The Start of the Brainstorming...

We just got two actors confirmed to act in our film opening! We're still going strong with the romantic comedy genre.

A worry that me and my group had about doing a film opening in the romantic comedy genre is that it could be seen as too "cliche". However, we really liked the ideas we had so we decided to go with them.

We started off by brainstorming different situations that a film in the romantic comedy would have in its opening. Some of these included:

              - meeting at a party

              - bumping into each other at a coffee shop

              - finding out they are working in the same office

Some of these circumstances are realistic to film at an amateur scale, while others aren't. After some discussion we came up with a scene at the beach. We additionally figured out a description for our characters. Chloe, the female lead, is a typical "good girl" who is focused on school, while Justin, the male lead, likes to have fun with his friends and is more extroverted. 

We came up with a basic outline:

- Chloe and her friend Sara are at the beach

- Sara is pressuring Chloe to get out more, especially after her breakup

- Justin is at the beach with his friends playing a ball game

- The ball hits Chloe

- They meet

- Their difference causes turmoil

What we want the beach scene to look like:

Now that we have a *basic* outline, we can start writing a script. I don't know how to write the script, so that research will be in next blog post! See you all then!!

Potential Characters

Going along with the romantic comedy genre, there are certain character types that are prevalent in almost all of them.

In most romcom films, the two lead character generally fall under these descriptions:

The Hopeless Romantic: Charming and free-spirited; probably a florist who believes in true love and "love-at-first-sight". Their infectious optimism and unwavering belief in soulmates make them the ultimate hopeless romantic. Their quirky personality and love for all things vintage make them a lovable and relatable protagonist.

The Charming Misfit: A witty and endearing bookstore owner with a penchant for classic literature and a fear of commitment. Their quick wit and undeniable charm often lead them into comical yet heartwarming situations. Their reluctance to embrace love makes them the perfect counterpart to the hopeless romantic. 

When planning out rom-com characters for a film opening, it's crucial to ensure that the main characters are introduced in a way that captivates the audience, clearly establishing their goals and motivations in seeking love. Therefore, it only makes sense to have both love interests in the film opening.

The opening should include a story that tells the audience the reasons for the characters seeking love, adding depth to their personalities and the overall story. 

Researching My First Genre!!

Romcoms are one of my personal favorite genres to watch, so it only feels natural for it to be the first genre I research. I also feel that "less serious" genres like romantic comedy are more feasible to curate as amateurs to the activity. 

Film openings in the romantic comedy genre often play a crucial role in setting the tone and introducing the central themes of the movie. One common feature of romcom openings is the use of a captivating and relatable meet-cute, where the main characters encounter each other in a unique or charming way. This serves to immediately engage the audience and establish the romantic tension that will drive the story forward. Additionally, romcom openings frequently incorporate lighthearted and upbeat music to create a feel-good atmosphere and draw viewers into the world of the film. By studying these elements in existing romcoms, filmmakers can gain valuable insights into how to craft an effective and compelling opening for their own film in the genre.

When creating a film opening for a romcom, it's essential to focus on developing endearing and relatable characters that audiences can root for. This can be achieved by introducing the protagonists in a way that highlights their individual quirks and likable qualities, while also hinting at the potential for romantic chemistry between them. Furthermore, incorporating humor and witty dialogue into the opening scene can help to immediately establish the lighthearted and comedic tone that is characteristic of the romcom genre. By paying attention to these key aspects, filmmakers can ensure that their film opening effectively captures the attention of viewers and sets the stage for an engaging romantic journey.

In addition to character introduction and humor, visual aesthetics and setting are important elements to consider when crafting a romcom opening. Utilizing vibrant and picturesque locations, such as bustling city streets or charming cafes, can help to create an inviting and visually appealing backdrop for the initial interactions between the main characters. Furthermore, paying attention to costume design and cinematography to enhance the romantic atmosphere can further elevate the impact of the opening scene. By drawing inspiration from successful romcoms and paying attention to these details, filmmakers can effectively leverage the conventions of the genre to create a memorable and enchanting film opening that resonates with audiences.

Starting My Cambridge Portfolio Project!

 

The time has finally come! We are officially starting our Cambridge Portfolio Project! This is going to be a huge task, but I truly feel that every assignment, activity, and project I have done in my AICE Media class has prepared me for this moment.

There's so much that has to be done, but before my group and I even start doing anything, there is going to have to be huge amounts of research done. When I first spoke about this project with my group, we all mutually agreed on studying multiple genres and watching countless film openings from each one. We additionally vowed to study and learn editing techniques from professional software like Adobe - I don't think CapCut will cut it for this project. 

It's going to be a large and difficult project, but I'm excited to take it on! I want to approach this project as headstrong as possible. That way I can ensure that throughout this process I am creating work that I am proud of!

Good luck to my future self!

Music Marketing Reflection

This project began with me and my group getting assigned "rock" as our respective genre. At first, we were perplexed as rock is not a genre my group was familiar with and we were still determining what course to take when figuring out the brand and styling behind the new artist we were assigned to craft. 

Knowing we had to figure out branding, we began researching and developing case studies about rock bands under two extremely well-known music distribution companies, Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group. While researching, we saw how rock bands were generally marketed and how their music was distributed. Researching well-known rock bands assisted in how we would create our own.

Therefore, we decided we wanted our new band to follow the grunge, rebellious aesthetic many rock bands utilize to create their brand. We wanted our music video to showcase notions of feeling carefree, rebellious, and youthful while remaining dark and grunge. After figuring out the locations we would use to film the music video, we designed our storyboard. We wanted the frames to match the sounds depicted in the music itself. As a result, we wanted the scenes during the pre-chorus to be slower while the scenes during the chorus would be fast-paced and inclusive of numerous jump cuts. When filming, we made sure we took numerous shots to be able to incorporate the fast-paced editing we wanted to do. 

Once we filmed and edited our music video, we had a much better idea on how to represent our rock band with branding and marketing. We coined the name "After Hours" for our band as we thought the aesthetic would be popular among our target audience, especially when it comes to the age we were going for (16-22 years old). From there, we were able to find out brand colors (white, gray, black, and red) and create a logo that symbolized the band. Taking advantage of concepts like technological convergence, we decided that the most effective way to market our artist would be to distribute their music digitally on streaming platforms and make their music available for purchase digitally. However, we also thought it would be innovative to sell their music digitally on vinyl and such; digital distribution is still the main form.

Overall, this project was the one I learned the most from. I got a real understanding of the type of work a large-scale project requires and how to take on the tasks it demands. Large projects have always intimidated me, but this made me more confident on how to tackle them. I believe this will be especially helpful when I begin developing my Cambridge portfolio. 

Music Marketing #1

For the music marketing project, the genre that my group was assigned was rock. When looking through our options, we decided to go with the music video under the progressive rock genre. 

Artists in the rock genre typically rely heavily on live shows, tours, and festivals to build a fanbase and drive interest in their recordings. Their music videos are creative with rebellious and counterculture themes that often appeal to teenage and young adult audiences. Mainstream/commercial rock genres still use radio as an important platform to break new tracks and singles. We had to take all of these factors into account when figuring out the branding for our new artist. 

Therefore, we decided to go with the quite typical "rock" branding style when it came to the marketing of our new artist. When planning the music video, we wanted to showcase the raw energy and rebellion that makes progressive rock memorable. We focused the brainstorming on simple but impactful visuals we could execute ourselves. We shot the music video in a local place and took a bunch of clips because we knew that when we edited the music video we would use fast cuts. 

From now on, we need to get the social media for our artist up and running. The color scheme we decided to use would be black, white, gray, and red. Our social media will consist of promotional photoshoots and more personal posts like behind-the-scenes footage. 

Representation

The 2018 film "Black Panther" was groundbreaking in its depiction of the fictional African nation of Wakanda. As the first mainstream superhero movie featuring a predominantly Black cast, creative team and cultural setting, "Black Panther" presented a vision of Black empowerment, technological advancement, and cultural pride rarely seen in American blockbusters.

At the heart of the film is the conflict between T'Challa, the new king of the isolationist yet technologically advanced nation of Wakanda, and his cousin Erik "Killmonger" Stevens, a Black American special ops soldier seeking to use Wakanda's resources to spark a global race war. Their ideological battle represents the divide between ideals of African/Black solidarity, revolution and conquest. Killmonger serves as an antagonist, but his backstory as an abandoned yet brilliant child of the African diaspora makes him an emotionally complex, sympathetic villain.

On the positive side, "Black Panther" depicts Wakanda as a utopian society, completely self-sufficient and the most technologically advanced nation on Earth due to its reserves of the powerful metal vibranium. Wakanda has never been conquered in its history. The film's detailed worldbuilding and production design bring the distinct tribal cultures of Wakanda to life on screen. The country serves as a symbolic ideal of what an African society could achieve if allowed to develop uninterrupted by colonialism.

Ultimately, while "Black Panther" breaks new ground, some criticize elements of the film as promoting questionable racial concepts. Yet the film remains an important touchstone for on-screen representation and re-examination of historical narratives. More than a standard superhero flick, "Black Panther" uses sci-fi and fantasy as a lens to explore African identity in the modern world.