Action Movie!

This week in class we learned about the structure of movies and how screenwriting fits into that structure. We talked about the structure, cycle, and act structure of movies. The structure of a movie is basically the selection of events from the character used to arouse a specific feeling. It is important that the events selected do a good job of arousing a feeling; Eric definitely stressed that. The movie cycle includes: goal, action, conflict, and reaction. Though regular length movies have three or four acts, we will have a one act movie that encompasses the aspects of all the acts, so we’ll have to include the exposition, build up, and climax in five minutes. We also learned the format of screenwriting, the job description of screen writers, and the relationship between the screenwriter and the director.

The highlight of the class, though, was finally getting the specifics of our five minute video! I was very excited to see what type of movie we were going to do. Some of the requirements of move include 1) a clown or mime 2) the lines: ““Why is this happening to me today of all days?” and "It would be better for us not to talk about that” and 3) a guitar, a cheese grater, and skull. Very peculiar stipulations for a movie, but I’m sure we can figure out creative ways to incorporate them.

My group (the best group BY FAAAAAR) was assigned an action movie. I think everyone in the group was very excited about the assignment. We started brainstorming instantly about possible ideas, characters, plots, and even cool screen shots we could include in our movie. As far as ideas, I think we all want it to be a suspenseful movie as well as action packed. We thought a lot about who our main character could be. We thought about a child action start, but it would be difficult to have a child come in whenever we needed and act without some kind of pay or reward. I think we’re pretty set on having a B.A. female action character. I like that idea and I think that we could have a lot of fun with that. As far as plot, we have not come up with anything concrete. We thought about having something very simple but stressful that a lot of people could identify with (like losing a key or paper) occur to the main character and showing all that action that ensues as she attempts to retrieve. A chase scene was agreed upon by all the members. I think a chase scene could add to the build of suspense and the overall entertainment of the film. Some shots we thought would be cool would be a staircase scene or a shot that focuses on the feet of the character and the pursuer. We have plenty of ideas floating around, but I think it’s important that we get them down soon. Develop our plot and work from there…

One of my main concerns is special effects. We tend to expect action films to have top of the line special and visual effects. We, as poor, uneducated (in the realm of special effects) college students, do not have the means to pull of blockbuster or even bad movie special effects. So I think one of our challenges will be to have special effects that are low budget but are still visually effective. I’m excited to see how our project turns out.

Also, Eric said something about having an award show. That would be a lot of fun…

Singin' in the Rain

So…Huntze I will say on my blog that you were right, Singin’ in the Rain is a really good movie. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this movie. Basically, Singin’ in the Rain is about a larger than life silent film actor, Don, making a transition from simply being a face in a silent movie to being an actor in a talkie/musical. It is filled with vivid, colorful musical scenes, fun and intricate choreography, and plenty of singing. The movie also depicts some of the problems that this transition created (i.e. the placement of the microphone, Lina’s annoying voice).

I thought the audio editing and the sounds of the movie were unique and different compared to Sunset Boulevard. A lot of the sound was used to emphasize the movement and action of the scene rather than emphasizing the mood. I forgot the exact term for it, something like Mickey Mouse, but the sounds very exaggerated and cartoon-like. One example of this was the make them laugh scene. Different, unnatural sounds were added to the scene to emphasize him falling, hitting the ground, or back flipping off walls. I don’t think this type of sound editing is bad, I just think it gives a different feel to the movie. I think it sort of takes away from the realism of the movie but adds to the overall excitement and entertainment. Also, this movie introduced us to the use of ADR, or additional dialogue recording, which is when lines or songs are re-recorded and added to the movie at a later time for clarity or better sound quality. This technique is also used to improve the sound of different actions like the feet tapping the ground during the tap dance numbers were re-recorded and added to the movie.

I was impressed by the skill level of the actors, also. The actors were multi-talented, so it’s kind of wrong to just call them actors. There were multiple song and dance scenes in the movie and the main actors were all able to sing, dance, and play their character. However, everything was very theatrical and over the top. Some of the musical scenes seemed to develop out of nowhere and have nothing to do with the movie. For example, a light-hearted song and dance scene starts when Don is getting lessons from a voice coach. Sometimes it just seemed like they just threw in musical numbers, but I thought they were all very enjoyable.

The theme of the movie basically suggests that the movies and the magic of movies are better than real life. The best example of this is when Don tells Kathy about his true feelings for her; he can’t say exactly how he feels unless he’s on set and lighting, mood, and scene are perfect. To me, this scene exemplifies the theme the best because this is supposed to be a very important and intimate part of a relationship starting and the fact that Don couldn’t express his true feelings without being on a set stresses movie rather than real life.

Making a movie...

One of the basic techniques we learned about is the rule of thirds which basically means to divide the shot of the camera into three equal parts vertically and horizontally. To utilize this technique, it’s important not to have the subject in the same third over and over and not to film the subject in the center third. Changing the positioning of the subject adds a dynamics to the shot and helps with the aesthetics of the movie. Viewers’ eyes are drawn to the top line of the horizontal thirds and the outer sections of the vertical thirds, so keeping the subject in those areas help emphasize anything important about the subject. Also, it can help convey different emotions depending on the mood of the scene. I think the rule of thirds will be a pretty easy technique to use in the five minute project because it doesn’t require anything but the camera and the creativity of the people making the movie.

Manipulating the lighting is another very important technique that can help enhance a movie. Lighting, similar to the thirds rule, is a technique used to emphasize the subject. V for Vendetta uses lighting very well. There’s a shot where the main, female character, Eve Hammond, is in the front of the shot and the lighting is placed so that her face and shoulders are more illuminated than the background and other character in the shot. Adjusting and manipulating the lighting of the subject and background would be an accomplishable task for student movie-makers; lighting is pretty cheap and easily accessible.

As far as composition, I think using the 180 and 30 degree rules will help in the editing process of the movie. These two rules will be easy to employ. Basically, these rules help with continuity. With the 180 rule, there is a line of action and the camera is not supposed to cross this line of action because it confuses the viewer. The 30 degree rules states that a new shot should be taken from greater than 30 degrees from the previous shot because shots taken from less than 30 degrees are deemed unnecessary. An example of the 180 degree rule is commonly seen during the conversation scenes of movie such as the conversation between Vince and Mia in Pulp Fiction. In this movie, close-ups and cross cutting were used along with the 180 degree rule during their conversation in the restaurant booth.

I think the techniques we’ve learned in class so far are easy enough to employ in our movies. Simple manipulations can go a long way in creating a mood or conveying a theme in a movie. I think it’s more about understanding the techniques and finding different ways to use them effectively and not randomly and without purpose.

I like my films like I like my coffee...black!

Film Noir - a French term that translates into black film - is a style of American cinematography popularized in the 1940’s and 50’s. These movies were deemed “black films” due to the dark visuals, the common theme of violence, sex, and mystery, and the fact that the movies do not have happy endings. Film noirs have main characters, but never heroes; the main characters have major personality flaws that prevent them from achieving happiness or success. Visually, these films are just as dark and dreary as their characters and plots; they are shot in black and white and dim lighting. This type of coloring adds to the overall dreary, gloomy, or mysterious mood that is invoked by the plot and characters in film noir.

In class, we watched Sunset Boulevard as an example of film noir. I am definitely one of those people who was bias towards black and white movies; I assumed that old films were boring and not worth my time. I was wrong! Sunset Boulevard completely changed my idea about old films. From the creative and captivating opening scene to the ridiculous relationship between Joe and Norma Desmond, I was impressed by the entire movie. It was interesting to see the characters, especially Norma Desmond, so engulfed in their dreams and ambitions, but never being able to attain their dreams made for a good movie. I especially liked the fact that the movie starts by showing the death of the main character. I found myself half expecting some kind of happy or satisfying ending. I kept thinking something pivotal would happen so that everything would work out because you get attached to Joe and become sympathetic towards him. But in the back of your mind you know that nothing is going to work the way the characters would want or expect them to.

I really enjoyed this dark film. It’s very different from the movies that I am used to seeing, but I plan on watching more of them in the future. ..