Emotions, how we feel them,
and how we perceive them are the backbone of
the human experience. For a film to be effective, it must
move an audience emotionally. If a viewer leaves a theater
feeling nothing, they'll likely consider the movie a failure. - That movie sucked. - Using emotional theories developed
by psychologists, filmmakers can understand why and how they
can affect their audience's psyches. This is how to
create emotion in film. Before we start the waterworks,
remember to subscribe to StudioBinder and click the bell to stay in the
know on all our filmmaking videos. We'll be spoiling
the following movies. Now, let's start feeling. - Maybe in a while when
I'm not so emotional. Give you a week or two
to change your attitude. - Modern psychology has long been
preoccupied with understanding emotion. In particular, psychologists have
sought to answer two questions. Where do emotions come from? And how can they be categorized? For our purposes, we'll be
focusing on the first question. Evolutionary psychologists
argue that basic emotions come from natural selection. Emotions help with decision
making and motivation. Socializing and memory
all are crucial to survival. According to psychologist
Klaus Scherer, there are five different components of emotion. Cognitive appraisal, where
the brain identifies an emotion. Bodily symptoms of emotion. Action tendencies, or
how we react to emotion. Expression. And feelings, how the
emotion is experienced. How psychologists understand
the way humans come to feel an emotion has evolved over time. Early emotional theorists, William
James and Carl Lang, argued that emotions are a result of
physiological reactions to events. For example, I'm sweaty,
so I must be nervous. Later, psychologists started to argue
that the process was a bit more complex. - I'm afraid things are a little
more complicated than that. - Richard Lazarus introduced
the cognitive appraisal theory. He argued that thinking must occur
first, and then both physiological and emotional
reactions would arise. For example, one person might
see a rat and identify it as scary. A heart will start pounding
and they will feel fear. Another person might see the
same rat and and identify it as cute. They will then feel joy. Emotion is critical to film. - I'm so happy for you. - Sergei Eisenstein famously wrote
that emotion is completely identical with the primary
phenomenon of cinema. In cinema, movement is created
out of two motionless cells. A movement of the soul,
and i. e. emotion, is created out of the performance
of a series of incidents. Or, as David Fincher put it... - It takes titanium and
aluminum and steel and glass and lasers to do
one thing, impart feeling. We're trying to make strangers
feel something at the same time. - Today, we'll look at the many
strategies filmmakers use to create emotion using the famously emotional flashback
from 'Toy Story 2' as a framework. Let's begin with
writing emotions. - Ron, where are you? - I'm in a glass
case of emotion! - While feelings can be augmented using
a variety of filmmaking techniques, the heart of a movie
begins in its script. - Have you read the script? - For a film to have an emotional
impact, the audience must care about the story and its characters so that
when a character feels something, the viewer will feel something. - Hey.
- What? - I just wanted to take
another look at you. - Particularly emotional moments
don't come out of nowhere. - Superman. - They are typically set
up throughout the movie. - I'm Superman. - One technique is
recontextualized repetition. - Ted! Don't forget
to wind your watch! - Putting a line, object, or
person in a new setting that gives it a more profound significance. - Ted! Don't forget
to wind your watch! - That conversation
made more sense this time. - In 'Jojo Rabbit', Taika Waititi emphasizes
Rosie's shoes throughout the script. Making the reveal at the end
all the more heartbreaking. For more on Jojo Rabbit's emotional
gut punch, our full video breakdown is linked in the description. The song, Remember Me, is played
multiple times throughout the film. But it is when Miguel plays it for
Coco that he packs an emotional wallop, since we now fully
understand the context of its lyrics. Emotion can also come from
especially well-written dialogue. As we can see in this
monologue from 'Steel Magnolias'. - Shelby, as you know, wouldn't want
us to get mired down and wallow in this. We should handle it the best way
we know how and get on with it. - Screenwriter Robert Harling doesn't
let the speech sit in one emotion. It builds from a
resigned sadness. - And finally, we realized
there was no hope. - To a devastated rage, encapsulating
the different forms of hopelessness one can feel
after a tragic loss. - I just want to hit somebody
till they feel as bad as I do. I just want to hit something. I want to hit it hard. - Here! Hit this! Go ahead, Malin! - Slopper!
- Are you crazy? - Jesse's flashback in 'Toy Story 2'
uses many of these writing techniques. First is Jesse's dialogue that
bolsters the emotion of the sequence. She introduces the flashback
by describing her relationship with Emily and how it made her feel. - Let me guess.
Andy's a real special kid. And to him, you're his
buddy, his best friend. And when Andy plays with you,
it's like, even though you're not moving, you feel
like you're alive. Because that's how he sees you. - How did you know that? - Because Emily
was just the same. - She was my whole world. - To show the passage of time and how
much has changed in Jesse and Emily's relationship, the
writers use repetition. They take two
trips to the country. The first is pure joy. Which makes the second trip,
when Jesse believes that Emily loves her again, so devastating. After the flashback, Jesse delivers
a heartbreaking line that sums up the sequence's emotional impact. - You never forget
kids like Emily or Andy. But they forget you. - Once feeling is written into a script, it
can be deepened with emotional imagery. Let's look at how
to shoot emotions. How you depict a scene visually can have
a deep impact on how the audience feels. Lighting, for example, can
inform the emotion of a scene. In this scene from 'Alien', the low-key
lighting puts the audience on edge. Afraid of what lurks
in the shadows. In 'The Lord of the Rings',
bright light is used to create a feeling of relief, piercing an
increasingly desperate situation. The beams of life shine
over the dark battle scene. Shot choice two can affect
what an audience feels. In this scene from 'Manchester by
the Sea', director Kenneth Lonergan places the camera
at a high angle. Emphasizing the guilt
bearing down on Lee. The camera then pushes
forward into a medium close up. Bringing the audience
closer to Lee's headspace. - I figure it's okay. So I just keep
going to the store. And that's this. - Filmmakers will often use
close ups for this purpose. This scene from 'Interstellar' relies
primarily on a close up of Cooper. Letting the audience
feel his pain intimately. - And today I'm the age
you were when you left. - But wide shots, too,
can create emotions. In this sequence from 'La La Land',
wide shots underscore the expansiveness of Sebastian and Mia's love for each
other and sweeps the audience up in it. Of course, the most powerful visual
conveyor of emotion is the human face. Camera movements and lighting will always
be secondary to an actor's performance. Colour can also subconsciously
affect how an audience feels. A scene bathed in red
may put us on edge. While pale, cool tones
may encourage melancholia. In 'Toy Story 2', visuals play a pivotal
role in how the sequence is perceived. The lighting for most of the
montage is soft and golden, evoking a sense
of sweet nostalgia. Available Now But when the montage turns from
happy to mournful, Jessie falls under the bed, removing the warm, bright light
and underscoring the sadness she feels. Deliberate framing, too, adds
to the emotion of the scene. We never really
see Emily's face. This keeps the focus on
Jessie and how she is feeling. While also highlighting that
who Emily is doesn't really matter. This is a well-worn story of
a child growing up that can apply to any audience member. Camera movement
is also utilized. In the beginning, when Jessie
is happy, we push toward her. In the second half, the camera
pulls back from Jessie, emphasizing her abandonment and loneliness. The emotions cultivated
in writing and filming can be further honed in
post-production. The post-production process is the
final step in creating emotion in film. And a filmmaker can utilize a
variety of techniques to ensure these emotions come through. A simple cut can greatly
affect the emotion of a scene. - Rachel, please. - I saw her face. Choosing not to cut can force
an audience to sit with a feeling. Cutting can also create
a powerful juxtaposition. In 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless
Mind', Joel's memory of Clem is intercut with his memories as a child, giving
the scene a wistful, nostalgic feeling. Music is also a crucial component
to how we feel, arguably the most powerful tool a filmmaker has. Music can make us cry. Or make us terrified. But sound design beyond music
can affect how an audience feels. In 'Boogie Nights', the loud fry cracker
noise heightens the viewer's anxiety. 'Toy Story 2' utilizes multiple
post-production tools to pack an emotional punch. Editors Edie Ichioka, David Ian Salter,
and Lee Unkrich use dissolves to make the montage feel more like a memory. These transitions are also used
for match dissolves that emphasize Emily growing up
and time passing. At the end of the montage,
the editors opt for hard cuts. Underscoring the cruel
abruptness of Jessie's realization. Randy Newman's song, 'When
She Loved Me', plays an outsized role in the emotion of the sequence. Performed by Sarah McLachlan, it
is somber and wistful, and its lyrics hit at the heart of the montage. No one movie is alike. But for most filmmakers,
the goal is the same. To move an audience. Whatever the method, great
films make us feel something. Get started on your own emotional
masterpiece with StudioBinder screenwriting and
storyboard software. That's the end of our video. Don't be sad it's over. Be happy it happened.