Revised Schedule

  I was looking at my schedule I already created and decided I wanted to change and add a few things to it so I know exactly what needs to be done to make sure my project is ready by the due date!

My Schedule (UPDATED)

JANUARY 26-31

• PICK A GENRE
• BRAINSTORM A FEW IDEAS OF WHAT I COULD MAKE MY FILM OPENING ABOUT

FEBRUARY 1-7

• DECIDE WHAT MY FILM WILL BE ABOUT
• CREATE A SCRIPT FOR THE FILM
• PLAN FOR FILMING

FEBRUARY 9-13

• CREATE AND GATHER PROPS I NEED TO FILM
• PLAN TO FILM

FEBRUARY 14

• FIRST FILMING DAY (FILM MOST OF THE MAJOR SCENES FILMED)

FEBRUARY 15

• SECOND FILMING DAY (FILM THE REST OF THE MAJOR SCENES AND MAKE SURE THE PREVIOUSLY FILMED ONES ARE DONE PERFECTLY)

FEBRUARY 21

• THIRD FILMING DAY (FILM THE SMALL DETAILS)

FEBRUARY 22

• FINAL FILMING DAY (UNLESS I END UP NEEDING TO FILM MORE CLIPS) (THIS WILL BE WHERE I CHECK OVER MY CLIPS AND CHECK IF I NEED ANYTHING ELSE)

FEBRUARY 23-27 

• BEGIN EDITING
• CHOOSE MUSIC OR AUDIO ELEMENTS I NEED TO INCORPORATE

FEBRUARY 28 + MARCH 1

• (IF ANY ADDITIONAL FILMING IS NEEDED IT WILL BE DONE ON THESE 2 DAYS)

MARCH 2-7

• CONTINUE EDITING AND ADD THE CREDITS (HOPEFULLY FINISH IF POSSIBLE)
• BEGIN CREATIVE CRITICAL REFLECTION PROCESS

MARCH 9-13

• CREATIVE CRITICAL REFLECTION

MARCH 14

• FINALIZE AND SUBMIT
• CHECK OVER PROJECT AND MAKE SURE EVERYTHING THAT I NEEDED TO COMPLETE IS COMPLETED

With this schedule I will be able to finish my project on time, and make sure it is done to the best of my ability!!

Analyzing Teen Drama Openings

Today I wanted to focus on taking a deeper look into the genre I am considering the most, and how most of the producers do their opening scene. After looking into a bunch of different teen drama openings, there are many things I have noticed. Teen drama openings usually start with a big moment that changes the characters life, or is something that already affects their life. If the problem they face is not already mentioned, the opening scene introduces subtle hints about upcoming conflicts. These scenes use popular music that matches the vibe their going for and close up shots of the characters face to show their feelings. Whoever designs the costuming and setting uses the characters clothes and bedroom to tell the audience who they are without using many words. 

The main thing these teen drama openings share is the struggle to find a place in the world, or just struggling in general. They sometimes show where the character stands in their social group or their town. Most of the time, a narrator is talking to the audience focusing on personal problems that feel very important to them. They also establish the overall tone of the film early on, helping the audience quickly understand what kind of story they’re about to see. Overall what I have learned from researching about teen drama openings is that they all create the tone very early in the film by sharing the main character or characters story from the beginning.

Here are a few openings that led me to this: 

Juno opening scene 

Wonder opening scene

Perks of Being a Wallflower opening scene

Easy A opening scene

After researching all about teen dramas, I am really excited to create my own characters with their own stories. I really want to make something that a lot of teens my age can relate to so that way they feel seen. I have watched a bunch of teen drama movies on my free time and there have been a couple that I truly relate to and it makes me feel like I am not alone in my own personal struggles. My goal is to create that same feeling in my film.

Research and analysis of other films

 Researching more film inspiration

Today I wanted to take a deeper look into one specific teen drama tv show. I am now considering doing more of a teen drama, kind of like Outer Banks. Outer Banks is a tv series filmed where these teens are living the "pouge" life, meaning they are broke teens that do whatever they want when they want. They are always living for the beach. I want to make my film a lot like that. The opening of this show is the group of teens hanging out in an abandoned house they should not be in, and then cops come and chase them out of the house. They then run in their car laughing and making fun of the cop while music plays in the background, showing their lack of care and how much fun their having. The show overall is about these teens who have nothing treasure hunting so they can live a good life. They face a lot of challenges along the way which is very important for the "drama" part of the film

Here is the opening scene of the show I am referring to:

 First minutes of Outer Banks

My Teen Drama Idea

If I choose to go with the "Outer Banks" vibe, I would make my film also revolve around a friend group who are not wealthy and decide to go to the beach to have a good time, but while running in the sand, they find an ancient artifact that they believe will finally make them rich and live the "good life", but they soon find out this artifact is not what it seems and comes with a lot of consequences. If I did this kind of film, I would rely heavily on the visuals. I would try and recreate a similar vibe in my film with the beach and similar costuming, and I would even make my own artifacts that these teens find throughout the film.

Portfolio Project Genre #2

Genre Research Part 2!

Fantasy

 Today I researched a different genre. Although drama is my top genre to do, I also was interested in doing a fantasy movie. Fantasy is a genre about worlds where things that are impossible in real life actually happen. It uses imagination to build settings where the rules of nature and history are totally different from ours. The usual target audience for these films vary but the one I would be trying to reach is the teenagers and young adults, the ones who enjoy stories about people finding themselves.

Ideas

The fantasy film I wanted to create was a princess trapped in her own life. Even though she lives in a beautiful palace, she is stuck following strict rules to be perfect for everyone else. I wanted this to be a film where the princess finds out who she really is outside of her kingdom walls. This idea reminded me a lot of the Disney princess films. For example Jasmine in Aladdin or Merida in Brave. They were meant to live up to this expectation but decided to make decisions for themselves and figure out who they were on their own. Another one is Tangled, the main princess Rapunzel is locked away in a tower but manages to sneak out and explore her kingdom and find who she really is. My last inspiration was from the movie Mulan. Mulan was meant to be a "perfect bride" since that is what her family and other around her expected from her, but she did not want that. She fought in the war and discovered who she really was. Although those are animation movies, the theme I was going for is very similar to those films. If I choose to go with this idea, I would create the opening scene with my own imagination since I have not yet found a film that matches my idea. I want it to start where the girl is dreaming she is running in a field and living a normal life in a small cottage, but then cuts to her waking up in her palace stuck living this "perfect" life where she is expected to always be perfect. 

Here is the trailer for the film I wanted to base my main theme on:

Brave movie trailer

Tangled trailer

Mulan trailer

Portfolio Project Genre #1

Transitioning to my Cambridge Portfolio Project

How I am going to do this

Hi Cambridge! From now on my posts will be about my portfolio project process. I have been considering how I want to organize myself so I get this project done on time, and decided to make a schedule to help me stay organized. Setting specific deadlines will keep me moving forward and help me track my progress each week. I want to make sure I manage my time well so the final result is something I'm really proud of.

This is the schedule I am planning to follow to get the project finished in time! 

Picking a genre

Okay now that you know about my planning process, now the fun part. What movie genre do I choose? I have a main genre I am considering the most for my project. I really want to do a drama film opening since I really enjoy drama movies. Drama movies are usually stories about real-life problems and how people feel. It focuses on serious situations and relationships instead of action or magic. The target audience for drama movies is usually adults and teenagers who like stories they can relate to. They enjoy watching how characters solve problems and grow as people. They often look for movies that make them feel strong emotions. 

My Kind of Drama

I want to do something thats a mix of sad and eye-opening. I want it to overall revolve around the growth of my main character. I want my film to start with a sad event that really moves the audience. I want the story to show how people learn and grow from hard times. I want the story to be eye-opening so it changes how people think. I want my film to focus on just one character and their personal journey through a hard time in their life. This will help the audience see the world through their eyes and feel all of their emotions. Some movies I have been researching are Wonder (2017), Beaches (1998 and 2017), Me Before You (2016), Waves (2019), and A Walk to Remember (2002). All of these movies are very different, but they have the general theme of something in their lives that is difficult that they have to grow from. Although me before you, waves and a walk to remember all are romance films as well as they are drama films, I really wanted to look into these because they all involve a very tragic event that happens that shapes the person they eventually become and how they learn to grow and heal.

Here are some of the opening scenes and trailers from the movies that I am inspired by:

Waves opening scene 

Wonder opening scene

Beaches (2017) Trailer