Film theories are a set of scholarly approaches in the field of cinema that began in the 1920s. They question the formal and essential attributes of motion pictures to provide conceptual framework for understanding the relationship between films and society, individual viewers, reality, and other arts. During the silent era of filmmaking that existed from mid-1890s to early 1920s, the theorists were concerned with defining the medium element used by the directors in their artistic work. The film theorists in the aforesaid period such as Sergei Eisentein and Dziga Vertov emphasized that film was different from reality and it should be considered as an art form ( Busuttil, 2016) . However, in early 1980s to late 1990s, film theorists achieved deeper prominence by focusing on the practical elements of movie production, writing, criticism, and editing ( Busuttil, 2016) . The notable film theories include formalist, auteur, cognitive, structuralist, mise-en-scene, and psychoanalytic. The paper will discuss how Robbert Zemeckis utilized diegetic and mise-en-scene theory to make the Forrest Gump movie.
Theories of Filmmaking in Forrest Gump
The film Forrest Gump comprises diegetic and mise-en-scene theories, genres, sub-genres, and movie elements. Diegetic theory entails the use of sounds in producing a film (Penner, 2017. Off-screen sounds of bikes and tracks demonstrate the theoretical application of diegetic in Forrest Gump . Mise-en-scene entails the arrangement of stage and scenery properties in a film. I n Forrest Gump , Zemeck used a high-key lighting shot demonstrated by few shadows in main objects and frames ( Ramos Pinto, 2018) . Genre is a specific content displayed in the film. The genres used in producing Forrest Gump are comedy and drama. An example of comedy scenes is when Forrest gets into a flight with Westly. He apologizes to a black panther by saying, "I am sorry I had a fight in the middle of a black panther party" ( Häusler & Hanke, 2016 ). Drama is displayed when Forrest was narrating to people about his life, the war, and his dying mother. The sub-genre presented in the film is war in Vietnam War, which was demonstrated by scenes with injured soldiers. The elements of film utilized in Forrest Gump are sounds based on close shots and light.
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Mise-en-Scene Theory
The mise-en-scene theoretical applications used in filmmaking include lighting, shot composition, and props. The sequence of arrangement used by the filmmaker is high-key lighting. The colors are neither saturated nor bright, making the lighting effect of the film ambient ( Chattopadhyay, 2017) . The choice of lighting is to facilitate the development of the naturalistic film. The director of Forrest Gump concentrated on the colors of the sky, clear and blue, to create a feeling of peace and fate for Forrest and other characters ( Ramos Pinto, 2018) . The lighting of the film is also based on the dark green color of the trees and grass. The selection of the color is to create the differences between a dream and reality. The lighting is demonstrated in the photograph below.
The shot composition used by Zemeckis is tilt and wide shots. The tilt shots were used to show the whole body of the main character in a close-up. This type of shot enabled the filmmaker to show the feelings of Forrest. On the other hand, wide shots were used to demonstrate the environment in which the story began. In the first minute of the film, Zemeckis captured images of trees, buildings, and the city ( Häusler & Hanke, 2016) . In the background, the props that include dirty shoes and a feather were captured using a close-up shot, as illustrated in the picture below.
Diegetic Theory
The filmmaker also utilized the diegetic approach in Forrest Gump . The film's title sequence begins with relaxing and soft music that accompanies the feather throughout Forrest's journey ( Penner, 2017) . As soon as the feather falls to the ground, the diegetic sounds increase. The other sounds that are heard include the chirping of the birds, noise from the case when Forrest opens, and buses. Throughout the film, the use of diegetic sounds portrays reality and life against the false magical world that Forrest has been living. T he diegetic sound is demonstrated in the first two minutes and forty-seven seconds in the film ( The3feeman, 2009 ).
Zemeckis also used on-screen sounds in the making of the film. The sound of Jenny telling Forrest to run is one example of the application of diegetic sounds. Also, the film displays sound effects in the background. For instance, the audience can hear the sound of candy being wrapped and see it at the same time ( Chattopadhyay, 2017) . The filmmaker uses the production technique to connect the audience to the scene.
Film Production in Forrest Gump
The production methods that Zemeckis used in Forrest Gump include the spatial relationships between shots and special effects. The spatial relationship between shots entails editing a film to create a sense in the viewer's mind ( Narayan & Kadiyali, 2016) . In Forrest Gump , the overall space of the scenes, such as in the height, depth, and width of the film frame, is limited. A good example of applying the technique in the film is in the scene where Forrest is sitting on a bench with his black housekeeper while narrating a story. The picture below is a demonstration of the spatial relationship between shots.
The special effects used in Forrest Gump are weaving of archival footage seamlessly into the film's story. For example, the production technique facilitated the shaking of hands between Forrest and Presidents Johnson, Nixon, and Kennedy. Other significant special effects that Zeckemis used in the film production include the transformation of Lieutenant Dan into a double amputee, crowds in the national mall, scenes of war in Vietnam, and filling of an Alabama football stadium with a group of raucous fans ( Narayan & Kadiyali, 2016) . The filmic effect of erasing Sinise's legs using virtual methods also contributed to the special effects in the film production. The image below demonstrates an example of the use of special effects.
The film Forrest Gump is an illustration of the application of film theories. The filmmaker based his work on mise-en-scene and diegetic theories to outline his thematic concerns. The theoretical frameworks and methods of production used led to the sequential development of the film. The props, costumes, and light effects were important in understanding that peace, pain, and tragedy are related. The diegetic sounds and props used led to the differentiation between dream and reality and pain and peace. Creating a natural film environment using audio and visuals facilitated the creation of a strong narrative.
References
Busuttil, D. (2016). Film Narrative: A study of three important film theorists and filmmakers. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/290607935
Chattopadhyay, B. (2017). Reconstructing atmospheres: Ambient sound in film and media production. Communication and the Public , 2 (4), 352-364. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F2057047317742171
Häusler, C. O., & Hanke, M. (2016). An annotation of cuts, depicted locations, and temporal progression in the motion picture" Forrest Gump". F1000Research , 5 . https://dx.doi.org/10.12688%2Ff1000research.9536.1
Narayan, V., & Kadiyali, V. (2016). Repeated interactions and improved outcomes: an empirical analysis of movie production in the United States. Management Science , 62 (2), 591-607. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.2139
Penner, N. (2017). Rethinking the Diegetic/Nondiegetic Distinction in the Film Musical. Music and the Moving Image , 10 (3), 3-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/13556509.2017.1338551
Ramos Pinto, S. (2018). Film, dialects and subtitles: A analytical framework for the study of non-standard varieties in subtitling. The Translator , 24 (1), 17-34.
The3feeman. (2009). Forrest Gump opening scene - Alan Silvestri introduction . YouTube. https://youtu.be/W7voy1vit6Y
