FILM

Short Film Evaluation

A2 media studies advanced portfolio

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Programmes Used in the Production of Filming

Film Questionnaire

The film questionnaire I produced contains questions that cover all of the aspects any director would want to know on how to improve their film to make it more enjoyable for their audience.

Below is a copy of my film questionnaire

Final Film Review

 

Below is an analysis of my final film review compared to professional one taken from the internet

The blue arrows are used to show all of the things my film review on the left has in common with the professional film review on the right. Each share a still from the film—one of which is usually used as it is of a poignant relevance . As well as this both have a section before the film review that summarises the film (film title, the release date, the certificate, the cast and the plot) which Is  think is used in most film reviews as away of informing the reader of the most important summarised information because if the reader decides to continue with the full film review they are still left with the relevant information. Then of course the two share in common the fall length review on each film. Both magazines also feature a strapline.

The two film reviews share many similarities all of which are conventions of a film review. However, there are also a number of differences and one of these differences is that my film review has a section specifically for the genre of my film—a Drama whereas the film review on the right only has the title of the film which  on mine is featured under the subheading. As well as this at the bottom of my film review there are a number of social networking site logos which makes the reader aware that the magazine has different ways of advertisement and ways of discovering new information about upcoming and old films. My film review also features the page number, the magazine title and the month which is not shown in the picture above.

Final Film Poster

Below is a copy of my final film poster produced for ‘BULLIED’

Below is an analysis of my final film poster compared to some professional ones taken from the internet

Film Review Drafts

After researching film reviews and collecting images I realised that most shared the same sort of structure in the sense that they have a specific area for each film genre, so for example all comedy films released in that month would under their own subheading away from the other genres. They all also seemed to have the same sort of layout in the sense that they were similarly structured with places for a photo, a summary, and a review.

Taking this information and uses the conventions of a film review I began to create my own templates for the production of my own film review for my film.

Film Poster Drafts

Below are some film posters I created when my short film was called 'The Bystander'

As you can see from the first picture this was a very basic draft that I constructed and a chose a central image that was quite striking as the actress looks very solemn and deep in thought which I think perfectly relates to the actual film.

My choice of font in this image above is very simple which after construction I felt didn’t relate well to the poster itself or the film which is the most important thing. However I think the colours chosen are colours often associated with sadness and genres such as thrillers or horrors so in that sense I feel the colours relate to my genre of film well.

Below is a development of the above picture and as you can see the featured image is still the same yet it has been edited and a grainy affect has been added to it which I think changes the overall outcome completely as it is much more duller and darker reflecting the actresses emotions. The thick black border has also gone which I felt as too 'play like' and without it the poster looks significantly more professional. Credits have also been added to the poster which is one of the key conventions when creating a professional film poster.

 

Below is the first poster draft for my short film since the name changed from 'The Bystander' to 'BULLIED'

  a)

  b)

As you can see from the two pictures above that once changing our short film name I still chose to keep the same theme and image for my poster as even though the name and development of the film had changed the concept was still the same meaning the posters already created were still perfectly relevant.

In the development stages of picture a) I decided to add ratings and give my poster two captions created from well respected publications. This whole effect I feel adds a much more believable and professional sense to the poster and it is one of the things that’s added to almost guarantee the attention of viewers.

Picture b) shows the changes to the font featured on the poster and the effect this change brings. I decided to change the font to one that was still simplistic but not as basic as the one featured in the previous images as I felt it added a much more dramatic effect and I really like the thickness on one half of the lettering this font provides as I felt it could be an interpretation of the struggling between victim and the bullies with the bullies being the thicker side and the victim the thinner. I also changed the quotations font colouring and the name of the publication to really ensure they stood out.

Research into Film Posters

Research into Film Reviews

As one of my Ancillary Tasks I am required to make a film poster to accompany my short film, therefore thought it would be wise to begin researching film reviews and giving myself an idea of the layout and context used to create one.

Changes to Film

Transition from 'short film' to 'trailer'

As our filming developed and finally came to an end we started the editing process and as this progressed, we felt that the point and meaning of our film was not being put across in the right sort of way which therefore meant it would not have an impact on our audience. The films and scenes we have we did not feel flowed nicely and consecutively with one another and it is because of these reasons that we decided to change our ‘short film’ into a film trailer.

The storyline behind our film was that a girl who had joined a new school was bullied by four other girls but when we put our filming together this was not shown. After a lot of editing we did not have a sufficient amount of scenes that made our synopsis clear however no more scenes could be filmed as we had already exceeded the set limit of time which was 5 minutes. Due to this we thought it would be best to take the best scenes and clips we had already made and use them to create a film trailer rather than a short film.

Transition from 'trailer' back to 'short film'
When creating a trailer Dan and I felt that we had already placed enough hard work into producing a film that it seemed unfortunate if it were all for no use. Whilst cutting and editing clips we felt too much of what we had was going unused and although some of them were the best shots they still couldn't be featured in a trailer as they either didn't relate to the next clip or it caused the time limit to overrun.

We therefore came up with a second idea as to what to do with the footage we had already recorded. Using elements of a documentary we gathered all of our most significant clips and once again merged them together we then decided that we were going to do some further research into bullying and find some facts and statistics on the matter. With these facts we would create a short film that not only showed the viewer how bullying takes place in school but how it can take place anywhere and in many different forms across the world.

Changes to Studio Ident

After researching and creating our original ident, once ‘Dollie Productions’ was put across the screen it ruined the whole effect of the transition phase as it could not be read to a glare on the screen. We therefore decided mutually that it was more important to include our name within the ident so mutually agreed to create a new ident.

By using the 3 following materials:

Pencil

Glue stick

Scissors

We created a unique and fun ident that can still be incorporated into media as all 3 materials are continuously used in the production of all media projects.

We created ‘A Dollie Production’ on a word document with each letter printed in a different colour, and then we cut each letter into a small square and one by one made the square travel onto the page print screening constantly to allow it to look like it was flowing alone once edited and put together.

Difficulties

During filming for our short film we experienced some difficulty due to the weather. It was extremely windy which wasn’t allowing us to get a steady shot of our actress as well as the wind affecting her appearance by blowing her hair across her face which in turn meant we didn’t have a clear shot of her either. Not only did it effect the filming it had an effect on the sound also because the wind could clearly be heard in the foreground as well as the background.

Stuido Ident

When designing our studio ident our first thought was what we were going to call our film company. We realised that if we collaborated our names, ‘Dan’ and ‘Mollie’ we came up with ‘Dollie’ which then became ‘Dollie Productions’. We deemed this appropriate for the name of our production company because a ‘Dolly’ is something that is used in films and by directors when creating a piece of media to create and ensure smooth camera movements.

We first created an ident to start with and after looking at more professional ones we decided that we were not happy with what we created and started to change it.

Above are some images of professional idents that are used by the film companies publishing and that are now know by the public as being signature for that company.

After researching and looking at professional idents I decided that the ident we had created needed to be changed all together rather than just edited. I found that the ident for ‘Pixar’ was the one I liked the most and I feel it is the one that had the most impact because of how modern it was overall. Together, Dan and I brainstormed how we could use Pixar as a platform to brainstorm our own ideas for our own ident and we decided that we would still use the idea of a camera on a dollie.

As you can see from the images above we took the idea of the moving icon from Pixar’s ident. We used and developed that idea so that our ident also had transitions and moved as it was played. The techniques we used gave the impression that as our ident was played the camera and tripod walked across the white backdrop until it was in the positioning of a close up shot in the frame
frame and here we would have the screen turn on with ‘Dollie Productions’ appearing across it.

The Bystander

 
My film title is ‘The Bystander’ and it is about a girl who is friends with a group of 3 others that begin to bully a new pupil at their school. The four girls begin to tease and taunt this girl simply because they can and whilst this carries on the fourth member of the group knows that what they are doing is wrong and she doesn’t want to be a part of it – making her ‘The Bystander’. Although she knows she doesn’t want to take part in any of the bullying she does not tell her friends to stop or stand up for the victim for fear she herself may become one or they may stop being friends with her.

As the film progresses various incidents take place each one becoming more nastier and in between each incident we cut back to a scene where The Bystander is speaking to her Mother about an issue she is facing – the issue of bullying at school. Whilst each incident takes place the camera cuts back to the ongoing conversation being had at home with her Mother.

When the Bystander finally says something to her friends the damage has already been done because that morning when she plans to meet the new girl and apologise to her she doesn’t come into school and the group of girls never see her again.

Dan and I chose to do a piece like this as we wanted to project an issue and produce an opinion derived from the viewing that was different to anybody else’s in our class. Bullying is a particularly sensitive issue that happens on a daily basis across the world and our short film shows that even the smallest bit of hurt caused by somebody else can have the most devastating effects.

Bait

‘Bait’ is a short film about the relationship between a father and son. The film follows a day in their lives where the father has to leave his son in a cafe whilst he goes for a job interview. Whilst there the child looks after their lunch and the story shows what happens when the boy has his lunch stolen by a homeless man and his dad discovers what has happened.

Shots and Angles

There are many different shots and angles that are involved when creating a piece of viewing for an audience and each shot or angle is useful depending on the effect you are trying to achieve.

Close Up

A close up shot allows the reaction of the actors to be seen clearly and create a greater effect than if it were a medium close-up. Very little background is shown and the shot concentrates on either the face or a particular part of the mise en scene which is most important, for example the expression on somebody’s face or words written on a piece of paper.

Extreme Close Up

An extreme close-up magnifies what we would actually experience in reality. A close up of a face would mean that only the mouth, eyes or a specific feature with no background whatsoever and it can be used to create a very dramatic effect.

Medium Shot

A medium shot is used to capture the actions of a character from the knees or possibly the waist up and it is primarily used in dialogue scenes and possibly in scenes used to show action or movement. Although background can be seen it is not in great detail and this is because the audience are most likely already aware of the setting in which the scene is set.

Long Shot

This is the shot that is used to show the image as being most ‘life sized’. The shot shows the entire body, with the head being at the top of the frame and the feet the bottom and whilst the focus is on the character the background can still be seen clearly.

Extreme Long Shot

Used for scene setting the extreme long shot shows scenes of action for example in a war or action movie. The attention to detail is non-existent in this shot and it is used to give a general impression rather than specifics.

Short Film Ideas

·         Psychological drama
·         Student is being bullied
·         One of the bullies is actually succumbing to peer pressure and doesn’t actually agree with what is happening
·         The victim becomes depressed/possibly suicidal
·         Both the victim and the ‘bully’ try to express themselves individually
·         No one listens
·         The ‘bully’ intervenes/is too late

'The Dipper'

A short film is ultimately the telling of a story and this is exactly what ‘The Dipper’ does. Directed by P.J Harling ‘The Dipper’ tells the story of a young pick pocketer that analyses various people on the high street whilst he decides who the ideal one for him to next rob will be.

In the opening scene of the short film there is never a focused shot that is above the person’s waist or as the camera cuts and pans from different people we only ever see the bottom half of their bodies focusing on objects in their hands, what they are carrying and what they are wearing etc. It isn’t until the 29^th second that we have our first focused shot that zooms from an extreme long shot into a close up onto the face of the character who we later learn is to become central. The camera techniques used in this opening scene by Harling create mystery and a sense of enigma from the very beginning and this entices the audience before anything has actually taken place. Throughout this opening scene the character speaks over the loud and fast non diagetic music which brings energy to the scene before anything has even happened because the viewer’s attention is now being drawn as they are anxious to know what is going to happen before it even does.

Throughout this film there is a lot of continuous camera movement particularly panning from the Dipper back to the character he is analysing whilst speaking about that character as well as split screens as we have close ups of certain items. At 1.14 we have the very first close-up of an item – a woman’s purse, ‘Single Mom, probably on benefits. I bet she hasn’t got a pot to piss in’ is what is said over the camera movement, ‘Poor cow. Would hardly be worth the effort,’ he continues to say which insinuates to the audience that the Dipper knows exactly what he is looking for and doesn’t want to disturb the peace of the high street if there is no worthwhile outcome.

Following this there is a close up of a man’s watch ‘Is know what you’re thinking ‘nice bit of bling’...its fake and he is on his way to a job interview,’ is what the Dipper says as the camera focuses on this man who has stopped on the street. The audience is now convinced that this character knows exactly what he is doing and knows exactly who he is looking for because he is good at what he does.

After doing this the man decides on his victim ‘Bingo,’ a lady who is wearing an engagement ring whilst looking in a travel agents window. The audience are now enticed and interested to know how the Dipper is going to approach the woman and as the man begins following her the non-diagetic sound increases pace and the camera sharply pans backwards and forwards in sync with the characters as he moves backwards due to her stopping in the street.

As the film progresses the Dipper makes his moves and purposely knock into the woman causing her things to fall onto the ground however when he helps her pick her stuff up he firstly walks of with the wallet that has fallen from her bag but turns around and hands it back saying, ‘Oh look at me, I’m so sorry Is  nearly walked off with this,’ – this here confuses the audience as we were led to believe this was what he wanted to do all along – steal from the woman. However it is then made clear as when the lady tells him he’s going the wrong way he turns round swiftly and takes the wallet back up from her bag and as they both turn around and meet each other’s eye because she has realised he begins to run.

As he is running away he is stopped by a police man who when asks to look in the wallet he is holding tells him he is on the way to see the owners widow – at this point the camera pans over his shoulder to see the woman he took it from smirking on the embankment. We are then shown a flashback of her helping the man who the wallet had belonged to but then keeping it and her then watching the Dipper herself before he had even noticed her in the high street.

The short film end on a cliff hanger and it is not made clear whether the woman herself had planned to do this to the Dipper all along or whether the Dipper was arrested. The final split screen is the final mystery of the film and there is an unanswered twist which leaves the audience wondering what has happened.

Below are a number of stills taken from the film in order of appearance: