Progress Report - Trill

Individual Progress

I have been busy with arranging a shot list. The shots list consists of round about 50 shots and  is about 2 minutes long. We have used a variety of different shots like close ups, long shots, medium shots, long shots, over shoulder shots and many more.

WWW- I have succeeded in producing a clear storyboard which worked and is well planned out.

EBI- I had to put it in a table so that it looks more professional.

The Next Step

The next step is to actually film the production with all the characters and in the scene.

Group Progress

As a group we have managed to finish all the pre-production work and finalise our cast and location, our script is complete and the basic storyboards are complete with the shot lists.

WWW- we were able to work cohesively as a group and manage to assimilate our work together and create a good plan.

EBI- Our communication skills need work and we need to show up after school to work together more.

Next step

Our next step is to film our production.

Story board

Shot list

Youngers

Youngers:

The teen drama Youngers has been aired on the E4 channel which is owned by the channel 4 institution. This institution is well known for broadcasting situation comedies and cartoon comedies. For example, Family Guy and The big bang theory. These shows are not owned by the channel 4 the big bang theory is currently owned by and produced by the CBS institution. The family guy series is owned by the Fox Corporation. The series ‘Youngers’ is filmed and produced by the channel 4 company. This teen drama is aired every Wednesday at 6pm. The first episode which is the pilot episode had received 450,000 viewers watching the new series being aired. The series is about two boys from south London who want to make it big. One wants to be a rapper the other a music producer. In the first few scenes we see that there is low key lighting present in the scenes, giving it a mysterious feel to the scenes that are being watched. This is because close up’s of the character is being used we do not see him. The lighting that’s been used is the key light in which lights up the characters face however producing shadows behind him. This makes the character look good looking and beautiful so that it may attract the female audience and real them in. the mother in the scene has been shown to be fully lit when she enters the scene, connoting that she is some sort of powerful person in the scene along with a low angle shot showing that she is god like and is in control.  

The actors that have been featured in the new series are both black characters and boys, these are the main characters in the teen drama. This creates a stereotype as they are both black and from south London. Black males are known to be stereotypically as violent thugs who rap about guns and knives. In this case it’s different as we see that the character raps about him making it in the rapping world, becoming a star. The mother in the scene is portrayed as a dominant character who has power over the two characters. The mother whilst the two boys recording their music and trying to make it, the mother could be the one who may in future try and prevent that. The setting in where the scenes have taken place is in a small compact room in where the two characters are recording and making the magic. The magic being the music they are working on. This could show that since they are recording in a small bedroom they are small time. They are not big, famous or rich; they make do with what they got and stick with it till they make it. Showing that these characters are determined to succeed.

The props that have been used for the main character is a microphone in front of him. We shear and see him singing showing to us that this is his passion he is a good singer. By also seeing that the character has headphones in we can tell that he loves his music and adores and aspires to be a rapper one day. We also see where the other character has a laptop in front of him along with some Dj equipment. This could connote to us that this character is a good computer technician and is also in to his music and producing it. The camera angles that have been used in the two minute sequence at the start were close ups of the characters mouth whilst he was singing. Possibly trying to show that you should listen to his ‘bars’ his lyrics. We also have close up of his face so that we can see who the character is and with the key light being used we get to see him perfectly creating recognition with the audience to character. This would mean that the audience could identify with him. This also repeats with the second character at the computer desk, having the same affect ion the audience. We also have another shot of where the mother comes in the room furious. The shot that has been shot is a low angle medium shot. This connotes to us that even though these two are independent and trying o make it they still are not fully free to do as they wish as they still get told what to do by their mother. This shows that the mother has power over the both of the two characters.

The main audience for the series are teenagers as it is a teen drama. This is because the scenes and problems that occur on the show are based around young people’s lives. This creates a bond between the target audience and the characters in the series as they may face the same problems. This series could potentially influence the audience as they may be in the same situation, the series backing up the dependency theory. It would relief the audience of any fears that they may have in their personal lives making them happier, showing that the audience are relying on the media by viewing TV drama and seeing how other people approach and deal with them. 

The big bang theory:

The big bang theory is an American sitcom. However, it is shown on E4 which is known for its comedy series, one of which is the big bang theory. There are 4 character in the start of the scene in which is introduced by a pan shot of the characters playing on their laptops. From this we can connote that these people may be good friends as they are collaborating which each other socialising. We see that in the episode that the setting is set in a small apartment in which two of them live in. the setting shows to us that these characters are geeks and intellectual people. However, not in any way rich in any form apart from knowledge.

We then see that the characters have been introduced all at once, with the pan shot. This gives the audience a chance to see who may be involved in the episode. The lighting in the scene we see that the whole room and the characters have all been lit up. There are no shadows or dark patches anywhere. We also see that he characters all have some stuff in common which is the game they are playing. The audience that has been attracted is an audience that seek laughter as this is a sitcom. We can tell this from the type of narrative in the scene and the sound in which is non-diegetic which is the laughter from the ‘audience’.

2 Broke girls:

2 broke girls is an American sitcom which produced by the CBS institution. In which specialises in producing sitcoms as they associate in loads of sitcoms. The opening scene in the pilot episode has started of with a medium shot of two characters. One in which is a chef the other a waitress. However, it’s mainly focused on the waitress, so then we automatically known as the audience that she is the main character. The lighting used in this scene is very high key lighting as we see the waitresses face clearly so that we can see her properly. The setting in which is in a cafe/restaurant. This is where the character works. The audience then automatically knows that her wages may not be big and that this is where the sitcom gets its name from.

The camera angles or cinematography that’s been used are a variety of shots for example. Medium shots, long shots and a close up. This shows to us that since it’s the first episode the director wanted us to identify with the scenery and get used to the scene in where most of the episodes take place.

The phone shop:

The phone shop is a series of funny comedy episodes in which is yet another sitcom. The two characters have been shown first which automatically shows the audience that these two are the main characters in the series. The two characters are two males one in which is white the other in which is black. The characters themselves speak in an urban way in which is not expected to them. However they are acting as if they are younger as it is their role.

The setting in which this scene has been set in is a café in which they are having their conversation in. the lighting in the scene is high key lighting where the audience can see what exactly is going on where they are and who is around them. They director has also used the 180 degree rule in the scene. The costumes that have been used for the characters are they’ve been dressed up with formal clothing. The shirt, tie, trousers and blazer. This would potentially attract a wide audience but mostly by the younger generation as the language used would be understood by them mostly, this would be teenagers. 

Feedback

WWW: fluent, original ideas, especially for question the first two questions.

EBI: Timing needs to improve. Q4 in particular is very limited.

LR: rewrite Q3/Q4 with more detail.

Learner response:

Q3:

During the short film sequence we hear that there is eerie music being played in which is non-diegetic sound. the eerie scary music being played suits the setting in the scene also the lighting in which is low key lighting, this is parallel sound. we also hear bells at the start, the audience would automatically think of a holy place like a church. this could foreshadow that there may be death taking place in the near future, this sound would be diegetic even though it is off screen. We then see that since scary music is being played whilst there are shots of the protagonist on the floor, it would make the audience automatically believe that this is the villain in the narrative. However, as soon as the second character appears in the scene the music changes and becomes more dramatical. This connotes to us as the audience that we were wrong and that there is someone else in which is possibly worse. We could also foreshadow that something bad will happen in which has something to do with this second character. When we see the two characters in the opening scene opposite each other. We hear that the main protagonist that's on the floor sighs, huffs and puffs. this could connote to us that this man is tired and maybe knows his time could potentially be up, meaning he dies tonight. after the other character shoots the character on the floor we hear a creaking noise, then it stops. this could have shown that the man who had been shot was in pain and now no longer is. the noise of the creaking could also empathise how isolated the setting was since it was so silent you could hear every single little thing in the setting, for example the boats creaking.

Q4:

At the start of the opening scene we see that the camera movement is slow, after that we see a man on the floor the protagonist. This creates an affect for the audience as it makes them think that this man is slowly dying, form him not moving much and sweating. We also see the camera movement being slow whilst there is a tracking shot of the other character walking down the stars. This makes the audience possibly fear the mystery character as we see his movements slowly and carefully. Showing to us that we may need to keep a close eye on the character. the 180 degree rule has been used in the opening scene between the two characters. However, we do not see the mystery man's face, producing an enigma code as we do not what he looks like. After the character shoots his gun, we see that we have moved away from the scene to other places of the setting in where.

The Bag - Evaluation.

The Bag - Evaluation

Class Evaluation

WWW- Used the rules well for example Shot/Reverse/Shot of Armond, and Kyle staring at each other. It was suspenseful. The music worked really well, as it was parallel. The narrative was good. The 180˚ rule wasn't broken. The song used was fit for purpose, and attention to detail was on point. Kyle's walk was more natural. It was very original and well planned, the editing program was used to the best ability, well planned, and a variety of shots was used. The editing of the bag was good. The production creates enigma codes.

EBI- The camera was shaky and a few shots blurred. The camera work needs improvement. There was some background noise, and items in the shot did not match the narrative. 

Teacher Evaluation:

WWW:
Sound and music were effective, especially with the sound of the clock in sync with the clock in the scene. This made the clock sound originally seem diegetic and in the scene however when the music progressed we realised it was non diegetic. It was also parallel and complimented the scene well.

An enigma code was effectively created as the identities of the characters were unknown. A clear enigma code was also created by the mysterious bag as the audience wonders what's inside.

The low angle shot of Armond in the close up of his face was effective as it made him seem more menacing and mean.

The dialogue and scripting was good as speech was clear and easy to understand.

The repeated shot of the close up on Armond's fingers was effective as it built tension and suspense.

Match on Action was also performed effectively in the scene of the door being opened and then shot from the other side showing the other character entering the door.

Editing was also effective as the fade out of music helped the scenes flow.

EBI:

There was some unintentional camera wobble and blur in scenes which made them less realistic and appealing to the audience.

The location of the scene could also have been better as the mise en scene did not suit the contents of the scene as books and posters were clearly scene, whereas a dealing between two mysterious characters would have suited a more isolated, mysterious location.

There was also some unintentional diegetic sound in the background of the scenes. This took some emphasis away from the music and speech between the characters as background noises distracted the audience.

Preliminary Results:

Creativity - 4/5
Use of technology - 4/5
Production process - 4/5
Codes and conventions - 4/5
Fit for purpose - 4/5
Attention to detail - 4/5

24/30 - level 4.

Self-evaluation:

WWW:

 What went well during making the preliminary exercise was that we planned out what we were going to do and where we were going to do it. We decided on the setting and the characters that will take part. This made us very well organised allowing us after shooting the video footage to have a handful of time to do the editing without rushing. In the video sequence we had produced we had some very creative shots. During the first scenes we had a few close up shots of the actor Kyle walking up stairs and, however we have not revealed his identity purposely as this would create an enigma for the audience leaving them curious to find out who the mystery protagonist is. We also had a pan shot of the bag following the direction of the bag. The audience from this would automatically know that this is what it’s all about a bag in which acts as the maguffin in the narrative. We had a low angle shot of Armand’s face as he was staring into the camera. This could potentially give the audience a feeling of this person is a dominant scary character. We also had a long shot of the two characters showing some kind of binary opposition between them. However, at this moment in time we do not know who the good guy or bad guy is, which leaves the audience yet confused and engaged in the sequence, with them desperately wanting to find out. The sound also was parallel to the scenes as they suited the scenes shot in the video. We used non-diegetic sound. However during the fit few scenes we saw a clock so the audience could be tricked into thinking that it is diegetic as there is a clock in the room. We also used a sound bridge as we had a scene of a close up of Armond’s face, whilst this was being shown we has the clock ticking then we’ have a scene of the clock. The lyrics to the music we had sued also suited what Kyle was doing which was going somewhere. The lyrics were ‘I’m coming’. Every time a scene popped up with Kyle walking we’d hear ‘I’m coming being said’.

EBI:

 What we could have done better in the video we had produced is that we realised that there were a few things we could have done better. For example the camera mans were a bit shaky. So next time we would have to get a camera man in which has steady hands, or we could use the tripod. We also had a few scenes in which were a bit out of focus. This would make the video footage look unprofessional and amateurish. This would need to be remembered for the next time we shoot videos so that we get all the scenes in focus. We also made a mistake where one of the camera men could is seen in the glass door filming the scene. This is important as it would not come out as a professionally made video in the end, the audience would notice. However, no one noticed during the video being played to the audience. We would also have to think about the setting as well as in the scenes we could see boxes and rubbish around which did not suit or fit the narrative. This would have created a distraction for the audience and would make them not focus on the protagonists and what’s going on in the video.  

The Bag