Welcome!

Welcome to my A Level Media Blog. My name is Joshua Brooks [0110] and for this project I am working in Group 5 with Vivian Oparah [0621], Sebastian Hodge [0330] and Louis Caldwell [0131]. Under the heading 'Labels' of the left hand side of the page, you are able to filter post from the project's various stages of production. At the bottom of the page is a link to older posts also. Click the link listed below for Group 5's Facebook page, which contains evidence of production work from throughout the project. Thanks for taking the time to read this and I hope you enjoy the rest of my blog!

NTLS Final Music Video


NTLS Final Music Video

NTLS Final Digipak

NTLS Final Digipak
NTLS Final Digipak [Right click to open larger image in new window]

NTLS Final Website

NTLS Final Website
NTLS Final Website [Right click on the image to open the website in a new window]

Twitter

View our Group Twitter page here:

https://twitter.com/NTLSmusic

Facebook

View our Group Facebook group, which we used to administrate the project, here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1538872199681204/?fref=ts

26 Sept 2013

Art of the title acticity - The list



For this class activity, our group were asked to plan and create a 9 grid filled with snapshots of a fictional movie's title sequence. We decided that our film, "The List", was going to be of the horror genre and would be the story of a psychotic murder who has the names of his victims on a list, and after he kills them, crosses their name off of this list. The opening sequence for 'The List' is of a body being dragged into the unknown killer's operating room, where he proceeds to change into more practical clothing, and dismember the victim before crossing their name of of his list.

I think that the shots all work well together to build narrative flow, however some shots are more important to the in the construction of the opening sequence than others. For instance i believe that the third shot is the most successful in explaining to the viewer just what is going on, as they see a more distinctive part of the victim's body, compared to the previous two which show vague shapes. The 7th shot in the sequence is also a very significant shot, as it answers the audience's questions as to what genre the film is and also ties up what exactly is going on in the sequence nicely. The last shot however, is the most important, for me, as it unifies the shot and the title, and together with the last eight shots builds the foundations of the viewers expectations for the rest of the film.

With all the shots together, i think that this opening has a strong significance to the rest of the film, as not only does it give the viewer a sense of genre but shows them who the killer is and also what the rest of the film is going to be like story wise. Shots like the 4th and 5th connote the horror genre when shown after shots 1, 2 and 3, and the audience start to imagine what is going on and worry, and it is not until the 6th and 7th shots that we actually get an idea that the man with the mask is using the saw on the body. For this reason though, i think that the opening for 'The List' is quite clear in stating its genre but also has a sense of mystery and surprise linked with it.

Overall, this film opening is effective, as it manages to give the viewer enough information and narrative to stay interested but at the same time doesn't give too much away.


Use of continuity techniques - Batman Begins


I thought the opening scene for batman begins used a number of different continuity techniques. Firstly a close up shot was used right at the beginning when Bruce falls down the well in his garden as he hiding from Rachel, and is used to show the emotion of Bruce's face and to shock the viewer. Then when Bruce has fallen down the well, the camera slowly zooms onto the hole on the wall at the bottom of the well, forcing the viewer to concentrate on it, and creating suspense with the speed at which the camera is moving. At the 1:36 mark, the master shot of the prison helps to give the viewer a sense of awareness and so when the following mid shots of the guards and other inmates are shown, the viewer is not confused as to where the characters are in relation to their surroundings. The next few shots are of the dialogue between Bruce and another inmate. These shots are over the shoulder shots, which are used to allow the viewer to see something from the character's perspective and empathise with them. Also during these shots, the match on action has made the movements of the characters flow smoothly from one shot to the next, and the use of the 180° rule in the shot-reverse-shot when filming the character's dialogue means that the narrative flow is also smooth. Next is the fight scene, which also features matchi on action in order to make the narrative flow smooth. The movement of the shots always follow Bruce's movements as well, which really involves the viewer in the action, and the fast paced montage style editing makes the scene more dramatic.  

24 Sept 2013

Analysing accident sequence


What techniques did you specifically use to create continuity in your accident sequence?
When filming this sequence, our group thought a lot about continuity. For instance with the first and second shot, we made sure that the subject did not step up to the ball twice and that she was standing next to the ball when we filmed the master shot, rather than further back. Again we made sure in shot five that they stepped back from the ball before running up to kick it to avoid the illusion of jumping from one place in the first shot to another in the next. Also our group tried to make the positioning of the characters continuous throughout the sequence, like the second and last shots for example, where the penalty taker is stood the same distance from the goal in both shots. After we had filmed the sequence and watched it in class however, we found that we had inadvertently used the 180° rule when filming the extreme close ups of the characters, which is another technique used to create continuity.

In hindsight, what could you do to improve the continuity of the sequence?
Issues such as the acting don't really improve the continuity of the sequence. I think that our group did a good job in creating a continuous narrative though, however the timing of the ball hitting the goalkeeper's head could have been a bit smoother. Other than that it was pretty good for a class exercise.

20 Sept 2013

Analysing film stills



1. Describe your shot and identify in what way it could be described as representing your genre
The Mid-shot above represents my chosen genre, horror, in a number of ways. Firstly the low key lighting casts atmospheric shadows which help to make the shot more scary. Secondly the red light with which the shot is lit connotes the horror genre, as things such as blood are associated with the colour red. Lastly the fact that the figure is blurred suggests movement within the shot, and their threatening stance, facing toward the camera implies direct threat to the viewer, again making the shot more scary. Most obviously however, the figure is dressed all black and is wearing a mask so we are unable to see  their face or any features that tell us they are human, which creates a fear of the unknown for the viewer. 

2.  What did you actually do to achieve this effect?
For this shot, our group decided to shoot in the darkroom, hence the red light. We then decided it would be a good idea for the model to move and threaten the camera to create the effect of directly threatening the viewer. The movement would blur the bat creating a still shot that imitated movement, at the same time as scaring the viewer, sticking with the horror/thriller genre we had in mind. The picture was taken from eye level, as we believed this would allow the viewer to relate to the shot a lot more, as if they were experiencing it. 

3. Identify what is successful about your shot
I think the way we managed to blur the figure in such a way that the viewer is still able to make out the shape of the figure, and also that the figure is moving fast towards the camera was quite successful. Otherwise the shot would look too static and would not have the desired effect. I also believe that the lighting we managed to get hold was impressive, as i tied in nicely with the horror genre we were trying to recreate.

4. What would you do differently in hindsight?
In hindsight, i think that maybe clearing out the background of the shot of its clutter and replacing it with items that were more relevant to the shot would have been better. I also think that using a more padded jumper/jacket on the figure or even a more stocky model would create a more intimidating feel, because at the moment the figure looks a bit small in comparison to his surroundings. Either this or placing the shot at a slightly lower angle to create the same effect.

Introduction to narrative theory - Up

  • Up is an animation, and is a mix between the comedy and adventure genres.
  • The story takes place in present time over the period of a few weeks, and is of a old man, Carl, who ties thousands of balloons to his house in order to fulfil his lifelong ambition to travel to South America. He manages to take with him the 8 year old scout explorer Russell by accident.
  • During the opening sequence of this film, we meet the two characters, Ellie and Carl. There is no dialogue, only music, and so the character's stories are shown in a series of short clips. Firstly we're shown their wedding, where the two character's personalities are seen to be quite different, Ellie being upbeat and confident and Carl being shy and traditional. We then see Carl carrying Ellie into the house in which they met when they were younger, and the next shot is of them refurbishing that same house, making it look that same as the one they dreamt of as children. The following shots consist of a time lapse of their day-to-day lives, showing the audience how strong their relationship is. Unfortunately however, we're shown a sequence of Ellie and Carl preparing a room preparing for a baby and then Ellie crying in the Hospital, suggesting to the audience that she cannot have children. At this point the music slows down and we're shown Carl comforting Ellie by reminding her of her ambition to travel to South America, and the couple then set about collecting money in a glass jar labelled 'Paradise falls'. Another time lapse of their every day lives is shown, and various accidents happen which mean they have to break into their savings for Paradise falls. Coming towards the end of the opening sequence, Carl finds an old picture of young adventurer Ellie and decides to buy tickets to paradise falls to fulfil their life-long dream, but as they are walking up the hill towards the picnic, Ellie falls over. The music slows down again and Ellie is in hospital where Carl has come to visit her, and he hands her the 'My adventure' book. The shot cuts from here to a shot of Carl alone at Ellie's funeral, which fades into a shot of Carl walking up to his house alone.
  • This Opening sequence is extremely important to the rest of the story as it explains why Carl is on the adventure in the first place. It also explains why his character is so gloomy and unsociable. The order of events in the opening sequence is also important as it tells the story of Carl leading up present time, where the film is set.
  • At the start of my film, I believe what the audience needs to know depends on the chosen genre of my film and also the order of events within the film. For example, in Inception, you're pretty much thrown into the deep end where the backstory of characters is concerned, compared to Up where the back story of the main character is essential to explaining the rest of the story.