This table shows the film genre preferences for women and men of different ages. The genre that we are leaning towards is a thriller. This means that, according to this table, we must make our target audience women and men aged 55+, because these are the people who are most likely to view a suspense/thriller film. We may therefore, include characters that are older to attract that audience so they can relate more to the film. However, if we chose a different genre, such as a horror film, we would have a completely different target audience of men 15-24. This is because these are the people who preferred this genre and who are most likely to watch a film of this genre. This is in some ways the opposite of the thriller genre because women 55+ are the least likely to view a horror film. This table has helped me learn the preferences of different film genres. Therefore, I can now decide more accurately what to include according to which genre of film I choose to use. This will essentially help me to attract my target audience and be more effective in making decisions on what to include in the film opening.
Technology today is always evolving, which means that we have the ability to create animated title sequences. These may have a high cost, however it may be worth it to make a good first impression on the audience and captivate them as soon as they begin watching the film. Creating a full length animated film would cost millions of dollars for example the Toy Story franchise produced a total budget of $320 million. Over the years, animation has become a useful technique for movie directors to have the freedom to do and create what they like. Instead of building a set worth millions of dollars, it is easier to create it in an animation, which may not cost as much as paying for the actual props. For example, in Coraline (2009) there is a parallel world that is created, whereby various strange activities take place and the world eventually crumbles apart into a white screen. Creating this on a set may not have the same affect as the animation because this way anything can happen, which is something that makes the film what it is. With other films of this genre (dark fantasy horror), special effects, which may also be costly. As well as this, Coraline is based on a novel, so the director wouldn't want to change many elements of it. A good way to make sure that they can include everything they want is to make the film an animation. The audience can therefore feel as if they are watching the novel come to life and they can become more immersed in it. However, animation is a very long process and it must be in order for the film to look realistic. Animated films take a longer time to produce than ordinary films. Pixar movies can take anywhere from 4 to 7 years to be produced. That being said, Pixar is a large subsidiary and so would spend a long time to produce as they want a good reputation.
If I had the option, I would want to create an animated title sequence, as I wouldn't be restricted by location or props and I could be as creative as I wanted. However we don't have the required equipment to carry this out and we have a very small budget for this task.
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is a non-governmental organisation, which is responsible for the classification of films in the UK. It was established in 1912 for films by a few members of the film industry who decided to manage their own censorship rather than have the government do it for them. They wanted to establish their own system of self-regulation. The BBFC began operating on the 1st of January 1913 under the legal basis of the Cinematography Act 1909; cinemas were required to have licences from local authorities under this act. Just before the Second World War, cinema became a socially powerful mass-medium and was feared because of the potential effects of its use for propaganda e.g.the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany.Therefore, an unofficial system of political censorship was introduced by the BBFC for the Home Office of the UK. However, Hollywood films weren't treated as strictly because the BBFC assumed that audiences would recognise American cinema as representing a foreign culture so it wouldn't have a big effect.From the 1950s onwards, the BBFC focused more on depictions of sex and violence than political expression. In 1984, the BBFC were given responsibility for classifying videos for hire or to buy and view at home as well as cinema. Home video and cinema are given the same certificate the majority of the time, however it can vary due to bonus features or extra content. In December 1986, the first video computer game was certified by the BBFC, however they do not have power over print media. Here are the current certificates:
UNIVERSAL: Suitable for audiences of all ages to view. Use of infrequent mild bad language may be used ('damn' and 'hell'). There is no overt focus on sexual behaviours but characters may be seen kissing/cuddling and there may be undetailed references to sexual behaviour. Treatment must be appropriate for a young audience; works with this certificate will usually have a positive message and an overall tone of reassurance.
PARENTAL GUIDANCE: Suitable for general viewing but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children. Nothing should upset viewers ages eight and over. There may be mild bad language included in PG films ('shit' or 'son of a bitch'). Some films are given the PG certificate but aren't made with a young audience as their target. There is no direct focus or reference to illegal drug use and sexual behaviour. Parents should consider whether the content would upset younger or more sensitive children.
12A (CINEMA ONLY): No one under the age of 12 may see the film in the cinema unless accompanied by an adult. Adults taking a child to see a 12A film should consider whether it is suitable for that child. A cinema may lose its licence if an adult does not accompany a child under 12 seeing a 12A film at the cinema. Depending on the context in which it is used, strong language ('f***') may be used in 12A films. Sex may be briefly and discreetly portrayed and verbal sex references shouldn't go beyond what is suitable for young teenagers. Moderate but undetailed violence is allowed and some horror films are given the certificate. Dangerous behaviour (e.g. suicide or hanging) may be presented but not dewlled on or include detail in a manner for young people to be likely to copy.
12 (HOME ONLY): The 12 certificate is the same as the 12A, but the requirements apply outside of the cinema because accompanied viewing cannot be enforced in the home. The film can only be sold to people over the age of 12.
15: Only viewers aged 15 and over can view the films as they are not suitable for children under 15 years of age. there are no restrictions on the themes involved, provided the treatment is appropriate for 15 year olds. At 15, there is no limit for the amount of strong language used (e.g. 'f***') and there may be occasional uses of stronger terms (e.g. c***'). However, this is depending on the manner of which it is used, who is using the language, the frequency of the language, and any special contextual justification because continuous or aggressive use will not normally be passed at 15. A 15 rated film could include things such as strong language, strong violence, sexual nudity, drug taking etc. Any sexual activity or nudity presented will not be in great detail and there may also be a strong threat and horror, provided there is no sustained focus on sadistic or sexualised threat.
18: No one under the age of 18 is allowed to view or purchase the film, as they are for adults only. No themes are prohibited at this rating because adults can choose their on entertainment as long as it is not potentially harmful or illegal. Therefore it is a possibility that viewers could be offended at the content. Some issues involved in a film given an 18 certificate are strong horror, strong blood and gore, very strong violence, and strong portrayals of sexual activity. There is no limit or constraints on strong language, strong violence, horror, and nudity. Although drug taking may be shown, the work must not promote or encourage drug misuse. These themes may be shown, however, there is still potential for dangerous or criminal behaviour to be cut (e.g. explicit images of sexual activity that cannot be justified by context or behaviour which poses a great risk if copied). Sex works (only material which may be simulated) are generally passed at 18.
RESTRICTED 18: A legally-restricted category, used for explicit sex works or strong fetish material involving adults. Films with this certificate may only be shown in cinemas with special licences, and video works may only be supplied to adults in licensed sex shops. R18 videos may not be supplied by mail order.
Since we had many different ideas for our opening sequence scenarios, we decided to come up with two final ideas that we would choose from. The first would be a horror/thriller that would scare the audience, and the second would be a thriller, which would interest but also be quite eerie so that the audience felt discomfort.
We are leaning more towards the second idea at the moment. We have watched a lot of as media opening sequences from former students in order to gain information, and the genre that a lot of people lean towards is horror. Therefore, if we were to do the thriller idea, we could still make the opening sequence sinister, but not horror/gore with a lot of blood, as we would like to create an original idea.
In order for us to make an accurate decision, we decided to draw up a mind map of different scenarios that we could possibly use for our opening sequence. We previously have watched a number of opening sequences, and both decided that we wanted an idea that would draw in people's attention by being quite fast-paced and resembling a thriller or action.
We had similar ideas, so this was a reasonably easy task to complete; we decided to rule out any romance or drama films, because after watching a few openings we soon discovered that nothing captivating usually takes place within these opening sequences. Therefore, all of the scenarios we though of involve some sort of action or ways that we can include enigma codes.
Continuity task involving filming and editing a character opening a door,walking across and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she/he then exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. The Preliminary task must include a match on action, shot-reverse-shot and adhere to the 180 degree rule to ensure continuity.
This task was given to us in order for us to gain some experience in filming and editing and develop our skills so that when we come to completing our main task we can be more advanced. We were able to also include some of the camera shots and angles that we learnt during our lessons, and create a narrative to the story, which we hadn't done before.
Before starting this task, we first made a mind map with a few ideas, and then decided upon a final decision for what our story would be. We then created a shot list and storyboard so that when we came to filming, we knew what we would film and in what order. This gave us more control over what we were doing.
We were able to film the preliminary task within around 40 minutes during a media lesson. Overall the filming of the task went quite well. However, whilst editing, we found that the sound was not very audible. This made it hard to understand what the characters were saying at times and is something that didn't go well in regards to this task.
Additionally, we didn't film an accurate shot-reverse-shot, which was something that could have been improved. On the other hand, our continuity was something that we were happy with, as there is not delay in our scenes and everything flows nicely.
If I were to go back and film it all again, I would make sure that the actresses that we used were louder when having their dialogue, so it is more audible than it is in the preliminary task. I would also maybe make the non-copyright soundtrack that we used a little bit quieter so that the dialogue is more audible. As well as this, I would produce a more accurate shot-reverse-shot so that the continuity of the task is a little bit better, although there was nothing too bad about it.
In the final task, I will make sure to take these factors into account and maybe use some more impressive camera techniques with the skills that I've learnt so far. For example, different camera angles and shots, adding a soundtrack, and making my sound easily audible so that the audience doesn't struggle to hear it.
