Prop Research

For our film opening many props are needed to give each scene a sense of validity. Props can vary in size. From something huge and expensive like a car to something as small as an item of food. Without props the film would not flow as well as it  potentially could. For this task we need to write our props list as we write our screenplay to make sure we do not miss anything as some of the props (bracelets) we need to buy and we only have a short period of time in which to buy all of the necessary props. It is very important to get the right props as it could make the shot or scene look jarring if they were incorrect. For example, if a wealthy person drove a cheap/damaged car.

Prop list:
1. Two phones.
2. Three matching bracelets.
3. One laptop.
4. Male shirt.

Mcguffin: In fiction, a mcguffin is a plot device in the form of some goal, desired object, or other motivator that the protagonist pursues, often with little or no narrative explanation. The specific nature of a mcguffin is typically unimportant to the overall plot. For example, like the feather in Forest Gump. In our film opening the bracelets represent the mcguffin.

Location Research

Researching locations for the film opening task is a relatively important element of pre-production as the right location makes it possible to achieve the look and feel you want your film to obtain. We only need two very contrasting rooms in our film opening. One will be used for Daniel's university room (give off the impression he is far away). This room needs to be modern, minimalistic and look like a typical working room with a desk and chair (right picture). The second room will be used as Phoebe's 'girly' room (give off the impression she is naive. This room needs to have lots going on in terms of posters and character to make it look like a typical girls room (left picture). We have decided to film at my house because I had both of these rooms. My bedroom will be used to portray Phoebe's room because it was slightly messy and also had lots of posters on the wall, which gave it a sense of character. I also said that we could use my Stepdad's study as Daniel's university room as it is minimalistic and has a desk that we can place the laptop on that he will use within the film opening.

My house is also a good location because there are lots of places in which we can take establishing shots. For example, the gate that leads to my front door and the big stair case that Phoebe will walk up as we introduce her as a character.

We have to take into account that we will need to carry all of the equipment so by making the location my house, which is very local to everyone, means that people will not need to drag equipment round for miles. Another factor we need to take into account will be our travel budget. We do not want to spend loads of money on travelling. By having a local location kept transport costs at a minimum.

Costume Research

Due to the fact that one of our main characters (Daniel) is a university student, we want to dress him in clothes that a stereotypical student would wear so that the age of our character is clear to the audience. Our other main character (Phoebe) is only a year or so younger than Daniel she also needs to be dressed in stereotypical clothes. Costume not only helps the audience find our what age the characters are but also the time in which the film is set, e.g. modern day or periodic.

We have decided to dress Phoebe in a big grey sweater to reinforce the stereotype that young people of this generation are often depressed/sluggish. She knows her boyfriend is acting strange towards her and so naturally she will feel down. The fact that much of her upper-torso will be concealed also emphasizes she may be insecure or worried about the stability of their relationship or perhaps herself. She will also be wearing jeans (a stereotypical item of clothing young people wear).

We have decided to dress Daniel similarly. He will be wearing a black V-neck T-shirt. This is not only stereotypical but again shows that he may be depressed or concerned as perhaps his guilty conscious is catching up with him.

Alexandra's costume will be harder to find as we need an over sized shirt. The reason she is wearing this is because we need the audience to know that Daniel is cheating on his girlfriend with this mystery woman. By Alexandra wearing (one of Daniel's shirts) it shows that he has not been faithful and has another woman in his life.

All three characters wear the same bracelet:

- Daniel (black)

- Phoebe (pink)

- Alexandra (blue)

The matching bracelets show the link between the characters and also we want to make it look like Daniel has given them to each of the girls and to really influence how untrustworthy his character actually is. The bracelets will have the infinity symbol on them, which means limitless or endless. The use of these particular bracelets shows the intensity of the damaged relationship because it is clear that the love between the characters is not endless.

Actor Research

This is one of the hardest decisions to make during the research process as it is vital we choose the right actors to fit the character roles. If the actor does not fit the criteria, it could give the film opening a jarring feel to it. Our film opening is based on a newspaper article so we have complete freedom as to what we want our actors to look like as there is no 'character' to go by. We know that our close friend Phoebe has an interest in drama and achieved an A* grade at GCSE. She is an obvious choice for the lead female role. The leading male role takes the most amount of thinking and decision making because it is the most important role. We have started thinking about male actor options and have decided a friend of ours would fit the bill as we know he has an interest in drama and has also been in school productions at his secondary school. For the second female role (the woman Daniel is cheating with) does not need to be thought about very carefully because we know you will not see her face (enigma element) and she only had a very short line. This means that this role will be the last role to be cast and we just need to ask one of our other female friends who will be free at the time. We will organise all the actor roles and filming times before we break up for February half-term so that when we come back to school everything will be sorted for the day of filming and we will not need to worry about it during the break.

Shot List

Shot list: A full log of all the shots you want to include in your film. Essentially it is a checklist filled with details that will give your film a sense of direction and efficiency.

1. Establishing shot of house.
2. Close-up shot of Phoebe opening the gate to house.
3. Medium-wide-shot of Phoebe opening the door and taking off her bag and coat.
4. Birds-eye-view long-shot of Phoebe walking up the stairs.
5. Panning shot of Phoebe walking and sitting down in her bedroom.
6. Over the shoulder shot of the phone ringing.
7. Close-up shot of Dan answering the phone.
8. Medium close-up of the entire phone call conversation.
9. Panning shot upwards as Alex enters the room.

Storyboard

Storyboard: A sequence of drawings, typically with some directions and dialogue, representing the shots planned for a film or television production.

What is the purpose of a storyboard? To organise the images to be displayed in a sequence for a motion picture, animation, or interactive media sequence. Storyboards make it easier for the editor to know what order the clips should be shown in.

Screenplay

Fade In:

There is an establishing shot of the outside of a house. The camera acts like a person and walks into the house. Once inside, the camera walks upstairs and comes to a stop inside a girl’s room. There is a panning shot of the room. The girl is sitting on her bed, a phone vibration is heard, camera zooms into the phone. Diegetic noise.

Phoebe

Good morning baby, how are you?

Daniel

Morning. I’m good. I miss you.

Phoebe

I miss you too. How long is it until you’re back home?

Daniel

UH, four weeks if I can get home.

Phoebe

(More serious tone – emotionally desperate)

Please don’t cancel again, I haven’t seen you in like two months.

Phoebe is seen sitting on her bed surrounded by books whilst Dan can be seen at his desk on his laptop typing.

Daniel

(Reassuring tone)

I won’t cancel on you again. I promise.

Phoebe

Go-

Daniel

Look babe I have to go I have stuff to do. I’ll talk to you later.

Phoebe

(Sad tone, emotionally drained)

Okay. I love you.

Daniel

(Dismissive tone)

Yeah, yeah love you too.

A girl is seen to be entering. Her face is not shown. She comes to a stop and rests her hands on his shoulders. The camera s positioned on Dan’s desk and can see them front on. The camera pans up to reveal his face. He has a guilty expression. 

Mystery Girl (Alexandra)

Was that her?

Fade Out:

The End