Media Film; Reflection Points To Develop

• Looking back on my first completed piece. I really enjoyed the planning and the structure of how we were going to film everything and being organised, but i also enjoyed trying out the equipment and getting used to the different angle and shot types practically rather than theoretically. 

• I also liked trying out the software we used to edit it (Final Cut X Pro) and knowing that i could click press and try anything and if it looked good keep it and if not i could undo it. 

• I loved the experimental side to it which was interesting and an easy way to learn first hand instead of being instructed step by step. 

• I liked the filming and for a first time i was quite proud but i felt also there was still a lot to be improved on as we got our filming times and accuracy wrong which was a minor mistake which i will remember for next time i film something. 

• I also think we tried too hard to use all the different shot types which i think in some of the scenes looks weird, staged and out of place. 

• However i understand why we did it because we had to try use all of them but some of them just didn't fit so next time i think i would try to use the different shot and angle types in the correct places if possible.       

Experimental Microdrama

If I had more time I would have re-shot some of the scenes for example when I had the reflection of a person and also when I had shakiness from the camera. And now I have experimented with the editing software I now understand how I could improve and edit my work further by adding new effects and sounds. Some of the scenes could be shortened so there is not a jolty start or ending. I would have also reshot the Ipad scene as all you can see is a reflection of my face which we were not aware of at the time until we came to edit it. I however did point this out that this could be a problem when shooing but we went ahead with it anyway.

Overall I am happy with my performance and I enjoyed using the software and experimenting with all the effects and trying out things even if they didn't work or didn't look right. I liked also working with people I wouldn't normally work with and using the camera to film.

In our microdrama we used narrative theories such as:



Propps Theory of Recurring Character Types:

From this we used his ideas of a villian/antagonist who struggles against the hero (villian - poppy potts) We also had the hero/protagonist who reacts to the donor and wins the prize back (hero - conal walsh) (prize amber pianforini) The donor was also played by myself. The donor prepares the hero or gives the hero some magical object in our case the Ipad App. We also had a false hero who was played by (sarah de baisio) who tries to take credit for the heros actions or tries to marry off the princess. In our case we used the false hero to take credit as she pointed him to the direction of where the victim of the kidnap took place. 

Todorovs Theory of Equlibrium: 

1. balance in the beginning - happy couple everythings happy 
2. disruption of balance - kidnap 
3. recognition of disruption - realisation of victim missing 
4. attempt to repair the disruption - searching for the victim 
5. reinstatement of balance - victim is found 

Levi-Strauss Theory of Binary Opposites and Dramatic Conflict: 

We tried to create binary opposites by doing stereotypical evil villain with black cloak and hat to hide the face we also did a stereotypical couple with a male and female. We also did this in other ways like the villain being more dominant than the victim or being more submissive and the obvious good hero and evil villain.

Roland Barthes Theory of Narrative Enigma: 

We tried to use this by creating tension whilst watching as to who kidnapped the victim and to also provide tension as to where the victim was being kept hostage too.


We tried to use a range of shots such as:

• extreme close up 
• two shot 
• close up 
• over the shoulder shot 
• medium close up 
• medium shot 
• long shot 
• low angle 
• extreme long shot

Microdrama: Our Narrative

 My Microdrama


Synopsis:

For our microdrama we decided to take the theme as a thriller as it was easy to create.We decided to have a kidnapping between a couple, where the vulnerable girl was taken by a mysterious person. The only clue that is left behind is her shoe along with a kind person who is willing to lend the panicked man an app to find her.

Characters/Proppian Achetypes:

Donor: Sarah De Biasio
Hero: Conal Walsh
Villain: Poppy Potts
Prize: Amber Pianforini
The False Hero: Sarah De Biaso

Narrative Enigma:

1. Equilibrium at the outset - couple are happily together
2. Disruption of the equilibrium by some action - the prize is kidnapped
3. Recognition that there has been disruption - Partner realises shes gone 
4. Attempt to repair disruption - he looks for her
5. Reinstatement of the equilibrium - she is found and the couple are back together

Binary Opposites:

Man - Woman
Good - Bad
Dominant - Submissive

TisEng: A Typical 'British' Film?

This is England 

Film Poster

Shane Meadows, 2006


Production Companies:

• Warp Films
• Film4
• Em Media
• Big Arty Productions
• Optimum Release 
• Screen Yorkshire
• UK Film Council

Also Directed:

• Small Time; 1996
• A Room for Romeo Brass
• Once Upon a Time in the Midlands; 2002
• Dead Mans Shoes; 2004
• Somers Town; 2008 
• Le Donk and Scor-zay-zee; 2009
• The Stone Roses: Made of Stone; 2013

Social Realism Definition: (As a genre) 

Film makers who draw attention to everyday conditions of the working classes and the poor. 

Social Realist Films I've Seen:

Kez

• Box Office Estimated at: £1,315,593
• Length of Run: 4 weeks 
• Starting Screen Number:62
• Highest Screen Number:151

Money US:

• 
  
• Box Office Estimated at: $320K
• Length of Run: 15 weeks 
• Starting Screen Number: 1 
• Highest Screen Number: 14

BoxOfficeMojo.com 

• UK Box Office: $3,144,754
• Sweeden: $1,375,066
• France: $1,408,593

Facts and Interesting Points: 

The learner car that combo drives has a 2005 tax disc displayed on the window screen.

The takeaway that shaun passes has a telephone number starting 0115 this area code did not come into effect until the early 1990s 10 years after the film is set. 

'Since Yesterday' by strawberry switchblade can be heard on the radio although it wasn't released until November 1984.

General Codes and Conventions

We have looked at the following films:
Hot Fuzz (Edgar Wright, 2007)
Bridget Jones' Diary (Sharon Maguire, 2001)
The Truman Show (Peter Weir, 1998)
The Warriors (Walter Hill, 1979)
Now You See Me (Louis Leterrier, 2007)
Le Donk and Scor-Zay-Zee (Shane Meadow, 2009)


we have seen that the order of the idents is often based upon the a budget

Often there is an audio bridge linking the idents to the opening scene, for examples we have looked at the audio bridge was only between the final ident and the opening scene. In three of our examples, Hot Fuzz, Bridget Jones' Diary, and The Warriors, there is an audio bridge between the shot in the opening sequence.

The titles would commonly start with "production company presents" and/or "a director's film".
The order of the next set of titles often starts with the main actor/actress, and then finishing with producer and director.

The titles will often be formatted to fit the genre. For example the titles for Le-Donk and Scor-Zay-Zee, who's titles are cartoon-ish and not serious and have been adapted to fit the genre.

We have noticed that there is often an audio bridge between the final ident and the opening scene with non-diegetic music often fitting the genre, in Bolt we hear music-box like music that continues. Whereas in Bride of Chucky the music adds tension with it's stops and starts [EG]

The mis-en-scene provide exposition on the characters, the type of film and the setting. These are shown throughout our examples, in Le-Donk and Scor-Zay-Ze the mis-en-scene show us that the characters are messy and slobs. In The Truman show the shot is very basic and is cluttered with bottles along the bottom, showing the 'fly on the wall' type style of the film. In the Warriors the mis-en-scene shows the type of area that the film is set in, the graffiti and the grimey floors show that the film is set in a stereotypical downtown area.

In Now you see me a narrative enigma is introduced, with a mysterious figure in a hoodie standing at the end of each character's introduction. In Bridget Jones' Diary, binary opposites are introduced, Bridget's mum lives in the countryside, whereas Bridget herself lives in london. Throughout the opening of Hot fuzz equilibrium is introduced with simon pegg's character being introduced as being the superior cop and excelling at his job.

The AS Brief and Markscheme

THE BRIEF, EVALUATION + HOW ITS ALL MARKED

THE BRIEF

Your mission is to carry out the following brief:

Preliminary exercise: Continuity task involving filming and editing a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she/he then exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. This task should demonstrate match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180-degree rule.
Main task: the titles and opening of a new fiction film, to last a maximum of two minutes.
All video and audio material must be original, produced by the candidate(s), with the exception of music or audio effects from a copyright-free source.

The coursework is worth 50% of the AS (same at A2) and the marking (detailed later) is divided into 3 sections:

RESEARCH AND PLANNING: 20%

PRODUCTION: 60%

EVALUATION: 20%

Your work is marked partially on my observations of your approach and level of organisation, but fundamentally its a DVD and your blog that are marked.

EVALUATION

Even before you start shooting (let alone planning) your production, you need to keep this final stage in mind. If you start (b)logging notes on this now it will save you a lot of stress as the final deadline (in May!) approaches. You are tasked with answering these questions (see below for details on how this is marked):

• In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? 

• How does your media product represent particular socialgroups?

• What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why? 

• Who would be the audience for your media product? 

• How did you attract/address your audience? 

• What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product? 

• Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

HOW ITS ALL MARKED [ie THE ASSESSMENT CRITERIA]

When I'm marking all this, I've got to write a paragraph for the exam board justifying the marks I've given you. The grid embedded below summarises the criteria I have to follow, and so you're advised to occasionally re-read this and ask yourself where you think you'll fall within the marking scheme!
For each section there are key components of the work which I have to assess as being one of the following:

MINIMAL
BASIC
PROFICIENT

EXCELLENT

If you think you're currently at the 'minimal' or 'basic' level for any of these, ask yourself (and me!) what you can do to jump up to at least proficient.

  G321 AS CWK Markscheme on 1pg DB

Last 5 Movies Ive Watched

This Is England (Shane Meadows)

Budget $1.5m

Box Office; $328,000

Indentity Thief (Seth Gordon) 

Budget; $35m

Box Office; $134,500

Leap Year (Anand Tucker) 

Budget; $19m

Box Office; $25.8m

Devil Wears Prada (David Frankel) 

Budget; $35m

Box Office; $124.8m

21 Jump Street (Phil Lord) (Chris Miller) 

Budget; $42m

Box Office; $138.5m

My Fave Film

 Devil Wears Prada

Film Poster    

David Frankel; 2006
Production Companies:
Fox 2000 Pictures
Dune Entertainment
Major Studio Partners
Peninsula Films
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Budget: $35m
US Box Office: $124.7
RottenTomatoes.com;76%
IMDB;7.6/10




My favourite film has to be The Devil Wears Prada because I think it is an amazing film with some well known actors such as Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway. The plot is based on the book The Devil Wears Prada which is about a young naive woman (Andrea) played by Anne Hathaway finds herself taking a job at Elias Clarke who owns Runway, which is a high end fashion magazine. Andrea finds herself working for Miranda (played by Meryl Streep) as her PA. Miranda is one of the most well known people in the 'fashion industry' and is also known as the devil for her attitudes.