Thriller Opening Deconstruction

Below will be two deconstructions of openings to V for Vendetta and The Dark Night (thriller films) and underneath this I will also embed a video showing the opening to both of these films.

Below both of these will be a deconstruction of The Sixth Sense which we deconstructed in class, enjoy!  

V for Vendetta Opening Sequence Analysis by George Feast

                    

                                             

Media- Dark Knight Opening Textual Analysis by George Feast

                 

                                               

Sixth Sense Deconstruction

                

                                          

The next post will be on the "Show, Don't Tell Me" task.

Early Consideration Of Evaluation Questions

So already OCR have given us criteria to look at despite we haven't even thought of our main task so lets have at look at the questions they're asking and understand what they're asking.

In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

So this question asks us if we're going to follow the stereotype style of thriller or if we're going to try something different. For example, take Shrek. The film goes against every stereotypical fairy tale with having an ogre as the hero. We need to take this into mind so that if we choose to avoid the stereotype of the genre we don't want to offend anyone.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

This question is important to our task as when we discuss which social group we aim our task towards we need to make sure we do not offend anyone and make sure we represent them in an appropriate way.

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

This question will be more appropriate after we have produced our film but we will need to understand film distribution when we come to answer this question.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

At this very moment I don't know who my target audience would be as we haven't discussed the contents of the film but after doing research on the BBFC I'll be sure to follow the guide lines and rate the product appropriately.

How did you attract/address your audience?

When getting people to notice our product we're going to need to make sure our product has aspects from a thriller but also isn't a carbon copy of any other thriller.

What have you learnt about technologies from process of constructing this product?

We would have to answer this question after we've finished our product but to expand on this we could look at successful thrillers and watch their openings and see how they have used different camera angles and movements.

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the procession for it to the full product?

Since completing the preliminary task we have used different equipment and have also learnt different skills which will help us along the way. Before we even start planning the main task we will learn more skills which will help us in producing the best possible opening we can.

Taking a look at these questions now gives us a good idea of what the exam board are after and what we need to do to produce some quality film footage! 

The next post will be some deconstructions of some thriller film openings.

AS Film Brief

Below is the AS/A Level media studies specification which holds everything there is to know about the course so gaze at it in awe.

The brief for the main task is really vague and sounds quite simple so here it is.

Main task: the titles and opening of a new fiction film, to last a maximum of two minutes.

The brief is located on page 12.

The choice of film we'll be going for is a thriller. If we picked a comedy the main goal would be to make people laugh and the same idea with a horror themed film, we would have to make people scared. With a thriller we just need to build suspense and tension which can be done with music and video which is causes mystery or confusion.

  

Media Specification V6 Sep 2013

The next post will be early consideration of evaluation questions

22 Narrative Theory

When looking into movies you would possibly class them as either comedy, horror, thriller, action or sci fi when actually there are 22 different genres all with ranging narratives. Below is a list of all narratives and the descriptions of the genres themselves.

Temptation
The main character has to make a moral choice between right and wrong
Film - The Godfather

Rags to Riches
The main character is poor, and then turns rich
Film - The Pursuit of Happyness

The Riddle
Main character has to solve a puzzle or crime
Film - Inception

Metamorphosis
The main character changes into something else. e.g. mythical creature
Film - The Hulk

Rescue
The main character must save someone who is trapped physically or emotionally
Film - 2012

Tragedy
The main character is brought down by a fatal flaw in their character or by forces out of their control
Film - Titanic

Love
A couple meet and overcome obstacles to discover true love or don't
Film - The Fault in Our Stars

Monster Forces
A monster/alien/something scary and supernatural must be fought and overcome
Film - King Kong

Revenge
The main character retaliates against another for a real or imagined injury
Film - The Hunger Games

Transformation
Character lives through a series of events that change them as a person
Film - Pretty Woman

Fish Out of Water
Protagonist tries to cope in a completely different place/time/world
Film - Hercules in New York

Maturation
The main character has an experience that matures them or starts a new stage of life, often adulthood
Film - Juno

Pursuit
The main character has to chase somebody or something, usually in a hide-and-seek fashion
Film - Catch Me If You Can

Rivalry
The main character must overcome obstacles such as defeating the villain to attain an object or goal
Film - Rocky

Underdog
The main character who is nothing in the world faces overwhelming odds but wins in the end
Film - Forrest Gump

Discovery
Through a major plot twist, the main character discovers a truth about themselves and a better understanding of life
Film - Last Action Hero

Escape
The main character is trapped by villainous forces and must escape as fast as possible
Film - Escape Plan

Journey and Return
The main character goes on a physical journey and returns changed
Film - The Mummy

Comedy
A series of complications leads characters into ridiculous situations
Film - Step Brothers

Quest
The main character searches for a person, place or thing, overcoming a number of challenges
Film - National Treasure

Sacrifice
The main character must make a difficult choice between pleasing themselves or a higher purpose (love, honor, pride)
Film - Wreck It Ralph

Wretched Express
The main character pushes the limits of acceptable behavior, destroying themselves in the process
Film - Straight Outta Compton

The next post will be the AS Film Brief

Narrative Theories

We've been looking at different theories that people have put together to explain basic plots within films. Below I'm going to show Todorov's theory explained in an Emaze, enjoy!

A film that clearly illustrates Todorov's theory is Jumanji. The protagonist has arguments with his father (equilibrium it's normal) then he begins to play a game and everything starts going crazy (disruption). The protagonist realizes its the games fault (recognition). They then plan to finish and do finish the game (repair). Then everything goes back to normal but the protagonist makes up with his father (new-equilibrium).

The next theory I'll be going into is Propp's character theory. This theory isn't about props but a man with the second name of Propp did put this together.

This link will take you to a prezi I created about Propp's character theory.

This theory would work well with Shrek as I've listed characters and where they would fit within Propp's theory.



Below is a prezi about Steve Neale's theory of repetition and difference so again please enjoy! 

                                   

The next post will be about the 22 narrative theory

Film Classification

So film classification... Well... What is it? How are films classified? Who classifies films? Okay lets get into. 

The British Board of Film Classification (or the BBFC) is a non-governmental organization, founded by the film industry in 1912 and is responsible for the national classification and censorship of films within the UK. Wow, that's a mouthful. Okay so in simple terms the British Board of Film Classification chose what rating films should be so if they think a film is really gory they wouldn't want young people to watch it so they would pick a higher age rating. 
The BBFC have 2 main principles:

• To protect children and vulnerable adults from potentially harmful or otherwise unsuitable content.
• To empower consumers, particularly parents and those with responsibility for children to make informed viewing decisions.

Not only is there the BBFC but there's the CBBFC designed to give children information on age ratings in the UK and how they work which I believe is good so that children aren't exposed to anything they shouldn't at that age. Good job BBFC!

Film makers have got to take a lot of things into consideration before they even start filming a movie, like ethics... Ethics are kinda taking over everything and the majority of the time it's a very good thing.


Okay, so the rating we know are U, PG, 12A, 12, 15 and 18. A U being suitable for all and an 18 being suitable for adults only
So lets take a look at some differences between a U and an 18.
U

• At U the BBFC will allow infrequent use of very mild bad language (e.g "damn" and "hell")
• Character may be seen kissing and cuddling and there may be references to sexual behavior. However, there will b
• e no overt focus on sexual behavior, language or innuendo.
•  Violence will generally be very mild. A U film may include brief fight scenes or moments where characters are placed in danger. However, moments of emotional stress or threat will be quickly resolved and the outcome will be reassuring.
• At U there will not normally be references to illegal drugs or drugs misuse there is a clear anti-drugs or educational message which will be understood by a younger audience.

18

• No theme is prohibited at 18. Adults are free to choose their own entertainment provided the material is not illegal or potentially harmful, so it is possible some themes tackled at 18 my be offensive even to some adults viewers.
• 18 works are for adults and can contain strong issues such as: Very strong language, Frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***') and/or very strong language (e.g. 'c***'), Strong portrayals of sexual activity, Scenes of sexual violence, Strong horror, Strong blood and gore, Real sex (in some circumstances), Discriminatory language and behavior.

                                            

So there's a large difference between what is in a U and an 18 and the descriptions of what 18 could contain pretty much says why there are age rating. What some 18's hold children should definitely not be exposed to. 

Now lets take a look into what the other ratings hold.

PG

• A PG film will not contain any theme which is inappropriate for a child. PG works can explore challenging issues such as bullying, bereavement or racism.
• There may be mild bad language (such as 's***' or 'son of a b****') in a PG film, but the context and delivery are always important. For example, if the language is used aggressively or if there is a great deal of bad language, a work may be passed at a higher category.
• Sex references are unlikely unless they are not very detailed and infrequent. In addition, if a child is unlikely to understand a reference, they may allow it at PG. Comedy can also often lessen the impact of sex references and innuendo.
• Violence will usually be mild. There should be no detail of violence in a PG work, so while there might be some blood, we would not see how the injury was inflicted in strong detail.

12 and 12A

• The 12A requires an adult to accompany an child under 12 seeing a 12A film at the cinema. This is enforced by cinema staff and a cinema may lose its licence if adult accompaniment is not enforced for children under 12 admitted to a 12A film. This only applies for cinemas as on DVD's the 12 certificate remains rather than the 12A
• The BBFC's Guidelines state that strong language (e.e. 'f***') may be passed at 12 or 12A, depending on the manner in which it is used, who is using the language, its frequency and any contextual justification. Aggressive uses of strong language may result in a film or DVD being placed at the 15 category. There is some allowance for puns on strong language at this category. There may be moderate language (e.g uses of terms such as'b****' and 't***' at 12 or 12A)
• Any discriminatory language or behavior will not be endorsed by the work as a whole
•  Sex may be briefly and discreetly portrayed at 12A or 12. Verbal sex references should not go beyond what is suitable for young teenagers.
• At 12A, moderate violence is allowed but it should not dwell on detail. There should be no emphasis on injuries or blood, but occasional gory moments may be permitted if they can be justified by their context (for example brief sight of bloody injury in a medical drama)

15

• h No theme is prohibited, provided the treatment is appropriate for 15 year olds
• What you might find in a 15 rated film are: Strong violence, Frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***'), Portrayals of sexual activity, Strong verbal references to sex, Sexual nudity, Brief scenes of sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence, Discriminatory language or behavior, Drug taking

As an AS media student I must consider classification as when we must produce our own film we would have to have a target audience so then would would suggest a rating based on our target audience. We would then need to make sure that the audience we show the film to fits the age rating of our product else they might be exposed to potentially dangerous and harmful material.

The next post will be on Narrative Theories 

Film Studio Ident Research

A studio ident is the method by which studios present themselves using conceptual visuals and sound to show they had an input on the film. Idents let the audience know who had an input on the film and the style of ident would suggest what type of film the movie is.

                                         
                                             

                                              

                                              

Universal Studios

The ident starts with the earth all dark and there's a light moving across the earth. In a matter of seconds you see that with in the light are the words "Universal Studios". Showing that Universal Studios is the light the world needs, the good in the world, a bright goal to achieve. Also the video could have other meanings for example the earth in the indent could perhaps mean that Universal Studios are world wide or even with their name they are universal, there are huge, the biggest thing in existence. 

MGM

The indent for MGM is pretty basic but does contain a lion perhaps suggesting that it's the best "king of the jungle" (Despite that lions don't live in the jungle)

20th Century Fox

A fanfare begins to play which would either happen at an event where a royal would be or to a parade which both suggests that the fanfare is played during an important event suggesting that 20th Century Fox is important and "a BIG thing". Also the giant sign saying "20th Century Fox" is being looked at from a low angle showing that 20th Century Fox are in power and above all. Again also, there are some signal lights perhaps trying to signal to people that there's something everyone should come and look at.

The next post will be on Film Classification

Film Title Design Research

A title sequence is how a film or TV program present their title, key production team and cast members using images and sound. It usually includes the text of the opening credit and help the audience understand the setting and tone of the film or TV programs.
I will be getting the title sequences from a website called "Art of the Title".

Below I'm going to post two title sequences that and then I'm going to analyse them to find their true meanings, enjoy the awesomeness!

Narcos
The solemn promise of Rodrigo Amarante’s “Tuyo” grounds Digital Kitchen’s pitch-perfect introduction to the Netflix crime saga Narcos. The title sequence is our passport into the sordid, seductive world of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar, offering a tantalizing glimpse at the life of the notorious “King of Cocaine” and a peek inside the international effort to bring down his multi-billion dollar enterprise. The opening is also the story of cocaine itself — the narcotic that built Escobar’s empire — and the wealth, power, glamour, violence, and death that always seems to accompany it. Hero to some, villain to many more, the effects of Escobar’s reign are still felt to this day, making the opening feel all the more relevant and vital. The opening title also has images of people but their eyes are covered perhaps indicating that everyone is a potential drug buyer or that every one is on the business. It shows a lot of the police side of the drug industry as it shows maps and tape recorder. The music brings the setting of the show alive with a Southern American feel and makes the audience think the show is set somewhere in South America.  

Bojack Horseman

The opening sequence features BoJack floating through the spaces of his life, disconnected from everyone and everything, staring bleakly into the eyes of the viewer. The sequence is colourful and intricate, the details inviting close inspection  particularly as they evolve over the course of the series.The title sequence, and the ensuing show, is powered by BoJack and his ennui, and the screwy cast of characters in his orbit. The music is odd giving a random unorganized feel to the show maybe showing how dysfunctional the main character is. The opening sequence cycles though night and day perhaps showing that the characters are stuck in a cycle. The main character also doesn't interact with anyone maybe to show that the story has hints of sadness within it.

The next post will be research on studio idents in films 

Film Title Convention Research

As a group we all went away and watched the openings of 3 films of different genres and wrote down what we found. We were investigating what order the names of the film producers, actors and distributors come in and see if there's any link with other films.

We picked 3 different genres to see if the similarities spanned across genres and to see if there was any repetition through out genres, then we could compare our findings with each other and together look for similarities.

Film Opening Research

Class Research V1

15 of the films listed above have the directors name at the end of the title sequence and another 8 have the films title at the end of the title sequence. This perhaps is to either build up to the film itself hence showing the title last or many people may be interested in who directed the film so there is a build up to the most "important" person.

The next post will be research on film title designs 

Film Opening Research

Many films when opening can be very similar so in order to prove or disprove this I will be watching the opening of 3 films and noting down here what I find.

The Terminator: 
Hemdale presents 
A pacific western production of a James Cameron film
Opening scene
Arnold Schwarzenegger(other actors)
Editing by
Director of Photography 
Music by
Casting by
Executive in Charge of Production
Special Effects
Written by
Executive Producer
Produced by 
Directed by
Title

8 Mile:
Universal Picture and Imagine Entertainment Present
 A Brian Grazer/ Curtis Hanson Production
Title
Eminem(other actors)
Casting
Original Music
Costume Designer
Film Editors
Production Designer
Director of Photography
Executive Producers
Produced by
Written by
Directed by

Shaun of the Dead:
Universal Pictures Studiocanal and Working Title Film present
A WT2 production
Big Talk Productions
Title

                                                                                                     
The next post will be about research on film title conventions

Advanced Camera Work: Dolly (Tracking & Arc Shot)

So clearly when using a camera there isn't just basic camera movements as if big box office films were recorded using basic camera movements lets just say they'd probably flop. 

One of the pieces of equipment used to help partake in the movements is called a "dolly". Basically you attach the camera onto a tripod and then attach the tripod onto the dolly which is a platform with wheels so the camera can follow characters and move around smoothly and freely. 

With an arc shot the camera is moved on the dolly around the point of interest in a horseshoe/arc shape hence the name arc shot, see its not rocket science.

Now the tracking shot also is not rocket science, the tripod is attach to a different shaped dolly which runs smoothly on a track so that the dolly doesn't freely move and stays going in a particular direction. This can be used to follow a character walking or even running.

The videos below are of both tracking and arc shot that we put together and what have been used in feature length box office films

Our Arc Shot

                                           

Our Tracking Shot

                                           

Professional Arc Shot

Professional Tracking Shot

The tracking shot in this crazy trailer is a lot more advance than ours but at the end of the day I'm not producing a multi-million dollar film

                                             




The next post will be on some research about how films open so stay tuned!

Basic Lighting: 3-Point Lighting & Using Reflectors

When filming your product you may want to use light so you can actually see the character (depending on the situation). To do this you can use 3-point lighting. The video below is of when we put together an example of how 3-point lighting works, enjoy!

Our Example Of 3-Point Lighting

                                            

The next post will be about Advanced Camerawork: Dolly (Tracking & Arc Shot)

UK Film Distribution

Here's a video showing how film distribution works in the UK.

                                             

I'm going to list two films and who is the company that distributes them.

Straight Outta Compton - Universal Pictures

The Interview - Sony Pictures Intl

I have taken these screen shot from a website called Pearl & Dean. Pearl & Dean is the UK’s best known cinema advertising contractor. Representing a wide range of cinemas, with multiplex chains offering landmark locations throughout the UK & Ireland including Showcase, Empire, Movie House, AMC and Omniplex sites.

The next blog post will be about Basic Lighting: 3-Point Lighting and Using Reflectors

Preliminary Task Evaluation

So I thought my preliminary task went pretty well but I'm no Stephen King and not making The Shawshank Redemption but considering I've never made anything like that before I honestly thought it went well so lets get into strengths and weaknesses.

Strengths

• I felt we all worked well as a team with the organisation of the story and dialogue 
• When filming we stuck to our roles  
• We were all happy with the final product

Weaknesses

• Organizing times to film and edit our production was fairly difficult 
• When filming we wasn't 100% focused 
• Finding cast was slightly difficult
• The shot/reverse shot wasn't 100% accurate as we broke the 180 degree rule

Peer Assessment(we are on the far right)

So here's now a step by step of what happened in each shot.

00:00 to 00:04 

We have our title and what its for, the title page was really simple and we'll definitely will produce something far more amazing in our next piece of practical coursework.

00:04 to 00:16

We have our actor walking through a door and then towards another door, we panned to follow his walk.

00:16 to 00:24

We have the match on action and then pan to follow the actor who then sits facing opposite the other actor.

00:24 to 00:28

The slightly dodgy shot/reverse shot has begun with actor 1 opening with the first line of dialogue.

00:28 to 00:29

The shot/reverse shot has commenced and actor 2 gives his line of dialogue

00:29 to 00:34

The shot is then reverse and actor 1 gives another line of dialogue

00:34 to 00:38 

The shot is reverse once more and actor 2 gives another line of dialogue

00:38 to 00:49

Our plain and simple credits appear giving the name of the task, what the task is, the actors and the team that put it together.

I believe that despite non of us ever producing anything like this before we did quite well with minimal mistakes. I definitely can't wait for the next practical piece of coursework  and I'm sure we're going to smash it 

Please stick around and prepare for complete awesomeness!

The next post will be about the UK Film Distribution

Preliminary Task

Here is my first piece of practical course work, my preliminary task. In this short video we had to include a few basic shots and editing skills so in this video there is a shot/reverse shot, a match on action and a few lines of dialogue, enjoy!

                                            




Thank you for looking at my preliminary task. The next post will be my evaluation of my blog

How Editing Constructs Meaning

Editing may be a way to move from one shot to another but it's more than just that. It can represent things, show meaning and bring a whole new  view to certain things.

The videos I've posted below tells you about how certain editing techniques represent different things, enjoy!

                       

                       

Basic Editing

Editing is essential to a visual video media product without good editing it can destroy the best story line and make the whole film look like trash. 
Here are some videos explaining some basic editing techniques which we have to use in the near future.

Split Edit

A transition from one scene to another where the audio doesn't match the current video, but follows its own. This means that we can usually hear what's going on before the shot is shown.

                                             

Straight Cut

A straight cut is when one piece of footage simply cuts directly into another.

                                            

Match On Action

A match on action is when for example a character walks through a door in one shot the camera moves and they continue moving through the door fluidly without any jumps or the character going through the door twice. It's when a character moves in two different shots but it looks smooth and fluid.
This example below of a match on action is also an example of a straight cut.

                                            


The next post will contain my first piece of practical coursework: My Preliminary Task

Continuity

Continuity is important in the flow of the film. If continuity is broken the flow of the film is broken and can turn even the best of films to trash. A continuity error can be something such as in one shot a character is wearing a black jacket and then in the next shot they're wearing a red jacket. It wrecks the flow of the film. Here's a video pointing out some continuity errors in Casino Royal.

                                             


The next post is about Basic Editing

Rules Of Video Based Media

When producing a film there are rules you must follow so that the footage you film is not utter garbage. If you don't follow these rules your production could confuse and disorientate your audience.

180 Degree Rule

The video will help explain the whole concept of the 180 degree rule

                                          

The 180 degree rule is in place so the audience don't get confused or disorientated. The camera is positioned by one side of a character and when the camera moves to the other character it must be on the same side.

30 Degree Rule

This video will help with explaining why the 30 degree rule is so important 

                                          

The 30 degree rule is in place so the viewers don't get bored. For example in an interview the camera is fixed in one position facing the interviewee over time the viewer would become bored so every now and then the camera should move 30 degrees or more then back. If the camera was to move under 30 degrees, to the audience it would seem like the shot had jumped which would be unpleasant for the viewer. 

The Rule Of Thirds

Now this isn't exactly a rule but it is best to follow to get the best looking project out there.

                                           

The rule of thirds is in place to make everything more easy looking for the viewer

The next post will be about Continuity