Film Production Feedback

1. Opening sequence

• Include dialogue : can't be silent

2. 1 minute - audio on clip

• need to be merged better 
• re-record dialogue - dub over? 

3. Soundtrack/Music

• Create atmosphere 
• Start experimenting 

4. Complete filming 17/3/16

5. Edit before Wed 23/3/16

BFI trip notes

I didn't attend the BFI trip however I did manage to get some information and notes from my peers.

I learned that :

• The BFI and other independent cinemas exhibit low budget films.
• There are multi-complex cinemas which are cinema that have large chains e.g Vue cinema and Odeon.
• The are prestige cinema which have low budget films but have big actors.
• The sub genres are horror,heritage,franchise,social realism and urban fairytale.
• some examples of film distributors are vertigo and warp.

Attack the block

Attack the Block is a 2011 British science fiction comedy-horror film written and directed by Joe Cornish

It is about a teen gang in South London who defend their block from an alien invasion.The group spend the whole nigh trying to fight off and kill the aliens before they start to terrorise the community that they live in.It balances fright with laughter really well and features solid performances from everyone in the cast.The use of gruesome aliens and a great setting that features outstanding action scenes all make it the great film that it is.The target audience for this film would be a 50:50 split of male to females and for those who are living in London or close to London. In terms of camera shots and editing I could see a lot of straight cuts being used , this helped to speed up the pace of the film especially in the fast paced scene where the teenagers had to fight off the aliens. In terms of characters I could see a lot of low angle shots used on the teenage boys which made them appear as powerful and in control towards the audience. This was used especially on the main character Moses who portrayed leadership skills and control throughout the movie.

Photoshop tutorials

PROGRESS REPORT

Work completed since 6 January

The Script for our production
the storyboard and shot list
preparing all of the props
Getting characters to play in our film

Any incomplete pre-production tasks

We have not yet completed our photo shoot however we will be doing it next Thursday.


Next steps/Action plan

We have all of our characters and props prepared for out shoot so we will be shooting from the 25th and onwards. I will also be working on my print design brief by taking head shots of the main characters and writing about each of them.

Date filming will be complete

Our aim to get the filming done by is the second or third week of February. However, there may be some other times when we have to re-shoot some scenes if they do not fit the way we want it to be (whilst doing the editing).

Requirements for photoshoot next week

Make sure the main character is wearing dark coloured clothing.
Have bright coloured lightings
Make sure that half the main characters face is shadowed
Also bring the props, e.g. coca cola bottle which is a main prop that will be used in the film

TRANSGESSION : Double page spread

Our film idea is about a group of teenagers who hangout everyday on an abandoned old rooftop. However one day it all changes and their casual chilling sessions are no longer 'chill' but in fact 'chilly'.  The group of teenagers decide to play a game of spin the bottle which changes everything they've ever known. The aim of the game is for the bottle to land on someone and that person gets one hour to change their life, whether that be going back in time or going into the future. Unfortunately the first spin of the bottle lands on the mentally-ill boy Jason ,who decides to take Grace on his adventure with him. The end result of this is that Jason ends up killing Grace with his baseball bat and the rest of the teenagers eventually find out. The groups aim is to find out why he did it and to try and cover up her death from the police.

'Don't trust a pretty face'

This is one of the most significant quotes of the film as 'pretty' is a term usually used for females. However it is not Grace that can not be trusted it is Jason. The use of the word pretty will make the audience think that it is Grace that will cause the drama in the film as she is the only female figure on the front cover of the film poster. I think the use of this quote will create a big impact on the viewers as they will be shocked to see that Jason is in fact the 'pretty face' which changes their perception on males. This quote may have also thrown off the audiences view towards the movie as they  may have already predicted the story line.

'Not everything is as it seems'

This quote is significant as it contrasts well with our movie. By looking at the film poster of the teenagers the audience will view them as innocent teenagers due to their friendly faces and code of conduct. However 'not everything is at it seems' as each one of them have a deep dark secret from the past that will eventually be revealed in due course throughout the movie. This contrasts with the film title 'TRANSGESSION' and this means an act that goes against a law, rule or code of conduct.

Main characters

Jason is the main male character who is a mentally disturbed boy. His past experiences in life have made him into the disgusting, disturbed teenage boy that he currently is now. His man aim in life is to gain power and the attention of others. If he lacks any of these two traits he begins to act crazy and his mind begins blurred making him unable to differentiate reality from things that are in his imagination. This causes he to make irrational decisions that affect the other in his friendship group.

Grace is the main female character of the group , who everyone assumes is the 'pretty face'. She is viewed by others as the pretty girl in the group who is vulnerable and innocent. This is portrayed in the movie when she deicides to walk into a dark , gloomy forest with Jason without any hesitation.

Research

1) Key conventions. Look over the magazine cover key conventions notes sheet and ensure you can confidently identify the key aspects that are found on a magazine cover.


2) Write an analysis of this BFI Film Festival programme front cover. How many of the 12 key conventions of magazine covers can you see? In what way does this print product differ from a traditional magazine cover? How have the designers made this programme visually interesting?

On this film festival programme colour I can see a title of publication that is printed in big , bold letters with the word "FILM" being the focus of the spread. In terms of the colour scheme the bright colours reflect off of the black background which makes it stand out more,making it more appealing and noticeable for the readers enticing them to what its about. The use of the language for example 'in partnership with' and 'American Express' suggest that this film company is quite serious about their business and are also very high up in what they do as they are in partnership with quite high companies with reputable names that are widely recognised. Instead of using colour to fill in the words, they've used an image of a persons face with the eyes being the sole focus which is effective as it makes people stop and read the poster. This is also effective in the sense that it is something different and more complex as opposed to something boring like plain colours.








3) Find at least 5 arts centre or cinema programmes/brochures aimed at a similar target audience to your project (art house cinema). For each one, pick out one design idea that you could use in your own print work.







I could use their idea of using the whole image as the background .The image could consist of the 5 teenage characters that will be in our film.






I could use their idea of having more than one image on my print work. Also my title of publication will be big and bold like how they used theirs.






I like the idea of turning the title of publication into the central image of the cover. I may consider using this idea for my print work.




I like how the text links well with the central image. The title of publication is 'cyberbully' which contrasts with the central image of the teenage girl alone on her laptop. It signifies how she is lonely and on her laptop which links well with the word 'cyber'. She is also bending her head down at the laptop and holding her mouth , showing the disgust she has for whatever she is looking at on the laptop. This links well with my target audience of young teens as this is something that is common which a lot of teenagers.



I like the idea of the male and female facing each other as they are in love. This will link well with my film and target audience as our idea is about a two of the characters who like each other and fall in love however it doesn't end very well. I think by using an image like this for my print work will deceive the audience of the outcome of the situation and make them more shock and intrigued with our story line.


4) Find at least 5 contents pages from arts programmes or magazines. How are contents pages designed? How do they use a combination of text and images to create an effective design?




1) This contents page contains a large title of publication which is usually what draws the readers attention first , however it mostly contains a large image that is quite colourful.




2) This contents page has a lot of things going on at once. It is not one of he best contents pages I've seen however it does have some key conventions such as its title of publication and use of two images. These two conventions work well together as the image links back to the title of publication informing us that this is the name of the film and the image gives us a brief look at what we may see if we watch it.




3)This is a simple contents page where the whole image is the background. There is a minimal amount of text however it is not very easy to notice so it may not be as important as the image itself.




4) This contents page splits it importance of advertisement equally. Half of the page is the image they are advertising and the other is text about information on the brand shown in the image.




5) This contents page has a large amount of text surrounding a small image of a female. This image is advertising the brand vogue which is written in bright, red , bold letters which will automatically gain the readers attention.

Planning and sketching

Planning and sketching

1) Create a spider diagram or bullet point list of all the things your target audience might be interested in. How can you use this information to create a main feature about your film that will appeal to your target audience?

2) Produce an A5 sketch of your front cover including the key conventions and design tricks you have studied in existing programmes and then planned in planning task 1 above.

3) Produce an A4 sketch of your double-page spread contents page. In terms of the text for your contents page, you will need to find out the names of the films of other groups in your class. The other films in the class will make up the rest of your contents page.

4) Create a spider diagram or bullet point list of ideas for your double-page spread feature. Write a list of potential headlines and sub-headings for the article you choose to go with.

4) Produce an A4 landscape sketch of your double page spread design now you have chosen the subject matter.

MEST 2: Print brief Photoshoot

Photoshoot


1) Which of your main characters will appear on the front cover of your programme?


The main characters that will be on the front cover will definately Jason and maybe Grace also. I think it would create enigma codes and have the audiences questioning what these two characters will have to do with the film etc.

2) What image or images do you need for the contents page?

For the contents page we will need images of the scenery where the group or teenagers hang out and the place where the murder of Grace takes place.

3) What image or images will you use for the double-page spread?

The double page spread will have close ups of each of the characters faces. This will look like a mug shot to give off that sense of 'who did it' so it relates to the death of Grace.

4) Write a shot list for the photoshoot. Make sure you plan a variety of camera shots you will look to capture - medium shots, close-ups etc.

medium shot of Grace and Jason

Extreme close up of both of their faces seperately

over the shoulder shot of Jason's shoulder

5) What costume, props or make-up will you require for the photoshoot?


The props we will need is the bottle and the bat used to kill Grace.

Jason will be dressed in average clothing e.g hoodie,jeans,trainers.

Grace will be dressed as a vulnerable little girl so she'll be wearing tights,a mini skirt, flat shoes.

Red paint or fake blood will be needed for when Grace gets hit.

6) How will you make sure you have everything prepared for the photoshoot on Wednesday 20 January?

We will make sure our actors are free on that date. We will make sure we have all of the costumes and props prepared. We will keep in contact with everyone daily to make sure everyone is on the same page.

MEST2 : Pre Production Edited

MEST2 : Pre Production Edited

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B9lJZsZTDdsJR0V5UGRkTDB5Njg

SCRIPT : TRANSGRESSION

FADE IN, ESTABLISHING SHOT OF LOCATION

EXT. THE SUBURBS OF LONDON. THERE ARE TEENAGERS WHO ARE

SITTING AT AN ABANDONED ROOFTOP ­ DAY

CUT TO A MEDIUM LONG SHOT OF THE TEENAGERS

A group of teenagers, three females and two males, are sitting

in a circle. Their friendship is quite strong hence the

chatter that is taking place; some of them have known each

other for years, but recently a new member Jason has joined.

Amongst the teenagers is an empty Coca­Cola bottle.

JASON

It’s a fairly simple game. Pretend the bottle is your life, it

CUT TO CLOSE UP OF BOTTLE

(JASON reaches to spin the bottle)

(In an eager and excited tone)

basically holds your fate.

JASON

and by spinning it you have pretty much gambled your life.

Whoever gets chosen has to change their life within an...

hour? It’s fun trust me, i’m so fucking tired of people not

committing to spin the bottle games.

MEDIUM SHOT OF JASON, THE CAMERA TRACKS HIS ACTIONS AS HE

SPINS THE BOTTLE ONCE MORE.

CUT TO A REVERSE SHOT OF LUCIA WHO STOPS THE BOTTLE FROM

SPINNING.

LUCIA

(She rolls her eyes in an annoyed manner)

That is the most stupid thing i’ve heard all day.

(DEVON gives LUCIA a slight nudge on the shoulder and grabs

her cheek)

DEVON

(In a teasing manner)

Give it a rest Lucia you’re always killing the fun, might have

to name you killjoy from now on.

(LUCIA pushes Devon away with force. There is small laughter

amongst them at this)

GRACE

I think it’s a pretty cool idea, besides it’s SOMETHING to do

(With admiration in her voice)

rather than just sitting around here.

CUT TO OVER THE SHOULDER SHOT, JASON WINKS AT GRACE AS SHE

SMILES BACK.

TYRA

C’mon Lucia stop being so negative. When will you stop holding

(Pleadingly)

a grudge against Jason?

LUCIA

(In an unimpressed tone)

Yeah, yeah whatever... Go on then, let’s see how AMAZING this

little shitty game of yours is Jason.

JASON

(In a tense tone as he makes sharp eye contact with Lucia)

Alright, let’s play then.

JASON goes to reach for the bottle and places it in the middle

as they form a circle.

CUT TO HIGH ANGLE SHOT OF THE BOTTLE SPINNING. P.O.V OF

THE BOTTLE AS IT SLOWS DOWN.

The bottle comes to a halt and there is silence amongst the

teenager’s. The atmosphere is quite tense and the bottle stops

at JASON, indicating that he has been chosen.

LUCIA

Well well, what a fucking coincidence! The bottle has landed

on the “chosen” one, now go off and do your stupid little

dare.

TYRA

I don’t understand, how are you meant to change your life

within an hour?

I don’t know... you just have to do something interesting or

JASON

(Thoughtfully)

daring.

CUT TO MEDIUM TRACKING SHOT OF JASON WALKING TOWARDS GRACE.

CLOSE UP OF JASON OFFERING HIS HAND.

JASON

Do you want to take the honour of helping me change my life

within an hour?

CUT BACK TO A MEDIUM CLOSE UP SHOT OF GRACE.

GRACE has a surprised yet keen look on her face as she takes

his offer by taking his hand.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF HER TAKING HIS HAND

GRACE

(In an imaginary posh voice, there is a sense of eagerness

within her voice)

Oh why of course! That would be splendid!

DEVON

(In a teasing manner with a smirk)

SOMEONE is getting a bit too excited; I wonder what they’re

going to do...

(TYRA joins in with DEVON’S teasing as she winks at GRACE)

TYRA

Don’t go and have too much fun the both of you!

(As JASON and GRACE leave, LUCIA mumble’s)

LUCIA

Something is not right.

FADE INTO THE NEXT SCENE. SEVERAL SHOTS OF THE TREE’S AND THE

SKY.

EXT. NEARBY WOODS – DAY

JASON and GRACE are seen walking together in the woods. GRACE,

an introvert, is too shy to ask about JASON’S plan and she

continues to follow him, who is increasingly slowing behind

her.

GRACE

(Nervously)

What are you doing?

JASON

(In a strange manner)

Oh, nothing. Keep walking, i’m just looking around.

GRACE

Oh, okay.

SLOW MOTION, OVER THE SHOULDER SHOT OF JASON BEHIND GRACE AS

HE SLOWLY FOLLOWS HER

(GRACE continues to walk, until she finally has the courage to

ask JASON about his dare)

GRACE

(As she is turning around to face him)

Hey Jason what are you planning to do as your da-

SHOT OF JASON GRABBING GRACE INTO A CHOKE HOLD. CLOSE UP SHOT

OF GRACE’S HANDS STRUGGLING TO PUSH AWAY JASON. THEN MEDIUM

SHOT OF JASON THROWING HER TO A GROUND AND GRABBING A BAT.

JASON

(In an ominous and hysterical tone)

YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN TO SHUT UP! YOU TALK TOO MUCH!

(With each strike JASON exclaims)

YOU’RE SO. BLOODY. ANNOYING.

(JASON continues to beat her with the bat with hysteria)

JASON

(Panting from exhaustion as he continues to use all his power and

force)

WHY... THE FUCK... AREN’T YOU... DYING?

P.O.V OF GRACE AS HE CONTINUES TO HIT HER. BLURRY SHOTS OF JASON AS

GRACE BECOMES UNCONSCIOUS.

GRACE

(She pleads for JASON to stop with her last breath)

Please... Stop.

(JASON gives one last blow to her head which finally kills her. He

chucks the bat into the river)

LONG SHOT OF JASON THROWING THE BAT INTO THE RIVER WITH GREAT ANGER

AND FORCE.

JASON

(He slightly kicks her limp and dead body while panting)

I never knew it took humans so long to die.

(JASON slowly mumbles to himself as he walks away)

This life is nothing but an illusion; we must fulfil the needs that

lie within our hearts. CUT TO BLACK

Mise en scene

Cinematography/Inspirations

Gone Girl, in terms of the mentally disturbed protagonist and the general psychological .

In terms of cinematography and actual filming styles:

House of Cards, different depths and variety of things being in focus/ out focus, foreground/background etc
Whiplash, use of colours and palettes
Drive, use of colours and palettes, and general cinematography, possible use of soundtrack
Run Lola Run, use of solid colour tint overlays which helps to drive the narrative and multiple personality or narratives of characters.
Trance, use of editing in post production to create disorientating effects etc
Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim, Hot Fuzz), possible use of the "montage" stylised cutting of scenes.

Casting

The characters with the most focus during the 3 minute extract will be Grace and Jason. Atousa will be playing Grace. Izaaz will be playing Jason. Lucia, Tyra and Devon will be played by 

Locations

A quiet and reserved area such as the woods near a park will be needed for the scene where Jason kills Grace. Another area where the entire location looks abandoned and old will be used for where the teenagers are hanging out.

Props

The props needed are a baseball bat which could be substituted later if we don't find one. Also a bottle will be needed as it is the central part of story line. 

Possible props, cigarettes, beer/alcohol containers?

Costume and Make up

Normal clothing because the characters are all teenagers, make up will be needed for the violence and the blood when Grace is killed.

Lighting

Generally, we will use natural day lighting but can use some high key lighting to create dramatic emphasis if need be. Lighting will have to be essential to create a vivid colour palette that resembles an indie film such as Drive.