CONVENTIONS RESEARCH: KEY INFLUENCES

KEY INFLUENCES:

This post is a summary of my key findings and a way for me to talk about what ive learnt from observing multiple pieces of media and how I am planning to apply them to my own work.

IDENTS:

By researching different aspects of how idents are used in cinema I have come to the conclusion that most idents are 6-12 seconds long (can be 14s) and most movies will usually show about 4 or maybe in extreme cases 6 with priority given to the distributor.

Here is an example of a "First draft" Ident I did for my final project:

TITLES:

Titles alot of the time are able to set the tone for the film by utilizing fonts, designs, backgrounds, colors and animations.

For my film opening I think a creative font over a vault background could be good because the white will not only be more visible on a darker background but can connote a more serious tone while not being too serious. I want to be able to achieve this effect because although the movie is fun in nature the main theme is stealing making it darker.

Heres a draft version I made in photoshop

(the font used was "A Love of Thunder" and I found the vault image on google)

1st SHOT:

most times people use an establishing shot (extreme long shot) to open a film as it is a very effective way of giving the audience a clear picture of the setting, this is a very common thing to see and I might chose to use the same technique in my own coursework if I find I have the resources needed to pull it off.

Some films will also open with the silhouette of a character (possibly the main character) in order to crate narrative enigma and hook the viewer in. This can also work well with an establishing shot and is certainly an idea worth exploring.

(not an example of a film)

Narrative enigma:

Narrative enigma is the convention for most good openings, it is a theory found by Bartez (you may recognise him as he was also the one who made the "action codes" theory) where you create a sense of mystery by withholding information from the viewer. This is done to draw in the audience.

I am definietly going to be looking to apply this theory to my coursework as not only is it a convention but it can increase the quality of an opening  

MISE-EN-SCENE:

The mise-en-scene of any shot is very important as it can connote important information about a scene to the audience. This includes costume, props and background.

In my coursework I will be looking to use this to connote to the viewer the personalities of different characters through the use of costume. For example the main character could be wearing a baseball jacket and sunglasses to reinforce his age and rebellious attitude while the bank robber characters will be in shirts and ties to show the viewer how their trying to blend into society.

I was also looking into the idea of having things layed out behind the windscreen of a car along with having a toy hanging from the rear view mirror. This is to show that the protagonist doesnt really care about the consequences of his actions (as in the film opening he is he getaway driver) portraying him as quite childish.

OPENINGS RESERCH:

Films I've researched: 

• Baby Driver
• Bohemian Rhapsody
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