Moreover, one of the
biggest aspects we learnt from our Prelim was sound. Due to negligence whilst
shooting and the pressure to finish production early we forgot to turn the
microphone on which meant that our film had no sound at all. Thus the audience
could not hear the dialogue that was supposed to be present. This only became
apparent to our group during the editing process and we by then we were
reaching our deadline of completing our Prelim and could not reshoot. To
overcome this major problem, we thought creatively and decided to convey the
dialogue and speech through another medium: subtitles. After learning how to add text we communicated
our speech through the subtitles. Unbelievably it was a similar situation for
the final product. Initially we wanted to make use of a voice over showing the
characters emotions to match the visual film. We had diegetic sounds of London
which worked but each time we recorded the voice over it did not match the
visuals and looked out of place rather working in accompaniment. We were able
to use what we learnt from the Prelim and showed the voice over’s content by
using subtitles but this time they appeared more like a type writer/diary on
screen. So we were able to use the lessons we learnt from the Prelim task to
create a better full task. And my knowledge of the film making process had
improved greatly.
Monday, 4 May 2015
Evaluation: Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
I have learnt a lot and developed my understanding to
produce the full product. Primarily, the importance of planning for production
significantly improved. Pre-production for our Prelim Task was very poor and
this lead to problems during Shooting. We lacked organisation in terms of
preparing the correct equipment to take and props that would be used. This
caused chaos during Shooting, however we thoroughly planned our final product
and made sure that all the Pre-Production was complete to a good standard
minimising any issues that would perhaps arise. We anticipated problems from
our Shot List for example; the Tracking shot used to follow Leo through London.
We learnt after shooting our Prelim that the camera’s movement was not smooth
and the shot thus suffered in quality because of this unsteadiness. We were
able to avoid this issue in the full product by making use of equipment such as
a tripod which gave a very nice flow to our tracking shot of Leo as the camera
movement was a smooth glide down. This was a significant improvement as the
Tracking shot was an element that we incorporated to establish the character
and shots that appear of low quality convey a negative message to the audience
who then view the product as “amateurish”. We also developed the quality of our
shots in general (some were not in focus), especially close-ups. Our Prelim
close ups appeared grainy to the audience due to the lighting not being bright
enough, we made sure that lighting would not be an issue during our full task
as well as making sure all shots were all focused, making our work overall,
appear to be a better standard. We did not make use of colour grading during
the Prelim task that could have enhanced our work. However to communicate and
add to our genre of Mystery we made sure to utilize colour grading;
incorporating blue colouring. This development added to the ambience of the
location and the genre, thus it was a significant development. Furthermore,
another way we developed from our Prelim was by utilizing transitions
effectively. For the Prelim task, there was not much requirement for it, but
our final product included transitions and quicker cuts which was a clear
development that proved to be successful.
Evaluation: What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I have learnt a lot about the cameras and Final Cut Pro (the software for the editing process). I learnt how to effectively use the camera lenses by experimenting with the different lenses to find the perfect one; Wide shot being 35mm, Mid shot being 55mm, and a close-up being 75mm. When shooting I was able to use my increased knowledge of the cameras to produce good quality focused shots, displaying depth to the audience.
I also learnt a great deal about Final Cut Pro at first I found it complicated but spending time with the software and exploring its functions I was able to appreciate the capabilities of it. Some of the functions I learnt about was the "Razor" this was a tool used to make clear cuts producing fluency of our film from shot to shot. This was a basic tool, other functions I learnt included adding diegetic sound, subtitles (like a type writer diary on screen), and colouring. YouTube videos and researching helped us to increase our knowledge in these areas, and Final Cut Pro appeared less daunting than before. The colouring was fairly simple, I just had to adjust the mix of colours increasing the desired cold blue colour to add to the ambience. Later rendering the footage made it return to Final Cut Pro compatibility. Thus I learnt a lot about technologies during the film making process of shooting and editing.
I also learnt a great deal about Final Cut Pro at first I found it complicated but spending time with the software and exploring its functions I was able to appreciate the capabilities of it. Some of the functions I learnt about was the "Razor" this was a tool used to make clear cuts producing fluency of our film from shot to shot. This was a basic tool, other functions I learnt included adding diegetic sound, subtitles (like a type writer diary on screen), and colouring. YouTube videos and researching helped us to increase our knowledge in these areas, and Final Cut Pro appeared less daunting than before. The colouring was fairly simple, I just had to adjust the mix of colours increasing the desired cold blue colour to add to the ambience. Later rendering the footage made it return to Final Cut Pro compatibility. Thus I learnt a lot about technologies during the film making process of shooting and editing.
Sunday, 3 May 2015
Evaluation: Who would be the audience of your media product?
Our audience would be British since our film is typically
British and passes the requirements according to BFI. It contains British
culture and other elements such as the actors and setting (London) that make
the film British, so it would appeal to this audience. Our target audience is
actually teenagers since of protagonist is a teenager and her journey is depicted
which is relatable to them. Furthermore
the genre more likely appears to this age range; Mystery including themes of
sadness, reminiscing about the past, isolation and searching for a future (with
her family). These elements thus make the audience of our media product British
teenagers since our film attracts them with this.
Evaluation: What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
Independent institutions like Warp Films or BFI would
perhaps distribute our film because our production is a low budget typically British
film (classified). Also, productions like these look to attract the British
audience so our film conforms to their expectations; the film is based in London
and contains British actors and depicts the culture. Our film could utilize the
online platforms such as YouTube to distribute the film to a wider audience.
Social Networking would provide opportunities to promote the film, for instance
Facebook and Twitter.
Evaluation- How does your media product represent particular social groups?
Gender and age is represented in our production. Our
protagonist “Leo” represents a teenage girl and is presented as rebellious and
excluded from her family. The use of her
casual clothes and the colour black, connotes this rebellious feel which
conforms to stereotypes of a teenager being a ran-away and unable to cope with
life’s situations. The subtitles used to convey her emotions also reinforce this.
Leo also appears isolated or lost in the busy crowd on London as long shots are
used depicting Leo as just another individual in a busy world. The use of a tracking
shot further underpins this and it appears to the audience like she is on a
journey but because she is out in the open it is almost depicting a loss of
innocence as she faces the “real” world (defending for herself). Being a girl
it is can be said that Leo deviates from stereotypical representations because of
this rebellious side presented and her strength in trying to find her family to
the extent of running away from her controlling relatives.
Evaluation- In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and convections of real media products?
Our media product uses and develops conventions of real
media products. The real film conventions (exposition) of real media products:
establish time, setting, character(s), narrative and conveys enigma. Our film
opening introduces the setting of London immediately simply by the wide shot of
South Bank’s bridge in London, the audience immediately become aware of the
setting as well as the diegetic sound of the people in the town. The time
period and of Running on the Cracks is established the effects of the diary at
the beginning typewriter and the Mis-en-scene also contributes to revealing the
time period to the audience by the use of
costumes and props. Leo is depicted as a rebellious teenager and her
costume/attire are casual and is of course modern- hoodie and black jeans
subverting to many stereotypes Hollywood Blockbusters portray of teenage girls
being “girly” and fashion obsessed. The rucksack (prop) used is rugged and even
containing holes although this is for fashion, it adds to conveying her rough
situation of leaving home. We established our protagonist Leo, through tracking
shots of her journey through London. The opening scene begins with a close up
of her shoes as she sits on the floor and a coin is thrown at her feet
communicating her situation rough situation and how she appears to the
society/public.
Sunday, 22 March 2015
Saturday, 21 March 2015
Post-Production
Firstly, when we encompassed our shots together, we as the audience did not feel it was right. After reflecting upon this we knew that match on action was missing making our film seem like a series of shots containing no sense of flow that is necessary in real time. This greatly affected the quality of our film and we knew this was a real problem because we did not have enough shots for match on action in the beginning of the film. To overcome this we added titles in the places that did not flow into the next shot and the cuts worked really well and proved successful in making the pace slower in areas where we wanted to establish the character through close-ups (e.g.her writing in her diary).
Close ups to create a more personal feel to the audience...
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Secondly, a major problem we faced was with the voice over, the voice over which did not match the visuals digitally of our film. Instead of adding depth and meaning to the characters actions it gave our film more of an amateur feel. This was extremely frustrating for us; we recorded the voice over twice in an attempt to fix this. However, after discussing this problem we knew we had to think creatively and problem solve like editors in the industry. We decided to communicate the messages we wanted from the voice over, visually. After adding subtitles- the subtitles appeared like a visual diary as we held a tableau in significant moments.
Through our editing skills we achieved match on action and communicated what we wanted the audience to know visually establishing the beginning of our narrative.
Visually presenting our voice over...
Friday, 13 March 2015
Shooting Journal
During Post Production and Production we many encountered problems.
Production
As stated previously we filmed using to locations London and Windsor so we decided to film on each location on different days. At the London location, we encountered many problems due to the sheer amount of people present during the day. This made it extremely hard to shoot our film as people kept appearing in our shots, this was of course a bigger problem for us in the frame of our wide establishing shots delaying the time we intended to end shooting (making the process of film making slower). The protagonist simply could not be seen in the crowd. To overcome this we had to complete our other shots first and then try and shoot, fortunately changing the time solved this, as it became less crowded later on in the day. Another problem we experienced whist shooting was the weather. It was REALLY COLD. The other group members and the actors were finding it difficult to maintain focus and we were annoyed at the delay it was taking to shoot all our shots. The cold weather also impacted on our work and we later felt we rushed through some aspects of our film and later this was made apparent to us during Post Production. At the Windsor location, we encountered problems with the tracking shot outside the house because it was difficult to track steadily, affecting the quality. This was a minor problem and everything else went smoothly. We planned the time better for this location in terms of meeting together and preparing for the scenes e.g props. So we finished filming on time with a pleasing outcome.
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Production
As stated previously we filmed using to locations London and Windsor so we decided to film on each location on different days. At the London location, we encountered many problems due to the sheer amount of people present during the day. This made it extremely hard to shoot our film as people kept appearing in our shots, this was of course a bigger problem for us in the frame of our wide establishing shots delaying the time we intended to end shooting (making the process of film making slower). The protagonist simply could not be seen in the crowd. To overcome this we had to complete our other shots first and then try and shoot, fortunately changing the time solved this, as it became less crowded later on in the day. Another problem we experienced whist shooting was the weather. It was REALLY COLD. The other group members and the actors were finding it difficult to maintain focus and we were annoyed at the delay it was taking to shoot all our shots. The cold weather also impacted on our work and we later felt we rushed through some aspects of our film and later this was made apparent to us during Post Production. At the Windsor location, we encountered problems with the tracking shot outside the house because it was difficult to track steadily, affecting the quality. This was a minor problem and everything else went smoothly. We planned the time better for this location in terms of meeting together and preparing for the scenes e.g props. So we finished filming on time with a pleasing outcome.
Tuesday, 3 March 2015
Light & Colour Research
Lighting and Colour was an important aspect of our film because we wanted to make sure that it communicated our genre. Our Genre is Mystery/Thriller.
On the set of our London location the lighting was naturally bright and we decided that would be bring a warm/colourful feel which we did not want since the setting had to reflect isolation that is almost depressing. Our film needed a cold essence/atmosphere also to reflect Leo's sad frame of mine whilst reminiscing about her family. To achieve this we knew this would be done during post production on the software: final cut pro. "Cold" colours were needed and according to our research blue and grey colours connoted cold/mysterious elements reinforcing the genre of our film to the audience and creating enigma. Blue colouring alluded to the genre (conforming to convetions of a Mystery Opening film) and signified Leo's sad state. (Tim Burton's "A Corpse Bride" illustrates the colours which we wanted to include, although the colours were a little too cold for our film it was useful to see the effects it created to the ambience of the film.) At the end our film, when colliding with Alex, the blue colouring lessened slightly to symbolise a sense of hope for finding her family. On the other hand too much blue colouring was undesired because after all our film had to display social realism and therefore had to look naturalistic.
However for our Flashback we wanted the colours to be warm and made sure that the home would be brightly lit with decorations, even adding candles to subtly create this effect. The warm decorations and bright light connote happiness signifying to the audience the fond memories Leo had in her childhood, that contrasts her present state.
Colour and lighting effects ambience...
Saturday, 28 February 2015
Location Research
Location- Running on the Cracks
As a group we had to chose the most appropriate location for our production to communicate our protagonist (Leo) is running away.
Initially we chose Maidenhead as our location because it was local and easy to shoot for our group but on reflection we considered that Maidenhead would not illustrate the isolation and internal struggles Leo would have in the narrative. Rather it would create an "amateur-ish" feel to the audience, therefore bringing the quality of our film down. We decided to have London as our setting as it is an iconic setting that would easily portray Leo's melancholy frame of mind whilst she was lost in the busy crowd of the streets. In London we chose to shoot on a bridge overlooking a lake, in order to incorporate a tracking shot of Leo walking in search of somewhere to live. As film makers, we wanted to covey a loss of innocence to the audience as Leo enters the real world, and I felt the ambience/atmosphere of London was perfect to depict this. Whilst searching for the exact location, I kept in mind that during editing we would eradicate the warmth of the atmosphere by adding blue filters to enhance the "cold" feel of London, (pathetic fallacy- English students would know) representing the location as almost depressing.
Images of London location, as you can see the original set for our film is too bright that's why we knew we would alter the colours :
Conventionally, films of mystery such as ours include open areas and crowds of people to demonstrate characters isolation so London was appropriate and a location that the audience would expect to see to communicate the genre.
Contrasting to London, I wanted to convey meaning to our audience about Leo's childhood with her parents and siblings. Thus we wanted the setting of our flashback to develop on this theme of warmth and happiness. When discussing appropriate location, a typical home came to mind because it connotes an intimate/personal ambience which was desired. One member in our group was willing to use a family member's house and we knew with decorations that the living room could be made very inviting/warm contrasting to the London location and communicating to the audience the fond memories of her childhood.
As a group we had to chose the most appropriate location for our production to communicate our protagonist (Leo) is running away.
Initially we chose Maidenhead as our location because it was local and easy to shoot for our group but on reflection we considered that Maidenhead would not illustrate the isolation and internal struggles Leo would have in the narrative. Rather it would create an "amateur-ish" feel to the audience, therefore bringing the quality of our film down. We decided to have London as our setting as it is an iconic setting that would easily portray Leo's melancholy frame of mind whilst she was lost in the busy crowd of the streets. In London we chose to shoot on a bridge overlooking a lake, in order to incorporate a tracking shot of Leo walking in search of somewhere to live. As film makers, we wanted to covey a loss of innocence to the audience as Leo enters the real world, and I felt the ambience/atmosphere of London was perfect to depict this. Whilst searching for the exact location, I kept in mind that during editing we would eradicate the warmth of the atmosphere by adding blue filters to enhance the "cold" feel of London, (pathetic fallacy- English students would know) representing the location as almost depressing.
Images of London location, as you can see the original set for our film is too bright that's why we knew we would alter the colours :
Conventionally, films of mystery such as ours include open areas and crowds of people to demonstrate characters isolation so London was appropriate and a location that the audience would expect to see to communicate the genre.
Contrasting to London, I wanted to convey meaning to our audience about Leo's childhood with her parents and siblings. Thus we wanted the setting of our flashback to develop on this theme of warmth and happiness. When discussing appropriate location, a typical home came to mind because it connotes an intimate/personal ambience which was desired. One member in our group was willing to use a family member's house and we knew with decorations that the living room could be made very inviting/warm contrasting to the London location and communicating to the audience the fond memories of her childhood.
Thursday, 26 February 2015
Costume Research
Leo:
Dressed in simple black clothing and a grey hoodie. Her hair will be open expressing uncleanliness and her rough situation. Black clothing connoting rebellious run away. Grey is reflective of her emotions which is sadness and emptiness also illustrating the dirty surroundings. For my research I used "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" as inspiration because the look conveys to the audience the rebellious feel we want to portray as well being fashionable for a teenager.
Family:
Dressed in Christmas Clothing (jumpers). Overall the clothing will be colourful signifying the happiness and joy of celebrating Christmas as a family.
Alex:
Casual clothing jeans and a hoodie/coat conforming to stereotypes of teenager attire.
Dressed in simple black clothing and a grey hoodie. Her hair will be open expressing uncleanliness and her rough situation. Black clothing connoting rebellious run away. Grey is reflective of her emotions which is sadness and emptiness also illustrating the dirty surroundings. For my research I used "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" as inspiration because the look conveys to the audience the rebellious feel we want to portray as well being fashionable for a teenager.
Family:
Dressed in Christmas Clothing (jumpers). Overall the clothing will be colourful signifying the happiness and joy of celebrating Christmas as a family.
Alex:
Casual clothing jeans and a hoodie/coat conforming to stereotypes of teenager attire.
Wednesday, 25 February 2015
Actors Research- Inspirations
While researching for inspiration for her character, at first it was difficult to find a character that subverts stereotypical representations of a teenage girl since big Hollywood productions that dominate films at the box office often choose to portray young girls as very fashion obsessed "girly" and living the high life. For instance "Wild Child" at the beginning of the film and "Mean Girls". However I reflected about these stereotypical representations and understood that Leo's character would be opposite to them.
I was able to use the character of Poppy as inspiration at the end of "Wild Child" (not the beginning) since she is portrayed as more natural English teenager like Leo, and also she is represented as sad and depressed because of losing her mother. Since Leo desperately wants to find her relatives and is represented as depressed without them I was able to use this film as inspiration.
Another inspiration was "The Perks of Being a Wallflower", the female protagonist is represented as rebellious in her behaviour and her attire was also used as inspiration.
I was able to use the character of Poppy as inspiration at the end of "Wild Child" (not the beginning) since she is portrayed as more natural English teenager like Leo, and also she is represented as sad and depressed because of losing her mother. Since Leo desperately wants to find her relatives and is represented as depressed without them I was able to use this film as inspiration.
Another inspiration was "The Perks of Being a Wallflower", the female protagonist is represented as rebellious in her behaviour and her attire was also used as inspiration.
Tuesday, 24 February 2015
Actors Research- In Terms of Casting
The actors were of course significant for our film and we took many things into consideration whilst choosing the actors. Together we discussed some specifications for the actors.
Leo: (protagonist)
We had to represent a young girl, who almost subverts some stereotypical representations of a typical "girly" teenager, portraying a rough edge to her. We tried to portray an element of rebelliousness and a loss of innocence almost as she enters the real world which was part of the narrative of our production. Thus Leo's appearance was vital to reflect her situation and realism of the character. The actor had to fit the requirement of being 16-19 years old.
Her style would connote a rough teenage edge (see Costumes Research). We were considering a member of our group but we decided on a drama student and our friend Katie Crossland, as our acting abilities would not be as good as hers and that would let the film down and destroy the viewer's belief in the reality our film is seeking to create. To me, Katie was more than for this role, she could effectively convey the characters emotions and relate to Leo.
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Alex: His face would not be revealed adding enigma to our film, enticing the audience to watch the rest of the film. To keep the element of mysteriousness and not reveal his face, in our shots we chose and frames we would make sure that his face is never shown by the camera focusing on his body or for instance his hand while he collides with Leo. His style would be simple and casual. Later on, he is represented as the support or hero as the male protagonist. Therefore we conformed to these stereotypes when searching for the Alex. Ollie Parkinson (a friend of one of our group members) played the role of Alex. Ollie was also the appropriate age to be paired with Leo so he was appropriate. Since Alex's role is small and did not require much acting only his presence at the end of the film we did found it easy to select a friend for this role.
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In particular the most significant element for the actors research, we wanted our protagonists to appeal to our target audience, (teenagers) who prefer to watch films with their own age range and a narrative that appeals to them.
Leo: (protagonist)
We had to represent a young girl, who almost subverts some stereotypical representations of a typical "girly" teenager, portraying a rough edge to her. We tried to portray an element of rebelliousness and a loss of innocence almost as she enters the real world which was part of the narrative of our production. Thus Leo's appearance was vital to reflect her situation and realism of the character. The actor had to fit the requirement of being 16-19 years old.
Her style would connote a rough teenage edge (see Costumes Research). We were considering a member of our group but we decided on a drama student and our friend Katie Crossland, as our acting abilities would not be as good as hers and that would let the film down and destroy the viewer's belief in the reality our film is seeking to create. To me, Katie was more than for this role, she could effectively convey the characters emotions and relate to Leo.
Alex: His face would not be revealed adding enigma to our film, enticing the audience to watch the rest of the film. To keep the element of mysteriousness and not reveal his face, in our shots we chose and frames we would make sure that his face is never shown by the camera focusing on his body or for instance his hand while he collides with Leo. His style would be simple and casual. Later on, he is represented as the support or hero as the male protagonist. Therefore we conformed to these stereotypes when searching for the Alex. Ollie Parkinson (a friend of one of our group members) played the role of Alex. Ollie was also the appropriate age to be paired with Leo so he was appropriate. Since Alex's role is small and did not require much acting only his presence at the end of the film we did found it easy to select a friend for this role.
In particular the most significant element for the actors research, we wanted our protagonists to appeal to our target audience, (teenagers) who prefer to watch films with their own age range and a narrative that appeals to them.
Sunday, 22 February 2015
Film Treatment
Film Treatment
Film Title: "Running on the Cracks"Production Name:
Film Duration: 2 minutes
Roles:
Director- Molly Fredrickson
Assistant Director- Kenzie Ellis
Production Manager- Angelina Rashid
Camera Man- Onaisah Abu Haj
Characters:
Leo: Katie Crossland
Sister: Martha Fredrickson
(Gran) parents: Jan and Fred
Alex: Ben
Costumes:
Leo:
Dressed in simple black clothing and a grey hoodie.
Family:
Dressed in Christmas Clothing (jumpers). Overall the clothing will be colourful signifying the happiness and joy of celebrating Christmas as a family.
Synopsis (Film Idea):
Adapted by an award-winning writer Julia Donaldson's first novel aimed at a teenage audience. Published in 2009. The story revolves around 16-year-old Leo, who runs away from her aunt and uncle's home, where she has been living since the sudden death of her musician parents. Leo is driven away by the disturbing behaviour of her uncle. She escapes to London, where she comes across Alex a young teenage youth who will help solve the mystery of where her grandparents are. The film ends with Leo’s first meeting Alex.
Setting:
We have chosen the location of London streets, as we feel it is the correct setting to portray a teenage runaway with all the chaos of London around Leo, she will appear isolated and alone in a busy environment.
Props:
Backpack/suitcase (to signify to the audience that she had left home, but also revealing her situation of leaving everything behind to start a new life and find her family)
Diary (creates a personal feel and reveals the thoughts of the character to the audience visually)
Pen
Beanie
Christmas Jumpers
Christmas Hats (signifies celebrations and happiness of her childhood as well as the presents and decorations)
Mince pies/food (contributes to the feel of a home)
Plates
Christmas decorations (Tree etc.)
Phone
Radio
Presents
Sound
We will incorporate some of the natural diegetic sounds from the streets of London on a typical day. To make sure this is fully achieved we will also travel and record sounds.
Other sounds we have to include is in our Flashback; the song "Walking around a Christmas Tree" will be used in the house by the form of a radio.
Lighting
Natural lighting already present in London will be used.
The Flashback in the house will be well lit by Christmas lights, although outside will be dark as the camera focuses on the house.
Thursday, 19 February 2015
Shot List- Ma.Task
Writing the Shot List?
Definition: List of shots used to plan or manage the shooting process of the film.
Example of a Shot List...
What is the purpose of the Shot List?
Portrays all the Shots that will be included in our film and is useful on the day of the shooting working in accompaniment with the storyboards. The Shots are in chronological order and details of lighting/depth and focus are included.
What were the challenges?
Sometimes we left out details of depth and focus which we later had to discuss, another challenge was we wanted a variety of shots but weren't sure exactly if we wanted to use them. In our minds we wanted to make full use of our Location London so made sure wide shots for example were included, but we were not sure what exactly would look best there.
Image of our Shot List...
Looking at the Shots we planned to incorporate we anticipated some problems that might occur during the day of production; Firstly with the wide shot displaying the characters Alex and Leo (7) because we knew there would be lot of people whilst filming so we were concerned with them appearing in the frame...
2) I also thought the tracking shot would be an issue because the camera movement could appear "shaky" not smooth. But to solve this we took a tripod (enabling the camera to stay in place with smooth movement) with us to make sure that the tracking of the character would appear smoother.
Definition: List of shots used to plan or manage the shooting process of the film.
Example of a Shot List...
What is the purpose of the Shot List?
Portrays all the Shots that will be included in our film and is useful on the day of the shooting working in accompaniment with the storyboards. The Shots are in chronological order and details of lighting/depth and focus are included.
What were the challenges?
Sometimes we left out details of depth and focus which we later had to discuss, another challenge was we wanted a variety of shots but weren't sure exactly if we wanted to use them. In our minds we wanted to make full use of our Location London so made sure wide shots for example were included, but we were not sure what exactly would look best there.
Image of our Shot List...
Looking at the Shots we planned to incorporate we anticipated some problems that might occur during the day of production; Firstly with the wide shot displaying the characters Alex and Leo (7) because we knew there would be lot of people whilst filming so we were concerned with them appearing in the frame...
2) I also thought the tracking shot would be an issue because the camera movement could appear "shaky" not smooth. But to solve this we took a tripod (enabling the camera to stay in place with smooth movement) with us to make sure that the tracking of the character would appear smoother.
Saturday, 14 February 2015
Storyboard- Ma. Task
Storyboards
Definition: a sequence of drawings, typically with some directions and dialogue, representing the shots planned for a film or television production.
Examples of Storyboards...
What is the purpose of the Storyboards?
The Storyboards are the second stage of Pre-Production process. It is the visual representation of the Screenplays and depicts all shots planned for the directors and camera operators. The shot types are included and key notifications can be seen on the Storyboards.
Task
We made Storyboards of our film as part of Pre-Production.
What were some of the challenges?
We encountered some challenges in determining the Shot Types to use a variety which was difficult to predict what would work best with our location of London. Also, it was a little difficult to put our visual ideas/interpretations to multimedia format on paper with important details of focus and depth of each and every shot to avoid flat shots. To further this, when the storyboards were first created it was open to interpretation due to the lack of clarity so they were created again making shots of better quality and detail.
Our Storyboards...
Definition: a sequence of drawings, typically with some directions and dialogue, representing the shots planned for a film or television production.
Examples of Storyboards...
What is the purpose of the Storyboards?
The Storyboards are the second stage of Pre-Production process. It is the visual representation of the Screenplays and depicts all shots planned for the directors and camera operators. The shot types are included and key notifications can be seen on the Storyboards.
Task
We made Storyboards of our film as part of Pre-Production.
What were some of the challenges?
We encountered some challenges in determining the Shot Types to use a variety which was difficult to predict what would work best with our location of London. Also, it was a little difficult to put our visual ideas/interpretations to multimedia format on paper with important details of focus and depth of each and every shot to avoid flat shots. To further this, when the storyboards were first created it was open to interpretation due to the lack of clarity so they were created again making shots of better quality and detail.
Our Storyboards...
Wednesday, 11 February 2015
Screenplay- Ma.Task
Writing the Screenplay...
Definition: A Screenplay is the script of a film, including acting instructions and scene directions, closely used by the director.
An example of a Screenplay is presented below..
by Mark Frost and Michael France.
What is the purpose of the Screenplay?
The purpose of the Screenplay is to inform what happens in the film chronologically; the first part of the filmmaking process. It contains all acting instructions and scene directions. The actors and directors are able to make use of the instructions and the setting, which makes it suited to the production stage of filmmaking. The screenplay essentially serves as the bare ones of the film. The artists later develops the Storyboards which is the visual medium of the Screenplay.
The Task given to us was: 'Create the opening of a new feature length film to include sound and to last no longer than two minutes'.
Our Screenplay...
As depicted there is not much dialogue, this was done on purpose to add enigma to the opening of our film as the audience want to find out more about the characters. Our opening ends with a question "Are you okay?" reinforcing this. The only character interaction is at the ending when Alex questions Leo. Leo is thus portrayed as mysterious and the screen play demonstrates this by the lack of speech from the protagonist.
Definition: A Screenplay is the script of a film, including acting instructions and scene directions, closely used by the director.
An example of a Screenplay is presented below..
Fantastic Four (2005) movie script
by Mark Frost and Michael France.
Based on the Marvel comic book by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.
Shooting Script.
FADE IN: CLOSE ON A MASSIVE STEEL HEAD Our first thought: DR. DOOM? But it's not moving. A welder's torch sparks into frame in the hands of a sculptor on scaffolding. This is art, an epic 20 foot statue going up of a business mogul (VICTOR VON DOOM) in whose generously extended hands sit two intertwined columns of DNA. His face is chiseled, angular, perfect (too perfect). Past sparks, we MOVE down to pick up... EXT. STREET/VON DOOM INDUSTRIES TOWER - DAY REED RICHARDS and BEN GRIMM head toward the soaring glass-box atrium of VDI Headquarters. Designed to inspire awe, it does. REED High open space, exposed structural elements. Obviously aimed at first time visitors to create feelings of... smallness, inadequacy. Ben glances at Reed, who looks a little nervous. BEN Good thing it ain't workin... Reed, what are we doing here? This guy's fast-food, strip-mall science -- REED This wasn't our first stop, in case you forgot NASA. And Victor's not that bad. He's just a little... (seeing the statue) Larger than life. INT. VON DOOM INDUSTRIES TOWER - DAY They move past the statue, into the sprawling atrium. REED He's financed some of the biggest breakthroughs of this century. BEN You'd never know it. He motions to a high-tech ORB, showing FOOTAGE of VDI's accomplishments: a safe and clean nuclear facility, the first private Space Station. All images have VICTOR front and centre, glad-handling George Bush, Tony Blair, shady International Leaders. The last image is Victor holding the AMERICA'S CUP. BEN (CONT'D) Jesus. That too? They reach three stern RECEPTIONISTS. REED Reed Richards and Ben Grimm to see -- A receptionist cuts him off, handing them each a pass. FEMALE RECEPTIONIST Executive elevator, top floor. BEN What's the price for a smile round here? They head for the elevator. Reed carries a small, black box. As they enter the elevator, steel doors shut and we CUT TO -- INT. VON DOOM INDUSTRIES TOWER - OFFICE - DAY A large, dark office. Ben in the corner. He yawns, watches... BRIGHT HOLOGRAMS: Stars. Planets. They hover in the air, making the room feel like a majestic portal into outer space. REED (O.S.) My research suggests that exposure to a high-energy cosmic storm born on solar winds might have triggered the evolution of early planetary life. REED stands among the holograms, speaking to a MYSTERIOUS FIGURE in shadow behind a desk. An ominous, PULSATING RED CLOUD covers the stars. It washes over a hologram of EARTH. REED (CONT'D) In six weeks another cloud with the same elemental profile will pass Earth's orbit. A study in space could advance our knowledge about the structure of the human genome, and help cure countless diseases, extend human life -- The SHADOW clears his throat. Reed speeds up, emotional.
What is the purpose of the Screenplay?
The purpose of the Screenplay is to inform what happens in the film chronologically; the first part of the filmmaking process. It contains all acting instructions and scene directions. The actors and directors are able to make use of the instructions and the setting, which makes it suited to the production stage of filmmaking. The screenplay essentially serves as the bare ones of the film. The artists later develops the Storyboards which is the visual medium of the Screenplay.
The Task given to us was: 'Create the opening of a new feature length film to include sound and to last no longer than two minutes'.
Our Screenplay...
As depicted there is not much dialogue, this was done on purpose to add enigma to the opening of our film as the audience want to find out more about the characters. Our opening ends with a question "Are you okay?" reinforcing this. The only character interaction is at the ending when Alex questions Leo. Leo is thus portrayed as mysterious and the screen play demonstrates this by the lack of speech from the protagonist.
Thursday, 5 February 2015
Directors Research
Directors
Part of our research included looking at some of the best directors to explore what styles they incorporated and whether they stick to the conventional openings of film. Each director had a different style/approach so we wanted to have an idea of what style would suit our genre (Mystery). Some of the directors include Quarantine Tarantino, Steven Spielberg and Tim Burton. To me Tim Burton's style influenced some of our decisions especially in conveying our genre; he manipulates the colour and lighting in particular adding blue and grey colouring which connotes a cold and mysterious feel to the audience. This is evident in the "Corpse Bride". This music further enhances this effect sometimes adding a depressing sombre tone. To create a dramatic effect and heighten tension during scenes the camera movement is fast (pace) with quick cuts. The audience engage with the characters emotions.
Part of our research included looking at some of the best directors to explore what styles they incorporated and whether they stick to the conventional openings of film. Each director had a different style/approach so we wanted to have an idea of what style would suit our genre (Mystery). Some of the directors include Quarantine Tarantino, Steven Spielberg and Tim Burton. To me Tim Burton's style influenced some of our decisions especially in conveying our genre; he manipulates the colour and lighting in particular adding blue and grey colouring which connotes a cold and mysterious feel to the audience. This is evident in the "Corpse Bride". This music further enhances this effect sometimes adding a depressing sombre tone. To create a dramatic effect and heighten tension during scenes the camera movement is fast (pace) with quick cuts. The audience engage with the characters emotions.
Saturday, 31 January 2015
Main Task- Opening of a Film
MAIN TASK: 'Create the opening of a new feature length film to include sound and to last no longer than two minutes.' All audio and video must be students own work. Audio may be obtained through a copy right free source.
We were told that our film had to be an adaptation of a book that had not been released as a film. So in our group we did some research to find appropriate books for our film, this was difficult for us in the beginning as we had such a huge range of books to chose from but also some of the narratives were not satisfying us. We had searched in our school library, the internet and even Whatpad an app on androids. Finally we decided on "Running on the Cracks" as this was suggested and read by a member in our group.
Running on the Cracks is award-winning writer Julia Donaldson's first novel aimed at a teenage audience. It was published in 2009. (See Synopsis in the FILM TREATMENT for the details).
We were told that our film had to be an adaptation of a book that had not been released as a film. So in our group we did some research to find appropriate books for our film, this was difficult for us in the beginning as we had such a huge range of books to chose from but also some of the narratives were not satisfying us. We had searched in our school library, the internet and even Whatpad an app on androids. Finally we decided on "Running on the Cracks" as this was suggested and read by a member in our group.
Running on the Cracks is award-winning writer Julia Donaldson's first novel aimed at a teenage audience. It was published in 2009. (See Synopsis in the FILM TREATMENT for the details).
Wednesday, 28 January 2015
Film Openings- Our Genre Divergent
DIVERGENT
Divergent is a 2014 American science fiction action film directed by Neil Burger, based on the novel of the same name by Veronica Roth. It stars Shailene Woodley and Theo James. The story takes place in a dystopian post-apocalyptic version of Chicago, where people are divided into distinct factions based on human virtues. Beatrice Prior is warned that she is Divergent and thus will never fit into any one of the factions and soon learns that a sinister plot is brewing in her seemingly perfect society.
The title of Summit Entertainment and then (swivel effect) Redwagen Entertainment enter first accompanied by unusual music/sound of wind which makes the mood feel almost strange feel to the audience. The title of the film is made significant by the dramatic variation in the music and the capitals "DIVERGENT", again adding a Sci-Fi feel because of the music this could also be alluding to the genre of the film that is action with elements of mystery. The setting of America is established by the extreme wide shot of the city which is later followed by a confirming title of "Chicago". Enigma is created to the audience as they wonder why this long tracking shot of various wide shots of the city appear and where are the main characters? The city is different in the extreme wide shot showing field/natural areas surrounding it. The time implicitly is established towards the end by the crowd of people because of their attire which seems recent around but it is not explicitly stated. Also the narrative is not really established clearly. However this opening is successful in creating a Sci-Fi and mystery mood because of the lack of conventions included.
Divergent is a 2014 American science fiction action film directed by Neil Burger, based on the novel of the same name by Veronica Roth. It stars Shailene Woodley and Theo James. The story takes place in a dystopian post-apocalyptic version of Chicago, where people are divided into distinct factions based on human virtues. Beatrice Prior is warned that she is Divergent and thus will never fit into any one of the factions and soon learns that a sinister plot is brewing in her seemingly perfect society.
The title of Summit Entertainment and then (swivel effect) Redwagen Entertainment enter first accompanied by unusual music/sound of wind which makes the mood feel almost strange feel to the audience. The title of the film is made significant by the dramatic variation in the music and the capitals "DIVERGENT", again adding a Sci-Fi feel because of the music this could also be alluding to the genre of the film that is action with elements of mystery. The setting of America is established by the extreme wide shot of the city which is later followed by a confirming title of "Chicago". Enigma is created to the audience as they wonder why this long tracking shot of various wide shots of the city appear and where are the main characters? The city is different in the extreme wide shot showing field/natural areas surrounding it. The time implicitly is established towards the end by the crowd of people because of their attire which seems recent around but it is not explicitly stated. Also the narrative is not really established clearly. However this opening is successful in creating a Sci-Fi and mystery mood because of the lack of conventions included.
Friday, 23 January 2015
Monday, 19 January 2015
Mystery/Thriller Film Opening- Black Swan
BLACK SWAN
Black Swan is a 2010 American psychological thriller film, directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel, and Mila Kunis. The plot revolves around a production of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake ballet by a prestigious New York City company. The production requires a ballerina to play the innocent and fragile White Swan, for which the committed dancer Nina (Portman) is a perfect fit, as well as the dark and sensual Black Swan, which are qualities better embodied by the new arrival Lily (Kunis). Nina is overwhelmed by a feeling of immense pressure when she finds herself competing for the part, causing her to lose her tenuous grip on reality and descend into a living nightmare.
Black Swan is a 2010 American psychological thriller film, directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel, and Mila Kunis. The plot revolves around a production of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake ballet by a prestigious New York City company. The production requires a ballerina to play the innocent and fragile White Swan, for which the committed dancer Nina (Portman) is a perfect fit, as well as the dark and sensual Black Swan, which are qualities better embodied by the new arrival Lily (Kunis). Nina is overwhelmed by a feeling of immense pressure when she finds herself competing for the part, causing her to lose her tenuous grip on reality and descend into a living nightmare.
The scene starts with a tracking shot of a black crayon which could be symbolic of the genre, thriller as black connotes darkness and danger. Furthermore the black crayon could also allude to the narrative as the protagonist, Nina leaves reality and enters into what is described as a living nightmare (darkness and the unknown). As the crayon is made to travel freely on paper enigma is created for the audience as they wonder whose hand is drawing. Titles appear on screen as the music evokes a melancholy and strange emotion from them. The titles appear accordingly and are all the same typeface and colour. As the crayon moves faster (pace becomes faster) the music intensifies a little and effects are used to demonstrate as the crayon passes over the titles they disappear or rub out. Noticeably, as the Natalie Portman the protagonist's title appears the music reaches a climax and the crayon depicts a double line on the paper establishing to the audience that the character is significant. At 2:03 a montage of crayons crossing out and lines are presented and then at 2:17 a clear cut to the "BLACK SWAN" is illustrated along with the dramatic change of the music, sound of glass smashing communicating the genre (thriller and some elements of mystery). There is a lot of missing parts for the audience creating enigma as the film opening is not really conventional excluding on establishing the character, narrative, setting and time.
Thursday, 15 January 2015
Sunday, 11 January 2015
Film Openings- ENIGMA BI
BORNE IDENTITY
The Bourne Identity is a 2002 American-German action spy film adaptation of Robert Ludlum's novel of the same name. It stars Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, a man suffering from extreme memory loss and attempting to discover his true identity amidst a clandestine conspiracy within the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The film was directed by Doug Liman and adapted for the screen by Tony Gilroy and William Blake Herron.
Borne Identity is a brilliant example of how directors use enigma to captivate the audience to watch the rest of the film. Enigma means: the feeling of curiosity and increased suspense as time elapses. Thus the audience when watching Borne Identity have many questions regarding the character in the sea and the narrative/location. Enigma has been created in numerous ways:
- The Universal Logo is silent which is different immediately demanding the viewers attention.
- Quiet through the landscape.
- Introduction of the sound and visual lightening, there is tension as the dramatic music first plays and the lightening can connote fear/threat.
- The Weather is stormy and dark which immediately evokes negative and mysterious connotations and the sound of the harsh wind and rain accompany this.
- The random men (crew on board ship) are unrevealed and the fact they are speaking a different language to English could demonstrate a hint at their location. However the location is not specifically revealed; boat in the middle of nowhere.
- The film opening is fast paced (shrinking screen time) and this is evident especially with the mid shots/close ups when the body is pulled out of the sea. The fast pace and unrevealing the features of the man that was floating in the sea certainly create enigma because of the glimpses of the characters rather than focusing on them.
- Evident changes in the sound track but tempo increases as the first title that is significantly the title of the film "Borne Identity" appears, thus creating emphasis.
- Colour and Lighting is very blue and cold colours are used.
Wednesday, 7 January 2015
Friday, 2 January 2015
Deconstructing Film Openings- CONVENTIONS IB
INGLORIOUS BASTARDS
Inglorious Bastards is a 2009 war film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. The genre is action/adventure and black comedy. We deconstructed the elements of this film chronologically...
The film begins in silence with the Universal Logo which automatically creating an impact as it is an old Universal Logo- alluding to the time period of the film (WW2). This is followed by "The Weinstein Company" which uses effects of disappearing the triangles first before the titles perhaps lead the audience to focus on the title. The music "The Green Leaves of Summer" (establishing setting to the audience) is then introduced for the first time with the title Universal Pictures and Weinstein Company. The music increases as the directors name is mention obviously creating significance to the audience and as the title of the film appears "INGLORIOUUS BASTARDS" the music reaches a climax and change it tempo, meanwhile the typeface is different and it is in yellow. It is almost ironic to the audience that yellow connotes happiness and warmth is used for the title Inglorious Bastards but perhaps this alludes to the genre of black comedy that is portrayed in the film. The typeface returns to the same font as before but is still yellow as the biggest star of the film Brad Pitt appears first. Noticeably, the "Melanie Laurent as Shoshanna" stands out as the only actor to have this, perhaps conveying to the audience the vital role that she plays in the film. The setting is later explicitly made known to the audience "Once Upon a time in Nazi occupied France" which accompanies the music from the start. The time period and the first character is established accordingly, as the title "1941" appears. A pan up shot reveals the first character as the diegetic sound of wood chopping occurs. Enigma is created when Shoshanna's sister moves the sheet she hangs up and is very still as she first hears a car of Nazis approaching their is a dramatic shift in focus as pulls the cloth and the music changes whilst the audience visually see the car in wide shot. She later calls "Papa" creating tension for the audience as they realise that the car approaching seems to be a threat because the characters are dismantled. Thus, Inglorious Bastards conforms to the conventions of a film opening by establishing the characters, time period, genre and location.
Inglorious Bastards is a 2009 war film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. The genre is action/adventure and black comedy. We deconstructed the elements of this film chronologically...
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