Location Ideas- Exchange

This is an area near the village hall.It is, unfortunately, not suitable for the exchange scene for several reasons.
-There is no access to lighting in this area so, as we have to film at night, we need lighting to be able to shoot effectively.
-There is little space surrounding the area in which we could film. Although a secluded area, it is fenced off and therefore shots would be difficult to compose and film.
-The inclusion of the building in this area may also have unwanted connotations as it may lead people to believe there is some significance in it, therefore meaning we needed a more secluded area with no buildings.


We have decided to use this location for the exchange scene. We decided on this area as:
-It is secluded and not clearly near homes and buildings.
-There is a streetlamp which would be used as main lighting
-We could make use of the trees surrounding the location in our shots and positioning of the characters.

Misfits- Research Into Representations Of Social Class Within Youth Culture

Misfits Presentation-Research Into Representations Of Social Class In Youth Culture

Bathroom Scene- Planning & Filming

This scene is one that took alot of planning and preparation. We used the bathroom at the village hall, but had to film separate shots of the 'protagonist' entering the bathroom as, of course, we had to film him walking into the male restroom, but, for the actual shots of the scene we felt the women's was better as the mirror and room were larger so better for filming.

We decided to include this scene as we believed it would create a perfect amount of tension and fear amongst the viewers of our film to make them worry about what was to come later on.

It was hard to negotiate the filming of this scene as we had limited space in the room and the positions of the characters needed to be consistent and well placed so as to create the desired effect.

This scene was integral in showing the 'protagonists' fear of the other character and building up the fear in their relationship before he is actually murdered.

It had to be perfectly done to be effectual and so several shots were taken before we decided it was right. The figure in the background had to be only seen for a split second, so much so that, along with the character in the film, we also doubt what we have seen in the film.

Commentary of the party scene

Music Ideas For Party Scene

After editing all the shots for the party and adding transitions, we needed to find a soundtrack that fit with the shots. Of course, limited by Copyright laws, we could only gain influences from existing artists,but we decided to focus on dance, grime and dubstep artists so that we could remix via a DJ. Artists we took influence from were:
-Borgore
http://www.last.fm/music/Borgore/+wiki
-Rusko
http://www.last.fm/music/Rusko
-Kid Cudi
http://www.last.fm/music/Kid+Cudi
We took inspiration from these artists to create the soundtrack for our party and create a different feeling for each scene. We needed an upbeat track to play during the dancing of the party, but a change int he sound when the murderer enters and we see him in the party. We chose dance beats with a strong rhythm that would be typical of a youth party. The strong bass beat meant it was easy to coordinate the cutting rate of shots and also the zoom shots of the party guests.
For the murderer entering, the shots of him within the party and the 'protagonist' leaving, we needed a lower, more bass heavy track with Dubstep influences. This created a feeling of imminent attack and threat to or from the characters. As we see the murderer later when he receives the text, we will use this track again to show a clear return to him in the party scene.

Cocaine Taking Scene- Party

This scene was visually edited to enhance the drug-taking effects on the character. We slowed the scene down and blurred the edges after he took the drug to create a spaced out and 'trippy' effect.
This use of editing via Final Cut Express was effective, however we believed we focused too much on this character, and it made an impression upon the audience that he was a central character and important to the film. We dramatically cut down the shot afterwards for our final film to counter this impression and showed less of the characters face to make sure it was clear that he was merely an extra and not an integral part of the scene. We also cut down how long he spent snorting the 'cocaine'.

Letter Sent To Potential Locations For Permission To Film

This is the letter which we sent out to several Village Hall Committees requesting the opportunity to use the hall for filming:

12th December 2009

Dear Village Hall Committee,

My name is Emma Brookbanks; I am a student who attends the Marlborough School in Woodstock, at which I am currently undergoing my AS levels which includes Maths, History, Geography and Media Studies.

For my Media Studies final I, along with three other girls in my class, Alexis Still, Hannah Green and Mary Beadle, have been set the task of producing a short 4 minute opening of a film, within this we have to simulate a party scene. We were hoping that we may be able to use Bletchingdon Village Hall as the setting for our short production; however the main issue is that we do not have a budget for this and we were hoping that there may be a chance if we would be able to use the Hall for free for one evening. We are well aware that this is a large favour to ask you but we hope that you consider it.

I can assure you that there will be no alcohol or drugs consumed at all. As we have to simulate a modern party atmosphere there will be alcohol bottles present and fake drugs for example we plan to use icing sugar, however this is entirely for filming purposes only. Also I can assure you that adults will be present as we are only 17, our teacher approves of our plans and we hope you consider our plea.

Thank you very much for your time and we look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Emma Brookbanks, Alexis Still, Hannah Green and Mary Beadle.

Party Scene- Planning & Filming

For the opening of the film, it was necessary to create a party scene in which we would make clear to the audience who the main characters are. We chose Begbroke Village Hall as our ideal location for the party scene, but putting the party into action was the hardest thing. To create an effective scene, it was necessary to have at least twenty people so we could focus on them in one area of the room. We needed:
-at least 20 people to create a convincing party scene
-equipment such as lighting.We decided to use fairy lights to create a room with more mood lighting than harsh illumination. We had to get enough fairy and rope lights so the lighting would be suitable and look realistic.
-Alcohol, but simply for the scene and shots and not consumption
-Something that looked like illegal substances. We decided to use icing sugar and vitamin tablets to create a further effect of a youth party where criminal activity was occurring.
-DJ & equipment. To create a realistic effect of a party we needed a strong sound system, to create the mood of a party for the extras. Although we added soundtrack later, it was important to make it seem as though the music at the party came from an on site DJ with professional equipment.

We had to request the availability of the hall to book ourselves a slot and ask permission to film inside.
We invited thirty friends to help us film as extras, and people to come and help us set up lighting, the DJ, speakers, and begin to compose shots that we desired for our party scene.
-We had particular shots that we wanted to film for the party scene. We decided to do a circular shot, using the handheld camera and arranging the extras around the camera operator enabling the camera to spin as everyone danced. This created a disillusioned effect and made the party look even more 'wild'. In editing we will gradually speed this shot up so the scene is merely a blur before cutting back to a shot of the protagonist to shock the audience back into the action.
-We also decided to use our soundtrack to create shots that move with the bass beat. We started with a medium long shot of the party scene, everyone dancing, talking, having a good time. From here we made use of the zoom function in and out of the scene to show the 'wild' party and use an interesting shot. We also used extreme close-ups of drug taking and alcohol usage to enhance the content of the party. One scene in the party is of an extra snorting 'cocaine', and we plan to slow this scene down in editing and add effects to make it disillusioned and 'trippy', to show the effect of the drug on the boy.

Location Ideas- Party

This is Bletchingdon Village Hall, and we looked at this location to gage whether it would be suitable for the filming of our party scene. There were advantages and disadvantages for this location:
ADVANTAGES:
-The hall has a staging area which could be useful to set up the DJ, equipment etc
-It is a fairly old building which is quite rundown from the outside, so could seem like somewhere where criminal activity and a youth party such as this might take place.
However...
DISADVANTAGES:
-The hall is fairly large, and with a minimal amount of cast members we may not be able to sufficiently fill the hall to create the effect of a realistic party.
-We would be required to pay for the use of the hall, which is impractical as we have no budget for the production of the film so the money would have to be paid out of our own pockets.

We decided therefore that this location is not suitable for the party scene due to the inefficiency of costs and the size of the hall.





Begbroke Village Hall
ADVANTAGES:
-The hall is fairly small on the inside so it would be easy to make it look full with the extras available to us
-There are lots of electrical outlets which will be useful for equipment and lighting
-The hall is available to us for free and had lots of availability, so we could fir filming sessions in easily.
-The outside of this hall would be effective as it had a ramp leading up to the door and a large car park in front which would make filming easier and both of these aspects could be used within the filming.
DISADVANTAGES:
-It is a fairly remote area so extras and cast may find it hard to get there.

We decided that Bletchingdon Village Hall would be the ideal place for our party scene as it is a suitable size and easy to access when we need to.