I.Introduction

It is being spread that independent films produced these days by domestic directors are awarded at a prominent film festival opened abroad. Unlike commercial films, these independent films are free from the constraints of the box-office logic and fully show their directors’ intentions and philosophy through diversity in themes (Kim & Kim, 2011). Thus, they can provide both product quality and artistry at the same time. However, due to its non-profitable and non-commercial characteristics, an independent film cannot help being vulnerable to economic approach of the commercial market where it is produced and accepted within capitalistic industry, most independent films faced with the harsh reality of low budget problems have difficulty in expressing and realizing symbolic elements, which is shown in the imaging and editing aesthetics due to the lack of budget in the production environment. Thus, the delivery of symbolic meaning in a film can be said to be a big weight such as through movie costumes that play a visual role. Especially color, which controls the whole image in a movie and the mood in a movie costume, can be said to be the most obvious means of drawing out an actor's emotion and delivering it to an audience, while portraying the whole flow of a movie.

Examining recent prior research related to this study, a study was performed on the color and symbolism of costumes and make-up images shown in movies (Kim & Choi, 2012) and studies on image and symbolism in movie costumes and color (Hong & Cho, 2008; Jun, 2007; Lee & Lee, 2004; Yang & Park, 2011). In this context, diverse research related to movies and color has been carried out. This formed the research in all these movies by analyzing image or symbolism, which is expressed in movie costumes, focusing on commercial films, from the observer's view. Also, it is the real situation of having not been performed a research of developing movie costumes by applying symbolism in color to clothes through the correlation between the movie place and movie costume.

Accordingly, the purpose of this study is to suggest reasonable and effective movie costumes in the lowbudget clothing environment of independent films as well as grasp the correlation between a movie title and the clothing color by introducing the symbolic meaning of color to a movie costume based on the image being expressed in a place and having been reflected in a character's internal psychological status and situation, by selecting America's typical independent film. The independent film a <Bittersweet Life> was selected as a research subject. This movie was selected as the invitation work of "A Coupla Quickies" live action short film festival and Hampton International Film Festival in 2011, thereby having been recognized as having representative value as an independent film. In addition, this study has significance in the sense that the substantial output was reflected in the research through direct experience in the specialized field of dubbed movies, by which this research team as a clothing stylist directly joins in and then presents costume styling. Based on this, the aim is to suggest basic data available for the application of costume color and design development, which is an important role in visual communication in diverse performing art fields as well as low-budget independent film.

The following are the research contents and procedures for this study. First, we examine the movie contents and director's production intention through general consideration of the concept of independent film and the low-budget independent film <Bittersweet Life>, and consider the scene-based mood and a character's psychological status through analyzing situational change and how a character is cast according to a place. Second, color is categorized as symbolism being expressed by color through analyzing relevant prior research and by dividing it into positive image and negative image based on a place and situational mood that the director intends to symbolically bring into the corresponding movie are changed into positive aspects from negative narrative by being divided into the first half and the latter half. Third, it elicits movie-costume design and implements object-design by dividing clothing items of a character in the movie based on a survey of image by analyzing a character and applying the color classification to express by color a character's psychological status in relation to the clothing item. Finally, it examines how effectively the symbolic intention of clothing color was expressed on the basis of a questionnaire survey by making an actual image exposing the clothing and textile to a major audience in order to secure the objectivity of the appearance to effectively deliver symbolic meaning, which was shown in the movie costume color according to the situational mood of a place.

II.Literature Review

1.Independent film

According to <Alternative Vision> published by the Foundation for Independent Video and Film Inc. and the American Film Institute, the independent film involves a “commercial media system of including a movie or television, a product of having been independently made from an army and enterprise, or a work of having been made by independent producer” (Franco, 1990). The name ‘independent film’ began with the Independent film by ‘New America Cinema’ that was known as America's cinema movement in the early 1960s (Kim, 2006). The independent film in an early stage in America discussed the justification of independent film focusing on a method of covering production cost. Today, the core standard of judging independent film is by how original and challenging the content is, unique the visions it contains, lower the production cost involved are, and finally by how big the ratio is covering the independent production cost (Kim, 2002). Even in South Korea, the sphere of independent film is progressing day by day. The increasing popularity of independent film grew alongside its closer relationship with the social labor movement of the 1980s. Independent film can be said to have been produced in earnest (Lee, 2007) as a movie club was made focusing on university while this form of media came to stand for enlightenment film illustrating resistance and social movements in response to the vested power in the first half of the 1980s. Its members later developed independent film organizations. According to the film vocabulary solution book (Lee & Lee, 1997) in the case of a country, “independent film designates the general in a movie of producing by arranging a budget independently without concluding a contract with a film company of being active within the existing film industrial circles,” thereby being prescribed as a movie being performed with the aim of pursuing an individual style of independent movie-man without being bound to the commercial and conventional restrictions.

In other words, an independent film re-illuminates social issues, which are strange to the masses through the independence in capital and narrative by escaping from the commercial and conventional restrictions, thereby performing a role of causing a change in the masses' social interest and recognition and simultaneously presenting impressions that cannot be felt in commercial film to the audience by utilizing material to stir up inspiration in the masses' emotion. In this way, the particularity in independent film is gradually expanding its sphere through works with colorfully added genre and form based on a director's originality and creativity, thereby positioning as an expression tool available for representing creative and free expression.

2.Independent film, <Bittersweet Life>

The independent film <Bittersweet Life> is a work that was selected as the invitation work at "A Coupla Quickies" live action short film festival and Hampton International Film Festival following selection as the most excellent work at SVA MPS Live Action Short Film Festival in America in 2011. The movie’s background is New York in an America experiencing the spread of unemployment and business bankruptcy because of the financial crisis originating in America in 2008 that led to economic recession. The crisis was proceeded by the development of a movie based on the problem of suicide being rampant in modern society. As for the intention of the production, Kwon (2010), who is a director of this movie, commented, “So many people take their own life. Why? My heart ached so much. Yes, they will certainly have a story that they cannot help committing suicide. As a story that cannot be understood obviously given not being the person concerned, this story of being suffered now by myself might be a big problem enough to be able to give up my everything. However, given looking at the nature of the problem with one step back from the problem, it might be not a big problem unlike being thought. I did like to say the word. I did want to see that people of being much more difficult than me exist in the world and that they are proceeding with living as well.”

In other words, the independent film <Bittersweet Life> can be said to be a work looking at the essential cause of the suicidal issue in modern society based on humanism and presenting a reason for needing to make a living to these people who try to abandon their own life due to a momentarily wrong choice. The movie is developed amid a conflict between two characters, a venture company's CEO ‘Jack’ and a homeless man ‘Peter’, who come to choose suicide due to the bankruptcy of a company. The characteristics of the major characters in the movie are as follows (Table 1).

3.Image of being expressed by a place of independent film <Bittersweet Life>

In a movie, a place is one of the most important parts in light of the development in a story because it strongly supports what the characters do, in which place and what and how they do it. The movie costume can be said to realize visual media aesthetics amid natural harmony and interaction with a place. The independent film <Bittersweet Life> has New York as a background and can be divided into two places involving the whole mood of the movie. The first place is the Brooklyn river bank in New York having winter as a background in the first half of the movie. The East River flowing in front of it symbolizes a sense of distance from reality as the place where the first meeting between Peter, who is attempting suicide, and a homeless man Jack. This changes the Brooklyn river bank into a space of despair, which was disconnected with reality and expressed feelings such as darkness, heaviness, death, and depression seen in the first half of the movie. Contrary to this, the latter half of the movie’s background is a SOHO street where the central part of New York is a place where the two characters meet again who came back to daily life. The establishment of this place implies a new beginning, and ideal place to escape from the disconnected space with reality, and comes to further show the two characters' psychological change, which has definitely changed from a negative situation to a positive situation. That is to say, the mood of a movie according to a place can be known to be moved to brightness from darkness. The arrangement of the image of space, which is expressed by a situational change of characters according to a place in the movie, is shown in (Table 2).

4.Criteria of the study through analyzing advanced research related to symbolism of color

It categorized this after considering prior research and books related to color psychology and color as the grounded data for extracting symbolism shown through the choice of color used in designing movie costumes that reflect symbolism in color.

The Japan Color Science Research Institute (Kim recited, 1997) divided color symbolism into five kinds: red, yellow, blue, white, and black. Kwack (2006) analyzed the symbolism of red, yellow, blue, white, and black. Also, Verner-bonds (2008) classified color symbolism into red, yellow, blue, white, black, brown, and indigo. Yoo (2010) analyzed the symbolism of red, yellow, blue, white, black and brown. Specific symbolism expressed by color considered through prior research is shown in (Table 3). The categorization of the specific symbolism of color generally into a positive image or negative image based on (Table 3) according to the image being expressed by a movie is shown in (Table 4).

III.Methods

The method of this study was based on theoretical research, and empirical research shown in a case, side by side. The primary theoretical research tried to consider the concept of independent film, the independent film <Bittersweet Life>, and image being expressed by a place in a movie, and established the standard of this study for considering the symbolism of color, which was shown in the movie costumes through prior research related to the symbolism of color. As the empirical research method, it elicited the output of the movie costume, which reflected the symbolism of color depending on the image being expressed by a place through the standard of this study and arranged in the theoretical research.

Second, for the objective and statistical analysis on whether the image being expressed by a place was correctly reflected in the color of the movie costume, a questionnaire survey was conducted composed of a 5-point Likert scale and multiple-choice scale targeting 100 students majoring in clothing and textiles who watched the movie in October 2013. Data analysis used SPSS Ver.12.0, which is a statistical analytical program. The analytical techniques used were reliability, descriptive statistics, and correlation analysis.

IV.Results and Discussion

1.Process of presenting movie costume with application of color symbolism in independent film <Bittersweet Life>

The empirical research in this Chapter was established on a clothing item through a survey of images related to characters in a movie and elicited the output by introducing color symbolism to movie costumes based on the standard of this study, which was arranged in the theoretical research according to the image being expressed by a place in the movie.

1)Establishment of clothing items through a survey of character's image

The depiction of the clothes of Jack and Peter, who are the two characters in the independent film <Bittersweet Life>, can be divided into the Brooklyn river bank and the SOHO street, which are the backgrounds of the movie. The type of clothing items can be divided by Jack, the CEO of a successful venture company on Wall Street in New York, and the homeless man Peter who is often in New York, through research on the character's image (Table 5).

As a homeless man Peter's clothing is elaborating the Brooklyn river bank in winter, and is composed of a beanie, parka, manyfold shirts, training pants, and old running shoes. Peter's clothing in the SOHO scene were worn such as blue jeans, turtle neck, and light overcoat, thereby indicating a comfortable image of Peter who returned to his family. Jack as a business man on Wall Street was basically shown in suits—Y-shirts, necktie, gilded watch, and shoes— and was allowed to wear an overcoat and mufflers on the scene of the Brooklyn river bank in winter, thereby having made it possible to distinguish a seasonal change through a change in an item.

2)Movie costumes reflected by the symbolic images of color in the independent film <Bittersweet Life>

Through analyzing images being expressed by a place in the theoretical consideration, we considered that the independent film <Bittersweet Life> expresses a negative image on the Brooklyn river bank in New York while the SOHO street in New York shows a positive image. Accordingly, this researcher categorized the image being symbolized by color into a positive image and negative image based on prior research. Movie costumes were presented by reflecting symbolic images of color in order to be able to effectively express the meaning of a story in the clothing item of characters by place.

2.Objective analysis of symbolic expression of movie costume that was shown in a movie

The movie costume in the independent film <Bittersweet Life> elicited the movie costume by introducing color, which can express a character's internal psychological status, to clothing based on the image being expressed by a place. For the objective analysis of the movie costume that reflected the symbolism of color according to the image being expressed by a place in a movie, this Chapter conducted a questionnaire survey that was composed of a 5-point Likert scale and multiple-choice scale targeting 100 students majoring in clothing and textiles who watched the movie in October 2013. Data analysis used SPSS Ver.12.0, which is a statistical analytical program. The analytical technique used reliability, descriptive statistics, and correlation analysis.

1)Questionnaire items of comprising Likert scale

The questionnaire item, which comprised the Likert scale, was composed of a total of 4 items as shown in (Table 7). Each item used a 5-point Likert scale from ‘Strongly disagree (1 point)’ to ‘Strongly agree (5 points).’

Firstly, examining the aspect of correlation between movie and place or between place and movie costume, 71% of respondents gave an answer of ‘Strongly agree’ or ‘Agree’ to the question, “Do you think that a place being shown in a movie has an influence on the movie mood?” and 85% of respondents gave the answer of Strongly agree’ or ‘Agree’ to the question, “Do you think that a movie costume is related to a place being shown in a movie or to the mood being expressed by a place?”

Based on these results, a place in a movie can be considered to have an influence upon the mood of a movie to some extent. It can be analyzed to have a high relationship with a place in a movie, the mood being aroused by the place, and movie the costume offering diverse visual pleasures in a movie.

Sequentially, 71% of respondents showed the outcome of more than ‘Agree’ for the question, “Do you think that the Brooklyn river bank, which is space of despair in the film <Bittersweet Life>?” as the item related to mood or image of a place. 76% of respondents gave the answer of ‘Agree’ or ‘Strongly agree’ to the question, “Do you think that the SOHO street, which is a space of a new start in the film ‘Bittersweet Life’, expresses a positive meaning?”

As for the results on the meaning of place, which is expressed in the movie, the result in the latter part compared to the first half of the movie can be known to show a little aspect. This can be analyzed by the fact that it takes a little time for the audience to understand a character and a story in a movie along with diverse visual and auditory elements. In other words, a meaning that a director aimed to deliver to the audience can be said to be recognized clearly given organically harmonized diverse elements, rather than possibly grasping a meaning immanent in it, through independent recognition only on each of the elements in a movie in terms of a movie that can be called the whole of a synthetic art.

Next, analyzing correlation among items in each questions as shown in (Table 8), the significant correlation was shown at the level of 5% with a significance probability of 0.05, as the correlation coefficient between Q1 and Q3 is 0.334; and at the level of 5% with a significance probability of 0.05 as the correlation coefficient between Q2 and Q3 is 0.299. Also, the significant correlation was expressed at the level of 5% with a significance probability of 0.05 as the correlation coefficient between Q1 and Q4 is 0.272; and at the level of 1% with a significance probability of 0.01 as the correlation coefficient between Q2 and Q4 is 0.246.

This outcome implies that the Brooklyn river bank, which is a space of new despair in the film <Bittersweet Life>, expresses a negative meaning, or that the SOHO street, which is a space of a new start, expresses a positive meaning, in that the place being shown in the movie has an influence on the movie mood and on the view that the movie costume is related to a place being shown in a movie and to the mood being expressed by a place. Consequently, it can be analyzed that a movie costume needs to be considered a place and mood of a movie and the relationship between place and movie costume in the film <Bittersweet Life> is significant.

2)Questionnaire items comprising multiple-choice scale

The questionnaire item, which comprised a multiplechoice scale, was composed of a total of 14 items as shown in (Table 9). As for each item, the questionnaire suggested 7 examples including others utilizing adjective image words, which comprise words signifying positive and negative meanings in the category, which comprise image words symbolizing color mentioned in the theoretical background. Also, to elicit specific objectivity and avoid a consistent answer in the questionnaire item, it suggested dividing a question into a feeling and symbol that are expressed by a color shown in the movie, thereby providing the opportunity to carefully consider the meaning of a question even a common meaning in light of the question.

First, analyzing the results on items related to Peter's costumes in the aspect of symbolism in color reflected in the movie costume in the first half of the movie, Q1 was in the order of gloomy (33%), hopeless (22%), and sardonic (16%) (Fig. 1). Q2 was in the order of lonely (40%), hopeless (25%), and gloomy (17%) (Fig. 2). Also, Q3 was in the order of loneliness (37%), emptiness & failure (21%) (Fig. 3). Q4 was indicated to be in the order of sardonic (39%), gloomy (30%), and hopeless (19%) (Fig. 4).

Analyzing the results on items related to Jack's costumes, Q5 was in the order of hopeless (39%), lonely (31%), and gloomy (13%) (Fig. 5). Q6 was in the order of emptiness (49%), failure (17%), and lonely (15%) (Fig. 6). Q7 was in the order of gloomy (36%), hopeless (24%), and lonely (21%) (Fig. 7).

Through this, the colors, which were shown in black parka and white sweater on Peter's costumes in the first half of the movie, were indicated by image words such as gloomy, lonely and sardonic from the negative image of black, as well as hopeless and failure from the negative image of white. The colors, which were shown in black coat and brown pants on Jack's costumes, were indicated by image words such as hopeless and lonely from the negative image of black color as well as empty and gloomy from the negative image of brown. This can be said to express negative image words from symbolizing effects in the colors of movie costumes. This can be said to have the same context as the place of the Brooklyn river bank, which conveys a negative image in the movie.

Next, analyzing the results on items related to Peter's costumes fro the aspect of symbolism in colors reflected in movie costumes in the latter half of the movie, Q8 was in the order of passion (38%), courage (24%), and abundance (19%) (Fig. 8). Q9 was in the order of polished (27%), truth (19%), and ideal (15%) (Fig. 9). Q10 was indicated in the order of calmness (47%), courage (23%), and happiness (14%) (Fig. 10).

Analyzing the results of items related to Jack's costumes, Q11 was in the order of calmness(50%) and happiness(33%) (Fig. 11). Q12 was in the order of abundance (33%) and ideal (25%) (Fig. 12). Also, Q13 was in the order of calmness (45%), courage (14%), and abundance (13%) (Fig. 13).

Through this, the colors, which were shown in match of brown coat and blue jeans on Peter's costumes in the latter half of the movie, indicated image words such as passion and polished from the positive image of blue as well as calmness, courage, and happiness from the positive image of brown. The colors, which were shown in black and blue combination suit and red tie on Jack's costumes, indicated image words such as calmness and abundant from the positive images of black and blue as well as ideal, courage, and happiness from the positive image of red. This can be said to be expressed in positive image words in the colors of the movie costumes. As this is the space of a new start in the movie, it can be considered to have the same situational context as the place of the SOHO street, which shows a positive image.

Through the above questionnaire survey, the symbolic meaning of color is given to a character's internal psychological status and situational mood and indicated in clothing based on the images being expressed by a place in a movie in presenting a movie costume in the independent film <Bittersweet Life>, thereby having portrayed the appearance effectively through the color expression of a movie costume using objective statistics. The following results are shown in each item in the graph.

V.Conclusion

This study selected America's representative independent film <Bittersweet Life> as a research subject and presented symbolic meaning in color to movie costumes based on the images being expressed in a place that was reflected in a character's internal psychological status and situation, thereby having grasped the correlation between a movie title and costume color while simultaneously suggesting the rational and effective use of movie costumes in the low-budget clothing environment of the independent film.

As the independent film <Bittersweet Life> is a low-budget movie in light of the characteristics of the independent film, it is known that a director tries to intensively reflect diverse symbolism in a story of a movie partially through movie costumes or props due to the shortage in additionally colorful imaging technology or movie setting space. According to a higher ratio of weight and responsibility for presenting a costume in this way, we tried to seek an efficient tool of expression for a movie costume by reflecting and designing symbolic meaning in clothing by utilizing relatively strong characteristics in the explicitness called color to depict a character's internal psychological status and situation in styling movie costumes. Also, to secure the objectivity of whether symbolic meaning in the colors of movie costumes was effectively delivered according to the situational mood of place, this study analyzed the actual image exposed to the audiences through major clothing and textiles, who can view clothing with intense interest, and examined how effectively the symbolic intention of clothing color was expressed based on the relevant questionnaire survey. The conclusions of this study are as follows.

First, the colors primarily presented were neutral colors in black and white or the colors in dark tone close to black in light to represent the negative narrative structure to draw a human being's image as if having been thrown away from reality by using the background of the Brooklyn river bank depicting a gloomy mood shown the aspects of bitter life in the first half of the movie. Even the symbolic image, which is delivered to the audiences, was analyzed through a number of negative meanings such as gloomy, hopeless, and lonely, thereby having analyzed the negative symbolism expressed effectively in a place of being intended. For example, the presentation of clothing color in black symbolizing fear, darkness or coolness could be considered to have portrayed to the audiences the expression of psychological symbols which mean an uneasy psychology and a situation of being confronted by oneself. As the similar sense, the white color on Peter's sweater implies a feeling of darkness, coreless and gloomy as psychological symbols such as black effects on the situation of movie. Also, the ambivalent image effect in dark brown on Jack's pants symbolizing a psychological of structure conflict or stability could have delivered symbolic images such as psychological compromise and a transition period expressed between confusion which means tension and nervousness in internal status and conviction in life to the audiences through clothing color.

Second, the blue series of colors were brightly presented generally in aspect of the positive narrative structure that depicted the image of a human being returning successfully to reality by having the background as a SOHO street that is full of vividness, which was shown the aspect of sweet life in the latter part of the movie. The symbolic image of being delivered to the audiences was analyzed through a number of positive meanings such as calmness, polished, and abundant, thereby having effectively expressed the positive symbolism in an intended place. As for a particular part, the black and brown color, which had been negatively utilized in the first half of the movie, were shown to be clothing color. The image, which was expressed to the audiences, comprised a number of positive images such as polished and stable. In light of this outcome, a color of being seen visually is the same. However, the symbolic image of being perceived by the audience can be considered to be differently indicated according to the spatial background that the hero confronted, namely, place and situation. It was analyzed to be possibly elicit a positive image effect by matching a clothing item in a bright blue series together, even if being part of the same black and brown costume.

Third, even the aspect of the application in color, which involves the psychological aspect as well as symbolism of general color, was effectively delivered to the audiences. Particularly, white color generally symbolizes purity and peace, but symbolizes sardonic and gap from a psychological aspect. In the movie, the application of white color to clothing for expressing the psychological status of Peter—who degenerated into a homeless man, fallen and living in his unique world while denying the loneliness of being disconnected with the world—was analyzed to have been able to effectively elicit a feeling of an empty image from the audiences.

Fourth, the emphasis on color in the partial detail of clothing was analyzed and even the whole image of being changed according to the flow of the story can be effectively expressed to the audience with an emphasis on symbolic colors, as well as being able to clearly deliver delicate emotion and the symbolism of being felt in a place and situation by the audiences. Specially, in terms of the negative narrative structure in the first half of the movie, Peter's anxious and nervous psychological status was expressed with a yellow necktie, thereby having delivered a weak image to the audiences. On the other hand, the emphasis on a red necktie in the scene with the background as the SOHO street creates a positive story that helps to effectively express the psychological status of passion and a fighting spirit to create the rosy future having returned to reality.

From this study, a method of presenting costume with the application of symbolism in each color in terms of presenting a movie costume design is considered to be effective for increasing the audience's understanding about the message being given by a movie from the aspect of delivering the visual effect of a movie, especially to produce a low-budget movie, achieve perfection in a work, and fulfill the director's intention of presentation and to present a way of visualizing and implementing the aesthetic aspect of costume design shown in the movie. Before drawing generalizations from our findings, several caveats are due regarding the limitations of this study. First, there is a possibility that one and the same color could have led to a specific analysis according to color tone or scheme, costume styling method, item setting, and story composition. Second, the respondents to the questionnaire, a survey that analyzed emotion on color after understanding a story with seeing a movie, were the students majoring in fashion design professionally trained on color. Third, our research generalized that positive and negative image in a film were determined only by color attributes. A follow-up study is expected to be performed on the development in movie costumes through more diverse approaches available for overcoming the reality of low-budgeted independent films.