Rough version of film

Me and my group created a rough version of the part of the film I am responsible for which is the revelation of the third fate which leads to the character being mugged. We filmed it using ourselves as the characters and around our school just to get a rough idea of what its going to look like and to ensure our ideas work. We learned that we need to include more shots from other angles to layer the footage to get more realistic and flowing action. This will enable us to make improvement from AS level to A2.

Idea for my part of the film

I am responsible for the third chapter in the film. This is the third day the man has walked past the clown machine (he has to get to his car from work). There is yet again another coin on the floor, so he picks it up and puts it in the machine. The music starts and the clown moves about inside then a ticket is dispensed. It reads ‘Money is hard to gain and easy to lose’, the man has a think about the fate and walks on towards his car; he has parked it in a different place as he got a parking fine the day before. On the way to his car two hooded females come up to him, one of them says a speech to him; but before he can react they attack him and rob his wallet. He stumbles off to his car and gets in to go home.

Outline of finalised decision on film in terms of narrative and themes

For our film we have decided to create an idea to do with fortune and fate. It will be between 4-6 minutes long; this will show the main character receiving four fates and a conclusion so the film will be cut into five chapters. We are deliberately making the chapters separate as the first four show the character receiving tickets which read a fate, so each chapter tells a short story. So far we have not designed our tickets but we have decided on what each will say.

We have an idea of what our fate machine will look like; we have purchased the wood and are in working progress of getting it made into our machine. We have decided that each member of the group has a responsibility over a section of the film, Karlene is responsible for the first two chapters where two fates are given, I am doing the third chapter where the third fate is given, Adele is doing the fourth chapter where the fourth fate is given and finally Paige is doing the fifth chapter where the character is escaping the clown. We have decided on what props we need and have decided on the script.

However, we have still not come to a decision on our target audience for our short film. Although we need to decide this soon in order to present our characters and scene to fit the appropriate audience. The theme of our film is also undecided, but our subject is based on fate and fortune so we can do research on ancient beliefs and superstitions to help us come to a decision.

Research to decide theme

As we were making a short film, we had the choice of creating a showcase film to show talents or a film to show a cause. We spent many lessons debating over topics we could cover and express to the best of our ability but still could not come to a joint decision. We decided that we did not want to do a cause film as we couldn’t think of anything intricate enough to keep the attention of a viewer. Then we were shown a clip of the film ‘Se7en’ in class, and all very much liked the narrative. We decided to add our own twist and create a theme on fate involving typical fortune telling but with a clown which is a common fear for many people.  

Black hole

In the short film The Black Hole, the subject is based on fantasy Sci-Fi. This is because a piece of paper that appears to have a black hole in is unreal. The intention of the producer is to highlight the fact that ‘curiosity killed the cat’. The man uses the black hole to get a chocolate bar out of a vending machine, then he unlocks a door with KEEP OUT written on it, then he sticks the paper to the safe and starts taking the money out of it, he eventually climbs right into it and the piece of paper falls off the safe so the man is stuck in the safe and cannot get out. This shows that because he was nosy and was doing something he shouldn’t he got punished for it. The implied target audience is the industry as it is a showcase film. The potential certification would be a pg as there is no violence etc and children can learn from it that you shouldn’t steal as you will be punished. The distribution would be on the internet as it is a showcase to the industry. The key character is the male worker; he is the only character in the film. The setting is in the office, this is relevant to the film as it is the only setting. The soundtrack consists of the scanner beeping and the odd vibes when the man put his hand in the black hole. The form of this is a film. I really liked this film, the storyline was humorous and I think the special effects on the ‘black hole’ were realistic.

Chicken a la carte

The subject of the short film Chicken a la carte is poverty. This is because in the film you observe how people are eating in a fast food restaurant yet the worker can only afford to get scraps to bring home to his family. The intention of the producer is to show how that some people’s lives are so bad they have to eat out of bins just to live. The implied target audience is anyone who will watch it as they are trying to put forward a cause that needs to be addressed. The potential certification would be a pg as there is no high levels of violence, nudity etc and young children would learn from seeing it that they are lucky to have what they’ve got. The distribution would be online as more people watch videos online. The key character in the short film is the male worker as you observe him working, then when his shift is over he goes out to the bins and sorts through all the wasted food, he brings back the best stuff to his family and shares the rest with his village. The settings of the film are the fast food place and the village where the worker lives. These are relevant to the film as you see how wasteful people are in the fast food place yet you see how happy the male workers family are when he brings back scraps which show that they must get worse/less food regularly. The soundtrack on the film is slow and creates sympathy towards the less fortunate. The form of this film is a pseudo drama as it is acting when the people are in the fast food place, but when the food is brought back to the village it is a documentary as you can’t fake the reactions when they are getting food as it is real life. I think this film is very good at showing the realism of some people’s lives. It shows the raw truth that people actually have to scavenge for their food and can’t afford any better.

Lovefield

The subject of the short film Lovefield is judgment. This is because the first half of the film looks like a woman is being murdered and we judge the man on the scene as we think he is killing her. When it turns out that he is actually helping her you realize that you judged him before you knew what had happened. The intention of the producer is to show that appearances are deceiving. The camera work in the film doesn’t show the main attraction but pinpoints things around it e.g. the napkin with blood on it, straight away you assume there is a murder going on especially when the woman screams and the bloody knife is rammed into the ground. The man appears to run away with a guilty conscience but it turns out he is actually helping a woman who has given birth. The implied target is the industry as it is a showcase film. The clever camera work and soundtrack show an impressive story. The potential certification of this film would be a 12a as the beginning of the film appears to be a murder so a child may need reassurance and explaining to when the story turns around and shows the birth. The key characters in the film are the woman who is giving birth and the man who helps her. The setting of the film is a wheat field by a road. This is a deserted place which makes it appear more of a murder scene as no one will know what’s happened. The soundtrack is very good in this film; it starts off with low edgy music with sound effects of an eerie creaking of a sign and the cawing of a crow. Then a phone is playing a no answer tone which makes you suspicious, there is a woman screaming which makes you assume she’s in pain maybe even attacked. Then the music softens and a lullaby is played, the man and woman are laughing and there is the sound of a baby crying, this takes away the suspicion and replaces it with joy that it was a happy ending. The form of this is a film. I really like this film, the twist in the story completely changes your outlook on the scene. The sound is very good in this with the repetitive cawing of the crow which shows it is watching the man, its almost judging him. The swinging sign creates anxiety and adds to the suspicious atmosphere. The camera shots also change your perception as in the beginning it only shows parts of the scene, by the end it shows you the whole picture and you realize what is actually going on.