Portfolio Project Research: Outline

Bailey and I discussed partly in class, but mostly on our own time, the main outline of the story we are going with. We planned to start the film opening with a individual cooking breakfast with the song, "Breakfast in America", playing simultaneously. However, if the rights to this song are not able to be acquired from the methods in the previous post, then we will either attempt to find different songs that fit the criteria we are looking for (upbeat and have some relation to cooking or breakfast), or go with a different idea entirely. But to continue the outline, the main individual would then finish cooking and go to a dark room to expose another individual captured in some manner (we are thinking about options such as ropes or a cage but are unsure). The individual would look extremely frightened while the cook introduced prior would approach them, holding a frying pan that they were just using to cook. On a strong beat or climax of the song, the cook would hit the captured person with the frying pan and the name of the film will appear on screen. Currently, we are still determining the name for the film, but some proposed ideas were "Dine Time" and "Time to Dine".

If this plan falls short due to our reliance on the song, we will formulate new ideas and/or get new music to go along with it. Just in case, while we wait for whether or not we get access to the song, we will be searching for new music on websites such as Killer Tracks and the YouTube Audio Library.

Portfolio Project Research: Getting rights to "Breakfast in America"

On Monday, Bailey proposed an idea to me about using the song "Breakfast in America" by Supertramp to create a dichotomy between a happy song and a negative visual. I thought his idea was great and would be a good fit for an opening. It creates suspense and ambiguity by not divulging too in depth into the characters, just giving a look at the faces and the setting, not providing much detail into the plot of the story. The song used would help fit the video since there would be, as Bailey proposed, a character cooking food whilst in the process of harming their captured person. The song's happy sound and tone, mixed with the dark theme of the video would create an interesting contrast.

In order to acquire the song, Bailey and I had to request rights to the music. We had to find out who owned the song which led us to searching on the internet first and foremost. We discovered that ultimately, Universal Music Group (UMG) owns the song by a chain of owning smaller companies that inevitably own "Breakfast in America". We then found UMG's website and filed a request for the song. We had to fill out a long form containing many fields that we did not know what to out, such as "Proposed Structure" and "Territory". We resolved these issues by doing searches and finding out what exactly was meant by them. In the end, we sent the request and are now waiting for a response.

In the meantime, we are hoping to acquire the song as it is a main component of the film opening, but we are also thinking about possible different opening ideas just in case we cannot use the song.

Portfolio Project Research: Technology

In nearly all films, there is some degree of technological intricacy involved. In the original Star Wars trilogy, there were tangible models of the spaceships created which were then destroyed, making it seem that an extremely large shit was destroyed due to the manner in which the camera shot it. This example uses what technology was available at the time and creates a detailed and complex product. Although it cost an extremely large amount of money and time to create and then destroy the models, I believe we can incorporate some ideas from this in order to make maximum use of the technology we have on hand. This can include making paper models or using shadows in order to accomplish our goals. I don't have any definitive examples yet due to the early stages of the project, but I feel using such elements could have a profound effect, be cheap to produce, and demonstrate professionalism.

Although, our project will likely stray away from certain genres such as Sci-Fi and Westerns anyways, thus there shouldn't be such a high demand for intricate technology. However, if there needs to be any products made to enhance the film, we can create models or emphasize silhouettes to capture a similar feel to having the real thing. We can use technology that we already possess, such as flashlights and lamps, to create an ominous scene, or to create high key lighting, or any other lighting necessary in order to accomplish whatever scene necessary. Essentially, we will be creating makeshift advanced technology, similar to what was seen in Star Wars, with low budget items, attempting to produce a visually high quality piece.

Portfolio Project Research: Genre

My partner for this project, Bailey, and I are going to be creating a film opening as opposed to a magazine. Thus, we both have engaged in research on film openings and attempted to find information to use on our openings. When I was researching, I looked into many different genres to see what was both realistic for us due to our budget and lack of actors, as well as what was visually interesting. I ruled out genres such as Sci-Fi and Westerns due to their high production cost. This led me to do research on genres such as Horror and Romance due to their utilization of the camera and actors much more than mise-en-scene. This is something we could accomplish since we only have 2 actors and we have cameras that could be placed in such a way to create the atmosphere seen in those Genre's film openings.
  
For example, the movie Scream's opening consisted of many shots to create ambiguity and tension throughout. Some shots could include the popcorn that was constantly seeming about to explode and the way in which what the main female character was looking at outside was hidden. These shots are very inexpensive and actually help the film by not revealing certain aspects to the viewer, keeping the suspense high, as well as costing less money to produce. We could use similar methods in order to keep costs at a minimum, while still having high production value. I will inform Bailey of my ideas derived from the film openings I watched and see his opinion on them.

Music Marketing Campaign

a. The project consisted of a band named Play-back and Jam (PB&J) and their song titled "Carry On". It presented them as a pop group with a marketing plan which has great interactivity with their fanbase. The video consisted of a man moving away from his past, both physically and metaphorically, to show him carrying on as the title states. He had past issues with drug use and other problems that arose from it which he is moving away from and carrying on from.

b. Most of research done on the social media sites and the target audience, which greatly influenced both our marketing strategy and our presentation of the video. Some of the research included the target audience of each social media so we knew what to post on what platform to maximize the use of each. Some of the links to the websites used are the following: https://smallbusiness.chron.com/breakdown-facebook-users-age-63280.html
https://www.omnicoreagency.com/facebook-statistics/

c. Some of our marketing creations could include the website and the merch with the logo printed on it. The website acted as a hub to connect all social medias together, as well as providing general information for fans such as tour dates. The merch had a logo on it to keep it simple to demonstrate the simplicity of the band, and furthermore, the hand drawn aesthetic of the logo. Pictures of both are as follows:


d. From this project, the most important thing I learned would be the extreme necessity of considering the target audience which includes the age, gender, and socio-economic status. By utilizing these elements, I will be able to make a portfolio project the best presents what my target audience would prefer, thus garnering more positive feedback for my work. Additionally, I learned to really plan in advance as an extreme plethora of footage was cut out due to time restraints. If time was taken to plan instead of shooting all the extra shots, I would imagine the product may have been better.

Representation: African Americans

1. African Americans are either represented weaker in films or in a power position.

2. One film in which African Americans are put in a more powerful position is BlacKkKlansman. The film tells the story of how an African American lead is able to infiltrate the KKK with the aid of a white partner. This film strives to show the power that the African Americans by putting him in control, as well as other African American actors within the film. However, the film does keep its historical accuracy with the negative African American slang, thus having a truthful aspect.

However, the news media does tend to portray African Americans negatively. Oftentimes, the media negatively enforces the stereotype of African Americans being frequent criminals. This is often seen by the skin color being referred to after crimes in news reports. Additionally, the media tends to view African Americans as lower since they embellish much of the smaller accomplishments. This is likely due to African Americans being prejudiced against throughout history, thus making their accomplishments more grandiose than a white individual.

3. I feel these representation characteristics poorly presents the African American community as it usually has negative connotations connected to it. I do not believe it is fair since there is a large disproportionationality between the amount of African American and white crimes emphasized. Even though in the past, this data may have been true, the representation currently is inaccurate. Additionally, the representation of African Americans typically being associated with gangs is inaccurate to the majority of the African American population. This representation shows the constant emphasis of the negatives of African Americans, as opposed to providing more representation of their relativly equal status.

4. In regards to represention aspects that I would keep, I believe most are poor at providing a correct representation, except for their strong attempts at turning the perception of the public into a more positive one.

In regards to the representation aspects that I would challenge, most representation in the media is greatly inaccurate and poorly represents the African American group. For example, aspects such as the crime affiliation and low intelligence paint a poor picture for modern day African Americans considering their evolution in social acceptance. I believe African Americans today are held at a much lower regard than what they should be, but that is slowly changing with an increase in the representation within films.

Genre Database Entry: Sci-Fi

Sci-Fi

Conventions-Content: Sci-Fi films typically consist of futuristic technology and scientific aspects. Oftentimes the period is far in the future with extreme technology advancements, or some past time period with technological advancements that contradicts what existed. The setting is often in space or an area that is not Earth, allowing for flexibility in the plausible technology. There is also a typical overarching conflict between a good side and bad side.

Conventions-Production Techniques: One of the main production techniques used is VFX. Sci-Fi films often use special effects in order to make the unknown technologies more realistic and believable, as well as to avoid having to create props that function in the advanced manner that is intended. 

Foley sounds are also often created in order to fabricate the abstract types of sounds that would be emitted by the technologies. This allows for more depth and emphasis on the technology, a common attribute of the genre. 

Another way that technology is emphasized is with close-up camera shots, providing the audience with a better image of the technology. 

Mise en scene is also a large amount of the production due to the importance of creating the futuristic aesthetic without using special effects for the film's entirety. The blend of the tangible set design, costumes, and props, as well as the VFX, creates a more realistic image that captures the genre. 

Marketing: Marketing for Sci-Fi often consists of strong emphasis on the visual beauty that is achieved through the intense use of special effects. Posters can either consist of this, or an emphasis on a certain actor, or sometimes even both. However, most often posters advertise their visual approach more than anything else. This helps to better entice individuals that are intrigued by such film aspects. 

Additionally, Sci-Fi films often market through tangible merchandise. Since the props seen in the films are often otherworldly, most audiences fantasize about being able to hold a replica of such technology. When films produce such products, they often earn extra revenue and have another method of advertisement since their film’s properties are being publicized, leading to more exposure. Additionally, the product looking technologically advanced may garner new attraction, possibly leading to a larger audience.

Film sample #1: The Empire Strikes Back: This film is one of the most prominent examples of a Sci-Fi film. Throughout the entire Star Wars series of films, there is always the presence of key Sci-Fi conventions such as advanced technology and a space setting, often with distant planets being visited. At the beginning of The Empire Strikes Back, the film is set on the planet Hoth which primarily consists of snow and is the base of operations for the good side (Rebels) of the film, which is another convention prevalent within the film. The Rebels are then attacked by the bad side (The Empire) of the film. This conflict satisfies the convention of a typical good side bad side conflict. Additionally, throughout the film, there are advanced weaponry such as lightsabers, which have been marketed heavily for exposure and for revenue, and blasters which shoot beams of plasma energy. The film also consists of heavy use of special effects throughout to capture the true feeling of the advanced technology. In the more recent films, the special effects are used more often and more computerized as opposed to the practical effects used in past films such as The Empire Strikes Back.

Film sample #2: The Terminator: This film consists of many different conventions that fit the Sci-Fi criteria. For example, the film takes place in 1984 but with advanced technology incorporated in it. This was made plausible in the film as it was explained that the Terminator technology was teleported back from 2029 to kill Sarah Connor, which is advanced in itself. Furthermore, the film has visual effects such as the machinery of the Terminator's endoskeleton.  This futuristic element is heavily marketed due to its unique appearance. It is sold as figurines and just advertised on posters to entice more people to view the movie. Posters also advertise Arnold Schwarzenegger as the main actor to garner even more attention towards the film.  Additionally, the film consists of a good side (Sarah Connor) and a bad side (The Terminator) conflict which fits the conventions.

Other examples: Matrix, E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Star Trek, Alien