The art of the title

The art of the title is a website that is designed to showcase how the titles of films are made and the wide variety that can be created.

It also shows the names of all the designers that worked on the title. 

Title sequences

A title sequence's purpose is to show the audience who was behind the film , such as lead actors, directors etc. Also, the title sequence can be rolling as the film starts or have its own segment in the show. An example of this is 'Friends' the TV show. At the start of every episode you see the same title sequence. In thrillers, title sequences can be used to build suspense before the film starts. Furthermore, the title sequences can be rolling as the film starts to lead the audience into a false sense of security.

Studio Idents

Studio Ident

What is a studio ident? 
A studio ident is the animation before a film that tells the audience who was behind the production of that film.
Why is it important?
Studio idents are important as it represents the company responsible for the film. In addition, an ident is what the audience sees before the film, so it should make a good first impression.
What is the importance of the design?
The design of a studio ident is very important as it represents the company. If the design is bland, then the audience will instantly assume that the company is bland. Equally, if the design of the ident is grand and bold then the same could be said for the studio.

Example


20th Century Fox is a studio that is part of the 'big six '. Its ident is very bold and grand. 20th Century Fox is a very big corporation that is responsible for a lot of the blockbusters we know today. This lets us know that the film we are about to watch probably has a big budget and will more than likely be successful.


The MGM ident is a lion roaring. This makes the studio seem mighty and powerful.  Also, the uniqueness of the ident makes the studio seem original. MGM is a mini major corporation. This means it isn't as big as the 'big six'. However, it is bigger than the independent film studios.



Film 4 is an independent film studio. The ident shows us different perspectives of the film 4. This shows us everything isn't what it seems, and that film 4 will show us a different look on things.

Continuity Editing

Continuity editing is making sure the scene makes sense. For example if a character walks throw a door then closes it. That door should be closed in the next scene. Continuity is there to ensure there aren't any mistakes in the film.
In addition to this there is the 180 degree rule that states that two characters in a scene should maintain the same left right relationship throughout the scene.

Speed/ style of editing

Film editing is the way in which editors can assemble their shots into a sequence and have them tell a story. The speed of the editing tells the audience how to feel. If a scene is longer than usual, it is so the audience can experience it for longer. In a thriller, longer scenes are used to build suspense and bring the audience in to eventually hit them with a jump scare. Similarly, faster editing is useful to speed up scenes and get the audience to the desired scene quicker.

Analysis of modern thriller openings

In a lot of instances thriller openings use a very similar format in that the opening is very ominous and sets the tone for the film. In many cases they actually foreshadow the film. The opening to the film is very important as it shows the audience what to expect for the rest of the film.

mise-en-scene: Casino Royale

Casino Royale is very heavy on mise-en scene. For example, James bond is seen to be wearing a suit which shows he is a professional and slick. Furthermore, the fact he wears some black clothes shows he has a dark side and can be dangerous. The villain is shown to be wearing all black, black gloves and a soviet hat. This has connotations that he is dangerous and cannot be trusted. It immediately puts him in the stereotype of violent Russians.

Evaluation of sound exercise

Our sound exercise was fairly good, considering we didn't have long to film or plan what we was doing. The plot of the film wasn't the best, it was just a theft. However that wasn't the point of the exercise. The point was to get used to using the mic and learning how to ensure the background noise doesn't interfere with the film. This was tough because we had to make sure we could still be heard but the wind didn't drown us out. We done the best we could, however we had to lower the volume, this makes it somewhat difficult to hear the dialogue at the end. Another problem with the film was when sam swore. He done this because he forgot that i was going to attack him. This had to be beeped out during the editing. All in all i think mistakes were made as it was our first time. However, these mistakes won't happen again as they are easily preventable now we have some experience with the equipment. In addition, it didn't help that the sound man kept changing as we all wanted a turn. This lead to different audio levels which made it strenuous to edit.

Sound exercise

This is our sound task.

Shifty

“Shifty” An Independent British Thriller.

“Shifty” is a British Film that was made in 2008 as part of the microwave scheme The microwave scheme provided young London film makers with a platform to make a small independent film.

The rules of the microwave scheme were that the film had to be made in 18 days and with a budget of less than £100,000. “Shifty” was the second Microwave film to be released and opened in 51 small independent cinemas including the Curzon chain and on its opening weekend it took £61,000. The final box office takings were £143,000. Most of the film’s profits came from DVD and television sales.

“Shifty” was distributed by Metrodome. They spent £50,000 on making celluloid prints, administration and advertising of the film. The intention was to attract two different audiences. The first of which was the middle class audience that regularly sees small independent films at independent cinemas. In addition they wanted to attract a new, younger urban audience. This audience had made “Kidulthood” and “Adulthood” profitable.

Targeting Audiences and Cross Media Convergence

In order to target both audiences, Metrodome produced different trailers. Interestingly the trailer targeting the youth audience had a soundtrack of ‘hip hop’ music. However, there was no soundtrack in the actual film.

In addition Metrodome ran adverts on pirate radio stations, used Fly Posters (which are illegal) and gave out ‘business cards’ which made Shifty look like a drug dealer and directed the recipient to a website. In addition to this, a music video was uploaded to promote the film. The music video used audio suitable for a younger audience. This lead to more exposure for the film.

Furthermore, emails were sent out virally that made shifty look like a drug dealer, these emails were banned, however the publicity generated had already helped promote the film.

Finally, Metrodome targeted the youth audience through a competition offering £500 worth of studio time to young musicians. The winner of the competition had the chance to work with a musician who starred in the film.

Synopsis
"Shifty" isa thriller that builds slowly. There are three parts to the story. The first part is the fact that Chris, a young man in his twenties visit his best friend back home, who he hasn't seen for years. We are lead to believe that something awful happened.

We quickly learn that Shifty has become a drug dealer.This creates a realistic picture of urban life as shifty has to make a living illegally. The second part of the story is about Trevor, a drug addict, the film follows his search for drugs as e becomes more and more desperate.

The third part to the film involves Glen, who places Shifty in danger by lying and claims shifty is short changing his supplier. The film builds towards a climax which takes the audience by surprise.