Friday, January 31, 2020

Title Research: Green Lantern


The title sequence for Green Lantern only had 30 titles. This number is way less than movies like D.No.
In this title sequence gave credit to the actors, studio, musicians and producers. The most likely reason
for the fewer titles was probably because there were fewer people involved in the movie. In the opening
sequence we saw images of planets in outer space. These planets in these images are broken apart and
scattered throughout space. Near the end of the title sequence the green lantern is shown.
These images represent how the movie is related to space and aliens. The destruction of planets
suggests that aliens might try to destroy earth in the movie. The green lantern symbol also suggests
that the green lantern will defend the earth from the aliens. The genre is reinforced with several
common movie conventions. The most noticeable one is the music which creates a feeling of energy
among the audience. Next the movie uses images of destruction which contributes to the mood of an
action movie. Finally the pace that the different images are shown in makes the audience excited for
the movie. The film establishes in enigma in several ways. It first does this by creating a space
atmosphere which isn’t common in action movies. It also uses a green tint which is contrary to the
usually lighting in other movies. In order to make sure the film appeals to the target audience the
creators impose a sense of nostalgia. This is done by making several references to the comic book the
green lantern. In addition to this they use the green lantern symbol in the end of the opening sequence.
Editing played a major role here. Without editing technology the green tint would not have been made.
Also the images of planets were products computer generated images. Finally both high and low angles
were used throughout. 

Title Research: Dr.No

The first opening sequence that I watched on watchthetitles.com was for Dr.No. As I watched the opening sequence I saw that there were 40 titles that popped up. In these titles they gave credit to the directors, actors and producers. The next thing I noticed where the pictures that went with the titles. At first it showed James Bond staring down the barrel of a gun then it started shown the titles with colored dots on a black background. This made up most of the opening sequence. As I saw these images I began to see what they meant. They were creating an action movie mood this was obvious from the opening scene where James Bond stared down the barrel of a gun. This use of dots on a black background creates a spy movie atmosphere as well.  The images that I saw clearly reinforce the genre of the movie. It does this by showing images that suggest there is danger and mystery. The music that plays in the background also proves this point. The opening sequence of the film breaks the common conventions of an action movie. They do this by showing images that aren't related to fighting for most of the opening sequence. This images are instead related to mystery which is good for a spy movie. The opening sequence uses different strategies to appeal to their target audience. These strategies include using images of fighting and music that creates a sense of mystery. In the opening sequence editing wasn't used that much. Instead they used transitions like making the slides move down or to the left and they use high and low camera angles. Overall the title sequence keeps the target audience interested in the movie. 

Title Research: The Changeling

1. There are 29 titles in the movie opening that all introduce the jobs and names of the people that worked on the movie. They also had the movie title appear in the beginning.
2. The main image is the main character. He is a man who I would think is in his 50s. We watch in the beginning that he is helping his family push a car down to a telephone booth where he calls someone to come help with their broken down car. Then we see him in walking down the street and coming out of work.
3. The beginning brings the connotation of family and happiness. He connects with his family through pushing the car and that adds a togetherness to the movie. Then when he witnesses his family die, we see him gloomy and depressed and his mood sets the tone for the rest of the opening.
4. Action movies usually introduce the characters in the beginning of the movie. Then we are given a glimpse into the story of the character and why he acts the way he does throughout the rest of the movie. Because he saw his family get hit by a truck and die in the beginning, he is gloomy and depressed in the rest of the movie.
5. Normal action movies introduce their characters differently. In normal action movies there an intense animated opening scene that gives the name and job of each person and then those titles don't show up on the actual footage so they wouldn't take up room. The characters in normal action movies are introduced afterwards. More recently movies have been showing the titles at the end of the movies instead of the beginning.
6. This is where I think this movie is very strong. The beginning sets a story that grasps your attention by setting a story that the audience wants to follow. They start the movie off with a traumatic event that will effect the main character for the rest of the film.
7. The main technology used were the editing and camera angles. We got constant switching between the truck and the man in the phone booth and the instigating car to increase the intensity of the moment and keep the audience interested. They used camera angles to show how fast the truck was going and how the accident actually happened. They used a eagle eye angle to show that the instigating car caused the truck to spin out and crash into the Family who was playing with snow. They used technology very well considering the year this film was made in.

Title Research: The Avengers


  • For the opening scene they had lots of titles which not only presented the jobs that lead to the creation of the film, but also gave the credit to the people that occupied the job. For example, the gave the music composer and conductor, Joel Mcneely credit for the work he did for the movie in the opening scene. In total, the opening scene for Avengers had 29 titles which each either introduced the movie workers or the companies that took part in the production of the film. 
  • One image that stands out the most is the clouds. They are in the opening sequence every five seconds, they are then shown less frequently towards the end. The image was replaced with the weather pattern of a hurricane and the text start fading in and out in a spinning fashion. They spin in and out of the scene while being overlayed over the images of either clouds or hurricane patterns.
  • The connotations that these images carry is maybe the feeling of intensity or disaster. They are trying to point to the fact that in the movie is going to focus itself on a natural disaster or a hurricane to be more specific.
  • The action genre usually includes some intense moments that could be from a common factor or something that one person struggles with. In this case it’s going to be one common factor that impacts multiple people at a time. The fact that the images of hurricanes and black and stormy clouds could signify that they are going to eventually lead to an intense and possibly dangerous situation for the main character. We are going to see how the character deals with this problem that is potentially life threatening and that is a normal convention in action movies.
  • Normally in action openings you get hit with music that immediately begins with intensity to set the tone for the rest of the movie. Opening sequences also give you a glimpse into the characters that you are going to see in the movie; however, this movie doesn’t give any information about the characters and leaves you to wonder who it is that we could be following.  The music in this opening is also very mellow and not as intense as other action movies that I have seen. And the sounds of the ocean waves drowns out the actual music and doesn’t really fit the background.
  • The movie uses a few strategies in this opening scene to grasp their audience in. They make it something relatable. By choosing hurricanes and natural disasters to almost represent their movie, they allow the audience to almost connect to the movie and be able to apply it to their everyday lives. They also don’t spoil what kind of character we are going to follow leaving the audience to imagine who it is that the movie could be about.
  • They used editing very well in this opening scene. They did the overlay well and made sure that the text was always in-front of everything. Their color choice for the text was good, because otherwise it would blend in to the background and be illegible. The also used other technologies well, but the only thing I would complain about is the choice of transition. It looked choppy and personally wasn’t aesthetically pleasing.

Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Watch The Titles Research



I sued this site to see how I should structure the title sequence for my movie.
I learned how the credits for a movie are introduced and how to implement them with the the opening
scenes.
I looked at the title sequences for several movies including The Mummy, Dr. No, and Mission
Impossible.
I saw how the setting of the movie should be introduced with the opening credits. 
I also learned how to introduce the opening credits for an action movie.
This site was very user friendly and useful.
I visited this sight.
For the first title sequence that I looked at the mummy I saw ancient
hieroglyphics and mummy's in their tombs with the credits over them.
For the Mission impossible opening scenes I saw images of dynamite exploding and fighting images
with the credits.  For Dr. No I saw spy related scenes and drawings of people with military uniforms.
I learned here that I need to make the opening credits give the viewer an idea of what the movie will
be about. I don't think that our opening credits will be as long as the ones we viewed so we won't have
to use the same elements that were in the ones I saw. I found this website to be interactive and very
useful for what I was doing. I think that using this website will help me to improve my movie.
I look forward to filming.

Monday, January 27, 2020

Art Of The Title Research


We chose this site because it was recommended by our media teacher, Ms. Marchionne. We used it to have example of what proper titles look like in the beginning of movies. We saw many different examples for many different kinds of genres. To find a specific genre, for example our genre, action, you just type in the genre in the top right and they give you a list of examples. They don't have new movies but the movies still properly represent action. We researched  the different kinds of titles that pop up during the opening scene. You see the actors names and all of the jobs that make up a movie. There's make up artists, directors, producers and many other jobs that are given titles in the beginning of a movie. We are given the names of each of the people involved in those jobs and they stay on the screen for no longer that 5 seconds each. The final title to pop up is the director and the first is usually the title of the movie itself. By just browsing around I learned how to navigate through the site. I also learned what to look for when searching for the titles. Using this site is going to be really easy. After navigating through it and using the website and all of its features I think this research is going to be made much simpler than having to go on YouTube or some other video platform to find the clips.

Sunday, January 26, 2020

Genre Research (Avengers: End Game)

Avengers EndGame was one of the most anticipated and now the most grossing movie of all time. It came out in 2019 and was the end of a storyline that marvel has been building for over 10 years. This movie also had a variety of camera angles. There were long shots to capture the fight scene. There were establishing shots often because the characters moved around often and were in different parts of the universe all throughout the movie. The had over the shoulder shots for conversations which were also accompanied by close up shots to catch the actors reactions to events throughout the movie. They had incredible costumes like the Captain America costume and the Doctor Strange costume which were both very important characters during the movie. Those costumes made the characters pop out and made them unique. They had all kinds of lighting throughout the movie. They used dim lighting to set the mood like the world as under an apocalypse because it was. They set a tone of hopelessness with the lighting which was something that was really important. They used actors that portrayed the characters before. For example, they had Chris Hemsworth play Thor and Scarlett Johanson play Black Widow. Both actors have played those characters in the past and were essential to the storyline. Make-up was also very important. They needed make-up to make it seem like the characters have gone through a war and have been fighting so things like blood and dirt were imitated using make-up. They used lots of props as well. Most of the props were CGI however things like the Captain America shield and Thor’s Hammer switches on and off of being CGI and the actor actually holding it. The setting changes often throughout the film. They start in space and then finish in a ruined land on Earth that is given a strong feel of apocalyptic Earth. Common sound was the main theme of the Avengers, which was played whenever they had a big victory. They also used lots of CGI sounds like alien sounds and the opening of portals. This movie could not have been possible without the editing. They used editing for everything in the movie. They used it for when the heroes used their weapons, they used it to create the infamous antagonist Thanos. They also edited the scenes so there could be two Robert Downey Jrs on the screen at the same time. They also used editing to make characters like the Hulk, all of Thanos’ army, and like I said earlier, Thanos himself. This movie fits the description for an action movie in all of the elements necessary and has its own flare which makes it unique to any other action movies. It includes fight scenes, intense moments, a common antagonist, and two different parties fighting over something they don’t agree on. In this case we have fight scenes between our heroes and all of the villains of the movie like Thanos and his goons.  They include intense moments like the moment that Hawkeye was being chased by alien dogs who wanted to kill him for the infinity gauntlet. They had the evil villain Thanos who believed that clearing half of the population of the entire universe would better the living conditions for the remaining half. However, the heroes obviously didn’t like this so they fought to stop him. Elements that I liked was the fight scenes, especially the fight scene between Captain America and Thanos. Captain America used not only his shield but also Thor’s Hammer, something that shouldn't be able to be picked up besides those who are worthy. It was something really cool to see. Something I didn’t like is how some of the protagonists impacted the storyline. For example Captain Marvel lowered the intensity of the fight by entering the scene and basically winning the entire thing single handedly. Overall this still is one of my favorite movies and it fits the action genre perfectly.

Genre Research (Gemini Man)

Gemini Man is a movie about how a retired sharpshooter is now being attacked by a clone that the government made of him to remake his incredible shooting abilities. This is similar to what our film is going to be however, we didn’t see the movie before coming up with our idea for our film. Because the characters moved around a lot going from country to country, they always had establishing shots to show where the characters were. They also used close up shots during fights as well as long shots to capture their entire body while fighting. They used normal soldier costumes, they weren’t anything special. Most of the movie took place during the night, so they used dim lighting to highlight the characters and to set tones for the scene. They casted Will Smith as their main character and as well as some other actors like Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Benedict Wong as supporting characters. They used make up like blood and scrapes from fights to show the effects of those fights. Those used lots of prop guns and entire grocery stores during the movie. The setting switched often. They began in Georgia, they went to Colombia, traveled to two other continents and ended up back in Georgia. Common sound were gunshots and sounds to help build suspense as well as intense music to add to the tone of fights and intense moments. Editing was one of the most important factors of this movie. They needed to make Will Smith, a 51 year old actor, look like his 23 year old self. They used editing that I don’t know the name of to make it seem like 23 year old Will Smith was cast as one of the characters in the movie. When it came to the fight scenes between the two they also used editing to make it look cleaner and more realistic. Action movies always have the base elements that most of them follow regardless. This movie followed most of the elements that action movies usually have. For example, they had lots of conflict points like gun fights or fights in general. This movie had an abundance of those kinds of fights considering it was about an ex-marine who was the best in the world. Action movies also have a common enemy that everyone in the movie tries to defeat in this case it would be the leader of the Gemini Program who created the clone and lied to him and the clone eventually joined forces with our heroes and took him down. They also had one main character who was the main fighter and knew how to do everything that was needed in the movie. They were also related to soldiers and government which is also a reoccuring theme in action movies. The main element that I liked is something that is not conventional to regular action movies. I really liked the fact that they made the main character fight himself, literally. Usually in action movies they have the main character fight an expected enemy who plans to take over the world or something extreme like that. But in this case he was fighting a clone who was sent to kill him because the main character knew something that he shouldn’t have known. One element that I didn’t like is the predictability. Once the clone is introduced you can already see that they are going to join forces. Because ever since they first spoke to him they tried to convince him that the main character and the clone were the same person and it eventually got to the clones head and they joined forces, but it’s something you could see coming from very early on in the film. Over all this movie was action packed and exactly what you would expect from an action movie plus more. 

Genre Research (Captain America)

The movie Captain America: Civil War consistently used certain camera angles and shots. It used low angles in almost all of the fight scenes, usually just to give a different angle of the ongoing fight. Next the movie used a high angle mainly to show when one of the characters was approaching their destination. The movie used aerial shots to show the fight scene when a lot of people where involved. Finally medium shots were used whenever the characters were having a conversation or planning a battle. Costumes in the movie were mainly superhero costumes for the main characters and the extras had military uniforms or formal attire. The lighting in this movie was a little bit lower than bright which gave the movie a more high tech feeling. The actors in this movie where Scarlet Johansson, Robert Downy Jr, Tom Holland, Chris Evans, and Paul Rudd. Make up in this movie was used to give the characters a beaten down look after and during a fight scene. Props for this movie included superhero helmets, a shield with a star on it, and fake weapons. The setting of the movie was modern day Europe and America. The sounds in this movie where not uncommon in action movies. Gunfire could be heard in most of the scenes. Missiles being launched was also heard in several fight scenes. finally the sound of cars or motorcycles racing down a street was often heard. There where three editing techniques that where common in the movie. Graphic matches were used to show the location of projectile that where launched at a character. Next insert were used put emphasis on something that was being shown. Finally action matches were used to give a different angle in fight scenes which made the movie better visually. This movie followed the standard rules of the action genre. It used the standard plot structure of the main character being placed into several dangerous and action filled situations. It used common editing techniques like and action match and cross cutting. And it used shots like the long shot and high and low camera angles. I liked that the movie used editing techniques like graphics matches and cross cuts because these were necessary to make the scenes interesting. I also liked the costumes that were used because they were original but still fitting for an action movie. I also think that the use of high angles and aerial shots made the fight scenes more fun to watch. However I do believe that there were some things that could have been left out. I think that the mostly bright lighting in the film made the threat of the villain seem less significant. I also think that the setting of the film should have been focused more on one area rather than several countries. Also I think that the use of multiple major characters in one film made the main character, Captain America seen insignificant. Overall I think that this was a good action movie. 

Genre Research (John Wick)

The movie John Wick uses a variety of camera angles. These include a high angle in the beginning of the film. A low angle is used when someone is on the ground looking up at the main character to show him as an authority figure. Next a dutch angle is usually used after a fight or an explosion to show that the character is disoriented. Finally a high angle is usually used to represent a security camera watching the main character.. In this movie the costumes included a normal outfit, a ski mask and dark suit for the home invaders in the beginning, and a suit and tie for several characters. The lighting in this movie was low which was probably used to represent danger. The main actor for this movie was Keanu Reeves. Make up was used in this movie to show cuts on bruises on people after a fight scene. Props in this movie included a baseball bat, a crowbar, and fake coins. The setting of this movie was modern day New York. The sounds in the movie are not uncommon in action movies. These sounds include punches and gunfire which are used in the fighting scenes. Other sounds that were used in this movie that aren't related to fighting include the noise of cars racing down a street and footsteps. Editing in the movie includes cross cutting which helps show what two different characters are doing at the same time. Action matches that show different views of the character that people in the movie can't see. Finally, fade in and fade outs which help transition from scene to scene. John Wick followed the common conventions of action movies in many ways. It did this by placing the main character in a dangerous situation with lots of fighting. It also uses the common editing techniques and camera angles. In addition to using common editing techniques it also used shots like point of view shots and long shots. The elements of the genre that this movie had that I liked included the jump cut and action matches because I think that they helped the movie move forward. I also liked how the movie had plenty of action scenes that kept it interesting. I also think that the use of point of view shots made it easier to connect with the main character. In addition to this I liked how the movie followed the convention of using long shots. I didn't like that the lighting was low I think that brighter lighting in some scenes would have improved the overall film. Also although I enjoyed the action scenes I feel like it became repetitive. I think that use of a formal for suit for John Wick was also contrary to the spirit of the movie. Overall I liked the movie. This movie will serve as an inspiration for our movie.

Genre Of Our Pitch

The genre of our pitch is action. We chose action out of the two genres because I believe that an action film better fits the description of the movie. We believe this because our movie is about an assassin so danger and action will be an important part of the film. We also think that the common camera angles for action films are better suited for this movie. I also felt like the idea of a character changing as a person didn't match with the plot line of our movie. Although our film won't bring in all the elements of an action movie we believe that it is still more closely associated with that genre. We are both excited to film our movie..

Thursday, January 23, 2020

Action and Adventure Genre Research

Our new film for AICE Media fits the description of both an action and adventure movie so we researched both genres. We did this to see what the key elements were for each one. This will allow us to properly film our movie. it will also let us know which conventions we might break in order to make our film unique.

In action films long shots and extreme long shots are used to make the subject look smaller than the location making them look unfamiliar. Medium long shots and two or three shots are often used in action movies to introduce the characters and include them all in one shot. In action movies costumes can range from normal outfit, a suit and tie, high tech gear, and mid evil night costumes. Action films typically have low key lighting to represent danger but can also have bright lighting if the director wants to add a comedic element to the film. The actors for action movies can vary but they usually have well known actors taking a lead role and less known actors taking a supporting role. Makeup varies with the film in certain films such as alien movies makeup that that will change the color of the face will be used and in war movies makeup that will make the character look dirty or tired might be used. For props most action movies will have fake weapons and use equipment like binoculars and smartphones. The setting for action movies can range from an urban city, small towns, nations, and different planets.

Common editing for action films include fade in and fade out effects along with burn in and burn out effects. Also in cases where the a certain scene was filmed during the day but the director wants it to look like it was filmed at night they can change the lighting through editing. Editing in action films will also often cut to the actors faces to show the emotion of the film. The common elements of an action film include a series of events that will lead the character into thrilling situations that include fighting and danger actions films will usually have one major protagonist and a villain that they must defeat. Examples of action films include Mission impossible, Inception, and John Wick. Common sounds in Action films are explosions and fighting noises. Elements of action films that I like are the thrilling plot and the suspense and danger. Elements that I don't like are the use of two shots and three shots.

Adventure films are similar to action films in certain ways. Adventure films use long shots, medium long shots and three shots. Costumes will also change depending on the movie and can be anything from hiking clothes to sci fi or high tech military clothes. The lighting in adventure films tends to be bright. Actors for adventure films can have any body type or gender and their popularity is not a factor. Make up usually isn't used in action films unless they are in a forest or outer space setting where they have to look dirty or nonhuman. For props adventure movies may use walking sticks, fake swords, and compasses. The setting for adventure movies is usually an area outside of a large city and can be in modern times or in the future and past. Like action movies editing includes cuts to the face along with fade in and fade out effects. The elements of an adventure film include a protagonist and a location that he must reach, during his adventure he will face obstacles such as enemies and natural obstructions and in the end he will come out a better person. Examples of adventure films include The Hobbit, Jason Borne, and Star Wars. I like the element of an adventure film where the main character is changed as a person from the experience. I don't like the bright lighting in the film and I think that dark lighting would help give it a feeling of suspense.

Genre Power-point Review



This power point is a power point based on the research we did in regards to a random genre that we got. We got crime and I worked with my previous group to complete this project. It's about all the different camera angles and movements that are most present in crime genre. We looked at many different angles and movements like long shot and pan. We also gave our own feedback on the genre. We highlighted what we liked and didn't like about crime movies. One things that we liked was the drama and adrenaline rush that comes with watching a crime movie. One thing that we didn't like is the predictability of crime movies. We all worked equally on this project. We all had parts done by when it was needed. This project was one of the easier ones because we got to work with people who we trust and know. 

Friday, January 17, 2020

Trial and Error

We have decided to narrow it down to two pitches. Out of the three, we chose the criminal one and then the assassin one. We left out the kidnapping one because it wasn't original. We were looking around our class and thats why we didn't choose it. It was obvious that everyone was going to do something like a kidnapping scene and we didn't want to follow that trail. We chose criminal and assassin because we really liked them and it was different. It was something no one was going to do and something that will be easy for us to do. We wanted to do something related to crimes and we felt these two fit the best. And for these we also have a lot of opportunities to make these scenes great. We have a mock court room that we can use.

Pitch 1 is one of the best options that we came up with. It does have some strengths and weaknesses though. One of the strengths is the fact that we have lots of resources to help us make it. We have that mock court room that I mentioned earlier. This is going to make it look realer and put the character and viewer in the environment that we want them in. One weakness however is the fact that we didn't really have the same connection and bounce back and forth on this one that we had on the following pitch. Me and Andrew my partner didn't really have much imput on this pitch. I was the main one that came up with this one and Andrew just agreed to it. This could make it a little harder to record because we both might not have the same image. This is still a very viable option.

Pitch 2 is definitely the best of the three. Both me and Andrew just knew what we wanted for this film. We kept bouncing ideas off each other and we just had a connection with this one. I feel this is something really important to have when your making a film. This could also be applied to any team project. If both parties don't have that same vibe then it's not going to be as good as it could be. One weakness is it's going to be a little harder to do. This film is going to require some props that we don't have. We're going to have to source the props and borrow them for the film. But besides that we plan on adding jokes and put the audience in a kind of environment where you can feel the intensity but the joke lightens the mood and makes people want to keep watching. 

Start of The Final Task

Hello my name is Emiliano Vallejo and I go to Fort Lauderdale High School. I'm a student athlete and I'm finishing my Cambridge diploma my sophomore year. I took 3 AICE classes last year and passed them all. Now this year I'm hoping I'm going to pass all four of my AICE classes. This year I'm taking European History, English I, Media Studies, and Psychology and I expect to pass all of them. I'm really looking forward for this project because all throughout the year I have been thinking of possible films that I would like to do. Unfortunately, I forgot the majority of them and only had a few that I'm going to mention later. I really want to do well in this project because this stuff is interesting to me. Even though I don't want to pursue a real career in this it's still cool to do. I'm really looking forward to doing this. I am working with Andrew Cambron again on this project.

In my last two projects I learned a lot. One main thing was how to use all of the technology we were given. Things like the camera, computer, and editing software were all things that became clearer to me. Ms. Marchiollne has been doing a great job leading us through what we need and how to do things we don't understand. I learned how to better utilize the Pinnacle Studios. I learned how to add transitions quickly and effectively. I learned how to make title screens and add words in the middle of the movie to introduce each character and such things like that. I learned how to export and import quicker and easier. And I also learned how to use the camera and record exactly what I am looking for.

Pitches are really important when introducing a movie idea to producers that may fund and/or create your movie. Officially, a pitch is a Hollywood term used to describe a film in 25 words or less. There are multiple different kinds of pitches like an elevator pitch, which is when you present a producer with an idea in a very short time, like an elevator ride.
Pitch 1- This is about a criminal. It's about him pulling off the biggest heist in the world. We start with a cutt of him in court and then transition into days before the heist.
Pitch 2- The second one is very simple and popular. This film is about a kidnapping. We follow a victim of kidnapping through her battling her way out of this dangerous situation and she eventually escapes.
Pitch 3- Our third one is even better. We start with the introduction of this character who is an ex-assassin we catch a glimpse of his house. An agent comes to his door offers him a job and we follow him through his post retirement adventure.

Audience and Institutions Practice Essay

Has the audience consumption of movies changed over time? Over the course of time movies have changed drastically in terms of how they ...