Preliminary Task: Script

(Kat is sitting, on her laptop with ear phones in. Meg walks in. Kat does not react but she looks annoyed. Meg sits down.)

Kat (irritated): Why are you here.

Meg: I said I was sorry.

Kat: Yeah, (turns to look at Meg) but that doesn’t mean anything does it? As if I’d forgive you for what you did.

Meg: Kat, I told you, he kissed me.

Kat: And why should I believe you?

Meg: It’s the truth!

Kat: (sarcastic) Ok, it’s the truth. My boyfriend is a cheating liar who would go around and kiss any other filthy skank. (Turns back to laptop) Just get out and don’t come back. Meg sighs and gets up.

Meg: Who are you gunna believe? Your sister or your boyfriend? (she leaves)

Preliminary Task: Story Board

Preliminary Task: Evaluation

For my preliminary task, of one character opening a door and walking into a room to have a conversation opposite another character, I chose to write the script like an argument. Meg and Kat are sisters and Kat has a boyfriend, however she heard that Meg and her boyfriend had kissed. Meg tries to explain that she was no responsible, although by the end of the scene Kat doesn’t indicate that she believes her. I tried to make it dramatic, with lots of close ups and have it fast paced. I set the scene in my room as it was appropriate as I am a teenager. Throughout, Kat is on her laptop with earphones. I thought this would be suitable as listening to music and being on the computer is what teenagers normally do.

There were a few things that did not work on the day of filming, such as the shot I was going to use which shows Meg’s right side and Kat’s left where they are facing each other. There was too much space for this in the middle and it did not work. Neither did the tracking shot of Meg coming through the door. There was something else that did not work, which was when Meg goes to sit down on the bed, the audience expect her to come from the other side. I think that the final product was a bit too fast paced and I don’t think there was enough emotion. I also could have added more to the beginning, such as Meg standing outside the door, knocking and then inside the room Kat telling her to go away. I am not happy with the lighting either, as overall it seemed kind of dull and some parts were a little too bright. Some of this I tried to edit, however it all had to be on the same level which was difficult.

One of the problems I thought I would have to face was that I would find it difficult to put together all the different shots without having a lot of distortion when they changed in the editing stage. Although I thought I did this well. I also thought there would be a lot of background noise which might make the actual dialogue too quiet to hear, however this turned out fine.

When selecting what shots to choose for the final video, I decided to try to get more and more close up as the tension built up in the argument. When Meg first walks in there are the mid shots of her and the two shots of them, however as Kat begins to yell and get progressively angrier at her there are more close ups of Meg, especially for her reactions. When the scene goes back to a two shot of when Meg gets up at the end, I would have liked to have included a close up of Meg’s mouth here while she was talking to create more drama. Also at the beginning, it would have been good if I included Meg standing outside the door knocking and some reaction from Kat being annoyed, before Meg enters anyway.

Overall I think the preliminary task worked out well, with only a few things I am not happy with including, the shot where Meg walks in from behind Kat, and how there is little movement of the camera. I could have included the tracking shot I was originally going to use. 

Preliminary Task: Images of the Set

Doorway, where one of the characters will enter.

The desk is moved slightly forwards from the radiator so the Tri-pod can fit and there will be enough space to film in the room. One of the characters will already be seated at the desk.

Where the tri-pod will stand

Where one of the characters will sit who walks in.

Posters that may get in the shot. They are teenage posters, which works with the script as this room belongs to one of the characters.

Preliminary Task: Survey

Here is the link to take my survey.
I created a survey on 'Survey Monkey'. This contained questions asking about teenage drama films, as for my Preliminary task I wanted to create a scene that would feature in a teenage drama.

Survey results:
A total of 9 people participated in my survey online. 8 were female, and 1 was male. I specifically asked teenagers to participate. Their ages ranged from 14 - 17. 14 = 1, 17 = 1, 15 = 2, 16 = 5

None of them responded with "no" to watching teen drama films. 33.3% said yes, with 44.4% saying "sometimes" and only 22.2% saying "not really", suggesting that it is a popular genre. Everyone said that they watch teen drama films more than once a year. The highest scoring option was "every few months" with 33.3% with the lowest at 11.1% which was "every week" and "every month".

Responses for why people would go to see a teen drama at the cinema:

• if it looked good
• I find them entertaining as long as there is a good plot that doesn't feel like too much of a cliche, and if not all characters are stereotypes
• if there was an actor in it that I like
• if someone invited me to go with them

Responses for why people would not go to see a teen drama at the cinema:

• if my friends weren't going
• I don't have enough money
• I don't want to spend my money on it

33.3% said they had seen a teen drama a few months ago. Everyone said they had seen a teen drama this year.

Not everyone answered what music they would expect to see in an argument in a teen drama as it was an optional question, and many participants said they found it a hard question to answer.
Responses:

• fast paced, lower pitched, not too loud or high
• depends on the characters, the argument and the scene. Probably rock/pop music or a sad instrumental
• lots of drum fills or something somber that almost clashes with the scene
• anything in a minor key, maybe fast-paced music
• something dramatic

I asked about the camera angles, however not many people were sure how to answer this question as they did not know about the different types of camera angles.

Responses:

• The moving ones, like in Glee where it's like they're the students
• Basic camera angles, nothing too fancy
• Mostly close ups
• Close ups for more intense scenes

I had a question about how many main characters were preferable in a teen drama and surprisingly no one said one. The highest scoring answer was 3 with 44.4%. 22.2% said they didn't mind, and the same amount said 4-6. The lowest was 2 with 11.1%.

44.4% said they wanted the characters in the teen drama film to be a few years older than them. No one wanted younger. 11.1% said their age, and 11.1% said one year older than them. 33.3% said they didn't mind. 

Preliminary Task: Extras

When I was finished filming, I got the actresses to talk about their characters and the story line and I also gave a few words.