Alfred Hitchcock and the Auteur Theory

Auteur Theory

The auteur theory is where the director is considered the primary creative force in a motion picture and it's a way of reading and valuing film through the mark of an auteur (author), otherwise known as the director. Andre Bazin founded 'Cahiers du cinema' which is a French language film magazine, in 1951, along with Jacques Doniol-Valcroze and Joseph-Marie Lo Duca. Andre Bazin is known as the father of auteurism due to his obligation of the world-view and the style of Charlie Chaplin and Jean Renoir. The term world-view is how you interpret reality or what you believe to be true. Younger critics who worked with he magazine developed the idea additionally, therefore placing interest on important directors from the Hollywood studio era as well as directors from Europe.

One of the most polemic Cahiers critics, François Truffaut, created the phrase 'Politique des auteurs' and this refers to a mode of film criticism.

Modern Day Aurteurs

Tim Burton

An American film director, producer, artist, writer and animator (born August 25th 1958, California) who is very well known for using gothic, dark and quirky fantasy films and this could be why I consider Tim Burton to be one of the modern day auteur theorists. And as an auteur director, Burton has worked repeatedly with the same people throughout his films such as musician, Danny Elfman who has worked on all but three of Burtons' films. Johnny Depp has appeared in 'Edwards Scissorhands', 'Sleepy Hollow', 'Corpse Bride', 'Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street', 'Alice in Wonderland', 'Dark Shadows' and Alice Through the Looking Glass', and as well has acting in a large amount of Burtons' films they have have become really close friends. Actress and former partner of Burton, Helena Bonham Carter has also appeared in quite a few of his films.

• Pee-Wee's Big Advertures (1985) - Adventure/Comedy
• Beetlejuice (1988)
• Batman (1989)
• Edward Scissorhands (1990)
• Batman Returns (1992)
• Nightmare Before Chistmas (1993)
• Edwood (1994)
• James and the Giant Peach (1996)
• Sleepy Hollow (1999)
• Planet of the Apes (2001) - Sci-Fi 
• Big Fish (2003) - Fantasy/Drama
• Corpse Bride (2005)
• Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
• Alice in Wonderland (2010) - grossed a total $1 billion 
• Dark Shadows (2012)
• Frankenweenie (2012)
• Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016)

Burton has also wrote and illustrated a poetry book called the 'Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy & Other Stories' (1997), and 'The Art of Tim Burton: The Things You Think About in a Bar' (2015), where there are compilations of his sketches that he drew on napkins. Burton also directed a number of episodes for the revitalised version of 50s/60s anthology horror series, 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' and 'Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre. He has collaborated with actress Winona Ryder a couple of times in 'Edward Scissorhands' and 'Beetlejuice'. Burton has also been seen to collaborate with Henry Selick in the stop motion animation, Roald Dahl classic, 'James and the Giant Peach' (1996).

Quentin Tarantino

Tarantino is an American film producer, director, screenwriter and actor. Tarantino is known for his non linear story lines, violence, gore, staring in his own films, features from neo-noir films, soundtrack from 60s to the 80s, extended scenes of dialogue and references to popular culture. Tarantino's career began in the late 80s when he wrote and directed 'My Best Friend's Birthday', which was a screenplay which formed the plot line for 'True Romance'. He then directed his first film as an independent film maker, 'Reservoir Dogs' (1992), where it was described to be a classic and cult hit and the greatest independent film of all time by Empire. Pulp Fiction was the next film Tarantino directed in 1994 and this film was described to be the greatest film by Entertainment Weekly from the year 1983 to 2008 and it was a very successful film indeed. Tarantino next adapted the novel 'Rum Punch' so the film 'Jackie Brown' was filmed and released in the year 1997. The chart below shows a large number of actors and actresses in which Tarantino has collaborated with, more than two times in his most successful films including, Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis, Helen Kim and Samuel L. Jackson.
As well as being a successful director, Tarantino is a well accomplished actor, starring both in many of his own films and in others. For example:

• Pulp Fiction (1994)
• Django Unchained (2012)
• Reservoir Dogs (1992)
• Jackie Brown (1997)
• From Dust Till Dawn (1996)
• Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003) 
• Kill Bill: Volume 2 (2004)
• Sin City (2005)

So far Tarantino has received two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, two BAFTA Awards and he was nominated for an Emmy and a Grammy.

An auteur director is usually seen to work with the same people and Alfred Hitchcock worked with these people:

• Saul Bass
• Edith Head
• Bernard Herrmann
• Alma Reville

Saul Bass

He was a graphics designer and he worked with Stanley Kubrick, Otto Preminger, Billy Wilder and Martin Scorsese and many of Alfred Hitchcocks' credits for his films and he was described as being incredibly gifted. Working with film director Otto Preminger, Saul Bass designed the titles for drama/romance film, The Man With The Golden Arm (1955), in which starred Frank Sinatra, Kim Novak and Eleanor Parker. He advertised and designed the titles for Hitchcock's North By Northwest (1959), Vertigo (1958), and Psycho (1960). His work were very psychedelic creations, which described the plot and ideology of these films perfectly. Saul Bass believed in grabbing the audiences attention with the very first frame in the titles. Saul Bass has also designed a number of advertisement logos that became some of the most recognisable of the time, for example:

• The original AT&T "bell" logo (1969)
• He also designed AT&T's "globe" logo (1983)
• He them designed Continental Airlines' "jetstream" logo (1968)
• United Airlines "tulip" logo (1974)

And another title Saul Bass designed was Billy Wilder's, The Seven Year Itch, which stars the most famous and successful female in the film and model industry.

Edith Head
Edith Head's career began in 1921 as a costume designer and over her career she worked in hundreds of films for both Universal and Paramount Pictures and won a total of eight Oscars. Costume designers are story tellers, she could interlace the personality, class, and wealth of a certain character through the clothes they were in; and also whether it was day or night.

Edith Head worked on a total of 11 films with Hitchcock, though the first time she collaborated with Hitchcock was in the year of 1946 for the film Notorious. Edith Head enjoyed designing costumes for  actresses both while filming and outside for their daily lives, and she says she likes to give people the confidence to wear the garments she made with joy.

The most iconic moment for Head was for the film 'Rear Window' where she intelligently designed the costumes that appeared near the beginning of the film, so men and women were seen wearing cotton fabrics and pyjamas. Whereas, when Grace Kelly's character appeared, she stood out from everybody else in her white and black cocktail dress. She worked with Hitchcock again in 'The Man Who Knew Too Much' with the actress Dorris Day, she was especially virtuous with layering and costumes that insinuated the characters were travelling, though the use of belts and scarfs.

Vera Miles was supposed play the character Judy Barton in the popular Hitchcock film, 'Vertigo' but she fell pregnant before filming and left so she was replaced by Kim Novak. She told Hitchcock she specially didn't was to wear the colour grey and Hitchcock replied, you can wear any colour as long as it's the colour grey. Head was described as the bridge between the actors and the directors.

Bernard Herrmann
Bernard Herrmann, born Max Herrmann, composed and conducted the scores for Hitchcock and other directors, and the score used for Vertigo is described as the one of the best scores ever. Herrmann said that Hitchcock only does 60% of the film; and he completes the rest of it. He also made an appearance as the conductor, in Hitchcock's 'The Man Who Knew Too Much'.

Herrmann played a very important role as the conductor as he one the one to fully capture the emotional state of characters, even without any speech, as whilst using important musical features such as tremolos crescendos to build and create tension. The following list are the films Herrmann has created a score for:

• The Man Who Knew Too Much
• Psycho
• North by Northwest
• Vertigo
• The Day The Earth Stood Still
• Cape Fear
• Taxi Driver
• The Devil And Daniel Webster
• Citizen Kane (the first film he wrote his first score for)
• The Ghost And Mrs. Muir

Alma Reville

Alma was the most important person both in Hitchcock's work life and his personal life, she was his "muse" and his collaborator. She was a editor and script writer for Hitchcock's films and 'Shadow of a doubt' was her favourite film that she and Hitchcock worked on.

Comparing Film Theories and Conventions (unit 4- task 1)

Strengths & Weaknesses of Genre Conventions

• The first strength of genre conventions is that they tell the audience whether they will like it or not, all depending on the genre of the film. 
• Another strength of genre conventions is that they can show stereotyped characters. However, this could be a weakness as audiences, such as myself, my not agree with the stereotypes seen in films. For example in horror films, there is usually a weak, blonde female character and they are most likely to be the first one to be murdered by a masked killer due to falling over whilst running away. I personally don't believe this stereotype most commonly found in horror films.
• In addition, genre conventions may also allow the audience to see who might be in a particular genre and who the director may be.
• One weakness of genre conventions is if an actress or actor is playing a character with a mental illness such as depression m find that they get too involved with their character, and this may resulting in the actor or actress developing a mental illness.

Strengths & Weaknesses of The Auteur Theory

• It's really quite difficult to completely fit directors into this category as directors such as Tim Burton and Martin Scorsese have based their career around one genre in particular, however they have done other projects were they have ventured into other genres and completed books.
• A strength of the auteur theory is that the audience knows who the director is just from the style of film, the genre, and maybe from the cast.
• However a weakness of the auteur theory is that a lot of people either don't fully understand it, don't know what it is at all, or don't believe in it. 

Strengths & Weaknesses of Micro-Features

• Micro-features allow the audience to guess or state the genre of the film.
• They are the main part of a film and as micro-features include, cinematography, mise-en-scene, sound, editing and performance, and together they make up the production of a film.
• They also set the atmosphere, and helps the plot line to be understood by the audience.
• However, micro-features could give away the plot and possibly ruin it for the audience as they may feel the film is predictable.
• New genres could be created if the micro-features are used in different ways.  

Analysis of The Basketball Diaries

The Basketball Diaries, released April 21st 1995 (Island Pictures), is a crime fiction, sports and biographical film,starring Leonardo DiCaprio, based on the life of writer Jim Carroll's life as a poetic and basketball player who found his way into a terrifying addiction with heroin,set in the 1960s. This film is produced by Liz Heller and John Bard Manulis an directed by Scott Kalvert. Scott Kalvert is mostly known for directing this film but he has directed a few video documentaries such as, 'Guns N Roses: Live at the Ritz' (1988), 'Cyndi Lauper: 12 Deadly Cyns...and then some' (1994) and Smilez and Southstar: Now That Your Gone' (2003). Other actors and actresses that star in The Basketball Diaries are, Bruno Kirby, Lorraine Bracco, Ernie Hudson, Patrick McGaw, James Madio, Michael Imperioli and Mark Wahlberg.


I have chosen to analyse this scene from the film, The Basketball Diaries, as this is my favourite part of the film and it clearly shows DiCaprio's and Bracco's academy award nominee performance. The codes and conventions of a crime fiction genre is stereotypically narrated by a male, the main character is usually a male protagonist, and the film is shown through the male's view. Female characters in a crime fiction are stereotypically the victim and they play quite a flat character in which is lacking realism. The rest of the characters are usually small time criminals and police. The themes most commonly seen in crime fictions are good vs evil, high class vs low class and power vs powerlessness. The setting of a crime fiction is usually seen in the inner city, run down areas such as abandoned buildings and cheap and temporary rooms. The codes and conventions of a biographical can vary due to them being an altered version of a trues story but they usually have some form of a narrator.

Some micro features that I felt was important was, performance, sound and cinematography, especially performance as the well delivered emotional and tense performance from DiCaprio ensures the audience is fully involved in the scene, and I personally felt quite attached to this clip and an intense amount of pain was passed from DiCaprio and Bracco. The sound is mostly diegetic sound, coming from the speaking, shouting, yelling and crying from the two actors. Therefore, strongly putting across the genre of the scene, through use of language such as, "They have a knife", "Give me some ******* money ma!" and other strong language. The final micro feature is cinematography, and the shots and angles I picked up on is close up shots of the Bracco and DiCaprio, showing there is much emotional intimacy between the character and the audience. A low angle, tracking shot is present when DiCaprio's Character is being carried out of the building and into the police car. Furthermore, pushing the genre crime fiction into the scene.

Using Premiere Pro

Premiere Pro

Premiere Pro is a timeline-based video editing software application.

http://www.mediacollege.com/adobe/premiere/pro/intro.html

The link above explains what Premiere Pro does, how good it is, what it can't do and how much it costs.




When I first opened Premiere Pro, this window appeared and as I haven't used PP before, I began by starting a new project.

Once this window appeared, I selected 'OK' and don't alter any of the options.

In the HDV folder, select the file that is called 'HDV 720p25' and then click 'OK'.

This is what PP looks like once it has opened. It has four parts to it

Reseaching Job Roles (unit 3- 1.1)

Introduction

I have always been interested in the media but I have recently narrowed it down to radio. For this task I will look more in depth into job roles within radio, or even research outside this sector to see if I can find any other job roles within the media that interests me.

Art Editor

Brief description of what an Art Editor does:

An art editor designs magazines and focuses on the overall look and style of the magazine, and they also commission photographs and illustrations. In order to be a successful art editor, there are a number of personal and technical skills needed such as:

• you will need to be able to have a great attention to detail
• be able to work well under pressure
• confidently use a mixture of deign software packages, such as Photoshop and InDesign
• be a excellent communicator
• have a deep and advanced visual style
• be able to employ imaginative ideas quickly and artistically

What does an Art Editor do? (continued):

Art editors ensure that magazines look presentable, readable, neat and stylish. To do complete this, they need to use a range of designing skills and IT skills to make the magazine, newspaper, book, journal etc, have a certain visual impact while ensuring the information is easy to read and take in.

Another responsibility that art editors would have to do is instruct photographers and illustrators on things such as designs and images they need for the magazine they are editing; this may involve searching for stock images. Even though a art editor sounds like they would only be needed in the post-production stages of the publication, they are needed and accountable throughout to overlook the making of everything.

If you're an art editor in more of a smaller company, you would typically work independently. Whereas, if you were to work in a more well known company you would be most likely to work in a team.

What are the qualifications needed to be an Art Editor?

Most art editors that enter the industry would have a degree somewhere in the artistic field, for example, Fine Art or Graphic Design.

What is the best route into this specific job role?

Ensuring you have a large portfolio full of impressive past work is essential as this way you can show case all of the work you've carried out, and show the employer the skills you have and just why they should hire you. The portfolio can be a mixture of personal projects or projects that have been completed during your time in education.

Having previous experience in the industry may be very helpful as it would allow you to have a closer insight into the job role. The best way into the role would be to work your way up, for example, begin with a junior role such as magazine designer and move your way up.

Radio Broadcast Journalist

Brief description of what a Radio Broadcast Journalist does:

Radio Broadcast Journalists identify, research and present news stories to a wide range of audiences. This job role of a RBJ is some what similar to the role of a radio reporter, however a radio reporter broadcasts news live from the scene as the events are unfolding. Whereas a RBJ focuses more on the planning, specific details, researching, writing and editing. Therefore to be a successful radio broadcast journalist you must:

• be able to know what audiences find most interesting
• know how to have an intriguing and motivating voice while on the radio
• be able to come up with original ideas and use them effectively 
• ensure you ask question while still listening to the interviewee
• adapt to different audiences
• work well and calmly whilst under pressure
• have an interest in news and have a common knowledge of past and recent stories
• be confident 
• know how to use modern recording equipment
• ensure that you can meet deadlines 
• understand the health and safety regulations 

What does a Radio Broadcast Journalist do?:

They are in control of coming up with new and original ideas, exploring the background information, ensuring that their information is from a reliable source, showing any new ideas or new news that could be contemplated by editors or any other people that can make them happen. They also research into different audios and locations they can use while looking for a possible person to interview. It is also essential that they prepare suitable questions for interviews, possibly take photographs so they're able to post it to websites and further promote either their company or their personal work.

Radio broadcast journalists additionally edit all their own work they have personally planned, researched, organised and recorded. While doing this, they will ensure they choose the right software package in which will allow them to edit the work to the highest quality, and edit the footage so only relevant is involved.

What are the qualifications needed to be a Radio Broadcast Journalist?:

No degree is needed however you may be accepted if you have a degree in a non-media related field. Having expert understanding in grounds such as science, business, politics or language could give you a very high chance in allowing you to acquire a job as a radio broadcast journalist. You can also begin in newspaper or magazine by writing columns and then work your way up from there into radio with at least two or three years' experience in journalism.

What is the best route into being a Radio Broadcast Journalist?

As mentioned above, the best way into the job role is to have at least two or three years of experience in journalism as this will allow you to have clearer view of what the job role is, what you need to do, the equipment you'll be working with, how to communicate well with your co-workers and how to work well under pressure. You may even decide at the end of the journalism that it's not all you thought it would be, and therefore decide that you want to do something else. However, if you do find that you enjoyed the work experience in journalism, looking for apprenticeships as a radio broadcast journalist at large companies may be the next step.

Advertising and Editorial Photographer

Brief description of what an Advertising and Editorial Photographer does?

They take professional photographs that will be used for adverts, promoting a certain brand, idea or product. Photographs are used in adverts to tell a story through the use of still images, and they're most common found in magazines, billboards, books and websites. Again, there are a number of factors which you need to be able to say you can do to such as:

• you must be able to understand how to use colour, tone and shape effectively
• ensure you are organised, imaginative and experimental
• have a friendly personality, and be able to stay calm and keep the people around you calm also, in stressful situations
• have a strong passion for traveling, talking to new people
• be confident and highly motivated
• ensure that you have good written and verbal communication skills
• be confident and skilled with manipulating images 
• be able to translate and illustrate a story and successfully promote the idea, brand or product.

What does an Advertising and Editor Photographer do?

An advertising and editor photographer takes photographs for a specific company or client, and the client could be part of a designer brand or advertising firm. The images can be categorised into specific factors, for example:

• landscape
• portraiture
• still life

Some work is done in studios, but most of it is mainly carried out in studios using studio lighting, props and other accessories. Some people that work in this job role specialise in well-lit images that are mainly used for medias such as catalogs and packing. These are known as 'Pack' or 'Pack Shot' photographers. Self-employed advertising and editor photographer get commissioned to do high-quality images that sell the benefits of brand awareness.

What are the qualifications needed to be an Advertising and Editorial Photographer?:

There are no set qualification needed to be an AEP, however having a strong portfolio to promote the work you've done in the area, having a good reputation and a track record can help you progress into the job role. There are many courses available in the UK that allow people to learn new technical skills, and help you get work experience. Employers also like it when people who want to get into this job role, have work-based qualifications such as apprenticeships.

What is the best route into being an Advertising and Editorial Photographer?

It is always good to work your way into the job role as an assistant photographer or working along side another photographer to see how they work and what the job role intakes. This will ensure you have the correct type of experience, also by asking to work along side projects, stand in on meetings, asking to meet clients, in order to fully understand the production stages of being a photographer.

Art Director

Brief description of what an Art Director does:

An art director is in charge of creating and designing advertisements, making sure that the images within the advert give the correct messages, all whilst ensuring it is pleasing to the eye and grabs the audiences attention. There are a number of factors you need to be able to have to be a successful art director such as:

• have a great imagination 
• have a great knowledge of advertising brands
• have good communication skills as you'll have to speak with different clients
• understand the target audience of each project, and adapt your work to meet the needs of the audience as well as the client
• ensure you are enthusiastic about your work, and that you can try keep the people around you enthusiastic also
• be able to develop original ideas
• be able to work effectively in a team and individually 
• be able to draw by hand well

 What does an Art Director do?

Art directors are responsible for directing the creation of advertisements, mainly visual advertisements and they are mainly found on posters, billboards, and magazines, possibly adverts on TV, mobiles applications and websites.

What are the qualifications needed to be an Art Director?:

Having a degree in a field such as graphic design, advertising o film making will get employers attention as they shows that you have a great knowledge in designing, team work, working individually, etc.

What is the best route into being an Art Director?

Art directors come from a variety of backgrounds and will usually have a degree in advertising or design. Then form a partnership with a copywriter while studying and look for a first job as a team. they create book or portfolio to showcase the work you've done.

Working Practices

The amount of money you earn all depends on the hours in your contract, how old you are and your position or activity in a business. A contract is physical or electric documentation that specifies the commitments an employer must follow, the hours you will work per week, how much you will get paid per hour and the benefits to the employer. The term unsociable hours, as I believe, means the employer may be working past hours of daylight, for example, working the night shift.

Full-Time- a permanent job usually consists of working a minimum of 39 hours in one week. 

What are the Advantages of Working Full-Time?

1. A full-time permanent job means that you have steady and guaranteed hour and income, therefore there is less financial stress.
2. Benefits such as health insurance, paid sick leave, and retirement plans are provided for full-time workers.
3. The more you work as a full-time employee, more social security benefits will be received once you retire.
4. You get to work as a team
5. Gives you the opportunity to get recognised and get promoted if you're completing your task on time and to the best of your ability.

What are the Disadvantages of Working Full-Time?

1. You may find that you don't get along with someone who works with you, and as you are working with them all day, nearly every day of the week this could possibly cause stress or demotivate you to work.
2. Full-time may be a disadvantage to a parent as they won't get enough time to spend with their family.
3. Little to no spare time and heightened stress levels
4. A lot of multi-tasking may need to be carried out in order to get the work load completed on time.

Part-Time- also permanent and for students are trying to earn some money either on the weekend or on days where they have days off from college or sixth form. Part-time workers get the same rights as full-time workers, they just work fewer hours. 

What are the Advantages of Working Part-Time?

1. Part-time work allows students to gain an income and save up for the future while they don't need to pay bills (if they don't already own or rent a property).
2. This working practice can also allow parents to work during the day while their children are at school and they are able to pick them up at the end of the day, if they don't want their children to go to a child minder.
3. In the professional industry, people chose to have a part-time job so they have more time for family and their personal life.
4. It's a great way to develop new skills while having the chance to pursue other projects.

What are the Disadvantages of Working Part-Time?

1. Due to only doing a certain amount of hours, therefore this means you are receiving a low income to what a full-time worker would get and this may create some problems financially, especially if the employer has a lot of bills or children.
2. It may be difficult for a person to move up in a business and get promoted if they are only there for a certain amount of hours.
3. Part-time workers usually have no health benefits, in particular businesses.
4. Stress could arise for students if they work part-time and have coursework to complete at college/sixth form

Freelance- explained as someone who doesn't have a full time or permanent contract with a specific company, therefore they can work with a certain business for short period of time and then move on to a different project at a different work place and an example would be, if I was to work as an article writer or as a radio producer.

What are the Advantages of Freelancing?

1. The first advantage is that you'll get paid more, due to being allowed to discuss and confer how much you are willing to work for, as a result of working for yourself, you don't need to pay for sick leave or any holidays.
2. You get to keep the profits form the projects you complete, as you no longer have to work for a flat rate.
3. Another advantage is being able to choose your own hours and be able to go where ever you like, travel and visit places you may not be able to if you were working full-time.
4. Having complete independence may not be a good idea for some people, however some people may find that they prefer to have all the work and do it by themselves.

What are the Disadvantages of Freelancing?

1. There is not a certainty that you will have a job lined up and it's not exactly reliable, due to workload and income being inconsistent.
2. As you are working for yourself, you may find it difficult to find a line between your personal life and your business life.
3. A lot of responsibility and pressure is being put on you to find your own work, complete projects and deal with financial problems by yourself and completely individually.
4. There are no benefits like you would get if you were working for specific business permanently, such as discounts in certain stores, health insurance, sick, personal and maternity/paternity leave, child and elder benefits and life and disability insurance. 

Flexi-Time- this type of working practise ensures employees can be flexible with their hours. They have the opportunity to chose the amount of hours they have to complete in a week. For example, if a person decides they want to work 30 hours a week, they could only work 4 hours one day and or even 3 hours the next day, bu they have got to work a total of 30 hours by the end of that week.

What are the Advantages of Flexi-Time?

1. Travelling could be cheaper for the employee as they could decide to travel when there is little to no traffic.
2. Balancing their personal life and their work life can be much easier as they can work around other commitments.
3. Flexi-time means that the company is progressive and takes in to amount the needs of their employees.
4. This working practise ensures the employees are more loyal and happier towards the company.

What are the Disadvantages of Flexi-Time?

1. If an employee decides or needs to work little hours throughout the week, they will need to work the rest of the hours at last minute.
2. Flexi-time could create difficulty with organising meetings and training
3. Working flexitime without having a manager or supervisor could cause some difficulties with employees that don't know how to organise their duties and tasks.
4. Lower levels of employees makes it difficult to cover all hours of the day.

Job Share- When two employees in the same business share what one employee would have to do, they share the same responsibilities, the same tasks and and work load. It's all just split in half so two employees can complete it. They will also share the same resources, equipment, desk and computer. 

Production Stages- Evidence (unit 1- 1.1 & 1.2)

Pre-Production 

The physical work we did in preparation of the production stage:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8wUC-ZEIt6jT0xTeDB3d09VUTQ/view?usp=sharing

The research I did on green screens:

http://mcardwellnnc.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/using-green-screens.html

Learning about operating a camera:

http://mcardwellnnc.blogspot.co.uk/2016/09/camera-angles-shots-and-operation-task-2.html

Production

Above, is the completed music video.

Post Production

The screenshot on the left is the timeline which includes, the sound track for 'Rockstar', the images which replace the green screen and the original footage of the students and staff miming to the track. I first began by dropping in the footage onto the timeline and removing the audio. I then dropped the audio for 'Rockstar' on to the tab called 'Audio 1'. And then bit by bit I edited the original footage so it matched perfectly with the audio.

Once all of the footage of the staff and students was edited to fit the audio, I began removing the green screen behind them.

I removed the green screen by searching for ultra key in the effects search bar, and then selected the 'eye-dropper' tool and then clicked on the brightest part of the background, and the green screen will be removed. And then this allowed me to find an image from Worksop, and drop it onto the time line which is where all the pink images are on the timeline in the picture at the top.

For example, in the image above I removed the green screen and found an image of a bathroom showroom, as I believed it linked to the lyrics 'and a bathroom I can play baseball in it'.

The screen shot to the left shows the footage of students and staff, and this is the footage we take and drag on to the timeline to edit. And in the bottom right hand corner of the clips, there's a small symbol that indicates whether the clip has been edited in the timeline.

Notes on Macro & Micro Features: Task 1 Film Analysis (Unit 4)

What is the difference between macro and micro features?

In terms of film, the macro features describe a film's narrative and its genre. However, micro features in film describes the mise-en-scene, performance of the actors and actresses, cinematography, editing and sound.

What is the difference between diegetic and non-diegetic sound?

Diegetic sound is the sound within the world, for example, talking, ambient noise, birds, wind. The diegetic sound is all dependent on the genre of the film. Therefore, non-diegetic sound is the sound added in post-production, such as music, theme tune, explosions etc.

The first clip- 'Batman Begins: Tumblr Scene HD'

From the micro features, myself and the group decided that cinematography, editing and sound were the most important and without these features the film would be a lot less interesting. Therefore, after we watched it without sound to see whether it would still be tense and dramatic, which it didn't. The use of dietetic and non-diegetic sound ensures that the audience is aware of the genre, and that their attention is also kept on the film.

The second clip- 'Enduring Love: Opening Scene' 

Once we watched the clip, we decided that the cinematography and sound was the most important attributes. Although with this clip, the sound doesn't conform to the ideology of a dramatic scene as i personal believe that the sound in a way doesn't match to what is happening in the scene. Non-diegetic violins are present, therefore changing the scene from dramatic to sad and upsetting. Also, the fact there is little if no verbal communication between the actors and actress, opposing to the stereotypical scene of an action film.

The third clip- 'The good the bad and the ugly: final scene'

This iconic cowboy/western scene has interesting cinematography, sound and editing from the micro features. The scene has a wide range of camera shots and angles such as extreme close ups of the men's squinted eyes and their hands edging towards the gun on their belt, therefore creating a long and extended enigma. The fast pace editing toward the end of the scene all creates enigma. At the beginning of the scene there was barley any sound, both non-diegetic and diegetic, but as the clip progressed, country/western music was present to build tension.

The final clips- 'Scream' (opening scene)

For the opening scene of 'Scream', we noted the codes and conventions:

• Master killer
• Hostage
• Dramatic non-diegetic music
• Blood
• Weapon e.g. knife
• Screaming
• Night-time
• Isolated location 

The most important micro features are sound, performance and miss-en-scene. The dramatic non-diegetic music allows the audience to decipher the genre in which is a horror. Screaming and crying is also heard a lot throughout the opening sequence. Performance is a important feature as the girl who is played by Drew Barrymore.

Codes and Conventions of Scifi:

• Good vs Evil
• Futuristic
• Advanced technology
• Robots
• Aliens
• Located in space
• Strange weapons such as laser guns
• Special effects

Codes and Conventions of Comedy:

• Located in bright places
• Diegetic sound of the actors/actresses 
• Props
• Camera usually follows the actor/actress
• Characters tend to wear bright coloured clothes
• Characters tend to act quite stupid

What is Mise-en-Scene?
https://collegefilmandmediastudies.com/mise-en-scene-2/
Otherwise known as, placing on stage or telling a story in theatre, mise-en-scene is an umberella term for everything you see on screen, how it has been arranged and shown to an audience. Mise-en-scene includes, lighting, staging, actors/actresses, props, location, costume/makeup and special effects (sfx). The way in which the mise-en-scene has been arranged, allows the audience to comprehend the genre of the film, TV show, advertisement, etc.

Lighting:

• High-key/low-key/natural lighting 
• Classic Hollywood Lighting

This consists of:

1. The key light- brightest light, found towards the front of the set
2. The back light- light behind the subject, therefore giving a sort of depth between the subject and the background
3. And the fill light- ensures there are no shadows in which have been created by the key and back light. Found generally opposite to the key light, at a lower brightness, to balance the overall image

• Quality

When referring to the quality of a piece of film, it's either described as being:

1. Hard- hard lighting create stronger shadows
2. Soft- a piece of film has a soft lighting when a diffuser is used, for example, a material is situated in between the light and the subject

• Direction

What direction is the light coming from?

1. Overhead lighting- this will create a dramatic and harsh shadows upon the subjects face, therefore making them look superior and sinister 
2. Under lighting- using this type of lighting will emphasise all the details and natural creases in the face, also used to make the audience think the character is evil
3. Side lighting- used to cast a shadow on one side of the subjects face, generally used in thrillers or mysteries 
4. Back lighting- silhouettes are created with this lighting, and it's often used in horror films to hide the killers face from the audience, therefore creating an enigma. An example of where this is most famously used is in Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" (1960).

• Source

What is the perceived light source in the shot?

1. fluorescent light of an office
2. candlelight
3. table lamps

What is the actual light source in the shot?

1. it isn't real candles creating the lighting effect
2. buy may be a light off-screen

• Colour

1. the colour can be changed in post-production using a process called colour grading
2. attachments to the lens, also known as filters, and coloured plastic that can withstand the heat of bright lights, also known as gels, can be used to add a wash to the scene.
3. depending on colour of the light, information can be conveyed to the audience, for example, a red glow on a person's face can indicate that they are close to a fire.

Terminology: Exposure

• When a camera exposes light into the film stock to create an image, the film can be:

1. under exposed- the picture is darker than it should be 
2. correctly exposed- the lighting is set to a suitable exposure
3. over exposed- too much light and parts that are already light are bleached out.

The Godfather (Dir: Francis Ford Coppola, 1972)

I would describe the lighting as ambient, as the main light source is coming from above (e.g. overhead lighting) making the Italian character is the beginning look as if he is being questioned, and sympathy is felt for this character due to what happened to his daughter.

Side lighting is seen thought the opening scene, therefore creating more of a dramatic image and texture becomes more prominent. I believe the director chose to use this specific lighting to create tension and to clearly she the genre of the clip thought the use of effective lighting.

Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock- The Master of Suspense

Alfred Hitchcock was an English film director and producer, who pioneered many elements of the suspense and psychological thriller genres. Hitchcock's aim was to have fame and fortune and the right to make his own art in his own way; and on the way he wanted to create a world as strange as his own personality, intertwined with glamour and thrills. Hitchcock beloved that he was quote a simple man, when in reality he was "rather complicated, extremely complicated", said his daughter, Pat Hitchcock.

Hitchcock describes his films as a mixture of "murder, mayhem, violence, sex, lovely costumes and a joke or two". In a documentary I watched, a man called Hume Cronyn (actor/friend of Hitchcock) said that Hitchcock had a very "narrow, prejudice, lower middle class, tough upbringing". He also states that Hitchcock was frightened by police men, though he didn't quite remember what he did, his father sent him to the police station with a note and then he was locked up in a cell for 5 minutes. That's when he was told, "that's what happens to naughty boys". A friend said Hitchcock told the story until people were sick of hearing it; it's said that this story inspired most of his films.

An interviewer once asked him, "What are you afraid of Mr Hitchcock?" and his response was:

"I'm afraid of policemen, the wrong side of the law, authority descending upon me, putting its heavy hand on my shoulder and making his stomach turn over in fear." 

Drew Casper (film lecturer) said Hitchcock went to college at the age of 11 and the college told him and the other students that 'you have to be very cautious in life because you have evil in you and so do other people'. Casper then finished with, 'good and evil aren't separated but they are bound'.

Samuel Taylor (screenwriter and friend) recalls Hitchcock going to a restaurant for dinner when at school, dressed 'proper', and ordered a 'proper' lunch' and had a cigar afterwards.

"The element of suspense is giving the audience information"- Alfred Hitchcock 

Hitchcock stated, two people could be sat talking to each other and then suddenly a bomb explodes from beneath them and both them up, however if you tell the audience that there is a bomb beneath them in which is going to explode in 5 minutes, the audience is then anxious and put under enormous amounts of stress. Suspense was the key to a Hitchcock thriller and when working with screenwriter Charles Bennett, he turned suspense into an exact science.

Jay Presson Allen (screenwriter) said Alma Reville was really smart and extremely knowledgeable about film. Alma and Alfred were so close, they were a pair, they read each others minds. Alma was afflicted with a disease when in school, which lead her to miss two years, in which was a real shame as she was a really bright woman. It was at this time when Alma went straight into the picture business as a film editor. Hitchcock didn't dare to ask Alma to be with him until he had officially become an assistant director.

Aurther Laurents (screenwriter) remembers if Alma didn't like someone, you would know it  and so would Hitchcock. She was a woman with opinions that she voiced.

Hitchcock discovered that the meaning in a film can be conveyed by the dynamic juxtaposition of images, a technique known as 'Montage'. Also, "in a montage sequence, acting then becomes a matter of stylised gestures expressions which become significant only when placed aside other images. It's a principle that Hitchcock would apply throughout his career to the dismay of many of his actors".

"The medium of pure cinema is what i believe in, the assembly of pieces of film to create fright is the essential part of my job"- Alfred Hitchcock

The Russians used cinema as a form of propaganda,they believed they could make the audience thing and feel a certain way,they thought they could manipulate the audiences opinions, and this is what Hitchcock wanted o interpret into his films. He liked the idea of bringing the audience to a high and then down to a low, making them scream, and making them laugh. From this, Hitchcock took Ernest Lehman (screenwriter) to dinner and began experimenting with chords on the organ, discovering that one chord could make an audience scared and another chord can make them laugh.

Ronald Neame (assistant cameraman) recalls finding a woman named Annie Ondran in which was to play the character of a little London girl, however she was from Czech Slovakia and had a very strong Czech accent, though it was too late to change the actress as she had already been photographed too much, therefore Hitchcock got another young actress (Jone Barry) to sit on the side with her own mic and Annie, the Czech girl mouthed Jone Barry's words. Blackmail was another Hitchcock success, though after this Hitchcock seemed have lost his way.

Linden Travers (actress, The Lady Vanishes) said Hitchcock reminded her of Buddha, "he was quite remote and self-contained".

Roy Ward Baker (assistant director, The Lady Vanishes) said when on set, "there was no other authority, there was no where else to look, he was it".

Hugh Steward (editor, The Man Who Knew Too Much) said Hitchcock knew exactly what he wanted and he remembers one instant where "he walked on the set on the very first day, held a script in his hand, placed it down and said another one in the bag".

Hitchcock was most interested in "pure cinema" and his thrillers gave him an international reputation, so by the end of the 1930's, he was ready for the biggest move in his career so far.Hitchcock had his eye on Hollywood for years, as he was tempted by all the resources the big American studio had to offer. It was in Hollywood that he met producer, David Selznick (1902-1965, died at the age of 63).

Marcella Rabwin (David Selznick's secretary) said Selznick was always a principle type of man. Rabwin recalls Hitchcock and Selznick would fight about scripts and he demanded the dialogue must come straight from the popular novel, that the setting should match the descriptions just as they are in the book. Selznick and Hitchcock agreed the film should have a $947,000 budget and a 48 day shoot, however in the end it took $1.28 million and 63 days to complete the film.

Arthur Laurents (screenwriter, Rope) said Hitchcock was a "curious homebody who enjoyed his work, that was his life, his wife and he was mad about Pat (his daughter)".

Timeline of Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock

1862- Father of Alfred, William Hitchcock is born and he later became a green grosser

1863- Mother of Alfred, Emma Jane Whelan

1890- Brother of Alfred, William Hitchcock junior is born

1892- Sister of Alfred, Eileen Hitchcock is born

1899- Alfred Joseph Hitchcock is born, August 13th in Leytonstone, London, England, UK, in the family high street shop.

1915- Alfred got his first job outside the family business as an estimator for Henley Telegraph and Cable Company, where he met Alma Reville.

1920- Hitchcock's hobby took him to a former power station in North London, where an American company came to London to open a studio so Hitchcock decided to apply for the job role where he could design titles, as this was in the silent film days. The titles were an important part of a picture.

1923- Director of the film 'Always Tell Your Wife' fell ill, Hitchcock was named the new director to complete the film.

1923- Directed his first film beginning to end, 'Number 13', though the production wasn't finished due to the studio's closure. However, it was later remade and completed as a sound film.

1924- Strike was released

1925- Hitchcock received the education of a lifetime, he was sent to work in a studio in Berlin (German expressionist cinema) where he learnt about shadow, camera angles that were unconventional, off center framing, shots from above and shots from below.

1926- The Lodger, recognised as the first Hitchcock masterpiece even though his film and career was still very new born. Unfortunately, when the film was finished, two distributors sent two representatives to view the film and when they came out of the film, they said it was "awful" and that it was a "dreadful picture". However, it was two months after this when they decided to show it after all, and critics said it was the "greatest British picture every made".

1926- The Mountain Eagle was released

1927- The year that he married Alma Reville (2nd December). Alma wasn't born a Catholic, but she became one once she married Alfred.

1928- Alma and Alfred's only child, Patricia, was born July 7th. Pat, later said that her mother, Alma, was a wonderful, forceful character

1929- Blackmail was released and Hitchcock was a natural choice to direct the first talking picture, Blackmail.

1933- Waltzes from Vienna was released. This was Hitchcock's first and only venture into the music genre. It was this year that producer, Michael Ballken, saved Hitchcock and he was the man that gave Hitchcock his first break as a director.

1934- The Man Who Knew Too Much was released, and this was the first of the thriller cycle (6 films in 4 years he made for Gaumount British Studio). It was after this Hitchcock earned his name "The Master of Suspense" with 20 films to his credit.

1935- The 39 Steps ( Gaumount British) was released, and Madeleine Carrol was named as one of the Hitchcock blondes.

1936- Sabotage (Gaumount British) was released, it was a thriller set in a world of street markets.

1937- Young and Innocent (Gaumount British) was released

1938- Hitchcock made the film 'The Lady Vanishes'. This was also the year that Hitchcock signed a 7 year contract with David Selznick ("obsessive, pill-popping workaholic") , in which he was to make 10 films.

1939- Hitchcock and his family left England for Hollywood and his first American film was was to be 'Rebecca', based on the popular novel by Daphne Du Maurier. Therefore, later on in 1939 Rebecca was released (Selznick International).

1940- Rebecca was Hitchcock's most popular pictures, so much so that it won the Oscar for best picture. However the Oscar when to David Selznick, the producer.

1942- The film 'Saboteur' pushed Hitchcock's fame as a director

1946- Hitchcock's 7 year contract with Selznick was running out, though Selznick urged him to renew it, but Hitchcock was already planning on something else; Transatlantic Pictures Co. An independent company set up and run by Hitchcock and producer, Sydney Bernstein and they had a 5 million loan from an American bank.

1948- Rope was released

1949- Under Capricorn was released, Hitchcock said that this film was going to be a "flop" before it was released and then he disappeared for a while.

1954- Rear Window was released

1959- North by North West  (MGM) was released

1957- Vertigo was released (Paramount Studios), this was Hitchcock's "most haunting films" and some even claimed it made them feel car sick when they watched it.

1960- Alfred was referred to as 'Alfred Hitchcock's ...' E.g. 'Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho' (the year where 'Psycho was released'.

1963- The Birds was released.

1972- Frenzy was released. This was also the year that Alma Reville fell ill from a paralysing stroke which made her unable to walk very well.

1976- Family Plot was released.

1979- March 7th, Hitchcock is awarded AFI Life Achievement Award. Then later in 1979 he was knighted.

1980- Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock died from heart and kidney failure.