Editing Session - Thursday Period 2 +3

Today I had an editing session alone which will become kind of normal for me as my private studies differ from the rest of the group. It felt awkward just making decisions without consolting my group but I just got on with it and managed to do/learn quite a few things.

-I practiced my key framing when using titles which I have become very good at and now understand completely how it all works. I impliented blurs/motion in to a title sequence and in my opinion it looked quite good, however, I dont know how the group thought it looked. I made the title blur on to screen, change to normal, as this was happening it was slowly brought forward on the screen and then simply faded out. I thought it looked quite stylish lol.

-I realised there wasn't too much I could do with the re-shoot footage and decided to tweak the sequence to a little better. I made the cut where the actor Jon sits down in his office a lot smoother.

-I made the flashback shot of the note longer as our feedback said that they couldn't read what was on it in time.

-I noticed that as the villain walks through the wooden door he slams it and that sound doesn't carry on to the next shot, and therefore I split the video from audio and extened the audio creating a sound bridge, which worked very well.

-I looked at different fonts and familiarised myself with the title creation process and learn't all the options it gives you when creating font.

Matt

Our New Idea

The new idea is based on a detective who works himself to death trying to catch a serial killer. Although I think the idea is not as good as our last it should work quite well with the locations we have chosen. I think the dark garages behind Nicks house should be our primary location as they look very dank and authentic at night. Also, with the studio lighting kit we should be able to create an amazing scene which needs to be taken full advantage of in order to make this opening work well.

Shooting Week 1

The weekend of filming didn't go as planned and on saturday we found out we couldn't use are location which was quite vital for our story. Things seemed a bit more hopeful when Nick said he knew a friend who had woods behind his garden and that it would be a good location for our story and easy to adapt to. However, when we got to the guys house we found out that there was no way to get to the woods as the fence had barbed wire on it. We sat a discussed our options and threw ideas back and forth but there was nothing concrete being said. We decided that it was a bit pointless carrying on and it was getting quite late, so we went home and started to blog a few ideas for the location.
On Sunday we decided to change the whole story so we could use a more easy and workable location which later turned out to be Nicks house as he had some garages round the back of his house which looked good in the dark. We arrived at Nicks house put some relaxing metalcore music on and started to work on our new idea. We blogged, made storyboards and wrote general story synopsis's. We then started to work on one of our props which is a detectives crime board and that took awhile. After we had taken some pictures of our actor in character we did a reccy of our locations, taking pictures as we went.
Although we didn't get any filming done we did make massive strides in our new idea which was really important in ensuring that the next weekend of filming runs very smoothly with little or hopefully no problems.

BLK feedback

Matt, you haven't linked your continuity sequence to your evaluation yet, can you sort it out?

Please keep up with your Stage 1 posting - you need to show how the project is developing from your own perspective. Try to avoid long-ish gaps between posts.

Please see the main blog posts for advice on how to proceed with your individual blog if you're not sure what you should be doing.

I know you've been really busy with the play, but it's not good to get behind on this as things move so fast. I'll give you an amnesty for a day or two to move forward with this.

Preliminary Task

1. Who did you work with and how did you manage the task between you?
In my group we had me, Tom Deason, Daniella Andrean, and Alice King. We managed the task by signing a role to each person in the group, Danni and Alice were actors, I was the cameraman and Tom was the sound technician. When Alice wasn't acting she would preform the role of production assistant. In the editing room Alice started off editing and after about 15 minutes she had learnt all the basics quickly, I then took over for the remainder of the session while the other members of the group offered suggestions.

2. How did you plan your sequence? What processes did you use?
When planning the sequence we found that deciding the location was very important because it then made visualising the sequence much easier. It was decided that the Sports Hall would be a good place to film as it was brand new and very modern looking. We discussed how the scene would play out and how we could incorperate a variety of shot techniques, such as match on action, shot reverse shot and the 180 degree rule, in to the sequence. Also, while discussing the scene we created a shooting script which made things very organised when it came to filming as we knew what order to shoot things and saved a lot of time. As Danni and Alice were acting they wrote the dialogue for the scene which was just a normal conversation about school.

3. What technology did you use to complete the task, and how did you use it?
The camera used for filming was a Sony HDV camera with a boom mic attached to the top of it outputing the sound through Sennheiser headphones. The camera was attached to a tripod which allowed us to do smooth pan's and keep the shots very steady creating a very controlled sequence. In the editing room we used Adobe Premier to edit our scenes together.

4. What factors did you have to take into account when planning, shooting and editing?
When planning we had to minimise problems by making sure that the room we wanted to shoot in was free at the time we needed to film. We booked the room and checked with the teacher that it was ok. Also we needed to check out the classroom we were using beforehand so we could become familiar with the location and realise any problems that might arise when filming. When we were shooting everything went very smoothly and efficiently. It was important too make sure the surroundings were quiet so that the boom mic didn't pick up background noise. However, in one of our shot reverse shots the school bell rang in the middle of it when we were filming and we didn't realise that the boom mic picked it up. We realised in the edit room that it was a problem and it prevented us from editing together our shot reverse shot, so were worked around it instead.

5. How successful was your sequence? Please identify what worked well, and with hindsight, what would you improve/do differently?
I think our sequence was quite successful as our cuts flowed quite smoothly especially our match on action as it was edited together very well. We succesfully caried out the 180 degree rule and would have done the shot reverse shot if there hadn't been a problem with the sound. If i could re-do aspects of the sequence I would definatley do more takes of each shot as you can never have enough footage.

6. What have you learnt from completing this task? Looking ahead, how will this learning be significant when completing the rest of your foundation coursework, do you think?
I have learnt a lot from this task as it has given me practice with shooting a variety of camera techniques aswell as understanding the process and the planning which must go in to a scene beforehand. I also got more practice using Adobe Premier. All of this will be very useful when I come to complete the rest of my foundation coursework as I will have had this experience and this practice of understanding the process.

Film Openings

A Clockwork Orange (1972 - Stanley Kubrick)
"There was me, that is Alex, and my three droogs, that is Pete, Georgie and Dim, and we sat in the Korova Milk Bar trying to make up our rassoodocks what to do with the evening." One of the most iconic opening shots in the history of cinema introduces us to the main characters, the film's Nadsat language, its distinctive interior design and the intentions of Alex and his gang. The shot is just a straightforward tracking shot, starting on a close up of Alex's face, made-up and staring malevolently out at the audience, and pulls slowly back to reveal the gang, the bar, other customers and and a white-clad bouncer. It is simple, but still cinematic perfection.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang Title Sequence


This title sequence serves to introduce the main actors and makers of the film. It is an animated sequence which is done to the style of the film and gets the audience ready for what is about to be shown. The sequence incorperates the theme of love (kiss) and violence (bang) and is portrayed through guns shooting out flowers or leaves. It mixes blood splattered on a piece of paper with a red lipstick kiss next to it which again combines the two unlikely elements. As with all title sequences the sequence must have a specific colour scheme which relates to the film - in this case it's orange. This helps the overall visual effect of the film making look really attractive. In this particular opening sequence everything seems very abstract - even the camera as it tracks and pans at different speeds, changing from one sequence to the next. This title sequence is very similar to the ones you would see at the beginning of a James Bond movie such as Casino Royale. However, for someone such as me to create something like this I would need to be very proficient in programs such as After Effects - and I'm not :(

Hostel Part II 720p Stills - REALISM

I've taken some snapshots of the film 'Hostel Part II' as I think they portray realism through: location, props, lighting, and special effects very well - espesially with the blood.


This still shows how a good location can take the look and cedibility of a film to new heights. The shot is simply beautiful and very authentic. The location looks very abandoned and taking the film 'Hostel II' in to consideration, that is a very important feeling given to the audience making things seem all the more real. This shows how a location in a film can add to it's overall effect - it's got to be believable and seem real in order to convince the audience it's real and this still does just that.


The lighting in this still is very low key, however, artificial light shines on everything relevent in the still. (The table of weapons/tools/props, the mans face and the sinister plastic flaps which you would find at a butchers). The props, the lighting and his outfit are all realistic in order to convince you of the films realism, we know deep down it's not truly real, but if everything is so authentic it keeps our mind off the fact it isn't and therefore at the time of viewing it's that much more scary. Low key lighting has become symbolic in the horror genre as most of the locations are isolated, such as basements and cemeteries and the darkness hides everything and creates a feeling of entrapment and loneliness.


The still above gives a feeling of vulnerability as it is very low key and the gag in her mouth shows that she can't do anything to help herself. The blood in the 'Hostel' franchise is some of the most realistic blood I have seen in film today and this is very important in this type of film because to the viewer the gore is what it's all about. Again everything is so realistic and convincing - these elements are essential to a film.

HORROR TIMELINE

The timeline shows the history of horror movies, from when the genre starts and from when it finishes. The genre was kicked off from 'the master of suspense' Alfred Hitchcock in the 1960s with all time classic 'Psycho' and set the bar for horror movies too come. After other such successes such as 'The Birds' we then move on in to the 1970s. The 1970s was all about taking horror to another level and this was achieved through shocking films such as 'The Exorcist' which caused quite a stir from the public due to it's satanic type story. This is the decade where a lot of these films would be re-made at a later date as their storylines were original and that combined with the special effects of the 21st century would make convincing films. The 1980s for me is the last decade where horror films shone and classics such as 'Nightmare on Elm Street' were produced and sequels would later be made. The 1990s in my opinion is where horror films start to go downhill, sure there are still classics such as 'Scream' but the genre is starting to die out and get a little bit repetitive. With this in mind, the 21st century changes the typical horror film by taking it in to a sub-genre the likes of which no-one had ever seen. Films such as 'Saw' and 'Hostel' are not your typical horror films as they are whats know as 'torture porn' in this modern day. These films capitalise on mass amounts of blood, gore and guts to freak the viewer out and it has found a credible audience giving a large appeal for such films as sequels to the above movies have been made. They have only got worse and worse in terms of how much blood and how far they go with scenes of torture. In my opinion these types of films won't too long before the appeal reduces as there is an extent to how many times you can 'up the ante'.

Genre Elements

HORROR

Iconography

The mask from Scream
Psyco shower scene
The red coat from Don't Look Now
Frankenstein
The axe in The Shining
Dracula's cape and fangs
Dark silhouettes

Props

Weapons
Masks
Blood
Candles
Cloaks
Daggers

Style

Darky, shadowy sets
Very low key lighting
Night
POV shots
Fast cuts/ Jump cuts
Scary music
Climactic moments

Settings

Basements
Dark areas
Haunted Houses
Churches
Graveyards
Cemetery's
Cupboard under the stairs
Castles
Mountians
Forests

Narrative

Co-incidence
Chase
Supernatural
Entrappment
Few survivors
Character being cut off
Vengence
Murder and Death
Mentally Ill
Obsession

Characters

Killers
Serial killers
Monsters
Women as victims
Demons
Devils
Vampires
Vunerable characters
Strong characters
Cocky Characters

Themes

Fear
Isolation
Pursuit
Traps
Death
Blood
Detailed torture
Premonitions
Dark
Scary Locations

Sound Types

Sound in movies today has developed 10 fold since it first began. A digital synchronised soundtrack combining dialogue, music, and sound effects.

DIEGETIC SOUND: The sound that happens in the world of film as we see it, sound which we can hear from actions inside the shot.

DIEGESIS SOUND: Sound which belong to the world of film, something happens off screen and wee still hear it to create an extra dimension to what we see.

Both of these types of sound help the viewer to imagine that what their seeing is more realistic, by making you feel there is more than just what's just on-screen. For example, in the movie Trainspotting at the beginning we are introduced to the characters and we see a baby on the floor crying in the flat. The camera then moves away from the baby and it's off-screen but we can still hear it crying in the background making it all seem very realistic.

This use of off-screen and on-screen sound creates a three-dimensional world instead of a flat two-dimensional screen.

Sound Bridges

Often in movies sound will continue from one shot to the next, and although the images are changing the sound is still flowing from shot to shot, and this is called a sound bridge. Sometimes we hear the saound from the next scene before the scene is even showed. It gives a coherent effect and links the film together creating a flow of continuity.

Parallel and Contrapuntal Sound

Sound in a film usually complements what we see, for example, happy images means happy sounds, exciting scenes require exciting music. This is parallel sound as the mood matches the musical tone. However, when music is not in synch - what wee see does not mach what we hear - it is called contrapuntal sound.

Script Writing

Script Writing Secrets: http://www.scriptwritingsecrets.com/contents.htm

Show it don't tell it, and don't direct it... unless you have to!

IMPORTANT NOTES

As a writer, your goal is to tell a story, that will be seen not read. But before it is bought, it'll be read, not seen. So, you have to tell it in a way that makes the reader "see" it. And you want them to feel like they're seeing a movie, not a slide show.

"Telling" most often refers to characters who describe something we could just as well see. If they're describing a past event, we might, instead see it in a flashback. If they're talking about another character doing something, it might be more interesting to see the other character do it. If a character says, "I love you," would it be more interesting to see the character gently kiss his love on the forehead and place a rose petal on her lips as he leaves. If a picture tells 1000 words, a moving picture tells 10 times that!

TITLE PAGE

The first thing that a reader should see when they look at your script is the Title Page. A Title Page is nothing special! More specifically, don't make your Title Page special in any way. Don't use graphics. Don't use colored paper. Don't put a photo of your dog or cat on the Title Page. Just put the bare necessities on there in plain old 12 point Courier.

In the center of the page:

• The script's title
• Your name

In the lower right corner:

• Your address or your agent's/manager's contact information

In the lower left corner:

• If you've registered your script with the Writers Guild, it's okay to add a line that says "Registered, WGA"
• You might also add a copyright notification like "© 1998, Me"

A script example of the new Max Payne Movie:

Successful Horror Directors

William Friedkin

William Friedkin is an Academy Award-Winning American movie director and is best known for directing The French Connection (1971) and The Exorcist (1973). His most well-known film was The Exorcist and is considered by many to be the greatest horror movie of all time and was also nominated for 10 Awards. It was also surrounded by a lot of controversy as the special effects were dramactically graphic, such as the posessed childs face. The actor playing the child was Linda Blair, and after the film was released she recieved many death threats and bodyguards were hired to protect her for 6 months. William Friedkin was also critisised for using subliminal messaging throughout the film as the demons face pops up quickly and he stated,

'The subliminal editing in The Exorcist was done for dramatic effect — to create, achieve, and sustain a kind of dreamlike state.' - William Friedkin

Also subliminal messaging requires the images to be below the threshold of your concience and this was simply not the case with The Exorcist. The film shocked people in all cinemas and showed the audience levels of horror they had never witnessed using the technology of special effects and it became the most talked about movie of its time. The film seemed too real for a lot of people to bare and they had to leave the cinema before the film even finished.

William Friedkin changed the face of horror forever creating movies which were so realistic other horror directors had to match it and from then on horror became a much more developed genre with films such as Halloween, A Clockwork Orange, Texas Chainsaw Massacare and The Omen.

Stanley Kubrick

Stanley Kubrick directed a number of highly acclaimed and sometimes controversial films. Kubrick was noted for the scrupulous care with which he chose his subjects, his slow method of working, the variety of genres he worked in, his technical perfectionism, and his reclusiveness about his films and personal life. He is very well known for a lot of his feature films but The Shining and A Clockwork Orange are two of his most famous. A Clockwork Orange features disturbing, violent imagery to facilitate social commentary on youth gangs, and other topics in a futuristic dystopian Britian. Many people found it too be quite a sadistic motion picture as it includes scenes of rape and ultra-violence. Stanley Kubrick commented to the New York Times regarding this film,

'Man isn't a nobal savage , he's an ignoble savage. He is irrational, brutal, weak, silly, unable to be objective about anything where his own interests are involved—that about sums it up. I'm interested in the brutal and violent nature of man because it's a true picture of him. And any attempt to create social institutions on a false view of the nature of man is probably doomed to failure.' - Stanley Kubrick

This statement definately shows that Kubrick had views about the world and the people in it, it also may gain him the reputation of a cynic. He often related his views to his films, not only in A Clockwork Orange but in Full Metal Jacket aswell.

Alfred Hitchcock

Alfred Hitchcock is known to many as the master of suspense as he has directed and produced many great psychological thrillers in his time, such as Psycho and The Birds. Psycho is considered to be one of Hitchcock's best movies and it was nominated for 4 Academy Awards. It was genre defining and shaped the future of the horror genre. Critics saw it as techniqually flawless and even a work of art. The shower scene was one of the most discussed scenes at the time and stuided to find out why it was just so terrifying. The combination of the screams and high pitched music coupled with the fast jump cuts, disorintates the viewer and makes everything seem very realistic.

Psycho starts with Marion who steals $40,000 from the office where she works and drives to California to the man she wants to marry Sam who needs the money to pay off his ex-wife. She stops off over night at the Bates Motel where see meets Norman Bates who shows her to her room. Later in to the night we see a figure murder Marion when she is in the shower and we see Norman clear up the mess when he finds it, eliminating any incriminating evidence. Private detectives visit the hotel and question Norman, they search the room Marion stayed in and find the $40,000. Marions sister goes in to Normans home and finds Normans mother in the basement as a mummified corpse, Norman comes up behind her wearing his mothers clothes and runs at her yelling with a knife, but the detective saves her just in time. We then find out that Norman was impersonating his mother the whole time as when he was younger his father died and his mother found a new love which enraged him and he killed them both - preserving his mother. It created a split personality and at times he truly believed he was his mother.

Wes Craven

Wes Craven has created many great iconic horror films, such as Nightmare On Elm Street, The Scream Trilogy, The Serpent and the Rainbow, and The People Under the Stairs. Most popular and successful is probably Nightmare On Elm Street which featured the icon Freddy Krueger. Wes Craven often experiments with the nature of reality in his films, for example, in The Serpent and the Rainbow the film presents a man who can not disinguish the difference between nightmarish visions and reality. Also, the characters in Scream refrence horror films similar to their position and at one point Loomis tells his girlfriend that lifes just one big movie. A more recent motion picture Wes Craven has directed is The Hills Have Eyes which also has a sequel. Both are very graphic and almost fall in to the genre of 'torture porn'.
During his career, Wes Craven won eight awards and received three nominations. He did well in the box office, since he was known for his thriller films.

PLOT THREE
Actor: Sendhil Ramamurthy
Sendhil Ramamurthy is perfect for this role as he can be seen as someone who is quite vulnerable, this is also further backed up by the fact he played someone without superpowers in "Heroes" and has thus seen as a less aggressive actor. He is definatley a credible actor and although this will be his first major film role, after watching "Heroes" he is more than up to the role.

PLOT ONE
Actor: Kirsten Dunst
Kirsten Dunst suits this role well because she is quiet young looking and has been in a lot of major film roles. She is an experienced actor and will succeed in portraying the struggle and sadness that they story presents. She also strikes me as someone very confident and strong when she needs to be which suits the story even more.

Horror Moodboard

Continuity Image Analysis

American Beauty

Sam Mendes

Lester Burnham, a depressed suburban father in a mid-life crisis, decides to turn his hectic life around after developing an infatuation for his daughter's attractive friend.



Shot 1 - 0.11: This is a long shot (LS) and opens up the scene introducing 2 characters eating at the dinner table. It is an establishing shot which gives the audience insight in to the setting of the next scene. Towards the end of the shot we see a girl walk in to the room and join them for dinner.

Shot 2 - 0.19: After the establishing shot there is a straight cut to a mid-shot (MS) of the mother. The distance from a long shot to a mid-shot is smooth and if it was, instead, a long shot to a close-up, it wouldn't look right. This is because the cut would look way too jumpy, but because a mid-shot was used it gave the audience some background scenery which follows on from the long shot, creating continuity.

Shot 3 - 0.24: The next shot follows the rule of thirds immaculately and the shot is very symmetrical. The candles placed on either side of the frame and her placed in the middle shows us that she is caught up in the middle of her parents arguement, and this shows that the shot is a reaction shot. The shot is again a mid-shot of her sitting at the dinning table.

The camera's cut back and forth between each of the characters according to who has any dialogue in the scene, up until 1:15. The cutting points are always the same and the audience becomes so familiar with these shots and don't even notice the cutting between them, they are matched cuts which keep the continuity of the shot going, and are 'invisible' to the viewer.

Shot 19 - 1.15: The daughter is framed in a mid-shot and she tries to leave the dinner table to get away from her parents arguement, but is told to sit down. The camera follows her movements as she gets up so that the cut of points don't change

Shot 20 - 1.22: The camera goes back to the master shot, a long shot which features the husband getting up and walking towards the plate of asparagus he has been asking for. The fact that the camera doesn't change position until he begins to sit down again, really emphasises his stubborness. The focus is totally on him as the other 2 character don't move at all.

Shot 21 - 1.52: After the master shot we go back to the standard mid-shots of them sitting at the table up until he gets up again with the plate in his hand. The camera follows him and when he's about to throw it at the wall the camera cuts to the master shot where the audience can see it smash against the wall.

Continuity is shown throughout this scene partly due to the same cut off points being used and the audience becomes so familiar with them. Also the last shot in the scene is the same long shot we started with and adds to the feeling of continuity.

BLK feedback

Excellent notes on your 1st clip Matt - really thorough, great choice of clip too, (I found it really shocking)

BLK feedback

Excellent analysis and reflections on your horror shot - super work Matt.

Great choice of clips, I might steal The Shawshank Redemption for some class analysis! Looking forward to reading your analysis notes.

Your blog is so impressive in all respects except could you add the link to the foundation portfolio blog? Well done so far.

THR Feedback

Great Post on the FDA but please please get it on the blog ON TIME Please!!

American History X and Shawshank Redemption Shot Analysis

American History X (1998)

Tony Kaye

A former neo-nazi skinhead tries to prevent his younger brother from going down the same wrong path that he did.

Shot 1: This is a long shot (LS) and features two characters. One is lying on the floor face down and the other is grabbing him by the scruf of his neck and pulling him while he tries to crawl away. The man in control has a gun and is pointing it at the other man's head while shouting abuse. This is a long shot because it gives us a wide perspective of whats happening in the shot, if it was a close-up (CU) then we wouldn't see both characters and the actions their making. Also, due to the next shot being a mid-close up it gives us a variety of shot types.

Shot 2: This is a medium close up (MCU) and shows us the man in control, although it is a very short shot it serves a specific purpose. The man shouts an order to the other person telling him to put his 'mouth on the curb' and because the shot is focusing on him it makes it much more personal to the audience and it shows us the emotion on his face as he says it; which is anger.

Shot 3: This is a big close-up (BCU) and shows us the man on the ground biting on the curb like the man told him to. It is very important that this shot was a close-up as it shows the audience the man's hesitatition and through this is conveyed fear. Close-up's are very often used to show emotion and to tell the audience what that character is feeling, and this is exactly what is happening in this shot.

Shot 4: This next shot is a close-up (CU) of a young boy who is positioned in the middle of the frame and is shown to be shouting to his brother 'Derek' to stop what he is doing. At the start of the shot, 15 seconds in to the clip, we see the boy take a deep breath as he knows he is about to witness something brutal and is obviously scared, and it is through the shot type we see the detail of what the boy is doing.

Shot 5/6/7: The next 3 shots are all in quick succession as they are a build up to the main action which happens in shots 8 and 9. Shot 5 is an extreme close-up (ECU), shot 6 is a medium close up (MCU) and shot 7 is a big close-up (BCU). The shots show the man biting the curb and as it gets closer and closer to the action his emotion of fear is portrayed through his expression and it gets stronger and stronger. The boy is shown to be running towards the two men screaming 'NO!' but as the next shots commence it is revealed to be too late.

Shots 8/9/10: Shot 8 is an extreme long shot (ELS) and serves to set the scene for the 'main event' so to speak. As the shot changes to number 9, we are given a long shot (LS) in which the man in control smashes his foot in to the back of the guys head. Just as contact is made the shot changes to number 10 of the boy, who's face lights up in absolute shock and horror. This shot is a medium close-up (MCU). Although we don't see much of the violence, the long shot gives us just enough information for us to imagine what just happened and this is even more powerful. The sound of the man's face splitting open resonates with us anchoring the images we have in are imagination making it all the more horrific.

Shot 11/12: Shot 11 is a long shot from the camera which captured shot 9 and shows the man who committed the murder side stepping away looking at his victim with no remorse, and at the end of the shot he looks towards his brother who falls to his knee's in shot 12. This shot is also a long shot and gives us our first piece of slowmotion, this emphasises the boy dropping to his knee's as he can't even begin to process the atrocity of what just happened.

Shot 13: This shot is a mid-shot (MS) and is taken from behind the character and shows the man spitting on his victim. The camera follows him as he does it keeping the framing of a mid-shot even when he bends down. In the last second of the shot we see a police car come in to shot and this was the reason the shot was taken from behind the character.

Shot 14/15: Shot 14 is a very long shot (VLS) and shows the police car speeding and swerving around the corner and the camera tracks it until it stops and focuses on capturing the police man who steps out of the car and raises a gun from behind his open car door in to the middle of the frame. This indicates to the audience that he is important and that they should be focusing their attention to him. Shot 15 is a medium long shot (MLS) and is taken from behind the character again so that as he places his gun on the floor and puts his hands in the air as instructed, we can see the police car and policeman in the background of the shot. This makes sense, it spells out whats happening to the audience really simply as well as making for more packed and interesting shots which the scene hasn't had much of yet. It's all about adding a variety of shots to the scene as it makes it more exciting and interesting.

Shot 16/17: The policeman instructs the man to turn around in shot 16 which is a mid-shot (MS). This sets up an extremely powerful shot for number 17. Shot 17 is a low angle, medium close up. The low angle creates a dominant and powerful aurora around the character, and it's the first time the audience see's his face since his crime in shot 9. The medium close up show us his feelings about the situation, he has no remorse for what he has done and thinks he did the right thing, his proud face can be interpreted as almost sadistic. As he turnes around, face towards his brother the shot is given to us in slowmotion. The director is using close-up's and slowmotion shots to really portray the feelings and emotions of the characters as this whole scene is all about understanding what is going on in these characters heads and the possibilities are thought-provoking and powerful.

Shot 18/19: Shot 18 is a long shot (LS) of the boy kneeling on ground, his face in pure disbelief. He doesn't move and inch and niether does the camera. The camera work is deliberately simple and acts as a window for you to just peer in with all the emphasis being on the characters. Shot 19 is a mid-shot (MS) and shows the man puting his hands behind his head, the fact that he has his top off and all his racist, typical neo-nazi tattoo's showing creates a very powerful image and gives the audience the connotations of a dominant and brutal figure.

Shot 20: This is a close-up (CU) of the man and the camera is completely still, capturing the sadistic emotions of the man as he raises his eyebrows, definately proud of what he has just done. The fact that he dominates the framing makes sure that the audience is focusing on him and his expression.

Shot 21/22: The shot is a mid-shot (MS) and as he kneels down in slowmotion the camera follows his movement exactly, so exact that it looks syncronised to the audience. The next shot, number 22, is an over the shoulder shot where we are given the point of view of the boy and are almost seeing what is happening through his eyes.

Shot 23: The camera slowly zooms in from a medium close up to a close up. The man is smiling up until the handcuffs start to be put on him. He thought his brother would be proud of what he had done, in his racist mind what he did was totally justified. But all he realises is that his brother is about to witness his arrest suggesting that what he did was wrong.

Overall: The scene to me is very powerful and this is partly due to the slowness and simplicity of the camera work, it forces the audience to think about what is going on in the characters heads and emphasises absolutely the emotion involved; brutal, sadening and pure hatred are some of the words I would use to sum up this scene. The audience never actually finds out what the characters reactions suggest, we never know if he is happy or sad or if he had a realisation to what he had done in the last few shots. This to me is why it is powerful, so much is left to the imagination which allows the scene to stick with you and provoks your thoughts.

Shawshank Redemption (1994)

Frank Darabont

Two imprisoned men bond over a number of years, finding solace and eventual redemption through acts of common decency.

Shot 1/2: This is a very long shot (VLS) but becomes a mid-shot (MS) towards the end. The actor is being released from prison and is slowly walking towards the camera. He looks dazed as it's the first time in years he's seen the world from outside the prison. Shot 2 is a mid-shot but the camera slowly zooms towards the character as he is seen clunging to the handles on the bus, all a little bewildered by this new experience for him.

Shot 3/4: Shot 3 starts off a very long shot (VLS) but as the bus drives past the camera uses this as an opportunity to cut in closer on the man's face, this time a medium close up (MCU). Without the bus the cut would look wrong as the distance your cutting from is pretty big and it would sort of startle the audience. This scene is all about the smoothness of the camera work blending in with the quiet relaxing music.

Shot 5/6: This is a medium long shot (MLS) and features the man crossing the road and the camera slowly pans with his movement keeping him in the centre of the screen. Shot 6 is another pan but it keeps the focus on the man's face as the shot is a medium close up (MCU).

Shot 7: This shot is another smooth pan and gives the viewer an idea of the surroundings. It shows us a supermarket where the man works. The camera eventually focuses on him in a mid-shot (MS) and has his manager in the background, a frame within a frame.

Shot 8: Another smooth pan with again sets the scene. The shot is of the man feeding the birds hopeing that the bird he looked after in prison would pay him a visit and say hello. The camera pans up to his face in a medium close up (MCU) and this is important because it shows the audience in close the man's face and we can understand his emotions, which are of a certain sadness.

Shot 9: The camera then cuts away to a long shot (LS) and it gives us a sense of the man's loneliness because no one is around and he's completely on his own with the birds. It's like society has rejected him because he's an ex-con.

The suicide scene is very powerful as the camera work is very slow with loads of smooth pan's and not many cuts which creates a sadness, emphasising what is happening. The last shot when the camera pan's down from the message engraved on the wood is a realisation to the audience. The massive build up doesn't let the audience in on what the man is planning and when he says 'I'm going away' it is slightly misleading all so, that that final shot is all the more powerful.

www.launchingfilms.tv - Notes

Release of a film
- Think about who this film might appeal to, it's audience.
- Develop a campaign which involves and communicates to the audience and gets them interested.
- Decide on a budget, looking at the movie and consider how it will do in the box office.
- Sit with the marketing team and look at promotion, third party promotions, premiers and media partners in radio and TV
- What you spend money on, such as posters and newspapers.

Target Audience
- Identify the taget audience, can be done by looking at past movies and seeing how the audience reacted to it.
- You can't be 100% sure, but you can be prepared.
- The 45+ movie audience will take time to react and see a film and will need prompting to see it whereas a younger audience, 15, will just go to the cinema and pick whatever they fancy.
- Age groups need to be targeted differently.

P&A Budget
- Cost of the film prints like posters and adverts on the TV and trailers for the movie.
- You have to think about where you want to advertise, where to put the TV advert to make sure it reaches the intended target audience and hooks them in.
- Consider costs in televison, its expensive, so would radio be a better option?

Marketing Plan
- Advertising and through press, advertising is more expensive.
- You would post them magazines, newspapers, internet, TV.
- Free forms of advertising by going through the publicity of the film via the press/media.
- Place features about the film in newspapers
- Adverts in the street and on buses.
- Word of mouth by showing people the film for free and getting them to spread the word.
- Through the internet you can put a film clip which makes people want to see it. If people like the film they'll tell their friends and they'll see it aswell, but if they don't like it, it can kill a film.

Link Between
- Convince exhibitors at the cinema's to take the film on in their cinema.
- When it comes to independant films it is very important to find somewhere to put it so people see it.

Test Screenings
- Research is important and comes in to play in all kinds of parts.
- When the movies finished we recruit an audience to see the film and they fill in questionaires.
- After they see it they take part in a focus group and get specific opinionsa on whats good and bad, what needs changing and what doesn't.

Opening Weekend
- It's very imporntant and is the way the cinema industry works.
- Opening day is on a friday and airs at the cinema through to monday.

- The monday morning hold over is to see if your film has to have made more money than any other film in that cinema as rotation. If it's sucessful then the film continues, if not the film may only last a week at the cinema.

Postioning and Audience
- Identify the films specific genre, eg. horror, action, comedy.
- Does it speak to a certain age group such as teenagers or adults.
- Who directed the film? The target audience would know who the actors and directors are so you would target your film to that audience.

Competition
- You need to stand above the others to be noticed, when the audience goes to the cinema why should they see your film over the 8 other films being shown?
- In October its a busy time for younger audiences as its dark earlier so it makes a great time to go to the cinema.
- You have to take time of the year in to account, if it's sunny outside why put an expensive TV advert on when a poster outside might be more beneficial.

Word of Mouth
- It's critical when you want it to happen.
- Sometimes the word of mouth for a movie will be very strong and if the movie comes early and it'll play well with the target audience we'll look to work with media partners - media, newspapers.
- They'll run screenings which are free before the movies out. They'll see it in advance and tell their friends how good it is.
- What peoples friends tell them is the most credible information.

Film Trailers
- Trailer is the most important key to expose the film for the audience.
- It needs to have the right impression through graphics, sound, concept and it needs to hook you in so that when that film comes out you know you will have to see it.

Digital Marketing
- Creating something a game, a video, quiz, that’s good enough for someone to send it on.
- However, word of mouth is more important and has a bigger impact.

Piracy
- In the UK it has escalated over the last 5 years and it counts for 20% of all DVD sales in the UK.
- A big problem as the consumer as they may feel their getting a bargin but they are getting ripped of because of inferior quality.
- The money they are paying for these DVD's are going towards criminal elements they are not aware off.

Horror Shot

1. Describe your shot and identify in what way it could be seen as representing 'horror'.
The shot is a medium close up (MCU) and the female actor is located towards the bottom of the frame with a scared look on her face. The camera is at a low angle and in front of wire fencing. The actor is trapped behind the wire and her hands grasp it as if to some how break free. There is a shadow above her head with an arm reaching out about to catch her as she is clearly hiding but has now been found. The lighting in the shot is very dark which is typical in the horror genre, and the only source of light is an artificial light which shines dimly on her face and the back wall making the shadow visable. The white in the victims eyes particulary standout and create a sense of fear in the victim.

2. What did you actually do to achieve the effect?

When we were setting up the shot we knew that we wanted a shadow in the background which would require two people but because the wire fencing was high up in a loft, the only way to take the shot was to hang off the ladder. This meant that we couldn't have two people on the ladder so we made the person taking the photo also be the silluette in the background as the light was behind him. The effect of horror also comes from the feeling of entrapment that we see in the actor; she looks typically scared and the wire fencing achors this feeling. We also had the actor holding on to the wire so she looks like she has no where to go. The lighting effect was achieved by cutting out all the natural light from the shot and having one artificial key light which shone dimly on to the face of the actor and the backwall of the shot. The shot is a medium close up and this allows the audience to clearly see the horror and fear in the actors eyes.

3. What was successful about your shot?

I think the shot portrays the theme of horror very well however, there is still some flaws. The location and the wire fencing is very important to our shot as it connotes entrapment and it helps to totally convince the audience that our actor is indeed trapped. Moreover, the fact that the actor grasps the wire shows that she is trying to get free because she is so desperate to get away from whatevers looking for her. Without it a lot of that feeling would be lost. The shadow while being a very effective idea wasn't done brilliantly as it is too low in the shot and dosn't appear powerful enough and thus is not as scary. However, if you look at it from the point of view of it rising up, getting bigger and bigger, then it works very well and creates a feeling of tension and excitement over whats about to happen. The positioning of the facial features wasn't done too well as only one of her eyes can be seen, the shot should have been repositioned so that both eyes could be seen through the fence as the eyes are very powerful in protraying emotion.

4. What would you do differently in hindsight?

If I was to redo the shot I would make the shadow higher in the shot and I would make sure her facial features such as the eyes are clearly seen through the wire fencing. I would also put a little bit more artificial light on the hands and the face of the girl to make her emotions of fear standout more. The actor is also looking at the camera and I would have her eyes turned slightly to the right of the shot as this is away from the shadow and we need her to be completely unaware of it being there.

THR Feedback

Great work Matt, thoughtful and detailed. You've clearly delineated what you can see using technical codes but you have also look deeply into the possible meanings created...a very good start that bodes very well for the future - GREAT :-)

Mrs Thrasher HW

Shot 1: This is a medium close up (MCU) shot with a man lying on his back with a gun pointed slightly to the right of the frame. The camera is above him at a high angle which creates a certain vulnerability and due to the fact he is holding his head it suggests that he has already been hurt. He may have been knocked down by a person out of shot and he may have the gun poised at him. There is definitely fear in his eye's and he is certainly looking at something or someone. The low key lighting creates a dark and dangerous feel for the audience. Light is also used to engage the audience as artificial light shines down on the key features of this shot, the gun and the man's face. This focus's and restricts what the audience has to look and concentrate on, this is also helped by the tight framing.

Shot 2: The camera is at a very high angle and may be attached to a crane to achieve this height, it is also a very long shot and a 2-shot. The high angle gives the audience an overview of the scene and serves to show us who is in control. We can see blood splattered near the man on the grounds right hand showing us that he has been shot and no longer wields his gun and is at the total mercy of the man standing with his gun raised, who aims as if to take another shot. We are given more scenery in this shot than the first and it tells us that the setting is located at a docking yard. The light is very low key and the black and white effect adds to this, light does however shine on the man standing's back and on the body of the man who has just been shot. This again focus's the audience on the action.

Shot 3: This shot is an extreme long shot (ELS) and is composed using the rule of thirds - the characters in the middle and empty space above and below. The shot shows us 2 additional characters, a man standing behind the guy shooting and a little girl watching from the side - her back is to the camera. The man on the ground is cringing in pain as the shooter leans over as if to speak and the man behind him is just watching with a gun to his side. The lighting is again low key and little sprinkles of light are shone on the characters to indicate they are whats intended for us to see in this shot.

Shot 4: This shot is the same angle as shot 3 but much closer up showing us the scene in more detail, it is a long shot (LS). The little girl sits in the right hand side of the frame witnessing a man being shot to death and even though her back is again to the camera we can gather from her posture that she is scared. The man holding the gun relentlessy points it in the direction of the other man's face as he is in to much pain to even beg for mercy. The Wind blows the man's coat back creating a powerful figure who is in complete control of what is happening. This also has low key lighting and artificial light is spread across the characters and their immediate surroundings.

Shot 5: This shot is a very personal one and shows us deep emotions of the little girl who has witnessed a man killed in what would seem cold blood, the shot is close up (CU). The frame is tightly packed only cutting off the tip of her head and to the sides of her are out of focus imagery of the sea in which the light shines on and reflects. The little girl is crying and the light which shines on her cheek reveals it to be damp with tears. Her hair is being blown by the wind overall making her seem very vulnerable and scared. The lighting is low key but for where there is light it seems very high contrasted and this makes for a beautiful parallel between the dark imagery and the light.

Shot 6: This shot is slightly low angled and is a very long shot. The killer is leaning over as if in pain clutching his heart and in the background there is the man he killed. It would seem he no longer has control or the power he had when he was shooting his gun. The man who was observing the murder is still standing in the same place still observing, lighing in the background from maybe an explosion or car headlights make his presence very dominating as his dark figure contrasts well with the light. The camera is in such a place that the audience feel as if they are peering in from another characters perspective. The shot has low key lighting with artificial light mainly coming from the background.

BLK feedback

that teddy's gonna give me nightmares - it's the eyes!

nice blogging btw

Great start!

Love the design Matt - woohoo!

Mrs T