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Visual Inspiration
Visual Inspiration
Wes Anderson’s style of filmmaking is one of the most delicate and distinctive styles out there in the modern era and, as one of my favourites, I wanted to look into what inspires him and makes up his work on a fundamental level to find some inspiration for my own style in this FMP short film. On of the first things I did was chose a film as a case study into what he achieves in his films. You can find my film review of the Grand Budapest hotel below this section. The three key elements of Wes Anderson’s style are Symmetry, colour palette and locations/ setting. Beginning with symmetry, Anderson is very specific with where items and characters are located. If there is only one character on screen, they will be placed at the centre of the frame whereas with multiple people, the spacing between them is very specific. The symmetry almost makes his worlds feel too perfect and allow him to walk in a hyperrealistic space. This symmetry carries into composition, in which the backdrops of the scenes always seem flat and stage like behind the characters. This feeds into the second point of locations. He, unlike me in this short film, tends to use model sets to place characters in with effects afterwards. The locations, even if they are real places, seem unique to the film and designed to suit the colours and symmetrical astetic. The settings always feel nostalgic and combine many eras of clothing and furnature to create a new space. Sadly, this will not be possible with personal limitations to my short film but I will be moving things around in my house and other areas I use to picture the spaces I want. And finally, colour palette. The palette, as discussed in my review, will capture each location and character’s individual mood and atmosphere. I doesn’t particularly matter if there are two conflicting costume and colours as these will symbolise a difference and take your attention. I aim to play around with colours signifcantly and have a different palette for each by passer in the film. Anderson himself is inspired by films for 1940-60s most and at that it is usually the plot hooks rather than this style. These include The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) and The Graduate (1967). Looking through his work has been very insightful and this visual style will be useful in defining my story.
Music
Music
Primary Research
For this project, I want to use a variation of music with each piece reflecting an individual and their personal life. This means that I decided to research the different types of music that, stereotypically, different demographics favours. Therefore, I sent out a research survey to my friends and family as these are the local people I will be reflecting in the film, the results of which are below. There are a few bands and songs that came up a few times that could be useful in establishing a tone for the age group. I found it interesting to see which hobbies and genres are linked. The ones that intrigued me the most were the variety of pop songs linked with people who say they are very sporty as to me that isn’t an immediate connections. It makes sense for all those into musical theatre to follow this in their music taste as they are avid fans of the material. Amongst the introverted people, I discovered, much like in my own case, people are into indie pop/ soft rock songs and, seeing as this relates with me, this is a theme I may explore in my film with one of the characters. One of the songs that came up was Conan Grey’s People Watching which seems quite on the nose but may work over the credits. I also quizzed my parents on their choices of music and what those mean to them so I could broaden the demographic. The songs they tend to listen to are all from the 80s and 90s as these are big songs that were present when they were growing up.
Secondary Research
As an extension of these discoveries, I wanted to look more in depth online to see what in these piece of music makes people tick and how I can use music effectively in my film.
Establishing a mood
Music is a universal language that connects people, relieving stress and setting moods in place. Music has a huge impact on the brain, particularly the release of dopamine and serotonin, which control your emotions and make them vulnerable to change at the effect of another song. Dopamine has an influence over sleep, stress, motivation, anxiety and pain, making music a coping mechanism for many people, including myself. As well as listening to music, making music, especially in a band or group, increases people’s connectivity and heightens emotions due to these neurotic systems. As an extension of this, hearing a tune that is familiar easily comforts someone and lifts their spirits which is why people become tailored to a specific genre. This genre may have been introduced to them through their nature and nurture and insights great memories that give the song its significance. As of this, people will find themselves tied to certain genres as new songs remind them of others that are similar. This explains why folk such as my parents will constantly listen to music from their childhoods and I too have come to love and respect these songs as my brain has been trained to hear it. This is useful information for my film as it helps me understand why each character will be connected with their song.
Establishing a tone or location
One of the other aspects of music I want to explore is how music fits with a location. For this film, I hope to jump locations a lot and need to know how to do this correctly with sound. Usually in industry, the composers will have a discussion with the director as to the mood of the scene and any preferences in the score. To capture the correct mood, I first made sure I knew which locations I wanted so that this research could be succinct. Below are my results:
Coffee Shop: This location has a variety of natural options that will be whittled down depending on the mood. The music in a coffee shop is just reliant on the staff and what genre they want associated with their venue. This could include modern folk, alternative rock, classical and jazz to name a few. As I want the scene to be a light-hearted mood with little focus on the music as its diegetic I believe I will be going with a cool jazz.
Paris: A main instrument associated with France is the accordion due to its long history and culture within the country, dating back to the 1820s. It’s a traditional instrument usually seen played by people busking and near Parisian cafes.
Film Noir: This type of music usual establishes a dark and mysterious atmosphere that’s comprised of cool unnerving jazz. The atmosphere for film noir is melancholic and impulsive, merging the lines between simple good and evil. The era of film noir was in the early days of filming making when Jazz was popular, creating a natural link between the two.
Musical Juxtaposition
Juxtaposition: the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect. This can be an influential device in filmmaking to alter the atmosphere and toy with the audiences’ thoughts and emotions. Seeing one thing and hearing something else can confuse a message or expose hidden thoughts of the character. This could be played for comedic effect, to lessen the danger and terror in a scene by playing joyful music or throw the audience into a mystery where you see a simple scene and hear a darker undertone. Two places where musical juxtaposition is used well are in the Godfather and opening to The Shining. In the Shining, you have no reason to believe the mountainside drive is anything but that but the use of the Dies Irae music builds a level of tension and terror. In my film I want to go down the line of subliminal messaging that doesn’t align with the scene at face value. The version of this that I want to use is putting a downbeat exhausting visual along with Louis Armstrong’s ‘What a Wonderful World’, creating music juxtaposition between the context of the song and the scene. This song is usually used in a mocking fashion, picking up on what makes the world bad visually and then spitefully slipping this merry tune into the background.
How this will help
Overall, the music in my short film will need to be very targeted to get each message across and thanks to the people around me I now know clearly the genres of music that suit each character and techniques I can use to heighten a scene and play with this demographic rule. It is also crucial that, at points, the music syncs up with the location for a complete narrative.
Writing Inspiration
Writing Inspiration
As stated in my proposal, one of my main priorities with my short film is writing a good and adaptable script. My main writing inspiration comes from Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Below you can find my review on one of her primary pieces, Fleabag, which was very useful in picking out what makes her dialogue pop. In looking at her inspiration and techniques for writing, it all comes from a personal connection to the material. She only writes things that begin at a memory of hers. For example, Fleabag has influences from her life in her 20s and she wanted to present that to the world as people would relate and be more open to discussion. Script writing and thus film making is all about starting a conversation and there's no better way to do that then taking something from truth and fictionalising it. Another key message of hers is to keep the audience off guard. Lure an audience in with something such as a comedic moment only to tear that down a second later. An audience that knows what to expect and prepare isn’t going to enjoy the film as much. The game then is writing so there are still things to unpack on multiple viewings. Additionally, Waller-Bridge wants to learn from the characters as much as she is writing them in the first place. The characters, whether protagonists or antagonists, should allow us as writers to change with them. These are a few major takeaways I found in my research and interviews of Waller-Bridge that are very insightful and will assist in my writing. I am already on the right sort of lines to achieve on her advice as this short film comes from memories of spending time with my brother, although I will be taking a bit of a different angle on it.
Technical Research
Technical Research
Lighting
As I would like to film in a coffee shop among other indoor spaces, I have decided to research indoor lighting to give me options for how to set up. I will probably have a set time in the shop so should be prompt on my filming and know in advance my setup. A major issue I may have with filming is that I want my actors to be sat next to a large window looking out. This will mean that I may experience over exposure and reflections of the equipment which would be an issue not really solvable easily in editing. My solution to this would need to be filming in an evening or day where it isn’t as bring outside so the natural lighting won’t be temperamental. Even when doing this, the light natural light source for the frame will be behind which could be problematic. To try and solve this issue, I need to make sure I have lots of lighting setup in front to balance the two grounds out. This may include the overhead lights in the shop along with key and fill lights. Another work around for the open space and window issue is to tighten my framing to capture as little excess as I can. However, once again this makes a composition issue as I would like to clearly see people outside walking past at points. So far, I’ve realised that my practical and creative visions for this film differ significantly so this will need to be taken into consideration in my pre-production. If I get into a situation where I must favour sunlight or additional lights, I should be more lenient towards the sunlight as this is natural and can’t easily be removed. It also give me a good neutral palette to use which I can adapt in the edit. Therefore, I know if I am unable to get lighting equipment for the days of my shoot, I shouldn’t panic.
A key point with lighting is setting the white balance. This is even more important when doing multi-camera shoots, as I am thinking, as the footage must all line up. The auto white balance should be turned off and, as always, I should balance using the main key light and a white card. I am already very aware of this but it is definitely worth reminding me of it as this is a crucial step. Something I also want to consider is filming outside just in case my plan for a location falls through. The main step about filming outside, especially if I want to use artificial lighting, is completing the shoot in the shade. The general colour temperatures of the artifical and actually light, in any scenario, should match for a complete product otherwise it can look sloppy and disjointed in the edit. Something minor that helps with lighting is the composition of the shot in terms of furniture and props. As much as possible I should try and de-clutter the scenes for a clean finish.
JVC
As this type of camera is available at college and I’ve used it before on previous projects, I believe my best path is to continue using the JVC as my primary camera. I have looked through the camera manual and reminded myself of the crucial features. The main areas I needed to focus on are white balance and adjusting the iris. In the past, we have also had issues with file formats but I have since pinned down the correct format and tested this before the shot so there will not be an issue.
JVC HM750E manual.pdfAspect Ratio
Aspect ratio is a key factor in framing a scene an can be missed by the casual viewer. Aspect ratio in film, particularly in Wes Anderson productions, is very interesting to me and I would like to use shifts in aspect ratio in my short film. Therefore I have carried out research into why aspect ratios differ and what different sizes can be used to represent. The most commonly used ratios are 16:9, 2.35:1 and 4:3. To begin, 4:3 aspect ratio was the original ratio for standard definition films. This means that in modern times it can be used to reflect a scene that happened in the past or is out of line with the rest of the story. In my case, I am thinking about having ‘flashback’ scenes to reflect the lives of the people being watched so for that I am leaning towards the use of 4:3. This is a more tightly packed square view of the world so can also represent a small minded view of a character or that they are trying to keep their space small to hide something. In terms of composition and lighting, I would need to be very particular about what features in a 4:3 aspect ratio. 16:9 is the new standard for HD films in today’s world. This would fill the space of a standard television and opens the viewer up the the maximum width and height of the scene. I see this as the natural and real world as everything is on display and the depth of the frame isn’t as limited. However, my main focus is 2.35:1. This aspect ratio, known as cinemascope, is common with the modern blockbuster as it creates a more cinematic atmosphere, with a lessened height but gained width. The picture stretches across the scene and can be useful for establishing shots and making the space between characters interesting. The same scene received by an audience in 16:9 or 2.35:1 could completely change the meanign due to the respacing of characters by the frame. It is important to also know that aspect ratio in film is fluid and many change it during the feature but this must look intentional. In many cases, an audience wont realise the framing has changed. This may be to show them something for a different perspective but I film’s such as Wes Anderson’s Grand Budapest Hotel and French Dispatch, the film pauses on the change in ratio so it is clear to the audience that this is a new substory. With this in mind, I now know which aspect ratios I would like to change between for my short film. The standard grey world will be 16:9, the main section between the two people people watching will be in 2.35:1 to widen their angle of the world and those around them and the flashbacks of each person’s life will be in 4:3.
I also research, 1.37:1, the academy ratio, which was used in early silent films as a possibility for my flashbacks and 1.85:1, an variation on 16:9 for high end television, among many others but these were not the frames I was looking for due their purpose and current connotations. I approached the silent film ratio as the flashbacks would take on a silent film esc atmosphere but I thought it will be a more clear dramatic shift to 4:3.
Audio
The initial audio recording method I was always going to use was a boom mic. However, since the story I want to tell will be quite intimate and stationary, an alternative option was to use clip on lapel mics. These seem to be the better solution to capture dialogue whereas the boom captures the general atmosphere and placement of the sound. The first key thing to consider is the proximity of the lav to the person. The lav will have an omnidirectional input, meaning it can take in sound from any direction, but for safety the lav should be placed on a lapel or chest area, where-ever it is able to clip onto a piece of clothing. It must be secure and make sure nothing rubs on it to cause excess noise. An issue with the lav is concealing the cable for a professional and more realistic look, if creating a film. A solution to this could be getting some wireless lavs but these are usually slightly larger so the cable is no longer an issue: the lav itself is. Alternatively, with wired lavs, you can use a ‘broadcast loop’ which is a tidy way of hiding the lav. Once the lav is mounted and secure on the actor, I need to make sure to do a sound check before the first take. With the Sony lavs that the college has, I will be able to connect both to a JVC camera and record in stereo. On the JVC, I need to check that the inputs are running off the correct voltage and aren’t running through the same system. If I decide to take the wireless route, I will probably invest in a set that can Bluetooth to my phone and have that running alongside the JVC.
As well as using lavs, I would also like to use a boom mic over head for atmosphere. Therefore, I researched into using one of these. Holding the boom pole can get tiring on a long shot so I looked for the best way of holding it to sustain yourself and remain out of shot. A common solution is to extend the pole all the way out to act as a fulcrum with the weight dispersed. You can move closer towards the mic, as long as it’s not a wide shot. The best way of holding the boom, for between two people, have your arms stretched out vertically about shoulder width apart side on and let the mic drop slightly towards the actors. It is also useful for the boom operator to have headphones and keep tabs on the audio during the shot. Due to this being a constant job, I will need to find someone else, at least, to be my crew and assist. Additionally, I will not be able to connect the lavs and boom to the same JVC as there are only 2 ports so I believe I should use two cameras and film with multiple angles at the same time. Additionally, I should gather background ambience from the location in case I need to alter any dialogue in post-production. I don’t plan on using much Foley sound but I have explored this before and completed a comical test video (Amelie – found in additional work) so I already know the process.
Along with all of the more specialised research I have formed on the last two pages, both in and out of classes with my tutor, I found the YouTube channel StudioBinder very helpful in understanding certain aspects of filmmaking and so I've linked a few very useful videos below. These are not specific to aspects of my film but allow me to more greatly understand certain artistries of the medium.
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