Location Recce | Final Task

Yesterday, my group and I travelled to London for the day to get location shots of places we are potentially filming at. Due to the opening being set in two locations; Cookham and across London, I went to Cookham butchers on a separate day to take photos of the location and discuss logistics with the owner of the butcher about the shooting day itself.

Below shows just some of the photos I took yesterday, and a few taken from peers in my group. To avoid confusion, I've tried to roughly order the photos chronologically with the storyline. 

Locations include: 

1. Cookham Butchers & Cookham Railway Station

2. Cookham to London Paddington route (First Great Western)

3. London Underground route from Paddington to Oxford Circus

4. Oxford Circus, Conduit Street & Carnaby Street

5. Trafalgar Square

6. Piccadilly Circus

7. Westminster Station & Waterloo Station

8. Southbank (Golden Jubilee Bridge, Westminster Bridge & Hungerford Bridge)

9. Thames Embankment (Millennium Bridge)

The Final Concept | Final Task

In the last few weeks, my group and I have been brainstorming ideas into what we want the film to be and look like. By developing ideas from each other we all wanted to create a opening that would ignite multiple questions for the audience so that they would be eager to watch on - and after many discussions and meetings we concluded that we wanted the genre of the film to be thriller. 

The concept of our opening film sequence: The sequence starts off with solely a sound of a square knife hitting the table. Having this at the start will naturally cause the audience to instantly think that it will cut to some sort of gruesome activity, because of the film being a thriller and the convections that go with it. From here it will cut to a butcher cutting meat, which will act as a anti-climax to the tension - as he looks innocent and 'not the typical looks of a serial killer'. Alongside this, we are going to have diegetic sound of a radio report in the background of a person going missing. To exceute this, we will place a radio prop  behind the counter and incorporate found footage sound into the editing process. 

The next shot shows a 'ordinary looking' customer walking out of the butchers with a red holdall and then heading off down the road. From here, the audience will see a different person walking with the same bag to the train station. To create suspicion, the audience don't actually see the bag being exchanged from one person to the other. Throughout the rest of the sequence, this idea of having a bag being travelled around places and not seeing any exchanging of it will follow. This means that it will create eeriness to the opening as the audience don't know the significance of the bag and the people. 

One unique aspect about this opening scene is that the sequence will be colour graded in black & white while the bag will be shown in red. This is an effective technique as we want the audience to realise that the bag is the subject of the attention in the film. This specific colour grading will potentially be done in Adobe Speed Grade due to it's complexity to produce results.

The girl dressed in red in 'Schindler's List' is an accurate reflection of what we are trying to create with the bag.

Planning Process | Final Task

Planning is a essential part into pre-production as without it, we can't develop ideas, make decisions and decide logistics - ready for the production stage. To ensure this, we created a private Facebook Page, so that we have a collaborative space to work from outside  lessons. Below shows a few posts from our Facebook Page.

We've also create a 'What's App' group chat that easily allows us to communicate with each other on our mobile devices. This differs to Facebook as the platform is a good for communicating with people as quickly as possible. It's like text messaging, but over the internet and free! However if we needed to file exchange anything or talk about a aspect of the project in specific we would do this over Facebook. 

TV Opening Analysis 7 - Dexter (2006-2013)

1) The opening to Dexter begins with a close up of a mosquito sucking blood from the character. We associate mosquitoes as nasty insects due to their nature of biting humans. This means we mercilessly assume that he is going to kill it because of the common nature of people killing mosquitos. It is significant that this clip has been placed at the start of the sequence because the Director wants to build the association of cruelty and gore as Dexter's morning routine develops. Moreover the use of the camera emphases the significance of the mosquito. By using a mid shot on the mosquito, this will make the insect look bigger, which therefore implies the all organisms are important, regardless of the size. 

2) The name of the programme is then followed with blood smearing off the letters. This animated text is effective as it fits into the context of the opening. The colour red has been chosen throughout due to its boldness and the connotations of the colour being red, e.g. blood.

3) We then see the character shaving and him cutting himself from it. The use of diegetic sound from the razor adds to the disturbing atmosphere for the audience. The blood then pours down the neck and into the sink. This is also giving a discreet connotation of blood.

4) The sequence then cuts to a extreme close-up of the blood being soaked into tissue. Using a extreme close and editing the clip into slow motion improves the sinister look which therefore creates a closer representation of death for the audience. Extreme close-ups will only work in this case, as the director wants the audience to perceive  these shots at a different perspective and use their imagination because of their knowledge about the programme, e.g. type of genre.

5,6) These next shots emphases the connection between Dexter's morning routine and killing, through the use of implementing food into the sequence. The cutting of the meat is implying that Dexter is cutting a body. The next shots followed have been deliberately used to show this intention.

7) The next few shots show dexter flossing and tying up his shoe lace really tightly. This is therefore implying that Dexter is killing through the use of strangulation.

8) This is the first time we see the character's appearance. Dexter leaving the house, gives a impression to the audience that his daily routine was ordinary as possible which therefore shows he doesn't come across as a murderer outside his home. Moreover we don't connect to him now as a murderer because of his stereotypical look as a ordinary person.

Film Opening Analysis 6 - Se7en (1995)

The opening titles start of with a extreme close up of a open book, which therefore instantly creates mystery as the audience don't see the name of the book or what it's about. Moreover the use of mise-en-scene of the lighting been dim also adds to the mysterious atmosphere that is being presented. Throughout this sequence the director has kept the ominous atmosphere to this titles by keeping a general darkness to the film. Other factors that add to the menacing presence of the opening are, the objects used. For example, the combination of a line of text getting highlighted and the shot being in slow motion connotes to the act of murder and revenge.

The editing also has great significance in this film, as it allows audience to create meaning and question to the shots that are being shown. For example, the beginning of the titles is slow paced, showing a variety of scenes/objects. Following this, the combination of editing and non-diegetic sound begins to pick up in pace. The clips are bought up in paced to suggest intensity of whats going on in the opening. In addition to this, the intensity is also bought through to the audience through the use of cutting the clips to the beat of the music and the ambient sound effects. These disturbing ambient sound effects add to the atmosphere and give more to the music when they are added. This is a typical opening titles you could see in a thriller but due to the use of unique camera shots, sound and editing it therefore makes the titles look original.

Film Opening Analysis 5 - Resident Evil Afterlife (2010)

The opening scene of ‘Resident Evil’ is a very significant part of the film as it attracts the audience and draws them into the rest of the film. The use of camera, editing, sound and mise-en-scene techniques enhances the sequence and therefore create meanings throughout the scene. 

Throughout the opening scene, the director has made the woman the centre of attention so that the audience would be drawn towards her. The combination of camera and mise-en-scene expresses this. For example, the first clip was focused straight to the main character. The camera shot was focused towards her high heels, which suggests power and authority. Moreover the high heel shoes are the only vibrant colour in the clip which also suggests how determined the director wanted the audience to notice them. Another technique that was used to make the main character the centre of attention was to to have everyone holding up a umbrella apart from her. This instantly creates a divide between her and her surroundings, which also can question her humanity in the film. The director has purposely done this due to that fact that he wants the audience focusing on her solely. During the close-ups of the main character, the camera shots have been focused onto her and the background being blurred. This is also another factor that has been incorporated to make the woman the centre of attention in the opening scene. Lastly she is also seen as the centre of attention because of the fact that she is centred in the frame which therefore  creates a sense of importance to the audience.

The use of sound in the opening scene of ‘Resident Evil’ is very much as important as the pictures, due to its involvement of creating meaning throughout the sequence. For example, the use of non-diegetic soundtrack that was used created a uncertainly during the opening. As the woman’s face was revealed the bass of the music cut out, which acted as a silence. This created suspense because the audience was waiting for a event to occur.

The combination of camera and editing in the opening sequence of the film is significant because it creates meaning between the characters and the storyline. For example, the whole opening sequence is shot in slow motion. This is significant because it accentuates the mood and expresses the movement of the characters actions. A example of this in the opening is when the woman notices the man staring at her. Slow motion is important in this instance as the audience can easily notice them being wary of each other. Moreover this type camera and editing technique creates suspense because a intense situation is occurring at a slow pace. Another editing technique used to create meaning throughout the sequence is the use of credits and credit transitions. The director has used uncanny font to express to the audience the type of film that is being shown. The director has used movement of the people and their umbrellas to bring the credits in and out of the frame. He has done this so that the credits disappear from the sequence discreetly, and not having to break up the flow of tension that is occurring in the film. Another technique that is used to create tension and eeriness to the opening is by using genre specific colour grading. Colour grading is a very important factor for moving image as it creates mood and meaning. In this instant, the opening scene of Resident Evil, the director has created a heavy grade, where the greens and blacks have been bought up and the vibrant colours pulled down. 

Film Opening Analysis 4 - World War Z (2013)

The opening credits to World War Z is excellent to analyse, as the editing is similar to our design for our opening sequence. Below I have picked out the a few interesting parts of the credits, and looked in depth into the use of editing and focused into how we can use aspects of the this opening to generate ideas for the editing process.

One major aspect of the editing is the gradual change in pace as the opening develops. In the very beginning we see slow moving wide shot landscapes of Philadelphia to represent peace and stillness on earth. This gradually changes in speed as news and people are introduced. This can also be seen as the  change in pace as the day time of days passes. The wide shots of people walking off the train for example, don't focus on one individual, rather the camera only focuses them as a group. This connotation implies that the citizens of the city are more important than the main character of the films, because they have been introduced before. It is noticed that there is an increase in pace because of the combination of diegetic, non-diegetic sound (news, music) and the use of camera. The introduction of the news reports instantly creates a sense of eeriness and the use of violent images also play a part. This indicates to the audience that there has been a negative turn of events, which therefore changes the atmosphere and mood of the opening.

One unique aspect of this opening sequence is the fact that it includes news reports which therefore makes the  sequence look much more realistic. Having these reports, creates questions between the news reports and the images that are shown around the city. For our opening, this is a effective method as you can easily mark questions and place links on significant aspects of the film. 

Film Opening Analysis 3 - Quantum of Solace (2008)

Frame 1: This establishing shot embellishes the setting for the whole film. With the use of non-diegetic sound and panning shot getting closer and closer to the mountain, this entices the audience from 10seconds in. In typical bond style, the setting is set in an exotic location and in this case, Italy. This is interesting as Bond is known for its British tradition, and by having almost every film being set in these stunning location across the globe, it allows the audience to escape from reality and jump into the depths of wealth and glamour.

Frame 2: The second shot shows a road going through the mountains. At this stage all you can hear is loud car engines and fast moving pictures of the mountain. This is significant as it the audience instantly know that the scene is a car chase, due to the nature of James Bond. When we see Bond change the gear in his car, it is indicated to us that the scene has become more exciting and intense, due to cars moving faster and more action occurring.

Frame 3: This is the first time we encounter a character in the film. Due to the film being a franchise and people knowing who James Bond is, the audience can instantly recognises him. This means that, the director can afford to shoot a close up of the character. In addition to this, the lighting has helped the audience to focus on his eyes, which therefore suggests the significance of what he is looking at.

Frame 4: This is the first time where we are in the heart of the car chase. The use of camera shots increases tension and reality in the film. This particular shot shows a tracking shot of the car chase, which acts as a Point of View from the car. With the use of loud diegetic sound such as the engine from the cars, this adds to the effect and makes the audience know they are watching a James Bond film.

Frame 5: This is the first time where we see Bond is in serious danger. The use of fast paced shots increases the tension in this instance and highlights the speed he is driving at. Moreover, the use of mise-en-scene enhances the tension in this scenario. The fact that a large lorry is about to drive through a sports car is exciting within itself. The audience likes scenarios where Bond is in problematic and dangerous situations. 

Frame 6: This panning shot over Siena is the first time where the pace of the sequence dropping. The speed of shots slows down, and the introduction of slow moving shots takes place. In this instance we see Bond entering Siena while the camera focuses on his destroyed car and the breath taking landscape of Italy. In addition to this, the non-diegetic sound of the music cuts out as soon as the car chase abruptly ends, to emphasis the ending of the encounter between Bond and the villains. 

Frame 7: This clip shows the villain being strapped into the back of Bond’s sports car. This is the first time we physically come see a close up shot of one of the multiple villains. This is significant in the whole film as the audience will begin to picture an opinion about the character from this instance. The use of lighting also complements this, as the dark lighting portrays the villain as a hatred figure.

Frame 8: Throughout the opening sequence there has been no dialogue used, until this point. The fact that Bond starts the dialogue of the film with "It's time to get in", which indicates to the audience that the adventure has just begun; and with the use of having the Bond theme tune following this. 

Film Opening Analysis 2 - 'Source Code' (2011)

1 - This is the first character we see in the film ‘Source Code’. This close up shot of a ordinary man on train ‘dreaming’ marks a question instantly to why this has been chosen to be the first shot in the film. The combination of  the audience being immersed in his dream and the background noise of the train carriage, the audience feel a sense of suspense and eeriness to the situation. 

2 - As he wakes up from his nightmare/thoughts we question the significance of him in the film and the thoughts that he is having.

3 - From him realising there is nothing to worry as there are no collisions, as an audience we wonder whether this is a indication of foreshadowing, as every action that occurs in a opening tends to be significant in the rest of the film. 

4 - This shot is when we meet the second character. We hear her voice a few moments before it cuts to a visual shot of her. 

5 - We see in this part of the opening sequence a lady being relaxed whereas the man seeming that she doesn't know her.

6 - This next shot is a good example of a closeup. Generally close ups mark a significance in the film and this example is a shot of a bag saying 'Walter Reed, Army Medical Centre'. This specific example of a close up will hint a meaning but will generally come apparent to the audience later in the film. 

7 - This next clip is a mid shot of the man and a new 'character' appearing in the sequence. Here, the man is trying to understand what's going on by stepping off the train.

8 - When he looks into the mirror, he sees he is a different person. From both, his and the audiences realisation we question further the reason behind this and try to find clues to why he's acting like a different person from the 'inside'. 

9 - Following him being confused - this 'unknown lady' says to him "Everything is going to be okay". As soon as she says that the train blows up. 

Film Opening Analysis 1 - 'Drive' (2011)

1 - 6 seconds into the opening credits we see simple but effective establishing shot of Los Angeles, California. This is a significant shot as the audience can identify the location and time of day.

2 - The actor, Ryan Gosling is the first character we see in the film and the only important character in the opening credits. In conjunction with this, the title of the film appears as Ryan freezes. 

3 - This over the shoulder shot shows the character driving. This choice has been made to give a POV from the Ryan's perspective. 

4 - In addition to the shot before, another POV shot of the main character is followed, along with a credit.

5 - This next shot shows a another establishing of the location the man is in. It shows that he is driving on a main road at night, which marks a question to why this is the case.

6 - Here we see him parking his car for the night in a car park. From this little information, it suggests he lives in a block of flats of some sort - which therefore explains his economic status.  

7 - This is the first instance where the man comes into contact with another figure. He ignores her and walks past, which suggests that he is unfriendly and hinders from society. This means that with the combination of this and a mysterious setting throughout, an enigma is produced as there is a loose link with the future of the film, which therefore entices the audience to watch on.

8 - Here we see the character opening up the door slowly and walking through. We then see the character placing a bag down in the room. This also creates an enigma, as he keeps hold of it at all times and then leaves in a a secure location, i.e. his apartment? 

9 - From here he slowly walks out the apartment, with the bag still in sight. The use old panning shot of the bag and the character in the distance - emphasis the significance of the bag. Therefore, resulting this, we question what's inside the bag, e.g. a dead body. 

Film Opening Titles Timeline 7 - 'Lord of War' (2005)

Film Opening Titles Timeline 6 - 'Man of Steel' (2013)

Film Opening Titles Timeline 5 - 'Drive' (2011)

Film Opening Titles Timeline 4 - 'Scott Pilgrim vs. The World' (2010)

Film Opening Titles Timeline 3 - Se7en (1995)

TV Opening Titles Timeline 2 - 'True Detective' (2014)

Title sequence designer, Patrick Clair, created a specific title sequence that would cater for the television programme, 'True Detective'.  From a previous interview he did, he said that the production company of 'True Detective' (HBO), wanted the titles to display a "lot about how the landscape and setting of the show revealed the characters and reflected their internal struggles". With this is mind he came up with a very abstract but appealing opening that would engulf the audiences mind into the programme itself. As with 'Skyfall', I have a produced a titles timeline below showing when each credit appears. 

In terms of the music used - the song was called 'Far From Any Road' by The Handsome Family. This song is a good choice for the titles as it matches the emotion of the programme and gives it a strong identity.

Film Opening Titles Timeline 1 - 'Skyfall' (2012)

Title Sequence Designer, Daniel Kleinman, created an immersing opening title to complement Bond's death in the opening scene. He described how "it was a great chance to make a moody transition into the titles". From his work in 'Skyfall' and previous Bond openings he described that creating opening titles for 'James Bond' movies has the opportunity to be very creative because of the traditional tension and bravura action that always opens up to. 

Below I have created a 'Film Titles Timeline' for 'Skyfall’ to demonstrate the different roles in film and indicate that job roles are shown in order of hierarchy. It is also important to consider that the more important roles such as 'Directed by Sam Mendes' have more 'screen time' due to their importance in the film. Moreover less significant roles, such as a 'Script Supervisor', 'Sound Recordist and 'Electrical Supervisor' will appear together in one title because of their importance. These conventions that occur are an important factor in the makeup of creating a opening credits. 

Preliminary Task - Evaluative Points

Following from viewing every groups Preliminary Task twice, as a group we discussed 'what went well' & 'what didn't go as well' for each group. 

Below lists each group (including ours) on the feedback that was received.

Group 1:
What went well:

- Continuity + Match on Action are accurate throughout.

- Good variety of shots used.

What didn't go well:

- Group 1 didn't follow the brief entirely. (sitting down at desk)

- Be mindful of camera reflections

- More sounds will help develop atmosphere.

Group 2:

What went well:

- Covered the brief. Showed examples of Shot Reverse Shot, Match on Action & Dialogue.

What didn't go well:

- Quality in sound: Relationship in Diegetic Sound and Non-diegetic Sound was unbalanced (background music + dialogue)

- Choice of music

Group 3:

What went well:

- Good flow of action

- Reasonable shot variety

What didn't go well:

- Continuity errors. 

- Tripod and foot in shot. 

- Use of transitions were unsuitable. Use of cross fade indicated pass of time instead of quick cut to next shot. 

TheOneAndOnlyMedia:

What went well:

- Good shot variety

- Sound was clear and a variety of diegetic & non-diegetic sound used. 

- Match on Action, Shot Reverse Shot and 180degree Rule was followed. We felt that this was a crucial aspect in keeping the audience attached and made to think that the situation was as realistic as possible. Without these three requirements, there would be a lack of continuity and there wouldn't be a logical coherence between shots.

- Lighting was suitable for the tone created. The use of artificial lighting allowed us to create a more eerie tone to the scene which then meant that the Mise-en-Scene appeared more appealing to the audience eye.

- Mise-en-Scene displayed well. 

What didn't go well:

- The 'fish eye' effect on the GoPro Hero 4 was unsuitable. Conveys unrealistic perspective. 

- Could have has some dialogue from the other character.

What have I learned?

The main lesson I have learned from this task is to follow every detail of the brief that is set - even if it's a good piece of work. Without following the brief you won't be able to maximise your chances of achieving the highest grade.

Preliminary Task - Interrogation Scene

Preliminary Task - Behind the Scenes