"Derogatory" is the title of the film my partner and I have decided on after having a lot of suggestions. We came to this title from looking at synonyms of different words and we felt "Derogatory" was the best title that represents our narrative. We chose this because it connotes some of the themes in our film such as disrespect and bad reputations. When related to the characters, we can see that the protagonist will be derogative in the sense that he expresses things negatively and he has a bad reputation which affects his life story. This title is conventional to the British Social Realism genre, because it depicts the negative themes which are commonly seen in BSR films. This title appeals to my target audience, because the word is uncommonly used and this intrigues them to want to know more what the film is about.
My target audience are mainly teenagers around the age of 15-18 and are both male and female, however the males are more dominant. They are interested in films with comedy or action. My film will appeal to them because the main themes my target audience are interested in are things such as:
This is a very dominant theme seen in most British Social Realism films. This is something most people can relate to in their lives and tend to be interested in them as it is exciting. As other people of this age do not experience this, they may find it would be quite intriguing to be enlightened on this as this is something they would not be typically informed on.
A niche market within this age range which is gradually growing, seems to be into films with verisimilitude. My film will contain this as it is a BSR film. As the audience have stated in this vox pop they like to see films with more realistic and unique storylines.
We will not use artificial lighting so it will all be natural. We may add sound effects or produce our own sound for the opening sequence of the film. All source material will be non-copyrighted. We will record all the shots with a HD video camera so the scenes will look better in a higher quality. I will record wild track sounds with a sound recorder to use for my film. One or two shots will be recorded using "CamStudio" which allows the user to record footage from the actual screen. We can use this when we show the protagonist typing on a laptop and instead of using a camera to record what is on the screen, we can use the software. This way we won't have any shaky movements when trying to record with a camera when we can use a professional software to do it for us. All footage will be edited using iMovie, because it is a professional editing software and it is easy to use. There are limits to be able to use some camera language like using a dolly.
The main protagonist is represented as a teenager with no friends. He sees the world in a pessimistic view as has a bad life and wants to inflict his oppression to others so that his life is more equal to them. He wears a casual hoodie with jeans and trainers. The bullies are represented as scavengers who would do any kind of job for easy money and they are not very bright. Jenna is very protective over her sister and is naturally a very sweet person. She will stop at nothing to get revenge on anyone against her family.
In my film, we won't apply Propp's character types as my film is about verisimilitude and does not follow the representations used in Propp's character theory.
My film will subvert the typical representations seen in many British social realism films, because I want to show new aspects of different people in our society as every person is different. The film will not challenge the typical representations of the British society, but rather the kind that is not usually seen. This way the audience can see further representations of Britain than the typical types you see in other British social realism films.
NARRATIVE -
SUMMARY OF FILM: The film denotes the story of a formerly troubled teen whom strives for recognition within his small community. He goes through the lengths of setting up dangerous scenarios in order for him to save so that he can finally be noticed. However, once love and the truth comes out, things are never the same again.
CONVENTIONS: I will use a select few conventions within my opening sequence. These will be things such as typical British locations to present the working class aspects, inexperienced actors to allow the film to appear as more believable, long takes so that the mundane lifestyle can be connoted and the exploration of serious issues so that the audience can relate/be informed about important things.
OPENING SEQUENCE: The opening sequence will include two scenes; one where the main character is shown runnning from police sirens etc. (this is the ending placed at the beginning). The other scene will be one that is denoted after the running but is chronilogically the beginning of the film. This is where the main character is typing up a diary entry about his current life. This diary entry scene mentions how he is proud of how he is given a lot of recognition for what he does, but he has a secret that he knows that if this is found out, his entire life will be changed immensely.
The locations that will be used within my film will be places such as:
Dagenham is a particularly cheap area that is within good reach from my partner and I as we both live close to the area. The location is evidently quite a dirty area and contains a lot of working class people. As well as being a dominantly white ethnic area, the BSR aspect of skin colour can be met there easily.
I am going to be using Chadwell Heath as this an area where we can use a house. As well as being a close location, the area is not exactly the cleanest of places. With this in mind, the scene within my opening where my lead character is running can express this negative outlook very well. This will be great for my film as the realism of the negative outlook can be portrayed believably.
As the time of my shooting may constraint me from taking my time with shooting, the use of long takes can solve this issue. In order to connote the mundane realism and ability of my actors, having longer running takes can help me to achieve this. This is because the longer the take, the less attention a viewer may be paying, and because the actors have to act for an extensive amount of time, it can be easy to depict that they are not exactly Hollywood trained, but are perfect for a British one. This has worked efficiently in many films before, such as This Is England (2006) and Fish Tank (2009). In Fish Tank, the lead actress (Katie Jarvis) did not initially intend to feature within the film, but was discovered at a train station.
The actors within my film will be people that I know personally. This is for two reasons. The first reason is that due to my budget, I will not be able to afford well-known professionals, so must stick to those of a lower affordability. The second reason is that because most BSR films tend not to have many people that are professionally trained and popular, the believable aspect is more apparent. This will be incorporated within my film for the same reasons.
Exploration of serious issues
My film will explore a variety of serious issues. This includes:
As many teens face the negatives of being lonely within a society of people that may not treat you right, this theme can appeal to them as it can be quite relatable. Although the issues do not get too good in the end, it is however a BSR film, somewhere where happiness is not a typical convention.
The family issues explored are things such as protection of younger siblings. The most important female character aims to take good care of her younger sister, and this leads her to sticky and dangerous situations. Many people can again relate to this as the viewers may be in similar situations. Those with younger or maybe older siblings could find that this same thing is happening to them, or maybe it isn't, and they may feel inspired.
Death is a key factor within my film. Although it is not explored throughout much of the narrative, it is apparent at the very end, which is quite impactful. The audience can be quite upset by this or they may find that it is justifiable, so this issue meets the typical conventions of a BSR film.
I will not include any hybrid aspects to the film as I do not want to over complicate the situations. By only having a typical BSR outlook, the serious issues that are explored can be portrayed within a believable portrayal. This can aid the way in which people take the information provided.
CAMERA WORK: I will incorporate a small range of shots as I would want the realism aspect to be easily noticeable. The shots that I will use will be:
- Hand held
The mid shots enable the audience to understand the expressions of the actors, face and body language. As my actors will be inexperienced, having shots that showcase their face will not be very beneficial as this may take away the believability due to their lack of acting, A mid shot is perfect as two aspects can be judged but they may not be done so within a harsh matter, so the believability can still be apparent.
Long shots enable the audience to see the actors body language as well as their surrounding location. I can easily denote props and connote feelings such as anxiety easily by using this type of shot. As it is so far away, facial expressions can not be seen in very much detail, as well as being easily incorporated aspects such as location can, thus helping the verisimilitude to be noticed well.
By using hand held camerawork, the audience can connote that the character is probably in a rush. Due to how these shots tend to be less fixed, the movement of it is quite evident, thus enabling the scene to portray more of a rough image.
To showcase where the scenes are, particularly the library scene, the audience can find out where about the scene is. For this scene in particular, the boy will be at the desk and will have the camera tilt from in front of him so that the audience can see the desk, laptop and him behind this.
EDITING: By adding in a few editing techniques, I can portray a believable aspect of BSR. This will include things such as:
By incorporating the use of long takes within my work, it can be clear to denote to the audience the mundane lifestyle of the characters. This editing style is quite a long lasting one so that can metaphorically connote the uninteresting day-to-day life of the personas.
Short takes will also be quite beneficial as they can help me to increase the tensions that would need to be incorporated. By having this, certain situations, such as the running scene, can be connoted as much more seriously and impactful as there would be a lot of shots, allowing it to increase in apprehension.
COSTUMES/PROPS: This will be an important aspect of the production process. By having particular costumes in my film, the characters can be connoted in a certain light for the audience. These costumes/props would be:
The hoodies and tracksuits that the characters will be wearing would be useful to connote the lifestyle of the characters. As these characters are of a working class background, having clothing that fits their social status will be great as it can emphasise on the verisimilitude as well. This is a great positive as the audience who watch the film for the realism can have their wants satisfied.
The awards are a crucial prop for the film as this is the mise-en-scene that exemplifies Ben's success. With newspaper articles and more, the fortune of the character can be greatly exemplified, thus aiding the connotations of the storyline.
In order to write his blog entry, Ben needs a laptop. In the opening, and throughout a wide amount of the film, he is typing on his laptop in a library. The laptop is a crucial part of the plot as it enables the entire blog to occur.
SOUND: There will not be much music playing as this is a BSR film that aims to prioritise the realism of the film first, and music may decrease the amount of verisimilitude. However, in terms of sound, there will be:
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So that the running can be made more believable, having the sound of the footsteps as well as the breathing of the character, the tension can be increased. For the members of the audience that like the realism and tension, they can be quite fond of this, thus being a successful choice.
By including the sounds of the typing, there can be more apparent evidence that Ben is doing this. This emphasises on his actions, therefore helping the verisimilitude to be showcased.
A voiceover will be used whilst Ben is typing so that the audience can understand what is on the screen in greater detail. The audience will be able to get a great comprehension of the current activities.
The film that will produce my film will be Film 4. In terms of the niche market of BSR films, this company is quite famous. They have produced many films such as "Looking For Eric (2009)" and "Nowhere Boy (2011)". This will have a great impact on the type of film that I will produce as it will enable me to stick to my initial BSR plans and to showcase this to the correct target audience. As the target market for many BSR films created by Film 4 are of the same market as mine aims for, my film can be quite successful.
The potential distribution of my film can exemplified by the film "Looking For Eric". As this film Ihas the same themes that I have (aspiration, violence etc.) and had made over £1million at the Box Office in the UK, I believe that Film 4 would be able to do the same thing with my film for the reasons of its similarity. The one USP of my film is that it contains younger characters, so the audience can range from youths who are in the situation and adults/elderly people who used to relate.
My film would initially be exhibited at the cinema, but not for a long while. In order to gain as much money as possible, I believe that Film 4 could put this film in the cinema for around a month so that it could be sent to DVD as soon as possible. As oppose to the 2009 film "Fish Tank" which only made a £100k gross after being in the cinema for over four months, I could allow my film to be there for only one, and then make even more income from the DVD asles whilst still being under the hype from the cinema release. This would enable quite a few people to see the film as well as making quite a bit of income.
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