Final Full Product

Here is my final full product of the film opening- A Geek's Date!

 



 

 

I think that the film opening went really well and supports the conventions of a Rom Com as well as slightly challenge them at the same time. 

Editing

Unfortunately, we decided against using the transition of a split screen as we tried it out and it just simply didn't look right of professional at all.
Therefore, we decided to use just simple cuts which I thought flowed and blended more easily and looked overall more effective.

Final Music Choice!

Music!

The music that has been decided on is a Cover of 'She will be Loved'.

I personally disagree with this music choice, however, as a group we asked around different people who ultimately decided on this song choice. 

Despite this my disagreement with this incidental music it does parallel the action well and emphasizes key moments which makes them symbolic and significant. 

This is the cover we will be using: 

Music!

Music

As a group we thought it was best to have a popular song but have it as a cover. This is keeping to the conventions of a Rom Com and personally I think that it will be more effective this way and also engage the audience more. 

Personally, I think that the vocal should be a males voice as the the protagonists in the scene are Joseph and Mollie. The reason I think this because that it will relate to the plot and also, the main audience gender will be girls so the girls will listen to the song and probably will relate to a similar situation and think about it more. 

I really like the song, 'What makes you beautiful' by One Direction. 

I think that girls will love the song and can relate to it a lot.

However, we would need I cover due to copyright, so I searched this and came up with a cover of the song by Alex Goot.

I think that this would work very well and also it is a great cover of it and up beat!

I also, like the song 'Superman' by Joe Brooks. This artist is one that teenage girls love and I think that this will work very well as an opening as it foreshadows possible events that could occur. 

The cover of this is also really good and it is by Patrick Mazzolo

However, my group members have different opinions and some of the suggestions they have came up with are: Good time, Torn, She Will Be Loved and I'm Yours. I think that are all great songs but don't necessarily fit to the theme like the two that I have chosen. 

Props for Joe's Scene

The props for Joseph's scene included:

iPhone 4- This establishes modern technology and helps to connote the modern day and generation. It is also a vital prop used as it enables the twist to take place.


Note pad- This basically just represents the age of going to school and cleary connotes the character of being a geek.

Checklist for Setting Two

Checklist for Setting Two

It was essential to organize myself a checklist of what I needed to remember prior to the filming as I was going to be the only one filming and at the location with the actor.  

This made it a lot easier for me to remember what I needed to bring thus it as successful and very helpful. 

Set of Joseph's House

Set of Joseph's House

Bedroom

The bedroom is situated in the attic with its own floor. It is plain natural colours which connotes being simplistic. I think that this showcases the character due to being a simple boy who care more about his education, friends and family then the aesthetics of life.

Bathroom

The bathroom was situated on the second floor, the floor lower than the bedroom. 

Living Room

The Living Room was on the bottom floor, two floors down from the bedroom. This room was basically just used as a passage way from the stairs to the kitchen. The rooms created a strong friendly, family vibe with the wood colours. It denoted a positive atmosphere. 

Kitchen

The Kitchen was also on the ground floor along with the Living Room. The style of the Kitchen matched and reflected well of the Living Room. It was clear that is was a family environment which also represented the idea of it being a loving and friendly scene. 

Risk Assessment for Joe's Set

Risk Assessment for Joe's Set

Before setting up for filming I had to take another risk assessment because it was a different set to what we used.
I went around the establishment and checked for any risks or hazards that could take place.
This included checking that doorways were clear and also the stairs as I didn't want the actor hurting themselves by tripping or slipping over.
Also I had to check I that carpets were secure to the floor as this would also help prevent any accidents in tripping over.
On the all cupboards that were used I had to open and close them all foray before filming to check that nothing would fall out of them and cause any inconvenience or harm to the objects and actor.
Simple things needed checking like light switches and doors to check that they all worked.
By doing the risk assessment it prevent anything risks or hazards from happening and causing any inconvenience to the filming plan.

Risk Assessment for Mollie's Set

Risk Assessment for Mollie's Set

In order to have a safe, hazard free run of filming it was necessary to have a risk assessment.
Due to filming this in my own house I was aware if there was any risks or problems that could arise.

The problem that I had to be cautious about would be to make sure that all floor area were spillage free to  prevent any risk of anyone falling or slipping over. To prevent this I checked that all surfaces were spillage free before the rest of the team and actors to my house.
Similarly, I checked that there was nothing that were constructing any exits such as chairs in case we had to get out of the house quickly for if there was a fir or something.
Also, I checked that there was no obstructions on the stairs to prevent any risk of the actors falling or tripping in scenes. This was very important as I didn't want anyone to fall over and hurt themselves.

When filming outside I had to make sure that pathways were clear and that the actors knew their route and how to avoid anything that was in the way. Therefore, we did practice runs of getting out of the house, closing the door and walking out of the drive along the lane. I think that this made the actors feel more comfortable and that they were more confident in what was happening and their surroundings.

Checklist for Setting One (My House)

Checklist

In order to make sure that we had everything under control and members knew what they were doing it was easier and practical to arrange a small checklist. 

Weather for filming

Weather for Filming

Today I filmed another part to my opening. I looked at the weather this morning and was slightly worried that it could snow again and the roads would still be icy from the weekend but I decided to go ahead with the plan. The roads weren't too bad so getting to the location was reasonably easy. The only thing that bothered me was that on the establishing shot there is snow whereas on the establishing shot on my other location there isn't. This means that I will have to re take the establishing shot so that the weather matches but this should not be a problem.

Tour around the set

Set- Mollie's House

Virtual Tour

Unfortunately, from this video there has been a few switch around of some items in the house.

Props- Mollie's Scene

Main Props

Mug

This mug was used in the scene of the Kitchen making the morning cup of tea. The reason this mug was used was because it highlights the fact that it is modern day and almost every teenage girl has read the Fifty Shades Trilogy. I thought that this was relevant due to the fact that also in the bedroom there is a Fifty Shades of Freed book situated so it links the two together.

Toothbrush

This Toothbrush was used during the scene in the Bathroom during the morning routine. The colour purple is a stereotypical girly colour which has connotations of wealth, pride and is just a colour that is stereotypically a girls favourite, along with the colour pink.

Comb

This was associated with the Character Harry. It was used and perfromed with almost as a 'Grease' moment and could be quite comical in the fact that he was deadly serious about it. The brush denotes a dominat male that is clearly far more interested in looking good rather than having fun due to the fact that it is carried in his pocket.

Setting of Mollie's Scene

Setting of Mollie's Scene

Mollie's House

All of' 'Mollie's.' locations such as the house, bedroom, hallway, bathroom ,kitchen and the interior are all from my actual house This location is set in Mansfield on a private road. The location is quite tucked and out of the way of any main roads meaning that there isn't a lot of traffic. The house is a new build with could suggest that it is rather posh much like a stereotypical house of a 'popular' girl would be.

Mollie's Bedroom

This bedroom is my bedroom at home. It is full of girly items and memories. The colours don't necessarily connote a girly vibe however the patterns and layout of the room do this effectively in my opinion, this is do to frills and wall art with inspirational girly quotes.

Also, placed in the room they're are. Few items that hint a girly room such as: baby pink GHDs, Ted Baker Bag, Makeup, Fake Tan Lotion, Heels. I placed these items around my room to denote and replicate a stereotypical girls room.

 

Mollies Kitchen

The Kitchen included key objects such as the kettle, fridge, and cupboards which are all key and featured in the filming. However, the lighting was quite difficult to work with as there wasnt much natural lights therefore it was more low key than high key. The colours connote a relaxing feel and also quite modern- Black.

Weather for Friday

Weather For Friday

Ideally I wanted to get the second part of my filming to be filmed today however due to snow this has made it impossible. It's made it impossible because my actor couldn't make it to the set and also not all of us could make it due to roads being snowy and icy.
Hopefully my next option would be to film on Tuesday because the snow should have melted by then.

Lighting for Mollie's Scene

Lighting

Mollie's Bedroom

The lighting was natural due to the fortunate time of day. This was very convenient as it was quite bright outside. Filler lights such as, ceiling lights were used to just reflect the time of day and typical morning routine.

Mollie's Kitchen

The kitchen lighting was more challenging as it was a darker part of the house due to the brightness of the lights. We didn't realize that this would be so much of a challenge and an obstacle until we started filming. This caused for improvisation. Fortunately, I had a torch on my iPhone which we used to highlight key features.

Mollie's Bathroom

The lighting in the bathroom was natural as it was quite bright due to the sky light. This allowed more light to travel through and for the surroundings to seem more bright and create a happy atmosphere.

Costume

Costume

The costume needs to be very realistic and stereotypical to gender and social groups.

Mollie

The character Mollie is a stereotypical girly girl therefore this needs to be shown through the use of costume. My interpretation of a stereotypical girl would be to wear pink as the colour connotes love, popularity, and simply being a girl as it is the associated colour of a girl when female babies are born.
With this in mind, I suggested to the actress who I casted as 'Mollie' to bring her own pyjamas that were preferably pink. The reason that I asked her to bring her own was because of sizing issues and to basicallly cut the cost of buying a new outfit. Another costume that we needed was an outfit to go out in during the daytime. I suggested the outfit to be pink, however due to weather conditions this could not be possible as of the season. So I then suggested a black day dress as it can be classy and can be stereotypical as it is 'a little black dress'. In my opinion although it wasn't what I originally suggested I think that it works.


Similarly, the hair styling of the character Mollie helps to portray her character and personality. This is due to the fact that her hair is really long and thick which is stereotypical to a 'popular girl's' style. Although, her hair isn't the steretypical blonde, I think that this works as it foreshadows that maybe she isn't the stereotypical 'popular' girl and that there could be more to her than just her looks and her popular boyfriend.

Harry

The character Harry is a stereotypical lad. In an American school then he would be classed as a 'Jock' in social groups. My interpretation of this character's costume would be a baggy shirt with jeans and maybe some sort of designer trainer such as: New Balance, Converse, Nike Blazers. In my opinion this connotes being free, careless, and tough. I asked the actor to bring his own clothes due to sizing and to cut the cost, meaning that I wouldn't have to spend money on buying a new outfit. This character only needed one outfit as he is only in the opening for a short amount of time.
Similarly, this charcter should have quite a lot of product in his hair to show that he cares about his image and he is viewed.

Joseph

The character Joseph is a stereotypical Nerd. This will be shown through the sterotypical geeky glasses and clothing that isn't made by a designer. My interpretation of this will be dark colour trousers and a plain t-shirt or a graphic t-shirt. This shows that he is a simple character and reflects on the stereotypical nerd that is perceived in the media. Furthermore, this character shouldn't have any product in his hair because my interpretation of a 'Nerd' is to be simple.

 

Characters

Casting- Photo Documentation

Joesph Lamb
'Joe'

Joseph Lamb is a student at Ashfield Post 16 and loves Drama! He studied drama in Year 10 and 11 and achieved to A*. In this film opening he plays the role of a stereotypical Nerd who is very shy when at school as he feels intimidated by the rest of the social groups, this is because 'Nerds' are at the bottom of a 'school's foodchain'. The character is very sweet, polite and kind and he represents all things a girl needs in a boy but doesn't necessarily want.














Mollie Leadbeater
'Mollie'

Mollie Leadbeater is a student at Ashfield Post 16. Mollie loves Performing in genral. For her GCSE Drama she achieved a B overall and now she takes Performing Arts as an A-Level along with Drama and Theatre Studies.
The character Mollie is a stereotypical girly girl who is very popular at school. It seems as though she has it all, looks, popularity, brains and a popular boyfriend and at first thats all she has ever wanted. However, as the end of her education approaches she realises that maybe she want something more, such as respect and kindness.The character is a kind and thoughtful character deep down but she hides it as if shes wearing a mask to keep her in her beloved social status.










Ross Johnson
'Harry'

Ross Johnson is a pupil at Ashfield Post 16. He also enjoys performing as he takes A-level Perorming Arts. The character Harry is a stereotypical lad. The character cares more about his looks and appearence than anything else, more than his education and his girlfriend. He has no respect for anyone or anything including his girlfriend Mollie. Also, he is the captain of the schhol football team which is very stereotypical to a popular boy.





Storyboard

Storyboard

Here is a brief outline of our plot.

This includes the 3 main sets used which is: Girl and Boy Bedrooms, Bathrooms, Kitchens and Front of Houses.

This was basically used just as a starting point before developing our idea fully and including camera angles so that we have a better understanding and know exactly what to do when it comes to filming the scenes and opening to the film.


Here is the more detailed storyboard.

Within this, it shows what each take should include as well as camera angles and editing techniques such as fades.

By using this it made the process and devising of filming a lot more easier as it was more simple to understand and it helped to run the process more smoothly.

Sticky Notes were used so I could switch the order if I needed to. I may of needed to do this to make the process even more simple by grouping all of the takes that are filmed in the individual sets, or another example would be to group all the takes which consist of the same costume. This would make the process easier, take less time and be simpler for the actors.

Feedback on idea

Feedback on Idea

Today I broadcasted my idea for the film opening on Instagram to see if other people liked the idea. I got nine likes on the photograph, meaning nine likes on my idea. This was really helpful for me to see a positive response as I boosted my confidence about my idea. I feel a lot more positive now knowing that others approve of it as well as myself.

Similarly, Jordan who is in my group updated a similar thing on Facebook and tagged me in it so that we could see other people's responses. 

Pitch

Pitch to Peers About my Chosen Genre Idea

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After me and my group pitched this idea tto the class we were given positive feedback and also improvments to be made or suggestions.
Some of these included:

• Liking the idea of splitscreen
• Use more transitions to make it more interesting and exciting
• Like the idea that the 'popular' girl falls for the 'geeky' boy rather than the cliche other way around
• Make sure that it is unique and stands apart from other typical stereotypical Rom Coms

This feedback was really helpful and It was a great learning experience that was really useful. I plan to take this feedback into consideration and learn from it as I think that it is really important.

Mood-board

Mood-board

I created this mood-board to help me with inspiration. Included in this I have picked three character that I think are important in a romcom- the jock, the popular and the nerd. I think that this is relevant to an ideal romcom situation as it has romantic images of the ideal stereotypical relation around the side therefore hiding the twist that would be intended. Creating this mood-board has really helped me with ways that I can show the relationship.