NEA evaluation

1. Evaluation Hana Kudryavtseva 4150 Alleyn’s School 10802
Page 1
A short film’s definition is dependent on the conventional length of feature films of the time.
The dawn of filmmaking saw a minute or less of footage being produced, and with the
gradually growing confidence in the medium this increased to ten, then forty minutes, the
latter of which is considered to be the length of a short film today. Typically acting as an
entry-level practice for new filmmakers, short films gain exposure primarily through feature
film festivals and the internet. The length of a short film acts as a limitation to the amount of
content and ideas expressed, however allows room for creative and efficient exposition - my
short film, ‘Tea Party’, cuts down on run time effectively by dedicating only a minute to the
car crash sequence (in which we both meet and see the death of the protagonist), immediately
establishing the circumstances that explain his situation in the film later on, whilst at the same
time leaving large room for ambiguity to sustain suspense and attention.
‘Tea Party’ follows Noah, whose involvement in a fatal road accident leads to him meeting
Evie, a young girl whose struggle with bereavement inspires him to take on the role of an
‘imaginary’ friend. The title of the film was one of the first concrete decisions made before
production even began, and required little to no deliberation. It carries relevant connotations
of a child’s innocence and a human tendency to find relief and escape in pretend play; it
seems to perfectly encompass the film’s plot and meaning, whilst at the same time preserving
the ambiguity of the actual synopsis. The font in which the title and credits are presented are
made to resemble a child’s writing in the way random letters are capitalised.
‘Tea Party’ heavily resembles Lewis Arnold’s 2011 ‘Echo’ - a story of 17-year-old Caroline,
who continuously relives her father’s death as a result of a road collision. Whilst Arnold’s
film is based on true events and maintains a sense of realism throughout, ‘Tea Party’
approaches the subject of death and child psychology in a more ambiguous and romanticised
way, with the application of a supernatural resolution (Noah becoming a guardian angel) to
grant a sense of a happy ending and thus satisfaction to the viewer. Caroline however is not
shown to obtain an outlet for healing from her trauma; the last shot of ‘Echo’ is a close-up of
her sobbing into the phone, a loop that instills the viewer with little hope.
Genre, as defined by Steve Neale in 1991, is a system of “orientations, expectations and
conventions that circulate between industry, text and subject”. ‘Tea Party’ is a drama - just
like Caroline in ‘Echo’ attempting to deal with the death of her father and Connor in Nick
Rowland’s 2014 ‘Slap’ struggling to accept his sexuality, my film is serious, focusing on
realistic conflicts, both internal and external. Noah’s ‘happy ending’ can only come from the
resolution of his internal conflict; acceptance of his death. This is a theme borrowed from
films such as Jerry Zucker’s “Ghost” and Night Shyamalan’s “Sixth Sense”, in which spirits
are shown to struggle with coming to terms with their deaths.
The film is broken down into 3 clear parts; a narrative structure influenced by Tzvetan
Todorov’s three-act model. This is a framework used when understanding modern
Despite similar themes,
the endings of ‘Echo’ and
‘Tea Party’ are vastly
different.

2. Evaluation Hana Kudryavtseva 4150 Alleyn’s School 10802
Page 2
storytelling and consists of a Setup, a Confrontation and a Resolution. Todorov suggested that
in a storyline, characters go from an equilibrium to some sort of disequilibrium, before the
equilibrium is restored at the end, usually with some changes in place (ie the eradication of
the possibility of the disequilibrium occurring again). Within my film, this structure is
unambiguously pronounced; for example, the final shot is the same wide shot that the viewer
saw when Noah first woke up in the room, however it is clear that a changed equilibrium has
now been achieved.
The first ‘act’ consists of Noah’s bike ride - the viewer acquaints themselves with the hero,
understanding he actively exists within his world and is in touch with those around him (as
conveyed by him texting in the opening shot). These seemingly obvious details are essential
for what is to come; his death marks the moment he will no longer exist as before. Even
though he is no longer in touch with reality as a physical being, his afterlife is the only time
within the film that we see him interact with another person - whilst alive, although connected
electronically, Noah seems distant. Thus, this is ‘The Setup’; Noah’s disorientation upon
waking up in Evie’s room in broad daylight is coherent, as the last thing he seems to
remember is riding his bike at nighttime. Colour correction was used to make the first act
distinct from the following two, which are romanticized through usage of warmer filters; this
further clarified that difference.
The
seco
nd
act is The Confrontation, in which Noah attempts to navigate the space around him and figure
out what happened. The script was written in a way that would mean Evie slowly gives him
the right information for him to come to the realisation necessary for the third and final ‘act’.
Following a preview screening I received unanimous feedback that the realisation Noah
undergoes is clearly indicated within the narrative; all audience members marked the
beginning of Noah’s walk back up the stairs as the moment the third act begins; when he
reaches an understanding of his new life and role within it.
Throughout, microelements are used to express the differences between Noah and Evie. In
the wide shot as well as the mid-shot from the window, Noah is positioned directly in the
sunlight, and the prearranged light colours he is wearing illuminate him within the space of
the room. Cinematography situates the viewer largely with Noah throughout; during his
Opening shot of Noah texting displays him physically in touch (yet distanced)from the world.

3. Evaluation Hana Kudryavtseva 4150 Alleyn’s School 10802
Page 3
conversation with Evie in which she explains how her parents passed away, instead of a shot-
reverse shot a close-up on his face is used. This is because the importance of this sequence
doesn’t lie in Evie’s emotion; it is at this moment that Noah begins to understand his
connection to her. The brief cut back to a POV shot with him on a bicycle that was seen in the
crash scene strings together the first act with the second two; something the audience at the
preview screening agreed was crucial for the understanding that it is not a coincidence he
found himself with Evie - it is because her parents died in the same accident.
After realising Auntie Ellie can’t see him, Noah follows her out of the room to find out more
and a seemingly meaningless close-up on him narrowing the opening of the door is shown.
This however shapes a motif in the film; a repeated pattern or idea in an artistic work that acts
in support of a theme or message. In ‘Tea Party’, doors symbolise passageways from one life
to another and ‘opening up’ to others. The door to Evie’s bedroom starts off shut, conveying
her unresolved inner issues, and is then opened wide by Auntie Ellie, whose function within
the narrative is to try to get Evie to open up (“I’ll leave the door open?”). As Noah walks out
of the room, the close up on him in the doorway strengthens the meaning of the same shot
repeated later, in which he stands outside with a light from Evie’s bedroom shining on his
face.
First close-up on Noah
glancing back at the
door strengthens the
meaning of the same
shot repeated later in the
film.
Noah’s costume and positioning illuminates him within the room, whilst Evie is in the dark.

4. Evaluation Hana Kudryavtseva 4150 Alleyn’s School 10802
Page 4
As Noah listens in on the conversation downstairs, he sits on the staircase. The fact that he is
not in the kitchen with the aunt and uncle is significant in stressing his distance from them.
As the camera cuts to a profile close-up of Auntie Ellie, in the background Noah is missing
from the stairs that the audience just saw him on - he is non-existent within their space. As he
grows to understand what has happened, his walk up the stairs and through the door mimics
an ascent into heaven, parodying the concept of a “light at the end of the tunnel”.
Noah’s metaphorical ascent into an ‘afterlife’.
Noah shown to be sitting on the stairs in the first shot, yet
missing in the following close-up.

5. Evaluation Hana Kudryavtseva 4150 Alleyn’s School 10802
Page 5
The film strays from conventional narrative structure in having an open ending. Despite there
being a sense of resolution, the audience is left with several questions, and the aim of this is
to rid one of the expectation that everything needs to be explained. Despite the ‘hero’s’ death,
there is a sense of rebirth and continuation. The spectator isn’t explicitly made aware of a
divine or spiritual force that causes the narrative to unfold the way it does, but the ambiguity
prompts one to consider their own take on the story; the film does not aim to point towards
any concrete religious view of the afterlife.
Word count: 1450.