Watching and analyzing a neo-noir.

I have decided to analyse the 2009 neo-noir 'Red Riding'. These three feature-length episodes based on the novels by David Peace and the film itself is written by Tony Grisoni. Each film has a different director. Throughout the films we follow a cynical journalist as he is assigned to report on disturbing kidnappings and brutal murders while the killer's identity remains a mystery. This story spans generations which leads to a shocking climax.

The specific episode which i am going to analyse if the first one, set in 1974 and directed by Julian Jarrold (he also directed 'Kinky Boots' in 2005 and various episodes of 'Silent Witness') focuses on a series of unsolved murders of young girls. The young reporter from the Yorkshire Post newspaper Eddie Dunford, played by Andrew Garfield, tries to find information on what happened to these girls and more mysteriously - who dunnit? This question is not easily answered.

Another frequent character John Dawson who is played by Sean Bean, is a local businessman who has bribed the council and police in order for him to purchase local land and gain permission for him to then build a mall on the land. John Dawson is pulled into the investigation when one of the murdered girls is found on his land, having been tortured, raped and strangled and most harrowing, she has swan wings stitched to her back.

He meets up with different people, trying to find key clues to resolves this investigation, however he mixes business with pleasure creating even more drama in his personal life and work. As circumstances become even more out of hand, somehow Dawson admits to Dunford that he was connected to the girls' murders. Dunford bravely flees into a car and into a head-on collision with the police cars hunting him down. He dies, but as he had previously given a fellow officer important documentation of evidence we think the investigation into the murders will carry on....until it is destroyed by a superintendent.

This first episode has been described as:

"The evil twin to Life on Mars" - DVD cover
"The accents were thick and difficult to understand" - nytimes.com
"It was confusing as the storyline went backwards and forwards" - nytimes.com
"Shot beautifully. Difficult to ignore" - nytimes.com

So here is my analysis and view of the OTS to the first episode set in 1974. I am going to start by basically explaining what happens in each shot and what dialogue is present in each shot:

- Titles on a dark background
- A moving shot upwards along the floor, where a few white feathers lay. The ground is dirty and we identify this must be outside. As the shot carries on moving up we see a pair of still swans wings and as the camera moves along one wing, we discover that these wings are stitched to a females back because we see her hair. She is dead on the ground. This shot isn't very bright, but as the wings are white they stand out dramatically. As the shot is very dark, it creates a creepy and bleak atmosphere. When the camera reaches the end of the second wing, there is no floor - just jet black and then fades out.
- Fades smoothly into a very out-of-focus blur and very close up shot of a young man.
- As the camera moves even close to his face, blending clearer and we see that he has a bloody face, his hair is scruffy and he is sitting on something brown and leather.
- There is a quick shot to his grubby hand dropping a gun. The gun falls, then bouncing on a brown leather sofa. For the gun to have bounced, he must have had his hand in the air while he was sitting down. We don't know if this young man is now dead.
- The screen goes black with the fading in of the text: 'The year of our lord'.....'1974'
- There is then a shot of what seems to be the camera attached to the side of a car, so we can see a close up of both door handles. The car is moving, with us moving with it. It is raining very hard and as the car is only taking up half of the frame, the road and scenery is taking up the other half - but it is very distorted and blurry. Only the car is in focus.
- A shot of rain dripping down the cars rear window, with somebody moving in the car. We guess this is the driver. We know this is the rear window because of the lines across the window. Very Blurry. Window is in the foreground, person in the background. Close-up of the back of somebody's head - the drivers.
- It then switches so that the person is in focus and the window is blurry. We see the messy hair of the person and their shoulder. At this moment, we are not sure who it is. Is it the bloody man?
- As this shot is still in the same place. The person turns their head to the side while at the same time, lifting his lighter-holding hand to then light a cigarette which was in their mouth. We discover - it is a man. The same man which had a bloody face. He is alive. He is the driver of the moving car. We could ask ourselves - was the bloody shot of him a fast-forward or a past event? He looks okay now, how long ago was he hurt?
- A front shot of the man where he is in the left side of the frame. - The car is right-hand driving so this must be in England or Europe. The window wipers are moving and its still raining. He looks quite sad. Takes a drag of the cigarette.
- The camera is laying in the middle of the road. Long shot so we see that the road is long, and the area is wide. Out eyes look along the markings in the middle of the frame towards the big landscape. The car moves along the left side of the road and the camera doesnt follow. As he is driving on the left side, this must be in the UK - setting the scene. The car moves further away from us into the distance. Still blurry due to rain. Road goes on forever, with the car moving further and further away from us. Still distorted and slightly blurry due to rain - realistic.
- Credits starting when car is moving away.
- There is then a quick shot of the young man going into a busy building. People on phones and looking at posters. With it being the same smooth shot, the camera follows the young man into another room.
- Still being the same shot, as the young man is fully in the room, a rather smartly dressed obese man looks at his watch, looks up and then calls "Edward".
- This has indicated to us that the young man who was driving and who had a bloody face is called Edward.
- Edward then knods his head to then walk to the man who called his name (still the same smooth shot).
- We are then shown that there is another man standing next to the obese man that called Edward. This man is looking down at some papers - so they must be something quite important or interesting.
- The shot then changes to the obese man being in the middle of the frame with Edward on his left, and the other man (still looking at the papers) on his left.
- There is alot of dialogue which at times, was hard to understand due to the Yorkshire accents, but i picked up on what i could:

Obese man: "Sorry to hear about your father"
Edward: "Thank-you very much Mr Radley *mumbles*
(So, we uncover that the obese man's name is Mr Radley and i shall call him just that)
Mr Radley: "This is Detective Superintendant Jobson"
(We have just found out that the man who is constantly looking at the papers is called Jobson)
(Edward tries to sneak a look at the papers Jobson is reading)
Edward: "Pleasure Sir, pleasure to meet you"
(Edward and Jobson shake hands with Jobson still looking down)
Mr Radley: "Mr Garfield is hoping to be the new crime correspondence"
Jobson: "Oh right, i always got on with Jack Whitehead"
Edward: "Good ole' Jack ey"
Mr Radley: "You'll be standing in for a trial period"
Edward: "Alright, pleasure to meet you and er, to work"

-The whole conversation is in one continuous shot. Edward walks off to a spot behind the couple. He looks to be waiting with various different people for something.
- After a few mumbles, everyone gets moving to the right with the camera shot still the same. Maybe into a room for a meeting?
- Mr Radley and Jobson walk off out of the shot (mid-shot) so there is then a wide shot of Edward in a crowd of waiting people and looking around him.
- The shot the quickly changes to Edward being in a crown of people. He mutters to a man beside him: "So wheres Whitehead then?" Edward is looking around.
- The man next to him responds: "Jack?"
- Edward replies looking nervous: "yeah"
- Man next to him: "on the piss probably, don't worry son, looks like you've got your legs right under the table, just do the job". From this we find out that Edward could be fighting for the job of crime correspondence with a man we don't know called Jack Whitehead. Edward is looking for Whitehead because he wants to know where his competition is.
- Edward then says: "I know, f*ck him, hes not getting out of this one". This can suggest that Whitehead is somehow in trouble, and Edward is trying to find him?
- There is then an over the shoulder shot of Edward and the man next to him. Between the men's shoulders, we see a long table and chairs with a microphone - almost as a press conference. The event is being uncovered.
- There is then a shot of along the long table, with Jobson sitting down and saying: "2 hours, its going to be tight"
-There is then a shot of the table again, but slightly further back so the rest of the table is seen. We see that there are more people sitting at the table. Jobson says: "gentlemen, going to give this brief".
- Over the shoulder of Edward and the man next to him - just like before. We see there are more people sitting at the table including a lady.
- Jobson says: "before 7pm early evening this September, Claire Kempley disappeared on her way home from juniours and infants" - which means he is starting to give details on an event which happened and which then explains the next shot. So now we know that this whole meeting is a press conference about the disappearance of a girl, and the police and the victims family are appealing for her to be found. We know that Edward is probably something to do with the police as he is in the crowd.
-There is then a close up shot of the lady on the table looking very distraught and teary - she must be a relative of the missing girl so i shall call her Mrs Kempley.
- Shot of Jobson and then he says "Claire is 10 years old..."
- Then close up shot of Edward in the crowd with his friend slightly blurrier in the background. Jobson carries on to say: "she was wearing a red anarak, grey school uniform..."
- Shot then moves to over the shoulders of Jobson, so we can see most of the seated big crowd. We see Edward in the seated crowd - this has set the scene and located where he is. Jobson carries on from previous continuously: "and red wellingtons boots. Mrs Kempley would now like to issue a statement. Thank-you." So now we know that the teary woman next to Jobson is more than likely the victims mother.
- Over the shoulder shot of Edward as Jobson moves the microphone to his left for Mrs Kempley to use.
- Shot of Edward in centure frame with the man next to him. Smoke is all around the room, which is another indication that this programme isn't modern if the audience didnt know already. Edward then says to the man next to him while still looking forward: "ey, do you think the dad did it?". Edward is guessing already from hardly information who the badie could be - suggesting that he is a confident and sure person?
- Mrs Kempley: "I would like to appeal to anyone who knows where my Claire is, i saw he off yesterday teatime, please contact the police. Claire is a very happy girl." From what Jobson had earlier said, the month is September because Claire went missing yesterday. Mrs Kempley is still understandably teary, which could create great sympathy for her character.
- Close up shot of Edward in centre frame. Background voice from Mrs Kempley: "and i know she wouldnt just run off without telling me". This is to see Andrews reaction to what Mrs Kempley is saying - he is feeling compasion.
- Shot of Mrs Kempley: "please if you know where she is"
- There is then a shot of Jobson in the side of frame while there is somebody's blury head in shot - as if we are sitting in the crowd/audience watching this take place. Jobson's expression is very stern and as if he is hiding something.
- Shot moves to another man sitting on the long table, close up also but we don't know who this man is. Another blurry head in shot as if we are sitting in the crowd.
- Close up shot of Edward centre frame, while Jobson says: "alright lads, thats enough". There are are also women in the crowd, but the fact that he only mentions the men could reflect on the gender differences in 1974.
- There is then a very unexpected and unexplained close up shot of a metal plague which is on fire. It is unnailed and laying on wood - meaning that this isn't on a door, and has been placed somewhere. The plague reads:

'William Dunford, 1912-1974'

- Then, there is an extreme close up shot of the name 'Dunford' and '1974' - this could be the plague on somebodies coffin? As we know that Edward's dad has recently died (Mr Radley earlier said he is sorry to hear) this could be his name - William Dunford. Therefore, we now know that Edward's last name is 'Dunford'. The plague melts and bends.
- The shot moves back to the close up, but then zooms in slightly more so that fire fills up most of the frame - giving a trapped feeling, its all we concentrate on. No longer see the plague - its dead, finished.
- Sudden shot of an ordinary house with Edward's car swiftly moving into the frame. The car parks on the curb. As the house is central in the frame, we could assume that Edward is about to go into that house.
- Shot of door. After a few seconds the door is opened by a woman who then hugs Edward - this looks to be Edward's mother who is very glad to be seeing him. There is a lady in the background who could be Edward's sister, she is standing and as she is in the background, she is slightly blurry. This woman does look very happy to be seeing him - because they both come to the door, we could assume that they were worried about edward.
- Still the same shot, Edward says: "im sorry" as if he was late - so the reason she was hugging him was because she didnt know where he had got to and was worrying incase anything had happened to him.
- Camera moves slightly right so the lady in the back is a bit more in the frame and more in focus. Andrew is hugging the lady again.
- Within the same shot, the woman (possibly Edward's mother) says: "business before pleasure he always says" - meaning what Edward's dad and the woman's husband always used to say. He used to say this because he is now dead? - this dialogue has just finalized that William Dunford is dead. The previous two clues were: Mr Radley meantions he is sorry and the plaque.
- Woman in the background (probably Edward's sister says: "She means dad..."
- Camera moves to inside the house and of the back of the mother and Edward. Almost as if the camera or us is next to Edward's sister.The woman carries on to say: "do you remember dad?". So we now know completely that these three characters are family and the father has died for some reason. The sister seems angry at Edward, as if she thinks he has forgotten what his father was like.

These events which i have described happened in the first 5 minutes of the film. I have highlighted key things which i have pointed out.There are some very important things i have discovered about the characters or what happened while looking back on the shots:

• I have a suspisious feeling that from the first shot of Edwards being very bloody and having a gun in his hand could be linked to his fathers death? Did he kill his father? He does look like he is reflecting on things when he is in the car, sad and stern.
• because Edwards sisters says "do you remember dad?", i could guess that he didnt die recently so, the is a fast-forward from when Edward is bloody, to when he is in the car.
• However this fast-forward cant be years because Edward doesnt look any older.
• The house is quite a middle-class size for the time this film is set. So edward must be middle-class. he also has his own car.
• When he is in the conference, he is wearing something to different to when he visits his mother. This is obviously a different day. I was first thinking that this shows he cares more about the way he looks infront of his mother compared to when he goes to work - but then i realised that his whole family are wearing dark clothing - suitable for a funeral? The funeral of his father - so, the death must have been recent.

So now, i am going to watch the 5 minute OTS a few more times, and write about the sound, lighting, mise-en-scene, character's (personalities, personas etc) character's aesthetics (costumes, etc), representation and stereotype and timings:

Sound
There is both non-diagetic and diagetic sound in the whole OTS. Right at the start when the title comes up, there is a non-diagetic thunder sound - this is because the title is set on a dark, and gloomy sky. During the moving up shot of the floor, feathers and swans wings, there is a very eery, creepy sound. This sound could be conventional of film noir and sets a very suspensed atmosphere and forshadows that we are yet to discover something - we are waiting to find something. When the fade into the shot of the bloody man, the music becomes slightly higher pitched but still flows and is similar to the before music. When the shot of the bloody mans starts to become sharper, the music becomes more simpler - just a few piano keys and an ongoing note. This on going note adds to the suspense because it is very calm, it is as if we are waiting for this note to suddenly change. Because the bloody man is just laying there hurt, it wouldnt make sense to have loud, fast music. As the gun drops, there is a slight sound when it falls out of his hand, but as the gun bounces off the sofa, there is only a slight and distant sound.
When the first text comes up, the music becomes slightly louder and has more substance of notes and keys. The music hasnt stopped completely yet, which has kept the audience hooked.
When Edward is driving in the car, the music is still very eery, effortletless and random is of piano notes, however more clearer than before. When there is a shot of the man through the back windscreen, we guess its the man, says some non-diagetic dialogue with the non-digetic music still behind it. We notice he has a Yorkshire accent. When the camera is on the floor of the road and the car drives by, there is a 'raw' of the car going past in the rain with the piano still in the background. This loud sound really contrasts with the quite and delicate piano sounds. The non-digetic narration from the man stops when he enters the busy building. The piano is still playing when he enters the room, but the diagetic sound of alot of people is present. The piano sound fades away when Edward starts talking to Jobson and Mr Radley. Non-diagetic sound of a bell rings telling the crowd to go inside the press conference room. As Jobson and the other people on the long table start to sit down, we hear the flashing of cameras - indicates that this is a press event.When they are in the conference room, the sound of the crowd is still there right until Jobson says the press conference is going to start. Rustling of paper by Jobson - probably was present when filming but has been enhanced. There is sound when the press conference is taking place - which is a long samey tone but so quiet it is almost as if it is very serious and silent event - the audience can really hear and concentrate on what the details about the disappearance are.
When the plaque is on fire, there is a harsh rawing sound and the piano notes start again and get louder towards the end shot of the plaque.
When Edward arrives at the house, we hear the rubble of his car, however as it isn't raining at this moment in time, the sound isn't as loud as the previous time. Piano still playing and i think i heard some very quiet bird cheaps. Piano carries on until the end of the 5 minutes.
Lighting
Overall, the lighting is mainly very natural in the whole OTS making it very bleak, raw and cold. The dark lighting of the dead girl with swan's wings is very dark - showing us that she was killed at night? It looks like the only light source in this shot is from the moon. When Edward is laying on the brown leather sofa, there is unnatural light shining on his face which indicates he is inside. It makes sense for the lighting to be very dull and bleak when it is raining - it is the type of light you would expect. And i think the dark lighting highlights Edward's siloette in the car - creating an almost mysterious persona. The dark lighting doesnt create a very jolly or happy atmosphere which matches the events of the film and Edward. Eventhough the lighting in the building is unnatural, it isn't very bright - giving a smokey and slightly blurry sight. No specific light is shining on any of the men's faces, so we evenly look at all of them. When everyone is in the press conference room, the lighting is still unnaturally bleak, however slightly brighter than the previous scene. Flashes of cameras. This slightly brighter lighting has meant we can see more of the characters. Bright flames of fire contrasts with the previous bleak scene. When Edward rolls us to the house, the sky is very dull, and doesnt look any brighter than the driving shots, this is also the same for when Edward is greeted by his mother.  
Mise-en-scene
The whole film reflects the time in which the film is set. When i was watching the shots of the girl with the swan's wings, i got the sense that she was outside, possibly very deep in the woods or wherever she was. She is facing down so we cant see her face, as if she had just been dropped and we wonder who she is. The wings are in the middle of the frame, we mistakenly think we are just going to see a dead swan. Edward is sitting on a very shiney, well-kept brown leather sofa - suggesting that he has money? The gun looks older than the 1970's, you wouldnt expect a young good-looking man to have a gun - is it even his? The landscape is empty and in the middle of knowhere. He doesnt look very country so we ask ourselves what he is doing there. hes a smoker which is common for the 1970's. He has a car suggesting that he is in poverty. With posters on the wall of the building and the very smart-looking interior, we could guess that this is a professional place. The place isn't big, so it could be for just one purpose? Inside the building isn't modern for the time, and is quite garish and gives the sense that it hasnt been decorated for a few years. Tables and chairs everywhere. As Edward is surrounded by lots of people when in the conference room, we could guess that this is quite an important event. The specialist microphones and table show that this room is used for one main thing - conferences. Interior very dull, yet smarty and conservative. I think that having the police officers and the victims parents all in a row lets us compared all of the people's reactions. The house is very normal and middle-class due to the size of it and the other nice cars. We see inside of the house and it is very nice, which again makes the people look very middle class. Also, the fact that the family still live in a nice house, even when the breadwinner (their father and husband) is dead could suggest that they have stable money.  The lady behind the mother is standing to the side so the audience can see her an her reactions. We notice her body language isn't as welcoming as the mothers suggesting a rift in the family.
Character's personas
After watching the whole OTS, i get the impression that Edward is quite laddish due to him smoking, fast driving, the gun and the banter he had with the man next to him when watching the conference. I don't know much about what type of person he is just from the first 5 minutes, but as the first shot was of him covered in blood could suggest there is more to him than he shows other people and he is hiding something. When he is commiserations to his father by Mr Radley, he doesnt seem to keen to talk about it. This could mean he was either very close to his father and the loss of him is still raw, or he is trying to avoid the subject because he feels guilty about something - which could also link back to when his sister asks if he still remembers him.
Mr Radley takes his job seriously but not as seriously as Jobson - he doesnt listen to anything about what Edward or Mr Radley says, he is too concerned about when is on the paper. Mr Radley seems like a very polite person as he greets Edward with a smart hand-shake and introduces both Jobson and Edward to eachother. Eventhough Jobson does shake Edwards hand, he stright away looks back down at his papers again. There is a shot of Jobson looking very suspious (4:17) of Andrew (as the camera is posistioned as if we are looking through Edward's eyes), he doesnt show much personality.
Characters aesthetically
The costumes reflect the time in which this film is set. Edward is young and good looking but i don't think this is to hook in the female audience because i don't believe they are the target audience. There is a noticeable contrast between the way Edward dressed to the way the police officers dressed - is he that bothered about being a police officer? Edward dressed very casually and for his age, and the police officers have dressed very smartly which is right for the job and their age. The difference of dress reflects the rebellion of Edward - he is dressed completely different from everyone else in the building - even his friend sitting next to him. His tie is lose, and his top button is undone, which could show that he isn't bothered about the correct presentation.
I did notice that when Edward goes to see his mother is is not wearing the same clothing as he did in the conference. This could mean that he could have dressed smart, but just chose not to. His whole family are dress smartly - possibly to go to a funeral? His fathers? As we now know that he owns a suit, we know that he could have chosen to wear it when he went the conference but didnt - isn't he serious about the job?
Representation and stereotype
I think for the age of Edward (in his 20's) the way he acts and dresses reflects his age. When he visits his family, he hugs her showing that he does respect his mother. I think that Jobson showed that he is very ignorant and rude by just looking at his papers. The mother of the victim has reacted very stereotypically to what has happened to her daughter and the father of the victim tries to comfort her however, he is more content in himself and doesnt speak or say anything, or even look at the crowd - this is why Edward asks the man next to him if he thought the father did the crime. Mr Radley is very polite which could reflect his age and position of authority.
Timings
The shot of the girl with swan's wings is very slow and then suddenly goes straight into a extreme close-up shot of Edward's blurry face. It is in slow motion when Edward is bloody on the chair and when drops the gun. This could mean something really bad has just happened. The driving shots go from one to the other, with a variet of different shots, so we never know what type of filming is going to be next. The scene is quite long compared to how fast Edward is driving - giving the impression that this is a long car journey. The scenes after the driving scene arent particularly fast or slow, they are very normal.
Credits
The production cinstitutions are noted on a black background, and then the cast member arent mentioned until the shot of the camera being on the floor and Edward driving past. This credit is in the bottom right corner, so it is not in the way of the car. The text is in capitals and the colour is yellowey. It looks very formal but doesnt look stereotypically 1970's. Everytime a new cast member is shown, they are on opposite sides to the previous. The cast credits stop just before everybody goes into the conference room.  
How it relates to conventional film noir
How it does:

• Has the theme of murder
• Police characters
• Main character is the protagonist - Edward
• Middle-class characters
• main character attractive
• There is a sense of mystery about the characters and the crime
• Eery music, but still very quiet
• Damp as been raining

How it doesnt:

• Very british
• Colour, eventhough very bleak
• Not very much shadow or hight contrast
• The protagonist could also be the antagonist as he doesnt give very much away and also, he had his hand on a gun and has blood of his face
• No femme fetale
• More gritty than glamourous
• The timing is quite fast
• The building is modest
• The portayl of the policeman is overall good and not as antagonists
• The main character us the policeman
• The murders are too brutal for film noir

Target audience
I would guess that the target is men because of the brutal themes, mainly male cast and police characters. I think nobody under the age of 18 would watch it due the the certified age limit, but any male over this age would enjoy this film.

Conclusion

I have probably watched the first 5 minutes of this film around 6 or 7 times. I did quite like it, but due to the violence, certified age and blood i don't think i will be watching the whole thing anytime soon. This film has had very good views, but personally, i don't think it relates very much to film noir - possibly due to the accents, era, unconventional personas, very serious murders and lighting.

What to do the night before the deadline.

Our deadline is tomorrow and i have plenty to do tonight at home, so to help me, i have put together a list so maybe i might see things in a more simpler way:

- Do task 9 of the theory booklet.
- Go through all of my previous posts and completing them.
- Make sure posts link back to my target audience.
- Watch the DVD teacher gave me on neo-noirs. Evaluate and analyze it.
- Organize the dialogue for my telephone box - do i even want dialogue anymore?
-  Pick what sound i am going to use for the poker scene.
- Make a facebook poll

Trying to complete my editing.

As my deadline is tomorrow, i have been trying to complete my editing as soon as possible. Firstly, i started to edit the following scene which surprisingly took less time than i thought. I had a lot of extra shots which i was able to include - these shots also helped to show the viewer that he is actually being followed. 

Then i started to edit the poker scene. I only had a few different shots (mainly of the brunette woman) because my filming instantly starts letter-boxing when i import it. As i only had shots of the male character and the brunette woman, i had to edit them into the scene and just skip over the blonde-woman's shots, to then fill her shots in later when they have finally uploaded.

I noticed i do have some good shots, it just depends on whether i will be able to use them in my OTS as we have a limit of around 2 minutes of film.

All of my work has had to be letter-boxed by iMovie because of different settings on my own film camera and the cameras at school (i put my tape into these cameras at school to them upload it to iMovie). This letter-boxing takes AGES to do, and it will not let you do anything while it is letter-boxing. So i am stuck waiting for it to complete. I think this has really made me behind on crucial work, so i think i am going to have to resolve this problem in the future by making the setting on my home film camera the same as the settings on the school film cameras.

Target audience

Sticking with my plan of having quite short and snappy shots during the poker scene, i have tried to stick to  this plan. Short shots keep my young audience interested, and not to look away incases they miss a vital shots. I also think that short and snappy shots add to the whole tension, creating the sense of fast, uncertain happenings.

 

FILMING THE GUN.

A few days ago i got my actress round to film the short shots of the gun coming out of her pocket and her pulling the trigger. I couldn't film these shots while we were in the streets as we could get in a bit of trouble if we were pointing a fake gun everywhere.

Unfortunately the only gun i had available was a brightly-coloured plastic one. Which ironically i said in a last post that i should not under any circumstances use a neon gun. However, the advantage of using this gun meant i didn't have to edit in gun shot sound effects as this gun already had them when the trigger is pulled. The sound effects which came with this gun mean that the timing is exactly right and also the sound is very loud.

I filmed this shot against a brick wall in my garage - it made the whole shot look darker than if it was filmed outside. I got my actress to wear the same as she did when we were filming the following scene outside - hat, camel coat, black gloves and a big gem ring (showing her wealth). I was hoping that the darkness and shadows in my garage would dim the bright colour of the gun.

I filmed these short shots in the day time, and i had filmed my following scenes in the dark. However, looking back at the film, i don't think this is much of a problem as the shots are quite dark anyway.

I also had to analyze how quickly she moved her hand up to pull the trigger, and try to match it to the past filming. As i have started to edit, i did find that the shot of her pulling the trigger and the rest of the following scenes do look different, however, i may only be spotting this because i have watched it multiple of times. I'm not certain that a first-time watcher would see it.

This gun definitely goes against my plan and the idea of a conventional 1950s film noir, as it is more futuristic than old-fashioned. As you can see, it is not at all what i wanted. The shape of the gun is okay - so in the dark i thought it would cancel-out some of the bright colour.

I don't think this is disastrous but it does go against everything i was aiming for. But with shade, darkness and quick shots, i believe that i can get away with it.

Concept board presentation.

Finally i have been able to upload my concept board presentation onto vimeo and then onto my blog. Technology has stunted this process and made me very behind on it. So here is the presentation of me, and the second video is of people's feedback:


VIDEO PRESENTATION 4 P1 from fLIX.TV on Vimeo.


as the tape ran out half way through the feedback session, it is cut in half but still carries on:


PRESENTATION 4 PART 2 from fLIX.TV on Vimeo.


Evaluation

I look back on my concept board knowing that some of my ideas havent been accomplished and there are valuble reasons for that. For example: I scrapped the idea of having a french title as i didnt think it fitted with anything and love didnt appear in my OTS. And also, when i tried to find another title in french, it was taking ages as it actually had to sound nice in french.  I did take a lot of feedback into consideration. I was asked about having one person playing all of my characters, to which i replied that it could be done. I still believe it could still have been done, however, it would have taken much more time to film and edit that i would have liked. So i decided it would be better to have one person playing just my female characters and my dad playing the male character. So i would have two actors altogether.


I didnt include my target audience in my concept board. I don't know why i didn't do this but i have given information on this after i did my presentation and for reminder: it is male and females aged 16-25. As my feedback was from people who would be included in my target audience range, this was very helpful. It helped me to take thier advice more literally and to hear first-hand what they thought of my ideas.

Overall, the reactions i got were quite positive and the questions i got asked helped me to think about my own ideas more realistically. Along with questions, i was given advice on solutions to my problems.

Photos taken during the 2nd filming session.

While i was filming the poker scene, i got somebody else and myself to take some photos before, while and after i was filming. I just took some pictures of my characters and the props that were used. Here are the photos and some explanations beside them:

This photo of my brunette woman character is wearing the planned black, sequins fur and lace, with the added extra of gem clip-on earings, black eyeliner and red lipstick. As my actresses hair is very long, i had to clip it back as very long hair would be quite unconventional for that time.








Black lace sweetheart neckline and her swept back hair relate to the 1950s - making the whole look much more believable. I think for my target audiences' sake, the look of my characters has to be believable because the are probably aware of what the 1950s women looked like generally.

This is me filming the blonde woman with my actress. It is slightly blurring however, i think this it the shot of my blonde woman holding a ciggarette while looking at her cards. My male character wasnt needed while filming the blonde woman and as you can probably see, there is a spotlight shining on the money in the middle of the table - so that the light then shines on my actresses face.

Okay, so the wig isnt very believeable, but i think i got away with it as on the camera there was quite dak surroundings. While we were in the costume change from brunette to blonde, we also changed the colour of her nail varnish which i decided should be quite dak, so it would show up in the dark surroundings. This nail varnish will help the viewer identify that there are two women in this scene. The red bow is shown mistakenly in this shot, but as this photo wad taken after filming, the bow wasnt shown during the filming. It would have just looked quite strange!

The main light in my dining room was on while taking the photo, which wasnt on during filming (it was just on in this photo so i could demonstrate her look a bit more). Note the pearls, cigarette and cards - they were very useful props during this scene - which helped the shots look more realistic and conventional.

Here is a shot of my table in which i filmed. The lighting is the same as i used while filming - a spotlight on the money so that the light then shines on my actors faces. It also shows that the money is the main object in this scene. I never put the actual light source in my filming as it would go against everything 1950s, its quite modern. I made sure the sheet on the table was quite dark, but unfortunatley i couldnt find a green one, so i had to settle with navy. This sheet wasnt crinkled while filming. The money was scattered in the middle of the table but not as much as this photo shows. I chose to not cover up the curtains behind because i think it identifies that this poker game took place in somebodies home, and i like the way the light shines off of it - creating depth and shadow.

In my dining room, we have a 'floating shelf' full of bits and bobs, however, this would be soo unconventional so i had to cover it up. My male character had his back to this sheet, but as i did no wide shots, the viewer wouldnt be able to figure out that this is actually a sheet. They might just guess that this is another curtain or something.

Here is the shot of the self-made money. I made it by printing off money which i found on the internet, making sure that this money was used during the early 1950s. The money was quite big back then, so i had to make sure i printed off the right size. I also had to take into account the amount of money i placed on the table - it had to be more that the average person could afford - it has to be the amount a wealthy buissnessman would have.

Here is an example of my spotlight shining on the money, the light hits the papers brilliantly. I also had placed an old fashioned ash tray in there (which does fit the 1950s time) and this ash tray was in shots quite frequently as my characters were conventionally smokers.

This is the fake ciggarette i used for both of my woman characters (my male character had a cigar). I think this looks quite believable so i did a lot of close-up shots of it being tapped on the side of the ash tray.

I only used two types of money - 10 shillings and 1 pound. They were the same size, which i dont think they were in the early '50s however i dont think my viewers would have pointed this out that much because they wouldnt have known very much about 1950s money.

I scatterd them in the middle of the table. I decided to do this because as my characters are quite wealthy, they wouldnt care about money very much. Money is no big deal to them. They arent fussed.

Here is the old-fashioned ash tray. I made sure before i used it that it was made before the early 1950s. And with my unknowledgable guess i would say that it could possibly be 1930s/1940s? With the shiney edge and the wave-like sides, the light shined off of it very interestingly and created a good effect when my woman characters tapped the end of their ciggarettes on the side.

Even though i never actually had a shot of the money neatly piled up, i wanted to show how the crumbled-up edges bounced the light. I think having crunched-up money creates the idea that these characters dont care about thier money very much - they are careless enough about it to just shove it in thier purse or pockets. The spotlight also creates interesting shadows.

Here is the box in which the cards came in. The cards are very old, and are from poland originally. Eventhough the box wasnt in any of the shots, i just wanted to show that even the cards are old.

This photo shows the old-fashioned layout of the cards in the box. Very legitimate and belieable. If something is actually old, then my audience are more likely to believe that this something is old.

Here is the very modern wind-up torch i used when i had to film shots under the table. I had to film the cheating card i my male characters cuff, and both my female characters shoes tapping on the floor.

I think i could have taken a few more photos of the die i used (i made sure they were also very old), photos of the shots i did under the table and photos of what my male character looked like. However, most of these shots will appear in my final OTS.

Filming the poker scene.

I filmed on Thursday night (5 days ago) and it went VERY well. I made sure it was dark outside so even though the curtains were shut, no light shined through. I kept the curtains in the mise-en-scene because the light that was in the room shone off of the curtains and made an interesting texture. To tackle the project of having one person playing both of my female characters: i decided to film EVERY female shot as the brunette person (even the shots of the blonde woman when my actress is in the role of the brunette) and then after that, i would film the same shots as my actress as the blonde woman. As i was filming the brunette lady first, i got multiple shots of my male character, so when i was filming the blonde lady, he got to go home!

I first started off by laying out the combinations of my outfit for the brunette lady, and when my model was wearing them, i just layered up lots of black, fur, sequins and lace. I didn't have to make my outfits work completely because it would be quite dark while filming as well as being black and white - to dark to see the outfit. As i had a tapping-foot shot (to show she is being impatient) of this character, i had to find the right shoes to fit the era. I'm not too sure about this but i think because i played with the lighting and shadows, i might be able to get away with it as not all of the shoe may be seen.

I then had to layout my table with a dark sheet over the top, then i put the fake money, ash tray, the cards, dice and light on the table. I made sure that the light-source was never in the shot as it is way too modern. But the ash tray is one that we already had in the house and just happens to be very old (1930s-ish). The dices were also very old, and there were 5 of them - probably made of ivory or similar. The fact that these dice were probably quite expensive when they were originally bought, fits well with the financial situation of my characters. The cards were again a very old find which fits to the time and place of my OTS and the amount of money my characters have.

After having organised the mise-en-scene of the poker scene, i had to start filming. I made sure that i went by the storyboard with the same shots but, i made sure i also got some extra angles in there also - JUST IN CASE and it also gives me the chance to experiment with interesting light and angles. I filmed my shots in chronological order according to my storyboard. So as my shots often jump from one character to another, my characters just stayed in the same place while i went round them and filmed those specific shots. I did it in chronological order because i knew it would be easier for me to know what is going on while filming and also it will make the editing process simpler and easier! I first filmed the brunette lady (the brunette one first because my actress is a natural brunette-head) and also my male character. After i had gone through my story board for the poker scene with the brunette character, i didnt need to film my male character any longer and i then had to film my blonde character (my actress in a blonde wig). My male character was dressed very smartly, with a white sharp shirt and trousers. I was planning in my storyboard to have my make character put the handkerchief in his suit-jacket pocket, however my male character didnt have a suit-jacket with him and it would have looked strange if he had put the handkerchief in his shirt pocket. So to sort this out, i decided to film my male character putting the handkerchief in his trouser pocket instead - which in turn, didn't look to bad in comparison to my original plan. To make my male character look sweaty on his forehead, i had to us just ordinary water which also looked realistic. I tried to do a very close-up shot of a sweat-drop flowing down his face, but, i couldn't get the camera to capture it and also i think it would go against the idea of my male character being very confidant and arrogant - it would have made him look over-nervous and tense and wouldn't fit his characteristics.

There will be no digetic sound in my OTS - exept when my male character 'THUDS' the winning cards on the table, and the non-diagetic sound will be low and mysterious. I have not determined what EXACT sound i will have, as i would prefer to wait until i have edited the OTS so i am make sure that the music fits the atmosphere and feel of the film.

I used just one spotlight, and it was positioned on the table and shining straight onto the money in the middle of the table. The light was the reflected onto my characters faces - so the light was shining 'up' their faces, making them look mysterious and eery - as if they have something to hide.

Filming the blonde lady was exactly the same as filming the brunette, with the same shots that were in the storyboard and also some extra just-in-case shots. It was actually quicker to film the blonde character as i was aware of what my aim was a bit more, and i was a bit more confidant that the lighting and mise-en-scene looks okay. Her costumes were black, fur sequins and lace however, with different clothing items. Just like with me brunette lady, i filmed under the table of my characters shoe tapping in nervousness and impatience.

The photos i took before, during and after my filming session will be uploaded soon.

Conclusion

In conclusion, i am very pleased with the progress i have made as i was concerned about reaching the deadline with an edited piece. All together, the poker scene took around 2 and a half hours to film including the costume change from brunette hair to blonde hair. Each shot was quite quick to film, as most of my shots were still and short - giving the impression of tension and foreshadowing something bad is going to happen. I decided to film my street scene before the poker scene because i knew the street scene would be harder to edit as i have to get the timing very precise and fit together correctly. It also needs to flow to not jump too much, however, i wanted my poker scene to be very jumpy, creating an unsettled feel so therefore it would be quicker and simpler to edit and film.

My next step is to film a quick shot of my killer holding a 1950s gun up and pulling the trigger, and another close-up shot of my killer lifting the gun out of her coat pocket. These small shots would have been filmed while i was filming in the streets, however i wasn't going to risk holding a gun when it was at night - just in case we got into some trouble. I did plan to do this from the start. So, to produce these shots, i will have my female character in the exact same costume - making sure she is still wearing the gloves and the same ring. I was film these shots probably against a brick wall as i don't think it will matter dramatically about the mise-en-scene because it will not be shown. I will then edit the shot into black and white, and make the whole shot darker. i am planning to borrow a fake gun and i have done some research on a gun which would have been used by a woman in the 1950s. Note: a female must be able to lift it up and also it doesn't necessarily HAVE to be based on a 1950s design - it could be from an earlier era because somebody would have kept a gun for a majority of years. So here are some still shots i found of guns used in 1950s films noirs:

I love this shot. I note that her gun is very traditional-looking of what a gun would normally look like. Nothing special about it. (Left)

Again what a brilliant shot. The cigarette and gun are highly contrasted against her sweet, modest clothing and glamorous hair. The gun is very similar to the previous photo, however it is black. (Right)

 

This is still very similar to all of the other guns i have seen in a film noir.(Above, left)

                                                                                           

 I like the effect of the bird-shaped shadow. The gun is a very typical design - a design that you would generally associate with a gun.

 

                                                               It is a clearer shot of the gun so i know what i am looking for. (Above) 

If i cannot find a specifically old-design gun to borrow, i think i will have to make do with black - it HAS to be black so that it will portray a mysterious atmosphere. Why would a killer carry a neon gun around? It must be subtle.

Linking back to my target audience

My audience is 16-25 year olds and are male and female. After filming the poker scene, i still feel as if i am targeting this group. I am targeting them by sticking to my storyboard and also with my intention of having the scene quite quick, tension-building and easy to watch, I'm sure that they will be hooked and will want to watch more. However, i can never determine this hope until after i have edited it.

Second editing session and the situation i had.

This post is slightly late but i need to record a problem and a solution that occurred when i was trying to edit a few lessons ago.  By the 'situation' i mean that when i was editing i discovered that i had a REALLY BAD continuity error which is going to be difficult to figure out. This problem is of a shot of my killer on the steps - these steps are where my victim is going to be killed but in this particular shot, my victim isn't in it. It is hard to describe the situation, but here is the best i can do:

In the alleyway that i filmed, there are two separate set or steps, where in the middle of these steps, there is just a plain, straight 'walking-bit'. I discovered that a shot of over my killers shoulder and aiming at my victim was filmed at the bottom of the first set of steps. This is wrong because another shot has my killer pointing the gun from the bottom of the second set of steps. This doesn't make sense, but the only way i could make this somehow look more realistic and unnoticeable is to have a shot of my killer just walking along the straight part of the pathway (which is in the middle of both sets of steps). However, i did find that i did have a shot of this BUT, my killer is walking the wrong way (she was walking left when she was meant to be walking right - where right is the direction to the second lot of steps). So i was shown on final cut that you can 'flop' the shot, making my killer walking the way i wanted her to - right.

However i believe there is a separate solution to this problem without using final cut. I think that i might be able to get away with it if i don't have this walking shot at all, so somehow she has jumped from the middle section of the steps, to the bottom - creating suspense and wonder in how she has done this - it could make it look a bit creepy to how she did this. I did want this scene to look quite jumpy anyway so i think this could contributed to this effect i wanted to achieve.

This 'jumping' problem only highlighted another problem i had. If i decided to use the walking shot, there is a slight hill on this straight flat pathway between the two sets of steps so she was walking slightly upwards, to then walk down the sets of steps - doesn't make sense. So i can either use final cut to rotate the frame, just leave the shot and try to get away with it or i could not use the shot altogether. To decide what i am going to do, i will have to  finish the rest of the editing so i can see how the whole thing flows, and then figure out this solution. I am completing my editing session on the 28th of February.

Preparing to film tonight.

Tonight, i have my friend round (she plays the femme fetales and the killers) and my dad round who plays my male character (the businessman and future victim) so we can film the poker scene of my OTS. I am still in the process of editing the following half of my OTS which will be completed as soon as i can. I have made a lot of preparations to film this second half as there is a lot involved to create the atmosphere i am aiming for. Here is the quickly thought out list of the things i have done and thought abot to make sure i am ready to film tonight:

- The table. I have organised the location of the table, which is in the back of my living room (technically the dining room) and there is curtains behind the table. These curtains will look effective when the light shines on them - creating shadows. I also think these curtains will create a closed-in effect which i am aiming for. As i havent been able to find a round table for my OTS, i have had to work with my big rectangular dining table. If i use the edge of the table,. and try not to focus on the table too much, im sure i will be able to get away with it.
- The cloth for the table. I have got a dark cloth which will cover the table. I mustnt focus on this too much as i think a rich buisnessman would have a proper felt cover on the proper poker table. I must have a cloth on it because it would hide the wood of the table and also if the cloth is dark, add to my mysterious and dark atomosphere. I also think the dark colour will contrast well with the colour of the cards and money.
- The cards and money. I have borrowed the cards off of my dad, and they are the traditional sized cards and designs. The money i something i have to organise in my media lesson today. As i cant use the money that is used in this present time, i am thinking i might have to print off some early 150s money to lay on my table set. I will talk to my teachers about this today, and i have to make sure it is right because i am filming a few close ups of the money.
- The floor. The floor of my dining room is a very 70's (my OTS is set in the 1950's), but as i only need to film a shot of a femme fetales foot and my victims cuff, im sure this will not matter dramatically. The light will shine off of this floor creating some reflection and hoefully, even more shadows.

Here is an example of my floor, which will hopefully be diguised with darkness, shadows and the black and white effect i am adding to my whole OTS (conventionally 1950s).

-  The costumes. Eventhough i have grouped together a whole lot of black, sequins, lace and fur clothes, there is no specific outfit for my femme fetale to wear. I have decided (mentioned in a few previous posts) that i am going to throw as much of these essential items on my characters and to see if they work. I musnt worry about this too much as i am not planning to do very many close ups of what they ar e wearing. The whole affect, however, needs to be black. I have asked my dad (the male character and victim) to wear a dark suit with a white shirt - and to be quite similar to what he wore for when we were filming the following scene. I have never asked him to wear a tie or anything like that - the reason is because i was to give the effect that he is very relaxed and confidant - leading onto the sense that he is quite arrogant.

- The film camera - The compact camera i have at home is very simlar to the ones we have at school, however, my camera has problems when i try to charge it and it is reluctant to do what i want it to. I will ask my teachers if they can loan me a camera just for tonight and then return it tomorrow.

- The camera - I am planning to take a few pictures of what my set looks like and what my characters and props look likw when the whole thing is set up. I am also planning to have somebody else take a picture of my while i am directing or informing my characters of what to do. These pictures will document and prove that i have directed, so i will snap away!

- Sound - i do not have dialogue in this part of my OTS, i am organising to have a dark, atmospheric sound which is conventional of a film noir in the 1950s. I am not going to finalize the music i am going to have because im aware that if i do, then the sound might not fit to the filming and it just wouldnt work. So i am waiting until i havge completed the editing.

- Credits - I am in the process of photoshopping muliple possible combinations of backgrounds for my credits - changing the font, colour and positions of the title but wit the same city scene background. I have done some research of different film noir titles by looking on the internet and by watching ones on the screen (note: the credits from the film noir 'Notorious' are quite simlar to the effect i am trying to accomplish).

Here is the edited photo which will be the backdrop to the writing of my title. The original photo was darken to result in this photo. I wanted to set the scene of mysterious night time.

This is the first attempt at puttin text onto my photo and the font is 'century gothic'. I want to put the word 'death' in capitials and in bright red because i think is over dramatic (quite 1950s) and it stands out - showing the viewer what the theme of this film will be. So when my OTS is watched, my target audience will know what is going to happen. But only when they watch it will they know where the word 'cheat' comes into it.  When i took the photo, i made sure there was a lot of sky, so i would have plenty of room to add text to it. I did because it has allowed me to have the text as big and dramatic as i want - the larger the text, the more impact and drama i create. When i have presviously watched film noirs, the font is very similar to this.

I really like this one. The font is 'New Times Roman' and is bolder than the previous one - meaning that the red of the word 'death' is bolder. Its easy to read, simple and most importantly, i think it suits the 1950s. The word 'death' is also very central to the text above it - making it the main focus. So the viewer would look at the word 'death' and then look at the rest of the title. I have decided to go with this example and it will feature at the start of my OTS. I have decided to have the actors names, the directors names and producers etc BEFORE the title of the film comes up. So its the last piece of text the viewer reads.

Adding the credits is the last thing i am going to do when i have finished editing, and will be done by using iMovie. I have organised what my credits will say with help from this videos i found on Vimeo and youtube:

 

"The Younger Ride" Credits from Emma Gael on Vimeo.

I like the layout and the picture beside the credits, the way the camera moves up the stairs with the text and the colour of the background. However, this does look really modern and it looks very homemade (its obviously not an actual film noir).


These credits are from an actual, real film noir and are a good example of what i am trying to achieve. The filming is quite wobbly but that greatly reflects the time this film was made and looks very legitimate. I dont think i will be able to achieve this 'wwobbky'; effect without printing put the planned credits and then filming them. I do like the idea of using fading to change from one credit to another - thisis would be easy to achieve and would look very