The Stages To Producing My Storyboard

Throughout the week we have been drawing up our storyboard and shot selections for our opening sequence. I drew up a potential sequence that i would use for my opening titles. These consist of showing a young boy/girl

This drawing is representing the lonely child sitting at some steps, with everyone walking past not taking any notice of him what so ever.

This picture is showing the character waiting on the corner of a street, waiting for he owner of the food stall (in this case a kebab van) to turn away in able for them to take the food that is on the side without causing a stir.

This shot is showing the child taking shelter in a station, (its suppose to be raining). Implying that they are living off nothing and that they need to find shelter for themselves.

This is a shot that continues off the other shot that was happening earlier in the sequence. So this shot is a sequence showing, the child running away from the food stall with a burger or something. Again, feeding himself.

This shot is a close up of the character's face trying to show their feelings through a few second holding shot. This will give you an idea of what the character looks like and how he must be feeling.

This is the basic and most probable final version of my sequence, i will repeat a couple of the shots maybe in different places to give the effect of the days going past. Although it could do with some more shots, i feel this is a good structure to my sequence.

Long Road Logo Animation

Here i have taken the Long Road logo, and animated it in my own way giving it a new look. We did the animation in AfterEffects.

My Pitch Of Choice

The pitch that i have chosen to create the opening sequence for is pitch number 2. 

A young boy/girl, homeless in the streets making her own way in life, stealing and finding shelter for themselves. Then someone comes along and takes them in, then the boy/girl sets off in pursuit of her family.

Things That Are Essential For a Good Opening Sequence

For a successful opening sequence, you should make sure you; 

- Make it eye catching, show off your production values;

- Taste of the rest of the film, but don't give too much away;

- Don't let it drag out into the film;

- Good soundtrack that works with the film, relates to it if possible;

- Build up e.g. tension or mystery. make the audience want to see more;

- Introduce characters, location, theme or mood, all of these? These are optional;

- Institutional detail. Distribution industry/ production company/ actors etc;

As long as you work with these points in your opening sequence, you should be able to create it in a way you will attract people into the film and encourage them to watch on.

Film Briefs

Film Brief:

A mainstream action film that will appeal to 15-25yr old males

All superheroes or heroes have a certain attained power or ability, and has a use right from the beggining. What if there were a heroe among us all but we didn't know anything about it! The power that we had at our very own fingertips, the things everybody wanted to have. What if you could change the world.

Charlie, a regular citizen of downtown New York, living a regular life. At 21 he has jus started to build a life for himself, has a secure job at a company in the city, (not determined what) own flat where he lives with his best mate Jake. Since he was born he had lived a normal life throughout the years, day in day out. All is well for charlie until he discovers what he was created for..

Film Brief:

An independent film featuring a young protagonist.


A young boy has been left alone in the streets of Tokyo as his family have no money to support another being in the family. He has to make a living for himself, find food, shelter. How could a young boy cope on the street all by himself. In this film, you will see how a boy is in the persuit of life s he struggles day by day. He is stumbled apon by a man who takes him in, gives him everything he needs. He then goes after he family, tracing them down..

Can this young boy in the streets of china live a life of hope and find where his family are.. or were they always right by his side.


Film Brief:

An animated feature appealing to an adult audience

A male scientist has been researching strange behaviour in some dogs, almost posessed. Due to a security breach the dogs cages have been released from lock and attacked the scientist biting him, ingesting a harmful desease causing zombification! The dogs are on the loose attacking residents leaving them all with this terrible desease. One man is left living under his own military training, serving as a military research scientist, stopping wave after wave of these deseased dogs and humans. He believes he is the last man alive, or is he?

Can he find a way to cure this desease and restore normal life in the city, will he find refuge or will he die trying to ave life of mankind? A cross between 'I Am Legend & 28 Days Later'.



Feedback on my ideas..

'The first film brief could do with some more detail informing us more about what the film would be about, explaining his power maybe or the story line.'

'I really like the pitch about the young boy living in china, it has a good line to it and seems quite gripping.'

'The last pitch was too much of a copy of known films around, even though was a good idea.'

Blog Thoughts

I looked at a blog from a previous student at long studying media. Their project was to make there own thriller opening sequence.
Before making their opening sequence they needed to research and plan existing thriller opneings, now this could be looking at other students work or observing a proper one from a film. They chose to take a sample from a film, the film they chose was Seven.
They analysed the sequnce and made notes on it. They then storyboarded a sequence which they feel would work well.
The planning and research was done pretty well i thought, but they only had 1 video of research between 4 people. If they had looked at a few more videos and posted them on the blog, they wouldv'e no doubtidly got more marks, but their final cut would ultimately be better as they would have differnet techniques they could have taken from othe sequences and merged them all to one. The levels of writing were good there was a lot, but maybe too much in comparisson to the visuals. Neede more pictures and videos for research. 14/20 Planning and Research.


The final cut was well put together and felt like a real opening for a thriller, but the minimal research had come back to haunt them as you could easily tell that their ideas were from Seven. The close ups, not seeing faces, not allowing the veiwer to understand or generate a thought of what is going on in the sequence. All together the construction for the film was good but the lack of research had let them down. Too many traces of the film Seven. 44/60

http://55thrillerproject08.blogspot.com/

Film Production Companies

The layout gone all wierd but here are some examples of production companies

These are just some of the big names in film production. Most films you have watched, would've probably been produced by these major companies.

Universal have pruduced some award winning films such as Billy Elliot, Fast and the Furious and newly released Role Models.

Miramax: Kill Bill v1/2, Reprise, City of Men and others.

Dreamworks: Eagle Eye, The Soloist and many other well know films. They also produce lots of anumated films such as Toy Story and Finding Nemo.

Pictures of Film Production Companies

Production Companies

Names of production companies and studios that appear in the credits for the 2004 hit, The Football Factory.

The production company Vertigo have produced around 23 well known films including 'The Business', 'Dogging' and 'Its All Gone Pete Tong'.

In its first year in 2003, Vertigo produced 'The Football Factory', which entered the UK Box Office at number 3 and has now sold over one million copies making it the most successful independent UK film on DVD ever, and It's 'All Gone Pete Tong' which went on to win several awards including Best Film at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2004!

The company responsible for the distribution of 'The Football Factory' in the UK were Momentum Pictures. There were also multiple companies in charge of certain areas of the production such as lighting, sound, editing and post-production.

Interesting Film Opening Sequence

For my opening sequence i chose The Football Factory.

Camera: The camerawork in this opening sequence is very clever - there is a part right at the beggining letting you know they are thugs when you have the view through a cctv camera. most of the camreawork is just tracking and following the movement of the mob.

Sound: The music in the sequence is very tipical to the likes of football huligans, the sort like franz ferdinand or other stuff like that, and rave music when they're fighting obviously just to up the tempo a bit. There way they talk is very indescrete and open minded, i suppose you have to be to be in a firm. They have ther own lingo they add in to make it clear they're all as one and not from around that area, but you dont understand this until further on into the film.

Editing: The editing is all very calm during the first couple of minutes, but when it hits the fight.. (they all seem to be buzzin' and anxious to start on this rival firm) the tempo of the shots picks up and you become more involved in the scene.