Children's Film - Final Copy

This is our final copy for our children's film opening sequence.

Storyboard & Shot List

Childrens Film Script

Barry Trotter and the Lost Scrolls

Script

The camera zooms in from a long, establishing shot to a mid shot of Barry who is levitating a stone with amazement.

HEIDI

(Walks towards Barry with books in her arms)

The stone flies towards Heidi and hits her in the side of the head

HEIDI

(Falls over crying)

BARRY

Oh Heidi! I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to hit you I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!

HEIDI

It’s okay Barry don’t worry, I’m fine, nothing the elixir of Calpol won’t fix!

BARRY

(Bends over to pick her up of the floor)

I feel so bad though, here have a sweet on me please, I insist there your favourites

(Takes some sweets from his pocket)

HEIDI

(Reaches out to take a sweet and eats one)

Eurgh, earwax and snot flavoured, I’m going to be sick!

(Runs over to the nearby bush and is sick by the side of it)

DOM

(Walks by whistling the Harry Potter theme tune, slips in the sick and falls by the side of the bush dramatically)

Woah! That’s disgusting!

BARRY & HEIDI

(Laughing)

DOM

It’s not funny at all; I’m lying in sick!

(Begins to pick himself up from the floor, sees something and falls back down again in amazement)

Oh great jumping magical toads!

BARRY

What!

DOM

(Reaches in and picks out the scroll from the bush and holds it above his head)

HEIDI

(Quietly)

It can’t be! Surely not

DOM

(Gets up and runs to Barry and Heidi)

BARRY

What is that, it looks like some kind of scroll

DOM

(Hands the scroll to Barry and they unravel it and hold it up so only the characters can see it)

BARRY

What is it?

HEIDI

(opens up one of her books at a random page and shows the characters)

It’s the lost scrolls of Haddenham!

This is a test shot where we found out how to crop one moving image into another. In our real opening sequence we will be levatating a stone with a wand however as we cannot actually do this we had to film two different shots from the same position. One shot is a character moving the wand and the second shot is of the stone levatating, in order to do this we tied fishing wire round a stone and held it from a high position. When we combined the images together we found that the camera had moved slightly and when cropping the person holding the stone out of the image the right side of the film looked slightly distorted. When we actually film we will ensure that the camera doesn't move so that the images match.

Props/Location

Props
Stone = normal stone (outside)
Wand = Stick (outside)
Multi-flavoured sweets = Skittles (Heidi)
Scrolls = Sahib's scroll (Sahib)
Levitating Stone = fishing wire (college)

Location
Art garden with a bench in some shots.

'Back to the Future' Storyboard

Task:
The task we did was to watch the opening sequence of 'Back to the Future' and we were first told to make notes on Mise-En-Scene, Sound, Shot types and Framing. We then made a storyboard of the first 6 important shots. We chose to use the pan of the clocks, then we chose the television news broadcast, then the close-up of the dogs bowl, then we chose the skateboard hitting the missing plutonium under the bed, then we chose the boy turning the dial on the giant amplifier, finally we chose the boy flying through the air after playing his guitar.

Chicken Run

1) The main target audience for the film 'Chicken Run' is children, but this film could also be targeted at adults. The film is animated and has a simple story line, making it enjoyable for children and easy for them to follow. The theme of the film could be targeted at adults, as it is similar to films such as 'The Great Escape' who's general audience is adults.  Other than that, some of the humour used in the film that children find funny, has a deeper meaning which adults can also enjoy, and may relate to their own lives.

2) I would class this as a children's film, firstly because it is an animated film in which, lots of bright colours and funny shapes are used. The characters look quite childish, silly grins and big round eyes. Other than that, the plot of the story is simple and easy to follow. The classification of the film is 'U' making it suitable for children, hence there are no references to drugs etc. and very short scenes of mild violence and horror e.g. when one of the chickens is killed. There is no particularly bad language used either, there are some stunts done by the chickens, but nothing really imitable e.g. the giant catapult.

3) Chicken Run is a comedy escape drama set on a sinister Yorks chicken farm in 1950's England.
It was directed by Peter Lord and Nick Park. It was inspired by escape movies, especially 'The Great Escape' to which there are many references throughout the film. The cost to create the film is an estimated $42,000,000, the film has to date made a revenue of $224,834,56. The film has won numerous awards including, 2 BAFTA's for 'Best British Film' and 'Best Visual Effects' and A Golden Globe Award for 'Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy'.

bbfc

BBFC - Stands for the British board of Film Classification.

The BBFC are a highly experienced regulators of British films, they are a non-governmental body. They have classified cinema films, DVDs and videos since 1984. Classification is the placement of films in categories. Films are sorted in categories by: sexual content, violence, drugs, discrimination,  horror, imitable behaviour, language, nudity and theme. We think that this is a good system because it helps to prevent younger children from being exposed to bad language, violence and obscenities etc. Which is good for society and the children.

UNIVERSAL (U)

Universal – Suitable for all

It is impossible to predict what might upset any particular child. But a ‘U’ film should be suitable for audiences aged four years and over. ‘U’ films should be set within a positive moral framework and should offer reassuring counterbalances to any violence, threat or horror.

If a work is particularly suitable for a pre-school child to view alone, this will be indicated in the Consumer Advice.

Discrimination

No discriminatory language or behaviour unless clearly disapproved of.

Drugs

No references to illegal drugs or drug misuse unless they are infrequent and innocuous, or there is a clear educational purpose or anti-drug message suitable for young children.

Horror

Scary sequences should be mild, brief and unlikely to cause undue anxiety to young children. The outcome should be reassuring.

Imitable behaviour

No potentially dangerous behaviour which young children are likely to copy. No emphasis on realistic or easily accessible weapons.

Language

Infrequent use only of very mild bad language.

Nudity

Occasional natural nudity, with no sexual context.

Sex

Mild sexual behaviour (for example, kissing) and references only (for example, to ‘making love’).

Theme

While problematic themes may be present, their treatment must be sensitive and appropriate for young children.

Violence

Mild violence only. Occasional mild threat or menace only.

PARENTAL GUIDANCE (PG)

General viewing, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children

Unaccompanied children of any age may watch. A ‘PG’ film should not disturb a child aged around eight or older. However, parents are advised to consider whether the content may upset younger or more sensitive children.

Discrimination

Discriminatory language or behaviour is unlikely to be acceptable unless clearly disapproved of or in an educational or historical context.  Discrimination by a character with which children can readily identify is unlikely to be acceptable.

Drugs

References to illegal drugs or drug misuse must be innocuous or carry a suitable anti-drug message.

Horror

Frightening sequences should not be prolonged or intense. Fantasy settings may be a mitigating factor.

Imitable behaviour

No detail of potentially dangerous behaviour which young children are likely to copy. No glamorisation of realistic or easily accessible weapons.

Language

Mild bad language only.

Nudity

Natural nudity, with no sexual context.

Sex

Sexual activity may be implied, but should be discreet and infrequent. Mild sex references and innuendo only.

Theme

Where more serious issues are featured (for example, domestic violence) nothing in their treatment should condone unacceptable behaviour.

Violence

Moderate violence, without detail, may be allowed, if justified by its context (for example, history, comedy or fantasy).

Source used: www.bbfc.co.uk

Looking at a fantasy film (Monsters inc.)

in this opening sequence we saw that:

• In the title, bright colors and shapes are creating cartoons, it outlines the plot by showing monsters coming out of doors.
• The music in the title is very upbeat and happy keeping the child engaged.
• The plot is outlined straight away so we know roughly what will happen making it clear for a young audience.
• it is humerous the monster is scared of the child.
• Slow-pace editing so that the children can keep up.
• it is made by pixar so the audience knows what to expect.
• the characters are engaging, they look different.
• Shows that monsters aren't that scary.
• All children think that there is a monster in their closet, the film shows there is nothing to be scared of.
• The dialogue is clear and spelled out.
• it is a fantasy/adventure film making it a Hybrid.

favorite children's film

The children's film we have chosen as our favorite is Pinocchio. We remember it so well because it was so easy to love the characters. This made the film seem more magical which appeals to children. The fact that the main character's nose grows whenever he lies teaches children not to lie and that it is wrong.
Here is the opening sequence of the film:

The film starts off with the opening of a book, showing that the entire film is based on a story which appeals more to children than any other audience. Because there is a story being told there is a narrative at the beggining and the music creates a sense of warmness which appeals to families.

Prelim task.

This is our film:

Evaluation:
In this task we have learnt how to use GarageBand and Final Cut effectively. We took the cameras out and learnt how to use them properly along with the tripod. We did have to ask for help but we did most of the work ourselves to which we are very proud. This has helped in the ability to use the software and cameras when we do our children's film project.

Story Board

Establishing shot:
This is effective as it allows the audience to see the surroundings making them aware of the area.

Close-Up shot:
This is effective because it lets the audience see a detailed view of the character's expression/reaction.

Match on Action shot:
Match on action is important to continue the flow of the scene.


Reaction shot:
This shows the reaction of a character when something happens, for example when the character doesn't know someone else enters the room unexpectedly.

Long shot:

Long shot shows both characters and shows where they are in proportion to each other and other objects.

Filming a conversation (shot reverse shot):
Shooting a conversation over the shoulder allows both characters to remain in the scene throughout.

Description of task:
The aim of the task is to make a short clip showing a number of different shots. We are doing this task in order to get practice on how to film different shots, and it also makes us work in a team.