Developing an Opening Scene

Not much happens in dramatic terms in the opening minutes of a film, because of this the job is to create a reason for the audience to carry on watching by establishing the character/setting and narrative context for the audience and to set up some degree of enigma. This is something that the audience will not understand what is going on but will find out later in the film.

This will help the audience understand easily where we are, who is involved but fundamentally, why we should be interested.

The idea needs to be developed in broader terms before a plausible opening sequence can be constructed.

Show the character in a changing situation which will become dramatic, show them in an everyday reputation must be achieved through micro elements: 

·        Appearance

·        Costume

·        Performance

·        Location

·        Dialogue

·        Lighting

·        Props

·        Music

·        Possibly Voiceover

Codes and Conventions of a Teen Drama Film

Codes and conventions of the teen film genre vary depending on the cultural context of the film, but they can include proms, alcohol, illegal substances, high school, parties and all-night raves, losing one's virginity, relationships, social groups and cliques, and American pop-culture.

The classic codes and conventions of teen film come from American films where one of the most widely used conventions are the stereotypes and social groups. The wide range stereotypes most commonly used include:

• The Jock/Cheerleader
• The Princess
• The Geek/Nerd
• The Rebel
• The Misfit, or The Outcast
• The Average Girl/Boy (the boy/girl next door)
• The New Girl/Boy
• The Loner
• The Band Geek

Apart from the characters there are many other codes and conventions of teen film. These films are often set in or around high schools as this allows for many different social cliques to be shown. This is different in hybrid teen films, but for the classic romantic comedy teen film this is almost always the case.

Sound

Diegetic sound 

Sound whose source is visible on the screen or whose source is implied to be present by the action of the film: 

• voices of characters 
• sounds made by objects in the story 
• music represented as coming from instruments in the story space ( = source music)

Diegetic sound is any sound presented as originated from source within the film's world 

Diegetic sound can be either on screen or off screen depending on whatever its source is within the frame or outside the frame. 

Another term for diegetic sound is actual sound  

Non-diegetic sound 

Sound whose source is neither visible on the screen nor has been implied to be present in the action: 

• narrator's commentary
• sound effects which is added for the dramatic effect
• mood music

Non-diegetic sound is represented as coming from a source outside story space. 

The distinction between diegetic or non-diegetic sound depends on our understanding of the conventions of film viewing and listening.  We know of that certain sounds are represented as coming from the story world, while others are represented as coming from outside the space of the story events.  A play with diegetic and non-diegetic conventions can be used to create ambiguity (horror), or to surprise the audience (comedy). 

Another term for non-diegetic sound is commentary sound.

Lighting

Lighting can suggest atmosphere and mood, e.g. in a horror movie, light and shade are important codes of meaning and major signifiers of genre. High-key lighting is harsh, low-key lighting creates a dark atmosphere, soft-key lighting creates a romantic atmosphere, spotlighting picks out a particular character from a group as special in some way. I will now explain certain aspects of lighting:

• Key Light - Usually the brightest and most influential
• Back Light - Helps counteract the effect of the key light making the character more rounded
• Filler Light - Helps to soften hard shadows, there may be more than one filler light
• Underlighting - When the main soure of light come from below the character, often used in horror films
• Top Lighting - When the main source of light comes from above, can be used to create a glamourous look in a star
• Back Lighting - When the source of light is from behind the subject

Camera Movement

Tracking

A tracking shot is when the camera is mounted on a wheeled platform that is pushed on rails while the picture is being taken

Crane
A crane shot is a shot taken by a camera on a crane. The most obvious uses are to view the actors from above or to move up and away from them.


Tilt
A shot in which the camera remains in place but rotates vertically on its axis so that the character is continually reframed.


Pan
A shot made while the camera swings on a tripod in a horizontal arc

Camera Shots

• Extreme Long Shot (ELS) - Establishing Shot (ES) - This shot is to show the panaramic view of an exterior location. This shot is generally used at the start of a film to establish the location of the scene/film. If there are people in this shot they will be very small figures in relation to other objects in the scene i.e. a large building/
• Long Shot (LS) - This is similar to an (ELS) but just zoomed in. You can still see a persons whole figure but they are closer to the camera and they are shown larger in relation to the surroundings. This can also be used as ELS.
• Medium Long Shot (MLS) - In this shot you can still see the whole character but in a lot more detail to the previous 2 shots. Although you cant see as much as the background in this shot it still retains the setting quite clearly in the mise-en-scene-
• Medium Shot (MS) - Again this is similar to the previous shots as you can still see a good deal of the background but this time you can only see roughly from the knees or waist to the top of the head
• Medium Close Up (MCU) -  This shot is quite a lot closer to the person in this shot. You can only their mid-chest up to the top of the head. You can see a quite a lot of detail of the character in this shot. MCU is usually used on people in a conversaion.
• Close Up (CU) - A close up shot shows the head and shoulders of a person to the top of their head. This shot is very detailed of the persons face on screen. This shot is generally used to show someones emotions, feelings and reactions.
• Extreme Close Up (ECU) - This shot just shows someones face so you can really tell the emotions, feeling and reactions of a character. This shot can build up tension for great dramatic effect

180 Degree Rule

The 180° rule is a basic guideline in film making that states that two characters (or other elements) in the same scene should always have the same left/right relationship to each other. If the camera passes over the imaginary axis connecting the two subjects, it is called crossing the line. The new shot, from the opposite side, is known as a reverse angle.

Shot/Reverse Shot

Shot reverse shot is a film technique where one character is shown looking at another character, and then the other character is shown looking back at the first character. Since the characters are shown facing in opposite directions, the viewer assumes that they are looking at each other.

Match on Action

Match on action is any cut that emphasizes continuity. It is a technique used in film editing from one scene to another in which the two camera shots compositional elements match, helping to establish a strong continuity of action - and linking two ideas with a metaphor.

Match on action is during the same scene in a film where the shot cuts to something else happening but to give the illusion the film carries on flowing. Here is a good example...

Continuity

Continuity is keeping the flim flowing as time goes by while the story carrys on. An example of this is if someone is talking with their phone in their right hand and if the shot changes and the phone is suddenly in their left hand, that is an example of bad continuity. Good continuity would be the person keeping their phone in their right hand which would happen without the error.

An example from the movie Star Wars here,

This is an example of very bad coninuity because within seconds and a couple of shots from the film. Something has completely changed which shouldnt have. Good continuity wouldnt have any of these errors in the flim and everything will flow properly