The genre that I'm doing for my film is sports comedy. I know that in my previous blog postings I didn't mention or even think about doing this genre, but during a conversation that I had with my teacher, I have decided that sports comedy would fit better for me and allow me to connect better with my project.
The first film I came across was Happy Gilmore. This film opening focuses on developing a character. In this opening sequence the film utilizes a technique known as a montage, this is where a film pieces together separate sections of film to form a continuous whole. While this montage is playing the main character, Happy Gilmore is doing a voice over, talking about his life story. This film uses a lot of medium and long shots, as well has handheld camera shots to make it seem as if every single shot was recorded from someone in the film.
During this opening Happy's life is broken down into two main parts. It starts off with his childhood and progresses into his life as an adult. During both parts of this opening the film was able to keep it's comedic intension by it's continuous jokes and it's physical humor. This opening is a very good representation for sports comedy, however I want my film to be different. Even though I didn't find the whole sequence useful, the physical comedy shown in this inspired me to use some of my own in my film.
Another sports comedy film I found was Here Comes The Boom. This movie opens with establishing character. The first thing the audience sees are pictures hanging up on a wall. One of these pictures has a young boy in a wrestling outfit and the other one is a certificate for teacher of the year. This film uses long shots and medium shots throughout the first few minutes to establish the setting. The music along with the scene of Scott riding his motorcycle is a nice touch and really adds that intense feeling. This opening has just the right amount of comedy with overdoing it. I also like how the film added the shot of the wrestling photo to foreshadow that this is going to be a sport related movie. Watching the fast pacing of the cuts in relation to the music and scene helped me understand how to create excitement and urgency. Applying pacing to my film will contribute to making my film better.
While Happy Gilmore and Here Comes The Boom are both good representations of sports comedies, another great film is Benchwarmers. Out of the three films Benchwarmers is the only one to start off with an establishing shot. In this establishing shot we can see a baseball field which foreshadows what the film will be about. This film is also the only film out of the three to introduce a side character. The film portrays its comedy through the use of satire and other physical aspects. Throughout the opening a consistent use of medium and wide shots were used. This film doesn't really relate to what I would like to do for my opening, but t's still good nonetheless.
What I liked about all of the films is that they established character and they all included the title of the movie early on. Another thing is that the films kind of foreshadowed what they would be about, which I though was interesting. Overall this films helped better my knowledge on this genre and what I need to include in my own film opening.
As I have progressed through this class and through life I have learned that time management is so important. Because of this I need to create a schedule to plan out how I will spend my time with my project.
Week One (1/29-2/2)
two blog postings
A transition posting to portfolio project.
A posting about two possible genre choices for project.
Week Two (2/3-2/9)
four blog postings
Choose genre for film opening
research and discuss three film openings
research and discuss three credit sequences from films within my genre
Research about a media theory that I wish to integrate into my project
Create a script or storyboard
Week Four (2/17-2/23)
four blog postings
Start filming
post focusing on character development
post focusing on mise-en-scene elements
post focusing on audio
create some Foley sounds(if necessary)
Week Five (2/24-3/2)
Four blog postings
Continue filming
Planning post of my choice
A few production posts of my choice
Week Six (3/3-3/9)
Four blog postings
Post-production process post
Post-production process post
Research for #1 question of CCR post
Start editing film opening
Sound effect layering
Week Seven (3/10-3/16)
Four blog postings
Research for #2 question of CCR post
Research for #3 question of CCR post
Research for #4 question of CCR post
Post discussing CCR production ideas
Continue editing
Create credits for opening
Week Eight (3/17-3/25)
Four blog postings
Post about production of CCRs
Post about post-production of CCRs
Final reflection of CCR
finish anything that isn't completed and/or needs touchups
In the past I haven't been the best at sticking to schedules because I would procrastinate and wait until the last minute, but this project is different. I am going to do my best to stick to this schedule and manage my time wisely.
Hello there! So for this post I was able to research anything in relation to the portfolio project, so I decided to do sound since it's very important.
There are many different and unique sounds used in films. Sounds make up a film, and without sound the film would be bland. You might think that the visuals are the most important part of the film but that's just not true at all. Although the story is being portrayed through visuals, sound enhances and makes the film feel impactful and complete.
A lot goes into creating and finding the right sounds. The first sound created during film making is the dialogue. Dialogue is also the most important sound in the film because it conveys the story and allows the audience to understand the plot and the character's emotions. The dialogue is also what keeps the audiences listening and engaged. Once the dialogue is edited and finished then all of the other sound effects are made.
One of the types of sound effects made post production are Foley sounds. This is my favorite type of sound effect because it's so unique. I like how the Foley artists are able to perfectly replicate what it would actually sound like in the film. Without Foley artists some of the most common sounds like walking and body movements wouldn't be in most movies.
This video from YouTube of Wicket eating a snack is a perfect representation of Foley sounds and other sound effects and how they make the film so much better. By adding the subtle footsteps of Wicket walking on the grass, the scene feels more real and finer. Without sound effects films wouldn't be as significant as they are. Sound is so important because it adds depth and texture to the visuals of the film, sets the mood and builds tension, and it helps express narrative elements that might not be fully shown by the visuals alone. I could use the knowledge I gained on sound effects and techniques to construct a better film opening sequence by creating and using sounds, in relation to the visuals being shown, to make the film feel as if it's coming to life.
As soon as I was presented with this project I started to think about what genre I wanted to my film opening to be about. I have been brainstorming and considering all of the genre options out there. Two genre possibilities that I have thought about the most were action and horror. These type of films have always stood out to me because it's what I find the most interesting to watch. That being said, I hadn't known much about these genres, so I had to do some research.
Horror
The horror genre revolves around creating an unsettling experience for its audience. Horror films are usually shot in a dark and ominous setting to heighten the sense of danger. The mise-en-scene elements typically have a lot of black and red to represent evil or danger as well as the addition of weapons. Also, this genre uses camera shots like the Dutch tilt and handheld to intensify the fear. On top of that the antagonist should be intimidating because it's the primary source of fear for the audience. This genre also requires an effective sound design to heighten tension and cause jump scares.
Action
Action films are mainly to keep audiences engaged and at the edge their seat. This genre of film embraces warm colors, high contrast lighting, props like weapons and vehicles, and frequent use of handheld camera movement and quick cuts to convey the intensity and chaos of the action. The primary intention of action films are its adrenaline-pumping moments, not necessarily towards creating a deep character development. One of the most crucial things about action films is their visual pacing as well as having an understandable and interesting plot.
From this moment on my blogs pertain to my portfolio project. All of the previous blog postings have guided me and allowed me to have a better understanding towards the portfolio project. I've learned so much in my class about media and I hope to express it all through my project. I am very grateful and excited that I can participate in making this project.
My initial thought when I was introduced to this project was "What do I want my opening to be about". Creating a story takes a lot of thought and consideration, but that's why I love it, because I am able to display my creative thoughts. By deciding on what genre I want to do I can then think about how I want to tell my story. After I've decided a basis on what I want my story to be about I can then develop it even more to intrigue the audience. Since I'm just creating an opening to a film I plan on keeping suspense so that the audience will want to watch the whole film.
My other plan is to develop the characters of the film. This is another thing that I find fascinating because developing the characters is what brings the entire film to life and makes it enjoyable. I'm so interested in being able to create these characters with their own unique features. Also, showing the relationship each character has with each other is exciting. I'm very eager to be creative about these characters.
In general I think this project is going to be a very fun and knowledgeable experience. Also, I feel like the start of this project is going to be a lot easier knowing how I want my story to be told and how I'm going to create it.
For my research and planning process my group decided that it would be best to split the project up so that it could be done quicker and more efficiently. By doing this it would give us more time to work on the music video. During our research my group figured out that TikTok and Instagram are social media apps in which popularity is easier to obtain and where our profile is more noticed. So we decided that we would be using those social media apps mainly to promote our artist.
Our song is "Me and Your Mama" by Childish Gambino. We're gonna completely base our music video off of our storyboard with the addition of a few changes. We intend to make a artistic music video, because we thought that it would match best with this song, and in the video there is going to be a man who's in love with this girl but he can't have her.
