UNIT 4: PRE-PRODUCTION PORTFOLIO ASSIGNMENT 1: PRE-PRODUCTION REQUIREMENTS

UNIT 4: PRE-PRODUCTION PORTFOLIO

ASSIGNMENT 1: PRE-PRODUCTION REQUIREMENTS

1)   The Requirements of a moving image production 

Pre-production is a necessary but lengthy and time-consuming process, which is understandable considering the factors like financing and locations for example. 

Finance in film is an important aspect as typically the budget determines the overall quality of the film for example if you have a bigger budget that allows you to by higher quality cameras and equipment as well as higher tier actors to give better performances.

The budget of a film usually depends on how well its expected to do for example a marvel film typically makes hundreds of millions occasionally billions so the budget is set high where as a smaller film no one has heard of with actors no one knows about will be given a very little next to nothing budget. Films get their budget from investors again take marvel studios for example they get their budget from Disney a multi-billion-dollar company where as smaller film usually have to get loads of investors from small companies to even people with money to spend like doctors all of which want something back so they usually agree to a percentage take of the films earnings.

Locations are another important factor in film for example filming at recognizable landmarks or having them in the background helps immerse an audience into the film. There are different laws depending on where the filming takes place for example some minor filming laws in London are: 

“If you are less than five people, including participants and actors, you count as a small crew, once you have identified the areas you wish to film at, you need to contact the relevant Borough Film Officer to advise them of your filming."'
"If you are using a handheld camera and your filming will not cause an obstruction then there is no restriction to filming on London’s public highway. In some boroughs this also extends to small crews with a tripod. No license or any form of official permission is required.”

Depending on where the filming takes place you need to obey the correct laws otherwise legal action may take place. This is usually with films that either don’t have the budget materials for building an entire set.

Timescales affect the production so planning timescales are important for example if the film takes place in different locations then rather than filming the entire film in chronological order it saved time and money if you start filming in the easiest location and film all the scenes that happen in that location first the move to the next location and set up there ready to film all the scenes in that location then once all the footage has been acquired then an editor would put all the footage in chronological order.

Big blockbuster films usually have all the best equipment like expensive cameras, lenses, mics and more but usually if it’s just a onetime film or even a mid-budget film, instead of buying these expensive cameras they work out an estimate of how long the filming will take and rent them out to save money which allows them to use multiple expensive cameras and equipment for cheaper saving their budget. For reference an ARRI ALEXA filming camera usually costs around 1,200 pounds per week whereas to buy one can cost around 119,998 pounds.

2)   The formats for Pre-production process

The proposal is important as its basically the pitch you give to get people on board with your film idea like investors and crew. In a proposal you identify the target audience to ensure that you have considered them to investors for example if you only had a film idea but didn’t think of what kind of audience you want to appeal to people will be less likely to invest as it shows there hasn’t been much thought put into the film which will damage its performance as the main crew don’t know the audience they are trying to please.

A proposal usually contains the screenplay, the main characters and a brief of the story as it needs to convince investors that it will do well and be a success. 

The definition of Scripting: Master scene script is “The format required by the motion picture industry for modern screenplays before they are greenlit for production”. This demonstrates how necessary it is as it can be shown to investors as it’s easy to visualize along with producers as a reader-friendly screenplay. It’s a basic version of the story including dialogue and description and excludes technical aspects like camera directions but instead split into sections of dialogue, narrative, description and headings. The importance of a master screen script relies on being an easy to read screenplay and to help for visualization to investors and producers to get onboard onto the production and also to help as a selling point and to show what the film essentially is.

A shooting script is different than a master scene script but none the less necessary to the film as the master scene script is a used to sell the film the shooting script is more helpful during the production of the film mainly for the director to have an efficient and smooth shoot reducing the waste of budget and time as it is the schedule for the whole shoot laying out the number of scenes for example increasing the efficiency pf the production.

After the script is done the next step is the story board which is the graphic representation of the film will unfold which demonstrates its importance as it’s the next step in translating the film from a script to visuals, it divides each scene and shots into story board panels to help the crew such as the cinematographer and director for example to visualize the types of shots are wanted for the scenes. This is also helpful for feedback from the crew before production to see potential errors before production and to predict the cost of the setup and/or creation of the scenes.

The shooting schedule is the predicted timeline that is needed to schedule the filming and breaks down the dates of shooting which is checked and ordered in the most efficient way to save time and budget and allows directors to time manage effectively. Of course (like every other aspect of a film) it doesn’t always go to according to plan. For example, the shooting schedule for the film Jaws was estimated to be 55 days instead the filming took 159 days of shooting.

Other paper work is vital when it comes to forms and legal documentation for example copyright clearance is necessary to ensure that there’s no legal problems when it comes to music and such eliminating any rights issues, other forms are important such as location release forms, location scouting templates, sound templates, risk assessments and many more.

3)   The functions of Pre-production 

Pre-production is vital and everything before the actual filming has benefits such as time to edit or alter aspects of a film before production saving budget and time, it also allows for time management to know when and how long filming will take place and to plan out expenses. Scripts go through other crew members that it will affect the most and feedback can be given where necessary then after the scripts the next step is storyboards to help with the visuals for the crew like the director so they know what scenes are wanted and where they can implement their own ideas if they haven’t already. Then it moves to the locations and finding which ones are right for each scene and what will work best for filming, cost is a factor in the decision making as it depends on the budget. The next step is the shooting schedule as it helps to plan out when, where and how long filming will take place in each location, this planning cuts down on time and budget as the filming needs to cooperate with the common renting of equipment. Most well received films have had a big pre-production which shows its value and this also allows for recognition for the crew of the film if it goes well for references for working on future films and more.

4)   The purpose of Pre-Production 

Pre-production is also necessary to ensure there are no legal or safety issues on set or with the film by obtaining the right contracts and filling out the right forms. Pre-production allows for time to go through all this before filming. The legal action that is needed to be taken care of are the health and safety issues and forms to ensure that the crew are ensured if anything was to go wrong on set whether it’s a stunt or just an accident with the staff. Permission is needed when using copyrighted material for example music for none diegetic sound. When filming in public areas if the public are filmed or affected by the production the correct procedures are needed to be followed like a filming license mainly for areas such as streets, permission is also required when filming at privately owned locations. Actors permission is also needed to be sought out usually this is a simple procedure like a contact they can read and sign before production to ensure they know how and where the film will be produced and permission is given for it to be released. An Age rating is procedure every film needs to go through and typically this is done through the BBFC in the UK at least as they review the material that has been sent in and give it a somewhat accurate age rating but if the deem it necessary they have the legal power to cut or even reject the film but all action is publicly discussed and follow our guidelines through a collaborated contract that all parties need to agree on (parties being the BBFC, the public and the film industry) and is tailored around the targeted audience. 

Learning Aim C

Unit 10 – Assignment 1

Unit 10 – Assignment 1

Codes and conventions

Stylistic

The horror genre is one of the more recognizable genres which allows horror films to be analyzed with ease as they have been drawn out and redone numerous times which creates a pattern of repetition, two examples of this are Friday the 13^th (2009 reboot) and Alien.

These two films are a prime example of the repeated codes and conventions in the horror genre, but as the theorist Steve Neale suggest, an audience demands repetition and difference and the horror genre is made up of both especially these two films.

One of the most iconic scene from the franchise is the scene of the chest burster killing one of the characters in the film. This follows some codes as its bloody by spurting out blood everywhere but the use of diegetic sound creates this realism for the audience which shocks them as this bloody mess I going on screen, this goes against the codes and conventions of a horror film as a usually the sound intensifies a murder or tries to scare the audience by instantly going load to create a jump scare.

Alien (a very iconic and well know horror film) is almost entirely shot in lowkey lighting which is a clear code for the horror genre and creates a constant eerie atmosphere creating suspense and allows the audience to sympathies with the characters with how little they can see.

                                                                                       

Another stylistic code and convention of the horror genre is the

isolated setting creating fear as the characters can’t leave nor ca they call for help. Alien’s location follows this convention as it’s on a ship in space and the alien is in with them and as they can’t leave the ship making escape/survival difficult creating tension and a sense of being hunted. Friday’s location also follows this convention as it’s on a camping site which is in the middle of nowhere and audiences can recognize this as its purpose is to be isolated away from technology and on the country side away from any and all safety.

Usually in the horror (mainly the slasher genre which resides in horror) there is a central weapon or prop used that can be recognized, two examples are Michael Myers’s kitchen knife and predator’s wrist blades. Jason’s machete falls directly under this convention as its used in very film and is associated with the character. Whereas Alien goes against the character is it kills without using anything that isn’t a part of the character’s costume for example it’s tale, second mouth and acid blood, this keeps true to the animalistic nature of the Xenomorphs.

A recognizable and iconic costume/look is what every horror film/franchise tries to accomplish which is what these two films accomplished as Jason’s hockey mask, towering body along with his machete has become an icon for the character as his height dehumanizes the character making him more of a monster and a beast, his iconic mask hides his disfigured face but intensifies the fear of the unknown as the human imagination will always be worse no matter how good the makeup is. The costume/look of a Xenomorph is instantly recognizable not only due to its franchise but through the freedom they had to create this creature as it didn’t need be something anyone had seen before as it was unworldly, and as it was a part of a species with realistic attributes like the tail and body it frightened audiences to think that this could exist somewhere out in the far depths of space.   

Narrativ

Films in the horror genre usually have a predictable narrative for example one of the most used convention of horror is the final girl where the films begins with a group of character’s which re usually just introduced to be killed off and by the end the final girl is left to either escape of to defeat the main antagonist, these film directly follow this convention the final girl in Friday is Whitney Miller played by Amanda Righetti and in Alien the final girl is Ellen Ripley played by Sigourney Weaver. 

The purpose of a final girl is to have a (despite her gender) relatable character that the audience can sympathies with as the story progresses and to express terror to the audience throughout the film.

Another narrative convention is isolation, the isolated setting traps the protagonist and antagonist together which at first allows all some/all other characters to get killed as the protagonist is hunted but either near the end or half way through the film the protagonist realizes they need to fight back which results in the conclusion/final battle ending by the traditionally the final girl finds a way to get the upper hand, in Friday its Whitney Miller using the locket of Jason’s mother as she looks like her to confuse Jason as they surprise him and “kill” him, in Alien its when Ripley fights the alien queen with a mech suit. 

These films take a very different approach to defeating their antagonist the more memorable is Aliens since its more of a show down and a struggle between the two characters which creates tension and excitement whereas Friday’s approach is more anticlimactic as they psychologically stun him by chance that the final girl happens to look similar to Jason’s mother and then beat and “kill” him.

The structural theorist Tsetzvan Todorov suggested the five stages of a film which were the Equilibrium, Disruption of order by an event, Recognition that the disorder has occurred, the attempt to repair the damage of the disruption, A return or restoration of a new equilibrium.

Todorov’s Theory can be applied to both films, in Friday the equilibrium is when the teens are all happy and normal having a good time, the disruption is when Jason attacks them then when they try and run and hide that becomes the Recognition of the disruption then comes the attempts to repair the disruption when they try and kill Jason then when they succeed this is the restoration of the new equilibrium.

In Alien the Equilibrium is the journey to their destination, the Disruption is when one character gets infected with the face hugger which leads to the chest burster comes out and kills the character this would be the recognition that the disorder has occurred leading to other events throughout the film, the attempts to repair the damage is when they kill all the aliens and finally the new equilibrium is when the characters return to highper sleep.