Researching different opening scenes | AS Media opening scenes

When researching different opening scenes of movies, I decided to look at other AS Media opening scenes to see the different type of conventions that they used to make their film effective.

Insanity

The first opening scene I looked at was from a film called 'Insanity' which was created by other AS Media students. 

Through this opening scene we can see that the movie is going to be a horror/thriller because of the conventions they use. They use dramatic music from the start of the opening scene to the end. This makes the movie effective as the viewer can feel tense and maybe scared as to what is going to happen.

The colour of the video is quite purple. They tinted the footage to make the scene more dramatic but also to make the main character stand out. The main character is dressed in a green jumper, but against the purple tinted footage it looks like he is wearing a very bright green jumper.

Pros: I like the use of different camera angles. They have used quite a lot of the match on action shot, and they have used it well. I like the graphical design that they have used at the end of the opening scene.

Cons: I'm not too keen on the dramatic music that they have used. It's very plain and dull and boring and there isn't really much to it. I think they need to add some more dramatic notes or some more dramatical chords to keep the audience interested.

I Can Hear You

The next opening scene I looked at was from a film called 'I Can Hear You' which was also created by other AS Media students.

Through this opening scene we can see that this movie, is a type of horror genre movie. However, it is quite hard to identify this in the opening scene because they haven't used much horror genre conventions. Also they haven't made it clear what is actually going on in the opening scene of the film.

In the opening scene you need to give the viewer a slight idea of what the rest of the film is going to be about, but I feel that this opening scene doesn't really give enough of the plot away. However, they have used a lot of different camera angles, and they have used them effectively.

Pros: I like the use of camera angles that they have used, and I like that they have used quite a lot of props in the opening scene. They have also made it quite normal, as in, it's a typical morning for a girl and the viewers can relate to the beginning of the opening scene./

Cons: I don't like that fact that they haven't make the storyline clear and they haven't made the genre clear. Also I don't like the music that they used at the beginning because it was too loud and it didn't really fit in with the opening scene. 

Preliminary Task

In lesson we learnt and used three different camera angle shots.
1. Match on action.
2. Shot reverse shot.
3. 180 degree rule.

Match on action

The match on action shot is when one shot cuts to another shot portraying the same action that was shown in the first shot used.

For Example; Someone walking down the street shown in three different shots. One shot is of the feet walking, the next shot is of the whole body walking - tracking, and the last shot is of the whole scene with the person in the scene walking - long/medium shot.

Many film genres use this shot to show what action the character in the film is doing. The main genre that it is used in is either action or horror. They use it in action films to show the intensity of the film and to emphasis the speed of the scene. They use it in horror films to show the fear and the emotion of the character in the scene, this is to make the scene more intense.

Shot reverse shot

The shot reverse shot is used when two of the characters in the film are having a conversation or when the characters are looking at each other.

For Example; Two characters having a conversation at a pub. In one shot you can see one of the characters clearly talking to the other character, then in the other shot you can see one the other character clearly talking to the other character that you just saw in the other shot.

A lot of films use this shot to either show a conversation between two of the characters or to show two of the characters in the film just simply staring at each other, not necessarily having a conversation.

180 degree rule

The 180 degree rule is when you have an action line that you cannot cross. You need to stay on one side of the line and only use different angles from that side of the line. 

For Example; Two characters having a conversation in a formal dance. They change into different camera angles, staying on one side of the characters, but you can still see the same thing.

Opening sequences of films | Series of Unfortunate Events

When researching different opening scenes of films with different genres, I chose to look at 'Series of Unfortunate Events' starring Jim Carrey.

This isn't the best video, but it's the only one I could find. Also I am analyzing a little bit more than is shown.

The first thing we can see in the movie is the 'Dreamworks' logo and title. While this is being shown, there is no music being played. This is probably done to make the viewer nervous and quite curious as to what is going to be shown on the screen next. After the 'Dreamworks' logo and title has been shown the 'Paramount' logo and title and the 'Nickelodeon Movies' logo and title follow shortly after. During the 'Paramount' title being shown, we can hear the chirping of birds, which indicates that the film may be happy and joyful, which of course it isn't. During the 'Nickelodeon Movies' logo and title, we can hear the start of a build up of music, which makes the us, the viewer, excited to watch the movie. As the 'Nickelodeon Movies' logo and title disappear, we are shown the set of the movie straight away - or at least we see a set of a movie.

The first part of the opening scene is a proper fantasy film with fairies, pixies, birds, butterflies and all things child appropriate. This then confuses the viewer as they think they are watching the wrong film, however, they carry on watching to see if it is the wrong film - which of course it isn't. In the first part of the first scene, we can clearly see that this film is going to be a fantasy of some sort. We can identify this because of the happy music being played and the colourful images being shown on the screen. The first part is all made out of clay figures, which means that the camera angles are very limited. There are quite a lot of panning shots where they pan the camera down on the clay set. Also there are quite a lot of tracking shots where the camera tracks the clay character skipping out of it's house. This is effective because it helps the viewer see clearly what is going on in the film and what the scenery looks like.

Once the clay figure set is gone, the scenery starts to look quite dark and intense. The sound you can hear is mainly the narrator speaking, but he is speaking over dramatic music which is being played. The next shots shown are tracking shots, long shots and close-ups. They use a lot of close-up shots and tracking shots to introduce each of the characters. This is so the viewer can learn about the characters one at a time and they can learn about them personally. They use quite a lot of match on action shots when showing what each of the characters do. They use this to give the viewer a bigger knowledge of what they do and how they do it.

They then go on to use the shot reverse shot to show the conversation between two of the main characters and a not so important character. They also use a lot of medium shots to show the family together, this is effective because we can see the connection they have together as a family. The setting that they are in is like an abandoned beach. It's quite dark and gloomy and in the distance we can see a bit of fog. This clearly indicates that the film is definitely a fantasy film because it is set in a weird place where no normal film would normally be set.

In conclusion, the opening scene of this film clearly states the fact that it is a fantasy film through many different points that are identified in that scene.

Opening sequences of films | Salt

When researching different opening scenes of films with different genres, I chose to look at 'Salt' starring Angelina Jolie.

The first thing we see in the opening sequence of the film is the 'Columbia Productions' logo and title. While this is being shown, we can hear the start of dramatic music which gradually, throughout the scene, intensifies greatly. The titles shown in the opening scene, range from large sized to small sized. The small text is used when stating the place and time the film is set in that scene, the medium text is used when stating some of the production teams names, and the large text is used when stating the title of the film. All of the text is in the colour white and the font is quite simple. They use a simple font type to keep the audience focused on watching the film rather than being focused on the font the whole way through the scene.

Straight away, in the opening scene, we can see that the film is going to be an action film. We can identify this by the camera angles changing quickly in the scene, so the shots are fast, short and snappy which is mainly used in an action film. In this scene, there are a lot of point of view shots (mainly from the main character). They use this to make the scene feel more intense and more real for the viewer. In some ways it makes the opening scene more personal to the viewer because they themselves feel like they are seeing the same as the main character, which makes it more personal and real for them.

As well as using a lot of point of view shots, they use a lot of close-up shots. They use these to make the film feel more intense and more effective to the eye. The film mainly shows close-ups of the main characters face and the enemies face. The viewer also identifies a lot of extreme close-up shots that show the violence that is being brought upon the main character. This is effective for the viewer because they can clearly see how she is being tortured and how much pain she is in. We can see this from her facial expressions and the blood that is shown on different parts of her body.

They have made the villain type character in the opening scene foreign. They have done this so it is easy to identify who the antagonist in the film is. They have made the foreigner speak at the same time as the main character. This makes the scene more intense as we can hear two different languages being spoken and in a rough way as well. We, as the viewer, are trying to hear what the main character is saying but it makes it hard for us to hear because of the foreign language being spoken over the top of it.

In conclusion, the opening scene of this film clearly states the fact that it is an action film through many different points that are identified in the scene.

Why I Chose AS Media?

The reason why I chose AS Media as one of my A-Level options was because I enjoyed the GCSE course of media, so I thought I would enjoy the A-Level course even more. When I went to the options evening to decide what options I wanted to take, media caught my eye and I was very interested in doing it. I have always been interested in the topic of media. Whether it be magazines, TV, internet blogs, and/or the conventions of a movie.

When I attended my GCSE media course in year 10, I learnt a lot about different camera angles, how a movie is made and how to make a magazine. I wanted to learn more about the different types of camera angles and I wanted a better understanding of how a movie is made. I thought about how I could do that and the answer was to choose AS Media as one of my A-Level options, so I did. I know I will enjoy this course throughout year 12 and 13 and I can't wait to see what this course teaches me about camera angles and everything media!