Wednesday, 1 December 2010
Research and Planning : My Trailer Animatic.
As well as making a storyboard, I scanned it in and made an 'animatic' from the original frames, I chose some temporary music and used a temporary font for the title, it is in no way perfect, but it is a vague overview of the order of my trailer.
Tuesday, 30 November 2010
Recce - 1st and 2nd Shots.
I went on a photographic recce over the weekend to a collection of places in the area that I could potentially film a few outside scenes, my aim was to find either run-down areas or shabby built-up areas. In the scene, where the main character meets his 'shifty' friend and I chose areas that are inconspicuous, because I thought these would be the best place for the characters to meet secretly.
In my first shot, I thought this would be good because it is a secluded area around the back of a local football and near a substation, the walls are quite grimey and the bars and locks in the background look very foreboding and link to criminal activity and danger. In a way they are almost symbolic. As well as the sort of angle-shot that I would shoot from, I have included a picture of the locks and the door in detail. This location is good for several reasons: it looks good, it is within a kilometre of my house and thus is relatively easy for traveling to and finally it is not within in the vicinity of anyone's house and thus I will not be disturbing people when filming.
I thought that this shot was good because it appears really wide and so there is a lot of space to film and yet at the same time, it feels quite compressed which helps give a good feel to the scene. I think this also looks good because it looks like it's a garage that could belong to the main characters friend. The garage doors alternating between vertical and horizon patterns, this looks quite nice in shot. I think it would look quite natural to film here as it seems like the kind of place people could meet one another. Again, this is reasonably close to my house although less secluded than the first location, being on an estate, I may have to ask people if I can film here, I do not know yet.
The 3rd and 4th Shots will go up soon.
SHOT 1
In my first shot, I thought this would be good because it is a secluded area around the back of a local football and near a substation, the walls are quite grimey and the bars and locks in the background look very foreboding and link to criminal activity and danger. In a way they are almost symbolic. As well as the sort of angle-shot that I would shoot from, I have included a picture of the locks and the door in detail. This location is good for several reasons: it looks good, it is within a kilometre of my house and thus is relatively easy for traveling to and finally it is not within in the vicinity of anyone's house and thus I will not be disturbing people when filming.SHOT 2
I thought that this shot was good because it appears really wide and so there is a lot of space to film and yet at the same time, it feels quite compressed which helps give a good feel to the scene. I think this also looks good because it looks like it's a garage that could belong to the main characters friend. The garage doors alternating between vertical and horizon patterns, this looks quite nice in shot. I think it would look quite natural to film here as it seems like the kind of place people could meet one another. Again, this is reasonably close to my house although less secluded than the first location, being on an estate, I may have to ask people if I can film here, I do not know yet.The 3rd and 4th Shots will go up soon.
Friday, 12 November 2010
Thursday, 4 November 2010
The Conventions of the genre of Revenge thrillers and trailers. My trailer and how it will fit with aforementioned conventions.
The main aspects of the revenge thriller are the first (and probably most important) scene, which will consist of an event that will ‘drive’ our character’s behaviour to beyond what we are expecting. This will usually involve an injustice being committed against our character e.g. a murder, a framing. Before this scene we will usually have character development but in a trailer, we are usual given some form of overview of this in a voiceover or small clip, this is done effectively in the Harry Brown trailer when his friend tells him that he fears for his life. This often adds some sense of moral duty for our character, and will later motivate his revenge. However these scenes do not provide the action that many of the potential audience will be looking for, that is why these sections must be short but effective, that is one of the reasons that some trailers use sound-bites. The first major scene takes up the largest section of the trailer, the aim is to capture the entire build-up and the main action, and the end result in the trailer is to use the entire scene of the ‘point-of-no-return’ or at least the main action because it is undoubtedly the most crucial scene, it is central to the plot. Also it contains the action that the audience will want to see.
The second section serves as a sort of contemplation scene, where the character is contemplating potential possibilities of what he must do, an inner conflict must be present both physically on screen as well as in some sort of sound-bite that will convey how unsure he is of what to do next. The other thing to do is to have an external source of advice e.g. a friend (in my case possibly a father) who shows him a way of thinking that inspires him to take justice into his own hands. These sections are often set in churches, graveyards and areas that are quite solitary, due to the mourning there is often an extended family involved.
The third section is the main section of the film, yet however much of this is not shown, there is a montage flashed of images that show violence and action, this is the clincher the bits that the audience do not see everything they want to see. The music always picks up pace quite rapidly and ends with a bang with an important shot and then the title and that thing that always come after the title with the cast and crew. It is important to give a massive build up that shows what the audience wants. Guns, fights, redemption, perhaps a message, a definitive bad guy etc. and finally some sort of shot that will stick solidly in the minds of the audience e.g. a twist, a selling point. The title itself should have a memorable font but not too over-the-top because that would end up making the film look less serious.
The second section serves as a sort of contemplation scene, where the character is contemplating potential possibilities of what he must do, an inner conflict must be present both physically on screen as well as in some sort of sound-bite that will convey how unsure he is of what to do next. The other thing to do is to have an external source of advice e.g. a friend (in my case possibly a father) who shows him a way of thinking that inspires him to take justice into his own hands. These sections are often set in churches, graveyards and areas that are quite solitary, due to the mourning there is often an extended family involved.
The third section is the main section of the film, yet however much of this is not shown, there is a montage flashed of images that show violence and action, this is the clincher the bits that the audience do not see everything they want to see. The music always picks up pace quite rapidly and ends with a bang with an important shot and then the title and that thing that always come after the title with the cast and crew. It is important to give a massive build up that shows what the audience wants. Guns, fights, redemption, perhaps a message, a definitive bad guy etc. and finally some sort of shot that will stick solidly in the minds of the audience e.g. a twist, a selling point. The title itself should have a memorable font but not too over-the-top because that would end up making the film look less serious.
Tuesday, 28 September 2010
Trailer Analysis : Harry Brown
Does this trailer fit the usual conventions of a revenge thriller? if so how? (or if not then what is new?)
The trailer to Harry Brown is a very good example of a revenge thriller trailer. The trailer is clever in the way that it genuinely does make you want to watch the movie. The Trailer begins with the problem, violent youths on a council estate being watched by Michael Caine as Harry Brown. Yes, it sets up a victim, Harry's friend Leonard at the beginning of the trailer. As well as this it sets up the situation where the main character makes a decision that he must attempt to right, like when he fails to think properly about protecting his friend and then exacts his vengeance on the youths. However it diverts from the usual plot of a revenge movie in the way that the Police are, by the looks of it, not condemning Harry for his vigilanteism, most revenge films choose to view revenge as more
Which trailer conventions does this trailer use well?
(voice over? / dramatic sound? /is it structured into 3 parts? /does it establish the genre ? how? /what audience do you think it is aiming at? )
Most of the trailer is dominated by sound-bites and voiceover that really give us the structure of the narrative, Michael Caine's voice is very well known and so this gives us a sense of familiarity to him and as well as this, he manages to convince me that his vengeance is justified. The sound used, includes violent noises and the trailer itself ends on the sound of a gunshot, this prepares us for a violent, modern urban film. I would say that the trailer is structured into probably 2 or 3 sections, the first being his friend feeling threatened and being killed, then the impression on Harry and him pondering whether he can just let his friend's killer go un-punished, and the final section (by the look of it much longer than the first two) him exacting his revenge. I believe that this trailer knows it has a huge audience, Michael Caine personally draws a large audience as one of the most respected British film-actors, this will appeal to older fans who know Caine, the idea of rowdy youth as well would suggest an older viewpoint of young society. As well as this it could be seen as a film for a younger audience as it is filled with action and violence and has a soundtrack of young urban music and the British rapper, Plan B, is a co-star in the film.
3) What are three moments or images or edits that you think are particularly effective in this trailer?
The images of the youth rioting in this street from an above angle in the dark makes it seem really ominous, this shot encapsulated the fear that Leonard felt before he died, the second image that really makes an impact is Michael Caine crying due to the fact that primarily he is a good actor and we can see how much this means to the character, Caine is also famous for playing tough characters and thus it is a strange image to see. The other is the finishing image of the trailer, where he points the gun at the screen and says ''You failed to maintain your weapon, Son.' which is the image that we are meant to be left with, thinking that he is fixed on revenge and nothing is going to prevent.
4) look at the studio idents - (what can you learn about idents and their style from these?)
The Lionsgate is the text LIONSGATE in block capitals it is black on a background of clouds in a sepia sky of clouds. They are quite interesting
The trailer to Harry Brown is a very good example of a revenge thriller trailer. The trailer is clever in the way that it genuinely does make you want to watch the movie. The Trailer begins with the problem, violent youths on a council estate being watched by Michael Caine as Harry Brown. Yes, it sets up a victim, Harry's friend Leonard at the beginning of the trailer. As well as this it sets up the situation where the main character makes a decision that he must attempt to right, like when he fails to think properly about protecting his friend and then exacts his vengeance on the youths. However it diverts from the usual plot of a revenge movie in the way that the Police are, by the looks of it, not condemning Harry for his vigilanteism, most revenge films choose to view revenge as more
Which trailer conventions does this trailer use well?
(voice over? / dramatic sound? /is it structured into 3 parts? /does it establish the genre ? how? /what audience do you think it is aiming at? )
Most of the trailer is dominated by sound-bites and voiceover that really give us the structure of the narrative, Michael Caine's voice is very well known and so this gives us a sense of familiarity to him and as well as this, he manages to convince me that his vengeance is justified. The sound used, includes violent noises and the trailer itself ends on the sound of a gunshot, this prepares us for a violent, modern urban film. I would say that the trailer is structured into probably 2 or 3 sections, the first being his friend feeling threatened and being killed, then the impression on Harry and him pondering whether he can just let his friend's killer go un-punished, and the final section (by the look of it much longer than the first two) him exacting his revenge. I believe that this trailer knows it has a huge audience, Michael Caine personally draws a large audience as one of the most respected British film-actors, this will appeal to older fans who know Caine, the idea of rowdy youth as well would suggest an older viewpoint of young society. As well as this it could be seen as a film for a younger audience as it is filled with action and violence and has a soundtrack of young urban music and the British rapper, Plan B, is a co-star in the film.
3) What are three moments or images or edits that you think are particularly effective in this trailer?
The images of the youth rioting in this street from an above angle in the dark makes it seem really ominous, this shot encapsulated the fear that Leonard felt before he died, the second image that really makes an impact is Michael Caine crying due to the fact that primarily he is a good actor and we can see how much this means to the character, Caine is also famous for playing tough characters and thus it is a strange image to see. The other is the finishing image of the trailer, where he points the gun at the screen and says ''You failed to maintain your weapon, Son.' which is the image that we are meant to be left with, thinking that he is fixed on revenge and nothing is going to prevent.
4) look at the studio idents - (what can you learn about idents and their style from these?)
The Lionsgate is the text LIONSGATE in block capitals it is black on a background of clouds in a sepia sky of clouds. They are quite interesting
Thursday, 9 September 2010
Trailer Analysis : Oldboy Trailer
The Oldboy trailer is a good example of a trailer that trys to appeal to a foreign audience. As a whole I don't think that it is a great trailer, but the movie was a huge international success. The first shot of the trailer remains unexplained adding mystery to the film. Then a selling point quickly pops up, "Winner of Grand Prix Festival of Cannes 2004", for many foreign films, it is quite difficult to sell them without the authenticity added by an award at a festival. We are then given some text with a distinctive font and a patterned background. Does not just tell the plot, shows it on screen. There is also a selective use of well-framed shots that show us the character as well as his surroundings. The trailer then changes to show our character having suffered, then action and revenge constitutes a change in the music. The trailer very much concentrates on our character 오대수 and I think it is quite clear that we are meant to view him as frustrated and obsessive by his behaviour and appearance. As it gets nearer the ending of the trailer,whilst flashing quotes from reviews to reinforce that it is infact a great movie, we get more of the impression of a tragic ending with the shots of the woman crying and our main character being beaten up. In this way, the trailer presents us with an outline of a story. Then the title comes up in a distinctive style of title.
Teaser Trailer Work : What is a Teaser Trailer?
What is a Teaser Trailer?
6 Months before Trailer, they are between 30-90secs .
They aim to tease the audience.
They show the name, the date, the stars.
Best bits of the film, good framing, ACTION, PLOT etc.
Dragon Tattoo
Closeup Image, the date comes second.
More graphics.
Characters, Text.
Faster pace, few soundbites, not much explanation.
Establishing single-shot characters.
Location.
Series of shots that seemed to link a crime.
Violence shown, the punch.
Played with Fire
US Version, the titles are very good
Uses visual effects, ripples the titles, multiple colours and capitalisation ‘they FRAMED HER for MURDER’ emphasis
Hornet Nest
Focus on a character.
A little shot between titles, and the music
Actor’s names
Only a bit of action, not actually needed…
Visual impression,
6 Months before Trailer, they are between 30-90secs .
They aim to tease the audience.
They show the name, the date, the stars.
Best bits of the film, good framing, ACTION, PLOT etc.
Dragon Tattoo
Closeup Image, the date comes second.
More graphics.
Characters, Text.
Faster pace, few soundbites, not much explanation.
Establishing single-shot characters.
Location.
Series of shots that seemed to link a crime.
Violence shown, the punch.
Played with Fire
US Version, the titles are very good
Uses visual effects, ripples the titles, multiple colours and capitalisation ‘they FRAMED HER for MURDER’ emphasis
Hornet Nest
Focus on a character.
A little shot between titles, and the music
Actor’s names
Only a bit of action, not actually needed…
Visual impression,
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