For our clip, we are going to have a soundtrack that will run throughout in the background. We found our soundtrack from the website, freeplaymusic.com. It is called Empty Chair by Eliot Pistor. We chose this because it is quite indie and it is both happy and dramatic. We think it would be very good for the start of a film. We are going to make sure this is not the only sound which will be used, as we are planning on including things like cars passing, people talking and diagetic music.
Category: research
28. Aural Diagram
26. Narrative theories
Vladimir Propp proposed the idea that in most tales and stories there are 6 main character types. I am going to say what they are and if we have them in our story and who they will be.
The Villain– This is the character who struggles against the hero. In our story this will be the parents.
The Dispatcher– The character who invites the hero to eliminate the evil. Fame will be the dispatcher in our story.
The Donor– The character who offers some sort of help to the hero by providing an object(s) that will help the hero in his/her quest. The donor will also be the parents as they will provide the money for their leap to fame.
The Helper– The character who helps the hero fight against evil. The helper will be the first record label who sign them.
The Princess– The character who needs to be rescued from the evil villain. We will technically not have a princess in our story.
The Hero– The character who eliminates the villain and weds the princess. Our hero(s) will be the homeless boy and the wealthy boy.
24. Key Elements
For an independent-or any movie- the opening credits have to captivate the audience and encourage them to watch the ensuing scenes. Here is short checklist of what is necessary in our opening credits.
Urban theme-
Interesting credits-
captivating and interesting-
introduction to characters-
lots of music-
stop motion periods-
introduction-
indication of themes-
21/22.The Institutions for our Film
To support the UK industry we are going to try and base our production and publishing within the British isles. We would Ideally use institutions that are UK orientated.
Our film will deal with many topics relatable to UK culture, so for production we are going to use Film4. As a UK based company the majority of its employees will understand the logistics and values of British life. Film4 produced “attack the block” which has an urban theme so it is evident that they are able to operate in the UK and do a similar urban theme.
Distribution is vital and as an independent movie Fox Searchlight would appear to be the best option. Fox Searchlight specialise in distributing independent movies so we know they have a audience base that would be willing to watch out movie. Juno was distributed by fox searchlight and they have some similar themes.
To exhibit our production to the right crowd we will showcase our works at Sundance film festival which draws in a large and forward thinking trendy audience all eager to watch independent movies, which is perfect fore us. Furthermore to get a younger audience watching we are going to put our movie on Netflix as that has a large youth following.
20. Pearl and Dean Analysis
Our ideal audience would be aimed at a male C1, as our themes include items that would be generally more appealing to males aged 15-24. Our movie will be broadly interesting and many different age and class groups will be attracted, however they will be predominantly middle class male.
19. Audience Member
For our perfect Audience member we have gone for a more indie approach, but hidden under the layers of charity shop Ralphie and flannel shirts lies a mainstream grime lover. He goes to partys and in his posh voice tries to say slang words as he talks about how many times he has smoked weed as he plays shutdown and shouts “shutdown” with the rest of him. When the next song comes on he attempts to show his “skanking” to the girls. He likes drinking special brews even though he returns home to parents who will let him drink nothing less that Don. Yes, his upper-class background and Kings Road house doesn’t deter him heading as far south as Brixton going to some “wicked” raves. He likes eating lots of meat and sushi but also will have a salad. He likes visiting charity shops and buys the vast majority of his clothes on Depop. Festivals are Matty’s favourite where he enjoys the rebellious “vibes”.
18. Openeing Title Audience Research
For out Independent Movie opening title, research as to what the viewer wants its key to a successful- and entertaining- first 2 minuets.
DO’s
General feeling of movie– The opening credits should be an indicator of the mood and themes of the movie .
Small bit of information– The sequence should introduce a few main characters, giving the viewer insight into their backgrounds.
Easy to read– the fonts should be easily viewable and not distract the viewer from the shot but blend in to its surroundings.
Entertaining– a cliff hanger or high intensity will draw in the audience and excite them into viewing more.
DONT’s
Too long– over winded opening titles can bore the viewer and deter them from watching further as this is the first thing he/she will watch.
Too much Information– an overload of information can put of audiences as they feel confused.
Poor Editing/ Acting– The lack of continuity and poor editing can lead to audiences lack of interest as well as poor acting.
15. The Breakfast Club 9 key shots
For my one other movie I have chosen to do the breakfast club. This classic movie is a perfect example of a Independent movie as it was all shot in one place-high school during detention- and deals with very teenage problems. Here is some more information on the Breakfast club.
The Breakfast clubs iconic opening titles include a series of stills voiced over by one of the students reading aloud the essay he wrote during detention.
This is the opening shot, its a low angle long shot of the entrance to the school. Its important as the entirety of the film- apart from a couple of scenes at the start and at the end- is shot inside the unattractive building. The shot holds for several seconds so that the audience knows it has some sort of significance.
This close up shot of a trophy cabinet is also important as it shows us that the school is actually very high archiving as it is stocked to it height. Furthermore it foreshadows one of the students in detention being an athlete.
This Vandalised section of wall is also very important as it comes right after the previous shot of the trophy cabinet. It is also highlights one of the themes of rebellion that is probably most important throughout. It also symbolises that every school has its places that its proud of- trophies- and not so proud of.
This shot shows the first member to be attending detention, from the shot that includes the BMW logo we can assume that the people in the car have some wealth. the next shot inside the car is the daughter complaining and the father to make her feel better, has bought her something. That is important as that is one of the key issues brought up, and straight away gives us an insight to her life. we can assume that this character is depicted as an “attention seeker”
I direct contrast to the past shot we see a crowded car with perhaps a more working class family symbolised by 3 in the front. Moreover in contrast to the laidback approach taken by the father in the previous car the mother here is very angry demanding that the young man do some work, even though they are not supposed to. From this shot we can assume the character is a “nerd”
Here we see the athlete inside his car with his father. his father seems more angry that he got caught rather than he was in the wrong, anxious that his son could miss a match. Rather than being apologetic the son tries to avoid the conversation, and storms out the car. This is important as it shows yet another stereotype of young “American athlete.”
Here is the a shot of a car coming to a sudden stop as a rebellious teen refuses to wait and continues with his path across the front of the car. Straight away we can assume a great deal about this character as he is the only one who has not been brought in by his parents indicating that he perhaps has issues at home and as a result has become a rebellious young man.
Here we see the final character be introduced, after the rebel stereotype has passed the young woman gets out the back seat of the car and nervously goes to address the driver, at which point the car screams away, leaving the girl alone as she waits for a second. This shot again like the rest shows us an insight into their lives that will be exploited later in the film as they make friends with each other and understand that they are not so different.
14. Opening Seaquence Of Donnie Darko
This classic released in 2001 was a slightly higher budget independent movie that saw the debut of Jake Gyllenhaal. The opening shot is at dusk, as the camera pans round a tree a solitary figure is seen in the middle of a desolate road, the lighting is dark and they have edited the shot to increase the blues emphasising the morning feel. Still in the same shot the camera moves around the back of the now sitting individual as he stares at the impressive sunrise, the costume appears to be pyjamas. . The actor appears to be amused at himself. he is completely alone on what appears to be a mountainside with a lonely road with a stray bicycle on the verge. Non diegetic soft piano music has been playing in the background which continues for a pan of the mountain range before him but abruptly changes after the actor arises from the ground and appears in the shot and walks of in the direction of the camera to reveal the title “Donny Darko” and as a bright edited light takes us into the next scene of Donny riding down the hill with a more upbeat music and demeanour. As the sleepy teen makes his way downhill he soon hits a suburban town and the mise en scene changes drastically as other presumably middle class commuters get ready for the day. There is more light in the shot as it follows Donny to his house and the happy guitar music continues. As he arrives home his family member’s seem relatively unbewildered with his unexplained absence as he makes his way inside with the camera still following him it stops to reveal a note on he fridge “where is Donnie?”.
Passage Productions 