Barbie Mise-en-scene Chart

 

	What to think about	Description	Comment
Setting/Location	When/where is it set. Is it filmed on set or on location? Does the setting tell us anything about the genre? The plot? The characters?	This scene takes place at weird barbie’s house in Barbie land. It is filmed on set.	The setting of the scene tells us that the genre of the scene will be fantasy. The background being colorful and all the contradicting patterns on the wall creates a contrasting mood compared to Barbie feeling bad about herself and the exciting background. It also creates a sense of drama.
Props	What props have been included? Do they tell you anything about the setting or genre? Connotations?	The props in the scene include a carpet, the wall, and a seat made from the wall.	All the props in this scene help to lead to the sense of drama in the scene. The carpet is where Barbie and Gloria start and Barbie talks about how she isn’t good enough. The carpet represents the start of Gloria realizing the hardship of being a woman exists even in “dolls.” Weird Barbie is laying on the wall in the background listening to Gloria’s speech to Barbie. The wall represents a steady spot for weird barbie to listen to the speech and really get the impact from it. It’s a solid spot to really soak in the meaningful message. The seat formed from the wall is where Gloria’s daughter is sitting. It also represents a learning curve for her daughter. She is listening to her mom ranting about how hard it is being a woman, while her daughter is just starting to hit the age of womanhood. The seat gives her a spot to soak in the message, so she can apply it later in life.
Lighting	Natural or artificial?  Which type? Where is it coming from? Shadows? What atmosphere is created?	The lighting in this scene is artificial light. The light in the scene is mainly put on Barbie and Gloria as they are the main two talking in the scene. There are blurs in the background of other characters.	The lighting emphasizes the characters as well as their emotions. Making sure the focus of the scene is Gloria and Barbie shows Gloria’s significance in getting Barbie’s confidence back by trying to teach the audience as well as the background characters a useful life lesson. The shadows and blurs of other characters add to the realistic aspect of this scene.
Costume & Makeup	What are the characters wearing? Does this tell us anything about them, the relationships between them, or the setting?	Barbie is wearing a pastel pink, yellow, and blue dress with pin straight hair that is starting to gain a little curl and a no-makeup makeup look. Gloria is wearing a pink dress with dark pink, orange, and white polka dots on it. She also has wavy hair and a no-makeup makeup look. The characters in the background are wearing variations of pink or purple on their outfits.	The similarities in these outfits show the fantasy of Barbie land. It shows that anyone in Barbie land should be happy and bubbly. It shows the irony in Barbie being distressed and feeling doubtful about herself and her image. It also shows her perfect image isn’t true even though she is stereotypical barbie. The natural makeup look is supposed to show natural beauty, but Barbie thinks she looks hideous.
Movement	What does body language and movement tell us about the characters emotions? What kind of atmosphere is created?	Barbie is sitting on the floor sobbing, while Gloria starts facing Barbie listening to her rant and then eventually stands up and starts to pace.	The beginning of the two characters being immobile on the ground sitting help to pull the audience in. Once the audience understands Barbie’s sadness and concern, it shifts to Gloria giving her speech on womanhood while pacing. The pacing shows the concerned mood and how Gloria feels the pressure put on women to feel perfect all the time is unfair.
Diegetic Sound	Describe the characters’ voices and sounds made by objects in the scene. What do they add to the meaning of the scene?	Barbie every time she talks, she talks in between tears and in a sobbing voice. She sounds distressed and upset. Her voice fluctuates to show how upset she is. Gloria talks in a concerned tone, or a condescending tone to show her concern for Barbie.	Being able to hear the sadness in Barbie’s voice helps the audience feel empathetic for Barbie and how she’s feeling. It makes them think about the bigger meaning. It helps them realize that even though she may look perfect/ act perfect that doesn’t mean she feels the same way. It shows characters have internal conflicts that don’t always show. Gloria’s speech and tone shows the audience she is a wise mother. We already know she is a mother beforehand, but it gives us a deeper understanding of how she thinks and her thought process. It shows she is a woman’s empowerment advocate.
Framing & Composition	What is included in the scene. How are objects/people positioned in the frame and in relation to each other. Are we seeing things from one person’s point of view?	The frame is in third person, so we can see the characters from an outside view. The scene starts with multiple over the shoulder shots and closeups. There is a wide shot that shows all characters in the scene (Barbie, Gloria, Gloria’s daughter, and weird barbie) then a medium shot of Gloria giving her speech.	The frequent use of the over the shoulder shots helps the viewers feel like they are in the conversation, while also focusing on the person who is talking. It helps the reader feel like they have a closer connection to the characters and feel the meaning of what the speech is about. The wide shot helps the audience see all characters in the scene that are listening to Gloria and Barbie’s conversation. The medium shot of Gloria helps the audience's focus go only towards Gloria. It makes sure that the message the scriptwriters wrote is conveyed to the reader. In this case it is telling women no matter how much they believe they aren’t good enough, and that womanhood can be challenging they shouldn’t feel discouraged. It is a good learning experience that the medium shot helped to convey.

Analyzing mise‐en‐scène