The 'Watching' Documentary

1) What does Thomas Sutcliffe mean when he says "Films need to seduce their audience into long term commitment. While there are many types of seduction, the temptation to go for instant arousal is almost irresistible"Thomas Sutcliffe meant that the opening sequence of a film needs to really engage the audience and convince them to watch the whole thing. Therefore it has to be eye-catching and interesting so it's merely impossible to look away.

2) According to Director Jean Jacques Beineix, what are the risks of 'instant arousal'?
Jean Jacques Beineix said that one risk is that if you start strong, you have to ask your self, "what do i do next?" as you have already aroused the audience and you'll have to maintain that level throughout.

3) Explain why "a good beginning must make the audience feel that it doesn't know nearly enough yet, and at the same time make sure that it doesn't know too little"This is said because the beginning is the moment that the film comes to terms with its viewers and draws up the relationship between the two. In order to gain a good reception, the audience needs to feel that they have a reasonable amount of information of the film.

4) What does critic Stanley Kauffmann describe as the classic opening? Why does this work?
An establishing shot of New York City, from the East, then a close-up of a building and the camera would go up the building to a window. Then it would go in the window, passed the receptionist desk to the private office, and there sat the main character.
This 'classic opening' worked because it provided the audience with vital information such as where it was taking place, what the occupation of the main character was, and the organisation of the world.

5) Why is Kyle Coopers title sequence to the film Seven so effective?
He knew that his director wasn't after a gentle prelude, but a sequence that would tune the viewers to the right dissonant pitch. He wanted the opening credits to immediately convey the idea that the film was going to hit you on your head and almost prepare the audience for what they were about to see. It worked because it felt like it was already part of the movie. It told the story and introduced us to the incessant nature of the character.

6) What did Orson Welles want to achieve with his opening to the film A Touch of Evil? What did Universal Studios do to it? Why?
Orson Welles intended the opening scene to be seen without credits and title music, and wanted to plunge the audience into the story, without giving them time to prepare themselves. However, Universal were cautious and put a score underneath it and credits.

7) What is meant by "A Favourite Trick of Noir"? What is the trick?
Is when the beginning of a film is more like the ending which is known as "A Favourite Trick of Film Noir". Lots of great openings share this quality. They feel like a destination as much as a departure point and if not clear the first time round, the next time you watch it it would become clear.

8) How does the opening to the film The Shining create suspense?
Because the camera pursues the car like a predator, high up and behind. It never strays to what is conventionally spectacualr, but remains fixed on the tiny object. Everything tells us that these people are travelling in the wrong direction.

Elements of a film that inspires me.

Over the holidays, I watched a thriller film named 'Paranormal Activity 1' the elements used in the film e.g. camera and sound inspired me.



There are several camera elements used in the film for example: 

This is an example of a wide shot recorded at night time. This is effective as it catches the audience's attention by displaying the time at the bottom right corner so therefore, we'll be eager to find out what will happen during the night.

This is an example of a medium shot where we're clearly able to see the character's expressions of fear due to the scary actions occurring in the film.

This is an example of an extreme close-up shot. This is quite effective because its scary and enhances the genre of the film - thriller. Also, builds tension in the audience's mind.

The video clip above shows the element of sound used in the film. When the two character's are sitting downstairs there is no sound - this builds up tension as we expect to hear something. Then suddenly we hear diegetic sounds of a 'bang' and the character's voice through a dialogue between both the characters. This engages the audience into the film as we're curious to find out where did the 'bang' come from.

Health and Safety Tutorial

Health and safety

The purpose for this tutorial was to familiarise us with the filming equipment we will be using. We also discussed potential problems we may face outside whilst filming outside. We talked about what not to do with the equipment and how to use it.


The video camera we will be using when filming is a JVC professional quality recording camera.
Do’s & Don’ts:

1.      Firstly we were told to treat them with care and safely for the sake of other students who may need to use it after us and because the cameras cost a lot of money.

2.       More importantly no eating or drinking while using the camera. This could also mean taking into consideration if you are able to use the recording camera outside depending on the weather, (e.g. rain and snow).

3.      Making sure that the camera is properly attached to the tripod.

4.      Not touching the camera lens which could result in blurry footage.

We had to be shown where and how to insert the SD memory card into the recording camera correctly, removing and inserting the battery, connecting the camera to the tripod accurately and how to actually set up a tripod. We had to demonstrate to other group members to see if the tripod was at level.    




SD Card



Tripod

Research - Health and Safety Tutorial

Working the video camera:
Before we begin filming for our projects, it is essential that we are briefed on the health and safety guidelines and given a clear tutorial on how to use and set up the camcorder's and tripods.

There are many health and safety rules that need to be followed before and whilst we take the
recording equipment out. Here are some of the rules that we have to follow.
- Before taking out any equipment, we must ensure that it is working fine
and that we have all the necessary tools; E.G. battery, memory card etc.
  - All equipment must not be taken out of the building without a bag for the
 camera.
       - It is essential that you NEVER touch the camcorder lens to prevent damage
and a dirty screen when filming.
- The camera must never be exposed to wet weathers and if filming takes
place in light rain then there must always be an umbrella available.
- It's important that all camera's are returned on time so they are available
to use for the next group and are returned in good condition.
- When using the tripod, its important that the camera is securely attached
and that the legs are all equal; this can be checked using the spirit level.

We were also given a mini, basic tutorial on how to set up the camera. We learnt how to:
- attach the battery to the camcorder
- The button to open and close the lens
- Inserting the memory card
- attaching the camera to the tripod
- setting up the tripod
 

- Before inserting the memory card, it is important that you check that it is not on 'lock' otherwise you will not be able to record and will not save to the card.
- Once you insert your hard drive into the computer, you have to ensure that you don't take it out without ejecting it, otherwise all the work you did that day will be lost!

Remake Scene - The Killers

Screen Shots of group 21 using final cut pro

This is a screen shot showing a fraction of the scene being cut.

The two different screens do different things. The one on the left is for editing the sequence

Again we have chosen the section of the sequence we need and have dragged it into 

This is a screen shot of all the clips we took when filming our remake of 'Killers'

In this picture, we are inserting in the fade to create a cohesive shot and to ensure
that the scene flows and the two shots go together nicely. In order to do this, as shown in the
screenshot above, we had to go to effects - video transitions - dissolve - fade in and out.

The video below shows our final piece of the Killers remake:

 


Our finished piece is similar to the original version in several ways for example:


The screen grab on the left is from the original version of 'The Killers' showing a mid over the shoulder shot of the guy from the girl's perspective. This screen grab is similar to ours as Renee (playing the guy) is shown from an over the shoulder shot through the girl's perspective
(Sabrina).

The screen grab on the left is from the original version of 'The Killers' as it shows a wide shot of the man looking at the couple. The screen grab on the right is our remake showing a wide shot of Raheleh (playing the man) looking at Renee and Sabrina (the couple).


 The screen grab on the right is our remake of 'The Killers' as we wanted to portray a close-up of Renee (playing the guy). This is similar to the original version as a close-up of the guy is shown.

 The screen grab on the left shows a side shot of the guy looking at the man in the background. Ours is similar to the original version as we have Renee's side shot looking at Raheleh in the background.



Our remake of 'The Killers' is quite similar to the original version because our task was to remake a shot by shot version of a film opening.




Pictures from behind the scenes of shot by shot remake of 'The Killers' Film opening

the timeline to add to the complete piece.

and the screen on the right is for watching it all as a whole. As you can see on this occasion,

we have dragged the section of the sequence that we want to keep into the timeline and then 

played back the complete sequence.

Health and Safety tutorial

We had a health and safety tutorial in order to prevent any problems arising during our practical tasks and we were introduced to the equipments we'll be using during the project. 

JVC Camera

We'll be using JVC professional recording cameras. It is small and easy to carry containing a professional recording quality to gain a great experience. We must be very careful while using the cameras and therefore we should follow the rules below:

• We shouldn't touch the lens because they can get easily damaged which can destroy our footage or the camera can stop working.
• The camera should be held safely.
• We cannot expose the camera to any liquid and bad weather conditions e.g. rain
• We should give the camera back on time and make sure its in a safe place during practical tasks.
• We must ensure that the camera is accurately attached on the tripod. 

Additionally, during our media lesson we were taught on how to correctly use the cameras by:

• Inserting and removing the battery properly
• Inserting and removing the camera from the tripod
• Opening and closing the tripod accurately
• Inserting and removing the memory card properly 

Tripod

When opening the tripod we should always make sure that all the legs are on the same level so that the camera is perfectly stable. The tripod legs can be extended twice according to the camera shot you want to shoot.

The memory card should always be kept in safe places and we must not lose it as we can lose all the footages. The memory card can support approximately 2 hours of filming which will be enough for our film opening.

Extension task - 'Watching' documentary on Film Openings

1) What does Thomas Sutcliffe mean when he says "Films need to seduce their audience into long term commitment. While there are many types of seduction, the temptation to go for instant arousal is almost irresistible"

Thomas Sutcliffe means that the storyline of a film has to persuade its targeted audience by making sure the audience continue to watch the film and not get distracted by any other obstacles. 

2) According to Director Jean Jacques Beineix, what are the risks of 'instant arousal'? 

According to Director Jean, the plot of the film has to gradually grow. If you give everything away in the beginning than you will find yourself in a bad position to develop the story interestingly.

3) Explain why "a good beginning must make the audience feel that it doesn't know nearly enough yet, and at the same time make sure that it doesn't know too little"

A good beginning of a film needs to catch the audience's attention by building up an interesting story according to the genre of the film, this will engage the audience to watch the film till the end. 

4) What does critic Stanley Kauffmann describe as the classic opening? Why does this work?

A classic opening is when the film begins with an establishing shot of a city, then a close-up of a building then the camera zooms inside the building through a window, panning the receptionist to a private office and there we are introduced to the actor. This opening works because it informs the audience about the location of the film and builds up an image of the actor's occupation.

5) Why is Kyle Cooper's title sequence to the film Seven so effective?

Because it instantly grabs the audience's attention by making them feel involved within the film.

6) What did Orson Welles want to achieve with his opening to the film A Touch of Evil? What did Universal Studios do to it? Why?

Orson Welles wanted to present the opening of his film in an unusual way. He wanted the audience to watch the film without an introduction to the actors in the film as he tried presenting the opening without credits or a title sequence. However, Universal Studios put the credits and the music as they were more cautious.

7) What is meant by "a favourite trick of Film Noir"? What is the trick?

It means to start the film by the ending. The trick is to establish a destination through the opening rather than a departure point.

8) How does the opening to the film The Shining create suspense?

The camera portrays the car as a predator. The shot is powerful providing a beautiful view but remain fixed in the tiny object, telling the audience that the car is going to the wrong direction.

Shot by shot remake task

The Killers Storyboard

Our task is to remake a shot by shot sequence from a film. The film that we have chosen is called 'The killers' before we begin to shoot the sequence, it is really important to create a plan of what we're going to do. So therefore, we have created a storyboard showing all the shots we'll record in order to remake a sequence from 'The killers'.

• mise en scene: shot in a cafe, decore light yellows and red (bright color)
• high key lighting 
• busy setting, lots of people walking pass. 

Raheleh is acting as the male suspicious character, she will be wearing male styled clothes. Renee is acting as the other male character having lunch with the woman. But we have decided that we want to portray this character as a woman, she will be dressed as a woman not a male. Lastly Sabrina is playing the female character in this scene and will be dressed similar to the woman in that scene. Ayesha has taken the role as a camera woman.

Research - conventions of a film opening

Research - Conventions of a film opening

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Research - Conventions of a film opening

By using the 'Art of the title sequence' I found a film opening of the film 'Dawn of the dead' directed by Zack Snyder. Several conventions have been used which are similar as all the other general conventions that are used in any film openings. 

For example, film credits and the title sequence of the film is presented. However, the credits are quite unusual and interesting as the names appear in red connoting blood and then they disappear by the alphabets turning in to liquid which looks like blood being scattered. This highlights the genre of the film - thriller and it is accompanied by the non-diegetic theme tune of a piano that is continuously played in the background to set a spooky atmosphere. This can be played through the link: 
http://www.artofthetitle.com/2008/06/30/dawn-of-the-dead/

Additionally, the production company name has also been displayed at the beginning of the film opening to inform the audience who the film has been produced by. 'Dawn of the dead' has been produced by Universal.

Furthermore, the conventions of a film opening also include the establishment of a location/setting. In the film 'Dawn of the dead' there are various images of locations but mostly to do with war so therefore, this suggests that the film establishes a war zone period. 
These locations are accompanied by a narrative hook - a song sang with a guitar to decrease the suspense of the film.This is presented through the link: http://www.artofthetitle.com/2008/06/30/dawn-of-the-dead/ 


To conclude, the conventions of film openings are similar in every film but they are portrayed in different manners to engage the audience. 

INTRODUCTION TO CAMERA: camera shots

Rule of thirds - incorrect shot
This is an example of an incorrectly positioned shot.

Big close-up

Interesting feet shot - we placed the camera under the feet and made it seem as if the feet
are about to step on the lens. We found this very interesting because it makes the audience seem small.

Interesting feet shot 2 - we shot feet from this angle because it looks very 'clean', we can see distance from each feet and the different types of footwear makes it seem interesting.

Interesting feet shot 3 - we got a member of the group to do a dance move, this shot is interesting because its alsmost as if she is in the air which looks quite fascinating.

over the shoulder shot

Rule of thirds - correct. This is an example of a correct rule of thirds shot as the person's face in the shot has been detected on the 1/3rd of the camera shot.

Rule of thirds - incorrect. This is an incorrect example of a rule of thirds shot because the person's face is positioned  in the middle whereas, it should be positioned on the top part of the shot.

wide shot