Opening Sequence planning

These are pictures of the feedback that we were given for our interpretations of Theories. We tried to include the theories on to our opening sequence and made story boards for them. An example of a theory that we tried to incorporate is Todrov's theory.

Audience Research

To improve our knowledge of Thriller movies, we decided to research which movies are showing that are thriller. We did this so that we could understand all the sub-genres that go alongside the normal thriller genre.

This week, there are 4 Thriller movies showing in the Odeon. They are Annabelle, Maze Runner, Gone Girl and Dracula Untold.

In Annabelle, There are sub-genres of Horror and Bloody violence.

In Maze Runner, There are sub-genres of Intense scenes, Threat and Violence.











In Dracula Untold, there are sub-genres of Strong Horror and Violence.











In Gone Girl, there are sub-genres of Violence and Strong Languages and gangs.











From this, we found that there are sub-genres of Violence, Threat and Gangs. This task is important as it gives us an idea on which sub-genre of thriller we would want our thriller movie to be classed under.

Se7en Opening Sequence Timeline

For this task, we had to create an opening sequence timeline for the film "Se7en". The timeline would include the timings of the names that appears on the screen.

In the opening sequence, the first names that are shown are the most important, such as the film company, Producer and Director. The Producer and and director's importance is emphasised even more due to the fact that their names are repeated at the end of the titles. The first actor that is shown is the main actor "Brad Pitt" and followed by the second main character "Morgan Freeman".


The Title of the film is then shown but only for a brief moment.


Names of actors and actresses are shown continuously from 0:30 to 1:03 then followed by a the casters, music editors, Costume designers, Editors, Production Designers, Directors of photography and co- producers. This supports the idea that order of names is based on the hierarchy of the film industry. The least important people are shown further into the opening sequence except from the Director and Producer who are repeated.

Style of font 

• Credits - mainly blocked letters except for actor names 
• Gothic writing for actor names
• White font which contrast with the black background and pictures

Movement of font

• Fading in from different parts of the screen as well as sharp movements whilst on screen
• Electrical effect when credits appear on screen
• Layered style of words (illusion/seeing double) 

Relationship to the genre and narrative

the relationship the credits have to the genre relate to the thriller genre

Memento

In this task, we were given a short movie clip from the movie "Memento". From that clip, each group were given a small segment to which we would have to make into a storyboard. We then gave our storyboards to other groups and they had to recreate that segment whilst only using the storyboard. 
This task made us understand the importance of making Storyboards very clear. We now understand that storyboards don't always need amazing illustrations, but they need description on the shot types, angles, mise-on-scene and timings. 
This task would help us during our planning for we would remember how to create a good storyboard. 

Storyboard

Here are the pictures of the storyboards which we were given and had to film. 

From that story board, this is what we filmed:

Actual Video



Uploaded by Ryan Navarro. Written by Darwin Serrano

Preliminary Task

Preliminary Evaluation by Darwin Serrano  



For our Preliminary task, we were asked to create a film which showed the 3 continuity principles a Match-on-action shot, Shot-reverse shot and the 180 degree rule. We prepared for this task by making a story board which put our ideas into paper and gave everyone in our group a vision on what we were planning our film to look like.

In this task, i was the main actor. I was the person being filmed by Ryan who was being our Cameraman. I also gave ideas on what and how we should film as i was the one who created the
Storyboard.

From doing our Preliminary task, we have found out our strengths and weaknesses as a group. We feel that our weaknesses can be seen in our final video therefore we hope that we can improve on this so that our work can be of the highest quality.

I feel that our strength is that we are able to adapt in certain situations very well. This is because, when we were first planning our preliminary task, we planned on shooting in the Library, We even based our storyboard on its setting. Unfortunately, we were unable to shoot at the library as it was occupied at the time therefore we had to find another place where we could shoot. In the end, we ended up shooting in our media room because it was the only place that was free to film in. Although it wasn't the setting we wanted, we still finished our task in what we feel is a high enough standard for a good grade.

This inconvenience, however, caused us a lot of time which we feel is what caused us to make some mistakes. For example, because of the lack of time, we were a little rushed in our filming which is never good as it meant that we couldn't shoot as many shots as we would have liked. This left us with limited shots to work with when we were editing. This is why in some cases, there are some strange cuts in our film. We had to do this so that we can keep continuity.

As a group, i feel that we worked really well because although we had our own roles, we all contributed in giving and listening to ideas to make our task better.

Match on Action

When studied the three Continuity editing, we were assigned a task to represent one of them. We decided to show Match on Action.



This task is important because it has made us used to the skill of editing and filming the Continuity Shots. This is significant because come the day when we film the Opening sequence, we would be prepared to use the three shots to keep continuity to our Film.

Insomnia

In this task, we made a visual essay on the thriller movie "Insomnia". We examined the different shots and cinematography that was used in the movie to help us understand the shots needed to make a good thriller movie. We learned that using contrasting colours is an effective way for showing the genre of thriller as it connotes to the idea of black and white, Good and Bad.

  Insomnia from St Peters RC Comprehensive by Ryan Navarro

Semiotics

For this task we studied semiotics. We did this to research the different representations of characters in Opening sequences. This gave us ideas on what to do with how we want to represent our characters on our Opening sequence. Representations on a character is very important as it helps individualise characters and easier to identify. For example, a person with tattoos, bandana or a hood would identify that he is a gangster.

By Darwin Serrano

Different Representations from Des Dube

Casino Royal Opening Macro Analysis

This post presents the macro analysis of Casino Royal opening.

Casino royale opening macro analysis (By Des) from Des Dube

Casino Royale Analysis

Casino Royale Opening Macro Analysis

From the opening sequence of Casino Royale, we are able to build up an expectation of what the film maybe about and how the rest of the story may turn out. The opening sequence shows that the character that James Bond kills wears a suit and tie and has a very impressive office. This implies that the movie will consist of a corrupt business, which the spy James Bond, will challenge. This is an easy link to the genre: Thriller as Corruption is one of its themes.  The opening sequence of the film also shows a flash back of James Bond’s past of which consists of a fight scene in a restroom. This shows that the film is action packed and filled with violence and fighting.

At the end of the opening section of the film is the Title sequence. The sequence is animated and has bright colours. The whole of the titles had references to Casinos which links to the title of the film one example is that Instead of bullets the gun fired spades. There are also pictures of figures fighting each other which link to the concept of the genre: Thriller. This is because one theme of a Thriller is violence and by showing a fight scene in the title sequence, creates a link to the genre: Thriller. However, not everything in the title sequence link to the genre: Thriller. The music played over the title sequence is not something you except to come across in a thriller movie instead you expect to hear it from a more cheerful genre such as a RomCom or a Comedy. This is because the song is upbeat and happy which differs from a more typical song for a thriller which is slow, tension building.

The only character that we can clearly identify from the opening sequence is James Bond.  It is easy to identify James Bond as he wears a tuxedo which is an iconic costume for the James Bond character. The Character that plays James Bond: Daniel Craig is physically fit and strong which makes him ideal for portraying James Bond as he is what most people imagine the character James Bond would look like.  Another character in the opening sequence is the villain. He wears a suite and tie which shows Authority and power this contrasts to another character, James Bond’s enemy in the fight scene, where he wears a more casual attire. There is very little dialogue in the opening scene especially in the fight scene where there is no dialogue used. This is significant as it creates tension due to the fact that having very little dialogue creates mystery as you would know less about what is happening. There are also no female characters introduced in the opening sequence of the film which is interesting as one of the main characters of all James Bond films are the James Bond girls.

The director uses clever cinematography, sounds and lighting to indicate that the genre of the film is Thriller.  There are Close up shots of James Bond’s face to show his emotion of seriousness.  This helps the audience identify that the genre is Thriller as it shows that the film is not cheerful nor humorous but serious and action packed, which are features of thriller movies.  The opening sequence is in black and white this made everything very dark which is important as it creates mystery because you don’t quite see everything clearly; this creates suspense which is essential in Thriller movies.  Furthermore, Dark has connotations of evil and violence which are themes of thrillers.  The use of sounds is used to create tension and suspense In the opening sequence.  Sounds of footsteps are enhanced to suggest that everything is very silent and slow tempo music is added to imitate the heartbeat.  This effect is important as it creates fear and tension for the audience. 

By Darwin Serrano 

Christopher Nolan and Casino Royal: Research and Analysis

Media Studies Summer Assignment

Christopher Nolan

He was born in London on the 30th of July 1970. Nolan began making films at age seven, borrowing his father's Super 8 camera and shooting short films with his action figures. From the age of 11, he aspired to be a professional filmmaker.
Nolan was educated at Hailey bury and Imperial Service College, an independent school in Hertford Heath, Hertfordshire and later read English literature at University College London. He chose UCL specifically for its filmmaking facilities.
Now he is an English-American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He created several of the most successful films of the early 21st century. His eight films have grossed over $3.5 billion worldwide. He is known for bridging the gap between art house and blockbuster films by presenting audiences with intelligent, challenging narratives.

The Dark Knight Rises

The Dark Knight Rises is a 2012 superhero film, starring Christian Bale, the lead role of Bruce Wayne/Batman. Christopher Nolan co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan. When Christopher Nolan completed “Batman Begins” in 2005, he had no plans for a sequel, let alone a trilogy. But seven years later, with The Dark Knight Rises, he has not only completed a cycle of the films that has built in intensity but also redefined what superhero movies can be while also grossing nearly $2.5 billion worldwide. And so this final film is Nolan’s conclusion of his trilogy on “Batman”

Nolan drew inspiration from Bane's comic book debut in the 1993 "Knightfall" storyline, the series of The Dark Knight Returns, and the storyline of "No Man's Land". Filming took place in locations including Jodhpur, London, Nottingham, Glasgow, Los Angeles, New York City, Newark, and Pittsburgh. One of the things that make Nolan’s Batman movies so compelling is their tone of plausibility. He will often prefer a raw, grittier design over one that is very sleek and product design great.

Nolan was nominated for a Directors Guild of America Award, Writers Guild of America Award and Producers Guild of America Award. This film also received eight Academy Award nominations.

Inception

Inception is a 2010 science fiction heist film written, produced, and directed by Christopher Nolan. Nolan combined elements from several different film genres into the film, notably science fiction, heist film, and film noir. In Inception, Nolan wanted to explore the idea of people sharing a dream space that gives you the ability to access somebody's unconscious mind. The majority of the film's plot takes place in these interconnected dream worlds. This structure creates a framework where actions in the real or dream worlds are connected to each other. The dream is always in a state of production, and shifts across the levels as the characters navigate it. Inception is similar to the film “Matrix” where it is based on a dream world.

The visual effects used for dream sequences in Inception is done by a computer-generated imagery. Nolan wanted practical effects whenever possible so using computer graphics can enhance the movie by making it look realistic and also eye catching. The most challenging visual effect work was the limbo city level at the end of the film because it continually developed during production.

The Prestige

The Prestige is a 2006 drama film, from a screenplay adapted by Nolan and his brother Jonathan Nolan from Christopher Priest's 1995 World Fantasy Award-winning novel of the same name “The Prestige”. The story follows with two men, Robert Angier and Alfred Borden, rival stage magicians in London at the end of the 19th century. They are obsessed with creating the best stage illusion, they engage in a very competitive state with tragic results. The rivalry between Borden and Angier dominates the whole film. The obsession, secrecy, and the sacrifice made it more exciting when they compete ad show off their stage illusions, as both magicians contribute their fair share to a deadly duel of one-upmanship, with disastrous results.

The Prestige received generally favourable reviews from film critics. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 76% of critics gave the film positive reviews. At Metacritic, the film received an average score of 66, based on 36 reviews. On IMDB the movie got an 8.5/10.

Casino Royal

Narrative

The opening of the movie started off with the main character, who is a spy, hunting down two men and eliminating them. The opening dialogue tells us that there may be corruption in the government and it gives the audience a vague insight into the story of the film, that is about to unravel.

Title sequence

The title sequence of the film relates to the movie tile “Casino.” This is shown by having card suites dominantly themed in the title sequence. The title sequence is mainly animated which makes it interesting to viewers as it is stands known that the title sequence in Bond movies are relatively long. It has up-beat music to make it go along with the movements of the title sequence and the actions to fit the movie’s action/thriller genre. The colour of credits of the sequence is white to make it stand out of the background and animation. The names are all capitalised and are in bold fonts so it out more from their titles.

Characterisation

Casino Royale is Daniel Craig’s first ever Bond movie. His role is James Bond, before he rejected the offer but he changed his mind when he read the script and became interested in making the movie.

James Bond and the other character at the beginning of the open sequence wore suits and this makes it a serious and tense scene because the lighting is dark and their facial expressions looks serious. Also it has slow and short dialogue which shows the intensity of the scene.

The scene also has flashback where James Bond is fighting in the toilet. The scene consisted with fast cut shot changes to make it an intense scene and relate to its genre. Both scenes consisted with weaponry, a male based prop, which makes this film appeal to male audiences.

Cinematography

In terms of cinematography there is a large range of shots. There is an establishing shot of the building where the action is about to take place to indicate to the audience where the characters are to make the narrative easier to understand and follow. There are lots of close-ups on all the characters faces but mostly James and the man wearing the suit. The close-ups are to show their emotions as they are clearly in a confrontation and the close-ups can give the audience an insight into what the characters are thinking or feeling at that time.

There are low angle and high angle shots used. The angle shots are used to show who has a higher status or has more authority to the other character. Similarly, over the shoulder shot was used to show power and also it shows the audience what the character is seeing.

Sound and Lighting

In the first scene of Casino Royale, the director used contrast colour which is black and white with dull lighting. This may represent the past or show it’s a flashback which builds up the narrative for the audience. There is also a contrast on the lighting on the fight scene where it is brightly lightened. This shows the difference of scene, the first one was mysterious with dialogue and the fight scene was more about action without any dialogue.

The music used in the first scene is slow and quiet which creates that suspense and mysterious mood. The fight scene on the other hand has a fast pace and louder music to make it more dramatic and action based theme.

Themes

Crime fighter and villain relates to the genre because the opening scene shows the main character in the scene to track down two men that he has to kill to do his job.

Victim and perpetrator villain relates to the genre because there are acts violence like fight scene and shooting the wearing the suit. These themes are mostly known by the audience as it is an action film.

Values and principle, and criminal opportunism relates to the genre because from the opening the audience see that James has the values and principle to find where is opponents weapon was hidden so he could defeat him without himself getting harmed. An example for criminal opportunism is when the audience see the fight scene, the criminal fought for his opportunity to not be killed.
St Peters RC Comprehensive by Ryan Navarro and Darwin Serrano

Director Analysis

Darwin Serrano

Media Studies Summer Assignment

Christopher Nolan

Christopher Nolan is recognised as one of the world’s best and most popular Film directors in today’s film industry. He has written, directed and produced in films such as the new revamped Superman movie: Man of steel, All three in the highly rated Batman trilogy: Batman Begins, The Dark knight and the Dark Knight Rises and the 2010 science fiction heist film: Inception.

Awards Won

He believes that his works are of a high standard and has awards to show for it by winning 3 AVI movies of the year awards with The Dark knight, The Dark knight raises and Inception. He has also won the Saturn awards 3 times for Best Director and Best writer, the Golden Eddie Film maker of the year award in 2011 and the AAFCA award for best Director. From this it is easier to understand why he is one of the most sought after directors in the world.

Why I chose to write about him

The best directors deliver an experience that goes beyond the product being sold to you.  They produce movies that, after watching, make you want to be a friend that has not seen the movie just so that you can relive that experience again. With Christopher Nolan you get just that. I think that this is what has drawn and influenced me to choose him as the director that I wanted to write about because from the movies that he had directed, written and produced, they had reminded me with feelings of what made me love movies in the first place.

A movie in particular that I feel Christopher Nolan has done this very well on is the Dark knight rises: the finale of the Batman trilogy. I think that this fictional thriller shows off Christopher Nolan’s skill as a writer, producer and director very well. It is especially hard to be successful in a film like this where everyone is so familiar with the character of Batman and that it has had many other different films made before it, thus it is much more difficult to input your own ideas and therefore make it stand out from the rest. But he did this and has managed to completely change everyone’s view of batman, from a funny looking chap in a spandex grey suit and a mask to a dark, broad and mysterious Hero, the Batman that we know today.

Methods in creating a film

When working with actors, Christopher Nolan prefers giving them the time to perform as many takes of a given scene as they want. "I've come to realize that the lighting and camera setups, the technical things, take all the time, but running another take generally only adds a couple of minutes. ... If an actor tells me they can do something more with a scene, I give them the chance, because it's not going to cost that much time. It can't all be about the technical issues." – Speaking in an interview. He had been praised by Gary Oldman for having a relaxed and calm atmosphere on set. "I've never seen him raise his voice to anyone" He also explained that Nolan does not give direction for direction's sake, rather "He lets you have the space to find things in the scene, and if he needs to tweak something he will simply step in and give you a note."

This method of directing gives actors the power to perform a scene the way they feel their character will act. This means that the movie is produced with ideas from both the actors and Christopher Nolan himself.

Christopher Nolan also seeks to minimize the use of Computer Generated Imagery in his films, preferring to use practical effects as much as possible. He only uses CGI to enhance elements which he has photographed by camera. For instance, his films Batman Begins and Inception featured 620 and 500 visual-effects shots, which might sound like it is a lot but compared with contemporary visual-effects epics which may have upwards of 1,500 to 2,000

Conclusion

Christopher Nolan will continue to grow into becoming one of the world’s best directors and as he does that, he will continue to create films which will deliver a reminder to everyone why films are so great.