First day of filming

‘Always be prepared for the worse in order to succeed’. This is one of the key factors I have learnt in the process of making our movie opening. Not everything went after our plan on the first day of filming. We filmed some footage, but at the end we didn’t find it as useful and ended up not having it in our final piece. This is because of the setting. We found the setting not very classroom like on that day. So we booked a new appointment for another day, when the classroom would be more crowded with people, as we only had two extras available on that day. This made us realise, that not everything is predictable, as we thought that the classroom will be more crowded with people on that day. But that was our instinct, so we realised that it is all about making sure and checking not fallowing your instincts. We found the first day very helpful for us, as we learnt our lesson and had a chance to see what went well and what went wrong in order to succeed on the next day of filming. We also had a chance to realise, that the camera that we were using was too complicated, so we changed our minds up and used a different camera on the next day.  

Second day of filming

‘180 degrees rule’. We are all ready and compared for filming the scenes in the classroom.  Mis-en-scene always gives some extra information on the characters to the audience, so we had to wear the right clothes in order to give the right idea of our characters. We had all of our props ready and we were ready to film. Everything went after our plan and we had now filmed all the scenes that we needed in the classroom.

Third day 

‘Check the weather news’. We came across a slight and unexpected problem. It started to rain outside. The weather wasn’t suitable for our film, so we couldn’t film that day. Also because of safety matters, as the actors and extras could fall because of weather, so we didn’t want that to happen, as the actors were very important. Also we had no equipment to cover the camera with, so we didn’t want the equipment to be damaged as well. As weather is unpredictable, we made sure that we also checked the weather news for the next day of filming.

Fourth day 

‘Planning is the key factor’. We made sure that the weather is suitable outside for our scenes outside. We made sure, that all the extras that were needed were in, by having a call sheet with their number on it. Weather turned out to be good for our film, the actors needed turned up and we filmed all the scenes outside. The problem with this was that it was freezing cold outside, as we spent few hours filming. We were meant to provide the crew with some food and warm drinks, but we didn’t plan it too well, so the actors, extras and other crew members were freezing and hungry.

  ‘Have a test shoot and you will see what’s missing’. When we uploaded the footage on the computer and started to edit, we straight away knew what was missing and what extra key things needed to be film in order to give the right representation as well as to make it look like a movie opening.                   

Day five

 We had decided to re film few scenes, as we wasn’t satisfied with the ones we already had, so we filmed in different locations in order to have a wider choice of shots to use. On day five, we also filmed few shots of our location as we didn’t really have a lot of shots to use for introducing our location. We contacted our very important extra to come in on that day, we filmed and the footage was exactly what we wanted and needed. We also had a shot where we plaid with the focus, which we found very useful at the end.

Day six

  This happened spontaneously, as we didn’t plan to film anything on that day, but we decided to film some shots of the atmosphere and classrooms for the diegetic sound, that we could use for our movie opening.

‘Great successes’. We had all of our footage that was needed and we were on process of editing. We came across few mistakes and problems, but we seemed to fix them. And next time we would be more prepared and ready. It was a very good experience and it helped us to learn a lot and understand the process of movie making much more.

By: Simona Larka 9575

                                                                     DVD Cover By Ash Khan

It is highly important to have a DVD cover, that will clearly show the genre of the movie, as if not the audience will get the wrong idea and be dissatisfied if they have expected something else.

The purpose of this DVD cover is to show the two main characters from film.

Ozzy, who is the main character of the movie is wearing a hoody and a hat, which represents his character very well. Ozzy is seen the most in the poster, as he is the main character and that the movie is mostly based on his life. On the other hand we see Simona, which is another character in the movie right behind him, as in the opening sequence we see her chasing after him quite a lot. She is standing near his right shoulder, which could give the audiance an idea of Simona helping him out quite a lot and that she will always be there to support him and help him out. The location this picture was taken is a park, which represents the place, where Ozzy usually sells drugs. The corners of the poster are faded in balck, which represents the dark theme of the movie. We didn't want it to look too happy, as we had to show the genre of the movie, so the people would have a clear idea of what the film is about. Word OzzY is the name of the movie as well as it has another meaning, which is hidden underneath the headding. OzzY also represents a way that drugs are measured. For people, that know this allready it would be very clear that this movie has a drug theme to it.

Film clasification is rated on 15+, as the film contains strong language and drugs. This is why we have chosen to rate it as 15+ movie. We don't want children to learn bad language while watching the movie as well as seeing drug dealing, as it could influence them in a bad way. We didn't rate this movie 18+, because we find it very important for children at the age of 15 to find out the real face of drug dealing, as they would find out about the consequences, which could make them understand the harm of drug selling and using.

Written By: Simona Larka 9575

CHARACTER RESEARCH 


The main chacracter in our film opening is a teenager from London. He is middle to lower class and comes from a poor family. Goes to college but is not academically successful. His personality is; aggressive, impatient, disobedient to authority, proud, responsible, independent, argumentative, reasonably popular but has many feuds too but nether the less a goody.
The main character is an artist and wants to pursue his an art career however due to his situation he turns to selling drugs and gets involved with violence. When he finally decides to go legit and sets his plans for his future he is arrested. 

Existing Characters that Relate



Trife from Kidulthood
-Ready to settle down and have a child with his girlfriend, he gets murdered.







Karim from Bradford Riots
-Was going to go to University but ends up arrested after he gets caught up in the riots.



Ricky from Boys In The Hood
- Always wanted to pursue his football career but gets shot in the end.





-Was ready to fix his life up but gets caught up in one last crime and then arrested.


All these characters are good guys but caught up in bad situations which is similar to the main character of our film. 


By Ash Khan

 Who is our Target Audience?

Our PRIMARY target audience will be TEENAGERS. The film will be rated a 15+

Why?

The characters in the film represent London teenagers. Teenagers will be interested to see how they are portrayed and will be able to relate to the characters. Films like Kidulthood were aimed at teenagers and was extremely popular amongst teenagers in London. 

...Anyone Else?

Yes, from young adults to the very old. Everyone can relate to the film since it shows the youths of London. It will be an education for the older generation. 

By Ash Khan

INTERVIEW WITH MENHAJ HUDA (director of Kidulthood)

Kidulthood Director Interview

As Huda says, living in the place where the script is set allowed him to fully understand what the writer wanted. Like Huda, I too am living in the area where the script is set. This is going to allow me to really understand the script. This is a huge advantage and i hope to use this to project the ideal message and feeling through my film.


Also, Menhaj mentioned how important the use of music was in Kidulthood. He used artists that the target audience would probably listen too. We can not use famous artists music due to copyright laws however we can  use music that is copyright free. Using this, we will select music that suits the genre. We will be looking for edgy, gritty beats that may be used to rap over since our audience will most likely listen to rap. 


 By Ash Khan

Roll Deep- Badman Music VIdeo Analysis

--------------------------------------------
    "Badman" music video analysis
This music video tells a short story and is produced like a film. It starts of with an ordinary family having breakfast. A teen age boy enters the kitchen and there is some brotherly light hearted arguments between him and his little brother. all in all the atmosphere is happy.

It then cuts into the next scene where there teenager is walking with his friend around an estate recreational area. Simultaneously the music starts. the two boys walk through the play area and meet their friends. They are now a group of people with a dog. from what each character is wearing we gather that they are trendy adolescents. If you focus on stereotypes then the audience can gather from their race, apparel and age that they are quite a rebellious bunch of teenagers who are more likely to be involved in crime. the character we see are also the primary audinance of the actual song.

Next we see the same charcter in the back of a car. The vocals of the song starts as someone inserts a CD into the CD player. There then comes a shot of the car but the camera is outside the car. During this shot the music volume is lessened and the clarity drops too as if to show that we are further away from the source of the music. This is a technique to make the viewer feel like he is in the scene more. the music then gets louder during the shots inside the car. I think this makes the viewer feel like they are with them in the car.

There are many shaky shots that pan to follow action in the scene. This makes the audience feel like he is in the scene watching what is being shown. the shots are short and snappy and there are many of them. This adds to the the tension because it builds up a fast moving scene and we are not fully clear of what is happening. The short shots strung together are a very effective way of gripping the viewer too. Although the music is loud and being played externally from the scene we hear sounds from the scene including parts of the argument between the teens and school children watching them. This further gives the impression that we are at the scene. It also gives us further understanding of the scene. As the confrontation grows the camera becomes even more unstable to show that there is pushing and shoving involved in the quarrel. The teens fight over a gun and the gun fires and shoots a passer-by school girl. We here the bullet fire and the music stops and we hear school girls screaming. the shooter is guided back into the car by his friend and the music starts again when it shows a profile shot with little lighting of the shooter.

Throughout the video we hear various comments and sounds from the scene even though it is a music video. In a few places the music completely stops and that is all we hear is from the actual scene. It is unusual for a music video to have so much sound from the scene but i believe the director chose to make the scenery sound more audible, and to make the connection between the viewer greater. I believe this music video is very successful in gripping the audience with a combination of cleverly edited sounds from the scene, fast sequences of shots when there was action and camera angles that sit the viewer in the scene.

Although this is a music video, it still helps me with the making of our film opening. This is because the characters in both this video and my film are of the same social type. This video helped see how other sources have portrayed the characters. Furthermore, our film opening will have music over it. The opening will be similar to a music video. After seeing this video I have been inspired to dip the music volume of my film in appropriate places so the audience can hear dialogue and scenery sounds like they do in this video.


By Ash Khan

Friday, Opening Analysis

Friday, Opening Analysis

The film starts of with a character speaking. The odd thing is that he starts speaking during the first seconds of the film when the company "New Line Cinema" is being advertised. I personally have never seen a films dialogue start so soon and this immediately achieved my attention. Also the character says a slightly humourers dialogue which sums up the film and tells the audience that this film is a comedy. After the dialogue, a soulful song cues while the first scene is shot. Throughout the opening the cast names are being presenting in a playful white font at the bottom of the screen. The first image we see is a pair of beat down trainers hanging from the power lines on a cloudless, bright day.The camera pans down and we see a road. It looks like suburban America. Three teenagers cycle through the road and into the distance. We then enter a house, which we can only assume is in the neighbourhood we previously saw. The camera moves through the house, showing photographs of the family. It seems like a cosy, happy environment. We then enter a bedroom and the camera pans into a medium shot of an elderly man snoring in bed and his partner being disturbed by him. In the shot, we see the elderly man clutching a monkey teddy bear which is an intended joke added by the creators for entertainment purposes. After being hit by his partner on the head the man stops snoring and proceeds to talk in his sleep about what foods he would like to order. Another joke to make the audience feel happy. The opening includes alot of moving shots, to show the environment. Also by moving the camera instead of stoppin the shot, the audience feels like they are the camera walking around the house. i also noticed that the camera was placed at about head height to further add to the illusion that we are present in the house. this effect grabs the audience more because the audience feels more connected to the environment and gets a better feel of the scenery.

Although this is not a social realistic film i still decided to analyse it. This is because I found the concept really interesting. What they did was really break down the setting. Starting from the streets to a personal tour around the whole house. This is a really effective way of allowing the audience to immediately understand the scene. I will take this style into consideration when making the opening to my film.  


By Ash Khan

CITY OF GOD OPENING ANALYSIS

CITY OF GOD OPENING ANALYSIS

The film starts of with a huge knife being sharpened. This immediately creates enigma because a knife being sharpened indicates murder. Shortly after, the music cued which is a traditional samba. The next several shots consists of live chickens, chickens being slaughtered and carrots being cut along with various other very short shots of various activities to set the scene. As a viewer we understand that we are in a less economically developed area but this is a happy environment. We see shots of people dancing and it's obvious some sort of dish is being prepare.

the attention is drawn to one chicken in particular. we realise that he is tied up and is about to be slaughtered.the chicken finds that he has wriggled out of the knot and he is free. The children become aware of this and proceed to chase the chicken. during this chase scene the chicken is almost portrayed as a human. the camera shot follows the chicken and it looks like we as the viewer are almost chasing the chicken too. we see the kids chasing the chicken through the favela and even taking shots at it. This could represent the life in the favela which is, you have to do what you can to survive.

Although this is not a British Social Realistic film it does portray the social reality of Brazil. Also the characters in the film are the social equivalent to the characters in our film. 

By Ash Khan

BULLET BOY OPENING ANALYSIS

BULLET BOY OPENING ANALYSIS

The film starts with cast names in a simple white font upon a black background ascending and descending around the screen in a random looking sequence while soft music is playing. It then shows a young boy confined in a very dark and small space. He has a tourch in his hand which he shines. the camera is very bumpy and we hear sounds of speeding cars passing by therefore the audience immediately believes he is in the trunk of a moving car. The shot gradually goes into a bright white screen and the film title "BULLET BOY" appears in a simple, black font in capital letters.

The next thing we see is a man lying down in a room. the camera is from the outside of the room and looking in through the glass on the door. we hear keys jingle and a lock open. the man gets up quickly and the person that opened the door says "come on sleepy head time to go home". as the camera moves about we begin to see more of the room. Combining all that we have heard and seen within the past few seconds it is safe to say that he is in a cell block. he leaves the cell and enters the reception. the prison looks fairly small and low security. He approaches another officer who is behind the desk and leans on the desk. the officers tells him to get off the desk in an authoritive manner and the man cooperates. this immediately tells us the relationship between the charcters and the statuses that they hold. the prisoner does not look very exited to be free so maybe his life outside the prison is not so happy. The prison officer asks the prisoner for his details and he replys quickly and you get the sense that he is use to being asked his details and has accustomed to his life in prison. Through out the scene the camera is very shakey and has slight panning shots. the camera is definitely being hand-held. i believe the director did this in order to engage the audience into the scene more. A shaky camera gives the impression that we are in the scene and the panning works as though we are rotating our neck.

After analysing the opening i took in the conventions and things they did. I think analysing Bullet Boy was very important because it is very similar to our film on several levels. Firstly, because they're both social realist films in London. Also, they are aimed at the same sort of audience and involve the same type of characters; Teenagers, to young adolescents to older adults. Finally Bullet boy is such a good film to analyse is because it is fairly low budget and obviously our film is too. Although the Bullet Boy editing is far more sophisticated than ours will be it is still in the lower end of the budget scale. This shows us ideas that we may be able to use.

By Ash Khan

Social Realism- Our Genre

The genre of our film is Social Realism. Our film shows the life of ordinary characters in London. Films that are in the same genre are;

This is England
Bullet Boy
Kidulthood
Adulthood
East is East
Fish Tank
Bradford Riots
Greenstreet

The British film industry have an impressive reputation for delivering excellent social realist films. It's a chance to show people the dramas that are in every day life. Something people can actually relate to.

By Ash Khan

Marketing

 Research is one of the most important steps that need to be looked at before making the actual project, which in our case was a movie opening.  Research involves collecting important information that is relevant to everything there is to do with the genre of our movie opening. We researched on one of the movies that we found quite similar to the one we were making, which was named’ Kidulthood’. We researched on all the type of shots that they had used, by watching the movie. I found this very helpful for us, as it gave us some extra ideas on how the camera was used in that particular type of genre. We also researched on their website. I analysed it in order to be able to see how their movie was marketed, which also was very important for us to get an idea of, as marketing takes a very big part in the process of movie making. To make the movie successful, it needs to be marketed correctly and well.

Kidulthood website analysis 

Analysis of Kidult hood website:

http://www.kidulthood.co.uk/

  Layout of the page is a commercial of special edition DVD that they offer for their audience and fans. The information on it also is on the webpage. This is a very good way of marketing, as the fans will be able to find all the extra information on the website, and as nowadays the internet is very popular way of researching and finding out useful information. 

  The website is designed for people to find out more about the film. The website contains all the information that people would be looking for. This website includes

the synopsis of the film, cast biography which is important to find out if you wish to know what the characters are going to be before just going off and seeing the film, as sometimes well known actors will interest people in seeing the film and just because the actor will be playing a role in it. 

   In the making gallery is made to just briefly show the people that are interested, what is going to be in the movie, few shots of behind the scenes or while filming. This has a very similar purpose, as trailer, which is trying to inform the audience more about the film, as if they would go and watch it, and if they would be disappointed, they would spread bad word of mouth around, which could even make the film to do very bad and to get less profit. 

These things are included to show the audience behind scenes basically and what is in the movie.

   The website also includes the trailer for people to see. If people are interested in watching the film, there are as well cinema listing on the website just to make it easier for people to find out where and in which cinemas the film is being screened at. 

   Basically it is important to have this on website if you are trying to market your film, because this is all the information that you find important for the audience to see in order to let them know all about your film and give them brief information on the film in order to get the audience ready before seeing the film.

Also I and my group mate Ash have researched on the Kidulthood poster, which all includes the researched on marketing, representing the film and also passing messages across to the audience and fans through marketing.


By Simona Larka 9575

Kidulthood poster analysis

(We chose to analyse this particular poster because it relates to our theme and is similar type of movie we are trying to create.)

This is the Kindulthood poster. I think that this poster is very affective, firstly because the title stands out from the dark background. The lettering is large, bold and white, which looks very dramatic. It say's "Before kidulthood comes adulthood" which suggests that the film is about teenagers.

The main image is a wide shot of all the characters. They look menacing and serious. Their facial expression as well as body language projects the stereotypical view of teenagers in London.

The background is of a dull and gloomy sky. In the dark sky there is an opening in the clouds where light is shining through. The light is shining above the characters heads and in hindsight of watching this film. i believe this suggest the death of the characters hence the bright light in the sky.
From the poster we can already recognise different character relationships. the girl and boy on the left look like they are in a relationship as do the central boy and girl.

We see a big teenager holding a bat on the right. This characters lightning is extremely low. This shows that this character could possibly be the bad guy in the film. I noticed how only two of the characters are standing up. This implies that these are the two main characters.

Furthermore, the review quote is very interesting. "Kicks the door of its hinges" tells the audience that there is an element of action. It is a very clever quote to use because unlike big machine guns and bombs, kicking is a more suitable form of abuse from teenagers.

In conclusion this poster is extremely informative once you start to look deeper into it. You can almost tell the full story. 


By Simona Larka 9575 and Ash Khan

Original Script

 --Script--            by Ash Khan

Art Class Room  (INT.)
Lesson Time, A small class of 6th form Art students are working. Ozzy is amongst them and so is Simona.
The pupils in the class are sat in a circular form facing the centre of the class.

- (Long shot) Showing the whole classroom but focusing on Ozzy.
- (medium long shot) Behind Simona. She is drawing a manikin.
-(close up) of the actual manikin she is drawing, the manikin is in the centre of the class room.
-(Close up) of Ozzy face. He is concentrating hard. He looks up and then continues drawing.
(close up) of Simona looking up and catching Ozzy look at her.
-College bell rings-

-(Medium shots) of Ozzy hastily getting up and putting on his coat and bag. He rushes out of the classroom.
-(medium shot) Simona putting on her bag and walking over to Ozzys art work that he left behind.
-(Close up) of picture. it’s a picture of her.
-(close up) of her face, She is flattered/ shocked

College Art Corridor  (INT.)      
(Fairly busy corridor, we hear students talking in the background)
-(Long shot into a close up) Simona Exit’s the classroom. Ozzy is in the foreground of the shot, Walking towards the camera briskly. Simona yells out to Ozzy

SIMONA
 Ozzy!

-Ozzy does not hear her as he is rushing and he has his headphones in/ corridor is noisy. He turns the corner.

-(Long shot) of Ozzy walking through corridor. He is walking in the direction of the camera. (camera pans)As he leaves through the school doors. We see Simona in the background, jogging after him. (camera pans) as  she follows him through the doors.

College Playground Area  (EXT.)
-Becoming dusk
-(medium shot) Ozzy walking through the quiet part of the college.
-(various shots) Ozzy walking and Simona in far distance walking briskly after him.
(two shot) as Simona is catching up to Ozzy, Simona's friend greets her.

(numerous shots involving 180 degree rule as they interact)

FRIEND
Hi, how are you?

SIMONA
Hi, I'm good thanks. And You?

FRIEND
Good, where are you going?

SIMONA
Um, I cant talk right now, I have got to go. See you later. Bye.

FRIEND
Bye!
Simona walks away.
(medium shot) of Simona walking round the corner and looking in the distance to see Ozzy.
(long shot) of Ozzy walking round a corner.
Simona continues to follow.

A quiet and neglected area around the back of the college   (EXT.)

-(long shot) Ozzy is in the foreground.  A character is in the distance.
-Ozzy is walking towards the character after turning the corner.
-(various shots) of Ozzy walking towards the character.
-(Medium shot) Simona comes the same corner Ozzy just turned. She looks to see which way he went. She sees him, and begins to carry on following him but then realises that there is another character over there.
-(Medium close up) of Simona. She is surprised, she quickly hides behind the corner, poking her head out in the direction of Ozzy and the other mysterious character.

-(various shot) Ozzy takes off his bag and takes an object out. About a handful in size but is unable to see clearly. Ozzy and the character exchange objects. (still unclear what is being exchanged)
-the other character leaves in the opposite direction.
-(Close up) On Ozzy’s face as he turns around. He looks stern.
-(medium close up) Simona retracts her head from around the corner and leans back on the wall.
-(close up) of Simona’s face. She is puzzled and in shock.

                                      
     --end scene--


By Ash Khan

INITIAL FILM PITCH AND SYNOPSIS

This is a very short, summary of our film...

The story is about a  college student in London who is a keen artist but unfortunately he sells drugs because he comes from a poor family and is determined to have money.

FILM SYNOPSIS


Ozzy, a 18 year old college student who loves to paint is lead to sell drugs in order to provide for his family. His single mother is ill and he also has a younger brother to take care of. Ozzy's frustration of being poor has made him sell drugs. the story starts in Ozzy's college where the girl that he admires oversees him selling drugs to a shady character. Simona, who is the girl, is also in Ozzys Art class. She never thought much about Ozzy before she witnessed the incident but she then felt she had to help Ozzy to leave the drug selling life and pursue his artistic dreams.

Ozzy's and Simona's relationship grows and Simona eventually has feelings for him. Ozzy swears he will not sell drugs any more and tries to go to University however Ozzy's last customer had over dosed the drugs he sold him and died. The police are now investigating the boys death and Ozzy becomes extremly paranoid and depressed.

After constant efforts of leaving that life behind Ozzy's past always manages to creep up again. In the end, through investigation and an anonymous snitch, police crack down on Ozzy and raid his house. They find large sums of drugs in his bedroom and arrest him. His mother has a heart attack from the shock and dies and his little brother is sent to foster care.

Story created by Ash Khan

Posted by Ash Khan

Planning Preliminary Task

SCRIPT FOR PRELIMINARY TASK (ASH'S GROUP)

(INT) The end of a school corridor. There is a door to a classroom.

-Latasha walks through the hallway. She stops at the door.
-Camera cuts to the character inside the classroom (Amanda). She is doing her work as a desk.
-Over the shoulder high shot over Amanda's left shoulder. The camera shows Amanda reading her work.
-Camera cuts back to Latasha opening the door. (close up) of door handle being pushed down.
-Camera cuts back to the classroom. Pan from Amander to the door, where Latasha walks in. Camera follows her as she walks towards Amanda.
-Profile two shot of the two character as Latashas sits down opposite Amanda.
-Close up on Latahsa face.
     LATASHA:                     You Al-right? What you been up to?
-Close up of Amanda face.
     AMANDA:                     Nothing Much. Just doing my work.

-Over the shoulder high shot from Amanda shoulders looking down at Latasha and the table.
    LATASHA:                   Do you know where i could get the sheets for the work from?

-High medium shot looking down at Amanda
    AMANDA:                    Oh it's over there

        --END--

Ash Khan

Preliminary Task Story Board (ASH'S GROUP)

 Latasha Walks Towards Door

 Amanda doing work in class

  

Over the shoulder of Amanda's work

Close up of Latasha opening door

Camera pans as Latasha enters and heads for seat

Two shot of both characters sitting down

Behind shoulder shot. Latasha speaks to Amanda

Close up of Amanda face as she replies

High shot, looking down. Latasha asks where the sheets for the class work is.

Amanda Replies

By Ash Khan

In our groups we were asked to create a short video for our preliminary task. The video had to include a character entering a room and talking to someone. The objective behind the preliminary task was to experiment with camera, lighting and to familiarise our selves with basic filming elements.

One important technique we were practising was the 180 degree rule.This allows the viewer to understand the scene more by making them feel like there present in the scene

The 180 degree rule is when two characters are in a room, facing each other and the camera or cameras only film from one side of the characters. 

So, if the two characters are facing each other, we should see Character A's right cheek and Character B's left cheek.

The line of vision is the imaginary line which the two characters are looking at each other through. If using the 180 degree rule then cameras will only be on one side of this imaginary line.

Going over the line is called Crossing the Line. 

By Ash Khan