It seems that from my research so far, I’ve been drawing attention to where directors are using colour in their films in a manner that is unusual and that makes the film stand out, and perhaps drawing attention to the artists intention behind the meaning of the colour itself.
Generally most filmmakers and artists want to create a sense of balance in their work, and this is often achieved by using colour schemes. Personally, I’ve always been a fan of considering basic colour schemes in my work before getting too deep into it.
fig.01
Fig.01 shows some of the most popular colour schemes used by artists to create balance in their work. Interestingly I recall being taught about these schemes in primary school but when studying colour at university level they were not taught in any more depth, perhaps Zena O’Connor’s theory on colour not being taught in 3rd level education was correct. Saying that it is true that these schemes create a harmony in an image that allows you to read the image without being distracted.
Amelie(2001), fig.02 is a great example of the complementary colour scheme being used to balance an image, the film uses red and green throughout.
fig.02
fig.03
Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom (2012) uses analogous scheme.
fig. 04
Pierrot le Fou (1965) uses a triadic colour scheme.
So we can see that these classic schemes are still being used in moving image to create a balanced image that doesn’t detract from the audiences viewing experience.
fig.01: http://www.phoenixtapware.com.au/article/5-ways-to-choose-your-bathroom-colour-scheme
fig.02: http://imoviequotes.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/1-Amelie.jpg
fig.03: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/2OOenYz6tfc/maxresdefault.jpg
fig. 04: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/e0/95/ff/e095ff484b7910a308c0dedb1a9b9b7c.jpg
O’Connor, Z. (2010). Black-listed: Why colour theory has a bad name in 21st century design education. Available at: http://connected2010.eproceedings.com.au/papers/p4.pdf (Accessed: 30 October 2016).
Colour Theory in Moving Image 