of the film the frequency of the transitions increased as well. Lewis displayed his creativity at the end of the film by bringing the two worlds together by allowing the actress to go into the picture with the guy who she had been following throughout the film.
Savannah Stanley: Peter Lewis encorporates a striking use of movement and sound in the short film "The Camera." From the establishing wide shots to the close ups focused on the main character's feet and hands, movement plays a huge part in the story of this film and in the characterisation of the girl. It expresses a warm and life that were intentionally defied in the last short film we saw. By contrast, the transition between shots at 1:47 creates the sensation of a picture being taken by establishing a shot and then immediately cutting to a wider view of the same scene. Movement is obviously also very crucial in the pictures taken by the polaroid: where the girl has expression through her movement, the boy is still and frozen in the photographs. Despite this, there is a striking relationship between the girl who we see in motion and the boy whose actions can only be caught in stills. Lewis furthers this relationship through the culmination of the story, where despite the girl becoming a part of the boy's reality in his frozen state, they are contrasted by the constant motion of the ocean that composes the background of the shot. Even in the final moments, movement and motion are vital to the theme and also the aesthetic of the film. Lewis's use of sound was also interesting in this film, though to an obviously lesser degree. In La J'etee, Marker conveyed his story through almost entirely still frames and sound via narration as well as music. In The Camera, Lewis removes the narration but incorporates the movement. The sound here is almost entirely music and environmental, not unlike our lab projects for the week. It exemplifies the ability of the director to tell a story without having to literally tell the story. The lack of dialogue made the relationship between the two characters all the more profound, and the noise of the environment aided in setting the scene without detracting from it.
Dustin Bennett: Peter Lewis's "The Camera" opens on a wide shot of a girl standing on the beach. This is the furthest we ever are from her, camera-wise at least, because this is the most alone we see her. The only other time we see her nearly as far is when she can't find the boy from the pictures and believes she'll never see him again. This is one example of Peter Lewis's great direction in the short.
His quadruple-duty role as the director-writer-editor-composer allows a lot of excellent synchronicity between his roles. His direction synchronizes with the plot he's trying to get across to show how we're supposed to feel, which is almost always what the main character feels, and the music greatly increases the sense of urgency present once she loses track of the boy, who, in such an ambiguous film, could be anyone from her brother to a complete stranger.
A lot of the excitement in the short comes from a combination of the idyllic visuals, either from the beautiful shots of the beach or the lovely sunny interiors of the cabin, the pleasant piano music, and the sense of genuine wonder the actress displays. Overall, I thought this movie was really nice and sweet.
In Peter Lewis short film "The Camera", we are treated to an interesting narrative. We are given a main character, a female, who is seen walking in a sandy area. The camera begins slowly panning to the left and right and incorporating different shots in order to create a narrative scene. As the shots continue, the main character is shown an old house(we are not sure whether she knows this house) and walks in. The shot of her walking on the front steps and then cutting to her walking up the stairwell provide some key insights as too that comes next. We then find our self in a bedroom opening up a chest that reveals an old polaroid. The main character mood changes and she begins looking through the chest too find an old photo of a boy(presuming the are related). It changes the whole scene and the music begins to change too. She is enlightened about what she scenes and begins taking pictures. Through all of the individual shots, we can visually create a story behind what the narrative is supposed to be about and have the ability to create our own storyline behind it.
Victoria Walker: “The Camera” created by Peter Lewis is an interesting film that captivates the audience’s attention from start to finish. Lewis brilliantly uses depth of field, close-up shots, and subjective view to convey a wide array of emotions throughout the film. Essentially he guides the audience along revealing only what he wants them to see. Yet, he leaves space for the audience to make assumptions. It was interesting how Lewis sets up the film with an extreme long shot. It suggest that the girl is alone and she is looking for someone or something. In order to capture the wide array of emotions from the girl, Lewis uses a series of close-up shots. In the beginning of the film most of the close-up shots showed a lot of confusion. As the film progressed the close-up showed her in more of an excited state. The way Lewis structured the shots also suggested that the girl could be following a map using the pictures that she took. Subjective view was another key element used to narrate the story. It’s almost as if we, the audience, are peeking into her world. Depth of field and subjective view was also used when the girl approached the abandoned house. What I found most unique was how Lewis used symbolism. Initially, one could say the film was about a girl taking pictures to connect with her past. After a second watch, I came to the conclusion that the camera was used to depict the connection between two worlds. Hence, the Polaroid, being the old fashion camera that it is, symbolized the past. So what Lewis could be saying is, the camera was her way of connecting her present with her past. All the while, she is in a maze essentially using the pictures as a roadmap to get the mysterious man and her place of happiness.
Ron Shaver: In the film "camera" by Peter Lewis it follows a young lady around as she wanders what seem to be an old vacation home, where she has a lot of memories stored. It was a really good film to watch because it made you feel like you were apart of the story.The lighting combined with the medium and close up shots were well timed. When the young lady discovered the camera, the emotions seem to shift and the tempo of the music picked up a bit. The beach scene was well thought out. Lewis transitioned from a very sad film to a suspense film, when the young lady could not find where the mysterious man was. However, at the end of the film both mysterious man and main character were at peace. Overall, it was an excellent film
"The Camera," a short film by Peter Lewis, is a unique narrative based fantasy that follows a young, unnamed woman as she visits an old beach house and finds a camera that allows her to see a young man who isn't there at all. The way that the scenes were laid out made it very easy to follow the actual plot of the film. Even there was no dialogue, we could tell what the woman was thinking as she went through the house, taking photos of the strange man. The pure emotion the woman was showing was enough to teach us how she felt, what she was thinking, and how it related to how the viewer was thinking. What I find interesting was the use of multiple types of shots to convey both the emptiness of the home and the emotion stirring in the woman's heart as she became fascinated with her new friend. When it comes down to it, this film fascinated me and inspired me a bit to do more in my work.
Peter Lewis' "The Camera" portrays a young girl who finds a camera in an old house that allows her to take pictures of things that are not actually there. One of the first things I noticed from the director are the wide array of different types of shots, particularly in the beginning. As the girl walks through the sand of the beach, a combination of still and tracking shots are used and structured in a way that gives the audience the sense that we are following her. The director also does a good job with using close ups to show emotion and the wide shot of the girl on the beach near the end to show isolation.
Mario Cirinese: In the short film by Peter Lewis “The Camera” portrays a story about a young female characters that finds an old polaroid camera in a decrepit house. The opening scene expels a shot of the unnamed character walking across a tantalizing beach. Throughout the film many unanswered questions are asked, like why is she there and who’s house is she exploring? While walking on the beach the main character finds a house and enters with very motion oriented shots giving the audience a sense of unease. The main character goes through a series of many tight fitting shots while approaching the upper stairwell setting a tone in the film. Early in the short a subtle piano can be heard playing in the background to truly set the mood. Taking pictures in each room to show a boy similar to the main character’s age the director uses him as a tool to progress in the story. Towards the end, the main characters turn frantic looking for the apparition that once appeared in the photos she was taking on the camera. Overall this film could be interpreted and discerned in many different ways that leave a creative mark for the director and anyone else involved with this short film.
Magdalene Kennedy: The Camera is a curiously sweet and melancholy short film. Although in some ways the narrative is straightforward, the film has a strong element of ambiguity that really elevated it. I think the choice of music really added to the film--the slow and contemplative piano highlighted the tranquility of each shot. Despite the urgency with which the girl moved through parts of the short film, each shot seemed unhurried, dwelling instead on the delicate lighting of the cabin and the emotions on the girl's face. The shots were primarily closeups, until we arrived at the beach. The last shot reflected a joyful/sorrowful duality as we see that the girl has also disappeared, but appears happy to be united with the boy. It's this duality that, to me, really defines this short film as a whole and gives it such evocative qualities.
John Oldani: The Camera is an interesting story with good visuals. The beginning was slow and a little bit unnecessary in my opinion. It starts with her just walking around and not really doing anything. While this beginning does allow for the viewer to become connected with character, I think it could have been sped up some. While she looks throughout the house the viewers are left to wonder what is going on and what she is doing. We can clearly see every time when she leaves one room and goes into another. While the story climbs, we can see her emotions change as well, which is crucial to the understanding of the story. The variety of shots is good until it starts getting a little repetitive when she goes room from room, but there really aren't too many great angles that would have told the story in the way it needed to be told. I like how the film speeds up when she becomes more excited and intrigued, it brings the viewer on the ride with the character. The ending is a very interesting and good ending. While the viewer isn't exactly sure what to make of it, they are left with a happier and more content feeling that she is now with the guy in her pictures.
McKenzie Miller: In “The Camera,” Peter Lewis creates a mysterious short film of a young girl finding a Polaroid camera that holds more to it than it looks. From the beginning, Lewis pulls his viewers in and catches their attention. The viewer does not have a background on who the girl is or what she is going into the house for, which makes it more intriguing. He includes many different frames of the girl, along with a variety of angles. He shoots her feet walking through the sand and up the steps. He gives the viewer a feeling that someone is watching by filming over her shoulder. Whenever the girl first entered the house, Lewis created a creepy element by going to a black screen and then having the slow piano music play in the background as she enters. He creates this mood up until the point when the viewer first sees the imaginary boy in the picture. The viewer is on the edge, wondering if this is about to turn into a horror film or something else. Then she takes more pictures, but she is able to calm the viewer by showing with her smile that it was not a scary environment. What is great about this film is that the viewer never takes their eye off of the girl in anticipation of her next move. At the end of the film, she takes a picture of herself on the beach and disappears. Then the camera zooms in on the polaroid picture, showing that the girl and the boy are together. This gives the viewer the freedom to interpret the sweet mystery at hand.
"The Camera" by Peter Lewis is a story about a young woman who appears to be at a vacation home when she stumbles upon an old camera. This camera allows her to take photographs of things that aren't actually there. Lewis' use of close ups alongside the actresses emotions allow the audience to draw their own conclusions of how the young woman knows the man in the photographs. The overall concept of the film was great, from the shots to the use of music, I was amazed!
Hannah Bynum: "The Camera" by Peter Lewis was a wonderfully executed short film portraying a girl who stumbles upon a polaroid camera and begins taking pictures. There is no dialogue so the delivery of the story relies on the actors and how Lewis chose to edit the film. The storyline could have easily fit in to a horror/thriller category since the primary action of the film revolves around a boy appearing mysteriously in pictures taken by the girl but instead Lewis turned the scenario into a sweet, almost fantasy type drama. The characters emotions and facial expressions along with the calm and cheerful music played a big role in establishing the tone of the film. I enjoyed the way Peter Lewis didn't give much information as to who the characters were or what their relation was but rather left it up to the audience to determine the meaning behind the photos.
Holly Hundsdorfer: "The Camera" By Peter lewis captivated me into trying to figure out the plot from the beginning. At first she is walking around and you start to wonder where the camera comes into play. I at first freaked out thinking this story was becoming some horrific tale when i saw the boy showing up with the photo, but since the lighting was still so bright and cheerful feeling- I had an idea it would go some place else. The music speeds up , the frames switch fast and she rushes around the room which gives it some sort of urgency as she tries to find the boy. She runs out to try and find the boy and ends up deciding to be with the boy in some shape or form. It's not clear exactly what happens we just know from the photo of them both that they end up together.
Jack Beuckman: Peter Lewis's ,The Camera, the short film is about a young girl who finds an old Polaroid camera. The girl then begins to take pictures of a house and a boy appears in the pictures but he is not actually there in person. The boy leads her from the house down to the beach where it ends after she takes a selfie and the boy appears next to her. Lewis portrays the girl as curious and naive. Lewis's use of camera work helps show the curiosity. One of his shot that I thought that was done well was when the girl was walking up the stairs in the house and the camera was looking down vertically at her and followed her as she walked up. Lewis also utilized the landscape in the beginning and at the end. He had close ups of her feet in the sand and also medium shots of her with the sand dunes in the background. He had shots of her walking towards the camera while the camera was walking away from her. At the end of it she walks down to the beach where there are shots of the horizon of the ocean. I thought that the short film was very creative and had good cinematography. There was never a dull moment and it had my attention through the entire film.
Jesse Tollison: With an intriguing concept and deep-seated themes about the the afterlife, parallel realities, and loneliness, "The Camera" by Peter Lewis leaves much to be desired. The film opens with a simple piano melody, meant to establish the general mood of the piece as being somber and thought provoking, but as the film goes on, and the plot turns to its rising action, crisis, and climax, instead of using the original score to develop these new tensions, it stays notably unchanged, relying on the undertone established in the beginning to carry the movement of the piece. This may be excusable if it weren't for the slow opening and underwhelming rising action, but the beginning features a minute of the girl walking through the landscape without giving us any new information as to the direction of the story. The same effect could be had by simply using an establishing shot of her in the middle of nowhere at the steps leading up to the house. This shorter opening would free up many lost seconds while still establishing all of the same information through the setting and music. This free window of time would better be used to build to the climax more naturally. Where she only takes a few photos of the boy before he disappears, we could see them build a rapport through these photos, making his disappearance more emotionally impactful on the audience. Following this with a more appropriate music build, perhaps using more than just a piano, the chase out to the ocean could be paired with photo after photo of her trying to find him in the landscape, making the fact that she finally takes a picture with him that much more poignant.
Christian Lundin: "The Camera" by Peter Lewis is a heartwarming piece that tells a simple story with minimalist style. Taking place on a beach, a young girl comes across an empty beach house, in which she finds an old polaroid camera that shows a boy in the room with her in the prints. The key elements to this films tone is the soft lighting and endearing piano score that make sure the audience is peacefully surprised at each discovery the girl makes throughout. For most of the film, it is unclear what is drawing this girl into the house and what forces her to come across this camera, but by the end, the audience is left with an interpretation to make: did she know this boy? Did she wish she knew this boy? Whichever question the viewer chooses to answer, its a hopeful tale that allows comfort with loss. This piece successfully takes advantage of natural light from the sun setting, which gives the film almost a romantic accent in the final scene, making the main character's connection with the boy in the photo more personal and more significant.
Blake Hudson: Peter Lewis's "The Camera" is a simple, beautifully shot film that tells an intriguing, but ultimately heartwarming story. The film is successfully scored with a simple piano track that keeps the pace throughout the film and helps the piece find rhythm and emotion, although every shot isn't necessarily cut to the beat. The mood set by the music is incredibly successful though - my initial reaction to the "ghost boy" appearing in the photos was a hint of fear, but, while the piano did have a hint of mysteriousness, it quickly returned to it's comforting tone, telling the audience that things haven't taken a turn for the worse. I would've like a little more explanation as to who the boy was, but ultimately it was left to the audience's imagination. Use of natural lighting, good cuts with action, and an interesting ending were more key components to this films success.
Joshua Perkins: "The Camera" by Peter Lewis is a very moving film about a girl using photos to go through her memories. She finds a camera in a house along the beach and quickly realizes every photo she takes features a man that one can assume is a recently lost loved one. She keeps taking pictures that translate into memories of the man and ultimately ends with her taking a picture of herself with the man next to her.
Taylor Hendrix: “The Camera” by Peter Lewis depicts the strength between a photographer and her camera, in my opinion. At first, you see the girl’s bare feet climbing up the hill and the stairs to get to the abandoned beach house. The camera following the girl becomes more and more shaky as the girl goes inside the beach house and finds the camera. The music becomes more intensive as she realizes that she can see the boy, making the short much more dramatic. I loved that the narrative was up the viewers’ imagination. The main character never speaks, thus we never know what she is thinking. This makes the interpretation our own. As I am reading some of the other comments, some people think the boy is a lost love, while others think that the boy is a lost brother. My opinion is that he is a lost brother and she wants to see him in any way that she can. Hence, the reason why she is taking pictures, to find him. As the girl loses the boy, she starts hurrying towards where she thinks he might be. Not only does the music speed up with her movement, so does the camera. The increased shakiness of the camera connects to the emotions of the girl and they rushed state she feels to find the boy. In the end, the selfie with the boy poses questions like, “Was the girl ever real?” or “Was this the girl’s way of seeing the ghost of her boyfriend or brother?” This is the reason that I really enjoyed this short, it is all in how the viewer interprets this short.
Tess Dillon: The Camera by Peter Lewis is a pensive dream-like live action short that follows a young woman from the beach to a near-by cottage. The images shown are somehow comforting and we see that the girl feels at home, almost as though she is rediscovering a place she once knew from a memory. The aesthetic is romantic, light and textures are imbue a sense of purity and nostalgia. The angles of the video camera juxtaposed with the angles the girl chooses for her polaroid camera could have made for a tight or awkward shot, but Lewis executes it perfectly. The audience still feels a sense of tension as they wait for the polaroid to be exposed but the angles and frames chosen by Lewis allow for a playful intensity to come from the actress as she moves from room to room. The Camera leaves the viewer with a melancholy sense of haunting. As though we've witnessed the spirit world and we are somehow comforted by knowing it's there, and we are sad to see it go. The dedication and credits made the piece all the more meaningful as did the score that accompanied the beautiful photography.
Katy Hale: The Camera by Peter Lewis struck me a little by surprise. From the beginning I was skeptical of what was going to happen next, and I was even confused on what the actual plot was. Although I was confused from the start, the film gave me some sort of comfort, and put the characters lives really into perspective for me. The characters gave me a form of comfort that I could not explain. Since the girl felt at home, I kind of felt as home with her. When she was trying to trace back her memory, I sympathized for her as a viewer. I put it into perspective of how I would have felt if I was in her same position and had come back remembering nothing, then suddenly remembering and feeling at home again. I cannot imagine how that would feel like, but I tried to as a viewer. Lewis' shots were in perfect depth of the characters and he had them, as well as the camera exactly where he wanted them. The feel of the film is a little spooky, which converted my thoughts a lot. I felt like Lewis was going to do something horrific, but instead he made the character welcome and safe, which I was really happy about. I kept thinking there was going to be a plot twist, or it was going to end as a cliff hanger, but he resolved the characters situations perfectly, and explained everything directly as it should be. I loved the end when he credited the piece because it gave it more of a sense of "home," which we all need sometimes.
Meg Magee: "The Camera" by Peter Lewis is a creatively produced and intriguing film, that continuously keeps the audience guessing. The beginning of the film captured my attention immediately. I thought that the main character's entrance into the house was especially ingenious. You see a girl walking toward a house, then the camera tilts down to feature the girl's feet as she walks up the stairs. Next, you see her feet reach the door. The camera angle changes again and cuts to the girl's hand turning the doorknob. At this point the screen goes blank, the title of the film appears, and the scene reopens. However, this time the camera is on the inside of the door. This creates a sense that we were one with the subject in the beginning but now, once she has entered the house, we are watching her. This feeling that we are watching the girl continues throughout the rest of the film. There is a lot of over the shoulder shots which further enforce this feeling. Especially, when the girl takes her first polaroid and sees a boy in the picture that is not there in real life. The over the shoulder shots after the first polaroid give off a creepy vibe, as if the ghost of the boy is watching her from behind as well. The feeling of the film changes once she realizes the boy is not harmful but, we still have the same perspective. We watch her from the point she walks into the house until the film ends. All in all this film was extremely well done and very creative with how the mood and perspective was switched seamlessly throughout the film.
ReplyDeleteSarah Clarke: Peter Lewis's "The Camera" explores the hopes that humanity has about the afterlife and the occult. Through his camera work and ambiguity behind the story, it keeps the audience guessing over what will happen in throughout the film. Following the main character, we see how she reacts in the entire situation after finding a benevolent lingering spirit. As Lewis's camera sees her traveling through this journey, a few things stand out in particular. The audience is always posed as a viewer and an outsider. We are watching her travel through the house. It does not appear to me that we are involved at all. Through the house, when she "sees" the spirit with her camera, we are always watching her reaction instead of exploring the space the spirit occupies. The entire scene, though creepy to others, is actually quite calming since the character is just experiencing something out of the ordinary. With the genuine shot composition of most of the shots, we always see the girl framed in such a way that she is somewhat included in the scenery but also on the outside. She is typically framed in doorways, mirrors, even between beds. Even though she is interacting with the house, it is obvious that she doesn't belong there. So she is an ambiguity of the house shown through the shot composition that Lewis has incorporated.
ReplyDeleteMolly Hochwalt: Peter Lewis’s short film “The Camera” follows the brief narrative of a girl’s journey with a mystical polaroid camera. I found this film to be exceedingly pleasing to watch as it had me hooked from the very beginning. The use of depth of field and focus in this film brought a very direct focus to the film. It was easy for the viewer to pay attention to exactly what they should, at exactly the right moment. The angles that were used throughout this film also added greatly to the feeling of the film. The position of the camera on the scenes and character made it feel as though you were following the character through the house. It also made it feel as though both the viewer and girl in this film felt like outsiders within the house. The transitions between the flash of the polaroid and the photos taken were very smooth and added to the overall easy flow of the film. Overall, this film gives a feeling of guidance throughout the piece. The viewer is being cautiously led through a house by a girl who is at first apprehensive about what she has discovered. The close up shots of the girl dispersed throughout the piece allow you to see the change in her as she goes from nervous to enraptured by her situation, in such a way that when the film ends you feel closure with the girl in the final scene. This film was a joy to watch and had many good compositional aspects.
ReplyDeleteAnthony Reed: I really enjoyed this film! Peter Lewis did an amazing job of creating a warm emotion even with no narrative at all. The choice of lighting combined with the soft music give you a sense of a peaceful wondering curiosity. The medium and close-up shots of the actress was impactful to me because her soft expressions complimented the rest of the elements of the film. The color grading really made the blueness of her eyes pop that really draw you in. I also noticed how the use of close-ups of her feet walking up the steps and her hand opening the door for example made very good transitions. All together I think this was a great short film that succeeded making the viewer feel exactly what it intended. Even after the man suddenly appeared in her pictures like a ghost, you never felt like she was in any danger. This could've been a whole different movie if the shots and music were darkened even with the same exact scenes.
ReplyDeleteAlex Cherry: Peter Lewis’ “The Camera” gives the phrase “less is more” a whole new meaning. The film lacks some major components which allow it to truly express a sense of longing, mystery, and open interpretation. Firstly, the characters in the film are entirely anonymous. The viewer knows nothing about the main character other than the fact that she has short brown hair and that she’s wearing a tank top and a long skirt. There is nothing that tells the viewer why she is there or what her motivation is, but motivation and purpose aren’t necessary, as the focus on the film is simply on the events as they unfold. By keeping the main character a mystery, the viewer can more openly identify with her and interpret her reactions individually. Secondly, and similarly to the character’s anonymity, there is no dialogue. Not only are the characters kept anonymous through their actions, but also through their lack of words. Because the main character does not speak, the viewer is capable of imagining different thoughts that might be going through her head that even the director or writer may not have thought of. The air of mystery is what allows this film to shine. Is the boy in the pictures a ghost? What about the girl? By not knowing, and by answers not being provided through the lack of dialogue and the anonymous characters, the viewer is able to interpret and discern whatever details they wish.
ReplyDeleteLouis Lartigue: The Camera by Peter Lewis is a short film that depicts a young girl’s discovery of a polaroid camera in an abandoned beach house that reveals a mysterious boy that can only be seen by the pictures she takes. The female lead is alone throughout the film and no dialogue is ever spoken leaving the delivery of the narrative dependent on the camera work and physical story telling. Peter Lewis is able to do this with angles and cuts that establish setting, plot points, and the actor’s actions and reactions to her surroundings. Each shot compliments the last and allows the narrative to move fluently throughout the film. Lewis effectively shows the audience what the girl is thinking and what she is trying to accomplish by using close ups of her face, the pictures she takes, the camera, and other relevant objects that have an impact on where the story goes. The pacing of the cuts between shots and the tempo of the music play an important part to the narrative as well. As the girl meanders around the beach the cut between shots are slow along with slow piano music. However as she discovers that her pictures are capturing more than just the present the cuts and music increase in frequency and with the increasing tempo of the music, the curiosity of the girl is shared by the audience. As the girl loses track of the stranger the tempo of cuts and music increase and allows the audience to experiences the franticness of the scene with the character. Lewis effectively creates a shared experience with the characters and audience.
ReplyDeleteCameron Panhans: Peter Lewis' short film "The Camera" is an intriguing work that draws in its viewers from start to finish. One of the primary techniques utilized to accomplish this is depth of field. Throughout the film, Lewis very carefully uses depth of field to draw his audience to what he wants them to believe is important. In the over the shoulder shot of the girl looking at this seemingly abandoned house (1:02), the house is exclusively in focus while the girl and the grass in front of the house are not. This signifies to the viewer both the importance and the isolation of this house that the girl has come upon. The proceeding shots of the girl walking up the steps of the house also features a narrow depth of field focused on the girls feet, visually separating them from the steps. The close up of the Polaroid camera that the girl finds later in the film (3:31) is another great example of drawing attention to significant objects through the use of depth of field. The front of the camera and the photograph that comes out are clear in focus while the entirety of the surroundings are blurry. This extremely narrow depth of field allows Lewis to point his viewers' eyes to the camera and the camera only. Throughout this short film the depth of field that Peter Lewis uses in his shots enables his to create a visually appealing film that draws in and mystifies its viewers.
ReplyDeletePhillip Spain: The Camera, a short film by Peter Lewis, is an incredibly interesting film due largely because it has so much meaning hidden behind a relatively straight-forward approach. The film doesn't hold your hand through its story, and instead of devoting precious time to individual details, it instead focuses on the overall atmosphere of the film, allowing the audience to decipher the film's meaning themselves based on the general feel and tone of the film. The tone itself is the key aspect of the film, because if it had been done with different music and reactions from the protagonist, the film could have easily felt more like a horror film, but instead resulted in a charming, touching film about coping with loss and remembering loved ones. The critical juncture that determined the tone of the film was when the character first sees the boy in the photo she just took. This was the moment that, depending on the character's reaction to seeing this, determined how the rest of the film would play out. But instead of the protagonist seeming shocked or scared, she seemed happy and smiled, and went out of her way to take more pictures joyfully, guiding the audience and revealing the overall tone of the film.
ReplyDeleteCaroline Builta: "The Camera", a brief narrative film by Peter Lewis, is incredibly compelling because of his simplistic shot style. Towards the beginning of the film, the protagonist is framed largely in the center of the screen. These shots make the character seem as though she is in control of the story and of each of her choices. However, as the story progresses, and she discovers the camera and the mysterious boy, the way she is framed changes. She becomes more and more off-kilter, symbolizing that she is no longer the only part of the story - the dead space is a metaphor for the mysterious boy that she is chasing. Towards the end of the film, as she is running on the beach, her body actually veers partially off-screen. She is no longer in control, and Lewis expertly knows how to visually convey that. The score was imperative to this film as well - it easily could have taken an incredibly dark vibe, like a horror film, but instead it kept it longing and somewhat upbeat. It veered towards sad, however, it was never scary, and the score, the lighting, and the framing were all imperative to creating this mood.
ReplyDeleteFrom the opening shot Peter Lewis captured the audiences's attention with a series of shots and music that matches up perfectly. Lewis transition between each shot is very fluent. Although the shots were amazing the concept of the actress going to get the camera from the empty box was very odd. That may have been because of the lack of background information. That was one confusing aspect of the film. The overall concept of the film was interesting as the film went on the shots really began to capture the emotions on her face once she didn't see the guy in the pictures anymore. The film displayed many different emotions as it came to its resolution. The super tight shots allowed the audience to see the true emotion of the actress. As the background music picked up in tempo reaching the climax of the film the frequency of the transitions increased as well. Lewis displayed his creativity at the end of the film by bringing the two worlds together by allowing the actress to go into the picture with the guy who she had been following throughout the film.
ReplyDeleteSavannah Stanley: Peter Lewis encorporates a striking use of movement and sound in the short film "The Camera." From the establishing wide shots to the close ups focused on the main character's feet and hands, movement plays a huge part in the story of this film and in the characterisation of the girl. It expresses a warm and life that were intentionally defied in the last short film we saw. By contrast, the transition between shots at 1:47 creates the sensation of a picture being taken by establishing a shot and then immediately cutting to a wider view of the same scene. Movement is obviously also very crucial in the pictures taken by the polaroid: where the girl has expression through her movement, the boy is still and frozen in the photographs. Despite this, there is a striking relationship between the girl who we see in motion and the boy whose actions can only be caught in stills. Lewis furthers this relationship through the culmination of the story, where despite the girl becoming a part of the boy's reality in his frozen state, they are contrasted by the constant motion of the ocean that composes the background of the shot. Even in the final moments, movement and motion are vital to the theme and also the aesthetic of the film.
ReplyDeleteLewis's use of sound was also interesting in this film, though to an obviously lesser degree. In La J'etee, Marker conveyed his story through almost entirely still frames and sound via narration as well as music. In The Camera, Lewis removes the narration but incorporates the movement. The sound here is almost entirely music and environmental, not unlike our lab projects for the week. It exemplifies the ability of the director to tell a story without having to literally tell the story. The lack of dialogue made the relationship between the two characters all the more profound, and the noise of the environment aided in setting the scene without detracting from it.
Dustin Bennett: Peter Lewis's "The Camera" opens on a wide shot of a girl standing on the beach. This is the furthest we ever are from her, camera-wise at least, because this is the most alone we see her. The only other time we see her nearly as far is when she can't find the boy from the pictures and believes she'll never see him again. This is one example of Peter Lewis's great direction in the short.
ReplyDeleteHis quadruple-duty role as the director-writer-editor-composer allows a lot of excellent synchronicity between his roles. His direction synchronizes with the plot he's trying to get across to show how we're supposed to feel, which is almost always what the main character feels, and the music greatly increases the sense of urgency present once she loses track of the boy, who, in such an ambiguous film, could be anyone from her brother to a complete stranger.
A lot of the excitement in the short comes from a combination of the idyllic visuals, either from the beautiful shots of the beach or the lovely sunny interiors of the cabin, the pleasant piano music, and the sense of genuine wonder the actress displays. Overall, I thought this movie was really nice and sweet.
In Peter Lewis short film "The Camera", we are treated to an interesting narrative. We are given a main character, a female, who is seen walking in a sandy area. The camera begins slowly panning to the left and right and incorporating different shots in order to create a narrative scene. As the shots continue, the main character is shown an old house(we are not sure whether she knows this house) and walks in. The shot of her walking on the front steps and then cutting to her walking up the stairwell provide some key insights as too that comes next. We then find our self in a bedroom opening up a chest that reveals an old polaroid. The main character mood changes and she begins looking through the chest too find an old photo of a boy(presuming the are related). It changes the whole scene and the music begins to change too. She is enlightened about what she scenes and begins taking pictures. Through all of the individual shots, we can visually create a story behind what the narrative is supposed to be about and have the ability to create our own storyline behind it.
ReplyDeleteVictoria Walker: “The Camera” created by Peter Lewis is an interesting film that captivates the audience’s attention from start to finish. Lewis brilliantly uses depth of field, close-up shots, and subjective view to convey a wide array of emotions throughout the film. Essentially he guides the audience along revealing only what he wants them to see. Yet, he leaves space for the audience to make assumptions. It was interesting how Lewis sets up the film with an extreme long shot. It suggest that the girl is alone and she is looking for someone or something. In order to capture the wide array of emotions from the girl, Lewis uses a series of close-up shots. In the beginning of the film most of the close-up shots showed a lot of confusion. As the film progressed the close-up showed her in more of an excited state. The way Lewis structured the shots also suggested that the girl could be following a map using the pictures that she took. Subjective view was another key element used to narrate the story. It’s almost as if we, the audience, are peeking into her world. Depth of field and subjective view was also used when the girl approached the abandoned house. What I found most unique was how Lewis used symbolism. Initially, one could say the film was about a girl taking pictures to connect with her past. After a second watch, I came to the conclusion that the camera was used to depict the connection between two worlds. Hence, the Polaroid, being the old fashion camera that it is, symbolized the past. So what Lewis could be saying is, the camera was her way of connecting her present with her past. All the while, she is in a maze essentially using the pictures as a roadmap to get the mysterious man and her place of happiness.
ReplyDeleteRon Shaver: In the film "camera" by Peter Lewis it follows a young lady around as she wanders what seem to be an old vacation home, where she has a lot of memories stored. It was a really good film to watch because it made you feel like you were apart of the story.The lighting combined with the medium and close up shots were well timed. When the young lady discovered the camera, the emotions seem to shift and the tempo of the music picked up a bit. The beach scene was well thought out. Lewis transitioned from a very sad film to a suspense film, when the young lady could not find where the mysterious man was. However, at the end of the film both mysterious man and main character were at peace. Overall, it was an excellent film
ReplyDelete"The Camera," a short film by Peter Lewis, is a unique narrative based fantasy that follows a young, unnamed woman as she visits an old beach house and finds a camera that allows her to see a young man who isn't there at all. The way that the scenes were laid out made it very easy to follow the actual plot of the film. Even there was no dialogue, we could tell what the woman was thinking as she went through the house, taking photos of the strange man. The pure emotion the woman was showing was enough to teach us how she felt, what she was thinking, and how it related to how the viewer was thinking. What I find interesting was the use of multiple types of shots to convey both the emptiness of the home and the emotion stirring in the woman's heart as she became fascinated with her new friend. When it comes down to it, this film fascinated me and inspired me a bit to do more in my work.
ReplyDeletePeter Lewis' "The Camera" portrays a young girl who finds a camera in an old house that allows her to take pictures of things that are not actually there. One of the first things I noticed from the director are the wide array of different types of shots, particularly in the beginning. As the girl walks through the sand of the beach, a combination of still and tracking shots are used and structured in a way that gives the audience the sense that we are following her. The director also does a good job with using close ups to show emotion and the wide shot of the girl on the beach near the end to show isolation.
ReplyDeleteMario Cirinese: In the short film by Peter Lewis “The Camera” portrays a story about a young female characters that finds an old polaroid camera in a decrepit house. The opening scene expels a shot of the unnamed character walking across a tantalizing beach. Throughout the film many unanswered questions are asked, like why is she there and who’s house is she exploring? While walking on the beach the main character finds a house and enters with very motion oriented shots giving the audience a sense of unease. The main character goes through a series of many tight fitting shots while approaching the upper stairwell setting a tone in the film. Early in the short a subtle piano can be heard playing in the background to truly set the mood. Taking pictures in each room to show a boy similar to the main character’s age the director uses him as a tool to progress in the story. Towards the end, the main characters turn frantic looking for the apparition that once appeared in the photos she was taking on the camera. Overall this film could be interpreted and discerned in many different ways that leave a creative mark for the director and anyone else involved with this short film.
ReplyDeleteMagdalene Kennedy: The Camera is a curiously sweet and melancholy short film. Although in some ways the narrative is straightforward, the film has a strong element of ambiguity that really elevated it. I think the choice of music really added to the film--the slow and contemplative piano highlighted the tranquility of each shot. Despite the urgency with which the girl moved through parts of the short film, each shot seemed unhurried, dwelling instead on the delicate lighting of the cabin and the emotions on the girl's face. The shots were primarily closeups, until we arrived at the beach. The last shot reflected a joyful/sorrowful duality as we see that the girl has also disappeared, but appears happy to be united with the boy. It's this duality that, to me, really defines this short film as a whole and gives it such evocative qualities.
ReplyDeleteJohn Oldani: The Camera is an interesting story with good visuals. The beginning was slow and a little bit unnecessary in my opinion. It starts with her just walking around and not really doing anything. While this beginning does allow for the viewer to become connected with character, I think it could have been sped up some. While she looks throughout the house the viewers are left to wonder what is going on and what she is doing. We can clearly see every time when she leaves one room and goes into another. While the story climbs, we can see her emotions change as well, which is crucial to the understanding of the story. The variety of shots is good until it starts getting a little repetitive when she goes room from room, but there really aren't too many great angles that would have told the story in the way it needed to be told. I like how the film speeds up when she becomes more excited and intrigued, it brings the viewer on the ride with the character. The ending is a very interesting and good ending. While the viewer isn't exactly sure what to make of it, they are left with a happier and more content feeling that she is now with the guy in her pictures.
ReplyDeleteMcKenzie Miller: In “The Camera,” Peter Lewis creates a mysterious short film of a young girl finding a Polaroid camera that holds more to it than it looks. From the beginning, Lewis pulls his viewers in and catches their attention. The viewer does not have a background on who the girl is or what she is going into the house for, which makes it more intriguing. He includes many different frames of the girl, along with a variety of angles. He shoots her feet walking through the sand and up the steps. He gives the viewer a feeling that someone is watching by filming over her shoulder. Whenever the girl first entered the house, Lewis created a creepy element by going to a black screen and then having the slow piano music play in the background as she enters. He creates this mood up until the point when the viewer first sees the imaginary boy in the picture. The viewer is on the edge, wondering if this is about to turn into a horror film or something else. Then she takes more pictures, but she is able to calm the viewer by showing with her smile that it was not a scary environment. What is great about this film is that the viewer never takes their eye off of the girl in anticipation of her next move. At the end of the film, she takes a picture of herself on the beach and disappears. Then the camera zooms in on the polaroid picture, showing that the girl and the boy are together. This gives the viewer the freedom to interpret the sweet mystery at hand.
ReplyDelete"The Camera" by Peter Lewis is a story about a young woman who appears to be at a vacation home when she stumbles upon an old camera. This camera allows her to take photographs of things that aren't actually there. Lewis' use of close ups alongside the actresses emotions allow the audience to draw their own conclusions of how the young woman knows the man in the photographs. The overall concept of the film was great, from the shots to the use of music, I was amazed!
ReplyDeleteHannah Bynum: "The Camera" by Peter Lewis was a wonderfully executed short film portraying a girl who stumbles upon a polaroid camera and begins taking pictures. There is no dialogue so the delivery of the story relies on the actors and how Lewis chose to edit the film. The storyline could have easily fit in to a horror/thriller category since the primary action of the film revolves around a boy appearing mysteriously in pictures taken by the girl but instead Lewis turned the scenario into a sweet, almost fantasy type drama. The characters emotions and facial expressions along with the calm and cheerful music played a big role in establishing the tone of the film. I enjoyed the way Peter Lewis didn't give much information as to who the characters were or what their relation was but rather left it up to the audience to determine the meaning behind the photos.
ReplyDeleteHolly Hundsdorfer: "The Camera" By Peter lewis captivated me into trying to figure out the plot from the beginning. At first she is walking around and you start to wonder where the camera comes into play. I at first freaked out thinking this story was becoming some horrific tale when i saw the boy showing up with the photo, but since the lighting was still so bright and cheerful feeling- I had an idea it would go some place else. The music speeds up , the frames switch fast and she rushes around the room which gives it some sort of urgency as she tries to find the boy. She runs out to try and find the boy and ends up deciding to be with the boy in some shape or form. It's not clear exactly what happens we just know from the photo of them both that they end up together.
ReplyDeleteJack Beuckman: Peter Lewis's ,The Camera, the short film is about a young girl who finds an old Polaroid camera. The girl then begins to take pictures of a house and a boy appears in the pictures but he is not actually there in person. The boy leads her from the house down to the beach where it ends after she takes a selfie and the boy appears next to her. Lewis portrays the girl as curious and naive. Lewis's use of camera work helps show the curiosity. One of his shot that I thought that was done well was when the girl was walking up the stairs in the house and the camera was looking down vertically at her and followed her as she walked up. Lewis also utilized the landscape in the beginning and at the end. He had close ups of her feet in the sand and also medium shots of her with the sand dunes in the background. He had shots of her walking towards the camera while the camera was walking away from her. At the end of it she walks down to the beach where there are shots of the horizon of the ocean. I thought that the short film was very creative and had good cinematography. There was never a dull moment and it had my attention through the entire film.
ReplyDeleteJesse Tollison:
ReplyDeleteWith an intriguing concept and deep-seated themes about the the afterlife, parallel realities, and loneliness, "The Camera" by Peter Lewis leaves much to be desired. The film opens with a simple piano melody, meant to establish the general mood of the piece as being somber and thought provoking, but as the film goes on, and the plot turns to its rising action, crisis, and climax, instead of using the original score to develop these new tensions, it stays notably unchanged, relying on the undertone established in the beginning to carry the movement of the piece. This may be excusable if it weren't for the slow opening and underwhelming rising action, but the beginning features a minute of the girl walking through the landscape without giving us any new information as to the direction of the story. The same effect could be had by simply using an establishing shot of her in the middle of nowhere at the steps leading up to the house. This shorter opening would free up many lost seconds while still establishing all of the same information through the setting and music. This free window of time would better be used to build to the climax more naturally. Where she only takes a few photos of the boy before he disappears, we could see them build a rapport through these photos, making his disappearance more emotionally impactful on the audience. Following this with a more appropriate music build, perhaps using more than just a piano, the chase out to the ocean could be paired with photo after photo of her trying to find him in the landscape, making the fact that she finally takes a picture with him that much more poignant.
Christian Lundin: "The Camera" by Peter Lewis is a heartwarming piece that tells a simple story with minimalist style. Taking place on a beach, a young girl comes across an empty beach house, in which she finds an old polaroid camera that shows a boy in the room with her in the prints. The key elements to this films tone is the soft lighting and endearing piano score that make sure the audience is peacefully surprised at each discovery the girl makes throughout. For most of the film, it is unclear what is drawing this girl into the house and what forces her to come across this camera, but by the end, the audience is left with an interpretation to make: did she know this boy? Did she wish she knew this boy? Whichever question the viewer chooses to answer, its a hopeful tale that allows comfort with loss. This piece successfully takes advantage of natural light from the sun setting, which gives the film almost a romantic accent in the final scene, making the main character's connection with the boy in the photo more personal and more significant.
ReplyDeleteBlake Hudson: Peter Lewis's "The Camera" is a simple, beautifully shot film that tells an intriguing, but ultimately heartwarming story. The film is successfully scored with a simple piano track that keeps the pace throughout the film and helps the piece find rhythm and emotion, although every shot isn't necessarily cut to the beat. The mood set by the music is incredibly successful though - my initial reaction to the "ghost boy" appearing in the photos was a hint of fear, but, while the piano did have a hint of mysteriousness, it quickly returned to it's comforting tone, telling the audience that things haven't taken a turn for the worse. I would've like a little more explanation as to who the boy was, but ultimately it was left to the audience's imagination. Use of natural lighting, good cuts with action, and an interesting ending were more key components to this films success.
ReplyDeleteJoshua Perkins: "The Camera" by Peter Lewis is a very moving film about a girl using photos to go through her memories. She finds a camera in a house along the beach and quickly realizes every photo she takes features a man that one can assume is a recently lost loved one. She keeps taking pictures that translate into memories of the man and ultimately ends with her taking a picture of herself with the man next to her.
ReplyDeleteTaylor Hendrix: “The Camera” by Peter Lewis depicts the strength between a photographer and her camera, in my opinion. At first, you see the girl’s bare feet climbing up the hill and the stairs to get to the abandoned beach house. The camera following the girl becomes more and more shaky as the girl goes inside the beach house and finds the camera. The music becomes more intensive as she realizes that she can see the boy, making the short much more dramatic. I loved that the narrative was up the viewers’ imagination. The main character never speaks, thus we never know what she is thinking. This makes the interpretation our own. As I am reading some of the other comments, some people think the boy is a lost love, while others think that the boy is a lost brother. My opinion is that he is a lost brother and she wants to see him in any way that she can. Hence, the reason why she is taking pictures, to find him. As the girl loses the boy, she starts hurrying towards where she thinks he might be. Not only does the music speed up with her movement, so does the camera. The increased shakiness of the camera connects to the emotions of the girl and they rushed state she feels to find the boy. In the end, the selfie with the boy poses questions like, “Was the girl ever real?” or “Was this the girl’s way of seeing the ghost of her boyfriend or brother?” This is the reason that I really enjoyed this short, it is all in how the viewer interprets this short.
ReplyDeleteTess Dillon: The Camera by Peter Lewis is a pensive dream-like live action short that follows a young woman from the beach to a near-by cottage. The images shown are somehow comforting and we see that the girl feels at home, almost as though she is rediscovering a place she once knew from a memory. The aesthetic is romantic, light and textures are imbue a sense of purity and nostalgia. The angles of the video camera juxtaposed with the angles the girl chooses for her polaroid camera could have made for a tight or awkward shot, but Lewis executes it perfectly. The audience still feels a sense of tension as they wait for the polaroid to be exposed but the angles and frames chosen by Lewis allow for a playful intensity to come from the actress as she moves from room to room. The Camera leaves the viewer with a melancholy sense of haunting. As though we've witnessed the spirit world and we are somehow comforted by knowing it's there, and we are sad to see it go. The dedication and credits made the piece all the more meaningful as did the score that accompanied the beautiful photography.
ReplyDeleteKaty Hale: The Camera by Peter Lewis struck me a little by surprise. From the beginning I was skeptical of what was going to happen next, and I was even confused on what the actual plot was. Although I was confused from the start, the film gave me some sort of comfort, and put the characters lives really into perspective for me. The characters gave me a form of comfort that I could not explain. Since the girl felt at home, I kind of felt as home with her. When she was trying to trace back her memory, I sympathized for her as a viewer. I put it into perspective of how I would have felt if I was in her same position and had come back remembering nothing, then suddenly remembering and feeling at home again. I cannot imagine how that would feel like, but I tried to as a viewer. Lewis' shots were in perfect depth of the characters and he had them, as well as the camera exactly where he wanted them. The feel of the film is a little spooky, which converted my thoughts a lot. I felt like Lewis was going to do something horrific, but instead he made the character welcome and safe, which I was really happy about. I kept thinking there was going to be a plot twist, or it was going to end as a cliff hanger, but he resolved the characters situations perfectly, and explained everything directly as it should be. I loved the end when he credited the piece because it gave it more of a sense of "home," which we all need sometimes.
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