Homework

                                                       25 word pitch for a horror movie:
A summer surrounded by girls but the only one he wants is dead. Patch is sure that he  knows who the murderer may be and is determined to find the evidence against them. Will he allow Nora, the girl of his dreams death remain a mystery or will he continue to search for the evidence fully aware that his life is at risk?
(i know this is way over 25 words but its difficult okay. 25 words is just too little sir. sorry)

                                                               250 word synopsis:
Four friends (Patch, Nora, Scott and Vee) decide to travel around Madagascar during the summer holidays. Three weeks into their holiday they discover a long lost island (but they don't know this yet). They decide to go to the island and meet all the beautiful people there. The people they meet aren't the average people they see daily. They're all very pale, have unusual eye colours, are always indoor and try to avoid sunlight. (They're really vampires living on an old island). One of the girls in the group (Vee) soon discover that they're really vampires. When she attempts to tell the rest of her friends she killed by one of the vampires. The vampires then torture the three friends daily by sucking their blood, making their death slow and painful but then the group of friends find a way to escape the island; only one of them escapes (Scott) however the other two get caught. The vampires decide to give the two remaining friends a choice; They either become vampires and kill the next souls to encounter the island or to be killed. They decide to become vampires but good ones. They stay low for a couple of months, follow all the vampire rules and regulations. When they're friend Vee comes back to rescue them, she is caught and is just about to be murdered when Nora and Patch save her. They kill the whole vampire gang with the help of Vee and demolish the island.

(EXACTLY 247!!! it's a rubbish synopsis anyways; sorry that i'm not creative)

Director Research

James Cameron was born on August 16, 1954 in Ontario, Canada. He landed his first professional film job as art director on Roger Norman's film "Battle Beyond the Stars" (1980). In 1984, he wrote and directed "The Terminator" (1984), a futuristic action-thriller. I t was a huge success. After this came a string of successful science-fiction action films such as "Aliens" (1986), "The Abyss" (1989) and "Terminator 2 "Judgement Day" (1991). In 1990, James formed his own production company Lightstorm Entertainment. In 1997, he wrote and directed "Titanic" (1997) which is a romance epic about two young lovers from social classes who meet on board the famous ship. The movie went on to break all box office records and earned eleven Academy Awards. It became the highest grossing movie of all time. James Cameron is now one of the most sought-after directors in Hollywood. The two common genres James Cameron uses are Sci-Fi and thriller. His films frequently feature scenes filmed in deep blues, plots or events involving nuclear explosions or wars; he likes to make nice and effective cuts as well as showing close-up shots of feet or wheels which are often trampling things. He likes using the tight close-up tracking shots on vehicles, especially during chase scenes and often brings camera in close during fight scenes, achieving a claustrophobic effect. In total, James Cameron has won 23 awards in his life. 

For more information: http://uk.imdb.com/name/nm0000116/bio

Frank Darabont was born in a refugee camp in 1959 in Montbeliard, France. His first job in movies was as a production assistant on the 1981 low-budget film "Hell Night" (1981). Darabont is one of only six filmmakers in history with the unique distinction of having his first two feature films receive nominations for the Best Picture Academy Award. Frank frequently makes adaptations of stories or novels by Stephen King. The common genres Frank Darabont uses are Sci-Fi, Romance, Horror and Drama. In total, Mr Darabont has won 13 awards in his life. 

For more information: http://uk.imdb.com/name/nm0001104/bio

Peter Jackson was born as an only child in a small coast-side town in New Zealand in 1961. When Jackson was 22, he embarked on a movie making-adventure that would change his life. This film “Bad Taste” (1987) was begun as any other Jackson film, in an amateur style at a low budget and using friends and local people to star in his film. He gave up his job at a local photographer's shop and became a well-known director of horror-movies, after the success of his first professionally made movie "Braindead" (1992). The genre Jackson uses is Horror. His movies frequently conclude with a bloodbath and he often shoots his movies in Wellington, New Zealand. In total, Mr Jackson has won 7 awards.

For more information: http://uk.imdb.com/name/nm0001392/bio 

How are Women represented in horror movies?

Typically, women are portrayed as weak characters and are always in need of male protection. They are represented in a stereotypical way which is often as vulnerable victims that are so helpless. They are seen either screaming or doing unrealistic such as running the wrong way while of course, the male characters hold it together. The women either end up outsmarting the villain or survive by luck.

In some movies women aren't always represented as helpless, destined to fail in tragic. In Friday the 13th, there is a young woman who must put all the pieces of the mystery together and save her friends in order to survive the night. Surprisingly she survives the night and not a single male does in the course of the film. At one point in Friday the 13th, the women are represented in a negative way. There are several scenes where the women are naked; these type of scenes makes some viewers not feel so sympathetic towards them as they are portrayed as sex symbols. However in the end the girl is seen in a positive light as she survives which shows that she is a powerful and bold protagonist.






In Hostel Part II, women are represented as insignificant, needy, weak characters (the stereotypical representation of women in horror movies). Throughout the course of the film, the female protagonist is constantly in need of being saved. All the women in Hostel are portrayed as paranoid and disorientated.  Just by watching the trailer of this horror movie, it is established very quickly that ultimately, the female is going to be the victim.

All in all, I believe that women are used for plots and atmosphere in horror movies. I think they are mostly represented as helpless and defenceless symbols to put it simply. I believe that here are very few horror movies where the women are able to stand on their own two feet.

Rough Cut

Evaluation:
In this lesson we were told to edit our rough cut from our preliminary exercise. So far, its going really well. We've made some progress on the editing and cutting. However it's still incomplete and needs some more editing on. We also need to do a few more shots again and try shooting some in different angles.

We have nearly completed our preliminary exercise. We've used as many shots as possible such as the 180 degree rule, extreme close-ups, panning, point of view shot and etc. Unfortunately we didn't have the chance to re-shoot or try some of our shots in different angles. We've made our whole clip run smoothly. We detached our sounds to make it continuous. Our lighting is perfect for the scene. We've made some clip adjustments such as slow down the speed of some of our shots. We crossed the 180 degree rule although it worked.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/EyigGqsNVBs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Preliminary Exercise

(A girl walks down a corridor and comes to a door; establishing shot. She opens the door and walks inside. She has pieces of paper in her hand; extreme close up. She closes the door behind her and walks over to a desk. Teacher is sat on chair asleep on a desk; medium shot. The student taps the desk; he wakes up abruptly).

Teacher: I’m not an alcoholic! (He shouts and stands up)   
(Extreme close-up of teacher)  (180 degree rule; right side of the teacher)
Girl: I’ve got the essay you wanted me to hand in. I told you I did it.
(She hands him the pieces of paper, happy with herself).
Teacher: Is that it? Jesus Christ!! (Camera flips to the girls left shoulder) 
(She puts the paper on the desk)
Girl: So, how did I do sir? 
Teacher: Wonderful. (Sarcastically)
Girl: Alright then, bye sir! (She walks out the room).
(Teacher picks up the paper, scrunches it up and throws it in the bin; close up of the bin)
Teacher: Stupid girl. Why am I teacher again?

Media Workshops

Session 1: Personally, I thought that the first media workshop was the best. I really enjoyed exploring representations of teens and creating a DVD cover. The lesson was really fun and fascinating. I learnt how to use photoshop and the green screen. I also learnt some new dvd conventions from the hand-outs they gave us (institutional logos, rating, special features, technical specifications and etc).Overall, it was fantastic and I'd love to do it again.

Session 2: The second media work shop was more complex. It was interesting. I learnt some new shots like the establishing shot; often used to give the audience an overview of the setting and the 30 degree rule which is used with the purpose of creating continuity between different shots within a larger sequence of shots. My understanding on editing for continuity, the 30% and 180% rules and the importance of action cuts has enhaced.I also learnt how to edit a video in a small amount of time without any impressive editing. All in all, it was satisfactory.

How is the chicken used as a metaphor in the opening sequence of City of God?

In the opening sequence of City Of God, the genre is established very quickly as the audience can clearly see that the film is an action movie. The opening sequence starts off with an extreme close up of a blade being sharpened on a rock which signifies danger; whilst this is happening the camera cuts to the knife being sharpened then back to a blank screen continuously. The audience hardly see the blade being sharpened but they hear the sound of the blade being sharpened which is a diegetic sound and that gives the audience suspense and makes them puzzled as they don’t know what the blade is being sharpened for.

Everything in the opening is very quick paced. The editing is very quick and flashy which makes viewers confused. After the blade sharpening, viewers hear a diegetic sound of people drumming however it’s not on the screen. The drumming is in a brazilian style which makes viewers think that the film is set in Brazil. The audience then see an extreme close-up of carrots being pealed and several close-ups of chickens feathers being plucked and being slaughtered. At this point of the opening sequence, the audience discover that the blade was being sharpened to slaughter chickens. In one of the shots of the chicken, it displays how the chicken is truly feeling. The chicken looks very panicky and tense as it can see its fellow chickens being slaughtered. A close up of a chicken escaping into an alleyway is then revealed. The chicken chase can be seen as a metaphor signifying how hard life in the brazilian slums can be. As the chicken is escaping, a close of a black man is presented. The man says speaking in Portuguese “f*** the chicken got away, get it!”.

Then there is a long shot of a gang shown with guns; this perhaps shows that the man is a group leader of a gang who is armed. As the chicken is still escaping, numerous of extreme close ups of the man laughing is shown; he's potrayed as crazy in these shots. Then a crosscutting shot appears of a young boy who talks about wanting to be photographer to his friend and how risky the shot he has to take to become a photographer is. He then comes across the man and his gang chasing the chicken eventually to the middle of the road. As the man and his gang is chasing the chicken, a person comes in his way and he pushes the person down, pulls out his gun and threatens to kill them. This shows the audience how dominant the man.

The man tells the photographer to grab the chicken who is in the middle of the road. As photographer is trying to get the chicken police pull up behind him. One of the gang members say “oh s*** the police”. A long shot of people running is shown. The man orders his gang to not run off and they all point their guns out, ready to use at the police officers who is behind the photographer. There are several close-ups of the gang members and the photographer and a panning shot giving viewers an overview of the setting.  The young photographer is in the middle of all this and doesn’t know what to do; he says “if I run I die and if I stay I die. At that point, the audience know that this young boy is the protagonist.

My Target

My Target for the term:

This term, I shall be focusing on using media terminology, specific shots and mise en scene as they would help enhance the overall effects of my analysis's. I should also avoid talking in terms of zooms as they aren't used in cinema very often. 
I think that I'm currently at a grade C.  Overall, I am aiming to get an A in media AS but thats highly unlikely. 

Opening Sequence: Seven

In the opening sequence of seven, the genre is established very quickly as viewers can already clearly see that the film is a thriller. Everything in the opening is very quick paced which gives the film a creepy, eerie feel to it. The text blends with the background and also fits with the music as the font is shown as the typical thriller genre. What is happening within the movie is sort of clear as the sequence integrates what is happening in the film.

The sequence doesn’t give a great amount of focus on the narrative; the editing is very quick and flashy which makes viewers confused and disorientated. The cuts change very fast so the audience has to watch carefully to see all the detailed information being presented. All of the quick flashes imitate death almost like life flashing before a person’s eye. There are extreme close ups from an unclear view; this portrays that viewers are seeing the shots taken from the villains point of view as well as it giving the viewers a very detailed look at the things. The use of camera in the opening sequence is very interesting as it just focuses on the detailed information (the hand, fingers, fingertips etc.).

The shots from above seem to show some sort of control. There are no long shots to give us an overview of the setting. Everything in the opening seems old fashioned, for instants the books, photographs and the locations looks like a place someone would study; a laboratory or library or perhaps a basement. The non-digestic music seems very scratchy and has the occasional cringe worthy chalkboard effect. In the opening sequence the digestic music mood gives viewers a very uncomfortable feeling; the music playing is very electronic, dark and disturbing. Towards the end of the song viewers here the words "You got me closer to God."