Final Piece

Our final piece for as media this year is to do the following; The titles and opening of a new fiction film, to last a maximum of two minutes. This brief is small and open to interpretation. In a sense, our film opening could be anything as long as we include title scenes. In our opening scene i will try and use as much of my research as possible to achieve the best possible film, this includes match on action, shot reverse shot as well as the compositional techniques i have learned. It is also vitally important that I research opening scenes for other films and make notes on when the titles come up on screen as well as how the genre is portrayed. I'm thinking about making a horror/thriller film opening so my research will focus on this genre of film.

Simon Hall Visit

Today our normal media studies lesson was interrupted by BBC news correspondent Simon Hall (pictured left). Simon had began working for the BBC aged 23 and said the job was like no other, he experiences history being made on a daily basis. He sounded passionate about his profession despite many years of it which made me consider a career in the media. While I had hoped he would talk about the media and it's influences, he focused mainly on careers and choosing the right one for you. The talk was inspirational to say the least, it made me think about what i want to do in the future and whether or not i would enjoy doing the same job for 50 years of my life. Toward the end of his talk i asked him how large he felt the media's influence on us all is, to which he replied saying, it has the potential to control our lives however the BBC in particular are very careful about how they control and distribute media. This answer made me conscious about how even my student film will have an influence on the population who watch it. The use of mise-en-scene, lighting, camera movement and angles, sound and editing can all work together in a film to change the viewers perceptions of a character/subject.

The link to Simon's twitter is as follows - https://twitter.com/SimonHallNews?lang=en

Camera Angles

Camera angles have a huge impact on a film's composition. Having a plethora of different camera angles in a film can make it far more interesting to the audience. When thinking of what camera angles are needed in a film, it's important to think of the three following factors; length of shot (time), Angle/framing and if there is movement in the frame. For example, the opening sequence of a film or scene may include an extreme long shot to set the scene, informing the audience of where the scene is taking place. On the other hand, if a character is exerting expressions an extreme close up may be used to show the audience the expressions in more clarity and detail. Below are a number of camera angles and a description with each of where the shot might be used and what for.

Extreme Close Up (ECU)
Used to show emotion such as tension, elation or happiness
facial expression gives the audience a clear picture of
how the protagonist feels.

Worms Eye
A camera angle from the perspective of a worm
on the floor. This angle gives the impression the
focus of the shot is larger than in reality
This can be used to portray a characters significance. 

Big close up (BCU)
Used to show where character is looking/Thinking
By showing facial expression and emotion.
Some background can be seen which is used to
show setting ect.

Long Shot (LS)
Long shots include the entire character or more than one.
These shots allow the audience to see more than other shots,
giving them a larger picture of the action.

Birds Eye
This angle is from the perspective of a bird, otherwise known
as an aerial shot. This angle emphasizes a spectacle by giving the
audience a clear view over the action.

Close up (CU)
This shot, and other variations of it are used to show emotion as well as
a closer/clearer view of the drama unfolding.
Close up's are often used for important characters as they
can change the audiences opinion or trigger their emotions
by allowing a closer view.

Medium shot (MS)
This shot is similar to close up shots however the torso and upper arms are visible. This allows the audience to see what the main protagonist is doing. This shot also allows the viewer to see any alteration to a characters body, e.g. cuts and bruises.

It is important that I research these camera angles and shots as I will be using them in my preliminary and main task. I now understand the basis of which shot/angle to use and why, allowing me to create more professional films. Combining these camera angles and shots with my compositional research should provide me with aesthetic shots for my own film.

The Rule Of Thirds

The rule of thirds is a camera composition rule. It has been described as one of the most important rules of photography. It consists of diving the shot into nine parts by drawing two lines equidistant from each other horizontally and vertically. Points of interest should be focused on these lines to increase the visual aesthetics of the shot. For example, in a portrait, the focus should be off centre to cover one of the cross sectional lines. Below is several examples from my own source to demonstrate the rule.

By placing points of interest along these lines, the picture becomes more balanced and can be interpreted more naturally by the viewer.

As you can see from the picture (left) the lines provide a guide for the position of points of interest. Eye lines should be on these lines for example.

Here are a few examples of the rule of thirds in action. As you can see, the main focal points of the photograph are along the lines. This makes the picture far more aesthetically pleasing to the viewer and keeps them interested in what is going on in said picture.

When filming my main or preliminary tasks, I will be keeping the rule of thirds in mind. A good film uses this compositional technique in almost all aesthetic shots. As you can see below in the film clip, the rule of thirds is used to make the shot more visually appealing to the viewer. Eyes of characters are often along the cross sectional lines of the rule of thirds. I will be using this technique in my own future films.

Match On Action

Match on action is the term referred to the editing technique of cutting one shot and matching the same action in the second shot. An example of this would be opening a door and using shots from both sides of the door to show the action. Another example of match on action would be a shot of a car bonnet being opened then a following shot of the cars engine. Although the two shots would have been filmed hours apart from one another, the technique gives the film the impression of continuation in real time. To the left is my own depiction of match on action. It is important I learn this film technique as it is in the criteria for my main and preliminary tasks. It is also an important skill to learn as in film it is used everywhere, in almost every action.

Preliminary Task - Final

Above is mine and Amy Chapman's finished preliminary task. I think it wasn't the best film we could've produced, we could've done with a lot more research and planning to be able to film it all smoothly instead of taking shots that now appear rushed. The shots are blurry as a result of my own poor camera work where i had accidentally used manual focus instead of automatic without realising. I also think the audio levels are poor, in some shots you can barely hear what the characters are saying. We did take out a microphone to help record audio however we didn't record any as we forgot to put batteries in it. We did write up a storyboard with details of shots to be used and we did stick to it, however some shots on the storyboard were not possible to capture. For example we originally wanted a birds eye view of the table the characters were sat on however it was physically impossible to film this shot without a drone of sorts. Another point i think let us down was the acting, using friends to act proved difficult as their attention was elsewhere. It was difficult to get them to portray emotion also, Alex Flinders was very wooden and stiff, we had to film the torture sequence 3 or 4 times as he wouldn't scream in pain.

The point of this exercise was to identify any weaknesses and doubt we had about filming. I will take all of these factors into account for my next task in order to make it much better. The key point for my next task i believe is careful planning so we know exactly what to do when we come to film it. After doing some further editing, our finished task is below.