Costume

We based our costume ideas on the famous police duo Starsky and Hutch and also the general 70's style. We liked the idea of both of them having a stereotypical 70s hair do so we looked into ones which would be easily recognised by the audience. After looking around and asking our target audience which ones they liked the most, we settle for these 2 styles. These add to the comedy aspect and fits in with the genre. The big heavy moustache was another convention which is 70's and helps add to the humour. We decided to have the cops wearing them not the criminals so the audience can distinguish between them easier.


We wanted the criminals to look different from Chip and Dale so the audience can recognise them easily. We had Chip to be wearing  leather jack so he would seem cool and sophisticated. He also is wearing flare 70's jeans. We did some research on 70's trends for the audience to be able to identify the period easily. Dale is wearing a denim shirt which is also typical of the period. He is also wearing a chest wig to add to the comedy. His trousers are high waisted which is 70's and adds to the genre of comedy. We looked at the police duo Bodie and Doyle and this is where we first got the idea for the leather jacket from. 


Here is a picture of our characters in costume

The criminals were wearing dark colours which is a semiotic message to the audience that they are evil and mysterious. The leader of the gang is also wearing a denim shirt and this causes rivalry between the Cop and the criminal and we see them fighting at the beginning. Later on we would see this rivalry grow. 

Storyboard

Here is a picture of my storyboard which is guide on how each shot will look when filming.

Each box represents a shot in our filming and the description under it describes what type of shot we want to use, any special filters and lighting. Ours was generally simple until the ending so we did not need to write much description.

Audience Research

After deciding the target audience and film rating, I needed to find out what my audience liked and enjoyed to watching to ensure our film would be successful. To do this, i created a questionnaire and asked a range of ages questions about genres and films. I asked as many people as possible to make my results more representative. Here is an example of some of the questions included in my survey.

1. How often do you go to the cinema?
2. What makes you go to the cinema?
3. How old are you?
4. What gender are you?
5. What genre of film do you prefer?
6. What format do you watch films on?
7. Would you be interested in a crime film mixed with comedy?
8. What do you expect from a crime film?
9. What do you usually see in a crime film?

The answers on this was valuable for me to know what to put my film. First, it will help me understand what they like so I can include it in my film. Secondly, the audience recognise certain conventions so they know its a crime film. If I include them in my film, they will easily recognise the genre. Here is some Graphs to demonstrate my findings.

In my findings, I can see that most people go to the cinema about once a month and they go because of the genre of film. This is important knowledge to me because if they only go to the cinema once a month, it shows me that it must be for something good. Also, the genre of film is what makes people go to to cinema, so following on from here, I asked if people would be interested in seeing a crime film mixed with comedy. Only 2 people said no to this question. This is what helped me with my decision of doing this genre as it was popular. One of the most recognisable crime film conventions was guns. I will ensure they are present in my film to aid the audience's understanding of the genre. The most popular genre was comedy and this is perfect for the genre i have chosen. 

My target audience is 15 - 30 years old. This is due to the violence involved, the comedy being very 'tongue in cheek' that would not be suitable for younger audience. The older generation may also find it slightly offensive. It is appropriate for 25 and over because it is similar is Starsky and hutch which they would remember from childhood. The target audience is wide due to the humour being appropriate for a large group of people.

Media Institutions Reasearch

There are many possibilities on how to distribute a film. First, there are the main big companies that are recognised world wide that need to be considered

20th Century Fox
This company has been present since 1935. The headquaters are in California, USA and is one of 6 major American film studios. This company has produced famous movies such as Star Wars, Ice- Age, Home Alone and Planet Of the Apes. 


Paramount Pictures
This company is an american film and television production company located in Hollywood. It was founded in 1912 and is the third oldest oldest existing film studio in the world behind Universal Studios and Gaumont Pictures. This company has produced The Godfather, Beverly Hills Cops and Saturday Night Fever.


Universal Pictures
It was founded in 1912 and is the second oldest production company in the world. Universal was founded by Carl Laemmle in New York. Some of there best movies includes E.T, The Mummy, Jaws and Meet The Parents.


I have decided to look into more local distributors due to financial issues and also doing parts independently. A way I could do it independently is by using YouTube. This is a free way and can be rewarding but also risky as it may not be viewed much. A modern way to get in into the public's eye is to use Facebook. Due to the social working network being so fast moving, it would be seen by many different people quickly. Friends talking to other friends would also spread the word around.


7Video distributors
These distributors are from Shropshire and are local to me. They produce films for a variety of different clients, industries and purpose. This would be ideal for me as our genre is different and unique and they would work with that. They have a lot of experience from web video to commercials.

Age Ratings

Age ratings are put in place to ensure that each film is suitable for different ages.  The BBFC has set guidance for each rating to ensure each film corresponds. When a rating is put on, no-one under that age is allowed to see it in the cinema or rent it. For our film, the beginning shows drugs and drugs being prepared on a table. It includes strong language and this can be frequent if it was a 15 rating. Sexual references can be strong but not portrayed. Sex is not seen much in our film but is very 'tongue in cheek' to add to the comedy. Violence may be strong for a 15 rating but cant dwell on pain. We show violence within reason due to fights between the cops and criminals. After looking at the guidance with great deal i believe our film is a 15. 

Mood Board

Our mood board is a collection of images which reflect our initial ideas for my own crime title sequence. It has allowed us to brainstorm many ideas from costume to genre.

Due to mine being based around  70's cops such as 'Starsky and Hutch', I put pictures of the police duo on which has inspired us with costume, genre and style. One of the main conventions used in ours is the famous 70's moustache and we wish to incorporate this into our sequence. The title is bold and bright to reflect the comedy element which is the main component. The images of guns is a convention of a crime scene so helps the audience to relate to the comedy but also crime genre.

Purpose of Title Sequence

The title sequence is the first part of the movie the audience witnesses and it instantly tell us a great deal. They ways this can be portrayed can be by the type of font used for the titles, sound used or background music or the transitions of the titles.

• It introduces the film 
• It tells us the genre of the film, such as crime
• It tells us where the film is set
• It sets the pace for the start of the movie
• Tells us the period and time that the film is set in
• Tells you the name of the people involved

The order of the names usually follow a certain order:

1. The producer
2. The highest billing (what is considered to be the biggest star involved)
3. The director
4. Title of the movie
5. The cast
6. The crew (music, lighting, etc.)
7. Final name to appear is always the director

Analysis of Casino Royale Title Sequence

Casino Royale Title Sequence

The title sequence begins with a shot of the main actor (Daniel Craig) being in a dirty, dangerous toilets.  he is wearing a smart dinner suit which shows us he is sophisticated and the hero immediately. There are old fashioned due to the doors being similar to 'cowboy doys' which are on a hinge and made up on lots of little wooden slanted panals. The walls are tiled white and look grimy. The shot is in black and white which adds suspense and tension and in the middle of the room is James Bond picking up a abandoned gun off the floor. The shot after a second immediately changes to a rough looks man with scruffy long hair and a moustache which are typical conventions of a criminal. The criminal takes an aim for james Bond. The shot reverse shot then returns to James Bond and he shoots directly at the Camera. This shows us he is triumphant against the criminal from the beginning and the audience will immediately start to favour this character. The titles then begin after this short narrative. 

A red substance which looks similar to blood then drips down the screen and changes the whole screen colour to red, contrasting from the black and white we saw before. The colour red can portray many messages. It could portray danger as the colour red is associated with that. The movie is obviously about gambling and the colour red can illustrate the danger of it is could also show passion such as James Bond enjoying his job. Or sex and women could be involved in the movie. We see then  see the title 'Albert. R Broccoli's Eon productions LTD' This follows the usual conventions of a title sequence as the producer is usually always first. The electric guitar gives a edgy feel and makes it mysterious. it sets the genre and atmosphere perfectly. 

A spiral of spades, diamonds, hearts and clubs then appear behind the next title. The spiral could represent how gambling could ''spiral'' out of control for some people. Also, that some people can have a gambling addicting that you some people cant control. The next title follows the usual conventions as the next title we see is Daniel Craig who is the highest billing actor. He is also a very popular actor and this could be the reason some of the audience are watching the movie.

The next title follows the theme of red and spiral of the pack of cards but the pattern is now more complicated. This could show that the movie into the story we get, it becomes more complicated for james Bond to fix. The next title reads, 'Ian Fleming's James Bond 007' This is the director and follows the usual rules of the title sequence

The background now changes to black with 4 circular patterns in the four corners. The the middle of the screen is reads ' Casino Royale' which is the name of the movie and is important. To make the title stand out boldly, the background is black with the title large in the middle with white writing. So far, all of the transitions of the titles have been fade in and outs and not used any special features. This makes the title sequence seems mature, mysterious and sets the pace to be slow at the beginning. The music is very recognisable as james Bond but has a modern twist due to the rock feel to the music. 

Conventions Of a Crime Film

Conventions and codes in a film are used to express what the genre is we are watching.  For example, the use of props, different lighting effects. For the audience to understand that my title sequence is a crime film, I needed to look at other opening sequences and see what they had in common. The conventions need to be clear and recognisable, even stereotypical from the very beginning to set the atmosphere and mood instantly. I looked at some opening sequences such as:


Poirot - After the funeral opening Sequence
The Godfather Opening Sequence


I have analysed these clips and noticed they have features in common.
Some of the conventions i found that were always present was as follows:

• A group of criminals or ''bad guys'' to cause problems
• Detectives or police officers who solve the crime
• Detectives to have their face fully lit up
• Detectives wearing lighter coloured clothing
• A dilemma which stops the detectives carrying out their mission
• A isolated, dark, dirty location for the crime to take place
• An establishing shot of the location
• Guns for the detectives and criminals
• Suspence and tension caused by the music or low lighting 
• A blue filter on the camera to create tension and the feeling of being cold and eerie 
• Criminals to be smoking and smoke all around the set
• Shadows created on the criminal's faces
• Money on a table with the criminals gathered around

After looking multiple opening sequences from many genres, I found this one to be the most usful to me as it is very similar to my group's title sequence Starky and Hutch


Comedy is my chosen sub genre and here are some conventions i noticed in this title sequence:

• Slap stick comedy such as being smacked in the face
• Over exaggerated movements with the gun
• Bright lightening when the police duo are in the room
• Pain inflicting is seen as comedy not serious
• Music used is more bouncy to create a lighter atmosphere
• Casual clothing for costumes