Planning - risk assessment

Planning - Shot List

1.       Beginning from behind a shadowy figure pan right to reveal car and individual in car, window rolls down we hear latches of briefcase open and we see figure handing over something into the car.

2.       Medium close-up/ close-up inside the car confused look on man’s face, we can’t see item man is holding.

3.       Back to same shot as ‘1’ except the man has gone

4.       Shot of case in distance next to bike shelter

5.       Shot of scared look on man’s face

6.       Shot of car driving off revealing school.

7.       60fps (will be slowed down in post) 30 seconds of footage character walking down corridor, ground level, following. Helter skelter style upwards pan to character’s face, pause at character’s face then proceed round to an over the shoulder shot the space in front of the character is blurred for 3 seconds then a change in focus occurs blurring the characters head and revealing the corridor ahead.

8.       Cut to extreme close-up of Jacob’s face

9.       Expressions shot from students in corridor, shot with all 3 or 4 then cut to close-up of one look of disgust.

10.   Extremely fast spin to Jacobs’s face where we see a shaking of the head and a look of shame.

11.   Shot of students in corridor as Jacob walks away, almost following Jacob looking back on his path. Students laugh to each other.

12.   Jacob stops in the corridor looks to one side (sees the case)

13.   Shot of case positioned against the wall

14.   Cut strait to mid body shot as Jacob walks towards the door with the case in hand

15.    Jacob reaches for the exit door

16.   Jacob bursting through the door from outside perspective

17.   Medium close-up moment, upset/ sick and tired look. Walks past camera.

18.   Shot of him walking away

19.   Shot of him walking away from further away 10 meters

20.   Shot from height even further away

Planning - Costume List

For my film opening sequence I will be needing a few items of costume that will be a huge asset in terms of setting mood and displaying themes.

Firstly my lead character Jacob Law will be in old and dirty school uniform as the sequence takes place as he is leaving school. through this costume I am trying to show the poverty that this boy has grown up in, and this helps the idea that he gets severely bullied.

1. plain school jumper (slightly too baggy) looks unwashed, holes and grazing's to fabric.

2. white shirt top button undone, very slight brown tinge to corners of collar.

3. school tie. green/yellow stripes. very loosely worn.

4. school trousers, black.

5. old well used trainers.

The man we see in a car at the very start of the sequence will be wearing very street style clothing. this is to contrast with the intense police sirens previously heard, also he needs to look like he is up to no good.

1. adidas track top

2. jogging bottoms

3. gold chain

The shadowy figure will only be seen from the back and is not really seen, but his costume will be a suit jacket to foretell of the world that Jacob is about to be thrown into.

the other students in the corridor will just be wearing untucked white shirts and other items of school uniform similar to Jacobs but more neat and clean.

1. jumper

2. black trousers

3. black school shoes

4. white shirt

5. green/ yellow ties

Planning - Updated script draft

MEDIA FILM OPENING SCRIPT MOCKUP – JARED STEWART

We see a black screen…

HOPE PRODUCTIONS appears on screen while both  police sirens and song (soundtrack) begin to sound.

LIGHT ROOM FILMS replaces previous text, the sounds continue.

cut to black, camera pans right to reveal that the camera was just behind a shadowy figure. the sirens are now less mellow and more distant sounding
window on car rolls down and shadowy figure opens case we hear the click of the latches off screen. the figure hands something to the man in the car(audience doesn't see this item)

cut to shot inside the car of guy looking at the item he was just given, shot in a way that again prevents the audience from seeing the item. confused look.

back to shot from outside the car. shadowy figure is gone. the case can be seen beside the bike shelter, shadowy figure is gone. man in car drives off revealing school behind.

Very slow zoom into the school just before cutting to a ground level following shot of our lead character walking down a corridor.

Camera pans up to character’s face for a brief moment then continues round to an over the shoulder shot revealing a hallway with a few students staring at our lead.

Cut to shot of student face staring in disgust.

Cut or quickly turn to Jacobs’s face.

JACOB: What?

Cut back to the students faces start laughing (camera is moving with lead)

Reverse shot of character going through door. Stop outside door. Medium close-up of character, sigh and walk on.

Jacob walking down path, telescopic cuts (while chorus of song is playing.)gunshot sound effects with each cut

on final telescopic cut and most prominent gun shot sound, cut to title reveal

Research - Final tile and font ideas (Audience feedback)

I handed this image around 10 individuals and asked them to put a tick next to their favourite font and why. 6 of the people voted for the top font and I often heard that they chose it due to the bold and strong look, but also the sharp aspects of the font, it makes it seem like weaponry and enforces a sense of danger right from the start. the other four voted for the third

Planning - props design/list

Props I will be needing for my opening are few in number but all have a hugely important role to play in terms of setting up the film. I will be going through the props I need and methods of making them screen worthy.

Gun...

I will be needing a prop pistol type gun for the sequence, this prop is planned to only been seen for around 4 seconds but it plays a vital role in not only setting up the opening sequence but also setting up the film.
to acquire this prop I will be taking steps to create/ remodel a toy gun, the steps I will be taking are listed below.

Planning - Location Ideas

the location of my film is going to be so vital in exhibiting the mood and tone of the film. i have been looking at dim and gloomy locations that really bring a sense of sadness and despair the the start of what would be a fast paced, action filled crime drama. on this post i will be displaying some of my ideas surrounding locations and why/ why i won't, be using certain places.

opening moments, outside school, night time.

the first idea that came to me for the school location would be my actual school exterior. after much thought and discussion with my partner in this project we decided to use the nearly youth centre exterior for the shot due to it being slightly lesser in quality and aesthetics that the real school, and also due to there being a road directly in front of the building so we can do the car scenes with ease.

Planning - Script Mockup

MEDIA FILM OPENING SCRIPT MOCKUP – JARED STEWART

We see a black screen…

HOPE PRODUCTIONS appears on screen while both mellow sounding police sirens and song (Radiohead) begin to sound.

LIGHT ROOM FILMS replaces previous text, the sounds continue.

Cut to footage of police car wheel spinning, the sirens are now less mellow and crisper sounding

Cut to tripod shot of police car passing revealing a school, the sirens fade with the car and we are left with the music.

Very slow zoom into the school just before cutting to a ground level following shot of our lead character walking down a corridor.

Camera pans up to character’s face for a brief moment then continues round to an over the shoulder shot revealing a hallway with a few students staring at our lead.

Cut to shot of student face staring in disgust.

Cut or quickly turn to Jacobs’s face.

JACOB: What?

Cut back to the students faces start laughing (camera is moving with lead)

Reverse shot of character going through door. Stop outside door. Medium close-up of character, sigh and walk on.

Jacob walking down path, telescopic cuts (while chorus of song is playing.)thud sound effects with each cut

on final telescopic cut, cut to title reveal.

Cut to various shots of drug use/ trading happening, shaky camera movements, multiple cuts showing the drugs, knives, guns etc.

Cut to establishing shot of druggies and Jacob walking on path beside.

Druggies look over at Jacob and shout.

DRUGGIES: OI! What you lookin’ at school boy? (Laugh)

Cut to Jacob continuing his journey ignoring.

Stopped in his tracks by well-built dealer, looks around, sees all weapons being reached for (depth of feel shot)

DRUG DEALER: Jacob Law?

JACOB: terribly sorry, do I know you?

DRUG DEALER: My boss has some questions for ya, so you’re coming with me.

All characters look at each other in silence, we see extreme close-ups and medium close-ups showing tension.

Jacob begins to sprint.

The Druggies run after him, the Drug dealer stays and raises a phone to his ear.

DRUG DEALER: that Law boy, we’ve found him.

Transition to a dark room shot of kingpin on the phone, at a desk. Puts phone down and picks up gun to shoot toward a target

Title KINGPIN appears on screen with gunshot.



the section of the script in green is the section that I cut out of the script due to over complication and new ideas for the first part. Now instead of the drug sequence I will be adding more detail to the scenes of the lead character walking out of school.

Planning - Draft Storyboard

Planning - Final Film Title And Font for Company Credits

In this section I will be displaying my process of elimination when creating my final title font and font for the company credits shown in the sequence.

This title was my first attempt at creating the company title. I had the idea to have the word HOPE in big bold font with the word PRODUCTIONS smaller and less bold so you see a very aesthetic rectangle. I kept this idea the same throughout the development process. the red gradient inside the text is to add some vibrancy to the title as it contrasts with the black background that will be in the final clip, the borders would have been white if I continued this idea. 

My second idea was to create a sunrise setting and using the sun as the letter O in HOPE. This sunrise was used as it represents hope and if I had continued this idea I would have made it into a moving title with the sun rising up into a full letter O. the idea of keeping the HOPE letters bold and large, and the PRODUCTIONS font small and perfectly underneath.

Here is my final design for the production company I have created for my film opening. I came up with the idea to make it more formal and linear as I believe that this will look most effective and overall it looks more professional than the other designs. the design you see here will be identical but white on a black background to look even more professional. in the final film this title will fade onto screen and fade off again.

Planning - Film Treatment

Research - Genre and conventions, Props And Costume

 

Research - Film title and font

This section of my media blog will be a description and explanation of my film opening's title and font used. pictures will be used to show the effects of the font.

Title idea one - Based Upon A Dream. we discussed using this title early on due to the fact it suggests many things to do with the film without even watching the film. it makes the watcher assume that the film will be based in a dream and therefore instantly informing the watcher that whatever happens in the film is fantasy or at least based on fantasy. this is one of my least favourite titles as it sort of takes away from the gritty and brutal side of the film due to the light hearted sense the title provides.

 Title idea two - KINGPIN. this title is one of my top choices for the film due to the ' in your face' feeling it provides. the bold and edgy font hints toward a gritty and action packed film. the title 'kingpin' is a huge hint toward the films narrative and lets the audience know that they are in for a high action film. the sharp edge below the letter G.

 Title idea three - Soldiers Of The Night. I came up with this idea as it not only suggests some of the films themes. it suggests that the soldiers aren't real soldiers but are soldiers of the night and it kind of hints at drug crimes as we all picture drug selling to happen at night. the font is similar to a sloppy army stencilling. I chose to use this as it suggests the theme of a rip off army and it makes you think that there are flaws in this army.

Research - Audience Profile

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research - Mood board

This is a duo of mood boards collecting images, words, and feelings that really represent the themes and concept of my opening sequence. my concept is a crime movie and I intend for the opening sequence to resemble the overall feeling the images provide. my film opening will be a British crime film and many of the ideal props and sets are displayed on this mood board. I have done two mood boards as there are two contrasting themes in my film, the first mood board is showing the suave and organised crime scene, this is the scene that my lead character will get entangled in during the movie. my second mood board shows the background and life that my lead character is in, the contrasting atmospheres will be my films unique selling point.

Research - Questionnaire on audience

QUESTIONAIRE ON AUDIENCE

Are you male or female?

o   Male

o   Female

What is your favourite genre of film?

o   Action adventure

o   Sci-fi

o   Horror

o   Thriller

o   Crime

o   Drama  

o   Romantic

o   Comedy

o   Other… please specify

Would you say that you notice and enjoy the opening credits scenes in movies?

o   Yes

o   No

If yes, choose one of these reasons why you enjoy the opening sequence.

o   Music

o   Interesting visuals

o   Company credits

o   Cinematography

I released ten of these questionnaires to family, friends, and strangers in order to get a fair result. my findings where that the male audiences were more interested in action, thriller, and sci-fi. and the male individuals also said that they really love the impact that music and 'interesting' cinematography have on the opening sequence of films, I will use this to my advantage when making my opening sequence and apply the use of music and camera angles in an effective way. on the other side of the spectrum, the women audience members aid that they enjoyed romantic, comedy, and drama genres. also the a couple of the women commented that they don't even really pay much attention to the opening sequence, the other three said that they don't think the opening sequence is much of an asset but they enjoy the music and the atmosphere hat it provides for the watcher. 

Research - Production Companies And Logos

 

Warner Brothers Pictures

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What I Think Makes An Effective Opening Sequence

First of all I believe that an opening sequence should be able to tell a story on its own, should be riddled with suggestions toward the films themes and ideas. I would also expect to see SOME company credits and the top billed cast displayed on screen. The more powerful and effective opening credits scenes always include music to help set an atmosphere, and always makes me want to continue watching the movie. It should be a powerful and establishing moment of 2-3 minutes to help set up the story and most of the time the scene will be very high impact in some way. In the opening sequence for the secret life of Walter Mitty all of the shots used are extreme establishing shots, which suggests themes of loneliness and the fact that the world is huge and waiting to be explored. The music used in this sequence heighten these themes with very melodic yet inspirational music, slow motion shots are used in some shots as the character is walking to almost make you think that he is stuck in an average lifestyle/ daily scheme. Another thing I find very effective in opening sequences is when you have the film summed up in a subtle and hinting way, for example in the opening scene for James Bond Skyfall we see  a sequence of interesting imagery that hint at  failure and getting back up again, also we see sets and props that will become huge parts of the story. this is very effective at setting up a story in my opinion.

 What I will need to avoid when making my own credit sequence.

• filming interesting things that don't help tell the story.
• over complicating things
• using the same types of shots
• letting the music tell the story
• using too many company credits

Opening Credits Analysis Part Two - James Bond 'Skyfall"

In the first shot of this opening title sequence we see the lead actor's name displayed as some interesting Bond style cinematography is exhibited, the colour scheme is very consistent throughout the sequence until the final scene when the scheme changes for dramatic effect storytelling. You can hear the bond theme for this particular film "skyfall by Adele"

The main characters name is shown to establish that the actor previously mentioned plays that character, in the mise en scene we see the character plunging into a whirlpool hinting at danger. the colour scheme is consistent with the previous image, the song is still playing. We see  Bond's lower legs and feet at an angle that makes it seem as if the audience is looking down with the character's perspective.

  The film's title is then displayed with the renowned bond style imagery in the background, the theme song by Adele is reaching its peak at this moment to create a very impressive moment, just as Bond is being consumed by the sea floor. The sound effects played on top of the song begin to change nearer the end of this sequence. what was once a mellow sound turns to a deeper more gritty sound.



This ending scene changes to a deep blood red colour which highly contrasts with the rest of the sequence which was blue, this has huge connotations toward death/blood, and could link the location shown on screen with a certain death to come at that location. we see knives and pistols falling down and hitting the ground as the camera pans through the graveyard, which reinforces  a theme of death.

Opening Credits Analysis Part Three - Lone Survivor

Opening shot is of navy seal undertaking extreme training, hinting toward not only the theme of the film, but the intensity also. we see company credits displayed on screen in plain military style text again suggesting themes. we hear an emotional yet motivational song played throughout. we see the marine being pulled up out of the sea, suggesting a helplessness that follows up through the film.



we then see recovery footage of the marine just before we are thrown into the movie's title in the next scene, we begin to see cast member's names displayed. the Sargent behind the camera is testing the soldier on times tables as he shivers with hypothermia. this shows the audience how tough these men are, setting us up to meet the main characters. 

the movie's title is shown as the music peaks creating a huge impact for the watcher. the text of the title is in military/uniform white text to again hint at the movie's theme and the intensity and inspiration you are about to experience. toward the end of this scene we begin to hear 'heaves and hoes' (pain and effort) this sound continues as it cuts to the next scene.



we see footage of hard hitting training that leaves the watcher feeling motivated and also helps the audience understand how the characters more as they've just seen what they have all been through. the song is no longer playing for this scene we can hear grunting and shouting. this scene is really intense to watch, setting us up for the following events.

This sequence sets us up for the film so efficiently as it shown us as the watcher the intense and brutal training the lead characters have been through which makes us support the characters from the very beginning and we feel as if we know more about them.

 

Opening Credits Analysis Part One - The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty

The opening shot to this movie's credits scene is an establishing shot of the main character exiting his apartment, you can hear the film's soundtrack playing with the sequence, the music is very inspirational and makes the watcher almost feel as if they are in the story. this initial establishing shot is one of many as almost every shot of this credit scene is establishing, this is so effective at hinting to the watcher that theres a big world out there and the character is very schedule driven and is almost trapped in a world of routine.



We see the main character walking past a building with his briefcase in slow motion, we can see company credits displayed on the wall, all the credits are displayed in a way that seems as if they are part of the footage rather that overlaid onto the footage like many films. this is very pleasing to watch and this style of presenting text is continued throughout the sequence. costumes used are almost all formal wear such as suits and dresses to hint at strict routine. the fact that the main character is wearing slightly less formal attire may suggest that he wants to test limits.

Establishing shot of character crossing a bridge with company credits displayed on the side of the bridge, the soundtrack is still playing. the mise en scene consist of a bridge, the main character walking and buildings in the background. we begin to see very interesting camera angles in the next few clips possibly connoting that the lead has a different take on life and is out of the ordinary so to speak. 

we see company credits displayed on the road as a train passes across the screen, this is establishing the current location of the character. at this scene you may begin to notice a higher colour contrast, intact if you look down the images you can see that the contrast goes from very colour drained, to vibrant colour at the end of the sequence, this can be seen as showing the character blooming like a flower and becoming better in a way.

Closer footage of train station and character, the director is using very visually interesting images throughout this opening scene, we see the film's title displayed on station signs as the character runs away, we still hear the soundtrack and also train sounds in this scene. this shots cinematography is beautifully executed as the train platform in perfectly in line with the bottom of the screen with the character centred. this can be considered very aesthetically pleasing.

in the penultimate shot we see a birds eye view of a colourful floor with the film's title displayed, The colour then fades away to reveal that the pattern is on a marble floor of a building, we see the character walking across the screen. this makes us think that he is back into routine after letting his imagination roam wild. 

Storyboard

Preliminary film and explaination

 

 

 

This is our final film in which we displayed knowledge of: the 180 degree rule, reverse shots, over the shoulder, panning, editing skills.

 our task for this short clip was to use and understand the 180 degree rule and reverse shots, we used the reverse shot for the opening of the door as we could make the transition really smooth and pleasing to watch, the 180 degree rule was applied during the dialogue scene as this is how the technique is used in film most often.

 we came up with the idea not to show the characters face that walks in until the dialogue scene to create a moment of suspense and mystery for the watcher. This was also a little play around with skills that we are looking at using for our actual opening sequence. the title of the clip cuts away at the exact moment the character reaches for the door knob, this makes the transition from title to action more crisp and saves the viewer watching a low quality fade out.
We see an establishing shot of the room and two characters, as soon as the character walking in begins to sit down there is a cut to a closer shot of the character sitting down, this makes a very smooth cut and is seen as being pleasing to watch as opposed to multiple jumpy cuts.

 

 

Opening Credits Analysis Part Four - Warm Bodies

 Opening Sequence Analysis

I have chosen to analyse the opening credits scene of the film 'Warm Bodies' due to the huge similarities to the style of my main film ideas. and it also in my opinion contains an array of interesting visuals and cinematography.

Production companies logos shown in rotten/zombie like fashion to create an atmosphere before the film even begins. audio includes creepy/crackling music. Uses of textures creates a sense of apocalypse or post apocalyptic scenarios. creepy music continues.

 the opening sequence is shown to follow film tradition by displaying the main studio name with the first shot of the film, the extreme close-up lets us know some features of the main character. the movie's theme music begins to play this can be best described as a soft melodic music. the music almost invokes feeling of hope that things will get better during the film.

 reveal of main character with mid-shot/ close-up with dialogue "oh right its because I'm dead" this is a perfect use of dialogue and footage, they go hand in hand. we really get to see the costume and makeup used in this closeup and overall is a very effective way to introduce the character to an audience.

establishing shot of airport(place we will see a lot of throughout the film) film's title displayed. crane shot follows character. in the miss en scene we see the lead character off centred and a large gathering of zombies wandering around. this shot makes us realise how boring and sad their lives are. we can see that the set is designed to look trashed and dirty to hint that the zombies were once maybe more violent?


we then see the names of the cast members displayed on screen as a transition takes place from apocalypse world to normal world then back again. this fascinating imagery is filmed in a 360 degree pan shot around the character. this clip really gives us a scenes that the character does intact have a brain and an imagination unlike the others. the main character's clothing stays the same through the transition so the audience knows that as an audience we are in his brain and its not real.

Film techniques

 

AS Media Studies- Preliminary Film Task

 

This 30 second long clip is part of my Media preliminary task, our stimulus was "person opening door walking across room and exchanging dialogue with another character" I had to go about this with a task of using the 180 degree rule and reverse shots.

 

180 degree rule

 

 

The 180 degree rule is a way to make perspective in film more effective to the audience, when doing over the shoulder shots you must make sure to use the 180 rule as it makes the shot more realistic and as if you are part of the conversation.

We used the rule during the brief section of dialogue  using a tripod to keep the camera steady and consistent.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reverse Shot/ action match

 

 

 

We used a reverse shot/ action match shot for the first few seconds of the film where the character opens a door. we decided to only show the lower half of the character for this shot to create a bit of suspense as to who the character is. as the character reaches for the door handle we see....



 

 

a cut to this shot where we see the perspective from the inside of the door, we edited this using action match so that the handle/ door was at the exact same position so it seems as if its all one event.