Showing posts with label Magazine Article. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Magazine Article. Show all posts
Tuesday, 11 April 2017
Thursday, 23 March 2017
Draft for Media Article
"If you were going to kill me, you would’ve done it already." So starts director Charlotte Parry's new fantasy short, as half-nymph Sienna sits captive under the watch of protagonist Melodie.
It’s February 2017 and we’re in the English countryside. Director, Charlotte Parry, is standing in a forest with a camera, umbrellas and three pointy-eared, elf-like nymphs. Although this may sound like another trip to Middle Earth, Parry has created a unique world of her own in the darkness of the local forest overlooking the Thames. She’s yelling at her actors. “You need to be more sneering, more condescending.” Parry calls to one of the actors. She’s not cross, in fact she’s far from it, as she instructs her cast through the scene and laughs as they run through the woodland, covered in mud past dog-walkers.
It’s February 2017 and we’re in the English countryside. Director, Charlotte Parry, is standing in a forest with a camera, umbrellas and three pointy-eared, elf-like nymphs. Although this may sound like another trip to Middle Earth, Parry has created a unique world of her own in the darkness of the local forest overlooking the Thames. She’s yelling at her actors. “You need to be more sneering, more condescending.” Parry calls to one of the actors. She’s not cross, in fact she’s far from it, as she instructs her cast through the scene and laughs as they run through the woodland, covered in mud past dog-walkers.
"You want to have the DNA of a good fantasy film," says the director, "but you want the excitement and gripping storyline of a science-fiction or action film. The audience want to be part of the story, part of the action."
Like the films that inspired Parry to create this short epic, Halfbreed starts with immediate action, throwing the audience into the struggle of Sienna, a half-nymph who's hunted by the Woodland Queen and her minions. On set, today is dedicated to the scenes involving the encounters with the villain, the Woodland Queen (Olivia Bunton), as the protagonist Melodie (Sophie Slade) prepares to take her captive, Sienna (Amelia Mather), to the Woodland Queen. The weather is dull, a brief of drizzle of rain still hanging on the air, and the crew are silent as the action ensues, all clutching hold of umbrellas in case the rain returns.
As costume designer and director, Parry has had to apply and shape three pairs of prosthetic ears to her cast - rather than relying of CGI effects to add a supernatural element to the characters. “I looked at elves and other fantasy science-fiction characters,” she says, “the way they look, dress and act.” The film may be a fantasy, but if its head is in the clouds, its feet are on the ground: the spectacle looks grubby, painful, the cast and crew are all shivering from the chill of the English weather, tired from a hard day of filming in the unpredictable weather. A crew member states that they are always working fast, dedicated to as much of the action on set as possible as the day passes quickly from light into darkness in a mere couple of hours. Parry states that she “intended to film in the twilight zone between light and dark, shooting sections of the film in a dusky period where the light has begun to dim”.
Fantasy short films are notoriously difficult to pull-off, most have floundered both due to poor effects and leaving the audience unable to connect with the characters. Parry reckons the problem is initially misplaced loyalty. “Sometimes fantasy fans are too loyal to the conventions of the films they know and recognise.” Here, the decision was made to create a whole new race of characters in shape of the nymphs, separating from the fantasy conventions of elves. Melodie is a cold-hearted individual with a traumatic childhood, under the control of the Woodland Queen. “Mel is a lone wolf. She’s cynical. And she’s sceptical.” Says actress Sophie Slade. “And so it’s her journey to become something beyond herself where she can feel like she belongs.”
“It’s not like stereotypical films, where you’ve got a light and a dark side,” says Parry. “There are no singularly good and bad characters, making the audience truly think about their characters and to really get inside the characters head. The whole idea is to make the audience sit there and wonder: should I be feeling that, or should I be backing this character?”
Like the films that inspired Parry to create this short epic, Halfbreed starts with immediate action, throwing the audience into the struggle of Sienna, a half-nymph who's hunted by the Woodland Queen and her minions. On set, today is dedicated to the scenes involving the encounters with the villain, the Woodland Queen (Olivia Bunton), as the protagonist Melodie (Sophie Slade) prepares to take her captive, Sienna (Amelia Mather), to the Woodland Queen. The weather is dull, a brief of drizzle of rain still hanging on the air, and the crew are silent as the action ensues, all clutching hold of umbrellas in case the rain returns.
As costume designer and director, Parry has had to apply and shape three pairs of prosthetic ears to her cast - rather than relying of CGI effects to add a supernatural element to the characters. “I looked at elves and other fantasy science-fiction characters,” she says, “the way they look, dress and act.” The film may be a fantasy, but if its head is in the clouds, its feet are on the ground: the spectacle looks grubby, painful, the cast and crew are all shivering from the chill of the English weather, tired from a hard day of filming in the unpredictable weather. A crew member states that they are always working fast, dedicated to as much of the action on set as possible as the day passes quickly from light into darkness in a mere couple of hours. Parry states that she “intended to film in the twilight zone between light and dark, shooting sections of the film in a dusky period where the light has begun to dim”.
Fantasy short films are notoriously difficult to pull-off, most have floundered both due to poor effects and leaving the audience unable to connect with the characters. Parry reckons the problem is initially misplaced loyalty. “Sometimes fantasy fans are too loyal to the conventions of the films they know and recognise.” Here, the decision was made to create a whole new race of characters in shape of the nymphs, separating from the fantasy conventions of elves. Melodie is a cold-hearted individual with a traumatic childhood, under the control of the Woodland Queen. “Mel is a lone wolf. She’s cynical. And she’s sceptical.” Says actress Sophie Slade. “And so it’s her journey to become something beyond herself where she can feel like she belongs.”
“It’s not like stereotypical films, where you’ve got a light and a dark side,” says Parry. “There are no singularly good and bad characters, making the audience truly think about their characters and to really get inside the characters head. The whole idea is to make the audience sit there and wonder: should I be feeling that, or should I be backing this character?”
Thursday, 26 January 2017
Fantasy Photoshoot Examples: King Arthur
Having evaluated EMPIRE magazines in depth I decided to look at a different magazine: Entertainment Weekly. I did this in order to compare the shots used in the magazine instead of the content of the article.
Although this film has not yet been released I decided to look at the new film directed by Guy Ritchie. The two shots I found online from Entertainment Weekly were both obviously from photoshoots and most of the ones that I could find display the main character instead of any of the others such as the villain or the mysterious sorceress shown in the trailer. This I thought was key as the audience obviously require images of the main character more than the other characters. This is useful regarding my magazine article I will be producing as it means that I should perhaps focus more on the main character than the others. One thing that seems to be evident in the photos taken for Entertainment Weekly is that they are (like fantasy film posters) colour coded to be more greys and blues than bright colours. This I will definitely take into account for not only my film poster but also for my magazine article for colour coding the photoshoots with filters that are more grey or dull in tone.
Fantasy Photoshoot Examples: Game of Thrones
Game of Thrones
Although not a film, I decided to also analyse the photoshoots done for Game of Thrones. The first image presents Jon Snow (left, played by Kit Harrington) and Daenerys Targaryen (right, played by Emilia Clarke) and is very bland as well as having been obviously been done in a studio. I do not like this idea in regards to the photos I will need to take for my magazine as it does not give the audience a clear idea of who the characters are or what the story is even about apart from the fact that Daenerys is clearly highborn whereas Jon looks like a warrior. Alternatively looking back on the poster I think was a very strategic move used to please the fans of the series in regard to Jon's heritage which was revealed in season six whilst this poster is supposedly from season two! The poster in the middle of Arya Stark (played by Maisie Williams) really emphasises on her character's development from the tom-boy daughter of Ned Stark to a training assassin. Also the background of the poster is supposedly inside the Hall of Faces however the stone column she is leaning against is not dark stone like it should be but covered in frost and ice which links back to her character's origin as a daughter of Ned Stark whose house words are "Winter is coming". Finally I chose to look at a poster of three characters who could arguably be three of the most powerful women in the series: Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey), Margaery Tyrell (Natalie Dormer) and Daenerys Targaryen. This photo has obviously not be taken in studio and is actually on set of the film making the audience aware of the setting of the series or the season from which the photo is from. The photo portrays the top three female claims to the Iron Throne and therefore sets competition for the season it is for. This could be a good idea in regards to the magazine article having perhaps the Woodland Queen with Melodie and Sienna. Also, all the photoshoots are of the character(s) looking into the camera although not purposefully breaking the fourth wall. This is another factor I must consider in regards to my short film's article as it seems common in the photos I have chosen to study.
Wednesday, 25 January 2017
EMPIRE Magazine Articles
Having already reviewed a selection of articles from EMPIRE magazine that I had at home stacked in my bookshelf I decided to evaluate them further to determine exactly what I like and would perhaps like to use in my own article. I selected my two favourite articles to evaluate in depth which were the articles on Pride + Prejudice + Zombies (PPZ) and Dr Strange.
Pride + Prejudice + Zombies
In my previous post I mentioned how I liked the aesthetic of the article and from the pictures above I wanted to analyse exactly what I like. First of all I really like the colour scheme of dull greys and natural colours. I think it emphasises on the tone of the film without making it seem dull and looks very realistic even though the film is set in a dystopian nineteenth century England. I also mentioned the two page poster at the start of the article of Mr Bingley fighting off a hoard of zombies (or at least attempting to). I think this is very effective because it highlights exactly what the film is about as well as portraying the characters. For instance, Mr Bingley throughout the film seems to be so afraid of the zombies that he cannot fight them which often results in him almost killed before the intervention of Mr Darcy. Each of the three shots shown in the pictures highlight exactly how the characters are presented in the film which I really want to try and use myself when it comes to making my own magazine article.
Regarding the content of the article I like the idea of asking my actors to say something about their characters for a piece I could write - a bit like what the PPZ article does with Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet - as well as a short piece of context (also shown in article with Lady Catherine de Bourgh). I also like the idea of talking about the filing locations, however I would not want to write a section on the director (me). Ultimately I like the idea of how the article selects both shots from the film itself and shots from photoshoots done with the actors which I will take note of when making my magazine article on my short film.
Dr Strange
In comparison to the PPZ article I decided to also look at a more recent article that has been done by EMPIRE that I also like. I therefore chose the Dr Strange article which published only a couple of months back. Similar to the PPZ article it has a two page poster at the beginning of the article, however this time it portrays the main character (Strange). As this seems to be a common structure for EMPIRE I am considering something similar myself for my article. I like how the poster title is surrounded by mystical symbols which really emphasises on theme of magic throughout the film and therefore makes the reader aware that the film is about someone or people with supernatural abilities. This idea of using symbols is continued throughout the article which is another aesthetic that I like about the article.
Thursday, 19 January 2017
Magazine Article Planning
For my A2 coursework I have to make a magazine article on my short film so I recently decided to start looking at film articles. I have been subscribed to EMPIRE magazine for just over a year now and decided to leaf through my massive stack of magazines last night. I looked at articles that are linked to the fantasy genre but I also looked at some of the articles written for a few of my favourite films.
Firstly I looked at the article EMPIRE wrote on the film 'Pride + Prejudice + Zombies'. Although this film is classified as a thriller I liked the aesthetic of the article. After reading the book two years ago the film soon became one of my favourites with a impressive cast including Lily James, Sam Riley, Lena Headey, Charles Dance, Bella Heathcote and Douglas Booth. The article is ultimately six pages long (including a two page poster) and is sectioned into five. The poster of Mr Bingley fighting off a hoard of zombies is the first part of the article titled 'Dead Posh' and then goes onto the sections of 'The Scrappy Couple' introducing the main characters portrayed by Sam Riley (Darcy) and Lily James (Elizabeth Bennet), 'Lena and Meaner' giving the reader a brief bit of context before introducing Lena Headey's adaptation of Mr Darcy's aunt Lady Catherine de Bourgh. The articles continue with 'Further Afield In England' which talks about the filming locations, 'Steers At The Helm' where the director is mentioned and briefly interviewed, and the final article is called 'Fun With Bingley and Jane' which talks about the other romance aside from Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet. I like how the article is structured with some of the text being written over the images - both from photoshoots and the film itself - whilst one article is written on a plain background with a picture next to it.
I then flicked through the article of fantasy-horror film 'Crimson Peak'. Although I'm not a fan of horror films 'Crimson Peak' is still one of my favourite films, exploring the life of a young woman named Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska) in 1887 who believes she can see ghosts before being whisked away after her father's sudden death to marry English baronet Sir Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston). I decided to look at the article in EMPIRE because it is closer to my chosen genre of fantasy than 'Pride + Prejudice + Zombies' is, although both share certain horror elements. Similar to the previous article I studied, EMPIRE's article starts with a two page poster of the film with a simple shot of Sir Thomas Sharpe and his sister Lucille Sharpe in the gothic mansion where the film is set. The article then goes on to review the film with a collage of four pictures in the centre of the four page article with quotes from the director on the images. For example, actress Mia Wasikowska who plays Edith quotes that "For Edith, it's [the film] about learning to fear the living, not the dead".
I then went on to look a fantasy article on the hit television show 'Game of Thrones'. Having watched all of the current seasons of the show, 'Game of Thrones' was probably a inspiration for my short film due to the medieval themes throughout the show. The article to 'Game of Thrones' was similar to the one for 'Crimson Peak' however the quotes were not just from actors but some were also used from the characters themselves. The article seems to focus a lot on the main characters as well as new ones as well as the locations that the show is set in e.g. the introduction of Dorne or the progress of the Daenerys and her dragons. The article also talks about casting and who may have played the character and who actually did play the character. Alternatively I could do something like this but perhaps find a character that I took inspiration from.
Alternatively, I found at least three articles on 'The Lord of the Rings' and 'The Hobbit'! I have been a fan of J.R.R.Tolkien's books since I was eleven. In one of 'The Hobbit' articles I noticed it seemed to focus a lot on the introduction of the company of dwarves (shocker) and the elves which I think would be useful for my article to focus on the notion of the dryads in the forest. By the third selection of articles I noticed that EMPIRE tend to use the same format over and over again and either use quotes from the film, director or actors.
Another one of my favourite articles was for Marvel's film 'Dr Strange'. As a fantasy film, I enjoyed the whole aspect of fantasy in the modern day. The aesthetic of the article merges with the fantastical and magical themes throughout the film which I like and would like to use in my own article.
Firstly I looked at the article EMPIRE wrote on the film 'Pride + Prejudice + Zombies'. Although this film is classified as a thriller I liked the aesthetic of the article. After reading the book two years ago the film soon became one of my favourites with a impressive cast including Lily James, Sam Riley, Lena Headey, Charles Dance, Bella Heathcote and Douglas Booth. The article is ultimately six pages long (including a two page poster) and is sectioned into five. The poster of Mr Bingley fighting off a hoard of zombies is the first part of the article titled 'Dead Posh' and then goes onto the sections of 'The Scrappy Couple' introducing the main characters portrayed by Sam Riley (Darcy) and Lily James (Elizabeth Bennet), 'Lena and Meaner' giving the reader a brief bit of context before introducing Lena Headey's adaptation of Mr Darcy's aunt Lady Catherine de Bourgh. The articles continue with 'Further Afield In England' which talks about the filming locations, 'Steers At The Helm' where the director is mentioned and briefly interviewed, and the final article is called 'Fun With Bingley and Jane' which talks about the other romance aside from Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet. I like how the article is structured with some of the text being written over the images - both from photoshoots and the film itself - whilst one article is written on a plain background with a picture next to it.
I then flicked through the article of fantasy-horror film 'Crimson Peak'. Although I'm not a fan of horror films 'Crimson Peak' is still one of my favourite films, exploring the life of a young woman named Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska) in 1887 who believes she can see ghosts before being whisked away after her father's sudden death to marry English baronet Sir Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston). I decided to look at the article in EMPIRE because it is closer to my chosen genre of fantasy than 'Pride + Prejudice + Zombies' is, although both share certain horror elements. Similar to the previous article I studied, EMPIRE's article starts with a two page poster of the film with a simple shot of Sir Thomas Sharpe and his sister Lucille Sharpe in the gothic mansion where the film is set. The article then goes on to review the film with a collage of four pictures in the centre of the four page article with quotes from the director on the images. For example, actress Mia Wasikowska who plays Edith quotes that "For Edith, it's [the film] about learning to fear the living, not the dead".
I then went on to look a fantasy article on the hit television show 'Game of Thrones'. Having watched all of the current seasons of the show, 'Game of Thrones' was probably a inspiration for my short film due to the medieval themes throughout the show. The article to 'Game of Thrones' was similar to the one for 'Crimson Peak' however the quotes were not just from actors but some were also used from the characters themselves. The article seems to focus a lot on the main characters as well as new ones as well as the locations that the show is set in e.g. the introduction of Dorne or the progress of the Daenerys and her dragons. The article also talks about casting and who may have played the character and who actually did play the character. Alternatively I could do something like this but perhaps find a character that I took inspiration from.
Alternatively, I found at least three articles on 'The Lord of the Rings' and 'The Hobbit'! I have been a fan of J.R.R.Tolkien's books since I was eleven. In one of 'The Hobbit' articles I noticed it seemed to focus a lot on the introduction of the company of dwarves (shocker) and the elves which I think would be useful for my article to focus on the notion of the dryads in the forest. By the third selection of articles I noticed that EMPIRE tend to use the same format over and over again and either use quotes from the film, director or actors.
Another one of my favourite articles was for Marvel's film 'Dr Strange'. As a fantasy film, I enjoyed the whole aspect of fantasy in the modern day. The aesthetic of the article merges with the fantastical and magical themes throughout the film which I like and would like to use in my own article.
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