Task 2 --> Research

Task 2 – research

War Horse

War Horse is a major motion picture of 2012, automatically a must-see due to being made by Stephen Spielberg, this automatically meant that people of all ages wanted to see it, due to him being a well known director, so automatically is being promoted is a positive way. The story is about a young boy called Albert has a close relationship with his Horse who his father sells to the war for cavalry, he enlists to serve in World War I to look out for his Horse and to protect it. Albert's hopeful journey takes him out of England and across Europe as the war rages on, where he is reunited with his Horse once more after it being on a struggle of a journey.

 It started off as a book called “War Horse” by a man called Michael Morpurgo, this is how it started. It was for ages 9+ and was first published in 1982, and is known as a classic war story. So it was originally made for the younger target audience, however I have read if before watch the movie and felt it could be for adults too, due to the good storyline and the emotion and information of the war that is brought into the book. It was popular enough that the book has also been made into a play adapted by Nick Stafford. The play also called War Horse and was staged at the Olivier Theatre, National Theatre in London. The production opened on 17 October 2007 and was met with critical acclaim with its use of life-size puppets of horses from the Handspring Puppet Company won an Olivier Award, Evening Standard Theatre Award and London Critics' Circle Theatre Award for design. In February 2010 it was revealed that the play would transfer to Broadway in New York City, New York, United States. This is really what promoted it into being a film, due to it being as popular in book and as a play; it was so carefully thought out as a play that Spielberg decided to make it into a motion picture.

I would definitely say it’s a family film, due to the storyline is more for the family, there isn’t much violence in the film as Spielberg left a lot of it out from the book, so it could be lowered down so children could see it, there is only a bit of violence within the first half an hour of the film, when the war starts, generally after that it is more about showing Albert’s and the Horses journey in the film, the people they meet and where they end up, more than the war itself, which is why the target audience of 12A suits the film. However maybe it should have been a 12 not a 12A due to there is some violence and it may upset children to see dead Horses and people throughout the film and could be seen as disturbing. There is no sex and nudity in the film at all, however there is like I said previously violence and gore, frightening/intense scenes and a bit of alcohol use and profanity, so that is why a child under 12 has to go with a parent, as it is up to the parent if they want their child to see this.

It is also campaigned for Horsey lovers or people who are interest in WW1 and respect the people who were involved, due to showing the viewer what is was like for them people, and to also open up viewers eyes into how in those times, Horses were a big part of man kinds lifestyle, and how without them a lot would have been more difficult and different, such as Horses were used to carry carts with the dead or injured it, so they could be looked after or put to a resting place. They really used having a Horse as a main character to advantage, having posters and backgrounds to download with the Horse in, making sure the trailer and images are filled up with the main Horse is, to make Horse lovers want to come and see the Horse in action

Due to by the time the film was nearly out in cinemas, it was widely known, it had its own Facebook page, which automatically promotes it as Facebook is used all over the world, and this is positive as people get to talk about it on a page, looking at trailers and pictures to get them excited. It has it’s own official website: http://www.warhorsemovie.com/# which is really well created and really gets excited into viewers as again is has screen shots, and all the latest trailers, it also has information about the film, for example a more in detail plot , and you can download screensavers icons profile pictures for things like Facebook etc, so you really get to feel like you are involved and it really promotes the film and makes you want to see it. Alongside with the very touching trailer, saying how good the film is, stating reviews and getting the audience excited over the film, they especially used the fact it was made by  Stephen Spielberg to really  boost potential viewer numbers as he is so well know and has done some credited work such as “Schindler's List” that near enough everyone has heard of, so when his name is mentioned people automatically assume that it will be a must-see film.

 However it could be seen as negative as people get a close insight into everything about the film, and maybe information could be spilled through into the media industries and the public find out quicker, so the film isn’t as anticipated as it should have been, due to a lot of information is already known to the public so they know what to expect.

Recently, Spielberg has taken his attention to the younger audience film, producing thing such as “Reel Steel” “Super 8” and “The Adventures Of Tintin”.

“Super 8” and “The Adventures of Tintin” in particular were widely campaigned; they both had their trailers always played in the cinema, to help promote the film. Tintin in particular was showed on TV and even a game was made to advertise and get more fans for the film, so people with all consoles could play the game and  it would make them want to watch the film, or vice versa. Also to help promote Tintin, they synergized with “McDonalds” and with the children’s meal, “Happy meal” they came with Tintin toys, this really boosted up the fan base, as children would either watch the film and then want to collect the toys or get a toy and want to watch the film after, so both companies would get a profit and it would get more viewers for the film.  

With “Reel Steel”, there was the trailer, that really got you into the idea of the film, but again for children, action figures were sold in shops such as the ultimate toy shop “Toys R us” making a child want to collect all their favourite characters of the film after watching it or vice versa.

And with all of these films mentioned, they had their own Facebook page, and an official website, they were on other social networking sites such as “Twitter” So like War Horse, they were all well promoted and you could easy find information about them, or really get into the film, talking about it on social networking sites, of having desktop backgrounds on your computer of the film.

And again Tintin was a comic book, so Spielberg takes an interested in stories, and bringing them onto the big screen, after doing it with Tintin, people may have wanted to see how he brought the War Horse book to life, so in doing so having done it previously could promote War Horse.

TIM - Deconstructing thriller poster

Task 1 --> responding to the brief

I am going to do a poster, and a website. I decided to do a dvd cover as it’s a chance to be creative and show some ideas. And then I decided to do a website to back the dvd cover up, and to give out some information about my poster for the audience so they know what my film is about a bit better.

In my poster I will include my actor/actresses names in so the audience know who is in it, to get them known and to show them credit for being in it. I will possibly have a slogan, a lot of thrillers such as “The Machinist” and “The Strangers” have slogans at the top of their poster, so I am considering having one myself. I will definitely have a picture or a screenshot from my thriller used for the poster, preferably the main setting in my thriller as it is relevant and gives the audience an idea of the setting so they can start asking themselves questions. I will not include any credits or the company name on the front as I think it will get rid of some of the effect of the poster.

In my website I will include images from my short thriller, again to promote my thriller and so viewers can have a look through the pictures so they can see what kind of things happen in the film. I will provide information provided from myself including what the film is about e.g the plot, on basic notes so not to give too much away, to let the viewer have a bit of an idea as to what my thriller is about. I will describe the target audience encase anyone is unsure if they want to watch it, they will have an idea of what violence or gore for example is in it, to determine if they want to watch it or not. I may put  the codes and conventions in of my thriller, again so viewers have an idea. Information about the actors/actresses so viewers can get to know a bit about them, and finally who did what in the thriller, giving them some credit as to who did what.

TIM- How to burn a screen on the light box.

How to burn a screen on the light box.

You will need your screen you have left in a dark room, the light box, and a positive film that you put under your screen.

Before anything else, the first thing you should do is turn the light box on, like an energy saving light bulb, the longer it’s on before you use it, the more powerful it is, so turn it on at least an hour before you want to use it so it has plenty of light energy.

Get your screen out of the dark room, and make sure that it is ok to use, looking to see if there are any drips and if so, remember to avoid them when using the positive film. Make sure the vacuum switch is not turned on as for health and safety reasons it would be dangerous if you tried to open the lid and the vacuum is on, as it could shatter the glass which could get in your skin and/or eyes. Also make sure the UV light isn’t on, as if you lifted the lid up and it is on it could blind you if you look into it. If both of these things are not turned on, open up the lid, and place your positive film onto the glass. Place your screen on top of the positive film in the place you want it to be, avoid putting it on any drips.

Make sure it is lined up exactly how you want it to be, and shut the lid of the light box down onto the screen. Once it has shut properly, lock the lid with the two clips on the side of the light box, and turn the vacuum on, it will suck the rubber on the lid down to the glass, and hold your screen and positive film in place, so when it “bakes” it doesn’t move the screen and you have a wonky stencil, like when tracing.

Once the vacuum is turned on and into place, you can then turn the UV light on, to do this you press green “start” and hold down  the "starter" on the far left for 5 seconds, it counts down in light not in time. During this time you just have to wait for it to “bake”. You can tell when the UV light is on, as the bottom of the light box has a blue light coming off of it. Once the light timer has gone down turn the vacuum off and press cancel just to make sure the UV light is definately off, and you can open up the light box and get your now baked stencil ready to use for printing.

TIM - CYMK

CMYK is used in color printing, and is also used to describe the printing process itself. CYMK refers to the four inks used in some color printing:

• C=cyan
• M=magenta
• Y=yellow
• K=key (black)

The reason this is considered a “subtractive color model” is because the higher percentage of cyan, magenta, and yellow you smear onto a white sheet of paper, the less amount of light that will reflect through, ultimately creating a black (in this case, smudge) on paper.
Why is black referred to as the letter “K” in CMYK?  Allegedly, the K actually stands for Key, as in the key plate used by a printer. It was referred to as the key plate because it generally contained the artistic detail for a piece.

The advantage of CYMK or CKYM is that you had a code to follow, its easier for someone to know what colours to use first and to follow a guideline with a good outcome.
The disadvantage of this is it won't work for every image, this is more for a realistic print, and using it for things like patterns may not give out the same outcome as patterns tend to be bolder.

TIM- How to successfully screen print

When printing with the finished stencil.

Once you have used the light box, and baked the stencil onto the screen with the light sensitive emulsion, your stencil will be on the screen as a greeny colour. You use the jet wash to wash off the green and then the screen where the stencil is goes more clear.
Get your acyrlic, whatever colour you fancy, and put it in a pot ready for when you need it, you will also need a palette knife and a squeegee board the size of your stencil, and an extra empty pot for when you hold your screen up so when the acrylic is on the board it doesnt go all over the newspaper and potentially ruin your print.
Once you have done that, you then either put newspaper on a flat surface, or you can use a board and put newspaper on (tape the newspaper to the surface so it doesnt move) and place your screen on the newspaper, draw a clear thick line around the screen so you know where to place it down when your print your stencil onto another material.
Also make sure you have some newspaper next to your screen to put the acrylic covered sqeegee and palette knife on to stop mess.
Then either get a piece of plain paper, or whatever you want to use, and place it under the screen where the stencil is, and when you have put it in place place some tape at the bottom and mark where to place the piece of paper for when you print your stencil.
Put the pot under your screen and let it rest on that so it is up at an angle, and then underneath your stencil, using the palette knife get some of the acrylic out of the pot and place it in a line under the stencil, not on the stencil just underneath and put the palette knife on the extra newspaper, then put some of the sqweegee board so when using it it has some on already so therefor easier to spread.
Put your paper in place where you left your tape so it is just on the top of the tape. move the pot away from the screen and place the screen on the newspaper in line with the line your drew around the screen before, so everything is in the right place and your screen wont go off the paper you are using. Then with the squeegee board, hold it in both hands at a 40 degree angle facing you, and with some pressure pull the sqeegee up over the stencil, making sure not to get the boarder of the screen as it is an inconvenience, harder to clean and can cause a mess, register your sqeegeem which means when you get past your stencil, push back a little bit so the emulsion goes behind and when you lift up you don't get acrylic everywhere. put the squeegee above the acyrlic, and at the same angle pull back towards you again and register once more.
Once you have done that put the sqeegee on the extra newspaper, and lift up your screen, if the paper has stuck to the screen do not worry, just gently pull back the piece of paper so it doesn't smudge, and there is your stencil printed out onto paper. Put the pot back under the screen and let it rest on that once you have more the paper away from the screen, again for less mess.
When you have finished make sure to clean all equipment and put newspaper in the bin.

NEIL - video installitation youtube videos

1968-"THE ALPHABET" by David Lynch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpxXx5Qf4HA

It lasts for 3.45 and is a random sequence involving the use of the alphabet. It starts off with children singing the beginning of the alphabet to what looks like a women laying in a bed. It uses a mix of animation and real footage throughout the video, the real footage being in black and white, and the animation being a mix of colour and black and white, mainly using bright colours such as orange and red. The only time the alphabet is shown is through animation of them appearing in one shot, and near the end of the video when the girl in the bed is doing strange movements as the letters appear. The video is very strange and doesn't quite add up or flow. it is very random.

"SAND ART" by Kseniya Simonova
on Ukraine's Got talent

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOMgDbcA84A

This video lasts for 8.33 seconds and isn't a formaly made video like the first one due to the fact it was on a television program so was just a recording of a live event not a proper made short film/video. It shows Kseniya Simonova in "Ukraine's got talent" using sand as a base to create pictures that mean a lot to her and show emotion alongside music to go with the mood. It shows the audience and judges react to the different images such as crying, showing that some had more meaning behind them. The atmosphere she was in was also quite dark, using dimmed lights and candles to create that more creative effect.

"TELLING LIES" by Simon Ellis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5nN6wemb_8

This is a  British short video only lasting 1.27. And is a blank video only showing writing on screen as people are talking o the phone. The background is black and it uses red and white font as the people are speaking. As the people are speaking the words come up to join the tone and speed of the persons voice. However sometimes what the people are saying doesn't come out the same on the video, it comes up with what the person is thinking, such as one guy is asking another if he slept with his girlfiend, the man is saying no but the words on screen is saying yes.

"THE KISS" by Kye Wilson

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLWN78oMCEA

This video  was directed by Kye Wilson and Deniese Callender. It lasts for 6.59 and is an award winning set of five 60 second video pieces. There all basically figures in this silk like material trying to relate to one word that the certain clip is called. The first one being called "resurrection" showing what appears to be a women under this material, first a panning close up of her legs under this material, and she is still, then it is a mid shot showing the whole figure moving slowly around in this material, then at the end once again a close up, but this time panning the upper body with no moving. There is whipsering going on throughout this clip. The second clip is called "Virus", and again it shows a women under this material, appearing to be struggling slightly, the clip of the woman doubles and another version of the women forms into the original, creating weird shapes before it fades out. There is an kind of heart-beaty music going on in the background. The third clip is called "trace" this one is quite black only showing the top half of a person in this cloth, moving their head from side to side gracefully alongside outside noises such as crickets and a graceful music. The next clip is called "the kiss" and the name sums it up as it is a man and a women under the cloth kissing to slow music. The clip sometimes has two version of them over the top of each other at the same time. The fifth clip is called "scream" and shows the top part of a women under the cloth at a really fast pase going from side to side to very static music that matches the struggle and pressure clearly coming from the figure like they are screaming. As the sound gets more static and louder you start to see the womans face through the cloth untill the end there is no cloth just the women moving her head from side to side screaming.

2001 - "STILL LIFE" by Sam Taylor-Wood

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIzXWGcb3u0

This video lasts for 3.18, and is what it says, a still life showing a bowl of fresh lovely fruit, and a pen next to it. There is no music, just the image basically showing the fruit decay over time, showing how something so nice can go horrible. The video shows all this grey mist-like substance coming off of the fruit and the fruit go all grey and fall apart, getting lower to the bowl they are sat in.


2002- "A LITTLE DEATH"  bySam Taylor-Wood

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIl9rO9sURE

This video is very similar to the "Still life" but with a Rabbit next to a piece of fruit on a table. The video lasts 4.56 and basicaly shows the Rabbit decay. As the Rabbit starts to decaya you see the rabbits skin kind of vibrate, it looks like a little mole is travelling through the rabbit by the way the skin is moving. It is a sped up video otherwise it would take to long to show. It shows it travelling through the body and you see the animal slowly fall apart. By the end of the clip all is left is some skin and the furr off of the Rabbit. The only thing that confused me with this clip, is how the peach is still fresh next to a completely decayed Rabbit?

"HYSTERIA" by Sam Taylor Wood

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKAA9lgxges

This video clip lasts for 8.16, and is basicaly a close up shot of a womens face in front of a black screen. It is a silent clip all you have is the video and the whole clip just shows this women laughing hysterically over something unknown.

Ukrainian independence Building Wide Projector Show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo9XpnsLlmk

Unknown who made this video. It lasts for 5.50 and like the "SAND ART", it was a live recording not a short film. It is basically a big building being used as a giant prop in which a projector is playing around with the building using light and other animation. In this video you see things like the pillars being lowerd by the projector and balls dropping out the top, all projector work, you see things like a dog projected to be walking on the top of the building, and also different parts of the building being lit up at different times. This was obviously made in a proper sequence as it was cleverly thought out and more animation as built up as the clip goes on, a lot of thought went into the sequence.

Six minutes of stuff getting destroyed
(in super slow motion)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snD1b-om5xw

Again another clip in wich the creator is unknown. This clip is 6.49 and throughout the whole thing you have very clever images of different objects getting destroyed, the first one being a pot dropped onto the floor, soon as the pot his the floor this slow bassed music starts up. Some of the clips of things getting destroyed are very clever, where they are all slowed right down you get to see the object break apart and some of them look quite pretty and you really get a good look of what something looks like when it gets broken. Every time something is destroyed, right at the end the clip is sped up to normal speed. One in particular that is quite shocking is when a man karate chops a block of concrete, you see his hand bend right foward and ripple and it is quite horrible to see. There is a lot of different things, from close up of objects to showing people do something with an object, however not every clip has something breaking. You get to see a good variety of colours so the video is quite vibrant.