Christmas

Just to say that due to the christmas holidays I wont be posting for two weeks.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!
xxx

Reflections On Editing So Far

Our sequence is now on its way to being completed although we still have some way to go. Yesterday we got feedback and advice from Miss Thrasher and other media students. Miss Thrasher suggested many small changes that will make the sequence look a lot better, which we will do after the christmas holidays, while Selina suggested fading in from black at the beginning and Nick gave us advice on how to reduce camera sound, which is a big problem on the sequence. When we get back after the holidays we also need to rerecord the second line of Barney's dialogue.

Reflections On The Shoots - Fri 5th and Sat 13th

On Friday, we only had a shoot with Laura, as unfortunately Barney was unwell. We filmed her in the shower and I didn't get a chance to see the shots until today as I've been unwell, however I think they work really really well. Also we shot her walking down the stairs and into the kitchen with more interesting lighting. We added some contrast with candles in the hallway and I think this worked well, as it makes the shot less flat. We also reshot her walking round the table and picking up the knife, and her dropping the towel, all with more interesting lighting. I think this worked really well, and I especially love the shot of her dropping the towel as I think the lighting looks really good. We also retook the last shot due to issues with lighting.
On Saturday we had our final shoot. Once again, we ended up shooting on a rainy and cold day, but despite this we managed to shoot Barney's outdoor shots. These included a pan of him leaving the park, his conversation from different angles and shots of him at the door, ringing the bell, and waiting at the door. The sound was bad again because of the rain, so we recorded the dialogue in the house. Alice also went outside and recorded some atmospheric outdoor sound, as the rain hitting the umbrella sounded really bad and you can really hear it on camera. We also re-recorded the clocks to 5.00 rather than 7.00.

Evaluation Of Things That Could Have Gone Wrong

Before the real shoot we thought about things that could go wrong. These things were problems with organisation, communication, technical and group dynamics.
Our organisation was good overall, although I was late for the shoot (we had agreed to meet an hour earlier than the actors) I did let the group know before the time we had agreed to meet that I would be late. Other than that our organisation was good for example, we knew that there was a chance it would rain so we took umbrellas with us on the shoot, we also had a good shooting script that we followed word for word, although our big issue was timing as everything took us longer than we expected and maybe in some cases longer that it should have. In our group both communication and group dynamics are very good as all three of us get on and we make sure we allow everyone to voice their opinions, we also make sure that we do an equal share of the work, although on the day of the shoot when we started to run out of time I did let the group know that I was going to be bossy so that we could get the shoot finished. On the shoot we ensured that the actors were warm and well fed (thanks Alice!). Technically we are also quite good, we considered continuity, sound and lighting during our filming however continuity is going to be an issue for us mainly because the lighting changes a lot in the time it takes for Barney to walk down the street. To rectify this we will either have to rerecord the dialogue and replace what he says so that when he's on the phone he doesn't tell Laura that he's at the end of the road, or we have to cut the conversation on the phone out of the sequence. The fact they are together should come across from the picture on her dressing table but we are going to ask people for feedback on what to do before we make our decision. After watching the footage today we've agreed to retake some shots of Barney, him walking up the drive, him walking along the street from behind and (as Alice suggested on her blog, the shots of him ringing the doorbell), we will have to try and do these in the same light as they were taken in before which may be really difficult but we'll try :-). We also need to retake the establishing shot of the house and of the bathroom window and we will have to retake the shot of outside the door while she's in the shower. We will take these shots on our reshoot on Friday and will plan a shooting script as soon as possible.

First Real Shoot

I've just got back from the first real shoot and I think it went quite well. We did have some major issues at the beginning when it started to rain. It sounded really bad but we recorded some atmospheric sound that we'll replace with the real sound of the shoot. We also had big problems with cars as there seemed to be one on the road for the whole of the outdoor shoot but we did manage to get shots when there were no cars so it worked out ok, although at first I was getting very stressed over it, as although I knew it would happen on our test shoot there seemed to be a lot less cars. After having our lunch break with the two actors, our male actor (Barney) left and we started shooting with our female character (Laura). These shots went a lot better than the outdoor ones did. The lighting was all good and the shots worked exactly as we planned, as we obviously didn't have the issue of the weather. We were also really lucky to have amazing actors who played their parts really well and didn't complain about anything even though we had them standing out in the freezing cold and Barney had to film in the rain for quite a long time without an umbrella. However, all our shots took a lot longer than we thought they would and we ended up leaving Alice's house at 10.15, but I think this was better than leaving the shots for Friday as if they didn't work on Friday we would have had no time to reshoot them.
Overall I think today's shoot went well and hopefully when we watch it all back we wont have too many shots to retake. However, we do still need to record Barney's dialogue and need to record Laura and Barney laughing together, which we will do as soon as we can this week. We also need to check for continuity with their dialogue, the light and her leaving the bathroom. There are pictures on the group blog of the shoot.

Actors

We have now got our actors, Laura and Barney, who are going to be perfect for the characters. Laura has the exact features that we imagine for our actress, and we knew almost straight away that she would be perfect for the character. Barney also has the perfect look for the character he's going to play. We want the character to look slightly anxious, the audience is supposed to feel sorry for him and I think Barney is perfect for that r0le.

In our lesson and meeting we managed to get loads done so we're completely ready for our first real shot.
We:
- Finished the storyboard, and made sure that we got our continuity completely sorted. We're going to put a cross on the floor with masking tape so that Laura knows exactly where to stand each take.
- Completed the shooting script - we did this so we don't have any stress on the day and so that Barney and Laura didn't have to each wait around while we were filming the other.
- We met with the actors to take a picture of them which I will now post on the group blog. We also told them what time to arrive and discussed with them what they should wear (Laura - red nails etc, Barney - Black coat, smart shoes).
- We also decided who's bringing what. I need to remember:
- White towel
- Red Roses
- Red Lipstick
- Photo of the couple
- Red Napkins

In our lesson today we managed to finish capturing our sequence and we edited a part of it too. It helped us to see that we did have some issues with continuity but those can be easily resolved. It also helped us see which of our shots we like best and meant that at lunch we managed to get started on a final storyboard. We've also cast both parts now, casting of the guy was starting to worry me as both people we had in mind couldn't do it but we've found someone perfect for the role, so now we can give both actors scripts, which me and Alice have done today (see below). We also need to think about what times the actors will arrive for the shoot, which is something Alice reminded me of, so we have to think of that when completing the shooting script which hopefully we can get started on tommorow so that we don't tell the actors too last minute. We also need to take a picture of the actors together, which we will put in a photo frame on her dressing table. We'll post this picture along with a picture of Barney, the actor we cast as the guy, on the group blog as soon as possible.

Script:
Girl: "Darling - you were meant to be here at 8:00. You're two minutes late "
Guy: "Ahh gosh yes I know, Sorry I'll be there soon. I'm just at the bottom of your road."
Girl: "Okay - well ... It's almost time (small pause?) for dinner."
Guy: "Okay I''m on my way - Love you."
(both hang up)

Test Shoot

Our test shoot has really helped me (and I'm guessing Aarti and Alice as well) realise that a test shoot is really important. It made us realise a whole list of things that we didn't think would be a problem, most importantly lighting. After today we decided that the best time to film outside would be 3.30/4 till about 4.30/5. But for the real shoot we really need to plan a lot better. Everything took a lot longer than we expected and for the real shoot we need to make sure that we have an exact plan to follow.
But not everything about the shoot was negative. It was so much fun and we managed to get loads done. We shot almost every shot we wanted to and set up the bedroom, which Alice said she'll leave exactly how it is. We also tried different props and finally got the scene with the candles, right. And we got the dining table set up exactly how we want it which I took a picture of so that we get it exactly the same next time. We also all got a chance to act, direct, shoot, do lighting and be a PA, which we didn't get a chance to do in the preliminary exercise.
All together I think the test shoot went really well, and it's going to be so helpful for the real thing.

Fifth Meeting

After Friday's meeting I feel so much more calm. Now I feel like we actually know what we are going to do on the day of the test shoot and I feel more relaxed about the equipment etc.

Fourth Meeting

I'm glad we've agreed on dates etc. for our filming but the meeting really made me realise that we're going to have really big issues with lighting. We're having another meeting later on today and hopefully once we've sorted out a completed storyboard, shooting script etc I'll feel a bit more relaxed about the test shoot.

In the second part of our meeting we started doing a storyboard and shot list as well as a final treatment. I'm going to think about how we can get the continuity to work in the sequence, as are Alice and Aarti, so hopefully by the end of the day Friday we're completely organised and ready for Monday.

Third Meeting

We've now got a pretty much completed idea, which I really like. I love the idea of having him look nervous, as if he really wants to look good and impress her. And I think having her rushing will work well. I also like the idea of all four of the possible actors, so hopefully we've chosen who we are definately going to cast by the end of this week.

Second Meeting

In our lesson today we were working on planning our sequence. We've decided to film in Alice's house and street as it works best. We've also decided on pretty much the whole sequence now, so we're all going to roughly storyboard parts of it. It's going to be useful because I think we all see parts of it working in different ways so it'll be good to know how we each want the sequence to look.

First Meeting

Me, Alice and Aarti had our first meeting today. We've come up with our idea for the opening, just trying to figure out where we're going to film it, so me and Alice are going to take pictures of our houses/local area etc and in our meeting tommorow we'll try and decide where to film it. We also started thinking about actors to be in it and have come up with two people who we think would be really good but we need to ask them and make sure they don't mind giving up their time to be in it. When we get our group blog, we'll write up our idea, and hopefully by then we would've done auditions and cast the roles.

Evaluation Of Preliminary Exercise

1- Who did you work with and how did you manage the task between you?

I worked with Selina, Ben, Hannah and Daniel. Ben and Daniel were the actors in our sequence. Hannah was the production assistant, Selina was the cameraperson and director and i was in charge of sound. We didn't change roles during the course of filming as we didn't have a large amount of time to film and so it saved time. I found this useful as it allowed me to get experience in sound which I had little experience in and will be useful in our test and real shoots.

2- How did you plan your sequence? What processes did you use?

After we decided what the sequence was going to be about we drew a storyboard. This meant that we could see exactly what shots we were going to take and what shots would work well together. After this we did a location recce to see were we could film the sequence, and decided on one of the media classrooms. After this we wrote out a shooting script, so that we knew exactly what shots we were going to take and when. We also wrote out a script for the actors to ensure that they said the same thing in every take.

3- What technology did you use to complete the task, and how did you use it?

During production we used a camera, tripod and a microphone which we attached to the camera. In post production we used non linear editing to edit the sequence.We used Adobe Premier Pro. We used the timeline to help us and cut up and trimmed the clips, as well as reordering them. We used the output and source monitors to watch the clips and finally we added a title.

4- What factors did you have to take into account when planning, shooting and editing?

When planning, shooting and editing our sequence we had to take into account that we only had an hour for each, this meant we made sure we planned our sequence well, and made sure the shots weren't too elaborate but that would show continuity. We also had to consider whether or not anyone would be in the location, and whether we would have permission to film there. We also had to take into account the brief, ensuring that we included everything that needed to be in the sequence.

5- How successful was your sequence? Identify what worked well, and with hindsight, what would you improve/do differently?

I think our sequence was quite successful. We included most of the criteria and followed continuity rules, for example didn't break the 180 degree rule. We didn't manage to get a shot reverse shot, because although we had a lot footage from different perspectives when we tried to do a shot reverse shot it didn't work. Therefore if we did this again it would be better if Ben was sitting down and we would have to ensure we took shots of Ben and Daniel at the same distance, this would have meant we could have successfully included a shot reverse shot.

6- What have you learnt from completing this task? Looking ahead, how will this learning be significant when completing the rest of your foundation coursework, do you think?

We learnt more about the filming process from this task (how to start a shot - camera ready, sound ready etc) and this will be useful when filming our real sequences. I also learnt a lot about sound as that was my responsibility during the shoot, although during the test and real shoots I would like to direct and film as well. During editing, I was reminded of various aspects of editing that I had forgotten so that will be useful when editing our real thing.

Film Budgeting

At first, filmmakers would do a rough budget to show production companies. Once they’ve got the go ahead to do the film they would put together a more exact budget during pre-production.
These are the things that they would consider:

- Story Rights: You need to buy the rights to produce a film based on a play, novel, or new story.
- Screenplay: A well respected scriptwriter would be paid tens of thousands to write the first three drafts of a script.
- Dialogue Writer: They would also be paid tens of thousands.
- Director: A director would be paid minimum can be paid around 250,000 for one movie up to it’s first release, for a minimum of ten weeks' work. Usually, the director's salary is around 7% of the final overall budget. For example, in Spiderman 2 (2004, Sam Raimi), Sam Raimi got paid $10 million, the overall budget was $200 million.
- Cast: A-list actors will cost a lot more than unknown actors and can ask for millions to be in a film, as well as a trailer, entourage etc. More unknown actors will usually be paid a minimum. For example, for Spiderman 2 (2004, Sam Raimi) Tobey Maguire got $18 million.
- Production Costs: This is the overall cost of shooting the film, including location filming, sets, hotels, wardrobe, make-up and transportation of all this. The crew is also included in this.
- Visual Effects: These, if needed, are also very expensive.
- Special Effects: These are added in after and also need to be considered in the budget
- Music: Top film composers can ask for a six-figure salary, so if the music is original in the film then it would cost a lot.
- Advertising: The filmmakers would need to pay for all advertising, except word-of-mouth advertising.

The spending can be split into three groups: The cast, The actual filming (crew, set etc.) and post-production (effects, music etc.)

Our Film Budget:
- Whenwe are filming we will not have a budget. Therefore we will have to find actors who are willing to be in our films without being paid, we will have to find places to film where we dont have to pay and if we want sets made we will have to make them ourselves or get someone to make them for free. We would also not hire a scriptwriter or a crew, we would do these jobs ourselves.

How Costume Shows Character

How costume hints to character:
Camille (Olga Kurylenko) in James Bond: Quantum of Solace (2008, Marc Forster) :
In this shot we see Camille wearing a simple black dress. This is because she was at a black tie event, however the simplicity and practicality of the dress shows her character. She needs to be able to fight in the dress but at the same time needs to use her sexuality to get closer to the men that she is trying to get revenge on. This shows in the simple black dress she wears and also in the high-waisted khaki skirt she wears to meet one of the men she is trying to get revenge on. Both outfits show that she is practical but still feminine, and this comes through in her other outfits during the film as well.

Mr Smith (Dane Cook) in Mr Brooks (2007, Bruce A. Evans) :
We can see that Mr Smith wears very plain and average clothes. His 'uniform' is a pair of jeans with a t-shirt and jacket. The clothes he wears show that he is just an average guy and although he wants to be like Earl Brooks (Kevin Costner), he is essentially just like most other people. Even his unoriginal choice of fake name (Mr Smith isn't his real name, he just uses this with Earl Brooks) shows that he is just an average Joe looking to make his life more interesting. His style during the film highlights his average life.

These characters are very different, while Camille is a heroic character seeking revenge for the death of her family, Mr Smith is an average guy who wants a chance to kill people, and this shows through their costume. Although, they are not the same gender it’s still possible to compare the two. They are similar in that both wear practical and comfortable clothing. However, Camille varies her clothes and they show that she has style and class. Mr Smith on the other hand, wears pretty much the same thing everyday and doesn’t have a very interesting variation of clothes. This shows the difference between the heroic Camille and the average Mr Smith.

Sound

Diegetic Sound:
-This is the sound that is inside the world of the film, whether on screen or off screen.
-It makes the film seem more real.
-Off screen diegetic sound can be used to give us clues to what’s happening around the characters or to the location the characters are in.

Non-Diegetic Sound:
- This is the sound that is not inside the world of the film.
- It’s sound that is added on later.
- For example, music playing over the top of a scene.

Sound Bridges:
- The sound from one scene carries over into the next or we hear the sound of the next scene before we see the images.
- Sound bridges give a wider and coherent diegetic world.
- Therefore, sound bridges are part of the films continuity

Parallel and Contrapuntal Sound:
- Parallel sound is when the sound we hear complements what we see, for example romantic music at romantic moments.
- The tone and mood of the music matches the scene
- Contrapuntal sound is when the sound doesn’t match what we see, for example in ‘Jaws’, the sinister sound we use as a signal for the shark coming, played over a scene with holidaymakers on Amity beach.

The Foley Track:
- This is the track of the sound effects
- Some sounds would need to be enhanced and others need to be created and added in later, for example the dinosaur eggs hatching in ‘Jurassic Park’ (Steven Spielberg)

Sound in Trainspotting (1996, Danny Boyle) :

The film starts with the sound of footsteps, with Renton (Ewan McGregor) and his friends running along a street. This would have been enhanced or added on in post-production. At 0.04 music starts, this non-diegetic. The music is fast and upbeat, and suggests that the film is not going to be serious. A voiceover (Ewan McGregor) accompanies the music, this is also non-diegetic. When the car brakes at 0.20 the sound of the breaks are enhanced or added in later on in post-production, as would the sound of Renton's head hitting the floor at 1.17. At 2.50 and 5.19 we hear a baby in the background although it is off screen. This makes the film seem more realistc and more three dimensional. At 5.37 we hear the sound of keys in the door and then see Renton close the door. This is a sound bridge, we hears what's happening before we see it. At 6.32 we hear the sound him putting the glass down although the glass is off screen. This again makes the film seem more realistic as we would expect to hear the glass being put down, in real life. When Renton comes through the front door at 5.37, music from 'Carmen' starts. This is contrapuntal to what's happening in the scene. The music is enhanced at 6.40 when he has broken the boards and has left his flat, which would be done post-production.

Scriptwriting

Notes taken from www.filmscriptwriting.com on how to write a good script, how to write an opening sequence and how to present a script

The story structure of a script:
Generally 100 to 120 pages. Each page is on average one minute long although this depends on how much goes on in the page. If you go under 100 pages it is assumed you don’t have enough material, if you go over 120 pages then the script is seen as boring and too long.

As we are going to be doing the opening sequence I researched how to write the beginning of a script in more detail:
Act 1 – The Beginning (roughly 30 Pages)
The first ten pages of your script are the most important. You need to grab the reader’s attention or they’ll move onto the next script in the pile. In the first ten pages of you need to establish the following:

- The Main Character – Who is he/she? Strengths? Weaknesses? Lifestyle? What’s normality for the character?
- Location– Where does the main character live? Where is the film mostly set? What is the mood of the location?
- Genre – By the end of the first ten pages the genre of the film has to be clear.
- The Premise – What is the basic story?

After the first ten pages there are two important plot points in Act 1:
- The Inciting Incident – A major situation occurs which the character will have to try to resolve during the film.
- Plot Point 1 – Around page 25 another huge event occurs. ‘ Thus far the story has been driving along and now is the time a tyre blows and sends the car careering off in another direction.’ This event will test the main character.
Here is a list of several ways to open a film. You can use each one separately or you mix a few together:

The Blatant Opening - Within a few moments you know exactly who the hero and the villain are and what the film will be about. This works well in action films.
A Regular Day – This shows a regular day in the life of the main character. Then and event which changes the normal life of the character will occur and they will need to resolve this to return their life to normal. For example, in ‘Wanted’ (2008, Timur Bekmambetov).
True Beginning - The script starts with the start of the story for the main character. For example, they might have just landed in a new country.
Dramatic Irony – The main character would not be in this opening. Instead the audience will be given some information that the main character would not know but that would soon affect their life. Dramatic irony allows the audience to be in a superior position and sets up both tension and anticipation.
Foreshadowing - This opening takes place before the main story begins and anticipates what is going to happen later on. Like the dramatic irony opening the audience is put in a position to predict what’s going to happen. This is used for horror films.
Narrator - The narrator can be the hero, another character or just a narrator. They tell the audience what happened to the main character at an important time in their life.
Flash Forward - The flash forward has two stories running side by side at the same time. The ‘B’ story has a narrator who tells the main story, which has already happened. At certain points there’s a flash forward to the narrator who continues with their story. The ‘A’ story is the main story and the ‘B’ story is of the narrator looking back.
Montage - This is the best type of opening if you have a lot of information to get across before the main story begins. Also known as a shotgun opening, a collection of short clips accelerate through the information until the story properly begins. Then the speed of the story can slow down to a normal pace. In a few of minutes you can explain years of your main characters life.

How to Present a Script:
- The industry standard font is Courier or Courier New - font size 12.
- The left margin should be 1.5 inches while your right margin can be between 0.5 inches to 1.25 inches. Both the top and bottom margins should be 1 inch.
- Dialogue should be 2.5 inches away from the left margin and should not go past 6.0 inches from the left margin.
- Actors instructions should be 3.1 inches away from the left margin and no longer than 2 inches.
- The characters name should be 3.7 inches from the left margin
- Each page of the script should have about 55 lines, not including the page number and blank line after the page number.
- Page numbers should be in the top right corner, 0.5 inches from the top edge.
- No page number is required for the first page of your script.
- At the end of the script you should signify it is the end, either with ‘The End’, ‘Fade Out’ or ‘Fade To Black’
- If there is somewhere in particular you want the opening or closing credits to appear then you can include this in your script.

There are three bodies of a script. Each of these has three points to remember:

Headings:
- Master scene headings which include:
a) Camera location - EXT. (exterior or outside) or INT. (interior or inside)
b) Scene location (LOCAL RACE TRACK)
c) Time (DAY or NIGHT)
- Secondary scene heading
- “Special headings” for things such as montages, dream sequences, flashbacks, flash forwards, etc.

Narrative Description:
- Action
- Character and settings (visual)
- Sounds

Dialogue:
- The name of the person speaking appears at the top, in CAPS.
- The actors direction (AKA parenthetical or wryly).
- The speech.

By the end the script should look something like this (Pulp Fiction, 1994, Quentin Tarantino)

Horror Genre

Iconography:
Mask
Bloody dagger
Frankenstein
Silhouettes
Distortion
Blood
Gore
Shadows
Mist
Mutilation

Props:
Weapons
Masks
Blood
Cloaks
Candles
Entrails

Settings:
Home/school
Abandoned buildings
Haunted houses
Dark places
Castles
Mountains
Forests
Bedrooms
Bathrooms
Gothic settings
Hospitals
Dark alleys

Narrative:
Stalking
Spying/Voyeurism
Running away
Entrapment
Death

Characters:
Victims typically pretty/innocent females
Couples
Children common
Killer
Hero
Men usually killers

Themes:
Suspense
Fear
Death (impending death)
Gore
Secrecy – element of unknown
Tension
Obsession
Revenge
Jealousy
Lust/Crimes of passion
Torture
Bad weather
Feel claustrophobic

Camera shots:
Angles
Tracks
Slow movement
Shaky camera work – Handheld
P.O.V Shots
Close shots, CU, ECU etc
Attention drawn to something important

Sounds:
Screams
Heartbeats
Creepy music
Creaks
Breathing
Silence
Thunder/Lighting/Rain

Casting For Film Plots

We were given plots to cast and were given a list of actors who we could choose for the roles.

Plot One:

There is a girl and her dream is to one day move to Paris and become a Moulin Rouge dancer. She spends everyday looking through books and dressing up like them. She lives in the Bronx with her mum, dad and sister. Her dad abuses the family and is an alcoholic. He doesn't really care about the family and leaves it up to the mum to look after them. The beginning of the film is about her struggle through life and all the problems she faces. When the girl is 14 years old her mum gets lang cancer and dies. The father puts the two children up

for adoption and in the process they end up getting split up. The girl ends up living with a well off family in Washington DC.

She changes into a different person and becomes very prim and proper and posh although she never truly fits in. Her foster parents dream is for her to become the first female president of the USA and she wants to please them so she follows this dream and brushes her old one aside. One day while she is running for president she manages to reunite herself with her sister. Her sister helps her rediscover her old self and the girl realises that being a president isn't the life she wants. She drops out of the elections and moves to Paris with her sister where she persues her dream of being a Moulin Rouge dancer.

I chose to cast Megan Fox as the girl because:

- She has the right look for the character

- She has played similar roles before (for example, as Hope's daughter in 'Hope and Faith')

- From roles she has played before, and other work she has done outside acting e.g. photoshoots, she would be believable both as a moulin rouge dancer and a presidential candidate.

Alfred Hitchcock

'The length of a film should be directly related to the endurance of the human bladder.'

After watching Psycho I decided to do some research into the film's director Alfred Hitchcock.
- He established many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres.
- He directed over fifty feature films.
- His career lasted close to 60 years, from the silent movie era, through sound films, to colour films.
Signature:
- His signature was cameos by himself in his films, whether it was boarding a bus, crossing the front of a building or appearing in a photograph.
- And as a recurring theme he would carry a musical instrument, the most memorable being him trying to get onto a train with a large double bass case.
- At first he would be a relatively unseen extra, for example standing in a crowd. But slowly he became more prominent in his cameos.
- Hitchcock experimented in his films:
o For example, setting the film in one place, as seen in ‘Lifeboat’ (1944), in which all the action takes place in a small boat. (He even managed a cameo in this, by appearing on the front cover of a magazine)
o In ‘Rope’ (1948), he made it seem as if the shot was done in a single take. However, it was actually taken in 10 takes with some of the transitions in between being concealed by having a large dark object fill the whole screen.
o In ‘Vertigo’ (1958) Hitchcock used a camera technique that has been imitated and reused by many filmmakers, it has become known as the ‘Hitchcock zoom’ or the ‘Dolly zoom’.
o He tried to include the number 13 into scenes for its superstitious effect. This was seen in ‘Psycho’ (1960), Marion Crane’s cars license plate adds up to 13. Also, Norman Bates first chooses cabin 3 then 1 for Marion.

Continuity Research - The Notebook (2004, Nick Cassavetes)

I have chosen to analyse the Ferris wheel scene from ‘The Notebook', where Noah (Ryan Gosling) asks Allie (Rachel McAdams) out. To watch the clip click here.
The first shot is a downwards tilt. This allows us to see the whole of the Ferris wheel and Noah walking into the frame.
There is then a MS of Noah looking up to Allie on the Ferris wheel, his eyes follow her as she goes around the top. We know this as the next shot matches his eyeline and shows us Allie looking at him. There is then a MCU of Noah. This shows us his reaction to her and is a shot-reverse-shot drawing us into the scene.
He then looks up again and starts to move to the right hand of the frame. There is then a MS of him running towards the Ferris wheel. This cut is seamless and we don’t even notice it has happened. To the audience it feels as if we are standing still and are watching him run past us towards Allie. We are then brought into the scene again with a VLS of Allie on the Ferris wheel and Noah running into the frame. We feel as if we are closer to the action and have a better view of what happens than if the camera stayed behind Noah.
There is then a matched cut of Noah jumping onto the Ferris wheel next to Allie. The position of the camera only moves slightly, just enough so that we can see the action more clearly, and so we don’t notice the movement. The camera then tilts up to follow them and then as they get to the top there is a MS of Allie and her date on the Ferris wheel and Noah sitting between them.
This MS allows us to see what’s happening more clearly and to see the reactions of Allie and her date.
There is then a HA shot of the Ferris wheel operator, Tommy (Jude Kitchens) shouting up at Noah and we hear Noah’s reaction to what he says.
We then go back up to the MS of Noah, Allie and her date. This allows us to see the conversation between the three of them and their reactions, clearer.
Then there is another HA shot of Tommy stopping the Ferris wheel and looking up at them. There is then a match on action shot, with a LA, ELS of it stopping.
After this there is another HA shot of Tommy shouting up at Noah and a LA shot of Noah replying to him.
Then there is a MS of Noah, Allie and her date. Noah moves to get up and the shot moves to a VLS in front of him, and then a LA, ELS. The shots stick to the 30 degree rule, and are better than one shot from one position as they help us to see what Noah’s doing, a lot better.
After Noah jumps up onto the rail and turns around, we see a shot of Fin (Kevin Connolly) and Sara’s (Heather Wahlquist) reaction. This is shown using a HA shot of them looking up to the top of the frame. There is then an OTS shot of Allie and her date looking at Noah. This shows us him looking down at his friends and then a LA, ELS shows him hanging off the Ferris wheel. This makes is look real as we can see him hanging off.
There is then a slightly HA, OTS so that we are looking at Noah when he talks to Allie. We then see her reaction to this with a MS of her and her date looking up at Noah with his body in the frame. Then we go back to the HA, OTS of Noah. And then back to the MS of her. This is a shot-reverse-shot, getting us involved into the conversation.
There is then another shot reverse shot with a MCU of Noah’s reaction to her saying no to him, then a MS of Allie with her date who replies to Noah and then a MCU of Noah. This again brings us into their conversation.
Again we have a shot-reverse-shot of the same shots but this time Noah talking to Allie again.
There is then a HA of Noah letting go with one hand. This allows us to see what happens clearer as we can see his hand swinging next to him. Following this is a MCU of Allie’s reaction to this. And then a HA, MCU shot of his friends’ reaction. We then go back to the HA shot of him. Then back to a MCU of her. Then to a MCU of him. Noah says ‘My hands slipping’ and the camera tilts up to show us his hand and then goes back to a HA, MCU of his friends’ reaction. We then see a HA, OTS of him and then back to the HA shot of his friends. These three shots are again a shot-reverse-shot.
The fast cuts add to the worried feeling that the characters have, that he may fall, and so makes us worried as well.
There is then another sequence shot-reverse-shot of eight MCU’s of Noah and Allie with Allie agreeing to go out with him. This draws us into the conversation and makes us feel as if we are between them and looking at each of them as they reply to each other.
After Noah holds back on with two hands the cuts slow down as the characters and the audience are now relieved, and feel more relaxed as they know he won’t fall.
There is a MCU of Allie’s reaction to what just happened in the scene, and a HA shot of his friends’ reaction to what happened. Then there is a MCU of Allie looking down to Noah’s friends and replying to Sara, and then of her turning around to Noah. There is then a MCU of Noah’s reaction to Allie starting to undo his belt and then back to a MCU of her undoing them.
At 1.52 there is a LA, VLS of her pulling his trousers down. This makes us feel as if we are watching with everyone else at ground level.
There is then a MCU of Noah, a HA shot of his friends and a MCU of Allie and her date showing their reaction to her pulling his trousers down. The final shot is an ELS of the Ferris wheel making us feel as if we are standing far away with everyone else. This shot helps lead into the next scene of the film as we feel as if we leaving the funfair.

Shot Analysis - Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift Directed By Justin Lin (2006)

At 0.07 there is a forward track. This makes us feel as if we are walking into the scene. It also introduces the viewer to the concept of the film, as we are taken in between two cars and we hear engines revving.

At 0.17 there are two whip pans, one towards the right and then one towards the left. This highlights the speed of the cars that are about to race. It introduces the two sides which implies confrontation.

At 0.21 there is a backwards track to give a wider view so we can see the two cars as they are about to start racing.

At 0.25 there is an OTS shot with an object moving into space. The shot also has a frame within a frame with the phones. This shows the intensity/significance of the race in the film, as it is being recorded. This again highlights that this is going to be a main focus in the film.

At 0.26 there is a TS. As they are alone this shows that they are important characters in the film. They are away from the chaos of the race at this point, and there is nothing in the background (they’re in a lift) so our attention is focused solely on them.

At 0.31 there is a HA. This helps us to see what the car is doing. It also gives us a feeling of being distant from the scene, although straight after we are brought back in.

At 0.33 there is a CU of a hand on the gearstick, and then there is a LS to show what the effect of the gear change. This brings us into the action and makes us feel a part of it.

At 0.35 there is a CU of his foot on the accelerator and then at 0.35 a forward track as if we are in the car. This again makes us fell a part of the action rather than as if we are watching it from afar.

At 0.43 there is a HA of the city. We have been shown what they film is about, so now the HA is used to show where the film is going to be set.

At 0.47 there is a LS, MS and then a CU. This draws us into the character. It also shows us that he is important as he is shown as the most significant person in a very large crowd of people.

At 1.07 there is a CU of the two characters which draws us into the confrontation. It also gives us both of their reactions to the confrontation.

At 1.22 there is a HA shot of D.K (Brian Tee) and a LA shot of Sean (Lucas Black). This shows us that Sean is down and that D.K is standing above him, and again draws us into the confrontation.

At 1.52 there is a CU of Sean with a gun. This ensures that we see the gun and that we know who is holding it. The shot wouldn’t have been as affective as a LS because we would not be able to see his expression.

BLK feedback

Excellent analysis and reflections on your horror shot - super work Mel!

Great films chosen as faves; looking forward to seeing your chosen clips too (why not analyse THE Harry met Sally scene!!)

Can you add some film websites to your links list?

FDA Video Notes

These notes are a summary of video clips found on www.launchingfilms.tv

Release Of a Film:

Identify the films TA.
Then choose how much money to spend on marketing by deciding how much money the film will make at the box office, and setting a realistic budget.
Decide how to market the film, talk to third parties e.g. Radio & Newspapers, and make sure the cast of the film are willing to promote the film.
Choose what media you’re going to spend money on, internet becoming increasingly important.
Ultimately, you have to decide on the best ways to communicate with the TA in the most effective way.

Target Audience:

With smaller films, you really have to decide exactly who your TA is and have to focus on targeting tem well. Use data from past, similar films to help with finding out about the audience, and how to target them.
You can never be 100% sure about who your TA is, so targeting one audience can be a gamble.
Different audiences need to be targeted differently, their whole approach to deciding what film to see and when is very different e.g. teenagers go to the cinema and choose what to see there and then, whereas adults take up to a week or more to decide to see a film.

P&A Budget:

You need to think about the cost of printing the actual film including technical elements & shipping and, more importantly, advertising costs from posters to trailers.
Decide how best to use the budget.
Think about: Whats the TA? Where are they going to see the ad? Where’s the best place to put the advert?
Some advertising is too expensive, e.g. TV and if you have a low budget you have to do something else, e.g. Radio.

Marketing Plan:

You market films through advertising and through the press.
Advertising is expensive; you have to pay for ads in magazines, newspapers, on TV, on radio, on the internet etc.
You can use the internet by email or viral campaigns – in which you put something to create interest in the film, e.g. a clip of the film.
You can put features on the film in newspapers & magazines.
Advertising outside, including on buses, on bus shelters and on billboards is expensive.
Press ads are ‘free’ – includes interviews with the cast and/or director of the film, which can also be on TV or Radio.
The best form of free advertising is word of mouth; you do this by holding screening programs – free screenings of the film.
Word of mouth advertising is crucial; it can make or break the film.
If your film plays well to an audience word of mouth is the best form of advertising you can have, especially if you have a low budget.

Test Screenings:

Research is very important and comes into play at different times.
You can do research well in advance by testing visuals such as posters, trailers and even sometimes of film concept ideas
You have to make sure they meet people’s expectations and communicate to the audience in the way that they need to.
When the film’s finished you do test screenings, where you get a group of the TA to see the film and fill out questionnaires.
Some of the group stay behind for a focus group where they’re spoken to in more depth about the issues in the film and what they did and didn’t like. Studios will listen to the feedback and change parts of the film, even sometimes the ending.

Opening weekend:

The opening weekend is very important.
Exhibitors work on the three day figure which is from the Friday that the film opened to the Sunday.
Then on Monday morning you have a ‘holdover’, which is make or break for the film.
The film has to of been successful - made the most money out of all the films in that cinema.
If it’s made the least money then the film is taken off, which is why a film will sometimes only show for a week.

Positioning and Audiences:

Define the TA.
Does the film have a specific genre?
Does it speak to a certain age group?
Who’s the director?

Competition:

Film distribution is all about the competition.
You need to stand above other films to be noticed.
Need to think about:
Why would your film poster stand out from the rest in a cinema?
Why do the audience want to see your film?
Why is your poster more exciting than the one next to it?
Around times like October half term it’s very busy for all films that appeal to younger audiences because there’s nothing else to do due to the weather, it’s a good time to go to the cinema.
You have to think about all factors including holidays, weather and audience patterns.
For example, you wouldn’t do as much TV advertising in July and August because everyone’s outside so you do posters etc. because that’s where they’re more likely to see your advertising.

Word Of Mouth:

The word of mouth is critical for a film.
When you want the word of mouth to happen depends on the film.
Sometimes you have a film that you know will work well, and you get it very early.
In this case you work with media partners e.g. magazines to help provide advanced screenings. For example, put a phone number in a magazine that you call to get free tickets to one of twenty or so screenings.
The hope is that the people who watch the movie leave and tell everyone how great the film is and so increasing the interest in the film.
If you get the film late then you have to rely on the advertising money you have to ensure a successful opening weekend, and then the word of mouth happens after the film is in cinemas. In this case, word of mouth decides how long the film is going to play for.

Film Trailers:

The trailer is the most important key to selling the film.
It’s the first and generally only exposure in the cinema of what they’re actually going to be buying into.
The trailer is being watched in the same environment that they’re going to watch the film in and the screen is the same size as the one they’re going to watch the film on.
It’s very important that the trailer has the right impact and right message, right down to the way in which the graphics, sound and overall concept of the film are portrayed.

Digital Marketing:

Viral marketing is very simple.
It’s creating an element, e.g. game, video or quiz, that’s good enough for someone to send on to others.
The most effective way of marketing is still word of mouth.
The best way for communicating that a film is good is for someone, whose opinions you trust and value, to tell you.

Persuading Cinemas:

First major step is to convince cinemas to screen the film.
First you have to sell the film to the cinemas – especially with an independent film.
Theres a big difference with other products in that with films you have to find somewhere to put it.

Piracy:

Piracy in the UK has escalated over the last 5 years.
In 2006 piracy counts for 20% of all DVDs sold in the UK – a shockingly high number that are illegally sold.
It’s a big problem because the consumer thinks they are getting a bargain when in fact they are being ripped off by bad quality DVDs.
The money the consumer pays for the DVDs may be going towards various criminal elements that they may not be aware of.

THR Feedback

Loving the dark feel Mel! Your work is great - detailed and focused on technical codes and effects. Well done.

Horror Still Shot Analysis

1- Describe your shot and identify in what way it could be seen as representing horror.

- The shot is a LA, CU with low lighting. The lighting used way artificial. It is a shot of a white female teenager grabbing onto a metal fence. The shot has a frame within a frame, with the use of the fence. There is a shadow behind her of someone. The back ground of the shot is a white wall.

- The shot represents horror as it shows evidence of entrapment. Also the low lighting and expression on the girl's face, which is highlighted by the light, helps represent that the shot is a horror shot. The fact that the light is unnatural makes the shot feel unnatural. The light also exposes what's going on behind her and so creates a feeling of fear. The whites of her eyes are highlighted and so the fact that she looks scared is highlighted. The fact that the light is shining on her, and we see a shadow behind her, emphasises that she's the victim. Her unnatural, distorted position and her hands grabbing hold of the fence make us feel uneasy. The shot overall feels unnatural, which is disturbing and so represents horror.

2- What did you actually do to achieve the effect?

- We found an enclosed space, above the ground with a metal fence surrounding it. The actress (Alice) went inside while the person taking the shot (Matt) stayed on the outside. We cut out all light except one with we shone upwards from below the camera. We took the shot from a LA and did not use flash as it revealed too much of the background.

3- What is succesful about your shot?

- The shadow created from the light is successful, as is the low lighting which helped create the shadow. The angle of the shot works well as it seems unnatural, as it is a LA and is at a slightly distorted angle. The enclosed spaced was good, as it highlights the feeling that she is the victim. Also the distance works well, as it ensures that we can see the characters expression.

4- What would you do differently in hindsight?

- Looking back I think the shot needs more light focused on the hands so we can see them grabbing on a lot clearer. There is also a bit too much going on in the background, and too much of the white wall is showing. It also would have been better had the actress looked a bit more like a victim through the use of make-up, props and costume, for example if she had a bloody nose or cuts on her face. Also it would be better if we could see more of her face so that we could see her expression even more clearly.

Sin City Shot Sequence Analysis

Shot One - This shot is of a man lying on the ground, pointing a gun at and looking at the camera. He is wearing an expensive looking suit and tie. The HA makes it easier for us to see his face and the MCU ensures that we are not distracted by anything else in the shot. The light shining on the man's face and gun makes us look at the them. The man is holding his ear which suggests that he has been hurt. The shot makes us feel as if the man is looking directly at us, or that we are looking at him from someone else's perspective.

Shot Two - This HA, LS introduces us to another character. The new character, a man wearing a long, light coloured coat is pointing a gun at the man on the floor. The distance of the shot helps us to see both men clearly and enables us to see a bit more of the setting. We can also see that the man on the floor's hand has been severely injured and we can assume that the man standing over him has shot his hand as the light shines on his arm so we can see even clearer that his is pointing a gun at the man. The blood from the man's hand has been lit up so we can see it very clearly, therefore it causes our our eye to be drawn to it. The standing position allows us to assume that he is ready to shoot again.

Shot Three - This ELS, taken from the side, introduces us to two new characters. The two new characters are a man standing, wearing a long dark coat, and a little girl sitting on the floor. The girls legs appear to be tied up. the distance of the shot allows us to see more of the setting and the surrounding area looks deserted. From this shot we can assume that the girl has been kidnapped. The man on the ground appears to be trying to get up, or to talk, and the man standing over him is leaning in towards him, and seems to be talking to him. We can now see that the light is coming from lights in the distance and this helps the shot seem more natural. The light shines on the man in the dark coat's hand to show us that he is also carrying a gun.

Shot Four - Although still a long shot, this shot is a tighter version of the previous shot; we can no longer see the man in the dark coat. The man standing is now pointing the gun back at the man on the floor. This suggests that he is ready to shoot him again. The man on the floor has raised his injured hand, possibly an instictive reaction, or to plead with the man standing, not to shoot. The light shines on the damaged hand and reveals to us that it has been severed. The man standing's coat is being blown back by the wind which makes him seem powerful. It also has a heroic element about it and makes him seem more heroic than he first appeared. It is possible that he is there to save the little girl.

Shot Five - This is a CU of the little girl. The tight shot makes us focus on her face and her facial expression. The light shines on her eyes and cheek showing that she is crying, and she is obviously upset and scared which causes us to assume she is watching the man get shot. She seems to be leaning forward, maybe trying to get away from what she has seen but she appears to be tied up and so can't. This shot is very different to the other shots we have seen. It seems more 'real' than the other, as the men have seemed to not show any emotion in the past four shots.

Shot Six - The ELS shows us all four characters again. It is a LA shot so we are looking up at the characters. The man lying on the floor now appears to be dead as he's lying flat on the floor, whereas before his knees were raised. We now see some emotion from the man in the light coat. He is leaning onto something, and leaning forward. This shows that he is tired and his facial expression also shows this. His expression also suggests that he may feel bad about shooting the man. The man in the dark coat seems mysterious and sinister, watching the man in the light coat from further back. We still haven't seen his face but have seen all the other characters faces, this adds to the mysteriousness of the character. The blackness of his coat is highlighted by the white smoke behind him which again makes him seem sinister. As well as the smoke highlighting his dark coat, the coat highlights the white smoke. This causes us to notice it more and contrasts the (what appears to be) calm scene of the three living characters with the hectic, everyday business that is going on behind them.

The Whole Sequence - By moving the camera around so much in a very short sequence the director helps introduce us to the surroundings and the characters. It also helps us to understand what's happening better. By changing the distance of the shots more and more characters are introduced to us. This means that the audience is not sure whether any other characters are going to appear and so helps create more suspense. The shot distances also help to show which characters are the most important in this sequence. For example, the man in the light coat is more prominant in this sequence and so we can see that he is the most important character in the sequence and maybe in the rest of the film.