Mary will play the role of an unassuming house wife with malicious intent behind the calm and stereotypical demeanor, in order to complete this unassuming and docile look, the clothes will have to fit what people perceive her as.
In order to fulfill this look i have looked at stereotypical "housewife" outfits, especially those from the 50s to the 70s and have decided to go for a floral dress of some description. I have decided to go with a more modest and outdated floral dress in order to fit with the rather dark tone of the film as well as the time period it is based in.
I want to recreate this image of the housewife within my films with the dated jewelry, the bland dress and the rather modest hairstyle. The look will be completed with the black plain pumps, completing the costume for the character "Mary"
Patrick Malonie
The character "Patrick Mc Malonie" plays the role of an over worked, disinterested husband figure, he does not love his wife, he does not like his job and has become increasingly more distant to his wife. This should be portrayed in the clothes he wears as well. For Patrick i want to create an extremely droll and business like persona but with a 70s feel. In order to complete this i will have him wear a simple shirt with a black tie, a light brown blazer with an overcoat.
Detectives
The detectives should have little to no variation between them as they will be wearing typical detective uniforms, we will have them in basic longcoats and black trousers with professional black work shoes, much like Patrick above.
Minor Characters
The minor characters within our film include the photographers and the forensic investigators which have no speaking roles. In order to save money we will have there faces covered as to avoid having to hire new actors. They will be wearing clean suits with face masks in order to fit in successfully with the police aesthetic.
Props
We will need various props in order to film in order to immerse the audience. We will be filming in a house so props such as sofas and ornaments will not be included in this list, but rather the small props which will be necessary in order to create the illusion of a crime scene as well as various other parts of the film.
2 Cameras - Preferably large polaroid type cameras in order to create the 1970 retro feel.
Police Line Tape - In order to make the crime scene look authentic, we will use this inside the living room to quarter off the body and immerse the audience
Leg Of Lamb - Possibly the most important prop, the murder weapon and the focus of the short film, it will need to look authenticate if not real and convince the audience that this is indeed a common leg of lamb, we may opt to use a real leg of lamb in order to get a true feeling of authenticity.
Drinks (whiskey) - The drinks Mary serves to patrick, we will also need whiskey tumblers in order to complete the set
Their was a lot of issues with our task, notably was the sound quality. With lots of jump cuts in order to get a range of shot types, our films audio became noticeably disgruntled with lots of white noise being heard and our voices being hard to hear at point.
Another serious issue we faced was that after filming we realised we needed a few reaction shots in order to place them in we went to film once again. However by this point i had already cut my hair, meaning the continuation in the film was very mixed with random shots of me having short hair being placed in. During this we also noticed the lighting issue with two different lightings being used, this was due to the weather outside being sunny or cloudy. As we were unable to control this factor we were forced, due to a lack of time, to shoot the reaction shots in a noticeably different lighting scale.
Another issue was the serious issue with finding actors. As we were unable to find anyone that would act in our film, we ourselves were forced to act. This presented an issue as our acting skills were quite subpar, often having to look at the phone on the table which held the script in order to remember lines, often leading to long pauses within the actual filming of the preliminary task creating disgruntled filming which looked unprofessional.
Another issue we found during filming is the long silences in-between each pun, as the audio quality was bad the puns were hard to heard often leading to a very confusing dialogue, this along with the silence within the film created an "awkward" atmosphere. We attempted to fix this issue by adding in a laugh track. With a little research, a royalty free laugh track and a bit off editing we were able to edit the long silences with laughing. This presented difficulty originally as we had to painstakingly watch the original film again (not helped by our acting) in order to figure out when each single pun was said within the film in order to place a laugh track over it.
One final issue we had was the lack of movement within our filming. We found that by having similar camera types with little variation or movement tended to lose the interest of the audience. In order to fix this we attempted to add reaction shots. This was not a cure all and had many difficulties of its own but it was an attempt to fix the retention issue. This helped me learn to have varied camera shots within my final task in order to not only show my knowledge on each shot but also to retain the audience attention.
Preliminary Task Video Review:
This details what i said above in a more general sense.
The soundtrack began with me looking for a tranquil western royalty free soundtrack online, however nothing trully met the standards or style that i was looking for after days of searching. So in the end i decided to attempt to make my own soundtrack. Unfortunately, without updates, the amount of possible sounds i had to work with that fit my style, tempo and tune were very far between. With this only about 4 tunes were avaiable so i attempted to try and arrange them in ways that sounded distinct.
I used the "The throwing stuff against the wall to see what sticks" method in order to develop tune. I found one sound that sounded pleasing so i stuck it in then another and another. With this i arranged them in certain orders and listened to see what was best. I began with accoustic picking, classic steel and a muted drum bass. I wanted to include a harmonica but with only three sounds to choose from, my choice was limited. Nothing trully matched what i had in mind but i decided to try and blend it within the music to attempt the western feel. However once i heard it, i decided that the harmonica did not fit into the soundtrack what-so-ever anddecided that it was not mandatory and removed it.
I decided to extend the soundtrack but i didnt want to simply repeat the same bar over and over again so i attempted to change the very few sounds i had avaible in order to make a unique sound. Here i introduced the picked steel string and a tamborine. I found that once the picked steel had been blended inside the soundtrack that it fit with the tranquil westernt theme quite well. However with the tambourine, with again very few sounds to choose from, the tambourine did not fit well with the other sounds with a far too upbeat and out of sync tempo and rhythm.
I attempted to include the tambourine in numerous locations in order to blend it however it did not fit in to the musical style choice which i was aiming for.
I extended the accoustic picking as i felt that it ended far too abruptly so in order to cover up the silence inbetween the two bars i cut one accoustic picking in half and conjoined it to the other. Again i tried to experiment with the tambourine in order to find out where it would best fit however i decided to remove them altogether.
I decided to remove the muted drumm bass in the end as i felt that it made the music sound much more modern as i was hoping for a more rustic western style useing accoustic instruments. I kept the muted drum bass in some locations and blended them with other beats in order to make it seem more natural.
Lady Dixon’s is a local public park located in South Belfast, covering almost 130 acres (0.53 km2) and is accessible from the Upper Malone Road. It includes meadows, woodland, riverside fields, formal rose gardens, a walled garden and a Japanese garden, as well as many walks.
Pro
Con
Close proximity - easy to reach for all of crew
The park is easy to film in. There are numerous quiet and natural places to film
Cheap location. Walking distance from houses.
Lady Dixon’s is less than ideal. We would much rather film in Newcastle or another rural area.
Crawfordsburn
With two excellent beaches, spectacular scenery and views across Belfast Lough, tranquil walks through peaceful meadows and wooded glens and a stunning waterfall, Crawfordsburn Country Park provides a relaxing natural retreat.
Crawfordsburn is a forest park in the Southern end of Antrim. It features two beaches, a forest, glens and meadows. It is an ideal place for us to film. Approach by train is cheap (<£5 for return tickets), the area is great to film in and features all the scenery we need while still being local enough for our entire crew.
It is important that we ensure that the two characters first shown arenot presented as heroes, as it is safe to assume that they were involved
in a misdeed in order to get the bounty in the first place. It is assumed that these characters are not high ranking, but rather the opposite, they are lowly criminals. However, in saying this, it is important that they are distinguished quite easily from the anonymous assailant, as he is shown to be better dressed, clearly of a higher class than those he is following. It is important for us, then, that he is distinguishable from the others upon first glance, which is completely influenced by the clothing which he wears.
Headwear
As was typical of the time setting, all characters will be wearing a hat, Stetson-style. Some examples of possible hats are included below.
Facewear
As in true Western style, we wanted to outfit our assailant with a bandana, to obscure a large portion of his face. However this is not a necessity.
Coats/Outerwear
We want out assailant to wear a typical western jacket that makes him distinct from the two men while also keeping with the western setting.
However we want our two men to wear very typical waistcoats not very distinct from one another, they will be wearing typically fromal wear that was common in the midwest
Location research
Newcastle
Newcastle, Co. Down, is a small Town off the Coast of the Irish Sea at the base of the Mourne Mountains. The mountains have numerous suitable locations to film in, including forest trails, disused quarries (interesting rock formations), and other interesting landscape features such as lakes, ponds, and clearings.
Pro
Con
Rural and secluded - no danger of passing cars, modern buildings, etc breaking continuity
Long journey times put pressure on our filming times, and require a deal of organization
Property restrictions are not an issue. No permission needed to film.
Most decent locations are out of the way - hiking is required
We will be needing three actors, skin colour does not matter as the west was a hot pot of various nationalities. The actors can be of any gender however we will most likely opt for three male characters.
The two men fleeing will have to act in a panic fashion, frightened and anxious, they know at any point their lives could end unless they finish this task and flee. This thinking should be in the actors mind at all times and should be represented through their actions.
Their dialogue as they are the only two characters to speak should be a colloquial texan accent with many slurred words and should represent their most likely uneducated background. Their frightened disposition should also be shown through their dialogue with their tone of voice showing clear distress. The two main men we were thinking of playing these characters are Naoise Brownlee and Emmett Dorrian.
The Third man will walk with purpose in a quiet and stoic fashion, from the way he walks its clear that he's confident in his abilities and feels that he is in no real danger. The actor should keep in mind this fact when he plays the third man in order to create the image of a stoic professional.
The third man does not speak at all, he should remain silent throughout the film and his motions should be controlled and planned. No unnecessary movements. The third man will be played by Michael Klonzakus.
1. The number one item we need is a typical western firearm, I've opted for the classic revolver which is famously used in many westerns such as "The Good, The Bad And The Ugly" and "A Fistful Of Dollars". The make i have selected seems to be the best quality when compared to others on the market while also allowing us to insert caps in order to make a gunshot sound once the lever is pulled. One slight issue is the orange safety cap on the gun that may ruin the immersion when watching the film how ever, with luck, the cap should be removable or we could even paint over the familiar orange colouring.
Name:
Peterkin UK Ltd 8 Shot Large Cowboy Gun
2. The next item we need to purchase is actual caps for the prop revolver in order to make the familiar "BANG" noise associated with this weapon. This will create a visual effect of smoke making the gunshot seem much more realistic. However unless the gunshot sound its self is noticeable when we edit it, we will have to place our own audio clips on a gunshot over them in order to get a much more satisfying signature "BANG!"
Name:
8 Shot Caps - 25 rings per card
3. The second last prop we require is a brown sack bag which the two men will be running with and frantically trying to bury. I've opted for a small brown vegetable bag as it best fits the western setting, an old sack woven together which looks very loose and ragged.
Name:
Nutley's 20 x 30 cm 8.9 oz Grade Small Hessian Sacks
4. The final item we need for the film is a shovel which the two fleeing men will be holding in order to dig a hole to bury the brown sac.
1. Look at the target audience for the film and how each film attracted their target audience; The typical western tends to be quite adult oriented with many western films featuring intense violence, bad language and scenes that are too adult for children to watch. How ever in recent times the western genre has broadened into child films with many featuring typical western setting and scenes but in a child like fantasy, such films would be Rango and The long Ranger.
2. What type of company distributes your chosen films? United artists andwines tine companies are some of the only film companies that distribute westerns, most famously at the very least.
3. How have social groups been represented in these films and how does this relate to the target audience? The majority of westerns include and mostly American, latin american and Native american cast. In traditional westerns the Mexican and Native American cast are cast in a negative light. This is mainly due to the racist ideals of the pre 1970s people, with many westerns being produced at this time. The typical western tends to relate to the people of the mid west and indeed the entire west, often painting the struggles the mid west had at the turn of the 20th century.
4. What are audience expectations for these films? The audience tends to expect violence from a western movie, a adventure tale of of a lone ranger making it against the odds. They expect a mid west setting with a varied range of characters and tropes. Mainly the lawlessness of the mid west that was a typical stereotype at the time.
Title: The title sequence is quite minimalist in appearance, the writing is placed over a dull grey background with the writing being white, overcasting the grey background. The actual quote presented in the opening sequence "The wicked flee when none pursueth" This links directly into the movies main story line, linking into the guilt of tom janey who fled the town despite no one giving chase which also links into the lawless ideals of the west. The dull grey background gives an idea of tainted purity , contrasting the lawless and apathy of the west with its staunch christian views.
Music: The music during the opening sequence is a melody played on a piano, this gives the scene a somber feeling, almost portraying the emotions felt by out protagonist at the news of her fathers death, this opening is quite unique as its extremely tranquil compared to many other westerns Shot types: The shot during the opening sequence is a long shot that slowly transitions into a portrait of the body of our protagonists father, this slow tracking shot that slowly comes into focus gives the narrator enough time to fill the viewer in but the shot, due to its slow develop and the use of natural lighting creates an extremely tranquil and beautiful atmosphere despite the grim tone.
Miss en scene: Their is not much use of miss en scene during the opening scene, the man lying on the ground seems to be wearing appropriate clothing for the time, extremely common showing the protagonists relatively poor background
Recurring themes and character types: The movie seems to run along the lines of revenge as the main protagonist attempts to avenge her father, the movie uses a strong female character as its lead even stating in the narration "people did not give it credence that a young girl could leave home in the middle of winter to avenge her fathers blood". This shows the hisotrical context of women being seen as weak but flips it on its head as well
Unforgiven
Title: The movie begins with a tranquil shot of a western hut on top of a hill at sunset, their is virtually no credits but their is an exposition on one the movies most important characters late wife. The way in which this news was delivered to the audience was quite stunted, perhaps mimicking the apathetic nature of the mid west.
Music: Their is practically no music in the begging sequence except a light guitar being strung which quickly dies off, this could represent how the mid west isnt as romantic as it seems, its cold, callous and downright sadistic.
Shot types: The movie begins with a long shot of a western sunset with the silhouette of a man digging to be seen in the distance, this then swaps to a wide landscape shot of a mountain, finally the camera moves through a western village, the dolly shot during this shows the silhouette of a couple, celebrating new romance, it then jump cuts to a quite dimly lit scene of two people having sex, perhaps depicting the death of romance from the romantic to the downright sleazy.
Miss en scene: The characters are seen to be wearing traditional western clothes, "cowboy hats" and old fashioned dresses are seen throughout the opening
Recurring themes and character types: Not much is given away on who the main character is at the beginning of the movie nor what themes seem to be present.
A fistful of Dollars:
Title: The title sequence is an extremely long one using animated silhouettes of typical western tropes (horse riding, gun fights, gun fights on horseback) the use of the red and black gives an almost gory sensation showing the audience from the very start that this is going to be an action packed movie
Music: The music is quite rugged, useing a combination of gunshots, noises and instruments its clear to see that the score is aimed to excite the audience
Shot Types: The opening sequence does not feature any live action shots, but instead shows an impressively animated sequence of various key western tropes. This is extremely well done as it keeps the audience constantly entertained as it goes through the title sequence, a part in any film thats often associated with being boring.
Miss En scene: Their is no present Miss En Scene but the classic western features are seen in the animation such as the poncho, cowboy hat, revolver, horses and cowboy boots.
Recurring themes and character types: The movie portrayals to the "lone ranger" character type, played by Clint Eastwood, this character does not intervene unless otherwise provoked to do so.
A few Dollars more:
Title: The title sequence begins with a man walking through a barren plain, the title credits begin once a gunshot is sound the character on screen is seen to fall of their horse, the credits them selves are overcast the landscape, often interacting with the landscape itself, the man is not named or even allowed to speak before he is killed, this could represent the lawless brutality of the west where people die unexpectedly and without chance
Music: The music is typical of the Dollars trilogy with the mixture of instruments and various noises such as gunshots creates a thrilling atmosphere and
Shot Types:Their is only one shot type used throughout the entire opening which is an extreme long shot. This not only gives a sense of the sheer magnitude of the west but also makes the character on screen appear smaller showing perhaps the insignificance of one man in the west
Miss En Scene: Not much can be seen from the extreme long distance but the man on horseback clearly shows that this predates the commercialization of cars, setting the era
Recurring theme and character types: No character types can be discerned from the opening but the recurring theme would have to be the lawlessness and sheer brutality of the west with this seemingly harmless man being gunned down for no discernible reason
The outlaw Joesy Wales
Title: The title sequence is superimposed over the sight of a bloody civil war battle, this not only keeps the audience captivated during the opening titles but it also gives a hint at what type of movie the audience will be watching, in this case its clear to see that this movie will be quite brutal and action packed.
Music: The music seems to be from an american civil war marching band, typical of the time to inspire moral, this sets the era but also seems to contrast with the brutality on screen, emphasizing the reality of war compared to the thought of war.
Shot Types: Their are quite a number of shots used throughout the opening sequence, with close ups, mid shots, long shots and extreme close ups all being used in equal parts.
Miss En Scene: The character costume design seems to be based of the fashion during the american civil war with lost of outdated rifels and guns being used which set the era and genre of the film.
Recurring Theme and Character Types: Recurring themes seem to be the brutality of the west and taking justice into your own hands as the main character is hinted to have done some sort of atrocity. The common "lone ranger" character type seems to be present in this film from the very start with the stoic main character barely uttering a word.
