Planning - Cast and Costumes

This is Georgia she will be playing the main character in my film. I think she is perfect for the role because she is a good actress and I think she can relate to the character. Also she looks how I want my main character to look and has a similar style to her.














What she is wearing in the picture is similar to the costume my main character will be wearing. I want her to look messy and as though she doesn't bother with her appearance and doesn't take care of herself properly. I want her clothes to be dirty and baggy, so they appear to be chosen for comfort instead of style.

Storyboard

These are pictures of a rough storyboard that I drew out for my film.These are just my very basic ideas.

This is an animatic of the opening sequence of my film based on the ideas of my drawn storyboard.. It is still photos of the shots I would like in my opening sequence, however after reviewing my animatic I think my final piece will look slightly different. there will most likely be more shot and i will consider different angles and more varied shot types in my final production.

Synopsis

My film is about teenage problems and rebellion. It will highlight that it is emotional and difficult to be a teenager. It will be set in a rural environment where there is nothing for young people to do, creating a feeling of being trapped in a small town. My main character is a young girl who's had a hard life and has got addicted to drugs. The film is also about how difficult it is to escape drugs that it is a vicious cycle that's nearly impossible to break.  The opening sequence will show the desperation she feels and the relief she experiences after taking the drugs, it will show a young girl who has lost her childhood to drugs, it will be clear that she has already been taking drugs for a long time because of the way she looks and how experienced she is when setting the drugs up. At first it will seem exciting, she's rebelling, doing something really bad but enjoying it, however right at the end it will become clear that she is lost and lonely, that although rebellion can be fun it can also turn bad and cause more damage to the person rebelling than the people they are rebelling against. 

Genre Research Summary

Titles
The titles to the films in my genre I researched  are generally bold, sans serif and quite plain, sometimes a little distorted. The titles are generally put over the film instead of on a blank background.


Music
The music is quite rebellious, it connotes a feeling of excitement and disregard for authority. Sometimes it appears lively but in other films it can be quite ominous. For my film I will choose quite a downbeat track.

Characters 
The characters in the films are researched generally don't put much effort in their appearance, they are quite sloppy and messy and don't really care what they look like. Make up is used to make them seem paler, quite rough and sickly looking. The costume is just basic clothes that are a bit worn and sloppy. The main character is always the focus of nearly every shot and are very privileged by the text. The fast editing makes the characters seem exciting and rebellious and interesting to the audience.













Mise en scene 
Generally it's slightly darker than natural lighting to connote the underlying sinister content of the text. The props are generally drug related things such as lighters, cigarettes, needles, tourniquets etc. also things of violence like knives and other weapons.









Narratives
The genre I have chosen to work in generally has non-restricted narrative, it follows a group of people rather that just one. This connotes a feeling of fun and power because lot's of people are involved, it make the world more available to them because they can picture themselves doing similar things with their friends.

Narrative codes
There are a lot of binary opposites in my chosen genre of film;  in Trainspotting the police and the drug addicts are binary opposites in Kidulthood there is some general idea of the kids and adults being binary opposites but there are also binary opposites within the kids, the bully's and the ones being bullied. There are also enigma codes in Kidulthood, what is the boy drilling and why? The enigma is created because of the use of close ups, the audience can only see the drill they can't see what is being drilled so they become curious. There is also an action code in Trainspotting because of the fast pace of editing.

Cinematography & Editing
The editing is fast paced and quite jumpy in places this connotes rebellion and excitement, the audience can tell that the characters are lively and hedonistic, however the editing is slower in some places when there is a more serious message to get across.  There are lot's of low angled shots in my chosen genre, this makes the characters seem big and important and exciting. There is some hand-held camera shot when the characters are doing something exciting this makes the audience feel involved and connotes fun and enjoyment.

Audience research : Group Anaysis

I asked my facebook group what their likes and dislikes were, their favourite films, their hobbies and how my moodboard made them feel. The response I got from the facebook group was good, the members of my group said they felt that the moodboard represented them well. I found that people in my target audience liked films such as Pulp Fiction and Trainspotting. These are some of the responses that I got :


I will try to take elements from these films and put it into my film so it appeals to my target audience even more. I will also avoid anything cheesy like high school musical: this means that the characters in my film will not be singing or dancing or interacting with the audience in any way.


My focus group said that they felt the moodboard was a good representation of them and that it made them feel excited and rebellious. They said they liked the idea of the film from what they saw on the storyboard. They suggested that that if I wanted to make the main character seem more desperate and sad that instead of just a close up of her looking blank at the end she should have a tear rolling down her cheek. They said that the idea of the film being set in an rural environment was a really good idea and that the main character rebelling because there is nothing to do is something they can relate to. They also suggested that if I want the audience to sympathise with the main character more I should have more shots or longer of her face. They also suggested that I should have a fast paced editing to connote more excitement and rebellion.

Audience research: Facebook group

 The top two pictures are screen shots of a group I made on facebook, I uploaded a link to my moodboard and a few film openings that I thought were similar to the genre I was aiming at. I also asked them some of their likes and dislikes, hobbies and favourite films, this was the response I got.




The last three are photos of a focus group I got together to discuss ideas for my film. They looked at my moodboard and my story board and gave me feedback from them.

Film openings - Genre specific analysis

Trainspotting:


 Introducing the characters in the film makes the audience feel involved and helps them keep up with the narrative, the font is bold and simple, it shows that there is nothing fancy about the film, it's bold and doesn't need anything flashy. The setting is bleak, urban and slightly harsh which represents the tone of the film.















The voice over gives the audience information on the characters, it sets the pace for the film and can also create enigma codes, who's talking? What does what they are saying mean? etc..

The Binary opposition between the main characters and the police creates a rebellious atmosphere, it also means that the audience relates more to the main characters.

The music sets the pace of the film. It's energetic, fast and rebellious, just like the characters in the film. It tells the audience that the film will be fast-paced and lively. The lyrics suggest that the characters are only interested in fun and living for the moment.

The low angle shots make the characters seem big and important. It shows the audience that they are the most interesting thing happening in their world, they are framed right in the centre of the shot blocking a lot of the background out, this shows that the rest of the world doesn't matter to them.
















Kidulthood


The sound in the film has been made louder this makes simple actions seem more sinister and menacing, creating a dark and foreboding atmosphere.

The cut away's from the teenagers doing normal things to the extreme close up of the boy drilling, give the audience the impression that he is removed from normal life, he is somehow different, this makes his interesting to the audience.

The shot of the drill also create enigma codes, what is he drilling and why is he drilling, this hooks the audience, they wan't to know the answers to the questions so will keep watching.

The music is quite jumpy and downbeat; it connotes danger and builds tension. It is also appropriate to the characters in the film; it’s young and urban.

The font used for the opening credits is bold but also slightly messy and scrappy, this represents the tone of the film, the film is messy but bold and in your face.

The out of focus shots of normal every day things, like a game of football, show that the characters in the film are removed from normal life, they are somehow different, normal life is out of focus for them, they have bigger things on their minds.

This extreme close up of a spinning drill connotes violence. The audience can tell from shots like this one that there will be violence and danger in the film, it builds tension, even though it isn't obvious yet there is underlying danger.

In both films the main focus of the opening sequence is  to show young people rebelling, doing bad things and having fun doing it.

Target Audience

Male: 40%

Female: 60%

Age Group: Teenagers 16-19

Brands:

Clothes: Animal, Roxy, Diesel 

Shoes: Converse, Doc Martens

Alcohol: Cider, spirits

Bands:

Radiohead

Kings of Leon

Kasabian

Hed PE 

Film and T.V.:

Film: Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, TrainSpotting, Donnie Darko, Kidulthood,Sweet Sixteen, Fight Club, Pulp Fiction, Psycho, Reservoir Dogs, American History X.

T.V:  Skins, Shameless, Being Human, Spaced, Blackbooks, Man Stroke Woman, Mock the Week, Never Mind the Buzzcocks

Demographic:

My film is mainly aimed at females, aged 16-19

The socio-economic scale

1. 

	Social grade		Description of occupation		Example
	A		higher managerial, administrative or professional		Company director
	B		intermediate managerial, administrative or professional		Middle manager
	C1		supervisory, clerical, junior administrative or professional		Bank clerk
	C2		skilled manual workers		Plumber
	D		semi- and unskilled manual workers		Labourer
	E		state pensioners with no other income, widows, casual and lowest grade earners		Unemployed

My film will be aimed at B, C1 and C2.

Psychographic

·         Mainstreamers: people who don’t like to be different but are conventional in their tastes and aspirations

·         Traditionalists: people who don’t like change and are very
       set in their ways

·         Hedonists: people who just want to have a good time

·         Individualists: people who want to stand out from the crowd
       and like to think for themselves

·         Rebels: people who don’t want to conform but challenge the traditional way of doing things.

My film will be aimed at Rebels, Hedonists and Individualists.