We have now come to the stage of composing music for our title sequence. We had to understand the the music has to relate to the genre of the title sequence and if it does contain lyrics it has to relate to the plot of character, however if it does not then our title sequence will not be so effective and will make the audience confused about the genre. Some examples from popular movies where the music creates the mood and atmosphere would be 'The Talented Mr Ripley'. We know that the film may be set in the 60s as we hear jazz music in the title sequence. Another example is Rocky, which uses quite victorious music connotating the victories of boxing matches that Rocky has had. This tells us more about the character suggesting he never gives up. The music is also quite fast-paced creating a boxing atmosphere. A third example would be from Jaws where the music is slow, and deep creating tension which informs the audience that something bad is going to happen (the shark is going to attack).
Friday 18 February 2011
Examples of Title Sequence's from Previous Students
In order to gain some more ideas and get a sense of what we will have to create for our title sequence, we watched some which were made by previous Media students. Watching them made us realise the little mistakes that could be made in ours, which we will have to be aware of.
The first title sequence we watched was called 'The Fat and the Furious'. The title sequence uses a range of shots which was really effective, however the title sequence was too long which made it very boring to watch, as not much was going on. We just see the regular behaviour of the male character, who wakes up, brushes his teeth and gets dressed. I think this was completely pointless as it didn't really convey the genre at all. For background sound all we could hear were police car noises, which had no relevance to the title sequence. At the end of the title sequence we see a close up of the male character sitting in a car where the title 'The Fat and the Furious' appears. I don't think the title of the title sequence was good, as it is a copy of the popular film 'The Fast and the Furious'. The title of the film looks as if the student who edited it forgot to place the 's' in 'Fat'. To improve this the student could have put speech marks around it so the audience know that this may be a spoof or that the editor didn't make a mistake with spelling. The font of the title also did not convey the genre, and the title sequence as a whole did not tell the audience anything about the main character. Overall I did not like the title sequence at all. I thought it was boring, too long and was not effective at all. The whole beginning of the title sequence was completely pointless, I think it could have been cut down shorter and should have shown a little more about the male character and shown if he could drive or not. This would have told us a little more about the plot.
The second title sequence we looked at was called 'Dead Revenge'. In the title sequence we see a female character and her actions - getting dressed, putting on make-up etc. There were also a range of shots used but mainly close-up/extreme close-ups. This makes it more clear for the audience to see what is happening and feel eager to know see what the female character is doing. The title appears quite fast on the screen as the female character carries on getting dressed. I liked the fact that it was clearly seen and the faded away. The title sequence did tel us that the character is a woman, this was shown through the clothes she was putting on and the mascara and red lipstick. Props like the red lipstick to connotate that the film may involve some type of death/murder. The black clothing that the female character was putting on suggested a mysterious genre. However the font of the the text used in the title sequence changed during the sequence, therefore this showed a lack of effective editing and also did not look professional. Overall i thought it was a good title sequence as there were many elements used to create an effective title sequence.
Wednesday 16 February 2011
Story Board
We weren't too sure about the fourth shot on this storyboard where Hannah imagines stabbing Zeba in the eyes.
We thought this would give too much of the storyline away making the film boring to watch.
The last three shots on this storyboard were not effective at all. We decided to edit these and take some out. This was because it was making the title sequence too long which is only suppose to be under 2 minutes. We also thought too much of the plot was being given away in just the title sequence.
The third shot on this storyboard was of Hannah imagining of smashing a mirror in Zeba's head. This was also going to make the title sequence too long and give too much of the story away. We want our title sequence to create engima's for the audience making our title sequence more effective. Therefore we placed our ideas on the title sequence just as a draft to get an idea of what we could do for our final.
We took this shot out of the title sequence which was of the fourth character Oscar, who was the mastermind behind killing Zeba and was encouraging Hannah too. In this shot we would see oscar watching Hannah from the window. However we had to keep in mind we are not telling the whole story in the title sequence, therefore we could not show all the characters at once in the first 2 minutes.
The third shot here, has been sightly changed now as we decided not to show Hannah's face when the title appears. We decided that we would show Hannah's face with a smirk and then a blackout, where the title will appear.
Troubleshooting
When planning for our title sequence, we were experiencing some difficulties. The first difficulty was naming the film. We decided to name our film 'Bitch' as the word itself mean't a female dog which connotated the role of Hannah in the title sequence. However when we dicussed this with our teacher, we realised that having a film named 'Bitch' would not appeal to many people or stores, therefore our film would not sell. We experimented many different names then finally settled on one...Death Kiss. We thought the 'Death' could represent the film will be horror and involve someone dying however the word 'Kiss' suggests there may be some romance linked in the film which is between Zeba and Rohan. Another problem that arose was where the film would take place. We decided Zeba's house however we thought that there would be too much ambient sound due to family members being present at the same time. We then had to change our location and ask other friends if we could use their house. Our friend agreed however it depended on when she would be available for us to come and film in her house.
Prop List
My group and I created a list of props that we will be needing when shooting our title sequence
1. Eyeliner pencil
2. A sharpener
3. Knife
4. Portrait of Zeba
5. Radio
6. Mobile Phone
7. Hair Brush
Shooting Schedule
Thursday 24th February - 3:00pm
Meeting at Zeba's house on Ley Street. Catching 169 to Ilford, then switching buses to go to Dagenham where we will be filming at a friend's house. We will then set up our camera equipment and get ready to film.
Vogler's Hero Journey
To make our title sequence effective it should follow a good narrative structure, either from Todorov's or Vogler's hero journey. We as a group we decided to use the structure of Voglers Hero Journey as we thought it fit our concept perfectly. Below is our narrative structure:
The ordinary world
Definition: The story starts in the ordinary world where the hero is going about everyday existence, oblivious of the adventures to come. This anchors the hero as a human, just like you and me, and hence we can associate our selves with the hero.
How our concept relates to this
Two best friends are having fun and getting ready to go out.
The call to adventure
Definition: The hero is next presented with a wrong done, a problem or challenge which they feel they must resolve. Thus the king calls for someone to save the realm from a marauding enemy, a private detective has a client bring a difficult case to them or an attractive other person is spotted in a bar. Thus the challenge is set, to defeat the enemy, solve the murder or win the heart of the other person.
How our concept relates to this
Hannah is jealous of Zeba's boyfriend - Rohan, behind her back.
Refusal of the call
Definition: The hero may well balk at the thought of the task ahead, perhaps refusing the challenge or having second thoughts. The problem seems to much to handle and the comfort of home seems more attractive than the rough wilderness or dangerous streets. This would be our own response and we thus bond further with the reluctant hero.
How our concept relates to this
Hannah who is plotting to kill her Zeba in order to get Rohan to like her, she starts to have seconds thoughts, reflecting on the good times both bestfriends have had together since childhood.
Meeting the mentor
Definition: The mentor appears to help the hero prepare for the road ahead. Thus Gandalf, Obi-wan Kenobi and a host of other wise and experienced people teach the hero the skills they need and give them critical knowledge to help them survive.
How our concept relates to this
Hannah is plotting to kill her Zeba who is her bestfriend. She gets the help from her Zeba's ex-boyfriend.
Crossing the threshold
Definition: Eventually the hero is ready to act and crosses the threshold, often literally as they leave the family homestead on their journey into the unknown.
How our concept relates to this
Hannah is ready to kill Zeba and goes crazy thinking about how happy Zeba is with her Rohan.
Tests, allies and enemies
Definition: Once out in the big wide world, the hero is confronted with an ever more difficult series of challenges that they may face, ranging from minor skirmishes and struggles against weather and terrain to riddles and various setbacks that would defeat a lesser person.
In this way the hero's character is both highlighted and developed. Now bonded to the hero, we feel a vicarious sense of pleasure as these challenges are met.
How our concept relates to this
Hannah realizes its impossible for her to kill Zeba on her own, so she teams up with Zeba's ex-boyfriend who she dumped. He is angry with her therefore wants to also seek revenge.
Approach the Inmost Cave
Definition: At last the final destination lays ahead and the hero, battered but wiser from their trials along the way must prepare for the ultimate test. In ancient legend, a typical 'innermost cave' is the land of the dead or a labyrinth. It is the lair of the dread enemy where no help may be found and only deep courage will win through. Another threshold must be crossed here to enter the dragons' den of the innermost cave.
We swallow hard, as does the hero, at the thought of what might go wrong. To approach the innermost cave is to face death and still go on. This pause helps show the hero as still human and helps build the story tension before the high point of the story.
How our concept relates to this
Zeba's ex-boyfriend agrees to help Hannah to kill Zeba
The ordeal
Definition: At last the hero must face their deepest fears, typically in battle with the dark villain. This is the ultimate test that the hero takes, where the real story perhaps is the inner battle whereby the hero overcomes their own demons in facing up to the enemy outside.
As observers, we feel scared for the hero and may be terrified that they might fail or die. In so doing we also face and, with the hero, overcomes our own inner fears.
How this relates to our concept
Rohan realises Hannah's plans and tries to save Zeba from dying
The reward
Definition: In defeating the enemy, the hero is transformed into a new state where fears are vanquished and the new fearless person is born. The reward in the story may be gaining new knowledge, a treasure or rescuing a princess, but the inner reward is in the personal growth that is achieved.
How this relates to our concept
Rohan kills Hannah as she is caught and all her lies are revealed to Zeba
The roadback
Definition: After the story has reached it main peak, the transformed hero sets out home again. Having gained the treasure they are have no need for more adventure and nothing left to prove and so set out back home again.
Setting out home is reverse echo of crossing the threshold in setting out on the adventure. In contrast to the earlier anticipation of danger, the anticipation now is of acclaim and rest.
How this relates to our concept
Zeba is traumatised by what has just happened to Hannah, but Rohan tries to comfort her and helps her forget about everything and move on.
The resurrection
Definition: The story has one last trick up its sleeve now, having lulled its audience into a false sense of security, as one last challenge faces the hero. Perhaps the villain was not completely vanquished or perhaps there are other people in need on the way back -- whichever way, we are again plunged into another climactic event, just when we thought it was safe to breath easy again. In ancient stories, the hero has to be purified before return. After the toil of the journey and the ordeal, they are formally reborn into a new and beautiful form.
How this relates to our concept
After a few months, Zeba has fully recovered after what has happened to Hannah. Rohan and Zeba carry living their lives together as a couple.
Characters
There are four of us in a group, however only three of us will play characters in the title sequence.
Hannah - Zeba's bestfriend and the killer
Zeba - Hannah's bestfriend and in a relationship with Rohan
Rohan - Zeba's boyfriend who know's there's something strange about Hannah
Oscar - Camera man
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