Conventions of a Drama film opening Prezi

Morecambe & Wise breakfast scene

For my 2 minute film piece, I am considering choreographing a scene similar to the one performed by comedy duo 'Morecambe and Wise'. I would intersperse this with shots of people running, as I think to pair the mundane task of cooking with frantic movement and panic of running would have comic value.

Film Opening Time Line

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/great-expectations/#

Here is a film opening time line for 'Great Expectations' (2011)

00:02 - RAY WINSTON
00:06 - GILLIAN ANDERSON
00:11 - DAVID SUCHET
00:15 - and DOUGLAS BOOTH
00:21 - MARK ADDY, CHARLE CREED-MILES, SHAUN DOOLEY
00:23 - OSCAR KENNEDY, VANESSA KIRBY, IZZY MEIKLE-SMALL
00:27 - PAUL RHYS, JACK ROTH, CLAIRE RUSHBROOK
00:30 - screenplay by SARAH PHELPS
00:33 - produced by GEORGE ORMOND
00:35 - directed by BRIAN KIRK

00:42 - GREAT EXPECTATIONS
00:44 - by CHARLES DICKENS

The credits appear relatively oddly spaced, the number of seconds between them varying widely.
The music for this film opening seemed to build, starting softly at the beginning with only one or two instruments being played. As the piece moved on, more and more depth seemed to be added to it, and by the end of the opening the music had reached a delicate, reserved crescendo using only one instrument. This was effective when paired with the butterfly starting off translucent, then becoming more white/grey, then developing fine black patterns on it's wings until finally, it's jet black and in the iconic pose of a butterfly preserved for display - referencing part of the story, and one of Miss Havisham's famous lines.

 Miss Havisham: [to Pip of a butterfly collection] "Look closer if you wish. My brother's collection. He went to the furthest reaches of the earth in his quest for the purest specimen of beauty. And when he found it, he stuck a pin through its heart. He's dead now. Cholera. In the tropics. Struck down in his relentless pursuit of beauty. Perhaps it was beauty's revenge to stop his heart when he had stopped so many others."

Iconic Sounds

Some of the key iconic sounds from the Pastiche genre are (I am looking at a mixture of comedy, action fantasy, gaming genres):

       

There are usually a lot of explosions in action films, so I might use this convention in my pastiche.




The game over track is an iconic sound, referenced in films with the video game theme to signal a death or the end.





The 8bit track is iconic to vintage video games which is often very relatable to gaming audiences.







The gun shot sound is extremely recognisable as it is used in a wide range of genres. People recognise it even if they've never even seen a gun in reality.



Zombies are one of the most popular human-mutant features in fantasy films, and their moan is easily replicated seeing as they are formed from creatures that were once human beings.

Typical Synopsis

Typical Synopsis for an 'Action-Comedy' -
A down-trodden 'lovable loser' type character is living their unsatisfying life undisturbed. Then something significant happens requiring them to become a hero or use some physical/metal skill only they possess to overcome the villain. They will often be taken out of their natural everyday environment and end up somewhere they don't know how to behave. They may come across another, 'hero type' character who becomes their guide/love interest/friend. In the end the loser gains respect after defeating his enemies and returning home where their life is considerably better, usually after honing their special skill. These will contain a lot of slapstick in comparison to an Action film.

Typical Synopsis for a 'Syfy-Comedy' -
A 'nobody' character may be living perfectly happily until a series of unusual events begin to occur. They may be told by another (more experienced) character that they possess supernatural capabilities. They must then work on their powers to become strong enough to: save their home planet/dimention, overthrow an evil ruler in a futuristic world/setting, or save the planet from certain destruction by another planet. There is often an impossible feat the character must perform, and using their special powers (which should be more powerful than anybody else possessing them) save everyone. In the end they settle in to using their powers, and are often made a leader or a ruler due to their bravery. These are often feel good films, opposed to Syfy.

Typical Synopsis for a 'Teen-Comedy' -
A nerdy teenager whom is particularly unpopular usually attempts to boost their social status by providing fake IDs/alcohol/drugs, resulting in much physical comedy. They will often have feelings for a popular girl considered way out of their league, but will attempt to court them anyway. The police are often involved and make attempts to try and stop them. Eventually, the nerd uses their natural intellect to get the popular people out of a bad situation, sometimes by sacrifising themselves. These films can end in two ways. The first, the nerd gains the respect of their peers, gets the girl, and is happy. The second (and more popular version) the nerd is popular for that night and that night only, and the next day at school they are treated just as they were before and the girl refuses to date them. The character may be happy that he achieved the goal, just for the night, or angry that it didn't last for more than a few hours.

My hopes for my film opening is to use aspects of all three of these film genres and create a divine hybrid of lonely characters, social status, peer pressure and unconventional heroes.

Typical Synopsis for a 'Pastiche Film' -
A group of mundane, introverted nerds from different walks of life, ages and families come together for a greater good, either for the sake of everyone or against their will. Each character has an attribute exclusive to them which the group cannot function without. One link from the group will falter and leave and it is up to the rest of the group to restore order and regain their trust to defeat the demons and their demons. Everybody wins, a lot of death is usually expected.

Audience Expectations

Here I have interviewed some potential audience members to find out what they expect from my chosen genre of Pastiche film.

Other answers:

Jenny - "There will usually be a loser character, but in the end they'll turn out to be the hero".

Shona - "The little guy will beat the big guy using his intellectual power".

As a fan of my chosen genre, my personal expectations are for a misfit protagonist character to find a purpose, willingly or unwillingly depending on the antagonist and 'side-kick' characters. An 'otherworldly' force or power enters the world and to complete the journey of personal growth and self respect of everyone present it must be understood and teamwork must be applied after an initial period of nerdy hostility.

Juno 9 Shot #2

 

Shot 1 -  

The film kicks off with a shot of Juno, walking down the street carrying a family sized carton of orange juice. She is dressed very casually as if she isn't particularly bothered about her appearance or what other people might think. This is reinforced when she meets a group of track runners in matching uniforms. The uniforms completely contrast Juno's clothes, as the shorts the runners wear show a lot of skin, and people would expect those to be worn in summer weather, even though it appears to be autumn. She is walking one way down the pavement and the boys run the other way, parting around her like a school of fish. This shows that she goes against the crowd, unconventional and unaccepted in this way. Once the runners leave he screen, the style changes to roughly sketched outlines. The buildings appear only as concept drawings and childish shading provides the colour. This is relevant due to the film being about children and pregnancy.

  

Shot 2 -

Shot 2 is shorter, and shows a lot of different textures. The houses are now made of grid paper and nothing casts a shadow but Juno. The credits look as if someone has drawn them in bubble writing to make them stand out. The windows are blank and show nothing within. Also, only the primary colours are featured here. Everything is very basic - apart from Juno. Her sketched self is very detailed a realistic, with the artist having drawn the folds in the fabric of her clothes and accurately cast her shadow. There is nobody else in the shot, which echoes the notion of Juno being/feeling alone.

Shot 3 -
Shot 3 features leaves that look as if they have been cut out of a magazine, only their outlines have not been properly trimmed off - also quite childish. Her shadow is not as accurate, and appears as if the light source is directly above her. The grass is very juvenile, having no texture and consisting only of seams. Juno is again the most detailed image in the shot.

Shot 4 -
Shot 4 is another pan, and now all seams are gone also. There is no telling where the ground is, where it begins or where it ends. The leaves are much less detailed as well, as if everything in Juno's world is getting simpler and simpler, more childish and messier. The minivan appears to be suspended in mid air seeing as their are no guidelines or shadow.

 

 Shot 5 - 

Here shot four runs into shot five. Shot four Juno can be seen walking across the top of shot 5 for the duration, whilst shot five Juno walks towards the camera, yet never moves. The houses, ground and bins are all one block colour, as if drawn as part of a cartoon that remains uncoloured.

 

Shot 6 -
The telephone pole is relatively 2D, which is a traditional convention in children's cartoon programmes. The lamppost blends into the sky and the cables are pencil thin, making it somehow lazier than real life.

Shot 7 -
Shot seven looks quite like a collage in that the trees and Juno are photographed but the houses, birds, sky and clouds are all sketches. The mixture of outlines and detail layered together along with the awkward 'stop motion' walking make the shot seem very divided.

Shot 8 -
The ground in shot 8 seems very unnatural, and there is no sign of nature here as there has been in the previous shots (trees, leaves, clouds etc.). Here it doesn't look as if Juno is actually walking on the driveway almost, which goes back to the layering. She also walks past some important items that appear later in the film, which the audience don't realise yet. Also, the sketching on her clothing seems to be getting simpler, especially her shoes and her left hand. Again there is no shadow. The shot looks cold and hard, again only using primary colours which make the shot look drained.

Shot 9 -
Again, shot nine shows Juno walking down the street at a less than natural angle. the fence and the buildings seem almost out of proportion in comparison to her. The horizon has melded together and has been reduced to white, blue, and pencil thin outlines. It is as if the further Juno walks, the less detailed, colourful and realistic the world looks, as if it stops where the pavement stops. It is almost as if she's walking off the edge of the clip and if she hand walked the other way from where the film started she would look natural and so would everything else. It would all stay normal, which is like her life - she had two options 'pregnant' or 'not pregnant'. Because she became pregnant her world disintegrates around her. If she had continued on without this life changing event happening to her, she would go on as normal.



Again this film is one I'd like to take as much inspiration from as I can, as I feel the opening is so effective and the feeling the audience gets from the grunge-nerd style is what I'd like to apply to my film.



Scott Pilgrim - 9 shots

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/scott-pilgrim-vs-the-world/

Shot 1 -       
The first shot of the film shows the iconic 'Universal globe', rotating as it does at the start of all Universal productions. When the icon appears (unconventionally slides) on the screen the audience expect the usual orchestrated theme that accompanies the globe, but instead they hear an 8-bit mock up rendition, more suited to a videogame than anything else. Also, the letters seem slightly pixelated and the globe moves another cell in rotation every 1/4 second. This is just as iconic as the Universal logo as 'vintage videogames' are very popular. This sets the tone/theme for the film as these references crop up throughout, and compels the audience to keep watching as this is a clear hint that the film is going to try to entertain you.

Shot 2 -
Once the audio has ceased, the second shot begins with a voiceover reading the text that appears on the grey screen. The lines of text appear one at a time, giving the audience a chance to read it for themselves before the voice does. The style in which the voice speaks is extremely similar to the narrators in the genre of fantasy films, where a voiceover introduces where the action is going to take place, when it is set, and often who the protagonist is.
This is beginning to set the scene for the audience, not only using the information the voice provides, but also allowing people to realise which stereotype the film is playing up to. The typical nerdy male gamer that is such an entertaining cliché to play up is taking centre stage here with the fantasy film and 8-bit gamer references. By using these, before you meet him the audience already know a significant amount of Scott's character. Also, these have a lot of comedy value. It is a fairly long shot, and as the first lines of text fade away, two more appear - again in fade - that set up exactly what is happening, allowing the audience to jump right into the action.
As the shot pans down a little more, the audience realises the grey background in reality was the sky, setting the gloomy tone the film opening takes. When finally the shot is still again, we see the roof of a house. The audience may assume this is Scott's house, and this sets up even more humour that will be realised later in the film when the audience see Scott's living conditions. The snow makes everything seem grey and cold, and the quietness creates a sense of anticipation for the audience. To finish, we here a woman's voice (as well as a musical chime (as if a memory)) as if replying to the narrator, repeating what he said as if displeased. This is a straight lead into the action.

Shot 3 -
Shot 3 is extremely short in comparison to shot 2, and very impersonal. Even though we see four characters straight off, none of them reveal their faces to the camera as if purposely ignoring it.
The table has four chairs around it, and this fact leads the audience to think that the four people in the shot are the only people who sit in those chairs, and so are a secluded and solitary group. None of the items in the shot are very modern and this hints to the audience that as a group they are not particularly wealthy. Regardless of the snow outside, 2 out of the 4 are wearing short sleeved t-shirts. This could show the audience how regular this harsh weather is, or that they wear the same clothing all year round, due to the lack of funds.

Shot 4 -
The following shots from now on are 'Shot Reverse Shot'. Shot four shows Kim from Scott's eye level, so the camera must have been tilted to make it seem as if the audience sees what he sees. It is also slightly darker in Kim's corner, and her dialogue is spoken with distain. This may reflect her dark personality and show the audience what kind of person she is.

Shot 5 -
Again, like shot 4 we see a 'Shot Reverse Shot' of Scott and Kim. There seems to be no 180 degree rule here as someone looking on would have to move continually around the kitchen to get at the angles of each characters face. Scott's corner seems a bit brighter, also you see more of Kim's head than you did of Scott's shoulder, as if the audience was actually looking past the back of Kim's head (in the room). When Scott speaks he doesn't turn around. At this point the audience still hasn't seen the face of the title character, also establishing the relationship between the too characters as quite casual.

Shot 6 -
A mid-shot of Kim, just about fitting her head in the frame. When she speaks she stays very still and doesn't use much energy in her speech or facial expression. This helps to set the lethargic mood in the scene.

Shot 7 -
Scott is introduced. This is also another mid shot, as if every shot style is then mimicked one more time by the other character. Another game reference is the ID box. These are used to introduce the name, rating/ranking, special skill and sometimes personal information in a videogame when selecting the character you want to play with. Placing it here is useful and comic, especially as each character (as well as this one) has an official rating from some unknown source. This is placed to take the audience back to when they might have played a game like this and looked for the player with the best rating.

Shot 8 -
Shot 8 introduces a new character. Behind this character (Steven Stills) we see the only modern appliances in the room. There are items behind him that do not automatically spring to mind as being typically owned by people of this age group, e.g. substantial spice rack, wok etc... which may hint to the audience that this is/was a family house. This also begins a new 'Shot Reverse Shot' between Steven Stills and Scott. Again, the lack of energy and enthusiasm adds to the lethargic feel of the scene, even though Stills' dialogue states the opposite of Kim's.

Shot 9 -
The final shot in this analysis shows the final character in the scene not yet mentioned - Young Neil. He has not yet taken an interest in the conversation, which may be the reason the space behind him is the most dark, as he is the least involved as he has been absorbed in his videogame. This is the most up-to-date piece of machinery and is symbolic seeing as it has kept the character out of the conversation so far, and yet there are so many references made. The design on his shirt is also similar to the device in his hand, as if by playing the game he is fulfilling the action suggested to him. The audience also sees what appear to be a very washing machine and dryer, which again are not typical appliances for people of this age to own. The fact that they are outdated hints that they may have been left there when the rest of the family moved out.





This film is what I feel I will take much of my inspiration from, as the themes such as 'videogame style' and overdramatized shots I find entertaining and fun to work with.

Relevant 'Oldies' (3)

Here are (in chronological order), the 5 'classic' films most relevant to the mixed up franken-genre I would like to use to form a concrete foundation for my film opening:

Monty Python 1975

The Rocky Horror Picture Show 1975

Blackadder 1988

Van Helsing 2004

Skyfall 2012

These all contain references to films other than themselves and were made in the last 40 years.

Director People (2)

Edgar Wright

Directed: Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, the World's End, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World...

Date of Birth: 18th April 1974

Wright uses "Fast action style editing, usually of mundane tasks, including whip pans and crash zooms." He also uses "deadpan humour in fast paced moments". He uses physical comedy in ways that have become his trademark: e.g. failed fence jumps... His films are recognised as they very often take place in either a bar or a pub.

Stephen Chbosky

Directed: The Perks of being a Wallflower, (Contributed to) Austin Powers - Goldmember...

Date of Birth: 25th January 1970

Director/Author (The Perks of being a Wallflower 1999), as well as an original Broadway comedy.

Gregg Mottola

Directed: Adventureland, Paul, Superbad...

Date of Birth: 11th July 1964

He is known for being an "indie-film hot shot" as Superbad and Aventureland were both 'coming of age', indie style films. He enjoys working with computer-animated characters as he did in 'Paul'.

 

 

 

The techniques of these directors are what inspire me when it comes to creating my own film opening, and also a standard which I can strive to achieve. 

Film Genres

I have found it a challenge to find a single genre that accomodates the wide variety of films I find to be my choice of style. Each film seems to fit into at least one category, but the majority of them do not agree with each other enough to fall into a single genre. However, I have concluded that the 'Adventure' catagory would be the best option, due to it being a very open genre with few rules on what is and is not allowed. In an adventure film, it is almost 'anything goes'. Sometimes the barrier between fantasy and reality is broken, and then sometimes it isn't. Both are allowed and that is why it is the genre I have decided to work with. Wikipedia says: "An adventure story is about a protagonist who journeys to epic or distant places to accomplish something. It can have many other genre elements included within it, because it is a very open genre. The protagonist has a mission and faces obsticles to get to his destination." Many of the films I am fond of include "crime fighters who often possess superhuman powers and battle similarly powered criminals."