G321 - Filming our remake.

Our group set aside a day to film our opening as there were many different shots to film and we wanted to ensure we had enough time to finish. Each member of the group had the task of gathering certain props as there were so many to collect. After gathering all the props we set about creating our own mini studio to film the shots we needed. As all of the shots used in the opening of Se7en are either a Close-up or an Extreme close-up we did not have to worry about location, our main focuses were lighting; camera angles and that our props looked appropriate.

By looking to our shot list, timeline and storyboard we could confirm that we were working our way through the shots that needed to be done. But for further confirmation we kept the original video open on a laptop so as to keep our version of each shot as similar as possible to the original (For Example keeping lighting, and angles the same).

By closing the curtains and keeping the lighting mostly artificial (whilst attempting to make it look natural) we had more control over how bright the shots actually were. If we relied only on daylight we would have had to rush to ensure we did not lose light.

For shots that needed much more concentrated light we were able to make the room completely dark and place/adjust this one light to get the affect we wanted.

Overall our final shots look as accurate as we feel we could have made them. During the editing process we will be able to create a similar atmosphere to the original by adjusting the colouring and shade of the shots.

Blog Post written by Katie Pridige

Katie Pridige, Charlotte Hester and Mia Norton all present on the day of filming.

G321 - List of scenes for our full film

Characters
 - Tallulah
 - Jade
 - Richard
 - Christopher

Scene 1:  Tallulah is getting ready for her date with Richard. Richard and his twin brother Chris are having a conversation about how Richard needs Chris to cover for him on the date - as he has to leave half way through. Chris is really annoyed and disappointed with Richard for suggesting they lie to Tallulah. There is a clear contrast between the personalities of the twins.

Scene 2: At the restaurant on the date. Richard leaves halfway through and trades places with Chris in the toilets at the restaurant. When Chris enters the date as Richard he meets Tallulah and finds that he has feelings for her as the date progresses. At the end of the date the two agree to meet up again. (At some point during the date Chris must mention how he does not like it when men wear jewellery after seeing a man wearing some. And Tallulah must mention how she has always wanted to go on a hot air balloon ride.)

Scene 3: The day after the date Richard and Chris are discussing the date. Richard then apologises to Chris about throwing him into the date. Chris however has had a change of heart after realising he has feelings for Tallulah and suggests he meets with Tallulah again. Richard then realises that Chris has feelings for Tallulah and wants what he can't have and the two argue about who will be going on the next date with Tallulah.

Scene 4: Richard goes on the next date with Tallulah whilst Chris sits at home alone. On the date Tallulah begins noticing contradictions from their last date. (e.g. He isn't as sweet/romantic/gentlemanly as before). Tallulah also notices that Richard is wearing an item/items of jewellery.

Scene 5: Tallulah talks to her friend Jade about the dates - questioning the obvious contradictions between them.

Scene 6: Tallulah bumps into Chris on the street and he invites her round to his home for a cup of coffee. When they arrive at his home they find Richard there with another woman. Tallulah doesn't think anything of him having a twin brother at first but then she notices Richard is wearing jewellery and that Chris is not. She is angry with them both and yells at them then storms out claiming she never wants to see either of them again. Chris is upset and angry with Richard for getting him into such a mess, but also upset with himself for not thinking more about Tallulah's feelings. Richard isn't bothered, tells his brother to get over her and move on. Richard then continues his date with this other woman.

Scene 7: After some time Jade and Tallulah are in Tallulah's office talking about what happened. Tallulah is talking about how she definitely felt a connection with one of them (Chris) but she was upset about him lying. They both find an envelope on Tallulah's desk which says a date, a time and a place to meet. She arrives at the place to find Chris (wearing a name badge) has prepared her a hot air balloon ride. She realises how sweet and romantic he is and loves that he remembered such a small detail from their one date. Final romantic shot of them kissing in the air.

Katie Pridige
Mia Norton
Charlotte Hester

G321 - Moodboard including some ideas on setting and character looks

Here are a few ideas on how the restaurant that they go to for their date will look. I thought it could be a nice idea to have them outside. There are also a few examples of the look we would like the twins to have and that the subtle differences between them will be in their clothing. We thought Tallulah would be a pretty and girly characters so I chose a few examples that fit with what we all saw in our heads.

G321 - Audience questionnaires analysed.

To find out what audiences were looking for in a romantic comedy we created a questionnaire and gave them out to 10 different people within different groups (age and gender).

Do you enjoy watching Romantic comedies?
- Yes = 5
- No = 1
- Sometimes = 4

What is your favourite romantic comedy?
- 500 Days of Summer = 1
- Bridesmaids = 7
- Knocked Up = 0
- American Pie = 1
- Other = 1

Why and if other what film?
- Other = Mother-in-law
- comments given were things such as :
- 500 Days of Summer is told in an interesting and not obvious way unlike most romantic comedies.
- Bridesmaids is relatable as I have been both a bride and a bridesmaid.
- Bridesmaids - I can relate to the characters and the relationships between them.

What age range do you think romantic comedies are aimed at? (can tick more than one)
- 12-14 = 0
- 15-17 = 7
- 18+ = 8

What age range do you like to see a romantic comedy based around? (can tick more than one)
- Young Children = 0
- Teenagers = 4
- Young Adults (18-25) = 6
- Adults (25+) = 2

Do you think the use of props such as drugs, alcohol etc. are appropriate to use in a romantic comedy?
- Yes = 5
- No = 4
- Sometimes = 1

Do you think the mocking of social groups/gender hierarchy (men are more powerful) is funny in a romantic comedy?
- Yes = 3
- No = 6
- Sometimes = 1

What do you expect from a film opening?
- The outline of the story = 0
- To be left on a cliff-hanger for the film to explain the rest = 3
- A brief introduction to the characters = 5
- No introduction to any characters just titles and credits = 1
- Other = 1

It's clear from the first 3 questions what type of films are popular at the moments which will tell us the type of humour and storyline themes that audiences will enjoy. The extra comments given about the audience film choices also tell us what audiences look for in a romantic comedy (such as relating to the characters and the situation). We can also see that the audience for a romantic comedy is believed to be teens and over but that it should be based on characters past their teen years, although basing it on teenagers could work too. There were also comments given on the use of drugs and alcohol saying that they were only appropriate if they weren't being abused and the context was appropriate. After seeing how people considered social groups it's possible that further research should be done into what humour would be acceptable and which audiences it would attract. From this we can see that audiences expect an introduction to the characters and hints towards the storyline that will keep them interested/hooked to watch the rest of the film.

These questionnaire results will help us to create our own romantic comedy film opening as we can see what is expected, what would improve our opening and what could make it different to other openings interesting audiences.

Katie Pridige

Charlotte Hester

Mia Norton

G321 - Audience questionnaire

To ensure that the audience received maximum entertainment from our film we compiled a few questions and asked people of different ages and genders their views towards Romantic Comedies and what they like to see included in them. This will then help us to add decent content to our film and not just the elements that we as girls like.

- Do you enjoy Romantic Comedies?

a- Yes
b- No
c- Sometimes

- What is your favourite romantic comedy?

a- 500 Days Of Summer
b- Bridesmaids
c- Knocked Up
d- American Pie
e- Other

- Why? And if other, what film?

- What age range do you think romantic comedies are aimed at? (you can tick more than one)

a- 12 - 14
b- 15 - 17
c- 18 +

- What age range do you like to see a romantic comedy based around? (you can tick more than one)

a-Young Children
b- Teenagers
c- Young Adults (18-25)
d- Adults (25+)

- Do you think the use of props such as drugs, alcohol etc. are appropriate to use in a romantic comedy?

a-Yes
b- No

- Do you think mocking social groups/gender hierarchy (men are more powerful) is funny in a romantic comedy?

a- Yes
b- No

- What do you expect from a film opening?

a- The outline of the story
b- To be left on a cliff-hanger for the film to explain the rest
c- A brief introduction to the characters
d- No introduction to any characters just titles and credits
e- Other

Katie Pridige and Charlotte Hester

G321 - The reason we chose the genre we did - Romantic Comedy

Our group chose to make a romantic comedy for a few reasons. One reason was that it would be a contrast to both our preliminary task (horror) and our opening re-make (psychological thriller). Making an opening that is contrasting to what we have already done will not only challenge us but give us experience in different genres. After our previous two projects were very serious/intense it would be a nice change to do something a lot more light hearted. We also found it a lot easier to come up with story lines for a Rom-Com compared to if we were to write a psychological thriller.
We were given a target audience when deciding on which genre we wanted to do (Males aged 15 - 25). We thought that writing and filming a Romantic comedy aimed at males aged between 15 and 25 would be interesting and a challenge as that is not the usual target audience for a Rom-Com. This means we will have to consider certain themes, types of humor and appealing characters for the male audiences.

Also, there are a lot of generic conventions used in romantic comedies, which would be easy for us to include in our opening. These are things such as; male and female lead characters and many situations which are relatable to the audience (such as a basic/familiar setting and romantic situations). We have easy access to locations and props which are relatable (like kitchens, bedrooms etc.) and the characters would be easy to find actors to play. If we had chosen a more complicated genre such as a sci-fi or supernatural, it would be very hard to include generic conventions as those are things such as other planets, advanced technology, ghosts/monsters, special effects & prosthetics/costumes etc.

e.g below is screenshot from a romantic comedy (Pretty Woman). There is a main male and a main female character and both are in a basic setting of a house/. This is the type of shot that would be very easy to create)




Katie Pridige

G321 - Research into Romantic Comedy

A romantic comedy is a sub-genre of Romance films and of Comedy films. They focus on romantic ideals such as 'true love' or 'love at first sight' and that love can overcome any obstacle put before it. They are lighthearted and fun to watch. Many Rom-Coms have been over the years and the audience always enter with the foreknowledge of the main structure as it is very stereotypical.

• girl and boy meet
• they begin a relationship
• they reach an obstacle in their relationship
• overcome this obstacle
• they live happily ever after

The majority of Romantic comedies are aimed at females as it is thought they are more interested in watching a film based around these romantic ideal as they believe in them. Although this is not necessarily true because many men enjoy watching romantic comedies, some which - like the majority - are aimed at females. But there are some Rom-Coms that break the stereotypical structure and some that are clearly more aimed towards men.

500 Days Of Summer (2009) - used trailer as opening could not be found

500 days of summer is a film that I believe to be aimed at both males and females as it seems to have been well received by both gender. This romantic comedy is very different compared to others as it does not follow the typical structure. The lead male believes in romantic ideal where as the lead female does not. Their relationship does not overcome the obstacles and we are left slightly not liking the lead female (contrasting other films and aiming this towards males as it is usually the male who is made to look like the worse character). The main difference in this rom-com is that the lead characters do not end up together and it is not the traditional happily ever after but it still has a positive ending.

Katie Pridige