When You Find Me Review

"When You Find Me"

Using the story themes/elements we reviewed from the "Project Imagination", please identify the 9 elements used in the film. Include screen shots from the film as evidence. Describe how the film incorporates each element/ theme. 

1. Character

The element of character establishes the traits of a single subject by focusing on the certain person or subject. In the film, When You Find Me, Character is established when we focus on the two girls after they come from the hospital after their mother dies. In this shot, her simple expression portrays her confusion and unknowing due to being so young and innocent.

2. Setting

Setting describes the time and location of a scene. This submitted photo inspired the broken down airplane in the film. They recreated both the interior and exterior of a broken/crashed airplane in the middle of a dense forest area.

3. Backstory

Backstory provides fuller understanding of the film or scene. This theme was not released when producing this film, therefore there is no inspiration photo. However, backstory can still be seen when we flashback to the hospital room where one daughter gets in an argument with her mother who is dying of cancer. 

4. Goal

Goal is whatever the character wants or is pursuing. The inspiration goal photo for this film depicted a girl reaching out to her window, wanting to get to some sci-fi space craft or entity. This inspired the illustrated dream sequence within the film, where the younger daughter's goal is to go into space and find her mother.

5. Time

Time represents a point within history. In this shot from the film, the context behind this is that the older daughter was finally able to find peace with her late mother after so many years by spiritually going the the place that her younger sibling had found as a child. This was inspired from this photo by Brooke Shaden where two girls are running with a lantern in a field.

6. Relationship

The inspiration relationship picture depicted a couple in a hospital with one of them hooked up to many apparatuses. Howard took this and used it to establish that the mother dies of cancer in the narrative. This shot signifies the relationship the father and children had with the mother and how sensitive of a situation it must have been to see her dead like such.

7. Obstacle

The picture of a large medieval gate represented the large cemetery gate in the film. These obstacles prevented the girl from getting to her said "spaceship". As she was about to give up, her sister offers a boost in hopes of her younger sibling understanding that she won't see mom anymore.

8. Mood

Mood is anything conveying atmosphere, tone, or emotion. In the film, the inspiration photo was recreated in order to establish emotions of loneliness or isolation, as she smokes alone in focus with the rest of the city blurred out and indistinguishable. 

9. Unknown

The unknown is used very effectively here as the film opens up with a shot of some obscure location with a large tree in midst of a flat prairie. The odd location and color tone arouses questions and interest within the viewers, for they want to continue watching to figure out what's happening in this scene.