Monday, 7 November 2011

Unversal Pictures

Universal Productions                                                                                              Maryam &Yasmin

Universal Productions was founded in 1912 by Carl Buttman. It is one of the oldest American movie studios still in continuous production. Universal pictures or Universal studios for short. It is a subsidiary of NBCUniversal and is one of the major movie studios. Some of the films produced by Universal Productions are Bridesmaids, Sanctum, Jhonny English Reborn, Cowboys and aliens and Fast five.

Bridesmaids was released on the 24 June 2011 and its budget was 32, 500, 000, and a huge profit was made when the gross total was found to be 281,000,000. It was directed by Paul Feig, and was written by, Kristen Wigg as well as Anne Mumolo. The film starred Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph and Rosa Byrne.

Sanctum was released on the 4 Feburary 2011 and its budget was 30, 000, 000, and a huge profit was made when the gross total was found to be 108,943,221. It was directed by Alistor Grierson, and was written by, John Garvin as well as Andrew Wight. The film starred Rhys Wakefield, Alison Cratchley and Christopher Baker.

Johnny English Reborn was released on the 7 October 2011 and its budget was 45, 000, 000, and a huge loss was made when the gross total was found to be 6,465,685. It was directed by OliverParken, and was written by, William Davies as well as Hamish McColl. The film starred Rowan Atkinson, Rosumand Pike and Dominic West.

Cowboys and Aliens was released on the 17 August 2011 and its budget was 163, 000, 000, and a loss was made when the gross total was found to be 140,555,209. It was directed by Jon Favreau, and was written by, Robemo Orci as well as Alex Kurtzman. The film starred Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford and Olivia Wilders.

Fast Five was released on the 21 April 2011 and its budget was 125,000,000, and a huge profit was made when the gross total was found to be 209,805,005. It was directed by Justin LIN, and was written by, Chris Morgan as well as Gary Scott Thompson. The film starred Van Diesel, Paul Walker, and Dwayne Johnson.

Monday, 31 October 2011

Big talk Productions

Big Talk Productions

Big Talk Productions is an English film and television production company. Big Talk Productions was founded in 1995 by Nira Park and the main headquarters now reside in London. Big talk Productions is owned by the BBC WorldWide and the Independant. The key people within Big talk Productions are Kenton Alley, Matthew Justice who is the managing director and Simon Curtis, the executive producer. Big Talk Production is a multi-award winning TV and film production company who have produced many films such as, 'Hot Fuzz'; 'Shaun of the dead' and 'Paul', etc.

Hot Fuzz is directed by Edgar Wright; written by Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg. The film stars Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Martin Freeman. The estimated budget of Hot Fuzz was 8,000,000 and a huge profit was made when the Gross total was found to be 23,618,786.

Shaun of the dead which was another film produced by Big Talk Productions and directed by Edgar Wright, was written by Simon Pegg, as well as Edgar Wright; starring Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Kate Ashfield. Shaun of the dead also made a big profit when the budget amounted to 4,000,000 and the Gross total came out to 13,464,388.

Paul, another film produced by Big Talk Productions was directed by Greg Mottola and written by Nick Frost as well as Simon Pegg. The three main stars in Paul was Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Seth Rogen. Paul didn't do as good as Shaun of th dead or hot fuzz as it lost out on profit and did not even manage to break even. The budget amounted to 40,000,000 while the Gross profit was  only 37,371,385.

How does a film get made

How does a film get made

There are four main steps towards the making and process of film making which are, production, distribution, exhibition (cinema) and exhibition (non-cinema).
The first step towards film making is the production process which consists of three main stages which are, the pre-production, production and post-production process. Pre-production is usually the tasks which are undertaken before the production begins, such as, reasearch, location, script writing, etc. For featured films post production includes more tasks such as, production schedule, set construction etc. Therefore the tasks carried out in post-production all rely upon how big and what type of film is being created. The next step in the production process in the actual producing of the film where the footage is actually recorded. The last step of the production is the post-production process which includes editing footage and soundtrack etc; adding titles, graphics, colours, special effects, etc. In some cases post-production could be really easy where the only main thing to do is to put the footage in the correct sequence, but then sometimes it could be even more time consuming and difficult then the actual production process.

The distribution process is almost like the middle man of the business and it includes the part of the industry that gets the movie from the studio to the theatre.
The next step withing the film industry process is distribution which is sometimes much more difficult than the actually process of creating the film. A distributor needs to feel very confident about distributing the movie due to the enormous amount of money and cost involved within this process. The distribution process consists of making sure that a distrubutor has the backing of a major studio or well known director where they then sit down to settle a distribution agreement the financial topic of leasing and profit sharing.

The exhibition of the film is the theatres where the film is shown, along with the people and technology involved in the exhibition, such as pojectors, pojectionist and sound equipment etc.
Exhibition is also the retail branch of the film industry.
Cinema Exhibition is still the primary channel for films to reach their audiences. The premiere which is a high profile star-studdied event which is used to launch the film to the public with an explosion of media coverage, usually full of gossip to grab people's attention. Knowing the audience is very important which is why the marketing team runs tests to see how the film is recieved. The Exhibition Department provides the final link in the film production chain, and is responsible for bringing the finished product to its audience. There are two main occupations in the exhibitioning of the film which is the programmer and projectionist. Programmers are responsible for selecting a suitable range and mix of films  for a specific venue, while the projectionist is responsible in ensuring that the film is projected at the correct time, without any technical problems.

Therefore, in conclusion the main process of the film making is production, distribution and exhibition which finally gets the film from the written script to the audience in cinema and or on DVDs, etc.

Thursday, 29 September 2011

Diary of a call girl-sound

Diary of a call girl-sound

During the first part of the clip there is no non-diegetic sound, but just plain and stilted dialogue that helps to emphasize the awkward atmosphere. Diegetic is sound within the clip that can be heard by the characters whereas non-diegetic sound is sound such as soundtracks that are added in the post-production, something that the characters can't hear. Within the first few seconds of the clip, sound bridge has been used, which means a theme song from the previous scene crossed over into this clip. Throughout the beginning of the clip, even though all the sound is diegetic, it has been enhanced to further emphasize the awkward silence and stilted talk between the father, call girl and the boy. Sound effects are used when the father takes the envelope out of the bag, this rustling sound effect, further enhances the fact the all three people in this clip are not sure what to say or think. The rustling of the envelope, helps to emphasize a further fact, as to why the boy is there; not because they love each other or even fancy one another, but that it is purely a business transaction; so again this situation builds up the awkward atmosphere. The sound of the locking of the door is again, diegetic sound that has been enhanced to emphasize the uneasiness and vulnerability of the boy; that if the door is locked his father is unable to enter to help him or take care of him if need be. The sound of the  locking of the door is the type of sound that is called ambient sound, which is the surrounding environment sound, and this provides the audience with the feeling of what the mood is, as well as giving context. The dialogue of both the father and the call girl are stilted, in that they hardly finish their sentences; hence leaving them unfinished helps the audience to be involved in the feeling of exactly how the characters are feelings; awkward and not knowing how to behave in such a weird situation. Throughout the clip, all the dialogue is punctuated by awkward silences, further drawing attention to the reason as to why the boy is there and how the characters themselves must be feeling in such an unusual situation, since the boy isn't a usual client, it is something new for both the call girl and the boy; while the father may feel even more awkward in not knowing where his place is in this situation. The boy's disability is treated as part of the narrative, through the sound or mise en scene, we are not made to feel particulary sorry or sad for the boy as yet. Sound affects are used again as the father goes to his car and starts to wind down his window, push the seat back and forth, as well as using the horn. All these sounds are most probably diegetic but have been enhanced to highlight the restless anxiety of the father, the classical music played at this point is also probably diegetic, but it certainly does not go with the mood of the father as it is quite happy and cheerful music , which is why he quickly turns it off. The sound bridge technique is used from the scene of the car back to the flat, and it is non-diegetic, helping to create the quite slow mood of the boy and call girl in the flat. The music played is the type of music that is slow and mellow, it is also played through a harmonica, which is an instrument often used to play sad blues music. Therefore, this music, almost forces the audience to feel sorry for the boy and his condition, that he has never been touched in this way, and it makes the audience feel sad for him in that he never may have a true loving relationship as every human being one day wishes for. Towards the end of  the clip, the non-diegetic sound track is increasing as the diegetic sound of the dialogue and ambient sound is slowly being phased out so that the music can take over in sound, to enhance the mood of the moment that we assume is about to take place.

Monday, 26 September 2011

Diary of a call girl-editing

Diary of a call girl-Editing
Continuity editing, which can be described as invisible editing, is used throughout the clip. There are also a number of transitions throughout the clip to create a sense of awkwardness and how each character is feeling or what they may be thinking. There are some shots that are put together, one after the other, to almost build a sense of flounder between the call girl, boy and father. The eye line match of editing is used when the father looks at the woman, this type of editing is used here to again create a sense of awkwardness and the stilted situation around. The awkwardness of the situation is further highlighted when there is a close-up shot of the call girl looking at the boy, as well as the father looking at the woman. A match-on-action, which is the cutting of motion, is used when the father lifts the boy out of the wheelchair and onto the bed, which is also a two shot. Another eye-line match is used when the boy looks at the call girl as she is locking the door, emphasizing his uneasiness and vulnerabilty, in that his father won't be able to walk in if he needs him. The shot that is taken in the room which suddenly changes to the shot of the father getting into his car outside is called a cross-cut; which is another aspect of editing,especially used here to highlight the simultanious action happening outside and inside. There is a shot reverse shot between the girl and the boy when they are having a converstion and drinking champagne, quick snap shots are used to helps to draw attention to the uneasy and stilted, awkward silence that takes place between them. As the father is sitting in the car, even though the camera is at the same angle, there are at least 2-3 transtitions, as well as a jump-cut, which is a shot taken with, parts being cut out, to show a passage of time. Jump cut is not a very popular type of editing technique, especially when continuity editing has been used throughout the clip; but in this case it helps to highlight the father's restlessness and worry, etc.
Monarch of the Glen-Shots

The dolly shot, which is when the camera shows only a small amount of smooth movement, emphasizes and helps the audience appericate the tools of labour and assists in helping the representation and difference of age. At the beginning, when the girl steps out of the house the shot taken is called a pan shot, which means it it pivots to the left and right. There is also a medium-long shot of the girl to help the audience establish the location in which the scene is taking place. As the girl gets into the car the shot that is used is a close-up shot, integrated with a dolly-shot to underline the girls uneasiness and again, represenation of age. The shot-size of the headmaster is a medium-long shot to show the conflict of age through the way he is dressed as well as the wy he presents himself, hence the use of the medium-long shot. When the two men enter the room to talk privately about the girl the camera is bought to eye level to make the two men look larger than life, giving them a sense of power and authority. The mise en scene, which is the surroundings of the adult room, the way the men are dressed and the old style of the room, integrated with the use of the eye level camera shots, helps create and even greater representation of age power. The eye-level is that of the girls, helping the audience to feel how she feels, scared and somewhat intimidated. Towards the end, when the men are shown working again, there are a series of quick camera shots, to assist in portraying the men to be good and hardworking at the work that is set out. There is a tilt shot, which is when the camera pivots up and down; this tilt shot takes place from when the men are working at the end to the girl's room. As we get enter the girl's room there is a slow-zoom of the photograph to portray and highlight the girl's sad and scared, as well as many other emotions. Towards the end when the old lady runs up to the man to tell him that the girl has run away, the camera returns back to his eye-level, because now it is his turn to feel all  the emotions of guilt, scare for the girl's safety, etc.

Monarch of the glen-

Monarach of the Glen notes-Notes The clip is about a girl who goes to work for some people whom she lies to about her age and the fact that she shoud be in school taking her exams.
During the first scene there are no children but the environment is one of hard work which is generally associated with manly and grown up, hard laboured work.
The ypunger people are depicted through the clothes they wear, which is casual whereas the adults are more smartly dressed. When the 16 year old girl is told to go run an errand and to take the car, her actions show uncertainty and a little bit of scare. This is what is known as body langauge and is always a good and clear way to show a characters feelings and thoughts. The scene in which the man comes over after the girl has crashed, depicts the girls child like ways that are still instilled in her, when she almost goes over to the man like a father and again this is a form of body language used to show that the girl is still only a child. The room in which the man takes the principal shows a very old setting, through the wooden panelling, hence portraying that the location itself is also very old. The room is again a very adult place where a teenager would definately not feel very at home especially when we see the brandy is in a decanter on the table , not put away, which insures even more that it is an adult room where children should never go. The girl's childish ways are portrayed mostyly through her body langauage again when she screams 'i hate you'! This is the action and words of a inantile childish person. The girls room is also filled with magazines that are usually read by young teengers, not even an older teenager. Her room is full of pink and girl things which give the impression of her state of mind still in that childish phase. The body language of the old woman at the end when she says ' Amy's run way' shows the worry and maternal instincts for the girl that have developed.

Thursday, 15 September 2011

There are four key media concepts which are Media Language, Representation, Audience and institution.

Media language is about the cinematography, editing, sound and mis en secene,of the filmor clip being created. Cinematography refers to the photographing of the movie itself, such as  the lighting and lenses that give certain effects, etc. Editing is the transtition of the clip and how it moves from one clip to another. Sound is one of the most important aspects of media language since without sound a film almost has no meaning. There are different aspects of sound such as diegetic and non-diagetic etc. Mise en scene is what is happening throught the whole film such as lighting, dress and make up, sound etc.
Representation is about representing ceartain groups of people or aiming a film at certain groups of people through gender, ethnicity and age etc. Audience is about appealing an getting the audience's attention by making films and aiming at certain audiences. Institution is what happens behind the scenes and how the producers or directors etc, work towards creating a film or documentery etc. The exam will ask for an anaylsis of the representation shown in a 5 minute clip as well as writing an essay on the film industry.

RE:KEY MEDIA CONCEPTS

There are four key media concepts which are Media Language, Representation, Audience and institution.