Brainstorming Summary

RISE
      The close ups of the different items such as the shoes and the backpack were really cool, it gave a sense of preparation and also told the audience what the 'character' was about to do. The fact the music got quieter when the camera shifted to a different 'character' allowed us to make the assumption that the music we are hearing is in the 'character's' headphones which created a cool effect. The extreme close up shot at the very end allowed us to see the character's face clearly, the fact they were so calm and emotionless while staring at each other created suspense which left the viewer wondering how they know each other and what will happen next.

OFFLINE
      The over the shoulder shot of the hooded figure created a sense of suspense right off the bat, we could see what the person was doing on their phone but we did not know who it was. The music suited this clip very well. The contrast between clips of the girl in the past when she was free and the present when she was in a cage highlight the drastic change in her situation.

DEAR LOVER
      The film opening starts with a close up shot of water, followed by an establishing shot of a brook. This set the scene for the film and highlighted the peaceful nature of where they were. The music chosen also went well with the tranquil atmosphere being created. The voice over used is a really effective way of explaining the situation in a subtle manner. By ending the opening halfway through the character's sentence, the students not only created anticipation within the audience but also effectively set the plot for the rest of the film.

DARE TO THRILL
      The beginning of this film opening was slightly confusing since there was no real explanation of the events that were going on. The rest of the clips were extremely action packed which led me to believe that it was supposed to be an action/adventure genre. The close up shots of the car lights and the dashboard were also very cool, the follow shots of the car driving on the highway also added to the genre. The end was kind of confusing.

ALWAYS WATCHING
     The opening started with a voice over which sparked a bit of interest at first, unfortunately due to the lack of realism in the 'actor's' performance the opening lost its momentum rapidly. The close up shot of Kane's face did create a very creepy atmosphere due to his eerie expression coupled with the music. Unfortunately the contrast between the volume of the music and the character's voice made it all too unrealistic which made the performance lose its effect.

THE BLUE BOAR
     The beginning of this opening did a good job at providing enough background information to set the overall plot for the rest of the film without giving too much of the story away. The high key lighting set the mood for the rest of the opening which went well with the positive tone trying to be conveyed through the character's hopeful singing. The drawing at the very end seemed to be a symbol for something important in the story, hence the title.

WHITE COAT
     All of the shots in this film opening were very high definition and of good quality, it made it seem like a professional film rather than one conducted by high school students. The music went well with what was being shown to the viewer and when combined both set a very suspenseful mood. They did really well at explaining the main idea of the story while still leaving some things up to the viewers imagination, which can be assumed will be revealed further in the film.

STALKER
     The beginning was very long and dragged out, the overbearing silence at the beginning kind of made it difficult to sit through. The sound effects and music were also not effectively added to the story. Not to mention that if all she heard were pictures being taken suspiciously one morning then there is nothing that could be written in the note she found that should cause her to react the way she did, especially since she didn't have any real suspicions. It all just comes off as very unrealistic. More knowledge on how to develop the opening would have made it more appealing.

NOSTALGIA
     Although the shots in the film were visually aesthetic and worked well with the music being used, there was no real explanation or hint as to what the plot of the film might be. This made it difficult to see the genre they were trying to recreate. Despite this, they did do an effective job as setting a very calm and peaceful atmosphere.

LOST & FOUND
     Although the film techniques, animation, and music worked well together as a whole there was no real plot set up. It's not clear to the viewer what story is being told or what the main conflict of the film will be.

Summary:

     The most important aspect in the making of a film opening is setting up a clear plot or story that will develop as the film goes on. I found that even if one uses good camera shots and techniques accompanied with appropriate music and sound when there is no distinct story line it distracts from all of the good things about the opening which lessens its effectiveness. I found that the right lighting and  music at the appropriate volume really makes or breaks the scene. If used constructively, they really are what sets the mood and tone of a scene. I think that if my partner and I can find a way to constructively use all these aspects and make sure that the viewer can understand the story then we will be able to make a successful film opening. 

Story Boarding

Summary:

     My partner and I decided to begin the opening with a close up shot of the folder with the case information in it, we would then pan out to an over the shoulder shot of one of the detectives reading the file. In our second scene the second detective walks in and analyzes the evidence and research they have so far while the first detective overlooks the case file. Then we cut to the questioning room where one of the detectives will be grilling the suspect, we'll do an extreme close up shot of the suspect in order to showcase their distress. While the detective is talking there will be a flashback to the scene of the crime in which we will use non-diegetic music as well as a voice over of the detective explaining the evidence. Then the next scene will be back in the present in which the detective presents the suspect with incriminating evidence. The suspect denies the accusations, then in the following scene the detective realizes the evidence does not incriminate the suspect at all. The overall plot of our film is a murder investigation being led by the two worst detectives in the precinct, and although they experience many wacky misadventure throughout their journey they somehow miraculously solve the mystery in the end. Madison and I worked together in coming up with the various scenes shown in the opening of our film, we both also agreed upon various filming techniques we should use for each scene. Madison wrote the descriptions on the bottom of each scene and I drew the pictures depicting what we would be doing.

Why Mystery?

  I was inspired to choose mystery because I have always been drawn to this particular genre ever since I was young, I think the emotions evoked are particularly intriguing. There's always a sense of suspense and tension and trying to figure out the mystery along with the characters is fun in itself. Mysteries are usually filled with unexpected twists and endings so trying to recreate the opening to such a film would give us a new challenge to tackle. The particular movie that comes to mind when I think about the mystery genre is "The Great Mouse Detective" and although it's an animation the film actually tackles a lot of the basic characteristics of the genre. It also was one of my favorite movies as a kid, and was partly responsible for kick-starting my love for the genre.
     The introduction to the film started off with an establishing shot of what seemed to be the city of London at night, the 'lighting' was dim and there was a heavy fog throughout all the streets. This setting set up the overall mood for the rest of the film: dark, broody, and mysterious. There was also a voice over that described the time of the year and the events that are about to take place, this let's the viewer know that a story is being told which the speaker has already lived through meaning the movie is set in the past. After briefly meeting one of the main characters, it starts raining which only adds to the mystique. Rain often signifies heightened drama, foreboding, or impending disaster. Not to mention that coupled with the dim lighting, rain adds to the grim mood. After this, there’s a long shot of the character walking through a dark, abandoned alley. This particular camera angle makes the character look really small in comparison to his surroundings and allows the audience to see how vulnerable he is. He is in an unfamiliar, sketchy looking area all alone and the voice over lets the audience infer something big is about to happen. Due to this, some tension is added to the scene which aims to leave the audience feeling anxious and curious to see what’s coming next.
     The introduction to this film was very open ended due to the fact we don’t really know why the main character is in London and  we’re immediately introduced to the first “case” of the story. We can infer that this case will most likely lead to something greater but we don’t know what. The opening leaves the viewer with a lot of questions including who is the famous detective the main character is trying to help a little girl find. By introducing a lot of questions but not many answers it leaves the audience wondering what really is going on, this technique gives the viewer a reason to keep watching. It not only keeps them on the edge of their seat but it introduces curiosity which by human nature a lot of people will give into.

My Film Opening Project - Genre & Group Members

The genre I have chosen to do for my project is Mystery.

The partner I will be working with is Madison Craumer.

Film Opening Research #2 - The Karate Kid

1. How many titles are displayed during the opening sequences to the film?
     There were seven titles displayed during the opening sequences: COLUMBIA a Sony Pictures Entertainment Company, Overbrook Entertainment, Columbia Pictures Presents, An Overbrook Entertainment/Jerry Weintraub Production, In Association with China Film Group Production, A Film by Harald Zwart, and The Karate Kid.

2. What images are prioritized in the opening sequence?
     Some of the images prioritized in the opening scene was the door frame in the main character's childhood home. There were several close ups of it in which the viewer could see that the door frame was used to keep track of not only the main characters height/age but also important events that occurred in his life such as his 9th birthday, his first homerun in baseball, his father's death, and more recently their move to China.

3. What connotations do the images carry?
    The images are a significant glance at the character's past as well as the emotions this move might evoke in him. He's grown up there and experienced his highs and lows in that house, the door frame symbolizes this. They hold a rather neutral connotation of reminiscence.

4. How is genre reinforced through symbolic and technical codes from the outset?
    Genre is reinforced through a main scene in the opening, the film is meant to be mostly a drama so to make it feel like one they make the character's departure dramatic. This is done by setting a gloomy scene by having it be rainy as they are leaving. The genre of drama is also reinforced when Dre's friend tries to give him his skateboard but he refuses at first making the goodbye longer, but then his friend insists and he finally accepts it. Then after their exchange Dre's friend briefly chases their car before finally waving goodbye.

5. How does the film establish an enigma from the outset?
     The film establishes an enigma through the main character's negative attitude towards having to move to another country. This is established especially in the scenes where Dre expresses discontent with the situation, including his unwillingness to practice Chinese in the plane as well as his comment about how everything in China is old. This leaves the audience to wonder how he will cope and adapt to being thrown into a completely different culture, language, and lifestyle.

6. What strategies are used to ensure the film appeals to its target audience?
     Some strategies used to appeal to the film's target audience (young kids) are music, the skateboard gifted to the main character upon leaving which could signify youth, as well as the the main character's outlook of China and calling everything old which could resonate with what other children could associate it with.

7. How has technology been used effectively? 
     Technology has bee used effectively through the use of special effects in the fight scenes.

Film Opening Research #1 - A Cinderella Story

1. How many titles are displayed during the opening sequences to the film?
     There are five opening sequences to the film during the opening scene: A TimeWarner Company, Warner Bros. Pictures Presents, A Clifford Werber Production, In Association with Dylan Sellers Productions, and A Cinderella Story.

2. What images are prioritized in the opening sequence?
     The main image prioritized is the establishing shot of a princess castle which when zoomed out we realize is actually a snow globe which also holds significant value. We see the same snow globe shatter during the earthquake later during the opening which signified that her fairy tale was about to end.

3. What connotations do the images carry?
     The connotation behind it is pretty important because it alludes to the whole 'fairy tale' theme the movie is built around. The castle signifies home and her relationship with her father as well as her dreams and aspirations. Their relationship is pretty good which is why the snow globe is so important to her, it is a gift from him and it supports the strong bond they have with each other which is why she sees her father as the King and as herself as the princess.

4. How is genre reinforced through symbolic and technical codes from the outset?
     The genre (which is teen romance) is reinforced through the music playing in the background when the main character goes to pick up her friend before school. The song that's playing is about love which highlights one of the main themes throughout the movie. The romantic genre is also reinforced by introducing Sam's (the main character) love interest, the film makers make this very obvious by doing a slow mo close up shot of him when Sam first looks at him.

5. How does the film establish an enigma from the outset?
     The film establishes an enigma by introducing the three main antagonists of the story which would be the main character's new stepmom and her stepsisters. The film makers make sure to portray them in a negative light by showing them doing rude things such as tricking her out of the wedding picture on purpose. This makes the audience wonder what sort of issues they will cause further in the movie and how the main character will escape them.

6. What strategies are used to ensure the film appeals to its target audience?
     Some strategies used are the setting and characters. The film makers make sure to portray the main character as likable and relatable so that the targeted audience (teenagers and young adults) feel like there is a familiarity and comfort within someone else on the film going through realistic problems and situations they might also be exposed to.

7. How has technology been used effectively?
     Technology has been used effectively especially in the establishing shot of the castle in which they use animation to allude to the fairy tale aspect of the story, this as well as different camera angles in order to convey different feelings. They did a high view camera angle in the beginning with both Sam and her father in the foreground to truly make feel like Los Angeles was their Kingdom and they were looking over it. The close up shot of Sam's father letting go of her hand to go help her stepmother also conveyed a negative and helpless emotion because moments after her snow globe shatters which further foreshadows that something horrible will occur. This is supported when they transition to her being alone because her father died.