Trailer Advice

First, WATCH A LOT OF TRAILERS. As many as possible!

Trailer Techniques
1. Long shots to establish character, setting and the ‘dilemma’
2. Fades to black that suggest shifts in time
3. Transitions accompanied by booming SFX, building tension and placing significance on the text on screen – often white on black
4. Short shots and quick cuts of some of the most exciting moments from the film, the ‘events’ that lead to resolution but not necessarily in chronological order
5. Quiet music to establish story, menacing music to highlight villains, build to a crescendo
6. Sudden moments of quiet and silence between and after music and SFX, which have equal impact on mood and pace.

Besides these persuasive features however, the language on screen and in the voiceover can also establish the narrative. Words chosen can suggest key themes and summarize the plot in a grand way to suggest the plot is timeless and universal. Some clichéd examples are:
• They will find hope where they least expect it
• One man’s destiny…
• She will face her biggest challenge
• It will change their lives forever!

Plan your film trailer – Storyboard, Shot List. Ask yourself the following questions:
1. What clips should I include in order to give a really good sense of the film’s style, content and genre?
2. How will I create mood? What mood(s)?
3. How will I create pace? Can I vary pace to make it more interesting?
4.What is the plot of my film? What particular hooks can I create? How?
5. What should I leave out in order to maintain some sense of enigma which can only be resolved by watching the whole film?
6. At what point should I include the film’s title?
7. How can I design the trailer so that it draws attention to my technical role in the film’s production?

How will your trailer fit into the history of trailers? Will it be typical of a particular style? Will you challenge conventions?

Taxi Driver

Taxi Driver is a film about many things, but overall it is about the theme of isolation and focuses on one particular loner in a big city who can be construed as an anti-hero. It is a film that draws from many genres: the Western, horror, film noir, and was also influenced by the films of the Italians (DeSica, Rosselini, Fellini).

Discuss cinematically, in at least two paragraphs, the themes of isolation and/or the anti-hero and how Scorsese's film is influenced by the different genres and by the Italians. You might find Ebert's original review and his Great Movies essay on the film helpful.

Mean Streets

Choose a five-minute scene and discuss the themes of redemption and religion in Mean Streets.

Tying It All Together

Think about the four films we've watched in this unit--Let the Right One In, Ringu, The Shining, and Alien--and choose 2 to use in your essay. Choose one of these two prompts:

• Examine all aspects of mise-en-scene (lighting, composition, set design, properties, etc.). This would include colors as well. Discuss the concept of "monster" through the mise-en-scene in each film. This exercise will help to prepare you for your Independent Study and your Oral Presentation. Examine CLOSELY and offer many details and examples. Think about what the director is trying to say IMPLICITLY. Tie both films in with each other. Discuss similarities and differences in the mise-en-scene in both films. Please do this in 4 well-developed paragraphs.

OR

• Choose a five-minute scene in both films and examine the role of women and how they are portrayed in your selected scenes and in the films as a whole. Be sure to discuss this topic CINEMATICALLY. How does the director show us? Do this in 4 well-developed paragraphs.

Let the Right One In

I want you to think about the mise-en-scene in Let the Right One In. Examine all aspects of mise-en-scene: lighting, composition, set, properties, etc. This would include color as well. Discuss the concept of "monster" through the mise-en-scene of the film. This exercise will help prepare you for your Independent Study. Examine CLOSELY and offer me many details and examples. Think about what the director is trying to say IMPLICITLY. Please do this in at least 2 well-developed paragraphs.

Use whatever scenes you can find on YouTube or come into the Library and use my copy.

Ringu

Remember how to look at a film through a feminist lens? Choose a five-minute scene in Ringu and examine the role of women and how they are portrayed in your selected scene and in the film as a whole. How does the director show us? Be sure to discuss this topic CINEMATICALLY. Back up all of your statements with evidence from the film. Your response should be 3 well-developed paragraphs. You must reference one of the big names (from feminist film criticism) such as Tania Modleski, Laura Mulvey, and Molly Haskell. You must state the title of the essay and use at least one quote. I have plenty of books in the library to help you with this.

The Passion of Joan of Arc

Full movie can be found here.

Please choose one essay prompt and write at least 2-3 well-developed paragraphs.

Essay #1 From Roger Ebert's essay on The Passion of Joan of Arc:

"There is not one single establishing shot in all of 'The Passion of Joan of Arc,' which is filmed entirely in closeups and medium shots, creating fearful intimacy between Joan and her tormentors. Nor are there easily read visual links between shots. In his brilliant shot-by-shot analysis of the film, David Bordwell of the University of Wisconsin concludes: 'Of the film's over 1,500 cuts, fewer than 30 carry a figure or object over from one shot to another, and fewer than 15 constitute genuine matches on action.'"

Many avant garde films also do not have matches on action or carryover shots. Compare The Passion of Joan of Arc to one of the avant garde films we watched in regards to editing and mise-en-scene. Use cinematic evidence to back up whatever you state.

Essay #2 From the Ib Monty article I gave you:

"When the film was released, the close-up technique was regarded as shocking. Dreyer defended his method by stating: 'The records give a shattering impression on the ways in which the trial was a conspiracy of the judges against the solitary Jeanne, bravely defending herself against men who displayed a devilish cunning to trap her in their net. This conspiracy could be conveyed on the screen only through the huge close-ups, that exposed, with merciless realism, the callous cynicism of the judges hidden behind hypocritical compassion--and on the other hand there had to be equally huge close-ups of Jeanne, whose pure features would reveal that she alone found strength in her faith in God.' As in all of Dreyer's major films the style grew out of the theme of the film. In La passion de Jeanne d'Arc Dreyer wanted 'to move the audience so that they would themselves feel the suffering that Jeanne endured.' It was by using close-ups that Dreyer could 'lead the audience all the way into the hearts and guts of Jeanne and the judges.'"

Agree or disagree with this quote. Use cinematic evidence to back up whatever you state.

Preparation for Independent Study

Choose any two minutes in the following video and create a 2 column script for those two minutes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0DotIqOD-E

Avant Garde

Choose 3 of the films we watched in class and answer the following questions. Answer all questions for each film to create at least 3 hearty paragraphs.

Le Retour a la Raison
Entr'acte
Le Ballet Mecanique
Un Chien Andalou
Meshes of the Afternoon (this is the one with the Maya Deren interview)

What do you notice about the film's presentation of cinematic space? What do you see on screen? For example, lots of landscapes or closeups? Moving or statics camera?

How does the director's use of lighting help to create meaning?

Do you identify with the camera's lens? What does the director compel you to see? What is left to your imagination? What does the director leave out altogether? Describe the mise-en-scene and how it helps to create meaning in the film.

What implicit meaning do you find in the film?

If you can't get enough of the avant garde cinema, check out this site: http://www.ubu.com/film/.

If you want to look more into Jonas Mekas, go here: http://jonasmekas.com/diary/

FREE SUMMER OPPORTUNITY

This looks like a great program and it's FREE. The contact person, Da'Von McCune, is a CHS grad and a friend of mine, so please mention you are in my class when you apply. Here is the link: http://buffaloartstechcenter.org/?page_id=1890. If you want more information about the program, contact Da'Von at 716-259-1680 or mccune@buffcat.org.

Independent Study Rationale

I want everyone to post their four films as well as their rationale by the first day of school. If you post over the summer I can read them and help you refine. Also, you can comment on each other's rationales as well...if you have ideas for films or themes. This site might be of help to you as well. Click on the Imagery and Themes tabs for ideas on filmmakers who are known for various themes... http://www.filmref.com/

Interesting David Bordwell Essay

I just found this short essay on the differences between being a film fan versus being a film scholar. If your friends are confused about what motivates us in IB Film versus what motivates your average viewer, have them read this article, Studying Cinema.

White Heat & the Gangster Genre

In at least 3 hearty paragraphs, discuss White Heat, as well as the characteristics of the gangster genre and its role as an art form. In your discussion, bring in another gangster film if you've seen one on your own (The Godfather, Goodfellas, etc.). Your discussion should be in relation to the Warshow article I handed out in class and the idea of the gangster as an individual. I want to see 2 quotes from the article in your discussion. Use your film textbook for more information on the gangster genre.

Breathless

Read this article. Choose a scene in Breathless and respond to the following quote. Be sure to write at least 2 paragraphs. Respond to each others' posts for extra credit. Here's the quote:

"This basic sequence of events is the minimal thread of continuity that holds the filmic narrative together. However, causal development and character motivation in the traditional sense are relatively loose. While the film does not reject narrative conventions as a whole, it goes a long way towards weakening the tight-knit structure and explanatory mechanisms affiliated with dominant narrative. The film's visual construction works even more aggressively against conventional film style. It systematically departs from the aesthetic guidelines and rules defined by continuity editing, relying variously on long-take sequences (often shot with hand-held camera) and jump cutting."

The 400 Blows

Pick one of the scenes below and write a 3-paragraph DETAILED analysis. Include at least one quote from a review that you find on the Movie Review Query Engine. Remember also to come up with an overarching theme for your analysis, state why you chose your scene, and the scene's relationship to the film as a whole.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uP2eWHdZLDE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9I-gsap0po

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERAGjXnXQwk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r00iQjNtC0k

Rififi

Examine Rififi through a feminist lens. Use at least one quote from a feminist film theory essay (either the Laura Mulvey essay or Anneke Smelik's essay.) Read the film by FULLY analyzing one five-minute scene. Be sure to discuss the film's meaning as a whole (through the feminist lens) and the scene's relation to that meaning. Why did you choose the scene? I also want you to mention your favorite part of the movie and what cinematic techniques you learned you could use in your own productions. Minimum of 2 paragraphs.

And, check out these cool production design pictures from the movie!

Bringing Up Baby

Think about the film's mise-en-scene. Choose one scene in the film and discuss all aspects of the mise-en-scene (costumes, set, lighting, props, framing) and its relation to the scene and the film as a whole. Use at least 2 hearty paragraphs for your discussion. Your discussion should include insights into the intent of the filmmaker as well as copious evidence from within the frame.

And please post your favorite line from the film.

The Rules of the Game

Read the following quote from Roger Ebert and choose a scene that displays deep focus and analyze for frame composition.

"Much has been made of the deep focus in "Citizen Kane" -- the use of lighting and lenses to allow the audience to observe action in both the front and back of deep spaces. "The Rules of the Game" is no less virtuoso, and perhaps inspired Welles. Renoir allows characters to come and go in the foreground, middle distance and background, sometimes disappearing in the distance and reappearing in closeup. Attentive viewing shows that all the actors are acting all of the time, that subplots are advancing in scarcely noticeable ways in the background while important action takes place closer to the camera."

Grand Illusion

Focusing only on the film's mise en scene (lighting, shot composition, set design, costume design), discuss this quote from the Robin Wood essay I gave you:

"How to belong, how to meet"--another way of putting it is to say that Renoir's perennial concern is with the boundaries; that keep people apart and the possibility of transcending them. The four-part structure enables him to develop this theme through a network of shifting, interlocking relationships presented consistently in terms of difference and the overcoming of difference.

Your response should be 2 paragraphs long and should include a correctly cited quote from one of the essays I gave you.

Blood Simple

Blood Simple is from the genre of neo-noir. You have now watched a film from the noir category and one from the category of neo-noir (American). Think about Blood Simple and Double Indemnity:

• the role of the female and her relationship with the "bad guy" (who can also be a female) and how this relationship is represented cinematically by the filmmakers;
• the "bad guy" and his/her violence and how he/she and the violence is represented cinematically by the filmmakers.

Remember that "cinematically" includes sound. Plot and narrative discussion should be limited. For those of you who are ambitious, please read Laura Mulvey's essay, "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema." Try to connect this essay (agree or disagree) with the two films in one well-developed paragraph (extra credit).

·  

For a high grade, you must in a minimum of 3 paragraphs:

•  provide copious examples from the film
• speak cinematically and use your cinematic vocabulary
• show what you know about the genre of film noir
• include quotes from any film essays you’ve read on the subjects (women, noir, etc.)

Fritz Lang's M Online

The Internet Archive has a copy online.

https://archive.org/details/PhantasmagoriaTheater-MFritzLang1931574

It does not have subtitles, but I don't think it is necessary.

It is also available on YouTube with English subtitles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihDwCKWdt0c

Sample Scripts

The only way to get good at writing screenplays is to read a lot of them. Go to http://www.dailyscript.com/movie.html to read screenplays of your favorite movies.