Task 12: Thinking of a Concept/Final Idea

Ideas for sequence from Tom Cornice

What I have learnt:
This task he's allowed us to come up with a final idea for our film. The main narrative of our film is about a young teenage boy who is terminally ill and follows his journey to achieve his bucket list before he dies. This task has also allowed us to identify different elements that we need to consider like institutions, audience and characters with the help of two mind maps and a slide share. We also created a mood board in this task which helped us clearly identify the conventions and key ideas in our sequence. Finally, we recorded ourselves debating our ideas, suggesting improvements or highlighting elements that wouldn't work. Overall, this task has helped me massively in thinking of a final idea and I will now be able to plan coordinately and effectively. 

Techniques I Have Learnt From My Research

Shot Reverse Shot

Match On Action

Jump Cuts

180 Degree Rule

Fast Shots

What I have learnt:
From this piece of research, I have reminded myself of the techniques that I have learnt and should include in my opening sequence. This is because they key elements of a video that must be followed, like the 180 degree rule which is the most important thing to pursue. Some of these techniques are also crucial when trying to engage an audience. This concerns using fast shots and jump cuts as they help develop speed in the sequence and therefore build tension. By completing this piece of independent research, I have made clear to myself what I must include in my sequence and I will add these techniques to my checklist for the opening sequence I will produce.

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.
• Include typography in my opening sequence.
• Capitalise and embolden peoples names.
• Think about the order of my credits.
• Introduce some of the main characters of the film.
• Use some short shots and jump shots to add pace to the sequence.
• Add emphasis on important sounds in the shot.
• Focus on my camera work.
• Include some dialogue to reveal some of the narrative.
• Put emphasis on key diegetic sounds.
• Use all of the techniques I have researched independently at least once.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off Film Review/Analysis

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.
• Include typography in my opening sequence.
• Capitalise and embolden peoples names.
• Think about the order of my credits.
• Introduce some of the main characters of the film.
• Use some short shots and jump shots to add pace to the sequence.
• Add emphasis on important sounds in the shot.
• Focus on my camera work.
• Include some dialogue to reveal some of the narrative.
• Put emphasis on key diegetic sounds.

Sound Research

Sound Research Mind Map

What I have learnt:
I have learnt that sound is crucial in portraying the coming of age genre from my research. The most engaging element of sound I have researched is a soundtrack. This is because it can clearly represent the mood of the film itself. To gain the full effect of a soundtrack I will aim to use a recent song or genre in my opening sequence as people may be encouraged to watch the rest of the film as they recognize the song. Both Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Juno featured popular songs from around the time when the film was released. Dialogue is another crucial element to reveal parts of the narrative. Therefore, I will use small amounts of speech to make sure that I create some enigma codes and don't give away too much of the film.

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.
• Include typography in my opening sequence.
• Capitalise and embolden peoples names.
• Think about the order of my credits.
• Introduce some of the main characters of the film.
• Use some short shots and jump shots to add pace to the sequence.
• Add emphasis on important sounds in the shot.
• Focus on my camera work.
• Include some dialogue to reveal some of the narrative.
• Put emphasis on key diegetic sounds.

Task 10: Analyse Previous Students Work

I thought that this opening sequence was quite good. This is because one camera movement was used throughout the scene which helped the video flow. Another thing I liked about this opening was the way the text was presented as they used different fonts which looked visually appealing. However, I believe this would be graded at a B because there is a lack of variety of shots and dialogue and very low difficulty editing.

This scene was not very engaging or exciting. This is because I felt that the dialogue was boring and unrealistic. The genre of this film is supposed to be coming of age although I don't believe this opening portrays the genre as the protagonist in this scene is an elderly woman. I would therefore grade this at a C grade because I feel that improvements can be made to make the sequence more exciting and portray the genre better.

As I said in my commentary, I thought that this sequence was excellent. The things that made me think were the effective use of sound and the dialogue. The dialogue was good because we were given enough but not so much that the narrative was revealed straight away. The sound was used in the right places and in the right context to demonstrate tension and further engage the audience. Therefore, I would have graded this sequence at an A*.

What I have learnt:
By analyzing these examples of previous AS level students opening sequences, I have discovered the level of work that is required to achieve a high grade. One positive thing that I noticed in each sequence was the quality of camera work and camera angles used. This made the videos look extremely professional so I will try to ensure that my camerawork is to the best of my ability. I have also found out what I can apply in my opening sequence to make it stand out. One element I can use is unusual editing that will catch the audiences eye and make my video look high standard. I will need to fine tune my sequence so that things like audio and shots are clear, of a good quality and are free of errors.

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.
• Include typography in my opening sequence.
• Capitalise and embolden peoples names.
• Think about the order of my credits.
• Introduce some of the main characters of the film.
• Use some short shots and jump shots to add pace to the sequence.
• Add emphasis on important sounds in the shot.
• Focus on my camera work.

Task 9: Representation in Films

Representation in An Education

Representation in The Breakfast Club

Representation in Kick Ass
Credit Tom Cornock












What have I learnt:
After looking at the social groups in these opening sequences I have learnt how you can use elements of mise en scene to represent a particular social group. Therefore, in my film I will try to use some of these elements to portray a certain stereotype. One of the most effective ways of doing this which I found out in my research is by using clothing. This is because people instantly stereotype when they see what someone is wearing so my viewers will be able to identify a specific social group straight away.

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.
• Include typography in my opening sequence.
• Capitalise and embolden peoples names.
• Think about the order of my credits.
• Introduce some of the main characters of the film.
• Use some short shots and jump shots to add pace to the sequence.
• Add emphasis on important sounds in the shot.

Creative Task: Continuity sequence of at least 20 different shots

What have I learnt:
After making this video, I have learnt how to effectively use different shots quickly to create tension and pace. I believe that we successfully completed what we had to do because we included a variety of shots that were no more than a couple of seconds long. This helped keep the pace of the sequence at a high level increasing tension and developing the narrative. However, we did experience some issues during our filming. Firstly, the shots that we filmed were fairly long and boring which meant that we had to use a jump shots in some of the video we filmed to fulfill the task. Even though this was not planned, I believe that this made our sequence look a lot better because we could have had a shot in the middle of our scene that lasted five seconds. Therefore, I will try to incorporate this editing technique in my own opening sequence as this helps keep the flow of the sequence and would engage the viewer. We also experienced issues with audio, like in our last production, which meant that the sequence was quiet. Even though this was not supposed to happen, it improved the video because it gave it a slight eeriness which linked nicely with the theme of our video. Some sounds were picked up perfectly like as the door was being opened and from a crow. This added to the intensity of the sequence and I will need to think carefully about the use of sound in my scene in order to engage the viewer.

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.
• Include typography in my opening sequence.
• Capitalise and embolden peoples names.
• Think about the order of my credits.
• Introduce some of the main characters of the film.
• Use some short shots and jump shots to add pace to the sequence.
• Add emphasis on important sounds in the shot.

Task 8: Narrative Structure

What I have learnt:
This task has helped me to discover what elements of the narrative that I would like to give away in my film and also introduced my to some narrative theories that can help me checklist this. In my opening sequence, I would like to use some enigma codes as I believe giving people clues and mysteries is a great way to engage an audience. I also think that it is good to introduce some of the character types in the sequence so that the audience can use this knowledge in the rest of the film. Hence, I will display this in my opening sequence.

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.
• Include typography in my opening sequence.
• Capitalise and embolden peoples names.
• Think about the order of my credits.
• Introduce some of the main characters of the film.

Task 7: Title Research

 

What I have learnt:
After looking at these three opening sequences, I have learnt how important typography is when engaging the audience, especially in coming of age films. One of the key things that I found out was that the order of where each piece of text appeared was slightly different in each video but had some elements in the same place like the title of the film. Therefore, I will need to think carefully about the order of my credits in my film to engage my audience. Other elements that I will need to think about are the positioning of the text on the screen, font and font size as these can all be used effectively to encourage the audience to watch the rest of the film.

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.
• Include typography in my opening sequence.
• Capitalise and embolden peoples names.
• Think about the order of my credits.

Creative Task: Create a title credit sequence for a coming of age film

What have I learnt:
After making this video, I have learnt how important title sequences are in an opening sequence because they can engage the audience. This is because people who appear on the screen may be recognised by the audience and therefore encourage them to continue watching. The font in the sequence we copied was fairly simple as it was one of the fonts from IMovie. However, it still accomplished what was needed and by having a clear font meant that everyone could follow the sequence. I believe that our recreation went well as we were able to transform the audio of the sequence from YouTube which made it easier to match the typography. In my own opening sequence I will make sure to follow what I did in this task and make sure that peoples name are in a bigger font and capitalized so that they stand out in each shot.

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.
• Include typography in my opening sequence.
• Capitalise and embolden peoples names.

Task 6: Audience Research

Qualitative Data:





Quantitative Data:

The Breakfast Club

Juno

The Inbetweeners

What I have learnt:

From researching this, I have learnt how important it is to use codes and conventions in order to inform the viewer who the audience is and engage the demographic. One way I have learnt that can be effective is the use of a sound track to reflect the nature of what you are about to see and costume to identify the characters personality and trait. Therefore, I will be including a sound track in my opening sequence and I will need to consider carefully what costumes my characters will wear in order to portray a message.

Checklist For My Opening Sequence:

• Don't reveal too much of the narrative.
• Use a catchy soundtrack to engage my audience.
• Correct institution information used.
• Make the main character the focus of the narrative.
• Film the video in landscape and not portrait as it will make it difficult to edit.
• Make the actors speak clearly and slowly to make it easy to edit and understandable.
• Stick to the 180 degree rule unless I am braking it to add effect and demonstrate confusion.
• Use close ups.
• Think about costume to represent a social group.
• Make a clear plan/storyboard.
• Make transitions seamless.
• Use Film 4 as my institution company as they are usually low budget films and bring up encouraging actors. 
• Try to include some animation in my sequence.
• Produce a script for my actors.
• Use pans to demonstrate motion.
• Create some enigma codes that will make my audience watch on.
• Produce a catchy soundtrack.