How much is revealed about the storyline, characters etc in film openings?

In film openings, how much revealed can vary. The director/writer may want to give a lot away so you instantly connect with characters then causing you to engage much more in the film wanting to find out what happens to the character. However, they might also want to not give so much away just to make you morre curious as to what the true side to the character really is, or where the plotline is actually going to go.
        In Romantic films, you're more likely to find out a lot about the main character and their background because the director wants to establish an instant connection, almost a relationship, between the audience and the character that the film will be focussed on. In the opening of a Romantic film, we also generally meet the character's future partner or somebody that is going to have a major influence on his/her's life, but it's not made incredibly obvious to us, because it is then created as a surprise later in the film, even though most of the audience feel like they can work it out now due to the vast number of films that have done this.
         This is supported in the film, "The Perks Of Being A WallFlower" when we meet Charlie in the very first few seconds. Then, a few minutes after we have had Charlie "writing a letter", which is the directors way of giving us an insight into what Logan Lerman's character is like, we meet a significant member of Charlie's life - Patrick. He's introduced in a quite goofy way, someone that you wouldnt expect Logan's character to be friends with, thats what we have the element of surprise when they meet and instantly hit it off. By doing this, the director has made us rule out the fact that Patrick is a possible friend for Charlie. Yet for the people that look past the personalities and action of people, it gives them the chance to pick up on the fact that he must be an important character to Charlie as he gets a long scene all dedicated to him.
       This idea is also supported in "(500) Days Of Summer". Another film of the Romantic genre, displaying the idea of meeting the main character and someone that is going to have a large impact on the characters life throughout the film. This film begins with an engaged couple sitting on a bench with some narration which explains that, "This is a story, of boy meets girls". This immediately informs the audience that these characters are going to be the main focus of the film and that these opening few seconds are set in the future. Then as the opening progresses we find that the actual main character is Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character of Tom. This then instantly tells us that Zooey Deschanel's character of Summer is going to be the person that has a mjor impact on Tom's life. The narration gives us the complete background of both characters, and that Tom knows that Summer is the love of his life from the very first moment he meets her, "He knows immediately, she's who he's being searching for". This gives us all the information we need to know that it is going to be a story of a boy chasing after and girl and wanting her attention. The story is completely set out for us. We know the characters, the plot line of them falling in love... That is until the narration goes on to say, "This is not a love story", this completely throws a spanner in the works and makes us completely unsure of how this story is going to pan out. This is effectively done because the writer knows that the audience are then going to be gripped to their screens to see WHY its not a love story.

Obviously in other film genres the directors choose to open their film in different ways, like in Horror, the director may chose have have it as a quite dark, mystical, and curious opening, where as an Action film may be very upbeat and chasey.

GCSE Media assignment: Live Again

This is one of my GCSE media assignments which I had to create. We were told to create a two minute opening sequence for an action adventure film, and within my group, this is what we came up with. We got our idea from the James Bond films, clearly evident, and each invidual participant within the group decided that it would be a good idea if we were to do our own editing, therefore showing off our on skills. This is my interpretation.
After rewatching this assignment, it has enabled me to pick up on areas of improvement for the piece of coursework which I am about to create, such as: linking of the music, camera quality, length of shots and the speech towards the end of the opening sequence being too quiet.

I think by doing GCSE Media Studies it has enabled me to get a real background of the subject and has acted as a valuable learning curve, therefore allowing me to reach my best potential at A Level.

Run Lola Run - How are the three runs really ONE run?

Micro analysis of the opening 7 minutes of Spider-Man 3. Focussing on: Mise-en-scene and Diagetic Sound.

In the opening 7 minutes, we find out a lot about the plot line of the film, Spider-Man 3, just from the mise-en-scene and the diagetic sound. In this essay, I will analyse how this is done.

                This film has been filmed both on set and on location. The very opening scene is of Peter Parker watching himself dressed as Spider-Man on the big screen in New York City. You can tell that this has been filmed on location due to the vast amounts of people on the streets, and the real sky which is visible. This could quite possibly signify the danger that Spider-Man is quite possibly facing as he is in a very open and exposed area. Also, no doubt the director wanted to ensure that it was as believable as possible. Also, it has been written and produced to be in the current day, this enables the audience to relate and feel like they are truly a part of the production opposed to just watching a film. In another part of the opening sequence Mj and Peter are in the theatre. It’s quite dark in this room, and has a sense of seclusion. As Peter’s enemy, Harry, is also in the theatre, we feel tension as the camera flits from both Peter and Harry, and we can see that Harry has a very evil look on his face. This is just one of the signifiers that Harry will be his enemy.  The final setting which I have chosen to comment on is the Laboratory which Harry is in towards the end of the 7 minutes. I picked this out because not only does it display Harry coming up with a master plan and emerging from a machine with an evil look on his face and a very strong stance, but it clearly displays the Sci-Fi genre which is carried on throughout the film.

                More evidence of the Sci-Fi genre follows with the black substance that appears at the end of the 7 minutes. This is a very large signifier of the genre, but also adds to the plot line of Peter and Mj getting into some sort of trouble that has to be sorted out by Spider-Man. Another genre which is a part of this film is action. This is clearly displayed in the very first few seconds of the opening by Spider-Man flying through the streets of New York. This is effective because it immediately informs the audience of the main genre and is also very captivating because you want to see what he does and who he is saving, even though it is a bit of an anticlimax as he doesn’t actually do anything, it is just a video playing on the big screen.

                The lighting throughout the opening sequence goes from one extreme to the other. When Peter is in the streets of New York there is natural lighting. This can signify how exposed he is in the open air, there are no shadows, therefore there is nowhere for Peter to hide, he cannot get out of any situation of which he is forced into. Not only does this show how exposed he is, but it also shows he is the hero in the situation. As we meet Peter in the day time, we feel like we can trust him a lot more, due to the light being bright and the sun shining on him like he is an honest man. Also, the use of the actor, Tobey Maguire, makes the audience a lot more reluctant to see his as a “baddie” within the film as he has a very cute, immature looking face, and this makes him appear an unlikely candidate to be the villain in any film. In contrast, the lighting in the theatre is completely dark with just the spotlight on Mj. This indicates that the focus of every character in the theatre is in on Mj, even the villain, Harry. In this theatre the audience has the light reflecting from Mj onto them, however, Harry is more in the shadow than Peter. This gives us, as the viewers, the impression that he is an underlying villain because he is more hidden than Peter. With Mj being in full view of everyone, and all of the attention, and bright lighting on her, we can infer that she is going to be the character which gets into some kind of trouble, and needs Spider-Man to come save her.

                The costumes which the character Mj is wearing are very simple. Even though she is dressed extremely glamorously on stage, they are still simple white colours. This tells us that she isn’t the one that is going to be saving anybody, as that is a complex job and her clothing doesn’t really display a complex side to her. Also her clothing is quite tight fitting; this suggests she is going to be the sidekick, as in the majority of action films where the man is the protagonist; he has a female side kick which helps him in his quest to defeat the antagonist. Generally, it is the female sidekick which gets into trouble; the tight fitting clothing also suggests the she will be the antagonists, Harry’s, target. The sidekick then becomes the heroine, because the protagonist wants to save her.

                The movement in this opening sequence is very significant in terms of discovering the characters roles within the rest of the film. This is evidenced in Harry’s lab when he is exiting the large machine. His stance is extremely strong and prevalent, his facial expression initially look quite concerned, most likely due to what he is going to face later on in the film. It then changes to a much more comfortable yet fierce expression. This practically confirms our suspicion of thinking he is the villain of the film. Props in this scene are also very prominent in the demonstration of the Sci-Fi genre. These props include masks, computers and metal wings.

                In relation to the framing and composition, we’re not seeing things from one person’s point of view as in the street we watch the screen from Peter, in the theatre we’re spying like Harry, and in the park we’re viewing it from the black substance.

Finally, the diagetic sound in this opening sequence includes the sounds of the cars in the city. It shows that the city was very busy signifying a possible fast paced film, and also maybe that quite a few of people will get in harm’s way during the film. Some other diagetic sound is Mj’s voice. She comes across as quite whiney and needy, always wanting to be the centre of attention, and wanting to constantly be the subject of discussion. After her performance, she continuously asks Peter to tell her how great she was in her performance, and as soon as the subject changes, she finds a way of relating it back to her. Another point is when they are sitting in the spider web, and she asks Peter to tell her he loves her. All of this shows a possible damsel in distress, due to already showing the whiney, crying out for help signs.

Genre - What Types Are There?

Action
Goes well with: Comedy, Crime, Thriller and Adventure.
Films: The Hunger Games, Transformers, Thor, Rush, Man of Steel
Actors: Angelina Jolie, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ben Affleck, Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris, Daniel Craig
       The action genre is a form of creative works distinguished by more emphasis on the more thrilling action sequences than on character development or story-telling. It's generally very upbeat and fast paced.

Adventure
Goes well with: Family, Thriller, Romance, and Action
Films: Children of Heaven, Inception, Gladiator, The Matrix, Titanic
Actors: Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Tom Hanks, Elijah Wood, Cate Blanchett, Alec Guinness
       The adventure genre use their action scenes to show and explore exotic locations, or wonderful inventions in an energetic way.

Comedy
Goes well with: Action, Family, Romance
Films: This Is the End, Don Jon, Monsters University, Mean Girls
Actors: Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler, Steve Carell, Ben Stiller, Will Ferrel
      The comedy genre has the main emphasis on humour. They're the kind of films which are designed to entertain through amusement opposed to amazement.

Film-Noir
Goes well with: Crime, Mystery, Romance, Thriller
Films: Sunset Boulevard, The Third Man, Strangers on a Train, Killer's Kiss
Actors: Humphrey Bogart, Charles McGraw, Robert Ryan, Lauren Bacall, Joan Crawford, Gloria Grahame
       Film noir, (French: "dark film") style of filmmaking characterized by elements such as cynical heroes, stark lighting effetcs, frequent use of flashbacks, ntricate plots, and an underlying existentialist philosphy . The genre was prevelent mostly in American crime dramas of the post-World War II era. - (www.britannica.com)

Romance
Goes well with: Comedy, Crime, History, Thriller
Films: The Great Gatsby, Romeo and Juliet, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Grease
Actors: Channing Tatum, Chris Pine, Zac Efron, Ryan Gosling, Meg Ryan, Amanda Seyfried, Rachel McAdams.
       Romance film can be defined as a genre wherein the plot revolves arounf the love between two protagonists. This genre usually has a theme that explores an issue within love, including but not limited to: love at first sight, forbidden love, love triangles, and sacrifical love.


There are many more genres, which I have not included above such as: Horror, Thriller, History, Musical, Wester, Mistery, Sci-Fi. The list is endless!

What is a Film Opening?

A film opening is the short 2 minute (approximately) section at the beginning of a film. It can either come just before or just after a title sequence. It is generally the plot establishing setting of the film where we meet the main character, and we find out most of the information that we will need to know about him/her.
      Also, in the opening sequence, we may find out the background of the setting/plot, perhaps what has happened to the town, or the reason that the main character is in the situation they're in, like a flashback.
      The opening sequence can consist of either narration - the character explaining a flashback, or explaining how they got to their current position - or just simply playing music to accompany the image on the screen in order to give the audience an idea of the genre.
      Sometimes in the opening sequence we can come across all of the significant items/objects/characters of the film, but not become aware of it until we later see them in the film. This can be effective because it can make the audience question the significance of the object, then causing them to instantly understand, and relate to the beginning of the film when they reach the significant point.

Todorov

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Vladimir Propp

Protagtonist (hero)-leads narative - quest - journey

Antagonist (villain) - gets in protagonists way

Heroine - Prize/reward for hero - can be physical thing/person (female)

Father - Authority figure, offers reward (heroine) to hero

Helper - sidekick

Donor - Give something, clue/tools/power that helps to complete quest