Our rough cut and the feedback that we have received from it.

From our initial screening we have received some really useful feedback. One of the main issues is to decide what will come before the 'two months earlier' as this makes the storyline slightly unclear at the moment. We think that some snappy and short shots of the main character washing blood off a knife would look effective. Another issue was framing and how we need to think about it a little more when filming some of the shots, particularly in the sections with the antagonist, where there was an issue of him laughing that we need to re-film. Some of these shots also appeared a little shaky so we must be careful and use a tripod at all times unless we are aiming for a shaky, disjointed effect. Another important issue was that we broke the 180 degree rule, so when we are re-filming these shots we must be wary not to do that again. One issue that people commonly raised was if the title sounds too American than British, so we are deciding whether to change the title to a more British one and what this could be. I think that something like 'Knife Point' would work well instead. We also were told that the main protagonist’s costume looked a little ill-suited so we have been considering on how to change this also. On the plus side, we received positive feedback on our self-composed music as it works really well with the opening.

Planning the locations, costumes and props.

In this prezi we will explore the locations, costumes and props that we want to use. These may be altered but it gives us some ideas to work with when at the filming stage.



From my research, I have recognised that these are essential locations, props and costumes to use for our film opening. I have noticed that for the location, we must carefully consider which would fit our desired purpose, as other British Gangster films do. The costumes are also an important role as they help to define a character and his personality, if he is an antagonist or a protagonist. Props have also been shown as an important element of British Gangster films as they help to set the scene and tell the story. We have therefore chosen our props very carefully to tell the exact story that we want.

Storyboard and consideration of titles.

Below is the storyboard for our film opening. To understand the images better, the script on the previous post can be used.

Although this storyboard provides some ideas about how we want to incorporate our titles, through the film name and 'two months earlier' being written in a large white font on a black background for a full on effect, we feel unsure about how we want to incorporate others. The use of them merged into the scene could be very effective, such as the actor’s names being shown in the same scene as them. However, we do also like the effect of having large white writing on a black background. To decide which will be most effective, we will have to look at it in more detail whilst filming.

Storyboard on PhotoPeach

Script.

Below is the rough script for our film opening. The camera movements and shots can be seen clearer on the storyboard in the post that follows this one.

Script for our film opening-

OPENING SCENE- Hands, knife and cloth covered in blood. Using the blooded cloth to attempt to clean the knife.

CREDIT –Careless Picture films.

Back to the scene of hands being cleaned by a sink and being scrubbed (Close up of hands and sink)

CREDIT– Directed and written by Bethany Eastman and Briony Watkins.

Cuts back to the scene of Jack Wilson staring into the directly into the camera crying.

MAIN TITLE- HITMAN (BLACKSCREEN WHICH FADES INTO THE NEXT SCENE AND LEADS INTO THE NEXT TEXT ON SCREEN- 1 month earlier AT THE BOTTOM LEFT OF THE SCREEN)

A landscape of Bristol which will be an establishing shot, tilt camera up then down for location change into an empty alleyway.

Man runs in from side of the entrance and others chasing him but run opposite way.

He stands for a few seconds and heavily breathing.

Cuts to close up of ringing phone then camera zooms out with the phone.

Jack: *nervous & stuttering* Wh-what?!

Cuts to The Boss in his office, talking on his landline.

The Boss: One more job and it’s over. No more. But if you don’t do it, well...

Cuts back to Jack in the alleyway, sat on the floor looking fed up.

Jack: B-but I’m retired! You said that the last job 5 years ago would be my last.

The Boss: Well, you should’ve never trusted me.

Jack: Fine. *sighs takes a deep breath and exhales* This, This will be my last job. Don’t bother trying to contact me again.

Cut back to a long shot of The Boss in his Office. Pans around from side angle to face on.

Hand moves towards phone to pick it up. The camera tilts up, following it to his face.

The Boss: He’s in.

Health and safety evidence.

 

To ensure that we film our opening following health and safety regulations, we have used a risk assessment to ensure that any precautions are met and dealt with before anything goes wrong. This can be seen below.

Pitch.

Pitch-

This film is about a retired Hitman, hence the name of the film. He is told to do one last job by his old boss, and the only thing making him doubt himself is his family. Selfless Jack has to face his last ever job in order to protect the ones that he loves, by the selfish boss who knows Jacks darkest secrets. You don’t know it yet, but The Boss has a surprise for Jack Wilson, as its not Jack that has secrets.

Character profiles-

Protagonist-Jack Wilson.

Jack is a man who has been caught up in the gangster business his whole life but he has had enough so he has retired. When the boss calls him and asks him to do one more job for him, Jack finds himself feeling confused and lost. He doesn’t know what to do, he desperately needs the money but he doesn’t want his wife and children to get hurt in any way. He is a character that we as the viewer sympathise with as we don’t want him to get hurt in any way and want to protect him in a sense. Jack is quite vulnerable and easily manipulated, but he still wants to put his family first and has a sensitive soul.

Antagonist= The Boss.

The Boss’ name is never revealed and he is a very mysterious character, as well as a dominating one. He tries to manipulate the inferior Jack, although Jack still has a strong love for his family who he holds close and will protect in any ways that he can. We dislike The Boss as he seems to be cruel and heartless, using his superiority to control Jack. He also has ‘cronies’ as a defence at all times, making him seem powerful and a character that you shouldn’t threaten or fight with. His costume also makes him seem superior as he will wear a suit in contrast to Jack’s more casual style. 

Raw footage of the locations.

These are videos of the locations that we recorded during our recce. They are not recorded to a very high standard.

The first video is from the first alleyway that we looked at and the second video is from the second alleyway. Photos from the recce can also be seen in a separate post.

Planning of music.

Planning the music proved to be a difficult task as we had to ensure that it wasn't copyrighted. I wanted the music to have a dark and mysterious tone, and it also has to be discreet so that it doesn't take over the scene and become too much of a focus point. This will fulfil the traditional use of non-diegetic music in British gangster films that I have noticed during my research stage. Therefore, we asked a musician to provide us with a digitally made track that fits these conditions. He fulfilled this successfully and we have a track to work with, which is provided below. It is very suitable as they have a great air of mystery and provide darkness, which fulfils our requirements exactly.

 

Initial ideas.

The mind map below shows our initial ideas. We had a variety of ideas, such as a heist and a story based on flashbacks, although we have preference for an idea using a flash-forward instead at the moment. We want an idea that followed the British gangster route but is also unique and different to the typical and already made films.



Working with my feedback so far.

I think that it will be beneficial for my to look at the feedback that I have had so far as this will allow me to know what I need to work on and how to make my work the best that it can be. Below is the feedback from my media studies teacher, who has informed me that I am currently working at a level 4.

'Fantastic research in to audience and you clearly show how this will support your planning. the voki and rate card are a nice visual demonstration of your target audience to support your survey. You have completed some really detailed research in to openings and conventions of the gangster genre. You have really considered the layout of your blog and embraced using new technologies to present your research too.'

From this I understand that my work so far is to a high quality and to ensure that I achieve the best grade possible, I must keep my work to this high standard. This target is what I hope to achieve through planning my film opening.

Audience research.

These are the film classifications according to the British Board of Film Classification. These ratings are important as they inform the customer of which films are suitable for them and they should watch and which they shouldn't watch. To grade the films, the examiners look at a variety of issues from discrimination and nudity to language and violence. However, much more than this is taken into account. They examine the context, tone and impact of the work and how it will make the audience feel as well as the format that it is in as a DVD will lead to a higher amount of underage viewing.
 

Suitable for all


Parental guidance


Cinema release suitable for 12 years and over


Video release suitable for 12 years and over


Suitable only for 15 years and over


Suitable only for adultsThrough research, I have discovered that the typical ratings for British Gangster films are either rated 15 or 18. This is usually because the films contain strong language and violence that is unsuitable for children, younger ones in particular. This tells me therefore that I need to set my target audience as adults rather than people under 18s.

What signifies a rating 15?

To rate a film 15, it must be stronger than a 12 or 12A. This could be in any section from strong violence to strong language. Subjects such as sexual activity can be portrayed but without graphic detail. A lack of strong, gory images is important and issues such as suicide should not be dwelled upon.

What signifies a rating 18?

To rate a film 18, it must be stronger than a 15. Issues such as strong language have no boundaries and stronger gory images are permitted than in a 15 rated film. Other issues such as drug taking may be shown but not promoted and nudity is permitted as long as it isn't excessive.

To try and get an idea of who my target audience are, I have sent out a survey to try and understand what they would want or expect from a film opening. I have found the results to be very helpful as I can see that more males then females enjoy British Gangster Films but I can also see that people under 18 have filled out the survey. However I do not want to use them as my target audience as it would be inappropriate considering that some British Gangster Films are 18 rated, so although mine might be 15 or 18 rated, at the moment I know that it is unsuitable to set under 18s as my target audience. I have put in a link to the survey below.

Click here to take survey

Below are the results of my survey.



I have created a voki to represent my target audience.




To understand what my target audience are like and their interests, I have created rate cards to represent them. For the technology section, I have looked into a variety of gadgets that they might use, such as I Pads and netbooks as they are a suitable size for easy use. As my target audience would have grown up through the technology era, they would have a keen interest in new technology. Also, as they would be at an age where they disposable income so can afford the latest gadgets.

The fashion section represents what the men wear. As they are the age that will want to dress so that they fit in yet have their own personality quirks. An example of this is converse, where men will wear different designs and styles, but ultimately still the same shoe.

This age group have a variety of hobbies; these depend on their location financial stability. The men in the younger bracket of my target audience age range will be more likely to go to nightclubs, whereas the men in the older bracket will be more likely to drive. This shows that the men in this age bracket, although a similar age, can have very different personalities and social lives.

I have also looked into the food that my target audience eat. I have shown a variety of typically British fast food as this age group tend not to cook, largely due to a lack of facilities and ability.

 

Analysis of a previous students' work.

Analysis of Previous Students Work by Briony96

Evidence of films that you admire or that will influence you.

To be able to collect the most inspiration and influence that I possibly can to make my film opening really effective and to a high standard, I have looked into film openings that I admire outside of the Gangster Genre. This has allowed me to expand my understanding of film openings to recognise the conventions of film openings in general that I must strive to meet.


The web link is also attached below to allow easier viewing of this blog post.

http://briony96.edu.glogster.com/inspiration-and-influences

preliminary task.

This is the video for the preliminary task.

Theory about narrative structure.

I have looked at four different theorists and how they describe the narrative structure of a film. To get inspiration for my own film opening I have looked at which British Gangster films compare and contrast with the theories.

Research into the relevant Gangster Genre.

This Prezi contains my Research into the British Gangster Genre. It has allowed me to understand the requirements and conventions that I must meet in order to ensure that my film opening is suitable for the sub-genre.

Influences of style.

To understand the importance of style in the media industry, I have created a moodboard demonstrating any inspiration about style that I could take from the images. I have collected a range of media forms, which are adverts, magazine covers, TV and film shots, to understand how style is massively important in all forms of media.



I then decided to create a photopeach demonstrating a variety of costumes that have been used in Gangster Films in general, although I have mostly emphasised upon British Gangster Films. This has allowed me to understand conventions of the genre, as well as deciding upon the costumes for my own film opening. I have noticed a trend of either smart and suited 'traditional' costumes, such as Get Carter, or some quite casual 'modern' ones, such as those in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. It will be important for me to consider which of these types of costume I will want to use myself, or if I might want to create a fused idea of the two, similar to images 10 and 11 from Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, where some characters are in suits and some are not. This will be something important to consider when planning my own film opening.

Research into a director and their previous work.

Analysis of gangster films which are from the same genre.

From the films that I have watched which were Snatch, Layer Cake and Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, I have begun to understand how my own film opening should look. Firstly, I have understood the importance of introducing either a pair of characters, which is used effectively in Layer Cake and Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels or a group/gang of characters that the film will be centralised on which is used in Snatch. The use of capital and lower case letters seem to be important for the type of British Gangster film that I want to do. If I want to create a humorous and more child-like opening then I should use lower case letters as shown in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. However, to create a more direct and loud style I could write all of the credits in capital letters in the way that Snatch does to create a strong impact on the viewer. The use of both capitals and lower case letters in the traditional way creates a more sophisticated looking piece, which is used in Layer Cake. This should be something that I should investigate further when making my opening sequence. The diegetic sound is important for my opening sequence, as is my non-diegetic sound, as I need to insure that I use a suitable mixture of both. For the non-diegetic sound, a rocky sounding music is vital to create the British Gangster feel. To create this effect myself it is crucial that I investigate what possible alternatives there are for me without breaking copyrights. Another recurring feature is how the opening sequences use straight, quite quick cuts between the titles and shots in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch to make the sequence seem smooth and well edited. The titles in Layer Cake overlap the action happening on the screen which makes it seem to be more of an after though and less important than what is actually happening. I also think that the effect used in both Layer Cake and Snatch where they tie the title of the film into the setting is very effective as it looks professional and well planned. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels contrasts to this as it uses a letter by letter typewriter effect to make the film title appear on screen, which shows a creative take on how to show it to the audience. These two different ideas give me some useful basis to work and get ideas off. The use of slow motion in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels is also something that I find to be very effective, as well as the non-diegetic voice over, which I think would be very effective to use in my own opening sequence.




Layer Cake.

Lock,Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

Snatch.

Research into existing companies that produce and distribute gangster films.

The Godfather, 1972.
This film started off with a budget of an estimated $6,000,000 which was made back with a gross of $244,900,000 worldwide gross. The production team was headed by Paramount Pictures, a famous  American company known for its creation of a variety of films. Alfran productions also co-produced, but they are a less known company from the time who only created a few films in comparison. The distributors include a vast amount of companies which is again fronted by the well-known Paramount Pictures. This shows that they believed that the film would be a success as they were willing to put money into it. This film is also shown to have been successful as it has become a trilogy although the other films haven't been as successful.


Scarface, 1983.
Scarface had an estimated budget of $25,000,000 which it made with profit with a $65,884,703 worldwide gross. Its production company was Universal Pictures which is a very famous American company that produces a wide variety of successful films yearly. The distributors are more widespread with the lead company universal pictures but also smaller companies participating in the regular re-releases of the film on to DVD.






Lock, stock and two smoking barrels, 1998.
The budget for this film was an estimated £960,000 and their gross in America alone on the 23rd of May 1999 was $3,650,677 which made them a big profit. It was produced by a mixture of both British and American companies such as Summit Entertainment which is an American film company that produces a variety of films and SKA Films that produce films that fit into the gangster genre such as snatch. The British influence on the films is also shown through the other company credits such as the special effects company Cinesite who have created the special effects for many films such as Harry Potter series.

 The departed, 2006.
This was a high budget, high profile film with a budget of about $90,000,000 and huge A-list actors such as Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon. This casting paid off massively though as the film made a gross of $289,847,354 worldwide by the 22nd of March 2007, which would still be increasing through recent sales. The production companies involved in this film were mainly American, with the massive company Warner brothers company presenting as well as distributing it although there was the company, Media Asia Films, from Hong Kong, who worked in association with the film. One of the visual effects companies was Lola Visual Effects, an American company who have worked on many incredible films such as Life of Pi and Avengers Assemble. This shows that this company are still an important institution for film making.

 Gangster Squad, 2013.
This film doesn't seem to be as high class as the others that I have researched. It started off with the budget of around $60,000,000 and although it had made a seemingly good $17,070,347 in the first week (11th January 2013) alone in America, this highly building gross didn't keep going and by the 31st of March, instead of making a profit they didn't even meet their budget with a gross of $45,996,718. This shows that the film was a flop and was a lot less memorable than the other films that I have looked at. Although Warner Brothers, who were involved in the distribution of Gangster Squad, wouldn't have been massively impacted by this as they make enough films yearly to be earning a lot of profit, some of the other institutions involved would have felt a loss from the film. Langley Park Productions for example have only produced a few films so they would have been impacted. Other companies involved such as Village Roadshow Pictures would have probably felt some impact as they have co-produced in some big films such as Sherlock Holmes and The Great Gatsby but it hasn't produced as many films as the main companies such as Warner Brothers.

Conventions of a gangster film.

The video below contains screen shots from the sub-genres British Gangster, Film Noir and Detective Who Dunnits from the genre Gangster Films. I chose to look at these genres as I thought that they would be interesting to learn more about how they are similar and different to each other which would help me to ultimately decide which genre to continue into. The films that I looked into were Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Layer Cake for British Gangster, Sunset Boulevard and Sin City for Film Noir and The Usual Suspects and Miss Marple's The Blue Geranium for detective Who Dunnits. The video below will go into each of these film openings and what features are similar and different in each sub-genre.

Hisory of the Gangster Genre.

To understand the Gangster Genre better, I have created a Prezi which will provide a deeper insight into the genre and the films that make it. This will provide me with ideas about what films are included in the Genre for inspiration as well as key information including which films were particularly successful and memorable and which were not.