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.
Normally In most films you expect to see around 6 to 4 idents which are usually 6 or 7 seconds long. Typically most idents are simple, like 20th century fox being a shot of the logo on a sky scraper however notably Warp x´s ident is not only long but a very intricate animation. Alot of idents also have a "jingle" or a short song that accompanies them, this is generally the norm unless the film chooses to use an audio bridge. There is also a difference between studio and distributor idents as studio idents tend to be longer (by seconds) than studio idents and more often than not they are given priority (sometimes if there are too many idents the studios will be credited usually in the title where they arent as visible, see the film ´71 as an example of this)
TITLES:
Title sequences are the way in which films present their title. This means showing the viewer the opening credits (more detail in the "THE SPECIFIC WORDING + ORDER section of this post) and seeks to establish the genre/setting of the film. They are a key part in helping the opening set the tone and atmosphere of the film. The title helps audiences establish the genre of a film through conventions.
TITLES STRUCTURE TITLES RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS:
General conventions associated with film openings and titles commonly seen in most films.
THE RAW NUMBERS:
Its common to find that most films will play 3 to 4 idents
These Idents will usually be roughly 6 to 8 seconds long, usually the distributors idents are longer however there are exceptions like Disney and Marvel, Marvel being a recognizable name.
Most times the last idents will include an audio bridge, I found this happens 8 out of 10 times.
THE SPECIFIC WORDING + ORDER:
This can be used as a way to tell the viewer the budget or "scale" of the film. For example seeing a Sony Colombia ident tells audiences that the film will have a relatively large budget. It is also important for the audience to know who produced and who distributed the film as sometimes production companies will be picked up by other distributors, for example Working Titles "Baby Driver" which was distributed by Sony Columbia.
I observed this in the opening of the Working Title film Hot Fuzz
The first ident shown was the NBC Universal and the second was the WT ident which connotes to the viewer that WT is a subsidiary of Universal.
In extreme cases like in Warps "´71" the Idents taking longer than 40 seconds meant that warp wasn't even able to show their ident and was credited in the pre title credits.
Three Cs:
-Companies
a (company name) production
a (company name) feature
presented by
in association with
Cast And Crew:
- Cast
wording conventions:
starring
co-staring
featuring
introducing
- Crew
cinematographer/ cinematography by:
It is also important to note that the director is credited twice, once in the title (a ... film) and again on the final credits.
THE DESIGN:
Choice of Color:
In this example form the film "Tyronnosaur" the white text and black background connote a very serious or raw film.
Then in this example the bright yellow and blue coloration can be seen as quite childish in nature, connoting a more light hearted and playful tone, especially when juxtaposed with the previous example.
Font:
Font can also be a way to set the tone for example less expressive fonts like sans serif or times new roman are used to create a serious tone, whereas more expressive or unique fonts create that less serious light hearted tone.
Tyrannosaur is also a good example for this point as the choice to use a "times new roman" type font is a very effective way to set the tone when paired with my previous points about color.
FX, ANIMATION:
Most titles will utilize effects and animation in order to connote the tone of the film to the viewer. A good example in my opinion being the film "Tyrannosaur" as it shows very well how a complete lack of effects and animations in a title can set the tone for a very serious and dark movie very well.
Then on the other hand you have Working titles "Yesterday" a light hearted escapism oriented film about a man who is the only one that remembers the Beatles after everyone else forgets. The title sets the mood for this perfectly by ending the title with a very creative and playful transition.
This is an example of the film "My Beautiful Laundrette" by WT which I think demonstrates my point, that being that the transition is used to make the opening more playful and cheeky in a way, even if this film is revealed to have some very dark undertones.
1st SHOT:
The convention with the first shot is to start with an extreme long shot or an establishing shot with a silhouette or an unclear or obstructed view of the protagonist or just a shot of the location. This is good because it gives the viewer key information about where its set while creating narrative enigma because the protagonist hasn't been revealed yet.
Here are some examples of films that I have observed:
Hot Fuzz (WT)
Bridget Jonses Baby (WT)
Tyrannosaur (Warp)
Yesterday (WT)
CENTRAL PROTAGONIST + NARRATIVE + AUDIENCE REPRESENTATION:
In most film openings the central protagonist is usually kept vague in order to create narrative enigma which was a narrative theory created by Bartez used to draw or hook viewers in and get them interested in the story. It is also common for films to establish equilibrium which is a part of a theory Todorov created which outlines the steps nearly every narrative. Most good opening follow this convention because it is the way people have come to define narratives.
Audience representation in the first few scenes can be very important to companies like Working Title as they are primarily concerned with making the money they need to cover not only the budget but the marketing costs, it is very important for them to appeal to their target audience and this is a way of engaging your target audience right away.
NUMBERS:
BRIDGET JONES DIARY:
Number of people: 0
Number of company titles: 6
Start time: 0:05:01
End time: 0:07:01
Run time of titles: 2m
Titles list (in order):
UNIVERSAL PICTURES STUDIO CANNAL MIRAMAX FILMS present
A WORKING TITLE production
Renée Zellweger
Collin Firth
and Hugh Grant
Jim Broadbent
Gemma Jones
Casting by Michelle Guish
Line producer Peter McAleese
Music Supervisor Nick Angel
Co-producers Debra Hayward Liza Chasin
Original Score by Patrick Doyle
Costume Designer Rachael Fleming
Production by Gemma Jackson
Editor Martin Walsh
Director of Photography Stuart Dryburgh
Executive Producer Helen Fielding
Based on the novel by Heleven Fielding
Screenplay byHelen Fielding Andrew Davis Richard Curtis
Produced by Tim Bevan Eric Fellen Jonathan Cavendish
Directed by Sharon Maguire
BRIDGET JONES'S DIARY
71':
Number of people: 0
Number of company titles: 6
Start time: 0:00:40
End time: 0:00:48
Run time of titles: 8s
Titles list (in order):
FILM 4 AND BFI PRESENT
SCREEN YORKSHIRE AND CREATIVE SCOTLAND PRESENT
A CRAB APPLE FILMS AND WARP FILMS PRODUCTION
Baby Driver:
Number of people: 28
Start time: 0:05
End time: 2:58
Run time: 2:53
List of Titles:
TRI STAR and MRC present
a WORKING TITLE BIG TALKS production
a film by EDGAR WRIGHT
ANSEL ELGORT
KEVIN SPACEY
LILY JAMES
JON BERTHAL
with JON HAMM
and JAIME FOX
EIZA GONZALEZ FLEA
SKY FERRIERA, LANNY JOON, R.MARCUS TAYLOR
casting by FRANCHIE MAISER, csa
choreography by RYAN HEFFINGTON
costume designer COURTNEY HOFFMAN
music by STEVEN PRICE
editors PAUL MACHLISS ace, JONATHAN AMOS ace
production designer MARCUS ROWLAND
director of photography BILL POPE asc
executive producers EDGAR WRIGHT, RACHEL PRIOR, JAMES BIDDLE
executive producers ADAM MERMINS, LIZA CHASIN, MICHELLE WRIGHT
produced by NIRA PARK, TIM BELVAN, ERIC FELLINER
written and directed by EDGAR WRIGHT
Oceans 11:
Number of people: 0
Start time: 2:00
End time: 2:18
Run time: 8s
Titles shown:
WARNER BROS PICTURES presents
in association with VILLAGE ROADSHOW PRODUCTIONS and NPV ENTERTAINMENT
a JW/SECTION EIGHT production
OCEANS ELEVEN
JOHNNY ENGLISH
number of people:
Start time: 0:10
End time: 1:50
run time: 0:40
Titles shown:
ROWAN ATKINSON
JOHNNY ENGLISH
NATALIE IMBRUGLIA, BEN MILLER
and JOHN MALCHOVICH as pascal sauvage
TIM PIGOTT-SMITH, KEVIN MCNALLY
OLIVER FORD DAVIES, DOUGLASS MCFARREN
casting by PRISCILLA JOHN cg6
visual effects supervisor PETER CHAING
music supervisor NICK ANGEL
main title song preformed by ROBBIE WILLIAMS
music by EDWARD SHEARMUR
costume designer JILL TAYLOR
hair and makeup designer GRAHAM JOHNSTON
editor ROBIN SALES
production designer CHRIS SAEGERS
director of photography REMI ADEFARSIN
association producer CHRIS CLARK
co producers DEBRA HAYWARD, LIZA CHASIN, JO BURN
written by NEAL PUVRIS and ROBERT WADE, WILLIAM DAVIES
Shot types Ranged from; ECU, BCU, CU, MCU, MS, MLS, LS, ELS(aka, at the
start of a scene, can also be referred to as an establishing
shot)
We also cover angles like; High angle, Low angle, Mid angle, Dutch
angle.
We recorded a short video or vodcast using all the different shot types
then did a voice over, describing what shots we did and what effect these
shots have on the viewer and how they might be used.
...
...
ANALYSING NARRATIVE + 1ST SHOT - WARP/WORKING TITLE EXAMPLES
Tyrannosaur (Warp: Director: Paddy Consedine, Year 2011 (BBFC))
Tyrannosaur is a social realist film that struggled at the box office
because of how hard it was for most audiences to watch. The opening is
very strong, with lots of narrative enigma as the film makers play with
our preconceptions of the proppian archetypes.
Yesterday (Working Title: Director Danny Boyle, Year 2019 (BBFC))
Yesterday is a film about a struggling musician who miraculously is the
only one who remembers The Beatles after everyone else in the world
forgot them. This opening isnt very strong but it still manages to
convey the overall tone of the film to the viewer.
Here me and the other media students wrote, filmed and directed a short film where we try to identify the stereotypes of characters and story structure used not only in film, but all kinds of narratives. We decided that this film should be a slasher because of the large number of tropes and stereotypes we could imitate, some examples we included are; the scream queen, the jock and the anti hero/ twist villain.
We applied numerous shot types and angles, such as:
Close up
Extreme Close up
Long shot
Two shot
Three shot
Group shot
High angle
Low angle
Birds eye view
Worms eye view
Over the shoulder
Panning
Tracking shot
Establishing shot
and more...
We applied many theories, such as:
Propp (7 Archetypes)
hero
villain
dispatcher
helper
false hero
prize/princess
donor
Todarov (Narrative Structure)
equilibrium
disequilibrium
realization of disequilibrium
attempt to repair equilibrium
new equilibrium
Levi-Strauss (Binary Opposition)
Barthes (Narrative Enigma)
what I learned:
I learned a lot about how shot are taken, for example, I learned how important mise-en-scene is, there is very little mise-en-scene in the recordings we did, making it lose a lot of verisimilitude. I also learned that it would be smart to use external methods of recording audio, because cameras don't hear the same audio as we do, which made it a lot tougher than I had expected to level the audio. I learned a lot about how to use a camera, and the differences between mono-pod and hand held recording. I learned how to connote what is occurring to the extent that the audience will understand, but without simply denoting it. I learned that it takes longer to record than I had previously expected. I also learned that shot variation is easier with multiple cameras, because that way you can record from different angles, and don't have one single take for each scene, but several from different angles, allowing for continuity editing, without only showing the single take recorded.
What I will change for the final production:
I will focus more on the mise-en-scene, and in doing so create verisimilitude, I will use other methods to get the audio necessary, so that it seems like its could be happening right in front of the viewer like most successful feature films do. I will use more shot types and follow the 180 degree rule, and use shot reverse shot. I will record using more takes and shots and redoing scenes to ensure I create the preferred reading I intend to.
Practice Productions:
Here we were simply trying out angles and shot types:
Here we made a small fil trying out and using those angles and shots that we had just learned:
MY HOPES AND FEARS: Greetings, I hope do develop a better and more detailed knowledge of film during the duration of this course. I am also very interested and very excited about the marketing and industry aspect of film making. The fact that I hadn't taken media for gcse made me a little nervous as I really didn't know what to expect. MY FAVORITE FILM: My favorite film that I watched recently has to be Mad Max Fury Road. This was because almost all the special effects where practical and that really made the movie stand out from other action movies for me. The main character, Max, was also played by Tom Hardy and I really enjoyed his performance. The budget was $150,000,000 and the box office was $375,225,175 THE BRIEF:
Option 1: Film opening task (video) Main task: the titles and opening of a new fiction film (to last a maximum of two minutes). Titles should follow the institutional conventions of commercial cinema. The task may be undertaken individually or as a group. There should be a maximum of four members to a group. All images and text used in the main task must be original, and produced by the candidate(s). Sound should be predominantly original (dialogue and atmospheric sound), though music taken from an acknowledged source may be used as part of the soundtrack.
CIAE go on to explain the basic requirements of how to achieve this:
Each candidate must complete an individual blog which is started at the beginning of the project. Each blog should contain:
the process of research, planning and production
any refinement, changes or edits made, and reflections on key moments
all individual contributions to any task undertaken as a group
evidence of any preliminary exercises
the final finished product, clearly labeled
the creative critical reflection, clearly labelled.
Some production elements such as storyboards may be shared by all members of a group. Collaborators who worked with the candidate on research, planning and/or production must be listed on the Individual Candidate Record Card under ‘other group members’.
THE EVALUATION (CCR): Creative critical reflection On completion of the product, candidates must creatively reflect upon their work. Candidates may use any digital format, such as director commentaries, a presentation with voiceover, podcasts or screencasts. Candidates may use a different digital format to explore each of the compulsory questions. The creative critical reflection should be produced and presented individually. Candidates must explore the following compulsory questions:
How does your product use or challenge conventions and how does it represent social groups or issues?
How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?
How did your production skills develop throughout this project?
How did you integrate technologies – software, hardware and online – in this project?
ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
This includes 2 of the 3 assessment objectives split into 5 parts:
AO2:. Analyse media products, and evaluate their own work, by applying knowledge and understanding of theoretical and creative approaches.
AO3: . Research, plan and construct critically informed media products using appropriate technical and creative skills.
Here's how that breaks down (each phrase is marked /10 for a total /50):
AO3: PRACTICAL APPLICATION
PRODUCTION SKILLS:
Use appropriate media language to communicate meaning to an intended audience
Use technical skills effectively to express and communicate ideas
APPLY KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF KEY CONCEPTS TO A PRODUCTION:
Research, plan and apply knowledge and understanding
CRITICAL CREATIVE REFLECTION SKILLS:
Use technical and creative skills to express and communicate ideas
AO2: EVALUATION
ANALYSE AND EVALUATE OWN WORK:
Explain how meaning is created, supported with relevant textual evidence
