After researching other sweded films over the summer holidays, I have decided to swede the historical-musical film, Les Miserables. I am very familiar with this film as it is one of my favourites, and I own the film on DVD, therefore will be able to refer it throughout planning. I have created a storyboard (which I have also made into an animatic) to plan each shot of my film. After creating my animatic, I found that my sweded film will be approximately 2:24 minutes long. I do not plan on using many editing effects and transitions, as I want my sweded film to be as simple and man-made as possible. I have thought about recording music to overlay the footage, however it would be difficult to condense all of the songs into such short scenes, therefore I will just be using diegetic dialogue.
My storyboard with corresponding original film clips
Saturday 28 September 2013
Thursday 26 September 2013
Original Analysis of 'Coraline'
Opening sequence of 'Coraline'
I have decided to analyse the opening sequence of an animated film to see how this differs from the opening sequence of a live action film.
1. Production Company
The opening sequence of the 2009 American stop-motion 3D horror/fantasy film begins with the name of it's production companies; 'Focus Features', 'Laika Productions', and 'Pandemonium Productions', which meets the key conventions of an opening sequence. The company logos are edited, as the font outline, basic shapes and coloured areas of the logos still the same, but with gothic and eerie sewed style, and the colour scheme of the opening titles. This is unconventional of production company logos for film opening sequences, however the house style makes the opening titles more artistic and sophisticated. The transitioning between them are fades.
2. Film Title
Next the film title is shown, in keeping with the house style but with it's own larger font outline and button graphic to make it distinguishable as the title by standing out from the rest of the opening sequence. It meets the convention of the film title being presented at the beginning of the opening sequence. It is also transitioned by a fading.
3. Main Voice Actors
The main voice actors are next to be presented in the opening sequence. They are not introduced by their role which challenges traditional conventions, but as the first voice actress is well known for her role, this is not necessary for the audience to recognise her. These are also transitioned by fading.
The voice actors with less major roles but still main characters in the film are shared between 1 frame so that the opening sequence does not being uninteresting by prolonging it's length, which meets the conventions of opening sequences.
4. Lead Animators
The lead animators are presented alongside the start of an animation of a doll being transformed into a new doll by the spindly, eerie antagonist of 'Coraline', foreshadowing the plot of the film. They are presented alongside this animation to link them to their work. This meets the conventions as this is one of the most major roles in animated films and should therefore be credited at the beginning of the opening sequence.
5. Concept Artist
This is a typical convention of opening sequences as the concept artist is a major role in animated films. The background of the case of cutting tools is the same leathery, vintage and wine coloured lining used for the production companies, film title and main voice actors backgrounds, which revisits the house style and explains why that background was chosen. The close up of the thin, spindly metal hands and rusted cutting tools make the audience uncomfortable and spooked, and the fact that we don't see who or what is operating the hands makes the opening sequence suitable for it's horror genre.
6. Art Directors and Storyboard Supervisor
These meet the key conventions of an opening sequence, as they are important roles within the making of the animated film. The audience establishes the doll being undone and the stitching ripped with close ups and extreme close ups, which helps them to begin to understand what the metal hands are doing. However the plot of the film is not obviously revealed and or begun, therefore the conventions of not giving too much of the film away are still met.
7. Editors
This is a typical convention of opening sequences as editing is a major role within all films. The presentation of this role is the most spooky of all, as the human doll shape is emptied of it's stuffing with a low angle shot, and turned inside out, which leaves a shadow of this on the gothic torn and spiderweb full wallpaper. As shadows and run down houses are associated with horror films, the mise en scene presents the film's genre well, which is conventional of opening sequences as it makes the audience uncomfortable in order to prepare them to be scared.
8. Visual Effects Supervisor, Music, Supervising Animator, Director of Photography, Producers, Author Based On
For the rest of the opening title sequence, we see the doll being pieced together, with new button eyes, sand grain/wood chipping stuffing, a new dress etc. The music becomes lighter with soft vocals, and the tools switch from harsh metal to gentler, less dangerous wood, which makes the audience feel more at ease and with what the metal hands are doing. All of the conventions are typical of an opening sequence of an animated film, as they are all main roles, which is why they are credited.
9. Writer/Director
The final convention of the opening sequence of 'Coraline' is the credit to the writer/director, Henry Selick. This is the last convention as the director is seen as the most important role of film making, and therefore should be the last name that the audience remembers. The opening sequence ends as it started, with the completely renovated doll exited the window it entered. The newly decorated doll foreshadows when the doll appears late in the film, and the style of the main character 'Coraline' who they will shortly meet. The original doll is also a character which they will come encounter. This is so the audience will recognise the doll from the opening title sequence, and also be aware of how the dolls are changed to manipulate the characters, helping them to understand the plot and make the opening sequence memorable.
Summary
In conclusion, the opening sequence of 'Coraline' is used to foreshadow the plot and characters of the film, prepare the audience to be spooked by making them uncomfortable with the gothic mise en scene and spindly, mysterious metal hands, cutting and stitching of the doll, and of course give credit to the makers of the film. This is achieved by the use of shadows and close ups/extreme close ups of the painful renovating done to a doll resembling a human, which the audience can feel empathy for.
I have decided to analyse the opening sequence of an animated film to see how this differs from the opening sequence of a live action film.
1. Production Company
The opening sequence of the 2009 American stop-motion 3D horror/fantasy film begins with the name of it's production companies; 'Focus Features', 'Laika Productions', and 'Pandemonium Productions', which meets the key conventions of an opening sequence. The company logos are edited, as the font outline, basic shapes and coloured areas of the logos still the same, but with gothic and eerie sewed style, and the colour scheme of the opening titles. This is unconventional of production company logos for film opening sequences, however the house style makes the opening titles more artistic and sophisticated. The transitioning between them are fades.
2. Film Title
Next the film title is shown, in keeping with the house style but with it's own larger font outline and button graphic to make it distinguishable as the title by standing out from the rest of the opening sequence. It meets the convention of the film title being presented at the beginning of the opening sequence. It is also transitioned by a fading.
3. Main Voice Actors
The main voice actors are next to be presented in the opening sequence. They are not introduced by their role which challenges traditional conventions, but as the first voice actress is well known for her role, this is not necessary for the audience to recognise her. These are also transitioned by fading.
The voice actors with less major roles but still main characters in the film are shared between 1 frame so that the opening sequence does not being uninteresting by prolonging it's length, which meets the conventions of opening sequences.
4. Lead Animators
The lead animators are presented alongside the start of an animation of a doll being transformed into a new doll by the spindly, eerie antagonist of 'Coraline', foreshadowing the plot of the film. They are presented alongside this animation to link them to their work. This meets the conventions as this is one of the most major roles in animated films and should therefore be credited at the beginning of the opening sequence.
5. Concept Artist
This is a typical convention of opening sequences as the concept artist is a major role in animated films. The background of the case of cutting tools is the same leathery, vintage and wine coloured lining used for the production companies, film title and main voice actors backgrounds, which revisits the house style and explains why that background was chosen. The close up of the thin, spindly metal hands and rusted cutting tools make the audience uncomfortable and spooked, and the fact that we don't see who or what is operating the hands makes the opening sequence suitable for it's horror genre.
6. Art Directors and Storyboard Supervisor
These meet the key conventions of an opening sequence, as they are important roles within the making of the animated film. The audience establishes the doll being undone and the stitching ripped with close ups and extreme close ups, which helps them to begin to understand what the metal hands are doing. However the plot of the film is not obviously revealed and or begun, therefore the conventions of not giving too much of the film away are still met.
7. Editors
This is a typical convention of opening sequences as editing is a major role within all films. The presentation of this role is the most spooky of all, as the human doll shape is emptied of it's stuffing with a low angle shot, and turned inside out, which leaves a shadow of this on the gothic torn and spiderweb full wallpaper. As shadows and run down houses are associated with horror films, the mise en scene presents the film's genre well, which is conventional of opening sequences as it makes the audience uncomfortable in order to prepare them to be scared.
8. Visual Effects Supervisor, Music, Supervising Animator, Director of Photography, Producers, Author Based On
For the rest of the opening title sequence, we see the doll being pieced together, with new button eyes, sand grain/wood chipping stuffing, a new dress etc. The music becomes lighter with soft vocals, and the tools switch from harsh metal to gentler, less dangerous wood, which makes the audience feel more at ease and with what the metal hands are doing. All of the conventions are typical of an opening sequence of an animated film, as they are all main roles, which is why they are credited.
9. Writer/Director
The final convention of the opening sequence of 'Coraline' is the credit to the writer/director, Henry Selick. This is the last convention as the director is seen as the most important role of film making, and therefore should be the last name that the audience remembers. The opening sequence ends as it started, with the completely renovated doll exited the window it entered. The newly decorated doll foreshadows when the doll appears late in the film, and the style of the main character 'Coraline' who they will shortly meet. The original doll is also a character which they will come encounter. This is so the audience will recognise the doll from the opening title sequence, and also be aware of how the dolls are changed to manipulate the characters, helping them to understand the plot and make the opening sequence memorable.
Summary
In conclusion, the opening sequence of 'Coraline' is used to foreshadow the plot and characters of the film, prepare the audience to be spooked by making them uncomfortable with the gothic mise en scene and spindly, mysterious metal hands, cutting and stitching of the doll, and of course give credit to the makers of the film. This is achieved by the use of shadows and close ups/extreme close ups of the painful renovating done to a doll resembling a human, which the audience can feel empathy for.
Saturday 21 September 2013
Original Analysis of 'Se7en'
1. Production company
The title sequence of the 1995 American thriller 'Se7en' begins with the name of it's production company, 'New Line Cinema'. It is typical for the production company to be the first convention of an opening title sequence, but this convention is also challenged by director David Fincher, as it is presented with cinematography rather than the traditional presentation using the company's logo.
(Production company)
(Conventional production company logo)
Using cinematography rather than the production company logo is unconventional as it brings less recognition and attention to them, but this is amended by the long shot of the production company name.
2. Producer and Director
The next conventions are the names of the producer and director of 'Se7en'. These are typical conventions and order of conventions for opening title sequences, as they are important roles which is why they are at the beginning of the opening title sequence.
Unconventionally however, the names of the director and producer are repeated at the end of the opening title sequence to give them more credit and recognition.
3. Main Cast Member Names and Film Title
This typical convention begins without the title 'Cast members' as the first cast member is a well known actor who does not need to be explained for the audience to understand his role.
The two main cast members, Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman are separated from the other cast members by the interruption of the long shot of the film title after their names have been presented and before the other cast names. This foreshadows the first scene after the opening sequence where "it first introduces us to retiring Detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman) and rookie replacement Detective Mills (Brad Pitt) as they also meet for the first time".
The cast names continue after the film title, with the less important cast members of the film sharing one frame; a typical convention of opening title sequences, as the audience discover who the most important main actors are without the opening sequence being too long and therefore uninteresting.
The film title is later repeated in a short shot which is unconventional, but makes it more memorable to the audience.
4. Casting Directors
Presenting the casting directors challenges traditional conventions of opening title sequences, as this role is usually credited in the end credits of the film. This makes the cast of 'Se7en' seem more complexly found and prestigious.
5. Director of Music and Photography and Costumes and Production Designer
Although the director of music and production designer is sometimes a convention of an opening sequence, credit to the costume designer and director of photography challenge traditional opening sequence conventions, as this convention is usually presented in the end credits. These conventions were chosen, as the people behind these roles are well known and award winning in their fields, making them credit worthy. "Memorable score and rich cinematography" The music and cinematography are important components of 'Se7en', which is presented by the opening sequence, and therefore the 8 award nominated photographer, Darius Khondji, and 3 Academy Award winning and composer of 80 film scores including 'Lord Of The Rings', Howard Shore, are notable in the title sequence.
The costume designer, Micheal Kaplan, won a BAFTA for best costume design, and production designer, Arthur Max, won 4 awards for his work in production designing. This also makes their roles notable in the opening title sequence, and as these well known names will be recognisable to some people, it will raise their expectations of 'Se7en' due to other great films these people have contributed to.
6. Editor
Presenting the editor is a traditional convention of an opening sequence, as it is an important role for all films, especially for films such as 'Se7en' with it's rich cinematography. However the order of conventions is a challenge, as for such an important role, it is quite late in the title sequence.
7. Executive, Co-Executive and Co-Producers
This convention is typical of opening title sequences, and the names are shared between 1 frame as they are of equal importance.
8. Writer
The writer is a key and traditional convention, usually at the end of the openings sequence so that it is memorable to the audience, allowing them to recognise this name from other works.
9. Sound
The sound used for this title sequence is the eerie remix of Nine Inch Nails' 'Closer', which sets an uncomfortable and creepy atmosphere for the film with it's crashing, buzzing and droning noises to spook the audience; making 'Se7en' suitable for it's thriller genre.
"The opening sequence is considered one of the most innovative of it's era"
I think that this statement is true, as the opening sequence of 'Se7en' differs to all opening sequences before it. A difference which distinguishes it from other title sequences is it's non-narrative format. The opening sequence portrays the film's killer, John Doe, as he assembles a diary documenting the murders he will be executing in the film. As the killer does not appear until 40 minutes into the film, the titles help to bridge that gap. The face of the killer is also not revealed to maintain suspense. The style of Se7en's opening sequence is new and innovative, "Cooper incorporated the computer to reconcile traditional and modern techniques. In doing so, he revitalized film industry titles and redefined their visual style." This inventive, new style inspired many other opening sequences over the years, having been co-opted almost wholesale by the horror genre as a house style. It has continued to impact the title industry two decades on; not only was 'Se7en' one of the most innovative of it's era, but has maintained it's legacy for following eras.
Wednesday 11 September 2013
Core Conventions of an Opening Sequence to a Film
These are what I think are the core conventions of an opening sequence to a film:
- Distributor company name
- Production company name
- Title of film
- Director's name
- Executive producer's name
- Editor's name
- Name of book/play and author if it is based on one of these
- Main cast members names
- Film logos Sound -music to set the scene of the film without giving too much away, such as whistling wind and low pitched drums to set a solemn and dull beginning scene, or recognisable theme music. An example of this is the Harry Potter opening music which incorporates sound to set the scene and its memorable theme music:
Identifying the Codes and Conventions of a Film Opening Sequence
4. Conventions of a thriller opening from zubairkhan93
Analysis:
How successful are they at identifying conventions?
The presentations were not all successful at identifying the key conventions of an opening title sequence (OTS), as although they were identified at the beginning of most of the presentations, they were not fully explained therefore I have no learnt why these conventions are used or much about their effect in an OTS. The third presentation 'An Analysis Of The Opening Sequence Of Vertigo' began to explain the effect of the key conventions, however this explanation was specific to the 3 OTSs that were analysed, and would be difficult to apply to the OTSs of other films. The information presented by the first presentation was also unsuccessful, as it seemed uncertain by the prevalent words "sometimes" and "could". This made me unsure of what the definite key conventions actually are. The second presentation however was most successful. It identified the most key conventions compared to the other presentations, and did this in the most appropriate level of detail in explanation. Also, the examples were comparable and could be extracted to analyse other OTSs.
Who is the audience?
The audience for these presentations are media and film studies students who are researching the key conventions of an OTS, film fanatics who are interested in the inner workings and methods behind the composition of OTSs, and young/new film makers researching how to create an OTS for their film.
What is the purpose of the presentations?
The purpose of these presentations is to educate it's audience of the key conventions of an OTS, and analyse the key conventions of the chosen films' OTSs.
Is the format successful?
The 3 presentations which chose Powerpoint as their format were the most successful in my opinion, as the slides were clear to read and extract information from, organised, and interesting with their use of colour, images and brief writing styles. However I found that some of these presentations were too brief; lacking the level of detail necessary to explain the key conventions. The second presentation had the most successful format, as the key conventions were immediately identified at the opening slide, and were analysed throughout the presentation with relevant images taken from films which present them in their OTSs. The information was comparable, as 2 key conventions were presented on one slide. This allowed the audience to compare their effect in an OTS. The third presentation format needed to be sifted and broken down in order to extract relevant information on the key conventions, as it was mostly a detailed analysis of 3 films' OTSs, making it the least successful format.
Did they identify ALL of the conventions accurately?
I do not think that the presentations identified all of the conventions accurately, as most of the presentations identified a different number of key conventions. An explanation of the conventions was lacking in many of the presentations too, therefore they were not presented accurately.
Analysis:
How successful are they at identifying conventions?
The presentations were not all successful at identifying the key conventions of an opening title sequence (OTS), as although they were identified at the beginning of most of the presentations, they were not fully explained therefore I have no learnt why these conventions are used or much about their effect in an OTS. The third presentation 'An Analysis Of The Opening Sequence Of Vertigo' began to explain the effect of the key conventions, however this explanation was specific to the 3 OTSs that were analysed, and would be difficult to apply to the OTSs of other films. The information presented by the first presentation was also unsuccessful, as it seemed uncertain by the prevalent words "sometimes" and "could". This made me unsure of what the definite key conventions actually are. The second presentation however was most successful. It identified the most key conventions compared to the other presentations, and did this in the most appropriate level of detail in explanation. Also, the examples were comparable and could be extracted to analyse other OTSs.
Who is the audience?
The audience for these presentations are media and film studies students who are researching the key conventions of an OTS, film fanatics who are interested in the inner workings and methods behind the composition of OTSs, and young/new film makers researching how to create an OTS for their film.
What is the purpose of the presentations?
The purpose of these presentations is to educate it's audience of the key conventions of an OTS, and analyse the key conventions of the chosen films' OTSs.
Is the format successful?
The 3 presentations which chose Powerpoint as their format were the most successful in my opinion, as the slides were clear to read and extract information from, organised, and interesting with their use of colour, images and brief writing styles. However I found that some of these presentations were too brief; lacking the level of detail necessary to explain the key conventions. The second presentation had the most successful format, as the key conventions were immediately identified at the opening slide, and were analysed throughout the presentation with relevant images taken from films which present them in their OTSs. The information was comparable, as 2 key conventions were presented on one slide. This allowed the audience to compare their effect in an OTS. The third presentation format needed to be sifted and broken down in order to extract relevant information on the key conventions, as it was mostly a detailed analysis of 3 films' OTSs, making it the least successful format.
Did they identify ALL of the conventions accurately?
I do not think that the presentations identified all of the conventions accurately, as most of the presentations identified a different number of key conventions. An explanation of the conventions was lacking in many of the presentations too, therefore they were not presented accurately.
Friday 6 September 2013
Animatics
An animatic is a series of rough storyboard frames drawn to the planned camera angles, edited together to approximate the finished film and timing between frames, with in some cases, sound and dialogue layered into the animatic. Most professional animatics are created using Photoshop to draw the frames, and edited together using AfterEffects; however for my first animatic, I created my frames by drawing them by hand and edited them together using Windows Movie Maker. Both are effective methods and uses of software for creating animatics, however the first method would more likely be used by a company which specialise in creating animatics, or a high end film production team.
I have created this animatic to plan my sweded film; Sweded Les Miserables. Sound and dialogue would be most effective if the film created was for a music video, with the effect of the frames are in time to the beat of the song. Also if the film has lots of dialogue which has already been scripted and finished. I chose not to add dialogue or sound to my animatic because my frames were widely spaced, therefore the dialogue and sound would be harder to follow in relation to the frames.
Some of my favourite animatic examples include:
This animatic was created using Photoshop and AfterEffects to plan a short film. The frames are detailed with small spaces between them, and there is no sound or dialogue which focuses the planning on the frames. The only colours used are black and white shading, and a maroon/red colour for detail within the film, which makes a clear not of it.
This animatic is created to plan a music video, therefore sound was used to arrange the frames in time with the beat and length of the song. There are also stage directions on the bottom left corner of the frames, to add further detail. The frames are drawn in the angles of the camera angles that it will be shot with, and are medium-lengthed spaced and quite detailed. The setting of the frames is also very detailed, as it is complex and changes between each frame; this organises and determines where each scene will be shot.
Advantages/disadvantages of creating an animatic as opposed to a live action film
Advantages:
I have created this animatic to plan my sweded film; Sweded Les Miserables. Sound and dialogue would be most effective if the film created was for a music video, with the effect of the frames are in time to the beat of the song. Also if the film has lots of dialogue which has already been scripted and finished. I chose not to add dialogue or sound to my animatic because my frames were widely spaced, therefore the dialogue and sound would be harder to follow in relation to the frames.
Some of my favourite animatic examples include:
This animatic was created using Photoshop and AfterEffects to plan a short film. The frames are detailed with small spaces between them, and there is no sound or dialogue which focuses the planning on the frames. The only colours used are black and white shading, and a maroon/red colour for detail within the film, which makes a clear not of it.
This animatic is created to plan a music video, therefore sound was used to arrange the frames in time with the beat and length of the song. There are also stage directions on the bottom left corner of the frames, to add further detail. The frames are drawn in the angles of the camera angles that it will be shot with, and are medium-lengthed spaced and quite detailed. The setting of the frames is also very detailed, as it is complex and changes between each frame; this organises and determines where each scene will be shot.
Advantages/disadvantages of creating an animatic as opposed to a live action film
Advantages:
- Cheaper to produce as actors, mise en scene, locations, lighting etc. are not required
- Easier to remake scenes/shots later, as live action films would need to be set up exactly as before for continuity
- Can create expensive and imaginative sets and ideas without the need for special effects, e.g. the tall castle and flying scene from the 'Defying Gravity Storyboard' animatic above
- Can be created over a long period, unlike live action films which are effected by changes in natural lighting and actors
Disadvantages:
- Live action films are easier to follow if the animatic lacks artistic ability
- Live action films are more realistic, therefore animatics work better for fantasy films, but worse for more serious genres such as dramas, historical, and documentaries
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