When creating a film there are a lot of important things to consider like costume, props, location, script etc. however, in this post I am just going to be talking about location. I will be showing you different location, why they are important and what they represent. I will also be showing you the locations that we will be using for our own media product, our thriller Never Look Back. Below I have embedded some research that we did as a group about location.
I am now going to embed examples of the different locations that could be used and what they represent.
This location could be used for a scene where we could use a boys bedroom. For example, if we had a scene where a teenage boy was in his bedroom with his friends, this would be the type of location we would use. It is a typical boys bedroom as there are green walls and there is a guitar on the wall which suggests the boy could be quite musical.
This location could be used for a scene where we could use a girls bedroom. For example, if we had a scene where a teenage girl was in her bedroom with her friends, this would be the type of location we would use. It is a typical girls bedroom with the pink and light blue colors. Also with the decoration on the wall, the butterflies.
I am now going to add examples from real media products. I will talk about the location that is used in the scene.
In this scene from Pitch Perfect, there are different people auditioning for a part in the girl group. This scene then is stereotypically set in a theatre and not in a random room. This is a typical scene for a singing audition being set in a big theatre. It also makes it look daunting the fact that it is a big space. It keeps you on the edge of your seat thinking, are they going to get the part or not?
The next thing I am going to talk about is street dance.
This scene is set in a dance studio. A dance studio, obviously because of the name, is where people go to rehearse dance routines. This however, is quite strange to see in modern day dance films as dancers stereotypically dance in the streets. For example they will just start dancing anywhere like flash mobs etc. To see them using a dance studio in this modern day dance film is quite unusual. Also this film is about street dance and dance studios are more associated with ballet etc.
The next film I am going to talk about is The Simpsons Movie.
This scene is set in Marge and Homers living room. This however is quite strange as they have a pet pig. Pigs usually live on a farm although some people keep them as pets it is seen to be quite strange. This is why this location choice is weird but the Simpsons movie is meant to be a comedy so it fits in with the genre and the location perfectly. Its all about using the right location for the genre and the scene of the film.
I am now going to give an example of a scene in a film where they are challenging the conventions of the stereotypical room. The one I am going to look at is Bend it Like Beckham.
In this scene we are in Juliette's room. Juliette is a 20 year old woman. This room looks like it would belong to a typical teenage boy. It is quite messy and the colors are blue and cream, it also has football poster on the wall. In the film Juliette is a football player and plays for a local girls football team called the Hounslow Harriers. However, if we didn't know her background story we would automatically think that this is a boys room.
The next thing I am going to do is embed and explain the pictures of our locations that we will be using for our thriller opening Never Look Back.
The first location we will be using is the drama studio in school. This will be used for the first scene when Stacey and Alex are rehearsing for their drama performance.
Then next location we will be using is Stacey's house. This will be when Stacey goes home and Alex is following her.
Another location we will be using is the street Stacey lives in as we will see this when Alex follows Stacey home.
Another location will be outside the drama studio. Alex follows Stacey after she runs off.
Here is another location where Alex will be following Stacey home.
As part of our research we have to look at the different costumes that our characters are wearing. This is a very important aspect when creating a film as the character's costumes represent their character's personality in the film. It represents the type of person they are and it says a lot about them as a person.
Our First Character
Alex - Played by Kyle Scale
Scene 1 - School Drama Studio - Drama Rehearsal
The first time we see Alex he will be in the theatre practicing for a drama rehearsal with his friend Stacey. He then spots Stacey's bruises and threatens to tell somebody her secret. This is the outfit he will be wearing.
This is the kind of t-shirt he will be wearing. This t-shirt is very casual and the typical geeky kind of rocker look. This represents Alex character really well as he is a geeky and nerdy character that loves the typical rock bands like my chemical romance. He is a very casual and laid back character that doesn't really care about what he is wearing and what he looks like.
These are the kind of trousers that Alex will be wearing. Again these are quite casual jeans that a typical nerdy and geeky teenage boy would wear especially one who loves rock. He loves the colour black as we can see from the two pictures above. He loves to wear black skinny jeans with almost everything. Black however, is a very dark colour which represents the dark and dangerous side to Alex's character.
Alex will be wearing black vans as well as everything else. The black again symbolises Alex's character at the beginning of the thriller he is mysterious. Film Example - Airheads (1994)
In this film example we see theses typical rockers in black clothing with band t-shirts on. This is the exact representation of our character Alex in our very own thriller. He will be wearing typical clothes like the character's in the film airheads.
Scene 3 - Outside - Following Stacey Home
The next time we see Alex he will be following Stacey home. This is to make sure that she is safe and he is protecting her from her dad. The scene where he is following Stacey home he is wearing the same t-shirt, jeans and shoes however, the difference in this scene is that he will be wearing a hoodie because he is outside.
This is a typical band t-shirt hoodie that he will be wearing in this scene, it is a Marilyn Manson hoodie. Again it is very casual which represents Alex in this film very well. Again the colour of the hoodie is black however, it doesn't have to be black it can be any colour I just think it represents Alex's character really well.
Alex will be wearing a watch as he will be looking at the time from when he sees Stacey walk into her house. He will be sitting for a while before Stacey makes another appearance. Film Example - The Expelled (2010)
In this film the character is always wearing a hoodie. In the film it creates suspense and tension as no one knows the person underneath that hood. This is the kind of tension and suspense we hope to create with our character Alex in our thriller. We know it is Alex following Stacey home however we want the audience to think "what's going to happen next?"
Scene 4 - School Drama Studio - Kidnapping
Alex will be wearing the same clothes throughout the film as the series of events that happens all happen on the same day. The only thing that changes is the fact that he puts his hoodie on from scene 1 to scene 2. If we did change his clothes from scene 2 to scene 3 it would look strange as there could have been no way that he could have changed clothes so it would be a massive continuity error.
Our Second Character
Stacey - Played by Annie Sutton Scene 1 - School Drama Studio - Drama Rehearsal
The first time we see Stacey is in the school drama studio when she is rehearsing for a drama performance with her friend Alex. Alex then spots her bruises and threatens to tell somebody. These are the outfits she will be wearing.
These are the kind of jeans Stacey will be wearing in our thriller. Stacey is playing a more popular character in the film. We have portrayed this through her outfits. These jeans are casual but also stylish. This is the reason why we have chosen these for Stacey's character in our thriller.
This is the kind of shirt that Stacey would be wearing in our thriller. Again this is portraying the type of person that Stacey's character is. She is a popular girl who wears all the latest fashion so we feel that this outfit portrays her character really well.
Stacey will wear a jacket. As she is popular and likes to keep up with the trends and the latest fashion she will wear a blazer rather than a jacket. She might not always be wearing a blazer as she might take it off at some points in the film but this is generally what she will be wearing.
Stacey will be wearing converse as they are her favorite shoes. Converse are quite trendy as well so as well as wearing her favorite shoes she is still keeping up with fashion and trends. Converse can be worn with anything.
Film Example - Mean Girls (2004)
The character from mean girls Cady Heron played by Lindsay Lohan is the type of outfit we are going for. As you can see in the picture above Cady is the one standing right at the front of the group which signifies that she is the leader which essentially is what Stacey is in our thriller she is the popular one. The look of Cady is what we are essentially going for.
Scene 2 - Flashback - Stacey cowering from dad
The next time we see Stacey she will be in her house. Her dad will be towering over her as her dad will be going to hit her.
When Stacey is in her house she will change into more casual clothes and therefore will be wearing grey sweat pants. This shows another side to Stacey's character in our thriller and shows she can be quite normal and not really care what she looks like.
She will also be wearing a grey hoodie. This will also be another casual thing she will be wearing along with her sweat pants. This again shows that Stacey has a different and casual side to her personality. She isn't always popular and stuck up.
Film Example - Juno (2007)
In this film the character Juno is quite a laid back and care free character. This is portrayed through the clothes she wears. In this scene she is sitting quite laid back wearing a hoodie and some quite loose fitting jeans. She is being quite casual. This is what we want Stacey to look like when wearing her hoodie and sweat pants.
Scene 3 - Following Stacey Home - Outside
When we see Alex following Stacey home she will be wearing the exact same clothes as she wore in scene 1. This is because when she is walking home she is coming straight from drama rehearsals as Alex scared her off. This is why she will be wearing the same clothes as she does in scene 1.
Scene 4 - School Drama Theater - Kidnapping
In this scene we see that Stacey has kidnapped Alex and has him tied up in the school drama studio. Here is what she will be wearing.
We have decided to go with a black hoodie. This is because black symbolises danger. This is a great portrayal of what is going to happen in this scene. Stacey kidnaps Alex and a black outfit is a stereotypical outfit to use when we don't want you to know who the person is doing the kidnapping.
Again we have decided to go with jeans in the black colour. Again this is because black symbolises danger and this is a great portrayal of what is going to happen in this scene. Stacey kidnaps Alex and a black outfit is a stereotypical outfit to use when we don't want you to know who the person is behind the kidnapping.
We will also be using a white mask. Stacey will be wearing this is the scene as she doesn't want Alex or anyone else to know who she is. She wants it to be an element of surprise when she takes off the mask. In the 2 minutes opening we wont see her take off the mask but we do see her about to take it off and then the scene cuts. It creates a sense of tension and mystery.
We want Stacey's character to be all in black in this scene so we have gone with all black converse.
Film Example - Street Dance (2010)
Film Example - Step Up 2 the Streets (2008)
These 2 films I have used as an example because of the white masks. Even though this film and our film aren't the same genres the masks still have the same meaning. They use these masks to create tension and to create mystery as no one can see their faces. This gets the audience thinking "who are they". This is why I have used these 2 films for examples.
Costume Plot
Below is a table that I made for costumes. It basically says which character will need which costume for each scene. It will also inform the characters as to what they will be wearing throughout the filming of each scene.
In my next post I will also have to do the same as I have done for costume, however, this time it will be for the Location. I will be doing location research.
A script is written text from a film. It informs the cast and crew what is happening in each scene. It includes things like;
Fade in - This is the transition from how the scene becomes apparent to the audience. These should be the at the top of each scene.
Scene Heading - A one line description of the location and the time of day of the scene.
Action - The narrative description of the events of the scene
Character Appearance - The characters name should be in capital letters and should be lined in the center of the page and should always be above their dialogue
Dialogue - Lines of speech for each character
Parenthetical - Action or attitude direction for a character
Extension - A not placed after the character's name to indicate how the voice will be heared on screen
This is an example of a real Media product and its script. This script is Saving Mr Banks.
In this post I am going to talk about film treatments. A film treatment is a piece of work typically the step between scene cards and the first draft of a screenplay for a motion picture. It is generally longer and more detailed than an outline and it may include details of directional style that an outline leaves out. Treatments read like a short story but are told in the present tense and describe events as they happen.
Now I am going to embed the opening of I am Legend so you can compare it to the treatment above. See if you can find any similarities or differences between the treatment and the actual film.
A film treatment should;
Have a clear title at the start stating the name of the film.
Includes important dialogue only.
When a new character is introduced it needs to be in capital letters, so we can clearly see where the character enters the plot.
For short films a treatment is generally laid out as a short story. However, longer films can be up to 60 pages long.
Some include little directions which show how the scene will be portrayed or shown in the film.
This treatment for I am Legend differs from our treatment for our thriller opening because this treatment is much longer than our. Our treatment will be around about 2 pages long as we are only doing the opening.
Below I will embed our own treatment for our own media product. The opening of our thriller "Never Look Back".
Treatment
My next post will be the script (research and product).
In this post I will be talking about sound research. This involves what are the issues when recording sound on location? What are the solutions to these issues? and I will also be talking about associated terminology.
Firstly I am going to be talking to you about location recording kits. The sound recorder is the heart of any sound kit. Then you have the boom pole and the boom operator.
The sound recorder is a vital piece of equipment when recording sound on location. The sound recorder or the voice recorder is small in size so can be easily moved around from location to location.
The sound recorder can also hold a lot of memory so you wouldn't have to worry so much about running out of space when recording and having to put a new memory card in or something like that, that will delay you in recording.
You have the ability to edit voice or sound recordings. They are often uploaded onto a computer and then further edited or altered from there. In some advanced sound recorders you can edit on the recorder itself.
Below I have embedded a picture of a sound/voice recorder.
The next piece of equipment is the boom pole and the boom operator. Booming involves attaching the microphone to a pole called a boom pole and suspending it in front of the subject. This technique allows for considerable movement by actors. Professional boom poles should extend at least 12 feet. Some extend to as far as 18 feet. It is crucial that the boom pole be lightweight, yet strong enough so that it doesn't bow under the weight of the mic.
The mic is attached to the boom pole using a shock mount that suspends the mic. This prevents vibration travelling through the pole to the mic.
The rule when booming is to get as close to the subject as possible, which is just outside the camera frame line. The further the mic is away from the subject the greater the background noise will be so every inch closer improves the sound quality.
The mic is normally positioned several inches to a foot over the actors head.
The are 2 types of booming. Booming overhead and booming underneath.
Below I am going to embed a picture of the boom pole and the boom mic.
Below I am going to embed a picture of how to set up the location recording kit for those of you who don't know.
Then next thing I am going to talk about is the different types of sound that can be used.
Diegetic sound - Sound that is visible on the screen or is implied to be present by the action of the film. Foe example, the voice of the actors, sounds made by objects in the film, music represented as coming from instruments. Another word for diegetic sound is actual sound.
Non-Diegetic sound - sound that is neither visible on the screen nor has been implied to be present in the action for example, narrators commentary, sound effects which is added for dramatic effect, mood music. Another word for non-diegetic sound is commentary sound.
Below is some examples of diegetic and non diegetic sounds. See if you can spot them.
Other example of sound are asynchronous and synchronous sound.
Synchronous - Synchronous sound is sound that is matched to certain movements occurring in the scene e.g. when footsteps correspond to feet walking
Asynchronous - Asynchronous sounds match the action being performed however is not precisely synchronised with the action. e.g. the sound being heared is a train however what can be seen is a woman screaming. This is used to create tension as the viewer can hear a sound but cannot see its source.
Below I have embedded a video of the different types of audio technical codes.
The next thing I am going to talk about is ADR. This stands for Automated Dialogue Replacement. This is the process of re-recording dialogue in the studio in synchronization with the picture. There are at least three roles in the ADR process; The actor, the recording engineer and the sound editor.
Below i am going to embed an example of a film company using ADR. The film I have used is the Great Gatsby. This is an example of ADR being used terribly in a film.
The next thing I am going to talk about is Foley. A Foley artist recreates sound effects for film productions on a Foley stage in a post production studio. They do this using many kinds of props for example; car fenders, shoes, plates, glasses, chairs and really just about anything they can find. The Foley artist can replace original sound completely or argument existing sounds to create a richer track.
During filming, the location sound recordists tries to capture only the dialogue. Microphones are carefully positioned on set to record even an actors slightest whisper without the background noises from the camera and crew. Foley helps to add back in that layer of sound to produce a rich and realistic track.
Foley does no cover sounds like car engines, explosions or other mechanical stuff - driving a car around in the studio or blowing up a building is usually not possible although they have tried! They don't do laser blasts, dog barks or rain storms. These are the domain of the sound FX Editor.
Here's an example of what a Foley artist would do;
Let's say in a scene the actor grabs his gun, walks to his motorbike, starts up and drives away...
Foley would recreate the sound of the leather jacket and jeans as the actor walks, footsteps (heavy cowboy boots), the gun pickup and handling, handlebar grab and bike moves - and maybe some key sounds as he put them in the ignition.
The sound FX Editor would create the roar of the motorbike engine starting and driving away, a tire squeal and background ambiance (birds, wind etc.)
In an ADR studio the actor would record his lines "ill be back" which was inaudible on location with the motorbike engine running. The dialogue editor would conform the production and ADR into one.
Here is an example of what a Foley artist does;
The Foley artists are on the right and the film is on the left.
The next thing I am going to be talking about is the Wilhelm scream. The Wilhelm scream is a stock sound effect that has been used in more than 500 movies, beginning in 1951 for the film distant drums. The scream is often used when someone is shot, falls from a great height or is thrown from an explosion and is most commonly used in films.
Here is the very first Wilhelm scream being used in the film Distant Drums. The Wilhelm scream is used when the male character gets shot.
Here is a compilation of some of the Wilhelm screams being used in films throughout the years.
The next thing I am going to talk about is the role of the sound designer/editor. A sound designer is responsible for providing the sound for on screen action. On a big effects film, this may be before shoots begins on a big budget production. It could be when director have approved the final picture edit. The first task for sound designers is to identify the three main kinds of sound effects needed these may be gunshots, clocks, doors closing, dog barking, rain, wind, traffic, birdsong. There are also specialist sound design effects such as dinosaurs, aliens, spaceships or computers. They plan and provide the sound the sound effects in films. All the sound effects in a film considered as a whole make up the sound space.
The next thing on the list is the film score composers. The film score composer scores music to accompany a motion picture for film. This could include dramatic underscore as well as popular songwriting. The traditional role of a film composer is to provide the orchestral dramatic underscore and only more recently the popular soundtracks have begun to stand on their own.
A popular film score composer is John Williams. He has composed many popular soundtracks to movies. Here are just a few of them;
Jurassic Park
Home Alone
Harry potter
Jaws
The next thing I am going to talk about is audio codes. Audio codes designs, develops and sells advanced Voice over IP and converged VOIP and data networking products and applications to enterprises. Audio codes develops the IP media family of market-ready server system designed for the service provider environment. Audio codes media servers enable network equipment providers, application developers and system integrator to offer service providers revenue generating enhanced voice services.
The final thing I will be talking about is what is the impact of an inappropriate soundtrack. For example, if there the film is an action packed thriller and the music playing over it is quite happy and slow then the track isn't going to suit the live action that is going on in the film. This also works the other way around. For example, if the film is quite a happy and romantic film and there is fast paced heavy metal it wont suit the live action that is going on behind it. It also makes it into a comedy when there is an inappropriate soundtrack playing in the background. People will be laughing when it isn't meant to be a funny film.
Below is an example of an inappropriate soundtrack. This example is from the matrix.
For this part of our task we had to create a pitch for our thriller opening. Here are some of the things we had to include;
The narrative of our thriller opening.
Whether we are challenging any conventions.
The age range of our target audience.
Information about what we would like our target audience to be.
The tensions in our thriller (What is the tension? What sparks the tension?)
Who the two characters are and the relationship between the two characters.
Below I am going to embed a video of our pitch. At the end of the pitch we had a few questions to answer about our thriller.
Evaluation
The first question we got asked was "if Alex sees Stacey go into the house, then why does Alex just randomly pass out?" Alex is unaware what is going on around him as he so fixated on the person going into the house. For all Alex knows it could be Stacey behind him or could be someone completely different. The person walking into the house might not be Stacey he might have got his wires crossed along the way. It gets the audience thinking "who was that?" what's going to happen next?"
The second question we were asked was "what are the conventions you are portraying in your thriller?" The conventions we have decided on in our thriller is that Stacey is going to end up kidnapping Alex. In this part of our thriller we will be challenging the social conventions of a typical thriller as stereotypically the boy kidnaps the girl but in our thriller it is the other way around where the girl kidnaps the boy.
The next question we got asked was "I thought Alex and Stacey were friends?" Alex and Stacey are friends in our thriller. However, because Alex finds out what Stacey's dad did to her, he threatens to tell someone about it. Stacey doesn't want anyone to know about it so se does whatever it takes to stop Alex from telling someone, that is why she kidnaps him.
The next question was "where is Alex going to be tied up?" Alex is going to be tied up in a dark place in the school somewhere like the theatre. The theatre is a good place for Alex to be tied up because there are black curtains all the way around the theatre which we could use to create a dark and tense atmosphere. We could then also use the 3 point lighting to create an interrogation kind of atmosphere.
The next question was "you mentioned something about abuse, that might be a bit risky". We aren't actually going to completely show Stacey getting abused. All we will see is Stacey cowering in a corner and her dad shouting at her. We will then see her dad raise his hand to her and then it will cut to Stacey almost snapping back into reality like the thought of her dad going to hit her made her feel it in real life.
The next thing that was mentioned was that the target audience is a bit small. To fix this instead of having our target audience between 15 and 17, our target audience is now 15+ so that now our audience is a wider variety and range of people and not just a select few people.
The next question was "how are you going to show that it is a flashback?" We were going to use a white flash in the editing to show that one of the characters is having a flashback, going into a grey kind of picture of the flashback. We will also use sound effects. Also with some of the violence we are going to show we will use slow motion and then when the hand is raised it could cut back to her being consciously back in the room.
In this post I will be taking you through our team name and team logo. This is an important part of creating any film as it separates you from any other film industry or company. In give you your own unique identity.
Below I have embedded a picture of the kind of logo we would like for our team. Our logo won't just be an eye on its own we will make it unique to our name and team. These are the ideas we have got.
This was our first idea. We wanted to incorporate the team name and the logo together so this is how we did it. We then thought we would create another design just in case we wanted another team name and logo. So below is another one of our designs.
This is our second design. Again we wanted to incorporate both the team name and the logo together so we came up with a few different designs like all good film makers would do. Below is our last design that we created.
This is our final design that we created. We looked at and analysed all three designs and we came to a decision as a team on what we would like our team name and logo to be.
We had two other names for our team these were;
The Optical
Connection
We decided against the other 2 names and went with Optical Productions instead. This is because we thought it sounded better and sounded more like a film production team and suited our team very well.
Below is the official team name and logo that we decided on as a team...
We decided on this one because we thought that it represented our team name very well. Optical is related to the eye so we thought it would be a suitable logo to have with our team name being optical productions. We all came to a unanimous decision that this will be pour team name and logo.
My next post will be my Film Pitch, Feedback and Evaluation of Feedback.
As part of our research for our main product we have to create and produce a TAP and also research similar films to our thriller to look what their target audience is. This gives us a better idea about who to aim our film at and the age ranges that watch and like these particular films.
Below I am going to embed at least 2 examples of films that are similar to our thriller which is 15+.
Title - No Escape
Age Range That is Most Popular - 15-24 (42%)
Genre - Thriller
No Escape is the same age range and certificate as our thriller that we are creating. Therefore it gives us a good understanding of our target audience and therefore helping us to create a good Target Audience Profile (TAP). It also helps us to understand what our audience likes.
Title - Jurassic World
Age Range That is Most Popular - 15-24 (28%)
Genre - Thriller
Jurassic World is the same age range and certificate as our thriller that we are creating. Therefore it gives us a good understanding of our target audience and therefore helping us to create a good target audience profile (TAP). It also helps us to understand what our audience likes.
This research is like our own thriller as in the films there are bits in them that are incorporated into our own film. They have the same suspense in their thriller that we have in ours. They create the same tension as we hope to create in our thriller, there are no scary parts like a horror has but there is suspense and tension. The age range of these thrillers is the same as ours so we hope to create the same effect as these ones do.
Using this information we are going to create a Target Audience Profile (TAP) for the perfect target audience for our film.
For our main task we have to add sound effects and soundtracks to our film opening so to practice this we created a short film.
For this task we had to create a short film. This was called Show me, don't tell me.
We had to work in groups of 4 which was specified in the OCR specification. In our groups of 4 we had to create a short film of two people playing a game. We then had to include cutaway shots and match on action shots etc. In the editing we had to include several sound effects to make our short film more interesting and cause tension for the people watching. This film didn't include any dialogue at all.
Below is a quote from Anton Chekhov that represents what the show me, don't tell me task was all about:
"Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass - Anton Chekhov"
In our task we had to include; Match on action shots, shot/reverse shots, cutaway shots, a two shot, an establishing shot, cross cutting (in a different location), insert shot, appropriate camera movements, appropriate camera shots, sound effects, soundtracks and basic titles and credits.
The things we could't include was; dialogue, footage from inside the toilets and camera zooms.
Below i am going to embed our show me, don't tell me final film. Have a look and see if you enjoy.
Evaluation
For this task we had a total of 2 hours to film our short film. Here is how we planned on doing it;
Planning and storyboard: 8.50 - 9.25 Shooting on location: 9.25 - 10.10 Editing: 10.10 - 10.50 Exhibit: 10.50 - 10.55
Even though we tried to follow this time. We found it quite difficult to do everything withing the 2 hour time slot. We therefore had to do some filming and editing in our free time.
If i were to redo this show me, don't tell me task I would do some things differently here are the things I would change; don't waste the space in the shot, less continuity errors, check the location and surroundings before filming, make the shots match up in the editing, make sure if I include a cutaway shot it makes sense when I cut back.
Below is the feedback from my teachers on my show me, don't tell me film.
A lot of the improvements I picked up on my teacher picked up on as well. This was just a practice for our main product so i'm sure it will be much better.
In my next post I will introduce the production name and logo for our main product.
For our AS Media product we are going to be creating the opening of a thriller. So in this post I will be deconstructing 2 thrillers in order to into depth a bit more so I can see the different types of techniques and camerawork used in order to make a successful thriller.
The first one I am going to show you is a deconstruction of the thriller the sixth sense. This one we deconstructed as a class.
The thriller I am going to deconstruct and talk about is called 96 minutes, "The lives of four children collide in a moment and hurtle toward a life changing end."
Here is my deconstruction of the thriller 96 minutes.
In this post I will be talking you through the questions that the exam board have given us, it's always a good idea to see what the specification is from the exam board is just so we know we are doing the right things.
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
This question is asking us if we are going to stick to a typical thriller story line like a murder case or an escape from the police or a gang etc. or whether we are going to create our own innovative thriller plot. For example, if we look at Shrek they challenge the generic conventions of a typical fantasy (Propp's Theory) you expect at the start of the film for it to be a typical fantasy with the music and the opening titles at the start with the castles and the prince etc. but then when the film starts it is the complete opposite to a proper fantasy film.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
For this question we need to take into account the different types of social groups we are going to showcase in our film and the people we are aiming our film at (Target Audience). When representing social groups (Sexuality, Gender, Ethnicity, Religion, Beliefs etc.) we need to make sure we are representing them in an appropriate way without offending any of them and making sure we don't isolate the different social groups we use in our film.
Who would be the audience for your media product?
I won't know what my audience for my film will be yet as I haven't decided the story for my film just yet. When I have decided the story for my film then I will be able to discuss and decide the type of audience I would like to watch my film. I will need to consider the violence and language i have in my film and then use the BBFC guidelines in order for me to decide my audience.
How did you attract/address your audience?
We have to make our film a successful thriller and we also have to make it different to any other thriller out there (Steve Neale's Theory), as long as it doesn't follow the same story line as every other thriller out there then we will manage to attract our audience.
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
So far we haven't started filming our product so I can't really make a comment on how technologies has helped with the construction of the product. When we have filmed our product we can decide which lighting creates suspense and the camera angles and camera shots etc.
Look back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression for it to the full product?
When filming our preliminary task we hadn't really learnt the more advanced camera movements and camera shots or lighting so we didn't really have a lot to work with we just had the basics. Now we have learnt the more advanced camera movements and techniques we would now be able to improve our preliminary task.
For my next post i will be taking you through a deconstruction of 2 thriller films.
For our project in our AS Media course we have to create a short film opening. This film opening has to be genre specific. There is a specific brief that we have to follow. The brief is "The titles and opening of a new fiction film, to last a maximum of two minutes."In this case the genre we are focusing on for our project is Thriller.
In the lesson we weighed up the Pros and the Cons of working with this specific genre.
Pros
There isn't anything major that we need to focus on achieving. For example, if we were to do a comedy then we would have to make sure that we made people laugh, if we were to do a horror film then we would have to make sure we scare people. Whereas a thriller doesn't have any major issues that we need to achieve.
Thrillers are quite popular with all ages and genders. If I were to do a romance or a rom com then I wouldn't have a wide range of audiences and would;d probably only appeal to women as it contains cheesy love scenes.
Thrillers don't take too much special effects in order to complete. If I were to do a sci-fi film or a fantasy film then I would have to use green screens etc. in order to achieve that out of this world m,magical and scientific look, whereas with thrillers you don't have to do that.
Cons
2 minutes isn't a long time to attract the audience to watch your film. So in those 2 minutes you need to make sure that you have built up enough suspense and adrenaline for the audience to make them want to watch your film.
The opening titles only last 2 minutes so you have to make sure that everything you want to achieve can fit into those 2 minutes or else some of it could get cut off or wasted which could make the story confusing or misleading.
Overall the thriller is a good genre to go for when creating a film because it creates suspense for the audience which is what we want to achieve. It is also quite easy to achieve when comparing it with other genres. With thrillers it can allow groups to create different types of the same thing for example a murder, there can be many different ways in which to do a murder story and many different ways for people to present it which makes them all different yet equally suspense.
In my next post i will look at the AS Media evaluation questions.
In this post I am going to be talking about 22 Narrative Theory.
The first thing I am going to do is embed a picture of the 22 narrative theory.
This Theory guarantees that every story line will be based on one of these 22 main stories, this is why there are so many film with similar stories.
An example of Temptation from the 22 narratives theory is the godfather. Michael has to make a moral choice between what's right and what's wrong. He has to choose between a life of crime with his dad or whether to become a proper family with his wife.
An example of rags to riches from the 22 narratives theory is trading places. Billy Ray Valentine and his friend become rich after uncovering a scheme by Randolph and Mortimer. They go from being poor to rich.
An example of the riddle from the 22 narratives theory is the da vinci code. A 2003 mystery detective novel by Dan brown. It follows symbologist Robert Langdon and cryptologist Sophie Neveu after a murder in the louvre museum in Paris. When they become involved in a battle.
An example of metamorphis from the 22 narratives theory is Pinocchio. When the woodworker Geppetto sees a falling star, he wishes the puppet he just finished Pinocchio, could become a real boy. In the night the blue fairy grants Geppetto's wish and asks Jiminy cricket to serve as the wooden boys conscience.
An example of rescue from the 22 narratives theory is the golden compass. Lyra Belacqua lives in a parallel world in which human souls take the form of lifelong animal companions called daemons. Dark forces are at work in the girls world and many children have been kidnapped by beings known as gobblers. She sets out on a mission to save her world.
An example of tragedy from the 22 narratives theory is the impossible. In December 2004 close knit family maria, Henry and their three sons begin their winter vacation in Thailand. But the day after Christmas the holiday turns into a nightmare, when a terrifying roar rises from the seas that is a terrible tsunami.
An example of love from the 22 narratives theory is grease. Stephanie Zinone is the leader of Rydell high school's pink ladies, a gang of girls are counterparts of the school's group of greasers called the T-birds. Stephanie is tired of her relationship with top T-bird Johnny Nogerelli so she breaks up with him and quickly catches the eye of English exchange student Michael Carrington. Hoping to win her over. Michael tries to overcome his nerdy ways while holding off the jealous Johnny.
An example of monster force from the 22 narratives theory is the Exorcist. When young Regan starts acting odd - levitating, speaking in tongues - her worries mother seeks medical help, only to hit a dead end. A local priest, however, thinks the girl may be seized by the devil. The priest makes a request to perform an exorcism, and the church sends in an expert to help with the difficult job.
An example revenge from the 22 narratives theory is the last house on the left. Mari and her friend look forward to a holiday at the remote collingwood lake house, but instead an escaped convict and his crew kidnap them and later leave them for dead. Mari makes her way back home, where her parents, John and Emma, have unwittingly offered shelter to the thugs. When John and Emma find out what happened to their daughters, they decide to make the strangers rue the day they harmed Mari.
An example of transformation from the 22 narratives theory is pretty woman. While on a business trip in LA Edward who makes a living buying and breaking up companies, picks up a hooker, Vivian, on a lark. After Edward hires Vivian to stay with him for the weekend, the two get closer, only to discover there are significant hurdles to overcome as they try to bridge the gap between their different worlds.
An example of fish out of water from the 22 narratives theory is Mr Bean's holiday. When London's wet weather becomes too much to bear, pratfall-prone Mr Bean heads to the French Riviera for some fun in the sun. As usual, his plans do not go smoothly, and he is mistaken for both a kidnapper and an award winning filmmaker when he arrives with a Romanian director's son and an aspiring actress in tow.
An example of maturation from the 22 narratives theory is Juno. When precocious teen Juno MacGuff becomes pregnant, she chooses a failed rock star and his wife to adopt her unborn child. Complications occur when Mark, the prospective father, begins viewing Juno as more than just the mother of his future child, putting both his marriage and the adoption in jeopardy.
An example of pursuit from the 22 narratives theory is Goldfinger. Special agent 007 comes face to face with one of the most notorious villains of all time, and now he must outwit and outgun the powerful tycoon to prevent him from cashing in on a devious scheme to raid Fort Knox and obliterate the worlds economy.
An example of rivalry from the 22 narratives theory is Rocky. Rocky Balboa, a small time boxer from working class Philadelphia, is arbitrarily chosen to take on the reigning world heavyweight champion, Apollo Creed when the undefeated fighter's scheduled opponent is injured. While training with feisty former bantamweight contender Micky Goldmill, Rocky tentatively begins a relationship with Adrian, the wallflower sister of his pal Paulie.
An example of underdog from the 22 narratives theory is Forrest Gump. Slow witted Forrest Gump has never thought of himself as disadvantaged, and thanks to his supportive mother, he leads anything but a restricted life. Whether dominating on the gridiron as a college football star, fighting in Vietnam or captaining a shrimp boat, Forrest inspires people with his childlike optimism. But one person Forrest cares about most may be the difficult to save, his childhood love the sweet but troubled Jenny.
An example of discovery from the 22 narratives theory is close encounters. Science fiction adventure about a group of people who attempt to contact alien intelligence. Roy Neary witnesses an unidentified flying object, and even has a "sunburn" from its bright lights to prove it. Roy refuses to accept an explanation for what he saw and is prepared to give up his life to pursue the truth about UFOS's.
An example of escape from the 22 narratives theory is saw. Photographer Adam Stanheight and oncologist Lawrence Gordon regain consciousness while chained to at either end of the filthy bathroom. As the two men realise they have been trapped by a sadistic serial killer nicknamed "jigsaw" and must complete his perverse puzzles to live, flashbacks to the fates of of his previous victims.
An example of journey and return the wizard of oz. When a tornado rips through Kansas, Dorothy and her dog, Tonto, are whisked away in their house to the magical land of oz. They follow the yellow brick road towards the Emerald city to meet the wizard, and en route the meet a scarecrow that needs a brain, a tin man missing a heart and a cowardly lion who wants courage. The wizard asks the group to bring him the broom of the wicked witch of the west to earn his help.
An example of comedy from the 22 narratives theory is ace ventura pet detective. When the dolphin mascot of Miami's NFL team is abducted, Ace Ventura, a zany private investigator who specializes in finding missing animals, looks into the case, soon Miami dolphin players are kidnapped too including star player Dan Marino making Ace's sleuth even more pressing. Working with dolphin representatives Melissa Robinson, Ace closes in on the culprits, but not before many ridiculous misadventures.
An example of quest from the 22 narratives theory is the Goonies. When two brothers find out they might lose their house they are desperate to find a way to keep their home. They find a treasure map and bring some friends along to find it. They are all looking out for the X and trying to get away from a group of bad guys who also want the treasure.
An example of sacrifice from the 22 narratives theory is Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. A clash between good and evil awaits as young Harry, Ron and Hermione prepare for a final battle against Lord Voldemort. Harry has grown into a steely lad on a mission to rid the world of evil. The friends must search for the horcruxes that keep the dastardly wizard immortal. Harry and Voldemort meet at Hogwarts castle for an epic showdown where the forces of darkness may finally meet their match.
An example of wretched excess from the 22 narratives theory is Citizen Kane. When a reporter is assigned to decipher newspaper magnate Charles Foster Kane's dying words, his investigation gradually reveals the fascinating portrait of a complex man who rose from obscurity to staggering heights. Though Kane's friend and colleague Jedediah Leland, and his mistress, Susan Alexander, shed fragments of light on Kane's life, the reporter fears he may never penetrate the mystery of the elusive man's final word "Rosebud."
My next post will be about the AS Film brief (Genre Specific).
