To get an idea of what people look for in a film we conducted a series of surveys. Firstly we held a survey for the genre of film people prefer. Then, through our results we could get an idea of where to go next with our title sequence.
From these results we saw that the most popular genre's are crime and action. We then decided to conduct another survey to find out what age groups what these films so that we new who our target audience was. We set about this by asking friends, family members and colleagues whether they liked action/crime films. It was important we got a variety of answers and so we surveyed people of a variety of age groups and put all our finding together.
Our results showed us that a vast majority of people under 18 enjoy watching action/crime films, however, we were then aware that a lot of films available of this genre, are certificate 18 and so would be unavailable to a majority of our target audience. Therefore we made the decision to make a film that used minimum graphic nature and didn't show explicit violence to get a lower age rating on our film.
For our Moodboard we decided that we would gather together a collection of images from other crime films so that we could identify the main features and conventions that we would need to include.
We decided to name our production company "Nameless Pictures" as we thought it not only adds elements of mystery but also gives our production company unlimited boundaries to the content we produce. Also through questionnaires and surveys we carried out, this proved to be an effective title for our target audience.
We saw that gambling was a common feature in crime films and so decided that we would include this in our film/title sequence. On the Moodboard we included images of people gambling, all of which are dressed to satisfy the genres costume requirements.
Our mood board contains; Production company name, costume ideas, contextual references, props that would be needed, as well as locations that would be needed.
This is the title sequence to the the 2006 James Bond: Casino Royale, which marked as the first appearance of a whole new Bond. The fonts and transitions used in these titles are modern, sleek and sophisticated. The audiences eyes are focused on a montage of casino related objects, the patterns and symbols provide the perfect backdrop. When James Bond finally appears, that in itself was the perfect visual anecdote for the new actor playing Bond and through an array of colours and intrigue the audience is hooked.
An idea that we decided we would take on board was the theme of gambling. James Bond is commonly associated with the suave setting of a casino in which hands are dealt and money is made. We decided that one of the locations we would use in our title sequence would be in an old warehouse, in which a private poker game would be held. As much as we liked the idea of using a roulette table as seen in Casino Royale, we found this too hard to acquire.
The colours begin romantic, yet also deviant, and a kaleidoscope effect is used. Many of the colours used in the opening sequence to this James Bond film contrast and so highlight the different roles each character will take on. For example, James Bond's character is shown in black, making the protagonist defined and stand out and also the femme fatal's face is revealed behind the queen card however only briefly.
The conventions of a film usually reflect on the genre it is categorised as being. Crime films are famously know to contain corruption, deceit and usually follow a narrative of good versus bad. However there are many more conventions commonly linked to crime films that are developed in a way to ensure the genre requirements are met. The codes and conventions of a film are used to address the viewer on what the film will contain, and in crime sequences this can be demonstrated by using particular shots, cuts, music and characters. The pace between shots is usually a lot faster to speed up the action in the narrative making it more intense.
Avid crime film fans are not shocked to see bloodshed and bank robberies, and it is considered a common feature for the audience themselves to establish a connection with the protagonist, before seeing them cunningly betrayed.
A character structure regularly seen supports Vladimir Propps theory of the roles in which each character plays. He states that there are seven characters that play a role in maintaining the desired narrative of a story. These seven characters can easily be identified in common crime films.
Props are also needed to represent the genre, and what is a crime film without a handgun or a facial disguise? These not only indicate to the audience the intensity and drama of the scene but add a sinister layer to the action taking place. This makes the audience want to watch contently so as not to miss anything, however some audiences find material of this sort too much and so that is when the conventions have to be regulated to suit the certificate rating.
Other conventions that can be recognised as being in a crime film can even be the motifs of certain characters. A common plot for a crime story is when an outsider dislikes his low status in life and so strives for more. We often measure the success of a character in a crime genre film by material goods. However, say we were to be watching a romance, then the wealth of a person may be measured through his relationships and the success of them. Often in a crime film we can also identify society as being the protagonists, antagonist.
Lighting is usually left at natural lighting, perhaps using a blue filter, except when wealth is being shown when a much warmer filter is used, making it almost desirable.
As you can see from this video of IGN's top five crime films, many of them share very common running themes such as guns, violence and secretive deals.
For the Preliminary exercise we were given the
following brief:
Continuity task involving filming and editing a
character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite
another character, with whom she/he then exchanges a couple of lines of
dialogue. This task should demonstrate match on action, shot/reverse shot and
the 180-degree rule.
From this we were very aware that we had to film a short piece of footage to a
high standard as well as neatly editing the footage afterwards.
We decided that we would go about this by using a variety of cleverly angled
shots as well as some wide and pan shots. We also wanted to make sure we were
aware that everything we needed was in the shot frame.
After doing this were we able to get some practice at using the camera and other equipment. Also it helped us in forming an idea for the development of our title sequence. From this we learnt on how to create a better setting, in creating shadows where needed. We took on a very Film Noir style cinematography, however the script was far more modern.
