Opening sequence

Opening sequence

I analysed 21 jump street opening sequence by looking at common conventions.

http://issuu.com/taramann/docs/mediaopening

Social realism timeline

British social Realsim definition

British Social Realism is an accurate insight of the reality of living in Britain, we see common themes and issues being dealt with such as Drug use, Alcholo, Undre-age realtionships and Voilence through un-varshed camera work. We commonly see characters from a working class background.

http://issuu.com/taramann/docs/timeline

Kes  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LCod-iVNHM                                                               

Poor cow    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMKtVUfl0d0

Quadraphenia     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aF-glrpjqog

Made in Britain   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePPRHgnTHXw

Scum    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yn7o35NcJwo

Trainspotting    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Naf_WiEb9Qs

Nil by Mouth    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiA7eRQLohU

Kidulthood    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwovziwEI6I                                                                  

Bigga than ben    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjLboA4ou8g

Production log one

Production log

The first week of our coursework has helped me as I have built up an image of how opening sequence work, as we looked at past students work and analysed opening sequence.

Looking at the mark scheme has allowed me to see what areas I must focus on to gain as many marks as possible. It has also allowed me to see how the examiner views work and where they award the marks which means I can focus on area and build them up to target a British audience and have conventions of a British social realism.

Looking at past students works has helped me because I found it much easier to see what standard i need to work at and to see how and what they found difficult to put into a 2 minute sequence. It also helped me as I can see what kind of issues they used and themes, I feel I can also learn from their mistakes because we gave each of the sequence a mark we believed was correct. I was marking them too low which helped me see that you can gain marks from little things like the continuity of the sequence.

Looking at their past work this will help see what I can do better in my work, I found it was the little things that added to their work. Overall I feel this week will help as I know what to include and where, like the title and credit should come the beginning rather then at the end, due to the sequence looking like a trailer. This week gave me an insight to opening sequences of movies and how they are effective and not effective.

From looking at other peoples work I will avoid copying music which is not copyright free and make sure that I target an British audience through British issues and convention, creating a British social realism. I will also avoid shots which aren't solid, we saw some shot in past students work which were shaking which made the opening sequence ineffective. I will also try and make sure I deal with a topic which has something to do with British social realism using the convention and shots. I will also make sure that the sequence doesn't look like a trailer bynot summin the film up in 2 minute.

Past students work

Battered and Bruised

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VT3uB9RTvuw

The music which is playing whilst we see this credit doesn't have any relevance with British Social Realism movie. We hear a drums with a rock style, this made me believe i was about to watch a music video or movie. I would improve this by changing the music to more of an urban feel due to the genre we have to create and i would also change the image because it also helps connote the movie may be about rock or music.

This scene has a good over the shoulder shot, however the Credits which appear on screen look a lot like a TV sitcom. All the credits are very big drawing the attention more to the credits then the story. To improve this is would make the credits much more smaller and wouldn't make them appear whilst were being introduced to the characters.

This shot was good because it allows us to see what their doing which social realism do, they don't cut the boring bits out. However the camera was shaking whilst they were filming, which is difficult to pay attention. I would improve on this shot by using a tripod to avoid the camera shaking.

The idea of using a hand held worked well when we saw the boy getting beaten up however i think they could have structured it a bit more as, it doesn't look like an effective hand held. I would improve this shot by making sure if i use hand held shot its not messy and has strong meaning.

This shot is good because it shows us a long shot of the bullies however this was the last shot which didn't make me want to watch the rest of the film as we didn't really establish a story or see any thing to do with social realism in Britain. Also shot pans to get the girl in but doesn't successfully get her in. I would improve this shot by making sure the last shot grabs the audience and if i pan the shot get what i need in the shot.

This shot doesn't really tell us about british social realism nor does the storyline. This shot makes them look like they lead a good life due to the expensive equipment. I would improve this by sticking to themes and environments that reinforce british social realism. However the shot type was very different which look good.

This shot is good because its simple like british social realism titles are however it looks like a web episode or tv sitcom title due to the way it appears on screen. I would improve this shot by making the title appear sooner because the title appears late making us feel its like a trailer.

Straight Edge

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5V5z9urV8s

This shot worked well in my view because its a typically background which you would see in a british social realism film. I also like how they added the girl drinking it adds to the story and we can see what the movie may be about. I would improve this shot by making the location more visible to the audience.

This credit is very well placed in the opening sequence in my view because it is commonly used convention in social realism movies. I also like it because it doesn't take attention away from the story. However i think it could be improved by adding who the person is, if they are the star, producer or music etc.

This scene in the movie is good because it leaves you wanting to watch the rest of the movie. However this could be improved by allowing the audience to see more of the action and not having too much dialogue due to the section only being the opening sequence.

The music in the back of this shot matches the movie because its very up beat rock, which is stereotypically known for drugs and alcohol. Also the music builds up which is seen in british social realisms. I would improve this by making sure the music matches what happening on screen in respect to the beat.







This shot is good because we see the credits appear in ver small text, not drawing any attention away. These are the production people who need to be credited. I would improve this by making it a bit darker so i can see it on bright backgrounds.

This long shot of the main character develops the story and the setting because the long shot allows us to view the location. This is what you would see in british social realism. Everyday things, he is wearing normal clothes and the estates help show its in Britain. I would improve this making sure i see more of the location which is commonly done in british social realism movies.

This shot it good because the use of Dialogue in it is what you would expect in a british social realism movie. Also this is the scene were we hear most of the dialogue but we can understand what themes the story may deal with. I would improve this by making sure that i have a script that would apply to social realism.










                               

Fish tank case study

Analysing Fish Tank

Theme and situations 

We see a young girl trying to fulfill her dream of becoming a dance, but unluckly grown up in a bad area which stops her from achieving her dream. The block she lives in doesn't give much hope as well her mum trying to put her in a private school. We see this kind of situation in social realism movies as the estates sums up reality, once your in, your stuck because your dream becomes harder to fulfil. Its an unvarnished picture of the struggles people in this situation face. I would use the location as it makes the story more real and gives it verisimilitude.


We also she the topic of underage relationship, between the Mia and Conor. Mia is only 15 which means she is still a child. We see Conor and Mia get closer, as she has no father figure she turns to him for comfort but this escalates into an un-natural relationship between the underage girl and older man. This is a situation that happens to some young girls, as they get stuck in an imagery world of feeling special, social realism highlights this situation. If i had this in my movie i would use it show the affect of the relationship in a negative way so people become aware of underage relationships. As we see Mia getting to involved in the relationship. 

This storyline is a typical social realism as it deals with many different point that happen to people in everyday life, especially in Britain. We see Mia not getting along with her mum which leads to her out burst, The sister fights, under age drinking and anti social behaviour which is seen when see's peeing on the floor and breaking into the area with the horse. This film is not an escapist movie, but the topics the film deals with is how some young girls who have grown up in a rough area may deal with. The film doesn't cover the situations up, they show it how it is.  I would use this due to the fact that the audience then can identify and taken in from the situation that the film deals with.

Representation (stereotypes and archetypes)

The little girl challenges the common stereotype of a little girl who are meant to be sweet and innocent, we see the little girl smoking and swearing breaking the ideology of little girls. Children are meant to be innocent and hopeful, due to her area of growing up she has been shaped into her character. This is common in social realism due to the fact that it shocks the audience that children act in this manner. I would show this due to the idea of showing children are not innocent and copy what they see.

Conor fits the dominate ideology of a typical man which is being very sexual, as we see him and Mia get very close. This idea of men being very sexual is shown through a underage relationship. He breaks the trust of Mia's mum to sleep with Mia. Social realism show different sides of genders, but deal with issues that happen. I would us this to outline the difficulties in a relationship. 

The stereotypes of the mother is challenged very much in this movie as we see her abuse Mia. We see her hit Mia and tell her she nearly aborted her. This is a challenged stereotype of a mother as we expect mothers to be a safe place and caring. This is common in social realism movies because it shows how a mother and daughter relationships work in different situations. I would us this because it shows how different environments can affect someones life. Mia has to look after her self at such a young age.

Mise en scene

The mise en scene is very low key and dark as we denote estates which connotes no hope for the younger generation. Also the mise en scene is very run down which is typically as Fish tank is made by an independent company who lack budget unlike hollywood. Social realism tries to keep the colour natural to get a real feel of life in the world of the story. This is common convention in social realism due to the whole idea of them not be varnished and non escapist. I would use this as it creates a sense of lost hope and no way to escape reality.

The costume that the character wear are very cheap as we can see that the family struggle for money as Mia steals and tries to get a job. The costumes are very basic and are made to appeal realistic to the storyline. We can see they are working class which means the costumes are very realistic. Mia is shown in simple joggers and a top and the mum in very basic non branded clothes. This is common in social realism films because they try to make the story and characters real as possible. I would use these costumes to make it look as real as possible.

Conor's actions in his performance makes the audience connote him as a life saver to the family but over time we see him abuse his level in the family as him and Mia betray the mother. We first she him trying to bring the family together and looking after Mia but then its escalates. This is seen in social realism movies as it happens in life to families. I would use this to show the seriousness of letting a stranger take so much control in the children's life. We denote the little girl to be very sad when Conor leaves as she is unaware of his action, His is also married which was hard to see during the middle section.

Music and sound effects

Most of the sound in fish tank is diegetic, due to making the story look more real. Social realism are made to represent reality in Britain. I would make all my sound diegetic because it adds to the reality of the story being told.

There is a lot of foley sound in fish tank which adds more verisimilitude  to the story. We hear the sounds of babies crying, people and cars, this adds to the reality of the story because these are the normal sounds you hear in the story. This is common due to making social realism sound real, most social realism are shot in urban area which have these common sounds. I would add these sounds because they make the story more real.

We hear mia's music when shes listening to it on her headphones to take us into her world. The music helps us understand her, the music that is played is very un-beat which could suggest her actions. The music in social realism movies are mainly made to match the action, normal very fast to represent bad actions. I would us a very up-beat to show violent situation. 

Camera work and editing

There are a lot of long takes within fish tank, which makes the story seem like its flowing and flows the action. The long takes also make the story seem more real as it adds parts of the story which may are not needed. This is used in social realism due them not being varnished, but also because it makes the story more real. I would use this because you can add little parts of make the film appeal to British audience. We a long take when Mia is crossing the road on the way to Conor's.

The editing is continuity editing, this as well as long takes makes the story follow, as reality does. This makes the storyline look more real to the audience because it doesn't cut out any bad bits. social realism use these because allows people to see the hardship and un-varshied life some people live.

We also see a lot of long shots of the area, this shows the audience where the characters are being brought up in and allows us to see how some people live in Britain. We see a long shot when Mia is looking at the horse. The long shots of the area create the sense of reality, which is shown a lot in social realism movies.

Dialogue

The dialogue used in Fish Tank is very uneducated, as they have a very poor RV and use slang. The Dialogue between all the characters is very rude as we hear the little girl swearing and the mother swears to her daughter. This is common in social realism movie as it allows the audience to see how all ages and gender are effected by the area you grow up in. We don't see Mia or the young girl attend school or show any interest in school. 

Secondary research

Fish tank won a Bafta award for Outstanding British Film, they also won 2 independent British film awards for best director and newcomer. Also at the cannes film festival they won the Jury Prize. 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1232776/awards

Fish Tank made £103,180 in their opening weekend and grossed £598,162. The amount made wasn't that much but did do well with the critics, which independent movies rely on to market their films.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1232776/business

Fish Tank was released on DVD which is different for an independent movie to be released on DVD due to lack of money. Fish Tank used music from all over the place not just UK on the soundtrack.

In the trailer we see a lot of critics quotes, helping with the marketing, if critics like the movie then they (film company) believe that the audience will watch it in cinema.

Ideology

LOOKING FOR ERIC

Looking for Eric is a film that film 4 created about a man how has a mental disorder, whilst trying to look after a family that is easy influenced by drugs and crime. Eric works in a post office and has imaginary talks with a famous footballer. At the end of the movie he has a happy ending which is - and looks like it not a happy ending but in reality he would be happy. the representation of the characters in the movie is very realistic. however the young boys play a very stereotypical characters of young boys growing up in a run down area in Britain. The representation of the place where the movie is set is very british, Its a very lower class area that looks to be struggling by the mise en scene being very messy and dull. The representation of the area is real as that is how lower class areas do look like in Britain. The movie has a lot of british reference in it which are not very obvious, Eric works post office which is the british post delivery in Britain. They also use english football teams, in America they call football, soccer . They language in terms of accent and dialogue is very british. The movie deals with a reality in britian and how single parents struggle bring up children that are easy influnced by crime also known as economic hardship. Also Eric's happy ending is happy but not as happy as it would be in an hollywood film, its as happy as it can be in his situation. The film is not an escapist movie which film 4 are very well known for. Film 4 also don't allow the audience to escape everyday life and shows us how life is for somepeople. Film 4 have built a reputation for BSR films and kitchen sinks and this movie supports their ideology.

SUBMARINE 

Submarine is another film that film 4 have created, the boy falls in love with a girl. whilst he is trying to keep his parents together, he loses track of the relationship with the girl who eventually moves on. The characters in submarine are represented as typical teenagers who think they fall in love. The boy is kind of represented as a protagonist as he tries to save his parents and his relationship. Film 4 use a lot of british cultural reference such as the tape, british bands on the tape, school uniform, roads instead of street and the accents of the characters. The hints that its an film 4 film is the use of swear words, the setting and cliff hanger at the end, we don't see if they end up together its just suggested. Film 4 also use un-varnished pictures of real life's struggles when we see the kid trying to solve his parents problems and when he breaks into the house. Film 4 has a strong aim and ideology to promote new talent, submarine used un know actors which helps them fulfil there ideology. We see a working class boy at school trying to be a typical boy by seeing his everyday normal life. Film 4 don't leave out any boring parts they try ans show his life in a very realistic way. Film 4 also like to use new talent, which we see in submarine as they us un known actors. Film 4 have built a reputation for BSR films and kitchen sinks and this movie supports their ideology.

FOUR LIONS

Four lions is a film about the stereotypes of all muslims being terrorist, Film 4 took a huge risk with this movie as the situation is very serious and wouldn't appeal to an audience outside of the U.K. Some muslims many find the film offences because whilst its a comedy its still very bias to muslims and the idea of every muslim being a terrorist. The representation of the characters in four lions is very stereotypical. The representation of the places are very realistic as they show the reality of the areas that are in the movie. There is a lot of British cultural reference in four lions such as the road signs, song in the van and the accents and dialogue. Film 4 often allow swearing in the dialogue as through out most of film 4 we've heard language that we wouldn't expect. This backs up the idea of film 4 taking risk and showing the reality. Even though film 4 take the situation and turn it into a comedy they show the protagonist (the main character) as a hero at the end as he tries to stop it but couldn't. Film 4 like to deal with issues that hollywood don't, as a film 4 are known for British social realism movies.

INBETWEENERS MOVIE

The inbetweeners movie is based on a T.V program which was aired on Channel 4. This is known as a Cross Media Convergence, in this case Film 4 used the TV program inbetweeners to create a movie but they are both owned by the same people. They are both produced and distrubted by the same people. The characters are represented as different type of typical school boy. The places are very realistic in respect to the narrative. The use of the school uniform is very british. The movie is a very safe idea for film 4, this movie would granty film 4 a good profit as it already has a wide range of mainstream audience through channel 4. The inbetweener was released on DVD which is new for film 4 as they don't have the money to release their films on DVD.


ATTACK THE BLOCK

Attack the block is a film about aliens attacking an estate building in england. The characters are represented very realistic in respect to the area they live in, in the story. The use of an estate is very British and the dialogue of the characters. We know its a common film 4 film becasue we see a realistic area which realistic characters. The area they live in is a very real situation people face in the uk. Also the film is very un-varshied and there are many hand held shots. We also hear people using language you wouldn't expect in a hollywood movie. This movie is a risk in my eyes for film 4 because it deals with an unrealistic situation as well as dealing with realistic situation. Aliens attacking an estate in the uk is very unlikely. Attack the block deal with a situation not in the same conspect but the overall idea that some people who live in estates have to deal with everyday which film 4 try and portray in as many films as they can.

Evaluation

Evaluation

This was short exercise to help us understand continuity in a film; we had to work in groups to make a short continuity film. I worked with Chanel Medi and Hardeep Pansera, I joined the group late so I missed the pre-production section but caught up and helped with the production side a lot.

We broke the 180 degree rule as I walked from left to right but when I sat down I was right side and Hardeep was on the left which confuses the audience because we swapped sides all of a sudden. So to prevent us from re filming because I had little time left, I added a shot of a clock to show that I was late for school.

Shot reverse shot allows us to show the reaction of two different people whilst they are having a conversation. We used shot reverse shot when I reveal to her friend she is pregnant to create more tension, it also allowed us to show someone’s face whilst they were talking. 

We used the rule of thirds; this is when the audience keep their eyes on the horizontal line. The rule of thirds allows you to create more visually interesting images, because it interacts the audience’s brain. Makes the shot more interesting for the audience because there’s so much space on one side of the shot.

Match on action shot is me walking to the door then opening it from the outside but then me opening the door from the inside the last place you saw me on the outside. Someone opening the door from two different view however when I opened from the outside I had to remember where I stop because I had to open it when filming inside at the same point. This is because we want the audience to think it was filmed at the same time with two different cameras (flow). 

When filming our shots we didn't really face any big problems however I did find it hard getting the match on action shot perfect. Also I felt that I didn't have enough time to film scene that I fought off after Chanels and Hardeeps scene because I entered the group late. If I was to film again I would have helped film the scenes more and also watched the film after we filmed it before moving on. We didn't watch what we filmed after filming it, so we were unaware if it was a good shot or not. 

During in post production I realized that my work didn't flow as I thought it should have and I also realized that we broke the 180 degree rule. I had to use the new I movie which was a challenge as I only knew how to work the old one. I also found that cutting shots together to get them perfect eg match on action was harder because they had to perfect for it to look real to the audience. 

My strengths of creativity were that the situation we applied can be applied to real life. An audience of young girls can relate to the story line as young pregnancy is a problem for our generation. I also think that I used I movie well as it was the new version which I never used before. I also learnt how to use different features of I movie as well as the Mac by exporting my movie to YouTube. When Editing I felt that I made the transitions of shot flow more after a while and I believe that the pace of my film was steady the hole way though, the speed didn't slow down or speed up at any time. Using the camera new camera was also strength as I haven't used that camera to film anything like this before, it challenged me which was a good experience to learn. Strength of the planning was the location and actress’s because the location was right if the main character was a young girl still in school also we had two young actors to make it more real.

The weakness of our creativity was that it was a hard subject to work within a short time because it was a serious subject. A weakness of my planning and research was that I didn't really have an input in the planning or research because I joined late. This affected my work because I didn't understand what was happening. I felt with post production my weakness was time, I felt I don’t give myself enough time to edit and the flow of my film was a little of at some parts. I didn't know how to add music to my work which was the weakness of the digital technology. My overall weakness of the project was time as I lacked time in post production as well as film because I had to re film some scenes.

Overall I think we could have improved on the shots, they could have flowed better together. As well as allowing time to re film as after post production we all released that we had to re film. If I re did the project I would definitely be involved in the pre production so I know what shots we need to make the work flow and have a better pace. I would use sound more in my work, I felt I lacked sound in my work because I didn't know how to use sound in I Movie.