Title Research: Priceless (watchthetitles.com)

How many titles are displayed during the opening sequences to the film?

There are 13 titles seen in the opening sequence.

What images are prioritized in the opening sequence?

Fancy jewelry, umbrellas, and wine glasses filled with wine. 

What connotations do the images carry?

The images carry a level of elegance and sophistication.
It can be implied that the movie has to do with people in the upper class of
society.

How does the film establish an enigma from the offset?

The transition from what looks like the beach and beach umbrellas,
to just two umbrellas in a girl’s hair, definitely adds mystery as to
what this movie is about. As well as the tone and kind of music that they used.

What strategies are used to ensure the film appeals to the target audience?

One of the strategies used was the use of music. The music starts off low and as
the sequence continues it gets louder. This adds to the dramatic effect of the
movie and foreshadows the drama that will happen throughout the movie.
Also, the kind of music that plays is mysterious which aids in keeping the
audience indulged in the movie.

How has technology been used effectively?

It has been used through the use of music, the images that they use as well as
colors.

Title Research: The Back-up Plan (watchthetitles.com)

How many titles are displayed during the opening sequences to the film?

There are about 23 titles displayed in the opening sequence. The way it
flows really set the pace and mood for the rest of the movie.

What images are prioritized in the opening sequence?

The images prioritized are images of babies, children’s drawings, baby toys.  
These bring the audience’s attention to what the movie is going to have a lot
of. 

What connotations do the images carry

The connotation it carries is that everything revolving around the movie will
have to do with babies.

How does the film establish an enigma from the offset?

They establish it by turning objects normally used by adults into items babies or
kids would. For example, when the couple is drinking from wine glasses and
as they clink glasses it turns into baby bottles. This gives the audience an
idea of what the movie will be about while also leaving them wondering what
is going to happen next. 

What strategies are used to ensure the film appeals to the target audience?

Some of the strategies used would be filling the screen with bright colors like
yellow or colors of love such as red and pink, even colors like blue and pink
signifying having a baby girl or boy. The colors are bright to show the
lightness and comedy of romantic comedy. Also, the play on images of
turning things into baby items brings a playfulness in the movie that
brings comedy watchers something to be interested in.  

How has technology been used effectively?

It has been used effectively by incorporating music, animations, colors, and
edits to create a title sequence that leaves the audience on the edge of their
seat and wanting more.

Title Research: Watch The Titles Website

To further our understanding of title sequences, we looked into another website. Upon clicking on the website the first thing that you see are videos of different interviews. This is the section where a title designer gets interviewed about their specific title sequences, the importance that title sequences bring to a movie, and how they got into their job and why they got into it. They have different title designers such as Kyle Cooper who produced titles for movies like Se7en, Spider-Man 2, and Darkness Falls. Another example would be Richard Morrison who made titles for Batman, Brazil, and Enemy at the Gates and Kook Ewo who orchestrated Splice and Silent Hill. All of these title designers bring different perspectives on how to do titles. The next thing you would see on the page are examples from different genres such as Features Films, TV Shows, Event Titles and so on. Getting to look at the different examples really provided me with background knowledge as well as give us some ideas on how we wanted our title sequence to look. After looking at both websites I think this one is better. This is because the first website mostly gives examples, where this website provides a better understanding and perspective of what a title sequence is like.

Title Research: Art Of The Title Website

For our final task, it would only be logical for our group to do research on the art of titles/opening sequences. In order to ensure the overall success and efficiency of the production and pre-production, we went on artofthetitle.com to gain more insight on the topic. This website predominantly focuses on title sequences so it was a good choice. On the website, you are immediately introduced to an article titled “Top 10 Sequences of 2019”. As the title indicates, this section focuses on sequences that the editors of the site saw as the best titles sequences amongst the many movies released last year. These sequences were chosen on the basis of factors such as originality, technique, innovations, and much more. Viewing this page indirectly helped our group. Though the selections were subjective, seeing some of the best titles ultimately gave our group some examples of what a good title sequence. We could then implement this newfound knowledge into our development process.

Genre Research: Queen And Slim

 CAMS (Camera Angles, Camera Movements, Camera Shots)

Camera angles and camera movements play a vital role within the production of this film.
These components aid in adding the dynamic effect that corresponds with the genre

 The Typical Camera angles include:

• High Angles
• Low  Angles

Camera movements include:

• Pan
• Zoom In/Out
• Tracking

Camera shots include:

• Establishing shot
• Double Shot
• Close-ups
• Wide shot 

CLAMPS (Mis-En-Scene)

The mise-en-scene of a film is crucial within any genre.
 Without costumes, lighting, actors, make-up, props and setting it would be impossible to even produce a film. It would merely remain an idea within a film maker’s notebook

Costumes typically in the movie include:

Casual Clothing
Police Uniform
Tracksuits

 Typical Lighting  include:

Lowkey Lighting
Natural Lighting
High Key Lighting

Typical Actors/Actresses  include:

Protagonist
Antagonists
Extras

Make-up typical to action include:

Natural makeup

Typical Props include:

Guns
Cellphones
Cars

Settings include:

An airport
A diner
An apartment
The street

Sounds

The sounds implemented into romance films work to evoke certain emotions within a given scene.

Sounds in Queen and Slim include:
Soundtrack
Voiceovers
 Dialogue
Diegetic Sounds such as gunshots

Editing

The editing within Romance films also plays a crucial role in adding the ‘flare’ and ‘emotional appeal’ associated with this film

Common editing techniques include:

Shot/ Reverse Shot
Fade In
Eye-line Match
Jump Cut

Elements of the Genre

There are several elements that makeup this film:
Concept of Man Vs. Society
Theme of True Love Prevails
Conflict
Rising Action
Sex

What Elements Do I Like?

The sense of intimacy among the main actors
The underlying theme of black excellence
The soundtrack.

What Elements Don’t I Like?

The movie followed a timeline similar to the story of Bonnie and Clyde, and though it was romantic the ending was predictable.

Genre Research: The Sun Is Also A Star

 CAMS (Camera Angles, Camera Movements, Camera Shots)
Camera angles and camera movements play a vital role within the production of this film.
These components aid in adding the dynamic effect that corresponds with the genre
 Camera angles include:
High Angles
Low  Angles
Camera movements include:
Pan
Tilt
Camera shots include:
Establishing shot
Double Shot
Close-ups
Wide Shot
CLAMPS (Mis-En-Scene)
The mise-en-scene of a film is crucial within any genre.
 Without costumes, lighting, actors, make-up, props and setting it would be impossible to even produce a film. It would merely remain an idea within a film maker’s notebook
Costumes typically in the movie include:
Casual Clothing
Formal Clothing
 Typical Lighting  include:
Natural Lighting
High Key Lighting
 Actors/Actresses  include:
Protagonist
Extras
Make-up typical to action include:
Natural makeup

Typical Props include:
Books
Cellphones
Backpacks
Headphones

Settings include:
An airport
A diner
An apartment
The street


Sounds
The sounds implemented into romance films work to evoke certain emotions within a given scene.

Sounds in The Sun Is Also A Star include:
Soundtrack
Voiceovers
 Dialogue
Diegetic Sounds such as singing and trains passing

Editing
The editing within Romance films also plays a crucial role in adding the ‘flare’ and ‘emotional appeal’ associated with this film

Common editing techniques include:

Cross cutting
Action Match
Eye-line Match
Jump Cut

Elements of the Genre
There are several elements that makeup this film:
Concept of Man Vs. Society
Theme of True Love Prevails
Suspense

What Elements Do I Like?

The sense of love amongst the main actors
The plot itself
The soundtrack.
The dramatic irony

What Elements Don’t I Like?

The movie appeared to have an unexpected ending, the female protagonist accepts her fate and is deported to Jamaica with her family; however, it is later revealed that she moves back to New York and encounters her lost lover, a true cliche ending.

Genre Research: To All The Boys I've Loved Before

•  CAMS (Camera Angles, Camera Movements, Camera Shots)

Camera angles and camera movements play a vital role within the production of this film.
These components aid in adding the dynamic effect that corresponds with the genre

 The Typical Camera angles include:

• Dutch
• Camera movements include:
• Pan
• Zoom In/Out
• Tracking

Camera shots include:

• Over the Shoulder Shot
• Two Person Shot
• Close-ups
• Long Shot
• Point of View

CLAMPS (Mis-En-Scene)

The mise-en-scene of a film is crucial within any genre.
 Without costumes, lighting, actors, make-up, props and setting it would be impossible to even produce a film. It would merely remain an idea within a film maker’s notebook

Costumes typically in the movie include:

• Jeans 
• Floral shirts/skirts
• Dark clothing 
• Khakis

 Typical Lighting  include:

• Low key Lighting
• Natural Lighting 
• High Key Lighting 

Typical Actors/Actresses  include:

• Heroine 
• Heroine’s love interests 
• High School Students 
• Extras

Make-up typical to action include:

• Natural makeup

Typical Props include:

• Love Letters
• Cellphones 
• Cars

Typical Settings  include:

• Rural Areas
• A High School
• A house 
• A cabin 

Sounds

The sounds implemented into action films work to evoke certain emotions within a given scene.

Sounds typical to action movies include:

Scores and incidental music that aim to build suspense and rising actions
Usually fast-paced

• Cars moving 
• Doors closing 
• Utensils being used
• Television 
• Voice-overs
•  Dialogue

Editing

The editing within Romance films also plays a crucial role in adding the ‘flare’ and ‘emotional appeal’ associated with this film

Common editing techniques include:

• Shot/ Reverse Shot
• Cross-cutting
• Eye-line Match

Elements of the Genre

There are several elements that makeup this film:

• A sympathetic Heroine
• Emotional Tension
• Happy Ever After Ending
• Believable Plot

What Elements Do I Like?

• The believable plot is something that really appeals to the audience. It creates a sense of hope for some people that they can experience a love like that.
• The emotional plot is another thing that brings in an audience. The emotional rollercoaster that the audience goes through with the heroine allows the audience to feel as if they are actually in the movie.

What Elements Don’t I Like?

• The cliche of always having a happy ending. The way life works, sometimes things happen in life and there isn’t always the cliche of the couple gets married and lives happily ever after.

Genre Research: Crazy Rich Asians

 CAMS (Camera Angles, Camera Movements, Camera Shots)

Camera angles and camera movements play a vital role within the production of this film.
These components aid in adding the dynamic effect that corresponds with the genre

 The Typical Camera angles include:

• Dutch

Camera movements include:

• Pan
• Zoom In/Out
• Tracking

Camera shots include:

• Over the Shoulder Shot
• Two Person Shot
• Close-ups
• Long Shot
• Point of View

CLAMPS (Mis-En-Scene)

The mise-en-scene of a film is crucial within any genre.
 Without costumes, lighting, actors, make-up, props and setting it would be impossible to even produce a film. It would merely remain an idea within a film maker’s notebook

Costumes typically in the movie include:

• Jeans 
• Suits 
• Expensive Jewelry
• Dresses  

 Typical Lighting  include:

• Lowkey Lighting
• Natural Lighting 
• High Key Lighting 

Typical Actors/Actresses  include:

• Heroine 
• Heroine’s love interests 
• The love interest’s family and friends   

Make-up typical to action include:

• Natural makeup
• Glam Makeup 

Typical Props include:

• Jets
• Cellphones 
• Cars
• Mansions 
• Dinner tables/ Utensils 
• Jewelry 

Typical Settings  include:

• Singapore 
• A mansion 
• A yacht 
• A wedding Chapel 
• A hotel suite 

Sounds

The sounds implemented into action films work to evoke certain emotions within a given scene.

Sounds typical to action movies include:

Scores and incidental music that aim to build suspense and rising actions
Usually fast-paced

• Cars moving 
• Doors closing 
• Utensils being used
• Television 
• Incidental music 
• Soundtrack
•  Dialogue

Editing

The editing within Romance films also plays a crucial role in adding the ‘flare’ and ‘emotional appeal’ associated with this film

Common editing techniques include:

• Shot/ Reverse Shot
• Cross-cutting
• Split-Screen 

Elements of the Genre

There are several elements that makeup this film:

• A sympathetic Heroine
• Emotional Tension
• Happy Ever After Ending
• Believable Plot
• A huge fight/ argument breaks out  

What Elements Do I Like?

• The emotional plot is another thing that brings in an audience. The emotional rollercoaster that the audience goes through with the heroine allows the audience to feel as if they are actually in the movie.

What Elements Don’t I Like?

• The cliche of always having a happy ending. The way life works, sometimes things happen in life and there isn’t always the cliche of the couple gets married and lives happily ever after.

Genre Research: Romance vs. Action

 Action

CAMS (Camera Angles, Camera Movements, Camera Shots)

Camera angles and camera movements play a vital role within the production of action films
These components aid in adding the dynamic effect that corresponds with the genre

 Camera angles typical to the action genre include:

• High Angles
• Low Angles 
• Dutch

Camera movements include:

• Pan
• Tilt
• Tracking

Camera shots include:

• Wide shot
• Medium shot
• Close-ups
• Establishing shots
• Aerial shot

CLAMPS (Mis-En-Scene)

The mise-en-scene of a film is crucial within any genre.
 Without costumes, lighting, actors, make-up, props and setting it would be impossible to even produce a film. It would merely remain an idea within a film maker’s notebook

Costumes typical to action include:

• Suits
• Armor
• Dark Uniforms
• Bodysuits

Lighting typical to action include:

• Lowkey Lighting

Actors typical to action include:

• Protagonists
• Antagonists
• Stuntmen
• Extras

Make-up typical to action include:

• Blood
• Bruises
• Cuts

Props typical to action include:

• Weapons
• Debris
• Cars

Settings typical to action include:

• City Streets
• Rural Areas
• Mountains
• Alleyways

Sounds

The sounds implemented into action films work to evoke certain emotions within a given scene.

Sounds typical to action movies include:

Scores and incidental music that aim to build suspense and rising actions
Usually fast-paced

• Diegetic sounds such as gunshots, explosions, crashes
• Voiceovers
• Intense Dialogue

Editing

The editing within action films also plays a crucial role in adding the ‘flare’ and sense of danger/anticipation associated with action films

Common editing techniques include:

• Jump cuts
• Action match
• Cross-cutting
• Split Screen

Elements of the Genre

There are several elements that make up this genre

Conflict

• Man vs. Man
• Man vs. Nature
• Man vs. Self
• Violence
• Stunts

Overall Themes such as:

• Vengeance
• Redemption
• Justice

What Elements Do I Like?

• The emotional roller coaster created by the scenes. This often leaves the viewer on the edge of their seat, stricken by suspense
• The fight scenes. A good fight scene is quite entertaining

What Elements Don’t I Like?

• The cliche aspect of many actions films in which the protagonist defeats the antagonist. This is usually followed by an expected good ending
• Sometimes audiences want to see an ending that is not anticipated, an ending that is ultimately contrary to the archetype

                      Romance

CAMS (Camera Angles, Camera Movements, Camera Shots)

Camera angles and camera movements play a vital role within the production of Romance films
These components aid in adding the dynamic effect that corresponds with the genre

Camera angles typical to the romance genre include:

• Dutch
• High Angle

Camera movements include:

• Pan
• Zoom In/ Out
• Tracking

Camera shots include:

• Over the Shoulder Shot
• Two Person Shot
• Close-ups
• Long Shot
• Point of View

CLAMPS (Mis-En-Scene)

The mise-en-scene of a film is crucial within any genre.
 Without costumes, lighting, actors, make-up, props and setting it would be impossible to even produce a film. It would merely remain an idea within a film maker’s notebook

Costumes typical to Romance include:

• Dresses/ Skirts
• Jeans
• T-shirts
• Comical outfits

Lighting typical to Romance include:

• Natural Lighting
• Bright Lighting
• Dim lighting

Actors typical to Romance include:

• The heroine
• The friends of heroine 
• A love interest
• Extras

Make-up typical to Romance include:

• Red Eyes (from crying)
• Puffy cheeks
• Natural make-up

Props typical to Romance include:

• Electronics
• Restaurants
• apartments/ houses

Settings typical to Romance include:

• City Streets
• Rural Areas

Sounds

The sounds implemented into romance films work to evoke certain emotions within a given scene.
The biggest filming technique that really makes a film a romance film is the music and sounds.

• Diegetic sounds such as footsteps, doors closing/opening, cars moving
• Non-Diegetic sounds such as
• Voiceovers
•  Dialogue
• Sound Motifs
• Sound bridges

Editing

The editing within Romance films also plays a crucial role in adding the ‘flare’ and ‘emotional appeal’ associated with action films

Common editing techniques include:

• Shot/ Reverse Shot
• Cross-cutting
• Eye-line Match

Elements of the Genre

There are several elements that makeup romance films:

• A sympathetic Heroine
• Emotional Tension
• Happy Ever After Ending
• Believable Plot

What Elements Do I Like?

• The believable plot is something that really appeals to the audience. It creates a sense of hope for some people that they can experience a love like that.
• The emotional plot is another thing that brings in an audience. The emotional rollercoaster that the audience goes through with the heroine allows the audience to feel as if they are actually in the movie.

What Elements Don’t I Like?

• The cliche of always having a happy ending. The way life works, sometimes things happen in life and there isn’t always the cliche of the couple gets married and lives happily ever after.
• Sometimes audiences want to see an ending that is not anticipated and leaves you feeling disarray of emotions.

Genre Research: And the Winner is......

As noted by our previous blogs, our group conducted research on 3 genres: Comedy, Romance, and Action. We acquired a decent amount of information in regards to the elements that make up of these genres. Through the analysis of these elements, we distinguished what about them we favored to what we dislike, enabling us to determine which genre we would choose.  Of these three, we have decided to choose romance as the genre for our final task. Romance is a genre typically categorized by themes of love, intimacy, and selflessness. Since our favored pitch revolves around the concept of a love story, it would only be logical that romance was the genre we chose. In summary, we intend on creating a romance film.

Genre Research :The first of many, comedy

For this project we worked in a group of 3 at the time. We split up the different slides into 3 slides for each person. One of us worked on common lighting, camera angles, and movement. When working on those three slides biggest thing was being specific to our genre. There was information having to do with all genres so picking out what was for comedy was a bit of a struggle. The next person did elements of comedy, Mis en Scene, and common examples. That was the hardest to do because finding Mis en Scene for comedy was difficult to find and we had to go different search engines to find what we were looking for. Once those slides were completed, we all came together to decide what we liked about comedy and what we didn't. For the most part we agreed on what we liked and what we didn't. Overall the project was a process but we learned a lot about comedy and how it is filmed.

Pitch Perfect

The process of coming up with 3 pitches was much harder than we expected. Since we were not at school at the same time, there was some confusion. One of was out sick the first day, while the other was out of town the second. We managed to work this out by calling each other on FaceTime to discuss our ideas. For at least 30 minutes, we sat on the phone trying to figure out what these pitches would be. The main issue arose in developing an idea that was not too cliché. This was caused by the absence of the  “creative juices” within our persons. After a period of deliberation and brainstorming we finally came up with 3 pitches. The first pitch was “A man subject to trauma from his past relationships ‘meets’ the woman of his dreams; however, she is merely a figment of his imagination manifested by the pain he endured”. The second pitch was “Considering his current state, a wanted felon is forced to take matters into his own hands when his daughter goes missing.” The final pitch was “After dying in a fatal car accident, a man encounters an angel who offers him a second chance at life under one condition.” After coming up with these pitches we decided to narrow them town to our best two: A  man subject to trauma from his past relationships ‘meets’ the woman of his dreams; however, she is merely a figment of his imagination manifested by the pain he endured. After dying in a fatal car accident, a man encounters an angel who offers him a second chance at life under one condition.

We chose the first pitch, a man subject to trauma from his past relationships ‘meets’ the woman of his dreams; however, she is merely a figment of his imagination manifested by the pain he endured, as one of our potential options for several reasons. First and foremost, this idea was one of the most original on the list. In comparison, to what we came up with and the films that are you out today, at least from our knowledge, there was none like quite like it.  As stated previously, we wanted a pitch that’s was not cliché so the originality was favorable. Though, one thing that can be said about this pitch. It stemmed from the concept of a love story, but of course we put a twist to it. There is also the fact that this pitch could be executed quite easily.  After deciding on this pitch, we immediately began to think about different scenes that we could shoot. We were already had a head start with this pitch alone. We almost decided on using this pitch from the get go; however, we still had to consider our other two options.

We chose the third pitch, after dying in a fatal car accident, a man encounters an angel who offers him a second chance at life under one condition, as our other potential pitch. Like our first pitch, it was also an idea not quite many of the films that we knew it about. This made deciding on which pitch we would use much harder. Though, one thing we did consider is how we would execute this idea. Regardless of the fact we would ultimately be able to find a solution to work passed it.

As one can conclude from this blog, we finally decided on doing our first pitch. We saw this pitch as the best option for our final task.

Countdown to the Final

So the first time I wrote about myself I listed the general things about me. In this blog, I wanna show how much has happened between the first blog and now. As you guys know my name is Autumn and I am a senior at Fort Lauderdale High School. Since my first blog, I have entered a beauty pageant where I will be competing for the Miss Florida Teen USA. The competition is from January 16th to the 19th, and I must say, I’m excited but also nervous. Another thing that has changed from the first blog is my plans for the future. Because it's my senior year, it is time to start thinking about what I want to do with my life after I graduate. I have applied to 12 schools already and I got accepted into 6 of them. I made the decision that I wanted to stay in state for college so I narrowed down my list down and now I have my top three schools I want to go to. In terms of things that have changed in this class, the group that I have chosen for this project has changed. Victoria, one of the group members in the past projects, decided to leave the group.This means that only Jeffrey and I are in a group now.
I have learned a lot since I joined this class. This class has taught me a lot from pre-production, to filming,and editing. On top of teaching me the basics for this class, it has also taught me valuable life skills. Such as time management, responsibility, and having self-awareness. One thing that I was known for in past projects was coming up with ideas and methods to do things. So as I walk into this new project, I want to use my strengths to make a great film. I want to bring new I ideas to the group, however I want to work more on my time management skills. When I was working on the last project, I had many things going on like college applications, other classes, work, and my responsibility from my title. I never knew how to compartmentalize my different activities so I could do all of them. This time to help me out I cut back on some of my activities so it should be easier to handle my schedule.........

A pitch is a Hollywood term to describe an idea where a film is encapsulated into 25 words or less, usually within one sentence.

The three pitches we came up with are:
- A man subject to trauma from his past relationships meets the woman of his dreams; however, she was merely a  figment of his imagination manifested by the pain he endured.
- Considering his current state, a wanted felon is forced to take matters into his own hands when his daughter goes missing.
- After dying in a car accident, a man encounters an angel who offers him a second chance at life under one condition.

We were working over video chat to discuss our pitches.