Hi there! I hope you are doing well, because I know I am. As you know, the name of my film (opening) is going to be "Maia: Unfiltered". Recently, I started my own personal blog, and the name I chose for this project is one of the names that I scrapped. I think that this fits the film because the main character is going to be blogging about every aspect of her life, and the film will explore those things as well.
Let me explain the process in choosing my fonts for the title card. I want my character to be a full of joy, cheerful, and unique, so the font that I choose has to reflect that. I also wanted to tie in the blog because that will be a big portion of the film. Without further ado, here were the different versions of the title card that I came up with, and the final one that I chose.
Version 1: I liked the idea of the keyboard, but I didn't like the actual font inside the keys.
Version 2: I really liked that there were 2 different fonts, but I didn't like the way that they looked together. The font of "unfiltered" was the one I ended up going with.
Version 3: I thought that the drawn font of "Maia" was nice because it shows a bit of personality, but the way that the two fonts looked together wasn't what I imagined.
Version 4 (final): I'm super happy with the final product, because I think that each font represents what I want it to. The font of "Maia" is unique and the hot pink makes it stand out a bit more, just like my own character. The font for "unfiltered" is supposed to represent the keys of the keyboard and tie in the blog theme.
This is the font that I used for the keyboard portion.
I found the other font, for "Maia" on Pinterest, but it is actually a set on Canva, which is the platform I used to design the title card.
For the title, I think I'm going to try to overlay the title onto the opening, so that there is still a clip playing in the background. When it's time for editing, I'll show you what I end up doing. Thank you for reading today's post and I hope you enjoyed the updated story! I'll catch you on the next one!
Sources:
Top Clip. (2019, June 20). Killing Eve | Opening scene (1x01) [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4utDk2QB_wc
Ian Double M. (2019, April 9). Juno opening scene - Clip 1 of 19 - JUNO film (2007) [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLREFnFNVUg
Hi again! Today I'll be researching credit sequences from the COA genre in order to confidently create one for Maia: Unfiltered. Right now, my idea is for the credits to be typed out on the computer as if it is part of the blog itself. For the actors, their names will be shown on the screen as they are also on screen. I'll be analyzing and discussing the following credit sequences:
Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
Scott Pilgrim vs The World (2010)
Eighth Grade (2018)
The opening credits of Napoleon Dynamite introduce the production company, actors, casting director, music director, editor, production designer, director of photography, executive producer, producers, writers, and finally, the director.
Throughout the opening, the credits are shown on many different lunch plates and school supplies. For example, the production company was written in ketchup on a plate of tater tots (pictured above).
This credit sequence shows many different school supplies such as, a school ID, pencils, books and more to let the viewers know that it will most likely take place at a school. It also used various fonts to present each title to highlight the quirkiness of this film.
In Scott Pilgrim vs The World, the opening lists all of the same titles as Napoleon Dynamite. Before the opening even starts, the Universal logo is a bit different; it's pixilated and the theme song is a bit more video-game sounding. After the title card, the names of the main actors are placed in the middle of the screen while the background is animated in a chaotic, rocky style. In the animation, I think that each background is supposed to tie into the character that each actor plays. For example, Ellen Wong plays Knives Chau, who we are introduced to in the opening and during her credits, the animation has knives in it. I think that the concept of having the credit have to do with the character is very cool and I might be able to incorporate it into my own opening.
Eighth Grade's credit sequence took a much different approach compared to the ones I've previously researched. Throughout the opening, the credits are in a very simple, white font and placed in the bottom left corner of the screen. I think that the reason for this is so that viewers focus mainly on the content of the actual opening. This shows that the character and setting development is the most important thing to pay attention to in these 3 minutes.
My takeaways:
From this research, I realized that there are different approaches I could take for the credits.
I could incorporate the credits through items in the setting, or having to do with each character. This might be a little distracting if the credits are items in the setting, but I'm not entirely sure yet.
Or, I could make the font very simplistic and have the main focus be on the content of the opening.
I don't think I'm going to type out the credits onto the blog, but I'll figure something else out. In the next post, I'll be exploring different font options for both the credits and the title card. Thank you for reading and hope to see you there!
Hey there and welcome back to my journey of my film opening! In order to create a proper opening that establishes the character and the conflict, I need to research a few COA film openings to serve as inspiration on how to effectively accomplish this. The three openings I've decided to research and analyze are:
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
Juno (2007)
The First Time (2012)
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) tells the story of Charlie, an awkward freshman in high school, navigating through relationships and mental health.
Because this video shows the first 10 minutes, I watched until the 2:38 timestamp.
The opening of this film starts with about 1:35 of the credit sequence on top of closeups of a tunnel with "Could It Be Another Change" by The Samples playing in the background. The lyrics in the picture to the left, are the ones in the opening. This sets the tone of the film to be melancholic but still a little bit hopeful. The opening introduces the main character, Charlie, with him writing a letter to an unnamed friend. Charlie voices-over the opening as if he was reading us the letter and we learn the conflict: he hasn't talked to anyone besides his family all summer. He says/writes that he wants to change that, because his first day of high school is the next day. The opening introduces Charlie as an introvert because in the letter, he says that he wants to stay anonymous. Another hint is that he hasn't talked to anyone all summer. Lastly, instead of thinking about the adventures of high school, Charlie is thinking about how long it will be until his last day of high school. This opening introduces the main character as well as alludes to a conflict, being that Charlie might not have friends, or has a hard time making them.
Juno (2007) is about a high school girl named Juno, who has an unplanned pregnancy and follows her through a year of her life, highlighting the struggles of teen pregnancy.
The opening begins of Juno begins with a wide shot, of a Juno, who is holding a jug of Sunny D and staring at a living room chair. She then says that everything started with this chair. We then learn from a flashback that Juno and a guy seemingly had sex on this chair and is what she is referring to. Then we hear a dog barking, which snaps the opening back to reality. As Juno starts to walk somewhere, "All I Want Is You" by Barry Louis Polisar begins to play. The song choice is important because it sets a little bit of a playful tone. Paired with Juno's slightly sarcastic character and the animated credits, the film entices the viewer to continue watching to answer questions such as, is Juno actually pregnant like in the posters? What does she decide to do with the baby if she is? This opening seems to take the approach of introducing the main character and possible conflict, just like the Perks of Being a Wallflower.
Finally, The First Time (2012) is about a high school senior named Dave, who meets Aubrey at a party and fall in love over a weekend. The film portrays all of the stages of a first relationship including both the awkward and enjoyable ones.
This video is the full film, currently available on YouTube to watch for free with ads. I watched up until the 2:31 mark for the purpose of this research.
The opening of The First Time, begins with a series of medium shots and closeups of what seems to be a high school party. Along with the upbeat song, "Silly Boy" by The Blue Van playing in the background, the opening suggests that this film will be a roller coaster of emotions. There are couples that are all over each other, people throwing up, and also having fun. We also see Dave focused and frustrated about something that seems to be a speech of some sort. Around the 2 minute mark, Dave and Aubrey meet in an alleyway with Aubrey asking why he's talking to himself. This shows Dave's character as someone who doesn't necessarily follow the crowd because he isn't inside partying with everyone else, he is practicing something that could be important in the following scenes.
What can I take away from today's research?
Today's research was honestly extremely helpful. I realized that in the COA genre, the openings usually consist of a song that completely establishes the tone for the rest of the film. Throughout my research, that was the common theme. Some songs chosen for openings set the tone to be a bit more depressing, while others are more cheerful and exciting.
Story Update:
With this, comes the fact that I have changed the story for my opening. The story that I previously wanted to tell was too complex and a 2 minute opening would not have been sufficient time to tell it. Over this past weekend, I created my own personal blog, and decided to base my opening on a girl who started a blog. When creating my blog, I came up with several possible names and one of the ones I did not use was "maia: unfiltered". I will voice-over the opening as if I'm reading the first post, similar to that of The Perks of Being a Wallflower.
During the opening I will establish the character, me, who has just started a blog. The reason she started the blog might be because she wants to make sure people know the importance of global warming, and its effects on the world. That's what I have for now, and hopefully by the end of the week I will have written the script.
Thank you for reading today's research and I'll see you in the next one where I'll be researching COA credit sequences.
Hi there! I hope you are doing well and today I'm sharing my schedule for the next 7 weeks of my portfolio project! Though this project is definitely overwhelming, there has to be a way to break it down so that I am able to execute it properly and letting it bloom as to its full potential. I am not including last week because it is in the past, but technically speaking, was the official start of the project. With that being said, here is my full schedule:
Week Two (1/26-2/1)
Research COA film openings
Research COA credit sequences
Decide on storyline
Week Three (2/2-2/8)
Create storyboard
Write script
find music (get permission, if needed)
View/find possible filming locations
Set filming days
Create costume design per each character
Find actors
Week Four (2/9-2/15)
Research any other mise-en-scene elements that I want to add
Create/plan the actual element
Create any voice-overs (if needed)
Start any foley (if needed)
Film
Week Five (2/16-2/22)
Create production company logo
Start and finish editing opening v. 1
Re-record any voice-overs or foley
Week Six (2/23-3/1)
Revise opening
Possibly make v. 2 if v. 1 is unsatisfactory
Compare v. 1 and v. 2 (if needed)
Choose final opening
Research CCR question #1 and #2
Week Seven (3/2-3/8)
Research CCR question #3 and #4
Create CCR
Edit
Film/Voice-over
Review
Revise (if needed)
Week Eight (3/9-3/17)
Buffer week in case of any delay
Now, I just need to follow the schedule as closely as possible and I believe that I will be able to create an opening that I am truly proud of. This project, without a doubt, is the longest amount of time I have ever been given to execute something. With that, I hope this process will be enjoyable as well as help me learn about the production world! Thank you for reading and I'll catch you on the next one!
Helloooo and welcome back to my journey of the portfolio project!! Today essentially marks day 1 of this humongous project which is honestly very exciting but also insanely nerve-racking and intimidating. At this exact moment in time, I'm not entirely sure what story I want to tell with my project. However, I do know that I want it to be a coming-of-age piece. My reason for this is because I want my project to reflect some aspect of my life and how I am trying to figure out so many things all at once because adulthood is getting closer every minute.
There are so so many ways that I could approach this piece in many ways. I could go for a more comedic opening or a more dramatic one. Because I'm not sure about the exact story of my project, I'll get back to you on that one...
A few classes ago we learned about the different types of openings, which you can see in my notes below.
Based on this, I know that I want to focus on developing character. I know that I want the conflict of the piece to be character vs. self no matter the story I decide to tell. I'm not entirely sure that my story is going to be interesting enough to make it into an opening, but here is my current idea:
I'll be the main character and as I said previously, I want it to be based on some part of my life. Right now I hope to pursue my sport, taekwondo, professionally, but I don't know if it is possible because the past year has been full of injuries for me and set me back who knows how far. I also want the main character of this opening to be struggling with a similar situation.
If I decide not to stick with my current story, I think it might be more interesting to possibly take a more comedic approach.
Anyhow, thank you for reading today's blog and I will catch you on the next one where I will hopefully have a completed 7-week schedule with all of the things!! Have a fantastic rest of your day!!
Hi there! 👋 As mentioned previously, I'm more interested in creating a coming-of-age film opening. So, today I'll be sharing my research on the coming-of-age genre for my portfolio project. Hopefully, this goes well and I'll be decided on my official genre by the end of this post!
Coming-of-age (COA):
Target Audience:
The TA for COA films are teenagers and young adults, roughly from ages 12-19, and is a predominately female audience. Even though the TA is mostly younger, people of all ages enjoy COA films. This is the TA because this genre is meant to be relatable and develop an emotional connection to the audience as they are likely going through similar situations like their identity, first loves, and entering adulthood.
Genre conventions with content:
Living Life to the Fullest
Some COA films are easy-going and cheerful watches that primarily focuses on the enjoyable, funny moments that are commonly associated with one's teenage years. These movies are often nostalgic and very comedic.
Ex: Clueless (1995)
Self-Discovery
Other films dive into the difficulties of understanding who you are and who you want to become as you dive into adulthood. Because most teenagers go through this type of situation, these films become relatable to them.
Not Fitting In
COA films often star a teenager who doesn't quite fit in with the rest of their school/community. These films dig deeper into who the character is and why they act that way. Some common misfit character types include: rebels, members of the LGBTQ+ community and the quiet kid.
Ex: Charlie - The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
First Love
Being a teenager and developing many new emotions and opinions is rough and during this time, many begin to experience their first loves. These relationships are complicated and intense but also bring so much joy to both people involved, which makes it an iconic type of COA film. Many of these films explore love and sometimes, sadly, the heartbreak.
Ex: Sixteen Candles (1984)
Genre conventions with techniques:
Voice-over
Throughout COA films, a popular narration style is through voice-overs. This often uses the main character's voice to tell the story and explain their thoughts and emotions while creating a more intimate bond between the character and audience. This can be used to highlight the character's personality in a way other than their actions. Voice-overs are usually synchronized with what is happening on-screen and paired with pauses for reflection and maximum effect.
Soundtrack
COA films always feature songs and most times the soundtrack of the film appeals to the TA. These soundtracks include iconic songs that connect to teenhood and make the film more relatable because these are likely songs that the TA listen to as well.
Ex: "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons - Featured in 10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
Institutional conventions:
Different Character Archetypes
Every COA film features a handful of different character archetypes including: the jock, the nerd, the popular girl, etc. The reason for this is to appeal to a wide audience so that everyone watching will relate to at least one character. This also increases the "Four-Quadrant Appeal" which is the ability for a film to appeal to the four core demographics: males under 25, females under 25, males over 25 and females over 25.
Ex: In Mean Girls (2004) there are many different cliques such as the Plastics (popular girls), the Art Freaks, Sexually Active Band Geeks and more.
"Becoming" Moment
Many COA films explore both the highs and lows of the teenage years, but because it is a film, they usually end with a happier ending. There is often a "becoming" moment for each character towards the end whether it be a graduation or finally finding good friends. This is to give hope to the audience that they will find their place.
Examples:
The Half of It (2020)
Lady Bird (2017)
My Girl (1991)
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005)
Final thoughts:
Okay, after that research on both rom-coms and COA films, I would like to officially say that I will be going with the COA genre!! 🎉🎉 I think it will be something more up my alley and will resonate more with me. I also think the idea I have right now will be a project I can be proud of when I look back on it in the future. Thank you for reading and I'll catch you on the next one!! Adios!
Sources:
Fiveable. (n.d.). Voiceover narration: Unit 6 study guide. https://fiveable.me/storytelling-for-film-and-television/unit-6/voiceover-narration/study-guide/j6JxKlaCmpcC13Gi
Heller-Nicholas, A. (2020, December 31). What is a coming-of-age movie? No Film School. https://nofilmschool.com/what-is-coming-of-age-movie
Long-Crowell, E. (2024, May 22). Genres: Order and integration. Media Studies. https://media-studies.com/genres-order-integration/
Mean Girls Wiki. (n.d.). Category: Cliques. Fandom. https://meangirls.fandom.com/wiki/Category:Cliques
Moxie. (n.d.). Mean Girls. Downtown Phoenix Inc. https://dtphx.org/do/mean-girls
The Screen Academy. (n.d.). Teen movies genre. https://www.thescreenacademy.com/knowledge/genre/teen-movies-genre
Vignoles, G. (2014, October 23). Target audience research [Presentation]. Prezi. https://prezi.com/u-mzr7kqffc7/target-audience-research/
Campion, J. (Director). (1993). The piano [Film]. CiBy 2000; Jan Chapman Productions. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102492/
Chbosky, S. (Director). (2012). The perks of being a wallflower [Film]. Mr. Mudd Productions. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1659337/
Gerwig, G. (Director). (2017). Lady Bird [Film]. Scott Rudin Productions; Entertainment 360; IAC Films. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4925292/
Heckerling, A. (Director). (1995). Clueless [Film]. Paramount Pictures. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112697/
Hughes, J. (Director). (1984). Sixteen Candles [Film]. Universal Pictures. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088128/
Waters, M. (Director). (2004). Mean Girls [Film]. Paramount Pictures. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0403508/
Zeller, F. (Director). (2022). The Son [Film]. See-Saw Films; Intale; Film4. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9683478/
MsMojo. (2023, June 17). Top 10 most iconic songs in coming-of-age movies [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nebaBmsafv8
Hello and long time no see (or read)! 👋👋 Today begins the long, exciting journey of my portfolio project!! For my project, I'm thinking about producing something either from the romantic comedies or coming-of-age genre. Realistically, I want to produce something reflecting my life by creating a story where the character is trying to find herself and where she belongs. (Let's see if my idea changes after research...) This post will be focusing on romance genre and the subsequent one will be about coming-of-age.
Romantic comedies (Rom-coms):
Target Audience:
The TA of rom-coms is usually women and young adults, though there is a growing trend of male audiences enjoying this genre. This genre focuses on relationships and nostalgic appeal, drawn by their TA's emotional depth.
The TA seeks emotional connection, comfort and relatable romantic scenarios.
Genre conventions with content:
Lovable leads
Rom-coms usually focus on one romantic couple that the audience roots for the whole way through. These two characters complement and bring out the best in the other as they are the foundation of the film.
Ex: Thomas and Hannah - Made of Honor (2008)
Meet-cute
Most romantic comedies begin with the leads meeting in a charming or in an unexpected situation, commonly referred to as a "meet-cute", which helps the audience become emotionally invested in the film to see the characters end up together. Many rom-coms make it obvious about who will end up with who.
Unique conflict
Each film has their own unique conflict that you wouldn't think is ever possible but coincidentally is. As each have their own conflict, each situation is different and can pull the lovable leads together or apart and truly pushes their relationship to its limits.
Relationship on the line
Similar to the unique conflict, every film has a moment where the main relationship is put to the test.
Heartfelt, defining moment
There is always at least one major moment in each rom-com that seals the relationship and makes the film iconic. These moments are the ones that the audience is on the edge of their seat, waiting for, all movie long.
Ex: Nick proposing to Rachel as she boards the plane to leave Singapore - Crazy Rich Asians (2018)
A good sidekick
Although there are unique characters to each film, the sidekicks are usually even more memorable. Sidekicks are relatable, funny, and usually help bring the leads together.
Ex: Damian - Mean Girls (2004)
Happy ending
Almost every romantic comedy ends with the happily ever after, to appeal to their hopeless romantic audience. Some couples in romantic comedies finally start to date or even get married and we see their life together.
Genre conventions with techniques:
High-Key Lighting
Rom-com films are usually filmed in bright, clear lighting to fully display the lovable leads and their expressions. Characters are shown this way to highlight their best qualities and show them off in the best possible way. While there are some rom-coms that use darker lighting, it is not very common.
Colorful mise-en-scene
Through bright colors in set and costume design, rom-coms create a happy tone to complement the comedic elements of the film.
Montage!
Rom-coms usually include at least one montage of the leads getting to know each other and inevitably fall in love. These montages could be of the two travelling, going shopping or just enjoying each other's company.
Institutional conventions:
Familiar actors
If you've ever wondered why some rom-coms cast the same actors over and over again, here's why: Rom-coms rely on well-known actors to draw audiences in even before audiences know what it is about. The actors in rom-coms are also known to be more likable than talented.
Ex: Julia Roberts in Runaway Bride (1999), Valentine's Day (2010), and Notting Hill (1999) or Sydney Sweeney in almost every recent rom-com.
Release windows
Companies strategically time the release of certain rom-coms for romantic holidays, like Valentine's day and the holiday season. This is calculated a certain way to drive profit.
Examples:
To All The Boys I've Loved Before (2018)
When Harry Met Sally... (1989)
Anyone But You (2023)
10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
Final thoughts:
After researching rom-coms, I think it would be a very fun opening to create, but I'm not 100% sure if this is the genre I want to do. As I said before, my current idea is to create my opening about a girl trying to find where she truly belongs in life and I don't think it should be focused on romance, though I might change my mind. If I do end up changing my mind, a rom-com would definitely be a high contender. I think that it would be so much fun to think up a meet-cute or something to intertwine the characters in the opening.
I hope you enjoyed today's post and I'll catch you in the next one!!
Sources:
Screencraft: Screencraft. (n.d.). The 9 elements of all great rom-coms. Screencraft. https://screencraft.org/blog/the-9-elements-of-all-great-rom-coms/
The Film Experience: Mullen, L. (2021, April 5). Gay best friend: Damian in Mean Girls (2004). The Film Experience. http://thefilmexperience.net/blog/2021/4/5/gay-best-friend-damian-in-mean-girls-2004.html
PremiumBeat: Maher, M. (n.d.). Rom-com genre filmmaking elements. PremiumBeat. https://www.premiumbeat.com/blog/rom-com-genre-filmmaking-elements/
The Paper Shell Review (University of Maryland): University of Maryland. (2021). Cupcake trucks, groundhogs, and.... The Paper Shell Review. https://english.umd.edu/research-innovation/journals/paper-shell-review/spring-2021/cupcake-trucks-groundhogs-and
Multimedia and Wiki Sources
YouTube: The Take. (2018, July 10). The rom-com formula explained [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5rtcfHqOmI
She's All That (Photo Gallery): IMDb. (1999). She's All That (1999) photo gallery. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0163187/mediaindex/
The Proposal (Main Entry): IMDb. (2009). The Proposal (2009). https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0817230/
Notting Hill (Media Viewer): IMDb. (1999). Notting Hill (1999) - Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant [Photograph]. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0125439/mediaviewer/rm845481728/
The Intern (2015) Meyers, N. (Director). (2015). The Intern [Film]. Warner Bros.; RatPac-Dune Entertainment. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3846674/
When Harry Met Sally... (1989) Reiner, R. (Director). (1989). When Harry Met Sally... [Film]. Castle Rock Entertainment; Nelson Entertainment. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098635/
Anyone But You (2024) Showalter, M. (Director). (2024). The Idea of You [Film]. Amazon MGM Studios; Welle Entertainment. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt26047818/
10 Things I Hate About You (1999) Junger, G. (Director). (1999). 10 Things I Hate About You [Film]. Touchstone Pictures; Mad Chance. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0147800/
