Setting Idea

Dan, Just too let you know there is is a ally and some open space near my house which would be a good setting for our opening and should be easy to film! But is just an idea so just let me know what you think and any idea you may have!

Styles of flims (western and eastern hollywood)

Me and Ian have thought of diferent but alos its about which type of media we are going to use east or west hollywood, with this we can loook at backgrounds of film editing and find more ideas and examples in our progress of our project.

East Hollywood: East Hollywood is a community that forms the eastern portion of the Hollywood district in the City of Los Angeles, California.

Is part of "Hollywood East" of Western Avenue and north of the 101 Hollywood Freeway. The northern border is Hollywood Boulevard, and the eastern boundary is North Hoover Street. This includes the smaller communities of Thai Town, Virgil Village, and Little Armenia, and borders Los Feliz and Silver Lake, about 4 miles from Downtown Los Angeles.


Looking at the place of east Hollywood e.g. the lifestyle and society background we found this:

"The area has an exceptionally diverse population, both in terms of ethnicity and income. While some parts of the district still suffer from the usual inner city problems, residential areas to the east - especially to the north of Melrose Ave and east of Alexandria - are predominantly filled with well kept middle class houses and this is reflected in the high property prices compared to the rest of the district. The 90029 zip code had a median house price of $925,000 in 2007, almost double the $550,000 Los Angeles County average".

So looking at the research from eastern part i find it old and runned down and abit of a rough area which may affect the film products they produce, but looking at the film aspect we found out this and my and Ians views towards it:

Hollywood East takes your event out of the oh-so-familiar realm of "Grandma's Home Movie" and into the world of big time Entertainment Television! Their exceptional style painted an exhilirating and touching representation of the evening that was."
Hollywood East Video specializes in providing entertainment style professional Audio, Video & Still Photography production for Special Events, Broadcast TV, Corporate promotions, Music showcases/videos, and Web broadcasts.

http://www.hollywoodeastvideo.com/roll-video.html

Looking from these parts of roll video me and Ian found ideas of the quailty of the picture and the quailty of settings so with this eastern hollywood type we have found quailty in sound mise en scene (which I think is a good gander). Also its a another form of film making in different techinques and effects which if we generate ideas we could make our film more affective and successful =).

Western Hollywood:
Now looking at western and the culture we found this:
West Hollywood is bordered on the north by the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, on the east by the Hollywood District of Los Angeles, on the west by the city of Beverly Hills, and on the south by the Fairfax District of Los Angeles.

The unique, irregular border of the city, which is highlighted in the city logo, was largely formed from the unincorporated Los Angeles County area that had not become part of the surrounding cities.

West Hollywood benefits from a relatively dense, compact urban form with small lots, a mix of land uses, and a walkable street grid. Commercial corridors include the nightlife and dining focused Sunset Strip, a largely gay area along Santa Monica Boulevard, and the Avenues of Art & Design along Robertson, Melrose and Beverly near the Pacific Design Center.

Now looking into the outlook of this enviroment i think there's a more creative part as is in a urban type of place, as i do art urban places are covered art ideas and successful drawing or whatever ideas which i think may link to film coroperation in the same aspect. Also "belevery hills" is a very rich and famous place and is a big steorotype for a rich town, so looking at it in film they can afford affective techinques and resourses etc etc.

Me and Ian found out these:

Western Films or Westerns are the major defining genre of the American film industry, a nostaligic eulogy to the early days of the expansive, untamed American frontier (the borderline between civilization and the wilderness). They are one of the oldest, most enduring and flexible genres and one of the most characteristically American genres in their mythic origins. [The popularity of westerns has waxed and waned over the years. Their most prolific era was in the 1930s to the 1960s, and most recently in the 90s, there was a resurgence of the genre.

Looking into the flims that me and Ian research we also found these useful crackers:
Western Film Roots:

The roots of the film western are found in many disparate sources, often of literary origins:

•folk music of the colonial period

•James Fenimore Cooper's novels such as his 1826 story The Last of the Mohicans (re-made as a feature film at least three times - Clarence Brown's 1920 version, a 1932 version starring Harry Carey, and George Seitz' 1936 version with Randolph Scott, and most recently as the popular film The Last of the Mohicans (1992) starring Daniel Day Lewis as the heroic white frontiersman scout named Hawkeye, raised as a Mohican)

•Francis Parkman's The Oregon Trail (1849)

•Samuel Clemens' (Mark Twain) Roughing It (1872)

•Bret Harte's short stories

•dime novels about Western heroes

•Owen Wister's influential The Virginian, published in 1902, the first modern western novel

•prolific Zane Grey's (1875-1939) 60+ novels that inspired dozens of films, including his best-known western Riders of the Purple Sage (1918, 1925, 1931, 1941); also The Rainbow Trail (1918, 1925), George Seitz's The Vanishing American (1925) - the first film made in Monument Valley, Rangle River (1937), The Mysterious Rider (1933, 1938), Lone Star Ranger (1942), Nevada (1927, 1936, 1944), Western Union (1941), Gunfighters (1947), and Red Canyon (1949)

•other mythologies (tales of Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone, Jim Bowie, Gen. George A. Custer, Wild Bill Hickok, Buffalo Bill Cody, Calamity Jane, Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, Bat Masterson), and outlaws (such as the James Brothers, the original Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and Billy the Kid)

•screen cowboy Gene Autry's "Cowboy Code" (or Cowboy Commandments) written in the late 1940s - a collection of moralistic principles and values that cowboys reportedly live by, including such tenets as: the cowboy never shoots first or takes unfair advantage, always tells the truth, must help people in distress, and is a patriot.

So from this useful imformation we can see different type of directing and what is more successful and easy that me and Ian can work upon and achieve more in, I say the more styles we have the easier we can pick up on and go back on errors to sustain and keep the project flowing :),the more evidence and thing we investigate into the more better the final project is going to be.

Our film summary in 25 words. (25 pitch)

Streets of lutterworth, a normal day ... or is it? Smig has a briefcase, the only thing is people want it for a vengeance, but why?

Brainstorm of ideas for openings:

This topic involves me and Ian making an opening scene to a movie:

The genre that i chosen for my opening film is thirller / action. The reason why I've chosen this genre is because it's my most strongest outlook in film and i no what things are expected to be in action films as it tends to be my favourite genre. Plus its easier than some other genres I think and can generate a whole range of ideas that make it even more excititng and adventurous compared to other genres.

First we had to pick the people that we're working with, I pick my friend Ian and Adam the reason why is that he has the same interests as me and properly the same mind set and opinions towards a action film and what need to be included.

Then after i chosen my people to work with we looked at some opening clips and from them generated ideas from them of what we could include in our final project.

From these clips we came up with these ideas:

• What is needed in an opening movie sequence that involves?
  • Big bold title
  • Mise en scene for the type of genre
  • Camera angles, how many shots? (10-20)
  • What clothes for the character, what way should he act?
  • What the character emotions are and the he acts
  • The type of text in the title, font, size, colour, bold, Underlined
  • What editing in the camera we need to do, fade in, fade out, zoom in, and zoom out?
  • Maybe a logo to represent the film like maybe a army film or gangster film etc.
  • Slow motion effects, fighting, gun shot; point of view like someone is watching someone etc.
  • Sudden bursts of noise, silent to loud in an instant, short and snappy.
  • Colour of the background, black and white, bright and bold, colourful and loud.
  • Historical vengeance, Job reference?
  • Point of view with a question to answer, a target on a person?
  • Appropriate surrounding quiet, day, night, sunny, windy, rain, busy, lazy.
  • Where’s it set on a building / sniper. In a street/ cars, gangsters, knifes, guns. In a house: quiet, close combat, anger, scene and signs of historical vengeance / flashbacks.
  • Angle of guns the way they point to represent that they are the main aspect or the character.
  • Maybe sort 20 seconds of background life of the chararacter, family, causes – convicted – shot and left for dead – etc....
  • Is the dilemma set in the local environment or far away in a different country?
  • Maybe a rise of monsters vampires, demons, zombies, aliens and needs to be a very intimidating and big dilemma!
  • Maybe the main character could turn him into the dilemma and be the dilemma without knowing, quick twists.
  • Brief summary of the story and how characters link to each other.
  • An opening scene slowly getting bigger and building up tension of what it includes, e.g. a mystery box, graveyard, symbolic codes.
  • End of movie clip which leaves an enigma code to make the person want to find out what happens next.
  • Abstract clever backgrounds maybe e.g. cartoony, (Sin city) (Kill bill) (Crank)
  • Explosions, powerful and fast or slow moving enrolment and tells the tempo of what the film maybe like e.g. (Crank)
  • Over the top action scene, maybe compare it to real life and then to the main character e.g. James bond.
• Heavy music in backgorund maybe, add supension and makes the actions more powerful and affective.

So me and Ian have finally got some evidence of pin point ideas (thank god) with this we can look for any errors in our project and encounter and reduce or make the problem better =).

Openings to action films in different genre.

When me and Ian were thinking and moving on in our project we came up with the idea that we are now looking looking at the different backgrounds in the opening of films that relate to our genre (action).

The reason why we are researching this part is because then we can get a more clear image of what style of film we want if it involves various props, cars, type of clothes, backgrounds, effects, etc.....
We looked at trailers this time as it gives a more in depth position of the film and what it's about.






This clip is from one of my favourite movies Hot Fuzz. This runs under a comedy/action film in this clip i found some resoures that could make our opening suscessful, we found:

• There policemen, uniforms, enviroment that he's in.



• Could have a action scene pause and then snap back into action (action comic books e.g. "Pow" with dramamatic sounds.)



• Sponser straight away in a spin effect "Universal" and then working title after his discription "working title" makes film more professional.



• Discription of main character blended into various character and whats the dilemma and how he can overcome it.



• Action in a silent sppech of comedy to inflict more interestes and makes it more successful and affective and not just a typical action film. (1.10-1.14) (1.32-1.39) (1.50-1.58)



• Comedy speeches can inflict vilonce and action e.g. "three people have died in a week" ... "accidents happen all the time what makes you think it was murrrdderrr?"



• Police badge symbol code effective backgorund and colour that resembles the police society of today/ blue (1.15-1.17)



• 1.28-1.31 to points of view the actual murder and then a character that doesn't no about the murder (enigma and symbolic codes)



• Weapons symbol of power and also the way he has them is over the top action.



• "I'm gonna bust this thing wide open!" Straight forawrd action line.

Gladiator.

The reason why i've chosen gladitor is bescause its an action but in a different genre of action as it's medevil times so the speech and enviroment and life will be a different act to todays look. The weapons and styles of clothes will be different and the defintion of pride and love will be much more stronger as it's old times.

>Looking through this trailer we found these:

• 
  
  Straight away tells you the story of the film and whats it's about.


• 
  
  Bigs the main character up "He became a gladiator ....... THE gladiator"


• 
  
  Starts of with a powerful opening "The general" main man of fighting and protecting, links with the gladiator idea.


• 
  
  0.24 examples of different culture (Rome) and what they did back then.


• 
  
  0.30-0.34 shows the dilemma and situation that starts of the rivalry of the empire and gladiator, short and snappy.


• 
  
  Action skipping to main aspect on story skipping back in to action, shows the story and how the characters role and emotions throughout the whole film. Also it makes the film more intense and exciting to watch, fast acting movements.


• 
  
  0.48 change of colour affect, maybe useful.


• 
  
  Tension slows down for spilt second and asks a question (the little boy 0.48-0.50) and then slowly builds back up again from where he was to what he's become. Creates a powerful and interesting storyboard.


• 
  
  "Russell crow" name of actor and slow motion low shot of him, confetti made as an effect to show he's special and well known.


• 
  
  1.12-1.13 intense action a gladiator on a horse diving out of the fire, shows how intense and exciting the action is going to be. Straight after title of film, snaps audience back to attention of what the film is called so they go and watch it and also shows the ending of the opening.


• 
  
  Crowd roaring, clash of swords, shouting, thuds of feet from amour, strong and effective sounds to make a perfect action scene. Could do a quiet tension building up slowly straight into crowd roaring and sword clashing which they've done.

The matrix.

I've chosen the matrix because it is a futuristic sci-fi action film, so yet again a whole different range of action. The matrix describes a future in which reality perceived by humans is actually the Matrix: a simulated reality created by sentient machines in order to pacify and subdue the human population while their bodies' heat and electrical activity are used as an energy source. Upon learning this, computer programmer "Neo" is drawn into a rebellion against the machines, involving other people who have been freed from the "dream world" and into reality.

Also it's a type of film covers these interest of what people may find interesting to watch for;

Cyberpunk and hacker subcultures; philosophical and religious ideas. Other examples of films which have used these ideas are classics such as "Alice's adventures in wonderland".

Looking at this film we found these:

• 0.02-0.04 logo of company changes to a different colour, maybe the colour of the representation of the film.


• 0.04-0.07 quick bursts of flashing images, grabs attention.


• 0.07-0.14 straight away action, also for effect screen goes blank and then bursts back onto screen, shows quickness of the action, and then slow motion for when she jumps the building to show how powerful the action is. Then flicks onto Neo saying "woah" basically as you think, inflicts comedy and the same wavelenght your on, involves you in the film.


• 0.15 rain used for an affect, dark cold night, street like, maybe a dark film.


• 0.17 shows an affect on the mouth, wried and abstract thoughts make you want to no whats going on.


• 0.20 effect on camera to make as if he's falling of a building.


• 0.22-0.28 using a propp (mirror) to use a powerful and really effective action of him pulling this mirror, shows a 'wow' factor and aspects of 3D.


• 0.31 sudden shot of him screaming, form of action and then cuts into noting slaps tension in straight away.


• 0.41 0.43 green flashes lightens up grabs attention and then goes into questions for audience to answer, question then quick scene to relate to it, useful and effective.
• 0.46 low shot of building rushing cloud, shows speed of film.
• 0.49 birds eye view and actors feet entering on a building futuristic effect and is affective.
• 0.56 when villain lands dust is spread shows a hint of action and maybe shows power and speed and intensity of the character.
• 1.03 three of the same people another effect of them being in the future side and adds more excitement as the three shows this character is powerful and means business.
• 1.04 birds eye view of gun, shows where bullet is going and how big the gun is.
• 1.05 slow motion effect of bullet hitting the floor, shows power and pure cold action/violence.
• 1.08 wall is smashed and the blocks come straight at you, makes the people want to be there. Also shows super powers in the character.
• 1.10-1.14 very quick flashes of characters and description of film and then slows back down and a wise saying is put into use.
• 'The maxtix has you' in other words it wants you so go and be a part of it and watch it.
• 1.23 coats opens and guns are there, camera roled from there to head for effect of costume in the character, maybe a icon for this.
• 1.28 blank bright background for effect, sudden rush of weapons come into place, camera angles and futuristic effect for the film.
• 1.35-1.36 Low shot of them being pulled up, device of action effect again.
• 1.40-1.42 a slice of the cake, the taste of impact and action in this film, guns and crazy moves.
• 1.47-1.49 use of slow motion effect with the impact of bullet and how many are being shot.
• 1.52 effect on speed of villain, futuristic action.
• 1.53 pause action camera rotates, special effective use of how hard the move or power that is provided to do this.
• 2.00 same device as 1.53 but in different aspect, so their are many ways of doing this.
• 2.05-2.-07 low shot of jumping out a building and catching makes the jump more effective.
• 2.08 sudden smash through window (action after action) and close up of her and gun straight up in your face action.
• 2.10 another low shot to make dramatic effect.
• 2.13-2.15 Massive explosion, fire, smashed glass, perfect ending for trailer/ opening and shows you that in 2.16 when screen flicks black.
• 2.16-2.20 amazing and epic effect on use of super power that 'Neo' has can dodge bullets, and slow motion effect shows the impact of action.

Overall in my words i think we have a sort of brainstrom of what setting lighting and some hints of camera shots we could use in our opening, it gives me and Ian a more eaisier visual aspect of fnding out our main idea for our project =).

Music and carlity of a opening flim.

Kill bill opening:

Kill bill is a fast action straght in your face action, a new style to action film, has a certain meaning but your drawn away from it abit because of the fight scenes and over the top stunts and blood, adds interest and makes the film successful in it's own ways. I like this flim because it is unique in its fight scenes and storyline and and overall point of view.
The overall storyline of Kill Bill — a woman seeks revenge on a group of people, crossing them off a list one by one as she kills them — is adapted from Lady Snowblood, a 1973 Japanese film in which a woman kills off the gang who murdered her family. A unique and an abstarct way to new action and a brilliant opening to over the top action.

The reason why i chosen it for the music point of view is because it doesnt hardly involes the music but from 0.25-0.35 sound effect to show what has happened and is a form of the women seeking revenge after what the villian has done to her, also a sepia mode has been used, the colours tells us about the mood of the chararter thoughts and the close up on the eyes shows how much this character wants to kill her. Also 0.35 till the end of the clip sounds effects such as the glass smashing and the swing of the knife is sharp and intense sound clips to make the stunts more dramatic and powerful which gives an explosive feeling and grabs people attentsion straight away.

Crank 2 opening scene: (00.00 - 00.28)

Looking at the first 28 seconds of crank 2 it's a brilliant example of fast snapping action straight into a themed backing tune, the sound of impact wacks the audience in thier seats and the sudden silence creates supsense and intensity. The bit where the eye blinks shows thats the chararcter is still alive from the impact and there's a hell of alot more action to come.
The thing i also like about the opening is that the action and build up doesn't stop, its a continous sprial of action and i think the sound effects and music makes the perfect opening to thistype of flim.



Also these flims are unique and different which i think will work very well in our flim clip, as we are aiming for a twisty over the top storyline with quite alot of sound effects and also a hint of music to blend out the action and make it more powerful and effective.

Welcome

Me and Dan have now created a blog to show all of our Ideas and progress when doing our coursework.
For our Coursework we will be creating a opening sequence to a Action movie, we have already done a fair amount of research which is on our own individual blogs and we will know copy it over to this blog to show what we have done together.