Looking back to your preliminary task, what do you

feel that you have learnt in the progression from it to the

full product?

Preliminary Film opening

Looking back at our preliminary task, I believe we have improved a lot. We have shown many signs of improvements in various aspects , elements and also micro elements.Our preliminary task contained a minimal amount of shots such as match on action, 180 degree rule and shot reverse shot. These were the necessary shots we needed to include in this task. We also included these 3 shots and various other shots in our film opening.

Match on action

180 degree rule Shot reverse

shot

Comparing the shots we used in our preliminary task with what we used in our film opening, there is a big difference. For our final product we used a wide range of shots and camera angles such as match on action, high/low angle, wide shot, establishing shot and more where as our preliminary task was very limited containing only a few shots. We also experimented with different shots seeing which looked better and suited our film opening.We also have stuck to continuity editing in our film opening. Continuity editing is a system of cutting used to maintain a continuous and clear action and using this benefits our film opening. The narrative has structure, the shot sequences flow seamlessly into each other and the film is also easier to watch.

Various different shots

Establishing shot

Long shot

Close up

180 degree rule

Continuity editingLow angle

Wide shot

Match on action

Shot reverse shot

Match on actionWe used match on action a couple of times in our film opening where there are two different framings of the same action consecutive to each other making it look uninterrupted. This gave the action a good flow without having abrupt interruptions. The match on action also allows the audience to see the action from another perspective due to the fact that the same action was being shown from different frames.

180 degree ruleWe followed the 180 degree rule throughout our film opening where the angle between any two shots should not exceed 180°. This is so that spatial relationships are maintained between two people and objects in any given sequence of shots.This is used so that the viewer can make sense of the scene, keep them focused and avoiding confusion.

The 180 degree rule is very evident in the last scene where the protagonist runs up the stares and enters the tunnel. The camera here is on the right hand side. As the protagonist runs in to tunnel the camera is placed near the line of vision making sure not to cross that line otherwise the 180 degree rule would be broken. In the last scene, the camera started of on the right and has stayed on that side throughout till the end showing that the spatial relationships have been maintained.

Shot reverse shotWe have used the shot reverse where two shots are edited together that alternate characters.We use this for chase scene between the protagonist and antagonists. Here we use cut shots of all the actors running. It switches from the antagonist to the protagonist and back to the antagonist etc. These cut shots make the chase scene look very fast paced as it is continuously switching from the antagonist to the protagonist.

We also used this for the fight scene near tower bridge where we see both the antagonist and protagonist throwing punches at their opposition as the camera switches between the two characters.

LocationThe use of props, location and costume as improved a lot from our preliminary task.For our preliminary task, we used out school premises to film which is very basic. However for our film opening, we went to central London to film everything which meant a lot more thought would have to go into this. Central London was definitely a better location compared to our school as there are many different places in central we could film at.

We used an establishing shot to show that we were filming in Central London. This showed London's famous landmarks which meant people will recognise this straight away. The fact that this location is well known will pull the audience in as they will want to see what locations were used in this film opening.

Dialogue

In our preliminary task, we did film dialogue however, we did not film any dialogue for our film opening. Instead we had a voice over talking about what had happened to him. We had a lot of non diegetic sound rather than diegetic sound.

Costumes The choice of costume for our film opening was also much better compared to our preliminary task. For our preliminary task, the actors wore whatever they were wearing on the day and so this meant not a lot of thought went into this. Whereas, for our film opening we chose costumes very carefully making sure it suited our chosen genre.

The protagonist wore a blue chequered top, dark blue/ black jeans and tan coloured shoes.The antagonist wore dull (dark blue/grey) suits with ties and smart shoes.We carefully planned out what each character would wear and also keep in mind the colours they would wear as we didn’t want bright colours which stood out as it would not suit the genre we had chosen.

Antagonist

Protagonist

Antagonist

Protagonist

PropsFor our film opening we didn’t use many props. In fact we only used 2 which was the dog tag and a mobile phone. For our preliminary task we used basic everyday school items such as books, pens, pencils and school bags. We didn’t really need to plan ahead of time for these items as they were basic everyday items that we carried to school.

However, for or film opening we had to look for someone who had a dog tag that we could borrow otherwise we would have to buy one. Even though we only used minimal props for our film opening, I believe much more thought went into these rather then just pulling things out of our school bag and using them like we did in our preliminary task.It wasn’t a big improvement but these props definitely helped make our film opening interesting and appealing.

Dog tag

Mobile phone

Planning We have improved a lot in planning since we filmed our preliminary task. When we look back at our preliminary task, not a lot of thought went into it. We didn’t really plan it. We just spoke about it and went on with it and used what we had handy on the day for the preliminary task. We also did last minute filming and editing. We filmed our preliminary task and edited it the day before it was due which doesn’t show good planning and coordination.However, for our film opening we discussed every detail such as costume, colours, location and props. We also visited different locations and did a few test shoots to see what the shots would look like. We discussed the kind of costumes we would want the protagonist and antagonist to wear. We didn't just pick any old outfit and tell them to wear that. We also kept in mind the colours we want on our characters as it is an action film so dull colours are what we are looking for.

Storyboard

There were vast improvements in the storyboard. For the preliminary task, the storyboard was drawn with a pencil which meant that when we scanned it on it was very faint. The storyboard also lacked detail and professionalism as stick men were drawn to show the actors.

The storyboard for the film opening was much more detailed and drawn with a black marker which meant it was not faint and it was easy to see. There were no stick figures in this storyboard.The storyboard was presented as an animatic which I felt was a much creative way of presenting it rather than scanning it and uploading it just like that.

Organisation

I believe our organisation was much better compared to the preliminary task. For preliminary task, the actors were a little unsure of how to act their parts out and they also found it hard to follow the script. We also weren't to sure on what location to use as everyone had different opinions. For the film opening, the actors were more aware of what they were doing and they also knew their lines very well which meant they did not need to improvise.we all had our individual rolls which meant no on was just standing around doing nothing.