Roach is a short film commissioned by the Hackney Film Fund and one of my personal favourites from the films that I've viewed. As the short starts, the audience are subconsciously encapsulated by the subtle non diagetic sounds, that lead you into the setting and introduce to the main protagonist. This then cues the increase in the volume of the soundtrack, which in my personal opinion couldn't be more appropriate for the scene, and immediately we're given an idea of where we are and what we're dealing with. Diagetic and Non-diagetic sounds are then smartly blurred, as while the soundtrack plays with the main instrument being a harmonica, the protagonist seems to have an item in front of his lips in the same fashion as one would play it. A few seconds later however, the audience is shown that it's in fact a 'spliff' and the protagonist is getting high, which had already been hinted with the use of a fish eye lens on the camera and awkwardly angled camera shots. Once it's revealed that the main character is high it also highlights the fact that the title 'Roach' is a play on cockroach you see entering the room as the film starts, and the item used to smoke his spliff with.
Moving on, the use of sound is key to the success of this piece for a number of reasons. Firstly, at no point throughout the whole film are any words spoken, and the absence of dialogue is used effectively. Secondly, the diagetic sounds that are used, such as eating or shuffling around, are heavily accentuated which not only adds value to the comedy, but beckons similarities with cartoons such as 'Tom & Jerry' which too used no dialogue. As it happens, the narrative depicts the battle between Man and Cockroach so that technique was maybe intentional.
All in all, I feel the use of sound in this particular production was incredibly effective, and is a significant part of what I think is an all round great short film.
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