I had a Moment of Enlightenment

So... I decided to completely change the plot for my film opening. Exciting right?
It's not that I decided to switch a few things or change small details from the ideas that I previously presented on the posts before this one. But instead I choose to go in a completely different route for the plot of my film (Shout out to my teacher for guiding me).

With that being said I present to you... [Redacted]
I'm still trying to come up with the name for the film so it will remain unknown for now.

The plot of my movie is centered around an upcoming artist who is obsessed with the idea of becoming famous and having recognition world wide. The problem is that this artists is currently struggling economically and they cannot afford to spend a single penny on materials to project their ideas onto a canvas or any other surface.
Our protagonists has the great idea of resorting to alternative methods of collecting materials for their work. These methods may seem a little bit unconventional for the public eye as they involve homicide, however the average person does not know this so they think that it is another artist that is trying to do something controversial to become relevant.
Eventually these unconventional techniques are paying off, as some galleries begin to show interest in the artist's work. Our protagonist begins to rise in the social scale as some of their fellow colleagues begin to suspect of the ethical work of our protagonist and will eventually try to uncover the truth behind the paintings.

I hope that this not so extensive summary of the plot shows my vision.

While thinking about this idea I found several lists of artists using bodily fluids in their art in a legal way (Hopefully). If you want to check their works out you can check these links:

Wikipedia Article
Flavorwire list with images

The Endless Possibilities for the Plot

I have tried to get all my ideas together and i'm going to give a quick overview of what I could possibly shoot in the future:

1- Miami drug war during the 80s. The main character would be involved in some way.

2- Heat of passion crime. a story about a love triangle, one of the characters acts impulsively.

3-I want to explore the idea of food tampering in a school environment.

4-Person wakes up but does not remember anything from the night before but are guilty of a crime.

So far these ideas are really vague, I have to pick one and then dive deeper to develop a complete story, the characters, the script, and the storyboard.

An extensive lists of potential criminal charges... Ideas

This is only for research purposes and I won't attempt any of the crimes that are about to be listed.

So.. I realized that my knowledge about criminal activities is very limited. I only know the basics, like illegal substances are not good and killing a person will definitely send you to jail, but there must be more to that, right?

Yes, I was right.

To compile this list of crimes that I could potentially incorporate into my film I used these two websites:

FindLaw  ClariFacts

And I decided to compile a list of some crimes that stood out to me... Enjoy learning about these charges and please don't attempt to recreate these.

Aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft- This one made me laugh
Arson- Setting fire to property
Blackmail
Child abandonment- does not apply to orphanages
Credit/Debit card fraud
Drug manufacturing and Cultivation
Damage to religious property
Destruction of property to prevent seizure
Embezzlement- withholding assets (Financial fraud)
Forced labor
Identity theft
Impersonator making an arrest/search
Manslaughter (Both voluntary and involuntary)
MIP- Minor in posession of alcohol
Product tampering- contamination of food
Tresspassing
Video Voyeurism- recording an individual without their consent

There were more than fifty more crimes that I could have included in this lists but I thought that these could be incorporated relatively easy into a story. One of these crimes will be the base of my story which is why I wanted to list potential options first, I will be picking a few of these later and create the outline of a story based on them.

Wish me luck

Lighting and Other Materials

These past few days I've been looking on different online stores and doing some research about the different props that I will most likely incorporate in the film opening.

Neon Lights-
I want to add a pop of color to the scene and i'm relying mostly on lighting to achieve this.
One of the options is to buy a trip of LED lights form Amazon or visit my local shop to buy these. There are different options that vary in length, brightness, and range of colors. The lowest price that I could find was $17.99 for a set of strip lights. They have the ability to change colors periodically and the user has the option to control the speed, these lights are also flexible which is an advantage because they can adapt to different locations.
The other option that I found is much cheaper and I can make it myself. It requires cellophane, which is the thin and transparent paper that is sometimes used to wrap presents, and a lamp. The basic idea is that you put the cellophane in front of the light bulb on the lamp to create a colored light. This is a god option because it's cheaper than buying them since a pack of cellophane papers of different colors cost about $5, the downside to this is that unlike the store bought lights, these would not be flexible and I would depend on the lamps that I already own.
These two videos explain the process more in depth in case you want to give it a try.
DIY Colored Gels by Nate's Film Tutorials, DIY Ways to Color Lights by UM Stamps

Crime Scene-
The basic idea for my story has to do with some type of crime as it is a characteristic of the genre I choose. The options that I have are pretty much the same as the item above. I can either buy them from a local store or make them myself.
Some stores like Party city and Walmart offer "crime scene kits" that range from $5 to $10 dollars. However I think that they don't offer anything that I can't make with some basic materials so for these I plan on sticking with the Do It Yourself method.

Trying to be an Organized Student

Creating a Schedule

February-

February is all about Pre-Production. During the last weeks of this month I will be occupied planning the body of my story, I will have to create storyboards, prepare props and an appropriate wardrobe, and finish writing the script for the opening of my movie opening. 

I also have to find some who is willing to act in this opening. 

Even though this may seem like a long list of tasks I'm already completing the most important one, setting a schedule.

I think that the Pre-Production process is the most important one of any production which is why I wanted to have enough time to properly think about most of the choices that will affect my story in the future.

March-

March will be the busiest month for me as the three process of production will be completed. As I said above, I want to have enough time to create the base of my story which is why the pre-production phase will be completed after the first week of march.

The next phase is production, the cameras will begin to roll and actors will be on set. during the two weeks that I will be dedicating to the production of this project I will be recording the shooting process and posting updates about said process.

I want to dedicate at least 6 days to filming the opening, this will be happening during Fridays and weekends because I figured that the actors will be more likely to be available then than in weekdays because of school and extracurricular activities.

During production I will also be creating the sound effects, most of the effects will be created in a foley stage and will be added on the post production part.

The post-production will be happening during the last weeks of March and the beginning of April. During those week I will be occupied editing the footage, adding the sound effects, and adding titles and graphics. There is the possibility of Re-Shoots happening if i'm not satisfied with the end result of a scene but I hope that is not the case.

April-

April will be the last month to work on the project (Just one week to be exact). The purpose of this last week is to make the last few changes of the scene and I hope to have everything ready by April 1st to have enough time to complete the CCR.

So... I'm really trying to be organized to have everything in control, I hope I can stick to this schedule and if something changes there will be an update.

See you soon

Diving into the (Inspirational) world of Neo-Noir Movies + Openings

Opening Scenes

After spending a couple of minutes (Hours?) trying to choose some opening sequences that embody the Neo-Noir genre.

But first, what makes a good film opening?
-leads to a singular goal, gives the viewer a promise that something will happen, creates anticipation, there is a strong theme present, it creates a strong connection with a character, it makes the viewer care
-Unifying theory of 2+2 - Make the audience put the pieces together instead of giving them the 4.

The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)

Opening Scene of The Place Beyond the Pines

https://nyti.ms/2piu2TE - This is a clip of a voice-over of the director telling anecdotes about the scene while it's playing (Shout out to The New York Times)

The opening of this movie perfectly embodies all of the elements of a neo-classical film. From the camera shots to the mise-en-scene elements, it's all there. The opening relies on a long tracking shot (more than three minutes) of the character walking through what it looks like a carnival and ultimately performing a stunt in a motorcycle. The sequence happens in night time and there are really bright lights that are used to create that characteristic chiaroscuro element to highlight the contrast of light and dark. 

Even though the character that is being followed by the camera is surrounded by a lot of people, the tonality of the scene create a lonesome and almost melancholic feeling. Diegetic sound is used for carnival rights and the voices of the crowd surrounding the character.

All of these elements paired together hint to the fact that main character most likely does not feel comfortable in his environment.

Sin City (2005)

Sin City Opening Scene

This opening scene is more stylized than the first one but it still shows conventions that are typical of a Neo-Noir movie. The scene basically shows a woman and a man talking on the rooftop of a building and it ends with the man (Spoiler?) killing the woman with a gun. I think that the betrayal theme of the movie is already established by this point, this scene also shows a strong contrast between shadows and lights and towards the end it begins to rain (Obscured settings). Unlike the opening above, this scene does have cuts and it is not tracking any character but instead it relies on close ups of the faces of the characters.

Some of the stylistic features of this scene is the shot showing the figures in 2-D and the fact that the background looks like something you would find in a superhero comic. I liked the use of color against the black and white to highlight some of the characteristics of the female character like sensuality. 

I picked these two openings because they show that even though they fall under the same genre, they are completely different. I'm using this as motivation for the opening scene that I'm going to create in the following weeks because It is evident that I have options, I can create pretty much whatever I want as long as it follows the characteristics of the genre and I can afford to produce it -I'm working with a limited budget $$ you know- 

I feel great now, I feel that I have creative freedom for this project... Lets hope that I'm still as optimistic next week.

Genre... Again?

I'm back to tell you more about...

Thrillers-ish!

To spice thing up a little I'm diving into a sub-genre of thrillers: Neo-Noir (Sometimes referred to as a stylish modern crime-thriller).

I'm sure you have at least watched at least one film that mixes these two genres but I'm going to discuss that later in this posting. For now I'm going to discuss some characteristics of both genres and the result of the combination of these two.

     Crime Movies- Crime movies are fairly easy to understand, they revolve around the actions of a criminal or "mastermind" -if you want to glorify them- and it will often show their rise and fall. Some crime films may choose to portray the victims of a criminal or a specific person trying to catch them.

These films are usually fast paced and have a mysterious atmosphere around the plot or characters.

Other characteristics are

1- Urban locations, the "bad part" of town.

2- Dramatic scores are used to build tension, crime jargon/code words in dialogue

3-Some films exaggerate these criminals and may fall into stereotypes to represent them (Male, tattoos)

Some of my personal favorites are:

                                

   
Thriller Movies- If you want a detailed explanations of this genre you can visit the "genre research" posting, I'm still going over some key elements of this genre to refresh your memory.
These types of movies often incorporate an element of suspense, characters are innocent victims that are not accustomed to danger and they take place in either a an urban setting that is highly populated or sometimes in isolated locations unknown to the main character. Editing is fast-paced and the identity of the antagonist will be most likely hidden.

So... What happens when you mix both genres?
The beautiful hybrid of Neo-Noir is born. To put it in the most simple terms, these movies combine the suspenseful atmosphere of thrillers with a crime plot.
Some features of these films are:

Femme Fatale

- Characters: an Anti-Hero which is like a protagonists that lacks conventional heroic attributes. Along with the Anti-Hero there may also be a Femme/Homme Fatale which is an attractive and seductive character who ultimately pushes the protagonist into dangerous situations (ex. Jane Smith in Mr. and Mrs. Smith / Amy Dune in Gone Girl).
- Themes and Organization: False accusations and betrayal, existential dread, corruption, and paranoia. The level of violence is these films has increased over the last coupe of years.
They often present complex plots with plot twists and Achronological narrative/analepsis -The narrative doesn't go in chronological order- are often used, this may be achieved with the use of flashbacks or flash forwards Ex. Pulp Fiction (1994), Memento (2000).

City of Tiny Lights (2016)

-Lighting: Low-Key lighting where contour figures are exaggerated and using light to create emphasis on shadows. This type of lighting is used to create an effect of chiaroscuro which creates a high contrast between lights and shadows (In Neo-Noir films neon lights may be used to heighten this effect using color).
-Setting: Obscured backgrounds are a common feature in these types of films, this effect is achieved with the use of fog, smoke, steam, and/or rain. Urban settings are also prominent (mostly at night) to create a sense of isolation. Some films in these genre have been set in peaceful looking settings like countrysides or small towns to counterpoint the violence on the screen.
-Shots and Angles: Long-tracking shots paired with dutch angles or inverted frames that reflect the instability of the film.
-Sound: As with most films, diegetic and non-diegetic sound will be used to add a layer of depth to the narrative. However, Neo-Noir films will also rely on a first person voice-over narration.

What is Neo-Noir | Netflix
This video summarizes the key elements of a Neo-Noir films and provides some visual examples... And it is made by Netflix so it's worth it.

Over the next few days I'm going to explore films that fall over this type of genre and I will be giving you my thoughts... I will become a film critic if you will.

Watchlist:
Drive (2011)
Nightcrawler (2014)
The Handmaiden (2016)
Femme Fatale (2002)
Heat (1995)
Chinatown (1974)

Music - Meet temptation

The process to create a marketing campaign for a music artist.

Some background information

Cover Art of single
Created by me

Our group got assigned the song "No good" by KALEO  (The cover art you see here was made by me) and our task was to create a campaign that used innovative techniques to attract audiences. We were also in charge of "creating" a bran new artists and a music video that accompanied the song.

The song is categorized as Indie/Alternative rock which some people may call it "Out of the ordinary", the genre gained popularity in the 1990s and since then it has still rising in popularity among young audiences (males and females,16-25 in age) who come from all socioeconomic backgrounds. Some of the characteristics of the genre is a simple instrumentation paired with a clear melody.

First of creating our marketing plan we had to do some research for artists that were in the same genre to get some inspiration and evaluate their marketing strategy and their success in terms of popularity with audiences. We choose Half Alive and Cage the elephant because both of these artists have some things in common: they are composed of more than one member, and their distribution and marketing techniques were relatively similar.

Both of them have an active website where information like tour dates, social media, and merchandise was available. Their music is also mainly available on digital platform to stream and buy, although they offer options like CD's and vinyl records. All of these techniques would be implement in our marketing campaign as they had proven to be successful and had pushed the bands to a mainstream audience.

Temptation - Creating our brand

Promotional picture

Coming up with the name of our artists was probably one of the most challenging parts of the process, we ended up settling for "Temptation" among an extensive list of names that were proposed.

 It was basically inspired from one of the lyrics of the song. Later we began to think about the colors that would best capture the essence of our artists, we choose a grey scale color palette, these colors are going to be present in the promotional pictures of the artists as well as in the website and merchandise.

Color palette

 Going along with the colors, clouds are also present in basically all of the components which i'm going to mention later. Sticking with a specific object and a set of colors was the easiest way we could develop a brand that was recognizable for a relatively large amount of people.

One of the main factors that affected our campaign was to stick to a budget and a plan that felt realistic, considering that we were creating an emerging artists that was pretty much unknown to the public eye. This was probably one of the biggest factors that affected our marketing campaign as we had to develop it for a local audience, this also affected our distributions methods because we choose our partner company because of their inexpensive fees. Our campaign was centered to be local (Florida) in order to create a loyal fan-base and then begin expanding from there. Our music was also going be distributed exclusively on digital platforms because it was the cheapest option and it is also and easy and accessible way for people to get to it if they have any electronic device with internet access (we do plan on expanding to CD and Vinyls later).

The Website - Source of information and Marketing

Artist's website

The website for our artist was made with the intention of being an user friendly platform that is easy to navigate. The design of the website is rather minimalist because we did not want to over-saturate it. On the main page there are a few pictures of the artists next to an announcement tab with news about music, tours, and merchandise. Not only does this provide relevant information for new visitors of the site but it also allows the artists to create a personal connection with them, as the tab includes some fun facts about the artists (ex. He has never visited North Florida). Important information like the social media sites are listed on the top right corner, there is also an option to subscribe to a newsletter by email or text to receive monthly updates about our plan. 

Next i'm going to talk about different elements of our campaign, which can be found on the website

     Tour dates: As I mentioned before, our plan focuses to create a local and loyal fan-base. Our artist as going to tour from South FL to North FL. The venues we choose are located in the heart of big cities to attract as many people as possible, we also wanted to make sure that they were easy to access for all people. Most of these businesses are nightclubs which is a place were people from our target audience tend to hang in. Some of the venues were exclusive to the genre of our music which guarantees that their frequent customers will also enjoy our music because the genre is of their liking. There are also a couple of events where food trucks are involved so we hope to partner with them to attract more people by offering an event with food and music. Visitors have the option to buy tickets directly from the website, making the transaction more convenient from them as they can choose the date and place from a list.

Social media post

     Merchandise: It is a key element in our campaign as we wanted to create something authentic for the people that was going to buy it. We didn't want to stick a template in a piece of clothing and sell it. The merchandise still stays within the color palette and also includes the "clouds" as a decorative print. All of the merchandise features either the name of the artist or the name of the song, this is because people may upload their pictures wearing our merch so in a way they are promoting our artist/song because their followers may see it and most likely will check it out. All of our items are unisex so they can be used by both men and women and we tried to include a variety of prices so even if someone does not want to spend as much money they can still get something for as little as five dollars. Each purchase also includes a copy of the single "No good" to increase the chances of the artists to rise in the charts and become more popular.
     Music Tab: The music tab is fairly simple as it features the cover art of the single "No good' and a list of websites where visitors can buy or stream the song. This again makes the process more convenient for them because instead of searching for our song in a platform they can click a link on our website and they will be taken there.

Social Media

     Social Media: we choose to focus on Instagram and Twitter to promote our music as both platforms have a large number of users and their users align with our target audience in terms of age and gender. The posts center on sharing news about music and overall projects that have to do with the artists, they also feature the clouds and color palette already established for our brand. Our plan was to use the hashtag #TemptationMusic and #NoGood to promote our song and music video, this would also allow our artist to connect with their fans as he would interact with the people that use the hashtag and would even re-post things they said about their song to their Social Media.

Music Video and Marketing - Learning Experience
Even though I was not alone in the process of producing this music video, it was still relatively difficult to produces, especially coming up with the story that we wanted to tell. We had many ideas at first but they were not cohesive or didn't work with each other so we had to slowly refine them until we reached an end point. It takes a lot of organization and compromise from all parties to plan and schedule the dates and times for filming the video and I think that having a solid plan is probably the most important thing for any production. Nonetheless I'm really proud of the final product and I hope that you enjoy watching it.