Opening sequence- Editing Workshop #6

For our last workshop we focused first on changing the names in the credits and then placed them further apart in order to slow the sequence's pace down. 

We then changed the main title to appear at the end of the sequence. We imported a 'digital' font to match with the sequence's concept and add effected to changed the letters into digits.

#4 final/rough sequence

Opening sequence- Editing Workshop #5

We began by importing the credits cards and naming each card, followed by placing them in certain shots where it had free space- to maintain a well balanced composition. We came across some issues with the placement of credits as they were too bunched up together- making the credits' pace too fast. 

Jake took care of this issue. Meanwhile, I began to research for non-copyrighted soundtrack/music on both YouTube and iCloud that would 'match' well with our opening sequence's crime/thriller genre. 

I selected multiple options for our opening sequence's soundtrack and with the help of the rest of the members we chose one and imported it to the sequence. We lowered the volume in order for the dialogue to be audible and added a few sound effects- such as typing keyboard noises, etc.

By the end of the lesson we were mostly done, just needed to refine the sequence, change the credits' names to make them sound more realistic and their placement as well as change the main title- maybe place it at the end of the sequence to create tension?

#3 rough sequence

Opening sequence- Editing Workshop #4

In the fourth editing workshop we dedicated extra time to finish editing the whole sequence. We started by incorporating our previously edited screen recording montage and the 'CCTV footage' shots. This made the rest of the sequence to become easier to edit as we began to see a final draft being created. 

    

By the end of the workshop we had finished the opening sequence, however after some quick feedback we had to change certain things such as scenes needing cutting- some shots are too long. The credits also needed to be placed, as well as sound effects and the soundtrack.

#2 rough sequence

Opening sequence- Editing Workshop #3

During this workshop we decided to perfect, shorten, etc, the edited footage we had so far. We spent the entire workshop figuring out the order in which to place the shots in. 

As mentioned before, the lack of guidance from the storyboard complicated/slowed down the editing process. Fortunately, we still had the final draft of our shot-by-shot list that was used to placed certain footage in the timeline.

Credits workshop

During the second workshop, Matt gave a short lesson on editing and placing credits in our opening sequences.

We firstly had to import 'bin title cards' on Premiere Pro and drag to timelines, as you would with raw footage, and place them wherever in the frame. The title card were also numbered/ in order therefore all we had to do was to makeup names. 

To change the original name on the title cards you need to click on the middle of the phrase and delete the sides to maintain the cards' format. 

The credits should be placed for a certain period of time in order for the audience to be able to read- a trick for this to be able to read the credits three times.

Opening sequence- Editing Workshop #2

In the second workshop we had created a possible introduction for our opening sequence. However, we were still unsure so we made another alternative for an intro beginning with an extreme closeup shot and an establishing shot- each sequence with a different arrangement inherent order for us to see which shot would create a more interesting sequence. 

We struggled to decide how to edit our opening sequence since we no longer had the storyboard as a guide. As we edited these, I took notes on how we could modify these according to the footage we liked best.

By the end of the lesson we were able to edit up until the scamming scene. We were quite satisfied with the outcome so far however some of the dialogue scenes were too long and needed cutting.

#1 rough sequence

Opening sequence- Editing Workshop #1

In our first editing workshop we began by watching the raw footage taken and placed the good footage into two bins: one containing all the scenes with the scammers and the other with the scenes of the student. 

After naming each rush we began to edit the intro. We attempted to edit according to the storyboard, however the shots we initially thought were going to be good ended up not turning out so well. 

Therefore, we decided to improvise and plan an alternative introduction. We didn't know whether to start with an establishing (wide) shot to set the location or an extreme closeup- the shot we liked best/found the most interesting composition to begin with. 

History of opening titles and credits research task

The history of titles and credits in film

Before the 1900, films would just begin. The first hint of the creation of title cards was seen in the film "How It Feels To Be Run Over", directed by Cecil Hepworth in 1900s.

Quick frames of "Oh mother will be pleased" were played in a scene from the film.

In 1901, interfiles (title cards in the film itself) were introduced to provide dialogue, set the scene, etc. This was first shown in "Marley's ghost" by Walter R. Booth.

"The Great Train Robbery" (1903) was the first feature film that included a title card introducing the film's title and the production company's trademark in the beginning of the film. The credits- name of actors and other staff weren't shown in these early stages.

Later on directors started experimenting with animation and animated titles. In 1906, J. Stuart Blackton's film "Humorous phases of funny faces" created their opening titles using chalk and stop-motion animation. 

link to opening title sequence

Evolution of animated titles/opening sequence

Opening title sequence evolved and became more consistent as all film production would use a similar template of a classic film noir theme. It also now included the studio logo, film title, screenplay credits, cinematography, music, wardrobe and director.

Titles and credits further evolved after 1949, when directors and producer become more artistically involved in the creation of these. 

Saul Bass had an impact in the modern title design as he introduced the first animated title sequence "Carmen Jones" (1954). He introduced kinetic typography to the film industry.

Maurice Binder's work on "Dr No" (1952) also had an impact on the film industry- creating the iconic imagery of James Bond 'telescope view'.

Title and credit cards become digital in 1978, in the "Superman" film by Richard Donner.

Evolution of Production company logos- how they've changed over the years? 

Our opening sequence's genre is crime/thriller. A couple of similar products that we looked into throughout the research stage were: "Mr Robot" (2015-2019), "Hacker" (2016), "Disturbia"(2007), etc. The theme of the titles reflected the genre through the 'robotic' typography. 

We took inspiration from these two videos down below- our idea was to use a 'robotic' font to reflect the theme of hacking/scamming as well as use some of the effects like "Social Network" title sequence.

link to "Social Network" title sequence

link to "Mr Robot" all season opening titles

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

• A media institution is an organisation that owns and produces media product such as films. 
• A film distributor is responsible for the marketing and selling of a film.

Film distribution companies:

• 20th Century Studios
• Warner Bros. Studios
• Universal Pictures
• Sony Pictures
• Paramount Pictures Studios

20th Century Studios films:

• Bohemian Rhapsody 
• Alien vs Predator
• Avatar
• Jennifer's Body
  
• Edward Scissorhands 
• William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet

Warner Bros. Pictures

• The Dark Knight
• Wonder Woman 
• Harry Potter saga
• Joker
• Man of Steel
• Aquaman

Universal Pictures

• Sherlock Holmes
• King Kong
• Jaws
• 
  Halloween
• Back to the Future
• Jurassic Park

Sony Pictures

• Spider-Man
• Ghostbusters
• Men in Black
• The Karate Kid
• Terminator
• The Da Vinci Code

Paramount Pictures

• The Godfather
• Friday the 13th
• 
  Mission: Impossible
• A Quiet Place
• Crocodile Dundee
• Star Trek

If your opening sequence was for a real film, what type of media company would distribute it?

link to response vid

Target audience

The concept of target audience is fundamental to the production of film. Age, gender, class/social status, behaviour and values must be considered in order to make the product as appealing as possible to the desired audience.

Our opening sequence "Reverse" is a crime/thriller film, that tells the story of a university student who uses his IT/computing skills to conduct a scam of his own, tricking professional scamming teams to expose them and make profit out of it. 

 

The audience demographic for "Reverse" is mainly straight, white, British, working class men, aged 18-21. This is because of the interests shared by the demographic on the sequence's concept around crime and student (teen) life as well as the the thriller genre. 

The socio-economic status of the target audience is D -semi-skilled and unskilled manual workers- and E - students and unemployed people. This is due to the social status of the film's characters and the appeal to the audience. 

I would categorise the target audience for our opening sequence as being in “The Reformer” group as they value independent judgment and intellectuality- such values shown in our main character. Moreover, the group is said to be "the leading edge of society", another word for outcast. 

Shoot day Evaluation

The day before, I made sure to print documents that would be used as guidance such as: the shot-by-shot list; script for actors and the storyboard. I also prepared the costume for the actors. Our group also took the time to prepare the first set beforehand in order to not waste time- decorated one of the boarding house rooms.

On the actual shoot day, I felt slightly nervous and unprepared. Before shooting, we rearranged the first location, gave small directions to the actor and set up the lighting- covering the window with dark cloths and place a small light against the wall.

As you can see in the two pictures above the set changed. This is because the way we had first arranged the location didn't meet our intentions of a messy/sketchy university student's room. 

On the shoot, we divided the roles into three: sound director; filmmaker and director. We switched every few scenes so all members could be included. The sound director was in charge of recording sound using a handheld shotgun microphone close to the scene to capture the dialogue and sound effects. The filmmaker was in charge of handling the camera and recording the footage, making sure the shot and composition looks okay. Finally, the director was in charge of leading the group, giving directions to the actors, etc. 

link to vid

I personally think I did well directing the shoot as our group lacked a bit of confidence. I found this to be an ongoing issue as there seemed to be a lack of leadership. I felt that when I took the role as Director, the shoot went a lot smoother and quicker. 

Another problem we came across on the shoot day was the fact we didn't have a detailed storyboard, therefore we weren't able to visualise our idea until the editing process. 

Despite this, the shoot went well. The shoot in the second location was most successful as we now felt confident and were able to capture some interesting shots. 

The first part of the shoot, however, could've gone better as we wasted some time unsure of what to do. Although we had this slight issue, filming in the first set was the most enjoyable moment during the shoot. Filming and directing was easier as we only had/needed few people on set, therefore being less stressful. 

I look forward to see the raw footage and how it turned out as well as how we will incorporate the hacking montage scene and the CCTV footage.

My production team worked well together as we are close friends therefore it was easy to communicate and share ideas/opinions. 

We learned that organisation and careful planning in pre-production stage- researching and planning- is essential in order for the shoot day to go as smoothly. We also learned that creating a storyboard is important as it serves as guidance- easier to picture the sequence, decide which shots are needed, etc. 

link to vid

link to vid

Research into filming roles

Media production is social collaboration which requires a division of labour – specialised skills in order to manufacture the right shots in getting the correct genre conventions and tone of your opening sequence. 

The Director is in responsible for the artistic/creative aspects of the film's production, as well as, giving instructions to actors and crew.

The Camera Operator sets up and works the camera, capturing the footage and making sure the shots are good, have a balanced composition, etc. 

The Editor gathers the raw camera footage, dialogue, sound effects together to produce a final product. 

The Sound Director is responsible for capturing/recording the sound effects, dialogue, etc. Responsible for the sound equipment + setting up.

After a short discussion with our group, we assigned the roles. I was designated the role of Director. This role is important as I will be giving the instructions to the crew and actors.

I am in charge of writing the final draft of the script and the shot-by-shot list, design the storyboard. As well as, cast and communicate with actors, prepare their costumes and set up the location.