BFI Media Trip Findings - Film Openings #36

BFI Media Trip Findings

Film Openings - Bog Post #36

                     
                  

                  

Film openings 1 copy from courtesy of Pete Fraser's blog

Film openings 2 from courtesy of Pete Fraser's blog

The two slide-share powerpoints were shown at the BFI (British Film Institution) trip by Pete Fraser. I believe that this powerpoint has informed me more about opening title sequence and some of the information have become more clear which I did not know prior to the trip.

For example it states the five important aspects within an opening title sequence, which are narrative (enigma), genre, character, atmosphere and setting. These five aspects are crucial when producing an opening title sequence, therefore I must comply with these aspects in order to create an astonishing piece of work. As well as this Pete reinforced key information such as planning is vital, you cannot expect to come up with a great final piece of work if you haven't planned, therefore when it comes to filming in the future I must plan beforehand a lot with my group.

In conclusion, the trip has been very beneficial for myself as I have increased my knowledge on particular points (such as the five aspects) and what I must maintain in my final opening title sequence.

BFI Study Day (Part Two) #35

BFI Study Day (Part Two)

Post #35



Pete Fraser talking to Simon Frame

Shortly afterwards our break, we had Peter Fraser talk to Simon Frame about how he got into the filming industry.  Firstly he spoke about various projects he has worked on. For example he showed us the opening sequence to ''Da Vinci's Demons'' which he worked on with other colleagues. One of the main factor Simon spoke about was how he got the slow motion effect within the title itself; he also talked through other factors about how the birds in the opening title sequence were trained and the filming itself took a lot of time to edit.

Different frames from Da Vinci's Demons



                         

Pete Frazer's Discussion with Jake Hume about 'Sixteen'

On the AS Media BFI trip, there was a discussion between Pete Frazer and Jake Humes. Jake showed us a screening of his film 'Sixteen' which was about a 16 year old child soldier who had just recently moved to Britain for a better life, whilst watching the extract from Sixteen I was engaged to the video, the short screening Jake showed us made me really want to see the whole film. He also spoke about the budgeting of the film and how he did a fund raise in order to shoot the film, he got some funding from a university, some of the film itself took place in a school which at first they school were contemplating it due to to the fact this film was low budget and Jake himself could not give the school money to film in the premises, after few paperwork and an agreement the school were happy for Jake to film on the school premises.

After listening to Jake, I have realised how hard it can be to film a low budget film, because you are not established yet it can be difficult to gain permission from the place you want to film. Below is a 'behind the scenes' video of 'Sixteen'.

                     

Below is also a funding chart for 'Sixteen', as you can see they have met their budget target.

                                                            

BFI Study Day (Part one) #34

BFI Study Day (Part One)

Blog Post #34

On Thursday 21st November, the AS media group and I visited British Film Institute (BFI) as part of an educational school trip. Whilst visiting the BFI; which is located in London (southbank) I had learnt various factors that can help me with my final opening title sequence, which i wasn't aware of prior to the trip. Within this blog I will be going into depth of how the trip was an some of the key information regarding opening title sequences. 

Pete Fraser

Time schedule of the day

When we first arrived at the BFI, we were given a copy of a time schedule of the day and how the day will be taken place, below is a copy of the scheduled day:

Our day first began with Pete Fraser going through 5 aspects of when analysing an opening title sequence. 

           

Lecture theatre we were sitting in
amongst other schools

                                            These five aspects were:

   Genre
     Narrative (enigma)

                                                       Character

                                                     Atmosphere

                                                         Setting

He then showed us three different opening sequences, the three films he showed us were, catch me if you can, dawn of the dead and napoleon dynamite. Whilst watching these extracts we had to make notes on the individual extracts, after each extract was shown we had a feedback exercise where we had to report our findings and discuss it among peers and the other schools that were in the lecture theatre


CATCH ME IF YOU CAN
(STEVEN SPIELBERG - 2002)

'Catch me if you can'

Whilst taking notes I wrote that 'Catch me if you can' consisted of the most elements of enigma this is because the animated opening title sequence itself had a guy running away from .a another man, this made me think to myself 'why is this man running away?' and 'who is he?' because I had not seen the film before. Also the animation takes places in different scenery which makes the audience such as me establish the scene, the that the opening title sequence consists of a plane and a man running to to a taxi suggests an 'On the Run' type of film as well as the title of the film can further suggest this.

DAWN OF THE DEAD

(ZACK SNYDER - 2004)

'Dawn of the dead'

As regards to the 'Dawn of the Dead' opening sequence, I mainly focused on making notes on the narrative, this is because the way this opening sequence is portrayed is rather mysterious, and the choice of colours (Black and Red) suggest death, blood and violence. Also the choice of music was very clever, the song used was 'Johnny Cash - The Man Comes Around', after doing some independent research I realised the significance in using this song for this opening sequence, the song itself is sending a message across that one day a man will come to pass judgement; this justifies the fact that this opening title sequence is about death and the lurking creatures/zombies within this film. 

NAPOLEON DYNAMITE

(JARED HESS - 2004)

'Napoleon Dynamite'

The third screening was the opening sequence of 'Napoleon Dynamite', this was the most interesting opening title sequence of all three shown, as Pete said 'the sequence to this is a really novel way of showing this'  however it shows us a sense of characters which is part f one of the five aspects, however there was only one character shown which was Napoleon himself; his face was shown in a ID card. A quick little trivia which I found interesting was that the food shown in this opening sequence was eaten throughout the film itself in separate scenes. 

Images Courtesy of: Art of the Title

Preliminary Task - Evaulation #33

Preliminary Task - Evaluation of skills developed

Post #33

Preliminary Task Final Outcome:
In this specific post I will be discussing the skills I had learned when creating this preliminary task, my main role was editing, so I put together the combination of clips.

                          

Below is an audio file discussing how we produced the preliminary task, the sound was recorded from my mac via a condenser microphone, then uploaded to Sound Cloud which was then embedded onto this blog entry. Overall I felt that the preliminary task went very well, however there were a few minor mistakes which I pick up on in this commentary. (Play the audio file)



Editing:
Screenshot of myself editing on ''Adobe After Effects"

This was the main timeline, as you can see the blue bars represent each individual clip, I had to trim them accordingly so that the combination of clips flow smoothly.

Prelimiary Task Storyboard Blog post #32

Preliminary Task Storyboard
Blog post #32

Below is a storyboard that we used to help us construct our preliminary task, I thought following a storyboard was helpful as it gives us a rough idea of our our shots will be constructed.

Preliminary Task Instructions #31

Preliminary Task Instructions
Blog Post #31

In groups of no more than four

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 he or she exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. This task must demonstrate match on action, shot reverse shot and the 180 degree rule.

Timeline Analysis of Sweeney Todd Blog post #30

Timeline Analysis of Sweeney Todd
Blog post #30

Above is a timeline analysis for the opening title sequence Sweeney Todd, this has helped me understand the timing of each individual credit and also that the director is always shown last. As well as this it made me realise that the average number of credits per opening title sequence is around 24 in this case it was 26.

Continuity Editing #29

Continuity Editing:

Blog Post #29

ESTABLISHING SHOT:

  

 An establishing shot is a long shot or an extreme long shot, it usually consists with loose framing, it makes the audience familiar with the setting and location before the characters are in that certain location. It shows spatial relations between the important figures, objects and setting in a scene.

Establishing shots were more common in the classical era of film making than they are now.

 Today film makers tend to skip the establishing shot in order to move the scene more quickly.

Here are two examples of establishing shots:

 

SHOT-REVERSE-SHOT:

  

A shot reverse shot is when two shots are edited together that alternate characters, typically in a conversation situation. Usually characters in one frame look left and in the following frame look right.

Below are two examples of shot reverse shots.
 Shot-reverse-shot may not be filmed in the correct order but will be edited together afterwards to ensure it looks continuous.

When filming a shot-reverse-shot you must ensure that the right amount of shots are filmed to make the 'shot-reverse-shot' sequence work.

180° RULE

 An 180° rule is when the angle between any two consecutive shots should not exceed 180°, in order to maintain special relationships between people and objects in any given sequence of shots.

The 180° rule is a principle which underpins all TV and film production.

However, we must remember not to cross the 'line of vision' between two characters.

 Otherwise the viewer may not be able to make sense of the scene.

The same rule applies to a moving subject: keep to one side of the direction of motion.

An imaginary line called the axis connects the characters and by keeping the camera on one side  of this axis for every shot in the scene, the first character will always be frame right of the second character, who is then always frame left of the first.

 If the camera passes over the axis, it is called jumping the line or crossing the line.

30° DEGREE RULE

The 30° rule is the angle between any two consecutive shots that should not be less than 30°, in order to maintain spatial relationships between people and objects in any given sequence of shots.


The 30° change of perspective makes the shots different enough to avoid a jump cut. However, if there is too much movement around the subject then it can violate the 180° rule.

Following this rule may soften the effect of changing shot distance, such as changing from a medium shot to a close-up or extreme close up.

CROSS-CUTTING:

Cross-cutting is the term used when a piece of editing alternates between shots occurring simultaneously.

This is done when the camera 'cuts' away from one action to another action; although it suggests that the scene are simultaneous, this isn't always the case.

Suspense may be added with cross-cutting, it is built through the expectations that it creates and in the hopes that it will be explained with time.

MATCH ON ACTION:

Match on action is a simple but an effective technique. It is when the camera perspective changes into a different shot but maintains flow.

For example, as you can see the images on the right, the images where taken on two separate occasions but it seems like they are occurring at the same time. Film makers do this to alternate camera angles in order to make it more interesting as seeing the same shot for a while can become boring.

It can also show who is there in the shot (ie. a witnesses) for example the top image shows that a fight occurring however the bottom image reveals that there is a witness who is spectating the fight.


                                                                 EYE LINE MATCH :

An eye line match is a shot which consists of the character looking at something off-screen, followed by a cut to the object or in this case the person who he is looking at.

The second shot shows the person looking back at the direction in which the person was talking to him in. This enables the audience to identify who or what the character is looking at.

                                                           RE-ESTABLISHING SHOT:

A re-establishing shot is which returns to the location after a character has engaged in a conversation.

The purpose of a re-establishing shot is to give the audience a sense of surroundings of the character and objects which lie around them.

For example an establishing shot may be used after a couple were having a conversation in their house and after that scene it shows a long shot of the house itself (re-establishing shot)

Evaluation on opening title sequence recreation #28

Evaluation on opening title sequence recreation

Blog Post #28

Here is the evaluation of an opening title sequence my group and I recreated. Our task was to recreate an existing opening title sequence, so we decided to recreate 'Memento' which is an existing thriller film. I believe that recreating this opening title sequence gave me a real 'taste' of what to expect when creating our final opening title sequence, meaning that it would consist of a lot of hard work and dedication. At the bottom of the blog is the original opening title sequence of 'Memento', in comparison to our own recreation which is just positioned below this paragraph:

                     

                        


Pre Production:

After looking at various opening title sequences, my group and I came to a final decision of recreating the opening title sequence for 'Memento'; the reason why as a group we chose 'Memento' was because we wanted to pick an opening title sequence that was rather challenging to recreate and something that was not too simple either.

The timeline I created in order to help my
group and I with this task.

After watching the opening title sequence for 'Memento' various times, I decided to create a timeline so my group and I would know exactly when to film each segment whilst recreating the opening title sequence itself; for example the first 5 seconds of the title sequence was the company name so therefore no filming was required for this stage, so we didn't need to worry about this until post production and editing.

If you look at the next segment on the timeline you can see that it states 'blood dripping' again for five seconds, so I knew I had to film blood dripping for five seconds, however I decided to be extra pre-cautious when filming and recorded an extra 5 seconds just incase something went wrong whilst editing, this was taken into account for the majority of the scenes.

Although the timeline is in chronological order, I told my group, ''Maybe it would be easier if we shot the much 'simpler' scenes first or scenes that are around the same location together, instead of having to go back and forth''. I believe that this is a key strategy and can save time whilst having to work effectively in a set time.

Setting locations & filming:

After putting the timeline together and having an in-depth discussion about this task, my group and I set off to film. We wanted to duplicate the scenes that were shown in the scene and make it as similar as possible for example in the original during 0:41 seconds into the title sequence there appears to be a man holding several bullets so we tried our best to replicate this, as you can see in our recreation you can see myself holding an empty shell bullet in a car whilst filming a point-of-view (POV) shot.

Other scenes also resemble the original title sequence for example when the vehicle (Mercedes) approaches it also rewinds (which was a key technique within the original title sequence), however this was more to do with post production and editing as this was on Adobe After Effects, the same accounts for the bus approaching the school gate. Although my group and I are happy with the final outcome, there are many room for improvements, however many of the filming and location were restricted as the task had to filmed around school.

Props/replicating items:

As mentioned earlier we wanted the recreation to be as similar as possible; this is why we tried our best to replicate the items. For example we had a polaroid camera however it didn't have any photo paper refills in it, so as an alternative solution i used my initiative and used a piece of paper; cut it into a square (similar to the size of a polaroid refill) and coloured a smaller square to resemble the original scene. Similarly, at the start of the opening sequence we needed an alternative solution to blood (once again seen at the start of the original title sequence), so instead my group and I headed over to art and got some red paint and covered it.


Complications and set backs:

Whilst creating this title sequence we had some setbacks and complications, for example in the original opening sequence (below) at 0:20 seconds there appaears to be a book burning. This was a major setback because due to health and safety and being in school (during school hours) there was no possible way of filming a book burning in the premises, furthermore there was no other solution around it. Unfortunately, there was no alternative outcome either so as a group we just decided to leave this specific scene out which is why it is not seen in our final recreation.

Another complication was that the polaroid we had was not in working condition so we couldn't get the 'flash' effect we initially wanted where the unidentifiable man took a picture in the original title sequence; again similarly this is why we didn't have the flash in our final recreation.

Original memento opening title sequence:

                       

Typefaces Blog post #27

Typefaces

Blog Post #27

Below is a Prezi i created which explains what typefaces are and what are the purposes. I also showed examples of typefaces from existing opening title sequences.

Textual Analysis of Jack Reacher Blog post #26

Textual Analysis of Jack Reacher (2012)

Textual Analysis 3/3 - Blog post #26

            

Below are Soundcloud sound files I recorded via my iPhone 5 and imported onto blogger.

In conclusion, this opening title sequence fits the convention instantly this is because the use of weaponry is already introduced in the first four minutes of the film which suggests that there potentially may be more as the film progresses.

Textual Analysis of Mission Impossible 4 Blog post #25

Textual Analysis of Mission Impossible 4 (Ghost Protocol) - 2011

Textual Analysis 2/3 - Blog Post #25

               

Representation:

The opening title sequence for Mission Impossible 4 (Ghost Protocol) is full of action, the characters within the sequence are represented as being heroic for example the main character Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is portrayed as a very masculine character for example he is wearing a vest which shows his muscles which suggests strength and power. Furthermore at the start when the two characters come down through the zip wire the first man falls over which shows that he is not used to it whereas Tom Cruise comes down with no problem at all which suggests that he is professional and that he has had practice in these types of  'jobs' before.

Camera:

In terms of camera work there is a lot of motion control this is when the fuse is introduced, the fuse is being burned and it moves along whilst constantly tracking around different sceneries, the fact that the camera is constantly moving helps create the sense of action and thriller, both of which are the key genres within the film, furthermore the fuse being ignited whilst moving creates upbeat action which could suggest that time is running out (ticking clock scenario).

Sound:

The sound within this opening title sequence allows the audience to familiarise with the film series, the fact that this is the fourth installment of the Mission Impossible series the audience may already know the theme tune as it has stayed the same throughout all movies, for example Harry Potter does this, within the opening title sequence the soundtrack is played at the beginning in order to remind audience which could potentially give a nostalgic feeling. Furthermore the sound of the fuse burning is running in the background of the soundtrack, this creates a tense feeling as the noise is almost 'sizzling' this creates a more realistic professional opening title sequence. Moreover in the underwater scene you can hear the water almost as if the you're (the audience) inside the water which again makes it seem more professional and 3 Dimensional.

Mise-en-scene:
The mise-en-scene within this opening title sequence is constructed very well in order to maintain the thriller convention. For example the use of dark lighting suggests that the film may consist of dark scenes such as killing and the use of weaponry.

The props used in the opening title sequence also suggest that the work they are doing may jeopardise their health, for example whilst coming down the zip line already suggests that they are working under cover and that they should not be there. Furthermore Tom Cruise is holding a torch and the female is also wearing headgear with a troch attachment which suggests the place they have entered is dark which could suggest death and potential hazards.

In terms of setting the beginning of the opening title sequence is set underground, this shows that unusual things are happening which suggests that they may be under threat, this is because their route isn't considered as a standard route.

Editing:

 The editing within this title sequence is fantastic, it really complements the genre. For example the fact that the fuse is running all the way through whilst the credits are being displayed it creates a sense of a ticking clock scenario (as mentioned earlier), this connotes that there may be danger after the timer has run out which creates tension and a sense of fear as the audience do not know what will happen. Furthermore the use of capital 3D text creates a sense of sudden urge and really complements the tracking of the camera, furthermore the ignition of the fuse (whilst being burned) forms the text 'Mission Impossible' which is a clever technique whilst editing, the text was motion tracked so that the movement fits in with the action.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this opening title sequence is quite subversive, this is because the title sequence itself is a compilation of other scenes in the film, whereas normally we would expect the opening title sequence to be an exclusive introduction clip where the title gives us the audience a sense of narrative. The title sequence is action packed and creates a lot of drama from the very start, the use of fuse as mentioned earlier creates a jumpy and tense mood.   

Textual Analysis of Se7en (1) Blog post #24

Textual Analysis of Se7en

Textual Analysis 1/3 - Blog Post #24

Below is a Prezi where I textually analysed the opening title sequence for the film 'Se7en'. 

Loglines #23

Loglines
Blog Post #23

In class I had learnt that a log line is a brief sentence telling us (the audience) what the film is about and what it has to offer, however is a form of a statement which if fairly vague; this is due to the fact that it can cause spoilers which could potentially  ruin the film for some members of the audiences resulting into a lower amount of viewers which could then decrease revenue because they would not want to watch the film anymore. A logline also adds a question to a persons mind and builds anticipation towards the release of a specific film. Loglines can be release few weeks before the release of the film, but they can also be stated on promotional posters on a billboard, they are also usually printed on the front of a DVD case, this can catch peoples eyes who are looking to buy DVD's as it is a sentence summary of the film which could appeal to that particular audience.

Examples of loglines:

''Faced with an unplanned pregnancy, an offbeat young woman makes an unusual decision regarding her unborn child'' - Juno

''A young mans peculiar upbringing renders him unable to competently cope with the struggle of growing up'' - Igby Goes Down

''Two imprisoned men bond over a number of years, finding solace and eventual redemption through acts of common decency'' - The Shawshank Redemption

History of opening sequences #22

History of opening sequences

Blog Post #22

What are opening sequences?

Opening sequences are shown at the very beginning of a film to give the viewers a brief introduction of the film itself, an opening sequence states the names of people associated with the film for example, the director, the producer and the main characters starring in the film as well as the movie title. Opening sequence usually have music in the background to accompany the shots.

History of opening sequences

Since the intervention of cinematograph (an apparatus for showing motion-picture films) simple title cards were used to help identify and show to the audience the name of the movie and the name of the production company, it was also a type of act to signal the start and the end of a movie. Many films have used unusual and fairly elaborate title sequences since the 1930's. For example, in multiple films the opening credits have appeared against a background of clouds such as; The Wizard of Oz, King of Kings, Clouds Roll By and Oliver Twist (1948).

Shortly afterwards, opening sequences began to intrigue the audience more and came much more interesting for example in 'Sinbad the Sailor' - 1947 the letters of the opening sequence seem to form from coloured water gushing from a fountain. From then they began to develop furthermore, in a trend increasingly common towards the end of the 1950's, opening sequences have been a showcase for contemporary design and illustration 

In the 21st century, opening sequences show a lot more than the standard movie title, they show a lot of action for example the film 'Zombieland' has a 4 minute opening sequence which is narrated by a male voice, it has motion tracking text to make the 'steps' in the opening sequence more unique and 3D. This engages the audience to the screen more and gives them a good impression before the movie even fully starts.

Conventions of opening title sequences blog post #21

Conventions of opening title sequences

Blog Post #21

Below is a PowerPoint presentation I created, listing various conventions from opening title sequences, I have also given examples of each convention from existing films.

                                 

Conventions of opening title sequences - Fateh Khaled AS Media from Fateh Khaled

This was uploaded onto Slideshare and embedded from there.