Costume Choice

Costume has a huge part in creating the character that you want the audience to understand and identify their role within the scene. Our target audience has helped us to create a character appropriate for the opening sequence, as it stands the target audience is aimed for adolescence around 14-18. Due to teenage culture today, there are many different subcultures which is influenced by friends and clothing choice.

As a group we created an idea of a young innocent girl but as the audience gets to know her they will realise that the is created in that way to hide her real personality. An example of different subcultures within the teenage years is 'Goths' and 'Emos' which are stereotyped to wear dark colours dressing in black with deep and dark make-up and listening to rock/ heavy metal music. If we wanted a character to be stereotyped in this form we would ensure that she was dressed in black with heavy dark make-up allowing the audience to gain a sense of the scene and create a dark atmosphere. However, as Goths don't make up a wide range of society today, if we was to focus our attention on them it would provide the genre or sense we would like to achieve and would also limit the target audience.

By choosing specifically to create a character with a vulnerable, innocent sense allows the audience to feel nervous and by ensuring that we gain as much audience as possible we have dressed the girl in casualty clothing, still fashionable but not branded clothing therefore appealing to the majority of teenagers and will create an atmosphere of them being in characters position. The make-up on our character will be minimal with a natural look and hair will be tied back. By not giving our character a make-up and glammed up will make the audience feel more comfortable and be able to relate to our main character which is important throughout the opening sequence.

Below shows an image of our main characters costume and overall look:


Instead of using a stereotype of an Emo or Goth which would be presented like:

Choice of sound track

After creating our final opening sequence, it was important that we research and apply the best sound track which is relevant and fits with our opening sequence. The soundtrack takes up half of your overall production and can influence the whole scene, without the correct soundtrack, it can change the view point from the audience perspective and change the whole atmosphere of the scene. Because of this, it is vital that we create enough research by looking at other opening sequences of the same genre and pay specific attention to the soundtrack and ways in which it connects and fits with the scene.

By already produced our opening sequence of a mystery drama, following a young girls journey and dealing with the guilt and loss of her best friend. This has allowed it much easier to find a sound track that fits with this as a happy, loud and cheerful song would easily confuse the audiences and create a happy environment. This tells us that we need to select a piece of music that is sad and depressing giving a clear insight towards the characters life and emotions. Due to not being able to choice a piece of music that has been copyrighted we have to ensure we found a soundtrack that isn't branded or a mainstream piece of work. This involved looking on YouTube at simple soundtracks that do not involve it being copywriter. There are many we were able to select from but as a good we have decided on an instrumental which follows a rather sad tone in order to suit out production.

The track we have selected is liked below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qlHMQGcFtk

Practice Filming

Our group decided to create a practice production so that we were clearly able to identify the shots and angles that worked and the shots that we could improve. By doing this we could notice that generally our camera movement was smooth but there was at times it started to shake which made the production look unrealistic. This is what we need to be aware of when filming the real production and ensure that the camera movement at all times runs smoothly. Below is a clip of our practice film:

Overall, me and my group are very happy with what we achieved and by slightly improving this beggining sequence it could be produced the way we were expecting. I believe that our opening sequence is running as a high and professional standered that is infulenced by the media helping us to improve this in any way possible.

Pre-Production Research

Before creating our own opening sequence it was imporant to research the differences of good and bad. This will give our group a clear idea of things that we need to invlove and thigns that we must ensure we do not produce. By looking at bad examples of opening sequences we will have a clear identification of the things that make the scene bad or not fit. An example of this could be when the set is too dark or if the opening sequence did not fit with the actual film.

By looking at other opening sequence we have made sure that our own production had full continutiy and fits with the story behind it allowing us to grab the audience attention and make them want to watch this film.

We decidied to create a practice run in a different loction to were we have planned to produce our opening sequence, this has allowed us to notice things that we have not included and identify different things we could change to produce the best possible opening sequence.

BFI: Youth, Media and Collective Idenitity day

On Wednesday 5th of February 2014 our class went to the BFI (British Film Industry) in Southbank London for a trip to experience and learn new things about the constructing the teenagers and how the media had effected or changed the way the audience view teenagers. This was a great opportunity to find out more about youth, culture and Theory presented by Matthew Hall. We began the day by discussing how the child begins to developed their identity and looking at Jacques Lacan which is a psychoanalyst looking at the mirror image and the psychoanalytic film theory and about how we use the cinema/TV screen as a 'mirror' to reinforce our identity. Matthew discussed that we need to interact in order to form our identity and when we do interact our own identity of influenced by other people that have different thoughts or view to how maybe we look at things. Media representations may influence the way we react. We watched a few different clips that we had to identify the textual detail, dominant messages sent about youth, the negotiated interpretation and what kind of audience would interpret in this way. These short clips were from:

• The Wild One
• Rebel Without A Cause
• Quadropenia
• Kidult hood
• Human Traffic
• My Brother, The Devil

Each of these clips that we watched allowed the audience to recognise how the teenagers were interpreted and their dominate message sent about the youths.

 One of the clips that I analysed was 'The Wild One' presenting a different culture with a black and white viewing, an old town in a motorbike sense. The dominate message sent about the youth allowed the audience to notice the difference from some youths trying not to 'fit into' the adult mainstream and their generation gap. The characters were trying to challenging traditional values and lifestyle by changing the way they act and presenting a different form or life behaviour. This clip fits into the adult hegemony as the film presents a lead ship and dominance of the adults sticking together in the same way and interests. The textual detail that we established after watching this clip, we could identify the jazz music in the background with helps to support their generation and culture that they were currently in. The motorbikes presented the group of boys to come across as rebellious comparison to the other characters in the scene.  The audience were able to clearly identify the fact that the group of men was challenging traditional values making the film become more interesting.

From this experience at the BFI, as a class we have learnt a new range of different perspectives of Media culture and Identity which will be very useful to use in our exam. It has provided a wider view to what positions and different job roles the media industry provides whilst allowing me to learn what is expected of me in my A Level media class to successfully achieve a good A level in Media Studies. As a result I enjoyed the Media Trip and have come away with ways in which to improve my own opening sequence and involve more textual details throughout.

The Brief for our Main Task

As a class we were asked to create an opening sequence within our production groups. There are very specific idea's that we need to ensure that is included throughout our opening sequence which contain titles, a soundtrack which must not be copyrighted, and the main focus on a faction film. This opening sequence must be approximate 2 minuets long.

 within our group, it was very important that we all had a clear idea of what we would like to present to our class taking into consideration and thoughts about the gender, soundtrack, introduction to main characters, title of the film and the credits.

There are many different Genders that out group could decide on to use for our production including, romance, adventure, comedy, horror, thriller or action. It is vital that our group are clear on each gender and feel comfortable using a certain gender for our production so research must be used for the conventions.

Due to the use of soundtrack must not be copyrighted, it may cause limitations to our production. However, to over come this problem the use of garage band used on the laptop/computer will help our group to come up with a soundtrack that is relevant to our scene. To be able to produce an efficient soundtrack for our production, our group will research some existing music that we think will suit our production and then use garage band and foiley sound to create something similar that will suit our opening scene. 

It is important that our group have planned out a time schedule for planning, recording and editing allowing us to have enough time to complete our production to the best standard we are able to provide. Although our opening scene is only 2 minuets long, it will take a long time for us to produce and edit before we will be happy to present it.

Genre Research

After creating as a group our final pitch and pulling together ideas about the conventions and what we would like to produce for our opening sequence, it is vital that we complete research on the different type of genres and select the genre most relevant to out ideas. Our opening sequence follows an drama mystery genre so in order to start thinking about the conventions I have started to look at other opening sequences within the same genre.

The link below is a trailer from a mystery drama called 'The Following'

 

'The following'  is a brilliant and charismatic, yet psychotic serial killer communicates with other active serial killers and activates a cult of believers following his every command. This is a drama mystery thriller and after watching this clip has allowed me to identify appropriate things that I need to include in my opening sequence allowing the audience to clearly recognise the type of genre I am producing.

 

This may include :

 

- Lighting, dark and mysterious

 

- Choice of location

 

- Type of characters and the way they are presented

 

- Different types of camera shots

 

By ensuring that we involve all of these will allow us to create a mystery drama and also help us to set our target audience.

Movie Clips - Research

Now that i have analyised the brief for our main task, i can start thinking about what type of genre i would like to create to carry out for my main production of an opening sequence.

'Movie Clips' was a great wesbite which enabled me to look at a varity of different openening sequences containing a range of genres. This was very helpful as it gets me thinking of which type of opening sequence i would like to achieve. Movie clips provides me with a means of identifying different conventions amongst different genres, which will help me decide a type of openening sequences i would like to do.

The Importance of opening sequence

Before creating an opening sequence for ourselves after receiving the brief, it is important that we are aware of the importance of an opening sequence within a range of different ideas and techniques to produce a great final production.

There are several different reasons for the importance of an opening sequence including:

• Setting the tone of the movie and supposed to lure people into the story
• introduces the characters and sense of identity
• Title sequences

Title sequence designs for films has evolved immensely over the years. Title sequences can range from bland black backgrounds with superimposed text over it to simply identify the film (which was the sole purpose in the first place) or they could be wildly creative and fun. The truth of the matter is that a title sequence also speaks volumes about the movie itself before it begins.

After taking this into consideration, it has allowed me to notice the importance of getting the opening sequence right and produced to the best of my ability. I am now aware and clear on the importance of titles and the different ways in which they can be advertised on the screen.

Camera Shot Task

For our first time using the cameras we had been asked to create a short clip that will include different camera shots and a variety of camera movement. The clip that we created includes a still panning shot were the camera is moving but the subject stays still. We also created a shot were the camera is following a moving object, for example following a moving bus. The clip also shows a tily up shot, this shot begins low down and the camera slowely moves up to reveal the actor of the object. As a group we also decided to film a over the shoulder medium shot which shows two people in the frame, but showing the reaction of one actor whist the others back it towards the camera to show them having a conversation. Once all the filming had been created and was happy as a group that we have provided enough different camera shot movements, we then focused on editing our clips together into one short video. Here is our short clip showing different camera shot movements:

Recreation of Short Clip

As seen from my last blog, we presented our story board as a group of the recreation from the beginning scene of 'Scream' from High School Musical Senior Year. The reason for choosing this clip was because it has a varitey of different shots, movements and angles such as panning and low angle shots. This clip was very simple and didnt require anything too difficult for us to try and recreate. Here is a video of the clip, we recreated the first 5 minuets of this clip:

Before we was able to start filming we had to decide as a group on a appropiate locations for the clip, and make a story board so we was aware of wait to aim for and how many seconds each shot should consist of. We also needed to think about if any props was needed in our recreation so had to make sure we was able to access them for the day of the recording. Once we had filmed our clip we then had to think about the editing and effects that we would like to adjust to the clip to give it more of an effective and profeshional look. Here is our final outcome:



Camera Shots - Movement

In todays assignment as a class we looked through the different types camera shot movements throughout a film. There are several different ways the camera moves around to give off a different effect which may inquire differnent technology to help. Below i will give some examples of the different camera shot movements:

- Pan Lef to Pan Right means moving the camera to bring the audience closer, showing them all sides of the character as an example.Moving the camera lens to one side or another, looking to your left then looking to your right - that's panning. 

- Tilt up to Tilt down means Moving the cameras lens up or down while keeping its horizontal axis constant. Nod your head up and down - this is tilting.

- Zoom in (lens) to Zoom out involves changing the focal length of the lens to make the subject appear closer or further away in the frame. Most video cameras today have built-in zoom features. Some have manual zooms as well, and many have several zoom speeds. Zooming is one of the most frequently-used camera moves and one of the most overused. 

The image above shows all the different camera movement that's available to process a film. It is very cleaver what the camera is able to do, and with the correct technical equipment it expresses a more realistic movement making the film look more professional and believable. 

Camera Shot - Anaslis

In Class today we looked at short clip from 'King Arthur' analising the different camera shots throughout and why they are used in this flim, is it to present something for a sertain reason?

 

The clip above is from 'King Arthur' the battle. It presents a vast amounts of different camera shots to analise who are the man charachters and to repersent the location it is taken in. There are close up shots at the biggining of the clip to the main characters face expressing there emotions of how they are feeling. They used a close up shot to make the audience aware who to focus on. There are also long distance shot to show were it is located in and who else may be in this scene. It shows the other group of men coming towards them to battle in the distance.

I also looked at a short clip from 'Insidious' called 'The smiling family'. This is a horror flim so the camera shots used are to bring the audience in gaining there attention to cause tension.

At the bigginging of the clip as the man is walking down the stairs it shows a medium long shot to represent the location of were he is and what he is doing making it clear for the audience to understand. As he gets closer to the womens face shining the light it becomes a close up shot allowing you to understand the characters and to draw in the audience. Near the end of the clip as he goes to leave the room it shows an reverse angle shot as it gives you a clear image of him expressing his emotions with anxiety, then a shot looking back to what he was looking at to make it clear why he was feeling that way. 

In a clip there are ruffely around 200/250 different camera shots which helps the audience to identify the location, characters, emotions and setting the scene. 

Camera Shots - Distance

There are a many different types distance camera shots which tells you a picture/story behind the image. By how close the camera distance is or the way the shot it taken can cause tension or tell a story before watching the film.

These are a some different distance camera shots from different films:

- Extreme close up shot - (EUC)

This image above was taken from the film 'Insidious' which is a Horror film. The image represents a close up of a lady's eyes looking up which gives the impression she is worried or anxious. This makes the audience prepared that something is likely to happen making them feel terrified before anything is shown.

- Close up Shot (CU)

 

This close up is taken from the film 'The Hunger Games'. Close ups are also very useful when trying to add emotion to the conversation. Whether the emotion is sadness, anger or fear a close up of a characters , can be so powerful in getting that emotion across without using any dialog. The image above expresses the young girls sadness and hope. She looks as if she is in pain and looking up to help and protection.

- Medium Shots (MS)

 

 

This medium shot is taken from the film 'Mean Girls'. This image shows two of the girls sat together in their school canteen having lunch. This is a medium shot as it show two of the girls upper body's and the location it is placed in. Medium shots are good for setting the scene, it gives the audience more of an idea of the location and the girls body language.

 

There is a difference in 'Medium Shot' and 'Medium Long Shot'. The image below is taken from the same film 'Mean Girls'.

 

 

 

The difference is in medium long shot you are able to see the girls full body and the location and normal how relating to the world around them. This image expresses the girls emotions by showing there facial expressions related to their body language which gives the audience a clear image of were they are and how they are emotionally feeling or experiencing.

 

- Long Shot (LS)

 

 

 

 



 



This image above is an example of a 'Long Shot'. A long shot image as you can see is more about the scene and location, not all focus on the characters. This is a very dramatic image as the location stands out in the image letting you know what's going on and why they are placed in that area.

 

- High angle and Low angle shots

 

 

This image represents a 'High angle shot' looking down on little Militia which makes her feel and look extremely venerable. It makes the small girl appear weak and scared as if she is being looked down on and not wanted. Any image that is presented from a high angle is used to make the characters have a lack of power.

 

The image above is a 'Low angle shot' which clearly label's the differences from high angle to low angle. Low angle shot represents a sense of power showing the characters skill and talent. Bat man in the image above is made to gain strength and be looked up to as a leader. He is made to look effective and already tells the audience that he is to lead.

 

- Dutch angle shot

 

 

The image above exemplifies a titles image. It is an easy way to establish a character in a film or image. He looks very worried as If he shouldn't be in that room. He lets off a sense of discomfort and shows him looking at something towards the right up high. This means he could be looked as venerable an weak. 

Analysis of short clip's

In class today we watched a short clip called 'get carter car park scene'. I am going to focus on the characters and there relationship shown throughout. From without even starting the clip it showed a clear image of who was the main character. This was shown as the man was with 2 other work men which were both dressed in a black suit but he was wearing a silver suit. This tells us that by what the characters are wearing tells us a lot about their role in the film. Also which was clearly noticed was that the two work men were directed a lot further away from the camera, compared to the man in the silver suit which was stood a lot closer to the camera. This gives the impression that he is the boss and a lot higher class than the two men standing further away. As Ian Hendry (Northern man) walks out of the cabbing in anger, it shows a Michael Caine underneath him in a dark shadow which represents a dark and broad character which already builds tension to the scene. As Ian Hendry bumps into Michael Caine unexpected  his body language sharply changed and his voice tones saying 'Jack?' Very sharp and efficient. His body language changes rapidly from an anger to held back stooped posture, This gives the impression that he was scared and worried to see Michael Caine and is now have control over him.

Similarly, I watched a short clip from Wolverine called 'brotherly fight'. This clip shows tension between Wolverine and his Brother Victor (dressed in black). Wolverine expresses his anger by bursting through the double doors with a very broad posture. Victor seems very relaxed with a clam voice when talking to Wolverine which makes him gain power to this scene with a tension build. Wolverine walks in through a dark shadow which also presents a dark image on his character.Victor shows a very clam character towards the start of the scene, but rapidly jumps over to wolverine express his feelings of anger and frustration. This is a action film including flighting similar to the clip 'get carter car-park scene' above.