#nc3med

[chicargill]

Pre-Production Exemplar

The exemplar of the student's work is attached here. Feedback on the pre-production work is below. 

For Excellence the student needs to produce a compelling design for a short film that meets the requirements of the brief. This student’s concept, treatment and pre-production activities demonstrate effective selection and application of design choices to command and capture audience attention.

The concept:

·         Includes a compelling plot synopsis and content details which the student links to shots in the storyboard: concept introduction (1) and plot (3)

·         Includes reasonably compelling character details in terms of personality and role in the film and how these details will be translated in the film: extracts from character details (2)

·         Justifies the subject matter in terms of how it will capture the audience’s attention in a way that is only just sufficiently compelling: Target Audience (5) and Purpose/Message (6)

·         Considers several practicalities such as location, transport, talent choice and availability, props and the practicable timing of the shoots. 

The treatment:

·         explains the mood, structure and pace in a compelling way (Plot and Treatment extracts: 3, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)

·         demonstrates effective selection of various techniques such as the vox pops, fades and props to capture and command the audience’s attention (Treatment extracts 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)

·         explains how the plot and character, and the selection of various conventions effectively meet the brief of ‘Light and Darkness' (4) and how these will be applied in the film (3). See also excerpts in the Treatment section (7, 8, 9, 10, 11).

Pre-production activities:

·         included a detailed storyboard and script and a production schedule which shows significant refinement and reworking (not included with these materials)

·         included location plans/photos, props list, crew and equipment details and wardrobe, including a comprehensive schedule as to which props and wardrobe are required for which shots (not included with these materials)

·         included all talent permissions (not included with these materials).

To meet Excellence more securely the student could:

·         refine the plot, particularly the motivation for Julia’s change and subsequent resolution to make it more compelling.  For example, just turning down another invitation from her friends is not portrayed with enough conviction, in either the plot synopsis or in the storyboard, to have turned Julia’s life around (see plot extract (3) from shots 42 onwards)

·         rework the script to contain more direction for actors’ performance and include further shots in the storyboard to portray the storyline in a compelling way (see above)

·         justify the concept and design in a more compelling way in terms of how it will command and capture the attention of its specific target audience by developing the statement:  “people in this 10 year age group may experience similar situations to the main character. This may include a social situation where one must try and figure out who is best for them to be with in either a class or just who to hang out with at break” (5) and linking it to the message that “balance is important in life”(6) which is relevant to this target audience

·         provide a more detailed and in-depth discussion of the stylistic elements of the film in the treatment. The student has covered too many elements in the treatment too briefly. For example, the student needs to provide more detail on the close ups to be used, not just of objects but of characters’ expressions, and on the music which is mentioned as “happy, upbeat, lively music” (7)

[chicargill]

Starting Points for Research Topics

Journalism

http://issuu.com/meaa/docs/2012_journalism_speed_of_bytes/35

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/how_tumblr_is_changing_journalism.php

Distribution

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118057628?cmpid=NLC%7CDailyHeadlines#.UCN-tlWdZJY.mailto

http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2012/02/how-new-platforms-streaming-media-change-the-equation-for-indie-filmmakers054.html

Copyright

http://www.nhvzr.net/Nick/Copyright_Graphic_Article.pdf

http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/digital-living/6600533/How-the-webs-changing-entertainment

Maori Representation

http://journal.mai.ac.nz/sites/default/files/articles/MAI_Journal_v1,1_%20MoewakaBarnes_etal.pdf

Social Media

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/connect/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501833&objectid=10786339

http://www.spiked-online.com/site/article/7873/

Advertising

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/nov/09/marc-jacobs-dakota-fanning-ad-banned?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487

http://m.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/10/are-tv-ads-getting-more-sexist/247545/

Industry

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gamesblog/2012/feb/03/digital-downloads-boxed-games-disappear?CMP=twt_gu

http://www.techdirt.com/skyisrising/

KONY 2012

https://www.facebook.com/notes/john-rudolph-beaton/visible-children-viewed-critically/10150614970287933

http://www.ethanzuckerman.com/blog/2012/03/08/unpacking-kony-2012/

[chicargill]

3.4 - Musical Essay

Students had two periods to write a essay about the relationship between society and genre by responding to the statement: "Societies' tastes and / or values shape genre." Here is my attempt:

The modern musical has surged forward in popularity reflecting a newfound interest in the concepts of fame and notoriety in a society that has moved successfully into the digital age. The musical has long been an escapist form, where reality is replaced by the ideas of success, wealth, romance, and popularity. However, in the modern musical since 2001, the escapist visions have been closer to the possibilities for the average audience. This era of musicals demonstrate how society’s values have continued to shape genre.

The musical has always been concerned with the idea of putting on a show. Since the early musicals where numbers were often staged without integration to the narrative, the context was typically a music hall, or a Broadway stage show. Musicals like 42nd Street, which laid the template for a successful wave of musicals in the 1930s, was set in the backstage of a show called ‘Pretty Lady’. The numbers were staged as part of the rehearsals or in the 20 minutes closing sequences where three spectacular numbers were staged back to back. As more sophisticated audiences developed, more integration between the song and dance routines and the narrative was demanded. Today’s musicals continue to be concerned with ‘putting on a show,’ with key narrative themes including romance between the show’s stars and the narrative drive of the show must go on. Moulin Rouge (2001) is set within the transition from cabaret halls to theatre, High School Musical (2005) is as expected about the staging of a high school musical, and Hairspray (2007) is set around the production of the Corny Collins TV Show. The contexts of the musicals remain in A setting where performance ideas are valued – being a good performer means being a stronger narrative agent.

However, a key difference between the musicals staged in the 1930s and today is the technological developments that have seen a distinct shift in the reasons for staging these musicals in ‘show’ contexts. The key technical development was the advent of the Internet. This completely altered the connectivity of society and therefore redefined the notion of fame and its accessibility. Websites like YouTube allow the possibility of uploading a video of oneself performing that then can potentially be viewed by millions across the globe. For Justin Bieber and Rebecca Black this was how they became household names. For Bieber YouTube got him recognised and a recording contract soon followed. The promise is the same for countless hopefuls uploading their own videos across the Internet. The appeal is that the  Bieber narrative of unknown to huge star through his recognised talent is a narrative with the potential to repeat. While fame in the Internet culture is fleeting and is only able to provide small windows of notoriety, as Rex Sorgatx wrote “the point is that renown is no longer the exclusive province of a select few. Nano-celebrity is there for the taking, if you really want it.”

Musicals have played on this increasingly popular narrative of the unknown hopeful rising to become the next star. This familiar narrative is played out within Hairspray in the context of the 1960s. Tracey Baltimore is a talented individual but only performs in her living room, until she is noticed by chance at school performing in the detention room. This sets off a chain of events in which she reaches local stardom and achieves social change. The film argues that talent is discoverable; it just has to be discovered. Like Bieber, Tracey was ‘discovered’ by chance. She sings in the climatic number that “you can’t stop the beat” and threatens anyone (“I’m going to spit in your eye”) that tries to hold her down and restrict her talent (“dancing feet”). This is persuasive message for the audience of young aspiring singers and dancers who desire their equivalent shot at the limelight.

This persuasive message about fame is perpetuated by reality TV, where there is further evidence of the shift in values that has brought musicals back in the modern era. American Idol is a prime example as it has now been running eleven seasons and pulls audiences of 29 million on peak nights. Idol is “the ultimate expression of the belief that anyone can be a star” (Richard Rushfield). It searches for untapped talent across America to find one person to arrive at the destination of stardom: “this could change my life forever!” The show contains meritocratic discourse, convincing the audience that anyone watching could be the next American Idol. The show emphasises and celebrates past success and uses personal pronouns to address the audience with its explicit messages, “keep believing in yourself because we will never stop believing in you." The show is typical of reality TV’s modern values where is advocates participation and involvement (through the voting process and fandom groups) in order to build a community that celebrates discovered talent. The enormous success of Idol and similar spins offs like The Voice, Pop Idol, X-Factor, and So You Think You Can Dance show the relevance of these values and beliefs. The rise of the musical, which is a genre already associated with these values, is an inevitable consequence of this societal shift.

In conclusion, the musical continues to respond to society’s values. After a long period of relative quiet, the increasing concern with fame spurred from the development of the Internet and connectivity has seen the genre gather momentum again. As the genre has always been concerned with performance modes, a society that values talent demonstrated through performance modes will likely see the musical succeed. The current zeitgeist that values fame in a micro form (‘15 minutes’) has allowed the musical to resurface. Should this trend of fame continue to be relevant then it is reasonable to expect that musicals will remain as an active genre in Hollywood.    

[chicargill]

In the future, everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes

Andy Warhol

[chicargill]

This article captures the rise of the value of fame and is critical of networks who are going over the top to target this aspiration to a younger and younger audience. This preoccupation with fame is tied to technological advancement; "YouTube and digital technology and social networks, the idea of fame has changed. It's a lot easier to become 'famous.'" But this has also been picked up by the reinvention of the musical genre which plays out similar narratives of ordinary people finding fame and achieving dreams through their performing talents. The protagonist who achieves these dreams is frequently positioned to the audience as someone who could be them.