Analyse the Ways Spielberg Uses the Camera to Create Measuring in the Film ‘Jaws’.

In the film Jaws, Steven Spielberg uses many camera techniques in creating the beach scene. Spielberg opens this scene with an establishing shot. This means that the camera it set up to film the location/setting and/or its participants. Which in this case, a lady walking across the beach. It establishes where they are so that the audience can engage with the movie as well.

The camera then tracks a boys motion of walking to his mother across the beach.

Notice how the boy stays in the same place of the shot each time as the camera is tracking him. This is because the camera is following the movement of this boy, but at the same time

the camera is filming the setting. This is done by placing a camera on a train track for the movement to be ‘smoother’.

The camera continues to track the boy again until he walks into a tent (off scene). The camera is now held at a close up shot of the Sherriff. This shot helps us to understand a characters emotion. Which in this case, the Sherriff is portrayed as concerned and worried – which makes this shot effective because the characters in the background portray a different emotion of happiness and joy which contrasts with the Sherriff’s emotions.

The shot then cuts to an extreme long shot of the sea. We can see that someone is floating in the sea, which in this shot makes them seem more vulnerable to its surrounding. It also represents the still and calmness of the beach/sea. This shot can also be recognised as the Sherriff’s Point Of View (POV). This means that the way Spielberg went from filming the Sherriff looking away suggests that he is looking at the sea – as it is seen as the next shot.

The peace is then disturbed by the dog jumping into the sea. But we don’t think much of it because the dog isn’t considered as dangerous.

The director films the different characters/extra who are also on the beach, to give the audience a better sense of what the setting is like. Spielberg then shot the Sherriff at a

medium wide shot. This shot then changes/cuts when another character walks past him.

The shot is now at a medium shot. This means that only the Sherriff’s top half is seen in the frame. This shot then changes again with the use of a passer-by.

This shot now at a medium close up. This effect of a natural vertical wipe is made subtle at the fact that people are walking across. Spielberg is portraying the Sherriff’s tension because people are walking past and blocking his view when he is trying to concentrate on what’s happening in the sea.

Spielberg creates a shallow focus on the Sherriff because it lets the audience acknowledge the fact that we are focusing solely on the Sherriff’s expressions and actions.

Spielberg then returns to the shot of the character who is floating in the ocean. This shot can be seen as the Sherriff’s POV. This shot is also at a high angle to portray how small the character is in comparison to the sea. It makes them seem vulnerable.

Spielberg continues to use passer-by’s to cut from one shot to another. The camera shot then returns to the same actor in the ocean, but at a wide shot. This suggests that the Sherriff is focused on that one particular character. This builds tension because it lets the audience know that we are focused on that actor and we expect something to happen to them.

Which in this case, we are able to see an object swimming towards the character. This gives suspense because we already know that the Sherriff is looking out for a shark, so the object is replicating a shark (attack). Spielberg sticks to this angle because it still represents the vulnerability of the character in the ocean.

We as the audience realise that it could possibly be a shark by the Sherriff’s actions. His posture suggests that a danger (shark) is approaching to his POV which was the character in the ocean.

However, Spielberg uses a false scare when the mysterious object appears to be another characters swimming cap. This effect gives up false hope which helps to build up to something unexpected.

The Sherriff’s attention is focused on the sea, but another character tries to distract that by starting a conversation. Spielberg uses a medium close up shot to show this conversation between the two characters.

Spielberg then changes the shot to an over the shoulder shot. This helps to show how the Sherriff is still concentrating on the sea, even when there is a distraction in front of him.

The shot then changes to a close up shot of the other character trying to speak to the Sherriff. However, Spielberg continues to include a shot of the sea as a wide shot. This creates a focus on that character because it represents what the Sherriff is focusing on also.

We then hear a scream from the character in the background which then sparks the Sherriff’s attention even more which suggests to the audience that the shark attack is now. Spielberg continues to use a close up shot of the Sherriff. This helps to show the Sherriff’s emotions and reactions at a closer shot.

However, we know that it’s another false scare when the shot returns to the girl in the ocean being picked up by another character.

When we realise that it’s a false scare, the shot once again returns to a medium close up shot of the Sherriff and another character. However, Spielberg includes 3 planes. This means that we are able to see the background, mid-ground and foreground in one shot.

We then see the children enter the sea in a wide shot. We are able to see the kid on the float in the background which makes him seem vulnerable in the sea.

Spielberg then uses another distraction for the Sherriff by having another different character speaking to the Sherriff once again. But the shot is different to the previous distraction. We are able to see a medium close up shot of the Sherriff and distraction but in shot/reverse shot as well as the background of the kids playing in the sea. This suggests that our focus is supposed to be on the kids in the background.

Spielberg then uses diegetic sounding (the radio which the actors are listening to is also heard in the shot as well). This could portray a more relaxed feeling for the Sherriff which also portrays to the audience that nothing is going to happen.

Spielberg then uses fast cuts in different angles because there is a lot of action from the kids playing in the sea. Spielberg uses shots/angles such as:

Wide shot

Medium close up

Close up

Spielberg then changes the shot to a wide shot which shows the 3 planes again.

The shot then changes to a mid shot of the character looking for his dog. We were able to see him in the previous shot, so this mid shot of him makes us focus on him. It also portrays the emptiness and vastness of the sea to show that the dog isn’t anywhere to be found.

Spielberg then uses a high angle shot to film the log that the dog was playing with earlier to portray that the dog has disappeared or something has happened to it.

Spielberg then changes the shot to an underwater shot. This represent the sharks POV. We get the impression that it’s the shark because of the non-diegetic soundtrack.

Spielberg then uses a contra zoom (when the camera moves towards a character, but zooms out at the same time). This portrays that the Sherriff has realised the scenario.

To end this scene, Spielberg uses iconography of the deflated float that the kid was on earlier. Spielberg uses a still shot. This represents that the boy was attacked by the shark at the fact that the float is deflated with rips in it and blood on it.