Audience

What do we mean when we use the word 'film'?
Film is technically the material fed through older cameras which would enable visuals to be recorded or photographs to be taken.




Do you think it means the same as the word 'movie'?
Although movies can also be referred to as films (typically older movies), movies are what film creates. A movie is a series of moving images with characters and a narrative and plot.




And what about the word 'cinema'?
Cinema can refer to the entire industry of film, but also to the theatre in which movies are shown to an audience.







Top 10 films
10 Things I Hate About You
Amelie
Grease
Juno
Vi är bäst! (We are the best!)
St Trinians
Submarine
Pan's Labyrinth
Donnie Darko
Big Hero 6

Narrative

Narrative - The retelling of a story

Barthes' Codes- Significant items and objects.
Stated that texts may be open: "Text is like a tangled ball of threads... needs unravelling so we can separate out the colours."
Example - enigma code
What are key characters showing (who, what, why, where?)

Aristotle - A famous Greek philosopher. He stated that all stories need a beginning, middle and end, and created a template for this.

Todorov - theorized that each narrative passed five stages:
Equilibrium - the state of normality.
Disruption of equilibrium - a character or action or action which disrupts the state of normality.
Main protagonist recognises that the equilibrium has been disrupted.
Restoration of equilibrium- The protagonist attempts to restore the equilibrium.
New equilibrium - Equilibrium is restored, but transformations and changes have occurred from the original equilibrium.

Propp
- All narratives have a common structure
- Shaped by characters

Levi-Strauss
- good narrative is caused by opposites (binary opposites such as male/female, good/evil)

Up narrative:
Significant items/signs-Clouds, mailbox, picnic basket

Production Logo

This is my production logo to put at the start of my films. I chose this image as I find the purple tones and pixelated artwork aesthetically pleasing, and it went with the name "Pixeltown Productions".

Boyz in the Hood - Analysis

Boyz in the Hood analysis

Camera
Frame- The camera uses a long shot in the opening scene which shows the run down state of the neighborhood the film is set in.
Angles- The camera remains at the level of the children, with them in the centre, showing they are the important subjects and the focus of the scene.
Movement- Through most of the scene focusing on the children, the camera follows them with a camera on a tripod (e.g. not hand held, so smooth movement)

Mise en Scene
Costume- The costumes for every actor are stereotypical 90s American clothing (bright colours and double denim), which is accurate as it was filmed and set in the late 1990s.
Lighting- Natural lighting is used throughout the opening of Boyz in the Hood.
Actors- Young actors are primarily used, to show the contrast between the innocence they should have would it not be for the fact that they are discussing shootings, murder and using profanity.
Makeup- No makeup on the children as realistically they would not be wearing makeup in real life, however the teacher and mother appear to be wearing light makeup.
Props- The children have school bags and lunchboxes, and the main young boy has a pencil which he is drawing with in class.
Setting- Neighborhood streets, a school classroom and a family home.

Sound
Music- Synthesized sounds are added here and there, alongside low, minor key strings when the children see what is presumably a crime scene.
Onscreen/offscreen- Offscreen, some dialogue can be heard between two presumably black males who seem to be planning some kind of attack - then shooting can be heard. After that, the voice of a young boy cries "They shot my brother, they shot my brother!"
Voiceover- There is no voiceover
Dialogue- The offscreen dialogue consisted of two males muttering about how they were going to "get" someone, then a young boy crying "they shot my brother, they shot my brother". Dialogue followed between the four children, the teacher and the main boy, and the teacher and his mother.

Editing
Screentime- The children have the most screen time throughout the opening, which adds to the juxtaposition of the film being about gang violence next to the children who should be innocent and not exposed to this type of crime.
Transitions- The image of old blood on the floor fades into the children's drawings of death and crime scenes, which is likely intended as disturbing imagery. Other shots simply switch from one to the otherwith no fade effect.
Order of narrative- Firstly the blank screen with factual text on it is shown, stating that: "One out of every twenty-one Black American males will be murdered in their lifetime... Most will die at the hands of another Black male".
We are then shown four children walking to school, who stop along the way to explore a crime scene.
The film moves on to a classroom scene, where a fight breaks out between two of the boys, which ends in a scene where one of their mothers is called.
Pace- The pace for this opening is fairly slow and calm, however, this changes once the two young boys start fighting. The angles and shots begin to change more frequently, making the pace faster.
Special effects- There are no obvious special effects used in this film opening.

Representation

Representation is the way in which people, events and ideas are portrayed to an audience - the media uses representation in a way so they often stereotype people, leading the audience to possibly become comfortable/lazy with the image that has been created and use this representation as a stereotype.

The two types of stereotyping are:
Archetypes - The most extreme stereotype possible (for example, a French man named Felippe who wears a string of onions and a beret).
Counterypes - Something that goes against the stereotype (for example, a French man named Greg who hates onions and only wears a fedora)

The film "Mean Girls" is a good example of stereotyping - the students are sorted into (direct quote): "Preps, J.V Jocks, Asian Nerds, Cool Asians, Varsity Jocks, Unfriendly Black Hotties... Desperate Wannabes, Burnouts...the Plastics".

Each clique is only shown for a couple of seconds, however we can easily establish who is who just by seeing them for that short amount of time. For instance, the Burnouts are slouched over and giggly, as though high (which is clearly implied by their given clique name), and the Plastics are sitting upright, dressed in light colours and looking pristine and pretty, and very separated from the other cliques.
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Semiotics

This poster shows a smiling young woman in a halo of warm yellow light above a French café on a cobbled street. Below this is the film title, which translated from French says: 'The Fabulous Destiny of Amelie Poulain'. Other text on the poster includes the name of the director, acting credits and the names of the two main actors.
When looking at this poster, it is obvious that the main character of the film is the young woman in the foreground. The warm toned colours such as the dark orange-red she is wearing and the yellow circle surrounding her insinuate that she is a warm and friendly person. Another interesting point is that the café below her shares the same colours, making it appear a warm and inviting place. The fact that it is also 1. The only open place on the street and 2. Full of colour in a grey-blue street draws more attention to it.

Film edit practice

In order to get a little more comfortable using the software Adobe Premiere, we each had to create a clip around 30 seconds long using footage of dancing animals and clips from James Bond movies.

For my Dancing Animals clip, I used a range of footage available in order to make it fit in with my song of choice, which was "Freaking Out The Neighborhood" by Mac DeMarco.
This song has an upbeat, summery vibe, which I felt went well with the opening shot of the animals break dancing. I also used a shot of a shark driving in a car, and used this entire shot instead of trimming it down, as I liked how it went with the beat of the song.
I then found a few clips of time-lapses in cities, and used a warp effect on one to go with a certain part of the song where the guitar does a little riff.
I especially liked the city shots, as the bright colors and low quality added to the summery 80s vibe of the song.
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The second clip I made was of various James Bond scenes edited together. I used the James Bond theme as music as it obviously suited the clips, and pieced the clips together accordingly, using fast paced clips where the music got more intense and slower clips when it sounded calmer. For example, I used a clip of a woman coming out of the sea and slowed it down in order to match the speed of the music. I also tested out many effects in order to get used to using them, and decided on using the Solarize effect over the same clip of the lady, as I liked how it made everything appear flatter and more 2D, whilst also making the scene more colourful.

DISTINCT Film Opening Analysis - Clueless

Clueless – Film Opening DISTINCT Analysis

Describe: The opening scenes show snippets of the main character Cher’s everyday life, which involves shopping with friends, hanging out at a pool party, choosing a fashionable outfit for school and a minor (but comedic) argument with her father. The last scene of the opening shows Cher picking up her friend Dionne in her Jeep on their way to school.

In detail: From the opening, we can straight away tell that Cher is rich and popular, from the expensive looking outfits she wears and buys in the first thirty seconds and all the friends she is surrounded by. She also appears to be the ringleader judging by how all the people are mainly gravitating towards her. She is also the driver of the group.

The next scene shows Cher choosing an outfit, which would be a simple task if not for the futuristic (at the time) computer which is dedicated to choosing matching clothes for her. The slight ridiculousness of having a computer choose outfits for you contributes to the comedic genre of the film. Other comedic elements are provided by the next scene, which shows their maid running in the opposite direction from Cher’s father because she is so scared of him and then Cher bickering with her father over a glass of orange juice.

Setting (locations):

Street of shops

Pool party

A bar

Driving down a motorway in Cher’s Jeep

Cher’s bedroom

Cher’s staircase and kitchen

Dionne’s house

Themes: Themes of this opening clip include teen life, shopping, family life and friendship.

Icons: Icons include Cher’s Jeep, her iconic yellow check outfit, and Dionne’s hats.

Narrative: At first, there are simple snippets of Cher’s life, including pool parties and shopping trips with her friends. They are also seen at a bar flirting with the bartender.

The chronological scenes start with Cher waking up and choosing her outfit for the day on her computer, which matches her yellow check outfit. She then goes downstairs to her father, who is described as so powerful and possibly scary that their maid, Lucy, is terrified of him. However, he is shown to be a normal father to Cher, bickering with her slightly before going to work after refusing the glass of orange juice she pesters him with, saying he needs his vitamin C.

Next, Cher is shown driving to school in her Jeep, swerving in the road and knocking plant pots over, as she does not yet have her licence. She then picks up her best friend Dionne and the two drive to school.

Character: Cher is a straight, Caucasian, blonde, teenage girl who seems to be around 16 years old and is very upper class (her father earns $500 an hour) and popular. She is confident and happy, if a little dim at times (her driving skills are abysmal).

Textual analysis: The camera uses lots of fast, swerving scenes while Cher is partying with her friends to indicate how hectic Cher’s life is socially, and stable takes for when she is home. The colouring for all scenes is bright and accentuates the gaudy costumes. Some parts, for example when she is shopping, have been slowed down and pause slightly, almost like snapshots of her life.

CLAMPS: The costumes in this clip are shown to be exaggerated and gaudy, but still closely based on the typical ‘valley-girl’ fashion of the nineties – everything is upmarket, clean cut and brightly coloured. The lighting for all scenes is bright, indicating that the film itself is a light-hearted one. The makeup on everyone is light and particularly on Cher, with just some lip gloss and mascara, provides a youthful and glowing effect.

Props include shopping bags, the glass of orange juice, nail polish and beach balls (the pool scene).

Sound: The song used in this clip is ‘Kids in America’ by Kim Wilde. It provides an upbeat soundtrack to the playful and cheery scenes shown of Cher’s life, and insinuates that Cher and her friends are stereotypical all-American young adults, clean cut and energetic.

The dialogue is mostly a voiceover from Cher, telling the audience how her life is really quite normal, about her father, and later on her Jeep and friend Dionne. She also has a short conversation with her father regarding orange juice, her grandparents and her step-brother, Josh.

DISTINCT Film Opening Analysis - Guardians of the Galaxy

Guardians of the Galaxy Film Opening – DISTINCT Analysis

Describe (In detail): A futuristic looking man is shown dancing through a watery cave, listening to music and occasionally kicking a dinosaur-like creature. He is shown to be listening to music through a Walkman, which is odd as the film is set in the future. As he dances throughout the cave, he occasionally kicks a creature out of his way, using one as a pretend microphone at one point.

Setting: This clip is set entirely in a dark rock cave, which has tiny ponds inside. It is also inhabited by dinosaur-like creatures.

Themes: Themes of this clip include music, loneliness and exploration.

Icons: Icons in this clip include the man’s Sony Walkman and headphones, and the jet boots he uses to project himself over a gap in the rocks.

Narrative: The man slowly puts on his Walkman and headphones, then sets off dancing throughout the cave and kicking into the water. He then kicks two creatures out of the way, and uses one as a pretend microphone.

The man continues to dance and spin throughout the cave, pausing only to activate jet pack boots which allow him to cross from one rock to another. After passing through a door, he holds a glowing sphere up to some sort of screen, then sets it down on the floor.

Character: The character is a Caucasian male who seems to be fairly young, and appears comfortable with his surroundings, leading us to believe he is familiar with this place. He seems playful and particularly fond of dancing, not taking himself very seriously.

Textual: The camera mostly uses wide shots of the man, perhaps to emphasise how he is all alone. The shots are smooth rather than juddering (which would come from a hand-held camera), so we can tell that this scene is supposed to be calm and not too serious.

CLAMPS: The main character is wearing a long, worn, leather jacket, with gloves, trousers, heavy boots and a satchel.

Although the cave in which the clip is set is dark, the lighting itself has fairly warm tones, giving the scene a friendlier atmosphere than if the lighting were in cool tones or grayscale.

Props in this clip include a Walkman and headphones, jet-pack boots and a glowing sphere.

Sound: The only audio in this clip is a pop/reggae song, which further enhances the playful and upbeat vibe of the clip.

DISTINCT Film Opening Analysis - What Lies Beneath

What Lies Beneath Film Opening – DISTINCT Analysis

Describe (In detail): A woman alone in her apartment senses something from her bathroom and appears to be disturbed by a supernatural force. After checking the bathtub, an eerie message appears on the mirror. When she retreats to her computer, something is typing repeated words onto the screen.

Setting: This clip is set in a very rudimentary apartment, going from the living room to the bathroom. The entire apartment is painted in dull grey tones, giving it a dark and creepy atmosphere.

Themes: Themes shown in this clip include isolation, fear, confusion and the supernatural.

Icons: Icons shown in this clip could be the bathtub and misted-over mirror, as they both provide elements of suspense and horror to the plot due to the main character checking them, and then seeing the threatening message written into the steam on the mirror. Another icon is the lamp, as it lights up the steam coming from the bathroom, letting the main character know that someone has been in there recently.

Narrative: After coming out from the doorway of her bedroom and making her way into the living room, the main character spots steam rising over a lampshade, which is coming from her bathroom. Entering the bathroom, she checks the mirror, which is steamed over, then the bath – which, although it has water in it, is empty. Upon checking the mirror for the second time, she finds the message ‘YOU KNOW’ written into the steam, by someone other than her.

When she runs to her computer, she finds that someone or something is typing three repeated letters into the keyboard.

Character: The main character is a Caucasian woman who appears to be in her thirties or forties, and seems relaxed until noticing the steam coming from the bathroom. Her demeanour then changes and she seems agitated and fearful

Textual: The camera shots are wide and smooth, and mainly follow the main character where she walks.

CLAMPS: The main character is wearing very plain clothes – a grey, long sleeved shirt and black trousers, adding to the bleak atmosphere. Another addition to the dreariness is the cool-toned and slightly faded lighting, which makes the whole clip seem shadowed and grey.

Sound: The whole clip is extremely quiet, a technique to build suspense – however, when the main character spots the message in the mirror she cries ‘What do you WANT?’, and a loud burst of atonal string music is heard, interrupting the silence. The music builds and continues as she runs to her computer and sees the letters being typed.

Genre Analysis

Seasonal

We decided to show seasonal with an Autumnal theme rather
than the stereotypical Christmas theme - however, showing boots surrounded by dry leaves hints at Autumn leading into Winter, which leaves a wide scope for imagination at the time period of the (theoretical) film.
The warm, reddish-brown colour of the leaves, and lighter background colours show that this film would be cosy and light-hearted.

Sports

For our sport themed film, we decided to use a minimalistic image of a single basketball in an empty gym, focussing the camera and leaving the background blurred. This ensures that the ball is the main focus point, which is also solidified by the bright red hue of the ball. The eye-catching, neon red also insinuates that there could be an element of excitement and danger in the film - alongside the minimalistic approach we took to the image, this ensures the viewer's attention has been snagged and is left wondering about the film's plot.

 

Our minimalistic theme carried on to this image, which shows some children's books propped up near a sign that says 'Family Story'. This shows that this photo would be of the family friendly genre and very PG so children would be able to watch it.

Film Opening

The film 'Clueless' is a teen and cult classic, iconic for its portrayal of the life of a stereotypical 'valley-girl' Cher, highlighting particular aspects such as her hectic social life, turbulent love life and of course, showing a more psychedelic and exaggerated version of high-end 90s fashion. 'Clueless' is a film that despite being a glitzy caricature of everyday life as a teenage girl, remains relatable for those growing up in the nineties and appeals to modern teens with its portrayals of different cliques and adolescent struggles.