MA-IS ePortfolio

Please Don’t Summon Demons in the Bathroom (Bea & Beezle-Bob) was created for Assignment 5: Final Project of MAIS 620 Digital Storytelling, Master of Arts – Interdisciplinary Studies, Athabasca University, for Dr. Jolene Armstrong, submitted on December 19, 2022.

The assignment was to create a three to five minute video (Part 1) and write an accompanying analysis (Part 2). For Part 1, I selected Option I: 3- to 5-minute video (with or without sound):

In completing your project, bring together all of the elements that you have learned in the course. You will be graded, first and foremost, on how well you have integrated the various components into a narrative whole, that is, on how well the visual, audio, and text elements serve the story objective. You will be graded on your use of visual material (including your ability to create visual interest, camera angles, framing, and the application of the rule of thirds), on audio elements (including sound quality and the use of a voice-over or sound track or other features), and on the way that all of these elements work together inside of a story structure.

MAIS 620 Digital Storytelling, Dr. Jolene Armstrong • September 2022

Analysis

The story for my final project takes place in the bedroom of the protagonist, a little girl named Bea.  Bea feels lonely and tries to summon a demon to be her companion.  The demon that she summons, Beelze-Bob (named after my dog Bobby), is a fire demon and is very particular about his surroundings.  The story follows Bea as she performs her summoning spell and initially thinks it is unsuccessful.  Upon discovering Beelze-Bob in her bathtub she is delighted and tries to find him a place to call his own.  Beelze-Bob is displeased by her first three attempts to place him, first under her witch’s hat, then in her cauldron, and finally on her bookshelf.  In the end, Bea finds the perfect spot for him in her fireplace where he feels at home amongst the flames. 

The story is constructed using Freytag’s Pyramid, the five-part story structure described by Hart (2011b) and Yorke (2014), which divides the story into five acts: exposition, rising action, crisis, climax, and falling action.

Practically speaking, the video was created using the timeline feature in Unity’s real-time development platform.  The technical aspects of this were quite challenging and, as I’m not yet proficient at using these tools, I had to be creative in my storytelling while limiting myself to the visual and animated elements that could be achieved with my current skillset.  Many of the deviations from my original storyboard were related to this. 

Act 1: Exposition (Bea)

The first two shots set the scene and introduce the audience to the setting, Bea’s bedroom including her ensuite bathroom, and Bea herself.  An establishing wide shot shows the audience the layout of Bea’s room (DSLRguide, 2015) and direct characterization is used to tell the audience a little bit about Bea.

Direct characterization, described by Hart (2011a) as the more modern approach, is used to portray the protagonist through her own preferences, attributes, and choices.  From the decorations in Bea’s bedroom, the audience can draw certain conclusions about her personality.  For example, the spell book, pentagram, candles, and potions tell us that Bea is not an ordinary girl – she’s at least a little bit witchy, and we can expect that magic and fantasy will be an important part of the story. 

The final frame of the first shot uses the “rule of thirds” placing the bathtub at the intersections of the lower third vertically – this object is important to the plot and is featured at the midpoint of the story (Armstrong, 2022).  This concept is used in subsequent shots to guide placement of the protagonist and her companion. 

Act 2: Rising Action (The Summoning)

The second act gives rise to dramatic tension when Bea performs a summoning spell in front of her bathroom mirror.  A complication is introduced when the audience sees what Bea doesn’t – that her spell did work and a small fiery lizard demon has fallen into the bathtub behind her. As Bea looks around the bathroom the “crickets” sound effect gives the audience a clue of Bea’s interpretation of the situation – she is looking around and finding nothing (hearing only crickets which is symbolic of an awkward silence).  Her disappointment is indicated by her “lose” animation as she hangs her head.

Tension rises and Bea lies in bed thinking her spell didn’t work, but then hears a growling noise coming from the bathroom and tries to locate its source.

In act two, there is a shift in focalisation (Smith, 2005).  The story of Bea is told in third person, where the audience is watching the action from outside of the story.  After Bea hears the first growl, she rushes into the bathroom and the audience sees through her eyes as she searches for the source of the sound.  This shift in focalisation adds to the dramatic tension and allows the audience to engage in Bea’s internal experience, even though we have already seen what it is she’s searching for.

The Midpoint (Beelze-Bob)

The story applies York’s notion of “the midpoint” as being where “something profoundly significant occurs” (Yorke, 2014, p. 37).  Right about halfway through the story Bea discovers Beelze-Bob and that her spell was successful! 

Bea has achieved her first scene goal – she has summoned a demon! This smaller goal drives the plot forward in act two and contributes to her overall “big-picture” goal of making a friend and having a companion to keep her company (Duke, 2015). 

Close-up framing of particular shots are used where the audience is asked to identify with Bea and engage with her internal feelings – the zooming in of the camera when Bea is lying in bed and the close up of her face as she discovers Beelze-Bob create a sense of intimacy and help the audience to identify with the protagonist (Armstrong, 2022).

Act 3: Crisis (Bea and Beelze-Bob)

In the third act, Bea is initially delighted at the sight of her new demon companion, which is indicated by her “win” animation, and tries to find him the perfect place to rest in her bedroom.  A crisis develops as Beelze-Bob expresses his increasing displeasure with each new place that Bea puts him.  He isn’t happy at all under her witch’s hat, in her cauldron, or on her bookshelf.  Bea hangs her head in frustration again and almost gives up after her third attempt.  The growling, roaring, and gurgling sound effects let the audience know that Beelze-Bob isn’t happy.  

Act 4: Climax/Resolution (Home Sweet Home)

The story reaches its climax and resolution when Bea finally finds the perfect place for Beelze-Bob to live – in her fireplace.  Of course, his fiery colours and lava-like spikes tell us that he is a fire demon!  Beelze-Bob is pleased and expresses his enjoyment with soft coos – Here Bea has achieved another scene goal. 

Act 5: Falling Action/Denoument (Friends)

As the camera pans out in act 5, the action falls as the audience sees that Bea is pleased with her achievement as she gestures in triumph.  Bea and Beelze-Bob both smile and the audience is safe to make the assumption that they will become fast friends and Bea has attained her “big picture” goal.    

Other Visual Components

As Bea and Beelze-Bob’s story doesn’t contain any spoken words, the elements of visual storytelling are important to the audience’s interpretation and understanding of the story.  These components include: space, line, tone, colour, movement, and rhythm (Block, 2008). 

Tone, colour, and movement are used in connection with the “magical” elements of the story.  When the scene is set, the colours used in Bea’s bedroom are dark, and primarily neutral browns, greys, reds, and other warm colours.  On the other hand, magical objects and events are indicated by brighter and typically cooler colours, such as green, blue and purple.  The exception to this is Beelze-Bob – he is bright but also warm, bringing together Bea’s world and the magical realm.  Visual effects and movement are also used in connection with action points in the story such as Bea’s spell and the conflict of Beelze-Bob’s displeasure.

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Credits

Andrei [@kripto289]. (2022). Mesh Effects (1.5.0a) [Unity Asset].

Arcadium1 [@Arcadium1]. (2022, August 12). Beast Squeal [Sound Effect].

GB01 [@GB01]. (2021, August 5). Cricket Chirping [Sound Effect].

Johnson, Jeff [@Digital Ruby (Jeff Johnson)]. (2018). Magic Mirror Lite—Reflection for Unity (1.2.0) [Unity Asset].

Lil Pupinduy [@Lil_Pupinduy]. (2022a). Brave Little Girl (1.0.0) [Unity Asset].

Lil Pupinduy [@Lil_Pupinduy]. (2022b). Lizard (1.0.0) [Unity Asset].

MacLeod, Kevin [incompetech.com]. (2022, November 3). Magic Escape Room.

Manning, McKay [@Pepperjack]. (2018). Bed & Bath Furniture Pack (1.0) [Unity Asset].

Montes, Alejandro [@3Dfrk]. (2018). Picture Frames with Photos (1.0) [Unity Asset].

Nigelnix [@nigelnix]. (2022a, September 7). Demon Pig [Sound Effect].

Nigelnix [@nigelnix]. (2022b, September 7). Growling Zombie [Sound Effect].

Night Spirit Studio [@NightSpiritStudio]. (n.d.). Please Don’t Summon Demons in the Bathroom [Cross Stitch Pattern].

Roaming Sloth [@Roaming Sloth]. (2022a, October 28). Sloth inspired (Imaginary) Sound No.4 [Sound Effect].

Roaming Sloth [@Roaming Sloth]. (2022b, November 5). Sloth Inspired (Imaginary) Sound No.12 [Sound Effect].

Roaming Sloth [@Roaming Sloth]. (2022c, November 5). Sloth Inspired (Imaginary) Sound No.13 [Sound Effect].

TRIPOLYGON, Inc. (2021). The Witch’s Cauldron (1.0.1) [Unity Asset].

Waxsocks [@waxsocks]. (2022, September 1). Roar [Sound Effect].

XxBirdoxX [@XxBirdoxX]. (2021, August 3). Stomach Growl [Sound Effect].

Yaremko, Evgeniya [@Evgenia]. (2019). Alchemist’s House Interior (1.5) [Unity Asset].

References

Armstrong, J. (2022). Week 4: Who Knows What When: Point of View (POV), Framing, and Discourse [Study Guide].

Block, B. (2008). Chapter 1: The Visual Components. In The Visual Story: Creating the Visual Structure of Film, TV and Digital Media (pp. 1–8). Focal Press/Elsevier.

DSLRguide (Director). (2015, February 7). Composition + Framing—Storytelling with Cinematography [YouTube Video].

Duke, H. (2015, August 9). Character Desires vs. Character Goals. The Writersaurus.

Hart, J. (2011a). Character. In Storycraft: The Complete Guide to Writing Narrative Fiction (pp. 75–88). University of Chicago Press.

Hart, J. (2011b). Structure. In Storycraft: The Complete Guide to Writing Narrative Nonfiction (pp. 20–40). University of Chicago Press.

Smith, H. (2005). Narrative, Narratology, Power. In The Writing Experiment: Strategies for Innovative Creative Writing (pp. 84–109). Allen & Unwin.

Yorke, J. (2014). Five-Act Structure. In Into the Woods: How Stories Work and Why We Tell Them (pp. 32–44). Penguin.

Notes

This post is the video (Part 1) and analysis (Part 2) of the Final Project I submitted in Week 15 of MAIS 620 Digital Storytelling, Athabasca University (Dr. Jolene Armstrong, September 2022).