Opening sequence overview

In order to help decide which genre I was going to use for my opening sequence I brainstormed all the possible themes in different genres. From this, I now have a clearly indication of which genre I may pick, for example either horror or action, with the theme of isolated areas and escape/siege. 

Institution: The film industry and distribution companies

Film distributor:

The film distributor is the organization responsible for coordinating the distribution of the finished movie to exhibitors, as well as the sale of videos, promotion and other media versions of movies. There are two types of distributors: 2) Big companies: for example Warner Bros., Sony and Disney. 2) Independent distributors: Momentum, lions gate. 

Big companies:

Warner Bros.- The company was originally created by four brothers, Harry, Albert, Jack and Samuel Warner. They began by showing movies in theatres they had bought in the 1900's, then they moved onto film distribution. By 1913 they began to produce their own films and moved to Hollywood. However, during the 1920's they ran into financial difficulty and were then known for their tightly budgeted, technically competent entertainment films. Following this the company started a craze in gangster films which included 'Scarface' (1932) and 'The Public Enemy' (1931). 

 Today, they are the most successful and popular film distribution company, with a total gross wealth of $29,135,050,869.

Independent companies:

Lion gate films- The company was created in 1998 by Frank Giustra, an investment banker wanting to capitalise the ever expanding film industry. There first major box office success was 'American Psycho' (2000) which generated $34,266,564 in box office sales. Other notable films include 'Saw' (2004) and 'The Hunger Games' (2012). Lion Gate is currently the largest and most successful independent film distributor in America with a total revenue of $1.584 billion. 

Process of creation:

Pre-Production- Arrangements made before the start of filming, including script writing and editing, set construction, location scouting and casting. 

Production- This is when the principle photography and filming takes place. 

Post-Production- This is work performed on the movie after the end of filming and photography. This involves editing, visual effects, sound editing and music score. 

Examples of stages in the process: 

Pre-Production- Casting: This begins with the directors vision. They will then consider three different things when casting actors. 1) Physical characteristics- physique, facial features, voice qualities. 2) Acting ability- body language, mannerisms, emotions, vocal effects. 3) Character types- personality traits, public expectations. 

-Steven Spielberg, a director once said "Sometimes the best thing I can do is cast the movie well. If you cast well then half the battle is already won. You've reached into a crowded world and pulled a man, a women, or a child from thin air and plugged them into your vision."

Production- Production design: This is the physical world of the film- the mise-en-scne. This includes, sets, scenery, location, props, costumes, make up and hair. 

Cinematography: This is the filming and is done so to the directors vision. This involves the placing of the camera in each shot, the light in each scene and shot, and finally the framing of the shot. 

Post-Production- Film editing: This is were the film is put together in the vision of the director. This involves the raw footage being cut and spliced to join shots, then its edited to create a smooth flow of shots with the correct timings. All this put together creates the rough cut, which then goes on to be tweaked and finished to create the final film as distributed into cinemas. 

Distributor of my film: 

If my opening sequence were to be developed into a film, the company which would distribute it would be Hammer Horror Productions. Although Hammer Horror no longer produce films, it would have been an ideal company to do so, due to it being based in the UK and due to the fact it only produces horror films. When Hammer Horror were still in production, they produced thrillers, gothic horror, science fiction and film noir, including 'Dracula', 'The Mummy' and 'Frankinstein'. They enjoyed worldwide success and I feel this would have been a perfect company to carry forward my story. However, in 2007 it was rumoured that £25m would be spent on developing and producing new horror films- which makes the prospects of my film more likely to be produced by them!

Continuity editing

Preliminary sequence: feeding the fish

Preliminary sequence: Feeding the fish- analysis

The process: 
-Initially we came up with the idea of cooking the fish fingers covered in chilli powder as we felt it gave a comical edge to the sequence. This was counterbalanced by the serious nature of the conversation between boss and the employee. We decided to follow it with the end also being comical with the next task being to kill 'Nemo'.
-We met up one lunchtime and began filming the sequence. We tried to use different rules of continuity editing such as shot reverse shot to establish the conversation between characters. however, as we had a limited amount of time this proved difficult to incorporate all rules and do them effectively.
-Next we met up in class to edit the sequence. This was predominantly done by myself and group member Theo. We came across some difficultly when editing including the fact we had we had filmed some things in landscape and others in portrait. This was an issue as there was a black rim around all the portrait shots which we could not change. Furthermore, we could not effectively create a seamless visual as we had not filmed enough footage, therefore continuity was not great, but we now know to take as many shots as possible to eliminate this problem in future filming.

What went well:

-Moving with characters in the frame. For example, when the employee was asked to sit down by the boss (At 0:27)

-A variety of different shots were used, for example mid shot- used when both the boss and employee were in the frame (0:28-0:33), shot reverse shot- when the boss and employee are having a conversation (0:37-0:47) and close ups- for the fish finger scene.

-Good mise-en-scene, in particular the costumes, which were themed around the Mafia. 

What could be improved:

-When filming shot reverse shots we needed to stick to the 180degree rule, as the eye lines didn’t match for the first shot (0:34-0:36) If we had more time to film we would have made a conscious effort to adhere to the rule.

-Some of the shots were too long and didn’t flow as well as they should have; for example, the shot of the employee walking through the door (0:13-0:18). This could have been avoided by using cutaways to give the shot a smoother, more natural feel. It would have also added to the mise-en-scene, as it would have identified the setting more.

-Some of the shots were shaky and this could have been avoided by using the tripod more, however we had a limited amount of time and therefore had to work as quickly as possible. We have learnt from this though and will always use a tripod or steadicam to ensure a smooth, steady film.

-During editing we came across some difficulties as we had filmed some thing in landscape and others in portrait. However when it came to turning the portrait to landscape in editing, there was a black rim around it because the framing was wrong. This problem can be overcome by using a different editing system or by using only landscape shots. 

Conclusion:

To conclude I feel if we had more time we could have eliminated the issues stated above which would have made the film a lot better. However, as this was an introductory task it allowed us to make mistakes now and learn from them. For example, I’ve learnt to use cut always to make the filming more fluid as well as the importance of the 180degree rule. 

Dialogue to storyboard

In this task we were given a script and we had to put the visual to it. It could be anything that would fit with the script, and we had to example which type of camera shots and edits we would use for each different scene. For my storyboard I tried to use a range of different shots including high/ low shot, mid shots, close ups and over the shoulder shots. I used a wide range in order to establish continuity and  through editing create a seamless flow to the visual. From this task I have learnt about how to use different shots and editing techniques to create tension to a scene and make it flow well, making editing invisible to the audiences eye. I will use this knowledge when creating my own sequence as it will help me to use lots of different shots, so i have a great choice when editing.

Oceans 12 extract storyboard

The orignal of this extract was staged editing, meaning the characters simply acted infront of a mid or long shot. There were no close ups or shot reverse shot, therefore our task was to incorporate a selection of different shots and change it to how we would have shot the scene. In my edited sequence I used a varity of shots including mid, close up and extreme close up to convey the characters emotions. I also used lots of shot reverse shot in order to keep and follow their conversation.
By using a varity of shots it created an increased sense of atmosphere and established continuety within the scene, moreso than the orginal staged editing. From this task I have learn that it is best to use many different types of shots to keep the audience interested and to establish continuety and flow; it is an invisible art and should be seamless. I aim to create this when filming and editing my opening sequence. 

Spooks shooting schedule

For this task we had to create a shooting schedule for a Spooks squence. In lesson we learnt that it is not always best to shoot the shots in the order they come on the storyboard; for example all the shots from one place should be taken at once, so in regards to the spooks sequence, all the shots taken from the bottom of the stairs should be shot at the same time, even if they do not go in that order. From this task i have learnt that creating a shooting schedule will save a great deal of time when shooting as I will not have to keep moving the camera, lighting ETC. if we followed the storyboard. By ordering the shots in this way it will save time and the hastle of moving everything.

Spooks shooting schedule:

Cam No/Op	Shot No.	Shot description	Shot done?	Details
	1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.	Man walking along bridge towards camera. (Camera pans left when he turns to walk down the stairs. Camera positioned at the top of stairs) (Photo 1 on sheet) Youths attacking man (Camera positioned at the top of the stairs) (Photo 5 on sheet) Youths running away (Camera positioned at the top of the stairs) (Photo 10 on sheet) Man writhing in pain on the ground (Camera positioned at the top of stairs) (Photo 11 on sheet) Man walking down stairs (Track/ pan> side on view) (Camera positioned to the side at the bottom of the stairs) (Photo 2 on sheet) Man walking down the street (Camera positioned in front of the man- man walking towards camera) (Photo 3 on sheet) Mid shot of youths on street and man walking past (Camera positioned in front of man/youths) (Photo 4 on sheet) Youths approaching/ attacking man (Camera positioned next to the action- mid shot) (Photo 6 on sheet) Youths attacking man (Camera positioned within the action- close up) (Photo 7 on sheet) Youths fleeing the man on the ground (Camera positioned within the action- close up) (Photo 8 on sheet) Youths running away with briefcase (Camera positioned in front of the youth- youth runs towards camera) (Photo 9 on sheet) Man standing up, stumbling to bridge (Camera positioned in front. Pans as he falls) (Photo 12 on sheet)