Research Plan:
To start, I will carry out primary research on audio via tests in the TV Studio. I will record conversation, possible sound effects and even Foley that may be required for the film. I will also analyse four scenes from four different films which are great influences over my final project.
I will also obtain some inside information on editing action scenes from Kingsman editor, Eddie Hamilton. This will further the research carried out in my report and allow me to justify my creative decisions when editing.
I will also visit possible locations to give myself more confidence in where I plan to shoot. Some locations are already in mind and I will look to contacting the necessary people to ensure I have permission to carry out filming.
I will continue to look for actors who could be part of the project and get to contacting them. Currently, I have received an audition video from an actor who applied for one of the roles on Starnow.
Having already done some primary research, here is the order I will follow for further research:
- Search actors via Starnow
- Visit possible shooting locations
Primary Research
Experimenting with audio recording (Conversations/Additional Foley):
Below are the audio tests for my film. They range from conversations through to footsteps and additional Foley from members of the cast.
In carrying out this test, I was able to familiarize myself with what additional sounds I should be looking to create for the final piece. For example, the footsteps; throughout this narrative there are a number of occasions where characters are running. On some of the shooting days, there could be risks with the quality of sound such as wind or nearby construction taking place and so recording Foley for footsteps is a sensible and extremely convenient measure of planning. With regards to the impact Foley, the film in question is an action film which features a number of fight sequences and people hitting one another. Of course, I would not expect actors to physically hit one another so creating Foley for the hits and punches is another convenient and more sensible decision to make.
Shots of locations:
Norton House Country Club
Weston Park Museum
The Arts Tower Building of the University of Sheffield (For EST shot)
Crookes Valley Park (For Heather sequence)
Cambridge Street (For Bank robber sequence)
Sheaf Street (For additional scenes)
The usefulness of these reference images:
In travelling to these locations and capturing these images, I allowed myself a practical space to envision characters and scenes taking place in. As well as this, I enabled myself to consider the positioning of equipment and the set up of shots. There are even changes encouraged through doing this; beforehand a shot may have been facing a certain building or had several different events taking place in it. But now, after taking these reference images, that shot may be in a more secluded area of the location where lighting could be manipulated or sound pollution could be decreased.
Eddie Hamilton on editing an action sequence:
I set out to further develop my understanding of how an action scene should be structured. To do so, I emailed Kingsman editor, Eddie Hamilton. In the response, Hamilton made the point of avoiding making an action sequence purely for the sake of it. He stated that if the audience are engrossed in the characters and story, first, then it is done correctly. Action scenes should tell the story and be necessary, otherwise they lack meaning and purpose. This will help me improve how I direct my action sequences and allow me to consider the events which lead up to them as well as how they will be resolved.
Secondary Research
Analysis of scene from Kingsman: The Golden Circle
Editing & Cuts:
Match on action-Used several times. Almost mimicking characters’ perspectives.
Shots last longer before cuts are made. Occasional cross-cutting whilst characters perform dialogue.
Individual shots are cut in and last up to three seconds, displaying reactions from the characters.
Shots/Angles/Movements:
Zoom ins-Used when tension builds
Medium close ups-Used in great succession during conversation
Long shots-Used towards the beginning to create a distance between the three characters and allow the conversation to decrease the space between them, both metaphorically and literally.
Lighting & Colour:
Low indoor lighting- Barrel house lights as main source. This adds to the tension and mystery before Tequila steps out of the shadows. This could be useful for the last act of the film with the underground car park.
A lot of brown and gold colour, establishing the typical summer approach to the colour palette of Vaughn’s films.
Audio:
No clear ambiance behind characters’ dialogue (Barrel house secured from any outside noise pollution)
Dialogue clear with distant echo due to change in surroundings.
Foley used (Footsteps, gun click, axe impacting on barrel, whiskey escaping barrel/etc.)
Music:
Cuts in as the third person is introduced (Mimicking their entrance)
The volume changes, according to the performance and deliverance of dialogue. As the tension builds, the score becomes more prominent.
The score almost becomes the replacement for the ambiance. The fact that is still present, in the background, keeps the audience waiting for a change in mood (Tension)
Analysing scene from Hot Fuzz
Editing & Cuts:
Cuts are considerably more frequent in comparison with the scene from, ‘Kingsman’.
The first shot is one of the few long lasting shots, present.
When there is a punch line, the cut seems to come a little later, giving the shot time to display humour for the audience.
Shots/Angles/Movement:
Close ups are most prominent throughout this montage. Objects of importance are greatly focused on, as they should be.
Like Vaughn’s films, Wright uses fast zoom ins to influence an energetic change to the pacing.
Lighting & Colour:
Shadows and brightness are sharpened. Colours are vivid and contrasted.
Again, the subtle orange tint is used and will be used in my final film as I believe it uplifts the aesthetics and allows them to convey a feel good mood for the audience.
Audio:
The volume on all sound, excluding dialogue, is heightened along with the score. This adds to the fast pace the montage works with and creates anticipation for the following scene.
Music:
The score is fast paced, as per the montage visuals. The pitch and volume seems to increase as the montage reaches the climax and returns to longer lasting shots. The score strongly translates the visuals and compliments them greatly.
Analyzing scene from Kick-Ass:
Editing & Cuts:
Certain cuts in-sync with the score. Each cymbal hit acting as a cut to another shot of another armed guard. This will be a method used for unit 13. It is the perfect method of building tension, with essences of humour.
Match on action is used several times and brings the audience forward, into the moment rather than using stationery shots where hardly any changes are made and it is largely down to the actor’s performances to convey the right mood. A distinctive change to the number of cuts from before the action through to during the action.
Shots/Angles/Movement:
An excess of zoom ins on the central character of the sequence. Shot movements vary from still shots to tracking shots of actors. Extreme close ups on the central character as they prepare to intervene with the situation.
Long shots used during stationary periods of the sequence where fighting has temporarily halted. These give the audience the chance to relax back into the narrative and begin to understand the gravity of the events.
Lighting & Colour:
Lighting is very bright and very upbeat. The interior design is extremely accentuated and almost comic book-like. The blood in the scene is almost artistic in how the light hits it and how it interacts with the environment. Each colour is complimentary to the next.
Audio:
Foley is more reserved in this scene. The elevator tone is the most prominent piece of Foley work. The sound effects such as gun shots and impacts are amplified and work alongside the music in the background as opposed to overpowering it and complicating the pacing and effectiveness of the scene. Certain sound effects, such as gun shots, were synced with the backing track, contributing to the slap stick action comedy conventions.
Music:
At first, there is a score which builds up the tension for when the character enters the scene. Then, the first segment of the fight sequence is accompanied by faster paced tones of the same score before cutting off, in sync with a gun shot. The next half is when ‘Bad Reputation’ is worked into the scene along with a guitar riff.
Analyzing scene from Baby Driver:
Editing & Cuts:
Cuts are most prominent during the first section of the chase sequence. The editing makes sure the audience remain with the protagonist by varying cut away shots of the police or of the two other criminals to a minimum. Certain cuts are made to sync movements of actors and objects with the backing track. This is consistent throughout Edgar Wright’s work and is effective in engrossing the audience in the moment whilst, simultaneously, changing the pacing of the film.
Shots/Angles/Movement:
A majority of the shots are medium long shots of the protagonist and they often track his movement rather than remaining still. The movements, tracking aside, involve panning and tilting. Any movement with the camera contributes to the pacing of the scene and this is another method I will carry forward into ‘Richie’s Lost & Found’. There are a number of close ups used as this scene depicts a lot of emotions, therefore conveyance is crucial and close ups are extremely relevant to doing this.
Lighting & Colour:
A lot of the lighting is natural lighting due to the scene being largely based outdoors. However, the colours natural and warm. They are accentuated along with a distant orange tint which introduces a summer feeling. In the underground car park we see, briefly, the lighting is very metallic, conveying the isolation of the location and the fact that the protagonist is trying to escape. It is almost a translation of the situation; the character being completely trapped and finding themselves in a dangerous place.
Audio:
Ambiance is present but, given the context of the scene, is not entirely the central point of focus. Instead, the sound effects are as they consist of the character’s interactions with their surroundings. The gun shots are all in sync with the music in the background as this film’s unique selling point was that all actions and movements were to the beat of each song, accompanying each sequence. This was consistent throughout the film and is a stylistic way of conveying action. Audiences applauded this method.
Music:
The music is very rarely a score, the film is mainly constructed of existing songs which influenced the director to discover the idea. This will not be something I carry into my own project; all scores used have been composed personally and effectively deliver the mood I wish to deliver with this project.
Conclusions drawn:
I set out to further understand what the action scenes, which appeal to me most, contain in order to be unique and successful. In analyzing the four sequences above, I found that they each tell a section of the story line all through visuals, as opposed to dialogue. In the scene from Hot Fuzz, we understand that the protagonist is intending to overthrow the antagonist(s) using the weapons conveniently at his disposal.
Realistically, the director could have made the decision to have the character stand and list the weapons they intended to use, to another protagonist with cut away shots to the weapons, listed. However, from the perspective of the audience, this would lack imagination and fall short of entertaining. Instead, we have fast cuts of each weapon as the protagonist prepares them for use. Accompanied with the high octane backing track and additional sound effects, this sequence proved to be a visual thrill ride and still informed the audience of what was taking place.
The same applies for the scene from Kingsman The Golden Circle where zoom ins are used to express the growing tension between the three characters. The actors could have been told to continue talking until an argument formed and then a fight scene follow on from this. Instead, director Matthew Vaughn decide to use visual story telling and have the characters stare at one another whilst the camera movements displayed their thoughts and feelings. Though there was some dialogue leading up to this, it was all relevant and was not overused. My original script contained an excess of dialogue and this would prove challenging when trying to condense into a short film running time. Now, having researched and analyzed relevant sequences, I will be able to tell my story in a shorter time frame and still maintain the entertaining approach I first intended on taking.
Actors Audition Tapes:
The tapes in the video are the only two actors who are still on board who originally sent audition tapes. The remainder of the cast have been cast based on reviewing their previous works and relating a suitable role to them.
Effects:
Being that this film calls for violence and a lot of blood, I am taking my own approach to creating the stock footage for the on screen visuals. With Kick-Ass, Matthew Vaughn’s team shot the blood rigs in front of a green screen and then placed them on each scene they were required for. For Richie’s Lost & Found, I will do the same.
I used my plastic blue bin as a solid backdrop and then shot powder elements in front of it. The same was done with liquid elements so that, when layered, they would all create a convincing blood effect.
Here is an effects test I did earlier this year:
In motion, the blood effect was very convincing and yet gave the short a graphic novel kind of twist. An ultra-violent, at times humorously melodramatic, piece of action.
Brandon Hobson 
May 1, 2018 at 10:55 am
Hi Brandon. It’s important to make sure that you write up what research has taught you or how it will impact on your production. The impact foley sounds, for example, are very good, as are the shots of your locations, but what have you learned by doing them, how were they useful – what have they allowed you to be more confident or knowledgeable about in terms of making your film? These are important factors. You have done this for your textual analyses, too, but doing it at the end doesn’t allow you to be specific about micro-elements like editing, music, etc. Do it after each point, and feed it into your practice, to demonstrate how it’s important. Good work.
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May 4, 2018 at 9:21 am
Okay, will do
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