film genre choice

for our film, we have decided to do a thriller because it is a serious film and we can have a variety of camera angles, and we wanted a chase scene and this genre fits the opening. we decided that there will be two officers chasing a criminal, and this could only work in the thriller. we have a lot of different camera angles in the chase, and they would not really be suitable in a comedy, so we are using them in the thriller instead. we also looked at other chase scenes, such as James bond and taken, and almost all of them are parts of thrillers as well. this made us decide to choose a thriller, and we now have the story and the camera angles set out.

group planning

we have decided to have our film opening as a chase scene, and we decided this because we don't need any dialogue in a chase scene, and we can have a lot of camera angles so it will be very diverse. we have been looking at other chase scenes to see ideas, and have taken some of the camera angles and have placed it in our film. we all decided that we would film it on the Wirral way as it is a very large area and has a lot of different areas where we can film, so the scene does not feel as though it is the same area being filmed. we have decided on having the story being two police officers chasing a criminal, and it ending with a dramatic showdown. for this we have decided on two suits for the police and a hoodie for the criminal. we will also have two guns for the two officers. we have also decided that it will end on a cliff-hanger, as it is only the opening for the film and not the actual film. the credits will be all the way through and will be incorporated into the film.

storyboard

here are our 3 storyboards that we did, before deciding that the third one was the best,  because it was firstly the most detailed, and also because this storyboard seemed engaging and interesting.

we didn't use this story as it wasn't very detailed and was not that interesting.

we didn't use this storyboard either because although its interesting and detailed, we thought the ending was quite boring

we used this one because it is  engaging, interesting and detailed, and the ending is suspenseful. it is also more suitable for are idea as it has a lot more diverse camera angles.

in what ways is avengers: age of ultron a typical hollywood film?

since all Hollywood films made have a large budget and are made by generally well known directors, they are almost always similar in at least one aspect. avengers: age of ultron is no different, and shares many qualities with other Hollywood films.

firstly, it is not the first film in the franchise, so it does not have to introduce the characters and have backstories, and instead quickly goes into the actual film. it also has a lot of well known characters in the film playing characters, such as Samuel Jackson, Scarlett Johansson and Robert Downey jr, whereas a independently made superhero film, such as kick-ass, tends to have less well-known actors. this is used as to make people watch the film, as they are more familiar with the actors and so they are more likely to see the film.

secondly, the use of CGI and special effects in the film is also a typical Hollywood feature, as the production company has a larger budget and therefore they can use more of the money on the effects, while films made by independent companies will tend to have less CGI and special effects, as they have less money to begin with. most marvel productions use CGI and special effects as they are needed in there films, as they are usually about superheroes, and so will need it to make the film look more believable, but there are still exceptions, such as the marvel TV series daredevil, which uses very little CGI and special effects.

another way that avengers is a typical Hollywood film is the plot. in many Hollywood action films, there is the general plot of the heroes fighting and losing, and then them fighting again and winning. this used in most films, but there are exceptions to this, such as the dark knight where two-face dies and batman goes into hiding as people believe that he killed him, instead of telling people that he turned evil.

lastly, it also has a large amount of editing in the film, which is very typical of Hollywood action films. it uses a lot of match on action and a lot of different shots to make the fight scene feel a lot more complex and interesting, but independent film companies usually use a lot less match on action shots as it is more expensive and more time consuming

preliminary task video

this is our preliminary task final video, but for some reason it has no sound and it has the end missing, but it can still be marked.

age representation

In the video extract from Warterloo road, the students are portrayed as being terrified and panicking. This is shown as most of the students in the school are all screaming and running towards the exits in large groups. However a few of the students are shown as being very capable, for example the young girl who was trapped in the bathroom shown tremendous initiative by attempting to block up the cracks of the smoke leaking door with dam, wet paper tissues. There is also the other student who bravely attempts to rescue the trapped girl. This shows bravery and that they are not all selfish and careless.  

The teachers are shown as being very authoritative and calm. They are ensuring that all the students are leaving in an organised and calm fashion. They show great responsibility and a duty of care. This is evident as we see them bravely go back into the burning building to make sure that all pupils have gotten out.

We can see that there is clearly an informal hierarchy as the older teacher regularly instructs the other teachers on what to do at all time. This is shown when the young female teacher approaches the old male teacher asking what’s going on and what to do. He replies and gives her instructions on what to do.

production planning: filming locations

for our production, we will need to film in a location and when we do we must consider things such as light, space and availability. since our production is likely to be outside, we must consider a number of different locations to use.







bidston woods: this is a suitable as it is a large, open space and it has natural light, and not many people go into the woods and so we could filming there without many  people coming. it will also be suitable as it can have a lot of different shots available.









Birkenhead park: this is also suitable as it is a very large space, and it has a lot of  different parts of the park to film in, and we also don't need to worry about lighting. however since a lot of people go to Birkenhead park, it will be hard to film without people getting in the way





lingham park: this is also a suitable location as it is a large, open park, and it also has an alley suitable for our film, and it is not that busy so there will be people getting in the way. it also has a lot of space for different shots. it also has natural light.







we may also film on the Wirral way because it is suitable for a chase scene as it has a lot of different features which will allow the setting to look more interesting and it will also allow a lot of different camera angles.

planning for actual production

now that we have done our preliminary task, we are now moving onto the actual film production.




genre: we are thinking of  doing a comedy/thriller film about a cop who is killed ands then his partner vows to avenge him, or if not then a thriller, a chase scene in which two cops are chasing a criminal








setting: we will be filming in a large space, such as Birkenhead park or bidston woods, as it has a large, open space which will have a lot of options for shots and camera angles. it is also suitable for a chase scene or a thriller scene.









costume: we will have a hoodie for the villain, and two suits for the policemen







props: we will be using a gun for the killer, and will also use doughnuts for the comedy









lighting: we will be filming during the day, and so we will no need any lighting equipment








sound: we will have a narrator, will have talking, and then music during the credits if it is a comedy, but if it is a thriller then we will probably not have any talking, but will have music for the opening

preliminary planning self reflection

recently we did our preliminary task film, and now we are doing the self evaluation, to see what we did well and what we didn't.


what went well?

• we all worked well together and didn't argue
• we didn't do a lot of stuff wrong, so we finished filming quite quickly
• we came up with the rule of waiting three seconds until starting, which allowed us all to get ready at the same time
• we used a large variety of shots to make the thing more interesting

what didn't go well?

• we couldn't use the equipment very well in the beginning, and this slowed down filming
• I messed up one of my lines so it doesn't sound as well in the film
• me and callum kept on laughing so it took longer to finish the film
• we kept on getting the timing of the filming wrong, so we would start too early or too late

what can we do to improve?

• to improve we can get a better understanding of the equipment we will be using
• we can also get a better script instead of just making it up
• do a better storyboard so that we all know what we're doing

   

stereotype representations in TV

there are many stereotypes in TV, such as the handsome man being the villain, or the female lover being kidnapped. some shows, however, use countertypes in their shows, reversing the roles.


in game of thrones, the handsome knight, Jaime lannister, is shown as being very good at fighting and being very attractive, so you would expect him to be the good guy, but instead he is evil, having pushed a kid from a building and killing many innocent people.



Arya stark is another who you would not expect to  be the way she is, s she is a young girl you would expect her to be very polite, wear fancy dresses and enjoy playing with dolls, but instead she likes getting muddy, wearing very dirty and ugly clothes, and practises sword fighting.



it does also have stereotypes though such as the queen cersei lannister,, who is evil and is only looking out for herself, and tries to kill a lot of good people so she can get what she wants. she also has a very intimate relationship with her brother, showing how evil she is. it is also very stereotypical as it has her as the loving mother who will do anything for her children, even kill people.

another character who is quite stereotypical is sansa stark, a teenage lady who is quite self obsessed, and talks about knights that she loves, and about dresses that she wears, and loves to be treated like royalty.

gender representation in music videos

in media, genders are represented differently to normal life. for example, men are more likely to be displayed as being the main focus, such as in a music video they will more likely to be playing the instruments or singing, while the women will more likely be dancing or adoring the man. also, men in music videos are more likely to be dominant and aggressive, while the women are more likely to be very passive and be submissive. they often have gender specific roles, such as a male being a fire-fighter and a female being a cheerleader. women are also likely to act in a more sexual behaviour, act more provocative and are more likely to be sexual objects, while the men will be very central. women are usually in music videos just so they can be seen, and are not needed in the actual song. women are also used solely for the male gaze, so more men will watch it. many people are against the use of women in this way, and they are feminist, while others support omen doing this, and are pro-feminist.

In this music video, Anaconda, the women in the video, including the singer, Nicki Minaj, are all wearing very revealing and form fitting clothes, which feminists would say is being used to show the women off in a sexual manner for the male gaze, while pro-feminists would say they chose to wear this outfit so they could feel attractive and beautiful. The women are also dancing in a very sexual manner, and are often showing various parts of the body off to the viewers. Feminists would say that the women are doing this so that the men will want to watch the video so it can sell  more, while pro-feminists would say that they are dong this to feel very attractive and to show that they have power over the viewer.

surveymonkey surveys

I decided to test my survey by making I online on a website called surveymonkey, which allows you to create a free account and then make surveys about whatever you want. I made two different surveys, the first one a simple one, asking what your gender and age was, and what your favourite genre of film was.


https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/R6DKJHC




the second one I made was more related to the action genre, and I asked people to rate the marvel cinematic universe films, using a scale of 1-11, one being terrible and eleven being absolutely amazing. I also included an N/A tick box, in case anyone had not watched a certain film, so that way it includes all options.


https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/5HRS89F

this is the graph from surveymonkey that shows people's preferred genre.

survey

in class we did a survey to look at the different people who watch films and which age range watch which films and which gender watch which film. this is good as it allows film makers to match the film to the right audience and age group, so they can advertise more effectively. here is my survey, which is simple but could be effective.

these graphs are useful as they can show the info needed and can clearly show what is most popular and what is most viewed and what is least popular, and this is a lot easier to show data than just looking at numbers.

  

surveys are useful because they allow people to answer questions related to their studies, such as a supermarket asking its customers about their shopping. it allows companies to find out what people find desirable about their company and what they don't like so they can make it better. surveys are also useful because they can be filled out either on paper or online, so if people don't have the time to while working or are busy at the time, then they can go home and they can do it online. I also did this survey online, so people can fill it in whenever they want.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/R6DKJHC

storyboard and shot prompt

here is my storyboard and shot prompt that  I have done for the preliminary planning, showing the different camera angles and the shots.

 

this is the shot prompt, showing the different shots I will be using and a description of what it will show. this allows people who don't have an idea of the intended camera shots, they can still shoot the scenes.

this is the storyboard, and it shows the story and how it will be seen, with the different shots in each scene. this allows the people who look at it to get an idea of the shots used in sequence

Representations

                               Representations


in society, both modern and old, we have always had representations of certain races, sexuality, and disabilities, and they are often stereotypical, especially in media. because of this, we expect certain things of certain people, and the characters are usually conventional or subversive, meaning they are either what we expect them to be, or they are the opposite of what we expect.
                 

age: in media, young people, such as adolescents are usually portrayed as quite rude and uncaring, are quite self obsessed, and are all about technology and social media. this is the stereotypical view of teenagers, but in most cases is not true. old people in media are often portrayed as quite weak characters, who are usually ignored by the general community as they are useless, this is shown in shows such as coronation street. then there is the young adult age group, which is shown as immature and reckless, and are often troublemakers, such as in university and in clubs and parties.  this is usually false, and they are usually hardworking and eager to get a job. Then there is the middle aged group, which is usually the most accurately portrayed, but they still portray them as being quite boring.                                                    

gender: in media, males are often portrayed as being strong and important, and the woman is just there to be rescued in films. the males are also shown as being superior to women, and the women should follow the  men. what they wear is also important as men normally wear normal clothing, while women are often shown as wearing revealing clothing.








race: in media, white superiority is often shown,  and the minorities are often shown as being inferior, but they do sometimes show the white minority. they show the minority as being inferior, and show the majority as being more successful and important. they often show black people as being very gangster and wearing hoodies.













disability: in media, people with disabilities are often portrayed in different ways. most of the time they are portrayed as the victims, and shown as being weak and needing help. other times they are portrayed as being villains, for example the joker, and they are shown as heroes on rare occasions, such as daredevil. 







socio-economical: in media, people who are in the lower classes are generally shown as living in poorer areas of their town and as being quite rough and mean, while those in the higher classes are shown as being posh but quite snobby and selfish 

nationality: in media, people who are from the country the media is based in are usually superior, while those from other countries are usually inferior and are often portrayed as villains. those from other countries are often shown as being untrustworthy and being suspicious.

sexuality: in media, people who are gay tend to be very intimate and open and are always dressed nicely and are very feminine, but in reality they are normally the same as normal people.

lesbians are also portrayed as very masculine, and are also very open about their relationship.




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movie intros

                                                       movie intros

movie intros are important as they have to captivate the person watching the film, and make them feel they want to watch more. if a film does not do this, then the person will feel less inclined to watch the film to the end, and will think the movie is bad. therefore, the film must be engaging, and fulfil the viewers expectations in the first few minutes.

 

in this opening scene from x-men, days of future past, the mutants are fighting the sentinels that are attempting to kill them, and as the battle goes on, more and more mutants die, and it ends with the place becoming deserted. I think the scene is very effective, as it is an engaging action scene which many viewers will find entertaining it also sets the tone of the film, with it being quite a ark film, as it involves robots attempting to kill all mutants, and you see some murdered. it is also surprising, as you would not expect to see the heroes die in the first scene of the film, so it is different from other openings, in which the hero saves the day. the opening is also effective because many people would be wondering what happened to all the people, and why they suddenly disappeared, and so will want to watch on.

 

this opening theme from the hobbit: an unexpected journey is effective, as it opens up with the backstory of one of the main characters, who we will meet later on in the film, and it shows us why how erebor is taken by smaug, and why he dwarves are so intent on taking it back. the scene is also effective sit includes action of the dragon fighting the dwarves, and it will entertain viewers. the film also makes you want to watch on, so you can see what happens to the dwarves, and if they will reclaim erebor.

this opening scene  from iron man 2 is effective as it starts off with tony stark in the iron man suit, jumping out of a plane, with rock music playing behind him, which makes it feel as though he is about to go into battle, but then fireworks set off in the sky, and this makes it feel more like a celebration. he then lands, and there is an audience cheering for him as his suit is taken off, which is good as it makes people wonder what's going on, and why he's worn his suit to a party.  then his suit is taken off to reveal he's wearing  tuxedo which  is funny, and then he waves to people while the song ends the music is also effective as it has an iron man feel to it.

ABC1 table

                             ABC1 table



in order to sell items to the right class of people, marketing have used ABC1 tables to separate people into classes depending on the money they have available to spend on luxury items. this is so companies, such as aldi and asda, can promote essential items, such as bread and ham, to people who are in the D and E category. they do this by placing adverts in sources that people are more likely to read free magazines, while the ABC group will read more expensive newspapers, like the times or the guardian. also, the lower groups will  be more likely to watch kid friendly films as the whole family can go, while higher up groups will go to watch more real films, as it doesn't relate to them as much as the poorer people. film marketers use this effectively as it allows them to get the most information about their film to those who are most likely to watch it, and can spend less money trying to advertise to those who will most likely not watch it. a good example of this is realism films, because people in the A and B zone would be more likely to watch it, because it doesn't relate to their life, so they will enjoy it, whereas those in the lower zones will be more likely to watch fantasied films because its not as relatable to their life. the films also show the hero winning, and lower zone people would like that.

PoV/ over the shoulder shot

PoV:  PoV shots are used to show the audience the view of the character or the object. this is good as it makes you feel that you and the character/ object are relatable to you. it also makes the shot feel more dynamic and interesting.



over the shoulder shot: over the shoulder shots are used to show a character/ object or setting from over the shoulder of a character. this shot is mainly used in conversations, to show another character talking, but it  also allows you to feel in the place of the character.

   

shot reverse shot

shot reverse shot:  shot reverse shot is the use of two cameras to shift quickly from looking at one character to another. this is normally used in conversation, as it allows you to cut from one characters face to another, and it allows you to see their face while talking. this is good as it allows the shots to feel more character based.

 

in this scene from the hunger games, a shot reverse shot is used to show each character's face when they're talking. this also allows you to focus on both the characters and see the expressions they are showing

match on action

match on action:  match on action is a long series of shots that are all edited together to give the impression of one scene, from different points of view. the shots don't need to be filmed at the same time, but can be all edited together to give the appearance of it all being the same setting at the same time. this type of shot is used a lot in action films, as it makes it seem more dynamic and fast paced.

  in this scene from kick-ass, the fight is shot with lots of different angles and shots to make it feel very fast and exciting. it is also useful as it is in an enclosed space and so this allows the scene to feel bigger, even though it is in a small space.