Location Reccie

Location List

Cast list

Call sheets

Production schedule

Production Log 11

This week we looked made a shooting script and looked at a production schedule, call sheets, location list and a cast list. One problem we found was with the production schedule was that we initially planned to do four days of filming from the 21/12/13 to the 24/12/13 but had to change two of the dates being the 22nd and 23rd and have had to spread out filming to other dates within the holidays. other than that planning was fairly simple as we knew what and who we needed for the production.

In the end fairly small issues such as dates for filming were just re-allocated to different dates but slightly bigger issues like finding an extra actor last minute to fill on a role but in the end we kept asking people and eventually we found an actor to participate in our production.

shooting script

Production Log 10

This week we looked at creating a vox pop and creating a meet my audience character to gain feedback and clarify what type of audience that we think our BSR production would attract, the vox pop allowed for us to see what type of audience we are dealing with and how we could adjust our production to meet the likings of our audience,

For primary research we collected feedback from our vox pop which looked at what people though of the BSR genre in general and what they thought of our ideas and how we could improve on them. We learnt that BSR films in general weren't that popular but people had seen them before and found them quite interesting to watch because it shows the reality of British life. Also we found that our idea to some people was exaggerated to an extent and we should find a way to tone it down and conform to the non exaggerated BSR genre. Also something we found which was pleasing was that most people look for action, violence and drugs in films which suits our idea quite well.

It affected my planning it has given me an insight of what i could to do to improve the production overall to match our feedback and seeing whether they thought our idea was unique. It also showed me how much the audience knew about the BSR  genre and how we could adjust anything to make it more appealing to those who didn't know so much about it.

Audience research

Here is a vox pop my group and I filmed to gain an insight into what people typically think of BSR films etc and if they liked our idea. This would help up to gain feedback to be able to improve our initial idea to make it more suited to the BSR genre.

After looking at our feedback from the people we interviewed i put the collective data into a table showing positive and negative feedback.

Here is a persona i created to be 'My audience' who i thought would enjoy watching my BSR production. It outlines the characters interests and social activities.

The audience re-search helped a lot with getting an idea of how and what we could improve our idea with.

One key aspect which I thought came up  was the exaggerated aspect of our characters life and how we either tone it down for realism or keep it exaggerated for the entertainment purpose. Which I think was a valid point and choosing which to do is tricky, I think that trying to find a middle ground of having some smaller parts exaggerated and the bigger aspects more authentic to be able to keep that entertainment value as well as making sure it keeps to most conventions of the BSR genre.

A lot of people said that violence, drugs and action were major themes that they would want generally from films and implementing this into our production is quite straight forward as our narrative revolves around these themes, but it has occurred to me that the way we illustrate these are key because we are trying to make it as realistic as possible and not like a hollywood blockbuster.

Another point I think we should take note of is that most people who had a favourite BSR film said either kidulthood or adulthood was their favourite. So looking as these films and taking inspiration from them could help us improve our production significantly.

Having an adolescent as our protagonist i think helps us make the audience able to relate to the character as most of the people that would watch BSR films are around that age. Seeing as in the vox pop people said that most BSR films they have watch have been relatable to themselves this is a positive part of our idea.

Also people said that they an engaging storyline from the outset and plot twists, seeing as our idea doesn't go straight in to action which doesn't make it very engaging i think we could improve on this by having a smash-mouth opening to get the audience interested from the beginning.

production log 9

I have learnt a lot this week about narrative, for example i recapped on linear and non-linear narratives seeing as i had looked at them beforehand. Linear being a straight forward beginning, middle and end and non-linear is when the narrative is not in chronological order which would mean using techniques such as flash backs and flash forwards. Also i learnt about restricted and omniscient narratives where restricted is when the narrative is looked at through a single characters perspective and omniscient is where the narrative is channeled through more than one characters perspective. Restricted narratives allow for the audience to be able to get to know a single character and be able to empathise with them where as omniscient narratives allow for a more neutral view of things within the narrative and doesn't really get the audience invested into a single important character which can make the story itself less interesting.

This helped me to decided how to structure my narrative for my idea, i have chosen to do a restricted linear narrative. Linear because it is very common in the BSR genre and flashbacks and flash forwards are not typical of the genre and not effective and a restricted narrative because it allows for the audience to invest their full attention into one character which makes the plot of the story more effective.

In the end we decided that anything which didn't follow the conventions of BSR wasn't worth doing but looking at the things we could have included such as a non-linear narrative i think would have made the plot more interesting but for my specific idea, it would have given away to much to the audience so we had to change that.

Mckee's Narrative structure

Exposition - Protagonist

My protagonist is a 16 year old asian boy names Chas. He is brought up in a very abusive world as his father abuses him a lot when he is angry. His dad would lash out on him every other day while his mother would try to calm him down. He eventually becomes sick of this and leaves home and enters the drug world. Chas is represented as a stereotypical teenager of this generation who does what he likes and is associated with drugs and violence. He dresses in very casual clothing such as a tracksuit with air forces as his everyday clothes.

Agents of change

The antagonist is the drug supplier who wants the money that Chas owes him and is willing to do what it takes to get him back, there isn't any alterior motive to this just the fact that the supplier is an irretable guy who wants Chas to suffer for wasting his time with such a little matter.

Conflict complication

Chas eventually wants to get out of the drug world because he finds out its not what he thought it was going to be so he wants to get out and stops selling drugs but ends up owing his supplier money but he only ends up owing the supplier money because instead of selling he was taking the drugs himself which isn't apparent from the get go and is seen later on in the narrative as it is a secret kept from the audience.

Elaboration

The film starts with the protagonist named Chas, he is neglected in his house and in school. He has no firends and his dad beats him senseless. Due to this he keeps to himself and he reads magazines and see how drugs are associated with money and fame in some cases. He craves this attention and one day he decides to get involved with the drug world and befriends some dealers to get involved. Eventually he realises that he wants to get out of the drug business and get his life back to normal so he just stops thinking its that simple. Eventually his supplier gets annoyed that Chas hasn't got the money he owes him and goes after him. He finds ways of avoiding the supplier for a long time seeing as he decides to go back to his old life of just sitting in his room with no one to talk to, he becomes very paranoid and cautious about a lot of these things.

Climax - resolution

After hiding from these dealers and making sure not to get caught, one day Chas finds out that his friend that he used to deal drugs with is in trouble with the supplier as well. His friend comes to stay with him and finally they get seen by the supplier. They get chased and Chas gets away but his friend gets shot and dies.

Coda

A couple days later it shows Chas crying at his friends funeral and then followed by some shots of how he's got his life back on track, he gets back into education and the supplier now leaves him alone as he feels he got him back for killing Chas' friend.

Treatment

Title

In my group we decided that out title should be called "Class A". The title "Class A" connotes the main theme of the narrative which is drugs. Because it is called "Class A" it also connotes that more serious drugs are involved in the story as well as looking at the theme of drugs it could be looked at as being a reference to a social class which our protagonist is looking to reach seeing as he is a working class character and wants to escape in to a higher class of people. 

The title originated from the main theme of drugs because we thought that this was the main theme we wanted to be able to portray and the connotations of "Class A" i think do this quite well as a reference to "Class A" drugs. It connotes to the audience what drugs will appear in the narrative and also possible serious consequences may occur because class A drugs have a serious penalty by if you caught under possession of it. Also in the drug world where class A drugs are deemed to be the best and most expensive drugs where gang fights often happen over drugs like these and people get killed, this also offers another connotation for the title. For example In our production we will be looking to have our protagonist as a drug dealer, this denotation reinforces the connotations that our main theme is drugs as we will see Chas dealing class A drugs and ends up owing his supplier money because he didn't want to be involved any more and having the supplier go after him backs this up.

I believe that the title being called "Class A" is conventional of the BSR genre, it is short, simple and has various connotations of the themes and content of the narrative. Typically BSR titles are short and simple with a reference to something that will happen in the film or either something that connotes something metaphorical like "Fish Tank" which is a girl wanting to escape like a fish in a tank. I think that the title is effective because it instantly establishes what the contents of the narrative is which i think is key to give the audience and idea of what the film will be about. 

I think my title would appeal to the target audience of 16 - 24 year olds as it is simple, though it is unique it is obvious to be able to understand what it is about just from the title. Though the title is obvious when looking at it as about drugs but it could also have smaller, less clear connotations such as aspiration because people turn to drugs to escape from the world around them. Also something like drugs connotes addiction or experimentation and some people around that age being involved with things like drugs whether it be dealing or taking them, and this has a possibility of them being to relate and personally identify with this theme also it provides a real life insight into how drugs can have an effect on someone's life even if they do not take them and are just involved. 

Identify target audience

My production is aimed at very specific people. My production is aimed at people that are aged between 16-24. My production is targeted mostly for boys because of the stereotype that boys typically like violence and are more associated with the bad things in life more than girls. The fact that the age range is from teens to young adults is good for my production because this way the characters and the narrative will gratify them more than it would for other aged people. The narrative or even the characters may relate to the audience and this way they will be entertained and they will enjoy it. Also in most BSR's the jargon being used is more relatable to this age audience so if the audience can easily understand what is going on and every term used then it will be more likely that they will enjoy it. Also playing on the stereotype of boys are more likely to enjoy violence then it will draw in a wide male audience. Even though this can be aimed particularly at boys it will bring in girls as well and the fact that the age range is for 16 years old minimum then everyone will be allowed into the cinema and there wouldn't be any issue to watch it on TV such as parental controls because they will be allowed to watch it. This allows the movie to be certified as a 15 and also it allows us to use a variety of language, violence and sexual associations etc. into the production. If there is this variety then it makes it more relatable to people because in our production our main theme is drugs and in life it is typically seen that 16-24 year olds that are experimenting on drugs or even addicts therefore making it more relatable. My production will be targeted towards people that are interested in certain things such as what life is like with drugs and how it can be positive and negative on people even though it is mostly negative. Also for the audience to be interested in my film they need to be interested in violence because my film will consist of violence throughout. The main interest for the audience though is to see what life is like on the grittier, dirtier side of the UK and what things happen in these areas and how people are affected. This will gratify the audience in the way of them finding out more information about this side of the UK. It will  be targeted towards people of the middle class. These are the average sort of people that you see on the streets walking around. Also it will be good to appeal to these people because most of these people own televisions and do go cinema so it will bring in a wider audience this way and these people will have the interest of finding out how underclass people live and what their lifestyle is like. The themes that my production will use are themes such as drugs, corruption of youth and violence. These are normal for BSR films but it does have originality to it when it comes to the narrative of the film. This originality will appeal to the audience as it will be something that they haven't seen before. The narrative shows scenes of violence and drugs which is normal for a BSR but the way these themes are portrayed in the film are going to be unique. Also BSR films are known for being authentic and my film will be authentic and it adds the sense of realism for the audience. This will keep the audience watching the movie. 

Technology

The technology that will be used will be some simple technology such as iPods and old phones. This will be simple and be only used to establish the era of the film. This will also establish the class of the characters. This will be suitable for my production as old phones such as an old Nokia will establish that these characters are not very wealthy as it is a very old phone that they are using. Also using a old iPod will establish their class. It will set the era by showing that it is set in the modern age but not in an area that is very high classed. In terms of camera i will be using a lot of different camera language such as 360 shots and long takes. This will be easy as it conforms to the conventions of a BSR. The limitations of the camera shots is the 360 shot as it is going to be hard to do this shot without making it to shaky. BSR films consist of handheld camera movements but if there is to much shaking then it will make the film very unauthentic. I have many ideas of how i can do this 360 shot and still make it look authentic for the audience. Other uses of technology will be using fake syringes for any scenes to show drugs and the effect of them will be done by acting. The only limitation of this is actually finding this fake thing and making sure in the film we use the appropriate camera language to make it look as realistic as possible. In BSR films there are infrequent edits and abrupt cuts. I will use this but i wish to do a shot tracking someones feet when they are running. This will be a good shot if filmed properly and it will make my film look good. This is another hard shot because we do not have the technology to follow someone's feet at that speed so we have to think of some other ways to be able to perform this. 

Representation

When coming up with our idea we decided on having one key character, a protagonist called Chas, a 17 year old male who has been kicked out of school and aspires to be rich through selling drugs, through him we see his lifestyle and the representation of a teenager who has grown up in working class conditions and how intends to escape from it.

Due to the fact that our narrative really only looks at life from his perspective which in a way is a positive aspect as it allows for the audience to be able to get to know and empathise with him. Also the fact that our character is representing a stereotypical, bad representation of youth of today it gets across the BSR genre and how it looks at showing real life as accurately as possible.

We are not really subverting from any representations of any social groups as we see that to not be accurate in relation to real life but we are subverting our protagonist in the sense that once he starts his drug dealing lifestyle he wants to get out of it as soon as possible and will do so buy any means. 

Narrative

The film follows the protagonist named Chas. He is neglected in his house and in school. He has no friends and his dad beats him senseless. Due to this he keeps to himself and he reads celebrity magazines and sees how  drugs is associated with money, fame and success. He craves attention and one day walking to school a group of thuggish boys, drug dealers approach him and invite him into the gang. Receiving the attention from these people he joins and from there on he becomes a drug dealer and becomes an addict until realizing what has become of him and he wishes to get out of this gang and get a job and money and does anything he can to get out. 

The opening sequence will start with 5-6 boys sitting around a round table talking and laughing. Every single guy sitting there is wearing baggy clothes and caps. This will show their personality in a way. One guy will be wearing jeans, a shirt and a jacket. This will show his status that he is a higher class. He is the drug supplier and he talks to all of them about stories that happened during the day of some violent act that he had done in  the day. Behind the drug supplier a trashy looking girl that is an addict and rubbing up against the drug supplier once again showing his status. The drug supplier will then start talking about how he wants all the money that everyone owes him from selling the drugs. Chas however doesn't have the money and gets all nervous. He had purposely done this due to the fact he wants to get out of the life he is living. The drug supplier asks him for his money and he runs straight out the door. From here the drug supplier stands up casually with a smile on his face, walks out and pulls out a gun. The screen will the fade to black and the title will appear. From here the next scene appears of Chas walking to school. 

Conventions
In our production, we will conform to the typical stereotype of a drug dealers appearance of jeans and and a puffy black jackets. This we will do to represent the typical appearance of local drug dealers and for the audience to identify and compare them from the main drug supplier, who will be wearing expensive branded clothing, such as Gucci and Louis Vuitton items of apparel for the audience to be able to establish him as the top antagonist due to his social status and wealth status due to his expensive clothing. We will also make sure that we subvert to the typical stereotype of a father as our storyline includes a abusive father figure, instead of a typical role model father who takes care of his kid. This will be portrayed by the fathers tone and language towards his son, he swears and abuses him to connote the little relationship between the father and son and the real life everyday struggles the main character, Chas is going through and how he fights to get out of that life. Also, some of the audience may be able to relate to this stereotype of a father as they have seen it and, therefore, the audience are able to relate to the film more, and are therefore more engaged into the story and characters. Also there will be subversion from the mother character as a mothers job is to protect her kids, but she is failing to do this even with her efforts and I think this will be portrayed best in a BSR as the audience will empathise for the boy as he has no one to turn to and this results in the audience empathising for this young helpless boy. This would also add authenticity as not all mothers are perfect as they seem and act different alone so this is to see the true side of the family that have grown up with low wealth and not much help.

Style and Iconography
In the production, I will be using a lot of handheld camera shots as typical BSR films are handheld to give it that serious atmosphere and to really drag the audience in the real life situations in the film. There will be little amount of establishing and long shots, as these are used in other genres, whereas BSR films stick to mid shots and close ups as these are most used in a typical BSR and this is where we clearly see the emotions of the characters to see the real struggle about a BSR film. Also we will use natural lighting throughout as this creates no effect, and keeps it serious which will be based around our type of storyline which is a serious struggle for our main character Chas.
We will keep the editing to a simple, and just base it around cuts and fades as these seem to be most effective and work well in BSR's. For example, in adulthood, there are only fades being used throughout the whole film and it seems to work best as it flows well with the storyline and the show for struggle being shown and the audience to pay attention to this and not the fancy transitions which are unnecessary and don't flow as well.
I will keep the costumes for the drug dealers to a simple plain tracksuit with trainers and a hat to cover their face. This will signify equality of authority between the drug dealers and will signify the difference to the drug supplier showing he has more respect, due to his wealth and clothes. Also this will signify the drug dealers as low class thugs who commit criminal activities to make money but are just assuming without knowledge of their background. Also the drug supplier, will be using the latest gadgets and expensive jewellery to represent his wealth and social status in comparison tot he drug dealers, who wear cheap clothing and do not carry around much as they have no money and earn a living with selling drugs representing the everyday struggles of their lives. Also another prop I will use will be flour to act as my drugs. This is used to signify a life changing object and also to connote the dangers of the life some have to result in due to their struggle for money. Also this links back to one of the main themes being drugs, and represents the title, being Class A, it connotes drugs which makes the audience think about the consequences of this drug which is what the movie is based on.
In consideration to music, We will like to keep to having our own created soundtrack that fits the genre and themes of the film. Also the music will be flowing accordingly to the shots so it will look professional and the audience will be able to remember the movie and soundtrack and create an association. Also is creates authenticity. We have ideas of slow paced music during tragic scenes and fast paced music during the action scenes. Also the music will represent the movies era and also will signify who the film is targeted at. 

Institution
The Brief of film four was to create the opening of a British Social Realism. This narrows what themes would be most appropriate and what is most typical to a BSR. There is a lot to do with drugs and violence so we made sure that these were two of the main themes inside our production. Also we must make sure it is realistic as that is a key feature to a BSR genre so we made sure that the storyline behind our production is realistic and believable. This will effect the distribution of the film as it is a BSR , so the majority of viewers will be from Britain and also would have to fit the target audience as that is who the film is based at. Our film will be exhibited on NMT as British social realisms generally don't do too well in box office sells, so if it is available to the public on line, they are able to take full use of it and this will grab a larger fan base who enjoy the film. Also I would maybe have home releases, because if it becomes a success on line, people may want the DVD's as a collection so if it is available, they may be able to make a profit through this method as well

Production Log 8

I had to come up with some creative ideas for my BSR production which looks at the narrative, themes, setting/location and a protagonist. I had to create three initial ideas and from that pick a final idea which i thought i could possibly produce the best of the three. While looking at these four aspects for my production i looked at how specifically they could link back to BSR films that have been successful. Themes was a major ingredient for the production though it is easy to come up with the themes for the production it has to be looked at in a unique way because themes that run through BSR films are typically all the same, ranging from drugs to domestic violence etc. So illustrating those themes in a way that is unique would make it successful as well as having a narrative which ties in with it and incorporates the themes deeply.

The key influences of my BSR ideas came from real life situations that i have been involved with myself or that i have seen in the media. Though the ideas didn't come from the BSR genre itself i think that they can be considered quite close as they have originated from reality and that is what BSR films do, look at things from a neutral realistic perspective. The aspect of the theme of drugs helped me develop the narratives the most.

We ended up picking our groups ourselves rather than have them be allocated. In my group i have two other people, working in a three will prove quite challenging seeing as one person could significantly drop marks for lack of contribution. Overall i think that working in a three is a possible advantage seeing as we have more people to have an input which means we can refine our production even more and there will never be a lack of ideas. In all i don't see any issues working in my group seeing as we all get along fine, and we all have ideas to share which are quite similar because i think we all understand the BSR genre to a high degree.

Initial BSR idea presentation

Production Log 7

This week i have been looking at real life stories, involving crime from the news, which i could use as a basis for my own production. Using something which reflects real life in my own production helps me to add authenticity to the final piece as getting across to the audience that my portrayal of these stories and crimes are not exaggerated from real life. These could help me to choose locations, create characters and a clear, simple but effective narrative which uses reality as a starting point then adding on my own original ideas.

Issues which i faced while researching was looking for the right types of stories, because though a lot of stories involved crime, not all related back to the BSR genre and also some were overly explicit to look and and try and possibly re-create while also adding my own style to it. But the stories I did pick i think related to the BSR genre strongly because of what i have seen in some BSR films before and how similar some of the crimes were.

(An example of the types of stories i came across)

Three initial ideas

Idea 1

Protagonist 

My protagonist is female, 14 years of age and is called Lucy. Her ethnicity is white, she has ginger hair, blue eyes and is quite small. She is a quiet girl, who doesn't have many friends and not confident in herself. She dresses in an appropriate manner compared to other youths her age and doesn't want anything to do with any social activities also she is very introverted. She comes from a decent background and while growing up she hasn't had a lot because her parents neglected her from a young age and she has always had to take care of herself.

Narrative

It starts with the girls parents getting divorced because her dad was abusive to her mum, so she ends up having to live with her dad because her mum has left. Her dad gets a new girlfriend who at this point are both doing hard drugs regularly and Lucy has to deal with both of them abusing her. She doesn't have anyone to tell about the situation and eventually a teacher at school notices all the scars and bruises and tries to get her to go get help. She doesn't want to do this so she runs away to go find her mum.

Setting/location

I plan to set it in London, Chadwell heath academy using key places such as class rooms and the canteen where she would sit by herself to show she's lonely. 

Also i would like to include a home environment to be able to show the lack of contrast between her school life and home life because her dad neglects her.

Themes 

The themes i will look at are drugs, abuse, domestic violence, aspiration and escape and corruption of youth.

Idea 2

Protagonist

A 16 year old male, starting off as a drug dealer, who is tall, of asian ethinicity. His personality is extroverted and is carefree. He has had a good life, but he gets away with a lot because his parents dont't really care about him.

Narrative

Starts with the boy getting kicked out of school and he decides to become a drug dealer, he makes friends with all these dealers and they invite into their world. He realises that drug dealing is not the way to go so he looks for a way out of it and stops selling, when it comes down to giving the supplier his cut of money he doesn't have it this is followed by him trying to escape. 

Setting/Location

London, chadwell heath academy, and local areas around there such as the park where he could do deals and the estates around there.

Themes

The themes i will look at in this would be drugs, violence, corruption of youth, escape and fear

Idea 3

Protagonist

Stereotyped male black teenager, who does petty crimes within his group/gang. 

Narrative

His gang ask him to go kill someone because who caused trouble with their gang. He gets pressured but doesn't want to do it, and says no to doing it eventually. The gang disown him and he ends up stabbing the person without them knowing he goes back to tell them and at this point he is wanted, the gang don't want anything to do with him now and he is all on his own.

Setting/location

London, ilford around estates and rough urban places 

Themes 

In this i would look at Gang culture, crime, violence, death, friendship, neglect and peer presure

What's in the news?

Outrage after pensioner's teenage killer freed and allowed to live just miles away from notorious murder

"A teenager who took part in the horrific murder of a pensioner is living just a few miles away after being released from prison.            

Sarah Davey was 14 when she and 15-year-old pal Lisa Healey killed grandma-of-three Lily Lilley in her terraced home in Failsworth, Greater Manchester.

They then crammed her body into a bin and walked it through the streets of Failsworth before dumping it in the Rochdale Canal."

 http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/killer-sarah-davey-freed-prison-2807553

This explores themes like violence, corruption of youth and murder which is largely used in BSR films corruption of youth is a big theme here seeing as the girls who murdered this woman were only 14 and 15. This is set in Manchester which is a location in Britain which applies BSR films. The possible protagonist here could be the pensioner and how life is for her and a narrative of the build of how and why the girls murdered her.

Anxiang Du trial: Businessman says "darkness" came over him before 'stabbing to death family of four', court hears

"A man accused of murdering a family of four told a psychiatrist that "darkness" came over him as he carried out the brutal stabbings, a court has heard. 

Anxiang Du, 54, is accused of knifing Manchester Metropolitan University lecturer Jifeng "Jeff" Ding, his wife Ge "Helen" Chui, and their two daughters, Xing "Nancy", 18, and Alice. 

After the killings at the family's home in Wootton, Northamptonshire, Du, who denies four counts of murder, fled to Morocco where he was eventually arrested and extradited back to the UK, the court has heard"

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/anxiang-du-trial-businessman-says-2809167 

This explores the themes of murder, death and escape, these are all very typical of BSR films so using them in my own production would add to the realism of it. The protagonist here would be the murderer himself who reflects the violent behaviour of most characters in the BSR genre and also the narrative could be more or less a replica of the orignal story of that a man kills a family and is trying to escape.

Victim of 'evil' child rapist describes nightmares she is left with after his depraved attacks

"The victim of a child rapist has told how her "evil" attacker forced her to smoke and take drugs from the age of seven, and spoke of the devastating impact his assaults have had on her.

The 36-year-old, of Lytham Road in Blackpool, was found guilty of nine counts of raping a child and six counts of indecently assaulting a child after repeatedly abusing the girls at an address in Oldham between 2002 and 2008.

After plying the youngsters with drink and drugs, he would force them to watch pornography and perform sex acts on him, as well as raping and indecently assaulting them."

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/john-paul-lee-jailed-victim-2807249

The themes here look at rape, violence, corruption of youth all are looked at in the BSR genre but rape is not so common and emulating it in my own production if I wanted to integrate it would be quite difficult. The narrative could look be of the girl who was raped at her current age and how the rape has effected her life in terms of how she gets by day by day while having exaggerated some possible outcomes to allow it to fit to the BSR genre. 

Beachcombing for inspiration

In my production i would like to use characters like Jay from adulthood because he is typical representation of a working class person who uses violence a lot. Clearly in the picture this is connoted by him holding a gun. Using props like this adds to realism of characters.

In this shot from James Bond Casino Royale I particularly liked the use of lighting in the background and foreground of the shot which gives it a sinister look and also brings focus to Bond. Using lighting in my own production like this to bring focus onto particular objects can be very effective because it can connote a theme or something about a character to the audience.

In this scene for bad boys 2, there is a 360 degree shot that goes around 3 times continuously. I think that this technique is very effective as it allows the audience to understand the action going on from all perspectives as though they are there themselves. 

In this scene from ill manors there is a soundtrack being used to narrate the story, this inspired me because i think that using this over a montage clears up any confusion for the audience as they watch because a montage has no dialogue. Using this in my production would be quite difficult because finding or creating a song which would match the entire opening sequence is impractical. 

In this shot from law abiding citizen, i found that the way the characters are placed in the shot is quite important and creates a sense of who they are to the audience. Like the man on the left is at a higher level compared to man sitting on the chair connoting authority. Using different placements of objects and characters in a scene in my production will be very important and I could do this so that the audience understands relationships between characters.

This is a shot from fish tank which is essentially shot of Mia recording herself, I thought this was good because even though you don't see the primary actions being done you see what she is doing from the other cameras perspective which I thought was quite unique. Using this but as a POV shot I think would be easy and creative in my production it would help the audience empathize with a specific characters. 

In my production i would like to use the theme of drugs, doing so is quite simple but showing how the theme effects people in BSR films is key. I could show the abuse of drugs within the production and convey its effects with the narrative.

One thing i thought was done well was the use credits over the actual scene of the incredible hulk and its typography matching the actual production, i could do this in my production but making the typography very simple and plain which connotes the realism of the BSR genre.

In the first 20 seconds of adulthood, there are flashbacks which help re-introduce characters and gives the audience and idea of what they might see in the film. Also there is a lack of sound in the first part which adds to the tension of the scene but also brings focus to actions i think using this technique i could very well build tension in production.

In these two shots here they both use real locations from the football factory. I would like to try to emulate the same type of locations in my own productions also in the image on the right i think the graffiti on the wall adds to the realism but also i could use this in my production for credits or as they have done here to give the audience the location.

In this shot from fish tank i found that there clever use of the iconic red London bus allows from them to portray the location. Using a similar technique in using icons to give the audience an idea of locations, themes and background of characters is key and could work very well.

In this shot from this is England they use of the the high angle shot which creates the theme of vulnerability, also the fact that he is blocking out the light creates a sinister vibe to the shot. Using high angle shots to create vulnerability and the use of light like this in my production will allow for me to achieve that realistic gritty feel for the production.

This song 'waiting for the sun' by plan B i think is a good song to use in BSR films simply because it has that grimey feel to it, i think i would use this song in my production as non-diegetic sound because it creates atmosphere, i could possibly use this in a bad situation.

This song by Flip'C Dubz - Dem Gully Guyz is a fast paced party grime type of song which you could possibly see at a rave in BSR films like in adulthood at the beginning. I could use this type of song as both non-diegetic and diegetic music to create atmosphere and a vibe for the scene.

Production Log 6

This week I have learnt that opening sequence devices range from various thing to make up the actual opening sequence, it requires creativity of the different conventions to be able to make the opening sequence memorable, and also it has to set locations and primary characters while also having incorporated everything from credits to being able to give the audience a clear idea of what the film is all about without revealing too much from the get go.I have also learnt that camera language is a major part of any BSR film seeing as the way the camera is handled reflects the genre. For example if shots are too perfect then it doesn't illustrate the genre, the shaky and amateurish feel to a shot connotes the act of emulating real life situations.

I think this will impact greatly on my production because it will make me think of the most effective but creative way to putting together all the ingredients the opening sequence needs.It has shown me how to incorporate all the conventions to make it more like a BSR film than a varnished production which has no real connection to the real everyday world.

I think I will use techniques such as finding ways to incorporate credits into the actual scene itself rather than very basically doing so  and just having it on screen also conventions from editing, camera language and mise en scene all have to represent something of the BSR genre.

Mise-en-scene style

Production log 4 / 5

Production Log 4

I have learnt that titles play a small but important role in the opening sequence, they need to be seen and stay on screen long enough for the audience to be able to read, they need to be discrete enough so that the audience's attention is not drawn away from what is happening on screen and should also reflect on the film. For example when I did the Incredible Hulk title analysis I noticed that the typography didn't interfere with any action on screen and was green to correspond with green look of the incredible hulk himself.

This will impact my work as it has shown me what to include when organising the title sequence and how to illustrate it to the audience so that the opening can flow freely without interruption, also knowing the order of which the credits should come up will help as well.

I would use a very basic typography which isn't super-imposed because it takes away from any action on screen, making sure that audience can read it but also be able to keep up with anything on the screen.

The typography on the left is what is more suitable for a BSR film seeing as it is low budget and a simple way to get across to the audience while not distracting them from the action on screen, if i were to use the type of superimposed typography on the right it would take away from the effect that i am looking to try get which is quite simple.

Production Log 5

I found that the sound analysis was the trickiest of the three tasks I did over the last week because I found that the film i looked at (Adulthood) looks at sound in very different ways, it even uses silence to create atmosphere.
Also I found that the fish tank case study was quite challenging because of the limited use of each convention, being a BSR film, fish tank has to use repeated techniques as it is on a low budget, talking about various techniques they used was hard but i also found that the way they illustrated these techniques were very interesting and creative.
I decided that the things i saw in each task, i would find some way to apply it to my production as they all could make it more successful if incorporated properly. Though I found one task quite useful which was the opening credits to a film. I did the Incredible Hulk, i found that the way the typography was used was very simple but matched the film itself for example the typography was green which goes with the green colour of the hulk.

(eg. of the typography from the incredible hulk, it shows how simple the opening credits are yet incorporating the colour scheme for the hulk)

Fish Tank case study

Themes and situations 

Corruption of youth is a major theme that runs throughout the whole of the film, though it is expected in a run down urban area set on an estate with working class people. For example a huge sign that corruption of youth is a theme is when the two kids are smoking or when Mia has sex with Connor, who is most likely twice her age and her being under aged makes the corruption of youth more powerful.

Aspiration is another big theme throughout the movie because Mia being the protagonist and her dream of wanting to be a dancer makes it big. Her aspiration of wanting to be a dancer shows up several times throughout the film for example when she picks up the leaflet for the dance auditions or the several scenes where she practices her dance routine.

Poverty is a theme which is encountered many times in the BSR film, for example Mia asks or steals money from Connor many times throughout the film, also the fact that Mia walks everywhere rather than take the bus or train reiterates her lack of money. 

Typically in BSR films, these themes are used to shows the realism and authenticity of situations that the film wants to portray. Conforming to these themes and rules to using them it would make my production more successful. I could stick to one big theme to look at in my production which would make it easier to illustrate or look at more than one  smaller theme and expand on what BSR films are all about.

Representations

A stereotype of the teenage boys near the beginning looking at girls in a sexual way while they dance. This stereotype enforces the fact that boys around that age are only interested in on thing with girls at that age and look at them like thy are possessions. 

An archetype that is broken in the film is the archetype of the mother role, the mum in the film is not like a typical mum who cares and watches out for her children, but acts as though she doesn't have any responsibility at all. She throws parties at home while she makes her children stay in her room, she has doesn't care where they go or what time they come back home. 

A stereotype of gypsies is looked at in the film, the three boys that live in a caravan are an example for this, the typical fact that they live in a caravan connotes that they are gypsies. Also the stereotypical representation of gypsies being aggressive towards people is shown when Mia is handled by the gypsy boys.

Mia herself is a counter type of the archetype of the protagonist, she is not heroic and is only doing the things she does for herself not like the typical protagonist of any film. This brings realism to the situations of the film seeing as it gives an insight as to what a working class girl of her age would be like to the audience.

These representations are easy to portray in my production seeing as I use the correct stereotypes and archetypes for characters to give a clear understanding as to who they are to the audience.

Mise-en-scene 

Clothing is a big part of the film, it represents the place very well, throughout the film the girls are seen to be wearing very revealing clothes and a clear repetition of clothing seen in the film connotes the lack of wealth as well as the type of people that live there: working class people. Mia wearing the same clothes in the film; tracksuit bottoms with a top and jacket re-enforces the lack of wealth.

Location in the film is represented in various ways, the fact that it is in the UK is clear seeing as they speak English but location within that is around London because of the fact that it is a very urban area, this is because of the iconic red bus that is seen in the shot below.

The era is clearly portrayed in the props that are used in scenes such as the television, the objects that people possess. For example Mia is given a camcorder to record herself dancing, the camcorder is a symbol of the modern day era because if it was not modern the handheld camcorder would not exist.

Lighting is used very creatively in some of the scenes for example, at 01:06:33 there is a shot of Mia dancing, the only light source is natural lighting from the window which is quite dark. This creates a silhouette of her which brings the audiences view from her expressions to her actions instead. Also a lot of dark lighting is used to set the mood for the next shots, most of which are dull, dim and gloomy.

I though some of the shots were very creative and use of surrounding and lighting added to the effect of what was trying to be achieved: creating a real and gritty atmosphere for the audience. I particularly liked the shot where the dark lighting created a silhouette of Mia, because it enhanced the effect that it was supposed to express more of the actions she was doing rather than he expressions.

Music & Sound effects

The film uses music a lot, though it is all diegetic music, whether it be music from the TV or music from a CD in a car, this creates a more realistic feel to the the production, a lot of the music is urban, R&B music which connotes the that Mia is of the teenage age because that is what is typically listened to by people of that age but when Connor appears in the film the music choice changes and becomes more like Jazz music and finally once Connor has left the music at the end goes back to being urban by playing a Nas track - 'Life's a bitch'. This re-enforces the situation while Connor was and was not there.

I could use this type of ideology that the type of music changes with the introduction of characters and reverts back to 'normal' when a certain character leaves to show the the effect they had on the plot or other characters.

Camera & editing

The camera work and editing is far from perfect, it has the gritty, un-varnished feel to it as it should. This type of camera work gives the audience a sense of realism as well as what BSR films are trying to achieve. Also a shot that i thought worked well because of its creativity was the shot below because it is not a primary shot of what is happening but is a shot of a camera that is showing the action.

Dialogue

Dialogue in this film is very aggressive, straight to the point and uses a lot of slang, even to the people they don't know. This back up the fact that they are from a working class background because it shows they haven't been taught how to talk formally at all. But this type of dialogue helps the audience understand how characters are feeling very easily and also how the environment they live in effects everything especially with speech.
For example here is a quote from the film I used from IMDB quote page for Fish Tank. 

'Mia: I'm leaving then.

Joanne: [dances] This is one of your CD's.

Mia: Yeah. It's Nas.

Joanne: Yeah, it's great.

Mia: You can keep it.

Joanne: Well, go on then. Fuck off.'

'Mia: Keeley, it's me. What's going on? I've left like three messages. I said sorry, didn't I? You know what I'm like. I was pissed off. Ring me back, you bitch.'

'Mia: What are you looking for?
Billy: A Volvo 940.
Mia: What's it look like?
Billy: Like a Volvo 940.
Mia: Cor! Clever Dick!'

This quote shows the type of explicit language people use even with people they are supposed to be close to, when Joanne says 'Fuck off' to Mia it shows even as a mother she doesn't really care which shouldn't be typical of a mother archetype. This connotes the working class background of the characters and re-enforces the aggressive tone of the typical language of the film as they tend to swear in nearly every sentence possible.

Even in the second quote where Mia is expected to sound apologetic she still calls her friend a 'bitch' in the end but it isn't intended to be rude, its just another normal word for the her. 

In the third quote Mia is talking to Billy a bout a car, and ends her speech with 'Cor! Clever dick!' but it doesn't have any malice to the tone seeing as it is a joke, the use of the slang term 'Cor' and calling Billy a 'Dick' re-enforces the connotation of Mia being an uneducated girl of the working class background who doesn't have much vocabulary at her disposal other than basic words and swearing.

Institutional background

For this production there are five production companies involved as said on 'http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1232776/companycredits?ref_=tt_dt_co' :

• BBC Films
• UK Film Council 
• Limelight Communication 
• ContentFilm
• Kasander Film Company

The main company that is part of the production is the BBC which was co-funded by the UK council as it had the opening credit, also the BBC is famous for producing other BSR films such as Ill Manors and the UK council have produced films like the kings speech. All of which were very successful. The UK film council has produced around 200 films so far and the BBC about 237 (quoted from IMDB BBC production page).

Target audience

The target audience for this film would be between 15-40 with no specific gender in mind, with a clear interest of typical life of a teenager and possibly dancing. The location for the audience would be the UK seeing as it is set there and the ethnicity would be mostly white seeing as the main characters are all white.

Marketing material 

Because theses films are British made and have a fairly low budget compared to Hollywood blockbuster films, the marketing materials are limited. But the way they are marketed are low budget and still effective enough to gain a decent audience. 

For example finding websites to sell the DVD version of the film, for example Fish Tank is sold on websites like Amazon, Play.com and PlasmaWindow.com. As well as putting the footage on Blu-ray as well as DVD to appeal to an audience who prefer better quality films. Also using posters as a marketing strategy  is practical cheap and effective because it can be shown to a lot of people.

 The poster here has been infused with reviews to make it seem more eye-catching as well as this the poster has been used as the front of the Blu ray cover.