Filming Plan for Paul's Bedroom scenes

We decided that for some scenes a directing plan was needed to direct the characters in advance. This plan is focused on all of Paul's bedroom scenes and will be given to Jacob - main character in advance so not only will he have a mental build up but also will be prepared on the day. 

The plan is long and detailed, plus we have included any changes to the script. For example one change we made, was to change Paul's 'getting ready' scene to him having an idea so that the audience will be more aware that he has an idea - we believe this will be more effective because the audience will directly know Paul is going to go on a mission rather than just getting ready and changing, which may not be as obvious to some.

Progress

On Saturday, the group filmed the chronologically first house scene, meaning that there were no longer any more scenes to film involving rebellious behaviour - breaking and entering. This did however, mean that we still had the interviews to complete and the police station scene. Luckily, we have been able to reassign the role of Paul's sister back onto the piece after a drama student volunteered to play her, so the script no longer will be missing a key area of dialogue. Unfortunately, non of our group can drive yet and the nearest police station is quite far, so timing the shooting of the scene with transport availability and daylight hours is tricky. We also still need to film Paul's dad interview, but just like Paul's sister, we have scheduled in the time slots for the filming.
Editing of the film is coming along well. Before the shooting of the film we said we would edit the whole thing as we went along so that by the end we would only have shift along the composition.

Plan of Action

On Saturday 14th December our filming will resume. We will be filming the next house scene at Katie's house and then we will make it our priority to film remainding outdoor scenes, e.g at the police station. After that we will film the interview of Paul and his dad. Unfortunately, the actress for the Paul's sister has fallen through, so we decided to cut out that scene, but if we find during editing that the film would benefit from having Paul's sister then we shall improvise in the moment.

Filming so far...

So far we have completed all 3 of the random poeple interviews, have got the voice-over for the little boy saying "Mummy, I think I heard something and have shot the end house scene with socks lying all over the stairs. We are near completed with our film poster and have started to edit our filming so far.
In our next filming session we will be filming the second house scene and the police station scene. After that we will move onto the official interviews.

Filming Plan

After getting all the immediate filming equipment we need, we are finally going to be making our idea a reality. On Sunday we will be filming scenes such as the sock trail and the returning home of the family and monday will be remaining house scenes, as well as the rest of the week being the interviews of the Sister, Paul and his dad. Random people will also be filmed for their opinions this weekend.

Script/Finished/Draft

Here is the script for our short film "Confessions of a Sock-a-holic". As said in my earlier post, when acting this mockumentary, improvisation will be allowed because it can add to the passion and realistic drama of the scene. Though it is finished the ending I believe could be improved, so this could be part of the script improvised during filming, however this will act as a directed guideline. In writing this scrip sounds more formal and serious, but when directing, editing and filming we will make sure the style is of a documentary. From previous research of television series', I know that pitch's of just scripts often do not get picked up because they don't fill the gap in the market for the broadcasting company, this is another reason as to why I feel improvisation on the day will emphasise that it is a mockumentary and not a documentary.

“CONFESSIONS OF A SOCK-A-HOLIC”

EXT-PARK-DAY

Documentary crew edge towards young boy walking dog

DOCUMENTARY CREW (QUESTIONING):

Excuse me, have you ever heard of the Sockmonster?

RANDOM YOUNG BOY (THOUGHTFUL):

…I think so, doesn’t he steal our socks?

                                                  CUT TO:

EXT-HOUSE FRONT-DAY

Crew knock on random door

RANDOM PERSON #2 (RAISES EYEBROW):

Can I help you?

DOCUMENTARY CREW:

Quick survey; do you often find you have odd socks?

RANDOM PERSON #2 (GROANS):

Too often to even count

                                           

                                         CUT TO:

EXT-CITY-DAY

DOCUMENTARY CREW (QUESTIONING):

Have you ever heard of the Sockman?

RANDOM PERSON #3 (FROWNS SLIGHTLY):

Who? The Sockman? Never heard of him.

                 

                                               FADE TO:

INT-INTERVIEW ROOM-DAY

‘Paul Smith’/Sockman settles down in the chair and anxiously fidgets. Adjusts attire and eyes flick around the room scanning the unfamiliar setting

INTERVIEWER (QUIETLY):

You ready?

PAUL (UPTIGHT) Clenches hands in lap:

Just get on with it

INTERVIEWER (TAKES DEEP BREATH IN AND OUT AND QUESTIONS):

So Paul, tell us about this enemy of yours, the Sockmonster

                                                   CUT TO:

INT-BEDROOM-DAY

Paul refers to map and further documents referring to the Sockmonster and his movements

PAUL (V.O)(CONTINUED FROM INTERVIEW)(PASSIONATE):

He’s not just my enemy. He is society’s villain. He steals (emphasis) socks. Your socks. He steals your clothes. I mean ok, sure he doesn’t take your t-shirts or your shoes, which are more valuable, but still he takes something you have paid for. Gone. Forever.

Paul pins tags to map, marking where he has been and where to go next. Looks to hand drawn picture of the Sockmonster and screws up piece of paper in anger

INTERVIEWER (V.O)(CRITICAL):

Don’t you think that’s a bit over dramatic? You’re taking it very personally, as well. It seems to me that he is not doing this just to you, so why take it so personally?

Paul gets ready for his next mission. Gets changed into Sockman outfit

                                                     FADE TO:

INT-INTERVIEW ROOM – DAY

PAUL (O.S) (AGITATED):

Over dramatic? Because of that thing, my mother is dead. He purposely left a sock, which my mother slipped on and resulted in her death. You cannot say it’s not personal.

INTERVIEWER(SIGHS):

Do you tend to have an outfit when tracking down this so called Sockmonster.

PAUL:

This is my OnePiece, I always wear this when on duty because it is the closest thing to a full body sock.

                                               

                                                    CUT TO:

Sockman/Paul picking at the door lock and breaks in. Cowboy shot and front shot of Paul walking up the stairs. Enters bedroom and goes to open suspected sock draw. In the meantime knocks over flower vase.

LITTLE BOY (ALARMED):

Mummy! I heard something!

Paul rises and anxiously scans the room

                                                     FADE TO:

EXT-POLICE STATION-DAY

Paul leaves police station after his arrest for breaking and entering. Long shot and pan of him crossing the road.

DOCUMENTARY CREW:

You ok?

PAUL (HUSHED):

Yeah I’m fine. I’m fine.

                                                   CUT TO:

INT-INTERVIEW ROOM-DAY

INTERVIEWER:

What was Paul like as a teenager?

PAUL’S SISTER:

We never really saw eye to eye. He was there…but it was like he wasn’t.

                                                 CUT TO:

Paul pulls the map out of his bag and places it back on the wall. He then takes out the socks he collected and repairs them with socks that he had previously found.

PAUL’S SISTER (V.O):

Ever since our mum died, he’s spent all his time in his room.

                                                CUT TO:

INT-BEDROOM-DAY

Pan of Paul’s room. See posters, voodoo dolls, map and picture of his mum.

                                                    CUT TO:

INT-INTERVIEW ROOM-DAY

Paul’s Dad looks serious sat in the interview chair.  Breathes in deeply and exhales in preparation for the unrepressing of  lies and hurt over his wife’s death

INTERVIEWER:

Why don’t you tell us how your wife really died?

PAUL’S DAD (SIGHING):

I knew you would ask that.

                                                 FADE TO:

INT-HALLWAY-DAY

Paul/Sockman enters another house and climbs the stairs to accomplish another mission.

PAUL’S DAD (V.O) CONTINUED:

You see when Paul was young, he would often…misplace things; whether that be a toy or a piece of clothing

Cowboy shot and front shot of Paul climbing stairs and identifying which room to enter.

PAUL’S DAD (V.O) CONTINUED:

Well one day, his habit meant he left a sock. This sock (STARES OFF INTO SPACE) has been responsible for all the evil and bad things that have happened to my family.

Paul enters bedroom, opens bag and enters sock draw to repair lonesome socks

PAUL’S DAD (V.O) CONTINUED:

I created the Sockmonster. He doesn’t exist. I used him to distract my son from taking the blame. At age ten, what are you more likely to believe? That you left a sock and now your mother is dead or that a Sockmonster left it. Haven’t you found you have odd socks?!

Paul hears noise from down stairs and thinks the home-owner is home. He goes to check and finds that there is a sock trail all down the stairs. Paul begins to hyperventilate/have panic attack

                                               CUT/FADE TO:

INT-INTERVIEW ROOM-DAY

Paul’s dad takes deep breath and shuts his eyes

PAUL’S DAD:

I never knew that his self-induced ostracization would lead to these delusions

CUT/END 

Script Idea

When drafting our script, it occured to me that Mockumentary style productions usually have a spontaneous nature. For example, The Office (http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/theoffice/archive.shtml) is 95% scripted, but there is some space for actor improvisation. I feel that this should be similar in our film because it will allow 'in the moment' dialogue, which will add to the mock drama of the scene.

Development Update: Location, Cast and Props

In this video, we discuss what locations, props and cast we are going to use, however some of them are still under question.

Camera Angles & Editing in Short Films

In short films, a variety of strong, storytelling camera angles are key. They use a shorter amount of time to tell the story compared to dialogue and in some cases can have more emphasis on points such as enigma.
Editing is part of the post-production, it is key in short films to signify when one scene has ended and another one begins.

30 Second Analysis
AVARICE (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87B1tz3KdOg)
In the this short, we are given an establishing long shot. It sets us up with a bedroom and a mystery girl reading a book - title is unknown at this point. We then cut to a close up of the book, which gives the impression that it is significant to the film. A 45degree pan is then used to swing and show the audience the female lead reading the book 'Macbeth' and responds to look at her phone. We then cut to a close up of her phone which has a cracked screen, it is unknown if this has a significant mean. The shot reverses back a close up of her face staring at her phone and then cuts to a long shot of her changing position so she is sitting on the end of the bed staring out the window mournfully. We are then cut to side close up of her face so we can see she is debating what to do next.
In summary, we are poistioned with a young girl, presumably studying the play Macbeth and is in question as to what to do next or perhaps she is lonely and wondering why no one has contacted her. All of this is unknown. As the film goes on we see that she has a 'magic pot' which duplicates anything she puts in there, for example money, so very quickly she becomes quite rich and spends it all. However this all comes to an end and symolises what happens when you get greedy.

Tick Tock ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w14v4vGUDdg)
We are first situated with an establishing medium shot of a ticking clock, which then pans to a young girl sitting on her bed enthusiatically. Thye camera pans again and we see a young male walk into the room from the corridor. The camera then sinks to the floor and blurs so that we only see bottom half of the couple. From their body movements we presume they are kissing, however the young male is then pulled out by a unknown spirit almost because do not see what pulled him out of the room. The entire first scene is in one take, so no editing has taken place. The speed of movement, obviously sped up signifies rapid changes in time.

Use of Sound in Short Films

Types of Sound:

Diegetic: Sound whose source is visible on screen or implied by an action.
                      - Character Dialogue
                      - Object noise (e.g. Phone ringing or kettle boiling)
                      - Music coming from on screen (e.g. Stereo)

Non-Diegetic: Sound whose source is neither on screen or implied by a reaction.
                      - Narrator Commentry
                      - Sound effects used for dramatic effect.
                      - Soundtrack music/ mood music

Use of Sound:

In short films, non-diegetic sound is used for atmostpheric purposes, for example in action films there is usually pulse racing mood music to emphasise the drama and Life & Death situations.

For Example:

Loop (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVGzK5M967Q)
In this short, the majority of sound is diegetic because the sound is constantly implied by the female lead, whether it is her dialogue or her sounds associated with the scene e.g. Gun shots. Non-diegetic sound is used during the opening titles. The music is tense and enigmatic which is the theme of the short film.

Connection (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87B1tz3KdOg)
Yet again in this short, the majority of sound is diegetic because it is implied; the sound is associated with airports and aviation. The Diegesis (narrative) of the film are crucial because in this case it tells the story of a lost foreigner and busy actor who plays himself. It tells the story that one another is lost within translation. There is some soundtrack music (non-diegetic) which fills in silences between the characters to keep the audience interested.

Many short films work the same way as these two examples. It is uncommon for them to break 4th Wall narration, which is the thin line that exists between story and reality (it is often the character telling the story to the audience in a way that they know they are the character, in simpler terms they talk directly to the audience). This was a popular technique used in 80s and 90s programmes such as Malcolm in the Middle - we see Malcolm talk to the camera/audience expressing his embarrassment about his life and family. The use of this narration is not largely used in short films because it would waste time and is quicker to use specific camera angles, sound and quick snippets of dialogue that would give the same amount of narration.

Character Profiling for 'Confessions of a Sock-a-holic'

Name: Paul Smith (Pseudonym)  

Age: 20 

Marital Status: Single

Occupation: Works part-time at a book and stationary store (able to get free stationary to plot his adventures)

Residency: Lives with his Dad who believes that his son would be incapable of looking after himself without guidance.

Family Life: Mother died when he was 10 and was mainly brought up by his father and grandparents. He has a younger sister, but they are like strangers due to Paul's self-exclusion from the family.

Close Friends: He believes his own company is more than enough and doesn't enjoy the company of too many people because he finds them interfering.

Brief Synopsis

Paul Smith, is a young Schizoprenic, who has suffered from delusions and hallucinations about the 'Sockmonster' ever since his father told him the scarce fable to cover up the truth over his mother's death. As the documnetary crew follow Paul, it is explained that he has an obsession with re-paring lonesome socks stolen by the sockmonster and with finding this theif once and for all. Paul's dad is keen to tell his side of the story. From his interview we discover that the 'Sockmonster' was a one off story to stop Paul from taking the blame for his mother's death, as it was him who left a sock which she slipped on and died.

Use of Narration

What is a narrative?

Julian McDougall believes that "Narrative is the art of storytelling, something we all do everyday. It is an important part of our lives and something we view highly, if you consider the amount of time we all spend in front of the television and cinema screens recieving narratives."

The English Dictionary defines narrative as "any account of connected events, presented to a reader or listener in a sequence of written or spoken words, or in a sequence of (moving) pictures".

Use of narratives in short films:

Loop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVGzK5M967Q

In this short film, there is no use of dialogue so entire narrative is through emotions portrayed through the main character (only character in this case). We see her expressing fear, anxiety and confusion.

THE APOCALYPSE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdtDU8Ww7mA (warning: shows animation of people blowing up)

In this short film, which is professionally made, dialogue of the characters is what carries the story, especially as we are unaware of when a character is going to blow up, there are no hints as to who it will be or when just a build up of tension when there is silence.

Alone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CT2tdplhKAY

In this short film, the narration is told through the little dialogue of the little girl and through mise-en-scene; for example the littered newspaper. The plot itself is also told through camera angles and editing. We see the next night the little girl presumably dying and clever editing and use of sunlight to demonstrate the stereotype of Heaven.

Use in My Short Film:

In our short film, we have chosen to have a traditional narrative, where the story expands in order as the film goes on. There will be verbal flashbacks, for example the main character's dad explaining why his son has an obsession with the sockmonster.

Conventions of a Mockumentary

For our short film, we decided on a Mockumentary because it will allow us to cover a somewhat serious situtation within a playful and humourous topic.

Conventions of a Mockumentary:

• Interviews with Characters

These are used to add more depth to the characters and get to know them on a personal basis. On paper this is the documentary side to film, however it is the strength of a script and the plot behind it which gives it a comedic feel.

In our film we will use interviews as the main pieces of dialogue. There will be questioning and the odd piece outside of the interview, but it is the interview which will hold the main segments of information. They will also serve as voice overs during some scenes - this may add to the tension of a particular scene or just to make sure the audience does not loose focus during times of silence and pure movement.

• Voice Over

These are used to compliment the acting on screen. They can either introduce a new scene or express to the audience off-screen or on screen happenings to give them information.

Though a convention of mockumentaries, there is no voice over by narrator. We felt as though the plot was self-explanatory and that voice over should be done by the characters to add an 'evolving story' feel.

• On-Screen Text

Used to identify characters, settings and time.

We decided to limit the use of on-screen text because it can often crowd the screen. We are only going to use it during the interviews to introduce the characters.

• Realism

This is the use of natural lighting and sound.

In our film, we will use natural light, even though some filming will be done during the evening. There will be little dubbing or foley work, except for when a little boy yells, because it is near impossible to get the noise loud enough for the camera to pick it up.

This is our Mock Poster for our film. We this was also a part of brief to be created for our pitch.
In my opinion, this poster, though a mock, gives good denotation to our short film. It is simple, but sums up our film, hopefully in an intriguing way to attract an audience.
There is still room for improvement; for example instead of our names being placed at the top of the poster, we should place our production company name and cast name. A date and new broadcasting company will also be changed to fit in with conventions, which for poster's is vital.
Poster created by Jacob Lucas

Audience Research Video

On our research video we interviewed a mixture of ages to see if people watched short films; we then wanted to know if people understoof the genre of Mockumentary and if they liked it.

Media Pitch

Recently, we have been told to create a pitch including a 90 Second Synopsis, 90 Second speech on Distribution and our mock poster. Here is a written format of pitch:

Synopsis
From young, Paul Smith (currently no name has been decided), was the under the illusion that the Sockmonster had left an odd sock on the top of the stairs, which his mother tripped over, fell and died. In reality, the Sockmonster was a fable created by Paul Smith's father to hide and reconstuct his memeory as to how she really died, which was by Paul Smith leaving his odd sock accidentally.
The short film follows Paul Smith on his mission to catch this Sockmonster. We are situated not only with Paul Smith's of obsession with finding the Sockmonster, but also his compassion reunite lonesome socks with their missing partner - He believes this will not only benefit the owner, but everyone because it will prevent others from plunging to their own death. Paul Smith's legacy leads him to great deal of legal trouble and his back story gains him little sympathy from the police, but they let him go under strict orders to find the truth about this so called Sockmonster. His father also plays a key role in telling the story. He explains to the documentary crew, that his fabrication of the Sockmonster got 'out-of-hand' as Paul Smith got older. His father thought that he had forgotten about the Sockmonster as Paul Smith grew up, when truthfully Paul Smith had created a delusion based upon hallucinations he suffered as an older child and teenagers - symptoms of Schizophrenia.

Distribution
I believe the distribution of our film would fit successfully within the mainstream market. Just like the synergy used in the feature length film 'TED' ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fbo_pQvU7M) of merchandise E.G. the bear TED, and the film; I see out short film using a similar technique - the synergy of the short film and of merchandise such as socks and it could be seasonal for example at Christmas, stockings could be apart of the franchise. It could be argued that the short film would be a success on the independant market because it covers issues of a sensitive nature, however, I think the way the mental health issue (Schizophrenia) is covered is in a mainstream way as it glamourises the disorder by not displaying the harsh reality of living with the disorder.
I also believe the short film would gain the largest attention if it were to be uploaded on the internet where it will gain an audience seeking such material and with the rise of Web 2.0 it is easier than it ever has been to access and share short films. It allows for it to be spread virally through Social Network (Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr), which could be argued as the most important way to share information and art.

Idea Research Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksuYZPgPADo

On this video you can see our group discussing our current ideas and problems we had with our first idea e.g lack of innovation.

Elaboration on Idea 1

Since our group video, we have had several more ideas elaborating upon the idea of mental health and we have since been to a convention set up purposely for OCR A-Level Media and Film students at the BFI in London.

The convention taught us the importance of distribution and marketing, in particular marketing a film according to whether it is aimed at a Mainstream (attitudes and activities shared by the majority and is seen as the norm) or Independant film (a film produced outside of the major studio system) audience. I believe our short film will thrive being aimed at a mainstream audience because it will cover mental health problems which are open in society, for example Schizophrenia and OCD. Some would argue this would also suit an Independant market because it covers ordeals that can be difficult for others to talk about and express, however I still believe it would suit Mainstream rather than Independant because it does not show the reality, dark or not, of living with such disorders, infact the style of a mockumentary would almost 'glamourise' the disorders.

There has been a change with the mental disorder to which our main character has because we felt an emphasis on delusions and hallucinations-symptoms of schizophrenia- would tie the story together and would create a better equilibrium, which is what we are aiming for.

Idea 2

In class, we were given the task of producing a pitch for a short film based on 4 mains details picked at random. They were:
                              
                              - Name (Cynthia)
                              - Prop  (iPhone)
                              - Mise-en-scene (High Rise Flat)
                              - Shot (Zoom Out)

From these we created the idea of a 25 year old girl called Cynthia, who is blonde and played by Scarlett Johansson. Her parents are mutil-millionaire Russians who have spoilt her all her life, however this doesn't mean she lives off them for money now; she currently has a job as a leading editor for Vogue magazine in New York. She lives in a high rise flat in Manhatten, New York and lives alone.

The film starts with Cynthia getting ready for her night out with the girls from work. As she's finishing up she goes to call one of them to ask if they were downstairs. iPhone users will know that iPhones have a mechanism called Siri, which enables the user to speak and the phone will search/dial for answer. In this case, she asks to dial her friend and it denies a response. She then finds that Siri starts shutting down or turning on electronic devices in the apartment EG. Electric Fire turns on, fridge turns off. Cynthia starts to become anxious and gets her bag and heads to the door to get out. As she goes for the door handle she sees that the lock is turned in the door, she ignores this and tries to open the door and as expected it is locked. She panics and begins to breathe deeply. Siri then speaks "Door Out of Action". This of course preturbs Cynthia. She goes to email her friends on her phone but Siri denies this. She realises that she can try to contact someone by going on her laptop as Siri should not be able to of hacked into the system. She goes to turn on her laptop when yet again Siri speaks "Laptop Out of Action". She then turns to her home phone which is also out of order, so Siri returns with the same answer "Landline Out of Order" As she looks around the room she becomes aware of the strange goings on.
A light bulb then switches on in her head, and she believes that if she turns her phone off, then Siri will no longer have this control. She goes to turn off her phone, only to have Siri reply "Phone in action. Access Denied". Cythnia by this point is in no mood or look to go out; her perfect hair is no longer perfect, her makeup smudged. Getting angry, she turns to her last resort of smashing her phone, so throws is against the wall cracking the screen. This enables all technology features to return to normal. Cynthia sinks to the floor with her head in her hands and deeply breathes trying to regain normality.
The film then cuts to her tousling her hair into an acceptable state and her make-up being altered in a reflection shot, though she does not take her time as she is still on edge about the previous events. She scurries out of the flat and checks the open plan living space as she leaves. The door slams and there is a pan towards the iPhone on the floor. A close up of the film is then shown with a slow zoom out. During this zoom out the phone comes back to 'life' and Siri's evilness reappears locking the door so that Cynthia cannot return into the apartment. The screen then fades to black. 

Film Idea Extended - OCD

What is OCD?
OCD is an anxiety disorder that comes in a variety of forms. The four main 'obsessions' are Checking, Contamination, Hoarding and Intrusive thoughts.

From my previous blog post, my group and I have come up with the idea for an Over Compulsive Burglar.
The film could start with a young male, dressed in the stereotypical burglar outfit, with face covered, breaking into a house. He starts to steal items such as TV's, Games Consoles, Laptops and any left behind mobile phones. As he is about to leave, he sees a plate left by the sink...this is where is disorder kicks in and affects him. He cannot leave the house without washing it up and putting it away. Once he has done this, he goes to leave again, but sees a light turned on in the lounge. Yet again he has to turn this off, otherwise his anxiety will strike and his burglary mission will be over. From here he begins to reorganise the kitchen. The film will begin to end with him out of the mask and in a cooking apron and cooking a meal e.g lasagne. The homeowners then come home and it finally ends with both the burglar and family looking shocked.

I don't think that the film will need any dialogue because it seems to be more plot driven, and often with media course it is the dialogue that brings the quality down.

Character Profiling

Name: Courtney Allen

Age: 23

Marital Status: Single (Boyfriend - Aaron Jones)

Occupation: Secret Stripper

Previous Job(s): First worked on a make-up counter for Bobbi Brown at Macy's (American Department Store). On the side lines she planned on becoming a Singer/Songwriter. She was eventually signed by Island/Def Jam Recordings, but then dropped after a year as they saw no gap in the market for her.

Residency: Studio Apartment in Compton, LA

Family Life: Good relationship with Mum and Dad, however they think she works as a receptionist and lives in an apartment in Brentwood, LA - when they come over she uses a fellow stripper's - Amy- apartment. Her older sister is a surgeon, so she has a lot of pressure to do well, which could be the reason she crumbled, especially as her dream profession is taken as a joke with her family - not in a mean way, more unrealistic. Aaron is unaware that she is a dancer/stripper at the club, he thinks she is waitress there.

Close Friends: Aaron is the only 'friend' she can rely on. Amy is somewhat of a friend, but she is hard to trust, just like anyone in her job. She pushed all her friends away by lying about life.

Where Is This Person Right Now?: In the toilets of the adult club, crying about the failure that is her life and getting ready to take a 'hit' to numb there pain.

Who Are They With?: Currently alone, but is about to be joined by a drug ravaged colleague.

Where Were They at 10pm Last Night?: Preparing to get ready for a night of senseless adulterated dancing.

Who Were They With?: Amy and 7 other colleagues.

Where Do They See Themselves In 5 Years?: Hopefully a success in the music industry or married to Aaron with children in a house in suburbia LA far away from her current life, also clean off drugs. 

Comparing Previous A2 Short Films to the Mark Scheme - Screening 3

Paradise Found - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pdZVYXX21A

Against the mark scheme, I graded this as a Level 4 piece gaining 38 marks. The films itself went against convention, which we only realised once the film had finished, so this meant during there was some confusion as to what was going on and what would happen next.
The camera angles used were great, they showed good attention to framing and there was close attention to mise-en-scene, which was heavily important in the first few scenes because it enabled the audience to get a clear picture of the characters personalty, which was key because the film was a silent film. This being said, there was the odd camera angle that could have been improved, such as when we are shown an over-the-shoulder of the 'artist' holding a letter up, a closer view would have been better and documented the film more. The editing was smooth and clear, and there was not problems with the continuity of the storyline.
I liked how they had focused on aspects of scenes; for example at 3:53, the focus from the Impossible Bottle to the 'artist'.

Comparing Previous A2 Short Films to the Mark Scheme - Screening 2

Hide and Seek

Against the mark scheme I graded this as a Level 3 gaining 30 marks. I thought it had a great use of camera angles, a wide variety were used and this enabled them to pick up several key emotions that the little girl subtly had, especially when she was confused, for example the little girl turned up her nose at the new era she had opened up into. Some camera angles however were too wide not giving clear reasoning for their involvement; for example at 1:41 a long shot pan is used to show the little boy reading a newspaper and the little girl walking towards him. Too much of the garden is shown in this shot, it demonstrated that the little girl had seen the little boy already, but the acting would prove she had not, giving no clear reason for her to wander from the table of adults.
There was continuity problems with the editing. A lot of the time you can skip certain movements in clips e.g walking towards a door - you don't have to show the full walk as the audience usually get the idea. However, in this the risk did not pull off. There was moments where the characters had gotten closer and it was not explained when she got that close, confusing the audience - shown at 1:57 where the little girl had gone from behind the tree to in front of the little boy who is standing rather than sitting down, which is what were saw him last doing.
This all being said, the use of children in acting is usually difficult. As they joke in Hollywood - never work with animals and children. In this short film though, the children acting well considering they are very young, there was a few moments where you could tell they struggled, however, editing can be as much to blame in these scenes.
Another criticism, is that the dialogue was often muffled by the wind - Grandfather talking.

Comparing Previous A2 Short Films to the Mark Scheme - Screening 1

Love Hurts -

Using the mark scheme as a guide, I graded this piece as a Level 3 gaining around 27 marks. This is because they had good control of the camera. Very rarely did we see the camera faulter, it was still, however when there was a POV from the girl's view the camera was very shaky and when the camera cut into an extreme close up this increased more. These shots were risk to take and unfortunately did not give the right effect; though it demonstrated how close the couple were, they were unnecessary.

With the film being in black and white it allowed for colour to emit emotion. The simple colour change of the balloon from silver to fushia pink showed the audience the girl's real connection and feelings for this boy and how depressed she was proir. This is reiterated when she becomes heart-broken and the balloon changes back to silver. By there being no sound, these factors are just as important as facial expression and body language (mise-en-scene) as they tell the story without the need for dialogue.

Another problem I found was that the editing was not 100%. There was often cut errors where is was not smooth enough and certain cuts made it look amateurish.

Idea 01

Throughout the months of June, July and August BBC Three have had special selection of programmes under the theme "It's a Mad World" which looked at a range of mental health problems that affect young people of Britain.

One programmed especialy caught my eye and gave me an inspiration. 'Extreme OCD Camp' followed the lives of 6 teenagers/young adults living with obsessive-compulsive disorder who embark on a life changing treatment course departing to the USA.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b037wn0l - Link to programme page.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAXjq28Wpyk - Link to episode one.

Mental health is an issue with a lot of stigma, however, a lot of the worlds population is affected by them; whether it's depression, eating disorders or multiple personality disorder.

One idea had from watching this series was a short clip on the theme of a documentary following the trouble that someone has suffering with OCD (one based around a phobia of sickness and bacteria). For example the difficulty one would have just pouring and eating a bowl of cereal, a task that the majority find easy.

Textual Analysis of "Shwarzfahrer" and "Get Off My Land"

Schwarzfahrer

Mise-en-scene:

In the first establishing shot we are given an introduction to an urban, working city life. We are then situated with medium and long shots of the general public during what looks to be rush hour (works traffic) at the train station. We are shown a collection of shots where there are adults in smart clothing - presumably for work-, reading newspapers and then are given the polar opposite of adolescents in casual clothing, listening to music and conversing with friends, as well as flirting between a group of teenagers. Once on the tram, we are introduced to an elderly woman dressed yet again in a formal suit. The placement of the black youth next to this white, elderly woman is to show the audience the full comparison of two different worlds - old and young. The elderly woman's discrimination towards the youth is not age related, but a racial attack. The clothing differences highlights the difference in opinions that the separate generations have. The elderly woman also has a problem with two Arabian boys situated on the train (earlier flirted with two German girls). The fact that the majority younger than the ranting woman are in casual, except for the working, is the demonstration that they have accepting these immigrants into their culture and in fact are incorporating some of their norms into theirs. The smart, formalness of this elderly woman and another elderly man who is shown to agree with the wicked rant demonstrates how in their ways they are, and refuse to take on societal changes because it goes against their norms, values and beliefs.

Sound:

Non-Diegetic:

The saxophone and drums during the establishing shot and introductory scenes are used to emphasis the busy work atmosphere. There is a deliberate use of non-diegetics because they give the film a documentary feel (even though it is not one) which alerts people to 'realness' of the situation

Diegetic:

The elderly woman's dialogue is almost like a narrative, however she is still in shot. This yet again emphasises on the documentary feel to make people aware of seriousness and extent of racist behaviour and how it can be anyone.

Camera Angles:

The establishing shot is a crane shot which introduces the audience to the environment of the characters, which helps with the fill in of their schemas with stereotypes we associate with areas of the same class. Low angles are often used to get view of the black youths POV when he is being discriminated. Long shots are used to get reactions from people on the tram. Extreme close up s are used to show the tension building and to put emphasis on little actions e.g a smirk.

Get Off My Land (click on title)

Mise-en-scene with camera angles:

The first introductory establishing shot we see is of a male and a females shoes. The female is wearing walking shoes and the male is wearing some fashionable trainers. From here we see a collection of two shots, which demonstrate that this is a couple, however not so much happy. The woman is seen storming ahead whilst the man is constantly complaining, either in his dialogue or with body language such as the brushing off of mud on his jeans with a deep sigh of annoyance. His 'difficulty' to climb a wooden fence is really his reluctance to carry on with the muddy autumnal walk. The girl friend storming off suggests that the boyfriend have done something wrong previously. We are then introduced to a farmer, however we only know he is a farmer because of how he is stereotypically dressed and material items- tweed hat, Land Rover, green outdoor clothing and a later shotgun. The built up aggression that the boyfriend has is then shown in a medium two shot when he demands to fight for the piece of land that they believe to of trespassed on. The aggressiveness that he shows when unzipping his jacket also stands for his ego to show his patriarchal dominance. An over-the-shoulder shot of the boyfriend then putting his jacket back on after the 'farmer' walks away gives the audience a fake sense that the battle is over, however, the farmer then returns and shoots the boyfriend, leaving the girlfriend shaking in fear and grief. We can see in a close up that blood has splattered onto her face leaving her with more fear. The farmer then saunters off only to swivel round and aim the gun at the woman. We are then situated with a shot of the forest and a gun shot resulting in birds flying out of the trees. A medium shot then shows the farmer continuing ith his previous journey and the two bodies of the couple.

Sound:

The sound is all diegetic. There is no music and sounds such as the wind and motor way noise are natural and kept in the film to give situation context. Of course in reality the gun shot noise is not real because it is acting so that is edited in, however, the gun shot is a realistic one in the context, especially when the gun is not in shot and the birds caw and fly away.

How Do We Consume Short Films?

Film Festivals

USA

The Sundance Film Festival is one of the largest independant film festivals. It is a showcase to introduce new independant filmmakers for both feature length films and short films. It was established in 1978 and in 2012 they had over 46,000 attendees. The festival was founded by the actor Robert Redford (famously played Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby); the name Sundance came from his role in Butch Cassidy and the Sundace Kid where he played the Sundance Kid, an American Old West outlaw.



UK


Established in 2002, the London Short Film Festival is recognized as the UK showcase for cutting-edge independant films. This year (2013) had over 7,000 tickets sold, more than 75 events and over 300 films screened. The Guardian call it "The Best Short Film Festival in the World".




The Encounters film festival was established in 1995 and is held in Bristol each year. It offers the chance to see the very best short films, as well as workshops, talks and exhibitions. It attracts a public audience of around 8,000 each year. It is branded to be "The UK's leading competitive short film festival".








BBC Film Network

This website is an interactive showcase alternative for upcoming British filmmakers to promote their short films. The BBC have often backed these directors/film or have taken a keen liking to short film to add to their collection. It also offers filmmakers great tips and instructions on how to make a film and the exhibition process, plus the chance to submit your own film. This link http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/organisations/category/festivals-and-competitions/ has a selection of festivals and organisations that sponsor and include shorts from the website.


DVD Extras

It is very common for DVD's to have special features, and sometimes this include shorts by the production un related or related to the film. For example Pixar often show an unrelated short before the main feature at the cinema and on DVD's they usually include both related and unrelated shorts. On the Monsters Inc. Special Features there are two short films - Mike's New Car and For The Birds.

 





Mike's New Car follows the two main characters Mike and Sully in a comedic situation that fits in with the ideal we have for each character following the main feature. Producers often create shorts like this because they want to prolong the characters and situations they get into.

For The Bird is Pixar's child friendly way of demonstrating the segregation that humans suffer every day due to racial differences, which in this case is demonstrated by different bird species. It teaches young children the value that by excluding someone for their race comes back as karma - "What Goes Around Comes Back Around". Pixar often add their interpretation of adult situations to transmit to children norms, value and ideals that are widely shared in society. 

Telling The Whole Story

For the majority of stories, the plot follows Todorov's narrative stages. This is no different in short films, the only difference being the story has to be told in a more limited amount of time, no longer than 40 minutes, compared to a feature film which on average lasts 2 hours.

Todorov's Narrative Stages:

Equilibrium- The setting is established, key characters are introduced and a storyline is set up.

Disruption- Oppositional characters appear and the story takes a turn.

Recognition of Disruption- The lives of characters and events are interwoven. Tension builds through out these particular scenes, which often take up a large part if the film.

Attempt to Repair- The highest point of tension which once resolved there is change in dynamic.

Reinstatement of Equilibrium- Matters are resolved, problems are solved and questions are answered.

The difficulty with telling the story in short films is introducing a character, their personality and their place in society within the space of a few minutes, as well as introducing other characters and relationships between them. Also because of the limited time the point of disruption is often immediate, which when script writing can cause some script-writers to waffle fictitious events from unrecorded and unscripted events.

However, the benefit of limited time is that it enables the script-writer to get to the core of the character cutting out unnecessary babble which feature films often include. It also benefits the audience because it allows them to a grasp straight away who the character is and their position in the story.

Not only is the story usually told by using Todorov's theory, but through mise-en-scene. The positioning of characters and their facial expressions expresses hidden emotions and can give an insight to following actions. Attitudes can also be transcribed through clothing; for example if a young male is dressed in baggy, informal attire then they are unlikely to have an uptight, snobby personality compared to middle aged woman wearing a tailored skirt suit. 

Experimenting With PhotoShop

Having very little experience with PhotoShop, so gaining help through a practical in class workshop was well appreciated. Since several workshops I am now able to strip the colour away from an existing film poster and paint colour with the use of masks and layers.


My first piece of PhotoShop was created along the brief of creating a species made from natural resources e.g leaves, twigs, mushrooms. I not only enlarged and decreased the size of each component, but I also used colour to contrast and add personality.

Welcome To My A2 Media Blog

For my A2 course, I will be creating and exhibiting a short film from a chosen genre of choice. On this blog I will be displaying my research and planning that will teach me the ways of creating an effective short film.

What is a short film?

According to the Academy of Motion Pictures (otherwise known to non-film buffs as the the Oscars) a short film is a motion picture that has a running time of 40 mintues or less; including credits.

The majority of people make short films because they neither have access to good equipment nor the correct experience. This mirrors how it was during the early days of cinema.
In the early 1920s, films by Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy, animations by Max Fleisher and Walt Disney; proved very popular and often attracted bigger audiences than the features they accompanied.

Charlie Chaplin Short Film -
















Animated Walt Dinsey Short Film -














Laurel & Hardy Short Film -