Concentrate By Olivia Rowan

Introduction

Concentrate (2015) by Olivia Rowan is an incredible short film featured as a finalist in the Screen It competition within the live action genre. The following case study will analyse and appraise how the technical and symbolic codes have been effectively used to touch on the theme of TIME. The film showcased the challenges faced by a young girl struggling with mental illness in a world where it is heavily stigmatised and her problems are misunderstood. Simultaneously, she battled the guilt of feeling as if she has burdened her family by struggling with everyday tasks. These struggles left the protagonist to lose the ability to understand or even recognise the passing of time (Film Freeway, 2022).

Context

Screen It is an international

The protagonist was seen asleep on the stairs with their mother walking past her. This illustrated that it was a normal occurrence for the family, despite it being unusual for the audience. This juxtaposition of maladaptive dreams from night to day further symbolised that time for her was fully consumed by mental illness. The bright central light with darker surroundings was reminiscent of (movie name) in which it utilised chiaroscuro lighting to create confusion and unease. Combined with the off-beat rhythm of the backtrack, Ms Rowan effectively produced an anxiety-filled final

By honing in on the protagonist’s daily struggles, Concentrate was able to contradict mental health stigma and outstandingly show the difficulty of not being understood by role models, and how much time is taken up with this problem. The heavy stigma within a school community is highlighted in this film and demonstrates how little teachers and people in positions of educative power understand about struggling students. This was a creative approach of the concept of time. By virtue of the title alone, it is clear that the protagonist lacks the ability to focus and pay attention. Her maladaptive daydreams render her incapable of stopping herself from losing focus and drifting off (Rowan, 2015). Because majority of people don’t experience this, the film was set from her point of view. This gave an in-depth idea of what she was experiencing, not what others around her saw. Films like Finding Dory (2016) used this editorial technique as well. The title was also symbolic of the mislead theory held by many adults today that mental illness is actually only laziness and, with hard work, can be overcame. The juxtaposition of these ideas establishes the preface of the