Cinematography

Taboo

Camera movement

Crane
Handheld - placed the audience in the scene
Tilt up - reveal
Low angle shot making him seem superior/power.

Framing

positioned in the middle of the frame// to the left a lot
most of the shots are very open frame - isolation with character.
the two masts block the ship in - make it seem trapped within it.

Camera Distance

long shot
wide shot?
establishing shot
Extreme long shots - supports the isolation w/ open frame.
new establishing shot - shows the storm included.

Depth of Field

medium DoF - most of it

occasional high DoF

the shallow DoF draws attention to the character

POLYSEMY//POLYSEMIC - multiple meanings of one image.

TABOO:

In the opening of taboo, cinematography is very effective at creating meaning. The first establishing shot could be used to represent two different meanings. For one, the open-ness of the sea compared to the small ship on which the protagonist is on shows the isolation to him from the outside world. There is also the polysemic meaning that the two masts on the ship show that he is almost locked in, with a small framing instead of the large framing. This shows the contradictory status that our character is currently under. this is also supported from the ship being positioned directly in the middle to further bolster the idea of isolation.

In the opening, we can see the way the protagonist is shown as dominant and in control from the low angle shots and the use of rule of thirds. Around the middle of the opening, the protagonists eye level is along the same line as the top rule of thirds line, as well as being towards the left, from a low angle shot really posts the idea that the protagonist is the dominant character. This also hints at his power, showing he is a powerful protagonist is useful as this is the opening - really setting his character out for the audience to see properly.