Short Film Analysis - 2)Umbilical

Another short film that our teacher told us to look at and analyse was "Umbilical". This short animated film won the Best Animated Short Film, as well as a variety of other awards back in 2009. This particular short story tells the tale of a child's connection to the world. 

Camera work:

• A panning shot is first included to show the umbilical cord attached to the head of the small child.
• The close up of the crayons and the character's drawing help to show that he/she is alone and has no friends so he/she has to draw them inside as they are trapped inside.
• Low angle of the child looking up at the window, to suggests that is where she wants to be.
• A wide shot is included after you gets shocked from the umbilical cord to show that the character is suffering in the dark, when he/she could be outside having fun.
• High angle of the child when he/she realises that they can't get out, to show that he/she is trapped in a vulnerable position.

Editing:

• The use of cuts helps to emphasise the different scenes.
• The fact that the clip is animated is different from previous short films as they have been in human. form. Therefore, the animation helps to reflect the main message that it is a child's story and emphasises the child's imagination.
• The fade out at the end to show that the children are "glued" the the TV and that there is no turning back from the new advances in technology.

Sound:

• Laughter of the child, express her enjoyment when playing with the ball. This could have a bigger message that Gray was trying to produce suggesting that due to the advance of technology, the simple things in life like playing outside with a ball is being replaced with the "cruelty" of the TV trapping the children inside all day long.
• The instruments being played, such as the piano to represent her/his happiness when playing with the ball or when she/he is down and depressed.
• Loud music which continues to get louder at the end when the TV is on to imply that technology is evil and "destroying" a child's fun, imagination and child hood. 

Mise-en-scene:

• Drawings which cover the floor, to suggest that he/she is all alone and has to create imaginary friends to save himself/herself from boredom.
• He/she stands on the packet crayons whilst walking back to the TV, to imply that technology now controls children's mind and also symbolises the child's hopes and dreams have been crushed.
• The umbilical cord connected on his/her head restrains her from going any further, to imply that the character is getting held back from her true happiness.

Conclusion:
Overall, I think what Rowan Gray was trying to capture the idea that children from this generation are now “attached” or "trapped" to the advance in technologies instead of going outside to play in the fresh air, which is cleverly sybolised by the umbilical cord connected to the TV. I believe this is an extremely clever short film, as it has a deeper message conveyed throughout the animated clip. Although at first glance, the audience may not appreciate what it was made for, the closer you analyse and pick the clip apart, the clearer the understanding to what point Gray was trying to create. On the whole, it shows how something simple can have such an effect on the audience, as the subtleties included unravel a wider meaning.