For this task, I am going to re-create a film opening from a previous film to experience the process of creating a film opening so I know what is to come when making my own. We have chosen to re-make the film opening from 'Se7en' because we have good ideas that will help us create a really similar piece which they will almost look the same. Also there's a lot of editing involved so we can learn a lot from it from this aspect. I believe this will help me out a lot by learning how to use the software's and how to film in the right way. Also as we are re-making a successful film, it shows what we can achieve in relation to it as we aren't a big institution with the technology, time and equipment that they have.
Se7en film opening:
Our re-make:
To conclude, I found it quite easy to do when filming and editing this piece because of the planning we did for it as that really helped us organise what shots we needed and how long they were. We also managed to gather all the props we needed and we found a room that was suitable to shoot in because of the lighting. I would say editing was the hardest part because of how long it took to complete and how much we actually had to do. This has allowed me to practice things like filming and editing to a similar degree of what it took to create the Se7en film opening in so now I know what to expect when I create my own film opening and I know how I am going to plan and create it.
For this task I am going to look into the differences between mainstream and independent films as I have mainly looked at mainstream films so I want to research into independent in-case we decide to base our film opening on an independent film.
Independent Films
In independent films, an important aspect about them is that the genre isn't specific and it's often quite hard to tell what genre it is. For example in the film 'American Honey' it contains so many aspects from different genres that it is difficult to label what genre it actually is. They do this to not specifically be categorised otherwise they may lose some audience.
Smaller institutions make independent films because otherwise they will be competing with the big six, and its suitable as they only have a small budget where as they have much bigger. They save money by doing things like advertising on social media and using less technology, but they have to pay distribution companies to distribute their films whereas the big six have their own distribution companies.
Independent films usually contain limited well-known actors as the institutions generally can't afford to have big stars. In the independent film 'Fish Tank', Michael Fassbender plays a role in the cast yet he is quite a big celebrity, however when the film was created back in 2009 he wasn't as big as he is now.
Independent films attract niche audiences because they aren't mainstream and therefore attract an audience who would be specifically interested in the film. It is stereotypical that independent films often attract an older audience whereas main stream attract a younger audience.
Independent companies are very limited to distribution because they have to pay distribution companies to do so whereas mainstream films often have their own distribution companies. This is a problem because of the small budget independent companies have so they can't afford to get their films out to lots of cinemas which is why we rarely see them out at cinemas. Therefore as they tend to have limited release, independent films are often put straight onto DVD or online through services like Netflix.
Independent films generally have lower production values because of their low budget so they don't often contain content like explosions, big stunts, special effects, etc.
They are mainly produced outside major film studios compared to mainstream films which are produced in places like Hollywood. Therefore the public won't be very aware of who is behind the film.
Independent films are rarely filmed in well-known locations for example big cities because they can't afford to as it's too expensive to travel to these places. This can cut down the size of the audience because if it is filmed somewhere local for example like the film 'A field in England' this wouldn't attract people from all over the world.
Independent films are rarely shown at multiplex cinemas because of their lack of distribution.
Their marketing campaigns often rely on social media and word of mouth because that is free. For example for the film 'Ex Machina' they used Tinder to help advertise the film.
Mainstream Films
Mainstream films attract a mass audience because they can afford to have a huge marketing campaign to help their films get herd of by the public.
Mainstream companies make more money from their films compared to independent because they have a bigger budget to begin with to put towards producing the film. Therefore they have higher production values e.g. better technology.
They are shown at multiplex cinemas and are easier to access than independent films.
They are often filmed in 3D and IMAX or converted into it so people have a choice on how they wish to watch the film and can generally attract a bigger audience and make it better.
Mainstream films attract a worldwide audience as they attract a mass audience and are shown worldwide.
They have more specific genres compared to independent who have safe genres.
The big six (Disney, Universal, Paramount, Fox Studios, Sony, Warner Bros) are the top, major institutions of the film industry who are behind most of the best mainstream films. Recent films made by:
Disney - Beauty and the Beast, Cars 3, Rouge One: A Star Wars Story, Moana
Universal - Get Out, Fifty Sides Darker, The Great Wall, Split, The Fate Of The Furious
Paramount - Baywatch, Arrival, Silence, Fences, Transformers: The Last Knight
Fox - Assassins Creed, Logan, Hidden Figures, A Cure For Wellness, The Boss Baby
Sony - Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, Don't Breathe, Life, Magnificent Seven
Warner Bros - Fantastic Beasts, Annabelle 2, Kong: Skull Island, Everything Everything
Mainstream films will generally be filmed in expensive locations that are well known as they have a big enough budget to travel. This ranges from capital cities and famous landmarks all over the world.
A lot of recent mainstream films consist of a franchise of either old films (beauty and the beast), a series of films (The Fate of Furious from Fast and Furious), and a best-selling novel (Fifty Shades Darker). This helps to draw in a bigger audience because the people who have read the books or seen previous films of the franchise know of what the film is going to be like and maybe interested to watch it.
Mainstream companies advertise using trailers, tv ads, internet, magazines, posters/bill boards, radio, and social media because they have a high budget and can afford too where as independent films can't so they have to spend as least as possible when it comes to marketing.
Conclusion
By doing this task I now have a much better understanding of what the differences and similarities of mainstream and independent films are. I learnt that a lot of what makes these categories so different is the budget because independent companies are trying to compete with mainstream whilst having a much lower budget. This has helped me more towards deciding on whether I want our production company for our film opening to be mainstream or independent as I now know what consists of them both and what I would need to produce for them. I think being a mainstream company would provide more of a challenge of trying to reach the standards of a mainstream film opening whilst being in a lower position than an independent company.
For this task, I am going to look at how films attract audiences by finding out specifically what's involved in their film openings that draws the viewer into the film and by finding out what they would expect to see in an opening of a film. I am hoping this task will help me think of ideas for what I can include in my own film opening that will draw in the viewer and want to watch more.
How film openings draw in audiences
The main concept of a film opening is to introduce a film to the audience so they have an idea of what sort of film it is going to be and what to expect. They draw the audience into the universe of the film as it clears their minds so they forget everything and only notice what the film is showing and telling them. I think that a good way to draw in an audience is to introduce a baseline of the story without giving it away as it opens up lots of unanswered questions making the audience what to carry on watching to find out the answers. By putting the audience in this perspective it makes them more interested and intrigued, therefore they enjoy the film more. A good example of a opening that draws me into a film is the Divergent film opening. The titles match the theme of the film really well and it begins with a shot of the sunrise which represents the beginning of the film as well as the day. It shows many establishing shots of the landscape to make the audience have some understanding with what's happening without having any idea of what the film is about i.e. it shows that something destroyed the world but there is a city that is still standing where the survivors live. The main character then does some narration talking about how they live. I find that this immediately draws me into the film because I know what's going on but I want to know why its going on and what actually happened to the world so it makes me want to carry on watching.
Divergent film opening:
Audience Theory
There is a audience theory known as the 'Hypodermic Needle Theory' which is quite commonly used in the film industry to trigger engagement between the film and the audience. This theory involves making the audience so drawn into the film that they almost feel like they are a part of the film and that they are in the universe of it. The films give people ideas and change their mid-sets which influences them to do something in reality that has influenced them to from the film. This is partially why films have certification - to protect younger children from seeing things they may not understand yet and influencing them to do it. An example of this is an incident that happened in 1993 with the James Bulger case where two 10 year old boys watched chucky and it influenced them to horrifically murder and 2 year old child. Obviously, films aren't trying to influence people to do things like this as people of the certification would be older so they shouldn't be influenced - the children were too young and weren't meant to be watching the film. I believe that people enjoy a film more if they are more draw into the story rather than just watching it which is why I want to try as use this theory within my film opening.
Conclusion
To conclude, by during this work I have analysed the aspects and techniques used in film openings that draw in an audience as well as myself. Therefore I now know what sort of things I can include in my own film opening to help make my audience intrigued and taken into the universe of the film. I have also looked at an audience theory to learn how it effects an audience and how I could make use of it in a good way.
This is the main character of this film opening being taken to the airport for a business trip.
He has now been dropped off and is waving good bye to the person who dropped him off.
He has gone to the check-in desk to weigh his suit case and have his pass port checked.
He is getting onto the plane as the captain welcomes him.
He is seated on the plane and is getting ready for the flight.
Everyone is seated and the cabin crew are doing the safety presentation.
The plane takes off.
The cabin crew are giving out refreshments and take is passing by as normal.
Turbulence starts occurring and the passenger spills his drink. The cabin crew advise everyone to sit in their seats and put on their seat belts.
We see that there is thunder and lightning surrounding the plane as they get closer to the Bermuda Triangle.
After a lot of turbulence the plane sits still and then we see a bright light appear which is so bright that you can't see beyond it. Then it goes to black and shows the name of the film. This leaves the opening on a cliff hanger as we don't understand what happened to them therefore the audience will be intrigued and want to carry on watching.
By doing this task it has helped to teach me how to come up with a good storyline in a short amount of time. It has allowed me to practice creating storyboards on the spot and developing ideas for when I create my own film opening. It has also allowed me to consider placement of titles and learn more about what's the best order to put them in that is suited for the type of film opening it is.
For this task, I am going to research into the genres involved in the film industry to fully understand what each of them are and what sort of audiences they attract. I am hoping this task will give me a good overview of the genres so I have a better understanding of them and I have more of an idea of what genre my own film opening could be.
Adventure
The genre 'adventure' is a category in which films contain content like travelling to a destination to get something or save someone, a disaster of some-sort that is causing a big problem, exploration in exotic locations, historic references or unrealistic/exaggerated situations. They tend to have an exciting story that isn't possible to happen in the 'real world'. I do like a lot of films from this genre and I would say it's one of my favourites because you get to see the world from a different perspective and I makes you wonder of the possibilities of what our world could be like if something like what occurs in a film happened or whether it's happening somewhere beyond us. Since 1995, 'adventure' has been ranked the most popular genre by a share of 22.49% compared to the other film genres. It's made a total box office of about $45bn with 708 films. An example of a recent popular film that is of the genre adventure is 'Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children' which is based in the real world, but contains elements that are unrealistic and can't happen. I believe that adventure films target audience range so drastically because they often draw in all types of people from different ages and genders which is why I think it is one of the most popular genres. I am interested in using this genre for my film opening as I really like it and have many ideas for it. However I believe it will be quite difficult to make a good adventure film without out it looking to basic because we don't have a big budget to spend, so we can't travel to an exotic location or buy the equipment to create CGI.
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children trailer:
Comedy
The genre 'comedy' is a category in which films contain content like an exaggerated situation that is however realistic, a sense of humour towards characters and their relationships, a funny storyline with generally a happy ending, content that possibly should be taken seriously but isn't, and people doing things that consider them as ignorant which amuses the audience. I enjoy most comedy films but I don't often watch them as I am not entirely keen on them because I would prefer to watch something with an in-depth/interesting storyline. Comedy is ranked 2nd on the most popular genres watched since 1955 with a share of 21.39% and made a total box office of around $43bn, yet it has had around 2302 films released so a lot more money has been put towards these films compared to adventure films. An example of a popular comedy film is 'Mean Girls' which bases of a realistic but exaggerated storyline where content isn't taken seriously so its enjoyable and funny to watch. The target audience for a comedy film can range from all ages but it depends mainly on the storyline of the film and what its about. For example 'Mean Girls' would probably attract teenage girls because its based on the life of teenage girls at school where as the film 'The Hangover' would probably attract men aged in their 20s because of the age of the characters and that its based in Las Vegas, yet they are both comedy films. I am interested in using this genre in my own film opening because I think it will be easier to create something based on comedy as most comedy films don't need advanced technology in order for it to suit the genre.
Mean Girls trailer:
Action
The genre 'action' is a category in which films contain content such as stunts, chases, fighting scenes, explosions, non-stop motion, good guys battling bad guys, guns, natural disasters and a realistic/well-known location. Action is probably my favourite genre because I feel that they often draw me into the universe of the film well and they have a meaningful/in-depth storyline. Action is ranked 3rd in the most popular genres since 1955 with a share of 18.22% making a total box office $36bn with 816. So generally this genre has worked out better than comedy but as action films contain a lot of stunts, they need a big enough budget to get the equipment to perform it. A popular & recent action film is 'Deadpool' which contains things like stunts and fighting scenes, and bases off a storyline with a 'superhero' defeating the villain. Action is mainly targeted towards males aged from around 12 and up because the characters in these films such as the hero and the villain tend to be male as stereotypically, things like fights, explosions and chases tend to be considered as masculine. I am interested in using this genre in my film opening as even though we don't have a big budget and don't have access to a lot of equipment involved for stunts, you don't necessarily need to include it within the first few minutes of a film while still keeping some qualities of an action film.
Deadpool trailer:
Drama
The genre 'drama' is a category in which films contain content such as a serious but in-depth plot line, realistic characters, settings & situations, and can emphasise other genres such as comedy and action. I have not seen many films that are specifically of this genre but judging with what I have seen alongside TV programmes, I find this genre quite intriguing because it reminds me of a horror movie but in a real life situation as a lot of tension and dramatic irony is used to draw in the audience as it makes you want to understand the story. They can often be based on real stories that have actually happened which helps you to learn more about our world and things that you are unaware of that are happening or could happen. Since 1995, the genre of 'drama' has been made into around 4442 movies which is the most movies made for one genre. I believe it is so popular because often a lot of films that are action, adventure, comedy etc can also contain drama so they are categorised as that as well. However it is ranked 4th with a share of 16.64% and has made approximately $33bn. An example of a specific drama film is 'Deepwater Horizon' which I haven't seen but by looking at the trailer I can tell that it has a serious, in-depth storyline and is based off of a true story. Drama films generally target an older audience because of the mature plots they have however it ranges drastically on who watches them depending on what the story is and who the characters are. I like the idea of using this genre for my own film opening but I would combine it with another genre because I don't have many ideas towards introducing an in-depth storyline at the beginning without it looking too basic so I would include possibly action so there will be action going on as well.
Deepwater Horizon trailer:
Thriller
The genre 'thriller' is a category in which films contain content such as jump scares, constant build ups of tension, draws the viewer into the universe of the film and puts you in the perspective of the main character, and performs an unrealistic but possible storyline. I like thriller films because when your put in the perspective of the main character and tension is being built up, it brings up a lot of emotion and makes you worry or feel the same way as the characters. This draws the audience into the film while taking them out of their comfort zone. This genre has been ranked 5th compared to the other genres with a market share of 8.50% with a total box office of $17bn. Around 895 films have been made of this genre since 1995 which quite a small amount compared to how many drama films have been made. Like drama, thriller is the sort of genre that is often combined with other genres and isn't specifically titled for a film. An example of a thriller film is 'Jaws' with contains and unrealistic storyline but elements of possibility as its about a shark attacking people which can and has happened. I am not so interested on including thriller within my film opening because I feel that you need to get to know the characters in order to put the viewer in their perspective otherwise it isn't as emotional.
Jaws trailer:
Genre Statistics
By doing this task, I have a much better understanding of what the definition of these 5 genres are, how popular they are, what sort of content an audience expects to see within a specific genre and what sort of audience is targeted for them. I looked at these 5 genres in particular because I definitely knew I wanted to base my film opening on one of these and know that I have researched them, it has helped me what sort of genre is best to do and has brought me more ideas. I have narrowed my options down to action, comedy and thriller but I am considering combining them as I have some good ideas for them all. This has helped me a lot with choosing them and now I need to start bringing my ideas together to begin creating my film opening.
Certification can create a big impact on the film industry because films that contain certain content may be restricted to certain age groups which decreases the size of the audience and therefore the size of the income. Institutions need to be aware of who their target audience is and what content they will involve in their films because if their target audience is aimed at people younger than the certification, then it is likely that the film won't be successful as people who would want to watch the film aren't allowed to watch it.
The Woman in Black (2011) is a horror film that experienced a problem towards certification. They wanted to release the film as a 12A so therefore the film would be open to a wider range of people so there would be a bigger audience and a bigger income. However there was a debate about whether the film should've been released as a 15 because of the many scenes that contained supernatural horror and threat towards the main character and others. Yet the film managed to release as a 12A which was beneficial for the films institutions and was very successful.
By doing this work it has helped me to understand more about how important it is to consider the age of the target audience for your film and the content you will involve because certification can cause a great impact towards removing part of the audience who want to watch your film which then decreases the amount of income you will get.
Certification is an important aspect to look at when choosing a target audience for a film. This is considered because if a film was made that was targeted at an audience of 15 year olds and the certification is 18 years and above, then you may not get a big audience as the whole age group the film is targeted at is cut off, and therefore there is not a lot of income. In order to lower the certification, companies need to consider what will be involved in their films so it's appropriate for certain ages to watch as the higher the certification, the smaller your audience will be. Certification exists because certain films contain certain content that may cause effect on people depending on their age. For example, a film containing violence would not be appropriate for a young child to watch. This is here to warn people what sort of content is involved and who the film is suitable for. The British Board of Film Classification (bbfc) regulate the certification for films in the UK to keep younger people safe from seeing inappropriate content.
Types of audience certification:
U - Universal - may contain mild bad language, brief fight scenes, positive messages and have a happy ending.
PG - Parental guidance - suitable for all ages but may contain mild bad language and moderate violence.
12A - Accompanied - suitable for people aged 12 but must be accompanied by someone older than 18.
12 - 12 years old and above - may contain mature themes, discrimination, moderate language and moderate violence.
15 - 15 years old and above - may contain adult themes, drugs, strong language, violence and sex references.
18 - 18 years old and above - contains strong/gory violence, hard drugs, and no limitation for strong language.
R18 - Restricted 18 - no content restrictions as long as it's within the law.
By doing this task I have learnt about the different certifications in the film industry so I now briefly understand what content is not allowed for certain age groups.
