There are many films that my film has been inspired and taken influence from.
The opening of the film and the ticking clock is inspired by La Haine. The location is similar- Suburbs of a multi ethnic working class society.
The opening scene from my film is an homage to La Haine, where Vincent Cassel is looking infront of the mirror and pretending to be Travis Bickle from Taxi Driver.
It has also inspired me too use the black and white effect.
Another influence is Trainspotting. Trainspotting explores the use of drugs and the influence of friends. I think this plays an important role in my film.
Other influences include Requiem for a Dream and Mean Streets.
Tuesday 19 January 2010
Monday 18 January 2010
Important Themes
One important part of my film will be the theme of Clocks. The clocks represent a countdown. In this case the countdown to Abdul pullign the trigger.
The ticking clock will appear twice in the film. The beginning when he's in the bathroom and during his comedown from the drugs. The ticking clock is inside his head. The only way he can get rid of the ticking noise is to shoot himself.
Also clocks will appear several times during the film. All the three shots of the hallway will feature a clock on the wall. The part where Abdul is sitting in the front room after taking the drugs will show a clock on the wall and another clock will be in the background before Abdul pulls the trigger after trying to get rid of teh ticking nosie in his head.
The scenes in the hallway represents emptiness. As the camera will be placed on the ground, the hallway will seem long and the walls tall. As the hallway appears at the beginning, middle and end, this shows the three different stages of the film; Abdul before taking drugs, Abdul after his fit and the empty kitchen after the events.
An important part of the film is the music. The Clair De Lune music contrasts against the images on screen. The music inspires a sense of beauty however the images on screen are far from beautiful. I want the music to tell the story and to fit with Abdul's emotions. I want the music to be part of the emotions and feeling so much that the audience forget that the music is actually there. I want it to become a neccessity to the story. The bit where the music fades out when Abdul has the come down, will be slowly substituted with the ticking clock. The audience will not realise that the music is gone. I believe that it is important as noticing the music stopping will take the audience out of the scene. By stopping the music, this will break the illusion of the story.
I want to evoke a sense of silence aswell but without it being silent on film. Silents plays an important part after the events of the day and the empty scenes in the house emphasise this point. Silence accompanies emptiness.
There are two interpretations of the film:
1) The beginning scene of Abdul in the bathroom represents him wanting to be part of a youth culture that his friends have adopted. He takes the drugs due to his friends influence as he believes it brings a sense of freedom. Once he takes the drugs he realises it is a wrong decision. He has become imprisoned by the drugs and eventually turns the trigger on himself. However as we know this isn't real and merely just a fantasy, the outcome is inevitable. He has become imprisoned by his attempt to be free.
2) An alternative view of the film may be that majority of what is seen and heard only takes place in Abdul's mind. The opening scene in the bathroom may be interpreted as a fantasy that only took place in Abduls mind and it represents the way he feels about his life; unmeaningful, pointless. If this interpretation is taken then Abdul takes the drugs as a device not to fit in with his friends but to take away his pain (a form of suicide) He takes the drugs to become free and to break out from his imprisonment of depression. When Abdul experiances the ticking noise towards the end of the film, he acts out his fantasy from the beginning of the film. Although this isnt real his smile as the end before pulling the trigger shows that he had succeeded.
Clair De Lune music can also be interpretted as being in his mind as his feelings and emotions are in time with the music. It is as if his feelings have been translated into a musical peice.
I want to leave the ending open, as I don't want to show whether Abdul dies or not.
The film I believe is about imprisonment and freedom. Whether or not drugs leads to imprisonment or liberation.
The film can be interpretted in different ways. I believe that there is no right or wrong interpretation of it.
The ticking clock will appear twice in the film. The beginning when he's in the bathroom and during his comedown from the drugs. The ticking clock is inside his head. The only way he can get rid of the ticking noise is to shoot himself.
Also clocks will appear several times during the film. All the three shots of the hallway will feature a clock on the wall. The part where Abdul is sitting in the front room after taking the drugs will show a clock on the wall and another clock will be in the background before Abdul pulls the trigger after trying to get rid of teh ticking nosie in his head.
The scenes in the hallway represents emptiness. As the camera will be placed on the ground, the hallway will seem long and the walls tall. As the hallway appears at the beginning, middle and end, this shows the three different stages of the film; Abdul before taking drugs, Abdul after his fit and the empty kitchen after the events.
An important part of the film is the music. The Clair De Lune music contrasts against the images on screen. The music inspires a sense of beauty however the images on screen are far from beautiful. I want the music to tell the story and to fit with Abdul's emotions. I want the music to be part of the emotions and feeling so much that the audience forget that the music is actually there. I want it to become a neccessity to the story. The bit where the music fades out when Abdul has the come down, will be slowly substituted with the ticking clock. The audience will not realise that the music is gone. I believe that it is important as noticing the music stopping will take the audience out of the scene. By stopping the music, this will break the illusion of the story.
I want to evoke a sense of silence aswell but without it being silent on film. Silents plays an important part after the events of the day and the empty scenes in the house emphasise this point. Silence accompanies emptiness.
There are two interpretations of the film:
1) The beginning scene of Abdul in the bathroom represents him wanting to be part of a youth culture that his friends have adopted. He takes the drugs due to his friends influence as he believes it brings a sense of freedom. Once he takes the drugs he realises it is a wrong decision. He has become imprisoned by the drugs and eventually turns the trigger on himself. However as we know this isn't real and merely just a fantasy, the outcome is inevitable. He has become imprisoned by his attempt to be free.
2) An alternative view of the film may be that majority of what is seen and heard only takes place in Abdul's mind. The opening scene in the bathroom may be interpreted as a fantasy that only took place in Abduls mind and it represents the way he feels about his life; unmeaningful, pointless. If this interpretation is taken then Abdul takes the drugs as a device not to fit in with his friends but to take away his pain (a form of suicide) He takes the drugs to become free and to break out from his imprisonment of depression. When Abdul experiances the ticking noise towards the end of the film, he acts out his fantasy from the beginning of the film. Although this isnt real his smile as the end before pulling the trigger shows that he had succeeded.
Clair De Lune music can also be interpretted as being in his mind as his feelings and emotions are in time with the music. It is as if his feelings have been translated into a musical peice.
I want to leave the ending open, as I don't want to show whether Abdul dies or not.
The film I believe is about imprisonment and freedom. Whether or not drugs leads to imprisonment or liberation.
The film can be interpretted in different ways. I believe that there is no right or wrong interpretation of it.
the storyline in more detail
Scene-The film will start with Abdul looking in a bathroom mirror. He is wearing a white t shirt.He is pretending to hold a gun. He stares into the mirror for a long time before turning the gun underneath his own chin.
Music- in the background the following noises will be heard: a ticking clock, sirens, traffic. Clair De Lune commences when he puts the gun to underneath his chin.
Notes- the point of the first scene is to show Abduls confused personality. His actions are meant to portray what is going on in his mind. The pretend gun is a symbol of control however when he turns it on himself, it shows that he infact is not in control. He wants to be someone else but ultimately cannot. This will also forshadow what happens later on in the film.
whilst Abdul has the gun to underneath his chin, a spilt second shot appears of 3 pills in an open palm.
The shot is infact a split second shot of what will happen later on the film. Although it appears for a spilt second, viewers will question what they have just seen, as it appears to be completely random. However when later on in the film they see the same image happening in the drug scene, they are reminded of the bathroom scene where they saw the image the first time. This is to give the feeling that the when the drug scene is taking place, the viewer has seen it all before. It also adds a sense of confusion.
A short montage of the London suburbs scene commences. It shows an estate, a railway and an alleyway before changing to a shot of an open doorwar and then an empty hallway, with the kitchen at the end of it. Abdul then walks across the kitchen.
Clair de lune can only be heard now. The beginning of this song is reflective and light. Background noise and the ticking clock stop completely once the montage starts.
The shots of London are simply there to set the location of where the story takes place. It shows areas that signify the working class: estate, railway, alleyway.
Shots of beer cans and cigarettes appear on a table.
These shots appear about a minute into Clair De Lune. This is where the music becomes alot more punchy. It becomes bold and heavy in contrast to the opening.
The scenes of beer and cigarettes acompany the music and are shown to be a bad sign.
Abdul steps into the front room and sits next to a scruffy looking teenager drinking alcohol. Abdul looks around the room and sees his friends drinking, smoking, playing about. Abdul looks nervous. The teenagers around him are scruffy, anti-social and all wear black. The scruffy teenager next to Abdul gives him drugs. He stairs at them in an open palm. He notices his friends all take the drugs.
The music at this stage is agressive and bold. It increases in volume.
Abdul's white t shirt contrasts with his friends black hoodies. This shows that he is good and his friends are bad. His friends do not talk to him. This is to show that they are not real friends and just there to hang out. When the scruffy teenager gives Abdul the drugs, Abdul isn't forced to take them. He sees his friends do it and wants to be part of the gang (against his better judgement) I want Abdul to be partly responsible for his downfall. He takes it upon himself to take the drugs, knowing full well the consequences.
The part where Abdul sees the pills in his hand is the same shot at the beginning. This is instantly meant to be recognisable to the viewer.
Abdul takes the drugs. He then becomes disjointed from the rest of the room. His friends carry on drinking and messing about without him. Instead he just sits there in the same position. His friends drink more and more.
Clair De Lune is still being played with no other background noise. This is the bit in the song that is played fast and inspires a sense of beauty. This carries on for around 40 seconds.
This is meant to show how Abdul does not fit in with his friends. He has made a wrong decision but is too late to go back. He feels detached from himself. The scene also shows the level of alcohol that the teenagers are drinking.
Abdul exits out of the room. He stumbles down the hallway. He has blurry vision and cannot walk straight. His heart rate is increasing and he starts to hear a ticking clock. He walks to the kitchen sink where he throws up.
Clair De Lune volume slowly decreases while the following sounds slowly increase: deep vibrations(rumbling), heart beat, ticking clock.
The part of the music that is slowly being decreased in volume is when the song starts to slow down. It is the aftermath of the beautiful bit halfway through. This will represent Abdul's come down from the drugs. Abdul walking through the corridor shows these effects. The ticking clock that is increasing is the same ticking noise as in the beginning. The sound of the heart beat is his own hearbeat.
After Abdul throws up he starts to clench his head and shout in pain. He then throws up again and then pretends to hold a gun with his hands, points it to underneath his chin where he pretends to pull the trigger. It goes black.
The music has died out completely and his now only replaced with the rumbling noise and the ticking clock. The heart beat can be heard faintly in the background. When Abdul pulls the trigger a gun shot can be heard. When it goes black there is no sound.
When Abdul clenches his head, this shows that maybe the ticking is in his mind. The only way he can get rid of it is too shoot himself. The gun shot is only in his mind and once again his actions represent how he feels inside. This is a replica of the first scene in the bathroom. He is insecure, lost and ultimately wants to pull the trigger.
Abdul is shaking on the floor. He is having a fit. His friends only just notice what is happening and run over to save Abdul. Abdul is shown lying with his friends surrounding him in the kitchen. The camera is placed at the end of the hallway. This is similar to the shot early on in the film
Once the picture comes back after the blackout, Clair De Lune starts from where it left off. It is soft and calm.
The shot of the hallway is the same as the once at the beginning of the film where Abdul is walking in the kitchen.
A short montage of shots of London are shown again. The alleyway and the estate. It then cuts to shots of inside the house when it is dark. First you see the empty cans of beer on the table, an empty kitchen, empty doorway, empty bathroom and then the final shot; the empty hallway where Abdul was laying.
Clair De Lune carries on playing with a reflective sort of mood. Sirens can also be heard in the background until shots inside the house start.
The shots of London are shown to be similar to the shots inside the house. E.g The alleyway is similar to the hallway. This represents that one cause of the anti-social behaviour (drinking, drug taking, Abdul downfall at the end) is there social economic status; the places where they are brought up and their class.
The empty shoots of the house afterwards are at night time, after the days events. It shows a sense of emptyness and loss. The rooms where there was once a presence are now empty. The last shot of the empty hallway is the third time it appears. It also emphasises emptiness and loss. As this shot appears regularly it is a reminder to the audience of a once filled space that is now empty.
Music- in the background the following noises will be heard: a ticking clock, sirens, traffic. Clair De Lune commences when he puts the gun to underneath his chin.
Notes- the point of the first scene is to show Abduls confused personality. His actions are meant to portray what is going on in his mind. The pretend gun is a symbol of control however when he turns it on himself, it shows that he infact is not in control. He wants to be someone else but ultimately cannot. This will also forshadow what happens later on in the film.
whilst Abdul has the gun to underneath his chin, a spilt second shot appears of 3 pills in an open palm.
The shot is infact a split second shot of what will happen later on the film. Although it appears for a spilt second, viewers will question what they have just seen, as it appears to be completely random. However when later on in the film they see the same image happening in the drug scene, they are reminded of the bathroom scene where they saw the image the first time. This is to give the feeling that the when the drug scene is taking place, the viewer has seen it all before. It also adds a sense of confusion.
A short montage of the London suburbs scene commences. It shows an estate, a railway and an alleyway before changing to a shot of an open doorwar and then an empty hallway, with the kitchen at the end of it. Abdul then walks across the kitchen.
Clair de lune can only be heard now. The beginning of this song is reflective and light. Background noise and the ticking clock stop completely once the montage starts.
The shots of London are simply there to set the location of where the story takes place. It shows areas that signify the working class: estate, railway, alleyway.
Shots of beer cans and cigarettes appear on a table.
These shots appear about a minute into Clair De Lune. This is where the music becomes alot more punchy. It becomes bold and heavy in contrast to the opening.
The scenes of beer and cigarettes acompany the music and are shown to be a bad sign.
Abdul steps into the front room and sits next to a scruffy looking teenager drinking alcohol. Abdul looks around the room and sees his friends drinking, smoking, playing about. Abdul looks nervous. The teenagers around him are scruffy, anti-social and all wear black. The scruffy teenager next to Abdul gives him drugs. He stairs at them in an open palm. He notices his friends all take the drugs.
The music at this stage is agressive and bold. It increases in volume.
Abdul's white t shirt contrasts with his friends black hoodies. This shows that he is good and his friends are bad. His friends do not talk to him. This is to show that they are not real friends and just there to hang out. When the scruffy teenager gives Abdul the drugs, Abdul isn't forced to take them. He sees his friends do it and wants to be part of the gang (against his better judgement) I want Abdul to be partly responsible for his downfall. He takes it upon himself to take the drugs, knowing full well the consequences.
The part where Abdul sees the pills in his hand is the same shot at the beginning. This is instantly meant to be recognisable to the viewer.
Abdul takes the drugs. He then becomes disjointed from the rest of the room. His friends carry on drinking and messing about without him. Instead he just sits there in the same position. His friends drink more and more.
Clair De Lune is still being played with no other background noise. This is the bit in the song that is played fast and inspires a sense of beauty. This carries on for around 40 seconds.
This is meant to show how Abdul does not fit in with his friends. He has made a wrong decision but is too late to go back. He feels detached from himself. The scene also shows the level of alcohol that the teenagers are drinking.
Abdul exits out of the room. He stumbles down the hallway. He has blurry vision and cannot walk straight. His heart rate is increasing and he starts to hear a ticking clock. He walks to the kitchen sink where he throws up.
Clair De Lune volume slowly decreases while the following sounds slowly increase: deep vibrations(rumbling), heart beat, ticking clock.
The part of the music that is slowly being decreased in volume is when the song starts to slow down. It is the aftermath of the beautiful bit halfway through. This will represent Abdul's come down from the drugs. Abdul walking through the corridor shows these effects. The ticking clock that is increasing is the same ticking noise as in the beginning. The sound of the heart beat is his own hearbeat.
After Abdul throws up he starts to clench his head and shout in pain. He then throws up again and then pretends to hold a gun with his hands, points it to underneath his chin where he pretends to pull the trigger. It goes black.
The music has died out completely and his now only replaced with the rumbling noise and the ticking clock. The heart beat can be heard faintly in the background. When Abdul pulls the trigger a gun shot can be heard. When it goes black there is no sound.
When Abdul clenches his head, this shows that maybe the ticking is in his mind. The only way he can get rid of it is too shoot himself. The gun shot is only in his mind and once again his actions represent how he feels inside. This is a replica of the first scene in the bathroom. He is insecure, lost and ultimately wants to pull the trigger.
Abdul is shaking on the floor. He is having a fit. His friends only just notice what is happening and run over to save Abdul. Abdul is shown lying with his friends surrounding him in the kitchen. The camera is placed at the end of the hallway. This is similar to the shot early on in the film
Once the picture comes back after the blackout, Clair De Lune starts from where it left off. It is soft and calm.
The shot of the hallway is the same as the once at the beginning of the film where Abdul is walking in the kitchen.
A short montage of shots of London are shown again. The alleyway and the estate. It then cuts to shots of inside the house when it is dark. First you see the empty cans of beer on the table, an empty kitchen, empty doorway, empty bathroom and then the final shot; the empty hallway where Abdul was laying.
Clair De Lune carries on playing with a reflective sort of mood. Sirens can also be heard in the background until shots inside the house start.
The shots of London are shown to be similar to the shots inside the house. E.g The alleyway is similar to the hallway. This represents that one cause of the anti-social behaviour (drinking, drug taking, Abdul downfall at the end) is there social economic status; the places where they are brought up and their class.
The empty shoots of the house afterwards are at night time, after the days events. It shows a sense of emptyness and loss. The rooms where there was once a presence are now empty. The last shot of the empty hallway is the third time it appears. It also emphasises emptiness and loss. As this shot appears regularly it is a reminder to the audience of a once filled space that is now empty.
Saturday 9 January 2010
New Storyline
A teenager under the influence of drugs.
A know its a bit cliched however i believe that it has to be a simple storyline in order for it to succeed.
The film will still be done in black and white as this makes it darker and gritty.
Storyline in detail:
Abdul a 17 year old boy is in his house with his friends. He is in the bathroom and pretends to hold gun to the mirror. He improvises a gun from his fingers and imagines himself as a gang member.
He makes his way downstair's where his friends are gathered in the living room.
His friends however are drug addicts and anti-social. Abdul is slowly being influenced by them. Abdul is uncomfortable with them inside his house, but rather than asking them to leave he lets them stay. He is offered a drug which he takes. His 'friends' are delighted and carry on drinking, taking drugs and messing around. Abdul sits on his sofa disjointed from the rest of his 'friends'. He sits there nervous and completely out of his head. He has lost control.
His 'friends' make no attempt to comfort him as they really do not care about him, they just need a place to 'relax.'
Abdul finds the strength to get up and stumbles to the kitchen. He has blurred version, has pains in his head and feels sick. He makes his way to the kitchen where the pain in his head becomes unbearable. He vomits in the sink and starts to clutch his head.
He imagines that he has a gun in his hand. Improvising a gun from his figures once again he draws the gun to underneath his chin and pretends to pull the trigger.
He crashes to the floor and shakes uncontrollably. He can't breathe. His neck and hands are bloody. He's dying from a gun shot wound to the neck.
He tries to scream but can't. One of his friends notices he has gone and sees Abdul dying on the kitchen floor. He calls the rest of his friends over and they run to the kitchen to help him. It ends.
The ending is not meant to be taken literally. He hasn't been shot in the neck however it is meant to show that the pain that Abdul feels is equivalent to being shot. Abdul pretending to shoot himself is a symbol that he is as much the cause of his own pain (maybe death) along with the influence of his 'friends'.
The first scene where Abdul is pretending to have a gun symbolises his own downfall. He hasn't got a gun yet and he isn't fully involved in gang culture however he is going down that path. It is only when he takes the drugs that he realises his mistakes, however it is too late.
The film will include no dialogue. Only the Clair de Lune soundtrack that i was going to use for my previous story.
I believe that a film is good when you can take away the dialogue and still understand the story.
The films key points will fit in with the Clair De Lune Soundtrack. I believe that this will be the hardest part.
Instead of building the soundtrack around the film, the film is built around the soundtrack.
However the soundtrack will not be placed at a constant volume and other sounds will include sirens, a gun shot, heartbeats etc. Also the soundtrack will not start straight away but gradually fade in. This will make it a short film as opposed to a music video.
A know its a bit cliched however i believe that it has to be a simple storyline in order for it to succeed.
The film will still be done in black and white as this makes it darker and gritty.
Storyline in detail:
Abdul a 17 year old boy is in his house with his friends. He is in the bathroom and pretends to hold gun to the mirror. He improvises a gun from his fingers and imagines himself as a gang member.
He makes his way downstair's where his friends are gathered in the living room.
His friends however are drug addicts and anti-social. Abdul is slowly being influenced by them. Abdul is uncomfortable with them inside his house, but rather than asking them to leave he lets them stay. He is offered a drug which he takes. His 'friends' are delighted and carry on drinking, taking drugs and messing around. Abdul sits on his sofa disjointed from the rest of his 'friends'. He sits there nervous and completely out of his head. He has lost control.
His 'friends' make no attempt to comfort him as they really do not care about him, they just need a place to 'relax.'
Abdul finds the strength to get up and stumbles to the kitchen. He has blurred version, has pains in his head and feels sick. He makes his way to the kitchen where the pain in his head becomes unbearable. He vomits in the sink and starts to clutch his head.
He imagines that he has a gun in his hand. Improvising a gun from his figures once again he draws the gun to underneath his chin and pretends to pull the trigger.
He crashes to the floor and shakes uncontrollably. He can't breathe. His neck and hands are bloody. He's dying from a gun shot wound to the neck.
He tries to scream but can't. One of his friends notices he has gone and sees Abdul dying on the kitchen floor. He calls the rest of his friends over and they run to the kitchen to help him. It ends.
The ending is not meant to be taken literally. He hasn't been shot in the neck however it is meant to show that the pain that Abdul feels is equivalent to being shot. Abdul pretending to shoot himself is a symbol that he is as much the cause of his own pain (maybe death) along with the influence of his 'friends'.
The first scene where Abdul is pretending to have a gun symbolises his own downfall. He hasn't got a gun yet and he isn't fully involved in gang culture however he is going down that path. It is only when he takes the drugs that he realises his mistakes, however it is too late.
The film will include no dialogue. Only the Clair de Lune soundtrack that i was going to use for my previous story.
I believe that a film is good when you can take away the dialogue and still understand the story.
The films key points will fit in with the Clair De Lune Soundtrack. I believe that this will be the hardest part.
Instead of building the soundtrack around the film, the film is built around the soundtrack.
However the soundtrack will not be placed at a constant volume and other sounds will include sirens, a gun shot, heartbeats etc. Also the soundtrack will not start straight away but gradually fade in. This will make it a short film as opposed to a music video.
A new Storyline
I have decided to change a couple of things about my short film.
The main themes are kept the same; a teenager becoming a product of a broken society, the influence of friends etc.
However the storyline is different.
I believe that the were several problems with the previous storyline.
1) The film lacks realism. A documentary about teenagers messing around with a gun doesn't look realistic. This is obvious as they will be ultimately breaking the law.
2) There would be too much too fit inside a 5 minute short film.
3) The script also lacked realism.
The main themes are kept the same; a teenager becoming a product of a broken society, the influence of friends etc.
However the storyline is different.
I believe that the were several problems with the previous storyline.
1) The film lacks realism. A documentary about teenagers messing around with a gun doesn't look realistic. This is obvious as they will be ultimately breaking the law.
2) There would be too much too fit inside a 5 minute short film.
3) The script also lacked realism.
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