Red Room Shot List

Red Room’ shot list

The film opens with an establishing shot of an isolated vehicle driving towards the camera on an open road. The camera then moves inside the car and into an over-the-shoulder shot of the driver. The scene cuts to a flashback where the driver recalls an earlier conversation he had with a lawyer. The camera fades to white as it is conventional for flashbacks to be accompanied by fades to and from white. The film changes to black and white colours to emphasise the fact that it is a flashback. The flashback begins with an over-the-shoulder shot looking over the main character’s shoulder at the lawyer. The camera then moves into a high-angle shot where the camera is looking down on the main character and lawyer as it dominates over the pair. A 180 degree shot is used as the camera rotates the length of the table into a wide shot, followed by a two-shot and eventually finishing with an over-the-shoulder shot looking over the shoulder of the lawyer and at the main character. Shot-reverse-shot editing is used to highlight the conversation between the two characters. The camera then fades to white once more and back into the over-the-shoulder shot of the driver.

Scene switches to the main character climbing the stairs. A high-angle mid-shot is used to show his confusion as he searches for his answers. Scene then cuts to a mid-shot of the main character attempting to turn the lights on, using a mid-shot allows the camera to view the actions of the actor. The main character then picks up a book; the camera is positioned at a low-angle and tilts up as the book is raised from the floor. The camera then tracks the movement of the book before jumping into a close-up of main character assessing the book. A focus pull is then used to lead into the next shot; a high-angle shot of a sink which is showing running water. There is a close-up of the sink as the main character turns the taps off before the camera cuts to a long-shot of main character looking around a room. The actor moves further away from the camera so the shot changes to an extreme long-shot. The camera then cuts into an over-the-shoulder shot of the main character sitting in an armchair staring at pictures of him and his dead mother however his face has been scratched out. A mid-shot shows the main character discovering the hidden pictures on the wall. The camera cuts to a close-up point-of-view shot of the main character looking in a mirror. The shot is seen at a low-angle as the main character is shown to be dominant over the camera.

The camera cuts to a mid-shot which tracks the main characters movements around the car. A point-of-view shot shows a secondary character talking to the main character and giving him a warning. There is a close-up on the secondary character to show her facial expression as she delivers her warning. The camera switches to a wide-shot; we see a close-up of the main character’s expression as he tears photographs of him and his mother from the wall but also see the door slam shut in the background to add effect to the gloomy atmosphere. The camera moves into a long-shot of the main character kicking the door trying to break in. Fast-paced editing is accompanied by handheld camera action to add suspense and heighten tension. The fast-paced montage continues with a long-shot of the main character moving into an extreme close-up before moving into a point-of-view shot and then a mid-shot once more before the main character jumps down the stairs. The camera quickly cuts to a low-angle shot as we view the action from an alternative viewpoint; this is known as match on action.

An extreme long-shot shows the main character running, the camera is tracking his movement. Handheld camerawork is used to demonstrate a sense of urgency and fear. The camera cuts back to the previous mid-shot of the main character discovering the hidden pictures on the wall, this is an example of non-continuity editing. The narrative returns to the running scene, a close-up of the main character illustrates his desire to escape the proximity. Handheld camerawork is used once more to further demonstrate the main character’s urgency. The camera then becomes still as the main character finally escapes it; the camera is almost acting as the evil that the main character is running from. The camera moves from a point-of-view shot from the main character looking at the wall into an extreme close-up of him ripping the photographs down from the wall, this illustrates his anger and pain.

A long-shot shows a carer coming towards the main character who is in the foreground of the shot. The camera switches to a mid-shot when we see more of the main character before it becomes a two-shot when the two characters interact for the first time. The male character is conventionally higher in the frame than the female character to demonstrate male dominance and superiority. A low-angle extreme long-shot shows the main character struggling to escape from the room. The shot is conventional and the fact that it has been shot at an angle suggests that something is not quite right. A low-angle mid-shot shows the main character looking at his childhood memories. He is intentionally filmed on the left-hand side of the frame while on the right-hand side of the frame the television switches itself on, this further adds to the unusual atmosphere that has been established throughout the trailer and tension is heightened as a result.

The camera switches to a point-of-view shot of the driver inside the car. The camera shows the main character emerging from the bushes to indicate panic and fear. The final shot is an extreme close-up showing the main character walking past the door. As he moves past the door a piece of newspaper falls from it and reveals the words, ‘Red Room’. The scene fades to black as the letters of ‘Red Room’ turn to a bright, blood-like red and take up the centre position of the screen.