Film Research- Catch A Fire

Catch A Fire

The director of the film “Catch a Fire” is Phillip Noyce. Other films that he directed are “Salt”, “The Bone Collector” and “Patriot Games”.

The main actors of the film “Catch a Fire” are Derek Luke, Tim Robbins and Bonnie Henna.

On its opening weekend, the film made $2,026,997, it was shown on 1306 screens across USA.

The budget of the film was $14 million.

It has been nominated for 4 awards; these awards are the best actor, Outstanding motion picture, Top independent films and Best actor in motion picture, drama. The film won an award for being Top Independent Film.

The film was released onto cinema screens on the 23^rd of March 2007 in the UK.  It was released on dvd on the 16^th of July 2007.

The film is a dramatic thriller about activist’s apartheid in South Africa.

Working Film Title

Working Title Films is a British film production company that is based in London.  The company was founded by Tim Bevan and Sarah Radclyffe in the late 1960’s. Working Title Films produces feature films and some television productions. The co-owners of the company are Eric Fellner and Tim Bevan. In 1999 Working Title Films signed a deal with Universal Studios which was worth $600 million. In 2004 the company made a profit of £17.7 million. Since 2007 all of the films they have produced have been distributed by Universal Pictures. Universal pictures own a 67% stake in the company.

Quantom of Solace Notes/Timings

Quantum Of Solace Notes

0.01 - Film soundtrack begins to play before anything else appears on the screen

0.03 - Reflection of James Bond in the distance appears

0.04 - Zooms in on image of James Bond

0.05 - Image shows James Bond standing facing the sun

0.06 - Names of the films presenter appear in the bottom left hand corner of the screen, Big, clear font

0.09 - Image on James Bond in the centre of the screen, drawing his weapons from his pocket

0.10 - Long shot of James Bond with a clear dark coloured background, Characters name appears in Big, clear font on the right hand side on the screen

0.14 - Close up of James Bonds face with the characters film name appearing underneath his head, font is consistant throughout

0.16 - Mid shot of gun being fired as the first name of the film crew appears

Questionnaire

Media Questionnaire

1)      What is your favourite genre of film?

2)      What is your preferred way of watching films? (Cinema, DVD, Internet)

3)      How often do you go to the cinema?

4)      How much money do you spend on average a month on Dvds, going to the cinema etc?

5)      What specifically draws you towards the films that you go to watch?

6)      Who is your favourite actor/actress?

7)      What do you like about them?

Questionnaire Answers

Media Questionnaire

Person Number 1

1)      What is your favourite genre of film?

      A) Comedy

2)      What is your preferred way of watching films? (Cinema, DVD, Internet)

A)  Cinema

3)      How often do you go to the cinema?

      A)  5-6 Times a year

4)      How much money do you spend on average a month on Dvds, going to the cinema etc?

A)  £15

5)      What specifically draws you towards the films that you go to watch?

A)  Good trailers and big name actors

6)      Who is your favourite actor/actress?

A) Johnny Knoxville

7)      What do you like about them?

A) Hes funny and does stupid things

Media Questionnaire

1)      What is your favourite genre of film?

A) Comedy

2)      What is your preferred way of watching films? (Cinema, DVD, Internet)

A) Cinema

3)      How often do you go to the cinema?

A) 1-2 a year

4)      How much money do you spend on average a month on Dvds, going to the cinema etc?

A) £5

5)      What specifically draws you towards the films that you go to watch?

A) Good/intersting trailer

6)      Who is your favourite actor/actress?

A) Scarlett Johanson

7)      What do you like about them?

A) Good looking & Funny

Media Questionnaire

Person Number 3

1)      What is your favourite genre of film?

A) Action

2)      What is your preferred way of watching films? (Cinema, DVD, Internet)

A) Cinema/DVD

3)      How often do you go to the cinema?

A) 1-2 times a month

4)      How much money do you spend on average a month on Dvds, going to the cinema etc?

A) £10-15

5)      What specifically draws you towards the films that you go to watch?

A) Trailers and word of mouth

6)      Who is your favourite actor/actress?

A) Brad Pitt

7)      What do you like about them?

A) Good looking and successful

Media Questionnaire

Person Number 4

1)      What is your favourite genre of film?

A) Action/War Films

2)      What is your preferred way of watching films? (Cinema, DVD, Internet)

A) Cinema

3)      How often do you go to the cinema?

A) 4-5 times a year

4)      How much money do you spend on average a month on Dvds, going to the cinema etc?

A) £5-10

5)      What specifically draws you towards the films that you go to watch?

A) Interesting trailers and favourite actors/actress's

6)      Who is your favourite actor/actress?

A) Vin Diesil

7)      What do you like about them?

A) Stereotypical hero in action/racing films and very successful

Media Questionnaire

Person Number 5

1)      What is your favourite genre of film?

A) War Films

2)      What is your preferred way of watching films? (Cinema, DVD, Internet)

A) DVD

3)      How often do you go to the cinema?

A) 2-3 times a year

4)      How much money do you spend on average a month on Dvds, going to the cinema etc?

A) £5-10

5)      What specifically draws you towards the films that you go to watch?

A) Favourite actors and good trailer

6)      Who is your favourite actor/actress?

A) Jason Statham

7)      What do you like about them?

A) Very good actor, very successful.

Target Audience

The target audience for our film 'Illuminati' is 15-26 for both males and females. The reason that we decided to make our film a certificate 15 is because of the paranormal activities the take place in the film. We chose to aim it at a mixed gender target audience because we felt that the film did not inlcude any stereotypcial features that would make it become a film aimed at males or females individually. We decided to put are film age certificate at a 15 and not an 18 because of the limited amounts of adults themes, the limited amounts of violence and also because there is no sexual references throughout the film.

Male and Female

15-26

Limited Money

Part time Jobs

Illegal downlaods

In a relationship

Non compulsory education or Recently left



Locations

We chose to base the seyonce scene of our filmin the drama studio. We done this because it is an easily accessable area and it has all of the correct features that we need, such as the balcony where the caretaker is going to be watching the students from. The room is also a dark area which suits the genre of the film and is a very stereotypcial convention of a horror/thriller film.

 



We chose the surroundings because the images outside of the school show a different setting to the school which shows that it is going to be set in more than one place and we chose the corridor for one of our settings because it is close to the drama studio and the symbol and seyonce can be linked in.

 

 

Risk Assessment

Fire Hazards- Candles being knocked over



Trip Hazards- The stairs of the drama room,
                      Balcony- things on the floor
                      Curtainsof the main stage in the room
                      Slippery floor

To prevent these hazards i will ensure that anyone who is acting in the film is aware of all hazards and i will also explain to everyone how they can be prevented. I will also be making sure that they are safe around all of the dangered areas.

Film Production Company Logos

The name  'Take Two Produtions'  connotoes that the company will re-film all scenes that went wrong to ensure that they are satisfying their viewers.















The word paramount means 'More important than anything else'. The semi circle of stars connotes that their films include the biggest name acotrs and actresses. The image of the top of the mountain connotes that their company is on top and is superior to all of the others.

Dreamworks produce films aimed at a younger target audience. The image of the man fishing on the moon connotes imagination and fantasy. The name 'Dreamworks' suggests that their films should be shown to children at night time so it is like a bedtime story.

 

The colour red connotes danger, this suggests that 'Vertigo Films' may only produce horror films as they include a lot of danger.

Genre Conventions in Thriller/Horror Films

When A Stranger Calls

Sound: Phone call at the beginning of the extract between a girl and a man - dialogue. The man hangs up, leaves the girl sounding worried and scared which also makes the audience fear for the girl. There is high pitched screaming towards the end of the extract, which is the girl when she is being attacked. This connotes that the film could be about someone murdering large numbers of people. There is also a women repeatedly shouting her childrens names. This shows that she cannot find them and makes the audience begin to worry for the children.  

Mise En Scene: Fair ground, showing little kids smiling and happy when the girl is being attacked in her room which is confusing for the audience because it is juxtaposing what is going on.

Narrative: From this extract we get the idea that the film is going to be about man that is going round murdering people. We learn this from the long shot of the characters shadow in the girls bedroom window just before he attacks her.

Characters: Shadow of the man in the girls window, black figure represents that he is going to be the evil character in this film. Police men are all in uniform and they are all white american males. This is stereotypical as it represents them as being the heroic characters.

Cinematography: Shakey camera emphasizesthe uncertainty of the film which helps to make it fit the genre of the film. Close up of the policeman's face shows that he is disgusted at what the murderer has done to this young girl.

Editing: Fast, jumpy cuts disorientates the audience and confuses them because there is lots of information being displayed on the screen in a short space of time.



1408

Mise en Scene: Dark, thunderstorms, rain builds up suspense for the audience because they cannot see a lot on the screen.

Narrative: The main character is a thrill seeker/ghost hunter who travels around in attempt to find the scariest and most haunted places.

Characters: The couple in the hotel come across as strange at first, as they do not stop talking when the main character is trying to get the keys to his room.  The main character is a brave, white american male, these are the stereotypical features of a hero. Old couple explain to the main character the history of the hotel and that it is haunted. They also tell the character that a women hung herself in the hotel. This creates tension for the audience because it makes them question why the man is staying at the hotel in the first place.

Sound: There is non-diegetic sound added in,in the background. This sound is a deep mysterious type of music which adds to the tension for the audience.

Editing: The editing in this extract is non -continuity editing.

Cinematography: Close up of cigarette shows that it is going to have some significance in the film and that it could be an important prop later on. Ellipses when the main character is sitting down in the chair drinking, then he is walking around in the room. Shows that he is attempting to stay awake to try and find out if the room is haunted or not.

Preliminary Task



For our preliminary task we had to film a scene where somebody walked through a door and then had a conversation with another person which should have lasted for approximately 20-3- seconds. Our task involves me and Harry. Overall i think that the dialogue in our film was good and clear for the audience to hear. It was also a very basic and simple conversation. To improve our film for next time i would make sure that the sound was maybe abit clearer and ensure that the door is closed properly because that affected the sound just before the dialogue began.

Se7en Notes

Se7en Notes

The film opening that I have looked at is Se7en. The four sections that I analyzed were editing, camerawork, sound and font.

Editing

In the opening to the film Se7en there is lots of editing. In the extract there is a fade to black, this is effective for the audience as it creates tension and connotes danger as it gets darker.  Another editing feature that is added in is blurred images. These images connote confusion and make the audience begin to question what the film is going to be about. The editing in this opening is fast paced and includes very quick cuts, this is also known as ‘subliminal’. These cuts suggest that a lot of things are going to happen in the film.

Image

The images used in the Se7en opening are very effective. The first image that Is effective is the close up of some work. This is effective as we can also see a character editing this work and adding images of people with their eyes crossed out. This suggests that the character maybe a disturbing type of character and we also get the idea that the storyline is going to be disturbing. There is another close up used in the opening scene and this is of destructive weapons such as needles and a razorblade. This is effective for the audience as it connotes that a character in this film maybe disturbing and may be harming other people in the film.

Sound

The main sound that is used in the Se7en opening is the music track in the background. It is a deep, low beat that starts of slow but gradually builds up. This sound connotes a heartbeat suggesting that it is getting faster and faster as the disturbing images begins to appear. There is also a high pitched screeching towards the end, this suggests somebody screaming which gives us the idea that someone is scared and perhaps being harmed.

Font

The font that we see in this opening sequence is all white writing on black background this connotes fear as it is a dark background. The way that all of the names appear on the screen isn’t a set layout and is random, this connotes that the film is going to be unpredictable. The names also appearing everyone on the screen suggests to the audience that the film is going to be scary.

Magazine Analysis

Magazine Analysis

Our magazine is called 'Footys Finest!'. It was originally called Footballs Finest but we changed it so that it was more suitable for our target audience. The target audience for our magazine is 16-24 year old single males. The main colours that we have used on the front cover of our magazine are red and blue, we chose these colours because they are stereotypically masculine colours and they are bright so they will catch the readers attention. The main title of of magazine 'Footys Finest!' is in a simple font, this is again very suitable for the target audience as it is clear and easy to read. Below the masthead we put the tagline "The worlds finest mag". We did this to try and convince readers that our magazine is the best sporting magazing out there. The price of our magazine is £1.99. We chose this price as it is a weekly magazine so we made it cheaper. This also makes it suitable for the target audience because its affordable for the age category it is aimed at.

 

Images

 

On our front cover we have 1 main image and tagline and then 3 smaller images also with taglines. We decided to have 1 mian image in the middle of the cover to show that this was the main story of the week and that it was the most important story included in the magazine. The three small images are placed on the right hand side of the page. We decided to put the three images there to show that they are also key storys of the week but they are not as important as the main image. All three of the images also have taglines that describe what has happened involving each of them players being shown.

 

Colour

 

The main colours that are used on the front cover of our magazine are red, blue and green. We chose these colours because they are stereotypically masculine colours and also they are colours that will attract our target audience. The masthead "Footys Finest" is inside of a filled red box. We chose to do this because it makes the main title a lot clearer for the audience to see. The colour of the taglines on our front cover are light blue, we decided to put them in this colour because it makes them clearer to read as they are a different colour to our main background. We chose to use the colour green in our background because it symbolises grass, which is what football is played on so this makes it relevant to the magazine. The colours that we used are very simple and basic colours, we decided to use simple colours so that it would suit the target audience of our magazine.

 

Storys

 

The main storyline of our magazine is "United sign Housdiniho". This is the main story on our front cover because it is the biggest and most important news that has come up in the past week. To show that it is the most important we have put the tagline in capitals and a simple font. This makes it clearer for the target audience to read and also gives them ideas of what to expect when reading the magazine.  The tagline is in a dark red colour, we chose to put it in this colour to make sure that it was easy and clear to see and also so that it will attract the reader because it will make them want to read more about the main story.

 

Other Features

 

The other feature that we have included on our front cover is a competition. This is advertised at the bottom of the cover. The competition description "Win champions league finale tickets inside!" is in a blue font inside of a filled red box. We decided to put the competiton description in a filled red box again to attract the reader and also to try and attract others and convince them to buy our magazine because they have a chance of winning tickets if they do. We chose to give out champions league tickets in our magazing because it is the biggest club competition out there which will make people want to buy the magazine to try and win the tickets.