Explain how camerawork and editing are used in the excerpt of Shameless.

This scene used many different camera shots. The first of these is a wide, tracking shot of Frank. It is a point of view shot from the view of the character in the car as you can see the windscreen of the car as it follows Frank. This shows the audience that someone important is in the car and that they are going to be involved in something important in the scene. Next, a centrally frames long shot is used to show Frank staggering along the road. This also shows the background of the scene and the car coming towards Frank. After this, an extreme close up of Frank is used to show the look of fear and confusion on his face. This is followed by a close up of Lip to show his anger and a worms eye view is used for the superiority of Lip and to show Franks point of view as he is on the floor. A close up of Frank is then followed with a close up of Lip's fist just after to show the action in the scene and to give the audience the scene from Frank's point of view. A cutaway shot is used next of Karen in her room to pull away from the action and to show a different perspective of the action. This shot is used with a handheld camera to show that she's feeling unstable. A fisheye lens is also used for this sequence to show her distress and anger. This shot is then followed by two shots of Lip with Steve and Frank with Fiona. These shots are used with a handheld camera to follow on the action and to show the distress of the characters and the scene. A static camera is used next while panning Karen to slow down the action and to show that the peak of the scene is over. This is followed by an extreme closeup of Frank on the sofa to show the bleeding nose that Lip gave him. A pull out is followed to show a two shot of Frank and Sheila. An eyeline match follows this to show Karen in the back of the room. This shows that Karen is feeling like an outcast because of how far away she is from the other characters. Throughout this part of the scene, a wide shot of the living room is used as the master shot to show all four characters. Finally, a low angle over the shoulder shot shows Karen leaving the room and the camera moves back to the two shot of Frank and Sheila.

Editing is also very important to this scene. Cuts are always used throughout the scene with one exception. The cuts are used to keep up with the strong pace of the scene and to follow the action. The one exception to the cuts is a white fade which is used for Sheila when she opens the door. This is used to change the pace of the scene and also to link the cutaway to the rest of the sequence. During the fight between Frank and Lip, the 180 degree rule is used. Match on action is also used to keep up the pace of the scene and a cutaway is used to show the house so that the action is continued. Match on action is also used when the car is following Frank to continue the pace and action. Shot reverse shot is used when Frank is walking to show a different perspective of him and also to show the setting to the viewer. Finally, in the end of the sequence, a deep focus is used for the conversation between Frank, Sheila and Karen to show Karen alone in the background but she is also framed so that she can be seen in the back of the room.

To conclude, this scene is very action packed and full of camera shots and editing. In this essay I have explained the use of camera techniques and edits and the effects that they have on the scene and the characters.