Romantic comedy films (romcoms) are films with light-hearted, humorous plot lines, and based on romantic ideals about love and also encounter problems in finding love. Romantic comedy films are a sub-genre of comedy films as well as of romance films.
The Film:
The Wedding Planner -
This film is a romantic comedy, this is a hybrid of the comedy and also the romance genre.
The typical conventions of a rom-com is that two people usually the main characters fall in love but encounter some problems before they can be together. In this case it is the actress Jennifer Lopez and actor Matthew McConaughy.
The film opens with a plain black background and the titles appear in a light blue girly font which gives an indication that the film involves romance.
The film starts with a flashback into Mary's (Jennifer Lopez) childhood where she is seen playing with her barbies acting out a wedding scene. This relates to the title 'The Wedding Planner' as the audience can already see that her future will involves weddings in some way or another .
The scene then blends into the present as a nervous bride is having second thoughts about her upcoming nuptials. It then cuts to Mary consoling her and reassuring her that she is doing the right thing, she is very calm and obviously experienced in what she is doing. This introduces Mary as a successful wedding planner who people respect.
The lighting is light and the scene is decorated with various lights, flowers and candles to fit with the theme of romance.
As the scene cuts to Mary entering her home the mise-en-scene suggests that she lives alone and is very independent as she makes sure everything is neat an tidy and in its place. The lighting is sightly dim suggesting that she is unhappy with the situation. However her house is decorated in a light pink and has various girly attributes to it to keep with the theme of romance.
The use of non-diagetic sound of a slow romantic song also ties into the genre and indicates to the audience that this is a rom-com. It is obvious from this that the film is targeted at females.
Sex and the City -
The television series Sex and the City is another example of the rom-com genre. The opening sequence of the programme starts with a half shot of Carrie's (Sarah Jessica Parker) face, this is to signify the idea that Carrie is a small girl in a big city, also SATC's theme tune starts to play and this is instantly recognisable. It then cuts into a low-angle shot of the empire state building which is one of the most famous landmarks in New York City, this sets the scene of the programme. Then it cuts to another shot of Carrie's face, this time its a close-up of her looking around and smiling which establishes her position as the main character of the programme. The mise-en-scene of the city environment and her hair and make-up fully made up shows that she is a confident city girl. The scenes then change but are very quick shots of different facial expressions from Carrie and then of the surrounding skyscrapers around her. This is used to emphasise the title of 'Sex and the City' Sex being represented by Carrie, and the City being represented by the skyscrapers, car/cabs and people of New York.
Carrie then starts walking seductively through New York in slow motion this is to represent her sexuality and also ties into the genre of romance, however when she is caught by a car splashing a puddle over her it represents the problems she and her co-stars will face in the pursuit of love which is a typical convention on the rom-com genre. The opening sequence then ends with Carrie looking round embarrassed and confused which makes her relatable to the audience.
Georgia Feyi-Waboso
Wednesday, 13 October 2010
Prelim Task Evaluation
Whilst filming our Prelim Task we faced a number of complications. For example when looking over the footage we had accidently recorded over it, so we then had to film the whole sequence again. However when it came to editing the footage we found that the 'lost' footage was actually on the video recorder just further back then we thought. This was irritating as we had spent time filming it a second time and not as long editing it. We didn't struggle with the 180-degree rule and put it into practice. For our main task we will take into consideration the feedback given to us by the audience.
Audience feedback:
The class had told us that overall our film was very good however they thought it was too long and the dialogue wasn't clear enough. They also noticed the change in the lighting as we had filmed two shots at different time intervals so there wasn't as much sun in one of them.
Claudia Zeppetella
Claudia Zeppetella
Prelim Task Brief
For our prelim task we had to create a short film to show our use of:
- Continuity Editing;
- Shot reverse shot ;
- The 180 degree rule.
We had to show a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another character, with whom she then exchanges a couple of line of dialogue.
We were able to choose the setting, the content of the dialogue and characters. We worked in a group of three and each of us had our own individual role.
We had to use a range of camera shots and we used a tripod to make sure the shots were steady.
We used editing software to edit our footage to make sure the film was fluent.
Claudia Zeppetella
Claudia Zeppetella
Opening Sequences of films...
Opening Sequences...
For our main task we have to produce an opening sequence to a film including credits, so in class we have been looking at some famous ones. We had to write about the different conventions used which create the effects in the first few minutes of a film. We looked at Rocky 3 and Seven.
Rocky III
Rocky is a drama film which also shares many of the conventions of the action genre. In the opening sequence to Rocky III the film starts with the recognisable rocky theme tune which is also used in the previous films in the series. The film immediately catches the audiences attention with the large yellow font stating the name of the film. Within the first 40 seconds of the opening sequence we know straight away it will be about fighting, as we are introduced to the main character Rocky fighting. Each punch he throws to his opponent is backed up with a increase of tempo in the music. The fast paced music is a convention of action genre. Both Rocky and his opponent fall to the floor and the camera shots back to a close up of a ladies face which allows us to see her facial expression and her reaction to the fight. We also get long lingering shots on Rocky's face which is a convention of the drama genre as we know the film is about him. The increasing tempo of music creates tension whilst we wait to see if Rocky will win the fight and rise from the floor. The non-diegetic sound of commentators also builds up suspense and excitement, we also feel the need to celebrate with the crowd when Rocky wins as the volume of the commentators voices rise and we can hear the excitement in their voices and we can sense the high energry which is also a convention of the action genre.The establishing shot of the ring and crowd tells us where it's taking place. When Rocky is given the prize the music crescendos to show the importance of it and loud music is a convention of the action genre. Also we see a close up of Rocky's face when given the prize which focuses on a high point in his life, something which is discussed in a drama genre as we see dramatic happenings in his lifetime. The montage in Rocky of training then fighting scenes get mixed together by the shots being faded in and dissolving is a convention of an action film as its a non stop motion with a fast pace in addition the fast paced song 'eye of the tiger' in the background builds up suspense and makes the film exciting.
Se7en
Seven is a thriller and it fits within the sub-genre of a psychological thriller. At the start of the opening sequence because its in a dark setting and there is no diegetic or non diegetic sound it creates tension as silence makes you feel as though you are alone that is why its used so often in thriller films, because people are scared of being alone. Before the credits come on the man puts the metronome on to fall asleep, and the ticking sound increases tension as you think something is about to happen as time passes on by. Which is what the thriller genre is all about, keeping the audience on their toes. We know it fits under the psychological sub genre because in the credits the person peels his skin off his thumbs, this makes you think that no ordinary person would do such a thing, they must have something wrong with them and they must be disturbed. Thriller films use dark sinister colors which gives tells you there's a chilling atmosphere. The montage used between the name credits and the hands makes the audience feel uneasy as they don't know what is coming up after the next shot. The sinister writing and eerie music makes you believe that the character is a disturbed individual. The credits are in a font similar to the hand writing of a child's, this creates a sense of uncertainty in the audience.
Claudia Zeppetella
For our main task we have to produce an opening sequence to a film including credits, so in class we have been looking at some famous ones. We had to write about the different conventions used which create the effects in the first few minutes of a film. We looked at Rocky 3 and Seven.
Rocky III
Rocky is a drama film which also shares many of the conventions of the action genre. In the opening sequence to Rocky III the film starts with the recognisable rocky theme tune which is also used in the previous films in the series. The film immediately catches the audiences attention with the large yellow font stating the name of the film. Within the first 40 seconds of the opening sequence we know straight away it will be about fighting, as we are introduced to the main character Rocky fighting. Each punch he throws to his opponent is backed up with a increase of tempo in the music. The fast paced music is a convention of action genre. Both Rocky and his opponent fall to the floor and the camera shots back to a close up of a ladies face which allows us to see her facial expression and her reaction to the fight. We also get long lingering shots on Rocky's face which is a convention of the drama genre as we know the film is about him. The increasing tempo of music creates tension whilst we wait to see if Rocky will win the fight and rise from the floor. The non-diegetic sound of commentators also builds up suspense and excitement, we also feel the need to celebrate with the crowd when Rocky wins as the volume of the commentators voices rise and we can hear the excitement in their voices and we can sense the high energry which is also a convention of the action genre.The establishing shot of the ring and crowd tells us where it's taking place. When Rocky is given the prize the music crescendos to show the importance of it and loud music is a convention of the action genre. Also we see a close up of Rocky's face when given the prize which focuses on a high point in his life, something which is discussed in a drama genre as we see dramatic happenings in his lifetime. The montage in Rocky of training then fighting scenes get mixed together by the shots being faded in and dissolving is a convention of an action film as its a non stop motion with a fast pace in addition the fast paced song 'eye of the tiger' in the background builds up suspense and makes the film exciting.
Se7en
Seven is a thriller and it fits within the sub-genre of a psychological thriller. At the start of the opening sequence because its in a dark setting and there is no diegetic or non diegetic sound it creates tension as silence makes you feel as though you are alone that is why its used so often in thriller films, because people are scared of being alone. Before the credits come on the man puts the metronome on to fall asleep, and the ticking sound increases tension as you think something is about to happen as time passes on by. Which is what the thriller genre is all about, keeping the audience on their toes. We know it fits under the psychological sub genre because in the credits the person peels his skin off his thumbs, this makes you think that no ordinary person would do such a thing, they must have something wrong with them and they must be disturbed. Thriller films use dark sinister colors which gives tells you there's a chilling atmosphere. The montage used between the name credits and the hands makes the audience feel uneasy as they don't know what is coming up after the next shot. The sinister writing and eerie music makes you believe that the character is a disturbed individual. The credits are in a font similar to the hand writing of a child's, this creates a sense of uncertainty in the audience.
Claudia Zeppetella
Tuesday, 5 October 2010
Monday, 4 October 2010
Dialogue
Andrea: Come In
Georgia: Hi my name is Georgia, pleased to meet you
Andrea: Good afternoon, sit down please
Andrea: Could I have your curriculum vitae please
Andrea: So tell me, why do you think I should give you this job?
Georgia: Well Iv'e always wanted to do this ever since I was young. It has been a dream of mine and your establishment has a very very good reputation, so I would just love to work here. Iv'e got the experience, Iv'e got the skills and... I really want this job.
Andrea: Thank you very much and we'll give you a call back
Georgia: Thank you
By Andrea Gonzalez
Georgia: Hi my name is Georgia, pleased to meet you
Andrea: Good afternoon, sit down please
Andrea: Could I have your curriculum vitae please
Andrea: So tell me, why do you think I should give you this job?
Georgia: Well Iv'e always wanted to do this ever since I was young. It has been a dream of mine and your establishment has a very very good reputation, so I would just love to work here. Iv'e got the experience, Iv'e got the skills and... I really want this job.
Andrea: Thank you very much and we'll give you a call back
Georgia: Thank you
By Andrea Gonzalez
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