Evidence of planning

These images show the planning for my characters, setting and props. The big house hints at the genre of the film as it is meant to be a haunted house this being a stereotypically horror setting. I chose Poppy Scarlett to be a main characters as she is a young girl this could then make her seem more venerable and weak character. I used Leah Patterson as another main character so that poppy's character in the film could form relationships and therefore the audience could relate to her more. I used the black bowls and cutlery to make the film seem more realistic to the audience.

Target audience questionnaire

Storyboard of Possession

Preliminary Task

Possession- Film opening

Intoduction

For my piece of AS level coursework I will have to complete a number of tasks to make sure that my final piece is to a high standard. I will have to plan for my film opening sequence, create my opening and evaluate my opening to meet the criteria. The text must be two minutes and must include film titles and credits.  Any audio material I add must me original or from a copyright-free source. To make sure I have complete all tasks to a high standard I will plan my work by doing a number of activities these being looking at other opening sequence, researching into narrative theory, codes and conventions, genre, target audience, characterisation and technical codes including mise en scene, camerawork, sounds and editing. After I have carefully planned my text and made my text I will evaluate my piece.

Opening sequences

The opening two minutes of a film can be in some films the most important 2 minutes of the film. The opening two minutes is very important, in these two minutes you have to establish a genre, tone and the style of the film.  These two minutes can be the most important as it needs to be able to interest the audience in order for them to keep watching.  The main jobs of an opening are:

·         To ‘hook’ the audience. Something interesting must happen in order to make us watch the rest of the film.  The opening may use enigma codes (questions that the narrative will answer later in the text.) to help create a ‘hook’ therefore making us watch on to see those questions answered.

·         It must introduce genre, tone and theme.  By using conventions of the chosen genre they can establish the genre within the audience therefore helping the audience to create and interest to the film and give idea to the audience of what they can expect from the rest of the film.

·         It must introduce characters. Showing clearly the type of character they are a heroine or an agent of change.  It must introduce their role in the narrative and successfully convey there personality to the audience.

·         It must establish the time and place, the setting and the atmosphere. Setting in the film is most important as from setting the audience will know what to expect from the film.

Finding nemo from Tashawilson95

Opening Sequences - Layer cake

The opening of the film layer cake start off with an extreme close up of an object the audience cannot make out at this moment so it creates an element of mystery. The colour of the black could connote death therefore hinting at the genre. The first thing the audience hear in the opening is the voice over of a man we are not yet introduced to. This then helps to set the scene of the film and also helps the audience hint towards the films genre. The camera then does a reverse zoom and we see that the object we didn’t know is the back of an old car, this then hint the era we are in at this point of the film. There is still a close up of the back of the van and then all of a sudden there is an explosion the close up the shows the full explosion and also emphasis the action at this point, as there is an explosions within the first minute the audience will know the film is an action/ gangster film.

 From the explosion are first piece of non- diegetic music begins to play the music is very calm which juxtapose with the action actually on the screen. The colour of the opening at this point is in black and white this could help show the era it is set helping the audience get a better setting of the film, which then creates an interest. We the here dialogue from the man in the middle of the action, even though this is the first man we hear speak that isn’t a voice over we know this is not the man who is the voice over, we know this because the voice over continues to speak whilst the man is speaking too, we listen to the voice over because his voice is the loudest and the one were most interested in. The camera shot is showing a mid-shot this then shows all the action to the audience and it also shows the proximity between the characters on screen him being the one higher up showing he has the most power.

The camera tracks across the screen when it meets a women the camera rolls over high hair and does a graphic match over to a man’s face. This then is when the colour finally changes and we no longer have black and white we know have vibrant colours. This can show the era change in the film and can also convey that it was a happier time in the past. the camera then does a reverse zoom and shows us the whole shot, this then emphasis we are watch a film with the genre of gangster as most people associate drugs with gangsters and bad people. The hippy’s first introduce the drugs to us first, they introduce the as a happy thing and more relaxed thing which is a contrast to what we see them as now. We the see a women who walks across the screen here it turns to a graphic match to a prison guard in a prison, this then takes us to a new setting, we know this is a prison from the customs worn by the guards and the men. The camera the pans across the screen showing us the whole setting, this helps the audience outline the main themes of the film this being drugs, it is also a contrast between the clip as it showed drugs as a good thing whereas of it showing that you can go to prison for it which the contrast to what the voice over is saying ‘we’re in the wrong fucking game.’ This then shows that the voice over thinks that being a drug dealer is the right job, with all of this it helps the audience have a little background story of the film.

 The camera then shows us a close up of the drugs which then makes the audience reach the climax that the film will indeed be about drugs, this will then make or break whether the audience is interested in the film ad wants to continue to watch it. The camera pans across the screen ad we see the whole room is full of drugs. The voice over at that point says ‘me’ and a man walks in at that point we know that this is the man of the voice over. The man walks across the screen and as he walks across the screen the drugs In the background disappears ad turns into normal per scripted drugs this could give to clues to the audience is that the man is an ordinary guy really and it shows that he drug work is separate to his normal life.

 The voiceover then says ‘I’m not a gangster I’m a businessman’ this then puts the audience on his side ad helps make a connection with him, even though we still don’t know his name this means that we cannot make a relationship with the character like we normally do.

 The camera does a crane a shot up the window where we seem them first handling with drugs, this is the first time we see are protagonist dealing with the drugs, put because the voice over makes it seem like he knows what he’s doing we are not concerned for him as we assume he knows what he’s doing. Also because he says that he only wants a certain amount of money and then he will quit the job we feel that he is safe.

 The camera gives a close up of the money this could emphasis how important the money is I this business also because there is bright light shining on the money it shows the audience that the money is all that matters. The voice over tells us that he owns a share or a housing business this shows that he has an ordinary job outlining he is just an ordinary person, with just a side interest. This then helps us related to are character and give us more connections to the main character.

 The camera in the opening shows us a lot of pans this helps show the audience the full action it helps show in each the clip the setting and it also shows us all the character I the clip and by the lighting in the clip we can see who is most important and also shows whether the topic is good or bad. When we meet the man that does or main characters fiancés and it shows a close up of the computer screen which we make up that it is something to do with money this then highlights the fact that one of the main themes to the film is money.

 The ending of the opening shows him walking down a very dark alley this then could give clues to the audience that the film might not end so well for our main character, making us feel sympathy for him at this point. Also because he says ‘life is so fucking good I can taste it.’ This then shows that he life’s could be too good for him and at any moment something bad can strike him leaving him venerable this then contrast with the setting and the lighting of the alley.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Narrative structure

To create a successful film the producer needs to be clear about the whole narrative from the beginning to end. They must know how the story with pan out and how it will develop.

The most simplistic way of explaining narrative structure is:

                                                                     Beginning – Middle- End

Beginning – At the beginning there is a state of equilibrium. This is when things are at peace. This then represents normality for the main characters.

Middle-something in the narrative will happen to disrupt the equilibrium and cause a state of disequilibrium. This makes up most of the storyline of the film.

The End- At the end the narrative is restored back to normality. The story then is resolved or a new state of equilibrium is achieved.

Therefore you can say the structure is like:

                                                             Equilibrium- Disequilibrium- Equilibrium

A more complex way of looking at it is:

 

I have looked at an example for 'Scream':

 



 

Narrative Theory – Narrative Codes

Enigma and action codes are a way in which a film can keep and audience interested. Enigma and action codes are posing questions within an audience then answering them. Enigma and action codes give enough information to the audience to keep them guessing what might happen in the film but they do not give enough information to ruin the ending, this then gives us reason to carry on watching.

 Enigma codes are the question posed in the film. The codes are there to make the audience pay attention and so that they keep an interest throughout the entire film. Some enigma codes won’t be answered to the end of the film and some will be answered straight away. Some enigma codes don’t get answered at all leaving the audience curious.

Action codes are often the answers to the questions posed by the enigma codes. Action codes are when the audience learn something new in the narrative. This could be something about a character, plot, theme, the action and the plot moves on in some way. Action codes give information that they will need to know in order to keep watching.

Narrative Codes – Silence of the lambs opening

‘Silence of the Lamb’ is very effective in posing both enigma and action codes in the audience therefore keeping them ‘Hooked’ throughout. From the opening of ‘Silence of the lambs’ it is easy to see where they have used enigma and action codes.

The opening begins with a long shot of a woman running straight away we have the enigma code  ‘why is she running?’ and ‘who is she?’ it isn’t till shortly after until the action codes reveals information about her.

From a mid-shot we see small writing on her jumper which reads ‘FBI academy’ this then making the audience a where she belong to the FBI. It’s not until later when dialogue from a man shouting ‘Starling’  that we get her last name and later on when she meets her colleague we get her full name ‘Clarice Starling’.

 Another less obvious action code is the sweat on starling’s jumper; this then gives information to the audience that she is hard working. When she talks to the man in the Forrest he calls on her to tell her important information ‘Crawford wants to see you in his office’ this then poses the enigma codes ‘what does Crawford want?’, ‘What relation is that man to Starling?’ and ‘Why is it so important?’. We later then are given action codes when we see the man’s FBI hat and we know that they both work together in the FBI. We don’t find out till later in the film what Crawford wants with and why it is so important. This then keeps the audience interested and a reason to carry on watching.

Genre Research

Characterisation

The film I have chosen to do my characterisation task on is the first Twilight film. I have chosen the clip where Edward Cullen is first introduced to the film. The character of Edward Cullen has been constructed by a number of ways. This is by what other characters say about him, the mise en scene, what the character is doing and by the camera work in the clip.

What other people say about Edward Cullen is a very important way of constructing his character. The character Jessica describes each of the Cullen family as they come into the canteen, she describes Edwards’s family as being very weird and even says ‘she’s with jasper, the blonde one who looks like he’s in pain.’  She gives each of his family quite negative descriptions but the when she’s describing Edward she says all positive descriptions like when she says ‘he’s totally gorgeous, obviously.’ This shows that he is very eye catching from a women’s point of view and that he is very much admired by them.  As she goes on she says ‘apparently nobody’s here’s good enough for him.’ This then shows that his character keeps himself to himself and doesn’t have close relationships with anyone other than his family.

The way the character is constructed through mise en scene is mainly through his costume, lighting and his proximity with other characters. Edward Cullen’s costume is very dark, which is a major juxtaposition with the rest of his family who are all in lighter colours like white and blues. This shows that his character could have a darker side to him or it could show that he is totally different from the rest of his family or wants to be different from his family. By wearing darker clothes it makes his character stand out from the rest of his brothers and sisters.   The lighting when the character enters is very dark with could connote that his character has a dark personality and to show the audience that there is a bad side to this character, it also then shows a massive contrast to how the girls have described him as being very dreamy.  Proximity with other character help to construct his character as Edward Cullen doesn’t walk in with the rest of his family, he walks in on his own this shows that he doesn’t have many friends and that given that option he would prefer to be alone then with his family. When he sits down he doesn’t interact with his family which gives us the impression that he isn’t that close with them.

Camera work is very useful when constructing Edward Cullen’s character. When he first walks into the canteen the camera is at a mid-shot.  This then helps to show his facial expression and also his costume. His facial expression is very hard and stern which then gives us the impression he is a serious character, it also shows him walking in a slow manner which shows he is a very calm and majestic character. The camera only ever does a mid-shot when they first introducing him until he sit down it then cuts to a long shot this then helps us to see the relationship he has with his family.

All of these factors help to convey Edward Cullen's character and helps us to interupt him as a character.  As the film goes on are opinion of him may change or it may help us to understand the type of character we first saw him to be.

Clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObWiQPqbFqo

A detailed analysis of ‘Grease’ credits/titles

The film opening credits I have chosen to analyse is Grease.  Grease’s title credits are very unique credits. These title credits of the opening help setup expectations in the audience for the rest of the film.

The title credits first appear after some of the main footage which is very important to the storyline after the titles it then goes back to footage again.  The opening title credit are all cartoon animated, this is what makes the Grease titles unique as the rest of the film is set back in real life. It also then makes the titles fun and the audience will become entertained which would be the main purpose of Grease as it takes the genre of a musical.

The piece of important information that the audience gets is the name of the film ‘Grease’, the name grease is integrated into the titles, this is when the guy squeezes his hair product the name grease comes out then a blue car fades behind it and the production names come in. The car then gives clues to audience that cars may be significant in the film.

The next piece of important that the audience gets is the important cast members in the film. This are simply but affectively put into the titles as once a character enters the scene the  screen always fades to white and there cartoon animated picture fades in along with the name of the actor fading in and the character’s name fading in to. The Names of the cast members all come all in bright colours this then catches the eye of the audience and shows that the film will happy and will possibly have a happy ending.

The non-diegetic music in the background mirrors the name of the film ‘grease is the word’ and makes the movie more remember for all the audience. The music has a happy tone this also hints to the audience that  the film will be a happy film and there won’t be any serious issues in the film and makes the introduction to the film light hearted and easy for the audience to follow.

The next piece of important information the audience get is when the film is set. The date ‘1950’ is integrated into the back of the number plate, this is effective as the audience can start to build ideas about what the characters costume, the  setting of the film and the type of music that may be played throughout the film.

By showing each of the main characters in different situations it shows some of the characteristics each of the main characters hold. For example the character Rizzo keeps changes her outfit this shows that her character is into her looks and is very indecisive.  It also helps the audience to decide which characters they will like in the film and which ones they perhaps may take a disliking to.

The rest of the important information are all integrated onto billboards as the characters drive by them, this is like the extra character like the ‘pink ladies’ and the ‘T-birds’, the director and the producer of the film all things that are important to the audience, these are important as they can make the audience create judgments of the film this is because if they have watched a film by the same producer then they might think that it will be a similar film to the one they have watched.

As the titles end they fade back into the real life footage. This is an establishing shoot of the school this then hint to the audience where the film will be set and it also then helps the audience establish the target audience to teenagers as they would easily be able to relate to it as it is set in high school. The lighting is very bright this then reinforces the light hearted tone to the film and also makes the introduction have a happy mood. The happy mood then hints to the genre that it is a comedy/romance.

Target Audience

Establishing a target audience when making a media product is very important. When making a film the target audience is one of the first factors that is needed to be considered. A target audience is a group of people that will receive the product ad make sense of the product. There are many factors that I which produces will have to consider when choosing a target audience this will be factors like:

·         What does the audience expect from the text?

·         How will the text appeal and cater for to the target audience.

·         Are they male or female?

Another factor in which producers will need to consider when choosing the target audience is an age group I which they would like to appeal to. With this come film certificates. The producers can get help from the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) when choosing their target audience age group this is because if they want to include in there film strong violence and strong language they would be looking between 15 or 18 years.

Target Audience - Opening to Scream

An example of a film that is successful at targeting there audience is ‘Scream’.

By watching the opening 2 minutes of ‘Scream’ it is easy to see who their target audience is. The opening two minutes with an older teenage girl home alone. This then helps to meet their target audience this being older teenagers to young adults between 15-20 as they can relate to the teenage character in the narrative. With this the main character is home alone about to watch a ‘scary movie’ this also helps the teenage audience to relate to the character as it stereotypical of teenagers to watch films alone.

 The next thing that would appeal to their target audience would be the genre of the film because of the horror genre it appeals to the audience as it is stereotypical for teens to watch horror films we know this because is it this audiences that like thrills and tense scenes. We know the film is a horror genre because of the many horror conventions used in the opening alone these being things like venerable teenage girl, isolated setting, night time setting and jumpy bits in the film. 

The last thing in why ‘Scream’ is successful at targeting there audience is because of the age certificate I which ‘Scream’ is. ‘Scream’ has an age certificate of 15 this makes the film successful as they have targeted towards the right audience. If ‘Scream’ targeted the film toward young children it would not be successful as young children would not want to watch a horror film with blood and gore and it would also be very insensitive.  

All this is within the opening of the film therefore as a audience we can easily see the target audience.

Film Ideas

My first film idea is for a horror genre. The film will be based around the paranormal. The story will be based around one family, a mum and two sister. The family have to move into a new house because of what happened in there old house and town. The oldest sister Rosie got bullied into her old school and rumours got sent around the whole town about. So Rosie and her family run away to a new town and new house to start a new life. What the family don't know is the new house they've moved into isnt just a normal house and infact the house is haunted with evil spririts. The evil spritis in the house take over Rosie's mum and sister and possess there bodies. In order for her mum and sister to return to there normal state Rosie will have to save them. Will Rosie run away like she always does or will she save her family and face her fears.

My second film idea is for a romance genre. The story begins with a boy and a girl, they have been bestfriends since primary school and now live together. The girl is 27 and one day finds out that she has a terminal illness and she only has six more months to live. Knowing that she will never do all the things she wanted to do before she dies, her bestfriend is determined that she makes a bucket list and do everything she want to do before she dies. So one by one her and her bestfriend go on and one until they complete the list but what they don't realise is that they are start to have feelings for each other and are actually in love with each other. She manages to complete everything on her list accept one thing, marriage. The boy being madly in love with her wants to complete her list so asked her to marry him before she dies. As it gets to the end of time she starts to get weaker and weaker. You can see that she is on edge, nearly dead her husband promises never to love anyone else and that he will always live on in her memory.

My Third film idea is an action/horror. Will be based on a zombie apocalypse. One morning a man that has been in a coma for ten month wakes up on a day he will wish he hadn't. To survive in this world he has to be sronger then ever before. He will have to find food, find water supplies and other survivors. Through finding other uninfected he hears that there will be a rescue helicopter to take the uninfected to take them all to a secure location but the only problem is he has to reach the helicopter by 17:00. With being miles away from the rescue point will our protagonist be able to make it in time. Will he be able to defeat the infected on his way.

My Favourite film idea is the first idea this is because I enjoy watching horror films the best and also believe that are the most popular film genre is horror, this means that is will be the most enjoyable for the audience to watch. I also believe that my film idea is unique as even though there are many paranormal films out there there are none with this storyline which makes it interesting.

Synopsis of my film idea

When one family have to move out of there pefecrt family home, the reason has to be serious. Catherine a single mum is try to do the best to protect and keep her family safe. When she  finds out that her oldest daughter Rosie is being bullied she has to put it to a stop. She wants to stop all the rumours that will hurt Rosie and protect her from all bad. To do this she decides to move her family to the other side of the country to the small region of suffolk even if it means making her yonuger sister move to. But when the family move into the house it isn't as lovely as they first thought, what they don't know is what they can't see will hurt them s they house is haunted with evil spirits. One by one Rosie's family gets possessed by the spirits that live at the house to. Now Rosie has to make the biggest decision of her life. Does chose to save her family and face her biggest fear or run away like she always does.

Opening Two minutes

The first two minutes of my opening will start like a flash forward. There is a close up of the main character Rosie running, her facial expression carries the look of worry and being scared. Her house is in the background and is blurred out so that the main focal point of the camera is the girl. Her house is isolated from anything else that then is a convention of the horror genre. This then gives hints that the girl is running from the house. The camera then cuts to a mid-shot this is so you can see the girl’s whole costume. You can also see by her actions now that she is clearly running. It then cuts to a point of view shot this helps to give the audience a more personal feel  and as the camera is handheld it emphasis that she is running fast.

 The camera then cuts back to the beginning of the film where there are a mid-shot of the main character Rosie and her sister. The first piece of dialogue comes in here. (Darcy) ‘You looking forward to starting new school today Rosie’ (Rosie) ‘Be nice to have a fresh start, making new friends is hard for me though.’ (Darcy)  ‘Just act yourself and I’m sure you will be fine.’ The Production Company then fades in really jolty in black writing.

 It then cuts back to the fast forward of a high angle of Rosie this then making Rosie look vulnerable.  Her facial expression is still scared which shows the audience that she is running away from her fears.

It then cuts back to the beginning where Rosie and her sister continue to talk. (Rosie) ‘That’s what I’m scared of; if I act myself people are guaranteed not to like me.’ (Darcy) ‘You know that’s not true, just have confidence in yourself.’ At the point where they are both speaking again the title of the director fades in jolty in black writing. The black writing connotes with death and evil and therefore gives clues that my film opening is a horror.

 It then cuts back to the flash forward of Rosie running. The camera is at a close up therefore we can see Rosie scared expression as, as she is still running the audience can get the impression that are main protagonist is running from something or someone.

 It then cuts back to the beginning again. There is a graphic match of Rosie close up of Rosie’s face where she looks nervous. (Rosie) ‘I hope I’ll be fine.’.  this then gives clues to the audience that Rosie will not ‘be fine’.

It then cuts back to the flash forward of Rosie still running. The camera is at an over the shoulder shot. This then helps to give the impression something is watching her or chasing her. The Producers name fades in jumpy the writing is still in black. The camera then does a point of view shot this then gives us Rosie’s point of view making it personal. To highlight Rosie is still running the camera will be hand held. The camera then does a horizontal pan to the left then to right this then emphasises that Rosie  is very much still alone and in an isolated setting.  The two main actor’s names fade in jumpy to go along with the jumpy/Jolty them to the titles.

 It then cuts back to A mid shot of Rosie and her sister Darcy walking out the door. This then helps to shows the proximity between the characters and that they share a close relationship.  (Darcy) ‘Guess we can’t be late for our first day.’.  The camera then zooms to a close up of the door where the name of the film possession fades in Jumpy In big bold black writing.

 For the last time the camera goes back to the flash-forward. There is a mid-shot of Rosie sat up against a tree with her head in her hands. The camera then tracks round to the front of Rosie. The last shot is a mid-shot of Rosie still crying this then makes her character seem weak. We can now see Rosie crying so it poses the question to the audience ‘why is she cry?’.  Therefore making the audience hooked and wanting to watch the rest of the film to find out.  During the flash forward there will be no dialogue just Rosie’s heavy breathing. Soft slow non-diegetic sound will be played throughout the flash forward to help set the tone of the film. In the bits where the characters are speaking there will be quiet tense music this will slowly build up until the name of the film fades in.