Progress so far:

So far I have the script draft written, I'm aware of all the of shot types and camera angles I want to use and I think I've decided on the music I want to use.

I have gotten in touch with everybody who I would like to be in my film and they all agreed to be part of it.

I still need to get in touch with a wedding dress shop, failing that, I have thought of an alternative scene and I am able to borrow a wedding dress from somebody I know.

I also need to get in touch with a costume shop to be able to get a army costume, failing that, again I have an alternative means of getting one. I know somebody who is in the army who has agreed to letting me borrow his clothes as a last resort.

For the garden scene, I have all of the lights and props I need. I'm in the process of making all of the other props and getting whatever is necessary.

I am arranging a time that I can get one of my actors to come by himself to that I can take his photo for the props like photos hanging on the wall, and the photo in the woman's wallet.

Script/Shooting Script

My film is going to be largely silent, with some music in the background and very little sound here and there. However, I still had to write a script so that I knew which camera angles and editing I would use, as well as knowing what the action in the film was going to be like.

Here are both of the scripts I came up with. Both are very similar, but one has camera angles and shots included.

Fade in:

EXT. House - Daytime

Establishing shot of a house in a quiet street, just at the sun is coming up.

We see where the main character lives.

Fade to:

INT. Bedroom – Daytime

GRACE is a young girl, maybe in her twenties, who is currently living alone as a result of her husband-to-be working for the army in Afghanistan. She is planning a wedding for when he returns.

GRACE is sleeping when her alarm wakes her up. She turns it off, stretches and lies staring at her ceiling.

She wakes up and turns off her alarm.
She rolls over and stretches and lies down for a short time.
She then gets up and puts on her slippers and dressing gown and leaves the room.
We see a photograph of her with a man in a frame beside her bed.

Cut to:

INT. Living Room – Day

GRACE is sitting texting her friends and watching TV in the living room, while drinking tea. She is arranging to meet up with them to go and try on wedding dresses.

She is sitting on one of the couches in her living room, with her feet up.
She is drinking tea out of a mug, with the tv on in the background.
She is on her phone and is texting a friend.
We see the conversation between the two.
She smiles and the scene ends.

Fade to:

EXT. Car – Day
INT. Inside the car

GRACE is sitting in the car outside of the bridal shop before she goes in. She has last minute jitters and takes a minute to calm down.

She taps her fingers on the steering wheel.
She picks up her purse out of her bag and opens it to look at another photo of the man in the frame, her fiancé’ and she smiles.

Fade to:

INT. Bridal Shop - Day

GRACE’S friend JULIE and her mother KAROLINE sit excitedly waiting for her to come out of the dressing room. They drink champagne and giggle together. GRACE enters the room and they go quiet. They stand up, stunned.

JULIE and KAROLINE sit together on a couch.
They are chatting and giggling, while drinking champagne.
GRACE enters the room from the dressing room, wearing a wedding dress.
JULIE and KAROLINE stand up, looking emotional

Dissolve to:

INT. – Living room – Day

GRACE is getting on with her housework, sweeping the floor when there is a knock at the door. She stops what she is doing and goes to answer it.

She is sweeping the floor in her living room
She hears a knock at the door and looks up
She goes to leave the room to answer it

Cut to:

INT. – Hallway/Front Door – DAY

GRACE goes to answer the door and sees that there is a man dressed in an army outfit. She is immediately confused and concerned. We do not see the face of this man, just his body from the shoulders down. He hands her a letter and she closes the door. Once she reads it, she becomes aware of the fact that her fiancé has died at war and naturally, she breaks down.
She walks towards the door and sees the man in uniform. She has a confused facial expression. She opens the door and we see the man standing there. He gives her a letter and she takes it before closing the door.
She reads the letter and then throws it on the ground. She then starts to cry and slides down the wall until she is sitting down on the floor.
We see a photograph on the wall of her boyfriend again.
She sits with her head in her hands.

Cut to:

INT. – Bedroom – Early Evening

GRACE has just read the letter and is still distraught and finding it hard to come to terms with what has happened. She goes into her bedroom and looking in his wardrobe, and ends up clinging on to his clothes. She stares sadly at her wedding ring and goes to sit down in front of her mirror. She envisions her fiancé standing behind her, putting one hand on her shoulder.

She walks into her bedroom and towards the wardrobe. She opens it and runs her hands along the clothes. She then clings to the clothes.
She then walks away, towards her dressing table and sits down, looking into the mirror.
She looks forward and sees him standing behind her, as a vision, and he puts his hand on her shoulder.
She then stares at the engagement ring on her finger and then closes her eyes

Dissolve to:

EXT. – Garden – Night (Flashback)
INT. – Bedroom – Evening (Present)

GRACE has a flash back of her wedding proposal. It is her and her boyfriend in a garden, with lights and a small table and wine. She sees him get on one knee with the ring again. Quick cuts back to her face every so often, in her bedroom, as she smiles, sadly with her eyes closed. 

We see all the lights and how the garden is decorated first.
Both of the couple are sitting at a table together, drinking wine.
[Cuts back to her when she is sitting in her bedroom with her eyes closed]
They are both smiling and laughing and happy, holding hands on the table.
He then gets down on one knee and pulls out a ring.
[Back to her sitting in her bedroom, with her eyes closed]
She smiles and indicates a ‘yes’
[Back to her in her bedroom, eyes closed]
He stands up and they hug.

Fade to:

INT. Bedroom – Evening

GRACE goes to have a lie down, but on his side of the bed. She clutches his pillow and then rolls over to retrieve the photograph of them by the bed. She clutches it and closes her eyes.

She goes to her bed and lies down and we see the empty side of the bed.
She rolls over and stares at the empty space.
She moves and lies on his side, staring at the photograph by the bed.
She picks up the photograph and stares at it.
She lies back, clutching the photograph and closes her eyes

ALL THE WAY THROUGH, NON-DIEGETIC INTRUMENTAL MUSIC WILL BE PLAYING, CHANGING DEPENDING ON THE TONE OF THE SCENE AND WHAT IS HAPPENING.
THERE WILL BE NO LOUD SPEECH OR CONVERSATION.
THERE WILL BE VERY QUIET DIEGETIC BACKGROUND SOUND AT CERTAIN POINTS, ALONG WITH THE NON-DIEGETIC SOUND.

I.E:
ALARM CLOCK
TELEVISION
TRAFFIC ?
GIGGLING
KNOCK AT THE DOOR

 Script with camera angles/shots:

Fade in:

EXT. House - Daytime

Establishing shot of a house in a quiet street, just at the sun is coming up.

Fade to:

INT. Bedroom – Daytime

GRACE is a young girl, maybe in her twenties, who is currently living alone as a result of her husband-to-be working for the army in Afghanistan. She is planning a wedding for when he returns.

GRACE is sleeping when her alarm wakes her up. She turns it off, stretches and lies staring at her ceiling.

Close up of her face while she sleeps.
A slow pan to a close up/ extreme close up of her alarm clock, reading 7:30 am.  (Diegetic sound: Alarm Clock)
Same close up shot, when her hand reaches to turn off the alarm.
A mid shot shows her roll over and stare at the ceiling. (Non-diegetic sound: instrumental music)
Aerial shot above her.
Slight pan to the side, reveals the other side is empty.
Slow pan to the side of her bed, incremental zoom to close up of a photo in a frame.
Back to a long shot as she gets out of bed.
Close up of her slippers as she puts them on, tracking shot of feet as she walks.
Close up of her hands as she picks up her dressing gown.
Long shot as she puts it on.
Pan watches her walk out of her bedroom.

Cut to:

INT. Living Room – Day

GRACE is sitting texting her friends and watching TV in the living room, while drinking tea. She is arranging to meet up with them to go and try on wedding dresses.

Long shot of her sitting on the sofa.
(Non-diegetic sound: instrumental music still playing quietly. Diegetic sound: television playing in the back ground, quietly.)

Slow pan from her on her phone, to another photograph in a frame.
Close up of her hand holding her tea as she drinks.
Midshot from the side to reveal her sitting on the sofa, on her phone.
(Phone text message sound: diegetic)
POV shot showing a text that reads ‘Yep, definitely. I’ll see you soon. Can’t wait to see the dress. Xx’
Midshot, slightly zooming into her face to reveal her excited facial expression.

Fade to:

EXT. Car – Day
INT. Inside the car

GRACE is sitting in the car outside of the bridal shop before she goes in. She has last minute jitters and takes a minute to calm down. She picks up her purse out of her bag and opens it to look at another photo of the man in the frame, her fiancé’.

Long shot, showing her sitting in the car alone.
Midshot showing her sitting inside of the car
Close up of her face
Extreme close up of her tapping the steering wheel
Close up of her face, nervous
Picks up her purse, with a close up and pan.
Over the shoulder shot, as she takes out a photograph and looks at it.
Extreme close up of the photograph, everything else around is blurred.
Close up of her face, smiling.

Fade to:

INT. Bridal Shop - Day

GRACE’S friend JULIE and her mother KAROLINE sit excitedly waiting for her to come out of the dressing room. They drink champagne and giggle together. GRACE enters the room and they go quiet. They stand up, stunned.

Pan around the room, showing the setting.
Two shot, showing the two ladies sitting down together.
Close up of each of their faces
Slow tilt to their champagne glasses and close up
Slow pan to the doors/curtains of the dressing room
Long shot of GRACE entering the room
Medium close up, showing her expression
Two shot of JULIE and KAROLINE standing up
Close ups of each of their face
Slow zoom out, showing her dress, tilt up and down.
Wide shot, showing them all in the room, appreciating her dress.

Dissolve to:

INT. – Living room – Day

GRACE is getting on with her housework, sweeping the floor when there is a knock at the door. She stops what she is doing and goes to answer it.

Long shot, showing her sweeping the floor
POV/Close up of the bottom of the brush and the floor
Medium close up of her face
Back to a long shot
(Diegetic sound: knock at the door)
Tracking shot, following her to the front door

Cut to:

INT. – Hallway/Front Door – DAY

GRACE goes to answer the door and sees that there is a man dressed in an army outfit. She is immediately confused and concerned. We do not see the face of this man, just his body from the shoulders down. He hands her a letter and she closes the door. Once she reads it, she becomes aware of the fact that her fiancé has died at war and naturally, she breaks down.

POV shot, walking towards the front door
POV through the window, seeing the uniform of the man at the door
Close up of her face, showing her confusion and concern
POV as she opens the door
Over the shoulder, from the man’s perspective, we see her expression and stance
Close up of the letter in his hand
Close up of him giving her the letter, then a medium close up of her nodding and closing the door
POV shot of the letter as she opens it
High angle, from below, as she reads the letter
Close up of her eyes moving side to side as she reads
POV/ Extreme close up, revealing words on the letter
Close up of her throwing the letter on the ground
Mid shot, as she leans against the wall and tilt as she slides down it
Close up of her face, crying
Slow pan to the photo of her boyfriend on the wall, dressed in an army uniform
Pan back and slow zoom out, to a wide shot, showing her isolation and her with her head in her hands
Close up of her covered face

Cut to:

INT. – Bedroom – Early Evening

GRACE has just read the letter and is still distraught and finding it hard to come to terms with what has happened. She goes into her bedroom and looking in his wardrobe, and ends up clinging on to his clothes. She stares sadly at her wedding ring and goes to sit down in front of her mirror. She envisions her fiancé standing behind her, putting one hand on her shoulder.

POV/Canted to show her confused/off balance vision as she walks towards the wardrobe.
Mid shot of her opening up the wardrobe
POV showing his clothes inside and a close up of her running her hands along each piece of clothing
Close up of her face from inside of the wardrobe
Over the shoulder shot of her clinging onto his clothes
Pan as she walks over and sits down at her dressing table
Over the shoulder shot, as she looks into the mirror
Slight zoom out, showing him standing behind her
Medium close up of him putting his hand on her shoulder
Slow zoom to her face
Extreme close up of her ring on her finger
Close up of her face looking at it
Mid shot from the side showing her looking at her ring
Close up of her face closing her eyes

Dissolve to:

EXT. – Garden – Night (Flashback)
INT. – Bedroom – Evening (Present)

GRACE has a flash back of her wedding proposal. It is her and her boyfriend in a garden, with lights and a small table and wine. She sees him get on one knee with the ring again. Quick cuts back to her face every so often, in her bedroom, as she smiles, sadly with her eyes closed. 

Starts of blurred, zooms out from a light, to reveal all of the lights in the garden
Pan around, to show what the garden looks like
Pan to the two sitting at the table, two shot
[Fast cut back to her sitting in the bedroom, a close up of her face]
Medium close up of each of their faces
Extreme close up of their hands holding on the table
Long shot as he gets up and slowly zooms back in as he gets down on one knee
[Fast cut back to her room, close up of her face]
High angle, looking down on him as he asks
Close up of the ring
Low angle, from his perspective and medium close up of her face
[Fast cut back to her sitting in her room, medium close up]
Midshot from the side as they hug
All the while, the camera is slightly unfocussed

Fade to:

INT. Bedroom – Evening

GRACE goes to have a lie down, but on his side of the bed. She clutches his pillow and then rolls over to retrieve the photograph of them by the bed. She clutches it and closes her eyes.

Pan following her as she gets up and goes to lay down
Long shot, revealing his side of the bed as she lays down
Mid shot as she rolls over
POV shot of the photo graph and her picking it up
Medium close up of her face as she looks at it
Close up of her holding the photo
Slow zoom out, to reveal her as being lonely, clutching the photograph
Focus slowly blurs and fades to black

ALL THE WAY THROUGH, NON-DIEGETIC INTRUMENTAL MUSIC WILL BE PLAYING, CHANGING DEPENDING ON THE TONE OF THE SCENE AND WHAT IS HAPPENING.
THERE WILL BE NO LOUD SPEECH OR CONVERSATION.
THERE WILL BE VERY QUIET DIEGETIC BACKGROUND SOUND AT CERTAIN POINTS, ALONG WITH THE NON-DIEGETIC SOUND.

I.E:
ALARM CLOCK
TELEVISION
TRAFFIC ?
GIGGLING
KNOCK AT THE DOOR

Shot Types Video

As a group, we filmed a variety of camera shots and angles and edited them into a video, using Premier Pro. This is my version:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dj-9wWWbfbg

Article first draft

I have written an article that will feature on my double page spread, but I will be making a lot of ammendments from this first draft to make it as good as I can before it is put on my final work.

An emotional tale of real heartbreak and sorrow, the film follows a woman’s life, which has been turned upside down when she finds out that her husband has been killed. A controversial plot as it affects the lives of many, and any misrepresentations could have an impact on the success of the film. Some people might see this film as a cheesy and cliché rom-com, like many others, where the man has gone off to war and the woman is left to pick up the pieces, however, this is not like any of those films. Instead, it tells an emotional love story. Gemma Graham, who plays Grace Smith, the main character, gives a good example of the suffering from many women. She said “I worked hard to get it right. I didn’t want to overdo it. But I wanted to convey the emotion the way it should be. I wanted to do it justice. Graham acts exceptionally well in the film.

Do not be waiting for a script to guide you through the film, as this is not what you will be getting. The acting of the characters guides you through a film made up of only an instrumental song and it tells as much good of a story as a script would. In fact, the lack of speech makes the final scene even more emotional than it already is, paired with good acting and good cinematic choices from the director.

The scene to look out for is where Graham finds herself alone in her bedroom and she has flashbacks to the day of her proposal from her boyfriend.  The flashbacks add to the extreme intensity of her emotion.

Focus Groups

I asked some questions to two members of my target audience and managed to film two:

These questions were:
What kind of colour scheme would you expect to see for a drama?
Do you think the article should be image or text based?

I will take this feedback and make sure I consider their opinions in my work to make sure that they will be pleased with the final result.

Audience Survey- Flim Review Article (Auxilliary Task)

I also created a questionnaire for my target audience about a film review they would find in a magazine article. I included some questions to get some background information on the viewers, as well as questions to receive their advice about certain things, like colour schemes and layout and what content to include.

This is what the finished survey looks like. Again, I hope that I receive feedback which I can then consider when creating my article, to make sure it would attract the type of audience I am aiming for.

I have asked questions like would you see a film just off the basis of a film review? So that means that if I get a lot of answers of yes from my audience, I would really focus on making the article positive and influential. Also, I included quite specific questions like 'would a star rating interest you?' and 'what kind of review attracts you the most: image, text or mixture driven' which means I can get a detailed opinion of the type of conventions to use for my article, based on how the audience feel. 

Audience Survey- Film Poster (Auxilliary Task)

I created a questionnaire that I am going to give to members of my target audience in order to get their feedback about what they look for in film posters, if they take notice of them and how they would think mine should look. This means that I can take on board their feedback so that I give my target audience what they want to see.

This is what my finished questionnaire looks like. Hopefully this will help me to create a better poster, after having a better understanding of what the target audience expect and what to see.

I will be taking on board all of the results and incorporate the views of my target audience into my work to make sure that I have considered their ideas so that they will appreciate and enjoy my work more. I included basic questions like 'What attracts you to a film poster the most?' just to be sure of which element to make the biggest, most eye catching and what to choose as the focus point of the poster, based on what my target audience would prefer. I also included questions like what kinds of colours they would expect to be on film of this kind of genre so that I can be very precise in which kind of colour scheme I used so that it can attract my audience and they would enjoy looking at the poster and for it to be persuasive and attractive to them. 

Short Film Deconstruction

1. The Most Beautiful Thing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IP8psM4LWXk

• I particularly like the way that there is very little speech and music over the top. I was just going to use all instrumental music and no speech, but I like the way speech has been used her in very specific and meaningful places, to evoke emotion from the audience
• I like how the story is based around two people mainly, but through the perspective of one in particular. This is the way I would like mine to be. (Through the eyes of the bride to be.) I think this was to make sure the audience were fully engaged in their relationship, without distracting them with other characters and other story lines
• I really like the lighting in this film. It gives the whole thing a really realistic look, whereas if lots of high key, bright lighting was used, it would look more set up and unrealistic. I want to include this into my own film.
• I like the use of the hand held camera in parts, as it shows more of a point of view of the character and the audience empathise for him, as well as it feeling again, more realistic and more like a documentary in some ways that a film. 
• I like the way that despite the fact there is instrumental music throughout, you can still hear diegetic sound over the top. For example, people's conversations, the train passing, opening a locker. I might consider this is mine. This was probably used to provide an overall atmosphere and to give the audience that space and time to feel emotion towards to narrative and the characters
• I like that the narrative storyline behind it is really interesting and unique and has a meaning behind it. 

2. Definitely Maybe

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1BIP10HHds

• I like the way that it is based around one character and we follow him around and see his life. By doing this, the audience relate to him more and form a relationship with him. This is what I am to have with my main character
• I dislike the editing in the way that there is a noise between a lot of cuts and it draws the attention away from the action/narrative. I would avoid this in mine as I wouldn't want the audience to be distracted from the main narrative. 
• I like the use of flashbacks and the blur used here and I will definitely be using this in my film. The blurring is used for dramatic effect and to make transitions smoother- also to show the passing of time
• I disliked the way that it was very slow and seemed to take a long time for anything to happen. Because of it being a short film, it should really have less of a back story and more action in my opinion. But sometimes a very slow beginning is used to give the audience time to follow the narrative and form a relationship with the main character. 
• At the start, I like the style of music as it adds a very nostalgic tone to the film and I would like to find something similar to feature in mine. The music is used just the way speech would be, as both have the power to evoke emotion
• I dislike the way at some points, especially during the flashbacks at the beginning, the heads of the characters were cut off and it seemed like nothing fit right within the frame. I think this was intentional, however, it seemed off putting and I would avoid that. I think this was used to draw attention to the action that was happening, rather than the emotion of the characters

3. An Ordinary Day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLjSU3t5kHM

• Similar to the first one, I really like the way the narrative is interesting and unique and has a meaning. I like the way it is kind of teaching a valuable lesson to the audience
• I really liked the wide variety of camera angles, from close ups to POV shots, it keeps the film interesting but still runs smoothly. I would like to make sure I include a wide variety of necessary camera angles and shots
• I like the repetition of the waking up scene and how the sound is exactly the same but the camera angle differs. It helps to show a change in time and I would consider using this kind of repetition in my film
• I like the use of natural lighting as it makes everything look more realistic- I would definitely use a lot of natural lighting
• I like how the cuts and transitions are very simple and lets the film flow well without pulling the attention away from the narrative. This is something I would have to be careful with, as too many transitions and varieties of cuts could make the film look messy and unprofessional and hard to follow

Writing a script!- Technical Elements

To explain the various elements needed to creative a script, I'm going to analyse a script which has been already written.

Usually, a script must start with 'fade in'.

The elements shown above are:
Scene heading- a brief, one line description of the time of day/setting

Action- A narrative description of the events in the scene

Character- Name must be capped and always appears above his dialogue. If it is the character's first appearance, a description of the character would be given.

Usually, a script also contains the shot types used, transitions and a description of a character when they we first meet them. Here are some examples:

This is an example of the kind of description that would be given when a character is first introduced. Their first piece of dialogue would feature below their name, which would be in capitals.

When transitions are included, this means it is a shooting script, as they act as editing instructions. So, for example, there might be a DISSOLVE TO or a CUT TO to indicate a changing of scene etc.

Shot types may also be included to make the reader aware of the focal point of the scene and also the changes in focal point. For example, you might see POV SHOT or MIDSHOT. 

Film Review- Magazine article deconstructions

Spiderman 2

• I like the way the image is predominantly on one page, and is the main attraction at first. I would like to have my article set out like this, with one main image being the inital main focus point.
• I like the use of colour and how the colour scheme is simple and matches everything well, I would make sure to keep my colour scheme simple and attractive. The main colour is red, as this matches the colour of the character of Spiderman, however, this colour is only used in very small places after the main image. This is a good way of making sure that the attention is on the main image and that the audience are aware that the image is important and they can see a glimpse of what to expect within the film. 
• I really like the inclusion of a verdict box at the bottom, showing the audience how many starts the film recieved. This is definitely something I would consider including in my review. I especially like the guide at the top, explaining what each amount of stars indicates. I think this is a good way of signifying how popular the film will be or how good it is, which is an interesting advertising device. I think by including a verdict/star rating it is just like using a respectable person's opinion of the film as part of the advertising on the poster. 
• I like how the title is just a simple font and plain black, because however minimal and simple it is, it still catches the attention of the audience
• I like how in the top right hand corner, there is a text box which states "film of the month" it gives extra info and is an insentive to watch the film. I may include this in my article as well

Avatar

• I like the use of colour in this article, and how they have used the orange text boxes to stand out from everything else
• I like the variety of photographs used, to show glimpses of the action in the film. However, I would rather stick to one main image on one page. The image reel signifies what kind of film Avatar is, as it shows people dressed in doctor/scientist-like costumes, hinting at an element of science fiction, but also one image shows explosions, fire and helicopters so signifies that the film also contains an action theme, which could attract a wider audience. 
• I would also rather have more text that is used on this one. This article is very image based and I would prefer mine to be more text based. However, I do understand that sometimes image based articles are effective, especially for films like this one, as the image itself shows a kind of film that is very uncommon and unusual and that in itself is a unique selling point. 
• I do like how they have included some extra information to involve the audience, in the form of 'Avatar Facts'. It probably wouldn't match the theme and genre of my short film, but I think it's a really creative and interesting idea to use in order to make the audience feel more targeted and involved and therefore feel like they know more about the film and want to watch it more. 
• Overall, I like the layout and use of colour in this article. I like the allignment of all of the photos and text and though there is a lot to take in on it, everything is placed neatly and it is still easy to understand. I would definitely make sure that my article is easy to digest and not too much for the reader to handle.

Lady in the Water

• I like the very simple colour scheme of red, white and black. I would like to similarly keep my text black so that it is easy to understand and digest. The lack of bright  colours signifies that the film is more targeted at adults and hints that the genre is something a little more serious, like thriller or mystery film. 
• I like how the text is all the way along the bottom, however I would prefer all of my text to be on one page as I think this would be easier for the audience to read. 
• I like the use of the quote on the right, and how it has been made a different font and colour to stand out. I think it's a really good advertising technique and I would definitely consider using this kind of thing in my article. It implies that it is a remake or based on another film or book as it mentions Disney. However, by saying "remembered only as the Disney divorce movie." this signifies that it is not a Disney film, aimed at children. 
• I like how there is more than one image, however I dislike the positioning and I would personally put one image per page as the image is disrupted through the middle of the page
• I like the use of the white captions on the images- it does not take away attention from the images themselves but still provide extra infomation. I would like to include this on my photographs so that the audience have a little extra information about the film and also what is happening in the image. 

Considerations for filming

Actors

• Antonio Townsend as the soldier

• Jemma Graham as the soldier's girlfriend (main character)

• Karen Quill as the mother of the bride

• Julie McKitterick as a friend of the bride

I have asked the permission of all of the people who will be acting in my short film. 

Costume

Antonio

• Soldier's uniform- hired from a costume shop
• Own casual clothes

Jemma

• Own clothes
• Wedding dress- borrowed from a relative

Karen

• Old cardigan
• Grey hairspray (to convey age)
• Own clothes

Julie

• Own clothes

Crew

I am going to be the one filming, as well as directing. Therefore, I will need somebody to assist me with location and lighting design. I have asked the permission of a college friend, Beth Hazard, who will help me during the process of filming. She also does media and film studies, so she will be a beneficial helping hand when it comes to techniques and ideas.

Location

• A house- I am just going to use my own house for this part, as it will be easy to access and I can spend a lot of time recording, without having a time limit. I have asked the permission of parents and there will also be nobody else present who isn't involved in my film
• A wedding dress shop- This is subject to change, as I may not be able to use a real wedding shop, as there will be customers wanting to try on dresses and privacy and confidentiality must be respected. If not, I will set up a room either in my house, or elsewhere, asnd make it look as close to a real store as possible. Beforehand, I will contact a few wedding dress shops in my area and see if it is possible to film in their property.
• A garden- I am considering using a garden for certain parts of the film, just to signfiy the character living her normal life before any drama happens. For this, I will again use my own garden at home to eliminate time limits and issues involving other people being present.  

 

Film Poster Deconstructions

The Other Woman- Film Poster

• I like the simplicity of this poster and I think I will use this in my own, because it does not give much away and is easy to digest, while leaving room for the audience to wonder what the film could be about
• I love the colour scheme and the way that the only text that really stands out is the title "The Other Woman" and then the name of the actress, slightly. I want to incorporate this into my poster also. I think that other than the image and tag line, it's important that the title stands out so that it remains memorable in the audience's mind. I would like to focus on making my title a font that is very noticeable but also make it large on the page, to attract attention. 
• I think it looks unique as the image looks like it has been painted and this would attract viewers more. However, I won't be using this style on my own because I feel it would not suit the style of film I am making. It looks very artistic and this could signify that either the film itself is very artistically made, or could carry connotations of the story being about art. 
• "Natalie Portman delivers an utterly fearless performance." I like how they have included a small review at the very top, which still does not give away any information, but persuades the viewers to watch. I would like to use this on my poster as it is a good way of advertising and persuading an audience to watch the film. This particular review was given by a respectable writer, so by including the positive opinion of someone who's opinion is seen as important, this helps with advertising. I would probably include a review from a popular, respected magazine or newspaper, but also one that would be read by my target audience. I think something like The Sun or The Guardian. 
• "Love makes anything possible." Is the tagline. I like this because again its very brief and leaves the plot up to the audience's imagination and interpretation before they watch it. It signifies that the film is about romance and love, without giving too much away about the narrative. I like that it carries positive connotations and enough information for the audience know what they will be getting, whether than is a romance film or possible a romantic-comedy. 

The Great Gatsby

• I particularly like the dark colour scheme of this poster. I like the black, white, silver and gold combination and I like how his suit stands out with the white shirt and on the background behind him. However, I would rather have a light colour scheme, as the actress will be wearing a wedding dress
• I like how really the only image is a midshot of one actor. You can see the expression on his face and that, along with his costume gives hints about his character, but still leaves the plot up to the audience's imagination, which is one of the main things I want to include in my poster. 
• I like the font style of the main title text as it's very unique and interesting and fits very well with the style of the poster 
• Again, I want to use the idea of not having more than one imagine, and only including the most important text, so that the audience must watch to find out the storyline
• Overall, the colour scheme, font style, posture and costume of the actor and the lighting signifies that the film will be about a prestigious, possibly wealthy character as there is a lot of black and gold used, along with him wearing a tuxedo and his facial impression implies that he is a confident character. I like how all of this can be deducted from just the image and colour scheme rather than the information provided on the poster. I wish to do this with my poster, making sure that I give enough detail in the conventions like the colourscheme and posture/facial expression of the actress, rather than having lots of detailed information, giving away information about the narrative. I would prefer the audience to make their own assumptions based on their interpretation of the images etc. 

The Last Song

• The colour scheme stands out to me the most because it's very light and natural. I think this is something I would like to consider to put on my own poster because it fits the drama theme and romance theme very well 
• Despite the fact that I would like only one image, I like the way that there are three in this one. I think having the two faces blurred above another really suits the style and is very unique. I could include this in my poster by putting the faces of both the soldier in his hat and his fiancée in her veil. I like the way that the main focus character is facing the front and the male character's back is turned. This hints at the storyline and signifies that something might happen within the storyline like he metaphorically 'turns his back' on her for some reason. 
• I like how the font style and colour is very simple and minimalistic so to not draw the attention away from the images
• However, I would not have a long tagline like this one, as I feel it would give too much away and take away from the main image
• The bottom image, where the pair are walking together also signifies that they are a couple and therefore hints at the genre and the audience know what to expect
• The title of the film is again simple and straight to the point, but signifies an element of music alongside the idea of a breakup or something similar. This is similar to what I was going for when I decided to name my film Bombshell. It carries connotations of war and the army, but is also a figure of speech when somebody suddenly tells you some bad information that you don't want to hear. 

Pitch presentation feedback

After doing my pitch presentation in front of my class/teacher, I received some feedback.

Some key things said were that people liked the idea of the silent movie and found the narrative interesting. Some liked certain editing elements, like flashbacks, and some liked my ideas of different lighting.
I need to consider how I will show the transition to flashbacks, and have the flashbacks different to my main story. I also need to consider how the institutions I mentioned advertise to certain demographics and consider this for my film.

Moodboard

This is a moodboard I have made before I start making my products as part of my research and planning.

• I have chosen some fonts that I think would look good, especially on the film poster. I like the idea of using army or typewriter style fonts because of the running war theme in the film
• I like the way the Dear John film poster has the two actors right a the top in a very simple font and light colour- I think I would have something very similar on my poster
• Also on the Dear John poster, there is a really big box at the bottom with all of the cast and crew details in. I want to include this but perhaps not as big as this one
• I think the idea of having a Q&A with one of the actors is an interesting idea, though my actors aren't very well known 

•  I like the way one of the magazines have used a box along the side of the page, just to give some extra information in case this was wanted by the audience. I think i'm definitely going to have something similar to this on my magazine
• I think that I would definitely include the bigger letters to start of the article, because this is a common convention throughout many articles I have seen in my research
• My main inspiration is now coming from the poster for Melancolia. I like the colour scheme and I think it reflects the style and genre very well. I like the way that everything is framed and the positioning of the text on top of the main image. I like how the colours and fonts are very simple and easy to read and that they have included a very short tagline. I particularly like how there is just one main image. I think I will be considering using many of these features on my film poster 

Short Film- Pitch Presentation

This was the presentation I made, to present to the class. It shows my ideas for my short film, as well as some ideas I have for my poster and magazine article review.
Some of the links shown above show some of my inspirational pieces and also some music that I had chosen to consider. These are shown again below:

•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObMFXjJsHXg  - Just a Dream- Carrie Underwood•

http://youtu.be/NU9JoFKlaZ0?t=5m  - Wake Me Up When September Ends- Green Day•
http://youtu.be/z3zdIHDTbg0?t=2m - Made in the USA- Demi Lovato•
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAjXiyKPBu8 -Beginning/Opening music 

•http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8TdCCr6Ndc  - Ending music

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More camera angles/techniques

180 Degree Rule

This means that the camera stays within a 180 degree field. It is used to establish a scene so the audience can make sense of it. It is helpful in a scene where a conversation between two people takes place. The 180 degree enables us to identify which person is speaking, and we know that one person should be facing left and the other facing right. If the 180 degree rule was broken, this would change and would confuse the audience. 

Sometimes the rule can be broken. If it is to purposely confuse the audience for a certain reason or to establish 'sides'. I.e. Good and bad.

Foreground and Background 

Framing

The action should be taking place in the cross sections where the viewers eyes are drawn to. Keeping in mind, the rule of thirds. It is more effective not to have the main action in the centre of the frame.