Storytelling Unit - Pitch Feedback

Today I presented my pitch to the class. I was told that my ideas were good and the story had legs to go with so I will move forward with this however there were a few things that I needed to build upon. My idea was that the female protagonist would bump into the lover in a coffee shop. This was said to be cliché and not very original so I will develop my idea's in making sure they meet differently.

When looking at the character's there was a good point someone made that Harriet seems to contradict herself quiet a lot with her character traits of being strong and weak but I wanted her to have many levels. When writing my script I want to make sure I am creating a strong person and her weaknesses are displayed when relevant.

The session was very helpful to me as it gives an outside opinion of what works and what doesn't and helps me to develop my story into something stronger than what I originally had. I will take all comments on board when it comes to writing my screenplay.

Contextual Studies - Mise en scène

Today I learnt how mise en scène is vital when producing a film. Not only does it create relevance, it allows the audience to align with pre conceptions of what they already expect from a certain genre or character. When looking at a scene that had muted audio, I was able to get a gist of what the scene was about by decoding what was in the scene.

I also understood the use of Semeiotics (the signs and their meanings) in particular with the way a character is dressed. When looking at Star Wars this is a clear representation of this as it shows good verses evil with evil dressed in black (Darth Vader, Darth Maul, Kylo Ren) and good dressed in white (Princess Leia, Hans Solo, Luke Skywalker, Obi wan Kenobi). This is an example of classic western archetypes as apposed to the matrix which adopts asian archetypes where white symbolises ghosts and spirits and black shows the protagonist. This showed me that I will need to look at the characters costume for my own film using western stereotypes making sure i use white for innocence and good as well as black and red for danger and evil.

We then looked at different elements of mise en scene by watching two very contrasting scene's from the popular tv show Game of Thrones.

In this scene we can already see that this has a setting of somewhere very warm and rich. We can tell this by the colour temperature, the props used which are ornate and expensive looking as well as when the windows are open it looks high up and in the mountains showing a possible exotic location. The costumes that the characters are wearing are also luxurious and very regal hinting at wealth and power. Cersie (female protagonist in the scene) is wearing red which connotes her character as dangerous. The lighting is soft and fills the room with natural bright light creating a positive and uplifting environment that is appealing to the viewers eye.

In the second scene we see the complete opposite of what was shown in the first. The setting is in a dark, dingy underground room that holds a very poor and deprived reflection. The colour temperature is cold and austere elaborating on this. The costume is medieval and army as the room is full of men all wearing metal and armour. This signifies war and masculinity. When looking at the staging Jon snow (seen in the image) is giving a speech and is standing platformed above the other mean. This shows he is a leader and is the main protagonist in this scene.







This has been an important lesson for me as I will make sure I include the conventions of the mise en scène for a drama including:

The Setting - All the locations will be pre determined for the story with relevance to their

Costume -    Worn as character specific looking at their social class and the colour meaning.

Lighting -    High-key and sharp with warm tones when happy and cold tones when sad.

Staging -     All thought out before and with purpose focusing on who's in power.

Storytelling Unit - 'The Affair' Pitch

I am going to write a screenplay, script and a 2 minute film trailer based on an idea i have created for a fictional drama piece. The short film will be called "The Affair" and will contain 2 main characters.

The Pitch:

When Harriet feels trapped in a lonely marriage, she's tempted into dangerous territory when a whirlwind affair creates turmoil and guilt beyond expectations. (23)


Harriet Wells

A woman who is smart and sophisticated. she takes pride in herself and her appearance but is always propelled to look for something different and interesting. Her boredom clashes with her strength in character although underneath she has traits of weakness especially with men that she buries. she is lost and frustrated wanting more from the world rather then settling on what she has.

She can be feisty at times when put in a situation that she doesn't agree with but deep down she emulates worry and distress that plays on her when she is alone.

Her parents are divorced and she no longer sees her mother anymore by her own choice which plays with her subconscious but shows her willingness to portray a strong person on the outside. She is a likeable character but has many floors which she chooses not to unravel.

She earns a good wage and reflects this on her dress sense with smart coats and beautiful hair. she isn't always indulged in designer looks but likes to follow smart trends and look presentable.


















Lewis Green

A complex character with many issues suppressed. He comes Across charming and good natured which he reflects in mannerisms and a smart/ easy going dress sense. polite with a good sense of humour, at face value he is an ideal catch but underneath he hides darker personality traits that do not stay concealed when he gets comfortable with others.

He comes from a working class family who did everything for him to the point he didn't have to endure any effort. When he left home he created success for himself although he doesn't visit his family often.

Looking closer he holds narcissistic traits of arrogance and vanity exploiting others for his own needs. When put in a situation he has caused he will deny responsibility and believes he hasn't committed any wrong doing. Hypocrisy and lies come as naturally as his controlling nature mirroring his self worth higher than others.

Likeable at first this character quickly shocks the audience into a false sense of security with his drastic change of personality

















The Synopsis:

3 months after her brief run in with an attractive guy in a coffee shop, Harriet has finally decided to temporarily postpone her lonely marriage to meet him. Unraveling into a short, one time affair, the risks begin to outweigh the benefits after seeing him for who he really is when she feels she has made a terrible mistake. What is she going to do? How is she going to tell her husband?



The Location:

The short film will be shot in three locations. Harriets house, Maidstone town centre and Mote Park.

Storytelling Unit - Camera Workshop

Today I learnt some basic requirements to using a professional video camera. Over the course of the workshop I gathered many different tips and tricks that will help me develop further, using some of the techniques in my short film.

One in particular was knowing how to switch focus between two different characters. turning the focus wheel on the front of the camera and looking at the metre bar on the LCD screen I was able to have on person clear and the other blurred out. As the two people were at different lengths I then twisted the wheel and switched the focus making the other person clear with the previous clear person now blurred. This made me think how I wanted to use this in my short film in a conversational part. A character would be talking to the other and then when the other character starts to speak the focus would switch and highlight them. I was also able to take it one step further and had a person walk from a distance towards the camera. Keeping the person in the frame, the zoom would keep them positioned as the same mid shot whilst I turned the focus wheel to keep them from blurring.

White Balance was something I have never learned but after this workshop I realised how Important it was and is going to consist in everything I shoot on film. A straight forward scale was shown which gave a rough guide to what the number should be depending on what light as shown in the image below

I then was taught how to get the camera to auto detect the white balance and tested this out several times using a white piece of paper in front of the camera and then push the white balance button at the bottom of the camera. This changed the subject from a greenish hue to a warm natural colour that looked a lot better.

I also used a sound boom for the first time learning how to attach it all together and then connect it to the camera using an external output. Once connected I was able to hear sound in a much clearer way when aimed at what I wanted to hear. This will be used on locations for my shoots as I am able to mask out background noice and create a more professional sound.

Storytelling Unit - Character Development

When coming up with an idea of my own I decided I wanted to create a drama piece about an affair. Before i came up with the plot I wanted to develop 3 strong characters of a wife, a husband and a lover. Initially I came up with a rough character profile of the husband and wife.

Recently I have developed the characters further in a more productive way exploring more depth to them. 

Over the last week I have learnt that it is an important process of a story to know your characters in great detail in order to create a successful idea so thats why i have proceeded further with developing my characters.

Story Telling Unit - Screenplay development

At the library I looked at an Ebook called The Short Screenplay: your short film from concept to production by Dan Gurskis. In this book it helped me to understand simple but effective tips on creating a short film screenplay.


Keeping the screenplay focused
This means to keep the story focused on a specific moment of the protagonists life rather than stretching it out into a life story. From this I realise I need to keep the story simple and direct to what I am trying to tell. If i make it complex and add lots of sub plots it can lose an audience's focus and moves the attention away from the story I am really trying to tell.


Limiting the time frame of the action
This involves creating a suitable time frame for my story to take place. Since I am writing a conventional short film (7 - 12 minutes long), I need to create a shorter time length that my story happens over for example over several hours or days rather than weeks and months. This will help the story flow and be consistent without it being to complicated.


Limiting the Number of Characters
The audience connects with a film through the characters it contains so if I'm writing a conventional short film it should contain very few as a larger cast would make it harder for the viewers to connect to them and lose the depth of the protagonist.


Below are some notes I wrote up that I found very useful:

Story Telling Unit - Writing a Screenplay introduction

I had my first session with Steve Coombes who introduced us to screenplay writing. we looked at a first draft screenplay from the feature film 'American Beauty' and then compared it to the final draft.

Interestingly the final screenplay was a lot more stripped back in detail than the initial draft. It was showing the audience rather then telling them. This ties into 2 of the five rules of writing a screenplay. 

1. Only tell what needs to be known

2. Show don't tell

3. Set up, Distraction, Punch line

4. Know your ending

5. Count your moments

I learnt so much from this session that less is more and quality can outweigh quantity. This is the first time I've properly looked at a screenplay so I have a lot to learn from it but I got an overall sense of the structure and content thats intended for one. 

Story Telling Unit - Pitching The Short Film Soft

I watched a short film called Soft directed by Simon Ellis which won numerous awards at film festivals globally.

After viewing the film we broke it down looking beyond the general context of what was involved writing notes about the genre, setting, characters, conflict the change and the overall theme. I learnt the large depth that was involved in the characters and how important it is to develop them to add to the plot. It is not black and white, characters are often complex and add value to why they are reacting to a situation in a certain way.

Once we analysed this we then had to develop a suitable pitch for the film. This was what me and class friend came up with.

After a demoralising run in with a hostile gang, a father fails to protect his son, pushing events to breaking point.

we felt it represented the story but created mystery and intrigue leaving the person wanting more. Its short but gets across what it needs.

I also learnt that small details go along way. From the characters dress sense to the purposely placed props (in this case the photo of the cricket team and the appearance of the cricket bat) which may not seem relevant to the audience at the time but they become an important part to the story later on.

Story Telling Unit - Pitching Ideas Further

In groups of three we were asked to pick 2 character descriptions and a location out of a hat in which case we had a single mum, an escaped convict and a school playground. From this we had an hour and a half to produce a story about a meeting of the characters involving the location. This is the story we came up with

Title: The Abduction

Allison, a single mother living in a council house in Birmingham struggles to make ends meet after her former abusive husband Dan was convicted to prison a little over a year ago. When she takes her son Tim to school she believes it will be just another day in the ordinary but things today will change. Dan has escaped from prison after longing to see his son and approaches the nearby playground where his son is attending. He recognises Tim and calls him over. Teachers unaware of what happening he manages to lift his son over the gate and take him. When lunch time has finished the children go back inside and a register is taken. Tim is nowhere to be seen and the teachers ring Allison to see if he has walked to his hime. When Allison questions why they are asking this her heart suddenly drops and rushes to the school. The police are rang and inform both the teacher and Allison that her husband has escaped from prison and are on the look out for him. To Allison's despair she panics and drives around in her car looking out for the boy but he is no where to be seen.

Dan is with Tim in an abandoned house and explains to his son that he wants to be in his life and does not deserve the outcome that he was given. It is then he revealed that he was not abusive towards Allison but was framed by her as she was having an affair and wanted him out of the picture.

These below are the characters we can up with:

Character Profiles:

Single Mum (Allison)

Mid 20's, Has a strong personality and its currently unemployed. She lives in a council house with her son.


Escaped Convict (Dan)

Mid 20's and in prison for an apparent abusive relationship with his partner Allison. He is the father of Allison child. He wants to see his son he has not seen in years.


Son (Tim)

6 years old, very shy and is bullied for what happened between his parents. He doesn't really understand what is going on between them.

Story Telling Unit - Pitching Idea's

Today I worked on film pitches with a maximum of 25 words based on different genres and budgets. I learnt how to scope through reading material and use resources to help me explore idea's and evolve them into fictional plot lines.

Our first pitch was to have a hollywood budget, a leading star and to be in the style of a thriller. When looking through a newspaper I found a story about a man who was on trial for murder and was pleading innocent. This evolved into being named "The Verdict" with the following pitch:

Leonardo dicaprio on trail pleading his innocence after being accused for brutally murdering elderly man and stealing a safe that still missing

Experimenting with different genres and budgets I was able to apply different ideas and stories based accordingly.