When receiving this assignment, I wasn't sure what scene I would analyze. Then I thought- when in doubt, use The Office. I chose the scene where all of the employees are attempting to learn CPR. This scene is simply a funny scene, and left me laughing. This scene also really sets the tone well for the film, and fits into the overall scope of the show. If someone didn't know what The Office was, this scene would sum it up really well. I would say this is something new, and we haven't seen anything really like it. I mean, have you ever seen a CPR class that ends with an attempt to harvest organs from the dummy? Odds are, probably not.

After watching the scene a second time, I took a few notes about the actual filming rather than the story. Some of these include "lighting fits the look of an office", "the interviews follow the 2/3 rule", "people break the fourth wall and look directly into the camera because it's funny, and "some shots are intentionally shakey". All of these things had an impact to get the desired look for the scene. The lighting matched so it wasn't distracting, the 2/3 rule made the interviews look really good (and in other episodes, this lets us see funny things in the background over the person's shoulder), breaking the fourth wall allowed the audience to really see what the character was thinking, and some of the shots were shaky, probably to make it look like you were there, and it wouldn't have been perfectly still. They want it to look like a camera guy is just recording everything that happens in this workplace.

While you might actually pick up a few real facts about CPR, (like ABCDs, give compressions at 100 bpm, call 911), the overall purpose and message of the scene is to be funny, and portray the craziness and many characters in this office area. There is a lot of dialogue, that is guaranteed to make you laugh, and lots of action including the stabbing and attempt to harvest the organs of a dummy. Many film techniques were combined with the dialogue and action to create a funny scene. Some of these include different angle shots, such as close ups, shots from the side view, and more of the 2/3 rule during interviews. There are many closeups, and this often happens by quickly zooming in, making it funnier. There is one abrupt cut towards the end of the scene- right after everyone is yelling at Dwight for putting the dummy face on his, it cuts to Dwight and Michael in an office getting talked to about the incident by, what looks like, upper management. There aren't many times where the camera is steady, which matches the crazy vibe of the scene. The only times where the camera is really steady is during the interviews with the characters throughout the scene, and at the end when Michael and Dwight get a talking to. 

The sound in this scene was really creative. After the CPR instructor mentions doing compressions to the beat of staying alive, the workers start singing the song, and get distracted from the actual CPR training. This is not only hilarious, but it helps build the energy in the scene. There is no other background music.

Realizing all of these little things that went into only one, four and a half minute scene deepened my appreciation for The Office. A lot of work (from shot angles, to lighting, to sound, to the actors doing their job correctly) went into this scene, and it shows. This scene came out really well, and it must've been fun to be part of the creative process.