A Well-Deserved Win

The Oscar winning short film, “The Silent Child,” is an extremely moving yet eerie depiction of the life of a deaf child.  Libby, the youngest of three children and daughter to two over scheduled parents, is a ghost in her own home.  And then Joanne arrives. Joanne is a teacher and advocate for the hard of hearing.  Her positive attitude and hope filled eyes become a beacon of hope to this lost girl.  With the use of close camera work and the roll of the fog, this film moves you to a world only few experience.

The choice of close-up camera shots was a brilliant move by the director.  Joanne takes on the task of teaching Libby sign language.  The close camera angles of their conversations provide a sense of intimacy and leaves the audience feeling like they, too, are a part of the journey.  The tight shots of the character’s faces, especially their eyes, gives the viewer the opportunity to see into the character’s souls.  Libby’s melancholy pale skin and hopeless blue eyes right in our face forces us to look.  It forces us to see the sadness and understand the issue at hand.  The shot of Joanne’s sleepless night captures the worry in her eyes and one can almost see her busy mind at work.

While symbolism is often found in literature, it is also found in movies.  The use of fog in this film stood for so many things.  The fog had an ominous unnerving feel during the opening credits.  It gave the audience a feeling of entering the unknown.  Every single day, Joanne would ride her bike through the fog to bring light to Libby.  The fog also symbolizes the fogginess of the parents’ understanding.  Neither parent felt the need to change or help Libby. Their minds were clouded with their schedules and the schedules of their other two non-deaf children.  Just as the fog seemed to be lifting, one of the final, and most moving scenes of the film, shows Sue, Libby’s mother, driving directly into the fog.  This symbolizes the refusal to change and to remain in a haze of misunderstanding.  The light, Joanna, received a final dismissal.

“The Silent Child” was a poignant film about the real struggles of deaf children and families of deaf children.  While the message was important and should absolutely be addressed, the filmography was magnificent.  The use of symbolism and the brilliant shot choices of the director made this film the Oscar winning triumph it was.