Script For Film - Updates

   We brainstormed ideas and came up with a rough story-line that I am currently writing the script for. The name of the film is currently undecided and we plan on making it a 15-30 minuet film, but only submit 2-3 minuets for the completed Media course. The plot will revolve around 5 characters; Daisy, Lucy, Sarah, Charlie and Joe, who have narrowly escaped a nuclear explosion.

Film Planning - Ideas & Inspiration

   My initial inspiration for this film was the films The Hunger Games, How I Live Now (to be released 4th October 2013) and a short film that I watched on the BBC Film Network called Coming Of Age.
   The basic storyline of our film focuses on a teenage girl who has awoken from an apocalypse and is lost. She is hallucinating and we see this by the distortion of the shots and focus of the camera. The weather conditions of the scene is foggy/misty to link with the cloudiness and confusion in her head, as she has been oblivious of what has happened before.

(The Hunger Games) 

(How I Live Now)

(Coming Of Age - BBC Film Network)

Here is the trailer for How I Live Now

Media Own Learning - Short Film Analysis

   In this blog post I will be analyzing two 3 minute extracts of the opening of films. The first film is featured on the BBC Film Network site and is called 'Coming Of Age'. It is about a teenage boy facing his own problems in a post-apocalyptic world.

COMING OF AGE

   I chose this film to analyse because I really like the genre of it. It is a post-apocalyptic drama about a teenage boy and his journey of survival after someone near to him (possibly a family relative) has died. I really love these types of films as it shows and depicts how humans live on after an global disaster and shows how they survive, which I think is a very interesting subject. I also think that these types of films and books are very important as it is a very real visualization of what could be in the future. I think this genre is widely becoming more popular among teenagers, literature and film as the audience of 'dystopia' grows.

Dystopia, an imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmentally degraded one."

   Although there is little dialogue, the story-line is very clear. i think that the absence of the dialogue emphasizes the narrative and makes the audiences more focused and attentive on the story-line, as it is a very serious topic, which is probably why the director wanted no dialogue. The camera work also cleverly reflects the environmental state of the world and feel of the genre. Most of the camera-work is hand-held, which was commonly used in the extremely popular 'The Hunger Games' film, which is also of the same dystopian genre and theme.

   I also love the colours used in this film, they are all dark and gritty, which again reflects the events of what has happened. Mostly dark greens, browns and beige's are used in this film, which could link in with the theory of the world going back to a more natural state, and so do humans with their appearal (clothing is very earthy colours).

   http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p00pb7wj

Lesson 1

   For the first lesson of Media Studies, we were asked to set up a blog and produce a post based on 4 films that we have researched into. These films are Avatar, Harry Potter (any one), The Kings Speech and Fishtank. We will be looking at the narrative, actors, directors, budget, production companys and locations used in each film.

1. AVATAR:

•  Narrative: A paraplegic Marine dispatched to the moon Pandora on a unique mission becomes torn between following his orders and protecting the world he feels is his home.
•  Actors: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Giovanni Ribisi.
•  Directors: James Cameron
•  Budget: $237,000,000
• Gross Income: $2,782,275,172
•  Production Company: 20th Century Fox
•  Locations Used: Hawaii, California USA, New Zealand

2. HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2

• Narrative: Harry, Ron and Hermione search for Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes in their effort to destroy the Dark Lord.
• Actors: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Michael Gambon, Maggie Smith, Evanna Lynch, Bonnie Wright, Tom Felton, Matthew Lewis, Ralph Finnes
• Directors: David Yates
• Budget: $125,000,000
• Gross Income: $1,341,511,219
• Production Company: Warner Brothers
• Locations Used: Freshwater West, Pembrokeshire, Wales, UK  
  
  

  Leavesden Studios, Leavesden, Hertfordshire, England, UK

  Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK
St. Pancras Station, St. Pancras, London, England, UK

3. THE KINGS SPEECH:

• Narrative: The story of King George VI of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, his impromptu ascension to the throne and the speech therapist who helped the unsure monarch become worthy of it.
• Actors: Colin Firth, Geoffoery Rush, Helena Bonham-Carter
• Directors: Tom Hooper
• Budget: $15,000,000
• Gross Income: $414,211,549
• Production Company: Momentum Pictures
• Locations Used: Buckinghamshire, Windsor, London

4. FISHTANK:

• Narrative: Everything changes for 15-year-old Mia when her mum brings home a new boyfriend.
• Actors: Katie Jarvis, Michael Fassbender,
• Directors: Andrea Arnold
• Budget: $3,000,000
• Gross Income: $2,357,852
• Production Comapny: BBC Films
• Locations Used: London, Essex