In the scene where Ruben first meets Joe, Ruben very is upset and confused. He had just lost his hearing and doesn’t want to stay apart of the deaf community forever. All he wants is to get surgery and go back to his old life. The way the scene is filmed shows how out of control Ruben feels.
The camera framing and editing work together to show how uncomfortable and disconnected Ruben feels. The film uses shot/reverse shot editing to go back and forth between Ruben and Joe as they talk, which is a common technique in dialogue scenes. But in this case, the way each character is framed says a lot about their emotional state. Ruben’s shots often leave a lot of space around him, especially in the background and above his head, making him feel isolated and out of place. The camera sometimes films him from a lower angle, and his body language is tense, showing his frustration. In contrast, Joe is usually centered in the frame, lit more softly, and shown in more balanced shots. The back-and-forth editing keeps the conversation flowing, but the framing makes it clear that the two characters are in very different mindsets. These visual choices show that Ruben is not ready to accept his new reality yet, while Joe is steady, already comfortable in the world Ruben is just entering.
The sound design is also important in this scene. We hear both Ruben and Joe speaking, but the space around them feels quiet and still. There’s no music and very little background noise, which makes the room feel tense. Subtitles appear on screen to show Joe’s words, helping both Ruben and the audience follow the conversation. This shows how communication is already beginning to shift for Ruben. Even though we can hear the voices, the quietness and the use of subtitles reflect how disconnected Ruben feels from the people around him. He’s not fully part of this world yet, and the sound helps show that.