Film Opening

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

From the beginning of the course until now I have learnt a lot.

Starting from the continuity exercise and the Life on Mars exercise which is posted on my blog I have gained technological knowledge through specific shots and order of shots that I have been taught. I have also learnt the meaning of different keywords and how to use different technologies throughout the course. For example, mise en scene is a French word to describe everything within the shot. I have also learnt the rules when recording such as using 180 degree angle.

The continuity exercise allowed me to learn about the 180 degree rule when I'm filming so that the shots look right and all flows seamlessly. Editing was a key theory in this exercise, as I had to ensure each shot was in the correct order and that the length of each shot was right to create one single, smooth piece of action. In doing this I had to use the cutting tools to help me aid my way through cutting pieces of filming out that were not necessary.

From the Life on Mars exercise, I learnt about timing so that each shot fit perfectly with the original version and matched the timing of the sound.

Also I developed my knowledge of editing the shots at the correct timing so that they would flow well, but also so they matched the music and sound effects.

In my media product of my film opening, I have learnt the importance of the micro elements such as, editing, sound, lighting and mise en scene. I have used these elements to attract a large audience, including my target audience of teenage girls and boys.

I had to think about many factors whilst creating my film opening which all contributed to my finishing product. These elements all made my media product look realistic and enjoyable to watch.  I also had to choose audio that suited the genre of the product I created.  Finally I had to add my titles to my product to show who featured in my filming and all the background workers that helped me. This all added to my learning and understanding of my media product

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

Throughout the practical side of AS media i have explored and learnt about new technologies which have gained me many skills which have enabled me to create my title sequence. 

Here are the main technologies that i have gained skills from:

How did you attract/address your target audience?

During my opening sequence i tried to include factors that would attract my target audience of teenage girls. To do this i added in shots of make up which would straight away attract the target audience as this is something a stereotypical girl would use.
Other factors that would attract a teenage girl would be the school uniform that the main character is wearing.
The setting of the first shots is also in a girl bedroom. This is somewhere many girls hang out together, therefore this would address teenage girls.

I interviewed a teenage girl who watched my film opening to see exactly what she thinks about my title sequence, this is what she had to say:

What most appealed to you in 'Imperfections'?
"I felt the most appealing feature within your title sequence was the fact it was set in an 'every-day' environment, this would attract many girls such as myself, as i spend a lot of my time at home, in my bedroom. Also the make up and mirror used in the sequence were used very well as i often put make up on in the mirror."

Does this film opening remind you of other films that are in the market?
"Yes. Even though i haven't watched the whole film yet, i can imagine it being a great film for teenage girls like me to watch. I can imagine the film being a lot like other films such as, mean girls or 27 dresses. These are both romantic comedies that i have enjoyed watching."

Do you think you would relate to the main character of Sloane, from what you have already seen?
"Yes, her character looks friendly and quirky. I enjoy these characteristics and i can't wait to watch the rest of the film."

Who would be the audience for your media product?

To help me find out who my target audience would be, i interviewed a typical teenage girl and asked her a few questions about her favourite movie genre. This helped me think about what i was going to base my media product around and how it would attract my target audience of teenage girls. This made the planning for my media product much easier as i was able to base the information i gathered around teenage girls.

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

Columbia pictures would distribute my media product as films such as 'Friends with benefits' were distributed by them. I think they would distribute my media product as it is a similar film to friends with benefits. It is the same genre (romantic comedy) so therefore may like my ideas.

20th century fox may also distribute my film as they have also distributed many films like mine, such as, 27 dresses (romantic comedy).
These are both big distributors that are popular in today's movie scene.

I feel i would choose 20th century fox as my final choice of distributor as they are very popular and after a release in cinemas i would be able to release my film on DVD and blue-ray.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

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

Risk assessment

When filming it was important that I was not doing anything that would put myself, my actors and camera crew in any sort of danger or risk. I had to ensure that all the safety measures were taken place to ensure that everyone was safe in our surroundings whilst filming.

To do this I planned out how each shot would be filmed so that it ran smoothly and nobody would be at risk of harm.

By doing a risk assessment before filming it made the filming process much quicker and safer for everyone involved

Equipment

The equipment that I chose to use was a video camera and a tripod. These pieces of equipment had to be transported from the school premises to the house I was filming at. To ensure that the camera and tripod were not damaged and kept safe, they were kept in the correct bags which I looked after responsibly.

Whilst the filming went on inside the house, I had to keep all the equipment together and tidy, out of any young children, or any pets reach, so that the equipment would not get damaged and so that they were safe. Furthermore, I had to make sure no leads were in our way whilst filming, in case of any accidents happening during the filming.

Keeping ourselves out of risk

It was important that all the people involved in the filming and the filming crew were kept safe. To ensure everyone was kept safe we all planned out where the scenes would be filmed and made sure nothing was in reach of harming us. This made the filming process a speedy process for us all as no obstructions were in our way.

Once everything was checked and certified I was then able to start filming.          

                        

Shot sheet

This table shows some of the shots i have involved within my film opening and the locations that i used them in.

Storyboard

This is a storyboard that i created on Final cut. It includes shots that i first planned to use in my media product of my title sequence. Some of the shots i have in this clip have been changed or edited, but this gave me an idea of what i was going to base my film around. To create this story board i had to draw all the shots by hand. Take photographs of the images, upload them onto final cut and edit them in the correct order. Once this was all done i was then able to edit the text onto the shots.

This was a helpful task as it enabled me to plan and structure my title sequence which saved me time.

Todorovs theory and my story plot

Following Todorovs theory, I was able to construct a suitable pitch for my film opening. The beginning of the pitch is the genre, in which I have decided mine to be a romantic comedy, as this is my favorite movie genre; I think other girls in my age range also enjoy romantic comedies.

Constructing my linear structure using Todorovs theory, I was able to create an equilibrium and disequilibrium story line to help me when constructing the structure of my film.

Equilibrium- My equilibrium begins with a long shot, which pans out onto the main character of the movie. This is where we are first introduced to her. She is looking at herself in the mirror, trying to make herself look pretty. She is also dressed in a school uniform. This helps the audience identify the characters age range, and helps us understand where the film may be heading.

Disequilibrium- The disequilibrium interrupts the equilibrium as she discovers she is running late for school. This suggests to the audience that her character may be a quite ditsy and forgetful, bringing in the comical side to her character. Throughout the film we discover the character is a clever and quirky, yet she fails to be noticed by her crush. As we connect with the characters we discover that her crush may also have feelings for her too.

Equilibrium- The film finishes with the two characters confessing the emotions for one another. The film ends on a happy note with the two characters going on a date, whilst the high school popular girl bullies are left in shock.

Locations and permission to record in the area chosen

In order to film my title sequence i had to choose a location of where i was going to film. In order to do this i messaged the home owner to ask permission in filming.
Once the home owner agreed on the dates and times of filming, i was then able to start my filming process.

Booking equipment

Before i started the filming process, i had to book equipment out to use. Using blogger i published a post onto my teachers (Miss Excel) blog, in which i asked to use a Camera, and tripod over the course of weekend. I had to book the equipment so that other students could also use equipment when necessary and so that my teacher could get the equipment ready for me to use, which was a great help as this enabled me to film quickly and efficiently.

Log line

• Title - Imperfections
• Genre - Comedy / romcom
• Main characters - Geeky girl 

The high school geek falls in love with the new boy that has just joined her school

She changes from a well mannered, clever but shy person to an arrogant and self centered show off, thinking this would win him over.
The guy is delighted when he discovers she has a major crush on him

Her luck strikes gold when the high school hunk confronts her and feels the same way

My title sequence order and popular directors

Title sequence in order

1. Pictures presents
2. A ‘….’ Production
3. A Daniella Carter film
4. Title
5. Casting x5 (minimum)
6. Casting by
7. Costume designer
8. Music and sound by
9. Co producer
10. Film editor
11. Production designers
12. Photography
13. Produced by
14. Written by
15. Directed by 

Friends with benefits was directed, written and produced by Will Gluck. He is a director who made his break through with Friends with benefits and now works for Sony Pictures.

No strings attached was directed by Ivan Reitman, he is a canadian film producer and director. He is the owner of the 'Montecito pictures' company. No strings attached had many producers including Gary Barber and Jonathon Glickman.

The Bridget jones diary was directed by Sharon Maguire. The book was written by her close friend and one of the characters in Bridget Jones - Shazza - is based on Maguire.

Research into Romantic Comedies

Log lines for recent Romantic comedies


Friends with benefits (2011) - While trying to avoid the clichés of Hollywood romantic comedies, Dylan and Jamie soon discover however that adding the act of sex to their friendship does lead to complications.

No strings attached (2011) - A guy and girl try to keep their relationship strictly physical, but it's not long before they learn that they want something more.

27 Dresses (2008) - The old "always the bridesmaid never the bride" chestnut gets another run down the aisle from the makers of The Devil Wears Prada. Knocked Up's Katherine Heigl is the perennial bouquet-holder whose nuptial hopes are dashed when her sister moves in on the man she's earmarked for husband material. Confetti-light comedy with a scene-stealing turn from Judy Greer.

What happened in Vegas (2008) - A man and a woman are compelled, for legal reasons, to live life as a couple for a limited period of time. At stake is a large amount of money.

The Holiday (2006) - Two women troubled with guy-problems swap homes in each other's countries, where they each meet a local guy and fall in love.

Purpose of the opening of a film - untouchables

The extract starts off with a violin playing a sharp note and a final bang of a drum, this makes the audience recognise when the film is starting. This loud bang is played when the title of the film comes on the screen.
there is then silence whilst the storyline of the movie comes onto the screen. This gives the audience an idea of the background idea of the movie. The film titles gives the background information of the 1930's in Chicago. this links very well into the next scene we see from the film where the bar explodes.
This is accompanied by a high angle shot of Al Capne and his interviewers and servants in an enclosed room.
Diegetic sounds of the characters conversing with each other are then heard. We can tell who the main character is because he is the centre of attention, centred in the middle of the room by servants and interviewers. But although the cameras are in a high angle it suggests because he is beneath the camera, that he should be in Hell, as his character is a villain. The camera then zooms in to a mid shot of Al Capone whilst he is getting his beard razored. When the barber draws blood accidently from Al Capone's face, we see from the facial expressions, who is of a higher status. Already from these factors within the film we can identify that the film may be a gangster type film, with a lot of violence.

title sequences

Throughout the two films i have investigated on title sequences, i have found that the amount of people listed in them can vary depending on the amount of actors, producers and the production.
The first film i investigated was 'Alice in Wonderland' the new edition. This involved 10 casting actors, whereas in the second film i investigated which was 'Texas Chainsaw mascara' had slightly less, at 6 actors. This suggests through different genres of films, or the budget can change the dependancy of well known casting. If the casting is very good they may want to project the fact they have these actors featuring in their film so add it to their title sequence.
The three main roles added to each of the title sequences that i have noticed appear the most are the production company, producers (co and executive) and who the music was by.

The different roles within the films are

• Animation sequence
• producers 
• production company
• type of film e.g Nex entertainment, walt disney
• The cast
• Casting by
• co-producers
• producers
• executive producers
• music by
• costume by
• make up by
• director of photography
• title sequence by
• title
• written by
• film editor

These are all interlinked with the film. They give us extra information on how the film was created.

The Alice in Wonderland title sequence was made as a cartoon even though the film is not cartoon.

The texas chainsaw massacre title sequence was done using extracts of the film and pictures.

these are two very different type of title sequences but linked well to the genre of the film. 

When creating my title sequence i will take into account the different types of roles i have to add within it.

Continuity exercise

This work contains my filming of continuity exercise for part of my AS Media coursework.
To create this work i booked a camera and tripod using blogger so that my Media teacher was able to provide me with the correct and relevant equipment to start the exercise.
When i entered my lesson i went and collected the equipment to promptly start filming.
The first step of filming was to find a classroom which was free where i could start filming without any distractions. I then found a partner to work with and once i had done that i was able to begin.
I began by setting up the tripod and camera and fixing them securely together.
The filming required me using particular camera shots and angles, in my filming i used match on match, 180 degree rule and shot reverse shot. The aim was to fit these three kind of shots into my extract so that the extract would run smoothly.
I started off by making my partner move the door handle downwards whilst standing outside the room she was going into. I filmed only her body walking towards the door, and moving the door handle downwards. My next shot was from inside of the room where we see my partner entering the room and walking towards the other character featuring in my extract.
I then made sure i used the 180 degree rule accurately and stayed filming on the same side as all the other shots were taken so that the filming would look correct and ran continuously smooth.
In my extract you then see Jessica (my second character) speaking a line. My camera then moves to character number one (Natalie) who speaks a line. Then back to Jessica again. This clearly shows me using shot reverse shot, whilst staying within the 180 degree rule.
Once i had done my filming i had to upload my filming to the Mac computers and edit what i had created, therefor i was able to delete any unnecessary parts to the filming that i needed to remove.
Lastly, i added a fade in fade out effect at the end of it to make the shot look more realistic and linear.
i then compressed it all and added it to my blog.