The Florida Project: Non-Professional Cast Of A Film

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Acting is a huge component to convince audiences of a film’s story. Baker wanted to make sure his story was convincing, because the issues of the socioeconomic divide in Florida are very real. The Florida Project uses an almost entirely non-professional cast to portray the story as authentically as possible. Both Halley (Bria Vinaite) and Moonee (Brooklyn Prince) were non-professional actors and made their first film appearance with The Florida Project. The purpose of choosing a non-professional cast was to further allow audiences to relate and feel part of the character’s struggles. Unrecognizable faces in film are less distracting to the plot, which is very important in this film. Baker did not want the attention taken away from what the …show more content…

195-214, 2015). This is further proven within The Florida Project when audiences easily understand the pain of the characters due to the extreme authenticity of the scenes. Many of the lines in the film were not even written, instead, Baker allowed the cast to become the character and say what they thought appropriate. The actions and expressions of the characters were realistic to the cast’s own personalities. The struggles of low-income and social divide that the characters experience are intensified in the audience’s emotions due to the relatability of the cast. For example, in the end of the film Moonee is extremely upset because she can no longer live with her mother. As tears progressively fall down her face, we see the pain and genuine fear she has in that moment. The pure shock and heartbreak audiences are meant to feel would not be as extreme without the raw emotion of Brooklyn Prince radiating through Moonie’s …show more content…

Throughout The Florida Project, Baker uses multiple camera shots to grab the audience and pull them into the story. To create a realistic film, there are shots that portray the characters in a way which eliminates just watching the characters, and instead allows audiences to empathize with them. The struggles in The Florida Project are extremely intense and exist in real life. When the film transports audiences into the situation of Halley and Moonee’s life, it is painful to accept as a truth. That is a powerful purpose of the film, Baker wants to bring awareness to the issues of social and economic discrimination through providing insight to reality and gaining audience compassion. An effective way that Baker captivates audiences is shown in the final scene of the film. As Moonee is distraught and crying because her world is crashing around her, she runs to her best friend Jancey; another seven-year-old girl living in a hotel. Jancey grabs Moonee’s hand and they run through the gates of Disney World, to the real magic castle. As they run, Baker films a hand-held tracking shot on an iPhone camera. This is significant because just as there is no stability in the camera shot, there is no stability in Moonee’s life in that moment. The camera is jarred and very unclear, which is how Moonee is feeling. This grabs the

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