Camera Shots and Angles

Extreme long shots are from very far away. They're often used as an establishing shot - something which sets the scene, not giving much detail but rather the general impression of the location and where the character will be/film will take place. It almost always shows the exterior of something - e.g. a building or a landscape. They are also used to show scenes of exciting action - for example, in a war film, or a disaster film. Sometimes, extreme long shots can be used to show the audience how alone, lost, or insignificant a character is - if they are completely engulfed in the background, and hard to see, they will look very small and powerless.

Long shots are used similarly to extreme long shots - to set the scene - but in general they are a lot more specific. They usually include a fair amount of detail, and have a specific focus. Long shots are difficult to define precisely, but they usually reflect images as life size (corresponding to the distance between the audience and people in the cinema). It's a very realistic point of view, which gives the audience a sense of virtual involvement, heightening enjoyment. The more visible detail of both the character and the setting allow the audience to visualise more accurately the specifics of everything previously mentioned, allowing it to act as a bridge between an extreme long shot and a closer one, such as a medium or close up - cutting from an extreme long shot straight to a close up could cause confusion.

Medium shots are the most typical type of shots to use when dialogue/interactions between characters are taking place. There are a few variations of this shot -  the two shot (featuring two characters from the waist up), the three shot (containing three characters), and the over the shoulder shot - filming over the shoulder of one character, revealing another, whilst still having the first's head, shoulder and part of their back visible. Over the shoulder shots help us understand the power dynamic between the two characters - where the camera is positioned (high angle or low angle) gives us an idea of who is stronger, taller, and more powerful. We can tell a lot about the situation the characters are in from over the shoulder shots - if we couldn't see the other characters face, it would be easy to interpret two people standing close to each other as them being comfortable around each other - however, by using an over the shoulder shot, and therefore being able to see their face, we can now potentially see anger, sadness or anxiety in their expression. This is why medium shots are useful in showing emotion - although you can't see their face in as much detail as you could in a close up, you can see their body language (which is something you can't see in a close up), which is often just as important.


Close up shots show very little of the background, concentrating either on someone's face or an element of mise-en-scene. This makes the focus of the shot more obvious, revealing its importance - whether it's some writing, a facial expression, or an object. It shows the audience that a certain persons reaction to something is significant to the film - especially when it is switched to that person's expression from the speaker, whilst they are still talking. Since there is not much background in the shot at all, we cannot focus on anything else, and so tend to notice the smaller details such as subtle facial expressions or emotion.

Extreme close up shots are the polar opposites to extreme long shots - they are very, very close to the subject, including no background. Since extreme close ups go beyond what we would be able to see with the human eye in a normal close up shot, they are often used for dramatic effect. Extreme close ups tend to either make the audience very comfortable or very uncomfortable with the character, depending on who they are - it enters both the audience's and the character's personal space, and so how much the audience likes them is a factor in how it will make them feel. Extreme close up shots being so much closer than what we would see in real life also allows us to notice very intricate details, such as colour variants in their eyes, or small, almost invisible freckles (If we like the character, this is why we wouldn't feel uncomfortable, as we like them enough to want to know tiny details about them).

The bird's-eye view is an angle which is shot from above. It often makes things look very unnatural to the viewer, as objects that they see will look very unfamiliar and strange. They can be used as establishing shots, as they are very long distance, taking in a lot of their surroundings - similarly, making the objects on the screen seem small, and the audience seem powerful.

High angle shots are elevated above the action, but they aren't directly above it like a bird's-eye view. They can introduce a lot of emotion into a scene - making a character seem smaller, weaker, younger, and sometimes lost/confused. This makes us feel very empathetic toward them, as we feel more powerful being in the dominant position.

Eye level shots are very neutral. They're based as if you are a character observing a scene - the other actors heads are at around the same level as the camera. They can help the audience feel a lot closer to the actors, as they show the subject as we would see them in real life. There is no power imbalance in this shot, as the audience and actor are on the same levels, and so it helps them feel more connected to the characters. 

Low angle shots are shots that are filmed from beneath normal eye level. They tend to make a character appear taller and more intimidating, or if they are showing a ceiling/sky they can sometimes add a feeling of disorientation or confusion to the scene. They often make the audience feel quite weak, as the person being filmed is portrayed as in power.

Wormseye shots are the complete opposite of birds eye view shots - they are very unusual, often distorting the view of the audience as there is no real 180 degree rule within it, but they are really great to use if the scene above is particularly interesting or nice to look at.

Canted angle shots are when you hold the camera at an angle (rotating on an axis, not vertical/horizontal tilts). In cinematography, it's a technique used to portray psychological uneasiness and unsteadiness, giving the audience a real feel for the mental states of the characters.

Panning shots are a type of moving shot - it's the most simple of all of them, as it just moves from one side to another. The camera is usually kept on a tripod, and it's turned to keep an in-motion object in the centre of the frame. Here is an example of a short panning shot - it follows the actor from one side of the room to the other, while keeping him in the (approximate) centre of the frame. However, panning shots don't always move to follow a specific action - in this scene from Game Of Thrones, there is a very long panning shot, which doesn't follow anything in particular. However, it's still very impressive in its own right, as it manages to include a lot of detail about what's happening in one long, fluid moment.

Tilts are similar to panning shots - they stay at a fixed point on a tripod, however, unlike panning shots they move vertically, instead of horizontally. Here is an example of a tilt shot - it moves from the sky, down to the ground where a person is standing. All tilt shots are generally the same, as they don't tend to follow a moving object down the centre of the screen - they tend to be more to show off the locations or to introduce a dramatic reveal.

Dolly shots, otherwise known as tracking shots, are a type of shot that move alongside the action, following it. The name 'dolly shot' comes from the piece of equipment used - a camera dolly is a wheeled cart (or something similar) that the camera mounts to, and is either pulled or pushed to create smooth motion. Dolly shots are great for following fast moving objects, e.g. trains, buses, or cars. They help divulge the speed of a certain scene to the audience. This is a really good example of a tracking shot - it's unusual in the fact that it lasts a very long time - almost 5 minutes - but it's very effective as it gives the audience a very good idea of the entire setting (and the extent of its size) whilst still being able to focus on the characters and what they are saying.

Hand held shots are very good at giving specific feelings to a film. Before the introduction of the Steadicam (first debuted in the Marathon Man (1976)), all hand held shots were just created by normal cameras - during WW1, they were very popular amongst news reporters. However, after catching on in mainstream Hollywood films, smaller, more lightweight cameras were demanded, as the unorganised, rough aesthetic was beginning to become popular. The Steadicam allowed for smoother handheld shots to be produced, and now, use of this contraption is used all the time in mainly walk-and-talk scenes, but others too. This scene shows use of the Steadicam - it follows two characters walking and talking up a street, and it moves from angle to angle. This is effective as we get a lot of different viewpoints of the characters - experimenting with the different emotions and power imbalances we feel. 

Crane shots are great for following objects moving in the air. The crane itself is a large piece of equipment that can move in all directions, and it holds the camera at the top of it. The crane balances using a weight system, which is controlled by a crane operator. Notable examples of crane shots include Tenebrae (1982), where the camera appears to crawl out the window and up the building, Touch of Evil (1958), where there are many examples of crane shots showing new settings, and High Noon (1952), where there's a crane shot rising above a character, showing the background.

It's important when filming to use a variety of angles, as each of them adds a unique feeling to the scene. For example, cutting from high angle to low angle shots is a great technique in showing a power imbalance between two people, which, if you just used eye level shots, wouldn't be visible. Every different angle has a different purpose, and so it adds variation and excitement to the scene, and sometimes makes the meaning a lot clearer. Also, it stops the audience from getting bored - if there was a conversation between two characters, and it just used a basic, eye level two shot, there would be no mental stimulation apart from the conversation itself. Adding in the over the shoulder shot, an establishing extreme long shot, and playing around with power imbalances using high and low angle shots creates a much more interesting scene to watch, as it feels like there is so much more happening. Using different length shots allow you to control what the audience focuses on - using close ups makes them to focus on the details, whilst using extreme long shots makes them acknowledge the wider setting. This is important as it allows the story to be told effectively, and it makes sure that no important detail is missed. Shot types can manipulate how the audience perceives a scene, and so experimenting with them until it gives the right atmosphere is incredibly important - the most exciting scene in the world can become very, very boring if different distances, angles and ways of moving the camera aren't used.

This is an example of a high angle shot and an extreme long shot. These are used in the establishing shots of the film, as they don't include a lot of detail and since they're very far away, they help to set the scene. The use of an extreme long shot combined with a high angle shot also gives us a sense of how isolated the characters are - the car is so small, and is surrounded by nothing but a long stretch of road (the tracking shot following the car shows this), a forest and some large mountains in the background - maybe an indicator of how the rest of the film is going to go. At the beginning of this clip, the camera glides across the surface of the lake, with the mountains looming on either side. This may make the audience subconsciously scared, as the camera is so low down - we have, at first, gigantic mountains on either side of us, and a huge, dark body of water beneath us.

The shots and angles used within this opening sequence are very important in setting the scene. It begins with an extreme long shot, showing a neighbourhood. This, very slowly, moves inward to focus on a specific street, allowing us to get a more detailed feel of where the character lives. There are then several different shots and angles - first, a birds eye view shot of the main character laying in bed, then followed by a close up of him slipping on his shoes, and then a very long (duration) medium shot of him in the shower. These all seem very long and dragged out, and when camera movement is involved it occurs at a very slow pace. This opening sequence uses shots and angles very effectively, as they all match up with the narration, accurately reflecting his tone of voice and emotions at that point in the film.

This film opening is a great example of extreme close ups. The shot includes hair, fingernails and dead skin being trimmed/shaved off, and landing on a surface. This is great as it does exactly what an extreme close up shot should do - it makes you focus on the details and the object right in front of you, not the background, and makes you think a lot about a small piece of a larger object. After this sequence, there are many different shots, but they tend to revolve around close ups - meaning the audience focuses on what's going on, rather than the introduction of the character (This is very important for later on in the film!).

Shorter shot lengths help to create dramatic tension. Quickly cutting between shot types, or even different locations, often reflect a character's frame of mind - jumpy, tense and quick-moving. My favourite example of short cuts in film are the drug montages in Requiem for a Dream (2000) - the nature of what they're showing, and how the characters are probably feeling is greatly enhanced by the shot lengths. (See post on montages for more information on these). They can both emphasize the importance of something and be used for something unimportant - it depends on the content of the shot. For example, if an object is focused on very fleetingly, it may be showing how important it is, but also the nature of the importance - the object will bring about a lot of fast moving action. However, skipping over something very quickly without focussing on a specific object, like a character standing up, shows that it's unimportant as there is nothing to quickly catch the audience's attention that seems of value.

Longer shot lengths also create tension. They often give the impression that something is about to happen, as if you are waiting for it at the end of the shot. They can also be very good at exposing emotion, as if they focus on a character for a long period of time without cuts, it tends to make the emotion they are showing a lot more raw as it's unedited. Also, longer shots can tell an audience that they need to remember something - if they focus on an object for a longer time, especially if it's a few seconds after the main character of that scene has left the frame, we know that it's something we need to concentrate on and keep in mind for the rest of the film. Sometimes, long shots are used to allow the audience time to absorb what they've just seen/heard - if there's a serious conversation between two characters, and one of them says something vital to the overall plot, there may be a longer length shot of anything from the other character's facial expression to the first person walking away, so the audience focuses and takes in what's just happened.

Film Opening Analysis

Student made film openings

 Hemlock

Quite a lot of the plot is introduced in the opening two minutes. It shows a person in a hooded coat pushing a wheelbarrow, with what we can see to be a dead body covered by a blanket. From this, we can presume that the rest of the film would be something to do with the body, maybe how the person got killed or the story of the person with the body - are they the killer? If not, how did they come across the body? All of these questions about potential plotlines show that the general theme of the film has been given away, but not the entire plotline. We see two characters only in the opening two minutes. I think we presume that both of them are the main characters, as it seems logical for the story to continue with how the body came to be where it was, and how the other person did too - we don't know for definite if they're the people the story actually focuses on as the whole film isn't in existence, but from what there is it seems like both the main characters are featured. There isn't any dialogue over the top as there's music and sounds instead - I think this is effective as it adds to the overall dark mood of the clip. There's only one location, the pathway in the outdoor area they're burying the body in. This, again, adds to the mood of the film opening, as it helps keep up with the still, calm, and dark mood of the scene. The credits appear on the screen as the body is being wheeled to the hole in the ground, which is a good way of not only setting the scene (with the forest/path and the body) but distracting from the long shot of it being wheeled up the path (which lasts just over a minute).

Red Tide

Most of the plot is introduced in the opening two minutes. You can tell that it's going to be a war film, as it's quite difficult to introduce that specific genre in the opening two minutes and create a complete change of one after that. However, we don't know if there is another main focus apart from this - it could just be a small part of a flashback, or the main focus could be about someone at home missing their husband who is in the war - this means we know part of the plot, but not all of it, meaning that we are curious as to what is going to happen. We see a lot of characters in the opening of this film, but a lot of them are shot. However, it's easy to tell who the two main characters are as they are the only ones who share dialogue, and you also see them both running away together. This is the only dialogue throughout the film opening, however I think adding any more would have taken away the effect it had, as it was fast paced, shaky and tense - more dialogue would have created a more still atmosphere, taking away from the overall feeling of it. The opening  is filmed outside - in the woods, and then in a field for the very last part. There's a lot of movement throughout with the camera, and so more locations would have probably made it quite confusing. There are quite a few credits, but they don't add or take anything away from the opening - they only let the viewer know the actors etc.

Untitled Youth

There isn't much of the plot revealed in the opening sequence of this film. You find out what the film is going to be about - a group of people wearing masks - but that's all you really find out. This both adds to and takes away from it - it does make you want to watch more, but the lack of knowledge about the plot does make it slightly less interesting. It's not very clear who the main character is - the first person you see is the man in the car driving up to the masked person, and you presume he is the main character until it cuts to the part with the person in the mask sitting at the table. This also makes it slightly more confusing as the viewers perception as to who is the main character changes over the course of two minutes. There's dialogue throughout the opening - I think including this was a good idea as it helps it to have a sense of realism, and it also makes it easier to understand. It's filmed in two locations - the road where the masked person is first introduced, and the office/police station. The title sequence is very fast paced, with lots of rapid changing patterns in the background, making it interesting to watch and fitting well with the mood of the opening.

Produced film openings

 Fight Club

In the opening scene of Fight Club, there is only around 15 seconds of the actual film (due to the credits), but a lot is revealed. Since that 15 seconds is in 'real time', and the rest (up to that point in the (whole) film, which is right near the end) is the Narrator filling in the details of how he got there, you essentially know how the film ends before it even begins. However, it doesn't give away the entire plot, and that's what makes it such a good film opening - it begins with someone we immediately guess to be the main character with a gun in his mouth, and he reveals through narration that he will tell us the story of how he got there. This makes the audience curious as to how a seemingly normal character got into that situation, and why he is so calm (which is also revealed later on in the film). Both the main characters are introduced in the opening scene - Tyler and the Narrator. However, this is only known  to people who are familiar with the film, as Tyler isn't in any of the shots, it's just his voice. However, this could be foreshadowing as the biggest plot twist in the film is the fact that Tyler isn't actually real, just a result of the Narrator's insomnia - so showing his voice but not him could be representing the fact that that's all he really is - a voice inside the Narrator's head. The dialogue in the opening scene is minimal, but it still manages to be very intriguing. Tyler says,

'Three minutes. This is it. Ground zero. Would you like to say a few words to mark the occasion?'

Combined with the situation the Narrator is in, using this sentence as the opening one creates a lot of interest into what Tyler actually means, why they're there and what they are going to do. Only one location is used in the opening scene to Fight Club, but I think this is very effective in contrast to the credits. The credits are very fast paced, with lots of flashing lights, fast music and glowing text, and so when it moves onto Tyler and the Narrator in the dark, still, empty office block, the use of one location (and not moving onto another one to keep with the pace of the title sequence) emphasises the aforementioned characteristics of the location, and so it makes people pay more attention to what's going on, and so they're probably more interested.

 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

The first two minutes of this film don't give away a lot of the plot, but it is very good at creating an interest in what is going to happen. It shows Joel, the main character, waking up, getting out of bed and going to the train station. He is average looking, wears average clothes, and there is initially nothing really interesting about him at all. The train station also reflects this - everyone, including Joel, is wearing grey business suits, grey coats and dark scarves - it looks almost colourless. However, toward the end of the first two minutes, instead of getting on his usual train, he is shown running across the platform, onto a different one. In the narration over the top of the scene, he says

'I ditched work today. Took a train out to Montauk. I don't know why. I'm not an impulsive person.'

This creates a sense of interest as the boring person we perceived Joel to be in the beginning is now changing - it makes people want to keep watching as this could be the start of a big turning point in his non-impulsive, uninteresting life. This does turn out to be true, as him taking the train to the beach allows him to meet Clementine, and subsequently get his memory of her erased, which, to anyone, is something very interesting. Joel is the only character introduced in the opening two minutes, but shortly after that, Clementine, the other main character, is also introduced. This is important as we have already started to connect with Joel, because it's him we meet first, and because we see Clementine for the first time when Joel does, it allows us to form a new connection with her as he did at that point in time. There's minimal dialogue in the opening two minutes - the only thing we hear anyone say (apart from the narration) is Joel phoning his work and explaining that he's not coming into work. This is effective as the first piece of dialogue we hear from him is something that doesn't really match the boring, bleak lifestyle we have seen him lead - the train station, his house, his clothes etc. are all very dull, and so when we first hear him speak, lying to his boss about why he isn't coming into work, it creates a sense of excitement and change. There are three locations in the opening two minutes of this film. They are all fairly normal places - a house, a train station and a beach - since this is contrasting with what's actually happening, it makes it a lot more interesting. It also emphasises how ordinary Joel's life is, and so in turn emphasising how not ordinary the beginning plot is. There are no credits in the first 2 minutes of the film - however, this could be foreshadowing, as the opening of the film actually belongs at the end - at the start of the film, he is meeting Clementine for the first time in his POV, but it's actually the second time after they both wiped their memories of each other. The credits appear when that scene ends and it cuts to the chronological start, which to some people, may be a sign of how the plot is actually ordered.

Trainspotting

A lot of the plot is revealed in the first two minutes. The film opens with two of the main characters, Renton and Spud, running away from two security guards. Their pockets are full of things, which is obvious to the viewer that they have stolen. There is narration over the top of the scene - saying:

'Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family, Choose a fucking big television, Choose  washing machines, cars, compact disc players, and electrical tin opener. Choose good health, low cholesterol and dental insurance. Choose fixed-interest mortgage repayments. Choose a starter home. Choose your friends.'

 This narration doesn't give away the plot, but it gives away the genre and feeling of the film. Since Renton is talking about living the typical middle-class life, but him and Spud are shown running away from security guards with stolen things in their pockets, it's revealed to the viewer that he obviously doesn't mean these things (at that moment in time). Therefore, we get the sense that the film is about something to do with rebelling against authority and not obeying the law. There are two of the 5 main characters introduced straight away in the opening two minutes - Renton and Spud - and the rest are introduced a little later in the opening, all together in a football game. The character's names are shown through a freeze-frame, where their individual names flash on the screen at the point they come in shot. However, since the film is about Renton and his experience with drug addiction and (attempted) recovery, only his name is shown at the start, despite being with Spud. The rest of the character's names are revealed during a football game. There isn't much dialogue in the start of the opening, as there's lots of narration instead - the first time the characters properly talk is when they're shooting up, which gives the audience a better idea to their personality as the first time we feel properly connected to them is when they're beginning to take heroin. There are a few locations in the opening two minutes - the main ones being the street Renton and Spud are running down, the football pitch, and the flat they are doing drugs in. These locations help us to form a better idea in our heads of the character's personalities, as the first locations are the street when they're running away from shop security, them playing football as a group, and them taking drugs. There aren't any credits in the opening two minutes, as it focuses more on the characters themselves rather than the introduction of the film.  

2 Minute Mise-en-scene Film Opening Evaluation

Here is the link for our final film opening.

Overall, I am happy with the outcome of our film opening. We had some trouble with the casting, as many of the people we asked weren't available on the day, and when we did book somebody they cancelled the night before. However, we managed to get the required cast last minute, and although they didn't really fit our character description properly, I still think the outcome was good.

The filming process went very well too. We didn't bring a tripod, but that was okay as we managed to hold the shot steady when necessary. We made sure to film for longer than we needed at the end and the beginning, as it made the editing process a lot easier. Also, we were very careful with our shots - retaking them as necessary, and always making sure we did each shot at least twice, so we had a variety of angles and different ones to choose from when we began editing. We had to be very careful to make sure there were no people visible in the background, and we managed this in all shots apart from one - we did retake this a few times, but the area was quite busy so we had to make do with what we had.

We also managed to include the required props, characters and costumes, and time of day in the film opening, making sure that they fit in will with our plot and location. The lighting was a bit of a problem, as the contrast between the sand and the sea made the colour balance very off. We tried to fix this in editing, but it didn't work very well - next time, we will have to be very careful to review our footage and make sure the lighting is right before we leave the location.

We tried to include a variety of angles, shot types and shot lengths in our film opening. In the editing process, we experimented with jump cuts - breaking down a longer shot into shorter ones, whilst still capturing the meaning of what we wanted to put across. We also filmed through the lens of an older camera to capture the photograph shown near the end, as it added the interesting affect of the shutter.

Next time, we have to make sure each shot is exactly right before we move on. The use of a tripod would help a lot, as it would make sure the shots are steady, and making sure the lighting is right (as to not contrast the scenery) is also very important.

Diamond 9

I think a film opening should...

According to the mark scheme, things are prioritised differently. Creativity is at the top, then followed by titles, and a variety of shots and angles. Introducing characters, a setting and making sure people understand it was next, and the last three were using dialogue, indicating the genre and starting at the beginning. After reading the mark scheme and having it explained to me, I will now prioritise some things differently when creating my 2 minute opening. However, I feel I can still justify why I arranged mine the way I did, and so if I was producing an unmarked piece of work, I would (mostly) follow the order of importance I originally decided on.

2-minute Mise-en-scene Film Opening Plan

What was the task?
The main aim of the task was to create a two minute film opening, using mise-en-scene. Mise-en-scene is defined as 'the arrangement of scenery and stage properties in a play' - which is why we were given a location, a costume, a time, a character and some props to incorporate into it. We had free reign with the plot - we could make it whatever we wanted, as long as it incorporated the criteria allocated to us.

What elements of mise-on-scene were we given?
We were given 5 different elements of mise-on-scene to work with in our two minute film opening, shown to the left. Firstly, we were given a location - ours was the old rollercoaster at Yarmouth Pleasure Beach. Then we were given a prop (fish and chips), a time (sunrise at the weekend), character guidelines (a 40 year old woman), and a costume (uniform). We were fairly happy upon receiving these, because a lot of them seemed to fit quite well together, e.g. the fish and chips and the beach, and the 40 year old woman and the uniform.

What were our initial plot ideas?
Initially, we came up with a few plot ideas. We then picked our favourite one to develop further, which would potentially be our final idea. Our first plot idea included a 40 year old woman in various places at the beach - as she visits different areas, she remembers different parts of her childhood (shown using younger people playing her younger self). We also thought about developing this into the beginning of a love story - she could potentially be there remembering the time she spent there with someone in her past. Our second potential plot was quite different to this. We thought about having a 40 year old woman walking past a rollercoaster, and being approached by a young man, who then tries to mug her. Our final idea was a woman who is visiting the beach to meet up with a man she's having an affair with while her husband is at home. She meets him and they walk along the beach together, passing the rollercoaster.

What were our casting ideas?
We decided on using a group member's parents for the cast. We thought this would be easiest as organising and co-ordinating everyone wouldn't be as difficult as it would be with a stranger. We weren't really sure about who to cast for the younger version of the woman (in our initial idea), but we knew it would have to be someone similar looking (e.g. same ethnicity, hair colour etc.)

What location were we given, and what research have we done about it?
We were given Yarmouth Beach. There wasn't much research needed about this location as we had all visited it many times before, and so we knew the general layout and where everything is. However, I did do some research about certain vantage points, specifically a Ferris Wheel, as we thought a high up shot would be an effective way to set the scene.

What props were we given? How can they be incorporated with our film opening?
We were initially given a cup of tea as a prop, but being allowed to swap one part of our given mise-en-scnee with another group, we then had fish and chips. We chose to swap to this as our given location was a beach, and so we thought this would make it easy to link into the plot - whatever we decided to do, fish and chips would fit in very easily (even just in the background).

What costume were we given? How can it be incorporated with our film opening?
We were given a uniform as the costume part of our mise-en-scene. Initially, we thought about linking the costume to the location/prop - e.g. ask to film someone working in a chip shop, or someone working at the roller coaster. However, we also considered having our character wearing a uniform - as we had to cast a 40 year old woman, we thought it would also be easy having her wear a work uniform (e.g. a suit), as it wouldn't look out of place, especially if she is passing by the beach on her way to work.

What is our target audience?
We decided the best age range to aim for would be similar age to the character - middle aged, probably women. We decided this as when watching a film, people relate best to characters that they can see themselves in, and so aiming it at teenagers would be less effective, as not a lot of teenage girls would see themselves in and relate to a 40 year old woman.

What's our filming plan/schedule?
We decided to film some time during the half term holidays, as it gave us plenty of time. Since we had to film in the early morning, having it during the half term would be best as we wouldn't have to film it on the weekend when a most people in our group are often busy. Also, if we didn't manage to film it during one day, we would have the opportunity to go back another day. We didn't have a specific plan for the order of filming, as that would have really required us to visit the location before filming to figure out angles etc. but we did have a few things in mind beforehand, such as what we wanted the characters to do, and the basic plot etc.

Final Ideas
Our final and developed idea was the first one we came up with. We decided this would be the best one as we all agreed it would be the most fun to edit and film, and we thought this was the most interesting, least generic plot of the three. However, there were some things we had to change. Due to cast availability, we had to change the plot to have the given character in a house, and the other ones at the beach. However, our final idea was to have a young (teenage) couple, at the beach. We would have various shots of the beach with the sun coming up, and them on the beach doing things like skimming stones, eating chips, walking and walking in the sea. We would then have them walking past the old roller coaster, and have someone take a picture of them - the picture would be the focus of the screen for a couple of seconds, zooming out to reveal it's stuck in a photo album. A 40 year old woman, in a work uniform is seen to be looking through a photo album as memories from her childhood.

We decided not to have any sound or people talking in our opening two minutes, not only because a lot of films don't feature sound (apart from music), but because filming at a beach without any proper microphones to record speech would result in distorted sound and an overall reduced quality of our end product. We decided to have music playing over the top, probably piano music, as it would set the scene of memories and nostalgia quite well.