Filming detination photos

OUTLINE OF STORY

Research into filming destinations

We are looking into filming at the nene valley railway for the part of the girls journey to her university. Through looking at the website and checking the train timetables, we found out which date we should film on, but we also need to ring them up and double check, the number is on the website.

Mise-en-scene

Mise-en-scene

Set:

Outside on a bench, Harry and Faith are talking about her going to university. (Daylight) high key

Cuts to her getting in a car to go to the train station (Daylight)  high key

Nene Valley railway for when girl gets on train to go off to her university. (Without getting the Peterborough sign in the shot as this is meant to be another train station. (Daylight)

The next place will be peterborough train station where she walks out of the station and is lost. She gets out a map to see where abouts she is.  (Night time) low key

After this She will be walking towards town park which is near by the place she is staying for the university. (Night time) low key

When she gets towards town park she walks down a dark path by the park, where her stalker grabs her and walks her out of the shot. (Night time) low key

Harry(the boyfriend of girl going to university) sits at home waiting for the call from the girl which he doesnt get. (House) Light

PROPS

Suitcase- For girl to go uni with

Phones-

Costume

(Pictures of characters in their costume)

Looking into previous years opening video's

Through looking at other makings of a film openings, noticeably most of them have the same genre of horror or thriller. In our idea we decided  on doing a romance along with a thriller, where the girl eventually gets kidnapped by someone wearing black.


After noticing many of the same genre video's and kidnappers wearing all black, we have decided to changet he kidnapper to be quite casual, and able to see their face. When doing this we will have to make the character look scary in some way, and for them to appear in the background of each scene.

Storyboard

Story board of basic outline of our idea, by Karina Mayes

Script

Weve been working on a script now for a few weeks, and we've come up with a final one, still with the lighting and sound to be added in.

UNDECIDED

Characters:
Faith (18) - The girl, who goes off to university, gets grabbed by person all in black.
Harry (18) - Boyfriend of the girl going to university
Attacker- Wearing all black and grabs girl when she is lost looking for where she needs to be.
Lola (18) - Friend of girl going university, saying goodbye
Passer by at train station- Girl asks for the way to Peterborough University.

Synopsis

Faith is a young adult aged 18 going off to university and has told her boyfriend, Harry. She thinks it would be best they break up where as he believes differently. The opening will be of the couple being happy, spending their last day together, when things change and Harry expresses how they should stay together but Faith doesn’t know.

Before getting in a taxi to the train station, she says her final goodbyes to her best friend and her boyfriend. Faith says when she should arrive at where she’s staying which she says is 9pm. Harry tells her to ring him as soon as she gets there or at the most before 10.30pm, if not, he will assume she has definitely decided they should not stay together.

Faith goes to her local train station (Nene valley), which is deserted, foreshadowing danger. She gets on the train. Then it goes to the Peterborough train station where she has a map out as she is lost. She asks a passerby where to go and how long it will take, which is stated it will take around 20 minutes. She makes her way, and then near by the university there is a scary park (Town Park). She is undecided of which way to go but she takes the quicker route by the park, this then leads to danger, and she is grabbed by someone...

Harry waits by his phone, at 9, and then cuts to nearly 11. Harry shows unhappy emotions.

In the start, Faith and Harry are spending their last day together before Faith is off to university. (Song playing: Example- Anything, chorus) (Inside house)

Romantic setting

Harry: If only you didn’t have to go so far away
Faith: I know, but it’s the best university that does the course which I want to do, as I’ve told you plenty of times before, I’m sorry
Harry: Yeah... I guess, just wish it didn’t have to end like this
Faith: I didn’t say I want us to end, I’m just undecided on whether we should stay together, I mean, I would hardly ever see you, and it would be horrible!
Harry: But we can make it work!
Faith: I don’t know
Harry: Please just think about it
Faith: I need to go get my bags sorted, come on (starts walking, holding her hand out)

Cuts to Faiths house, when she is saying goodbye to family

(Getting into Taxi, hugs her friend goodbye)

Lola: How were the goodbyes with the family?
Faith: Ah, upsetting but they are coming up to Peterborough to visit in about a month so
 Lola: That’s good then, ok well message me ok
Faith: Yes Yes I will! I’ll be at the place I’m staying for nine, hopefully the journey wont drag to much,
Lola: Oh bless you! I’m going to miss you
Faith: I’ll miss you too

Sitting inside taxi, Harry pops his head in

Harry: Look, you’re getting there at about 9 right
Faith: Yes nine
Harry: Right, well make sure you ring me after then, if not then ill assume you’ve decided you want us to end...
Faith: Ok
Harry: If you haven’t rung by 11 then that’s it ok?

Taxi is starting to go

Faith: I love you
Harry: I love you too

At the train station, deserted. She waits for ages as train comes late.

Faith waits for the train, which then comes; she sits on it, looking depressed out of the window.
(Receives text from Lola, ‘what’s going on with you and Harry then? Xxxxxxxxxxx’  Reply’s with ‘was going to split, but I’m gonna miss him way too much, telling him when i arrive at Peterborough that I want to stay with him’

Arrives at destination, cuts to her walking out of Peterborough train station, looks at the time on her phone which is 9.50pm. She has a map because she is a bit lost so asks a passerby which way towards Peterborough (street name of where she is staying)

Faith: Excuse me, could you help me, I’m a bit lost
Passer by: Of course
Faith: do you know the way towards this place? (Shows note saying information on where she is staying) I’m already very late as it is.
Passerby: Oh dear,  Yep, go straight down this path and over the bridge, towards the city centre then go straight on and you will see some signs
Faith: Ah ok, Thank you
Passerby: Alright, that’s ok

Cuts to walking by Town Park, not concentrating attempts to cross road but car is coming, foreshadowing danger.

 Faith walks towards the town park, where it is very dark and deserted. She looks at her phone for the time which is now, nearly 11. She is walking, looking quite lost, when unexpectedly a person in black jumps out at her and puts their hand over her mouth, dragging her away.

Cuts to Harry looking at the clock which states 11.10pm. Harry is now assuming she has decided not to be with him.

Presenting our ideas to the class

We prersented the idea's to class who helped us agree some of the idea's wouldnt work.

Camera shots, sound, editing, and titles we may be interested in using in the film opening

Camera Shots:
 Using an establishing wide shot would be successful because it enables viewers' to see the characters' surroundings, and it adds to the continuity of the film opening itself as it shows what atmosphere the characters' are in. Also linking to this the extreme long shot is based from a distance to show the enviroment/state of the scene. A close-up of the main characters' faces would be helpful so viewers' can pick up the facial expressions and features on the characters' faces. Similarily an extreme close-up of the characters' faces/objects will help viewers identify specific features. An over-the-shoulder shot will engage viewers as it will see characters' and objects from their point of view. This is similar to the point of view shot where the camera is based at where the other person would be. A long shot may be helpful if we wanted the background to be shown as well as the whole person and a medium shot might be helpful if we wanted to base the camera directly at the top half of the character and we want a lack of background.

Sound:
 We may decide to use diegetic sound if we want sound that can be heard by the characters within a scene/part of an imaginary world, or we could use non-diegetic sound if we didn't want the characters'/viewers to hear any sound. We may use musical components specifically for the scene to help give viewers' an idea of the characters' emotions. General sound effects may be used if we wanted sounds that are added to the opening before it is 'released'.

Editing:
 A straight cut may be useful because it is very common in films and can be used in ever genre. A fade-out may be good because it will highlight the end of the scene. A dissolve cut could make the opening look more sophisticated as one image is slowly brought in beneath another image, it also highlights the fact that the next scene is similar. Also, a wipe cut is when part of the screen moves to wipe across the other, this could signify that it is the start of a new scene. Jump cuts are only popular in horror/action genres but are used to bring the audience's attention into focus on something specific very suddenly. We could also change how we want to order the scene, a soviet montage is where the shots do not follow a logical order but are almost put together - this makes the viewers' put the images in their head manually for them to work it out for themselves. However, a graphic match is when the film maker chooses to order shots in a sequence to create a smooth transition into the next shot.

Titles:
Because we will be doing a opening to the film, we thought it would be interesting if we added titles to the end of the opening saying "BASSLINE PRODUCTIONS". Or at the start of the opening you could put the same quote as it is introducing the opening.

Disadvantages of idea's

Idea one:

Old woman (aged 80-90) disguised as a young girl (aged 19)

Would not work, due to way to much editing and would need special effect resources etc which we cant get hold of. Also getting an actor for the old lady. Overall would not work at all.

Idea two:

Young couple coping with one going too university, gets kidnapped

Could work, with a few difficulties such as distinguishing between two cities, and showing the kidnap. Would need to be at night time for kidnap, also considering continuity and different shots.

Idea three:

Initial idea's

Idea one:
Old woman (aged 80-90) disguised as a young girl (aged 19) continuously changes her facial features after killing/haunting someone so people do not find out her identity. The victims are young adults aged 16-17 who are researching to find out if ghosts/haunted people are real. When they find out that June (the old woman who disguises herself)is haunted they set themselves up to confront her. What they don't understand is that June reads minds and she knows every plot they think of, June is therefore angry at the teens for finding her out and thinks of multiple ways to kill them brutally.
June Is on average around 80-90 years old, but she disguises herself as a very attractive young girl aged 19. The reason being is because she is scared to be old and is secretly very self-concious. Everytime she begins to feel jealous of a young teenager she ends up killing them

Idea two:

Romance/Crime

Couple coping with one going off to university. The girl goes to university and the boy still wants their relationship to carry on so they try. 

The girl gets in her car and goes off to train station, when she arrives in the destination  of where the university is, she gets kidnapped by someone in the street, the boy try’s contacting his girlfriend, but she doesn’t reply, assuming she doesn’t care anymore.

Props and set:

Train station

Town Park

House

Problems:

Showing the distinctions between Peterborough and somewhere else (the place where they originally lived)

Getting off the train

Investigating how we can do the kidnapping scene

Idea 3:

Coming up with our film idea's, looking at the genre we want to do

Final production name

After many ideas of names we finally came up with, Bassline Productions:

The opening title sequence to Scott Pilgrim Vs. the world

The opening title sequence on a timeline

Scott Pilgrim Vs the world, 9 frames

Research into the right audience for our film opening

Through choosing the right audience for a film opening, we did some research into what the age ratings of films, to help choose the right audience for a film.
We looked into the website, BBFC (British Board of Film Classification)

It explains how the choose the ratings for films and what films have recently been rated.





We looked into the ratings of films:

It is impossible to predict what might upset any particular child. But a ‘U’ film should be suitable for audiences aged four years and over. ‘U’ films should be set within a positive moral framework and should offer reassuring counterbalances to any violence, threat or horror. If a work is particularly suitable for a pre-school child to view alone, this will be indicated in the Consumer Advice.



General viewing, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children.
Unaccompanied children of any age may watch. A ‘PG’ film should not disturb a child aged around eight or older. However, parents are advised to consider whether the content may upset younger or more sensitive children.



Exactly the same criteria are used to classify works at ‘12A’ and ‘12’. These categories are awarded where the material is suitable, in general, only for those aged 12 and over. Works classified at these categories may upset children under 12 or contain material which many parents will find unsuitable for them.
The ‘12A’ category exists only for cinema films. No one younger than 12 may see a ‘12A’ film in a cinema unless accompanied by an adult, and films classified ‘12A’ are not recommended for a child below 12. An adult may take a younger child if, in their judgement, the film is suitable for that particular child. In such circumstances, responsibility for allowing a child under 12 to view lies with the accompanying adult.
The ‘12’ category exists only for video works. No one younger than 12 may rent or buy a ‘12’ rated video work.

No-one younger than 15 may see a ‘15’ film in a cinema. No-one younger than 15 may rent or buy a ‘15’ rated video work.

No-one younger than 18 may see an ‘18’ film in a cinema. No-one younger than 18 may rent or buy an ‘18’ rated video work.





We also, personally asked people what their favorite film genres were. Majority of people said Action(Mainly boys). There are many different genres in which we need to consider for our main film opening:

Action films usually include high energy, big-budget physical stunts and chases, possibly with rescues, battles, fights, escapes, destructive crises (floods, explosions, natural disasters, fires, etc.), non-stop motion, spectacular rhythm and pacing, and adventurous, often two-dimensional 'good-guy' heroes battling 'bad guys' - all designed for pure audience escapism.               

Adventure films are usually exciting stories, with new experiences or exotic locales, very similar to or often paired with the action film genre. They can include historical spectacles, searches or expeditions for lost continents, "jungle" and "desert" epics, treasure hunts, disaster films, or searches for the unknown.

Comedies are light-hearted plots consistently and deliberately designed to amuse and provoke laughter with  jokes, etc, by exaggerating the situation, the language, action, relationships and characters.

Crime (gangster) films are developed around the sinister actions of criminals, particularly bankrobbers, underworld figures, or people               who operate outside the law, stealing and murdering their way through life. Criminal and gangster films are often categorized as film noir or detective mystery films.

Dramas are serious, plot-driven presentations, portraying realistic characters, settings, life situations, and stories involving intense character development and interaction. Usually, they are not focused on special-effects, comedy, or action, Dramatic films are probably the largest film genre, with many subsets.

Horror films are designed to frighten and to invoke our hidden worst fears, often in a terrifying, shocking finale, while captivating and entertaining us at the same time in a cathartic experience. They are often combined with science fiction when the menace or monster is related to a corruption of technology, or when Earth is threatened by aliens. The fantasy and supernatural film genres are not usually synonymous with the horror genre. There are many sub-genres of horror: slasher, teen terror and/or serial killers.

Musical/dance films are cinematic forms that emphasize full-scale scores or song and dance routines in a significant way (usually with a musical or dance performance integrated as part of the film narrative), or they are films that are centered on combinations of music, dance, song or choreography.              

Sci-fi films are often quasi-scientific, visionary and imaginative  complete with heroes, aliens, distant planets, impossible quests, improbable settings, fantastic places, great dark and shadowy villains, futuristic technology, unknown and unknowable forces, and extraordinary monsters either created by mad scientists or by nuclear havoc. They are sometimes an offshoot of fantasy films. Science fiction often expresses the potential of technology to destroy humankind and easily overlaps with horror films, particularly when technology or alien life forms become malevolent.

War (and anti-war) films acknowledge the horror and heartbreak of war, letting the actual combat fighting (against nations or humankind) on land, sea, or in the air provide the primary plot or background for the action of the film. They may include stories of military operations, and training.

Analysing film openings and their genres

We are looking into different film genres and the openings the their films.

Dirty Dancing(1987)
http://youtube/8Lwl0LO2VkU (embedding disabled)
Opening scene
Genre: Romance
This is a romantic opening of a film, quite an old film but shows the calmness and peace of the between the main characters, Baby and her father. Also baby mentions that she 'never thought she would find a guy as great as her dad' which could forshadow she will find love during the film.


The hangover(2009)
http://youtube/BAc_Z442voA (EMBEDDING DISABLED)
Opening scene
Genre: Comedy
This film starts with a disaster, due to a couple getting married that day, but the man is with his friends in a different city, so we can see from the begginning that the film is going to be funny and things are going to wrong for the characters.


The Quantim of Solice(2008)
Opening scene
Genre: Action



This film starts with an adventurous car chase, which gets the viewers engaged, because if the film starts with this exiting chaos, then it must be like this most of the way through which shall be very entertaining for its audience.


The Grudge(2004)
The opening
Genre: Horror



The opening to this film comes across as being scary as at the start, a couple are having a general happy conversation in their apartment, the man decides then to push him self over the balcony, killing himself, which then leaves the audience in confusion to why he did this, and they will want to find out more to this out of the blue suicide. Also the use of the font stlye in the opening credits is in red, showing signs of blood, death, most deffinatly accuring in the film.

Preliminary exercise

This is the in the final preliminary, each member of our group attempted to make a video and this was the final one because it was simply the best one. We also added some music to it which fades as the conversation is taking place. Although this is not marked, we did try making it quite good but as we are not used  to the software in which we created the video on, it was not all that good however it will be used to help us improve for ourt final production.

Coming up with a Production name

We are trying to come up with a name, which we are finding to be quite difficult. So far we have come up with the idea of using all of our anitials and thinking of a word each to go with that, but we found it may not sound media related. We shall now move on to annalying different film openings with the genres and come back to a production name later.

Opening to a film, showing the genre

The opening to this film shows the troubles of a tennager showing the right audience for this film would be teenage girls, maybe not boys. The opening scene also shows the funny side of this film which makes the audience want to watch more.

The purpose of a film opening

The purpose of a film opening is to show the genre of the film to its audience. Its also to get the audience to want to keep watching as it will leave us hanging with something that we will later find out about in the film, so its purpose is to keep people watching.

Codes and Conventions used in film openings

Codes and conventions used in film opening are for the audience to get a clear idea of what the film is going to be based on or to give us a head start on what the film is going to be like for example a film with the genre of romance may start with a couple together talking about love. This basically just opens the film with an imput of what its all about.

Codes and Conventions

Codes & Conventions are when a genre has several different ways of interpreting their features which is how we classify different media genres into groups.
Code is a rule that is very strict and can very rarely be broken, for example; character codes, plot codes, structural codes, cultural codes and production codes.
Conventions are habits or ways of doing things, this can change as a genre develops but if changes are made too quickly then the audience may not understand what is going on.

Camera angles

17 again, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJUjW9GMlnI&feature=related

Continuity

Continuity is quick camera change, from different angles showing different persons, plot, objects, places and events in the same scene. Continuity is particularly a concern in the production of film and television due to the difficulty of rectifying an error in continuity after shooting has wrapped. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0X2ZrwPMaaI

180 degree rule

The 180° rule is a film technique used to show that two characters in the same scene should always have the same left/right relationship to each other.  It is called crossing the line if the camera passes over the imaginary axis. The new shot, from the opposite side is known as a reverse angle. The 180 degree rule enables the audience to visually connect with unseen movement happening around and behind the immediate subject. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBPw9C57TuU&feature=related

Shot/reverse shot

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLkUHZ1qips Shot/reverse shot is a technique used to show one character looking at another character, usually two characters in convosation. The shot is usually over the shoulder of one character, which are not shown as much as the character they are looking at. The characters shown facing opposite eachother shows the audience/viewer that the two characters are looking at eachother. (embedding disabled)

Match on action

Match on action is used to show the strong continuity of actions between two shots. The two different objects/people in the example from youtube I have used in this post, is the shot of the book and the person picking it up. It does not fully show the person at one time and if so, the book is also included in the shot. The book has a shot on its on showing the main objest/person in this example.

1

I'm jade lowbridge and i have just started my A level Media Studies. I will be working on this project with my media partner Karina Mayes. This year we will be learning about specific contempory media technologies such as, producing two paired media artefacts from a series of briefs, involving progression from a preliminary to a more fully realised piece of work. The breifs i am using involve cover print, video and websites.
Our preliminary exercise involves a character walking into a silent room up to a door, opening it and sitting directly opposite another character. We must use the following techniques in our video:
-Shot/reverse shot
-Match on action
-180 ° rule
-Continuity, which i will later explain in different blogs