My name is Olamide Ajisafe. My candidate number is 8010. I am in a group 3 with Jerom Thambipilliai (8692) and Matthew Davies (8511). To see my work, please click on the 3 labels on the right named A2 Research and Planning, A2 Construction, and A2 Evaluation.
Below is our finished music video...
Below are the external panels of our Digipak. Left is the back and right is the cover
Below are the external panels of my Digipak
Left is the back of the album and to the right is the front
Below are the internal panels of our Digipak
Below are the internal panels of our Digipak
Below are the internal panels of our Digipak
Click on the image below to be directed to our website
I feel that my group has worked extremely efficiently up to this point in the process. This is because we have all worked to our strengths. For example, I enjoy drama and literature so I wrote and re-wrote the script many different times in an attempt to get a quality script. Pheobe has very good organisational skills so she took charge of particular elements of research such as mood boards. Alex is very technical, so took charge of figuring out how we would achieve certain technical challenges such as our GoPro shots. Georgina enjoys drama so she participated as an actor. By working to our strengths we ensure an efficient work force of a high quality which resulted in us finishing our tasks very quickly.
Looking ahead I am looking forward to our two remaining shoot days and hoping that we do not repeat any of the mistakes which were made on the test shoot. I am somewhat anxious about the editing process as I have not edited in a while, however, I am sure that I will re-establish all of my previous skills once I have revised the software a bit.
Our rough cut was a great opportunity for our group to get a reasonably accurate idea of what our final edit would look like. We were able to practise all of the editing techniques that we will use in our sequence and figure out which techniques looked best. For example, we made decisions on which shot transition types we would use in order to create a more professional looking sequence. We also keep theories such as the 30 degree rule and continuity in mind when editing. Creating a rough cut also meant that we were able to find the planned aspects that we did not work or no longer liked. Once we were able to pin point these aspects, we made suitable alterations to our storyboard. Overall, I feel that making a rough cut was extremely valuable as it gave us a great idea of what we had done correctly and what we had to improve.
Our test shoot was a very good learning curve for our group as we encountered many issues which we will hopefully not encounter again.
some issue we had
There were some issues that could have been prevented by our group having better communication with each other. For example, people arrived at the wrong meeting location, whilst others arrived at completely the wrong meeting time. This created a shaky start to our day, however, once everyone had arrived the shoot began to improve dramatically. Throughout the day we did encounter other issues which we had no power over. Issues such as rain meant that we had to take a break from shoot which had a knock-on effect on the rest of our shoot schedule. We also struggled to continue shooting at our second location due to a power out at the house. This meant that we were unable to shoot some of our shots as they required electronics which obviously couldn't be powered. It also affected the quality of our shots as we were forced to shoot using only natural light, which was difficult as it was late in the afternoon. In an attempt to overcome this we change the iconography of our shots so that they received as much lighting from the Sun as possible.
In order to have good characterisation for our characters, Pheobe created an extensive mood board for each of them. These tables had sections including the character's clothes, hair and accessories, characteristics, references and the actor playing them. We believed that this was the minimum amount of information needed in order to truly get a feel of each character for both the group members and the actors playing them.
Mood board for Craig's character
Mood boards for the character of David
Mood board for the character of Shaniqua.
I think that creating theses boards were very useful as we created a direct reference point for all of our decisions, increasing the level of characterisation for each character. Overall, they acted as a very effective way of helping to bring our characters to life.
We chose Reuben to play the part of Craig as he is a very confident actor that take A-Level drama. We also felt that he had many similarities to Craig such as their age, look and certain personality traits. Reuben is also a very reliable person and has participated in other people's previous media projects, making it an easy decision to cast him as Craig.
We wanted Alex to play David as he had the particular aesthetic that we envisioned for this character. He has many parallels to the character of David such as the way they dress. This meant that he instantly stood out as an obvious choice to play this role.
We chose Alex and Georgina to play our bullies. Georgina was chosen in order to increase our representation as we had previously planned to have two male bullies, however, we found that we have no gender representation within our sequence. Originally we had planned to have bully number 2 played by an actor with a different ethnicity, however, we felt that this would be a negative ethnic representation. Using members of our teams as actors was easier as we had to rely on less people and could travel easier.
For our shooting locations we chose Boywer's Water (a forest area) and Alex's house. We chose Boywer's lake as Georgina was farmiliar with the location and we felt that we would be able to get a very good variety of shots in such a large forest area. We then chose Alex's house as it was large enough to film in and also meant that we had to do less changes to the decor of the room as Alex and Craig would have similar rooms. Below I have included a detailed list of all of our sets created by Georgina. Along with a description of the location, it also has a list of props for each location.
Props were very important in our sequence as they suggest a lot about our characters. For example, we ensured that Craig had his notebook on him at all times to show his great attachment to it and it acted as a running motif throughout the sequence. By doing this we immediately suggested Craig's introverted nature. Props were also essential in the setting up of Craig's room as we felt this would be a great opportunity to reflect some of Craig's characteristics. We added subtle props such as posters of films such as 'Casablanca' and 'North by North West' to reveal Craig's quirky nature. Despite only appearing in the background, we felt that small details were essential to create a three dimensional character. This idea was inspired by films such as 'Submarine' as we felt that the set design was extremely effective at reflecting the protagonist's characteristics and interests quickly.
For our main shoot we made a call sheet in order to ensure that all of our shoot day was carefully organised and planned out. We gave copies to all of our group members including our actors so that everyone was aware of where they had to be and when. On our call sheet we included all of our group member numbers in case of an emergency. We set ourselves goals of when we should be at particular locations so that we were efficient with our time.
We created shoot boards so that our day would be carefully and efficiently planned out. On our shoot board we included:
A visual representation of the shot we wanted to take
The shot number
The location of the shot
The time the shot would be taken
The actors in the shot
Any dialogue within the shot
Who was in charge of the which element of the shot
The amount of takes we took
We organised our shots by location as a way to save time during our shoot as it meant that we kept moving from different sets to a minimum. Other time saving methods put in place were deciding who was in charge of which element of each shot before the shoot as it ensured that all of our group was aware of what was going on. By assigning different shooting times to different locations we were able to manage our time very efficiently, tailoring breaks for our actors and crew. However, we underestimated how long some of our shots would take to produce , meaning that we fell behind schedule at certain points.
A section of our original shootboard
For our main and back-up shoot we refined our original shoot board, creating a more structured yet basic version. During out test shoot we identified shots we no longer liked and removed these from our shoot board. This meant that we were left with the shots that we were sure we wanted to include and were able to identify these shots with great ease. In the new version of our shoot boards we were able to take some of the extra columns out as we felt that they were no longer necessary.
To produce our animatic we took live photos of the pictures on our storyboard. We then put these pictures on a timeline on Adobe software pro. On this timeline we also added music, dialogue and titles so that we could roughly visualise what our sequence would look like. We also worked on the timings within our sequence and used the trial and error method to figure out which looked best.
Creating an animatic was very useful as we were able to see any issues within our sequence. For example, we were able to sort out timing issues with the placement of our voice over. By cutting it down in certain areas, we were able to ensure that the dialogue within the sequence matched the iconography of the shots.
Our timeline For our timeline we created three sections that consisted of a soundtrack, dialogue/voice over and visuals segment. By doing this we were able to clearly map out what we wanted to include within our sequence and at which point. This method meant that we were able to figure out the specifics of our sequence. For example, we were able to ensure that the visuals included at any point matched the dialogue by altering where/how long we included the dialogue for. Overall, this was an extremely useful exercise as it enabled us to manipulate our sequence for the better, for example, it made continuity issues easier to spot and remove.
Our Storyboard To create our storyboard we put post sticky notes on a large piece of A3 sugar paper. We used different coloured notes to represent different shot types. This made our ideas easier to see visually. Our key: Yellow=Mid shot Blue=Close-ups Orange=Long shots. Using post stick notes meant that we could easily swap our shots and shot order depending on what suited our sequence more. We could also asses whether we had enough variation in our shot types by looking at the distribution of different colours. By varying shot types we created a sequence that was more interesting visually and therefore more entertaining. When deciding which shot to use, we got inspiration from many film openings. For example, in the film 'Submarine', close ups are often used to evoke a character's emotion. We also decided to do this as it was a quick and effective way to accurately portray the mindset of our character.
So far I feel that my group has worked very well together and have used our time extremely effectively. We have been able to put our artistic differences aside in order to create a concept which has developed into a creative and intricate film opening idea. We spent a lot of time brainstorming ideas and creating documents such as storyboards together in a group, whilst also having individual contributions to the group. For example, I spent some of my time outside of group meetings continuing to write the script, whilst fellow members of my team created storyboards of titles and shots for inspiration. By doing activities such as this, our group has developed very strong references for or film. Research into similar LGBT films such as Beautiful Thing have informed us about film content and our target audience, whilst films such as Submarine have given us a great insight into the British indie genre. This research has helped us create a film that we feel accurately portrays the genres which we intended.
Looking ahead, I am extremely excited about starting to film our opening and being able to experiment with different shots. I am looking forward to watching all of our hard work come together and hopefully develop into our envisioned film opening.
Whilst I was writing the script I felt that it was important to quickly and accurately portray what type of person that Craig was. For this reason, I felt that it was fitting to have a large majority of the dialogue within the opening as a voice over. This meant the audience could instantly feel more connected to the character as he spoke directly to them, allowing an immediate insight into his mind. This idea was largely influenced by the movie 'Submarine' as I felt that the character of Oliver Tate was impeccably represented through his use of voice overs. An issue that I had whilst writing the script was trying to find a way to condense a character such as Craig into very few words so that the voice over did not distract from the visuals within the opening. This difficulty resulted in many re-drafts of the script with the help of my fellow group members.Below I have included the Treatment for the script.
Since creating this draft I have edited it further in order to create a new and improved final script which I have included below...
In our opening sequence our main character, Craig, gets ready to leave his house and go to school. However, he skips school and goes to the lake instead. Here he writes his most intimate thoughts and ideas in his notebook. Whilst doing this Craig witnesses another apparently gay character getting abused by bullies. Craig finally plucks up the courage to interject into the fight and defend the boy getting bullied, however, this results in a violent outburst in which he is punched.
For sound we have decided to use acoustic instrumental version of the song 'Let it go' by James Bay. We have decided to re-record this song using only a guitar. We felt that this would give a raw edge to our soundtrack and suit our chosen genre of Indie. As well as the soundtrack, there will also be a voice over that runs at points throughout the opening and a small amount of dialogue during the conflict scene.
For sound effects we have decided to use the 'white noise' and the sound of a punch. We wanted to use white noise tosuggest the quiet rural setting and whilst also intensifying different moments. We wanted to use a punching sound as this would be expected in a scene of conflict and increases the naturalism of the sequence.
The titles within our opening sequence will include...
Film 4 productions ident
BFI logo
QUAK Films Presents
Our film title
Introducing Reuben Wooley
Directed by...
CRAIG
We chose these titles in order to stick to conventions for film openings. We took great inspiration from the film Elephant as they used 'b-roll' of scenes of nature for the background of their titles. We felt that this was very effective and gave the titles a more minimalistic feel. We chose to also include the name of our protagonist as a title at the end of the sequence as it helped to instantly give more information to the audience and signified the end of the film opening. However, we decided not to place the title of our film half way through the opening like in Elephant as we felt that it did not allow the film title to stand out a lot. We also researched many different types of fonts used within different film openings to gain inspiration from.
A mood board made by Pheobe of different styles within exsisting opening titles
The current 'working title' of our film is
'AGLET'. I felt that this would be a fitting name for the film as an Aglet is
an essential part of many people's lives that is overlooked regularly. An aglet
is 'a metal or plastic tube fixed round each end of
a shoelace.' Without this small element the whole shoelace would fall apart and
it would be extremely difficult to use the shoe anymore. Its seemingly
irrelevant but important nature mirrors that of Craig and serves to prove that
even people deemed unimportant by members of society are essential for it to
work efficiently. The use of seemingly unconnected names for films is usual in
the indie genre. For example, films such as Milk and Fish Tank have such
inconspicuous names which I felt were very powerfulan essential part of many people's lives that is overlooked regularly. An aglet
is 'a metal or plastic tube fixed round each end of
a shoelace.' Without this small element the whole shoelace would fall apart and
it would be extremely difficult to use the shoe anymore. Its seemingly
irrelevant but important nature mirrors that of Craig and serves to prove that
even people deemed unimportant by members of society are essential for it to
work efficiently. The use of seemingly unconnected names for films is usual in
the indie genre. For example, films such as Milk and Fish Tank have such
inconspicuous names which I felt were very powerful
The plot of our film consists of a teenage boy
name Craig whom is trying to come to terms with becoming an adult and learning
to tackles issues regarding his sexuality. Craig's journey is told from his own
perspective as we follow him whilst he attempts to find himself. The audience
are given a ticket into Craig's mind via his notebook and bear witness to how
his ideas, both good and bad, work out. Throughout the film we also see how
Craig's Experience of love develops and changes him for the better.
We will be trying to connote the Coming of age genre through Craig's journey. Character development is essential to connote this genre as they often follow their protagonist on a journey as they develop morally and psychologically. For example, in our film we watch Craig turn from a shy introvert, into a more confident and happy teenager. Coming of age films often use Todorov's theory and try to find a solution to the problem present within the film throughout.
Oliver Tate from Submarine
Another genre that we will be attempting to connote through our film opening is the British Indie genre. We have done this through our decisions of characters, grading and shot types. We decided to make Craig a quirky individual in order to reflect some of the types of people that we believed enjoyed the British Indie genre. For Craig's character we were greatly inspired by the character of Oliver Tate from the film Submarine. Although he is very awkward he is also a very likable character and has many layers to his personality. We have also been able to experiment with different shot types that may be considered 'quirky' and are fitting to the more risk taking genre of Indie. For example, in our opening we have decided to use different cameras such as a GoPro to achieve different effects. We will also be using more experimental editing such as jump cuts. This also occurs in Submarine and we felt that this was effective as it was something that is rarely seen and stood out to us.We also wanted our grading to connote the Indie genre. In order to achieve this we took inspiration from different grading techniques that we liked and felt would be fitting to out film.
Bright and colorful grading in the film 'Fish Tank'
Bright, saturated grading in the film 'Juno'
These grading decisions connote the indie genre as they give the film's footage a unique look, emphasisng their independence.
How we plan to attract/ address members of our TA:
LGBT community - We will attract them by having an openly gay protagonist. Doing this may appeal to the as they may find the character relatable as they may have gone or will go through the same situations as our main character Craig does. They may also feel that they are finally being accurately and realistically portrayed within the media which may appeal to them.
One of our British countryside settings
British people (over 15)- We have addressed British people by using British actors and a British setting. The characters also speak of British themes. These factors maybe seen as highly recognisable to this audience which means that they may be able to engage with the film at a deeper level. They would also be supporting the British film industry which is beneficial for many British people. We have addressed the older age of our TA through our 15 certificate. By deciding on this certificate we allow ourselves the right to include more explicit content. This may vary from the use of swear words to the inclusion of scenes of violence. We feel that this gives our film a more realistic feel which may appeal to more people.
British Indie fans - We attempted to stick to the conventions of this genre through our choice of shot types and grading decisions. We also depicted a character which may also be considered 'Indie' by his hobbies such as listening to vinyls, which fans of this genre may also enjoy. We my also be t attract them through our decisions in production and distribution. By choosing independent institutions such as Film 4, BFI and our created company Quak Films we instantly appeal more to British Indie fans as it becomes apparent that we are a low budget, British, Independent film.
Our chosen Independent production company
Fans of romantic dramas - As our film goes on, the relationship between Craig and David continues to blossom. The themes of love and heartache appeal greatly to this audience. The fact that the love story is between two males may be seen as something 'different' and appeal to a wider audience as it is a story that is rarely seen in the mainstream film industry.
Fans of 'Coming of age' dramas - Throughout the film we follow Craig on a journey as he struggles to find his voice. The audience bears witness to the characters maturing and developing into a more confident and happy person.
In our opening sequence we represent members of the LGBT community. The different sexualities represented mean that a large majority of our TA (target audience) may feel represented. We chose two represent two contrasting characters in order to avoid enforcing stereotypes. By avoiding the predictable 'camp' characterisation through our protagonist, we create a more believable character. This may also be seen as a U.S.P (unique selling point) for our film as it showcases a community and characters that are rarely explored in modern media. A love story between two males may also be seen as a U.S.P as their are not many representations of this type of story within the mainstream media.
Statistics revealing the lack of LGBT representation in film
Being gay is not seen as downfall of our protagonist and does not have any particularly affect of his characteristics. This helps to break down the prejudice towards the gay community and shows the audience that the people within the LGBT community are the same as those out of it. They go through the same situations and must overcome similar obstacles in life. This is why we felt that it was important to include a moment of conflict within our film opening as we wanted the gratification of an idealistic presentation of the world to be apparent, without creating a world that could be deemed realistic. It also reveals the very apparent presence of homophobes within modern society. This harsh and somewhat disturbing realism forces the audience to be educated to the discrimination that many people within the LGBT community go through.
We felt that creating a 'coming of age' film would be an efficient way to depict the journey that many gay people go through for self acceptance. As the film continues we are able to see Craig develop his own self confidence as he embraces himself and his sexuality. We felt that it was important to portray him as a stereotypical teenager with hobbies such as listening to vinyls and sketching in his notebook so his is seen as a likable and multi dimensional character.
Shot of Craig writing in his notebook with an average representation of a cluttered teenage bedroom
We created our own British, independent production company call Quak productions. Our company is based in London and focuses on producing independent films which represent members of the LGBT community.
Distibution:
We decide to use Film 4 as our distribution company. We felt that this would be fitting as they are a British company that have previously distributed other indie films such as 'Suffragette' and 'The Inbetweeners'. We will also be receiving a grant from the BFI (British Film Institution). This funding aids the British film industry and has been known to be a 'stepping stone' for many other British independent films such as... As independent films rarely get releases of varying platforms, we will heavily rely on screenings of our film at film festivals such as the BFI festival, and eventually TV releases on channels such as Channel 4 in order to increase the success of our film.
Core audience: The core audience of our film will be members of the LGBT community. The LGBT community is one made up of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. We are able to appeal to this audience through our portrayal of a homosexual protagonist. This creates a more relatable character for the audience as they may have experienced similar situations. It also gives opportunity for a social group that has rarely been represented in the media. Other films such as 'Weekend' (2011) and 'My Beautiful Laundrette' (1985) have also had this core audience and explore similar themes of love and happiness, whilst also revealing the hardship that people within this community often go through. Wider Market:
In our wider market we would hope to appeal to fans of the genres of drama, romance, coming-of-age and comedy. As our films takes different aspects from these many different genres, we hope this would make it appeal to more people. We would also hope to attract fans of the indie genre as this had a heavy influence in the decisions we made about our film. The film 'Submarine is an example of a film with a very similar target audience to the one that we want our film to appeal to. We also hope that our film would appeal to many British people due to our use of a British setting and British characters.
In our first group meeting we decided to meet on Wednesdays and Fridays from 3:55-4:55 in the media department. We have agreed to arrive on time and complete the tasks required for the meetings in advance. We have also agreed to work as a team by listening to everyone's ideas and respecting people's artistic differences. We have also set up a Facebook page so that we can contact each other quickly and posts any ideas and pictures that we may have.
