Film update- second draft

Today I have finished editing my clips and music and uploaded the second draft of my media film onto youtube.

Draft update

I have decided that since none of my actors will be available over the weekend to film, I will focus on analysing the comments that have been made by my focus group and teacher and improving on these aspects of my film. I am also in the process of making an improved titles sequence in motion as I think that my current titles are very underwhelming.

Revising my script

I have added some more lines to my script which provides more information about what is happening in my film and why the character is being chased.

A woman is running down a dark alley way.

She comes to an abrupt stop at a fork in her path, looks to her left and right while holding a phone to her ear.

Agent (Urgently)

This is agent 362, requesting immediate back up, cover has been blown and I’m being followed by a rival agent, the mission is compromised.

 I’m sending you my coordinates now, the information is acquired but I could be captured at any moment.

(Typed on screen code font, black and white)

Proceed to safe house, meet with agent 624, go underground and await further orders.

(I have found a tutorial about inverting the colours of a clip on iMovie which means that I will film the scene normally and invert the clip during editing) 

I am also hoping to film some extra footage of someone typing the above sentence on a computer screen, therefore I have been doing some research into the fonts normally used for coding, which are:

Courier

Andale Mono

Figure 3 Monaco

Proggy

Teacher feed back + re-scheduling

Earlier this week I gathered a group of students together to ask them what they thought about the draft of my production, after showing them the film, I asked them to write down things they liked about the film, things they thought could be improved and how I could improve them. As you can see below I have compiled a table of their thoughts and have used their feedback to make another schedule for the next few weeks.

I have also received feedback about my film from my teacher which I will also take into consideration when adjusting my film, the elements of my film i need to change are:

• the rain on the lens during an establishing shot
• a sudden switch in music at 0:30
• the titles 'writer' 'kevin' are not conventional 
• back to back b-roll pans of scenery take away from pace of narrative  
• sequencing of keyboard needs to be during/ after dialogue

Final title

I have decided on the title 'Code Red' as it fits in with the theme of spies and is terminology that is well known to relate to the theme of spies, this will inform the audience that the film they are watching features spies and could influence their level of interest. Also this title creates a sense of urgency and possibly makes the audience intrigued about what happens in the film to make a code red needed.

My film draft- Code red

This is the first draft of my opening scene for my action/ adventure film. The synopsis is that the first character we are introduced to is a spy carrying some valuable top secret information that the second character is trying to steal/ take back before she can get back to head quarters

Rating my film

We have been asked to appropriately rate our film by using the site BBFC (British Board of Film Classification). To make sure my films rating was realistic I also researched other action/adventure films such as Skyfall and The man from U.N.C.L.E. These films were rated 12 and 12A respectively as they contain moderate action violence and strong language.

As my film would be very similar to these movies, I have decided to rate my movie as a 12A as it would include a large amount of action violence, possibly a small amount of strong language and a small amount of gore (bullet wounds etc.). This would make my film a 12A because these topics might be disturbing or harmful to younger children. However the opening of my film does not involve any gore or strong language, therefore I would rate the opening of my film as a 12 as it only contains moderate violence.

Finishing music and syncing audio and video

This Friday I finished editing the footage and began to sync the music up to the events that happened on-screen, I also found some gun shot sound effects that I need to use in my film at http://soundbible.com/tags-gun.html.  On Monday I will need to upload the sounds onto Garageband and finish syncing the music and footage together so it can be uploaded here.

Film update

I have completed the sound for my film, although I may need to alter certain points to synchronise with the events that happen to create a more dramatic effect. I have also begun to edit my videos, I am halfway through editing my clips together and I am hoping to finish editing tomorrow so I can synchronise the music and film together on Friday.

Finishing my soundtrack and title brainstorming

I predict that my music will be finished by tomorrow as I have still had technical difficulties with the different versions of Garageband.

 I have also been thinking about the title of my film, I think that it should include the main characters name, as this is often seen in this genre (James Bond, Jack Reacher, Lara Croft etc.), this could be because this allows the audience to familiarise themselves with the main character. Action/ adventure film titles can also include the name of an object or place (The Temple of Doom, Ghost Protocol, Dead mans chest, this is done so ta the audience becomes intrigued and wants to learn more about what the name could mean

Storyboard

These are the storyboards I made to gather ideas for my film, I chose to layout my storyboard in the traditional style as I already had a firm idea about what my film was going to be based upon, this layout also allows me to include more detail in my storyboard (camera shot, duration, type of music etc.) 

 In this storyboard my film was going to be set in the woods, the protagonist of the film would find an object in the forest floor and be shot by a mysterious figure, however I was advised by a teacher to film in another location as setting my film in the woods would not clearly show my audience what genre my film is.

In this idea my film is set in a city centre as this location is more stereotypical to the action/ adventure genre I have also included more of a chase element into the scene as I wanted to build tension so the audience would become more intrigued by the suspense happening in the scene. However I have still kept the abrupt ending of the main character being killed as I wanted to grab my audiences attention and shock them so they would keep watching and still be interested.

Scripting and titles

The script for my film will be as follows, the plot will be that a spy is being followed because they are carrying information that opposing forces are trying to acquire, the agent is being followed and a chase ensues until the agent is cornered. 

A woman is running down a dark alley way.

She comes to an abrupt stop at a fork in her path, looks to her left and right while touching a device in her ear. 

Agent (Urgently)

This is agent 362, requesting immediate back up, cover has been blown. Im being followed by a rival agent. The mission is compromised, I repeat immediate back up requested. 

I may add more dialogue to my script as it could be more interesting for the audience.

Filming and Editing Schedule

Developing my soundtrack

After researching tutorials and increasing my understanding of Garageband, I have become more confident about using the program and the music for my presentation is currently being developed and I estimate that it will be finished by the end of the week or the weekend. However, because the version of Garageband on my personal computer is a different version to the version on the public computer at school, unfortunately this means that I will not be able to work on it at home until I ask the schools staff to update the program at school.

I have taken inspiration from similar spy movies such as the James Bond movie 'Skyfall', as I will need to create something similar for my film. After researching different soundtracks I have come to the conclusion that my music will begin quite quietly, as I want to introduce the movie by creating suspense in the audience, I would also like my music to include some violins/ string instruments as these instruments are normally included in high budget action/adventure films as they increase the drama in the opening scenes. My soundtrack will also include some loud, sudden sound effects as I want these effects to increase the dramatic events that are happening on screen.

Opening scene prep+ location research analysis

This week I have been preparing to do my opening scene by looking at different locations that could be used for filming in Sheffield. I have also uploaded screenshots of the locations in sheffield where I want to film and have analysed why I would use them in my film.

Wellington street:

This shot would be useful for my film as I will need a close up shot of a security camera at the beginning of it. I want to include this in my film as security cameras are often seen in action/adventure films and iconography of action films, this is because it shows the audience that the     setting of the film is under surveillance and makes them wonder if the characters in the film are being watched. I could also use this location for an establishing shot as it provides interesting perspective lines and clearly shows that the film will have a city setting.

Ward street:

I think that this location would be suited for my film as I would like to base it in the outskirts or back alleys of a city or town, this is because I want my film to conform to the conventions and stereotypes of action/adventure films, I also want my film to feel 'gritty' and realistic, and it is more likely that the situation in my film would happen in this location.

Wicker lane:

 I would like to use this location because at the end of my film my protagonist will need to be backed into a corner, i think this wold be the perfect place to film this as the location has high walls on both sides and has a 'urban' look which will keep the film looking realistic.

Alma street:

I could use this location for b-roll or an establishing shot as shot from this area look very urban.

Well meadow drive:

I think this would be an interesting b-roll or establishing shot as the perspective lines in the shot are very dynamic and would catch the audiences eye.

Park square:

 This location also has very dynamic perspective lines and could be used for an establishing shot or for a chase scene as the characters could run across the bridges creating a interesting tracking shot.

South street:

 I think that this location would be an ideal establishing shot for my film as it shows the location of the film from a distance which makes the audience curious about where the story will be based and what part the characters will play in the film.

Westhill lane:

I think that this area would be useful for filming as there is lots of interesting graffiti which would make the scene look more urban and realistic.  This would also be good for a chase scene as the path is very small and the audience could wonder if the character will outrun the antagonist.