AICE Media Studies Blog, Short Film

The opening of the film Baby Driver tells a lot of the story in the first scenes. From the opening we can see that the main character, Baby, is a get-away driver for criminals. We can see his importance in the story, his love of music, and his expertise with cars. Via shots such as eye-line matches we can see Baby's separation form the rest of the criminals, and his disapproval of their actions. From the opening we not only see that the music is diegetic and is what Baby hears, but also we see that the music will play a very large role in the film, as the whole scene goes to the rhythm of a song. An abundance of cuts are used in the opening chase scene, however most focus on just Baby's face. In the opening credits the jobs of casting, actors, costume designers, producers, choreographer, and the director and writer. The film had a budget of 34 million, and made 226.9 million. It won best action at the Golden Trailer Awards, and best editing and sound mixing at the International...

The Opening of the film Drive had little of the story told in the first two minutes. The only several facts can be seen. The first is that this man is a driver, this is shown by his driving gloves, racing jacket, and the fact that almost the entire opening is him driving. Establishing shots as well as aerial shots also show that this is set in a large city. A tracking shot follows the character out of his car, and a POV is used to show what what he sees briefly. The music and stylized credits also show a bit of the aesthetic theme will be. The credits name the casting agency, production designer, costume designer, producers, who the screenplay is by, and who directed it. The budget was 16 million dollars,  and it made 78.1 million. It won best director at Cannes Film Festival, Oscar nominated for sound editing, and won a Golden Globe for supporting actor.

The first film opening we analyzed was  Reservoir Dogs by Quentin Tarantino. In the first 2 minutes not much of the story at all is told. Almost all the character's personalities are shown by the dialogue.  However, the only clues as to what is going to happen in the story is the fact that they refer to each other by code names, and there is some references to their criminal nature. A dive dinner, as well as very relaxed and casual language are used to show that these character are probably not the most professional people. A dolly circles the table the characters sit at the table, and close ups are used on some speaking characters. A two person shot is used to between two characters several times to foreshadow their connection and liking of one another. Only the actors' and director's names are featured in the opening credits. The budget of the film was 1.2 million dollars, and it made 2.8 million. It won a bronze horse at the Sundance film festival.

I have chosen to do the film project. I'm very interested in everything ranging from camera shots, to acting. I have some skill and experience with acting, and I have experienced and analyzed camera angles and shots. I am also a capable drawer, so that will come useful with planing story boards. The project will be a thriller, it will center around a character who's playing a poker game with some shady characters. He wins, is accused of cheating, and has to flee the area. This results in a chase, and a get away. I will work with a partner, he is skilled at digital design, sound mixing, and editing. I foresee us both collaborating on camera angles and direction. During the shooting he will work behind the scenes, and I will work on screen.

The aspects of filming that interest me the most is the actual acting portion of the production. This interests me because I would love to act in a movie or film of some-type. I think the relationship between actors and directors is one of the main things that determines whether a movie is good or bad. That includes finding the right amount of direction, and finding a character's real personalty. My strengths in the process of filming, is that I have seen a large amount of movies. With my knowledge of camera work I could provide ideas as to how to direct a scene. I also would feel comfortable asking people work with us in obtaining props, extras, or locations. My weakness is that I don't have any real acting experience myself. This could prove a problem, as I will most likely have to act in our own movie.

The aspects of print journalism that really interest me is the chasing of a story. Going to the sources of the story and using methods to obtain their information, also speaking and meeting with confidential informants. I also like the independence of working on a story with only yourself, or a partner. There seems to be little direction or interference when you are working a story. So this allows one to do things their own way, at at largely their own pace. The skills I have that would make the magazine a good fit for me is the fact that I'm not shy. I feel very comfortable around people, and would not have a problem approaching someone to interview them. What might make the project a challenge for me is that I'm not the best with technology and design. Making the magazine itself look presentable may be a problem.