Sound Effects

Sound Motif:

A sound motif is a recurring sound effect or group of effects that are associated with a particular character. Viewers can then tell when a certain character, event or situation is going to arrive as it is sustained throughout the episode or series. 
For example, in Doctor Who, whenever the TARDIS materialization sound is heard you know that The Doctor has arrived: http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/sounds/tardis.mp3  

Paralleled sound:

Parallel sound adds to the effect of the show or film by contributing to the mood and atmosphere. The audio and visual effects match the mood and atmosphere, like you would expect them to. 
In this clip of Merlin, Sir Gwaine and Prince Arthur are made to fight, and exciting, dramatic non-diegetic sound is playing in the background. This adds to the battle and drama of the scene, as the drums and crescendos play in time with the clanging of the swords: 




Contrapuntal sound:

Sound that goes against what the viewer would expect and contrasts with the mood or atmosphere. It is the opposite of Paralleled sounds and creates a unique effect when watching the film; it sets viewers on edge as the music and images clash. This clip comes from the film Mr & Mrs Smith, and it shows the two main characters Jane and John having a fight, yet the music is quite jolly and this makes the scene far from real and gives it a comical feel.



Another example within this film would be the fight scene at the end of the film between the couple and the companies they work for. The action, gun power and well choreographed moves are contrasted with a tango song that was also featured earlier on. 




Direct Address:

"Breaking the 4th wall" where an actor or actress addresses the audience by looking at the camera and/or talking to them, not another cast member. For example, in Miranda, she often looks at the camera to show her inner feelings to the audience, and the other cast member cannot see what she is saying or doing, as she is talking only to the audience. This clip involves a few examples of how Miranda looks at the camera during the scene: 

KICK-ASS

Idea:

The idea for the Kick-Ass movie came from the comic book series written by Mark Millar. It was published by Marvel Comics and illustrated by John Romita Jr. The comic-book series is about Dave Lizewski, a teenager who sets out to become a real-life superhero and ends up by being internet famous.

Finance:

Budget: $30 million

Total income: $96,188,903

Matthew Vaughn went around, securing independent financing. But now that it’s received a positive response at Comic Con; Lionsgate, Paramount, and Universal are all making bids for distribution. The rights to a film version of the comic book were sold before the first issue of the comic book was published.

Script Development:

Vaughn: "We wrote the script and the comic at the same time so it was a very sort of collaborative, organic process. I met [Millar] at the premiere of Stardust. We got on really well. I knew who he was and what he had done but I didn't know him. He pitched me the idea. I said, 'That's great!' He then wrote a synopsis. I went, 'That's great, let's go do it now! You write the comic, I'll write the script.'" 

  Jane Goldman one of the screenwriters, said that when she works with Vaughn she does the "construction work" and the "interior designing" while Vaughn acts as the "architect."

Seven American film studios turned down the script before Vaughn released it through his own production company. Vaughn initially went to Sony, but he rejected calls to tone down the violence.

Other studios expressed interest but wanted to make the characters - in particular studios Hit-Girl's character - into adults. Whilst studio executives said that it would be less offensive to portray Hit-Girl as a teenager, Goldman argued that it would have been more offensive since, as a teenager, Hit-Girl would have been sexualized. Goldman said that Hit-Girl was not supposed to be sexualized.

Aaron Johnson and Chloë Grace Moretz were cast as Kick-ass and Hit-Girl and a cameo from Nicholas Cage was included as the character Big Daddy.

Production:

The big studios doubted the success of an adaptation as a violent superhero, which made the film be independently financed, but this gave him the freedom to make the film the way he imagined, without having to worry about high-censorship. Vaughn believed enough in the project to raise the money himself, with the help of co-producer Brad Pitt. Christopher Mintz-Plasse, (Red Mist), said that the creators of the film were wondering whether a distributor would pick up the movie. On the set Vaughn jokingly referred to Kick-Ass as something that was going to be "the most expensive home movie I ever made."

Filming locations include Hamilton, Ontario, Canada; Dip 'N' Sip Donuts on Kingston Road in Toronto, Sir Winston Churchill Secondary Schooland "many Toronto landmarks that play cameos"; and various locations in the UK, including Elstree Studios. The opening sequence with Nicolas Cage was filmed in a sewage plant in East London.

The 2D/3D animated comic book sequence in the film took almost two years to finish. Romita created the pencils, Tom Palmer did the inks, and Dean White did the colours.

In an interview with Total Film, Aaron Johnson confirmed that the film stays true to the adult nature of the comic book series by featuring a large amount of profanity and graphic violence. It received a 15 rating from the BBFC. Director Matthew Vaughn felt the 15 certificate was about right and expressed some surprise at the film having received a "PG rating" in France.

Production companies involved in making the film were Marv films and Plan B entertainment. Distributors then included institutes such as Universal pictures, Paramount and Warner pictures. 

A full company involvement list can be found here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1250777/companycredits

Sales:

A teaser trailer was shown and this caused some controversy because of the explicit language used by Chloe (Hit-girl). An international trailer was then released and shown around the world.

Marketing:

Posters were put up in bus stations, magazines and and trailers were shown on TV. Empire and Total Film magazine covered the film and it's journey from page to screen and film reviews are on their websites also. The film was also pitched at San Diego Comic-con and the Empire magazine Movie-Con.

Exhibition:

A premier was held in London for the film and the cast plus other guests - including Brad Pitt- arrived to promote the movie.

Kick-Ass made £3,881,704 (UK) on the opening weekend (4 April 2010)  and it was shown on 402 Screens across the country.  

It was shown on 5778 screens across the world on the opening weekend alone.

	All Critics	Top Critics	Audience
	76% (235 reviews)	67% (39 reviews)	83% (211,361 reviews)

(Taken from Rotten Tomatoes/ wikipedia)

Chris Hewitt of Empire magazine gave the film 5/5 and declared it, "A ridiculously entertaining, perfectly paced, ultra-violent cinematic rush that kicks the places other movies struggle to reach.The film's violence is clearly fantastical and cartoonish and not to be taken seriously."

In an interview, Matthew Vaughn said, "There is about 18 minutes of deleted footage, which is really good stuff." The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 3 August 2010 in North America, selling 1.4 million copies within its first week, one-third of these in Blu-ray format. Kick-Ass debuted at number one on the DVD sales chart and the discs were released in the United Kingdom on 6 September 2010.

Other Windows:

A video game produced by WHA Entertainment and Frozen Codebase was released through the App Store on 15 April 2010. The game was released on PlayStation Network on 29 April 2010.

The film has been nominated and has won several awards for Best British film, Best newcomer and more, with Chloe Moretz winning four of them for her performance.

Kick-Ass 2

It was reported that Universal will be distributing Kick-Ass 2.

"The costumed high-school hero Kick-Ass joins with a group of normal citizens who have been inspired to fight crime in costume. Meanwhile, the Red Mist plots an act of revenge that will affect everyone Kick-Ass knows." -Synopsis

The same cast will be returning, plus a few new faces. Matthew Vaughn had chosen Jeff Wadlow, who also co-wrote the script along with Vaughn, to direct the sequel with filming planned to begin in September 2012.

Good source of information: http://www.scribd.com/doc/42700167/Kick-Ass-Production-Notes

KICK-ASS on Prezi

American Beauty // Lester Burnham

Todorov's narrative structure

Equilibrium 
At the beginning of American Beauty, the normal 'household' contains fighting, unhappy family members and a dysfunctional marriage. The main characters Carolyn, Lester and Jane are having family problems as both women think Lester is a loser and not good for anything. Lester himself is having to face losing his job and he also has no male dominance in the house. 

Disruption (disequilibrium)

Lester starts to lust after Jane's friend Angela and fantasizes about sleeping with her. New next-door neighbors move in and the son of the family, Ricky, is seen as a freak as he videos everything because he thinks it's 'beautiful'. Ricky's dad is a homophobic, military based man who drilled discipline into Rickey's mind by putting him in a metal hospital. 

Recognition of disruption

Jane finds out Lester wants to sleep with Angela and Jane warns Angela not to sleep with him because is her dad and he's a loser. Jane finds out more about Ricky and see's that he isn't as weird as she first thought, and she finds befriends him. Ricky is accused of being gay by his dad.

Attempt to repair disruption
To get away from his controlling dad, Ricky says he is in fact gay and his dad throws him out of the house. Ricky then asks Jane to run away to New York with him and she says yes. Lester chooses not to have sex with Angela as she is a virgin and then asks about how Jane is doing, because he cares about his daughter. We also find out Ricky's dad is gay and that's why he is so homophobic; he's hiding a secret that is released when he tries to kiss Lester.

New Equilibrium

After being rejected by Lester, Ricky's dad shoots him and the family is forced to live in a world without Lester. The old equilibrium isn't restored as Lester is dead, but the film ends so we can't see how the other characters cope with the loss. 
Lester Burnham

Lester Burnham is the male role lead in American Beauty and despises life at the beginning of the film. 

He is seen as a loser by his wife and daughter, and we can see he feels trapped in his body and life, due to his actions and the things he says.

In this film he is represented as a middle aged man in difficult circumstances who is passive aggressive and then finds his voice. 

He is seen as the victim in this film as everyone hates him, but he's just trying to get on with life and do the best he can. We feel sorry for him as he is sexually frustrated, seen as lazy at work and his daughter plans to kill him in the establishing shot. It seems the only thing he enjoys in life is getting high, until he meets his daughters friend, Angela and starts to fantasize about her. This represents him as a slightly deranged man, but desperate for love and intimacy. 
In the end we feel sorry for him, as he is shot by his next-door neighbour because he rejected him, due to the fact he wasn't gay. 

Attack the Block

Director and writer: Joe Cornish
Rating: 15
Genres: Action/ Comedy/ Horror/ Sci-Fi
Release Date: 13th May 2011
Stars: Jodie Whittaker, John Boyega, Alex Esmail.
Budget: £9 million

How it was produced:

It was produced by Big Talk Productions who are known for filming, Hot Fuzz, Scott Pilgrim vs. The world and Shaun of the dead. They produced the film with the UK film council, Film4 and Studio Canal.
The 'block' was a mixture of council estates across London.

 "We wanted to stamp a clear layout on the audience's minds early, and since we couldn't afford to show an aerial shot of the estate as it doesn't exist, the way to show it was by showing this top shot of the map at the very beginning of the film." - Director Joe Cornish.

The film was shot across London from March to May 2010, with six weeks of night shoots on the Heygate Estate and various other places. Interior scene were filmed at Three Mills Studios in east London.

What it was based on:

Cornish was once mugged outside his home in South London and investigated the kind of kids that robbed him. He then took thay stereotype and turned it into an Alien/ Sci-Fi.

"Children make mistakes; they test the boundaries of the world."

 

Soundtrack:

The soundtrack for the film was an original score composed by Simon Ratcliffe and Felix Buxton of the popular electronic dance music group Basement Jaxx.

Promotion:

Posters were posted on bus stops, billboards etc. promoting the films release.
A premier was also held for the film in Leiceter Square London.

Attack the block has a website that promotes the trailer, screencaps from the film itself, and interviews with the cast and directors. http://attacktheblock.com/ 

The Film:

There wasn't any controversy surrounding the film as it is a comedy-horror and appealed to a "geek-friendly" crowd. It was the debut film of director Joe cornish and the cast said they enjoyed working with him.

My Review:

When i read the critic reviews of Attack The Block, i thought 'finally, another good comedy/horror to look forward to' but after watching the film i was disappointed. The reviews had told me it was 'genius' and i would 'regret not seeing it in the theater', however when i watched the film i wondered what all of the fuss was about. 
I usually love Sci-Fi/Comedy/Alien films - Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead are two of the best in my opinion - so i expected to really enjoy and love this film.

To begin with i felt that the film had a weak plot line as there wasn't much explanation of the events or characters. I found it hard to watch the actors on screen because i find the way they spoke to be quite cringey as i felt they were overdoing the "block" talk at times. 

Throughout the film the character of Brewis (played by Luke Treadaway) made me laugh as he was so out of place with his well spoken accent and the fact he sought approval from the "block" gang.
Another aspect that made me laugh was the cameo of Nick Frost as the drug dealer, Ron. His one liners like: "Well, 'ere lads, you've discovered a species hitherto unknown to science, quite possibly non-terrestrial in origin, and you kicked it's fuckin' head in!", made me laugh, as did others throughout the film.

I thought the second half of the film was better than the first as I found myself getting into it more and I found myself wanting to see how it turned out in the end.
The slow motion sequence, when Moses is being chased by the aliens was good as, we could everything that was happening without it being a blur and different camera angles allowed for an exciting way to view the events. I enjoyed the on-going battle between the aliens and the kids.

Overall I would rate this film  ★★★ as it is enjoyable enough but not as good as the critics had said. 

5 X 5

Top 5 Magazines 

Empire - They always have good film reviews inside.

SFX - Allows me to find out about upcoming sci-fi films.

Total Film - Enjoyable to read, always have my favourite actors inside.

NME - They often cover bands i like.

Doctor Who magazine - (not Doctor who Adventures) contains all the info on episodes and characters.

Top 5 Marvel Characters

Wolverine - "Wow. Koo-koo-ka-choo got screwed." - comedy value, badass, has adamantium claws.

Charles Xavier - Played by Patrick Stewart and James McAvoy.
Iron Man/ Tony Stark - Robert Downey Jr. Stan Lee created him so we shouldn't love him, but do.

The Human Torch - Comedy Value, his power is quite unique.

Loki - "Kneel before me"

Top 5 TV shows

Doctor Who - "All of time and space; everywhere and anywhere; every star that ever was. Where do you want to start?"

The Vampire Diaries - Amazing plot lines and is full of beautiful people.

New Girl - Best comedy on TV.
Sherlock - Refreshing take on the books by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

How i Met your Mother - Barney Stintson is one of the best people ever.

5 Favourite Book series

The Hunger Games -Original, good reads, can't wait for all of the films to be released.

Divergent Trilogy - Heart-breaking but excellent Dystopian novels.

Delirium Trilogy - Heart-breaking but excellent Dystopian novels.

House of Night Saga - Fresh take on "Vampyres"

Harry Potter Series - One of the best series' around.

Top 5 bands

The Vaccines - "For goodness sake, let us be young. 'Cause time gets harder to out run"

Two Door Cinema Club - "There's a spanner in the works you know, You gotta step up your game to make to the top."

Florence + The Machine - "I must become a lion hearted girl, ready for a fight."

Panic! at the Disco - "Velvet lips and the eyes to pull me in, we both know you'd already win"

Little Comets - "I love your hands, i love your face and eyes, i love the way she only ever tells me lies."

Industry Flow Chart

Industry Flow Chart

Good Cop

The character of Sav is first introduced to the audience at the beginning of the episode when he is walking down the dimly lit street. The surroundings are dark in the establishing shot and there is a faint orange glow from street lights which hints at a light/dark contrast within the character. It is also raining which adds to the dark, miserable atmosphere of the scene and gives the impression that Sav could be quite a negative person. 
He is then seen in his room with blood on his hands and a gun on his bed which makes it look like he has committed a crime and possibly shot someone. We begin to question his mental state as he rushes around frantically trying to clean everything up. He also has ripped wallpaper that could have been placed there to represent the way the character behaves and feels. 

When he meets Cassie and Libby on the beach we see a different side to him, like the contrast in the street lighting suggests. We can see he has had some previous history with the woman as he is interested in what she has to say, even though she is quite rude towards him. He keeps calm and looks upset when she walks away, which suggests he might have feelings for her. This scene represents him as a man who has made mistakes but feels bad about how things have turned out. 

Sav seems like a concerned member of the public as he goes to check she is okay, only to find the man in the toilets harassing her. We then find out Sav is actually a police officer and his badge represents the law and being a good person, so we start to think the gun and blood are all tied into his job. 
He seems genuinely concerned for the Waitress' well-being and this shows he is a nice person who is good at his job. Instead of rising to the mans threats and taunts he says "have a nice day sir" and this shows us he is smart and thinks about his actions. Although, this then makes us think about why he was so panicked in the opening scene. 

The relationship between Sav and Andy seems like a friendly one as they makes jokes and laugh with each other when they are in the cafe/diner. When he is at work in the locker rooms, he seems to have a good relationship with his co-workers as he tells them about his meeting with Cassie on the beach. They seem to know about his situation so that makes us think they are friends. In the locker scene Sav is represented as a caring, friendly person which makes us like him more. 

When dealing with the Victims and the dead baby he uses hushed voices to be considerate and doesn't know how to react because it's a terrible tragedy. He doesn't know how the baby died so he doesn't accuse anyone and tries to be rational in the situation whilst Andy, his partner, is a little bit more shocked. Sav talks to the brother of the dead baby and is represented as a helpful police officer who is just doing his job and making them feel more relaxed and less hysterical. 

The Film Industry

Selected Key Terms for Institutions and Audience

An institution (in the film industry)

Definition:

Any company or organisation that produces, distributes or exhibits films. The BBC makes films with their BBC Films arm; Channel4's Film Four produces films, Working Title also produce films, as does Vertigo Films, etc. Some institutions need to join with other institutions which distribute films. Vertigo Films is able to distribute its own films, Channel Four distributed Slumdog Millionaire through Pathe. Working Title's distribution partner is Universal, a huge US company which can make, distribute and show films. The type of owner ship within an institution matters as, for instance, Channel 4 and the BBC are able to show their own films at an earlier stage than other films made by other institutions. They are also better placed to cross-promote their in-house films within their media organisations. Use you work on Film Four as the basis for most of what you write, Moon is a good cross comparison as Duncan Jones had to create his own institution just to get the film made.


Distribution and Marketing

Definition:

The business of getting films to their audiences by booking them for runs into cinemas and taking them there in vans or through digital downloads; distributors also create the marketing campaign for films producing posters, trailers, websites, organise free previews, press packs, television interviews with the "talent", sign contracts for promotions, competitions, etc. Distributors use their know-how and size to ensure that DVDs of the film end up in stores and on supermarket shelves. Distributors also obtain the BBFC certificate, and try to get films released as the most favourable times of the year for their genre, etc.
Examples:Universal distributed Working Title's The Boat That Rocked; Pathe distributedFilm4 and Celadors' Slumdog Millionaire after the original US distributor, Warner Independent went out of business. TRON was heavily marketed across a variety of mediums, Moon struggled to get press attention and Duncan Jones had to really push the film  in obscure places like Popular Mechanics etc. The Kings Speech was distributed by Momentum (a susiduary of Aliance films) who are a major independent film distributor.


Exhibition

Definition:

Showing films in cinemas or on DVD. Media attention through opening nights and premieres How the audience can see the film: in cinemas, at home, on DVD, through downloads, through television, including premieres, the box office take in the opening weeks; audience reviews which includes those of the film critics, ordinary people, cinemas runs; awards in festivals, The Oscars, BAFTAS, etc.


Examples:
Slumdog Millionaire almost never got distribution. Its early US distributor, Warner Independent was a victim of the economic downturn and went out of business. The film's makers then struggled to find a distributor! Then Fox Searchlight stepped up and "the rest is history". The 8 out of 10 Oscar nomination wins ensured that the film has been the greatest British success in awards and in box office for nearly 60years.http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/boyle-reveals-slumdog-millionaire-was-nearly-never-made-1331821.html

Initially Sony Pictures Worldwide were due to distribute the film but they specialise in straight to DVD features. Following positive reaction following its Sundance film festival the rights were acquired by Sony Classic Pictures who gave the film a limited release in the US in Cities like New York and LA.

Exchange

Definition:

The unintended use of an institution’s media text (i.e. a film) by OTHER PEOPLE who use the film or parts of it to form new texts. What happens to a film, etc. after the public get their hands on it using digital technology. 

Examples:People unconnected to the institution/ film using WEB 2.0 applications such as YOUTUBE, Blogger, Amazon film message boards, TWITTER, Face-Book, discuss the film or edit parts of together to form a new text which the may then put a new soundtrack to and publish on YOUTUBE, etc. When you add a trailer from a site like YouTube on your blog you have been engaging with exchange. Look back to MArk Kermodes video regarding piracy and the new release strategies for films like Ken Loach's "Route Irish" (Loach has reportedly steeled himself for a frosty response from critics and anticipates an underwhelming box office, noting the difficulty he faced securing a distribution deal. Though pragmatic in his view that “people don’t make films to communicate; they make it as a commodity”,an unorthodox release strategy utilising Sky Movies Premier - which will place the film (and by extension, its subject matter) in a wider public sphere than it might otherwise have reached – suggests he hasn’t given up on pedagogy entirely.) or the Jack Ass 3 release on DVD and Sky Box Office.


Vertical and Horizontal Integration

Definition:

Absorption into a single firm of several firms involved in all aspects of a product's manufacture from raw materials to distribution.

Examples:Vivendi Universal have integrated film, music, web and distribution technology into the company, including owning big stakes in cables and wires that deliver these services. Therefore they are vertically integrated because they own all the different companies involved in film, from production to distribution to exhibition. They are also horizontally integrated because they have all the expertise for producing media content under one roof – films, TV, magazines, books, music, games thus being able to produce all the related media content for one film under the same roof (see synergy). This is important for the control the institution has over their product/film.


Synergy/Synergies 

Definition:

The interaction of two or more agents (institutions/companies) to ensure a larger effect than if they acted independently. This is beneficial for each company through efficiencies in expertise and costs. 

Examples:Working Title know how to make films and they have formed a business partnership with Universal, a massive US company, who have the experience and size in the marketplace (cinemas, stores, online, etc.) to distribute them. (They create the marketing campaign to target audiences through posters, trailers, create the film’s website, free previews, television and press interviews featuring “the talent”, drum up press reviews, word of mouth, and determine when a film is released for the best possible audience and the type of release: limited, wide, etc.) Channel Four’s Film 4 and Celador Films(Celador also produce Who Wants to Be A Millionaire and films, too) benefited by pooling their know-how, experience and expertise to jointly produce Slumdog Millionaire. These companies formed a business relationship with France’s Pathe to distribute this film. In the UK Pathe helped create the poster, trailer, website, etc. In the USA the film found another distributor after being nominated for the Oscars.


Viral Marketing

Definition:

A marketing technique aiming at reproducing "word of mouth" usually on the internet and through existing social networks. YouTube Video pastiches, trailers, interviews with cast members, the director, writer, etc. You can find interviews of “the talent” trying to gain publicity for your case study films on YouTube. Find some clips from the films we have studied to help you in the exam. Guerilla Marketing.The use of unconventional and low cost marketing strategies to raise awareness of a product. The aim is usually to create “buzz” and “word of mouth” around a film. Unusual stunts to gain publicity (P.R.) on the film’s opening weekend, etc.

Examples:Sasha Baron Cohen created “buzz” before the release of his film “Borat” by holding fake press conferences. The studio also accessed the popularity of YouTube by releasing the first 4 minutes of the movie on YouTube, a week before it’s release, which can then be sent virally across the nation. At a special viewing of “Bruno” Cohen landed on Eminem “butt first” from the roof MTV Awards venue, dressed in as an angel outfit with rents in the rear end.


Media Convergence

Definition:

Convergence of media occurs when multiple products come together to form one product with the advantages of all of them. 
Examples:More and more films are being marketed on the Internet and on mobile phones. You no longer need even to buy the DVDs or CDs as you can download films and music directly to your laptop, Mac or PC. Blue Ray DVDs can carry more features than ordinary DVDs and can be played on HD televisions and in home cinemas for enhanced/cinematic picture quality. You can save films on SKY digital, Free-box digital players, etc. You mobile phone has multiple features and applications. With media and technological convergence this is growing year on year. Play-Stations, X-Boxes and the Wii can can connect with the Internet and you can play video games with multiple players.


Technological Convergence

Definition:

The growing interractive use of digital technology in the film industry and media which enables people to share, consume and produce media that was difficult or impossible just a few years earlier.

Examples:For instance, the use of new software to add special effects in editing; the use of blue-screen; using new types of digital cameras like the one Danny Boyle used in “Slumdog Millionaire” (The Silicon Imaging Camera to shoot high quality film in tight spaces); you can use the Internet to download a film rather than go see it in the cinema; you can watch it on YouTube; you can use special editing programs like Final Cut Pro to edit bits of a film, give it new soundtrack and upload it on YouTube; you can produce illegal, pirate copies on DVDs from downloads and by converting the film’s format; you can buy Blue Ray DVDs with greater compression which allows superior viewing and more features on the DVD; distributors can use digital software to create high concept posters; cinemas can download films to their projection screens and do not have to depend on a van dropping off the film! The is also the Digital Screen Network. There are tons of ways in which technological convergence affects the production, distribution, exhibition and exchange by prosumers. ( A prosumer is someone who not only consumes (watches films) but also writes about them the Net, blogs and make films out of them, often uploading them on sites like YouTube, etc.

A Mainstream Film

Definition:

A high budget film that would appeal to most segments of an audience: the young, boys, girls, teenagers, young people, the middle aged, older people, the various classes in society. Distributors often spend as much or more than the film cost to make when distributing mainstream films that are given wide or universal releases.

Examples:

The Boat That Rocked was a mainstream idea and was given the mainstream treatment on wide release. The film flopped at the UK box office on release ( and has not done too well since mid November 2009 on release in the USA. This was mostly because of its poor reviews, particularly from “Time-Out”. However, when young and older audiences see the DVD they generally like the film because of its uplifting storyline and the well-chosen soundtrack.


Art House Films

Definition:

A low budget independent film that would mostly appeal to an educated, higher class audience who follow unusual genres or like cult directors that few people have heard of. Therefore it is usually aimed at a niche market. Foreign films often come under this category.

Examples: The low budget film, Once (2007) which found a specialised, boutique distributor in Fox Searchlight fits this label. (FOX the mainstream company usually distributes big budget film and blockbusters); So does “Juno” from 2008 which began as a low budget film about teenage pregnancy that the big studios thought too risky to touch – but it found popularity through its touching storyline, engaging music and its Oscar nomination for best script. Like “Slumdog Millionaire” the film crossed over between art-house cinemas and audiences to mainstream ones because of the recognition it received from Canadian film festivals and award ceremonies like Britain’s BAFTAS and the Hollywood’s Oscars.

Ratings bodies BBFC - The British Board of Film Classification:

How your institutions films are rated will affect audiences in so far as WHO can see them. Remember that sex scenes, offensive language, excessive violence, the use of profanity, etc. can affect the rating and certificate the film receives and therefore affect who is able to see the film.

Camera Angles

Two Shot Scene depicting Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and James Moriarty (Jared Harris) arguing in Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. This scene depicts the superiority of Sherlock as he is towering over James and looking down on him. It suggests he is more important and more intellectual then moriarty too.

Long shot of Hogsmeade villiage from the Harry Potter films. This has also been used as t he scenes master shot to show where the upcoming action will be set. The Long shot gives an overall view of where the film is set, as well as adding to the atmosphere of the film.

Medium shot of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) in The Hunger Games, as she fills the majority of the screen it shows her strong, powerful dominant mature, and because the weapon is in full view too, it shows she is capable of inflicting pain on others. This shot also shows the viewers what she looks like.







Close up of CGI Gollum from Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring. 







The establishing shot of Pride and Prejudice showing the sunrise on the moor. 

 POV from Iron Man's helmet. Allows the viewers to get involved in the action as well as being able to see what he sees. The use of on screen robotics and images also allows the viewer to escape to a different kind of world; as well as emphasizing the nature of the film.

TV Drama - Asylum of the Daleks

In this episode of Doctor Who, The Doctor, Amy and Rory are taken by the Daleks and forced to enter the 'Dalek Asylum' to shut down the planets surrounding force field - whilst tackling problems of their own. Amy and Rory's (what seemed to be) perfect marriage has broken down and The Doctor feels as if he has to fix it, whilst trying to get out of the Dalek Asylum and save the mysterious Oswin Oswald. 

The Doctor is one of the most beloved characters on TV because every time he regenerates he brings something new to the table. Matt Smith - the eleventh and current doctor - dons a quirky bow tie and during this episode as he fixes his bow tie, he fixes the broken marriage between his companions. 

We can tell that the genre Doctor Who fits into is Sci-Fi because of the fact most of it is set in Space, on Spaceships, with aliens - in this case, Daleks. This episode was watched by 6.4 million people and this proves the show is loved and has a large fan-base because Doctor Who appeals to both Genders and all ages. 

The Establishing Shot of this episode shows the Daleks home planet Skaro in ruins and this sets it up for the main story line. Throughout the episode itself, Two Shot scenes and Close ups are used to convey emotions within the characters and their reactions to each other. For example, when Amy and Rory are alone they start arguing with each other and close ups are used to show tears and facial expressions. 
Non-diegetic sounds are used in these scenes; they play backing music to link into the current situation. For instance, when The Doctor is in an action scene with the Daleks, Amy and Rory, loud clashing music is being played to convey the atmosphere of the scene.

BBC iPlayer: Asylum of the Daleks - Doctor Who