Semester Exam- Film Analyses of Black Mirror (season 3, episode 4, San Junipero)

“San Junipero” is part of a British science-fiction TV series named Black Mirror which has received Emmy Awards in 2017 in the categories of Outstanding TV Movie and Outstanding Writing. Moreover, “San Junipero” has successfully become one of the show’s most popular episodes among fans. The episode opens to reveal an establishing shot of the beachside town. San Junipero is basically a small town with several bars and animated areas giving the viewer the sense of a “party town” because most activities in the town takes place at Tucker’s, which is a bar where Yorkie first meets Kelly. This hints at the thought that Tucker’s is the heart of the town and is where the most action takes place, which leads on the audience as to what may occur as we see our protagonist Yorkie go into the bar. Before the two protagonists of the episode meet there is a two-shot showing Kelly and her friend entering the bar which influences the curious Yorker to enter as well. In general, the setting of San Junipero affects the mood of the film. The place itself is filled with many people who are actively moving and going to do various kinds of activities. The crowd is lively, and it gives the viewer a very dynamic feeling.

There are also cinematographic aspects in San Junipero that play a decisive role in supporting the establishment of the narrative, especially through the shot sizes and the lighting. In terms of lightning, an important feature to point out is this film shows a consistent use of low lighting which supports a gloomy vide and highlights the ominous aspect of the storyline. Moreover, the shot sizes mostly used in the short film are the medium shot, close-up shot, and the long shot. As the audience sees Yorkie enter the bar there is a medium shot that goes into a close shot that elicits the shy girl’s anxiety and nervousness. Furthermore, as the guy invites Yorkie to play the old fashion arcade game there is a close-up shot revealing Yorkie peering over at the car game only to be surprised at a flashback that causes her to jump. This is also a sign of symbolism while although the film does not give a clear reason as to why Yorkie freaked out for a second the car crashing in the arcade game hints at the audience that Yorkie had a traumatic flashback. Based on these two aspects, emotions and feelings are the subjects that seem to be highlighted the most in this episode.

In terms of the costume and setting, both Yorkie’s and Kelly’s costumes show a contrasting and specific different clothing style. In regards the era of the 1980s, Yorkie's clothing style is more casual in relations to that time period with wearing a long-sleeve shirt and shorts which makes her appear as a shy introverted girl. This simple clothing style with its calm tone colors seems to correlate with Yorkie’s reserved personality, which is emphasized when she is offered another drink by Kelly but appears hesitant to take up the offer. On the contrary, Kelly is the opposite. Her clothing style seems to be exaggerated with various kinds of accessories such as multiple necklaces or stand out colors such as the purple she was wearing in the film. This exaggerated clothing style with its bold clothes seem to fit Kelly’s vivacious personality. The elements in throughout this film come together homogeneously to create beautiful scenes which tied together the emotions, settings, and design shown throughout the film.