To do some research and find some information on the type of audiences who are watching each genre of film, I created a survey and asked a range of various people, from different age groups, to answer it. Here are the results from the survey.
This first question is getting basic information from the participants in order to compare and relate to findings in later questions.
Again, thiss question is getting basic information off of the participants in order for me to compare and contrast when looking at answer in later questions. Doing this lets you know which age group you are predominantly working with and gives you a relatively clear answer of what kind of specific age or gender enjoys which kind of film the most.
Finding out the most enjoyed or most commonly watched genre of film shows which age group this is most likely from and also gives us as students, an idea of what type of film opening to produce so that it will be liked.
By finding out which part of the film they are drawn to in order to want to watch it, gives a starting idea of how interested they will or will not be in watching a film opening.
By asking this question about how much attention people usually pay attention to credits and titles at the start of a film, can generate the process of maybe they titles either need to be shortened, enlarged, increased for information, cut out completely or something more suiting.
Finally, asking the participants what they most expect from a film opening, really gives a clear idea of what to include or what not to include, however this can vary between ages of genders.
Above: A brief mind map exploring various genres to films.
Note; Our final piece includes elements from all genres of film. We have mixed few ideas together but decided to focus on mainly a horror theme with elements of an action film.
The opening scene begins with a close up of the girls' toys, a china cup, saucer and teapot. The small toys take up the entire frame (tight frame).
Emphasis on the small toys that suddenly have taken up the entire frame, representing the youth that is about to be withdrawn.
Shot two:
The next shot shows a medium shot of all three children on the floor playing.
This shot is to remind people viewing of the innocence and youth of the films victims.
Shot three:
This shot is a BCU (Big Close Up) of two of the three children, showing shoulders upwards so the viewers can focus on the facial expressions.
The shot show the girls' pinafores to give viewers an idea of the time period in which the film is set.
Shot four:
This shot is a loose frame of the young children playing with their china dolls.
The act of looking after their dolls juxtaposes the care (or lack thereof) they should be receiving as children.
Shot five:
This shot is a loose framed, high angle shot of all three girls sat playing on the floor.
As it is a loose frame you can see the entirety of the room and all the old fashioned set and props that are being used.
It is high angled to show the girls looking straight up and directly at the camera, as if they are looking at the woman in black.
Shot six:
After turning their heads to what the woman in black is directing them at, the next shot is a loose frame with three large windows centred. (Hinting at the scene about to unfold).
Shot seven:
This shot shows a close up of one of the children's feet, about to stand on and break a china doll.
Again, hinting at the girls' fates and showing the audience what is about to happen.
Shot eight:
This is a medium shot of the girls' upper torsos and faces. You can clearly see their blank facial expressions as they walk towards the windows they have been directed to go to.
Still in their simple items of clothing and hair tied neatly in ribbons to represent innocence.
Shot nine:
This is the final shot at the end of the opening where you can see a long shot of all three girls jumping from the window ledge.
You can no longer see their faces and so is depersonalising the situation so emotion is detached. A representation of how many children have already met this fate in the town.
Conclusion:
These shots make it clear that this opening scene is going to lead to a harrowing film that is set to play with emotions of the viewers. The costumes and set have already played a huge part, clearly showing people the time period this film is set in.
The film opens with a wide set angle camera shot showing an icy river, somewhere in the arctic. The editors have started with a basic landscape with little to no variation of colour so that the audience can focus on the text.
The opening credits start showing and the first to come up is the producers name. Notice only the name is in larger lettering so that fans of this man can immediately become interested in the film.
Shot Two:
This shot reveals Hanna yet still hides her facial features. Hanna's face, and any part of skin really, is hidden until the very end of the opening to keep her identity a secret - a connotation of her hiding in the woods from society.
Medium long shot is used here whilst she is crouched down, making her hunting skills seem less intimidating.
Shot Three:
In this screen grab, you can see the lead character, Hanna, is only partially seen again through the surrounding trees; another hint at protection of identity.
A medium shot is used here, to just about show the bow and arrow she is about to use to hunt. At this moment, the audience is only focused on the anticipation of what she is about to do.
Shot Four:
An extreme close up is sued here to focus on Hanna's eye, emphasising on the aim she is focused on in order to 'shoot for the heart.'
The bright blue eye that is really the only thing visible in this shot is a complimentary colour for the surrounding landscape, almost camouflaging her.
Shot Five:
As she is running through the forest, chasing the deer, the camera cuts to the POV shot from the deers perspective.
The camera uses high angle shots for this while the edges of the frame are burred to imitate the dying animal's sight. The camera also moves at a very quick pace to emphasise on this.
Shot Six:
Medium close ups have been used here to follow Hanna running after the deer she has just shot.
The simple background of the arctic sky draws attention away from the beautiful landscape and instead on the 'not-so-beautiful' event that is happening in this scene.
Shot Seven:
In this shot, the camera has used low angle shots to exaggerate on the fallen deer and the huge mass of it.
Looking up on the animal in this way really makes it look lifeless and for a second, makes Hanna look like thee one in the wrong. This death is a crucial ending to the opening scene of the whole film.
Shot Eight:
This is a low angle shot and an extreme close up of the deer's eyes after the have rolled back, once it has been killed.
It is not shown clearly in the shot but Hanna is [at this point] standing over the animal. Her reflection is being shown in the light reflected from the deer's eye. This really puts the event into perspective and the power humans have over other living things is present.
Shot Nine:
In this final close up before the opening scene ends, Hanna has removed the scarf from her face and her facial features are now visible. Perhaps a hint at the fact she is now willing to reveal her identity now that the hunting has been done.
Moments into this shot, the first line of dialogue in the film is spoken "I just missed your heart." -She is talking to the animal as if it were a living, talking human, clearly the very opposite of the truth.
Conclusion:
These opening shots are already making it apparent that this is an action packed film, perhaps with mystery and murder involved. The film has also already hinted at the topic of 'taboo', as even the opening scene of this film has shown a young girl, who lives in the arctic, out to be capable of killing a large wild animal, which clearly is far from societal norms.
•The
film opens with a stark black background with principle titles shown over the
top in a bold white font.
•The
director is a well known auteur who will be a draw to the film, it’s therefore
important his known appears prominently and early on.
Shot Two:
•The
films title appears during a long, high level tracking shot that flies over New
York.
•The
large, bold title hints at the films action genre. It’s full title ‘Leon: the
professional’ also ties into business like font.
Shot Three:
•The
camera then moves to another high level tracking shot, this time presumably on
top of a bus or lorry. The shot is a little shaky to convey a rough, working
approach to the scene. This ties in with the change of location from upscale
central park to a busy, working class area of New York.
Shot Four:
•The
camera then moves to another high level tracking shot, this time presumably on
top of a bus or lorry. The shot is a little shaky to convey a rough, working
approach to the scene. This ties in with the change of location from upscale
central park to a busy, working class area of New York.
Shot Five:
•This
is a medium establishing shot which identifies the restaurant where the opening
scene is set to take place.
Shot Six:
•This
is an extreme close up on the hands of the first character to come into the
film. The drinking milk represents his abnormality in society and the well kept
hands and nails identifies his professionalism.
Shot Seven:
•This
is another extreme close up shot, this time of a middle aged man’s sunglasses.
The dark lenses of the glasses hide his identity and give an emotionless,
neutral presence.
Shot Eight:
•This
is a close up of an ashtray, perhaps to represent a poor lifestyle with bad
choices. The multiple cigarette butts shows that the two at each side of the
table have been talking for a while.
Shot Nine:
•This
is another extreme close up of a middle to old aged man’s eye. The limited
shots of the characters face and identity as a whole signify his detachment
from society and maybe that his emotions are hidden from the public eye.
Conclusion;
These opening shots already are hinting
at a mystery, perhaps action movie. The shot where a picture is handed to one
of the two men instructs someone to be found and killed, definitely identifying
an action packed movie to follow this opening scene.
I chose the three films 'Hanna', 'Back to the Future' and 'Into the Wild' to look at the opening scenes of. Below is brief summary of each, including the effects that were used, specific techniques and camera shots/angles.
Hanna:
In this opening scene, the camera starts by panning through the trees in a snowy forest using a medium long shot to show the probable size of the landscape. Notice, the camera does not show the entirety of Hanna's face, only partially, hidden by a scarf and the surrounding trees. This is so not to give away the main characteristics of the lead role and keep her identity hidden.The intense, slow music played right from the start indicates that this is already going to be an action film. When Hanna disappears from behind the tree it also hints at a film containing mystery. The pace is sped up as Hanna shoots the deer and runs through the forest to retrieve her arrow, before she uses an eery declarative sentence of "I just missed your heart." -to end the opening and cut to film credits.
Back to the Future:
In this film opening, showing the boy's face is avoided and instead the camera is set up from low angles, shooting medium long shots of other things for the audience to focus on. The 'ticking' from all the various clocks in his home that the camera pans over, creates the build up before we see the boy arrive. We only ever see his lower legs and feet in this section. We see the boy using the amp system with extreme close ups of his hands turning up all the dials, this also adds to the big build up before he is blasted to the other side of the room by the noise. Already giving the impression that this is a comedic film.
Into the Wild:
In this opening scene, Chris Mccandless is filmed trudging through the snow, using a mixture of long and extreme long shots. The camera pans over the snowy grounds emphasising on the extent of the landscape. The soundtrack played over the opening scene is the song 'Long Nights' by Eddie Vedder, a slow and steady song with a steady beat, hinting at Chris' start to his journey. The camera uses lots of various shots of him out in the wilderness throughout this scene, a memorable one is a low angle shot of Chris looking up into the wide sky - a connotation of this being his love and admiration for the outdoors.
For our AS Media Studies coursework, we were given the option to either do either a short opening scene for a film, or a front cover, double page spread and contents page of a music magazine. In a pair, alongside Holly Haskins, we have decided to do the opening scene option.
For the film opening we will have to do:
Choose a genre for the film opening and find out what the conventions are.
The history of the specific genre and similar films.
Research the genre's key directors.
A collage of iconography associated with the selected genre.
Sound and musical advantages connected with the genre.
The most used camera shots, angles and movement of the genre.
Certificate ratings of the genre.
DVD analysis of a film that uses this genre.
Audience expectations of the genre (e.g.- questionnaire).
Still frame analysis of different film openings associated with the genre.
Analysis of various font styles, associated with the genre.
The stereotypical or popular locations directors have chosen for films of this genre.
