Director case study - Jason Reitman

Jason Reitman

Jason Reitman is a 37-year-old director, born in Quebec, Canada, in 1977. His father was Ivan Reitman, who was a famous director, and his mother was Genevieve Robert, a famous actress. His father has been a part of many great films including Ghostbusters, Baywatch and No Strings Attached. This meant that Jason spent a lot of time in set with his father, surrounded by film and many great actors including Bill Murray. He even worked as an extra on some of his father’s films. He attempted to gain a Pre-Med degree in New York, but instead dropped out and studied at the Southern California School of Cinema-Television.

Jason wanted to escape from his father’s shadow, the reason he went into Pre-Med to begin with, so he turned down huge offers to direct big budget films, including Ghostbusters 3. Finally he released “Thank You for Smoking”, his debut full-length feature film. This film received outstanding reviews form critics, which allowed Reitman to finally be recognised as an original director. However it was “Juno” his second film that really got the critics raving. It won him an Academy Award for Best Director and I regarded as one of the best coming of age films of all time.

His opening sequences are truly unique and Reitman’s unique style stands out from most. He makes good use of camera angles, panning across the screen in a slow motion, allowing you absorb the information that is given to you and look at what is happening in the background. He often shows the location and his sequences are well edited, giving the audience an idea about the narrative. He is also well known for using bright colours and high key lighting in his work. It helps to reflect the genre of the films and shows the childish and light hearted nature of them. It also it also highlights that the film will be entertaining and funny to watch. This allows him to raise serious subject but in a more relaxed and fun environment. As with most coming of age films, the genre is often romantic-comedy drama, which appeals to teenagers.

Reitman uses a range of camera angles in his work, one of them being a high angle shot. This tells the audience something will happen to the protagonist that they and we will have no control over. This links with the narrative and equilibrium of the films. He also uses tracking in his opening sequences, which helps to connect the shots in a way, which looks smooth and professional.

Another typical aspect of Jason Reitman opening sequences is that he doesn’t show you any of the characters in the film. However in “Juno” he focuses on the main protagonist in the film, following her movements as she is walking along. This is a very clever way of introducing the audience to the main protagonist and also makes good use editing techniques. He uses tracking to show how time is passing and additionally use a variety of camera angles, especially close ups. This helps the audience to understand how the character is feeling as you have a clear view of their facial expression. The mise-en-scene is very important to the narrative and genre of a film, this is why he shows a shot of Juno smiling, which connotes that the film will be happy and fun. You can also tell that “Juno” is a coming of age film because of how old the protagonist is, a typical convention of a coming of age film.

You can also tell a lot about the narrative of a film from the sound, which is used. Jason Reitman often uses upbeat and memorable songs to form their soundtracks. As “Juno” is typically meant to be a fun film which touches on a serious subject, Reitman chose to use the song “All I want is You” by Barry Louis Polisar. This was popular among audiences and engages the audience. He also makes sure that the transitions between each shot fit with the beat of the song, helping the opening sequence flow smoother.

On the other hand it is rare that Reitman adds any other sound to his opening sequences, but when he does they are non-diegetic sounds. This is because they are usually relevant to what is happening in the background.

The narratives of all Jason Reitman’s films are quite similar this is due to the fact that they all have a similar style about them. It always involves the main protagonist, who has a problem, and tries to solve the issue with a solution that won’t work. Although this causes a minor plot twist in the film and helps to create an unexpected ending. They characters are often too confident to realise what the issue is so end up on a self-discovery journey. Each narrative is original in its own way, which makes them interesting and entertaining to watch. They are also normally happy endings, which means that the equilibrium is restored, even if it not the way that you expected things to pan out.

Learning Comment:

Looking at a direct such as Jason Reitman has helped broaden my view on coming of age films. It has helped me see what styles and techniques are used professionally and shown me how I can use them in my own opening sequence. I now understand the importance of camera angles and editing, as I know that they help to create a smooth and interesting opening sequence. Jason Reitman has a lot of good techniques which he uses in his opening sequences, but I think one of the most important to remember is how he makes use of sound; if you are going to use music make sure it fits the genre and narrative of the film and be careful about your choice of sound effects by making sure they are relevant to the scene.

I will consider the way in which Jason Reitman develops his narrative, as I would also like to use comedy in my opening sequence, whether it touches upon a serious subject is something to think about. I will also still use the typical techniques used to create typical opening sequences.