Investigating UK film websites

Britfilms by British Council http://www.britfilms.com/


The purpose of the British Council Film Department is to promote contemporary and innovative UK film to audiences around the world, working in both lead and supporting roles on showcases, workshops, festivals, conferences, tours, residences and virtual projects.


Types of information available
News and events
Training and courses
Film festivals 


People who might use this site
Directors that want to submit their films and get them seen by other people. 


2 things i learnt 
 It focuses on British and cultural films, i also learnt that there are many different film industries and they all do different things.


British Film Institute http://www.bfi.org.uk/


The BFI (British Film Institute) promotes understanding and appreciation of film and television heritage and culture. The BFIruns a range of activities and services.


Types of information available
News on new films
BFI national Library
Archives of films


People who might use this site
People who are interested in seeing british movies and reading information about them. 


2 things i learnt
BFI runs annual film festivals and the BFI releases films in cinemas across the UK, bringing classic titles to a new generation of film-lovers.


Netribution http://www.netribution.co.uk 


It is a type of blogging platform where people can write their own views and articles on british. 


Types of information available
News on contests, scripts, festival, film industry and TV.
Interviews with directors, actors, producer and writer.


People who might use this site
People who have opinion  that they would like to share with other people on british films. Also, people who like to see interviews about films and like keep up to date with the film industries and festivals.


2 things i learnt
You can upload photos and videos
It gives the chance for people to give their own oppinion. 


UK Film Council http://www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/


The UK Film Council is a lead agency backed by the government for British films in the UK. They focus on having and representing the economic, cultural and educational aspects of film effectively. The UK film council is the corner stone of british film industry and fund most big cultural film initiatives. 


Types of information available
Information about what the UK film council does
Funding]Board of directors


2 things i learnt
They have backed 900 films, short films and features
How much funding they give to support people in the film industry

Film Distributors

A film distributor is an idividual company or person responsible for pubishing and releasing films to the public, through either theatres or home viewing (DVD's etc). The distributor can do this directly like if they own theatres or networks for distribution or through sub-distrbutors.

20th Century Fox Film LTD

Films they have distributed are -

• Avatar
• Star Wars
• Ice Age
• X-men
• Die Hard
• Home Alone
• Dr. Dolittle

Columbia Pictures

• The Da Vinci Code
• Casino Royal
• RV
• Lords of Dogtown
• Memoirs of a Geisha
• 50 first Dates
• Peter Pan
• Gothika
• Big Fish

Momentum Pictures

• Let the Right one in
• Tsotsi
• Dorian Gray
• Just friends
• Ps. I Love You
• Youth in revolt
• Dear John
• The Crazies

20th Century Fox Film LTD
I would pick this company to distribute our film because its has distributed some very well known movies and they could dirtribute our film succesfully through theatres and DVD's as they are a well known name. However our plot is different to the usual movies they distibuted therefore benefitting the distributors by appealing to a wider audience.

What we learnt doing our preliminary task

Whilst we were filming the preliminary task we learnt how important it was to make sure the storyboard is clear and to stick to it because it effected the time management during the filming.
We learnt how different camera angles can really effect the outcome of the film and that a variety of different angles is good to keep an audience interested.
We learnt how to use the camera properly and how to use a tripod correctly and how it can help us pan around a room without it being shakey for our establishing shot tat the beginning.

We also learnt how to upload our film clips correctly and how to edit them effectively to improve our final coutcome. Such as cutting out bits we didn't want and adding titles and also using effects to fade out the end to make it look more proffessional rather than it just stopping abruptly.

We also learnt to not spend too much time on one shot as then we didnt get to film the whole task in the time it was given. Therefore if we tried to film it the next given day it would effect the quality of the film because we would be dressed differently, the lighting would be different and the setting may have had to change. So we re-filmed and time managed each shot properly the second time and got our whole film filmed in the time given so none of the aspects would have to change.

We learnt how to film a shot-reverse-shot correctly for scene where the teacher was speaking to the pupil and we also learnt how to use a point of view shot for when the girl see's the teachers hands slam down on the table in front of her. we also got to see how the different shots effected the flow of the film.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l11BPzYehUE

• This the opening sequence to Batman

It starts of with a very dark sky at night with a lot of clouds which tells us that we are viewing somewhere outdoors. The camera then leads downwards to what look like an old sone wall but is quite close up so we are not too sure what it is. It carries on following the wall so we start to imagine the shape we are following. This also sets us on edge because we are unsure of what we are looking at as it is so close up and we can't see its surroundings.

The camera shot then zooms out slowly to reveal that we were looking at the batman symbol. The lighting throughout the opening sequence remains very dark and just mainly black an blue colours.

The music also adds an eery effect because it is orchestral and you can mainly here the violins and trumpets.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvOmlRkKRgQ

• This is the opening sequence to Edward Scissorhands

Both Batman and Edward Scissorhands have similar characteristics in their oping sequences because both movies are produced by Tim Burton. Just like in the Batman opening sequence we start with eery music that sounds orchestral and has a childish feel to it.

The snow falls in time with the music and the snow also adds to the slightly eery feel of the opening sequence.

Also like the batman opening sequences we see close ups of objects that are unfamiliar to us and its very dark and only consists of black and blue colours, which gives us the feeling of being uneasy and wondering what could be coming next

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEZK7mJoPLY

The music in the opening sequence unsettles us as there are sounds that we can't recognise and they go in time with what we see happening.

We see stuff being scribbled out like a picture of a person and his eyes are being scratched out, this is an unusual thing to do and this is done in time with the music so that makes us wonder why this person is doing this and it reminds us of something a murderer would do.

The fact that we aren't sure why certain things are being goe and we can't see who is doing it makes it scary and we don't know what is coming next.

Feedback on our plot presentation

This is our presentation about different features and the plot of our movie.
http://prezi.com/bgb4ey7cy_uu/our-plot-presentation/

Our feedback

• We were told that we should think about the whole plot and to mae sure that the opening to our movie stays as an opening and doesn't become the whole movie in a short time.
• We were also told we would need to come up with a way of putting the "This is halloween" in our opening without using the actual song as we can't used copyrighted music.
• Make the gender of the killer more clear.
• How we are going to make the blood

Film plan

Plot
It starts with a girl getting dressed for a halloween party, as she is gettimg dressed she heres the floor boards creaking outside her room. She thinks this is her mother and goes to check. (It is actually the killer approaching her). The killer hides as she goes to look for her mum downstairs. She calls out for her mother because there is no sign of her. she smells something burning so she stops looking and heads towards the kitchen. the killer comes up behind her and hits her with a base ball bat making her unconscious. She then wakes up in a area she doesnt recognize, surrounded by trees halloween decorations and as her vision comes into focus she see's that the killer is standing over her and says "Welcome to the party..."

Conventions of horror films

Horror films are unsettling films that are produced to frighten us, create suspense and dread, invoke our worst fears and have a terrifying conclusion.

• They usual have at least one survivor like in the end of the shining where the boy and the mum survive.


• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgxAkocAPmg


• There is usually a killer that has a trademark


• There is usually a positive outcome
• Blood
• Death
• Victims
• Weapons
• Storms
• Snow
• Ligtening
• Chase sequences
• Screams
• A religous aspect
• Creepy music

Analysis of sounds in the opening sequence of "Scream"

Diegetic/Non diegetic
Theme
Incidental Music
Sound effects

At the very beginning of the opening scene the title comes up and the sounds of screaming and something that resembles a sudden gunshot acompany it. This is effective because the sudden noise and the scream creates an atmosphere and has us anticipating the worst. This is also effective because it sets up the theme of the movie and what it is about.
Also as the scene starts there is a heartbeat fading out in the background, this create an eery atmosphere.

When the girl picks up the phone the voice we here is creepy and deep, and because we don't know where its coming from or who the person is it adds to the mystery therefore it makes it more scary.

Also the repetition of the phone ringing everytime is effective because everytime she hangs up the mysterious man calls har back quicker and his voice starts to sound more angy and agitated, this let us knows something bad is going to happen and creates even more anticipation. Everytime the man calls back it creates another layer of anticipation and we start to realise we are slowly getting closer to something bad happening.

When the man asks her whats her favourite movie is she says "halloween" and pulls a knife out of the knife rack and it makes a loud slicing sound which you can tell has been enhanced and added in as an effect. This is effective because she is picking up the knife as something normal but we know due to the beginning that something bad is going to happen and this creates suspense.

As the mysterious man on the phone starts to sound more sinister and tells her he is watching her, music that is non diegetic starts play and it is in time with the shock that appears on her face. As the scene carries on the music makes sudden loud noises that we are not expecting and this is effective because it puts us on the edge of our seats and the strings play long, drawn out, high pitch notes which start to create suspense.

Audience

Gender: Female
Their favourite films- Nightmare before christmas, Edward scissorhands, The shining, Sleepy Hollow, Sweeney Todd
The age- Teenagers (16-18)
What they do on the weekend?- They see their friends, go shopping and ride a bicycle.
Favourite Tv shows: Dexter, CSI and True Blood
Their ideal partner would be - Fit and healthy, love movies and tv shows, especially horror
Where would they go on holiday?- Brighton, France, Ireland
What sports would they play?- Tennis, netball, and beadminton
WHat mode of transport do they use- Bicycle, train, bus and walking
There favourite restaurants- Pizza express, anything Italian.

About me

I picked media because i found it interesting to study when doing GCSE english. I am also very interested in watching movies and video games.
I am also interested in maybe having a career in media if doing something art doesn't work out. I chose this course because i thought it would help me with my future choices. I also think i could combine some of the other subjects i do such as art, psychology and photography.

My Prezi about my media consumption

I made this Prezi about what I watch inculding my favourite tv shows, games and movies.
http://prezi.com/3ibv4jpacix5/my-media-consumption/