Dear Moderator,
Our task was to create an opening sequence to a film with a maximum of 2 minutes screening time. There are labels attached to each of my posts to help navigate you round my blog. I worked in a group with Ruby Davies and Eoghain Kilbane throughout our coursework, although, we did the evaluation individually.
Name: Max Austin
Candidate number: 9060
Centre number: 5111
Yours sincerely,
Max Austin
Friday, 25 April 2014
Thursday, 24 April 2014
Question 1 - Final Evaluation
For this question we have used the 9 picture frame shot. Above, are our most important frames in our final piece, those pictures are what we feel create the atmosphere and mood of the film.
The first picture is a shot of the name of our film, we used this so that the audience are aware of what film they're watching, this is a code and convention of the opening scene to a movie.
The second shot is an image of our protagonist character as he walks down the alley to his house. It is important that we showed the audience our main character in the opening scene as they would want to see who he is and what he looks like, this is also the only person we introduce in the opening scene, making the audience wonder if he's a family man etc. Revealing the character in the opening scene is also an important code and convention of the opening scene to a movie.
The picture on the top right is an establishing shot, we used this shot to set the scene and location of the film, so that the audience are aware as to where this is being filmed.
The picture to the left in the middle is a shot of a table with a mysterious object on, you can also see that the lighting is quite dull and the colours associated with the shot are quite dark. This is all been done to emphasize the genre of the film, the dark colours resemble a mysterious and scary man and the object on the table makes the audience wonder what type of man he is and why he has objects like this in his house, maybe this symbolises the name of the film; Hidden?.
The middle picture is a shot of a chopping board, pepper and knife. We used these objects because we felt they created a sense of danger and the objects themselves related to death. We used a large pepper as it resembled the shape of a heart and blood red in colour. The large lethal looking knife was used as it provided a sense of foreboding and menace. Although this image has nothing to do with the film and the props don't play a part we thought we'd include it to bring a sense of intrigue upon our audience.
The picture in the middle right was used because it shows him walking down into the cellar, which is in fact one of the most important scenes in our final piece. As our character walked down the stairs we filmed a high angle shot upon him, this shot shows that our character is a dominant and strong person. We thought that we should include a cellar in our final piece as we believe it brought a new mysterious location to our film. Having watched many Horror films, I am aware that cellars/basements are used quite a lot, where the main characters hide mysterious possessions as they are hidden away from the house and the world. We felt that this was a great way to entice our audience in and to make them think what is the relevance of this cellar in the film?
The bottom left shot is an over the shoulder shot of the man in the cellar, this location is one of the most important places in the film, this is where the man keeps his 'hostages' or 'prisoners'. We felt that it was very important that the audience were introduced to this location early on so that it becomes a familiar place to them.
The next image is an over the shoulder shot of the 'hostage' looking at the man. We used this to too create a threatening and eery atmosphere, we also wanted the audience to be aware of the girl that was being kept in the cellar, this would have left the audience asking a to of questions as to why she is there?
The last image is a blank screen, this is where we end our opening scene, we left it on a blank screen to leave the audience wanting more and to leave it on a cliff hanger.
Question 4 - Final Evaluation
As you can see from the video above we interviewed 3 different people. James Merry, Antonia Moss and Lyle Dalgleish. We interviewed these three people because they all fitted out target audience. Having recorded them myself and then questioning them more behind the scenes for additional information, I am now aware of what type of films my three people watch and why.
James Merry is 16, he is from Crowthorne and is very keen on Media studies. James has been a real film fanatic ever since he was a little boy, ranging from animatronic movies like toy story to action packed bond movies. He is a fan of all genres but mainly watches: Action, Thriller, Horror, Comedy and Drama films. He also said he has his weak moments when he sits on the sofa and when theres nothing on TV, he would pop a romantic movie on, as he loves it when theres a happy ending. James told me he visits the cinema on average twice a month, although he said it depends on whether theres more good films out one month than another. He is very update with new converging technologies because he said he likes to watch a lot of films on Netflix. James fits our target audience because he's a film fanatic, he likes Horror and Thriller movies and he is the exact age we are marketing towards.
Antonia Moss is 17, she lives in Crowthorne and has always enjoyed watching films. Antonia said she has a real passion for Disney films as they have always played a part in her life. Ever since she was a little girl she watched all the animatronic movies that disney had to show, only recently has she departed from the animatronic movies and has moved onto the more Horror and action packed movies. Antonia said she enjoys watching films on sky movies and anytime tv as they always have the latest movies on for show. Antonia said to me "I can't believe I've missed out on all these amazing genres of films over the years, because I have been shocked as to how I've been so drawn in by romantic comedies and Thriller movies".
Lyle is 17, and also lives in Crowthorne, Lyle is very passionate about the film industry and knows almost every film you say! Lyle enjoys every genre of film out there apart from romantic movies, he said "they make me feel sick, because they are so cringy". Lyle has always been a massive fan of sci-fi and Horror movies, he likes mysterious and spooky films that may have a plot twist. He said "the best way a film can draw in its audience is by leaving the audience questions as to how something has happened, then at the end of the film the plot is revealed so the audience can see if they were right or not". Lyle has a Lovefilm account and loves to rent out movies with his family, he also loves going to the cinema around twice a month, depending on what movies are out on certain months. Lyle said that once a year he gets treated by his dad, where he takes lyle to see a very good film in an Imax cinema in London.
These 3 people are class mates of mine and they all have a passion for the film industry. They all have a keen interest for Thriller and Horror movies and they say they watch about 2 every month. They either rent them from blockbuster, watch them online or buy them from HMV etc.
Question 5 - Final Evaluation
Here you can see we have put the name of the film directly in the centre, we have done this so that it is obvious to the audience. As you can see behind the title we have used the special effect of fog, we have used this to crate an eery and spooky atmosphere. It also leaves the audience wanting to know what is hidden behind the fog. This has been used to draw in the audience and to create a spooky and mysterious effect. We have made the background black to resemble the nighttime and so that the transition into the next scene works perfectly, as the next scene is filmed in pitch black.
The next image is a shot of our protagonist character, this is the first time the audience see the main character in the film (but they don't actually know its the main character yet), from this shot all they can see is the outline and clothes of his body but none of his facial features. A light is used directly behind him to create a shadow and to create an eery and spooky atmosphere. The fact that the light shines directly onto our protagonist character creates a sense of intrigue, which is an important code and convention for Horror movies.
In this scene we used a panning shot from left to right to show the man walking down the street. All you can see is the mans legs and feet. The fact that nothing else is shown to the audience furthermore provides a sense of mystery and intrigue towards this man.
Here we have an establishing shot of the mans house? Who knows, the audience are left asking questions to whether this is where the film is going to be set. It also makes the audience wonder what this man is up too and where he has been?
From this shot you can see the good use of dark lighting mixed in with the rich coloured walls, this al creates a dark atmosphere and sets the scene really well. The object on the table really sticks out in this shot, emphasising the mystery of this man, it also leaves the audience asking questions like who could he be and why would he have this?
We felt that this was a good way to attract our audience as it displayed normal cooking stuff but in a deadly way. The knife was used to look menacing and to provide a sense of danger and the pepper was shaped like a heart and represented the colour of blood, this is also where we decided to put our titles.
The image below is another shot in which we wanted to include a title, we used the effect of a candle blowing out and a close up shot of the smoke, we used this to create a variety of shots and to keep the audience interested. As you can see the lighting stays dark throughout the opening sequences.
This next shot makes the audience feel as if the man is walking towards them - makes the audience feel intimidated? We used a low angle shot up at the man to show his power and status, he looks threatening.
The next shot sets the location of this scene, a large cellar packed with many boxes, does the audience notice the girl to the left with a white bag over head?
The next shot is an over the shoulder shot shows us the girls point of view, the audience are left asking questions as to who this man is, is he a 'kidnapper', 'peodophile' or 'serial killer'? The audience are left asking questions as to why this girl is locked up and what this man is going to do with her.
We end the opening scene on a black screen, this leaves the audience wanting to know more and leaves the final piece on a cliffhanger.
Wednesday, 23 April 2014
Friday, 18 April 2014
How did you attract/address your audience? Draft Question 5
Here you can see we have put the name of the film directly in the centre, we have done this so that it is obvious to the audience. As you can see behind the title we have used the special effect of fog, we have used this to crate an eery and spooky atmosphere. It also leaves the audience wanting to know what is hidden behind the fog. This has been used to draw in the audience and to create a spooky and mysterious effect. We have made the background black to resemble the nighttime and so that the transition into the next scene works perfectly, as the next scene is filmed in pitch black.
The next image is a shot of our protagonist character, this is the first time the audience see the main character in the film (but they don't actually know its the main character yet), from this shot all they can see is the outline and clothes of his body but none of his facial features. A light is used directly behind him to create a shadow and to create an eery and spooky atmosphere. The fact that the light shines directly onto our protagonist character creates a sense of intrigue, which is an important code and convention for Horror movies.
In this scene we used a panning shot from left to right to show the man walking down the street. All you can see is the mans legs and feet. The fact that nothing else is shown to the audience furthermore provides a sense of mystery and intrigue towards this man.
Here we have an establishing shot of the mans house? Who knows, the audience are left asking questions to whether this is where the film is going to be set. It also makes the audience wonder what this man is up too and where he has been?
From this shot you can see the good use of dark lighting mixed in with the rich coloured walls, this al creates a dark atmosphere and sets the scene really well. The object on the table really sticks out in this shot, emphasising the mystery of this man, it also leaves the audience asking questions like who could he be and why would he have this?
We felt that this was a good way to attract our audience as it displayed normal cooking stuff but in a deadly way. The knife was used to look menacing and to provide a sense of danger and the pepper was shaped like a heart and represented the colour of blood, this is also where we decided to put our titles.
The image below is another shot in which we wanted to include a title, we used the effect of a candle blowing out and a close up shot of the smoke, we used this to create a variety of shots and to keep the audience interested. As you can see the lighting stays dark throughout the opening sequences.
This next shot makes the audience feel as if the man is walking towards them - makes the audience feel intimidated? We used a low angle shot up at the man to show his power and status, he looks threatening.
The next shot sets the location of this scene, a large cellar packed with many boxes, does the audience notice the girl to the left with a white bag over head?
The next shot is an over the shoulder shot shows us the girls point of view, the audience are left asking questions as to who this man is, is he a 'kidnapper', 'peodophile' or 'serial killer'? The audience are left asking questions as to why this girl is locked up and what this man is going to do with her.
We end the opening scene on a black screen, this leaves the audience wanting to know more and leaves the final piece on a cliffhanger.
Thursday, 17 April 2014
Update to draft evaluation
I have read Mrs Dobbs' feedback from my evaluation draft, but i have recently been struggling with my computers at home as my they don't allow me to access prezi due to safety concerns!
Tuesday, 8 April 2014
Mrs D
Question 1,2 and 3 see feedback on Eoghain's blog.
Question 4 - the film is a good idea. Needs more summing up from you in some way with specific details re your audience.
Question 7 is a good draft but limited to mes. You need to explore how camera, editing and sound developed from prelim too.
Question 4 - the film is a good idea. Needs more summing up from you in some way with specific details re your audience.
Question 7 is a good draft but limited to mes. You need to explore how camera, editing and sound developed from prelim too.
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? Draft Question 1
For this question we have used the 9 picture frame shot. Above, are our most important frames in our final piece, those pictures are what we feel create the atmosphere and mood of the film.
The first picture is a shot of the name of our film, we used this so that the audience are aware of what film they're watching, this is a code and convention of the opening scene to a movie.
The second shot is an image of our protagonist character as he walks down the alley to his house. It is important that we showed the audience our main character in the opening scene as they would want to see who he is and what he looks like, this is also the only person we introduce in the opening scene, making the audience wonder if he's a family man etc. Revealing the character in the opening scene is also an important code and convention of the opening scene to a movie.
The picture on the top right is an establishing shot, we used this shot to set the scene and location of the film, so that the audience are aware as to where this is being filmed.
The picture to the left in the middle is a shot of a table with a mysterious object on, you can also see that the lighting is quite dull and the colours associated with the shot are quite dark. This is all been done to emphasize the genre of the film, the dark colours resemble a mysterious and scary man and the object on the table makes the audience wonder what type of man he is and why he has objects like this in his house, maybe this symbolises the name of the film; Hidden?.
The middle picture is a shot of a chopping board, pepper and knife. We used these objects because we felt they created a sense of danger and the objects themselves related to death. We used a large pepper as it resembled the shape of a heart and blood red in colour. The large lethal looking knife was used as it provided a sense of foreboding and menace. Although this image has nothing to do with the film and the props don't play a part we thought we'd include it to bring a sense of intrigue upon our audience.
The picture in the middle right was used because it shows him walking down into the cellar, which is in fact one of the most important scenes in our final piece. As our character walked down the stairs we filmed a high angle shot upon him, this shot shows that our character is a dominant and strong person. We thought that we should include a cellar in our final piece as we believe it brought a new mysterious location to our film. Having watched many Horror films, I am aware that cellars/basements are used quite a lot, where the main characters hide mysterious possessions as they are hidden away from the house and the world. We felt that this was a great way to entice our audience in and to make them think what is the relevance of this cellar in the film?
The bottom left shot is an over the shoulder shot of the man in the cellar, this location is one of the most important places in the film, this is where the man keeps his 'hostages' or 'prisoners'. We felt that it was very important that the audience were introduced to this location early on so that it becomes a familiar place to them.
The next image is an over the shoulder shot of the 'hostage' looking at the man. We used this to too create a threatening and eery atmosphere, we also wanted the audience to be aware of the girl that was being kept in the cellar, this would have left the audience asking a to of questions as to why she is there?
The last image is a blank screen, this is where we end our opening scene, we left it on a blank screen to leave the audience wanting more and to leave it on a cliff hanger.
The first picture is a shot of the name of our film, we used this so that the audience are aware of what film they're watching, this is a code and convention of the opening scene to a movie.
The second shot is an image of our protagonist character as he walks down the alley to his house. It is important that we showed the audience our main character in the opening scene as they would want to see who he is and what he looks like, this is also the only person we introduce in the opening scene, making the audience wonder if he's a family man etc. Revealing the character in the opening scene is also an important code and convention of the opening scene to a movie.
The picture on the top right is an establishing shot, we used this shot to set the scene and location of the film, so that the audience are aware as to where this is being filmed.
The picture to the left in the middle is a shot of a table with a mysterious object on, you can also see that the lighting is quite dull and the colours associated with the shot are quite dark. This is all been done to emphasize the genre of the film, the dark colours resemble a mysterious and scary man and the object on the table makes the audience wonder what type of man he is and why he has objects like this in his house, maybe this symbolises the name of the film; Hidden?.
The middle picture is a shot of a chopping board, pepper and knife. We used these objects because we felt they created a sense of danger and the objects themselves related to death. We used a large pepper as it resembled the shape of a heart and blood red in colour. The large lethal looking knife was used as it provided a sense of foreboding and menace. Although this image has nothing to do with the film and the props don't play a part we thought we'd include it to bring a sense of intrigue upon our audience.
The picture in the middle right was used because it shows him walking down into the cellar, which is in fact one of the most important scenes in our final piece. As our character walked down the stairs we filmed a high angle shot upon him, this shot shows that our character is a dominant and strong person. We thought that we should include a cellar in our final piece as we believe it brought a new mysterious location to our film. Having watched many Horror films, I am aware that cellars/basements are used quite a lot, where the main characters hide mysterious possessions as they are hidden away from the house and the world. We felt that this was a great way to entice our audience in and to make them think what is the relevance of this cellar in the film?
The bottom left shot is an over the shoulder shot of the man in the cellar, this location is one of the most important places in the film, this is where the man keeps his 'hostages' or 'prisoners'. We felt that it was very important that the audience were introduced to this location early on so that it becomes a familiar place to them.
The next image is an over the shoulder shot of the 'hostage' looking at the man. We used this to too create a threatening and eery atmosphere, we also wanted the audience to be aware of the girl that was being kept in the cellar, this would have left the audience asking a to of questions as to why she is there?
The last image is a blank screen, this is where we end our opening scene, we left it on a blank screen to leave the audience wanting more and to leave it on a cliff hanger.
Saturday, 5 April 2014
What kind of media institution might distribute your product and why? Draft Question 3
Distribution is extremely important within British film. New technologies means that films can now be digitally distributed into cinemas either using fibre optic cables, satellite or portable hard drive. It has got much easier for film distributers over the years but there is still quite a lot of pressure on them. When looking for our film distributer, we had to look for a company/subsidiary in which we can trust, we looked for good reviews and recommendations from other independent companies who have been through the same processes. Its much harder for independent film companies to find distributers as the process takes a very long time. Compared to Hollywood production companies who already have a distributer in place before production even begins, independent film companies have to find their distributers once finished the film. There are many problems with distribution like piracy, which is extremely dangerous for independent film companies as they make most of their money from ancillary sales. Luckily new technology is being made like Blu-ray which has encryption codes to stop piracy.
The distribution process is very important, depending on whether you distribute your film correctly can determine the amount of people come and watch your film. The aim of distribution is to send it to as many people as possible, the more contacts you have the better, because the more cinemas that screen your film the more money you make. Its good to contact a well known independent film distributer because they may have contacts worldwide, this is better because this means your film won't only be played in the UK but hopefully it could be played all around the world; instantly increasing a companies revenue.
Having taken all these points into consideration we discussed the different ways of distributing our product and what suited our moving image piece best. As a group we felt that we should be aiming more towards the Independent production companies as we are aware these companies produce very low budget films just like our own. Apart from the Sony camera we borrowed from school everything from the props/costumes to the filming locations were all of a very low budget. The reason for this being we didn't have a lot of money to spend on props etc, because we were aiming our film more towards the independent institutions and we know full well that they only produce low budget films. The institutions that we had in mind were Film 4 and momentum pictures, we felt that these companies would suit our product best and they would be more than happy to sell and distribute our product. If we went to a high budget institution and granted them to take our product then I feel that would have been a waste of time as our product doesn't resemble the institution at all; we have a low budget film, therefore, we aim towards the low budget institutions.
The distribution process is very important, depending on whether you distribute your film correctly can determine the amount of people come and watch your film. The aim of distribution is to send it to as many people as possible, the more contacts you have the better, because the more cinemas that screen your film the more money you make. Its good to contact a well known independent film distributer because they may have contacts worldwide, this is better because this means your film won't only be played in the UK but hopefully it could be played all around the world; instantly increasing a companies revenue.
Having taken all these points into consideration we discussed the different ways of distributing our product and what suited our moving image piece best. As a group we felt that we should be aiming more towards the Independent production companies as we are aware these companies produce very low budget films just like our own. Apart from the Sony camera we borrowed from school everything from the props/costumes to the filming locations were all of a very low budget. The reason for this being we didn't have a lot of money to spend on props etc, because we were aiming our film more towards the independent institutions and we know full well that they only produce low budget films. The institutions that we had in mind were Film 4 and momentum pictures, we felt that these companies would suit our product best and they would be more than happy to sell and distribute our product. If we went to a high budget institution and granted them to take our product then I feel that would have been a waste of time as our product doesn't resemble the institution at all; we have a low budget film, therefore, we aim towards the low budget institutions.
Thursday, 3 April 2014
What we are up too:
We are currently working on our evaluation which is taking a lot of hard work. Alongside this I am trying to gather more audience research. The reaosn why i am doing this is because I want to find out what people thought of our moving image final piece.
Who would be the audience for your media product? Draft Question 4
Who would be the audience for your media product?
As you can see from the video above we interviewed 3 different people. James Merry, Antonia Moss and Lyle Dalgleish. We interviewed these three people because they all fitted out target audience. Having recorded them myself and them questioning them more behind the scenes for additional information, I am now aware of what type of films my three people watch and why.
James Merry is 16, he is from Crowthorne and is very keen on Media studies. James has been a real film fanatic ever since he was a little boy, ranging from animatronic movies like toy story to action packed bond movies. He is a fan of all genres but mainly watches: Action, Thriller, Horror, Comedy and Drama films. He also said he has his weak moments when he sits on the sofa and when theres nothing on TV, he would pop a romantic movie on, as he loves it when theres a happy ending. James told me he visits the cinema on average twice a month, although he said it depends on whether theres more good films out one month than another. He is very update with new converging technologies because he said he likes to watch a lot of films on Netflix. James fits our target audience because he's a film fanatic, he likes Horror and Thriller movies and he is the exact age we are marketing towards.
Antonia Moss is 17, she is Crowthorne and has always enjoyed watching films. Antonia said she has a real passion for Disney films as they have always played a part in her life. Ever since she was a little girl she watched all the animatronic movies that disney had to show, only recently has she departed from the animatronic movies and has moved onto the more Horror and action packed movies. Antonia said she enjoys watching films on sky movies and anytime tv as they always have the latest movies on for show. Antonia said to me "I can't believe I've missed out on all these amazing genres of films over the years, because I have been shocked as to how I've been so drawn in by romantic comedies and Thriller movies".
Lyle is 17, and also lives in Crowthorne, Lyle is troy passionate about the film industry and knows almost every film you say! Lyle enjoys every genre of film out there apart from romantic movies, he said "they make me feel sick, because they are so cringy". Lyle has always been a massive fan of sci-fi and Horror movies, he likes mysterious and spooky films that may have a plot twist. He said "the best way a film can draw in its audience is by leaving the audience questions as to how something has happened, then at the end of the film the plot is revealed so the audience can see if they were right or not". Lyle has a Lovefilm account and loves to rent out movies with his family, he also loves going to the cinema around twice a month, depending on what movies are out on certain months. Lyle said that once a year he gets treated by his dad, where he takes lyle to see a very good film in an Imax theatre in London.
These 3 people are class mates of mine and they all have a passion for the film industry. They all have a keen interest for Thriller and Horror movies and they say they watch about 2 every month. They either rent them from blockbuster, watch them online or buy them from HMV etc.
Saturday, 29 March 2014
Friday, 21 March 2014
questionnaire feedback
Having discussed about the feedback we recieved with both our teacher and friends, we have concluded that we are going to re-film the second scene and the last two scenes. Our friends were shocked that we could produce something like this and all of them said that they would watch more if they could. So we take this as a very good starting point, we can only improve from then which is why we are re-fliming tonight.
Thursday, 20 March 2014
Wednesday, 19 March 2014
The soundtrack
Ruby, Eoghain and I feel that the music by 'The XX' doesnt match the genre of our film. We are currently trying very hard to find new music for the opening of our film, we want to find more horror music to make the opening more atmospheric.
Filming
Me, Eoghian and Ruby have been very busy over the weekend and up until now preparing and filming for our deadline on thursday. We had to overcome many problems, for example Eoghian wasnt free over the weekend so we had to wait for him until monday, the battery of the camera wasnt charged the first time we tried filming and we found the battery didnt last very long. However, we overcame these problems by turning the camera off every time after use and not to look over recorded footage until the end. We've managed to complete our filming and we are now currently spending time after school, during lunctime and in our frees to get the editing side completed.
Friday, 14 March 2014
What we have been up to:
Yesterday, me, Eoghain and Ruby picked up the large canon camera and a tripod. In the evening we started to film our opening scene, however, we came across some problems, the camera wasnt fully charged, we didnt know how to work the tripod and there were some lighting diffuculties when filming outside. We brought the equipment in today and we learnt how to use the camera properly, how to set up the tripod and we have taken some lights home to overcome these problems, we intend to re-film monday.
Tuesday, 11 March 2014
Thursday, 6 March 2014
Logo ideas
As a group we are currently looking for a new logo. It is important that the logo is bold and will stand out, because we want the logo to be noticed by everyone. The logo has to represent the film and the genre of the film. So for example, our genre is horror/thriller so we are going to include drops of blood and dark colours.
Wednesday, 5 March 2014
Ideas we intend to use
As a group we watched a few film openings on you tube to try and gain some new ideas. The opening of the film Dexter really intregued us and put many new ideas into our heads which we will know try and put in our final piece.
The opening of the film Dexter included a range of different everyday props, such as: coffee blender, cuts meat, razor etc, he makes innocent props seem deadly which resembles the genre. This is what we want to include in our short film opening to make it look better.
The opening of the film Dexter included a range of different everyday props, such as: coffee blender, cuts meat, razor etc, he makes innocent props seem deadly which resembles the genre. This is what we want to include in our short film opening to make it look better.
Tuesday, 4 March 2014
Feedback taken into consideration - changes we'll make:
During Lunchtime this week, we had a quick group meeting in the atrium. We had a disucssion about the feedback we had recieved and how we are going to make our draft and film opening better.
The first bit of feedback we recieved was that the end of our draft made it feel a bit like a trailer instead of a film opening. We can change this by taking out the extreme clse up of eoghains lips when he says "Mr Lynch". Instead of putting this at the end we are now going to put it at the beginning so he introduces us to the name of the film. By doing this we hope it will make our film opening more of a film opening rather than a short trailer.
The second bit of feedback we recieved said that we should use more sound FX. We got told to use more sound FX so that the opening of the film felt more realistic rather than just having a sound track in the background. The sound FX we will use will be:
At the beginning of our film, we followed Eoghain up the alleyway, and we noticed that there was a slight pixilation problem, this is where the picture quality was a bit blurry. We filmed the draft on Ruby's camera which wasnt very good. We will improve this by using a high quality camera in our final piece.
The mise en scene wasnt taken into consideration on our draft, this was because we were unsure on what Eoghain and Ruby should wear. Having filmed our draft we know have a clear understanding on what they should both wear in order to improve the final piece. Eoghain will wear a black suit to show that he is a normal business person, the first couple of scenes makes the man seem rather innocent but once he goes down into the cellar, that all changes. Ruby is going to wear normal clothes, with a bag and rope over her head. Ruby is going to wear a bag over her head to show that she is being held hostage and it makes the scene feel very tense and scary.
We have taken the lighting into consideration because numerous people have said the bright lights take away the feel of the opening title, seeing as our genre Horror/Thriller. The lighting will be all dark so that the atmosphere of the film opening is made mysterious. The lighting will be quite dull, especially when we go down into the cellar.
The titles will be put in more smoothly and will be made noticable but not in great depth so that the audicence watch the film not the titles.
The first bit of feedback we recieved was that the end of our draft made it feel a bit like a trailer instead of a film opening. We can change this by taking out the extreme clse up of eoghains lips when he says "Mr Lynch". Instead of putting this at the end we are now going to put it at the beginning so he introduces us to the name of the film. By doing this we hope it will make our film opening more of a film opening rather than a short trailer.
The second bit of feedback we recieved said that we should use more sound FX. We got told to use more sound FX so that the opening of the film felt more realistic rather than just having a sound track in the background. The sound FX we will use will be:
- The door slam behind him
- The wine pouring into the glass
- The cellar door opening
- A piece of metal drop on the floor in the cellar
At the beginning of our film, we followed Eoghain up the alleyway, and we noticed that there was a slight pixilation problem, this is where the picture quality was a bit blurry. We filmed the draft on Ruby's camera which wasnt very good. We will improve this by using a high quality camera in our final piece.
The mise en scene wasnt taken into consideration on our draft, this was because we were unsure on what Eoghain and Ruby should wear. Having filmed our draft we know have a clear understanding on what they should both wear in order to improve the final piece. Eoghain will wear a black suit to show that he is a normal business person, the first couple of scenes makes the man seem rather innocent but once he goes down into the cellar, that all changes. Ruby is going to wear normal clothes, with a bag and rope over her head. Ruby is going to wear a bag over her head to show that she is being held hostage and it makes the scene feel very tense and scary.
We have taken the lighting into consideration because numerous people have said the bright lights take away the feel of the opening title, seeing as our genre Horror/Thriller. The lighting will be all dark so that the atmosphere of the film opening is made mysterious. The lighting will be quite dull, especially when we go down into the cellar.
The titles will be put in more smoothly and will be made noticable but not in great depth so that the audicence watch the film not the titles.
Evidence of our group meeting up 4/3/14
Here is a screenshot of our group chat, we are all lucky enough to have Iphones, therefore we communicate as a group via iMessage. We are constantly communicating and updating each other on our progress, we do this so that we are all aware of how far weve got as a group and that we know what we still have to do.
Friday, 28 February 2014
First draft responses
We asked a couple of people in our class to give us some audience feedback, the responses we recieved were both good and bad:
- I like the different types of camera angles and shots you have used
- I like the plot
- The music adds to the scene
- The music doesnt fit the genre
- The natural lighting defeats the genre
Mrs D
An excellent first draft - completed early. Well done. You have some great camera shots and fragmentation of the killer. The end sequence makes it read like a trailer. There is some pixilation within the first tracking shot. Use more sound FX of wine etc. Some continuity issues with the wine and strawberries. More work on mes costumes etc. Some lighting problems towards the end. I'm really impressed. Better motion of titles, film ident.
Our Draft
This is our first draft, we are very pleased with the way it has turned out because we know what we need to include in the final peice to further improve it.
What we have been up too:
During yesterdays lesson with Mrs Dolby, Me, Ruby and Eoghain went back to my house and began to film the draft. The draft took us about 20 minutes to film and the rest of the time we sat down and discussed all the different things that we could include to improve the opening sequence and draft. We were very pleased with the outcome of the draft, it looked really good and we had a clear understanding of how our final peice would be like.
The XX music confirmation
This is written evidence from an email we recieved from Emma Lomas, this hereby grants us permission to use their song during our opening scene of our short media clip.
Wednesday, 26 February 2014
Mrs D
Well done on your storyboard. I like the music and the pace works well. I would recommend going back to the exam criteria and checking that you have covered everything like a range of camera shots and framing. You need to also think about the length - it is currently very short and rethinking your titles as it reads a bit like a short film at present.
Friday, 21 February 2014
Mrs Dobbs
Well done Max. There is lots of detail here and you have got some good ideas. Please add more technical detail as requested by Miss Dolby and get your animatronics on your blog ASAP. I look forward to seeing some filming soon.
Thursday, 13 February 2014
Wednesday, 12 February 2014
What we did once we discussed our audience feedback (max)
Once we had discussed about our audience feeback we came to the conclusion that we were going to make the genre of the film Thriller/Horror. We did this because our audience feedback told us that they were confused about the genre of the film, therefore by changing the genre we hope that it is now clear to our viewers. There were many concepts of horror in our storyboard and we realized that there was little action that we could include, also action movies usually have very high budgets and we have a little one.
We are including a basement in our thriller/horror movie this instantly portays a horror movie, this is why we now feel confident about filming a thriller/horror movie. Other feedback that we recieved said that we are trying to include too much in a 2 minute time gap, we have discussed it as a group and planned the shots we are going to use and how long they are going to last for. We are going to include a number of different shots that look suspicisous and scary and we will try and make the duration of the shot add to the atmopshere of the shots being used.
We are including a basement in our thriller/horror movie this instantly portays a horror movie, this is why we now feel confident about filming a thriller/horror movie. Other feedback that we recieved said that we are trying to include too much in a 2 minute time gap, we have discussed it as a group and planned the shots we are going to use and how long they are going to last for. We are going to include a number of different shots that look suspicisous and scary and we will try and make the duration of the shot add to the atmopshere of the shots being used.
Audience feedback (max)
We recieved both positive and negative feedback from our audience. However, i dont see the negative feedback as negative, i see it as constrcutive critisim. I believe that we can now improve our short clip because we cant improve the bits that the audience didnt like.
We received feedback from both males and females. The male said that our idea reminds them of dexter. Dexter starts off with a guy making food, but the process of making food relates to death (metal blender spinning fast blending coffee) this is what we have tried to include in our opening clip. We also have to prioritse our idea.
The females liked our idea becuase they said the storyline is gripping and they want to know whats happening next. We need to have a clear sense of genre, good illusion to lighting - upstairs and basement idea, shadows and fragmenting.
We received feedback from both males and females. The male said that our idea reminds them of dexter. Dexter starts off with a guy making food, but the process of making food relates to death (metal blender spinning fast blending coffee) this is what we have tried to include in our opening clip. We also have to prioritse our idea.
The females liked our idea becuase they said the storyline is gripping and they want to know whats happening next. We need to have a clear sense of genre, good illusion to lighting - upstairs and basement idea, shadows and fragmenting.
Thursday, 6 February 2014
Tuesday, 4 February 2014
Miss D
Some detailed analysis her of the RMAs- make sure you are being as technical as possible and you may want to sum up what you've learnt from your anlysis in terms of common or effective features- do any openings challenge convebtions?
Shortlist of potenetial ideas for our movie (ruby)
Idea 1 –thriller/crime drama
Characters:the accused, a detective and a murdered victim
Story line: scene stars with a flashback of a murdered victim, covered in blood etc. in the house. Scene cuts to the interrogation room with the detective asking “why did you do it”.Another flashback to the house, of the woman before she died screaming at something off screen. Flashback to the interrogation room focusing on the accused man, wearing a white shirt covered in blood. He says “I didn’t do it”.Flashback to the outside of the house, man running out with blood on his hands and shirt (camera focuses on his hands then follows up his body to his face). Then goes back to the interrogation room > detective: “we found your prints all over the weapon” flashback to a knife lying next to the victim, covered in blood. Back to the interrogation room > accused: “it all happened so fast”detective: “why don’t you just start from the beginning?” [END OF FILM] Very basic dark toned lighting in interrogation room. Dramatic music at time of flashbacks.
IDEA 3 –thriller/crime drama
Use initial ideas 1 and 2 but combine them > use the same setting and characters as idea 1, use flashbacks as suggested in idea 2 to when/how the girl was taken. Use props such as rope etc. to indicate a flashback whenever the camera focuses on it. Use the same ending as idea 2.
Setting: normal family home > kitchen > scene finishes in basement.
Characters: an innocent female victim and a male ‘bad guy’ > we never see his face until the very last shot.
Storyline: The camera focuses on the man’s back as he opens his front door and walks through his house and into the kitchen. He’s whistling along to the radio. All seems normal, lighting is very natural. Camera continues to focus on his back until he goes to the door of the basement and slowly opens the door. Camera changes to focus on his feet as he goes down the steps into his basement > at this point we begin to hear a faded groan from something in the basement. Very dim lighting. Camera focus’ on the back of his head and shoulders – revealing more about the character – he’s walking towards something. Camera changes to focus on a girl sitting in a chair, with her feet and hands tied, wearing a blindfold and with duct tape covering her mouth. He rips off the duct tape and disappears completely from the frame, focusing on the girl. She’s crying > screaming “what do you want” “who are you” etc. The man comes back into the frame, standing behind her, and the camera cuts to a close up of his face. Finishes with a dramatic line from the man and then there’s a blackout. [END OF FILM]
Characters: an innocent female victim and a male ‘bad guy’ > we never see his face until the very last shot.
Storyline: The camera focuses on the man’s back as he opens his front door and walks through his house and into the kitchen. He’s whistling along to the radio. All seems normal, lighting is very natural. Camera continues to focus on his back until he goes to the door of the basement and slowly opens the door. Camera changes to focus on his feet as he goes down the steps into his basement > at this point we begin to hear a faded groan from something in the basement. Very dim lighting. Camera focus’ on the back of his head and shoulders – revealing more about the character – he’s walking towards something. Camera changes to focus on a girl sitting in a chair, with her feet and hands tied, wearing a blindfold and with duct tape covering her mouth. He rips off the duct tape and disappears completely from the frame, focusing on the girl. She’s crying > screaming “what do you want” “who are you” etc. The man comes back into the frame, standing behind her, and the camera cuts to a close up of his face. Finishes with a dramatic line from the man and then there’s a blackout. [END OF FILM]
IDEA 2 –thriller/crime drama
Setting: an interrogation room and a house.Characters:the accused, a detective and a murdered victim
Story line: scene stars with a flashback of a murdered victim, covered in blood etc. in the house. Scene cuts to the interrogation room with the detective asking “why did you do it”.Another flashback to the house, of the woman before she died screaming at something off screen. Flashback to the interrogation room focusing on the accused man, wearing a white shirt covered in blood. He says “I didn’t do it”.Flashback to the outside of the house, man running out with blood on his hands and shirt (camera focuses on his hands then follows up his body to his face). Then goes back to the interrogation room > detective: “we found your prints all over the weapon” flashback to a knife lying next to the victim, covered in blood. Back to the interrogation room > accused: “it all happened so fast”detective: “why don’t you just start from the beginning?” [END OF FILM] Very basic dark toned lighting in interrogation room. Dramatic music at time of flashbacks.
IDEA 3 –thriller/crime drama
Use initial ideas 1 and 2 but combine them > use the same setting and characters as idea 1, use flashbacks as suggested in idea 2 to when/how the girl was taken. Use props such as rope etc. to indicate a flashback whenever the camera focuses on it. Use the same ending as idea 2.
Moodboard 04/02/14 (ruby)
This is our moodboard, we have related our moodboard to the genre of our movie and the ideas that we have which we would like to include in our movie. We are doing a thriller and are involving fruits that are coloured like blood, knifes to represent death and roaps and bags to show danger.
Wednesday, 29 January 2014
Analysing 3 real media artifacts - Action Thriller trailers
The first action thriller trailer I analysed was:
Skyfall
I have analysed the opening scene of Skyfall, which is a very high budgeted film, produced by a Hollywood production company. Skyfall is part of a very long sequel so it makes tremendous amounts of money.
First of all we see James bond being followed through a hallway and down the stairs by a handheld camera. We see that James bond is dressed up in a very smart suit, this instantly represents his status in his job. From the very start of the film we are presented to the agonist actor of the film which is James bond and the antagonist which is his co-worker. We see that he is also carrying a gun in front of him as if he was ready to shoot someone, this suggests that he is hunting someone down and that we are about to witness an action packed opening scene. We then see a medium long shot of James bond, we can see the back of him walking through the door into the city. After we see James bond walk through the door, an establishing shot is used to set the location, we can see two very tight streets either side of the corner where james is stood, which is crammed with lots of people and cars passing through. Followed by a close up on James' face as he looks around to suggest he's waiting or looking for something. We then see the car pull up and the horn beeps, James then gets inside it, and they drive off. We see a subjective shot over James and the drivers shoulder and through the windscreen of the car in front. At this point the pace of the film starts to speed up and the cuts become faster; from the streets, to the two different cars and then too the faces of james and the driver. The quick cuts and the fast paced tense sound track creates an atmosphere for the viewers because it all gives us the impression something crazy is about to happen, this starts off an action thriller very well. We see a contrast between two different locations during the opening scenes. We witness a very serious but calm scene at the headquarters where Dench and her worker is, they are calmly updating the main character where they are situated and where there target is, followed to a fast packed scene where james bond and his worker are pacing through the streets in order to hunt this car down. The opening scenes are mysterious for the audience as we don't quite know why they are chasing the guy in the black Audi. As the two cars part side by side we see them both crash into each other followed by the stronger car which is the land drover force the audi up onto some hay forcing it to tip over, the car then carries on moving at a fast pace into a dangerous area where people are shopping at stalls. This scene has many quick cuts to emphasize how chaotic everything is. We see stalls tip over, fruit and veg rolling all over the place and scared passers-by who are running frantically for safety. Once the black Audi becomes at a stand still, another man dressed in a smart suit rolls out of the car firing a large gun directly at james and his worker inside the car, the windscreen smashes and they roll out and duck for safety. We see James whip out his gun and a gun fight begins. The synchronous noises of people screaming in the background emphasizes the seriousness of the scene and makes the viewers scared for them. The good thing about the opening clip is we witness the main actors of the film which is important because the viewers at home want to know from the start what they look like and what are their roles. The film also starts off at a very fast pace to set the genre of the film.
The opening sequence for Skyfall is very clever and exacting. Non-continuity editing is used at the start so that the film because the opening sequence contrasts between two different locations, the first one is the car chase through the city and the next scene is where Dench and her worker are situated in a relaxed office. The transitions are quick and unnoticeable which is good. There are many quick cuts and the film runs at a very fast pace, this makes sense as the film is an action thriller and straight from the start you are aware that this movie is action packed. Quick cuts from one scene to another make the scenes more dramatic and make it look as if there are many things going on. There are many synchronous sounds used at the start, for example we hear a lot of car horns but we can also see many cars on the street. We see and hear James bond load his gun in the car as he stares at the car in front. This makes the audience start to think he's going to shoot this person in front.
The second film I am going to analyse is:
The Purge
I wanted to find a film that had started of their opening sequence entirely different to what Skyfall had done. It was very hard finding a movie that had started off their film different to Skyfall, but then came across the film called 'The Purge'.
The opening sequence of this film is this film is started by two different quotes on separate clips. It is basically saying about the country of America is changing and is going to be reborn, this suggests that the movie starts off about all the bad things about America and as the movie progresses we start to see a change. After the two quotes the opening sequence is them filmed by CCTV camera. The CCTV cameras are placed everywhere around a normal city. Houses, backstreets, shops and buildings all have CCTV cameras on them, there is no speech at all at the start the only thing you can hear is non-diegetic music, the sound track which plays whilst the CCTV clips are being shown actually sound quite upbeat and peaceful, this completely contradicts the film shown by camera. Maybe this is because they want to keep the viewers interested and if they played quite dramatic and loud music then this may give the viewers the impression the film is quite full on and violent; so it is cleverly done.
The way in which the opening sequence is filmed provides realism for the viewers at home, everything that is seen on these cameras have occurred during an a normal day, no actors have been used at the start which is clever because it makes the audience feel quite sad because they are now aware how brutal life can be. The start of the film shows violence and un human like behaviour. We see large groups of people beating up people in the streets, we see people firing guns at each other and at car windows and buildings. We see large buildings and shops on fire which have obviously been started by gangs, so by watching the first minute or so to this film we have been given the impression that this involves a lot of violence and crime, with gangs ruling cities maybe? The directors have been clever by starting off a film this way because this intrigues the viewers because we want to know why we have been shown this and how it is relevant to the film we are about to watch. I have been given the impression that by the way the people have been introduced and the clothes they wear (jeans and vests) that the film is situated in the poorer parts of the country and perhaps have less money so they lead to crime. The mise en scene in the opening clips relate to the genre of the film, throughout the opening scenes we see baseball bats, guns and fists used to beat up people, this shows violence at its worst.
The editing style used at the start of this film is continuity editing, this makes the opening sequence flow smoothly so that it can tell the storyline. The transitions are unnoticeable and it just fades from one scene to another, the audience pays more attention on what the film shows than how it diverses from one scene to another.
The fact that the opening sequence is filmed by CCTV may suggest that the film is orientated around the government and the way in which crime effects people and the country. This makes the audience want to know who is behind these cameras and why they are not doing something about it.
The opening sequence also suggests that it is a low budget film because of the way they have decided to film the opening sequence. Usually high budget films would start off by producing a spectacle of an opening scene by showing off a variety of different camera angles but this film starts off by CCTV recording which is different.
The next film I am analysing is called:
Shutter island
Shutter island's opening sequence was very clever because it made the audience want to know more to what happens next from the very beginning. We start off with a zooming in shot on two men who are standing on a pier. As the camera gets closer it becomes obvious that these two men are policemen, they look like they are very strict and are guarding something important. In the background we can also see two more men either side dressed in the same clothing, this suggests that this is a very protected area of land where nobody should go. This makes us want to know what these men are guarding and why are there so many of them. The sound track is upbeat, of a rather fast and dramatic pace and sounds like suspense music. Straight after we see a pan shot of two men dressed in beige suits and hats, there are two policemen either side of them which makes us think they are not welcome and that they are here for a serious reason, we are given the impression that these two men are detectives, although you'd think the policemen would be nice to them if they were effectively on their side, close ups on different policemen faces says otherwise. The police seem to follow and pay strict attention to these two men, with back up policemen behind with large guns. Guns tend to pay a massive part in almost every thriller, this is a very common way of making the storyline gripping and exciting, because usually people are shot with guns compared to other ways of death. eye line shots of the policemen furthermore show that they are never taking their eyes off of these two men.
Once the two men hop into the jeep, we then see a medium close up shot of the two men as they gaze up at a sign, the sign says "Remember us for we have too lived, loved and laughed" this quote may have some part to play in the film, we do not know. Above we can see that the sign says hospital and cemetery, this automatically gives me the impression that these two men are hear to solve a mystery of someone's death, I have got this impression by the clothes and hats that these two men are wearing. We notice that in the opening sequence we are presented to the two main characters in the film, an extreme close up on the protagonists face after seeing the sign shows us that he is worried and focused. We then see a pan shot as the car drives past us from right to left, in the background we can see a very large wall that goes on for miles. This suggests that this piece of land is a very well guarded and protected area.
The editing style used in this clip is continuity editing, the opening sequence flows smoothly and makes sense, the storyline flows smoothly as we are aware that these two men have been brought to this place and are here for a specific reason and need to be watched. As the jeep approaches the hospital the suspense sound track gets louder and faster to make the arrival of these two men more dramatic. Only synchronous sounds are used for example you can see and hear the car, there are no sound affects at the start which makes everything natural.
The start of this film is brilliant, as the plot and storyline is set straight away, we know that all these guards and policemen are hear to protect something and guard the place from intruders. The we have instantly been introduced to the main characters which is part of the codes and conventions of a movie. We know that the two characters are here for a specific reason because they are dressed like detectives and they look like they are of a high status, when see the sign saying about hospital and cemetery we are given the impression that these two men are hear to analyse a dead body maybe? and find out how the death of someone occurred.
Skyfall
I have analysed the opening scene of Skyfall, which is a very high budgeted film, produced by a Hollywood production company. Skyfall is part of a very long sequel so it makes tremendous amounts of money.
First of all we see James bond being followed through a hallway and down the stairs by a handheld camera. We see that James bond is dressed up in a very smart suit, this instantly represents his status in his job. From the very start of the film we are presented to the agonist actor of the film which is James bond and the antagonist which is his co-worker. We see that he is also carrying a gun in front of him as if he was ready to shoot someone, this suggests that he is hunting someone down and that we are about to witness an action packed opening scene. We then see a medium long shot of James bond, we can see the back of him walking through the door into the city. After we see James bond walk through the door, an establishing shot is used to set the location, we can see two very tight streets either side of the corner where james is stood, which is crammed with lots of people and cars passing through. Followed by a close up on James' face as he looks around to suggest he's waiting or looking for something. We then see the car pull up and the horn beeps, James then gets inside it, and they drive off. We see a subjective shot over James and the drivers shoulder and through the windscreen of the car in front. At this point the pace of the film starts to speed up and the cuts become faster; from the streets, to the two different cars and then too the faces of james and the driver. The quick cuts and the fast paced tense sound track creates an atmosphere for the viewers because it all gives us the impression something crazy is about to happen, this starts off an action thriller very well. We see a contrast between two different locations during the opening scenes. We witness a very serious but calm scene at the headquarters where Dench and her worker is, they are calmly updating the main character where they are situated and where there target is, followed to a fast packed scene where james bond and his worker are pacing through the streets in order to hunt this car down. The opening scenes are mysterious for the audience as we don't quite know why they are chasing the guy in the black Audi. As the two cars part side by side we see them both crash into each other followed by the stronger car which is the land drover force the audi up onto some hay forcing it to tip over, the car then carries on moving at a fast pace into a dangerous area where people are shopping at stalls. This scene has many quick cuts to emphasize how chaotic everything is. We see stalls tip over, fruit and veg rolling all over the place and scared passers-by who are running frantically for safety. Once the black Audi becomes at a stand still, another man dressed in a smart suit rolls out of the car firing a large gun directly at james and his worker inside the car, the windscreen smashes and they roll out and duck for safety. We see James whip out his gun and a gun fight begins. The synchronous noises of people screaming in the background emphasizes the seriousness of the scene and makes the viewers scared for them. The good thing about the opening clip is we witness the main actors of the film which is important because the viewers at home want to know from the start what they look like and what are their roles. The film also starts off at a very fast pace to set the genre of the film.
The opening sequence for Skyfall is very clever and exacting. Non-continuity editing is used at the start so that the film because the opening sequence contrasts between two different locations, the first one is the car chase through the city and the next scene is where Dench and her worker are situated in a relaxed office. The transitions are quick and unnoticeable which is good. There are many quick cuts and the film runs at a very fast pace, this makes sense as the film is an action thriller and straight from the start you are aware that this movie is action packed. Quick cuts from one scene to another make the scenes more dramatic and make it look as if there are many things going on. There are many synchronous sounds used at the start, for example we hear a lot of car horns but we can also see many cars on the street. We see and hear James bond load his gun in the car as he stares at the car in front. This makes the audience start to think he's going to shoot this person in front.
The second film I am going to analyse is:
The Purge
I wanted to find a film that had started of their opening sequence entirely different to what Skyfall had done. It was very hard finding a movie that had started off their film different to Skyfall, but then came across the film called 'The Purge'.
The opening sequence of this film is this film is started by two different quotes on separate clips. It is basically saying about the country of America is changing and is going to be reborn, this suggests that the movie starts off about all the bad things about America and as the movie progresses we start to see a change. After the two quotes the opening sequence is them filmed by CCTV camera. The CCTV cameras are placed everywhere around a normal city. Houses, backstreets, shops and buildings all have CCTV cameras on them, there is no speech at all at the start the only thing you can hear is non-diegetic music, the sound track which plays whilst the CCTV clips are being shown actually sound quite upbeat and peaceful, this completely contradicts the film shown by camera. Maybe this is because they want to keep the viewers interested and if they played quite dramatic and loud music then this may give the viewers the impression the film is quite full on and violent; so it is cleverly done.
The way in which the opening sequence is filmed provides realism for the viewers at home, everything that is seen on these cameras have occurred during an a normal day, no actors have been used at the start which is clever because it makes the audience feel quite sad because they are now aware how brutal life can be. The start of the film shows violence and un human like behaviour. We see large groups of people beating up people in the streets, we see people firing guns at each other and at car windows and buildings. We see large buildings and shops on fire which have obviously been started by gangs, so by watching the first minute or so to this film we have been given the impression that this involves a lot of violence and crime, with gangs ruling cities maybe? The directors have been clever by starting off a film this way because this intrigues the viewers because we want to know why we have been shown this and how it is relevant to the film we are about to watch. I have been given the impression that by the way the people have been introduced and the clothes they wear (jeans and vests) that the film is situated in the poorer parts of the country and perhaps have less money so they lead to crime. The mise en scene in the opening clips relate to the genre of the film, throughout the opening scenes we see baseball bats, guns and fists used to beat up people, this shows violence at its worst.
The editing style used at the start of this film is continuity editing, this makes the opening sequence flow smoothly so that it can tell the storyline. The transitions are unnoticeable and it just fades from one scene to another, the audience pays more attention on what the film shows than how it diverses from one scene to another.
The fact that the opening sequence is filmed by CCTV may suggest that the film is orientated around the government and the way in which crime effects people and the country. This makes the audience want to know who is behind these cameras and why they are not doing something about it.
The opening sequence also suggests that it is a low budget film because of the way they have decided to film the opening sequence. Usually high budget films would start off by producing a spectacle of an opening scene by showing off a variety of different camera angles but this film starts off by CCTV recording which is different.
The next film I am analysing is called:
Shutter island
Shutter island's opening sequence was very clever because it made the audience want to know more to what happens next from the very beginning. We start off with a zooming in shot on two men who are standing on a pier. As the camera gets closer it becomes obvious that these two men are policemen, they look like they are very strict and are guarding something important. In the background we can also see two more men either side dressed in the same clothing, this suggests that this is a very protected area of land where nobody should go. This makes us want to know what these men are guarding and why are there so many of them. The sound track is upbeat, of a rather fast and dramatic pace and sounds like suspense music. Straight after we see a pan shot of two men dressed in beige suits and hats, there are two policemen either side of them which makes us think they are not welcome and that they are here for a serious reason, we are given the impression that these two men are detectives, although you'd think the policemen would be nice to them if they were effectively on their side, close ups on different policemen faces says otherwise. The police seem to follow and pay strict attention to these two men, with back up policemen behind with large guns. Guns tend to pay a massive part in almost every thriller, this is a very common way of making the storyline gripping and exciting, because usually people are shot with guns compared to other ways of death. eye line shots of the policemen furthermore show that they are never taking their eyes off of these two men.
Once the two men hop into the jeep, we then see a medium close up shot of the two men as they gaze up at a sign, the sign says "Remember us for we have too lived, loved and laughed" this quote may have some part to play in the film, we do not know. Above we can see that the sign says hospital and cemetery, this automatically gives me the impression that these two men are hear to solve a mystery of someone's death, I have got this impression by the clothes and hats that these two men are wearing. We notice that in the opening sequence we are presented to the two main characters in the film, an extreme close up on the protagonists face after seeing the sign shows us that he is worried and focused. We then see a pan shot as the car drives past us from right to left, in the background we can see a very large wall that goes on for miles. This suggests that this piece of land is a very well guarded and protected area.
The editing style used in this clip is continuity editing, the opening sequence flows smoothly and makes sense, the storyline flows smoothly as we are aware that these two men have been brought to this place and are here for a specific reason and need to be watched. As the jeep approaches the hospital the suspense sound track gets louder and faster to make the arrival of these two men more dramatic. Only synchronous sounds are used for example you can see and hear the car, there are no sound affects at the start which makes everything natural.
The start of this film is brilliant, as the plot and storyline is set straight away, we know that all these guards and policemen are hear to protect something and guard the place from intruders. The we have instantly been introduced to the main characters which is part of the codes and conventions of a movie. We know that the two characters are here for a specific reason because they are dressed like detectives and they look like they are of a high status, when see the sign saying about hospital and cemetery we are given the impression that these two men are hear to analyse a dead body maybe? and find out how the death of someone occurred.
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