Contextual Research - Dog Altogether (2007)

Dog Altogether (2007)

Contextual Research - Short Film

Dog Altogether (2007), is a film following Joe, a man who searches for redemption as his explosive temper and irratic behaviour slowly causes him to self-destruct. The film is closely based on the writer / director (Paddy Constatine)'s own experiences growing up around his Father (modelled on the character of Joe). The title of the film itself, "Dog Altogether" comes from an Irish expression Paddy's father would use when situations became desperate - highlighting the dire, yet personal nature of the film's story.

Sound design, or in this case a lack of, is prevalent within the film; as a lot of the film's sound is diegetic, or natural - for example the ambient sounds of wind or city streets. A non-diegetic soundtrack is used at 8:07, consisting of a simple sad, yet hopeful piano melody:

Opening shot - Slow dolly shot moving from a close up
to wide shot of dead body, slowly revealing the scene and setting

This is the only use of non-diegetic sound in the film, and occurs as Joe first sees Anita - creating a motif to perhaps foreshadow his redemption at her hands. The lack of an extravagant film soundtrack emphasises the severity of Joe's situation, as there are no distractions from the unfolding events, leaving them to simply resonate amongst the audience and Joe himself. This is a simple yet powerful idea which I intend to use in my own film, especially in my opening shot. I had planned to include music over this, but I think silence would be more resonant considering the already powerful image of a dead body on the floor, and the silent nature of death, a theme at the heart of my story.  Instead, I think I will use my soundtrack to close off my film, or perhaps emphasise certain points of the dialogue.