Tuesday 24 January 2012

These are our interview questions that will be videoed

Before they see our opening scene
What would you expect in a 1960’s based film?
What colours do you associate with the 1960’s?
What characteristics would you expect to see in a teenager aspiring to be a model in the 1960’s?
When they have seen the two minute opening scene
What era do you think this film is based?
What do image do you think the character is trying to portray?
Do you like this opening scene if so why? And if not why?
What audience do you think will be interested in watching this film?
Would you watch this film from the opening scene?

We will show this to numeral members of the public, and the information that we will receive will help us to determine what type of audience will watch our film and what things we would need to tweak to make it more appealing.


Modeling industry
The Modeling Industry has always been image conscious throughout multiple generations. The Modeling Industry particularly in the 1960's became more body conscious due to the fashion changed that happened in the 60's. The 50's was a time of curvaceous woman in comparison to the 60's where Twiggy brought in the 'boyish' figure; due to this abrupt change in society woman were subjected to pear pressure, struggling with weight-lose to fit the fashionably revealing outfits, such as the mini skirt.


Sound Analysis of 1960's music




















People have sung protest songs throughout human history. Wherever people are oppressed or united in a common struggle, someone will voice strong feelings in song. The 1960s came to be known as the decade for protest with the twin causes of the Vietnam War and the lack of civil rights for African Americans. Some of these songs became anthems and still resonate today. They were the inspiration in countless demonstrations and marches.











 Published in 1962, Bob Dylan expresses to the listener that by taking away the innocence of these young men who are being forced into war, there will be a devastating results which includes the death of these men.

Artists and bands use alliteration and repetition to help certain verses stick in the listener's mind. Bob Dylan's lyrics are, for the most part, very poetic and sometimes ambiguous in meaning. His song "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" shows how the use of these devices benefit his attempts to voice his opinion on war, more specifically the Vietnam War; we also do this throughout our own lyrics to express Cindy's need for help due to her live fast die young, demanding lifestyle 'oh Cindy Cry for me, oh Cindy lie to me, oh Cindy get high for me' the repetition used shows the strain and pressure that Cindy has to endure, and also illustrates how lengthy her strain lasts. The words we have used also presents them to have an imperative tone rather than a free-willing one, to ironically counteract how wild and outrageous her lifestyle is.





Released in 1967, this song was extremely popular, and its Album sgt.Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band became the biggest selling studio album internationally. 
The lyrics of the song — which is commonly believed to be about an acid trip — feature image-laden verses which present an overtly psychedelic travelogue, describing a boat trip through a fantastic land of "rocking horse people", "newspaper taxis" and "marshmallow pies", alternating with chorus sections which simply repeat the song's title. This psychedelic song has certainly influenced our 'Cry To Me Cindy' lyrics, with their imaginative lyrics and craft.


Pete Seeger wrote this song, adapting the lyrics from passages in the Book of Ecclesiastes in the Bible. He recorded it in 1962, helping to cement his place as one of the greatest exponents of the protest song. The words state that there is a time for everything, including peace. The folk rock band, The Byrds, enjoyed the most commercial success with their cover version in 1965



Due to our film timing and pace we need to decide when and where our newly edited sound will fit in, it needs to be in keeping with the titles and shots that are shown and also needs to be slightly modified to mirror the scenery. 

This is our recorded sound that we have edited. This is not our final edit as i believe the sound needs to sound more fitting to the era. The over recording and the layering of sound needs to be tweaked to make it sound more professional.










Sound
When discussing the pros and cons of using two voices of each gender we discovered that the voices might override one another and become to powerful, thus drawing away attention from our opening title onto sound which is not what we wan't to do.
To solve this problem we decided to use two vocals, one from each gender to create a more simplistic, yet effective sound. This will also emphasis the tone of voices used to create a stylistic effect. This also enables us to have more control over where and when the voices are solo and when they are in unison, this also makes it easier to edit on the Mac computers, which will also help us to record the sound due to its evolving technology.
Sound research
Due to the range of vocals that we are going to use for our ambient sound our group decision was to split the vocals into the following, Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Bass; then record each octave separately and edit them together, thus allowing each voice to be heard and making it easier and more efficient to record.
The Strengths of recording a choir using multi-track is that you have control over the volume of each part. If a member of the allocated group sings a note too loudly you can tone down the phrase which contains that note. A weakness to using multi-track is that you’re not recording all of the parts together and so some of the harmonies may sound artificial and out of place when put back together.



Step one:  Place the microphones 12ft away from the section. Angle the microphone downwards making sure it is situated higher than the section. Step two insert headphones so that you can get a sense of the overall sound and volume. If unhappy with the sound, you can experiment placing the microphones in different places, to help you try and find the ‘sweet spot’, this is the part where all the harmony’s can be heard together without them sounding muffled. Step three after recording the choir parts you can judge for yourself the volume and weather you have achieved the sounds that you require. 
Sound equipment 
Choir mic technique is the technique used to sufficiently record and edit sound, enabling us to be able to have more control over the post-recording work of mixing. Due to each track being recorded individually, means we can adjust the levels appropriately to make the tone and sound more fitting

Source of information about Sound

A list of things that i need to research

-Modelling industry
-Audience
-Sound research
-Interviews – questions and writen
-Feedback from public
-Conventions of titles
-When titles come in
-Who will produce our film

Monday 23 January 2012

Sound

This week we finished the lyrics to our song; these lyrics reflect Cindy's roller- coaster life, and infer the dangers within her lifestyle.


Chorus -
Oh Cindy, cry for me
Oh Cindy, lie to me
Oh Cindy, get high for me
And i'll see you tonight

Verse 1 -
You disobeyed your father's words, and went into a world of hurt oh.
The cat walk yeah its for the strong, but Cindy what your doing is wrong oh.

Chorus

Verse 2 -
If you walk out that door, you aren't welcome here no more oh. 
And oh what would Twiggy say, if she saw you act this way oh.

Chorus

Verse 3 - 
Now look at the mess you've made, your left lonely and afraid oh.
Look in the mirror what do you see, and empty smile gazing back at thee oh.

Chorus

End

The Instrumentals 


This is the instrumental music which will be played on guitar to correspond with what is being sung.


All chords are barred except the E and the B7 (Both chords are played open). The * symbols playing the EADG open.


Chorus 1

E               A           B

Oh Cindy Cry For Me
E               A           B
Oh Cindy Lie to Me                         Repeat x2
E              A            B
Oh Cindy get High for me
        D     C      A
And I'll see you tonight

Verse 1

B7                                                                                                            E E * E * E E * E
You disobeyed your father's words, and went into a world of hurt oh.
B7                                                                                                                        E E * E * E E * E
The cat walk yeah its for the strong, but Cindy what your doing is wrong oh.

Chorus 2 – Repeat Chorus 1


Verse 2
B7                                                                                                   E E * E * E E * E
If you walk out that door, you aren't welcome here no more oh.
B7
And oh what would Twiggy say, if she saw you act this way oh.  E E * E * E E * E

Chorus 3 – Repeat Chorus 1

Verse 3
B7                                                                                                       E E * E * E E * E
Now look at the mess you’ve made, your left lonely and afraid oh. 
B7                                                                                                                       E E * E * E E * E
Look in the mirror, what do you see, an empty smile gazing back at thee oh. 


Chorus 2
E               A           B
Oh Cindy Cry For Me
E               A         B
Oh Cindy Lie to Me
E                    A           B
Oh Cindy get High for me
B     B   B     A  A        E     
And I’ll see you tonight



Feedback

When we had our group discussion today our teacher told us that we needed to focus on sound and to research how to record and what equipment we would need to produce high quality music.

Wednesday 18 January 2012

Day of re- shooting

Today we re shot our film, so that it would be more understandable as to what the story line was. Our location was different to before and we decided to not use the 'bath' scene to show Cindy getting ready; instead we used a more obvious approach of Cindy waking up after a night before, with her room messy and disorientated, hence stereotyping the 'younger' generation. After this we film in detail the steps she took to get ready before going out to a modeling after party (which will not be featured in the two minute opening scene); this scene entailed the make-up and clothing applied to look like her idol Twiggy. The purpose of the bottles and cocaine which is presented is to also represent the misguided Cindy and how her obsession and addiction to becoming the same size as Twiggy is override with substance abuse. This has historical reference as Cocaine is the most common drug used among models to become extremely thin, in addition with alcohol to prolong the affects.

Tuesday 17 January 2012

preparation for re-shooting

Due to our feedback , we have decided to re-shoot the 'getting ready' scene so it is more understandable.
Today we have address the faults within this scene; coming to a conclusion that it needs to reflect Cindy's obsession with the modeling world before she gets ready to go to a modeling after party. This decision, in changing the layout of the opening scene was made due to the lack of development that the story line presents within our rough-cuts and storyboards. Our decision lead us to reassess what we wanted our audience to feel, and what we wanted to capture within the first two minute opening scene.

Consequently from our feedback, we decided it to be more fitting to our story line if Cindy were to emphasis the stress and pressure that the Modeling Industry encompasses; as a result of this we need to focus more on Cindy getting ready as apposed to  her rushing to go to a party; this will create tension and suspense for the audience; this will also reflect the image-conscious fashion industry, and the obsession that goes with it.

Ideally within the first two minutes we will present obsession, and desperation to achieve perfection by Cindy's flaunted admiration of Twiggy ( a popular model of the 1960's). This will be portrayed by Cindy constantly comparing herself to the photo of twiggy that will be placed fittingly on the mirror. By doing this it shall then primarily elucidate Cindy to be a obsessive character from that point onward; we will reinforce the Modeling Industry's corrupt views and influence towards teenagers further, by Cindy delving into the world of illegal substances just before she leaves the scene.

In these prominent shots, it will illuminate and enlighten the audience that this character will go to any length to reach her dream, it will also show the naivety and influential reality that peer groups have on individuals.

The multiple shots will be abrupt, demonstrating Cindy's hunger and strive to be perfect and to fit in to social norms.

Within this two minute opening scene we aspire to recreate the younger generation of the 1960's and how they can easily be manipulated towards social taboo's; thus inferring the highly dangerous consequences that come alongside.

Alongside the changed in story line, come hand in hand the change in location. Formally we used a transformed shed to stage the party, but for a more inventive and intellectual story line we have now come to a conclusion that a decorated room would play the part accordingly. This is because it reflects on the Cindy's personal environment that will reflect on her personality; thus creating a connection with the audience as they will immediately be subjected to Cindy's lifestyle and evidently be subjected to her characteristic traits even before the character is introduced.

Changes

Due to recent events and time schedule, we have decided not to use our current idea on advertising our film on the back of computer screens as our original footage was suitable enough with sufficient editing.

Saturday 14 January 2012

Group Discussion

Feedback from our Group Discussion communicated that we needed to compose a piece of music for our opening scene . We are going to write the lyrics for our song and then hold auditions at our school, allowing students the opportunity to come together and sing the tune for the song. Theoretically speaking we aspire to form a singing group which will recreate the atmospheric joy and bliss of the 1960's.


We are going to advertise this audition by the help of computer technology; Every public computer within our school will automatically illustrate the information about the audition and what we are looking to achieve as soon as the user signs in, thus allowing our information to be received quickly and effectively.

Teacher Feedback

Due to our tutorial, this told us that we could improve our film work and refine our story line so that it is made clear as to what the conventions of our story line is. This feedback also told us that we would need to dress the 'house' scene more fittingly to the 1960's as there are some cinematic faults.

Sunday 8 January 2012

Edit 2

Edit 1





media trailor

The storyboard for Cry to me Cindy

Animatic 3





Preparation for the name and potential production companies for our film

A case study about British Film Industries









Momentum pictures

Momentum pictures also known as Alliance Films UK is one of the top independent film distributors in the UK and Ireland. They release around twenty films a year consisting of plays and novels that Momentum has turned into big budget films as well as films that have been released straight- to video. They have won eight BAFTA awards this year

Momentum pictures have produced highly successful films such as the following
.The girl with the dragon tattoo (2010)
. The king’s speech (2011)
.The Crazies (2010)
. Amelie
.Law abiding citizen
Momentum Pictures have produced many more and will release the following:
.Shame (13 Jan 2012)
.Haywire (20 Jan 2012)
.The woman in black (10 Feb 2012)


When I looked at the momentum logo, I specifically Acknowledged and admired the fact that they decided to use such a bold and effective font to suggest professionalism; implying that because they are such a renowned independent film distributing company they would not need to fabricate their importance by using bright colours or a picture logo to interest the audience. I believe they wanted their logo to be direct and to the point by using basic colours and font making their logo seem effortless, nevertheless having a striking appeal to the audience.
What I find most interesting is that they use their name as the logo. The ‘momentum’ font is bigger than the ‘picture’ font and that word is also slid the bottom right hand side of the ‘momentum’ text to suggest that their name Is more important than what they produce, implying that without momentum the film would not have been produced or as successful as it is without them; therefor they have given the ‘pictures’ text second place but although they have done this to suggest empowerment to the company it also has a nice lay out which is appealing to the audience.

Warner Bros

Warner Bros was originally established in 1918 and over time they grew from a struggling minor player in the industry to one of the top recording labels in the world. They were most popular for their harry potter franchise, which grossed over 7.7 billion pounds.

Warner bros have distributed leading films such as;
.Cats and dogs (2001)
.harry potter franchise (first released by warner bros in 2002)
.Scooby –Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed
.The phantom of the opera (2005)

The attraction of this logo is the fact that it is 3D making it bold and obvious. The way the font is as bold as the shape suggests that it is an important logo and the fact that they have used ‘WB’ instead of ‘warner brothers’ suggests that they do not need to use their whole name for people to know who they are; thus making it more casual and appealing to the younger generation.
The colours of this logo symbolise wealth and holiness as the colours are rich, but complement each other, and the gold band wrapped around the logo implies that it is orbiting the ‘universe’ (warner bros) which empowers their company.   

Fox searchlight


Fox searchlight was establishes in 1994 and is a division of Fox Filmed Entertainment adjacent to 20th Century Fox. Through the early 1980’s Fox searchlight released independent films under the name of 20th Century- Fox international classics, such as Himself, Reuben and the spider from mars.
Fox Search light has released recognised films such as the following;
.Slumdog millionaire (2008)
.Amelia (2009)
.28 days later (2003)
Fox searchlight has one of the most iconic introductions to the opening of a film. The lights symbolise the curtains coming down to introduce the film. The logo is very original and the search lights link in with the title of the company, indicating their title, the colours are gold and dusk blue suggesting that the company has wealth and are classy and with the blue background it is setting the scene for a dark surrounding ready to watch the film.
I like the fact that their font is bold and as appealing as the colours used. Within the picture the company is being hunted by the searchlight suggesting that they are a wanted company because they are so well known.

Working title

Working title films is a British film industry that is based in London; this company was founded by Tim Bevan and Sarah Radclyffe in 1983. This company produces television programmes as well as producing and distributing films. But as of 2007 all its films are now distributed by universal pictures who own a 67% stake in the company.

Working title’s logo is very modern and futuristic signifying that this is a vast company and is the way for the future and will be better than any ‘classic’ logo due to the uprising in technology. I like the fact that the letters are bold and in capital letters to make all the words and letters important which endeavors the letters with power. The colours used are also very futuristic and sophisticated which is an appealing aspect.


Heyday films

Heyday films are a British film company that was founded by producer David Heyman in London in 1997.
Their first film was Ravenous, but the company is most notable for producing the Harry Potter franchise beginning with Harry potter and the philosopher’s stone in 2001
Their logo was first introduced with harry potter and the goblet of fire in 2005, however they changed their logo in the first appearance of The boy in striped pyjamas (2008)

I like their recent logo because it is simple and to the point and it is not using a picture to symbolise the company. The font is bold and in capital letters to make a statement, and the font is black so that any bright colours do not distract the audience from the company; this is effective because it uses simplicity to hold the reader’s attention. 

Production Companies 





Titles 

After choosing the name of our film 'Cry to Me Cindy' we decided to play around with the font and appearance, to give us a idea on what the final font would look like. Below are some samples.






















Characters names

research has told us popular names given to Boys and Girls in the 1960's

Main Girl: Cindy (91,580 Girls had this name)

Main Boy: Eric (152,232 Boys had this name)

Secondary Boy: David (734,057 Boys had this name)

    Secondary Girl: Janet (89,299 Girls had this name)

    Father: No name- immediately signifying that this character has a distance with the audience

    Supporting cast

When deciding on what to call the film based on our main characters name, i researched popular names of the 1960's and the most common names were; Cindy, Lisa, Lori, Mary and many others.
My favoured name was Cindy, and within choosing this name created the following possible Titles for the film.

-Cry to me Cindy
-Cindy my dear
-Cindy Ford

Due to these title decisions i created a pole to the general public using the known networking site 'Facebook', asking the question ' For my Media project what name do you think is best fitting for a 1960's based film'. This pole will show what the majority of the public would prefer for a 60's based film.




The majority of the public voted for Cry to me Cindy, and so this was decided to be the title of the film.











Location shots/Final Touches


These are some 60's objects and materials that i have used to decorate the outbuilding.
The bottles below were filled with food dye and coloring to resemble alcoholic beverages.
The records, cloth, mirror, heater and light are also objects that date back to the 1960's, along side the color scheme as orange was most favored.

The 1960's was a time of change and 'modernism', undoing most of the conventions of the previous few decades and forced designers to think again, delving back into the past to patch together a look that was both modern yet firmly in the styles that had gone before.
This decade had a fun loving, frolicsome spirit that added a small but personal twist to every design; injecting individuality and memorability.
The  Pop art and op art both had a firm footing in the 1960s. Artists such as Andy Warhol and David Hockney with their pop art references to mass cultures crossed over into interiors, and on to murals, wallpaper and posters. Similarly, op art with its use of pattern and colour to simulate movement found its way on to everything from furniture to wallpaper. Artists such as Bridget Riley, who works predominantly in black and white, became popular. Floral patterns and contrasting colours also immensely favored; exposing in furniture and on walls. 
  • Open plan - Houses were open planed, using sliding doors and moveable screens to partition off rooms and each room would flow into another.
  • Wood - Pine was used to panel walls and ceilings; they were unpainted and exposed.
  • Shag pile rugs, vibrant colours and futuristic shapes were much adored along side the tinted lights and lava lamps.
  • Towards the end of this period plastic was vastly used as its properties enabled them to create these 'futuristic' shapes. 


Within our film we plan to create a party that is based in the 60's era to reflect the fun, exiting, carefree and enthusiasm that this period encompasses.

Our scene will be based around the idea of a 'after' party where all the upcoming models and designers socially indulge in a cocktail of alcohol and illegal substances.

We have dressed our chosen area with vintage material, lighting that we have produced, alongside exposed wood, brickwork and genuine 1960's utilities.  


The Red light is in front of the orange background creating one of the most favored contrast in colour during that era. 
These lights were made by paining acetate with the colours Green and Red, then attaching the sheets of acetate together in a 'futuristic' shape and applying them carefully around the light bulbs so that the would reflect the chosen colours; recreating the interior designs of the 1960's. 

60's clothing, make up, hairstyles and dance moves


Friday 30th December we shot our first attempt of our 1960's style film 'Cry To Me Cindy'. Starting from 9 O'clock in the morning, we arrived to where we were setting the film and immediately got started on the make-up. We had purposely staggered the schedule of people arriving; this was so that we could create the best cosmetic and hair production line possible  with the time we had. We stuck essentially to the same style make-up; this was for dramatic effect to attempt that generic 60s look. Hair we varied from the iconic bee-hive, pixie cut, and the flick. We applied plenty of hairspray to boys and girls as big hair was huge in this era. Once the characters had been transformed they were sent upstairs to the changing areas; and from there sent to rehearse the choreography



60’s clothing women

Women

Fashion went through a revolution in the 60s, but for most women little changed in the early years of this decade. The styles of the late fifties, the Chanel suit and the full skirt were still popular. By the middle of the 60s, the mini skirt, short hair and geometric style were ‘in’.  By the end of the sixties, the look was long, flowing hair, hippy beads and kaftans.
The mini skirt was the fashion phenomenon of the sixties. Hemlines rose to 7 to 8 inches above the knee. There is some debate over who invented the mini. Mary Quant's boutique, Bazaar, on the King's Road, Chelsea was one of the first places that sold them in 1965. French fashion designer, Andr Courrges, also added mini skirts to his fashion collection in 1965.

Make up

False eyelashes were worn by women throughout the 1960s
The mod look was comprised of thick eyelashes, eye liner, layered eye shadow, and a nude lip. The main colours were black and white, following the geometric trend. This garish make up complimented the garish outfits.

Hairstyles 

Popular hairstyles from the 60s included The flip which was aclassic 60’s look that remained 'in' for most of the decade. The beehive was popular in the early to mid 60’s, and the ‘pixie’ was a short hairstyle, which was popular in the mid 60s, before long hair came back in the hippy era.


Men clothing

Teddy Boys had established a teenage market in the fifties and made it acceptable for males to dress for show. Now both sexes became increasingly fashion-conscious.
Drainpipe trousers, ‘winkle picker’ shoes and slim ‘college’ ties were still worn

Hairstyles


Among young males, 'quiff' hairdos were still around, but were being fast replaced by Beatle-style 'mop tops'. 

Video


Inspiration that enabled me to collect 1960's clothing.


This is my preparation for the movie, i have assorted make up, hair products and clothing ready for filming, inspired by my research.



Dance moves 

The Twist was a rock and roll dance, popular in the early 1960s named after the song The Twist. It was the first major international rock and roll dance style in which the couples did not have to touch each other while dancing.

The Mashed Potato, Hitch Hike, and The Swim were also common dances that featured a lot at parties in that era.  

This is our cast rehearsing some dance moves, which consist of the iconic 'Twist', 'Swim' 'The Monkey' and 'The Jerk' which will all feature in out opening title.  This gave the cast insight on how to interact with one another and also allowed us to illustrate exactly what we wanted them to do so that the choreography displayed a fun environment.

This video demonstrates favored dance moves of the 1960's, which will help us understand the vibe and excitement entailed.  

The Pitch

This is what i had to present to the class as a basic introduction on my idea of the opening title and what it should represent.

This tale is written to restore and revive the exciting era of the 60’s themed on sex drugs and rock and roll. Based on a girl struggling in the cut throat and ruthless modelling industry. She battles with conflict with her parents, dabbling with substance abuse and influenced by the powers of love. 
This young innocent girl destroyed by this pitiless industry will be aimed to capture the hearts of the audience. The girl will create a love, hate relationship with the audience. Engaging with the character should change their opinion on the young rebellion as her story unravels.

The film will be a humorous, emotional and raunchy rom-com. questioning the glamorous lifestyle of modelling and fame's morality; how the industry can destroy the mere pureness of a young girl.

Bright lights, fun, tears, conflict and living life to the full. This film will take you on an emotional roller-coaster experiencing the highs and lows of a girl stripped of her innocence and fighting for her youth.