Gas man - rough cut

Here is a rough cut of my film "gas man", it still has a long way to go yet, things such as idents, smoke effects and sound all need to be improved.

My poster!

For my film I needed to create a poster in order to give people an idea of what happens, and when the finished film will be released. In order to design my own poster I looked at a few film posters from some big block busters. The first one I looked at was the poster for the blockbuster film Star trek, from this poster you can see who is going the be the main characters within the film, the three at the top, them being at the top makes them feel more dominant, especially over the tiny character at the front. There is also the title of the film, followed by actors names, and also the companies who worked together to make this film. This poster gave me a lot of inspiration for mine, the idea of making a character feel so dominant, and belittling other chracters is what I wanted to go for in order to give my poster the feel of the film.

I have never made a poster, or anything like this before, and because of this Photoshop was new to me, having never used this software I found it very difficult to do what I wanted to do, and therefore had to sacrifice some ideas. If I were to do my poster again there is a lot I would change, it is very plain and simple, and the editing which has been done is very basic. However for a first attempt I think it will have to do, it includes the main characters, as well as gives off the information needed about the film, such as release dates and the title. Along with a star rating and the characters involved, hopefully it is good enough for people to want to come and watch my film. Here is my poster below:

Motion tracking!

As my film is set in the year 2050 i needed to add things to try and make it look like the future. To do this i tried to add a futuristic lock for the robbers to break into. I started with a photo frame and then added a picture to it, thinking it would be easy to add a light on to it afterwards with Adobe after effects. After a few attempts i was struggling so decided to do it on Motion, apples version of after effects, this made it much easier and the result i ended up with in my opinion is very pleasing. Here is a short clip of the tracking and also the light which i have created.

 

 

When the clip is put onto the timeline I will also add some sound effects for it, such as a buzzing noise when the door is unlocked and possibly an electrical hum just to add to the overall feel. I have done this to a few different clips where the lock is in view and think it has turned out really well.

Cast

In the film 'Gas Man' I will need four different actors, along with people to help with the lighting, camera and green screening. For all of this I ended up using 5 people, including myself. I got 3 other actors to play parts in my film, and myself doing the fourth character which has very minimal screen time. I also got one other person to then help me with the lighting and sound.

Henry: Henry is a fellow film enthusiast and is making his own films all of the time, because of this I decided he would be very experienced and would add a lot to the cast. Henry was mainly the soundman, however he also helped with directing, and filming. Henry made the task of filming much easier and took a big weight off of my shoulders, so if I were to film again in the future I would definitely try to get another person like this to help me out.

Amanda: Amanda is currently studying drama at sixth form and is a young up and coming actor. I chose for her to play the part of the second burglar. The second burglar in the film is very quiet and unconfident in everything that they are doing, because of this I chose a female to play the role, because I decided it would play on the stereotype that most have of girls. She was a very good choice to make and I think that she played the part well.

Rory: Rory is also a student at sixth form who has acted in a few short films of recent, after seeing his acting skills I decided he would be perfect for the role of the ARB unit. He has played lots of roles similar to this where he is evil and I believe he fulfilled this very well. He was very easy to work with and it was a pleasure to do so.

Ed: Ed is currently working in a theatre production as well as studying Drama at sixth form, this makes him a very experienced actor for his age. Because of his experience I chose to give him the main role in the film, burglar one. This burglar is the one which is very confident and wont give up no matter what, very often in the film he is the one leading the way. Ed played this role superbly in my opinion and you will hopefully see that in the finished production.

Location!

The location for my film is very important, I want to give off the impression we are in the year 2050, and that we are in a nice area. The robbers are supposed to be breaking into a more upper class house, in order to steal the best things they can. So firstly I had to choose where to film, this ended up being very simple as I actually used my own house, its in a quiet neighbour hood so I was hoping it would give off the impression I was hoping for. In the picture below you can see it in the film at night time, I tried to make sure nothing was in the shot which gave away the year, for example by cropping out cars.

 

 

The second location I had to choose was where the ARB unit was going to appear, to follow the script I chose to do this just inside of the door, in the hall way. From the hallway you can see various different ways to rooms which the robbers could go to, hopefully giving off the impression that it is a fairly big house. In the photo below you can see Rory (the ARB unit) in the film, standing in this location.

 

A third location I had to decide on is where I wanted the Portrait of the master to be, and also where I wanted the robbers to stand while they were stealing items. I came to the conclusion that I would use my dining room, it has a fairly big open space with a table in the middle. I placed the portrait in the far corner but so everyone could easily see it.

 

 

The fourth and penultimate location needed was the room which the master was going to be seen dead, and where the mayhem would start. I needed this room to be airy so I could make the gas start coming in via after effects and to also get the ARB unit in there. I decided to make this room near the stairs also so the robbers could run down with ease, which also in turn made it easier to film. In this photo you can see the master laying in his bed, after he suffocated to death.

 

The final location needed was the one in which the robbers would end up dying, I decided on doing this back at the door in which they came in. this would mean the viewers would recognise this area, and also it would show them trying to escape from the gas. In this photo you can see the robbers trying to escape the house after the ARB has malfunctioned yet again.

These were the five different locations I chose in which to do the film, I think the impression they give as a whole is close to the one of upper class I was looking for. If I could have I would have chosen to film some where which looked a but more futuristic as my house is very dated as it is. But for my first short film I think the locations were ok.

Making Rory a hologram

For my film ARB I needed a hologram butler, I've never done anything like this before so everything was new to me. To do this I have used adobe after effects for the editing, along with a green screen and lighting which was used for the filming of him. Below you can see how he has turned out.

 

 

I done this by firstly keying out Rory, leaving the shot with just him. After I then added a background of where I wanted him to be standing. However he still didn't look like a hologram, so I decided to mask over him and give him a blue shading. I then changed the opacity to 85% so the background can be seen through him. Finally I added an effect called 'noise' which adds a slight distortion to the image in order to try and achieve the best hologram look possible. On the film I have also added sound effects when he appears and disappears and also a slight humming noise while he is about, which will all hopefully add to the effect.

 

Overall I would say he hasn't turned out too badly, there are a few things which id like to improve if I had more time to learn how to use After effects, such as the masking and how he appears, but for my first attempt I am happy with it.

 

 



 

 





Analysis of an A2 media short films

Many students have made their own short films and put them on youtube, so I'm going to take advantage of this and check out a few of them, so I can see what I like and don't like. This way I know what ill want to put in my film, and hopefully it will therefore improve it.

Hide and Seek

The first film I watched was called 'Hide and Seek'. This film is based around a little girl playing hide and seek. When she goes to hide she heads over to a basket in a garden, once she hides and proceeds to get out she finds she has gone back in time to the world war era. We also see a little boy by the name of Stanley Smith who plays with her. Eventually she gets back in the basket and she is back to normality. I really like lots of aspects of the film, the idea of different times to just the present and also the way in which the little girl travelled around. However there are some flaws with it as well, the fact the director has chosen to use children as actors has meant the quality of acting isn't all that good. It isn't bad by all means however it does let the film down a little bit, as some times you can see they are struggling for words. Apart from this though I do think its a really good film.

The Desk

A second film which I watched on Youtube was called 'The Desk' this film tells the story of a boy who is being bullied. In the film we see him sitting at his desk in an English class. one day he decides to write on his desk, and to his surprise the next day, there is a reply. This carries on for a few days until he has to move classes, and this no longer happens. the person writing to him is himself, because he's lonely and got no one to talk to. I really like this as an anti bullying campaign and as a film, I think it gives off a really good effect. There isn't too much talking which I think also adds to the impact of the message, making it more meaningful. You can take away from this many different meanings depending on how you interpret it, this is how I saw it personally. There are many people commenting believing its to do with transgender or them talking through desks in different rooms.

Aqua

The third film I decided to watch was a short film called 'Aqua', in this film it shows the death of a young girl. The whole film is based around the power of water, hence the name 'aqua'. In my opinion the film is show casing a suicide however it can be interpreted differently depending on the viewer. this film had lots of underwater shots which I really liked and also the editing for this film was extremely good. From watching a film like this it has given me a few more ideas for shots for my film, and some extra editing I could put in, which altogether will hopefully give my film a better finish.

Recreating film posters

For this task we had to recreate a film poster, the film we were given was 'The Hangover II', the poster below is the one we tried to make.

 

 

 

 

To start off we decided to look at the poster closely to see how it was put together, after analysing we decided that they were not all in this photo at the same time, and in fact they were all photoshopped together. The thing that gave this away mostly was the monkey sitting on top. This made us decide to take photos of our models individually in front of a green screen, in order to make it easier to put all together at the end. Due to being in a school we obviously didn't have access to people who looked similar to this. However we did draw on tattoos, rough up hair and do anything we could in order to try and make them look as similar as possible. After we had done this we then uploaded them to photoshop, lassoo'd all of the models individually and put them all on to the same picture. This then left us with a background to choose, so we headed to google images, found a suitable image and then placed it behind the models. and as you can see below, this is what we created.

A.R.B script

Gas men

By Jake Doughty and Henry Wright

 

 

 

 

 

Breaking in

It's late at Night in the year 2050. Two men run up the driveway to an expensive house dressed in typical burglars clothes and begin breaking in.

They arrive at the front door to discover a bio-metric scanner lock on the door.

Burglar Two

Shit. (to Burglar Two) Can you get it open?

Burglar One

Of course.

Burglar two pulls out a small tool box from which he pulls a small screw driver. He opens the scanner and continues to mess around with the wiring inside until the scanner gives them clearance to enter. They both enter the house as quietly as they can.

Upon entering, the two walk a little way into the entrance hall

Burglar two

And you're sure they aren't in?

Burglar One

Positive, either that or they haven't left the house in days

The door slams shut behind them and before them appears a hologram of a man dressed as a butler.

A.R.B

Good Evening Gentlemen, are you the Gas Man?

Burglar one

(To Burglar one)Its ok, its just the A.R.B. I'll handle this(To A.R.B) No, we're just here to err... Look around, if that's alright?

A.R.B

May I have your name's sir's?

Burglar one

Certainly, I'm Mr Pink, this is my associate Mr Perk.

A.R.B

Thank you sir, I shall let the master know you are here

Burglar one

No, there's really no need!

The Hologram disappears.

Looting

Hologram re-appears in a bedroom.

A.R.B

Sir, two Gentlemen are here by the names of Mr Pink and Mr Perk.

Cut to two burglars downstairs.

Burglar two

Why did you give it fake names?!

Burglar one

Well I wasn't about to give it our real names was I?

Burglar two

But it still went off to talk with the master. We should go, he could be down any minute!

Burglar one

Relax, he's not in remember? It'll just come back and tell us he's not in. It can't do anything to us, its a hologram!

At that moment the hologram re-appears in the spot it was before.

A.R.B

The Master wishes you full access to his home. Unfortunately he is unavailable at this time so I've been asked to stay with you. Please, feel free to look around.

The two burglars look at each other. Burglar two looks extremely unhappy whilst burglar one looks extremely pleased.

Burglar one

Very well, we would like to see the dining room first if you please.

A.R.B

Certainly Sir. If you would like to follow me.

The hologram turns and floats off in the direction of the nearest door. The two men follow on a little far behind.

Cut to Dining room. Hologram and two burglars enter. There are display cabinets to one side of the room holding many valuable's. The two men make a discreet bee line for them and begin to remove the items from them and place them in bags they have been carrying.

A.R.B

The Dining room, Mr Pink. If you wish to inspect the silver ware, do please be careful. Master is extremely delicate over them and is unaccustomed to having people handle them.

Burglars continue to remove the items from the glass casing. Burglar one then turns back to A.R.B once he has finished emptying the case.

Burglar one

Do tell me please, do you have any more exquisite items in this household that resemble these?

 

Burglar two

(Notices a portrait on the wall)

Excuse me, but who is that in the portrait behind you?

A.R.B

That sir is my master, Mr Kretts, Mr Topsy Kretts. That portrait of him was recently valued at around £1000 british pound sterling. If you have an eye for paintings sir, why don't I show you the gallery upstairs?

Cut to the three of them walking along the corridor to the stairs. As they walk along the burgalars catch a glimpse into one of the rooms, seeing something shiny.

 

       BURGLAR ONE

HEY, WHATS IN THAT ROOM ARB? CAN YOU SHOW US IN THERE?

A.R.B

(SPINS ROUND TO FACE BURGLAR ONE) THATS THE MASTERS BEDROOM,WE CAN GO IN, BUT YOU'LL HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL.

THE A.R.B UNIT DISAPPEARS AND THE BURGLARS SEE IT REAPPEAR IN THE BEDROOM. THEY SLOWLY WALK OVER AND CREAK OPEN THE DOOR TO WHICH THEY SEE THE MASTER LYING ON THE BED. THE SMELL AND SIGHT MAKES THEM TAKE A STEP BACK.

 

      BURGLAR TWO

WW-WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM?!

 

         A.R.B

ASFIXATION ARE YOU THE GAS MEN? WE HAVE A TERRIBLE LEAK. I MYSELF CANNOT FIX IT.

ALL AROUND THE HOUSE ARE SOUNDS OF LOCKS GOING OFF AND SHUTTERS CLOSING. THE MEN BOTH START TO PANIC, CONFUSED WITH WHAT IS HAPPENING. GAS CANISTERS THEN START TO GO OFF, WITH A DISTINCT SOUND AND THE BURGLARS DROP THEIR LOOT.

 

      BURGALAR ONE

WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING, WHAT GAS LEAK??

A.R.B

CHLORINE GAS SIR.

THE TWO MEN RUN DOWNSTAIRS, STRAIGHT TO THE FRONT DOOR, TRYING TO OPEN IT.

A.R.B

ALL EXITS ARE LOCKED, THE HOUSE HAS BEEN PUT ON LOCKDOWN UNTIL THE GAS MEN HAVE COME. ARE YOU THE GAS MEN?

THE TWO BURGLARS SLOWLY FALL TO THE FLOOR, GASPING FOR AIR. AFTER A WHILE THEY BOTH DIE (CANISTER NOISE STOPS)AND LAY STILL ON THE FLOOR. CAMERA THEN CUTS TO THE KITCHEN WHERE THE A.R.B UNIT APPEARS.

A.R.B

'ITS NEARLY DAWN, BEST START PREPARING FOR THE UNCLES ARRIVAL TODAY. HE CAN HAVE SUCH A POOR TEMPER WITH POORLY KEPT ROOMS.

CAMERA SHOT FROM OUTSIDE OF THE HOUSE FROM BOTTOM TO TOP ON A DARK NIGHT, AND THEN TRANSITION TO CREDITS OVER THE NIGHT SKY.