Props Facts and List

Prop’s List:
- Rope
- Chair
- Wedding Ring
- Ear Piece

There are only a small number of props required within the production of this short film. This is largely because the tension is created by the dialogue, narrative and location as well as in the acting. It is also an important feature because of the minimal number of locations used. All the characters within the short film are immobile; Rhys tied to the chair, Lucy and Kathy by the nooses around their neck reinforcing the fact that they cannot interact with a large majority of objects. It represents to the audience that this is a location emotionally unconnected with any character due to the lack of personal content, connoting the danger the characters are in.

Due to the fact there are only minimal props within the piece means that each item needs to imply a crucial fact about the characters behaviour. The ear piece is a central point within the film. It is the only connection within the main structure of the film to Lance, the villain, who is holding them in the location. The ear piece while crucial for communication also represents the importance of technology and the modern era that the short film is based in. It also conveys the only piece of technology in the film, contrasting with the traditional roles and methods used, reflecting the danger and conflicting nature of Lance’s personality.

The wedding ring is a crucial statement about supporting the character and her background to Lucy. Lucy’s ring represents that she is married and has a family, supporting Rhys’ decision to save her. Lucy represents a traditional role and character, with simple and stereotypical roles. Despite the fact that her position and career represent her as serious and intelligent, when faced with danger, she portrays a variety of conventions of a damsel in distress. Her ring reinforces her partial dependence when compared to Kathy.

The rope and chair are the most important props within the short film. They are the construction of restraint and danger within the piece. These props symbolise the peril that the characters face. Being bound in the chair with rope is not only a physical restraint but is a symbolic restraint of Rhys’ mental choice. He has been forced into this decision and cannot choose otherwise. The rope that creates the noose upon the necks of Kathy and Lucy is literally a line between life and death. This metaphor is commonly understood for dying and this acts as a visual representation. Rope is also a dangerous object and conveys the inevitable passing of one of the characters.