Group Meeting #1!

So we just had our first official group meeting!!! YAY ok so, we started by talking about our genres and our main ideas.  Of course i had to start off with how i was confused on what genre i wanted to do at first. But then after watching multiple film openings and seeing what genre they were under I finally found my genre, coming of age!!! I told them about my ideas/storylines that i have in mind but made sure to tell them that its still a little underdeveloped. I told them my key research was focusing on genre because it seems very important because of the specific style i want to achieve. I talked about how I want my main character to be and specific things i needed to include for sure for my vision. I talked about my favorite directors/inspirations and how i want to try similar techniques from them and just combine lots of of my favorite different styles together for this film opening. just some of the same information i have talked about in my past blog posts.

For the most part i asked for help on my storyline, i needed something to help get my ideas flowing. The feedback was actually incredibly helpful. They told me to focus on little things i wanted to include and make them into one. I was so stressed on just focusing on one look for my project but they just let me know that i can take different things that i enjoy and want to include to create my project. Knowing what i want to include and then putting it together it make one big picture remind of a puzzle, like somehow those pieces will come together. They also mentioned how i needed to look for a key plot line that makes my story different so i have been definitely been thinking about that since i am starting to dive deep into making my storyline and attempting to finish it.

Target Audience and Characters

 Now that i have found exactly what genre i want to do and my inspiration when it comes to the genre, I want to focus on my character and the film target audience. Right now when it comes to my storyline i am all over the place, during the weekend i will be focusing on that but right now i am going to start creating my target audience and characters. 

Target Audience:

Coming of age films usually have a target audience of teenagers or young adults. This genre follows young people living their lives and experiencing experiences. They are usually relatable to theses age groups since the characters are usually trying to find their way and go through learning experiences good and bad. They see themselves in these characters because these films show when the character messes up and when they peak. Coming of age is based off of relatability. It shows the transition of childhood to adulthood, the positive and negative sides of it. 

 Examples (with trailer links)-

Booksmart (2019): "the most recent coming-of-age movie to thoughtfully portray the teenage experience." Queen’s Journal

Ladybird (2017): "arguably one of the first to capture the essence of teenagedom." Queen’s Journal

Rocks (2019): "Everything about these teenagers’ lives rings true,"Mark Kermode, The Guardian 

Moonlight (2016): "a visually ravishing portrait of masculinity"Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Mid90s (2018): "Mid90s is so real the characters practically fall off the screen" Eric Kohn, IndieWire

Characters:

I still don't have my full storyline but i do know who my story will revolve. A 17 year old female in Junior year. I have some thoughts on who i am going to cast but right now i am going figure out what her personality will be like and then i'll choose who can play her. I want her to be seen as quirky, relatable and real.

Inspirations for my main character: 

Christine "Lady bird" From Lady Bird (2019)

Lux Lisbon From The Virgin Suicides (1999)

 Nadine From The Edge Of Seventeen (2016)

More Genre talk!

 Ive found the genre i know i want to do for this project!!! The genre is coming of age. I do not know why i had so much trouble finding out what genre to put my film opening under but i will definitely do a coming of age approach for this project. Ive been researching coming of age film openings and title cards to really get an idea of what i want my project to be. 

My main character will be a female in high school, so my inspirations are films like Ladybird (2017) like i talked about in my previous post, The Edge Of Seventeen (2016), The Perks Of Being A Wallflower (2012), Booksmart (2019) and 10 Things I Hate About You (1999).

There are many factors of why i chose these films for my inspirations: Ladybird i have talked about before but the opening for ladybird captures and establishes setting so perfectly while also showcasing a perfect amount of character and context for the rest of the film. The Edge Of Seventeen shows the life of a teenage girl in high school which is perfect when relating my main character for the film opening. Perks Of Being A Wallflower has a similar storyline to what i am going for, moving to a new school, teenage angst. Booksmart and 10 Things I Hate About You are both under the coming of age genre. They all have that teenage coming of age story that i am going for.

My Project Schedule!!

Since i started my portfolio project i need to keep track of my task and time in an organized manner so i do not get off track or lost. I created a schedule based off my teachers recommended schedule.

Week One

- Three blog posts.

- Genre post, schedule post, story planning.

- Choosing genre

- Develop plot/storyline

- Research 

 Week Two  (2/12-2/18)

- More story planning, storyboard and shooting schedule.

- Continue research

- Finish plot

- Find the final story idea

 Week Three (2/19-2/25)

- Three blog posts

- Changes to project, key moments and ideas and planning.

- Continue to research

- Develop script

- Develop filming/editing schedule

- Create shot list

- Create storyboard

 Week Four (2/26-3/3) 

- Three blog postings 

- Production.

- Process, wrongs and rights, new ideas and changes. 

 - Continue to research (if necessary)

- Begin production of film opening

Week Five (3/4-3/10)

- Three blog post. 

- Production.

- Process, reflection on key moments, changes to project, post-production and CCR creation.

- Continue to research (if necessary)

- Continue production of film opening

- Begin editing of film opening

Week Six (3/11-3/17)

- Three blog posts.

- Reflect production process, reflection on key moments, changes to project.

- Post-production and CCR creation.

- Research information relating to creative critical reflection

- Finish editing of film opening

 

Week Seven (3/18-3/24) 

- Three postings  

- Reflect production process, reflection on key moments, changes to project.

- post-production,CCR creation

- Research information relating to Creative Critical Reflection

- Create Creative Critical Reflection

- Post to blog

 

Week Eight (3/25-3/31) - Spring break 

-One posting reflecting on key moments, changes to project (why), etc.

-the second to last posting should consist of a link to and/or embedded Creative Critical Reflection

-the last post should consist of a link to and/or embedded final project (magazine or film opening)

-create final, overall project reflection

-post project and CCR to blog

Genre Planning

I have multiple ideas for what i want this project to look like but I'm having trouble pin pointing what type of genre it is under. Since i am struggling with what genre these ideas might be i am just going to talk about it and see if i see anything in common with said genres but all the films I've researched have fallen under one genre, romance, but that usually retains to the plot of the film not just the opening but i don't know.  Ive been researching different film openings.

 One film opening i love is Priscilla (2023) Directed by Sofia Coppola: Priscilla Opening. 

I love so many things about this opening. It shows setting and some context on where the film is and who it is about. It shows close ups her getting ready and then cuts to a credit then some setting shots and then more credits. I like how simple but beautiful this opening is. It makes me wonder if i want to make a opening set in a different era. If i were to do that for this opening i would set it in the 70's era. Im really inspired by her approach of showing so much with such simple scenes.

I also watched the opening for Ladybird (2017) Directed by Greta Gerwig.

I love the style of this film. I love the coloring and how well it established the setting of the catholic school. It also establishes character. It shows how ladybird stands out in the pews of the school church and it shows how she interacts with characters and setting like with her teachers and school. This is one of my favorite films so i definitely am inspired by this style of film for my opening.

My portfolio project transition post!!

 This is my official post that starts my blogging through my portfolio project. I will be posting my process and showing you guys how this journey plays out for me, i am excited to share this process with you guys!!!!! 

My teacher has given us access to all the past projects. I have looked through a few of them and gotten the feel of this project. Looking back at these previous students work has helped me really establish what i want to show with this project, its been a helpful tool to have especially when Im just getting started.

Ok now lets talk brainstorming: Right now i have some idea of what i want to do. I know i want this film opening to be based more on developing character. Yes, there might be setting being established but for the majority of this i want it to be about character. I want to use these two minutes to show and introduce a character (probably a girl), show how she lives or a snippet of what her life is like and develop the context of the rest of the film. I need to focus more on the story that i want to begin to tell with these two minutes. Right now i feel like Im more worried about what i want this opening to tell the audience. I want to make it informative and show the audience about a character that i am going to create.

 Right now not much comes to mind when i try brainstorming but i will be updating and posting about this soon!!!