Preliminary Filming Task - Evaluation

Click here for the video.

Overall, I think we did okay for this task. Filming did not go particularly well. The group was often unfocused or off-task. However, editing was fine and we completed the editing within a lesson.

There are a few issues with the video. The dialogue between the two characters is too fast. There was no pause between the speech, which not only made it unnaturally fast, but also made editing the various angles in and have the conversation match up well was very difficult. There should have been longer pauses between all of the dialogue. When Josh stands up and shouts, you can still hear Sara saying the previous line. Another issue with the video is that between the shots of Sara walking in and being sat down, her handbag disappears and she has her arms crossed. This is another issue with everything being filmed too quickly and less focus on attention to detail. Lighting is also an issue. When we turned off the lights behind Josh, we intended to darken his side to connote that he is a more malevolent character, however, doing this only darkened the lighting on Sara.

On the other hand, we did make a successful split-screen. This was to show the status of each character as Sara was making her way to the meeting. We added this because we want to use multiple split screens in our opening sequence and took this as a chance to practice. The action match also went well. There was another angle to it but it didn't work out well in the final edit because it made the action look rather disjointed. Also, during the dialogue, we kept to the 180 degree rule and used shot/reverse shot editing.

Next time, we will continue to consider the 180 degree rule, shot/reverse shot, and other editing techniques such as action matches. However, will make sure to focus on the task at hand, pay more attention to detail in our shots, and allow enough space for smooth editing.

Preliminary Filming Task - Video

Research Into Romance Genre

Romance can be defined as a genre in which the plot revolves around the love between two protagonists. They often centre around themes of issues within love, but can include themes such as forbidden love, love triangles, and love at first sight. Romance films have no conventional tone. They can be happy, tragic, or many other emotions, but romance films aim to evoke strong emotions in the audience.

There are a variety of sub-genres to romance. Here are the main ones:

• Romantic Drama - Romantic dramas tend to explore the complex side of love. They conventionally revolve around an obstacle between the two protagonists preventing love between them. Obstacles can include forbidden love, family disapproval, or even one's own psychological obstacles.
• Romantic Comedy - Romantic comedies tend to be light-hearted and humorous, exploring romantic ideals such as true love and its ability to surpass most obstacles. The two protagonists are usually placed in a humorous situation.

Conventionally, the two protagonists are a male and a female. LGBT couples and characters are uncommon in both the romance genre and the film industry as a whole. Romantic films conventionally end with either the couple breaking up (common in romantic dramas) or a happy ending. Romance films are often "feel-good" films, intending for the audience to walk away with a positive message or improved outlook. Romantic comedies tend to be feel-good films.

Lighting in romance films is conventionally very natural or soft. The lighting is often very realistic and relies on the lighting provided in a "normal" setting. This is with the intention of making the film relatable and believable. Colours tend to be very natural, soft, yet also bright, to signify the nature of love and its development and also the commonly happy and upbeat themes. Red is commonly used in romance films because it signifies passion and love. Conventional props in romance films include items such as flowers, gifts, and chocolates. These are props that people commonly associate with love and romance.

Romance films are conventionally set in well-known locations such as large cities like New York. This is because the films are supposed to be as relatable as possible to engross and involve the audience. Characters are conventionally represented as believable and "normal" people. Costumes are also conventionally very "normal". The male character tends to wear smart yet casual clothing to reflect professionalism but that he is down to earth and comfortable with himself. The female character will often wear colourful and appealing clothing that emphasises her figure in order to be appealing to the male character.

Music in romance films is conventionally employed to indicate the emotional mood. Therefore, the type of music used in romance films varies based on the sub-genre, tone, or theme. Romantic comedies might employ a happy, upbeat soundtrack in order to match the tone of the film, whereas a romantic drama might employ soft, dramatic music to match the focus on the complexity and obstacles in love.

The conventional target audience for romance films is white, working/middle class, heterosexual, females, aged 15-34. This is because representation of protagonists in romance films tends to be restricted to white straight couples of working or middle class. The target gender is female because women are stereotypically more emotional or susceptible to emotional themes. In terms of psychographics, romance films appeal to aspirers and mainstreamers. Aspirers want a better life, and will want to watch romance films for inspiration and to have something to aspire to, since relationships are held in society as something important in being a functioning person. Mainstreamers prefer to be like most other people. Therefore they will want to watch romance films since they are quite a mainstream genre. Also, relationships are seen as a "normal" thing and if you're not in a relationship you're abnormal.

Examples of famous romance films include Titanic (1997), The Notebook (2004), Love Actually (2003), and The Fault in Our Stars (2014). Actors and actresses that are commonly in romance films include people such as Hugh Grant, Channing Tatum, Leonardo DiCaprio, Sandra Bullock, Cameron Diaz, and Julia Roberts. Directors that typically make romance films include Woody Allen and Rob Reiner.

Propp's Character Theory

Vladimir Propp thinks that all narratives contain the same character types who all contribute something towards the narrative. These are the character types:

• Protagonist - Leads the narrative, tries to solve the disruption.
• Antagonist - Tries to prevent the protagonist from achieving resolution.
• Dispatcher - Someone who gives the quest to the hero and/or sends them on their quest.
• Princess/Prize - A male or female prize for the protagonist.
• Helper - A character whose job is to help the protagonist (often a sidekick).
• Donor - A character who gives the protagonist something which helps them in their quest.

I took Propp's character theory and applied it to our viewing of Steven Spielberg's Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Here are my findings:

Protagonist

• Young Indy - He takes the cross from the miners because he believes it should be placed in a museum for everyone's benefit rather than being made part of a private collection.
• Indiana Jones - He is the character that the audience is meant to identify with. He battles for resolution and creates a new equilibrium in the story.

Antagonist

• Miners - They are taking the cross for their own benefit when it should be put in a museum. When Indy tries to do just that, they chase him down and get the cross back.
• Panama Hat (Man in White Suit) - He is trying to take the cross for his own benefit.
• Dr. Elsa Schneider - Elsa reveals herself to be an antagonist when she is pretending to be held hostage by one of the Nazis and reveals herself as being on their side when Indiana slides his father's notebook to her.
• Walter Donovan - Donovan turns out to be on the Nazi's side as well and is only trying to find the Holy Grail to help them.
• Nazi General - He tries to torture Indiana and his father.

Dispatcher

• Walter Donovan - He sends Indiana on his quest for the Holy Grail in the first place.
• Henry Jones - He makes Indiana go to Berlin to get his notebook back.

Princess/Prize

• Dr. Elsa Schneider - She needed to be rescued from the Nazis.

Helper

• Marcus Brody - He helps Indiana in Venice.
• Dr. Elsa Schneider - She acts as Indiana and Marcus' guide in Venice.
• Sallah - He does a lot of fighting and sourcing for Indiana on his quest.

Donor

• Henry Jones - He gives Indiana his notebook, which provides Indiana with essential cues on his quest for the Holy Grail.

Murch's Editing Theory - "Gone Girl"

Click here for more information on Walter Murch's "Rule of Six".

I have chosen to analyse the trailer for David Fincher's Gone Girl (2014) for the use of the various aspects of Walter Murch's "Rule of Six". The genre I would like to use for my opening sequence is either thriller or drama, therefore I have chosen Gone Girl, which fits in to both. Here is the trailer I will be analysing:

Emotion

• Slow editing in the beginning to show the romance between the two characters. It allows the audience to see how they look at each other and him leaning in to kiss her. You can see they are both happy and have strong feelings for each other.
• When the police are in the man's house, the editing is fast. It connotes the tension and hostility in the room and between the characters. The close-ups also mean that the audience can see their facial expressions. The police look as though they think he is the suspect, and he is uncomfortable and taken aback by their assertions.

Story

• In the beginning, you can see the man and woman kiss, and a ring being revealed from a book. This denotes to the audience that they are in a serious relationship and are becoming engaged.
• A few shots later, a silhouette is shown walking towards her menacingly. This denotes that something bad is going to happen to her and disrupt the equilibrium.
• The next shot is her face on a missing persons billboard. This denotes to the audience that she is missing. This is the disruption in the main plot.
• The police are shown in the man's house, treating him as the suspect. This connotes that the battle for resolution involves the assertion that he is the person that made her go missing.
• Multiple shots are shown that involve him and others looking for her and him talking to people about her. This connotes that the battle for resolution is mainly about finding his partner.

Rhythm

• The editing goes from roughly mid-speed in the beginning to fast in the end. This connotes that the film will have a long, steadily-paced build up in rhythm.

Eye-Trace

• In the first few shots, the audience is made to look at the characters' facial expressions. One of the shots also involves an engagement ring being revealed. They connote and denote that they are in a serious relationship respectively.
• Later on in the trailer, the camera pans toward a pile of broken glass and furniture. It connotes that someone is in danger, and when combined with the previous shot, that the woman is in danger.
• The shot in which the policewoman is placing a marker next to the blood on the door frame draws the audiences attention to the blood. This connotes that the woman has been at least injured by her attacker.

Two-Dimensional Plane of Screen

• As aforementioned, the engagement ring being revealed from the book in the restaurant denotes to the audience that the two characters are in a serious relationship.
• As aforementioned again, the blood on the door frame when the police are in the man's house connote that the woman has been at least injured by her attacker and that the man is a potential suspect.

Three-Dimensional Space of Action

• The editing is slower in the beginning of the trailer to let the audience see that the man and woman are very comfortable around each other (talking, kissing).
• When the police are in the man's house, the camera is placed so that you can see that him and the police are spaced a fair distance away from each other. This connotes the hostility between the characters to the audience.

Todorov's Narrative Structure

Tsvetan Todorov thinks that all narratives, whether they are in films, TV programmes, or otherwise, contain the same narrative structure. The structure consists of the following:

• Equilibrium - where everything is happy and normal.
• Disruption - something happens to disrupt the normality.
• Battle for Resolution - someone tries to restore equilibrium by solving the disruption.
• New Equilibrium - where everything becomes happy and normal again.

Over two lessons we watched Steven Spielberg's Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) to analyse it for Todorov's theory. Here is what I found (contains spoilers):

The film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade follows Todoroc's narrative structure theory. His theory suggests that all narratives have the same narrative structure: equilibrium, disruption, battle for resolution, and new equilibrium. It can be applied to both the small plot in the introduction and the main film plot. For instance, in the small plot, it begins as a standard scouting trip (the equilibrium). Then young Indy (River Phoenix) finds the miners digging for the cross (the disruption). Indiana proceeds to take the cross from them and try to escape with it on horseback and then a train with the miners in pursuit (battle for resolution). Young Indy manages to get away with the cross and calls the police, hoping to have it put in a museum, only for the miners to have the police on their side. The cross is returned to the miners (the new equilibrium).

In the main plot, it begins with Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) teaching at his university as normal (the equilibrium). When he is overwhelmed by students asking for help outside his office, he climbs out of his office window to escape. Indiana is walking down the road when a car stops and some men step out to take him to Walter Donovan (Julian Glover). Donovan sends him on a quest for the Holy Grail (the disruption). The film continues with a search far and wide for clues about the grail's location with many problems along the way (the battle for resolution). Eventually, Indiana makes it to the grail room. He chooses the correct grail whereas Donovan does not, meaning he can save his father freely (he was shot by Donovan previously). Elsa Schneider (Alison Doody) tries to take the grail out of the temple but this causes the temple to collapse with the grail inside. The heroes ride of into the sunset (the new equilibrium).

Binary Opposites in "The Dark Knight"

The following is a practice assignment on binary opposites in a clip (chapters 22-24) from Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight (2008).

A variety of binary opposites are represented in The Dark Knight and structured through a variety of visual, audio, and technical codes. I will be analysing the representation of binary opposites in chapters 22-24 of The Dark Knight.

First of all, the lighting in the beginning of the scene creates binary opposites. As the commissioner walks in to the interrogation room, his side of the room is lit. When the camera cuts to reveal the Joker, his side of the room is pitch black behind him. This lighting effect connotes a sense of good versus evil and hope versus despair. The light connotes that the commissioner has good intentions behind his actions and that he is hopeful that he succeeds in getting information from the Joker and saving the other characters. However, the darkness on the Joker's side of the room connotes that he's unwilling to give up the information and has negative intentions. It also connotes that he's lost hope in the police or society in general, especially since he's working against them.

Another visual code is the difference in costumes between the Batman and the Joker. Batman's suit is very clean-cut, well-shaped, and orderly. It's also entirely black, which adds another level of order. Alternatively, the Joker's outfit is very creased and messy, with a variety of colours. His hair and face are also very messy and dirty. Their contrasting outfits connote oppositions of order versus chaos and potentially hope versus despair. Batman's all-black, tidy outfit represents order, whereas the Joker's colourful, untidy outfit represents chaos. Batman's suit could also be seen as a representation of vigilante justice: the hope of the people. The Joker's outfit could represent despair; he's turned his back on the world and makes no attempt to meet its standards.

Secondly, there are also audio codes that represent binary oppositions. For instance, the Joker asks the commissioner: “Does it depress you, commissioner, to know how alone you really are?” The commissioner responds: “Where is he?” This dialogue represents good versus evil and hope versus despair. The Joker is trying to get into the commissioner's head. This connotes that he's evil because he's trying to manipulate the 'good' side in his favour. It also connotes that he's in despair because he's really alone and wants others to try and understand his pain. The commissioner, however, stays on topic and continues to question the Joker. This connotes that he's good because he's doing everything he can to try and get information out of the Joker, but also connotes that he's hopeful because he believes that he is capable of getting information from the Joker.

Another piece of dialogue that represents another binary opposition is between Batman and the Joker. The Joker says: “You have all these rules,” to which Batman replies: “I have one rule.” This dialogue represents the opposition between order and chaos again. The Joker is criticising Batman and society for their various rules, which connotes that the Joker is very disorderly. On the other hand, Batman defends himself by simplifying his guidelines. This connotes that Batman is very pro-order, emphasised by him making his system of order simplified by having one rule only.

Thirdly, there are technical codes that represent the binary oppositions. In approximately the first third of the clip, when the commissioner and Joker are conversing, they always stay in separate shots. The camera switches between facing each character individually when they speak, making sure to capture the lighting differences behind each character. This represents the binary oppositions of good versus evil and also serves to emphasise how different the two extremes are too. The separate shots connote that the characters oppose so much in good or evil intentions and character that they cannot be seen in the same light.

Another technical code is identifiable when Batman is attacking the Joker. When the camera is focused on Batman, it is angled upwards to his face, whereas when it is focused on the Joker, it is angled down to his face. This represents the good versus evil opposition again. The camera aiming up to Batman connotes that he is morally higher than the Joker, representing the good 'side'. However, the camera aiming down to the Joker connotes that he is also morally below Batman, representing evil.

With these codes in mind, it is clear that the audience is positioned to identify with and support Batman and are positioned to see the Joker from a negative perspective and see him as a threat or disturbance. Through a variety of visual, audio, and technical codes, The Dark Knight represents a variety of binary opposites: good versus evil, hope versus despair, and order versus chaos.

By Michael Vodden

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We may be able to use binary opposites in our opening sequence. They are often used in romance films on the main characters. This is based around the idea of "opposites attract", with each party of the intended couple being the binary opposite of the other. For example, you could have one of them be shy and the other be outgoing, or one rich and one poor. Binary opposites might be good to include in our opening sequence to make it more conventional.