Research: Film Openings - Institutional

Spectre (Sam Mendes, 2015)

Analysis

• The opening of "Spectre" (Sam Mendes, 2015) gives the audience a sense of what the film is about through visuals, audio and institutional credits. 
• There is a total of 25 institutional credits and 29 different visuals. 
• There is one soundtrack playing throughout the whole opening: "Writing's on the Wall" (Sam Smith, 2015), which sets a mysterious tone for the film ahead. 
• The Director's name (Sam Mendes) always appears at the end of the credits of all his Bond films which makes his name stick in the audiences' minds. 
• The high budget of the film is reflected by the elongated opening of 03:43. This high budget is highlighted at 00:09 with the institutional credit of "Eon Productions Presents:". This is the production company that only produces Bond Films.
•  The actors' names appear before the names of those involved in the production process as these names would appear more to the audience. 
• James Bond is the only distinguishable character throughout the opening, with the rest of the people only seen as silhouettes. This highlights the importance of Bond's role within the film. 
• The actors' names are shown in the order of importance of their role, with Daniel Craig stealing the limelight, which would further appeal to the audience. 
• The Spectre logo is shown on a ring at the start and end of the opening sequence, which suggests it has importance in the film. 
• The title of "Spectre" appears at 00:29 in an easy to read white font juxtaposing the background of fire, making the title stand our further. 
• The majority of images in the opening are all moving, with the only still images, such as pictures, still possessing a moving effect. 
• Although everyone knows what genre Bond films are, the genre of the film is easy to distinguish with the use of the soundtrack and the ambiguous setting. 

"Skyfall" (Sam Mendes, 2012)

Analysis

• The opening of "Skyfall" (Sam Mendes, 2012) gives the audience a sense of what the film is about through visuals, audio and institutional credits. 
• There is a total of 14 institutional credits and 17 different visuals.  Throughout the whole of the opening sequence. 
• There is one soundtrack playing: "Skyfall" (Adele, 2012). This use of convergence and synergy is very beneficial for the film as it is a way of promotion through the music industry.
• The high budget of the film is highlighted by the length of the opening sequence of 03:53.
• The names' of the actors all appear in order of the importance of their role.
• James Bond is the only distinguishable character throughout the opening, with the rest of the people only seen as silhouettes. This highlights the importance of Bond's role within the film. 
• In terms of tone,this opening is melancholy and mysterious. 

Conclusion

From films openings, the audience can:

• Establish the genre of the film
• Tone
• Atmosphere
• Characters
• Narrative
• Title
• Credits
• Genre

Practical Production: One Minute Film

Pre-Production

During the process of pre-production, Anna, Megan, Teejay and myself thought of our original concept. We considered all the different genres that we could explore and eventually, we settled with thriller. We picked the characters within our short film and then assigned a role for each of us: Megan being the murder victim, Teejay being the suspected murderer, Anna being the actual murderer and myself as a police officer. We all wrote the script together. We aimed to use as little dialogue as possible to ensure we met our one minute target. The drawing up of our story board was also going on at the same time as the script writing which saved time and gave our film a sense of structure. We then began to discuss what locations we were to film in and we decided to film in the drama room as it has good lighting and there were also props in there that we went on to use during production. 

Production

During the process of production, we filmed in two different locations; predominately in the drama room and partially back stage in the main hall. We decided not to film the scenes in the order they were to be in the final product. We did this because we did not want to keep moving the camera around as our film features flash backs, which required the same camera angle. At the very beginning of our film, we used a close-up on the prime suspect's face which showed his eyes flickering to convey nervousness. We decided to completely black out the room and use torches as spotlights. This was especially effective during the interrogation scenes as it added verisimilitude. However, this did cause the camera to become unfocused which prompted us to use manual focus. We used hand-held camera work right at the very end of our film, when the murderer is seen fleeing from the scene, which gives a sense of urgency.  During production, we used props such as a table, chairs, a bracelet and a photo card which was used to portray to the viewer who the real culprit was. 

Post-Production

During the process of post production, we used the iMacs to edit our film. Using Final Cut Pro, we were able to cut certain parts of filming out and also put the scenes in order. Using the same software, we were able to add sound effects like a door creaking and several different backing tracks to add to the eerie atmosphere. We also added filters; for the flash backs, we used a black and white filter to infer those scenes were in the past and for the present interrogation scenes, we used blue tones to create a nervy atmosphere.

WWW:
We had a clear genre and the storyboard led to a clear structure also. We also picked a location with good lighting which helped whilst filming. I also feel the black and white filter was very effective as it showed that the scene was in the past.

EBI:

We could have made the plot clearer to the audience by perhaps adding more dialogue. Also if we had more time, we could have added a company name and credits at the end to make it look more professional.  

'Spectre' (Sam Mendes, 2015)

Conventions 

The job of a trailer is to point out the film’s best moments and this trailer is successful in doing so. All throughout the trailer, there is a backing track playing, which is the world famous Bond theme tune. The backing track is an essential part of the trailer and can be difficult for the producers to pick one which corresponds with the atmosphere. The decision to use the theme tune all throughout the trailer and not just in certain scenes was clever as the audience is aware of what film the trailer is promoting. The viewer is immediately informed that there is a notorious organisation called 'Spectre' and are able to guess that it is Bond's job to go after them. Filled with explosions, car chases, collapsing buildings, low flying plane shots and helicopter stunts, the trailer features everything that makes a film exciting and as an audience, we know that that's what the James Bond trilogy is all about.

Target Audience

The Bond Trilogy's target demographic is usually from teenagers upwards and this film is no exception. This film would especially appeal to those who have watched the all the previous Bond films and who love the thrill and excitement that comes with it.

'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1' (Francis Lawrence, 2014) Trailer Breakdown

Conventions

The job of a trailer is to point out the film’s best moments and this trailer is successful in doing so. This is a sequel to ‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’ (Francis Lawrence, 2013) and so the audience is already aware of the film’s genre however the trailer makes evident to any new viewers that it is an adventure film. The trailer features a backing track, which is one usually, associated with battle and warfare, essential in creating atmosphere. At the beginning of the trailer, the voice of the character, Katniss Everdeen, is heard saying, “I never wanted any of this, I never wanted to be in the games. I just wanted to save my sister and keep Peeta alive.” This line is appealing to those who have seen the two films previous, as there is reference to what happened in the prequels. The character of President Snow says, “It’s the things we love most, that destroy us.” This piece of dialogue suggests that during the film, the character of Katniss (the heroin) could potentially lose herself and make decisions she regrets. Throughout the trailer, there are no images of Katniss and Peeta together which perhaps suggests that her ultimate goal in the film is to find Peeta and bring him, home. There are many scenes of destruction; pictures of buildings being crushed and planes being shot out of the sky that suggest that there is a war or battle which will occur in the film, which links to the backing track. An essential part of trailers is to display the film’s stars and this trailer does so, giving actors such as Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth and Julianne Moore their deserved limelight. The title of the film does not appear on screen until the trailer is finished, which makes the viewer remember its name. This also leaves the viewer curious as to what the title of the film is all throughout the trailer.

Target Audience

The target audience for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay is mainly for teens as the main characters of the film are teenagers. As this is a sequel, the producers would have added scenes in the trailer that would appeal to viewers of the prequel.

1. Where's this airship headed? Are we getting our first look at District 13 from above or is this when Katniss heads to District 8 for some propaganda filming?

2. War!!! This teaser was filled with violence from peacekeepers against the people of Panem, so we think that the film will go more into the aspects of war in Panem than the book did.

3. Into the trees! Rebellion is spreading so this is maybe District 11 where the people have orchards and whatnot. It is also where Rue was from and we all know she was pretty good at climbing trees! Then again, it could be the lumber district (District 7).

4. Panic! We see a bunch of people running around as Katniss is staring down. Maybe this is when people have to evacuate to the bunkers? That might also mean Katniss is trying to find Prim!

5. Natalie Dormer as Cressida! We already know that Cressida will have a bigger role in the movies than she does in the book so we're excited to see how Dormer does!

6. Katniss walking amongst injured people in battle gear. We're guessing this is when she is with Gale at the hospital to film a propos! This would make some sense since the trailer also showed an explosion near them. Also, note the colors on her arrows. Are these the fancy new ones Beetee made for her?

'Suffragette' (Sarah Gavron, 2015)

Summary

A drama that tracks the story of the foot soldiers of the early feminist movement, women who were forced underground to pursue a dangerous game of cat and mouse with an increasingly brutal State. These women were not primarily from the genteel educated classes, they were working women who had seen peaceful protest achieve nothing. Radicalized and turning to violence as the only route to change, they were willing to lose everything in their fight for equality - their jobs, their homes, their children and their lives. Maud was one such foot soldier. The story of her fight for dignity is as gripping and visceral as any thriller, it is also heart-breaking and inspirational.

Trailer Analysis

• Shows the main aspects of the film 
• Shows the name of the film at the end of the trailer which will make the viewer remember its name

Case Study: 'Sixteen' (Rob Brown, 2013)

Quick Summary:

SIXTEEN is an urban thriller about an African former child soldier called Jumah was brought to London by Laura, an aid worker who he now lives with. Jumah is about to turn 16 in two days and wants to leave his violent past behind him. Things seem to have taken a turn for the better with Jumah now; he has a sweet but tentative romance blossoming with a girl at school. But then Jumah witnesses a stabbing and the people involved want to make sure that he says nothing to the police about what he saw that night. Pressure mounts as violence forces it's way back into Jumah's life.

Trailer

• The music is used to create a mysterious atmosphere which hints at the dark aspect of the film 
• Shows the stabbing which what the film is based around 
• Title only comes up at the end of the trailer which makes the audience remember its name 
• Includes a review from the BFI London Film Festival 

Semiotic Analysis

Hey, welcome to my blog. I'm Harsh Makwana and I'm 16 years old.