Section 1:
After finishing our final product, and thinking back to when we had to prepare for this film it was extremely difficult to getting our treatment just right. And then after that doing our script and characterizing the characters in a way that they can be portrayed, as they were in our treatment, through their actions rather than dialogue. Filming was very difficult considering we all had our own commitments during weekends and most of the week. The locations were easy to shoot at but the variation of the shots was difficult because most of them on our script were similar to we tried to think of other ones while filming. Another thing we had to constantly change was the lighting in the rooms; we used many lamps to either add light when all of the lights were off or to make spotlights. Christian, Dee and myself had to act in our short film so despite having to set up each shot and lighting had to try to get decent acting in to be able to get our plot across to our audience. Overall, I believe we were able to get it across to our audience although it was difficult. Our footage was mostly easy to edit since we did a rough cut before we were able to get all our footage. By the dead line we did not have so much stress of it being done since we had all our footage edited and just needed to get our audio in. Most of our footage was good quality, one thing I would change, in a particular the scene when the woman takes the bag off of the man's head, was the lighting in a few shots. Some shots were too bright when compared to others and some too dark to make out who was in the shot.
Section 2:
Conflicts between the two main characters are are expressed well and add to the drama of the short film. The acting is very consistent throughout the film; everyone tried their hardest to portray the characters through their actions, like how they were in our script. The man is constantly shown to be a jerk throughout the film and the woman stays serious. The dialogue shows the characters' true personality towards the situation. In our film there is a flashback that cuts into the present, our movie takes place all in one day. The light was very difficult to deal with so we were not able to obtain the contrasts we wanted to make our film more noir. We made a effort to dress in dark clothing but did not since our film is neo-noir. The color of our clothes and the balance of the color do not interfere with each other so our shots were not grainy. We chose music to add to the tension and drama building up to the end result from our acting and dialogue. We fixed the levels of the background music so it does not interfere with the dialogue. Our choices of location kept the audience focused on the characters and what was happening rather than what was in the background. We used small rooms so that there would not be any distractions to the audience. We struggled with lighting a lot. In some scenes we had too much light and in others too little light. We used lamps to try to create little light as possible but still be able to see the characters' faces and actions. We frequently used close ups and tight shots to keep the characters in focus. We preserved the 180 degrees rule; and ordered the shots in chronological order so the audience can follow the plot.
Section 3:
In film noir the most evident thing is dark lighting and shadows in most of the scenes. Our flashbacks represent film noir, also the man's wardobe in the scenes are mostly dark. Our film consists of many close ups to keep the audience from seeing things around the actors to give a sense of mystery and suspense. The characters are also redolent characters of film noir: the woman is the femme fetale, she is powerful, while the man is corrupt without a sense of sympathy. We used stylized dialogue throughout our film to cause our audience to question the decisions the characters come across. We used tense and low background music to add to the dark mood. The effect of the final outcome, the woman being murdered and the man getting away with his womanizer acts leaves the audience confounded. Our film is neo-noir because it is set in modern times and it is in color unlike the traditional film noir black and white. Our contrasts between black and white are not very drastic.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Script Analysis
The film starts at a dramatic moment in the middle of the drama by the first scene being at a resturant with the main character trying to get his date to go back to his house with him but she tries to kindly refuse and once she agrees he gets kidnapped. The scene that opens the film is when the main character gets kidnapped and when the main charcter kills the woman that kidnapped him will be the memorable scene that ends the film. The character's attitude and position throughout the events portray him as a jerk that does not let anything discourage him. He is very comical with what he says and will do anything to get what he wants. The man is introduced in the begining of the film when the audience can see the way he acts with woman. By using dialogue, props, flashbacks, shadows to emphasize certain objects, and by helping the audience create an imagination by using different angles and lighting you can help the audience discover what is happening rather than telling them. By not having long exaggerated shots that do not have a point, making sure the shots help the plot, and having a mystery to the plot can reduce things to a minimum but can still have an impact.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Chinatown Story Analysis
The narrator of Chinatown is Mr. Gittes, the protagonist in the movie; since he is one of the main characters it is better that he is the narrator so that the audience can see what happens in the situation rather than outside of it. Voice over narration usually took place when Gittes goes further into his thoughts so he could express them to the audience. The movie does put itself together but at the end when the audience knows all the information and can see the relation of everything. The audience has to pay attention to be able to put one and one together to figure out what is happening in the film. This film mostly goes in order of events but sometimes it didn't because later in the film Gittes would reveal the mystery and relate all the events together. Chinatown is a formalistic film.Chinatown is considered film noir but it is a lot more colorful than other film noir films. The film Chinatown states or implies that this time period was moraly corrupt because of everyone going behind each others back and keeping secrets from each other and trying to cover them up the further along they go in life. It also implies that people didn't feel that they could trust other people around them if they couldn't tell each other something and that they disrespected people they didn't care about. This film shows the darker side to humans and what we are capable of.
Monday, November 2, 2009
I think the quality of our presentation was more than average but there could have been more effort and analysis of the different scenes and what the low key and high contract did to the film and how it affected the characters. I believe our choice of examples were solid and we were able to explain what the low key and high contrast did in these shots. We were able to connect this film to film noir with the use of shadows and mysterious and dark scenes in Chinatown. In our presentation we used several filmic terms but not as many as we should have used.
We could have improved our analysis of the different scenes and how it affected the environments in the different scenes. We also could have gave more background to the characters in more joyful scenes and compared them to see what affect the film noir style gives to a film. We could have clarified on what the characteristics were and what the definitions are. Also if we all related it back to different styles of film noir it could of had a larger affect than just to focus on mainly two aspects of film noir.
Before we discussed Chinatown as a class I was very confused on who was who and what their importance in the movie was, but then we started to discuss it and by the end of the movie I knew the whole plot and actually like the movie, although at first it was complex to me, and the at the end of the movie I realized that I have actually seen the movie before. I understand film noir techniques and will be able to incorporate them into my films.
Film Noir Treatment
Short Noir Film Treatment
I. Producers: Dee Chalco, Chris Pascual, Ash Rich, Gabe Villalobos Title:II. Neo-noirIII. A womanizer finally gets his just desserts at the hands of a disgruntled ex-girlfriend
IV.
INT. RESTAURANT, NIGHTA man (CHRISTIAN) is sitting in a restaurant, talking to a woman (ASHLEY). They seem to be on a date. The conversation is seemingly amiable, they talk about life, interests, and the subject of past lovers comes up. The woman has nothing to say, and the man hesitates, but regains his cool and replies that he has "no baggage". The woman nods, seemingly interested in the man, and asks if he enjoyed their meal together. In the traditional "after-meal" stretch, then man reclines in his chair, when suddenly, a bag is shoved over his head and the screen blacks out.
INT. DIMLY LIT ROOM, NIGHT
Screen Black, there is heavy breathing.The bag is slipped off the man's head; his vision is initially blurry, but clears to reveal a mysterious woman (DEE). The two seem to know each other, by the man's smiling reaction, and the woman's disgust. The man playfully chides the woman for not simply asking to see him again, after so long, but the woman merely scoffs and glares back at him, immune to his wry wit. She walks up to him, and there is a suffocating tension in the air. Her face comes awfully close to his, and she says cryptically, "I know what you do. You can't run from your crimes forever."
INT. HOUSE, NIGHTThe man is alone, on the computer. He seems to be balancing many suggestive conversations between different women. He tells one of these women to meet him later near the dark alleyway. Soon after, he receives a call, and starts a conversation, but the audience cannot hear the other person. As he is talking, a mysterious figure is watching him through the window. The man says he'll meet them at the restaurant tomorrow, and finally, a reassuring "I love you too." The man looks through the window where the figure was, but it is gone now. Back in the computer room, the man hears a loud thud coming from his room. Startled, the man goes to the room brandishing a weapon, and opens the door, only to find the window open and a startling note on his bed, reading, "YOU CAN'T RUN FROM ME." Crumpling the note, the man walks back to the computer, but finds the door open and his cellphone recently used. As the screen fades, a torn picture of DEE is seen in pieces on the floor. Fade.
EXT. STREET, NIGHT
Fade In. Man's shoes walking on street at night. Somebody (DEE) is watching him from a distance. The man is calm until he hears a loud thump. He reels around, but sees nothing behind him, and continues walking. The dark figure continues to watch him at a distance, watching his every move. The man is clearly nervous now, certain that he is being followed, but he cannot see anyone. The man arrives at a dark alley, while the figure stalks him from afar.
EXT. ALLEYWAY, NIGHT
Still shaken from his walk, the man takes out a cigarette and takes a drag. A woman walks out from the darkness. They greet each other, happy to see each other and they share a hug. The dark figure is watching angrily from a distance. The hugging couple get increasingly more intimate and walk together in the darkness of the alleyway. The dark figure walks away, seemingly disgusted. Fade.
EXT. STREET, MORNING
Fade in. Man is walking on sidewalk and enters a restaurant from the beginning. He is still being trailed by the same person. He comes to a table and greets ASHLEY again. They have the same conversation and the same familiar stretch. After he is bagged, DEE is shown to be the person bagging him. Pan right: ASHLEY thanks DEE for the info as DEE knocks out the man.
INT. DIMLY LIT ROOM, NIGHT
The man and DEE have the same conversation from the beginning. In response to DEE's suspiscion, the man laughs and calls her a "deranged stalker." Outraged, DEE takes out a knife and threatens to kill him if he doesn't stop flirting with other girls. The man retorts that she no longer has control over his life and that he can "womanize" all he wants; he proceeds to spit at her, provoking her disgust. DEE looks at the knife peculiarly, and laments that she'll have to stop him herself, and protect everyone from his "filthy existence." As the woman approaches him, the man struggles to escape from his confines, collapsing the chair in the process. DEE points out that there's no point in escaping, he is trapped and the only way to escape is to redeem himself right then and there. The man continues to laugh and says that DEE doesn't have the guts to harm someone she previously loved, much less kill. However, this time DEE chuckles and openly questions if the man will change his mind if he has more "positive reinforcement." She calls in ASHLEY and the woman from the alley, and gives the man her final ultimatum: give up being a womanizer or suffer the worse fate a man can face. Refusing to show any sign of weakness, the man eggs DEE on by flirting with the two girls that just came in. Shrugging, DEE tells the two other girls to pin the man down and remove his pants. Realizing what DEE intends to do, the man feebly struggles escape but is pinned down. DEE laments, but sarcastically tries to calm the man, "Don't worry. You'll still have one of our heads."
I. Producers: Dee Chalco, Chris Pascual, Ash Rich, Gabe Villalobos Title:II. Neo-noirIII. A womanizer finally gets his just desserts at the hands of a disgruntled ex-girlfriend
IV.
INT. RESTAURANT, NIGHTA man (CHRISTIAN) is sitting in a restaurant, talking to a woman (ASHLEY). They seem to be on a date. The conversation is seemingly amiable, they talk about life, interests, and the subject of past lovers comes up. The woman has nothing to say, and the man hesitates, but regains his cool and replies that he has "no baggage". The woman nods, seemingly interested in the man, and asks if he enjoyed their meal together. In the traditional "after-meal" stretch, then man reclines in his chair, when suddenly, a bag is shoved over his head and the screen blacks out.
INT. DIMLY LIT ROOM, NIGHT
Screen Black, there is heavy breathing.The bag is slipped off the man's head; his vision is initially blurry, but clears to reveal a mysterious woman (DEE). The two seem to know each other, by the man's smiling reaction, and the woman's disgust. The man playfully chides the woman for not simply asking to see him again, after so long, but the woman merely scoffs and glares back at him, immune to his wry wit. She walks up to him, and there is a suffocating tension in the air. Her face comes awfully close to his, and she says cryptically, "I know what you do. You can't run from your crimes forever."
INT. HOUSE, NIGHTThe man is alone, on the computer. He seems to be balancing many suggestive conversations between different women. He tells one of these women to meet him later near the dark alleyway. Soon after, he receives a call, and starts a conversation, but the audience cannot hear the other person. As he is talking, a mysterious figure is watching him through the window. The man says he'll meet them at the restaurant tomorrow, and finally, a reassuring "I love you too." The man looks through the window where the figure was, but it is gone now. Back in the computer room, the man hears a loud thud coming from his room. Startled, the man goes to the room brandishing a weapon, and opens the door, only to find the window open and a startling note on his bed, reading, "YOU CAN'T RUN FROM ME." Crumpling the note, the man walks back to the computer, but finds the door open and his cellphone recently used. As the screen fades, a torn picture of DEE is seen in pieces on the floor. Fade.
EXT. STREET, NIGHT
Fade In. Man's shoes walking on street at night. Somebody (DEE) is watching him from a distance. The man is calm until he hears a loud thump. He reels around, but sees nothing behind him, and continues walking. The dark figure continues to watch him at a distance, watching his every move. The man is clearly nervous now, certain that he is being followed, but he cannot see anyone. The man arrives at a dark alley, while the figure stalks him from afar.
EXT. ALLEYWAY, NIGHT
Still shaken from his walk, the man takes out a cigarette and takes a drag. A woman walks out from the darkness. They greet each other, happy to see each other and they share a hug. The dark figure is watching angrily from a distance. The hugging couple get increasingly more intimate and walk together in the darkness of the alleyway. The dark figure walks away, seemingly disgusted. Fade.
EXT. STREET, MORNING
Fade in. Man is walking on sidewalk and enters a restaurant from the beginning. He is still being trailed by the same person. He comes to a table and greets ASHLEY again. They have the same conversation and the same familiar stretch. After he is bagged, DEE is shown to be the person bagging him. Pan right: ASHLEY thanks DEE for the info as DEE knocks out the man.
INT. DIMLY LIT ROOM, NIGHT
The man and DEE have the same conversation from the beginning. In response to DEE's suspiscion, the man laughs and calls her a "deranged stalker." Outraged, DEE takes out a knife and threatens to kill him if he doesn't stop flirting with other girls. The man retorts that she no longer has control over his life and that he can "womanize" all he wants; he proceeds to spit at her, provoking her disgust. DEE looks at the knife peculiarly, and laments that she'll have to stop him herself, and protect everyone from his "filthy existence." As the woman approaches him, the man struggles to escape from his confines, collapsing the chair in the process. DEE points out that there's no point in escaping, he is trapped and the only way to escape is to redeem himself right then and there. The man continues to laugh and says that DEE doesn't have the guts to harm someone she previously loved, much less kill. However, this time DEE chuckles and openly questions if the man will change his mind if he has more "positive reinforcement." She calls in ASHLEY and the woman from the alley, and gives the man her final ultimatum: give up being a womanizer or suffer the worse fate a man can face. Refusing to show any sign of weakness, the man eggs DEE on by flirting with the two girls that just came in. Shrugging, DEE tells the two other girls to pin the man down and remove his pants. Realizing what DEE intends to do, the man feebly struggles escape but is pinned down. DEE laments, but sarcastically tries to calm the man, "Don't worry. You'll still have one of our heads."
Thursday, September 24, 2009
The Notebook :)
The Notebook is told by the main character Duke, who is the husband when they grow older; when they are younger his name is Noah Calhoun. Part of the movie is a voice over as it plays back their memories. The implied character is Noah because he is the one telling the story and playing a part in what is happening, the other implied character is Allie, the other main character who has alltimers as an adult. The time is presented in chronological flashbacks. It is realistic because it starts off at the end off the movie and then it goes back to flashbacks and plays their life then ends with the beginning of the movie. This movie is a romantic movie. This movie shows that in the 1940s rich families really looked down on people below them no matter how well they treated them. The Hamiliton's, Allie's parents, moved her away from Noah so she could have a better life and someday marry a wealthy man. That shows that all her parents wanted was her to have money security and not to be with someone that she loves. People want to have money so it is one less thing to stress about but only the shallow people worry about being with rich people and marrying into money, while others only look at their actually personality.
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