I have made a list of key attributes for my trailer; I will continually refer to the list to ensure I have considered each point along the production stage.
-Genre
-Narrative
-Voiceover
-Unique selling point(s)
-Pace of shots/music
-Credits, titles and text
-Dialogue
-Target audience
-Soundtrack/music
-Shot types/camera techniques
-Special effects
-Editing techniques
-Actors present
Thursday, 4 October 2012
Voiceover Analysis Continued
Here are some points about how film trailers that do not feature voiceovers convey information:
-Text & titles for producer names, release dates, etc.
-Always at end, largbe 'block' of centered, symmetrical text displayed showcasing important production team, cast, etc. Tends to only be present in adult-aimed films as it bares connotations of professionalism and perfection
-Narrative conveyed through imagery; clips cleverly and often non-chronologically presented to help build narrative in a clear way or to build suspense, often with a sense of enigma
-Music: Popular music may appeal to particular audiences, certain music has different effects, e.g. instruments used, their connotations, the tempo of the music, its pitch, may even be contrapuntal (such as Batman: The Dark Night Rises trailers)
-Signifiers such as mise-en-scene, non-diegetic sounds, etc.
-The presence of particular actors, their connotations, how popular they are, the expectations of them as a character, etc.
-Sometimes characters are shown in a clip and the frame is frozen, along side a caption of the character's name
As we can see some of these concepts require a fairly in-depth level of thought or simply more knowledge to relate to than young children may have. This is why many films trailers aimed at children use voiceovers. Another contributing factor is the amount, and the pace of text in more adult-orientated trailers. Children may not be able to read the text fast enough, may not bare the knowledge to identify the actors and may even wish to avoid reading in general as they may associate it with difficult learning, stressful experiences at school, etc.
-Text & titles for producer names, release dates, etc.
-Always at end, largbe 'block' of centered, symmetrical text displayed showcasing important production team, cast, etc. Tends to only be present in adult-aimed films as it bares connotations of professionalism and perfection
-Narrative conveyed through imagery; clips cleverly and often non-chronologically presented to help build narrative in a clear way or to build suspense, often with a sense of enigma
-Music: Popular music may appeal to particular audiences, certain music has different effects, e.g. instruments used, their connotations, the tempo of the music, its pitch, may even be contrapuntal (such as Batman: The Dark Night Rises trailers)
-Signifiers such as mise-en-scene, non-diegetic sounds, etc.
-The presence of particular actors, their connotations, how popular they are, the expectations of them as a character, etc.
-Sometimes characters are shown in a clip and the frame is frozen, along side a caption of the character's name
As we can see some of these concepts require a fairly in-depth level of thought or simply more knowledge to relate to than young children may have. This is why many films trailers aimed at children use voiceovers. Another contributing factor is the amount, and the pace of text in more adult-orientated trailers. Children may not be able to read the text fast enough, may not bare the knowledge to identify the actors and may even wish to avoid reading in general as they may associate it with difficult learning, stressful experiences at school, etc.
Voiceover Analysis
The codes, conventions and use of voiceovers for film trailers:
-To convey Narrative
-To present background information of characters, setting, etc.
-To showcase star appearances such as famous actors
-To showcase the production team including producers, editors, etc.
-Help build anticipation and suspense, often a climax in the trailer
-Present the title of the film
-Present release date
-Summarise story; especially common in films aimed at children or families
-Sets tone and atmosphere of film
-For comedies, contrapuntal tone
-Serious, deep/low pitch tone of voice is the conventional voice over tone used - connotations of seriousness and action, yet is very commonly used for films with a target audience of children
Unfortunately it seems voiceovers are not common in the adventure-sport docu-drama genre. So far these characteristics do not seem to be useful in my trailer. I will continue my research into voiceovers.
-To convey Narrative
-To present background information of characters, setting, etc.
-To showcase star appearances such as famous actors
-To showcase the production team including producers, editors, etc.
-Help build anticipation and suspense, often a climax in the trailer
-Present the title of the film
-Present release date
-Summarise story; especially common in films aimed at children or families
-Sets tone and atmosphere of film
-For comedies, contrapuntal tone
-Serious, deep/low pitch tone of voice is the conventional voice over tone used - connotations of seriousness and action, yet is very commonly used for films with a target audience of children
Unfortunately it seems voiceovers are not common in the adventure-sport docu-drama genre. So far these characteristics do not seem to be useful in my trailer. I will continue my research into voiceovers.
Technical Camera Settings
Colours
-All cameras will be set to the same white point/balance of 6500K to match that of modern computer monitors as well as HD televisions-All footage will be colour-balanced in post-processing
Resolution & Framerate
-All cameras will be filming at 1920x1080 resolution at thirty frames per second (FPS) - this is the maximum resoltion these cameras can film at, and 30fps is chosen over other defaults such as 24fps or 25fps as these lower framerates can be noticed by the human eye and can sometimes make fast-moving motion (such as a kayaker on a river) seem 'jumpy'
-When a slow-motion effect is desired I will set the cameras to their fastest framerate setting; 60fps. This will allow for us to record twice as many frames of motion than before, giving us the option to display action anywhere between realtime speed and half-speed
-Here is an example of framerate differences
http://boallen.com/fps-compare.html
Aperture
-Aperture will be carefully selected to ensure key subjects are included and their relationship to other objects are clear-Large aperture (small f-stop/small depth of field (DOF)) will be used when subjects do not stand out from the background, ie. when a large focul length is used, when subjects are next to other objects or
subjects are colour-camoflauged against their backgrounds
-Smaller apertures (larger f-stops/larger DOFs) will be used to include multiple subjects which are somewhat seperated, ie. two kayakers next to each other or a group of people walking up the mountains
-Of course, the choice of aperture is dependant to some extent on the available light
Exposure Length
-I intend to have each frame being exposed for a very short of time (~1/250s to ~1/4000s) this way no individual frames will appear blurred when the camera is recording fast moving information, such as fast camera pans or a rock climbing falling
-Even at night scenes I intend to keep exposure times as fast as possible to maintain a fast-paced, action-filled atmosphere - fast exposure times can be kept at night with the exchange of high ISO
-As the 'slowest' recording setting we will use is 30fps it is impossible for our film to contain any footage with exposure times of slower than 1/30fps
Thursday, 27 September 2012
Film Genre Proposal
I have been inspired by a few films with intriguing narratives where the film is portrayed to be a documentary, but the story is actually invented and ficitonal. This allows the producers to take more control over what happens, what the characters are like, where it is set and what props are used. This genre is often referred to as 'docu-drama'.
Two films that utilise this style are:
Two films that utilise this style are:
A Tree of Wooden Clogs
The Story of a Weeping Camel
I am also involved in many outdoor adventure sports and would love to include an extreme-sport element into the film. Some films that inspired me that I will analyse as film research are:
Touching the Void
127 Hours
Vladimir Propp
Vladimir Propp was a russian critic who, in the early ninteen-hundreds, examined many folk and fairy stories to find out if they had any common links. He discovered that characters in these stories had similar roles. He referred to these as spheres of action. These roles are different from, actually characters as the roles are linked directly to the actions.
He identified 8 character roles and 31 narrative functions.
He identified 8 character roles and 31 narrative functions.
The 8 character roles are:
1. The villain(s)
2. The hero
3. The donor – who provides an object with some magic property.
4. The helper who aids the hero.
5. The princess (the sought for person) – reward for the hero and object of the villain’s schemes.
6. Her father – who rewards the hero.
7. The dispatcher – who sends the hero on his way.
8. The false hero
These spheres of action are very applicable to films as many film modern films are versions of fairy tales - for example, Star Ware and Pretty Woman. Many non-fairy tale films also use some of these spheres of action.
By using this theory for breaking down films we are reminded that although on screen characters may seem very real, they are simply constructed characters who have roles to play for the sake of the story.
These spheres of action are very applicable to films as many film modern films are versions of fairy tales - for example, Star Ware and Pretty Woman. Many non-fairy tale films also use some of these spheres of action.By using this theory for breaking down films we are reminded that although on screen characters may seem very real, they are simply constructed characters who have roles to play for the sake of the story.
Tzvetan Todorov's Narrative Theory
Open Narrative
-Open narratives have no sense of ending - they could go on forever. Television dramas are a good example of this
-Characters tend to come and go
-Prrallel editing is common with multiple, intertwining story lines
-Narrative is almost always presented in chronological order
-Audience is normally given a large amount of character info; much like TV dramas and contrasting typical films where a sense of enigma is created from not knowing a character's history or personality
Closed Narrative
-The audienceare aware they a watching a complete story, an ending is often expected
-Audience are invited to make a verdict on characters
Binary Oppositions and Characters Roles in Narratives:
-Very obvious contrasting roles are used that represent superlatives on a scale (binary oppositions)
E.g.
- Good/evil
- Silence/loudness
- Strength/weakness
- Youth/old age
- Light/dark
- Wealth/poverty
The conflict between these roles will drive the narrative until some sort of equilibrium or resolution is achieved.
Star Wars posters, presenting binary oppositions in character roles of good and evil through the use of light/dark and foreground/background
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