Technical and Creative Skills I Developed
I used the camera to achieve the Film Noir effect I wanted by using different type of shots. I used varied angles such as a high angle shot and a Dutch angle to create the mistery and suspicion that a Film Noir film has. A Dutch angle implies suspicion towards a character or a scene. I used lighting to create the Film Noir effect by filming when it was cloudy, so that when I turned it into black and white, it would look gloomy and dark with the right amount of contrast. I also placed the lights in the green room strategically so the actor's facial expressions could be seen and the Femme Fatale's beauty was showcased. I used the green screen to get a Film Noir idea by filming there and uploading actual 1940's backgrounds, instead of using my surroundings, to make it resemble the time frame and to make look more similar to the original Noir movies. I used props to achieve the Film Noir idea I wanted for my opening, by using props that symbolized Noir themes and developed the characters' personality. For example, I used a bottle of alcohol , which symbolized misery and doom and also extended our knowledge of the 'Doomed Hero', suggesting he is a lonely, drunken fool. I used costume to get the Film Noir look I wanted by combining my knowledge of fashion in the 1940's and how I wanted to portray my characters when choosing their outfits. For example, I wanted my Femme Fatale to look seductive but powerful, I knew that women wore black dresses and red lipstick in the 40's, so I incorporated that to make her look seductive. I chose a coat which was quite similar to the male's one to show her power. I also used setting by choosing locations which didn't show any modern objects and corresponded with the scenes we filmed, while looking old fashioned.
I also used Final Cut Pro to edit my film so I could achieve the Film Noir effect I wanted. For example, when it came to adding sound, I inserted 1940's jazz/blues music in a few of my scenes to set the atmosphere of a 1940's restaurant or casino. I also inserted a 1940's telephone ring in the scene where Lazzaro gets a phone call so it looked professional and like it was set in the 40's. I used final cut pro for my green screen scenes to insert backgrounds which resembled 1940's locations to complete the look of the Noir genre. Making the whole movie black and white sealed the look and set an old fashioned, 'noir-esque' atmosphere, we played around with different filters to try and achieve this look. The skills I have learnt most while making my Film Noir opening have been editing on Final Cut Pro, as it was my first time using this to edit clips. A big part of the skills I mastered was attention to detail and being really specific about how I wanted things to look. Teamwork was also an essential skill our group practiced during the process.
I also used Final Cut Pro to edit my film so I could achieve the Film Noir effect I wanted. For example, when it came to adding sound, I inserted 1940's jazz/blues music in a few of my scenes to set the atmosphere of a 1940's restaurant or casino. I also inserted a 1940's telephone ring in the scene where Lazzaro gets a phone call so it looked professional and like it was set in the 40's. I used final cut pro for my green screen scenes to insert backgrounds which resembled 1940's locations to complete the look of the Noir genre. Making the whole movie black and white sealed the look and set an old fashioned, 'noir-esque' atmosphere, we played around with different filters to try and achieve this look. The skills I have learnt most while making my Film Noir opening have been editing on Final Cut Pro, as it was my first time using this to edit clips. A big part of the skills I mastered was attention to detail and being really specific about how I wanted things to look. Teamwork was also an essential skill our group practiced during the process.
Codes and Conventions of a Film Opening
I made my title and credits white because white was mainly used as a font colour in the original Noir films and it also contrasted well with our backgrounds. White also symbolizes the white lies told by the Femme Fatale. We used a swirly, twisted font for our title 'Sweet Sacrifice' because it represented the twisted personality of our Femme and foreshadowed a complicated plot. We chose the title because it is a reference to how our doomed hero sacrificed his firm and money to gamble for the woman he was madly in love with, only to find out she didn't feel the same. We created a film Noir atmosphere by considering what kind of things would set a suspicious mood. For this, we used shadows and abandoned locations. Also, props such as alcohol bottles and cigars also enforced a gloomy, Noir atmosphere. We introduced our characters through voiceovers, indirectly, because we felt it flowed better and the scenes covering the voiceovers said something about the character. For example, when Lazzaro's voiceover starts, his firm is showing, showing that he starts the story as a wealthy businessman. When a voiceover mentions Lisa, she is shown in the scene just looking into the party for a second and walking back out, representing how she creeped into Lazzaro's life and then suddenly left him. I created interest for the audience in my Noir story by showing a bit of backstory so the audience understands how much our doomed hero loses and how the Femme Fatale impacts his life. Another way I created interest for my audience was using hints that made the audience question wether the love relationship was real. For example, I made the casino scee very short because I wanted it to be obvious that the Femme Fatale was only there to gain information, not because she was falling in love with him. We ended the film abruptly to make the audience question what would happen next. The fact that it didn't have a proper explanation suggested it was not the end.
Film Language, Organisations and Audiences
I used Warner Brothers as the producers of my film because they were a very famous film company commonly used in Film Noires in the 1940's and I felt that this suited my genre best. Our ident is an old fashioned Warner Brother's ident in black and white. We had to find the audio seperately for it and then layer it to the video because the audio with the original video was faulty. The new audio looked better and fit the genremore a it had jazz tones to it. My primary target audience are people aged 16-40, fans of 1940's films and old fashioned Film Noirs.
Conclusion
Overall, I think my film opening has good content and our vision of the storyline was met but due to it being too long, some scenes were cut out so we didn't use the whole of our script. I think the voiceovers and scenes blend well but our accents didn't sound as professional as the older years'. Our green screen is the main thing we could have improved, mainly because we didn't know we weren't supposed to move the camera, and once we edited our scenes, a lot of the footage drifted mid air. This caused our opening to look improper and rough. I think we used costume and make up effectively because our characters did look very Film Noir and the overall look resembled the 1940's. Our editing went better than I expected because I thought we wouldn't know how to edit seeing as none of us had used Final Cut Pro before properly, but we were quick learners and managed to solve all the problems we had. What I learnt most from the whole film making process was how to edit on Final Cut Pro and how to work together to make compromises and solve problems.