Pre-Production-3MW Documentary Silence the Defiler

Minor consent form

Location release

Adult release forms

Production schedule

Risk assessment

Recce

The finished production

Overall the pre production for the project consisted of getting talent forms signed and securing locations. We documented a local metal band Silence The Defiler. It consisted of formal interviews and a fly on the wall approach. When it came to shooting the interviews it was professionally shot and informative. When we filmed the band at their practice we wanted a completely natural experience so we documented whatever happened. A lot of the things the band members said and did was unpredictable.

Cat and Mouse First cut

Cat and Mouse is a short film I have been involved in. Here is the first cut as it needs some polishing.

The Hateful Eight Review

       

As a young aspiring film maker in the 21st century Quentin Tarantino has definitely left an impression on how I see films, as he is one of the most outspoken film makers of the past twenty five years. I have always loved his films, however I had never seen a Tarantino film in the cinema as I was too young. So I had never had the full experience of one of his movies. The Hateful Eight was my first Tarantino film in the cinema and it was a wonderful time. I really wanted to see it in 70mm, but no cinema near where I lived showed it in that format. Even on a digital screen I found the film to be great and it blew me away. The Hateful Eight isn't a perfect film as it does have a lot of flaws, including that of the character Bob. Who's Mexican accent is similar to that of a Looney Tunes character from the 1950's. And some scenes went on maybe a little too long. Even though the film isn't perfect it is a significant film, and I reckon it will get more popular as the years go on. 

The way in which the film deals with race relations during post Civil War America contrasts sadly with a lot of violence in America going on today with police brutality and constant gun violence. Instead of overtly making a film about modern day America, Tarantino chooses to be creative and implement it into his western. Maybe it could have been done with some subtlety but Tarantino isn't famous for subtlety.  

Hateful Eight deals with a lot of it's dark subject matter through dark gallows humor. Tarantino makes the audience laugh in some horrible circumstances. A lot of the violence is played for laughs too, as characters painfully suffer a lot of it is very funny. One of the darkest scenes in the movie is meant to be divisive being on the very fine line of funny and not so funny, yet when Major Warren monologues to the Confederate General about the fate of his son it works. It is nasty, vile, hilarious and one of Tarantino's best speeches. 

The actors do a fantastic job in the film. All working off of each other flawlessly. Which must be a hard task because two and a half hours of this three hour movie are set in a haberdashery. So in that time you have to grow attached to these characters, know their motivations and so forth despite how despicable they are. I will say a major flaw was that when some characters bit the dust it had no impact on me emotionally which maybe was the point, but when watching a three hour movie when some characters die and there is no impact it isn't a good thing. That isn't necessarily the actors fault, it's just how some of the more violent scenes were directed. The gore effects were outstanding but there wasn't an emotional impact to pack a big enough punch of shock.

Overall The Hateful Eight isn't Tarantino's best film, yet it is an extremely poignant and funny film.

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  T.V advert evaluation 

Section 1: Brief 

The aims of the project was to re brand a Unilever product. Unilever is a company that sells products. E.g. Lynx, Lipton, Ben and Jerry's, dove etc.  I chose to re brand Radox. My original idea for an advert was to pay homage to Pulp Fiction.

Pulp Fiction, 1994, Quentin Tarantino

I would have adapted the iconic scene in Brad's apartment, having it so when, Vincent opens the briefcase Radox is in there. I would have shot it similarly to the actual scene making changes here and there. 

I checked Ofcom and I wouldn't have broken any rules or regulations as If I would have made the advert I would have taken out the violence and swearing. 

Radox was aimed at a 25-30 demographic, so with the advert idea I aimed it at 17-25 year olds. Because that audience would like Pulp Fiction more. As it is iconic for younger people. 

However after our presentations, Toby, Horatio and myself were grouped together and we decided on making Toby's Psycho idea. Essentially the advert was a shot by shot recreation of the famous shower scene from Alfred Hitchcock's iconic masterpiece. We decided to rebrand the product to an older audience. 30-50 year olds. As Psycho is an iconic film from the sixties an older audience will appreciate the advert more. 

                                       

Psycho, 1960, Alfred Hitchcock

The three of us decided to choose Radox as it is unappreciated compared to other shower gels like Lynx.

Section 2: The finished project and brief. 

We got people to view it through email and students in class. The majority of people who saw it were 16-18 years old. The general reaction was positive. The cinematography and mise-en-scene was praised. From the steady camera to the stark black and white. It was even praised at being a good recreation of the film Psycho and that the quirkiness was great. The final shots with the spiraling water and Radox bottle were great according to the people who saw it. And someone said it would be great to show in the cinema before the film starts. However the main flaw was the dubbing. As at one point the audio is not synced properly. And another flaw is that someone who isn't a lover of cinema may not get it either. Apart from minor flaws it was loved by people. We couldn't get it to an older audience, however the people who viewed it said that older people would love it even more. Young people could get into it because of Toby being young. 

I feel we got the message across. We made a faithful homage to Psycho which we were aiming for. However the finished video is close to Psycho and the storyboards, last minute we had to change location as the location we were hoping for, was going through renovation. So we did our filming in the college changing rooms last minute, which actually proved to be a much better location in the end. It was more spacious, which gave us more room to film. Which is always a good thing. Plus it gave our advert a fresh new twist. I feel it will resonate with the older audience. 

The mise-en-scene, cinematography, editing and sound all fitted together really well. The best part of the advert was definitely the cinematography. With what we had we recreated the look of Psycho perfectly. From the steadyness to the pristine black and white look. The editing complimented this. With appropriate cuts. A mix of very long and very short shots gave the scene an underlying sense of tension throughout the advert. And even though the score wasn't similar to Psycho's frantic knife sounding score. The music we found fit the tone very well. With its eerie sound creeping in slowly. And how it became much more lovelier towards the end of the advert. The bad piece of dubbing is a huge flaw of the audio however. We got the mise-en-scene of the shower room right. It actually felt like Toby was in the shower. 

                                     

I personally believe our advert was effective. It was generally well received, it got people interested in Radox which was our main priority. It was strange, different and unique. And I feel that the older audience will love the advert as it captures the tone of Psycho closely. Despite the subtle changes.

Various shots from  Psycho, 1960, Alfred Hitchcock

The persuasion of the advert worked. We wanted to build a feeling of mysteriousness that would attract the audience to the product. We didn't show the product close up until the end of the advert. So we used suspense to build the reveal of the Radox bottles. The masters of soapspence line probably helped draw attention in as well. 

I feel that our advert was very clear towards the target audience which was an older one. By filming it in black and white we knew an older audience would resignate with it. Especially as it had a vintage look and it captured the look of Psycho which is what Toby, Horatio and myself wanted. And we succeeded at doing it. However we had a great secondary audience which was 16-18 year olds. 

I feel the advert is fit for purpose. Apart from the out of sync screaming, it is shot very professional. No shot is shaky or out of control. And the black and white makes the advert look less amateur then it may of been if it was in colour. The way we put forward the product was professional by implementing the Psycho drain spin and spinning from the Radox logo. And looking at the BCAP/ASA rules we broke no rules. Even with Toby in the shower we broke no rules. 

Section 3: Personal reflection

From pre-production to production there wasn't that much of a change. Except for the main location change. Where we had to find a new location. Which changed a few of the shots in the storyboards. However I think this worked to our advantage as the college showers gave the scene a unique feel and take on Psycho. So it benefited for us. The editing didn't really change from our original vision. Apart from a few extra cuts and different pieces of music. I'm glad audience reaction was generally positive. And the improvements to be added will definitely make things better.

Overall I am very happy with the advert. I feel it is the best short I have made so far and that Toby, Horatio and myself have made something that is great and shows how we have improved over the past year. If I could go back in time and do something differently, that would be to have recorded the scream at the same time we shot the video. 

Production stills

The Darkness - Barbarian Music Video

M.U.G Short film

The Pawn that Went Boom short film