Trailer analysis - Straight Outta Compton

Institutional 
Name: Straight Outta Compton
Year : 2015
Certificate : 15
Production company : Legendary pictures
Director : F.Gary Grey

Box office

Awards: Too recent for awards
Budget: $28,000,000
Opening weekend: $56,100,000
Star System : O'Shea Jackson Jr.,  Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Neil Brown Jr., Aldis Hodge

Target Audience
This film is a true story based on the achievements and exploits of the world renown rap group NWA and follows their life story, NWA are a very well known group for their controversies and music and would already have a dedicated fan base and this film would certainly attract their attention as the film takes the name of their first and most notorious album "Straight outta compton".
The trailer clearly displays scenes of adult nature, such as criminal acts, firearms, police brutality and urban culture that deemed only fit for ages 15+, and due to the male leading roles and lack of feminine themes I would say this film targets a primarily male audience.

Settings and location

this trailer is a compilation of the basic areas of the film and therefore shows many locations shown throughout the sequence however each of them seems to be presented as a run-down "Ghetto" urban environment, several icons of this stereotype can be see such as low rider cars, graffiti and large groups of intimidating looking people, all these signifies to the audience the setting of the film.

The vast amount of this film was filmed funnily enough in L.A Compton, and following the obvious title and narrative of the film make this a fairy obvious place to film why attempt to recreate the Compton environment when you can use the actual Compton environment.
However one scene that is emphasised in the trailer that is outside the Compton environment is the scene in the recording booth, this scene differs quite greatly and is presented in the trailer as a clear turning point in the film and the clean high class looking environment presents it as a high point in contrast the low quality climate through the majority of the trailer.

However it is notable how in almost every scene throughout the trailer is shown in low level lighting, this is done purposefully to signify to the audience the low quality and deprived climate the characters exist in and the few scenes that are in light are generally those in which the characters had developed wealth.
Also the low lighting outdoor scenes are meant to present the idea of crime and nightlife being a persistent theme in the film.

Sound
There is a sound track that is continuous, it's the single "Straight outta Compton" by NWA dissected into its layers and as the trailer intensifies it keeps building up until eventually the the full song is playing and it merges into the video with the performers performing the song on stage in a sort of match on action, but as I previously stated this film is an urban cultured themed film and this is shown by the street style rhyme and beat of the soundtrack and of course the rapping itself.
The song chosen for the soundtrack is very iconic and popular and would appeal to the target audience of this film

Short film analysis - The Jump

Film: The Jump
Produced by: Invenire Films
Budget: Unknown
Released: Apr 15, 2015
Genre: Short, Sci-fi, Time travel, comedy?

Sound
Throughout the beginning of this film sound is very much used to comedic effect. It starts with a light hearted piano riff  incidental sound track that is played all throughout the process of building the time machine. Throughout the process of building the time machine each sound effect involved with the making progress is exaggerated for comedic effect, such as the cutting of wire or the fire of the blow torch. Ambient echoing sounds are played whilst the time machine is being inspected, this is added to give a sense of mystery. The sound of the date being changed on the time machine is highly exaggerated to clearly signify to the audience what is going on. The sound effects of travelling in time are very simple, it's a quiet boom, the actual visual effect of the location is enough to signify to the audience that the protagonist has traveled in time. Sound effects are very important in the scene in which the protagonist has traveled into the past. The producers have cleverly used ambient sound effect of nature and birdsong to imply the lack of human activity to suggest to the audience that the protagonist had traveled to a past location without the existence of human presence. Throughout the scene in which the character has traveled forward in time to the future, the sound effects are important in exaggerating the chaos and drama of the futuristic warzone the protagonist finds himself in. In the crucial "Mum" scene of this short film the incidental soundtrack is crucial in signifying to the audience the sadness of the situation. The sombre sound track implies to the audience that this is a sad moment for the protagonist and that something tragic is about to happen. The sound effect of the car crash is important in telling the audience that the car containing his mother has crashed, this is not shown visually.

Mise-En-Scene
The costume of the protagonist does little to enhance the narrative, although it is typical for a Time travel film to have a character dressed in casual, normal time period clothing. It could be argued his style of hair is stereotypical for a "nerd" character who would be interested in technology etc.

 







The key prop used throughout the film is the time machine. Much like the one in "One Minute Time Machine" it's very simplistic in design. In this case it's a simple brief case which has been cleverly used, the combination code has been used as the date selector for the time machine. In terms of representation brief cases are often associated with business and serious affairs, this juxtaposes with the unusual time travel capabilities it has.

The notepad prop has great significance throughout the entire film. With the absence of any dialogue what the protagonist writes in this notepad is key to directing the narrative of the story forward and implying the audience what is happening. The film has two settings, inside the house and the outdoor environment. Little is seen of the house it'self but it appears to be a modern style house. However it is notably quite empty this suggests to the audience that the protagonist is living there alone and is quite lonely. The outdoor setting is very peaceful and rural, there is no signs of human activity, this is used to suggest to the audience that the protagonist has time traveled to a time when humans did not exist. Oddly the same outdoor environment has been used for the future scene, where the chaos of the lasers and destruction juxtaposes with the quiet tranquil countryside setting.

Editing
The first scene in which the Time machine is being built is fast paced, this implies to the audience the rush for the protagonist to build the time machine. The main bit of editing is the time travel special effect. In this the character remains in the same position and it instantly transported to another scene, this is a very simple yet effective effect that implies to the audience that he has traveled in time. Special effects have been added to the future scene in the form of laser beams and fire effects, this implies to the audience that he is in the futuristic warzone with laser guns and explosions. The pace of editing in this scene is very fast and frantic to emphasize the danger and panic of the warzone environment. The pace of editing in the remaining scenes is often very slow to signify the emotion felt by the protagonist. There are also a number of eye line matches to show the emotions the protagonist during these heartfelt scenes.

Camera 
Throughout the whole beginning sequence the camera uses two different perspectives, the POV of the protagonist and a reaction shot the protagonist. This is done to show the concentration and ingenuity of the protagonist as he constructs the time machine. One shot of special significance is the extreme close up of the note pad and the protagonists pen writing on it. This is used as a tool to progress the narrative and tell the audience what is happening, it is presented as an extreme close up to signify to the audience of the importance of the notepad.

An extreme long shot is used in the "past" scene to show off the vastness of the outdoor environment and to clearly indicate to the audience that there is no human life. It also displays the "greenness" and tranquility of the setting. The camera angles used in the future scene cleverly only concentrate on the protagonist and track movements at a mid shot. This is done to keep as much of the setting hidden from the audience as possible and also to signify the action and excitement of the scene.

In the sad "mum" scene the camera constantly does a shot reverse shot eye line match of what the protagonist is looking at, this also works as a reaction shot and it displays the emotion felt by the protagonist in these sad scenes.

Short film analysis One-minute Time machine

Film : One Minute Time Machine

Produced by : Empty Box Productions 

Budget : $1000

Released : 29th March 2014

Genre : Short, Comedy, Romance

For my upcoming analysis I am going to personally rate each clip on the 4 key areas of any media production, Sound, Mis En Scene, camera and editing.

 I will also explain my reasons for my decision and state what in particular I enjoyed about the clip.

Sound

Sound does not play a key role throughout this film, throughout there is a constant "Romantic" piano riff non-diagetic incidental soundtrack that is played for comedic effect to imitate the style of a romance film.

This sound track is then muted in moments when the male character makes a "mistake" when attempting to romance the girl and is immediately continues as he activates his time machine and works out the correct thing to say, this is done to parody the normal cliché "guy meets girl" romance scenario with a twist and works very well.

Sound effects wise there is only really the activation noise of the time machine which is quite crucial in indicating that the scene is switching to the next time scenario thus moving the story on for the viewer.

Overall judgement 6/10

Mis En Scene

The setting of this film much like the sound track is set to try and imitate the Cliché of a romantic film, it is set on an isolated bench in a well lit location that would be deliberately set in a romance film to stage an emotional connection between two characters with no environmental distractions.

The high key natural lighting of the area creates a tranquil climate and shows of the characters in a positive light, it certainly present the female character to be in a state of relaxation.  

The costume of the woman clearly presents her as an character of intellect, this is shown by her sophisticated looking cardigan and shirt that is quite stereotypical of a woman in a doctoral or educational position, this is further reflected by the style of her hair which is neatly tied up in a professional style, she can also seen with a scientific book prop that adds to her representation as a character of intellect.

The male character however is dressed in more casual attire, his outfit does not really stereotype to any particular class of person and does not really do much to present him as a character.
His hair however does more to address his personality, his hair is styled in a way that shows that he has clearly put a lot of effort into looking his best, this clearly matches his aims in the film which is to gain the attention of the female character.

Overall judgement 7/10

Editing

The most consistent edit shown throughout the film is the transition from scene to scene that follows the pushing of the time machine button, it is a mere flash to white along with the sound effect this is quite a simple effect but it very clearly signifies to the audience the change in the film and in a way is more effective than a traditional melodramatic sci-fi time machine, the simplistic manner of this adds to the comedic effect.

During the dialogue between the two characters there is a fairly moderate paced shot reverse shot which alters between a mid-shot and close up of the characters as the intimacy between them grows this is meant as an imitation of the romantic style, the way the editing works almost makes the film seem like outtakes thus adding to the comedic effect.

Overall judgement 9/10

Camera

The camera angles does not stay consistent throughout, as i stated with the editing it changes levels as the intimacy between the two increases for example, at the start when the two are distant strangers they are shown from a mid-shot which is remains until a clear connection is made which is indicated when the female states "I like weird", at this point the zooms into a close up this signifies clear feelings of intimacy.

Other than the occasional long shot to establish a twist in the plot the camera angle does not have much variety and is not very vital to the advancement of the story.

Overall judgement 6/10   

Trailer Analysis - Suicide squad

Institutional information 

Name : Suicide Squad

Year: 2016

Age Certificate : To be specified

production : DC Entertainment 

Director : John Ayer

Other details regarding budget and income are yet to be released, this is still only a teaser trailer.

Target audience

Suicide squad is based on the DC comics series and therefore is part of a franchise with an already established fan base, and this trailer has some references to the comic series that an existing fan would find very appealing and would create hype throughout the fan base and these existing fans would go to help make this trailer viral.

This trailer features a number of conventions that would appeal to an action film fan, such as armed swat style costumes and slow motion fight scenes along with dark thriller environments such as the prison or the streets and there are numerous weapon props from bats to assault rifles all of which indicate to the viewer that this is going to be action packed intense film.

The film has its unique selling point that the Villains take the role of the main protagonists and they try to show this as a theme throughout the trailer, such as the almost constant low key lighting that suggests the dark nature of the characters and the rather creepy sound vocal in the background all signify to the audience that the characters wont be your conventional "goodies". 

Cast wise I think it would be fair to say that the characters Mis En Scene would stereotypically appeal to a more masculine audience.

Setting

A variety of locations are shown throughout the trailer, all of which are in low key lighting and are all locations that contain conventions of a criminal theme, for example the first part is set in a candle lit restaurant with the outside set dark and rainy, this reminds me of a godfather style Mafia meeting.

   

  

The next important setting shown in the sequence is the prison, now this is important to imply to the audience that the characters are criminals despite being the protagonists. The prison looks considerably more concreted and built up then your usual prison and there is a troop of guards taking point, this clearly implies that whoever is in this prison is dangerous.

The rest of the settings presented in brief snippets are a combination of urban environments and close quarter scenes all portrayed in low level lighting so the audience is sure to see that this areas are affiliated with negative actions.

Character Mise En Scene

The costumes worn by the characters in the trailer are based upon the characters in the Suicide Squad comic book, although there has been negative feedback from the fan base in regards to how well the film actors and costumes correspond with the comic, Will Smith especially:

    

The female character "Harley Quinn" is represented in a sexualised "psycho-fem" style, this means she is presented with some feminine attributes such as her use of weapons and threatening behavior, whilst also being presented as promiscuous and sexualised. This sort of style of feminine Mise-En-Scene is typical for what you'd find for female protagonists in these type of films.

All the main protagonists in this film are all villains, this undermines Vladimir Propp's film theory about the character roles. All characters are presented in comic based costumes. These costumes all have connotations of wrong doing and evil, such as dark colours, tattoos, vicious weaponry props and rugged clothes.

  Camera

This extreme long shot/establishing shot is used in the trailed to highlight the threat posed by the figure shown in the distance. The establishing shot shows the cage the character is held in as very isolated from the rest of the jail, this implies that the character held within is of special significance and danger. This is also shown by the culmination of tactically dressed men approaching the cage with caution.

This mid shot of the top of the character's head presents her as looking very menacing. The shot shows her as very isolated and troubled. Firstly this can be very obviously seen by the fact she's bathing in a pool of blood. It is also shown by the derelict look of the environment she's shown in. All this presents the character as a troubled individual and hints to her involvement in the narrative.

This long shot summaries the Mise-En-Scene of the film. Within it you can see the main character's in the film and their unique costume designs, and to really emphasise their evil persona you can see the dark, urban and rugged setting.

Discussion

After sitting down with my partner and discussing our chosen genre and we both take a likening to the idea of using the idea of time travel to create a short thought provoking film that will use good plot and camera tricks instead of expensive effects and props.

Early decision

After watching a vast variety of short films from Horror to medieval films, and although it is not our final decision we have decision we wish to aim towards the ScFi genre.
Although this genre is not recommended for a amateur film maker due to the costly effects and general difficulty of the subject, however we're going to try and use a mixture of after effects and clever narrative to try and make an entertaining clip with a small budget.        

One-Minute Time Machine

I like the way this short film manages to create a short intriguing plot with an entertaining narrative with little need for over the top effects and props, really shows how simple Sc-fi genre pieces can be created so simply.