Research into other films within our genre

Below is a list of the current (February 2014) top ten drama films and their certification.

1. The Wolf of Wall Street - 18 
2. American Hustle - 15 
4. Lone Survivor - 15
5. 12 Years A Slave - 15
6. Only Lovers Left Alive - 15
7. Dallas Buyers Club - 15
8. Captain Phillips - 12A 
9. August: Osage County - 15
10. 300: Rise of an Empire - 15

As these statistics show, the genre of drama appears to target a mainly adult audience, as only one of the films of the current most popular drama films is certified in a way which allows people under the age of 15 to watch it. This is because they often show the grim reality of a certain society, which means there is often violence, bad language and drug use. The genre also targets older teenagers, as not only does the classification mean that younger teenagers cannot watch the films, the subject matter is often not something which is of interest for younger teenagers. For example, The Wolf of Wall Street would have been even more popular and successful had it been certified as a 15, because it's certification as an 18 meant that many viewers aged 16 and 17 had to turn to piracy in order to see the film.

The demographic groups which our genre targets are usually from working class to middle class - it is unlikely that anybody who is upper class would be interested in watching a drama. This is because they contain elements of realism which they are unlikely to have ever experienced before, although they may be more interested in a historical drama such as 12 Years A Slave. Because of this, the demographic groups targeted by our film will be B, C1, C2 and D, as it is unlikely that anybody in demographic category E (the underclass) would be interested in watching a film about a subculture, and anybody in category A is likely to feel too detached from what they are seeing to be able to relate to it.

The Wolf of Wall Street proved that drama
movies don't have to be realistic in order
to be successful.

The audience theory which can be applied to this genre is the Hypodermic Needle theory. Despite being outdated, the theory suggests that the audience are going to copy whatever they see in a film. This is true for most drama films, as they are often relatable to the audience (kitchen sink dramas) and allow them to change the audiences mind about a certain issue. An example of this is The Wolf of Wall Street, as despite it containing situations which the vast majority of the audience will never experience (making $50 million in a year), it has a message which they will be able to relate to at the end, which is that the capitalist idea of making as much money as possible isn't the best way to live.  The audience know this because they see how money corrupted the young man. This is a perfect application of the Hypodermic Needle theory, as the audience are likely to go away with this idea in their minds, and live their lives according to it. Drama is one of the only genres where this theory is still applicable, as many other genres of film contain story lines which are too surreal for the audience to take things from to apply to their own lives.

As expected, most of these films used big name actors and directors (Martin Scorcese, Leonardo Di Caprio, Tom Hanks and so on) as their main way of attracting an audience to watch their films. I will not have the luxury of any budget to pay actors, let alone a budget as big as these ones, so I will have to rely on the more subtle techniques and theories which are used to attract the audience in these films when making my own one. For example, if I were to employ the uses and gratifications theory into my piece, then I would be able to show the audience that my film is able to fulfil certain needs of theirs, for example the need to witness artificial relationships or for entertainment. All of the drama films which I have studied employ these theories, however they are harder to spot in higher budget films because the majority of the emphasis from attracting audiences is placed on the lead actors within it.

By George Martin

Mindmap of Target Audience

Here is a mindmap which demonstrates a few aspects of the target audience which need to be consider when making the film, and it includes audience theories which back up the ideas which I have written about. For example, by aiming a film with a teenage protagonist at an audience of teenagers and young adults, they will be able to see a part of themselves within the film, which will give them both entertainment and a fulfilment of things which they have perhaps been unable to do in their own lives. A similar theory is applied when targeting the film towards an audience of people who are predominantly white race, because the majority of the staring characters are white race - this means that the audience will be able to emphasise more with the text, and use the hypodermic needle theory in order to take more away from the characters.

Creating this mindmap will help when considering the Mise-en-scene of our film, because it will remind me of what needs to be included in order to aim it at the audience which I want it to be aimed towards.

By George Martin 

Mood board on the look of our audience members

The main things which I am representing with this moodboard are teenagers and regional identity/location. I have included teenagers from a variety of different social groups. These groups were inspired by the website www.uktribes.com, as it shows the variety of different groupings which teenagers place themselves and their friends into. By including as wide a range of teenagers as possible, I have represented that I want my film to appeal to as large an audience of teenagers as possible. Groups of teenagers which I have included in my mood board include casuals, hipsters, townies and goths, a diverse mix in order to show the diverse audience which I believe my film will have. Note that I have not included any or many adults within the mood board, because I believe this film will not appeal to many of them.

In addition to this, I have included iconography of the north (gravy), as I believe that our film would be more successful with a northern audience than a southern one. I have also shown urban and suburban areas, as this is where my film will be set. People are more likely to enjoy a film if they can relate to its setting, so by setting it in an urban location, I am more likely to attract an audience of people who live in the city rather than those who live in the countryside. 

Below is my mood board. Creating it will be very helpful when scripting out my film, because it will be a visual reminder of who my audience are, and thus will remind me what iconography will need to be incorporated into my film in order to attract these audience members which I am targeting the film towards. 

By George Martin

Scenes in our film and how it would run

After the opening, the film is going to be told mainly in the form of flashbacks and flash forwards - very little of the film is going to be set in the present, apart from occasional scenes showing her being bullied in school. Below is a selection of hypothetical scenes which would be important if we were to make the entire film and not just the opening, which should give an idea of how the film is going to run overall.

 

Facebook Scene

 

A few days after Rebecca uploads the retaliation video called "Back At Ya", she attracts even more hatred around the school, meaning that her video backfired and ended up making her the target of even more abuse. This then cuts to a shot of her scrolling through multiple Facebook messages, all of which contain expletives to insult her. She then begins to type out a status update which resembles a suicide note - to show that even in death she is still dominated by the digital age. However, she falls asleep before she can post it, leading to her dream which is a flashback of a time when she was still friends with Rachael.

 

Family Scene

 

The extended cast would be involved in this scene, because we will include members of her family in order to show her dynamic when she is around a different group of people - it will make the later scenes where she manages to get back at her bullies more effective.

 

Final Scene

 

This is set in school, when a vicious rumour circulates through the school that Rachael was caught sleeping with Angel's boyfriend. This leads for the majority of people to fall out with her, leading to a changing opinion about Rebecca in the eyes of the students, meaning that she has got back at her bullies, by purpose or not.

 

Organising some of the most important scenes in order to work out a rough idea of how the film will run is incredibly important in the production of our film opening, because it will ensure that we know the things which will need to be in our opening in order for the rest of the film to be a cohesive product which makes sense to the audience.

By George Martin

Moodboard for our film showing what it will include

Doing a moodboard will be purposeful for our film because it sums up our film in images as well as words in another post. The moodboard should give an instant showing of what our film will be about.

Our moodboard carries themes of bullying, cyberbullying, differences in character and most importantly, revenge. Our film opening starts with our main 'protagonist' being bullied but the films entirety is Rebecca getting her revenge. As you can see from our moodboard all these themes are quite clear and it shows a brief part of the storyline. Doing this moodboard has been purposeful for me because it helps me structure the film opening and identify any lose connections in the plot.

By Jack Jolly

Target Audience Questionairre

In order to gauge what an audience would want from a coming of age drama film, I have devised a questionnaire. I am going to target the questionnaire primarily at people within the age group of 15-25 who come from a variety of different backgrounds. This will mean that I will be able to compare what people from across the socio-demographic spectrum would expect to see in a coming of age film, in order to include as many of these elements as possible in my own film.

I asked the questions to 15 people, although if I decide to add to this amount later then I will update the graphs. The graphs will not load on this blog, so please see them on my personal blog.

Question 1. How many protagonists/antagonists do you expect to see included within the opening 2 minutes of a coming of age film?

The results from the survey show that most people would like to see a few of the main characters in the opening, but not all of them. As I plan to feature 4 or 5 protagonists in my film, the stories of whom all end up joining together coincidently, asking this question has shown me that it may appear to be unrealistic if the protagonists are all shown in the opening 2 minutes or so.

Question 2. What sort of props would you expect to see in a coming of age film?

I expected this answer from the question, as it is often the fashion choices of the protagonists which bring them together as part of the same subculture. An example of this is in This Is England, which despite not strictly being a coming of age drama, shows a group of people who are bound together because of their mutual interest in skinhead fashions. I am keen to use an idea like this in the opening of my film.

Question 3. Which time period would a film have to be set in in order to interest you the most?

The response to this question surprised me a bit. I thought that there would be an overwhelming majority vote for a film which is set in the present day, although it appears that the majority of people would rather watch a film which is set in the 20th century, more specifically in the 1960s/1970s. This could be an idea which works well, as an audience would prefer to see how people grew up in times before theirs, rather than watching a film which is set in the time which they grew up in.

Question 4. Would you rather watch a film which is set in a notable location in the UK or one which is set abroad?

I was expecting this answer, because films which are set in the UK often appeal to a UK audience much more than films which are set in, say, America. It also means that we will be able to film it more easily and won't have to bother with American actors (or dodgy American accents), so setting the film in the UK, probably in a notable place in London, would be a much wiser move in terms of finances and keeping the audience happy.

Question 5. Would you rather watch a protagonist who is around your age, older, or younger?

The response to this question surprised me, as I prefer watching films with a protagonist who is older than me, yet the majority of the people who I surveyed said that they would rather see a protagonist who is around their age. This fits in conveniently as I am unlikely to be able to find actors who are much older than me (adults are unlikely to want to star in a piece of A level coursework), so by having a protagonist who is between 16 and 20, I will be able to meet the wants of the audience without having to look too far into casting the actor. 

Question 6. Would you rather watch a film which is light hearted or serious about a certain subject matter?

I was hoping for a response like this to this question, because I have always believed that films which are light hearted about something will please audiences more than films which take it seriously. This is because a section of the audience are likely to have had to experience the subject matter in real life, so presenting it in a light hearted way will make them see a more humorous side to the subject, which will then mean that they enjoy the film even more.

Question 7.  Which of these coming of age films appeals to you the most?

The response to this question was not surprising considering the answer to the previous question, as the majority of people who took the questionnaire preferred the coming of age film which contained a comedic aspect. I hope to include a bit of subtle comedy in my coming of age drama, although if the comedy gets overboard, it can completely change the genre of the film.

Question 8. Do you prefer films where the main protagonist is male or female?

The answer to this question was surprising, because I asked 8 girls compared to 7 boys, so I thought the results would be almost equal, if not in favour of a female protagonist. However, it appears that a male protagonist is preferred by both sexes, as it usually seems that male characters can recover from the things which happen to them in a film better than female ones can. This is important in a film which has as turbulent subject matter as a coming of age drama does.

Question 9. Would you agree that the soundtrack of a film opening is important as the action on screen in a film opening?

I was surprised about the response to this question, because I personally believe that a film opening requires careful attention to both the soundtrack and the on screen action in order to work well. However, it has shown that the majority of audience members pay more attention to what they can see than what they can hear, which means I should plan out what is going to be on the screen more than I should plan out the accompanying soundtrack.

Question 10. Do you agree that the opening title sequence of a film will either engage you, or put you off from, the rest of the film?

I completely agree with the majority response to this question - the opening to a film is what will either make it or break it in the eyes of the audience. Films seldom recover from a poor opening, which is why I need to ensure my opening is of the highest quality, so that if I was to go on and make the rest of the film, the audience would have the best idea possible about what they should expect from it.

Below is the table which shows the results from each of the questions. Doing this questionnaire has been possibly the most helpful piece of research which I have completed as part of the planning for my film opening, as it has answered all of the questions which I had in my mind that I couldn't answer from researching on the internet.

Question	Answer 1	Answer 2	Answer 3	Answer 4	Answer 5
1. How many protagonists/antagonists do you expect to see included within the opening 2 minutes of a coming of age film?	None/one	Two to three	All of the protagonists of the film	N/A	N/A
Answers:	3	7	5
2. What sort of props would you expect to see in a coming of age film?	Drugs/Alcohol/Cigarettes	Weapons	Certain fashion choices to reflect the period	N/A	N/A
Answers:	6	2	7
3. Which time period would a film have to be set in, in order to interest you the most?	Pre 1930s	1930s-1950s	1960s & 1970s	1980s-1990s	Present day
Answers:	1	3	5	2	4
4. Would you rather watch a film which is set in a notable location in the UK or one which is set abroad?	UK	Abroad	Not sure	N/A	N/A
Answers:	9	4	2
5. Would you rather watch a protagonist who is around your age, older, or younger?	Around your age	Younger	Older	N/A	N/A
Answers:	8	2	5
6. Would you rather watch a film which is light hearted or serious about a certain subject matter?	Light hearted	Serious	Not sure	N/A	N/A
Answers:	7	5	3	N/A	N/A
7. Which of these coming of age films appeals to you the most?	Submarine	Easy A	American Graffiti	Dazed and Confused	Mischief
Answers:	4	5	3	1	2
8. Do you prefer films where the main protagonist is male or female?	Male	Female	Not sure	N/A	N/A
Answers:	9	4	2
9. Would you agree that the soundtrack of a film opening is important as the action on screen in a film opening?	Yes, it is important	No, the action on screen is much more important	Not sure	N/A	N/A
Answers:	6	8	1
10. Do you agree that the opening title sequence of a film will either engage you, or put you off from, the rest of the film?	Yes	No	Not sure	N/A	N/A
Answers:	12	3	0	By George Martin

Why did we choose our genre

We chose to make a film within the coming-of-age drama genre because it will allow us to access a target audience which is relatable to our own age range. Because a coming-of-age film is most likely to feature a character or characters which are going through their teenage years, our film is likely to be of interest to a film which has a teenage protagonist, as they will be able to relate to the things the character is going through. By aiming the film at a target audience which we are a part of, we will know what sort of things the teenagers would want to see in a film, which is a bonus which we would perhaps not have the advantage of if we were making a film which was aimed towards a more adult audience. 

However, by making a coming-of-age film, we also open the film up to adults who would be interesting in watching the film in order to reminisce about their own youth, for nostalgic purposes. This would not be a possibility if we were to make a film which was aimed at a lower age range - it is only by aiming the film at a teenager audience that we will be able to attract an audience of adults. An example of a cross over success from the teenage to adult market can be seen in coming-of-age drama Submarine. Featuring a story about a 15 year old, it would usually be expected to be a film enjoyed by just teenagers, but the messages within it are powerful enough to resonate with any age range who watch it. This is a reason as to why we chose to make a coming-of-age drama, because it has potential to be successful outside of our target audience.

A final reason as to choosing this genre comes down to the fact we have decided to act as an independent production company. This is the perfect sort of film to be produced by an independent company, because it contains realistic themes which will not be able to be properly portrayed if it were produced by a mainstream company, who would insist on using unrealistic settings, and actors who would be to recognisable for the characters they are playing to be realistic. Because our film will probably contain elements of a kitchen sink drama in order to achieve the verisimilitude which will be necessary for it to be regarded as a successful drama film.

Choosing this genre has also allowed for some versatility in the way in which we make the film, because it leaves lots of options open, unlike, for example, choosing to make a film within the genre of horror, which would mean we would be restricted to including certain key signifiers - in a drama, the key signifiers are specific to each film because of the vast range of ways in which a film can be taken. 

By George Martin

Jelly Babies Film Opening Activity

In order to learn about the order in which the titles of a film opening should run, we used Jelly Babies to create a template for the opening of a film which we could end up making. The brief for the film which we made was an independent action movie with a young protagonist, which is aimed towards an adult audience. To meet this, there were a few key criteria which we had to follow. One of these criteria was ensuring we didn't include any big name actors, as an independent film company wouldn't usually be able to afford the most famous actors. Additionally, we had to include both visual and audible iconography of the action genre: for us, this was a car chase with two competing alpha male characters and tense fast paced music which was broken up by the increasingly loud sounds of car engines and smashes. This was likely to interest an adult audience through the uses and gratifications theory, which suggests that these audience members would want to see the film because it provides them the entertainment of seeing things which they are very unlikely to have done, or to do, in their lives. 

Whilst we cut out some of the crew titles which would usually be included in the interest of keeping the activity simple, it has taught us the order in which each title should go, from institutional logo right through to the final director credit. 

Doing this activity will greatly help us with the making of our film because it has taught us the importance of getting the titles in the right order. The titles need to run in the same order as the majority of other film openings for our product to seem like it has been produced by a proper media company. 

The photos from the activity can be seen below. 

               By George Martin

Three Mindmaps of Genres

The three genres which we have considered for our opening are coming of age drama, action drama and romantic drama.

Below are the mind maps of different things which we could incorporate into a film opening within this genre.

As active film watchers, we decided to brainstorm a number of films from each sub-genre to remind ourselves of some of the cross-over conventions which are necessary and so we have a guideline to work by. We have decided to create a film with a Coming-of-Age Drama theme so we can connect with young people our age. Doing this will help us pursue our chosen audience with a plan in mind and examples to work from.

By Jack Jolly and George Martin 

Type of institution we wish to be

Our company, Peacock Productions, is going to be an independent production company. There are a myriad of reasons as to why we have made this decision, most of which come down to the tight financial budget we have to work on. However, there are also stylistic reasons behind choosing to operate as an independent company, and it will allow us to target a more specific audience. 

As an independent company, we will not be able to use CGI,
especially in the way it was demonstrated in Avatar

First and foremost, we have chosen to be an independent company because we are going to be working on a budget of almost nothing. This means we are unlikely to be able to film in locations which are particularly far away, or invest in any specialist equipment. This is why being an independent company will work well, as the audience will be coming to see our film based on the quality of the story it tells, so will not be disappointed when there are no special effects or uses of CGI. 

Reservoir dogs was an independent film made more
realistic from its largely unknown cast of actors

Another financially motivated reason for deciding to be an independent production company is it means we will not have to find star actors for our film. A mainstream film company would be expected to use big name actors/directors in the production in order to bring in an audience who are fans of the other work of these people. However, an independent company will often use relative unknowns. Additionally to this, using actors who are unheard of means that the audience can focus entirely on their roll within this film, rather than comparing it to their performances in other films which they have featured in. 

As our film is going to be part of the broad drama genre, being an independent company will actually benefit this. Drama movies thrive on having high levels of verisimilitude, which comes about from using realistic settings, realistic actors, and camera work which isn't particularly flashy. A mainstream film company would be looking to put a "Hollywood sheen" over all of these aspects of the film, so being an independent company will allow us to stay true to the roots which our genre which founded in. 

Finally, operating as an independent company will allow us to target a more specific audience, as we will not be looking to recoup a huge budget in the way that a mainstream company would have to. This means that we can target the film towards an age range of between 5-10 years, and at just one psychological mindset, whereas a mainstream film would have to aim to appeal to all psychological mindsets, and a variety of different ages.

Considering the type of production company which we wish to operate as has taught me about the importance of making our film as professional as possible, even on the tight budget which we are going to be operating on.

By George Martin and Jack Jolly

Independent research on film openings

Through all of the research we have done into film openings some things have become clear which are common denominators in creating a successful film opening. The opening must not give away an crucial information but must either be straight into the action or create an instant mystery leaving the audience questioning. Also some openings are artistic beautifully creative which is another way of keeping a grip on the audience by providing stunning visuals like various James Bond opening title sequences. This all comes down to keeping the audience engaged in the first few minutes of the film to make sure they stay put to watch the rest. Examples of gripping film openings that I have been inspired by the most are as follows;

The Casino Royale opening was one of the first I was shown in class and it has stuck with me due to the artistic design created by Daniel Kleinman. It is a great example of how artistic design and instant action can be intertwined to produce such a gripping animation to open a film. 

The Lost In Translation opening sequence is different to any other that I have seen but uses and completely relies on the Male Gaze Theory by Laura Mulvey to attract the audiences and keep them fascinated. Scarlett Johansson's body is the centre of attention in this opening and apart from being a great example of the Male Gaze Theory it also adds a effect of mystery because her face is hidden. The audience are questioning who the person is and how she is vital to the story.

Inception, being another one of my favourites is a very gripping title sequence. The work by director Christopher Nolan and Cinematographer Wally Pfister has resulted in a beautifully shot landscape of waves and sandy beaches whilst Leonardo DiCaprio's character is providing mystery for the audience due to being unexplainably washed up on the shore. 

The Sherlock Holmes opening trailer uses music to attract the audience. The face paced non-diegetic sound gives the impression that there is action about to take place and builds a suspense about the opening which keeps the audience engaged. Also, shots of mysterious characters running and chasing each other around London displays an action-packed opening sequence which will be followed by an action-packed film. 

Researching film openings like these has shown me that any film, genre irrelevant, needs an interesting opening to grab an audiences attention and ensure they watch the rest of the film. It could be a Rom-Com film or a Horror film but without action, mystery and beautiful creative art, the film opening will not successful. This motivates me to make sure Peacock Production's film opening will be one of the most interesting and mysterious title sequences, with a cleverly thought out narrative to ensure a mystery and complex, yet understandable piece of film.

By Jack Jolly

Drive Remake

This is our Drive remake. We had to export it as a file and save it on this blog post however everything works correctly and we think we have done well to replicate the film opening. However we missed one aerial shot because we realised during filming this wasn't possible. Everything else has been mimicked to the best of our ability and we are proud with the remake.

By Jack Jolly and George Martin

Process of producing our remake

To begin the filming, I filmed the clip of the skyline which will be featured in our remake - I did it by filming a skyline from PS3 game GTA V. Whilst it is not perfect by a long shot, it was the best way of creating the skyline shot which is seen at the start of Drive, as we didn't have the luxury of a helicopter to film with which would have been available during the original production.

A screenshot of one of the many various shots which we took
inside the car, in order to give us as much choice as possible
during the editing process

The next shots which we filmed were interior shots of the male protagonist inside the car whilst it was stationary. We decided to do this because these were some of the first shots in the film, and it would be easier to film if we did it in chronological order, because it would mean that the acting performance had more verisimilitude. We filmed shots of the driver from a variety of different angles, because this would give us a choice about which ones we decide to include in the editing process of our remake. 

It was important to keep the shots of the car being driven
at a long distance in order to keep the verisimilitude of
the film high

After this, we filmed the exterior shots of the car. Because our male actor doesn't have a driving license, we had to get somebody else to drive the car, which meant that we could only film it from the back in order to maintain a sense of verisimilitude within the film. Had it been obvious that he wasn't the one who was driving the car, then our remake would look poor and would not have taught us anything - in effect, using a different person for the actual driving of the car was similar to using a stunt double in a Hollywood movie. 

The final shots which needed filming were the ones of the protagonist walking into the lift. This was the easiest shot to do, because all it required was some good timing, and a steady hand in order to pull  off the tracking shots. 

To put our remake together, we edited it using a mixture of Final Cut X and iMovie. This is because the clips could be strung together easily in iMovie, but in order to get the titles to look how we wanted them to (see the first picture), it was necessary to use more powerful software in the form of Final Cut X.

By George Martin and Jack Jolly 

Shotlist and Storyboard of our remake

The shotlist of our film opening remake will show the shots used in detail, more detail than displayed on the storyboard.

Shot duration: 0:00 - 0:10 

This is a shot of a skyline view which we are going to record off of PS3 game GTA VI. The shot consists of a pan over the city to show the miraculous bright lights and colours. 

There will then be a cross blur before the next shot lasting 2 seconds. 

Shot duration: 0:12 - 0:24

This show will consist of our actor who is playing the role represented by Ryan Gosling. The shot consists of the character staring in a direction off of the camera, to avoid looking down the camera. The shot will take place in a car and the background of the shot may be pieces created by Peacock Productions to look like the city life in the view of the window.  

In between this shot and the next shot there will be a slow transition which is more of a jump, this will last for under a second. 

Shot duration: 0:25 - 0:41

This shot is the shot that displays Carey Mulligan's name and the other actors who performed in the film. The shot is also a over the shoulder shot of the main character driving the car through the city. Again the city scene may be created on cardboard used as a backdrop to create the scene. This shot is also set inside a car. There is no camera movement in this shot.

Cut

Shot duration: 0:42 - 0:51

This shot is a close up on Ryan Gosling's hand on the steering wheel, driving the car. Again there is no camera movement in this shot. It shows the view inside the car and a great deal of the outside of the car, the city lights and road side shops. These will be recreated the same was as the back drops. 

Cut

Shot duration: 0:51 - 1:01

This shot displays the side of Ryan Gosling's face and shows him driving the car yet again. The slow pace and calm temperament is kept again but the lack of camera movement. This close up will be done with our cameras on our actor who is taking on this role. 

Cut

Shot duration: 1:02 - 1:18

This shot is different from the rest and will be done by filming toy cars with a creative background and flooring. It will imitate the shot with the cars driving around the roads and flyovers in the city and follow the movements of the original piece. It pans over the cars as they drive along the roads. 

Fade starting at 1:14

Shot duration: 1:19 - 1:22

This shot shows the side of the character driving again. It will be shot in the same car which a member of Peacock Productions owns and the background from the window will be created to match the film. 

Cut

Shot duration: 1:22 - 1:26

This shot is of the car's exterior and it is being driven and parked in a parking lot in a multi-story or block of flats. This will be done with toy cars or by asking an adult to drive into a park space in an appropriate scenery for the films setting. 

Cut

Shot duration: 1:27 - 1:30

This shot shows the other character in the opening coming out of the elevator and walking past our main character. For this shot we will go somewhere where there is an elevator we can film in front of to create the scene to the highest quality. This shot is a two shot of both of our characters that we will need to cast for. 

Cut

Shot duration: 1:30 - 1:33

The elevator doors shut from the inside in this shot creating a fade to black effect. This shot is a close up of the doors and will be filmed from inside the elevator that we choose to film with.

This shot represents the fade to black that will end our film opening recreation of Drive.

We will dress our characters appropriately for the film and try to recreate the costumes that are seen in the original film. Our main character will be dressed in a jacket like the one in the film with a scorpion on the back, as it's iconographic of the racing genre and getaway drivers in the 80's.

by jack jolly

Timeline of Drive opening

Below is the timeline I made in order to detail when the titles come within the opening sequence of Drive, the film we are remaking as practise for the final film opening which we produce. It follows the usual order of crew credits, beginning with credits for casting and costume and ending with the names of the writers and producers. However, it is different from most other movie openings in the respect that it contains no production company credits. This is probably because it is an independent film, so by not showing the audience any production company, it seems like the film has been produced without much of a budget at all. 

This timeline will help us enormously in producing our remake, as it shows us exactly where each title should go without having to re-watch the clip over and over. 

By George Martin

Why we chose to remake Drive (2011)

Use of music is a key element of a successful film. Kavinsky's Nightcall works well in this modern film because it is a contemporary style of music which has only been around for the last 30 years. Added to the use of bright lights and colours in the opening it emphasises the modern qualities of the film and the overall electronic theme. It has many beautiful establishing shots of the city it is set in showing all the lights and colours emitting from the city scene. The editing of the piece is quite slow paced creating a relaxed, comfortable film opening which Peacock Productions could recreate to a higher standard than a faster pace film opening. The shots within the opening are quite long, creating a more laid back film opening which could be recreated with our arsenal of filming equipment. The only actors featured in the opening are Ryan Gosling, who is playing the unnamed getaway driver and Carey Mulligan, who plays Irene. This means it could be quite simple to cast for our remake of it.

The use of toy cars could help with the birds eye views within the clip which look down on the busy city featuring hundreds of cars. We chose to do this film opening any other because it is a highly reclaimed film which would be a slight challenge to recreate, testing our skills and the knowledge of the industry. We liked the font that was used for the titles because although it was simplistic, it worked against the array of dark colours shown in the opening title sequence. The pink brings a very 1980's Miami nightlife feel to the film opening which is an interesting era to recreate a film title for. Although the film is set in Los Angeles, the font and titles are very stripped back and retro, meaning they would be interesting to remake on software like Final Cut and iMovie with the original. 

Overall, the members of Peacock Productions really like the film Drive, making the recreation of it a fun task to do. The enjoyment of the task will result in a high quality remake of the 2011 film opening which can be achievable due to the smooth camera and editorial works of Bold Films, OddLot Entertainment and more.

By Jack Jolly 

Storyboard of our remake

Below is a picture of the storyboard which I made for the film opening we are planning to remake - Drive. Whilst it appears to be a fairly basic storyboard, the cinematography of the opening of Drive is one which is made up lots of slow, panning shots, rather than the fast action shots which are usually associated with the crime drama genre. Additionally, for the storyboard which we make together for our final piece, we will go into much greater detail, including things such as the sounds, but as the only sound in this opening clip is the non-diegetic music, there was no need too. 

Making a storyboard for this opening has shown us what a crucial tool it can be when producing the movie opening - it gives concise information about what each shot needs to look like. If we weren't to make a storyboard whilst shooting our final film opening, then we would end up shooting lots of clips which were unusable, which would be a waste of time and would have a detrimental effect on our overall grade.

Below is the complete storyboard for the film opening, with pictures underneath it which are zoomed in on each part it.

By George Martin

Why we are doing a remake

The film opening which we are going to remake is Drive (2011). This film was a good choice to remake as it is part of the drama genre, which is the genre which the film we make is going to fit into. Additionally to this, it contains lots of shots which would be incredibly challenging to do with no budget or specialist equipment, so it will mean that we have to be creative and innovative in order to get around certain problems. 

The main reason we are doing this remake is to get used to using both the hardware and software which we will be using for our final film. However, by learning these skills whilst making a light-hearted movie remake, we will be able to try out different techniques with the equipment without wasting valuable filming time, which would happen if we were attempt to start making our final film opening without having practised using the equipment before. This will help us when making our final piece because we are likely to have a much more professional looking film if we already have had practise using equipment such as cameras and tripods. Whilst we are not using Final Cut for this remake, it will still be helpful to practise using a Mac to edit, as there are many similarities between editing on iMovie and Final Cut.

Another reason for doing a remake of a pre-existing film opening is to get a proper feel as to where titles should go, and what order they should run in. By copying the exact order of the titles of a film within the genre of drama, we will be able to apply this order, or a similar one, to the final product which we end up making. Additionally, we will be able to test out the limitations of the software we will be designing the titles on, as the more powerful the software, the closer we will be able to get to the titles in the original film. This will help us in designing our titles as we will know whether they have to be static titles, or whether we can do more complex things with them. 

A final reason for making a remake of an existing opening sequence is that it will allow us to showcase the innovative style in which we plan to make our final piece, and will highlight any flaws in our style which need to be ironed out by the time we make it. For example, as this is a fairly difficult remake to open due to the ariel shots of a skyline in America, it will encourage us to find innovative ways in which we can recreate this. This will help us to find a specific style to make our final film opening with, as we will have to find ways to do shots which would require us to have specialist equipment such as a crane.

By George Martin and Jack Jolly

Names and Candidate Numbers

George Martin - Candidate Number 8220

Jack Jolly - Candidate Number 8203