The Props

My film is set in a fantasy world and one of the most important things to do is immerse the audience in this world without anything pulling them out of it. One way that they can be fully emerged is through the use of the props. The props that are involved in my piece will consist of a bow and arrow, a necklace and may include various campfire equipment, such as pots and pans. So far I have got the bow and the pendant. The bow was initially red so it was painted brown to look more immerse, as can be seen in the picture. The necklace is the most important prop as the whole story is built around it. I decided to go with a simple blue pendant necklace as seen below. I chose this as it needs to look like as normal so that it gives it an innocent persona even though it causes nothing but problems for the person who wears it. The next step is to decide on whether a campfire will feature in the film as these props will need to be assembled if this is the case.

Audience research into fantasy films

With any film making sure their is an intended target audience and that you will capture their attention is key. Before I start my own piece, I need to make sure my chosen genre is appealing, and who it is appealing to. To do this, I need to conduct some audience research to see what sort of genre people like and what they're opinion is on the fantasy genre. There are a variety ways of doing this however I feel the best way of doing this is through a questionnaire. Therefore, I put together a survey which asked questions which could help me determine if my choice of medieval fantasy was the right one. Below are all the questions that I asked along with some analysis of the feedback received.


What is your favourite film?

On average, peoples favourite films fell under the action genre, such as 'Purge Anarchy' and 'Fury'. There were a few people who preferred films that were far from reality and could have been classed as a fantasy film. Most of the other films mentioned do not move away from reality too much like fantasy films do. Some examples of this would Forrest Gump and Billy Elliot. 

What is your preferred film genre?

In this question, the participant could choose from a selection of the most common film genres such as action, adventure, horror, comedy and so on. All but one of the participants said that they enjoyed the action genre. More importantly half of the participants said that they enjoyed fantasy films. The fact that most like the action aspect of films means I could interoperate this into my piece by adding a small action sequence such as a chase or a fight scene. 

How often do do you watch fantasy films and do you like fantasy films?

My research shows that the majority do watch fantasy films however and do enjoy the genre. However the people who didn't really watch much of the genre and didn't enjoy it had a similar taste in other films. For example, two of the participants who said that they didn't enjoy the genre were both into horror films. This could show they prefer things that could be related to real life rather than that of imagination. 

If yes, What is your favourite fantasy film and why?

By an outstanding amount, the majority of the participants favourite film was the Hobbit. This helps greatly in cementing my idea to make a medieval fantasy film as it seems this the most appreciated fantasy sub-genre. There were a few other sub-genres that stood out such as Sci-Fi fantasy such as Avatar. 

Overall, this survey has helped greatly as has cemented the idea of a fantasy film, specifically a medieval fantasy film. Although not enjoyed by some the majority do enjoy a film which takes them away from reality and into a completely different world and this is what I plan to do with my piece. 

If you'd like, you can help me further my research by completing this poll to the right about your favourite genre 

  

The Location

As I am going to be making a fantasy film, making sure the location immerses the viewer in the world is important. After looking around I decided the best location to use would be a forest of some kind as it is hidden away and surrounded by natural scenery. As well as this, the majority of the short film will take place in a forest so it needs to be perfect. The best place to use which will work well and is most convenient is a wood a couple of miles from school. It's very closed off meaning there won't be many distractions or interruptions. On top of this there are quite a lot of clearings where the camp could be set up. Beneath are a few pictures of the forest showing how ideal it would be.

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Representation of youth in Misfits

In our theory lessons, we have moved from youth culture films to youth culture TV. We started off looking at programs from the past such as Grange Hill and Biker Grove. These programs were a influencial starting point for youth culture as it presented 'real' issues that teens were dealing with in a way in which that made it easily relatable. As times moved on, more and more shows started appearing that managed to successfully potray how the youth were seen. One of these programs is Misfits. Misfits is a program that revolves around a community center and a group of young people serving their time in community service. Each character involved accuratly potrays a different social group as well as showing another unknown side to them. For example, Kelly is a stereotypical chav but as the series goes on the viewer comes to realise she cares a lot about how people perceive her. Another example is Simon. Simon starts off as a creepy nerd who struggles to fit in but behind it all is extremely clever. Youth Culture is also shown through the main theme of the show, superpowers. Each character finds themself with a superpower that reflects their character whether it be the power of invisibility for a shy person or the ability to turn back time for someone who has made a life changing mistake. Youth culture is represented well in this program as it gives a more physical interpreatation of the different youth groups that are out there.

The Costume

The costume in a media production is essential as without it, it can break the continuity. As my production is a fantasy genre, the costume is probably the best way of portraying this. It has been challenging to find a costume which will fit in with the production but also fits within my budget. After searching I found some costume pieces that will be both effective and within budget. At the moment, their are two costumes that need to be considered. Firstly their is the main character who is a ranger, therefore his costume is going to have an overall rugged look, which could feature such items as a cape, a tunic and some knee high boots. The other character is going to be an peasant. This costume will be a simple brown tunic. Once I have got this costume and are happy with how my characters look, I will be able to go out and start filming!  

Main Characters Outfit                                          Peasant Outfit

Storyboarding

One of the most important aspects of the planning and research stage of the production is making sure that every shot is planned so that when going out to film it can be done effectively and efficiently. The best way of planning these shots is with a storyboard. A storyboard shows a shot by shot plan of what is being used in the production. As well as the drawings, the camera angles and the duration of the shots can be included. For my production I have began this process. I have done this with the first two scenes of the production planning the camera shots and duration in detail. As my ideas change however it is difficult to keep these ideas set in stone. 

Below is a page from the storyboard that I have created so far:   

Submarine Analysis

On the theory side of things, we are continuing to look at contempary youth culture films. The most recent one we watched was Richard Ayoade's 'Submarine.' Unlike most youth culture films, Submarine doesn’t focus on the typical youth groups but instead a boy who doesn’t really fall under any. The story follows an eccentric teenage boy called Oliver who is struggling to juggle his new girlfriend, the chance of his parents splitting up as well as other, smaller things. Although the film is generally light hearted, it does cover some genuine teenage issues. On the most part, it goes against most theorists ideas as many of them talk about reinforcing hegemony and the anti-social behaviour. Although Oliver does act slightly anti-social in the industrial estate he is a mild teenager for the most part. The themes and issues that are covered however do fit the conventions of a youth film. The two most prominent themes that arise are relationships and family issues. As mentioned, Oliver gets a girlfriend, who he’s liked for a while, called Jordana. She’s just as eccentric as him but she has other issues affecting her life as her mum is suffering from cancer. The family issues are the fact that Oliver’s mum and dad are having relationship troubles, and may even face divorce. This relates to a huge amount of teenagers as divorce isn’t rare. Just like Oliver, a teenager would try and do anything to keep their parents from splitting up.   

The Main Actor

Since the start of the pre-production process, I have invisioned what the main character would look like. Ideally, he would be a rugged looking ranger with a beard and a cloak. After thinking about potential actors I decided to go with Sam Parsons (below). I chose Sam as he has a rough beard which will fit the overall rugged look and he is 6.3ft which is an appropriate height for a ranger/hero. The next step will be to assemble a costume so that he will look the part even more.   

Pre-Production Plans

One of the most important steps of any production is the pre production stage. This allows the director to get their plans and ideas into order so that when it comes to the production stage it can be done smoothly and efficently. 

For my production, the pre production stage took a while to get into motion as I was unsure of how the story would fit around the five to six minute length. Once I had this sorted however, many of the other ideas fell into place. The main things to consider at this stage is the storyline, the camera shots and then the mise en scene aspects such as the costume, props and location. Many of these apects will be explained thoroughly on separate blog posts. To keep track of my progress throughout the whole process. In green, you can see the pre production stage an how I have managed to stay to the same dates as the planned calender. So far, this is good but I can see myself going over into the production stage as the costume and some props still need to be either made or bought.  

Attack The Block Analysis

In class, we have moved onto watching some contempoary films which are associated with youth culture. Specifically, we have been focusing on gang culture films. One in particular is the film 'Attack The Block' , directed by Joe Cornish. The film has a strong emphasis on Sci-Fi and comedy, but real issues revolving around teenagers are bought up. This film supports Hebdiges theory that teens are presented through the eyes of adults rather than through the teens themselves. This can be seen through a variety of ways. The protagonists of the film could be seen as the antagonists to begin with as they rob a helpless nurse as she comes back from work. This is a fear that many adults would feel if they were to encounter a group such as the gang in Attack the Block. This helps support Gebners theory that television and film impact the way we see the world. However as the film goes on it becomes clear that there are reasons for the group being as they are. For example Moses, the main character, is seen as quite ruthless and independent but we learn later that he is only 15 and has no real connection apart from an uncle who ‘comes and goes’.  That’s why the block means so much to him as it is all he has and he would do anything to protect it. 

Overall, Attack The Block is a bit different from a typical youth culture film due to all the aliens and so on. However, it manages to pull out some interesting points to do with youth and their 'wolfpack' attitude when with friends, especially on an estate in London.              

Historical Youth Culture Films

On the theory side of media studies, we are focusing on how youth are represented through film and television. This is due to the fact that the exam at the end of the year is focusing on this. In previous lessons we have been looking at a variety of films from since the teenager first emerged so in this post I will go through some of the films which we have looked at and discuss how they have been influencial.

A Rebel Without A Cause (1955)

This film was one of the first influential youth culture films as it began to show teen struggles. It revolves around a young male called Jim who is having trouble dealing with typical problems that people his age face. Although it isn’t strongly seen from a teenage perception it does mark a starting point for starting to address these issues.

Saturday Night, Sunday Morning (1960)

this film is seen from an adult’s viewpoint and focuses on the rebellious side that teens were beginning to show. It focuses on the fact that teens were starting to go out on a Saturday night and get drunk followed by the morning after. This film was made to help show how this way of living was becoming ever more popular for teenagers and what impact it was having on the rest of society. 

A Taste Of Honey (1961)

A taste of honey focuses on a smaller aspect that affects some teenagers, which is pregnancy. Unlike modern times, the majority saw this as unacceptable so it was a controversial topic. It didn’t just focus on this however, it also featured the fact that teenagers wanted to get away from their parents and have a good time as well as the hardships of growing up.