Cinematography and editing in COG and DBATB

Cinematography and editing in City of God and Diving Bell and the Butterfly:

Camerawork and lighting. Space and pace.

1.) Diving Bell and the Butterfly. 

The use of the camera in the shaving scene and the fathers day scene, How is meaning created?

- The handheld camera in papinou's apartment shows the frantic movement of JeanDo and how he lives fast paced and doesn't have quality time to spend with his father. This juxtaposes with the following scene as the camera on the beach is static. This portrays his changing lifestyle as he lived a chaotic and face paced life compared to after his accident where he becomes immobile which is represented through the static camera. The juxtaposition is used to drastically compare the two stages of his life. By placing these scenes next to each other it heightens the effect of his paralysis.

The fantasy sequence, how is meaning created?

- The close shots at the start of the sequence focusing upon the butterfly shows us the origin of his imagination. By the end of the sequence the mid and wider shots show the expansion of his imagination. It represents his expanding mind and him opening up to reminisce on his memories. Imagination opens up and the initial fantasy of butterflies leads on to the memories flooding back to him. By the fading from Jean Do's face to the butterfly confirms to us it is his imagination.
- The fantasy sequence ends with a montage of photos from Jean Do's life edited in reverse chronology. This is used to evoke emotion as it heightens are sense of sympathy. The fact that it shows him during his childhood shows that it could happen to anyone. It shows a regular child having fun and unknowing of what would happen. An unremarkable person has as remarkable illness that he didn't know was going to happen.
- The editing of the fantasy scene confirms that we are seeing Jean Do's imagination in action.

2.) City of God

In City of God, the story of the apartment sequence, how is meaning created?
- The static position of the camera throughout the apartment sequence shows we are the spectator like an audience in a theatre. Shows to us we are just observing the transition of the apartment and not involved in the action. The fade between the scenes shows to us the passing of time. The constant fade allows us to see that a significant amount of time has passed. The lighting throughout the sequence reflects the mood of whats happening. At the start the room is warm when it is occupied by the women. By the time we see Lil Ze's arrival the lighting changes to cold and grey colours which reflects the mood of the favela when it is taken over by him. When we see carrot kill his friend the lighting is dark to show the serious nature of the new drug business carrot has joined. The loss of lighting also shows the buildings growing in size as the favela changes over time. The new taller buildings block the light. The short sequence represents the entire development of the favela throughout the film. Premonition of little Ze's entrance.
In the film, What techniques have been used to draw attention to characters and to emphasise the importance of the action simultaneously taking place. 

- The freeze frames that we see when we are introduced to main characters shows there importance. The split screen used shows that two things are happening simultaneously.
The editing in the film has been described as restless.
- This reflects the life of people in the favela. At some points the characters are chilled and using drugs and suddenly they are at war and killing others. The maniac life of the people in the favela is reflected through the editing.
The flying chicken scene.
- The chicken reflects the dreams of people in the favela never come true. It shows that you cannot escape from the favela. It reflects the plot line of the film as the people of the favela struggle to escape. The knife piercing through the black screen shows how peoples life are interrupted from the violence of the gangs.