It is officially time to start working on our short films for class. The class was split into small groups and each group was assigned a different genre-comedy, drama, horror, romance, experimental, and action. Our group was assigned the genre comedy. Each film must be two to five minutes long and include the following: a mime/clown, the lines “Why is this happening to me today of all days?” and "It would be better for us not to talk about that,” a guitar, a cheese grater, and skull.

Our group is very excited and has come up with a few ideas about our film. However, we are all a little bit nervous about screenwriting. The art of screenwriting/direction/and sound all coming together to create a masterpiece is intimidating but definitely our ultimate goal.

Before Eric assigned genres we came up with a really neat idea for a film that is centered on a dollar bill. We wanted to depict the lives of different people who all had that dollar bill at some point in the day. That probably could have been really neat had we gotten the genres drama or horror. When we got assigned comedy, we were a little disappointed, because we liked our original idea so much. But when we started brainstorming again, the excitement returned. I also think our group will be able to produce more usuable and creative ideas when we get the input of Sam and Tommy. Sam was away on a conference and Tommy was learning the tricks of a camera-man.

I was very impressed with the short film “The Spider” that Eric showed us in class. It started out pretty boring and I did not pay attention until the characters started driving. If you haven’t seen it, the ending was very shocking and I was speechless. Even though we have comedy, I am confident that we could create a very fresh and original twist to our plot.

For our genre, dramatic lighting throughout wouldn’t be appropriate. I think it would be neat to create the same lighting that is present on sitcoms. We talked about the importance of dialogue in our film. That might be our biggest challenge because any dialogue in a comedy needs to be strategically structured to include witty one-liners, awkward silences, etc. We decided that two things in life that are always funny are farts and falls. Therefore farts and falling will most likely be incorporated in our final cut. Haha

Basically, we want to produce something that we are proud of and will make people laugh.

Singing in the Rain

So I failed to take useful notes while watching the movie, again. It’s so hard for me since I’m enjoying these films so much that I feel incapable of noticing the cinematographic elements.

Last class period we watched Singing In The Rain, a 1952 musical based on the transition from silent films into films with sound, or "talkies, " as the characters in the movie referred to them. This was my first time to watch this movie, and I can't tell you why. I actually thought it would be boring, but I was completely wrong. The movie was so colorful and cheerful (especially compared to Sunset Blvd). My face literally hurt after watching that movie because I smiled the entire time.

I really enjoyed the humor in this movie. Lena cracked me up; her voice was slightly reminiscent of Karen’s from Will & Grace. Haha. Cosmo’s wit and Don’s charisma made the perfect duo for this movie. I also enjoyed the frustrating triangle between Lena, Don, and Kathy. I wonder if movie stars really do get disillusioned by tabloids that easily. My favorite scene in the movie, however, was the beginning when he was telling the reporter his story, only we were watching what actually happened. It was really neat and humorous to get that perspective.

I liked the insight that I got during discussion about how musicals are done today compared to Singing in the Rain. The famous street scene was filmed in only 5 shots. I actually prefer this to the series of shot changes we see in today’s musicals because scenes just seem to be more cohesive and flow.

I want to own this movie!

Cinematography

Perhaps, one of the most critical aspects of film is lighting. After workshops, we’ve been able to dissect the three components of lighting and how they will enhance our films. By manipulating the key light, back light, and fill light we could emphasize or de-emphasize the subject. Not only does it help set the mood and tone, but it also helps strengthen the characters’ roles.

I was really intrigued by the technique of changing the images shown following the look on a certain character’s face. For example, if you show a man that is happy and then a clip of happy, children playing, the audience assumes he likes children and they might even be his own. If you show a man that is happy followed by a clip of a woman in a bikini, then the audience believes this is a dirty, perverted man. Tonight, as I was watching American Idol, I even noticed how this technique was used as the camera went from the contestant to the judge. This technique is very clever and would help prevent meaningless dialogue to help build our characters.

I also think that the variety of camera shots we have been exposed to could be utilized in our film. By using dolly shots or close-ups we could really make our film seem more impressive. We could give more angles and more depth to our characters by using an over-the-shoulder close-up between interacting characters. We could set the tones and convey moods by creating severity with an extreme close-up.

All in all, I know there are many other techniques that we will use to make our short film but I feel like these three will be involved in every film inevitably. All of these techniques can be created with accessible equipment (camera, lighting tools, editing software). Even though we are inexperienced film-makers, these techniques can still be done with basic software and basic knowledge. As long as we utilize all of our resources and really pour our effort into this project, I believe our team will produce a film we’ll be proud of.

"Insert Sunset Blvd. Quote Here"

I enjoyed watching Sunset Boulevard so much last Thursday night! I had planned on taking notes during the movie, but after the first 15 minutes, I was completely captivated. However, I got so much out of our discussion at the end. To listen to 30 different perceptions led by Donna after one viewing, gave me the insight I would gain after about 30 viewings on my own.

After class, I started thinking about Film Noir in general. Overall, I enjoy darker movies so I think this is a genre that I need to venture into more. In our discussion about the elements of Film Noir, made me realize how intentional and deliberate every detail in every frame is. In this genre, the films are dark and end unhappily. If the film is done correctly then the audience is meant to feel uneasy, and even guilty. Then there is also the play on how a film noir film is made "correctly," because their unique trait is that they are so imperfect.

I'm having a little trouble with my short film project, but I'm about dedicate the next fews hours on it, so hopefully I can get it together!