Task 2 - Opening 2 minutes of a film

Opening 2 Minutes to a Film

2 Minute Film Opening Task:

Develop a character and use this character in a 2 minute film opening set in a given location. Plot, cast, film and edit an opening to a film. Incorporate your character's traits into the film.

Character Development

Character development is the expansion and growth of a character, including in depth details, within literature and film. Character development is important in order to create an in depth, relatable character. Creating a relatable character is necessary to engage the audience, as they have a character to connect and empathise with. A basic, plain character will not be relatable, as they appear inhuman and are therefore not engaging because they are seen as boring. If the audience cannot engage with the character, it will make the film less entertaining and people will be less inclined to watch it or enjoy it. A character used merely as a plot device cannot engage the audience as a sole character, and they don't really add much to the film besides aiding the plot. Moreover, characters with certain personality traits, including a fatal flaw, can impact what happens in the story, and therefore makes the plot more in depth and thought out.

Creating a Character

During the lesson, we were provided with a sheet containing several images of random people. We were asked to choose one of the people and develop a character based on their appearance and expression in the image. This is the sheet of images we were provided:

This is the image I selected:

From this image I brainstormed these notes:

  Group Member's Characters

We were randomly generated into a group of three, so again I was working with people I was not entirely familiar with. However, this didn't have much of an impact, as we all shared and explained our ideas thoroughly and confidently to each other. Upon being put into the group, a member of the group (Jack) and I realised we both were working from the same image, and therefore had the same character appearance. Initially, we thought to use them as two different characters but then we compared both our character analyses and realised that they had minor similarities. We decided to merge our character analyses into one character for the project.

This is the character analysis Jack brainstormed from the same image as mine:

I believed this character image portrayed a young confused girl with a lot of story and background to which she doesn't reveal. the expression she uses looks twisted yet calm to show an evil side from which may be masked from her friends and family making her unpredictable which is a good trait for the first two minutes of the opening film.

Jordan, the other member of the group, chose to use this image from the selection:

   

These are his notes he made based on the image:

I named my character Gordon Smith and said he was a local MP but secretly he was a drug dealer which his family didn't know about. He has a wife and 2 children(girls) and the plot line I came up with from the character is that he gets into trouble with a local gang for selling fake drugs. Due to this he ends up getting death threats from the gang and eventually he got jumped, therefore he is trying to stay away from the violence and hide. His wife and kids think he's gone missing but he is really just staying round his best mates house.

Group Brainstorming

In our groups, we were given a location in which our 2 minute opening had to be situated. We received 'Woodland'. From this we had to develop an appropriate situation in which both our character's meet realistically. It also had to be engaging. We devised the concept of burying a body in the woods.

Location

We brainstormed different places we could potentially film the project. The first suggestion made was Thetford Forest.

Thetford Forest is a large woodland and nature reserve on the edge of Thetford. It contains tall, varied types of trees, including pine trees, which is the image we had initially desired for the project. Thetford forest is appropriate because it is deep and huge, therefore the chance of any pedestrians walking in the background, disrupting the film, or making noise is low. Moreover, there are little to no everyday noises that will mask the audio of the film, and it is open spaced therefore we can move freely to obtain the desired angles. It is also a good choice because of how deep it is, therefore won't have any plain field, park, town etc in the background. On the other hand, Thetford forest is a popular forest for dog walkers and hikers, therefore on the off chance somebody does walk past, it will disrupt the filming. Furthermore, it is so large, it requires a lot of travelling to get to a desired spot, which requires transporting the equipment too. This is a hassle and will use up valuable filming time. If we were to film in the easier areas to access, it will be close to the main road, therefore noises of vehicles passing will be caught on camera. We decided not to use Thetford forest because not everybody could get there, as it is 30 minutes away from the majority of the group and requires travelling by vehicle. This is an image of Thetford Forest:

 

 

 

Our chosen location is Kett's Park, Wymondham. This location is appropriate because it contains open areas, making it easy to film in. It's easily accessible to the entire group which was the main factor in our final decision, as the entire group must be present when filming.



Casting

Casting the roles was difficult, as we had to find actors who were both willing, free and looked remotely similar to the characters chosen. We had to find a female actress, fairly young with fair skin and hair. Unfortunately, I couldn't locate a female that precisely fit the required description, but found someone who's facial features mildly resembled the character's. This is the actress chosen:

I chose this actress because she was eager to become a part of the production, and can innately perform the role of an anxious yet angered female. Moreover, her facial features are very mildly reminiscent of the character's, including her long face and small, darkish eyes.  

 

Casting the male proved even more difficult, as nobody knew of any middle-age male appropriate and willing to perform the role. After long consideration I chose an actor with fairly long hair, which would be able to be combed over in the same fashion the character in the image chosen has. As a group, we agreed to apply makeup to the male character to make them appear much older, and add temporary grey dye to achieve the look of the character the appearance is based on. This is the actor chosen:

 

I chose this actor because even though he did not look like the character, he can be transformed into the role using makeup, hair dye and wearing a suit. He can perform the role of a refined man and come across intimidating but derisive, which is perfect for the role.

 

Props

For the project, we only require two props; a wedding/engagement ring and a shovel. These props are easy to obtain, as I own a shovel that we can use. However, we must make sure the actress is cautious wielding it, as it is rather heavy and can cause an injury. A cheap, dupe ring can be purchased from an inexpensive retailer, and can be passed off in the film as an expensive wedding/engagement ring.

 

Plot

The film begins in a woodland and pans to a man walking through the forest. As the man progresses through the forest, the sound of shovelling dirt can be heard. The man approaches a woman patting on a pile of dirt, assumed to be a grave. The woman patting the grave appears to be anxious and paranoid (one of her included traits) and is constantly checking her whereabouts cautiously. She hears a crunch of leaves and turns round to see the man, shocked at first but upon recognition calms. She shows him her finger excitedly, it has an engagement/wedding ring on and she says she stole it from the woman she's buried (the man's wife). The man is unimpressed, which makes her uneasy and begin to panic about not getting away with the murder of his wife. He then reassures her, saying that he's going to be okay because he's going abroad and laying low. She's is confused about not being in his plan and he admits to using her to kill his wife. This angers the girl and she begins shouting before slapping him in his face. This then angers him too and he grabs her by the throat and slams her against the tree before saying that he never loved her. He takes her hand gently, which seems romantic at first, but he then proceeds to pull the ring off her finger and flick it past her face onto the ground before walking away. She drops to her knees before noticing the shovel she was using. She grabs the shovel and runs after him, hitting him on the back of the head so he falls to the ground. The scene ends with him laying on the floor, appearing dead.

 

I interpreted this scene as a flash forward at the beginning of a film, and as the rest of the film progresses you find out the events prior to that and eventually after that.

 

Here is the image of our story board:

Here is the image of our script:

The script used only contains subtle hints that imply what is going on, rather than saying straight up what is. This leaves it to the viewer to interpret more from it, and also makes it more realistic and natural.

 

Filming Schedule

We decided to film on Tuesday 27th September, after school, as it is the most convenient time when everybody is available. Moreover, afternoon lighting will be the warmest light, and therefore will create the most attractive and appropriate tones and footage.

The final product of our 2 minute opening film can be found here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbycF8VTxCI