1. The BBFC is an independent organisation which classifies cinema films. It is responsible for the national classification and censorships of films within the U.K.
2. Film are rated by people by themselves - solo viewing. They reach a conclusion through a consensus. The people that rate the content are called examiners and they have started to rate games based on the content that is included in the game. For films they watch them in BBFC cinema in order to accurately judge the movie and to get a better ouput of sound and special effects.
3. The work should be allowed to reach the widest audience that is appropriate for their theme and treatment. the issues faced are: whether the material is in conflict with the law or has been created through the commission of a criminal offence.
Violence
Sex Sexual violence
Drugs
Horror
Imitable Behaviour
Discrimination
Language
4. Its main issues are that there was a lot of violence and there shouldn't be a lot of detail on the violence. There should not be emphasis on injuries and blood. I think it should of had a higher rating due to the violence, blood and injuries included in the film.
5. The guidelines for a 15 certificate are there is strong language allowed and sexual references in context to the narrative. This shouldn't be repetitive otherwise it would make the film to explicit to the offensive language and violence.
6.Attack the block was given a 15 certificate due to the violence, foul language and blood. I think this is right due to these explicit scenes not being repetitive.
The 30 minute film will be about a student who has two personalities. He seems to be secure at first and this should play a twist with the audience's mind as they would see a different side to the character near the end of the 3 minute clip. Near the middle of the film the audience we see a variety of fights and educational work from the main character.
Other characters who would appear are fighters and the crowd from the fights.
Target audience - 16-35 year olds and 70% males and 30% females. We are trying to get people who don't go to arthouse cinemas to attend it for our film so struggles and people in the demographics of C2 and some lower to watch our film.
A 6th former student at Greenford high school has passion in chemistry and creating chemicals. However, this student has another personality, an alter ego which opposes his first one. The student is a fighter and a really good one. This means that his competition in these street fight competitions are deadly and perhaps would want to seek revenge. His past could deliver a dangerous future. Our thinking was to start in school to establish the fact that he is a student of the school. We would have a teacher in this scene suggesting he constantly stays after school to do unnecessary work. the beginning will portray him as being an insecure and nervous person with him wearing a jacket with it's hood up. It wouldn't reveal much of his face which make him a mystery man in the story. Maybe a voice over describing his past and why he enjoys what he does. Then, with the BFFC certificate in mind, we would consider how we will record a fighting scene to not be too explicit. The fight scene would come near the end of the three minutes.
The research our group did allowed us to receive reliable and objective views on our low budget film. This would include the film idea, tagline, plot etc. The feedback was partially positive which would enhance our confidence on the film idea. However, we did get negative reviews and this is a good thing as we would be able to use this as our secondary specification. As a group we decided straight away that we would definitely need to edit a few ideas to cover the brief and keep the clip interesting.
A few quotes from the audience:
Wouldn't watch, but interesting
Narrative needs to be thorough, more work needed on the 30 minute film compared to the 3 minute clip. Isn't clear.
Good idea as a short film
Need to cover the 15+ certificate
Definitely male is right gender focus for this film
Fight scene needs other characters that won't seem funny (audience don't know)
Tagline could be changed if narrative is not changed
Violence needs to be reduced as much as possible. Build atmosphere but don't involve fighting scene
What we will consider
From the film pitch reviews we have got an understanding of what our film sounds like from a different perspective. The feedback could be a factor of the film becoming better and professional. We have concluded that we were right about the film being male oriented as most of the females said they wouldn't watch it but like the concept of a person having two personalities. We have thought about whether the narrative we are trying construct will fit the 15+ certificate because of the fight scene containing violence. We are wondering if the fight scene shouldn't be included in the 3 minute clip or if it should be taken out of the film completely. Also, we are considering getting a few people (older) to act in our film so the audience don't know the actors which could potentially turn a serious well worked scene into a sort of parody of our original scripted idea. The tagline will be determined on how much we change the narrative.
Target audience
This hasn't really changed much from what we were originally thinking. the age range is 16-35 years of age because other films with a similar concept target this age range. Therefore, we believe the people within this age range will enjoy the film produced. In addition, we have said 70% of males would watch this film and 30% of females could possibly be interested in watching the film. The feedback has supported our estimate. Also, we think working class and lower class will like this film as the film will be stetted in an urban area. Furthermore, as this is going to be screened in an arthouse cinema we have decided to make this an alternative film to the ones screened in arthouse cinemas to try to attract more people and make these cinemas more diverse. The film would need local promotions as it has a small institution behind it so blogs and social media would be some ways of advertising the film attracting a wide range of people who don't go to arthouse cinemas.
WWW: A solid evaluation that uses some media terminology
effectively and picks out some key strengths and weaknesses in the production.
You’ve clearly reflected on the process too – this will help with the real
MEST2 coursework.
EBI: For the top grades, you lack the detailed analysis
of key shots, edits, sounds etc. and the possible interpretations for the
audience. You do consider the audience which is good to see but I’d like more detailed
and specific discussion of certain shots, transitions etc. Also think about the
balance of your evaluation – you’ve got more on the brief and planning process
than the actual evaluation of strengths and weaknesses. This should be the
other way around!
LR: Put the embedded film from YouTube into the blogpost
with the evaluation. Copy and paste this feedback into a new blogpost and write
three specific aspects you will look to improve for the real MEST2 evaluation
in March.
Three aspects I will look to improve for the real MEST2 evaluation:
I will need to do analysis in the evaluation
I will need to add more detail to my writing and description of scenes
I need to have more evaluation than description of production
1.Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless mind produced by - 'This is that productions, Focus Features, Anonymous content'. Girlhood produced by - 'Hold Up Films, Lilies Films, Arte France Cinema, Canal +, Films Distribution'.
2. This is that productions also produced - 'Collaborator, Super, The American, Sleep Dealer, The Devil and Daniel Johnston'. Focus Features also produced - 'Shaun of the Dead, Insidious chapter 3, Sinister 2'. Anonymous content - 'The Loft, Wrecked, Lake of fire'. Hold Up Films - 'Parade, Acrobat, Tomboy'. Lilies Films - 'Tomboy' CANAL + - 'Taken 3, Eden, Northern lights'.
3. Some of the production company have films that familiar with many. These are the successful production companies. However, they are the films that have been advertised a lot more than most of the other art house films so these well known films have become mainstream.
Distribution: Independent film distributors
1. The planning for the production would begin and the producers, directors and screenwriters are all involved in this set up. ideas are collected and this allows the mathematicians of the set to do their work. The calculation for the expenses (employee wages, equipment) would be made to see who and what is needed.
Distribution
Distributors are important to a film because they are the trade body. They get the films through a third party sales agent or a studio or production with whom the distributors has negotiated an output deal covering a slate of titles. The target audience is created and the production team have to decide who it would appeal to and try to ensure it does using the ideas they have already formulated. the distributors want are the set of people who decided who they are identifying (target audience) and considering why they would go and see the film. In order to distribute films successfully, they need to have commercial experience, statistical research, professional judgement.
Once their final decisions are made and everything in the pre-production stage is completed, filming starts.
2,3,4.
Distributors of the art house films:
Girlhood
Abordar (Spain) and Strand Relseasing (USA). There were no distributors from the UK.
The movie was surprisingly screened in VUE cinemas and had made a domestic gross of $60,000 which is a profit.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Universal Studios Home Entertainment (USA) is the distributor that caught my attention. It has made $72.3 million of Box office.
Ill manor
Revolver Entertainment (UK). The only UK distributor of the film. It was released in 191 cinemas in both the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. It has made £453,570 off Box office.
5. Curzon Artificial Eye is an English British film distributor and it works with foreign language and art house films. It gives these low budget films a chance against the major competing films (not Hollywood) and can enhance their popularity.
Exhibition: Art house cinemas
1. The arthouse cinema I have chosen (surprisingly) is the Electric Cinema which is located in the UK. They can be found in Notting Hill, London and Birmingham.
2. The arthouse cinema shows ironically shows arthouse films and is beginning to show mainstream films. However, it is passionate about screening low budget films as they want to give them a chance to gain popularity in their luxurious arthouse cinema. Two films screening this week are Carol and Bridge of Spies
3. Arthouse films intend to attract the white middle class people of London as most of the films are related to their life styles. However, because the mainstream films are creeping in, the target audience could possibly be changing. The font on the website would suggest the cinema targets posh people.
A case study in independent film production
1. Film London is the UK's public agency for films and media. It wants to promote and develop film culture.
2. Microwave film is a low budget film fund. It was created in 2006 and hopes to always create films with a budget of £100,000.
3. London calling trains people with talent and some of it is free of charge
Lifting
This is a British drama which the audience of an arthouse film would probably enjoy as long as it represents a realistic Britain. However, the foreign language implies an English speaking audience may not want to watch the film but in arthouse cinemas the audience don't see it as a barrier. Also, I think the target audience is for younger females because females are more accepting of homosexuality than males. I believe the ages of 16-35 years of age would watch this because older people would be more traditional and wouldn't like the idea of a homosexual romantic film.
Freestyle trailer
This film is about a girl who takes basketball lessons from a basketball free-styler and the film reveals the romantic genre. Arthouse films usually have some form of romance which this film hints at times. The film looks like it worked off a low budget because of the setting and the lighting used. We would expect to see many light filters used to enhance the look of an urban estate. The target audience is potentially for a younger sporty group of people (15-35 years old) this is because of the sport being used to 'show off' in front of others. This is a male dominated film.
Shifty
This film looks like a low budget film due to the settings used. We can see from the trailer the setting barely changes from the estate the two characters roam around. It is a British film with an English language and the location looks to be in England which arthouse also watch. It probably tries to attract an alternative audience of arthouse films. 75% males would watch this film from 16-28 years old because of the action and criminal action in the film.
This scene really plays the audience's mind as we believe that we see a woman perfectly having an ordinary conversation with her friend only to discover she isn't real. Perhaps, she has passed away or has moved on and the main character can't get over her. I can suggest this because he still thinks about her and talks in a public place (library) to 'her' when in fact she isn't with him. It seems she is his entertainment on the side as he is already in a relationship (married) and we know this because of the dialogue. The dialogue makes the audience wonder who she is and why men want her so much. She says, 'too many guys think I'm a concept or I complete them or I'm going to make them alive'. This suggests she either has gone through many relationships or what I believe the most is she destroy's couples by getting together with married men.
The camera work is very unusual because the camera constantly shakes throughout the scene. I believe a handheld camera is used which would entice the audience into the story a lot more due to the more natural and realistic movement. It's as if we are there watching them talking we would keep the audience interested in the story. Also, some of the shots are taken from behind the book shelves which is one of the ways the audience will be engaged with the scene because we don't want to miss any of the character's movement. In addition, the scene uses the tracking shot to keep up the characters who move from the different aisle. The editing used is simple and allows the audience to follow the story easily. Straight cuts are used which work well with this scene because it is slow paced and they are in a library which signifies quietness peace - related to slow pace.
Girlhood
This scene from Girlhood is very accurate to the typical group of teenage girls. They are playing music and enjoying themselves. The music being played is parallel to the scene because the audience would suggest, although it's in another language, the music is something popular under the urban genre. The camera movement only pans from left to right because the girls are left and right (internally) of the train. The scene uses medium close ups to show the girl's facial expression in depth and we can tell they are having fun. The shot is only in focus with the girls and nobody in the background. This suggests to an audience that they are not related to the story line and we should/would instantly eliminate them from the shot because they have no significance. The editing from the scene is simple with straight cuts being the preferred and only transition used in this clip.
The mise-en-scene is probably about teenage girls living a wild life and the girl on the left (main character perhaps) isn't familiar to this life. I know this because of the dialogue, 'she's into it' which implies they have swayed her thinking and like of music towards their opinions of it. Also, the girls facial expressions and behaviour suggest the main character doesn't normally behave in that way because they laugh.
Ill manors
This is a trailer from the urban low budget film Ill Manors. The trailer sends out a vibe of crime and gangster life that could possibly be roaming the estate the film is set in. With that in mind, the audience would have to wonder who the main character is and whether gangster life is the right choice for them because there were many 'soft' characters in the trailer. The camera work used from the trailer suggests there will be a lot of action due to the fast pace of the scenes within the trailer. The lighting used in the film is mainly low key lighting which represents the urban genre as being depressing and having a lot of deaths due to 'gang bangs'. This would suggest to the audience the film will be a typical urban genre portraying youth in a negative way. Also, the narrative could be told before watching the movie as the trailer and posters itself imply a dangerous estate and location. In addition, the main colours used are grey; black; white which reinforces the suggestion of a dangerous estate.
Furthermore, the pace used is fast in the trailer which would keep the audience intrigued into the storyline. This is because as each shot changes rapidly, the setting, character and narrative changes which creates a lot of suggestions about the plot. The cinematography is very effective in the trailer as it shows loads of London's urban run down estates which reinforces the stereotypes people have created about these areas. Therefore, people have Britain would be interested as they probably would want to watch this film for social desirability.
The falling
The person narrating in the beginning of this film is the person who has the bruise. The becomes evident to the audience when she talks about it. The sound bridge is used to show the setting is in a school which is important as the audience will get an understanding of the character's environment. The non-diegetic sound is used to imply the genre of this film as being scientific fiction. Therefore, the sound is parallel to the story because of this.
The cinematography used was confusing in the beginning because the film was trying to suggest the girl is having visions and this is also shown through the cloudy edges of her visions. The pace of the transitions of her visions were extremely fast and it would be difficult for the audience to follow. This suggests the character has witnessed things that has affected her mentally and she can't forget about it. Also, the montage was used to show her visions quickly which is effective as it would tell the audience loads of her thoughts in a short period of time. I would say this uses high key lighting as it is more realistic and this is shown through school setting with the two girls. the sun is out but they are standing beneath a tree so the shadows eliminate the light like the a tree would in real life.
Run Lola Run
The sound used is music and it sounds as if a German person sings the song in the background of the clip. Therefore, the sound is non diegetic as the character can't hear it and it was added after the production of the film. The song used suggests the character is German and something epic will occur in the film because of the continuity of the beats which sounds rapid. However, there were times where the character encountered people on her journey and the audience were able to here them share their opinions loudly which was diegetic sound. This is because it came from the real World and the main character was supposed to hear the abuse being dished out towards her.
The editing used was effective as it used fast paced transitions (straight cuts). The pace of transitions were quick because the audience have stay alert and wonder why she is running, where she is running to and who she is running from. The audience are supposed to believe it will be revealed in the montage of running scenes. In addition, the montage was used to create the factor of mystery because we see various shots of the main character.
The cinematography used similar many different shots like close ups to see what the character looks like, long shots to see what the character is wearing which could indicate the type of person she is. In addition, there were plenty of tracking shots.
Our short clip involved a teacher questioning a pupil for not completing homework. There was a short piece of dialogue between the teacher and the student. We have covered the brief by using the shots specified and shots of the characters specified on the blog. Match on action was used effectively because the transitions were smooth. An example is when the teacher walks to the door (long shot) and the next shot is a close up of him swiping the card. It tells the audience that it is the same time and the card obviously is the reason the door unlocked. Also, it indicates to the audience that he is the teacher as he has a pass to open the door. In addition, shot reverse shot was used when the characters were discussing the 'homework issue'. It adds realism to the scene because we would expect a conversation to be fluent and the audience are able to see quick reactions which is natural.
Planning process
As a group we decided to split the work so ideas could be constructed quickly and the communication in this task was key. I had done the storyboard and my colleges did the shot list and transcript. We decided to use a draft storyboard to sketch ideas down and picture whether the transitions were fluent. If not, we would try to replace the shot or the type of shot we initially chose. For example, we were going to have a long shot of the teacher walk to the door and swipe his card. But I realised a way we could start covering the brief is by using match on action so the teacher would walk to the door and the next shot is a close up of him swiping his card to open the door. We would discuss whether some of the shots would make sense to a viewer who wouldn't know much about the story line. It was essential to look at it from their perspective because we would be able to criticise our work and edit changes that needed to be made. Also, we were going to make the recording seem as if it was hand held. So the camera would have been swaying slightly to show the casualness of the scene. This would have been a good addition because it show suggest although it is a serious clip (detention, education), we can try to make it relevant to our audience as they probably would have been in a similar situation - decided not to use it.
Strengths and weaknesses
The framing was okay because the audience were able to see the character that is on focus in the shot. The audience were able to understand the shots we used and realised a student was in detention and was neither of the characters were pleased. However, when the shot changed the positioning of the character's were different from the previous one. This is obvious to the audience and it takes the naturalism away from the shots. Therefore, the effect is reduced from the scene because it makes the continuity slow down and instead of making the audience feel like they are part of the story they would probably feel as if they are part of the editing of the clip. The dialogue was very clear and easy for the audience to understand. I believe this was mainly because the script had easy language to follow and for most they would be able to familiarise themselves with this situation. However, because of the editing, the shots didn't flow and this made the scene look artificial. The focus of the camera was poor and this made some of the shots look unprofessional and would take the audience away from the story. We were able to cover all the shots but the shot reverse shot didn't flow which is the main reason why the conversation also wasn't fluent.
