SPATIAL CONSTRUCTS- 1984 Film Screen-caps

These are a series of screen-caps from Michael Rudford's film version of 1984. The film remains quite faithful to the book and provides some great visual reference. Some elements differ from the book and I will be using a combination of both to develop my interpretation of the scene. 

Big Brother

The door to Winston's room. I particularly like the old worn light switch.

Rudford's interpretation of the telescreen. I'm not sure how much I like this design, as it does not look 'high-tech' enough and will try to develop my own version of it that more closely matches the book.

Winston's 'Victory Cigarettes'.

A shot of the Telescreen watching Winston.

This scene is particularly interesting. This is Winston pulling out a loose brick to reveal the hiding place of his secret diary. This is very different to the book, where Winston keeps his diary in the drawer of a desk, stating that hiding it is useless: if they are in his flat looking for the diary they will find it and he is doomed anyway. This concept is described through Winston's inner monologue and as such would be difficult to convey visually. Therefore the director obviously wanted a more visual representation of the secrecy of the diary and as such chose to conceal it behind this loose brick. I am not sure which version I would like to use for my own scene and will be considering the visual and narrative impact of both. This scene also lacks an important feature: in the book, Winston writes his diary in a small alcove next to the telescreen where he cannot be seen. I do not understand why this detail was omitted from the film but I will be including this element in my design.

A good shot of the bed, chair and other props.

A clear shot of the windows.

A shot of the surrounding area around Winston's flat. 

Some interesting props to populate the scene.

A good shot of the 'Ingsoc' logo as well as the spy helicopters that watch citizens through their windows.

I particularly like the light next to Winston's head.

This scene is actually in Winston's neighbor's house, however is filled with great props that I will bring into Winston's room for the purposes of the scene.

A shot of Winston's view from his window at night. I particularly like the lighting and have decided to set my scene at night as well. This will allow for dramatic lighting as well as reducing the work required to render the outside, as most details will be obscured due to the dark.

The building opposite Winston's room. This differs from the book where most of Winston's view is obscured by the building opposite, most of which is covered by a huge poster of Big Brother that stares right into Winston's room. I think that this is a really strong visual detail the was omitted from the film and will be including this in my scene if time allows. Another detail that was not included in the film was Winston's view of his place of work: the towering Ministry building, The Ministry of Truth . This gleaming pyramid towers above the rest of London and is strong focal point that I am keen to include. 

The building opposite Winston's room. I particularly like the style of windows and will incorporate them into my design.

The clock in Winston's room. All clocks in this world are 24 hour, the book opens with the clocks 'striking 13', and is a small detail that I will be sure to include.

A great shot of Winston's favorite drink: Victory gin.