HW 3b - Existing continuity sequence analysis

The continuity sequence I have chosen is from the 2015 blockbuster film, Jurassic World. This scene consists of a worker in the raptor habitat falling into the cage and then the male protagonist rushes into save him by risking his life.

The sequence begins with a birds eye view shot of the worker attempting to catch a pig with a net. His attempt ends with failure as we are then taken to a mid-shot of one of the raptors catching the pig and in turn bringing the man of his bridge. His fall from the bridge is captured in three shots and in perfect continuity; it starts with an extreme low angle shot, but then transitions into long shot which is face on to the falling man and then a high angle long shot of the man lying on the floor. This transition portrays the diminished power that the man experienced in his fall as a high angle shot implies vulnerability.

For the next 10 seconds the sequence cross-cuts between the action of the man being surrounded by deadly raptors and the protagonist rushing from safety into danger in an attempt to save him. The majority of these shots are long shots however one of the first shot in this 10 second area is a close up of the protagonist face in order to capture his emotion. Following this we witness many shot/reverse/shots which follow the dialogue between Owen, the protagonist, and the raptors' screeching.

In order not to break the 180 degree rule the camera always stays on the right side of Owen as this keeps the logic of the sequence in check. Furthermore, this is done by the camera facing the front of Owen to capture his dialogue and emotion, in close-ups and mid-shots or behind him to capture his movement into new areas of the raptor enclosure, in long shots and mid-shots.

The 30 degree rule is also not broken as this would create jump cuts which would cause the narrative flow of the sequence to be interrupted. In order not to break this rule the camera constantly cross-cuts to other charsets instead of solely focusing on Owen for the entirety of the sequence.

In addition to all this, the camera also keeps a constant eye line with Owen or if necessary a low angle shots as this ensures the audience is always confident he is not in a vulnerable situation while also making the audience feel as if they are apart of the sequence by following part of Owen's POV.