Individual Contribution to Avoiding Problems

The 5 things i can do to make sure shooting runs smoothly are...

1. Encourage people to speak their mind--> If no one says what they think then no one else will know there's something wrong and resentment will build up resulting in pointless arguments.
2. Keep the group focused --> Stop time-wasting as much as possible and make sure everyone in the group knows we're on a tight schedule.
3. Assigning Jobs --> Make sure 'fun' and 'boring' jobs get shared out equally between group members so everything is fair.
4. If I'm supposed to bring anything on shoot weekends, I must make sure I check I have everything I need before I leave.
5. Losing my patience --> When things don't go my way I must learn to compromise and understand that everyones ideas are equal and therefore deserve to be heard.
   

Opening sequence of "Pi"

A film made by Darren Aronofsky, the director of "Requiem for a Dream".
'A paranoid mathematician searches for a key number that will unlock the universal patterns found in nature' -IMDB
I am desperate to see this thriller movie! I thought the opening sequence was really interesting; really unconventional in some ways but really sticking the rules in others. The whole effect of the opening sequence with the music and the images is really freaky and trippy and looks a bit like a computer game. This sequence is similar in ways to ones I've posted before in the way that there are lots of different images flitting on and off screen in a very short space of time. Very inspirational for my own thriller sequence.

The Departed (incomplete)

First 10 minutes


One of Martin Scorsese's earlier films. In "The Departed", we see the typical Cop vs. Gangster relationship but with a twist; the race to uncover the moles who have infiltrated the Police force and the mob. This makes sure the audience aren't too unnerved, but adds excitement to what would be a very conventional film. It's also such a simple idea that I'm surprised other writers haven't focused their films on this sort of plot. I find it interesting how i was inclined to take the side of the gangsters over the cops and the overall message of the film to me is summed up in this quote "When I was growing up, they would say you could become cops or criminals. But what I'm saying is this. When you're facing a loaded gun, what's the difference?" which sets the tone for the rest of the movie. Throughout the film, it becomes difficult for the audience to distinguish between the 'bad' and the 'good.' Scorsese seems to sit on the fence and does not seem to persuade you who is right or who is wrong and is basically saying at the end of the day, what difference is it going to make?

The movie opens showing the racial unrest and protests of 1960s Boston, suggesting a political metaphor which in fact is not followed throughout the rest of the film. You could say what's happening in the opening sequence has nothing to do with the plot of the film. However, it sets the time and the city in which the film will be situated in therefore giving the audience the background of the film.

"The Departed" is a remake of the Hong Kong blockbuster "Infernal Affairs" and i feel Scorsese had done an excellent job of modernising the story and tweaking it so the audience can relate to it more. However, many people find the psychological tension to be much higher in the original.

"Forget the film, watch the Titles"

While researching opening sequences i came across the following video which I can't seem to paste into the blog so I'll just put down the URL

http://www.submarinechannel.com/titlesequences/video.jsp?video=27967

I recommend everyone have look at it as it was made with a small budget using close ups to make ordinary, everyday objects seem strange. I have read the information down the side of the page about Danny Yout and apparently this title sequence links to Se7ens title sequence.
If you press back you can see the rest of the films which are also very good e.g. El Bufalo de la Noche, Allerzielen. Defiantly worth looking at it, and very influential for budget producers [like ourselves].

(I've realised I really REALLY like the use of image close ups and want to use them in my thriller film)

From Top left: Reservoir Dogs, Scream, Hide and Seek, 12 Angry Men, Memento, L.A. Confidential, Scarface, Psycho, Flightplan

Rope (1948)-Another Hitchcock Film

While researching Scorsese's long take from Goodfellas, I found information about the film 'Rope'. The whole film was made up of a series of 8-10 minute shots all seamlessly cut together to make it seem like the same shot. According to IMDB, 'there are only 2 intentionally visible cuts during the main body of the film' This was the first notable film to use long unedited takes to tell a story and has inspired many directors e.g. Scorsese, to use this technique.

Hitchcock, on the other extreme, also made the film 'The Birds' which has 1,360 edits.

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Kill Bill
-Another great example of a long take. This one isn't quite as well known or quite as long as the other but I really do think it's an amazing technique. The way the directors make it seem so easy when in fact, it would be extremely difficult to do. It makes the audience feel like they're really there, inside the film and part of the action, instead of making the audience feel like an outsider.

• Long takes can be used to create the effect of claustrophobia on the audience and negatively can cause the audience to wait for the actor to make a mistake rather than paying attention to the plot. It can also bore the audience so they loose intrest in the film.

Director Research: Martin Scorsese

Other Films: Mean Steets, Taxi Driver, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Raging Bull

After finally watching Goodfellas (thanks to Michael) and thoroughly enjoying it, I was compelled to do some research into the Director, Scoresese's, work and the techniques he uses...

Many see 'Goodfellas' to be the high point in Scorsese's career and shows a fantastic display of the director's cinematic technique. Scorsese usually begins his films with segments of the film taken from the middle/the end of the story plot. I think this is particularly influential for me and my thriller as it is very enigmatic and makes the audience want to keep watching the film. Scorsese is a huge fan of long, tracking takes and uses them in many of his films. Below is the legendary clip taken from 'Goodfellas' showing the long tracking shot of Henry and Karen walking into a restaurant. This clip puts the audience in the point of view of Karen who Henry is about to sweep off her feet. I find the maneuvering of the camera through the tight hallways while maintaining dialogue and a high level of acting very impressive.

Goodfellas Opening Sequence-
The Opening sequence of 'Goodfellas' raises a number of questions in the audiences minds the main one of which is; what is Scorsese trying to tell us? The first thing we see is 3 men in a car driving into the woods and we hear a banging coming from inside the boot. The car stops, the men get out of the car and the camera zooms in on the boot. Next, the boot opens and there is a reverse shot back on the men as if something is staring at them. We then see the boot open and see a man covered in blood pleading for his life. Two of the men seem to sympathise with the man but the third shoots him a number of times. The camera then zooms in on the main character and 'antihero' of the film whose voice over says "As far back as I can remember, i always wanted to be a gangster" which is a strange thing to say in those circumstances. The scene is very enigmatic and the audience don't know why any of the things happening in the scene are happening. The only way to answer their questions will be to watch the film.


Binary Opposites in the film
e.g. Law vs. Criminal
Family Greatness vs. Underworld
Glamour vs. Despair

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I've decided I want to base my thriller sequence around gangsters, crime and vigilantes.

Loactions

I decided to do some research into the filming locations used in some of Mr Quentin Tarantino's movies...


Pulp Fiction
The film starts and ends in the above diner. i think it's an interesting place to set a thriller/ black comedy hybrid as it seems to be a quite a normal place. There is nothing dark or mysterious about it e.g. the house used in 'Psycho.' This is clever as it means that perhaps the audience can relate to what's happening more easily.


Reservoir Dogs
The majority of this film is set in an old deserted warehouse which I've done some research into and found out the warehouse was once a mortuary. This follows the typical conventions of the thiller genre e.g. isolation. The interior of the warehouse is quite dank, seems unused and decor gives the auedience the idea of a prison or of criminal activity.



Jackie Brown
A lot of the 'exciting activity' or whatever you'd like to call it takes place in a shopping centre. We see the same time period a number of times (i think 3 but don't hold me to that) from diferent characters in the story points of view in order to understand why things happen e.g. why Jackie leaves the money in the changing room. The first time you see it is very confusing but as it is replayed again and again from different points of view, the audience understand. I think it is an interesting place to shoot a film as it is a very normal place, full of people making the stealing of the money more interesting.

Opening Sequence: Se7en

An extremely clever set of opening credits which, in many ways shares techniques shown in my earlier clip taken from 'Requiem for a Dream.' I haven't yet seen the film and Se7ens opening credits are highly effective in sparking curiosity in the audience and creating enigma. The credits are classic yet at the same time do not conform to the 'rules'; they are black and white but move around and switch colour places regularly. My earlier clip and this one are similar in the way that they show lots of close up images that the audience don't understand and will only find out how they are relevant by watching the film. The music used is modern and the flickering on screen disorientates the audience.
A highly effective opening sequence...

Opening Credits

What's in them?

• Company name e.g. Dreamworks, Motion Pictures
• Main Characters
• Director e.g. A Tarantino Production, A Steven Spielberg Film
• The Title
  

Are Opening credits neccessary?

I think the opening credits of a film are useful as they are the first thing the audience see and if used effectively can set the mood/tone for the film prefectly e.g. the opening credits in 'Psycho' -simple yet hypnotic.

Opening credits can be used to outline the directors intensions and set up expectations of those watching the film. However, I have researched openind credits a bit and I have found out that many films don't have opening credits and some dont even mention the name of the film.

Vanilla Sky, Apocolypse Now, The Ring, The Bourne Identity, and The Mummy Returns are all examples of this.

These are all highly successful films which could be seen as evidence that Opening Credits are unnecessary. However in my thriller I still plan to use opening credits as i think it's a helpful form of introduction for the audience.