Preliminary Task

1. Who did you work with and how did you manage the task between you?

I worked in a group of four, with Robbie, Jessica Rich and Eva. We managed the tasks between us evenly, with Robbie and Eva predominantly acting, and Jess and I predominantly filming. Jess and I filmed all the two shots and the master shot, and Robbie and Eva filmed the parts that they could: the scenes which they weren't in screen. While Jess filmed, I checked the sound, and vice versa, and Robbie and Eva had a go with the sound too.

When editting, we each took it in turns to capture and cut too, and as a group, decided when to cut to the next scenes, to make sure our film flowed seamlessly.

2. How did you plan your sequence? What processes did you use? What theories did you try and take into account?

We planned our sequence by having a meeting during a private study. We discussed a few ideas, and once we had our main idea of what we were doing, we storyboarded. As we were drawing the storyboard, we discussed all the different shot types, and made sure that they followed the continuity rules, e.g. the 180 degree rule and short order.

 

After we drew out our whole storyboard, we then wrote out our script, and then wrote out all the shots that we would need to be filmed. Then, we discussed how we should shoot the scenes, and in which order, to make it the most time efficient and easy. We started with the master shot, and then shot all the different scenes inside the room, and finally, all the scenes outside in the corridoor.

We took in quite a few theories into account, the main being continuity, especially the 180 degree rule,  shot/reverse shot, and match on action.

We also took in a few film theories, for example Levi Strauss's theory of binary opposites, with our opposites such as boy/girl, dealer/buyer...etc, and Barthe's theory of the enigma code, with the audience thinking 'What is he buying? Drugs?' before the banana is shown.

Media Script and Schedule Prelim

3. What technology did you use to complete this task, and how did you use it?

We used a lot of technology in this task, as we had to film our scene, and then edit it.

During filming, we used:
- A video camera
- A microphone
 - Headphones
- Tripod


We used the video camera to video all the footage, and had it on the tripod for the whole time, to ensure that our shots were straight and stable. When using the video camera, we would press the 'record' button and then the director would call out 'camera rolling'. The assistant with the clapper board would then say the scene, the scene would then roll on for a bit, and the director would then say 'action!' After the scene is finished, we would let the scene roll on for a few seconds again, and then the director would shout 'cut!'. We left seconds to roll before and after the scene to ensure that in editing, we wouldn't cut anything off by mistake.

As our scenes also had dialogue, we attached a microphone to the top of the video camera, and plugged in a set of headphones too. So while the director was filming the scene, the assistant would wear the headphones, and make sure that they could hear all the dialogue. To make it easier for the dialogue to be heard and the background noise to be minimalised, we set the microphone to shotgun, and faced it towards the actors.

Finally, after shooting, we then had to edit our footage. We used the computers in the edit suite, and plugged our video cameras straight into the computer via the firewire. This meant that our video could be viewed - and therefore editted - on the computer. So to do so, we used the programme Adobe Premiere. There we could easily capture all the scenes, and this was easy to do as we used the clapperboard before each shot, so we knew what each shot was. After capturing all our different shots, we then cut them down to size, and then put them in order onto are timeline, using the two tracks diagonally and alternatively.

4. What factors did you have to take into account when planning, shooting and editing?

The first factor we had to take into account was time. We were only allowed an hour to shoot and an hour to edit, meaning that we shouldn't be too creative, and just keep it simple. We also had to take in account the room we were filming in, and make sure that it had everything we needed: in our case, just a door, a table and two chairs.

So when planning and storyboarding, we had to make sure what we were drawing was possible and practical, with the props we needed in the scene, as well as the actors being able to act.

While storyboarding we also took all the continuity rules into account; after all, our scene had to flow seamlessly and illustrate continuity. So we made sure we followed the rules such as the 180 degree rule and shot order, so our scene would look normal, and our viewers wouldn't get confused.

When shooting, we took the room and the props into account, and had to keep making sure that it looked right. For example, in one scene there was a computer in the background, but we thought it looked quite distracting and weird with just one computer there, so we ended up moving it out of the shot. And again, we also took the continuity rules in mind, for example, we made sure that the actors looked up at the right time, used the same hand for the exchange of the money and banana, and turned the same page of the book with the same hand.

Finally, during editting, we again kept the continuity rules in mind, and made sure our scene flowed seamlessly. When cutting two shots and putting them together, we made sure that they followed the rule 'match on action', with the last second in the first shot being exactly the same as the first second in the second shot. We also tried to make the colour and lighting in all the shots the same, so one or two shots in the scene didn't suddenly look out of place. This was demonstrated with the second BCU, of Eva looking up. Somehow when we filmed it, the shot was really bright and slightly tainted yellow, so when editting, we altered the brightness and contrast, to make it look similar to all the other shots.

5. How successful was your sequence? Please identify what worked well, and with hindsight, what would you improve/do differently?

In my opinion, I think our sequence worked really well, as almost all of shots flow easily and seamlessly to the next, 'suspending the audience's disbelief'. All the shots are filmed with a high quality, with none of the shots showing a jolt in the camera or anything, making it easy on the viewers' eye. The sound works well in the scene too, with all the dialogue easily being able to be heard, in contrast to the solemn silence which is in most of the scene.

The predominant silence gives the scene a sombre, serious mood, which ties in with the 'drug dealing' theme, and adds to the humour when instead of drugs, a banana is shown in screen. The addition of the line 'Full of potassium' also makes the scene funnier, as that is not what you would expect from a usual drug deal, and is in actual fact, true!

In hindsight, if I were to reshoot to improve our scene, I would reshoot the CU of Robbie, but shoot it further out. This is because the previous OTS shot is quite far out, so the jump from this shot to the closeup is a bit too much of a jump, and looks slightly odd. I think our scene would be better if there's a closeup of Robbie first, then a big close up of Eva, so the camera slowly moves in.

These two closeup shots are also different in colour - due to the natural lighting and positioning of the windows - so if we were to shhot again, we would make sure we had similar lighting in both. We tried to alter the colour when editting, but I still don't think that it is exactly right.


6. What have you learnt from completing this task? Looking ahead, how will this learning be significant when completing the rest of your foundation coursework, do you think?
From this task, I have definately learnt the rules of continuity, and the significance and importance of continuity in film. The rules of continuity such as match on action, shot order, 180 degree rule and shot/reverse shot are very important, and are needed to be taken into account when filming, as you need to know where and how to position the camera and the rest of the equipment. I have learnt that the best way of filming is to film the whole scene various times; this way you can make sure that scenes will definately flow onto eachother when editting, as you can cut as much as you like off.
I have also learnt that a shooting schedule and shot order is also very important, especially when time is a limiting factor. For example, the best way for us to shoot was shooting the inside of the classroom first, and the corridoor afterwards.
I also learnt how to use different pieces of technology, especially the microphone, and all the settings. This task was also the first time we connected a headphone to the video camera, so I have also learnt how to use the headphones.
So I think that this information I have learnt will be really helpful with the rest of my foundation coursework, especially when filming our own opening sequence. So when I film my opening sequence, I will know exactly how to use all the equipment, and I will take everything I have learnt into account, especially continuity rules and the various film theories.

Barthe's Theory

The Butterfly Effect (2004)

1. Identify the key actions within the opening - what kinds of actions are included and how is the narrative moved forward?
At the very beginning of the movie, we see Evan (played by Ashton Kutcher) run in to what looks like an office in the dark, move the tables and chairs to block the door, and hide under the table. We see him picking up a notepad and quickly write on it; writing '...I might be able to save her.' This helps the narrative to move forward, as we understand that he wants to try and save 'her', who we guess is someone he loves. Also, as we see that he is writing onto a notepad, this is really important too - as he needs to write things down to travel back in time, which we see later on in the film.
After this scene, we see the opening credits, and we then flip back to 13 years earlier. We learn that Evan has quite a close relationship with his mother, but barely ever sees his father. (At the end of this clip we realise that he has never actually seen his father, and his first encounter is located in his father's pyschiatric institute.)
The next few scenes show Evan at school, at home and at his friend's house, and in all three scenes, we learn that he seems to blank out and forget his actions - 'I don't remember' and 'Where am I? Where'd we all go? I was just somewhere else!'
We also see that he's slightly disturbed and has a disturbing life, although he doesn't remember anything. At school he drew a picture of him killing people, at home he picked up a knife, and at his friend's house, he found himself being filmed for child pornography.
So in these opening 10 minutes, we have seen a lot of Evan's past and we can learn a lot about him, and this helps the story of the film move forward.

2.  Identify the enigma codes within the opening - what kinds of questions are posed and how is the audience meant to read these codes?
As explained in question one, there are many things that happen in the opening sequence, especially in Evan's past. We find ourseleves as the audience asking 'What happened to him, why couldn't he remember anything he did?' as well as 'Why did he draw a picture of himself killing people, and why did he suddenly hold a knife when he was in the kitchen?'
This makes us wonder a lot about Evan and if there is something wrong with him; why does he keep doing strange things and keep forgetting about them? Does he just black out, or is someone possessing him? But even if we are unsure and slightly confused, we know that it will all be answered later on the movie.
However, it's not only Evan's past which makes us question what is going on - even the first scene when he is in present time. We're asking 'what is he doing? Is he being hunted/chased down? Why is he writing under a table, and who is 'her'?'
So as we can see, many questions and enigma codes are raised in this opening, which make it a great way of drawing the audience in and making them want to watch the rest of the film.

3.  Identify key characters and think about what they represent in the opening.
The main key character in this film is Evan, and we can see that he is a troubled child, with a disturbing life. He is always find himself doing strange things, not remembering anything he has done, being abused by his friend's father and living without a father of his own. He represents the main part of the film and we follow his journey: we sympathise him, are shocked by him, and we almost want to go in to the film and help him.
Another key character we see in the opening sequence is his mother. She helped to bring Evan up on her own - her husband/his father is staying at a pyschiatric ward - and she loves and is terribly worried for her son. We can see she is a loving mother and is trying to help him, by bringing him to get his brain checked and bringing him to see his father, but we can also see she seems a bit helpless, and this is shown by her crying in the car, and asking for help.

4. Interpret the cultural codes in the opening.  What kind of knowledge is being drawn on? social/historical/political/art and culture etc.  Highlight the 3 most important references in the opening that help with audience understanding.
The film starts with a quote saying 'It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly's wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world.' This immediately shows the audience that the film is about small changes and how this effects fate, and this is reinforced by the saying 'the butterfly effect', which is the title of the film.
There are also very obvious settings in the film, meaning they don't have to say where they are, but because we are familiar with the settings, we know exactly where they are. For example, at the very beginning of the film, we don't need a close up on a sign saying 'OFFICE'; we know where he is because of the tables, water dispenser and files. And also, in the past when Evan's mum drops him off to school, it doesn't show the name of the school or anything, but we can tell it is a school just by the shape and structure of the building, and the ring of the bell.

5.  Identify key themes and analyse how they are presented visually/technically.
The key themes in the opening sequence would be enigma and the unknowing, as the characters in the film, as well as us, are wondering what is going on. This is presented by Evan's mysterious actions and how he has gotten to where he is, as he doesn't ever remember anything.
There is also a theme of sin/crime, as when he does these mysterious actions, there is always a knife and killing involved, and when he found himself at his friend's house naked, we see that their dad is filming them.
Finally, there is also a theme of fear and worry, and this is mostly represented by Evan's mother, as well as Evan's teacher and doctor, when they all worry for Evan's mental health and stability.

Continuity in Film

 In the Land of Women (2007) (scene starts from 0:04, ends at 3:04)
The scene starts with a close up of the headlights of a car, and we can see that it is parking and coming to a halt. Immediately we know that they have drove at night to some sort of field, as we can see the grass in the background. The camera zooms slightly out and then pans upwards, so that we can see Carter (Adam Brody's character) exit the car. We then have a VLS pan of Carter and the scenery behind him - this is our establishing shot, as it establishes where the scene has taken place. From what we can see, we guess they have driven to their school, as we can see a very school-like building in the background, and on the field there are white painted football lines. While this pan is taking place, we can hear our other character (Lucy, played by Kristen Stewart) get out of the car, and she is only seen in the next shot.
We then have a two shot of both our characters; Carter is bending down and Lucy is behind. This is our Master Shot, and the dialogue between them begins.
At 0:48, Carter gets up and walks towards Lucy, while the camera zooms and pans along. The fact that the scene starts with VLSs and slowly gets closer to a LS shows the continuity and follows the rule of short order. When he sits down we get a MS of him, and as the dialogue continues, the camera gets into a sequence of OTS shots.
The first OTS shot (1:06) is slightly further out and a MLS, and we can see Lucy's whole body. The next is of Carter (1:17), and we can see from his chest upwards, as it is a MS. Then the camera shows Lucy again, but this time we have a CU of just her face. So again, just by viewing these three shots, we can see that the scene is following the rule of short order, and slowly zooming in.
This carries on till about 1:34, when Lucy gets up, and we see the camera start to slowly zoom out again. And now that Lucy is standing up and Carter is sitting down, there is a large height difference, so the eyeline match rule is obviously seen. When she is talking (1:40) she has to look down, and at 1:44, he looks up to see her face. So this shot not only shows the eyeline match rule, but is also a reaction shot, as he reacts to what she has said and looks up.
The next minute of this scene carries on with more OTS/POV shots as the conversation between the two characters continue, with the shots zooming in and out again, the furthest out being the LS of Carter at 2:23.

Applying Levi Strauss's Theory

Step Up (2006)


1. What is the genre of the film? How are the genre signifiers introduced?
The genre of this film is dance. This is shown straight at the beginning, with loud music with strong beats, and cross cutting between two dance scenes: one showing a ballet class at the Maryland School of Arts, and the other showing streetdance at a party. The two dances are in time with the beat of the music, and although they are two completely different dances, they are made to look slightly similar so we can compare them, e.g. at the beginning, we see medium close ups of their feet, and in both scenes, they are jumping. This is done so that we can see the different ways of jumping in different dances, so by doing the same move, they are highlighting the opposites and differences. The ballet scene is also tinted a light pink (conveying a brightness and the female gender) and the party scene is dark and navy blue (conveying the male gender), so again highlight the opposites.


2. Who are the main characters and how are they opposed?
The main two characters are Tyler Gage and Nora Clark, and there are also other important characters, such as Mac Carter, and his younger brother, Skinny Carter.
Tyler Gage is the male protagonist in the film, and is a streetdancer and trouble maker. His best friend is Mac Carter, and he is mostly always with his younger brother Skinny, who also gets into a lot of trouble, especially at parties and at the beginning of the film. This is shown when they throw bottles and cans at cars and houses, and then break in to the school. They are all from a poorer part of town, so when they break into the school and see the grand stage and building, we hear them saying 'This looks like a museum', 'Looks like stuck up rich folks' and 'Man, these rich kids get everything.'
The other main character is Nora Clark, who is the female protagonist, but isn't shown in the opening sequence. (She is in fact only shown at about 15 minutes into the film, after we see Tyler work and do community service for the Maryland School of Arts, which can be seen in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quGqAN60YJ0&feature=related) Nora is a beautiful and talented ballet dancer, and goes to the Maryland School of Arts. She doesn't get into trouble and is one of the top students there.
So already, we can see that the two main characters are completely different and opposite, from their personality and preffered type of dance. And as she goes to the school, we can also guess that she is quite well off, to be able to afford school fees.
However, although they are completely different, they end up falling in love. We can see this when we first meet Nora, as while she is having a lesson, Tyler is on the side working, and he stops and stares at her. When she looks over her shoulder and smiles at him, we can see and feel their chemistry, and they almost have a love at first sight moment (him more than her - she then goes off with her boyfriend.)


3. What are the main themes of the film and how are they introduced?
Within all the dancing, the main themes of this film are romance and love, and also crime.
In the opening sequence, the camera keeps cross cutting between ballet - a 'girls dance' - and streetdance - a more 'manly dance' - so we can start to guess the romance theme, as we can guess that although they come from different worlds, they may meet up and fall in love.
This is reinforced with the entrance of Nora (shown in part 2, see link above), where they see eachother, and we as viewers can see the connection, and guess that they will fall in love later on in the film.
Finally, the film also has a theme of crime and fighting, and this is shown by the fight at the party, and the three boys breaking in to the school.


4. How is the narrative organised to show conflict?
At the beginning when we see the cross cutting between the two types of dance, it shows a little bit of conflict, as they are totally opposite, and this is reinforced with the colourings/brightnesses of both scenes - one is light/pink and the other is dark/navy.
There is also conflict between Tyler and one of the people at the party, as when Tyler is dancing with that man's girlfriend, they end up in a fight, and the other man produces a gun from his pocket.
Finally, we also see conflict between the boys and the police officer when they get arrested for breaking into the school. But we see more of a conflict between Tyler and the officer, as he instructs Mac to leave, so that only he gets in trouble, instead of all three of them.

Applying Todorov's Theory

A Cinderella Story (2004)


1. Who are the agents: the protagonist and antagonist?
Our protagonist is Sam Montgomery, who plays our 'Cinderella' like role, who seems to have the perfect life. This is shown at the beginning, and she in fact says 'What did I need a wish for? I had amazing friends and the coolest dad'.
The antagonist would be Fiona, who plays Sam's stepmother, who has help from her two daughters - Sam's stepsisters - Brianna and Gabriella.


2. Describe the Equilibrium. How is it represented? What kind of camera shots can you identify? Pick out 2 or 3 examples. Describe the mise-en-scene: what meanings to the props/costumes/lighting/framing carry?
The equilibrium at the beginning of the film shows Sam having the perfect fairytale life, with all her friends and her dad. At the beginning of the film, we see shots of mountains and a fairytale castle (the camera seems to be flying over the mountains during these shots), and when the camera then zooms out, we realise that it actually the inside of a snowglobe. When the camera fully zooms out to reveal the real world, we see Sam and her dad, and the scenery around them. This VLS establishes the location: we can see that they are on the top of a hill, and the exact location is given by the voiceover: San Fernando Valley. At the end of the shot we can see her dad put his arm around her, and this not only shows the close relationship between the two characters, but also reinforces the theme of Sam's perfect life.
The next scene and various shots are of 'Hal's Diner', which is the diner that Sam's dad owns. We first see the exterior, and then the interior, and we can see that the place is full of colour, people, balloons and smiles: which again reinforces Sam's perfect life and the equilibrium at the start of the film. We also see a close up of writing on the wall, which says 'Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.' This quote is in fact a quote from her father, and is a key quote in the film. It sort of has the 'if at first you dont succeed, try and try again' notion, which conveys a positive mood, so again reinforces the perfect place. The diner is also filled with vivid, bright colours - for example for all the balloons - are used in the diner show and help to portray the happiness of Sam's life, and back up her quote 'I was the luckiest girl in the world.', which is said just before the scene changes.


3. Is the Disruption or Disequilibrium introduced or hinted at?
Right after we see Sam blowing out the candles of her birthday cake and the voiceover saying 'What did I need a wish for? I had amazing friends and the coolest dad', the theme and mood change. This is shown by a pause in the music, and the voiceover then saying 'But I guess my dad thought I needed one more thing... Fiona.' Suddenly, the music changes, and so does the scene. We see a shot of her dad and Fiona getting married, and we are introduced to Fiona's two daughters, Brianna and Gabriella. We see that in the scene, they are about to have a wedding photo taken, and we see Fiona purposely dropping her bouquet of flowers for Sam to pick up, so she is purposely our of the photo, and we hear Fiona then say 'One's enough'. So this already shows the disruption in the equilibrium, as we can see that Sam's perfect life is starting to go downhill, with the entrance of her stepmother.
However, the final turning point is when there is an earthquake, and Sam's father dies. This is a key part of her background and story, and this is emphasised by the slow motion close up of their separation of hands, and a cutaway shot to her snowglobe which smashes to the ground. This is symbolic because the snowglobe represents her fairytale life, and since it smashes, her perfect life smashes too.


4. Are there any visual/verbal/aural clues that hint at what the hero's journey might be?
There aren't many clues that hint at what the hero's journey might be, as at the beginning of the film we just learn about her past and story so far. However, we do realise that her dad has died and her life has gone totally downhill, and this is reinforced by the voiceover, saying 'Since my father didn't leave a will, my stepmother got everything; the house, the diner, and to her dismay: me.'


5. From your knowledge of the film, how will the equilibrium be restored and what will be the new equilibrium?
Similar to the original Cinderella, she meets her Prince Charming, and lives 'happily ever after'. However, this film is a more updated and modern version, so she meets her 'Prince Charming' online. However, as they are online, they don't know who eachother are: he is in fact a popular jock called Austin, and she is known as a sort of loser, and is nicknamed 'Diner Girl' (as she works there). She is teased and doesn't have that many friends, but always talks to Austin online, and they fall in love (despite not knowing who is actually on the other end of the computer!). At the end of the movie, they find out who eachother are, and despite coming from different cliques, they date and then go to Princeton University together, and live 'happily ever after!' :)

Continuity

From reading the 'Making Your Film Make Sense' booklet, pages from the folder and doing the accidents task during class, I have learnt many key tips for making a film make sense, and continue.

The main things I have learnt are the rules for continuity editting, especially the '180 degree rule', '30 degree rule', 'match on action', 'shot/rverse/shot' and 'eyeline match'.

The 180 degree rule shows us that it is important to not cross the 'line of vision'. This is because if there are two people in one shot facing eachother, it is important not to make it seem like they are on the same side/coming from the same way, as this may confuse the viewer. This was demonstrated by another group doing the accidents task, as when they filmed two people bumping into eachother, they accidentally made both people walk from the same direction. So from reading the booklet, I have learnt that the camera has to stay on the same side, as this diagram illlustrates:

There is also the 30 degree rule, which tells us that we cannot jump from one camera angle to another angle which is less than 30 degrees apart. This is because it will look confusing to the viewer, and it won't look easy on the eye, as it will just look as though the camera has 'jumped'. This was in fact shown by my group, during the accident task. We shot two shots of 'the fall', one where she is mid air, and then another where she is falling down. However, when we shot the two different shots, they were shot from different angles, so when they were put together, the camera jumped maybe about 30 degrees, and the fall looked very strange.

Another reason why our shot of the fall looked strange was because we didn't match the two shots exactly. This is the rule 'match on action', where we must match two action shots exactly, to make it flow. i.e. the end of the first action shot must be the beginning of the second.

From the booklet, I had also learnt the rule 'shot/reverse/shot', where we must first shoot one character who is facing one direction, and the second character who is facing the other direction. This was also demonstrated by the other group in the accident task, who accomplished this rule well, by showing the two people's faces, before one decided to kick the other.
Their two shots also worked well as they accomplished the 'eyeline match' rule too, which is where the gazes of two characters match (e.g. if one is taller than the other, they are looking down, while the other is looking up).

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Other than these Continuity Editing rules, I have learnt about all the different transitions, lighting, camera movement and framing. These were learnt from not only reading the booklet, but the task during class where we had to film various shots.

There are different transitions such as cuts, dissolves, fades and wipes; all of which convey meaning and help the film flow. The main transition is a cut, which is almost invisible to the viewer, and the least common is a wipe, as this sometimes looks too childish.

I also recapped all the different camera distances and framings, including VLS, LS, MS, CU and ECU. In class we also learnt about the 'Establishing Shot', which is a VLS which shows the audience the setting, and where everyone is in comparison to other characters, and is usually shown first in a sequence.

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So from reading the booklet and doing the tasks during class, I have learnt a lot, and they will help me largely in the future. For example, by just doing the accidents task, my group and I had accidentally broken the 30 degree rule and match on action rule, and we can now learn from our mistakes.