Copy of - The script

This is the script I prepared a few days prior to filming, for both the actors (to learn dialogue in advance) and the Camera crew/ Director (for other purposes such as knowing where to be, where to shoot from and where to expect the actors to appear from) to use when rehearsing and filming our Opening Sequence.

Where it all begun - Story Boards

Above is a copy of the story board I created over the christmas holidays. I didn't include the type of shot because I think its obvious what time of shot it is from my sketches :) nor did I specify the time of each shot because this was really just a rough copy and I wasn't sure how long each would be. Plus I knew there would be lot's of changed made to it.

Researching into - Genre + Audience

Below is a tally chart I created to explore into different age groups, finding out what their favourite genre for film is. I asked 40 people from each age group and these are the results I got:

As you can see from the chart, Horror was popular with all age groups but teens and under 25's in particular. Therefore I decided the Opening Sequence story board I was to design would be of this genre, targeting 16-25 year old's as my audience, I thought this wouldn't be to difficult seeing as I am in that category so I would just ask friends of a similar age what they thought as well as creating something I myself would enjoy.

Preliminary Sequence

TASK:

To film and edit a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down opposite another character. They converse. Should demonstrate match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180 degree rule. Last a maximum of 2 minutes.

The above clip is of my groups Preliminary Sequence demonstrating some examples of successful camera work and exploration of angles, in the preparation of filming our Opening Sequence.

I would have liked to have more time to plan this exercise and include credits. Shooting and editing took 2 hours in total.

Editing essay - Pillow Talk VS Fringe

FRINGE VS. PILLOW TALK

“How are the sequences from ‘Pillow Talk’ and ‘Fringe’ different? Discuss the differences in pace and style of editing as well as the effect the editing has on meaning/ the audiences reception of the extracts”.

Fringe and Pillow Talk are very different in terms of pace. Fringe, for example has a lot of cuts in the beginning of the extract that are quick. When the characters are conversing is when this is at its fastest, as little as a cut every few seconds. Whereas in Pillow Talk, there are no cuts in the first conversation, one cut in the second, and hardly any in the third. The difference in cutting is because Fringe is a more modernized film, but Pillow Talk is an old fashioned film and therefore is quite outdated when it comes to technology.

Styles of editing in the two clips again, don’t have much in common. Fringe demonstrates lots of fancy ways to move from one cut into the next, such as close ups at the start, showing reactions and facial expressions more clearly, as well as zooming, long shots and straight cuts. The camera is also always moving even if it is barely even noticeable. Pillow Talk, on the other hand has fewer examples of editing, consisting of only mid shots with no transition and long shots with a straight cut and then split screens. A small number of close ups is used, but they are present and the camera stays still throughout the whole extract. This portrays a general lack of education in editing.

Editing can have an effect on the audience reception of an extract. For example, Pillow Talks slow pace is likely to not appease a younger viewer. Or it may not appeal to those who like action due to not much happening on screen and type of genre and this could also cause the audience to perceive the film differently than the editors and directors intended it to be.

To conclude, although fringe and Pillow Talk have differences, they do share some similarities like they both use straight cuts (and vary on pace), and they both jump to the near future in each shot.

ELLA TRAINOR

'Children of Men' Essay

Children of Men, released in 2006 and directed by Alfonso Cuarón shows our world very differently to how we know it. In the opening sequence, it is evidential that it is a futuristic film set in ‘2027’ by the use of repeated hints such as the voice over of the current news, the visual footage of the news and in case we miss that, text on the bottom of the screen displaying the date! This information is clearly vital to the understanding of the film.

The genre of the film being mystery and drama again is immediately portrayed, this time through the use of dark colours in the general setting, and other aspects of MES such as what we as an audience learn through the voiceover but mainly through the actual content of the opening sequence; for example the selection of what are meant to be ‘normal’ people are all dressed very similarly in dull and gloomy clothing, and the way in which they react to the situation being presented by the news, (shown through the sea of shocked facial expressions, crying and devastated body language), encourages the audience to question what is going on and in fact make us want to watch more which after all is the primary purpose of an opening sequence – to keep the viewer intrigued.

It is obvious who the main character is as he straight away stands out from the crowd of faces, this is because a well known actor has been used to play him (Clive Owen) and also due to him being less stunned by the news than everyone else in the scene and appears to be ‘different’ in comparison to the sheep-like, sad people surrounding him which connects with the audience for two main reasons. One, it almost creates a sense of comforting and familiarity as we no longer feel like an outsider looking in on these strange circumstances but also because we feel we can follow this character through his chaotic journey that will answer the questions we originally conceived.

As he carries out a task we presume is part of his everyday routine of getting coffee, the camera follows him exiting in a hand held manor. During this we see many things that represent what the time period and the location of the film is like, such as the use of motorised passenger bikes on the street, moving images as advertisements on the sides on buses, both suggesting big changes in terms of technology, the business of the location which is central London, almost relating to the audience as a current Japan or China ambience, but also the dirtiness of the streets and not a wink of sunlight as if the equilibrium of the world had been broken. The camera moves in a way to allow us to see these factors as again they are significant. The camera is then positioned for a few seconds facing Owen from the side so it is in full view of the explosion that shortly takes place, still remaining hand held and then directly after the explosion quickly goes towards the action to capture the not at all disturbing image of a woman waddling out the cafe Owen were just in missing an arm.

Use of sound in this extract is essential for the effect of the loud explosion and following screaming enabling it to seem more realistic and hectic, as well as the voiceover being off scene for a while and then on screen diagetic sound when the television is displayed. The narrative functions are quite simple the film starts at the present day of the story and proceeds onwards from there revealing more horrid truths about how the director perceives the future!

To conclude I believe the opening sequence Children of Men effectively used the forms and conventions of a film opening as I have demonstrated in my essay. Personally, I as a viewer enjoyed the extract as it was different and interesting, and definitely made me want to watch on. So much so that I am investing in a copy of my own so I can watch the rest of the film and find out how it ends!

Children Of Men - Mindmap

This is the mind map I created whilst watching the opening of 'Children Of Men' to assist me with my essay.