Dear Moderator...

Dear Moderator,

My name is Alexa Rusakoff and this is my blog;  it contains all of the work undertaken as part of the G321 AS Foundation Portfolio Unit within the OCR GCE course in Media Studies.

I chose to work independently using the genre of 'Pastiche' - which I adopted as a mixture of several genres, e.g. action, comedy, indie etc.

The project has lasted approximately 6 months, commencing in September 2013 and finishing in March/April 2014.

I hope you enjoy my work and find my film opening entertaining.

Please use the navigation bar on the left hand side of the page in order to access my work, as organised into the seven stages, Audience Research (including progression tasks), Planning, Camera Work, Sound, Titles Research, Editing and Evaluation. There is also a link to the St Mary's School Blog Hub.

My 2 minute film opening

Here is my 2 minute film opening: 'Philip Reads a Book'...

Evaluation Task 7

During the creation of my film opening, I referred to the skills I learnt during the filming of my preliminary task in September.

At the start of the course I was taught the basics of camera work, including the 180 degree rule, match on action and shot reverse shot. When filming my 2 minute opening, I tried to remember to use what I had learnt, in addition to using panning, tracking, long shots and framing my shots.

When I started in September I had no knowledge of many of these techniques, but in the time between the two projects completion I taught my self many by reading camera and filming guides, and of course watching films.

When I came to filming my 2 minute opening, I thought about the 3 techniques from September. I decided to firmly stick to match on action throughout (apart from the shots in which the intention was to not know where things had come from), and to insert at least one moment of shot reverse shot. The 180 degree rule however, I was not so worried about. I was told that during a running sequence, it was not necessary to obey this rule, as the running could take the camera anywhere and to stick to it would constrict the angles and shots of the film.

I tried to not frame the shots with too much headroom, but I had also learnt from September that you don't want too little either, or you are at risk of cutting out the heads or faces of the actors as they move throughout the shot.

I tried to include a range of shots including close-ups, which I had never attempted before but I feel were successful.

When the time came to edit, I was told both times to make sure the way I edited added meaning and pace to the film, which I kept in mind as I did so.

In conclusion, I feel what I learnt during my preliminary task formed the stepping stones for me to develop new ideas and to discover new techniques from the basis of 'shot reverse shot', 'match on action', and the '180 degree rule'.

Evaluation Task 6

Evaluation Task 6 - What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Evaluation Task 5

I've chosen to annotate this shot of my film opening as there are so many aspects that can be delved deeper into in relation to similar films of the genre:

1. The background for the shot is a forest setting, which traditionally adds a feel of magic to a film.

2. The actor on the left is dressed as a typical teenager, much in the same style of Scott Pilgrim and other lead teenage males of indie films.

3. The hierarchy of the shot is unusual as the focus and the power lies in the young girl in the centre. This arrangement is very similar to most posters and group shots in 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower'.

4. The red book is the main 'eye-catching' object in the shot. Most of the important or dangerous objects in an indie or pastiche film are red, such as Scott's red electric guitar or the uniforms of the rival skate team in 'Whip It'.

5. The way the actors look into the camera breaks the 4th wall and gives the feel that there may be other dimensions, as there are in 'The World's End' and similar films.

6. There are no written words or signs of where they might be, giving the potential for them to be anywhere in the world. This opens them up to be in any country, or being able to move through places, as Ramona Flowers does in 'Scott Pilgrim'.

Evaluation Task 4

Here is my presentation on identifying my ideal audience member to watch my film opening...

Evaluation Task 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product?

 While the film's production company is responsible for raising the neccessary fnds, it also has the task of finding a suitable media institution to get the product in theatres. My chosen genre being far from mainstream I feel would be more likely to attract smaller independent film companies to handle distribution, such as Miramax Films.



Miramax Films is an indepenedent film company known for distributing foreign and indie films both accross the USA and internationally. This film company has distributed films of a similar genre to mine such as 'Adventureland', from which I took much inspiration.



Although the genre is not as conventionally defined as 'comedy' or 'action', the audiece and fan base is incredibly large. This being the case, I would consider approaching Universal or Lionsgate; two larger film companies that helped make the indie hits 'Scott Pilgrim Vs the World' and 'Whip It' the successes they were.



The Film Distributor's Association has stated that the most frequent film goers happen to be teenagers and young adults due to their enthusiasm and high consumption of today's media. My film is aimed at an audience aged 16-25, so this statistic suits my chosen genre, and would help in the pursuit of a film company or distributor, such as Carzon which, as a distributor and cinema owner, automatically ensures that my film will get shown in theatres. Plus 'Carzon Home Cinema', which allows viewers to watch films online the same day they are out in the cinemas.

 

Evaluation Task 2

 

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

 

 

 

My media product is based around one small social group - young, awkward teenagers. I chose this group in particular as through its representation, the characters go on to represent other themes. For instance, the characters are alone in the woods - this fits in with the stereotype that awkward teens prefer to be away from other people; by making the forest the location where the action takes place, the stereotype then mixes with the cinematic trope of magic and unknown power residing in a natural setting such as this.

The characters are dressed simply, with no bright colours or flashy designs or labels. The idea of teenagers wanting the newest and the most fashionable clothing better suits the characters of a chick flick than an action-comedy. This then represents more of their character, as often in films writers like to introduce red herrings and obscure characters that do not draw attention at first but later turn out to be vital to the plot. In order to further represent the social group to which my characters belong, I decided to give them a look of insignificance; if you saw them in the street, nothing would draw your attention to them at all. Classically teens of this social group prefer to go unnoticed.

In this shot especially, the order in which I placed the characters echoes both a filmic stereotype and defies a social one. Teenagers in this social group are often classed as 'different'. This perfectly suits my film, and I used this idea when arranging the shot - by having the two older, taller, and more menacing looking characters either side and the small, less threatening one in the centre, the arrangement creates an unusual hierarchy of unusual human beings. In a different social group - perhaps of more popular teenagers, the largest/prettiest, most powerful member of the group would take the centre. As for the filmic stereotype, to represent the social group of 'nerds', 'chief nerd' is often the one you do not expect. However, in films such as these there is often more unity in the social group from the start, so not distinct leader is set in stone.

Evaluation Task 1 - 9 Shot Analysis

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? 

Shot 1 -

For my production company logo, I really liked the concept of the MGM 'roaring lion', but I wanted something a little quirkier to suit my chosen genre. When we were filming the last of the shots, we noticed a cat watching us from a window and I saw an opportunity to get my lion into my film. Fortunately he decided to yawn for us and now he is my own MGM 'esque' mascot. 

 

Shot 2 - 

Here I wanted to apply two of the key aspects of 'indie' film openings:

1. Set up an enigma that will later be discovered/resolved/defeated

2. Establish an equilibrium by showing ordinary objects in an ordinary setting (e.g. teenage jeans and trainers)

 

Shot 3 -

For this project I wanted to obey the convention of having the credit for a particular actor show up on screen when said actor is present for the principle characters. I also wanted to again show the mundane and ordinary aspects of the world the audience is viewing.

Shot 4 -

In this shot I wanted to introduce the second character, but not his surroundings. It is apparent he is outside, as is the first character, but I didn't want to show the distance between the two, meaning I can put that to better effect later on.

 

Shot 5 - 

I wanted this shot to be the first time the audience gets a sense of something out of the ordinary going on, so by having the character open the book on that specific double page reading something suspicious I felt it would take the rest of the film off in a different direction, as is the norm with other films of this genre.

     

Shot 6 - 

Here I used close up to allow time for the second character to come closer without the audience's knowledge. I also wanted to have some 'irregular' shots to better suit the conventions of the genre and to give those watching a better feel of what kind of film this is.

Shot 7 - 

Here I wanted to show a full scope of where the previous events had taken place. Where the first character came from, where the second hid, where the first moved to and where the second ran away are all visible in this shot. I also wanted to introduce the third character before you saw her as she is also an enigma, and so I wanted to give the audience a hint of what's to come and build anticipation. 

 

Shot 8 - 

Here I wanted to defy camera convention and add a few shots that do not agree with the 180 degree rule etc., as in may chase scenes and similar films (from which I took my inspiration) they take several different and illogical angles and compile them to make a faster moving, more visually interesting piece. I also wanted a shot of both actors running at the same time, to show the chase more clearly. 

 

Shot 9 -

In this shot I wanted to build up the suspense, and make a bigger moment of the book changing hands. I wanted the tension to mount and the audience to get a sense of danger, especially as a young girl is handing the book over, making it seem she is as dangerous as the book.

Shot 10 -

By having this as my last shot, I wanted to establish a hierarchy as they do in many films of this genre. I wanted to make clear the fact that the girl is the head if the operation and the other two are more like henchmen in comparison.