Rocks&Bottles: 2011-11-13

Location - The Tunnel

I thought this location could be interesting to use in our film opening as it is a approved graffiti site and is visually exciting which would be useful in a short film opening. Also, it is suited to an urban drama as graffiti is typically seen in urban and unkempt areas, also usually in inner city areas where we are basing our opening. This location is a tunnel which gives it a sense of confinement. This would be good as from this location we can suggest the characters are secretive and I think we could use this location when the gang of characters meet to suggest that they are meeting clandestinely, away from the public eye.

This photograph shows some crude images which I feel would enhance the realism in our opening which is typical of a urban drama. I like also the water on the floor which would have our actress look into to reflect on herself and actions.

This photograph shows the walkway leading down into the tunnel, I think the darkness at the end makes the tunnel look intriguing yet slightly threatening. As our film opening will be exploring the theme of violence for an urban drama this angle could be good to use.

This photograph is of the empty spray cans people leave behind, this would be useful mise en scene as it is typical of the surroundings. It could also suggest destruction and vandalism which graffiti can be considered as and is parallel to the narrative of rioting which we are using.

This is another angle of the open end of the tunnel and would be good to film in as it is very bright and natural lighting would make the scene have a harsh, realistic feel. Also the walkway above would provide a good place to have some high angled shots.

I like the vibrant colours in this photograph and this would make the shots interesting. Also I think as this space is enclosed it would be good to film an intimate shot.

In this photograph it shows the the overhead lighting which I think could also give a harsh effect but also create shadows which could provide a good visual which would contrast the constant use of natural daylight lighting.

This photograph shows the tunnel as more derelict as there is metal bars and lots of rubbish on the floor. The lighting here is quite dark and dingy which I think we would find useful.

This photograph was taken from a high angle and I think it could be quite interesting to film from a high angle. Looking down on the characters would give a sense of intrusion which could be quite affective as a gang is unwelcoming so intruding from a high angle would be a good camera angle to use.

This photograph is a low angle of the staircase which leads down into the tunnel. I like how the stairs are quite gritty and decayed. I think we could perhaps film the main character coming down the stairs to meet up with the rest of the gang.

Amy F

London Riots Research - Laura Johnson

I researched about the London riots which occurred earlier this year and Laura Johnson's story stood out to me. We are thinking of basing our film opening around her and create a story line which follows her involvement in the riots. We liked the idea of a wealthy girl turning to violence and disruption as a theme for an urban drama.

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2040020/Laura-Johnson-Millionaires-daughter-looted-5k-electronic-goods-London-riots.html

Amy F

Deindividuation

Deindividuation is a concept in social psychological theories and describes the state of an individual in a crowd and how their behaviour changes. 'The loosening of social norms in groups'. This is usually because individuals feel anonymous or protected when in a crowd, this leads to a decrease in responsibility and loss of inhibitions. Studies show that behaviour of crowds does not reflect the characters of individuals with in that crowd. This was explored in a recent experiment by Derren Brown, 'The Gameshow'.

The London riots are a recent example of this and this kind of research can help us to develop ideas for our film opening to convey the transition of an individual from good background to taking part in the riots. It is important that we use editing techniques, camera angles, mise en scene and sound to show a transition and give the impression that the character will be taking part in the riots as it is an opening so the main character carrying out actual rioting actions will not be shown. To convey this we will use some of the following techniques:

High/Low Camera Angles: commonly used to show who is more superior or who has authority. We will use different angles on our main character as her behaviour changes when she becomes part of a crowd. This will be effective of showing how highly or lowly moral her actions are and how she moves away from her upper class life style.

Urban Genre of Music: Urban music would fit in with our genre and also juxtaposition the surroundings in the opening scenes. Non diegetic music of this genre will be effective because it will represent how the main character is rebelling, listening to popular music that she may not be expected to listen to.

Costume: A large part of acting differently in part of a crowd is feeling anonymous. We can show this through costumes of minor characters e.g. all dark clothing, hoodies, scarves, balaclavas. This will also be effective for conforming to the 'hoody culture' and stereotypes associated with an urban drama.

Over the Shoulder Shots: These could be used to give a visual representation of how somebody in the middle of a crowd feels protected by those around them and how they may be influenced to behave differently.

Amy C