COLOR FUNCTION AND COMPOSITION

Like lighting, color also plays a major role in film and television.  It can indicate the importance of an object or theme, as in the Sixth Sense, or a change in the main character's state of mind or place in the storyline, as in Momento or The Wizard of Oz.

In the GED Achievement PSA, the color really goes hand-in-hand with the lighting.  They used high-key lighting which creates a sense of ease, as the goal of the PSA is to encourage something that could be potentially stressful for the target audience. The PSA appears to have been shot with a white light to make the true colors chosen for set pieces, clothing, and graphics stand out as much as possible.

Color composition as a whole can be altered on film and video through filters and color correction.  If you want to neutralize a scene that looks yellow in the camera, add a blue filter to change the tone, and vice versa.

All of the titles and graphics throughout the PSA match how you are supposed to feel about the person giving the pep talk.  Terry Crews and Debra Jo Rupp are encouraging and gentle and understanding so they receive green titles.  DMC has the higher level of "enlightening" and gets a blue title.  The color blue is often associated with power and strength.  Danny Trejo, however, is the highest level and won't take "I can't" for an answer.  Don't call Danny if you don't want the truth.

Color can also be found in clothing and set pieces as well.  In the GED Achievement PSA, all of the women are wearing bright, solid colors, but all of the men are wearing black.  I think this leans more toward women needing to be encouraged and coaxed back into a potentially stressful situation, where all of the men giving pep-talks are telling them to MAN UP AND GO BACK TO SCHOOL. No pretty colors for these boys.

Figure 1: Terry Crews is dressed in a black button-up and jeans, making him look more imposing as he slouches in that chair.  However, with the purple and blue folders in the background, the beige and off-white pieces of the cubicle, and the green 'SYMPATHETIC' graphic next to him, he appears to be the tougher nice-guy that knows what you're going through.

Figure 1B: In contrast to Crews, Trejo is a "LEVEL 13: EXTREME" and he is taking no prisoners.  In this image, all we see is Trejo with a black tank-top on, with a red, eye-catching graphic next to his face.  He means business.

Figure 2: In this image, we see the non-threatening Debra Jo Rupp and DMC having a simple, friendly workplace conversation.  However, the colors of Debra's shirt and the pretty pink flowers behind her make her appear soft and patient and encouraging.  Even her graphic, in comparison to Danny Trejo's above, is a non-threatening lime green.  We also see DMC in a black leather jacket, holding what appears to be a tiny water cup.

Figure 3: This image gives us four options to look at: three guys in black/grey colors and a woman in a solid, bright one.  Each subject also has yellow in the frame: Crews - the phone number, DMC - the gold wedding ring, Robinson - the flag, and the post-it in the last frame.  The color yellow is a warm color and is often associated with calming or neutrality.