Character Profile

SHEP FLANNIGAN: A middle-aged man Texas originated and loves money, he is respected by the people he employs, he is very professional in his line of work and takes many precautions to keep it that way and only reveals himself to people that he trusts. He covers his loan shark job by being an acting CEO of a piping firm.

JASON KABLE: A hit-man that is very well known for getting the job done no questions asked and being undetectable to people that he doesn’t want to find him.

MARCUS FINFISH: A little man that you wouldn’t think much of needs a loan to help his company stay stable, but knows that he cannot repay the loan with in the time limit. He is a clumsy man who gets very nervous in the conversation with SHEP FLANNIGAN and SHEP knows that and uses it the exploit the due date on the loan which he has no other option but to comply.

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15 minute analysis

The International 15 Minute Analysis.


This film is about an interpol agent who is determined to bring justice to one of the world's most powerful banks.

The film starts off with Interpol Agent Louis Salinger stood outside in the rain, while his partner Thomas Schumer is in a car with a man called Andre Clement who is talking about the International Bank of Business & Credit (IBBC) and how the IBBC is going to purchase missiles in a deal with China. Schumer exits the car and walks out whilst on the phone to someone telling him the business plans. He then walks out to the street giving a signal to Salinger and then suddenly grasps his arm in pain, vomits and collapses to the floor dead. Salinger goes to run across the road to help him but is knocked out by the side mirror of a passing vehicle.

Salinger is then looked at in hospital and is told to stay overnight for observation but he refuses and requests to see his partner, Schumer and is told he suffered a fatal heart attack, although Salinger doesn't believe this and closely expects the body to find something on the back of Schumer's neck and requests for a full autopsy to be performed. The first 15 minutes shows a lot of tension and fast action and therefore is a typical trait for action films. Everything happens very sudden and in the first scene it seems almost sudden that both Salinger and Schumer are collapsed on the floor. There are fast cuts which create tension and suspense. The character Louis Salinger (played by Clive Owen) looks confused throughout the first scene and this gives the audience a sense that something strange and unusual is going off. There are a few long shots, for example when Schumer is walking towards the road we see him in a long shot and this gives the effect that Salinger is expecting him as it is shot from Salinger's point of view. The sound at the beginning that we can hear is the sound of moving traffic, when Salinger is knocked down we can hear a sharp ringing sound, this represents Salinger's unconsciousness. There is a sense of the typical 'agent' in this film, this is shown by the cinematography as both partners Schumer and Salinger are wearing long coats with trousers and shirt underneath which is typical of agents and spies in action movies.

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Questionnaire Results (filtered)
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Audience Questionnaire

Film Distributors

 For our film, we will need to look at possible distributors to release our film. Because we won't be producing a mainstream film, we will be looking for distributors who have experience in independent films.

One possible distributor for our film is Momentum Pictures, who are one of the leading independent motion picture distributors in the UK and Ireland. Momentum have released films such as Insidious 1+2, The Woman In Black, The Kings Speech and The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. In February 2011, Momentum Pictures won 8 BAFTA awards, more than any other UK distributor. This would be an ideal film distributor for us as it is a UK distributor and releases many independent films. 

Another possible distributor for our film is StudioCanal UK, formerly Optimum Releasing. Optimum was acquired by StudioCanal, a subsidiary of Vivendi. StudioCanal have released films such as Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and The Awakening. This distributor will be good for releasing our film as it is again, a UK distributor.  

Similar Films

Similar Films.

One of the similar films to our film idea is The Debt Collector which is rated 18. The film is very dark and violent which is one of the reasons that this film is an 18. The Debt Collector stars Billy Connolly, Iain Robertson and Annette Crosbie and is directed by Anthony Neilson. Total Film says that "The Debt Collector is a warts-and-all, life-in-the-gutter drama, set in Glasgow. None of the characters are particularly likeable and there are several moments of horribly graphic violence." This film is very similar to our film idea and our storyline is expected to be similar to The Debt Collector storyline. The film stars Billy Connolly as Nicky Dryden who is an ex convict and former debt collector who now makes a living as a sculptor. Total Film rated this film at 3 out of 5 stars and IMDB gave it a slightly higher rating of 3.5 stars out of 5.

Another similar film is Pulp Fiction, about two hitmen who are asked to retrieve a suitcase stolen from their employer who is a mob boss. The film is rated R which converts to the equivalent of a rating of 15/18 in the UK. Pulp Fiction stars Samuel L Jackson, John Travolta and Uma Thurman. The film is directed by Quentin Tarantino. IMDB rated this film 9 out of 10.

Red Dragon is another film similar to the genre that we are aiming for and goes along the Action - Crime genre. It is directed by Brett Ratner and stars Anthony Hopkins and Edward Norton. The film is about a retired FBI agent with psychological gifts who is assigned to help track down a mysterious serial killer.

Pulp Fiction Trailer

15 minute analysis

15 Minute Analysis (Casino Royale)
Casino Royale is a James Bond film. The storyline in this particular Bond film is about Bond chasing after a man. The film follows the story on Bond being set a mission to gain information and follow a man to find out his recent actions and about the man who the Mi6 beleive to be dangerous. Bond's job is to stop him from doing sothing dangerous. This film is a action/espionage film, this is easily determinid in the opening minutes when we see a big, strong man dressed in a suit. The fact that he is big and strong show that there is going to be some form of action involved like fighting and the suit screams out to the audience that this man is a secret agent.

The first 15 minutes sees shows an opening scene in Prague where Bong has gone to kill someone. In the process of the killing we see flashbacks of abother killing, which suggests that Bond is new to this job and the fact he is having flash backs about a previous kill shows he is not comfortable in his new job. We then see the famous Bond title sequence. This features lots of CGI'd graphics of the 'suits' of cards, roulette wheels and the sillhouettes of men fighting. This alone tells us a lot about the story. It tells us that it us going to be an action film involfing the presence of a casino. After this we see a short scenec in Uganda where a deal between two men is taking place, which is then followed by the scene in Madagascar  where Bond is chasing a suspected terrorist. 

The way the first 15 minutes of Casino Royale is very good and actually influences the way the audience feels. In the first scene in Prague, there is a black and white filter on the camera. This scene is meant to take you back to Bond's fist real mission. The black and white filter allows you to realise that this is in the past and has already taken place. The black and white also makes you feal depressed, which may be the way Bond feels about his first ever mission as after he kills the man he looks shocked and scared. Despite this the camera is always looking up at Bond which menas he is dominating the screen which also makes him look more dominant than the victim. The victim however has the camera looking down at him so he looks vulnarable. The camera also looks up at the one of the men in the Uganda scene when they are negociating the deal. This shows to me that he is a dangerous man and has the more leverage in the deal. Whenever there is action on our screens eg. fighting, there are more shots. This along with the jump cut between shots makes the scene more unexpected and faster flowing. This keeps the audience guessing and makes the action better to watch.

The sound in the first 15 minutes is used to good dramatic affect. In the scenes we see, all of them have the background noise you would expect. However when we are seeing action scenes like when Bond is chasing the terrorist we hear some fast paced incidental music. This along with a higher shot count in action scenes make them flow faster, which makes the action scenes more interesting to watch. The opposite of this happens when characters are talking like in the office in the Prague scene. The music is slower and quieter which allows you to hear the dialogue but adds tension in the scene which make the audience panic a little and wonder what is going to happen. In the opening scenes of Casion Royale there is lots of sound effects used. The main ones used are gun noises to give the impression of a real gun being fired and the dsound of a punch. This make the audience think the the punching is real, but as the effect is louder than the real sound of a punch it makes the audience sort of wince when  punch is landed. This helps add dramatic effect.

In the first 15 minutes of Casino Royale we see lots of costume being used as well as make up. This is refferded to as mis-en-scene. James Bond is a secret agent. You would expext a secret agent to wear a suit and carry a gun. In the first scene this is what Bond is dressed like. This allows us to know that he is a secret agent. After seeing him like this we see him in a shirt and jeans in 'Madagascar'. This make the audience assume that there is somthing different about him now. We find out later that he is undercover. The use of props is extensive in the scenes we see. We see guns being used as well as vehicals and explosives. This makes the action secens more interesting to watch. But more importantley it make the film realistic. You would expect a secret agent and a terrorist to use weapons. Another aspect of the mis-en-scene that make the film more realistic is the use of make up. When Bond and the terrorist are fighting on the crane there is some hand to hand combat. The makeup is used to create blood and cuts. So wen they are fighting and they land a blow to eachother makeup can be used to make the fight realistic as you expect blood in a fight. Location is part of mis-en-scene. This film is in several locations in the openimg scenes. Location helps to make the film more realistic. An example of using location to make a film look realistic in this film would be in 'Madagascar'. This scene is shot in a slum type location overflowing into a building site. If this scene where Bond and the terrorist are shooting and fighting was in a city you would expect the police to come and arrest them. However as it is in a slum you would expect the policing to be less and of a lower standard explaining why this is allowed to happend and not be stopped. In this scene vehicals and actors in costume make it seem realistic.

The cinematography in the opening scenes of the film allows extra detail bee seen. Cinematograohy refers to what the camera can see and what shots are used. The cinematography allos the audience to see the most important things in the scene. When the characters are talking we see close up shots. This shows the head and shoulders in shot. This allow us to see the facial expression when talking so we can see the reaction to the dialogue. This is used to good effect in the first scene when Bond has killed the man in the bathroom. After he has killed him, we see his face and we can see his emotion. His emotion makes him look scared and vulnarable which show the audience he isnt used to killing people and hasnt been a special agent long. However when Bond has killed the man in the office we see the same shot, which shows him emotionless. This tells the Bond is now used to killing people. The types of shot when there is action is different. When Bond is chasing the terrorist we see more mid shots and long shots being used. Mid shots show the waist up on camera, so it is useful to show hand to hand combat between characters as the arms can be seen. Longs shots show the full body in scene. This is good for the parts where the characters are jumping over the tables and over walls. In this scene an extra long shot is used. When Bond is jumping off the crane, we see an extra long shot of him. this alows the audience to se Bond jump off the crane and land on the building.

As this film is similar to ours we will have a similar desired effect. Tis was a very good, sucessful film. Therefore it may be a good idea to do some things like we see in this film.

Title Sequences

Title Sequences

A title sequence is the method by which cinematic films or television programs present their title, key production and cast members, or both, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound.

The film that we make will need a title sequence in order to tell the audience the title and key cast and production members. In order to make a title sequence we will need some ideas and inspiration from existing title sequences.

Drive (2011)

In this title sequence the first shot is an establishing helicopter shot which shows the audience the setting for the film, this being Los Angeles. During this shot the actors name (Ryan Gosling) is shown on screen to show the audience that he is the main actor in the film.  It then cuts to a low angle shot of ‘the driver’ to show he is the main character, this shot shows that this character is powerful and should be looked up to. After this the film’s title and supporting actor’s names are shown on screen next to images from inside the car that ‘the driver’ is driving, showing that if it wasn’t obvious already, driving is a strong base for the plot of this film. The music throughout this is quite low and doesn’t have a real exciting feel to it, until a change in key when the music becomes more interesting when the person’s name who did the music is shown on screen. This is followed by the names of the people who were key to the production of this film such as producers, the editor and designers. After this ‘the driver’ is shown parking in the car park of his flat and heading to the lift when he walks past the main supporting actress (Carey Mulligan) this suggests to the audience that she may be important later on in the film. After being shown in his flat for a very short time ‘the driver’ is next shown driving again which shows that the only important aspect is how important driving is in this film. During these shots the titles come to a close with the director’s name (Nicolas Winding Refn). There is not a lot of information giving to the audience during the title sequence about what the film entails, but it does create a sense of interest and make the audience have to watch on to find out what happens.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vm0cZB4XQjI

Possible Distributor

Possible Distributor

Momentum Pictures

Momentum Pictures is one of the leading independent motion picture distributors in the UK and Ireland and releases approximately 20 theatrical films a year. On 9 January 2013, Entertainment One acquired the parent company of Momentum, Alliance Films which led to a wider range of films for momentum to distribute.

Some of momentums most known releases include, the Oscar, BAFTA and BIFA-winning The King's Speech, Welcome to the Punch, The Woman in Black, Limitless and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

Momentum Pictures would be good company to distribute our film, because they distribute films that are similar to the one that we will be creating, and a wide range of films that have the same BBFC certificate as the film we want to make.

In 2013 Momentum distributed the film, Welcome to the Punch, which like our film is an action crime thriller that has a 15 certificate like that of our film, this would help our film as Momentum would be well known for distributing these kinds of films.

Similar Films

Similar Films

The film that we are making is an action film that is based around a man who is a debt collector for a loan shark. On one of his jobs he is told to kill his brother. He decides against doing this and he and his brother try to escape the country to avoid being found and killed.

The Debt Collector is a very similar as the name suggests. It is about a man who is the debt collector for a loan shark who has to overcome the problems that his job has got him into. It is similar in the way that both of the films have a similar storyline and similar characters.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0159401/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Drive could also be seen as a similar film as it follows a stunt driver by day and getaway driver by night as he accidentally gets involved in a feud over gangland money, he has to fight and kill to protect himself and his female neighbour and her son who he has become close to throughout the film.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0780504/?ref_=nv_sr_1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr1NMzPVCSA

The Transporter could be seen as a similar film. This film is about a man whose job is to deliver packages without asking any questions. Complications arise when he breaks those rules. This is similar to our film in the way that they both have a man who have to do what they are told by their boss, no matter what and both involve the character breaking the rules and facing the consequences

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0poXFSvX0_4

Genre Research

Action Film Genre Research

Mise-en-scene

The mise en scene of films are the typical aspects you would expect to find, for example where the films are set, the props they use and the costumes they wear.

The typical settings of action films are in quite highly populated and popular travel destinations such as London and New York, so that people can easily relate to where the action is taking place.

The costumes in action films do vary depending on the sub genre of the film for example in an adventure based action film such as Indiana Jones the character wears explorer outfits almost to give a western effect, whereas in a film such as James Bond the characters are smartly dressed, the audience would always expect the characters to look smart.

In action films the props typically used are weapons, mainly the use of guns are to be expected In a war film, whereas an action western would use a different style of gun or even a bow and arrow depending on the time in which the film was set.

Not all action films use props in the fight scenes however; a lot of films use simple fistfights to get a more dynamic view of the action and a more close up view of the characters. The uses of cars are also very popular in action films, as they normally feature a car chase.

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

Makeup is used extensively in filmmaking especially action films. Makeup is used to make injuries like bullet wounds, scars and bruises look real. This makes an action film look more realistic as there is lots of combat in action films. Makeup could also be used to change the complexion of someone’s skin. For example you could make a characters skin paler which would make them look like they are dead/dying or just different which could define the character.

The music in action films tends to differ depending on the scenario and the plot which the film is following. In an action chase or fight scene the music would be quite fast paced to create an exciting and thrilling feel to the scene. But in a scene with more dialog than action the music would tend to be lower in tone and slower to create suspense and keep the audience wanting to watch more.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JZKEN_vpzY

The characters in action films tend to be very similar. In action films you generally have a male main character, the protagonist, the character who the film is more or less based on. Then in most action films there is the bad guy, the antagonist. This is the person that has a plan to cause distress to the world or take over the world.

Finally then other characters you would expect to see in an action film is the support characters, these are usually women who helps the protagonist in some way. This character generally ends up in an on screen romance with the main character. This is essentially like a ‘Bond Girl’.

After this in most action films the other characters are just support roles. Not all action films follow this setup depending on the story line and the sub-genre.

Title sequence

Title sequences

A title sequence is the method by which cinematic films or television programs present their title, key production and cast members, or both, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound.

The film that we make will need a title sequence in order to tell the audience the title and key cast and production members. In order to make a title sequence we will need some ideas and inspiration from existing title sequences.

James Bond:Casino Royale

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/casino-royale/

In this title sequence you see a black and white silhouette of a man in a suit (Bond) That is fighting enemies with guns and fists. These enemies are red and yellow and black silhouettes and when they are defeated they dissolve into the suits of playing cards. Throughout the title sequence, in the background we see lots of graphics of the suits of the cards, the pictures on the cards eg. a queen, on a green and sometimes red patterned background. These colours would be associated with casinos, which would explain the name Casino Royale. Also in the sequence we see roulette wheels which again stresses the link to casinos and The Black silhouette loading a gun with ‘Spades’.

From this sequence it is obvious that the film is an action/espionage film. The fighting between the cgi characters shows that. It could also be said that all the silhouettes are ‘teaming’ up on the one Black silhouette (Bond) which could suggest that he is a secret agent or dangerous man that need to be stopped, but cannot be. The presence of ‘suits’ of card and roulette wheels as well as the name of the film shows that there is going to be gambling and casinos involved.

The music (rock) along with the footage get the audience ready for lots of hard hitting action. It helps to set a more serious mood among the audience, which helps add to the emphasis of the story of the film. This film is slightly similar to ours and I like the full title sequence and would like to do something similar with the titles coming on top of CGI’d silhouettes fighting, however it is unlikely we will have the technology to be able to do so. 

21 Jump Street

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/21-jump-street/

I personally think that this is a very good title sequence. This sets the mood for the the film it gives a glimpse as to what the film is about and it sets the pace of the film.

Firstly this sequence has a lot of images flashing on and of. This along with the the music that fast paced and catchy give the title sequence a fast pace. This to me suggests that we are going to see a film that has lots of fast paced action. The footage and music was edited together rhythmically which is somthing i would like to do in our title sequence as it helps to set the pace.

The footage is shown is very helpful, in a way that it tells the audience what to expect. The title sequence includes lots of footage of money in piles and being counted and also drugs and them being used. This along with the footage of guns being loaded made me think that somehow in the film gangs are going to be involved. This was backed up by the footage of offices and typewriters in offices, guns being fired at targets and police in cars. These things made me think of police and if you think of police you think of criminals and gangs. This helped me realise that the film would be an action crime film based on police and gangs like many other films of this kind.

The american flag that is shown allows you to know that the film is based in america. The sequence is very helpful in telling you what is going to happen. Throughout we see lots of cars, driving fast and reckless which shows that there will be car chases. It also show lots of footage of explosions and weapons being used, like the axe on the tree and guns being fired. This shows the audience that there is going to be explosions and weapons used in the film which in turn show the audience the film is going to be full of action like shootouts and also and action film.

I really enjoyed the sequence and would like to use some aspects of it when making ours. The aspects i especially liked was how the footage was fast paced and the music was fast paced which helped to set a mood in the audience for the film. I also liked the fact that that footage that was shown was relevant to the film and helped to give the audience a glimpse into what is going to happen in the film. To do this for our film we would need to take lots of short shots of weapons and money and put them together with some fast paced music. As our film is a fast paced action film about a debt collector for a loan shark.

First 15 minutes

In the first fifteen minutes of  'Transporter' there are a lot of exciting action scenes that really get the audience involved and intrigued as the the rest if the film, I would exclude some of these parts into my film to create the same effect. As this film is an action like ours and also has the same bbfc certificate rating as the one we intending to make, we could use some of the same parts as are included in this, and other films that match the specification as ours. We also could take into consideration the choice of music that used because it may match with some of the scenes that we are intending to do due to the similarity of genre choice.

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?client=safari&hl=en-gb&biw=320&bih=372&tbm=isch&tbnid=M2Ta0Ebo-dxXgM:&imgrefurl=http://ohnotheydidnt.livejournal.com/30259101.html&docid=JJ4k00vbBSpPvM&imgurl=http://i38.tinypic.com/14cfh2e.jpg&w=467&h=600&ei=zynhUsq7AvCp7Aa734CwBQ&zoom=1

Title sequence

http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/iron-man-3/

I like how this title sequence is set out and gives a sense of the film before it ha even started.
We could maybe do something like this at the beginning of our film as it give the feel of the film and shows what goes on, before the film even starts. This effect could also be done quite easily because if we do a simpler version then there won't be as many chalanging editing techniques and will still give the same effect as the more chalanging 'iron man 3' title sequence.

Film Distributors

In order to make our film successful we will need to employ a distribution company. A film distributor is a company or individual responsible for the marketing of a film. The distributor may set the release date of a film and the method by which a film is to be exhibited or made available for viewing: for example, directly to the public either theatrically or for home viewing (DVD, video-on-demand, download, television programs through broadcast syndication etc.).

As our film is independently produced it is unlikely a major distribution company like Warner Bros are going to agree to distribute the film. This is because our film is independently produced and so it is likely to have low production values. This means that it is unlikely to be heard of and unlikely to be very popular. Big Film Distributors like Warner Bros like to sell films that are full of action with big budgets and big stars which independent films cannot provide. Therefore to distribute our film we would need a distribution company that specialises in independent films.   

StudioCanal UK (formerly Optimum Releasing/Home Entertainment/Classics^[1]) is a film distributor company working in the UK and Ireland. The company releases many films, including independent British, Irish and American films in the UK and sometimes Ireland.

Optimum was acquired by StudioCanal, a subsidiary of Vivendi SA, in 2006.^[2] Since StudioCanal bought Optimum, the French company distribute their large back catalogue of classic British films (many from the Cannon and EMI catalogues) through Optimum releasing under the strand 'Optimum Classic'.

In September 2011, the company was renamed StudioCanal UK

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Tyrannosaur, Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, The Awakening and W.E were among the first films released under the StudioCanal UK banner.

This distributor would be good for our film because it specialises in distributing independent British films to the UK. Our film is an independent British film so this company would know exactly how to distribute our film. When Studio Canal was Optimum the distributed the very successful Four Lions. This film was popular in the UK especially in Yorkshire where our film is being produced. This could persuade some people to come and watch our film.

          

UK Film Distributer's

Momentum Pictures is one of the leading independent motion picture distributors in the UK and Ireland and releases approximately 20 theatrical films a year.

Momentum's most successful theatrical releases include the Oscar, BAFTA and BIFA-winning The King's Speech, Amélie, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Lost in Translation, Control, Downfall.

The studio has also released several family films, such as Hoodwinked, The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle co-distributed with United International Pictures as part of a two-year agreement, Arthur and the Invisibles, as well as the home video rights for popular TV series Creature Comforts.

This film Distributing company would be good to distribute our film, because they distribute films that are similar to the one that we will be creating, also the bbfc certificate is also quite similar. 

Like their recently distributed film 'Snitch' witch is the same certificate of 15 which we are planning to set ours as, also there is about the same amount of violence as would be included in ours.  

Risk Assessment