FILM STUDIES AS DISORDER FINAL CUT

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yLi39ARXVk&feature=youtu.be 

A link to my coursework hope people enjoy!!!

Revision of Section A

Convergence

NBC is a converged industry as it contains many different industries responsible for music, distribution, production, broadcast, cable, digital, film all full under the umbrella of NBC. This is describe as cross-media convergence.

This can be seen as being bad as it reduces competition as it creates film as a product rather than film being viewed as art.

Cas study: Furious 7

Got to Number 1 of Digital Audience Ratings at the end of the November with an estimated 47 million digital hits with the trailer being release. This created a huge buzz around the film.

After the release of the film in April 2015 and it has become one of the world's greatest earning films. This can be seen that the three days after the release with a gross of $147.1 million and after 17 days it broke the record of the fastest time to reach the $1billion mark in terms in revenue.
This is the highest earning film that Universal have EVER made as it is the most successful film in terms of revenue in its history.

Furthermore, because there was no pre-release behind Paul Walker or a tribute towards him in the film, the fans had to go to the film to see Paul Walker's last performance which created even more of a buzz behind the film.

Synergy basically means working together to achieve an objective that couldn’t be achieved independently.

Universal Synergy- Universal use co-production because there are more risks involved with releasing a film nowadays

Jurassic World: Production companies: Universal Pictures, Amblin entertainment (Spielberg)
Distribution- Universal Home Entertainment
Soundtrack- Universal Music
Game- Playstation 2, PSP - Universal interactive
Franchise- 4th in the Jurassic Park franchise
-Joint Venture with Legendary pictures who signed a multi-million dollar co-production/co-finance deal with Universal 2014.
- Other merchandise - toys, clothes, posters, books, all promote the film and benefit Universal financially.

reflective analysis 2.0

Reflective Analysis

Without doubt, our genre for our short film ‘Disorder’ is psychedelic and slightly horror. The genre has heavily influenced the decisions we made for our short film to reflect its hallucinogenic nature. We focused heavily on transitions that emphasise tripping effects to highlight the interference that these drugs have on humans. However, there is a greater message that we wanted to highlight. A film with a similar narrative is Darren Aronofsky’s Requiem for a Dream (2000) and we wanted to portray a similar message about how a drug can consume an individual, leaving them isolated to become a distorted figure which is ultimately living inside a human body. In addition, what our group really wanted to achieve, while cinematography, is to imply the main character’s isolation from the real world and that he is in the wild and disturbing world in which his senses are altered to highlight his slightly shocking trip. We deliberately did this to show how a drug can consume and can make anyone succumb to the ugliest trips making the spectator bear witness to the true effects and eradicate the perception of reality when we follow the actions of Doug (the main character).  

In keeping with the psychedelic genre of our film, we really wanted our sound to emphasise the intensity and perhaps the adrenaline that Doug is experiencing but that the spectator bears witness too as well. Furthermore, the beats of the drum become more vigorous, prominent and intense; they reflect the narrative as they represent the demonic visions in the film.. I wanted the spectator to appreciate yet understand the subtle messages which were portrayed in the film, for example, I wanted my spectator to recognise and acknowledge the change in beat or the reasoning behind the changes of music from heavy and powerful music to when it gradually becomes more forceful. I would like my spectators to make the link that an action moment or ‘Hollywood’ moment is going to occur when the sound becomes distorted.

Our group was only composed of two people; therefore we could effectively agree and compromise with one another as well as effectively establishing narrative with us both focusing on our separate micro features. As I focused on the micro elements which are associated with post-production, I was still able to work on features such as mise-en-scene and help shoot the film as we would have liked it. Furthermore, because I worked heavily on the script, I was able to shape and help the mise-en-scene for the party scene in which I was able to provide the lighting and a suitable location in which to film.

My understanding of editing and sound has improved as not only have I improved my Final Cut Pro skills but more importantly I have learnt how to appreciate editing and its value. I think that without the editing we couldn’t reflect the narrative.  I understand the importance of sound as well as we use sound to create emotion as well as intensity. Furthermore, the message we wanted to convey to our spectators through editing and sound was the hallucinogenic effects of unknown drugs and the disturbance or ‘disorder’ that they bring.

Initially, our group hadn’t considered the use of deer in our film however we adapted to the situation and location, (Richmond Park), therefore we added the deer because we felt that it would add to the deeply disturbing visions that the spectator views. The addition of the deer highlights the disconnection of nature of our main character because through the editing, by changing the saturation of the images of the deer scenes, as well as making the picture more vibrant throughout these scenes, indicates to the spectator that it is still part of trip. A greater meaning that the main character is suffering from his own troubled problems and maybe he has reached his own personal hell in which he has no control over his actions and the drug has completely overridden all of his control his senses. To highlight that he is suffering from an outer body experience, we use the effect of a shadow to imply
that he is overtaken by disorder, powerless to stop himself from the consequent actions.

Reflective Analysis

It needs to be 750 words and should be reflective analysis to your contribution.

To highlight Doug's tripping, we use a series of transitions which distort reality, reinforcing the genre of a psychedelic and . For example, we usea range of colours as

Reflective Analysis

Without doubt, our genre for our short film ‘Disorder’ is a psychedelic and slightly horror. The genre has heavily influenced the decisions we made for our short film as to reflect the hallucinogenic nature of our film, we heavily focused on transitions that emphasise tripping effects to highlight the interference that these drugs have on humans. However, there is a greater message that we wanted to highlight. A film with a vaguely similar narrative is Darren Aronosky’s Requiem for a Dream (2000) and we wanted to portray similar message of how a drug can consume an individual and leaving them isolated to become a distorted figure which is ultimately living inside a human body. In addition, what our group really wanted to achieve is through cinematography to imply his isolation from the real world and that our protagonist is in the wild and disturbing world in which his senses are altered to highlight his slightly shocking trip. We deliberately did this to show how a drug can consume and can make anyone succumb to the ugliest trips making the spectator bare witness the true effects and eradicate the perception of reality when we follow the actions of Doug (main character).

The intended audience for our film was mainly 16-25 year old male (demographic B-C2) but also female as well, but we focused more on the male demographic hence we used a 17 year old male as our main character for our film. Furthermore, I believe that this demographic would engage with this the most and with some of my friends in this age group stated that they enjoyed and connected with our film.

In addition, the psychedelic genre of our film, we really wanted our sound to emphasise the intensity and perhaps the adrenaline that Doug is experiencing only but the spectator bears witness too as well. Furthermore, the beats of the drum become more vigorous, prominent and intensive; it reflects the narrative as it represents the demonic visions in the film as well. I wanted the spectator to appreciate yet understand the subtle messages which were portrayed in film, for example I wanted my spectator to recognise and acknowledge the change in beat or the reasoning behind the changes of music from heavy and powerful music and when it gradually becomes more forceful, I would like my spectators to make the link that an action moment or ‘Hollywood’ moment is going to occur when the sound becomes distorted. An example of when this powerful use of sound was when we used the grass to dominate the frame to demonstrate intrusion and to highlight Doug's intrusion and disturbance of nature we used a high frequency noise which is a signifier for Doug entering the unknown where he is not welcome therefore by using the high pitched sound only reinforces Doug's unwelcome. 

Our group was only composed of two people; therefore we could effectively agree and compromise with one another as well as effectively establishing narrative with us both focusing on our separate micro features. As I focused on the micro elements which are associated with post-production, I was still able to work on features such as mise-en-scene and help shoot the film as we would have liked it. Furthermore, because I worked heavily on the script, I was able to shape and help the mise-en-scene for the party scene in which I was able to provide the lighting and a suitable location in which to film in.

My understanding of editing and sound has improved as not only have I improved my Final Cut Pro skills but more importantly I have learnt how to appreciate editing and its value. I think that without the editing we couldn’t reflect the narrative.  I understand the importance of sound as well as we use sound to create emotion as well as intensity of the film as well. Furthermore, the messages we wanted to convey to our spectators through editing and sound was that the hallucinogenic effects of unknown drugs and the disturbance or ‘disorder’ that they bring.

Initially, our group hadn’t considered the use of deer in our film however we adapted to the situation and location, (Richmond Park), therefore we added the deer because we felt that it would add to the deeply disturbing visions that the spectator views. In addition, the addition to the deer highlights that the disconnection of nature from our main character because through the editing by changing the saturation of the deer scenes as well as making the picture more vibrant throughout these scenes indicate to the spectator that it is still part of trip or a greater meaning that the main character is suffering from his own troubled problems and maybe he has reached his own personal hell in which he has no control over his actions and the drug has completely overridden all of his control over himself. To highlight that he is suffering from an outer body experience, we use the effect of a shadow to highlight that he is no longer in control of himself anymore and that he is overtaken by disorder, powerless to stop himself from the consequent actions. Furthermore, the long shot used of Doug cleaning his face in the lake was not anticipated or planned however we included it as it can be interpreted to signify that Doug is attempting to cleanse himself from the drug by essentially 'washing away his sins' in an attempt to end his never-ending nightmare.

Overall, I think that I managed to develop my micro elements (editing and sound) to really create a short film in which I am rather pleased with the outcome of the film as well, as our group managed to expose and utilise micro features to the best of our ability meaning that ultimately we were happy with the final outcome.

ms sharpe essay

What is significant about setting and/or place in your chosen American films?

Without doubt, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969, George Roy Hill) and Thelma and Louise (1991, Ridley Scott) both heavily focus on iconic locations, such as the grand canyon and the endless mountain ranges in Mexico, to establish genre, as well as establishing the theme of freedom and representation of gender.

Firstly, Maria Sturken (film critic analysing Thelma and Louise) states that ‘Thelma and Louise is a film about space, both the wide open space of the American West and the confining interior space of the home.’ This can definitely be seen by Louise being trapped in the workplace and Thelma being trapped at home, yet as the film progresses Thelma and Louise’s journey shows how they become liberated as there are numerous open wide shots of both of the women in the Thunderbird 66’ driving across the landscape. Furthermore, the ending of Thelma and Louise is in such an open location that it is implied that Thelma and Louise have reached the pinnacle in their journey for liberation and whilst they may have been caught up by on the police, both characters exchange kisses and hugs before Scott cuts to an extreme wide shot in which the Thunderbird 66’ appears miniscule at the centre of the frame therefore implying that because there is so much space, Thelma and Louise are truly liberated and free from their problems meaning that it seems fitting that the film ends with them driving off the cliff as it suggests that whilst they may not survive the fall, Thelma and Louise are still continuing their journey after the end of the film only making the ending of the film more mythical. On the contrary, Butch and Sundance is almost an opposite in terms of opening and endings. Whilst the narratives are virtually the same (on the run) the opening of Butch Cassidy and Sundance are much more open and the men are free to roam and be outside whilst in Thelma and Louise, Louise is trapped in the restaurant and Thelma is trapped at home by Daryl. With Butch and Sundance going on the run all the way to Bolivia, the use of cinematography by Connie Hall implies to the audience that they are trapped and ultimately they no longer have any freedom or liberation which suggests their entrapment when they die. In their final scene, as well as being trapped by the army, Butch and Sundance are trapped within the frame as they appear as diminutive figures with the shadow occupy most of the frame. This high angle shot of the room demonstrates that their journey is over as they are finally trapped which goes against the genre of a western as in typical westerns the final shootout is usually outside with many passers-by being witnesses to the finale.

In addition, the significance of the locations in Thelma and Louise can be used to demonstrate the representation of gender in the film. Scott cleverly shoots most of the film on the old dreamy ‘Route 66’ type highways making the viewer really admire the beauty of the mid west. Furthermore, the beauty of the landscapes which are portrayed by picturesque wide shots at sunset as the bold orange colour of the sun merges into the landscape, with the mountain ranges piercing the land as well as revealing the land’s vastness and its liberty that it provides to Thelma and Louise. Also, since this is a road movie, it sticks to the convention that the road is territory for men and that women do not belong on the road. However, whilst Scott doesn’t destroy this convention, he simply makes the road a form of a challenge for the women so this only heightens the significance of their emotional journey as always on the road they are pinned back by obstacles (the attempted rape, J.D stealing the money and the police tracking them down). Scott uses the road as a way of implying that perhaps that the road is no place for women or that the long path and journey of freedom for the women is full of obstacles giving a greater meaning and significance of their sacrifice because by embracing death, both of the characters are embracing their true freedom.

By contrast, Butch Cassidy and Sundance stick to the genre of a western with the men being the free and predominant figures in the film with women as second class citizens, as mainly women are prostitutes in this film indicating how there is no gender equality. Furthermore, because the main characters are outlaws, Hill, captured by the cinematography of Connie Hall, was able to demonstrate the men’s freedom and lack of place in society by them on the run in the run through the vast and barren mountain landscapes of the mid west. Many wide-shots that are used show the men as small dots with a trail of dust behind them as well as only occupying a fraction of the frame which suggests the land has swallowed them as well as providing them protection from the super posse and ultimately suggests that they are free as a result of it. Even in Bolivia, with the frames of the camera dominated by lush green as well mountainous terrain not to dissimilar to the mid west.

Another point that could be made is that whilst Thelma and Louise's journey develops, as the landscape becomes wilder, so does the women's appearance. This can be seen that both women ditch their original clothing at the beginning of the film such as Louise's headscarf and Thelma's dresses are swapped for jeans and vests instead. Whilst this occurs the women venture further from the city or civilization and they head of into the wilderness of the Grand Canyon which makes them go slightly nomadic as they cut off from civilization and it ends up only the main characters embracing the inhospitable wasteland of the Grand Canyon therefore their journey as well as being a journey of freedom can be seen as a journey of the women embracing nature and disengaging with society.

Ultimately, the locations of the film are extremely significant as without the locations of the road or the vast mid-west countryside then both of the films would not be able to establish the genre of the films. Therefore, if Butch Cassidy didn't have the huge mountain ranges or if Thelma and Louise didn't have the 'Route 66' type highways, then both of these films would have not followed the conventions of the genres of the films therefore this is why the locations of these films are extremely significant.