Reel to Real: Romeo & Juliet - Education resource
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Reel to Real: Romeo & Juliet Education resource This education resource is designed to work in conjunction with the accompanying PowerPoint, available to download from www.filmclub.org/resources Paramount © (1968) All rights reserved. intofilm.org Into Film is a trading name of Film Nation UK. Registered Charity number 1154030.
Our resources are designed to be used with selected film titles, which are available free for clubs at www.intofilm.org
Teachers’ notes Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Curriculum focus
These activities are designed for English, drama and related subjects at ages 11-18. They are particularly suitable
for supporting the study of Romeo and Juliet in English at KS3, GCSE and Third and Fourth level. For GCSE English
literature, there are direct links to Assessment Objectives AO1, AO2 and AO4.
Paramount © (1968) All rights reserved 20th Century Fox © (1996) All rights reserved
Romeo and Juliet | Franco Zeffirelli | 1968 | UK/Italy Romeo + Juliet | Baz Luhrmann | 1996 | USA
| 138 mins | PG | 115 mins | 12
What’s this film about? What’s this film about?
This iconic 1960s adaptation of Shakespeare’s tale of Loud, colourful, fast and frantic, this adaptation of
star-crossed lovers may retain a traditional look through Shakespeare’s tale of star-crossed lovers is about as far
its use of costume, but it was controversially received from traditional theatre as you could imagine. Played by
when it was released. Not only did it streamline the action Leonardo Di Caprio and Clare Danes, the young couple
by cutting half of the play’s dialogue, but - for the first at the centre of the story must still overcome their families’
time - the two leads were played by actual teenagers. bitter feuding in order to be together, but now they do
The story is as engrossing and heartbreaking as ever, and so in violent Verona Beach, Florida, a place where swords
there are some terrific supporting performances. have been replaced by guns, and where their soundtrack
is blazing rock music.
What the critics think What the critics think
“It has the passion, the sweat, the violence, the poetry, “Aesthetically, it is just stunning, part pastiche, part
the love and the tragedy in the most immediate terms I sincerely classical. Shakespeare’s centuries-old dialogue
can imagine. It is a deeply moving piece of entertainment, somersaults though scenes that borrow from Spaghetti
and that is possibly what Shakespeare would have preferred.” Westerns, Tarantino, theatre and dance, and innovative
new takes on the original text, such as the famous scene
Roger Ebert where Romeo and Juliet first glimpse each other across
the divide of an aquarium.”
Anna Coatman, Little White Lies.
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Our resources are designed to be used with selected film titles, which are available free for clubs at www.intofilm.org Teachers’ notes Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet Introduction This resource helps students explore characters, themes and interpretations of the play through clips from Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 Romeo and Juliet, Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 version, and a clip from a recording of the 2013 National Youth Theatre production, courtesy of the National Video Archive of Performance (NVAP) at the V&A Museum. Images from the film versions and contextual details from the V&A Museum’s collections enrich the learning experience for students and help bring the text to life in the classroom. Before starting these activities, we recommend that students have a solid understanding of the basic plot, themes and characters of Romeo and Juliet. By using these materials, you will develop and extend students’ understanding of the play through close analysis, creative writing and filmmaking activities. Activities are also designed to deepen students’ understanding of the different ways a text can be interpreted which, in turn, challenges them to develop higher-order thinking skills such as analysis, evaluation and creation. This resource focuses on analysis of characters and key themes of Romeo and Juliet in the following areas of the text: • The prologue • Act 1 Scene 1 (the first public brawl) • Act 1 Scene 3 (Juliet and Lady Capulet) • Act 1 Scene 5 (the Capulet feast) • Act 3 Scene 1 (Mercutio and Tybalt fight) • Act 3 Scene 2 (Juliet learns of Tybalt’s death and Romeo’s banishment) • Act 3 Scene 5 (Capulet and Juliet argue) • Act 5 Scene 3 (Romeo and Juliet take their lives) About Reel to Real This unique teaching resource is part of the Reel to Real programme, a partnership between Into Film and the V&A Museum’s Learning Department. Reel to Real harnesses the immersive, visual nature of film, as well as the wealth of the V&A Museum’s world-renowned collections of art, design and performance, to give students new and exciting insights into key English curriculum texts at ages 11-18. For more about this programme and other quality teaching resources in this series, see http://bit.ly/R2R-resources. How to use this resource These flexible materials can be used in their entirety or in part, and can be adapted to suit your students’ needs. The resource comprises activity outlines, with supporting worksheets for students, and is designed to be used in conjunction with the accompanying PowerPoint presentation, downloadable at http://bit.ly/R2R-resources. The film-focused activities here are supported by embedded clips in the PowerPoint presentation. You will find a DVD copy of the film helpful in the classroom and timecodes are referenced in this resource to help you find key moments. You will also need an internet connection and IWB or similar. We recommend viewing the feature film in full once you’ve completed the activities. Students will need copies of the play and printed copies of the worksheets (note that the Focus on… mise-en-scène cards are designed to be cut up into individual cards). For advice on filmmaking and on film language, see this helpful guide (in particular pages 8-11, which you may want to share with your students): http://bit.ly/SecondaryFilmmaking. Links to other websites are included where they are educationally relevant. We recommend you check these links before sharing with students, as we are not responsible for the content, which may change, move or become unavailable without our knowledge. intofilm.org 3
Our resources are designed to be used with selected film titles, which are available free for clubs at www.intofilm.org Teachers’ notes Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet Accessing film You can order Franco Zeffirelli or Baz Luhrmann’s film adaptation of Romeo and Juliet for free through your Into Film Club account. You could also use other film adaptations from the catalogue to enrich your students’ understanding of the text, such as: Carlo Carlei’s adaptation (2013, PG); Shakespeare: The Animated Tales (1992, PG); West Side Story (1961, PG) and Gnomeo and Juliet (2011, U). Joining Into Film and starting a film club will give you and your school access to thousands of fantastic films to watch, as well as opportunities for members to develop skills in reporting, programming and reviewing. Clubs are also offered support in filmmaking, putting youth voice at the very heart of the scheme. Through participating in a film club, children and young people can engage directly with members of the film industry, discover career opportunities and learn how to pursue them. Not yet Into Film? Joining is easy and free – go to the website to find out more and register: http://www.intofilm.org/schools-film-clubs or email support@intofilm.org. intofilm.org 4
Our resources are designed to be used with selected film titles, which are available free for clubs at www.intofilm.org
Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Introductory activities
Summary: Classroom activities to promote critical and creative
reflection on the play text and its context.
A timeless tale?
1. Though it is one of Shakespeare’s earlier plays – and well over 400 years old – Romeo and Juliet still has the ability
to capture the imagination. Show students slides 2 – 5 on the accompanying Romeo and Juliet presentation, which
offers visual stimulus for the discussion points that follow. Give students opportunities for discussion in small groups
as they view the images, before exploring these questions as a class:
• What are the key themes the play deals with? Which of the key themes in the play are still relevant today, and what
makes them timeless?
• What are the most iconic things about the story of Romeo and Juliet? Are these cliches now? Or can a director -
or an audience – still find new things in the story?
• Ask students if they think the actors in a film or stage production should be a similiar age to the parts they play.
Does this matter more, or less, in a story like Romeo and Juliet? They might be interested to know that in the 1936
Hollywood film production of the play, the actors playing Romeo and Juliet were 43 and 34 respectively; in the
1968 version, they were 17 and 15.
• The play is set in Italy, but was written by an English playwright. At the time it was first performed, all stage actors
were male. Ask students to think about the difference that casting and performance decisions might make to an
adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, thinking about the following aspects of character in particular:
• Age
• Nationality
• Gender
Students could consider a range of characters in their responses.
• The play is a tragedy – six of the characters die before the end (Mercutio, Tybalt, Paris, Romeo, Juliet and Lady
Montague). Ask pupils why they think this tragic love story with its teen protagonists remains one of Shakespeare’s
most famous plays. Can they think of any other texts (books, films, television series etc) that combine the elements
of tragedy and romance with young people at their centre? Who are these texts popular with, and why?
Extension: If the play stopped before the death of Tybalt, it would be a comedy ending in a wedding. Ask students if
they had to turn this tragedy into a rom-com (romantic comedy) what plot points would they change and how?
intofilm.org 5Our resources are designed to be used with selected film titles, which are available free for clubs at www.intofilm.org
Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Setting the story
2. Though it used traditional costumes, director Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 film version was seen by critics at the time as
a modern interpretation, with its young central cast and carefully honed screenplay giving a streamline two-hour
running time. For reviews of the film, including contemporary opinions from the film’s release from critics Renata
Adler, Roger Ebert and others, see IMDb: http://bit.ly/RJ-reviews. Use the Romeo and Juliet presentation to help
students explore what difference the setting makes to the action:
• Show the images on slides 6 and 7, taken from the V&A Museum’s collections, of garments contemporary to the
time Romeo and Juliet was written.
• Then show slides 8 and 9, which show fashions from Britain in the 1960s from the V&A Museum’s collection –
what Zeffirelli’s Romeo and Juliet might have been wearing, had they been in contemporary clothes.
• What difference do costume and setting choices make in terms of the way an audience might respond to the
characters and action on screen?
• Put students in small groups and give each group a different image from one of slides 6-9 – either Shakespearean
costume or 1960s fashion. Ask groups to discuss how they would respond to a version of the play performed
in these styles of clothing. Can they comment on how society might have been different in these two very
different times?
Adapting Romeo and Juliet for the screen
1. Show students slide 10 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation, which has a quote from a 1968 review of the film by
critic Roger Ebert taken from http://bit.ly/EbertRJreview.
• What do students think are the most important factors that would affect the success of a film adaptation of Romeo
and Juliet? What would the filmmakers – and the actors – need to get ‘right’ for the film to work?
• Students complete the Diamond 9 worksheet on page 15 in pairs or small groups and should be prepared to
justify their answers. Answers on this sheet can be revisited and revised whenever you introduce students to a
different interpretation of the play. It provides a quick-form way of assessing the clips and clear success criteria
that students can adapt as their learning deepens.
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Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Clip-focused activities
Summary: These varied activities engage students with film
adaptations of the play and a clip from a 2013 stage production
by the National Youth Theatre.
Prologue: ‘two hours’ traffic of our stage’
1. Remind students of the play’s prologue, on slide 11 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation, then discuss the
following:
• What clues are we given about the themes, characters and context of the play?
• Who do students think should deliver the prologue in a stage or film production?
2. The prologue describes the ‘two hours’ traffic of our stage’. Film versions are also around this length. But how much
‘real time’ does the play take up? Students work in pairs to populate the Romeo and Juliet timeline worksheet on
page 16 by matching the correct plot point with the correct time. Answers to this challenge are provided on slide 12
of the Romeo and Juliet presentation. You can use this as a revision activity, to ensure that students remember the
key moments of the play.
3. What reasons might the playwright have had for including this prologue before the action begins? Do students think
filmmakers should keep this part of the play in a screen adaptation or not? Explore these ideas together.
4. Now play the clip ‘Prologue’ from the 1996 film version on slide 13 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation (timecode
00:00:32-00:02:29).
• Discuss the effects of this visual choice with students. What expectations does this raise for the rest of the film?
What type of interpretation do they think this will be?
• Compare this clip to the prologue text on slide 11 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation. What visual and spoken
clues does the director include that foreshadow events in the play and the style of the film?
• Students revisit their Diamond 9 worksheet from the preceding activity Adapting Romeo and Juliet for the screen
to assess whether this film opening has met their expectations for an effective film adaptation. Do they still stand
by their success criteria? Would they like to change any of the rankings in light of what they have just seen?
5. Split students into eight groups and give each group a couplet from the prologue. In secret, groups prepare a
tableau, storyboard or stills film for the line they have been given. Groups perform their tableaux or share their
films, and the class guess which couplet they are representing.
Extension: Spoiler alert! What are the benefits and drawbacks of knowing the plot of a film before you see it? Film
trailers give an audience an impression of a film, and sometimes include key details about the plot. Challenge students
to come up with a concept for a thirty-second teaser trailer for Romeo and Juliet that contains no plot spoilers. Share
the results!
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Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Act 1 Scene 1: ‘From ancient grudge to new mutiny’
1. The backdrop to the play’s action is the ‘ancient grudge’ between Capulet and Montague, acted out publicly in the
first scene of the play. In the Zeffirelli production, the fight is energetic and violent and involves almost the whole
town.
• Arrange students into small groups to explore a particular aspect of the mise-en-scène, using the Focus on...
mise-en-scène cards on pages 17 and 18. Show the clip ‘Act 1 Scene 1: 1968’ (timecode 00:03:12-00:05:36) on
slide 14 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation and ask them to take notes on aspects of the mise-en-scène.
• Now show the short clip from the same scene in the 1996 Luhrmann adaptation on slide 15 of the Romeo and
Juliet presentation (timecode 00:03:48-00:05:10). Groups make notes on their area of the mise-en-scène.
• Each group feeds their ideas back, commenting on how their area of mise-en-scène was used in the 1996 version
to reference and refresh the original text.
2. Where else could you set this action? Students work in their groups to come up with ideas of other times and places
in world history - or contemporary events - where this story could work.
Extension: This ‘civil brawl’ is part of the wider social conflict in the world of the play. What would it be like if this
conflict was being played out on social media? Get students to develop social media profiles for some of the characters
involved, (eg Samson, Abraham, Benvolio etc). They could create status updates or messages that incorporate the
language of the play. This activity could be further adapted to include more characters and scenes.
Act 1 Scene 5: ‘My only love sprung from my only hate’
1. Explore symbolism in the play text and film versions by focusing on Romeo and Juliet’s first meeting at the Capulet
feast:
• Show the images from the 1996 film version on slides 16 and 17 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation. Print the
images on the slides and give a copies to groups.
• Groups work to complete an image analysis focusing on how costuming offers a symbolic shorthand to character.
They can use the Image analysis prompts on page 19.
2. Develop students’ critical thinking and analysis skills by introducing them to the idea of iconography, meaning and
connotations, and encourage them to write a PEEE (point, evidence, explanation, effect on audience) paragraph to
explore the connotations of these costumes (eg their costumes connote innocence and heroism; Tybalt’s costume
represents his fiery nature; Juliet is seen as a fallen angel and Romeo her knight in shining armour; they represent
binary opposites of peace and conflict etc).
Extension: Explore more costumes used by Baz Luhrmann, in other parts of his adaptation, on slide 18 of the Romeo
and Juliet presentation. Students design their own interpretations of character (eg Romeo, Juliet, Tybalt or Mercutio) to
fit into the context of their own production idea. They write costume designers’ notes (see this interview with a costume
designer for more ideas - http://bit.ly/ClaireCollins.
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Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Character development: ‘I’ll look to like, if looking liking move’
1. This activity helps students refresh and deepen their understanding of Juliet as a character, and her personal journey in the
play.
• Remind students of the wishes of Juliet’s parents in the play by showing slide 19 of the Romeo and Juliet
PowerPoint presentation.
• Pose these debate starter questions:
• Do parents always know best?
• Should children always do as their parents ask?
• Is there ever a time when it is right to disobey a parent’s wishes?
As a follow-up task, students could research and discuss contemporary news stories to explore how this aspect of
the play might be linked to the present day.
2. Before meeting Romeo, Juliet’s response to her parents’ wishes is obedient and diplomatic ‘I’ll look to like, if looking liking
move’. Invite students to compare this to her behaviour at the Capulet feast (Act 1 Scene 5) and in the balcony scene
(Act 2 Scene 2). Is it just her love for Romeo that changes her mind about marriage, or is there a deeper change in Juliet’s
character? Is this love or just teenage lust? Allow students to vote by staying seated for love, standing for other explanations
or interpretations – question students to get their rationales.
3. Analyse this pair of rhyming couplets:
My only love sprung from my only hate!
Too early seen unknown, and known too late!
Prodigious birth of love it is to me,
That I must love a loathed enemy.
Use the Character crossroads worksheet on page 20 to explore how the story would have changed if Juliet had
known Romeo was a Montague from the start. Share students’ ideas about alternative endings.
Extension: Students rewrite the party scene with this new outcome in mind, in either contemporary language or
Shakespearean-style prose or verse (task outcomes can be differentiated according to ability). They annotate the text of Act 1
Scene 5 with director’s notes on performance and camera work and then rehearse interpretations ready for performance. These
could be filmed and evaluated as a class.
Act 3 Scene 1: ‘A plague o’ both your houses!’
1. Students will consider how different directors choose to portray the conflict in this key scene.
• Give students the Extract from Act 3 Scene 1 on page 21. How long do students think this section of the text might take
in a film version? What action or visuals might a director add in around the lines of dialogue? Why do you think directors
spend a long time on this moment?
• Now show the clip ‘Act 3 Scene 1: 1968’ (time code 01:13:35-01:15:41) on slide 20 of the Romeo and Juliet
presentation, asking students to time the scene. How long did the action take? What extra detail does this film version
include around the lines of the text?
• Put students into pairs and give them a copy of the 3Cs and 3Ss sheet on page 22. Play the clip from the 1996 production
on slide 21 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation (time code 01:00:15-01:01:15) and ask them to use the 3Cs (colour,
character and camera) and 3Ss (story, setting and script) on their sheet to compare the two scenes. Discuss the similarities
and differences between the two versions as a class.
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Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
• Ask the class which clip they think is the most effective version of this scene, justifying their answers using their
notes on the 3Cs and 3Ss and, if appropriate, their completed Diamond 9 worksheet from earlier.
Extension: Challenge pairs to annotate the Extract from Act 3 Scene 1 on page 21 with their own director’s notes about
staging this scene for a PG audience. Join pairs together to form small groups to get a collaborative version of the
scene. Groups can then rehearse and film a screen-test version of their ideas, which could be shared with the class.
Give students the Board of Film Classification (BBFC) Classification Guidelines for PG on their website and get them to
use this information as success criteria to peer-assess each other’s work:
http://bit.ly/WhatIsPG.
Act 3 Scene 2: ‘O serpent heart, hid with a flowering face!’
1. Introduce students to the importance of internal conflict by reading Juliet’s speech in Act 3 Scene 2.
2. Show the following quotation and ask students to think – pair – share what this tells them about Juliet’s internal
conflict at this stage of the play:
NURSE
Will you speak well of him that killed your cousin?
JULIET
Shall I speak ill of him that is my husband?
3. Ask students to draw a gingerbread outline, modelled on slide 22 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation. They
should use this technique to help them analyse the internal and external conflicts Juliet is facing at the end of
Act 3 Scene 2.
• Around the outside, instruct students to write words and phrases that describe the conflict that is happening
all around Juliet.
• On the inside, ask students to find quotations from the text that show Juliet’s feelings towards the news of
Tybalt’s death and Romeo’s banishment.
• Ask a few students to share a quotation from inside their gingerbread with the class. As a class, analyse the
meaning of the quotations that students have chosen. Use this to highlight the different ways Shakespeare uses
language to help the audience understand Juliet’s internal conflict and to empathise with her situation. Do
students empathise with Juliet or do they think that ‘blood is thicker than water’ and that she should side with her
family? Hold a class vote.
4. Remind students of the purpose of oxymorons (as used earlier in the play by Romeo) before asking them to work in
pairs to find examples in the speech that starts ‘O serpent heart’ and ends with ‘gorgeous palace!’. This speech can
be displayed on the IWB and is included on slide 23 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation. Students can analyse
these oxymorons more fully, whilst also developing their analytical writing skills, by writing a PEEE (point, evidence,
explanation, effect on audience) paragraph about a quotation of their choice.
Extension: Display Juliet’s speech from Act 3 Scene 2 on slide 23 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation. Ask students
to draw images that reflect the imagery used. This could easily be animated by using a flick-book technique or a simple
presentation software tool – see the Into Film resource ‘An Introduction to Stop-Motion Animation’ for ideas
http://bit.ly/IFanimation. An example is included on slide 24 of the accompanying Romeo and Juliet presentation.
Students could then perform and record the speech as a voiceover.
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Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Act 3 Scene 5: ‘Hang thee, young baggage! disobedient wretch!’
1. Divide students into groups of four to prepare a role-play of the Capulet family conflict in Act 3 Scene 5 (from ‘Ay, sir;
but she will none, she gives you thanks’ to Capulet’s exit). You could give each group a small section to focus them.
• Instruct students to start by annotating the text with ideas for performance before they start rehearsing their
interpretation. Give them complete freedom to interpret their scene however they wish.
• Invite students to perform their versions to the rest of the class. Were there differences or similarities between their
interpretations? Why?
2. Play the National Youth Theatre’s performance of this part of the play on slide 25 of the Romeo and Juliet
presentation. Discuss how their staging and performance shows conflict. What techniques did the performers use to
bring this scene to life? How did this compare with their own interpretations?
3. Keep students in their groups and give each group a different Focus on... mise-en-scène card from pages 17 and 18
of this resource. They will use the prompt questions on the card to analyse the mise-en-scène area they have been
allocated.
• Show students the same moment in the 1968 film, on slide 26 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation (time code
01:38:08-01:40:00). Ensure each group is making notes to answer their prompt questions while they watch. If
necessary, play the clip twice and give groups a little time after the viewing to discuss and consolidate their ideas
before feeding back to the class.
• Ask each group to feed back on how the mise-en-scène helps to emphasise the conflict between Juliet and her
parents.
4. Put students back into their groups from the earlier role-play task. Ask each group to revisit their performance notes
and annotate them with ideas about how mise-en-scène could be used in their interpretation, in a different colour pen.
Share ideas as a class.
Extension: Read Juliet’s soliloquy from Act 3 scene 5, from “Ancient damnation!” to the end of the scene, as a class. How
is language used to show Juliet’s internal conflict here? How does the religious context (bigamy was considered a mortal
sin at the time this play was written) influence Juliet’s reaction to the Nurse and her subsequent actions? Give students an
opportunity to write their own versions of this soliloquy. This could be written in Shakespearean language or in modern-
day prose, allowing you to differentiate by outcome. If tablets or cameras are available, film these as a video diary/vlog that
records Juliet’s emotional response to what is happening to her.
Act 5 Scene 3: ‘For never was a story of more woe, than this of Juliet and her Romeo’
1. Show students the still image, on slide 27 of the accompanying Romeo and Juliet presentation, taken at the end of
the National Youth Theatre performance. Can students work out which moment this image depicts? Can they find a
quotation to summarise this still? What should the audience feel at this point? Why?
2. Ask students to consider how camerawork could be used to emphasise the emotion in this scene. Give students a copy
of the Storyboard template on page 23 and a Shot types worksheet on page 24 to sketch the shots they would use to
emphasise the emotion of this scene, eg using a close up to emphasise facial expressions or to focus on a key prop etc.
Extension: Put students into small groups and ask them to each take on a role of a character in this still. They must find a
quotation that encapsulates either their character’s feelings at this moment or the part they played in this tragedy. Students
must work together to recreate the still image, on slide 27 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation, in the form of a tableau.
When they perform their tableau, other members of the class can activate characters by touching them on the shoulder, at
which point students must deliver their characters’ lines. Encourage the audience to evaluate their choice of quotation –
does it effectively represent that character’s feelings or influence over this tragedy?
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Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Taking it further
Summary: These extension activities provoke creative and critical
thinking around the play and offer opportunities for group work
exploring and reflecting on the play in depth.
‘The fearful passage of their death-mark’d love’
1. Show students the TV news report prologue of the 1996 film on slide 13 of the Romeo and Juliet presentation.
Discuss how the director Baz Luhrmann immediately modernised the story here. Are there any other moments of
the original text that could be updated? How could you do that? Students think – pair – share answers to these
questions.
2. Explain that Romeo and Juliet falls under the tragedy genre. Ask students to research the tragedy genre. They should
find out about different types of tragedies and decide what type of tragedy Romeo and Juliet is. This should help you
to generate meaningful discussions around themes of tragic predestination, fate and character flaws in Romeo and
Juliet. You could also challenge students to find quotations that prove that both Romeo and Juliet believed in fate
themselves.
3. Divide students into small groups and give them time to decide which moment in the play they think is the most
important in determining the fate of Romeo and Juliet. To give less confident pupils greater confidence in tackling
the task, remind students there is no right answer to this question.
Once they have decided on their chosen moment, allow them to pick a genre from the following list (you can add to
this or change it according to your class):
• documentary
• melodrama
• film noir
• science fiction
• dance film
• teen drama
• horror
• war movie
• biopic
• supernatural
• silent film
• world cinema
• Challenge students to recreate their chosen moment using the conventions of the genre they have been given.
Will they use Shakespeare’s text or change the language to better reflect their chosen genre? What costumes,
props and settings will they decide upon, according to their genre? Give each group a copy of the Genre swap
worksheet on page 24, a Storyboard template on page 23 and a Film pitch worksheet on page 26 to help them
plan their scene.
• Depending on time and resources, students could just role-play their scene and pitch their idea to the class, or
each group could film their moments. These could be edited into a class movie trailer. Alternatively, you could
ask the class to vote on the pitches and just film this version – complete with costumes and props and possibly
extended scenes that also follow the chosen genre.
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Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
‘See, what a scourge is laid upon your hate/That heaven finds means to kill your joys with love’
• Stage a whole class role-play task to meet speaking and listening learning objectives. Students imagine that the local
community of Verona has come together for an emergency public meeting, just after the discovery of Romeo and
Juliet, at the end of the play.
• The discussion can explore what the town will do to ensure that this type of tragedy doesn’t occur again. Students
must communicate the impact it has had on their character personally and professionally (always in role). To do this
effectively, they should plan their opinions and points of view by referring back to relevant events in the play. During
the meeting, every student must speak at least once. Characters could include the following:
• chair
• representatives from each household
• neutral citizens
• police officers
• PTA/parents of teenagers
• local teenagers
• school headteacher
• neighbourhood watch
• paramedic
• local shop owner
• journalist
• elderly resident
• local religious leader
• mayor
• You could start with small group debates, simultaneously, to warm students up, before bringing them together for a
‘public meeting’ which can be recorded.
Extension: If you have video editing capabilities, recordings of the debates could be made into a highlights package
which is edited to favour the points of view of one side over another.
Evaluating film interpetations
• This is a useful exercise for when students have seen significant sections from the two film texts, Zeffirelli and
Luhrmann, featured in this resource.
• Show students contrasting reviews of the films – for example, visit www.rogerebert.com and search for ‘Romeo and
Juliet’. Ask them to respond to Roger Ebert’s comments and attempt to analyse what he finds so inferior in this version
of the play compared with the 1968 version.
Extension: Direct students to use (or revisit) the Diamond 9 worksheet on page 15 to draw up suitable success criteria
to judge both interpretations upon. They should use this to help them write a short comparison essay which analyses
the strengths and weaknesses of both interpretations before deciding which film is the best, and why. Alternatives to
writing an essay could be to divide the class into two for a debate around the contrasting reviews.
intofilm.org 13Our resources are designed to be used with selected film titles, which are available free for clubs at www.intofilm.org Activity outlines Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet Additional resources You can find additional educational materials on the Into Film website, including: • Guide to Shakespeare on Film for GCSE English: http://www.filmclub.org/assets/pdf/GCSE-ShakespeareOnFilm.pdf • To support study of the Animated Tales - resource and workbook: http://www.filmclub.org/assets/pdf/romeojuliet-intofilm-shakespeareweek.pdf http://www.filmclub.org/assets/pdf/Romeo&Juliet-Workbook-Final.pdf • Resource on musical adaptation West Side Story: http://www.filmclub.org/assets/pdf/westsidestory-intofilm-shakespeareweek.pdf And finally… Groups can view live video recordings, including the recording of Romeo and Juliet used in this resource, from the National Video Archive of Performance (NVAP) at the V&A free of charge. Contact bookings.office@vam.ac.uk to make an appointment. A list of recordings is available here: bit.ly/VandA-Performance Go to ‘Search the Collections’ to find out more about the V&A Museum’s collections online: collections.vam.ac.uk/ intofilm.org 14
Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Diamond 9 worksheet
What do you think are the most important features of a successful film adaptation of Romeo and Juliet? What would the
filmmakers – and the actors – need to get ‘right’ for the film to work?
Complete the Diamond 9 below by ranking the following filmmaking features
Most important
Least important
Actors’
Location Time performance
(where the film is set) (when the film is set) (quality of actors)
Costumes, hair
and make-up Characterisation Sound
(what the film (how the characters (music and effects)
looks like) are interpreted)
Camera work Editing Dialogue
(how it is shot) (how it is put together) (how clear and
understandable the script is)
intofilm.org 15Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Timeline of Romeo and Juliet’s relationship
Match the correct time with the correct event by drawing a line to connect the boxes.
The bodies are discovered and events are unravelled.
Sunday a.m. The prince makes the final speech.
Romeo leaves Juliet and heads to Mantua.
Capulet and Lady Capulet announce their plan for
Sunday p.m. Juliet to marry Paris; Juliet refuses and instead visits
the Friar, who hatches a plan.
Monday a.m. Romeo is lovesick for Rosaline.
Monday p.m. Juliet’s ‘body’ is discovered.
Romeo gets the Friar’s permission for the marriage
Tuesday a.m. and sends word to Juliet; they are married.
Tybalt kills Mercutio; Romeo kills Tybalt; Romeo
Tuesday p.m. is banished, but spends the night with Juliet.
Wednesday a.m. Romeo and Juliet meet at Capulet’s ball.
Wednesday p.m. Juliet takes the poison that makes her appear dead.
Juliet is buried; Romeo hears she is dead and heads
Thursday a.m. back from Mantua. He kills Paris in the Capulet tomb
before taking his own life. Juliet awakes and kills herself.
intofilm.org 16Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Focus on… mise-en-scène
What is mise-en-scène?
The term is borrowed from a French theatrical expression, meaning roughly “put into the scene”. In other words,
mise-en-scène describes everything in the frame, the way it is shown and how it has been arranged.
The prompts below will help you analyse it for its effect on the audience.
1. Costume, hair and make-up
Choices about a character’s appearance are usually designed to
have an immediate effect on the audience.
• How are the different characters presented? Make notes on costume, hair and any other interesting features.
• What ideas about their status, and their state of mind, do you get from their costume?
2. Performance
Look closely at the actors’ performances, and
listen carefully to their voice and delivery.
• How do they use voice, facial expressions, gesture and body language to convey a sense of character?
• How do they interact with one another, and with the audience or camera?
3. Setting and props
Look closely at all the objects you can see, as well as
the background scenery or setting.
• How do the setting and any props elements create a sense of time and place?
• What do they tell us about status? Do you notice any interesting details?
intofilm.org 17Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
4. Sound and music
Listen carefully to how sound (including incidental sounds,
sound effects and voiceover) and music are used.
• What can you hear? What effect does it have as you watch?
• If any instruments are used, can you identify them or guess at what they might be?
• Does the sound in the scene create atmosphere, or link to wider ideas of character or theme?
5. Lighting
Look carefully at the lighting in the scene, thinking about what is
lit and what is in shadow, as well as the direction the light seems
to be coming from.
• What are the main areas of light and shadow in the scene? Has lighting been used to
focus attention on a particular character or part of the set?
• Does the lighting seem ‘natural’, or ‘heightened’ (with bright lights or deep shadows)?
• How does lighting create atmosphere?
6. Camera
To film a theatre production, cameras can be positioned around the
auditorium to record a single performance. With a feature film, different
camera positions may be used, and different ‘takes’ may be edited
together to create the final recording.
• Look at the shot types at key moments. Has a close up been used or a long shot? Is the camera
high up or low down? What effect does this have on the audience?
• Does the camera move at all and, if so, how – does it follow a character, or zoom in or out?
7. Editing
Editing involves deciding the order in which shots appear on screen, the
duration of shots and any ‘transitions’ between them (such as a fade).
• Count the number of shots in the edit. How quickly do they change? What effect does this
pace have on the audience?
• Does the edit keep us in one time period, or do we move back or forth in time?
• How does editing place shots side by side to help audiences understand the narrative, character or setting?
intofilm.org 18Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Image analysis prompts
1. Costume, hair and make-up 3. Actors
Choices about a character’s appearance are usually Look closely at the actors’ positioning, body language
designed to have an immediate effect on the audience. and facial expressions
Prompt questions: How are the different characters presented? Prompt questions: How do the actors use facial expressions, gesture and body
Make notes on costume, hair and any other interesting features. language to convey a sense of character? - How are they positioned in relation to
- What ideas about their status, and their state of mind, do you get one another, the audience or camera?
from their costume?
3. Lighting 4. Setting and props
Look carefully at the lighting in the scene, thinking about
what is lit and what is in shadow, as well as the direction Look closely at all the objects you can see, as well as the
the light seems to be coming from. background scenery or setting.
Prompt questions: What are the main areas of light and shadow in the scene? Prompt questions:
- Has lighting been used to focus attention on a particular character or part of How do the setting and any props elements create a sense of time and place?
the set? - Does the lighting seem ‘natural’, or ‘heightened’ (with bright lights - What do they tell us about status?
or deep shadows)? - How does lighting create atmosphere? - Do you notice any interesting details?
intofilm.org 19Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Character crossroads worksheet
Key ‘crossroads’ moment in the film
Explain the choice Juliet has to make. Can you find a quotation to show this?
The decision... What does Juliet decide? Did she follow social norms or her own personal The alternative... What other decision could Juliet have made at this point?
values?
Effect on the story - at the time What happens? How does the choice affect Juliet and Effect on the story - at the time What difference might this change make? Think
others? about how this alternative choice could change things for Juliet and others.
Effect on the story - later on What happens? How does the choice affect Juliet Effect on the story - later on What things might change later in the story?
and others?
intofilm.org 20Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Extract from Act 3, Scene 1
Act 3, Scene 1
MERCUonT IO bmission!
ourable, vile su
O calm, dish
rries it away.
Alla stoccata ca
Draws u walk?
t- catcher, will yo
Tybalt, you ra
TYBALstTthou have with me?
What would
MERCU TIO g but one of your nine
of cats, nothin
Good king you
withal, and as
at I m ea n to make bold the
lives ; th
af te r, dr y- beat the rest of
shall use me he re his pitcher
u pl uc k yo ur sword out of
eight. Will yo out your
M ak e ha st e, lest mine be ab
by the ears?
t.
ears ere it be ou
TYBALT
I am for you.
Drawing
ROMEO o, put thy rapi
er up.
Gentle Mercuti
MERCUurTpaIssOado.
Come, sir, yo
The y fight
ROMEO lio ; be at down their wea
pons.
Draw, B envo outrage!
en , fo r sh am e, forbear this
Gentlem essly hath
t, M er cu ti o, the prince expr
Tybal streets:
ying in Verona
Forbidden band o!
Good Mercuti
Hold, Tybalt!
Y B AL T un d er ROMEO’s arm
T IO, and flies with
sta bs M ER C UT
his followers.
21
intofilm.org 21Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
3Cs and 3Ss
Colours story
character setting
camera sounds
intofilm.org 22Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet Storyboard template For further advice and guidance on storyboarding, see this helpful video: bit.ly/HowToStoryboard. Notes Notes Notes Notes Notes Notes Notes Notes intofilm.org 23
Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Shot types
REC
Establishing shot Long shot Close up
Medium long shot Mid shot Extreme close up
intofilm.org 24Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet Genre swap worksheet Allocated genre: List the key features of your allocated genre here: Narratives: Settings: Sound and music: Characters: Costumes, hair and make-up: Actors: How could this relate to Romeo and Juliet? Use the headings above to transform Romeo and Juliet into a film that would fit with the key features for your genre. Narratives: Characters: Settings: Costumes, hair and make-up: Sound and music: Actors: intofilm.org 25
Reel to Real: Romeo and Juliet
Film pitch worksheet
Your pitch should be a maximum of three minutes long. Use this template to guide you:
Production company name:
Title: Tagline:
Synopsis/plot outline: Cast/interview list:
Themes/issues:
Filming locations:
intofilm.org 26You can also read
