Evaluation of the Preliminary Exercise.

Evaluation

I am evaluating the Preliminary Exercise that I have just done with my group and another. We had a group of three me, Kirsten Day and Victoria Chetley, for our actors we joint up with another group. All three of us helped with getting the story board correct, we all done one each and took ideas from each to make a final story board so we knew roughly what we were going to do. This is the same for the script, even though it's simple as anything we all looked over it and sorted out what they were going to say. We all had a go at shooting, recording sound and writing the shot number and takes down on the shot list.We all also had a go at editing the film and making it look better and pefessional in a way. I did the over the shoulder shots and the wide shot of them looking at each other.I also recorded the sound for the middle shots, the beginning shots I took down the shot list so we knew where we were at and what shots we were going to keep and the others that need to be done again. We all carried and looked after the gear when it was out and helped each other set the equipment up. I think my contribution was as fair as the others contribution, we shared it out fairly and even so we all had equal amount to do. I think my shots where good and I especially the other the shoulder shots, I was happy that I got their eye contact right so it matched up when they spoke and didn't look out of place. I enjoyed the editing even though there are a few bits that could of done with a bit longer time limit if I look back now. Also when shooting the film it would of been nicer to have a bigger space because as you can tell when the actor is walking down the hall when he gets closer to the door it begins to cut out his head and I think it would of looked alot better if we could of had his head into the shot. I also think that the actors could of said their words a little slower so it would of acutally looked like a nie relaxed coversation and not something that looked rushed and so quick when they talk. Also when the actor who walks down the corridoor walks into the room he does this slight laugh that I picked up on, if we could go back I would re shot that scene and try and get it so he doesn't laugh because it just makes the film look a lot better that way. There is another spot I noticed witch I would change and thats the same scene where he sits down, he just relax and when it snips to the other shoulder shot he is relaxed and it just looks odd. I would re do this scene andmake sure when he sits down he's not moving or swinging on the chair I think we picked up on the editing quite quickly and I feel confident with it.

I learnt a bit while making the film, I learnt how to work together with other people and sort things out between us and how it's better if everybody has a bit to do not somebody taking it and trying to do it all so no one else gets nothing to do. My knowledge on how to pan and getting the correct angle on a camera has improved a lot from this film it helped me understand a lot more when getting the perfect view point. Also I learnt about the 180 degree angle and the rule of thirds, these helped create believeable shots and we did stick to the 180 degree line and I was rather happy about that and putting these in use. I also think learning about the different angle shots helped us a lot and the different camera shots helped such as close ups and wides shot. Once we knew what each shot does to emotion and how it helps the audience view that character we could use it to our advantage and I think this did help when we made our film.  I think the hardest thing was the 180 degree line because we were all aware of it and we tried so hard not to try and cross it. However if I was given a camera at the beginning of the course I doubt I could of done most of these shots and getting everything ready like we did for this, if someone said do an over the shoulder shot I wouldn't of known what to do but know I do and it makes me feel confident in knowing what i'm doing. I think the overall technical quality was good for our first go, I think I would try and give and little bit more time on the film at the beginning and end so theres enough time for us to edit so it doesn't seem like one of our actors is cutting the ends of his words. If I done it again I would try and improve the sound quality at least, it sounds a bit muffly at the begining of the film. I think the camera work was rather good for our first go, I think there are certian pieces we would need to clean up a bit if we were to shoot it again. I think the use of our editing was rather good, if we didn't get to edit the film then I would believe it would be in shambles and it wouldn't look that good, we had to shoot this film in the college in a corridor. I think we could of had a better place in the college because our actors looked like they should of been at college which was good.

Brief for Preliminary Exercise.

Preliminary Exercise.


For our first piece of filming we are doing a  Preliminary Exercise, we shall put everything that we have learnt into the film even if it's going to be a few mintues long. It's also so we have some expierence before we go out and start shooting out Film Noir piece. We shall try and fit in everything we have learnt in the lesson such as the 180 degree rule and the rule of thirds to make out films look that extra bit better. Our film has to be on a person walking down a corridoor and entering a room where he or she meets someone and they start having a conversation in the other room. Before filming we will have to do a storyboard so we know what shots are going to be used and what postion the character needs to be in, we then needed to set out a script for the others to use even though it might be a few words we need to get it right and make it easy for them to say. We arn't allowed more than eight different shots and it has to be a range of different shot sizes. After we have completed the film we will then edit it on the macs and make it into a short film, we will use Final Cut Pro to edit our films and make them into what we want. Every person in group will get a chance to have a go at filming, recording and putting down the shot takes so no one will not get a go and it's fair that way.

Analysis Of A Neo Noir film opening. Two.

Se7en

 Seven was made in 1995, its director was David Fincher and was written by Andrew Kevin Walker. It’s about two detectives who are on the hunt for a serial killer who uses the deadly sins as their modus operandi. The music at the beginning of the film is Nine Inch Nails with a slowed down verison of 'Closer'. It's has a part where it goes 'you get me closer to God.' Which is a refrence to the film as the killer uses the deadly sins to kill their victums. When it first begins the music is kind of down beat, rough and a bit fast... You dunno when the next beat is going to be but it makes the auidence feel a little unsettled especially with a few pieces of what happens in the credits. The beginning is really a list of what a killer needs or what this killer needs and what they do to prepare, the images are only on for a few seconds so if you look away you might miss a few important pieces. The light in this helps aswell theres somethings that are a bit to dark and maybe it's something they don't want you to see. This beginning pulls you in even if you are a little creeped out by it at first, theres a lot of showing of razor blades, needles, people, books, it's as if it's only the props are important and not the person themself as they are never shown as a whole. This adds to the mysteriousness off it all and makes the viewer either confused and wanting more or just wanting more. There is always a contrast between white and black even in the titles, it seems to be giving the good and evil effect of maybe.

Analysis Of A Neo Noir film opening.

Kill Bill Volume ONE.

Kill Bill is a two part film, volume one and volume two. It was directed and written by Quentin Tarantino and was released in 2003, the main character is played by Uma Thurman and the character's name is Beatrix. The opening to this film is rather extreme in some ways but I think thats the great thing about it, it pulls the audiences attention straight into the film and makes them want more. We don't know who these people are except in the opening we can tell that the guy talking is called Bill as thats what it says on the hanker cheif he uses to wipe her up says. I would say this is the main prop, because it's lets us in on a little something even though the film hasn't even started yet we know his name is Bill and what he done. The use of the black and white is rather good aswell because it makes the audience think that it's maybe a flash black? It also makes the blood on her skin stand out a lot more and the contrast goes well with the meaning. Another thing that pulls us in is that we don't know who these characters are and we don't not whats going on and even on the last moment where Beatrix says "Bill... It's your baby." The audience now whats to know what going on and has he actully killed her. Tarantino knows how to grab the audiences attention straight away and it works.

Analysis Of A Neo Noir...Brick.

BRICK

Brick was released in 2005, it is an American neo-noir film which was written and directed by Rhian Johnson, Johnson admired books written by Dashiell Hammett. Johnson liked the hardboiled detectives and he read most of Hammett's books, Johnson grew up with film noir which made him more interested in creating his own noir but different. This is where he created Brick.

 

  When the film starts at first the music for the opening screen is gentle but has a hint of sadness and mysteriousness, a lot of the sound through the film are done with classic instruments just like a film noir would have. However there is one scene where a unusual instrument is used, unusual because you don't hear them at all in film noirs but it still adds effect to make the emotion of the movie come across, maybe this is just a new take on sound for Neo noirs. When we first see two of the characters we can guess that these two are quite important and they are the most important character there is played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt who is Brendan Frye, Brendan choose to distance himself from other people and really on talks to one person and thats a character called Brain. We find this out later in the film and we also find out that he's the noir's anti-hero, just like a film noir would have. The first scene shows Brendan and a blonde haired girl, the girl is laying on the floor at this point we're guessing she's hurt or even worse dead by the way Brendan's facial expressions are however we don't know how. In good old Noir fasion we then get a flash back, our flash back is of two days a go. This scene starts of with barely any talking, just Brendan walking up to his locker an where he finds a piece of paper telling him where to go. This is used to spread the tension, because on the opening Johnson has already grabbed the audiences attention it's just making them wait to see what will happen nexted. We then find out that the woman on the floor was actually Brendan's Ex girlfriend Emily Kostich who is played by Emilie de Ravin. He recieves a distressed call from her, this is when he tries to be the hero and goes out to find her but later on finds her dead near the bridge. Brendan then becomes a detective of some sort to try and find out what happened to Emily and why it happened. This starts to make him into a hardboiled character just like Johnson wanted, he starts using a lot of violence to find out what he needs. This kind of leads up to where he meets the Pin and 'Tug', we see Brendan fight quite a bit in this intill him and Tug meet. Tug is played by Noah Fleiss, an associate of the Pin's, his right hand man that gets the dirty stuff.

Tug seems to be motivated by violence and uses it a lot on our main character, The Pin is a drug dealer and one of the largest ones around, he's played by Lukas Haas.

There are two Femme Fatales in Brick, one is Laura Dannon, a popular high school girl who has a lot of knowledge on Pin and she is involved with some of th Pin's dealings. She tries to get Brendan to trust her through out the whole film after Emily's death but Brendan doesn't really have any of it intill he turns into the anti-hero where he sleeps with her but he's soon to notice her fag but and remembers it from the call when Emily called him. She's always there when Brendan needed help, the props that she wears are 1950's style some of them anyway like the fur coat and even how she has her hair at points all link back to film noir. Brendan finds her out a makes the jigsaw fit together when he finds out she was the one who caused Emily's death. Like a Femme fatale would she begs Bredan to believe she didn't do it and cries. Our other Femme Fatale is a girl named Kara, she's one because she seems to lure in men and makes them do what she wants and when she wants it. Kara seductive actress in the school play and it seems she likes to get her own way.

The setting is normally a old urban area, even the school was. This fits in perfectly with the film noir setting as most of these were urban and crowded by the city. Also the plot for this film was all based on murder just like a film noir would be something to do with crime.