January, Jan 17, 2011

Today and Tomorrow YOU MUST:

Go through your notes and make up AND ANSWER the questions in this pattern that I am about to describe in this note that is before you. Currently.

Note: These questions go back to the start of the semester. Yipes.

1. Short Answer Questions – 3-5 marks

Come up with 5 or so.

2. Longer Answer Questions – 6-8 marks – these involve use of examples

Come up with 5 or so.

3. An opinion piece – could be called an essay if this was a mean old man class, wait, it IS! (20 marks – 10 for logic, flow, structure and 10

Here is the opinion, and here is why I think it with proof/references from the course

4. Review of a Movie or show – I am doing this part – 30 marks

Work Owesies - Jan 13, 2011

News Assignment (create a news article with a photo)

Spencer, Robin, Brandon, Captain Slovak

Tabloid

Myles, Alex, Brandon

Magazine Project (ad analysis group)

Brandon,

Music Quiz Prep

Spencer, Kaylen, Robin, Brandon

50s Music Performer (must do ONE EACH! – not in groups!)

Jessica, Spencer, Alex, Kaylen, Brooklyn!, Karleeeee, Brandon, Devin,

60’s Music Performer

Jessica, Jamie-Lee, Spencer AGAIN, Myles, Alex, Kaylen, Brooklyn!, Karlee, Jenna P, Jennifer, BRANDON, Myra, Devin

70’s Music Performer

Jessica, Spencer, Myles, Alex, Kaylen, BROOKLYN!, MEGAN!!!, Karlee, Jennifer, Myra, Devin

Three TV Show Ideas (all by myself /sniff)

Did you get these in?

Full TV Show Proposal and Package

This was the one show and it is in groups.

3 Main Character Possibilities

Main Character Profile – this is the lead character for the Blockbuster

Blockbuster Movie Final Project – the last project (20 – 25%)

Exam Prep/Questions (part of your exam mark)

Exam (5 - 10%)

Intro to Production - Jan 10, 2011

EMS30 – Production – Lights, Camera, Action

-       when the script is done and the actors are hired and the sets are built and the locations are arranged and all the stuff is ready to go, then we are in PRODUCTION

-       a basic day of production looks like:

cameras are in a place, lights are put up to aim at the place, sets are designed for lights and cameras, actors are in make up and wardrobe

once the set is ready and cameras are ready and lights are on and everything is in place, then, the actors come in – this could take hours

actors often spend hours in a trailer waiting for lighting to get up and right

who stands on the set and acts like the actors to set the lights?

-       a stand-in – a kind of ass’t or wannabe or something who just stands there

Another group of funny jobs you don’t know about from production

GAFFER –

-       a gaffer is an electrician – he/she rigs lights, runs cable, sets up generators and deals with the electric around lighting –

-       busy job, lots of hard work setting up, and then, pausing when the cameras roll

GRIP

-       set mechanic – build things that are needed to do a shot – camera dollies (track that the camera rolls on to get a moving shot) – tool guys with pipes and all kinds of set pieces and so on

BEST BOY –

-       the head electrician

Cinematographer-

-       also called the Director of Photography – the person who gets the cameras and the lights to do whatever the director wants 

-       the DOP works with LIGHT, DARKNESS and COMPOSITION (means whats in the frame and what the camera sees)

-       basically he/she is a camera expert combining science, tech and art

Director – what does he/she do on set?

-       combines all the elements that are there to make the movie from the script – turn the words into pictures that are of actions shot on the set or location

-       tell actors how to move, deliver lines and so on (NOTE – does a STAR get easily bossed around by a director? No. Robert Downey Jr. does whatever HE thinks is right for a scene

-       the director is responsible for getting the other crew members to create a certain look – a way or style that shows the image that best tells the story or makes the audience feel whatever

Actor –

-       to play a character from the screenplay in the best way to make the audience RELATE and FEEL the feelings of the story

-       the best actors are the ones who are the best at making us feel their feelings - communicating their feelings to us in the most dramatic and realistic way

-       LIVE the part in a way that looks like it’s really happening

-       Last, but maybe not least is to be able to PHYSICALLY do or show what needs to be shown

-       Eg Salt – Angelina Jolie – she had a ton of stunts, action, fights, etc all badass

A bunch of people, many we never discussed, all have to work together to create the production and it is a HUGE, EXPENSIVE ordeal

Blockbuster Project - Jan 10, 2011

Blockbuster Movie Project Final Ass. – Due January 21, 2011

We have already gone over all this, now for the specifics:

How to do a movie poster –

A movie poster has these elements:

A dominant graphic – this is the image that is in the foreground, is larger than the other imagery and is the most obvious picture in the poster

-       it usually features an important character or object from the movie

-       you don’t have to draw it, you could use cut and paste, etc

Title – a large, clear, well designed title that catches attention and stands out from the rest of the poster

Pull quote – a quotation from a reviewer that generates excitement – eg – on The Watchmen poster it has “A Powerful Experience” and then a rating by Roger Ebert, a prominent critic

A tag line is a great addition – look at the Napoleon Dynamite poster -  “He’s out to prove he’s got nothing to prove.” It’s a cool line or funny line that captures some part or idea of the movie

We can also see a group of other photos on a poster kind of like a collage – this is another good idea to put in yours – a way of showing some scenes or moments from your movie – even though you don’t have one

Ratings and credits – having a few credits on there and maybe a rating is a good way to make your poster look more realistic –use em

Script Sample

-       you will need to write a brief (5 page) sample of your screenplay

-       it is NOT a typical format that you can just do in Word or Wordperfect – you need to do some mucking around with tabs and stuff

INT. A DARK CLASSROOM – DAY

A chunky middle-aged man in a checked shirt stands at a keyboard work station (MR. LOBB, 45). He shouts at the people in desks before him.

These are his students and they do not wish to learn.

                          TINA

          Mr. Lobb! Can I leave?

Mr. Lobb cocks an eyebrow.

                          MR. LOBB

What? Are you kidding me? You haven’t done any work in this class!

Tina looks around at her classmates who are all grotesque and not paying attention.

                     TINA

          Nobody else is paying attention. 

                     MR. LOBB

Nobody else is going to write your exam for you either!

Shockingly, Mr. Lobb pulls out a knife and hurls himself at Tina, tearing out her liver and eating it raw.

                          TINA

          AGH!

The other students run out of the classroom, realizing that Mr. Lobb is not a human being. He is a werewolf, and this is not a comedy. He is a werewolf of the worst kind: the kind with knives.

So How Do We Actually Write a Few Pages of Script?

Tip 1 – write a scene that gives a character something to do – like a CONFLICT! – so an argument, a fight, a chase, a confrontation, an exciting moment is best

Tip 2 – Have more than one character, but not more than three – why? Complexity – juggling characters makes it harder.

Tip 3 – pick characters that are like YOU – or that you understand – this sample should be realistic and make sense – if you don’t understand yourself, then you are a typical person, especially one your age

Tip 4 – balance between ACTION and DIALOGUE and remember – every new action gets its own new line and every new place gets its own new INT/EXT line and every boy who owes me work will fail and become a sad man

After script sample comes a TREATMENT

This is where you tell me the story of your movie using that Blake Snyder pattern that we learned about in class at some length – those who were absent will NEED to check the website very carefully and maybe check www.blakesnyder.com and look under TOOLS in the top left toolbar

The type of treatment we are making is called a beat sheet.

We should know this.

What makes a LEVEL 4 character?

-    somebody that you might want to be like – or admire

-    somebody who has a lot to figure out

-    somebody who has a relatable quality

-    HAS TO HAVE PROBLEMS, specifically one big problem that affects his/her whole life

-    SO, design a character that has an awesome and interesting problem that needs to get solved in your movie

-    Start NOW

-     

-    For this character, you need to tell me about:

-     

-    Background

-    Description

-    Hobbies and Interests

-    Faves and Least Faves

-    Typical Behaviours

-    Likes and Dislikes

-    Mental state

-    Family and friend situation

-    Any key personality elements

-    Weirdnesses and strange elements

-    Biggest problem(s)

-    Greatest strengths

Each person in a group must have one of these characters

 

Making Movies - January 6, 2011

Making Movies, Hollywood Style

Step 1

Development

-     the first person involved in the making of any particular movie is the screenwriter

-     the screenwriter’s job is to come up with a story that will work as a movie that can be shot and made for a reasonable amount of money

-     some ideas just can’t work as movies – could be too expensive (Avatar cost about 275 million dollars – these days an average movie will cost upwards of 70 million dollars)

-     some ideas are just too much in the head, not enough action – ie a single character whose life is about thinking or takes place in the mind (Castaway, Moon, one person movies are risky)

-     some ideas aren’t marketable enough to attract a big enough audience to risk paying for the movie – eg a movie about romance between senior citizens – just aren’t enough seniors going to movies like there are kids

-     screenwriters have to think about the audience, the money it would cost, the “things” that attract stars to be in it, and a bunch of other factors that we may not even know

-     screenwriting is a lonely job that requires a TON of time and a TON of rewriting – it is very difficult to stick with it – a tiny fraction of writers actually makes money

-      do any writers become big stars, really popular and well known? Answer – not many.

-     Frank Darabont (The Green Mile, Shawshank Redemption, The Walking Dead TV series, The Mist)
Scott Frank – (Marley & Me, The Interpreter, Minority Report, Flight of the Phoenix)

-     Stephen DeSouza – Die Hard, Running Man, Street Fighter, Beverly Hills Cop III)

-     David Benioff (Wolverine, Kite Runner, Troy)

-     The thing is, these guys are big for awhile, but they never get well known unless they direct – writers have NO power in the industry

The Writing Process

-     start with a treatment – which is a story version of a movie – often in quick, short lines of description that tell the broad outlines of the actions

-     often uses a format called “beat sheets”

-     the most commonly used beat sheet pattern was created by a guy named Blake Snyder – we will use his beat sheet for our pattern

-     www.blakesnyder.com - the template is under Tools at the top left – download it and that is our template to make our own movie beat sheet to plan our blockbusters

-     (see separate note on the Blake Snyder Beat Sheet)

-     this pattern is one of many possible patterns writers can use to outline a movie script

Once a movie script is written, the writer usually has to attract another key player in the process of making the picture

This person is called a PRODUCER

The producer is a crucial player in the life of a movie

This is kind of like the boss of all the business elements, and the person who sets the whole thing in motion

Producers deal with the most important aspect of the process at this point – getting a studio or distributor – which means getting MONEY

The producer will try to get money from investors, maybe from studios, maybe from pre-selling the movie in advance to distribution companies around the world, or in Canada, the producer will try to get money from the government (TeleFilm)

This sets up a new process of endless rewrites to the script to get it to some perfect place that everyone can agree on how awesome it is

It is almost impossible to get everyone to agree on anything, and many screenplays never get made even though they cost somebody millions

This problem is why most movies are crappy – they cannot be awesome if they’re written by committee

How many writers worked on the old Flintstones movie that starred Hallie Berry? – 27

This process kills almost all the screenplays that are written by anyone every year

There are writers in LA making big money who have NEVER had a movie made. Their scripts get bought and just sit there.

The third key player comes in early as well, and this person is probably considered the most important player in the movies (even though that isn’t always the case – writers and producers are important too)

A director will come in and make a whole bunch of new changes, and bring their own ideas to the table

Once that player comes in and the money is there, the movie can be GREENLIT

GREENLIT means it’s a go picture

The director takes over.

A director’s job:

-     to hire actors, particularly a STAR – we will look at STARS in a minute

-     break down the script into a series of shots and sequences that tell the story

-     he comes up with a “look” or a visual style that the movie will have – some directors have WAY more visual style than others

-     some directors with a really strong visual style are: Tim Burton, Michael Bay, James Cameron, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Zach Snyder, Christopher Nolan, etc

-     these directors who have a real stamp on the movie and have similarities in all their movies are called AUTEURS

The most important person to come in on the early stage of development (in Hollywood movies is the STAR)

This is because Hollywood movies cost a FORTUNE and the studios who make them are looking for as sure a thing as possible – in order to guarantee audience, they think they have to get a big star to be the focus of publicity and audience interest

The whole idea of the STAR system comes from the earliest movies that used repeat performers who the audience got to know

Right now two of these giant celebrity actors who can guarantee press and audience interest are Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie – there are lots more, but these are two of the biggest

When they come into a movie, they are the 500 pound gorillas – they are the big deal and everybody else takes a back seat

-     the star gets to decide what happens – how she looks, what she does, etc – she will work with the director and the director will have to figure out how to control the star, which can be tough

-      

Blake Snyder's Beat Sheet - January 5, 2011

THE BLAKE SNYDER BEAT SHEET

PROJECT TITLE:

GENRE:

DATE:

1.  Opening Image (1):

-   this is the start of the movie, which will often be moment or a shot that somehow symbolizes or represents the ideas or themes to come in the movie

-   can give us setting, character, mood, a real sense of what we need to know to get into the picture

-   you might not even know what you’re getting, but it could make sense later

2.  Theme Stated (5):

-   the central idea of the movie will come out in and around the 5 minute mark – it can come as a line said by one character to the main character

-   the central idea is almost always about a big change that the main character has to go through

-   this moment is sort of the whole key issue that everything else is based around

3.  Set-Up (1-10):

-   the audience needs to see a bunch of stuff in those first ten pages (minutes)

-   who this movie is about, what is the main problem that the whole thing will be about fixing or solving, what the existing “world” of the movie is like – the BEFORE of the world that will get changed by the problem that will occur – what was the hero’s life like BEFORE the problem that changes her

-   we also have to see the setting, the time, the “rules” of the world, the people who are there, etc 

4. Catalyst (12):

- the moment where something new happens to the main character that changes the pattern of his/her life and starts us on the movie storyline for real

- it is some great spark of difference that FORCES the character to break out of the old ways and do something new and scary and awesome and bad and good and etc

- catalyst means CHANGE – this is when the movie actually starts and when the audience LOCKS in to the hero’s problem – we want to know what’s going to solve the main issue that comes up – that makes us enjoy a movie

- this moment is the breaking of the main character’s old life (which actually wasn’t very good or fulfilling) and the start of building a new life that will fix all of the character’s problems   

5. Debate (12-25):

- the main doesn’t want to change, or to undergo this big situation or problem and all the stuff that goes with it

- most people just want to stay with what they know – and the Catalyst created a really uncomfortable new life for the hero – this is why we like it – we like to watch someone grapple with problems that aren’t ours

- once the hero locks into the new situation and accepts the new life pattern, the problem becomes the focus and we break into the next part of the movie/screenplay – this is called ACT TWO

6. Break into Two (25)

- the movie stops being about the hero simply getting into this new world situation and becomes a more typical structure of a character trying to do SOMETHING – solve a crime, rob a bank, get the guy, bake the best pie, etc

- this is where the real good start – this is where we feel the most engaged in the movie and start getting really pulled in

7. B Story (30):

- this is where we usually meet some love interest for the main character – this could be a friend or some other kind of companion, but it’s a character who “goes along for the ride” with the hero and usually provides something that the hero needs or wants

- this is almost always someone that there hero would NEVER have wanted to be with before or someone that is the opposite of what they usually liked

- runs along the main storyline and acts as a way of building emotion into the movie or giving the audience some more to chew on and deepens the movie, creating more “moments”

8. Fun and Games (30-55):

- this is usually the best part of any move because it is the part that has the most forward motion of the hero trying to do something, it has the exciting sensation of a fresh bunch of changes and actions that the hero is doing in their “new” life (eg Olive embraces being a “slut” in Easy A)

- the moments that you see in a trailer are often taken from this part of the movie

9. Midpoint (55):

- this is where we have a confrontation with the bad guy or problem or whatever that looks like the hero will get what he/she needs – it looks like the hero will solve the problem, catch the killer, get the guy, etc but that is not the case

- there is a buildup and then it turns for the worst – in Easy A at this point Olive seems to have the best thing going, but then it gets nasty for her – the religious kids turn against her, the guidance councilor screws her over, and she feels lost in her new “role”

- in “Se7en”, the detectives go to the killer’s apartment, but

10. Bad Guys Close In (55-75):

- this comes after that big confrontation midpoint action moment and it is a long slide where the hero begins to feel like he/she is losing their progress, slipping into worse problems and suffering from this new situation that started way back at the Catalyst

- the way this plays out in most movies is by the hero losing ground in their quest or goal and the enemy character gaining ground

- the hero starts to lose confidence and question everything that he/she is doing and has done

11. All Is Lost (75):

- the moment where the worst thing happens to the main character – this event should be the most dramatic, most difficult, most challenging and have some kind of death or symbol of death in it

- this is where the partner dies, the girlfriend is dumped, the marriage is called off, the friendship is broken, the killer captures the daughter, etc

- this dark moment is also the lowest point that has to do with the hero’s original problem – ie Easy A – Olive has no confidence and no sense of awesome at school, she is lonely and doesn’t have a relationship, SO her dark moment is going to be linked to that original problem – the guy who asks her out, she thinks it’s a real date, and he treats her like a hooker

12. Dark Night of the Soul (75-85):

- in some movies there is a period of self-doubt and questioning that comes after the darkest moment

- in this section of a movie, the hero needs to dig down deep in themselves, or visit someone who gives them some info, a pep talk, an item or object that can help or some way or dealing with their inner problem AND the outer problem of the plot

- this section can often show a hero loading up on weapons and getting ready for battle, or walking around in the rain, or sitting sadly in the fog or looking off into the distance through a window with rain coming down the window, etc

- the whole point is that the character has to come to some kind of understanding and acceptance of their problem and themselves – who am I? What am I doing? What is it all about?   

13. Break into Three (85):

- when the hero finally finds his/her inner strength and confidence and builds up their “whatever it is that they need”, then the hero has to go and make that final confrontation with the forces that are against them

- in doing this, they also will be defeating the problem that has been with him/her since the start – in Olive’s case, it is finding a place to be herself and be accepted

14. Finale (85-110):

- the hero solves the problem of the plot, but at the same time, this solves the problem of his/her life – the problems are paired –

- defeats the bad guy, the evil energy or the whatever force is opposing him/her, figures out something that allows him/her to go on and be a happy healthy person, and leaves the audience satisfied that they have seen a change occur – we NEED to see the hero go from A to Z and at the end have grown and become a new, better version of themselves

- this is the actual point of us watching every movie – seeing that change and experiencing the journey of that character going through it

- the underlying point is to learn something about life that is meaningful and valuable for all of us

15. Final Image (110):

- the final image is the completion of the ideas and themes of the movie, often the reverse or a repeat of the opening image, only with a slight change –

- the idea is to capture a mood, a vibe or a sense of tone that we take with us

in Se7en, the final image is police walking into dusky shadows as the sun goes down – the idea is that the world is a dark and evil place, and Morgan Freeman’s character has to continue to work as a cop to try and hold the darkness back – he is fighting the evil

- The Hangover – gives us the photos of their lost night – the crazy stuff that happened – we finally get to see what we have been hearing about for two hours

January 3, 2011

In the next THREE weeks, you must:

1.           Submit ALL work that you owe before January 14 – work submitted after that date will be given a mark of HOLY COW, YOU JUST FAILED!

2.         FINAL ASSIGNMENT – this is a blockbuster movie assignment that will be worth at least 15% of your total mark, and as much as 20%

Blockbuster Movie

You are going to plan and outline and do the development on a blockbuster summer movie for 2012.

To do this, you will need to create:

a)        a poster for you movie (can be hand drawn, cut and paste or computer designed)

b)       script sample of around 5 pages minimum (no more than 10)

c)        cast list and character descriptions

d)       set and/or location list and descriptions

e)        soundtrack list of songs (can burn as CD, compilation on blog as Youtube videos, etc)

f)          target audience description as per

g)        outline/treatment of your whole movie story

h)       Due Date – Jan 25^th, 2011

3.         Generate exam questions and submit them to Mr. the Lobb before Jan 14 so that I can use them to make your exam.

4.         In-Class exam – Jan 20, 21 – do not miss these days of school

a)        one day we will use a video and review structure – you will watch a movie and analyse it

b)       the next day is the typical questions you’ve set up