Continuity Task 2 (BLK)

My sequence is taken from the action film Edge of Tomorrow.

This sequence begins with a hand-held shot in MLS of a group of soldiers jogging in unison with a camera track to the right as they jog by. The folllowing shot (2), is a MS of the soldiers with a pan left which follows them as they jog by. A matched cut and match on action is used here to effectively continue the action from the previous scene into the next with a seamless feel. This is the case throughout this sequence such as in shot 2 to 3, where the MS of them jogging becomes a MCU of character 1 jogging, and in shot 9 to 10, where the MCU of character 4 becomes a hand-held CU shot of character 1 jogging with a track. There is a strong sense of being right among the action in shots 4 - 16. The multiple use of hand held shots in a closed frame is the cause of this and the audience are able to feel involved in the actions taking place; they feel like they are jogging with the group of soldiers. Another thing is the use of sound overlaps to continue the action in the next shot whilst keeping the audience aware of what is going on else where, this is in shot 20 and 21. The sergeant/character 5 orders character 1 and the rest of the platoon to drop and do 50 push-ups. In shot 20, we hear character 5 begin his order, however it carries on into the next shot, where character 1 is beginning to start his set of press-ups.

Evaluation of AOTT Activity (DYM)

1) Our film is about a young girl who is mentally disturbed. She is staying at a mental asylum and during her time there she becomes uncontrollable and her psychotic nature sees her begin to kill the other people there, one by one. In the opening, we wanted to establish this and we did so through the shot of a small tally chart, which is in fact the number of lives the girl has claimed so far.

2) In the opening of the film, we were sure to include key information to ensure our desired audience would be well informed. We established the main settings and locations of the film, both indoors and outdoors, the main characters that were to feature in the film, the names of the two main actors and most importantly the title of the film.

3) The titles link to the man film idea because they are successful I connoting the genre of the film. The main title is in a very distinct font and the fact that it is called ‘playtime’ could reflect the significance of what is to take place in the film. The phrase ‘playtime’ reflects the characters horrific acts of killing people for fun.

4) Following seeing the film I would expect the audience to be slightly disturbed and in great shock due to what they had just seen. I also expect the audience to be unable to apprehend the events in the opening. The actions of the main character would be the cause of this confusion and discomfort that the audience would be feeling. By the end of, I expect the ambiguity of the opening to leave the audience feeling very confused about why the main character is doing such things

5) Three things that were included in the film opening that are important are:

•      The film title – the title is key when informing an audience about a film. It lets the audience know of what the film might be about and in this case it informs them that it will be about something that one may consider to be fun
•      The introduction of the main characters – this is important because it allows the audience to expect certain things from the characters that they are introduced to, therefore setting up expectations which they will want to be gratified later in the film
•      The establishment of the main genre – the genre allows an audience to decide whether or not they will be interested in watching that film. Through the use of signifiers such as blood and shadows, the audience become aware that the main genre is horror, and so this will result in the desired target audience being appealed to and therefore increasing interest.

6) I believe that the film opening was effective as an opening as we were able to conform to the many expectations of the desired and we were able to include typical conventions of a film. I think that one of the most successful things was the way we were able to ensure that the audience were well informed, whilst not revealing too much about the narrative of the film, which meant that the audience were left wanting more.On the other hand, I do feel that if I were to do this again I would have included an establishing shot of the building which is where the film is set.

AOTT Research (DYM)

The two opening sequences that I have chosen to compare are (1) Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant and (2) Kung Fu Panda.

(1)

(2)

The opening title sequences of these 2 films are in stark contrast to one another. Despite these films having similar genres of action and adventure, Kung Fu Panda is an animation. One of the main points of contrast is the sound element to these title sequences. Where in Cirque du freak the visuals are driven by the music, in Kung Fu Panda the visuals are driven by a voice-over and the music. As well as this, unlike in Cirque du Freak where titles and credits are used in great number, there are no credits/titles stating things such as the main actors, directors in Kung Fu Panda. The credits in Cirque du Freak play an important role in the sequence. As there is no voice over to provide the engagement with the audience like that in Kung Fu Panda, the credits for Cirque du Freak need to somehow engage the audience, and this is done through building the graphics around the audience so that they are more visually engaging. The aesthetic styles of these openings are similar because they are both made of graphic shots and animations, which come together to create a very visually stimulating title sequence.

Film Opening Analysis (DYM)

• The film opening sequence that I have chosen to analyse is for "Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant (2009)", an action, adventure, fantasy.
• The story takes place in a number of places and locations; the most distinct being that in a graveyard. However the settings do vary from a coffin, to a forest and then to the guts of some kind of creature. The time scale is not made clear, however there is a clearly a journey taking place in the sequence in which 2 puppets venture through the varying locations, encountering six freak show characters . By having these 2 puppets in this sequence, the audience are drawn to them and question things about them, however their questions are left unanswered in the opening sequence suggesting that there is definitely more to be told and also encouraging the audience to watch the film in order to find out the answers to their questions.
• Cirque Du Freak, is a graphic opening that introduces six freak show characters and brings them together through the journey of two puppets. Throughout this journey there is a strong sense of the genre, which is connoted through the visuals of thing such as a coffin, blood, spiders and graveyards. Additionally, the journey is significant in the telling of events because it showcases all the encounters that the 2 puppets make, which tells the audience that they can discover more by watching the movie
• All the events in the sequence are linked to each other as they focus on this path that the 2 characters undertake. Also, the
• Six freak show characters are introduced and they are brought together through the journey of the two puppets. We know this because on their journey, they are shown running form place to place, almost giving the idea that they are trying to escape from something.
• The idea of a main title sequence is to set up the tone and mood so the audience can discover the story as the movie unfolds. Not too much about the plot of the film is revealed in the title sequence; the only thing given to the audience is the idea of some kind of journey. By not explicitly referencing the key and most iconic events, the audience is left wandering about what is to come and also left with many questions that cannot be answered unless they watch the film. 
• At the start of my film, I think that the setting and the main characters should be briefly introduced so that the audience are able to quickly get a strong sense of the film’s genre and perhaps the story line and key events as well.

Continuity Task 1 (BLK)

Explain the story of your video?

Characters A and B are doing their work in a classroom and are joined by character C, who enters the classroom through the door. Character C then walks past characters A and B, but in doing so he trips over himself and falls to the floor. He then slowly picks himself up, after which point Character A is then shown to be very shocked and alarmed at character C's accident.

How did you attempt to create a 'narrative flow' (continuity)?

Narrative flow was achieved through the use of different camera angles which build the audience into the narrative and through the use of camera movement; one of the shots panned and tracked character C as he walked past the camera.

Did you achieve full continuity?

No, we did not achieve full continuity and I think that this was due to the lengthiness of shot 1, the delay of the reaction shot (shot 6) and the unnatural look of the fall/accident.

What would you do differently to improve the narrative flow of your video and tell your story more effectively?

Narrative flow is about continuity for audience so the action/shots are seamless. With full continuity a story can be told more effectively. To improve this I would have…

• shortened the length of shot 1 as it slows down the pace and goes past the point of a strong anticipation
• started filming shot 2 when character C is out of frame so there is no chance of the shot starting with a stationary character, and also so character C is shown opening the door and entering the building which looks more natural
• used 'match on action' by cutting down the link between shots 2 and 3
• shown the object that character C trips over, to remove the question of 'what did he fall over on?' from the audience's minds
• swapped shots 5 and 6 so that the reaction shot (6) is not delayed. This means that the reaction of character A is shown immediately after the accident.

Below is the edited version of our story with an improved narrative flow, and a more seamless feel:

My Film Still Analysis BLK

In this shot, the lighting is very abstract. Through the particular positioning of the lighting equipment, we were able to create a very eerie and sinister atmosphere within the still. Both the camera lights were positioned at a low angle to the character, at the side nearest to the camera (to the left of the still) the many shadows that have been created are effective as they cast a shadow on the character (me), making it seem like he is further restricted by more lines/cages. Furthermore, the rest of the still is dark which further enhances this eerie atmosphere, as we are not aware of what may be lurking in the background. 

The signifier in this still has to be the shadows which come together to connote the desired genre of horror. The audience will initially be puzzled as to what is going on and questions will arise such as Why is he behind the bars? What did he do to get there? Is there something wrong with him?. Following the attempts to comprehend what is going on in the shot, I expect the audience to begin to sympathise with the character as they may potentially imagine how it would feel to be in that situation.

In my opinion, the most successful aspect of this still has to be the use of lighting to deliver the desired effect to the audience; the lighting is responsible for the shadows seen all over the character. As well this, I believe that the positioning of the character adds to the eeriness of the still, as the characters right hand casts a large shadow on the right side of his face.

In order to better showcase the desired genre, a more suitable/relevant clothing should be worn to perhaps portray a current issue, such as blood on shirt to suggest an unknown injury.