Magazine Layout Review

Most film magazines such as Empire feature many reviews in their issues. These reviews are useful because not only do they inform the readers about the film, but help people to decide whether or not to go and see the film being reviewed.

Reviews are laid out in all different ways – some are double page spreads, some are only a single page, and some are no more than a couple of paragraphs in the corner of a page. Below I have featured some examples of reviews in different layouts.

The writing in this review on the film Avatar only takes up one page, whereas the rest of the feature is made up of stills from the film itself. There is also a small box to the side with facts about the film. This is an example of how sometimes the reviews themselves  take up very little space.

This next example shows multiple reviews on one page, with appropriate pictures from the films being featured. This is a good way of laying out reviews as people won’t be reading too much on one film, they can move onto another review if they don’t like the one they’re reading.

Using the script for the film E.T The Extra Terrestrial, I reviewed the film in a magazine layout. I feel that my review may not have been very strongly written, but I chose to use one page for my review. In it I talked about the plot, my opinions on it and some of the techniques used when filming. Here it is below.

E.T Film Review

 

 

Log Lines

Log Lines

A log line is a one sentence summary of your script. It tells the audience what the movie is about and helps them decide if they would want to see it or not.

The log line is there to inform you of what the story is about without giving away the entire plot.

Some characteristics of a good logline can include information such as who the main character is, what their goal is, who is standing in their way etc. It isn’t necessary to include the character’s names but some brief insight into who they are or their background could be good.

It is important to have a good log line for various reasons. For example, if you wanted a producer or an agent to read your screenplay then the log line must be powerful enough to grab their attention. This is the same for if you wanted to sell your screenplay. The logline also helps to keep you focused as you write your script – you will always have the basic concept there in front of you.

Here are some examples of good and bad loglines:

BAD: A woman confronts her past when her illegitimate daughter shows up after twenty years.

GOOD: A minister’s wife confronts her long-buried past when her illegitimate daughter shows up after twenty years.

This first example shows the basic idea of an illegitimate child showing up after a long period of time, which is quite basic. However, the second one adds depth to the plot – the woman being described as a “minister’s wife” implies deception and possible conflict in the workplace while the phrase “long-buried past” peaks the reader’s interests – what other secrets could she be hiding?

Another example could be:

BAD: A woman plots to murder her sister

GOOD: A woman obsessed by jealously plots to kill her sister, who married the man she loves.

This second example again shows a basic plotline, but when you add the motive to the plot – the woman is jealous that her sister has married the person she herself is in love with so plans to kill her – makes the log line intriguing and suggests themes of familial conflict.

I wrote a short story in Terries lesson about two characters meeting for the first time. Using the research from above, I have created my own logline for this story:

An aspiring young artist falls in love with an ex-fighter, who is determined to keep her from discovering his long-buried past.

Screenplay Analysis

Using the website IMSDB (Internet Movie Script Data Base), we had to pick 5 scripts to analyse, each one from a different genre. My genres and films that I picked were:

Fantasy – Lord of the Rings: Return of the King

Musical – Les Miserables

Action – Thunderbirds

Sci-Fi – E.T The Extra Terrestrial

Romance – The Fault in Our Stars

FILM (GENRE)	SETTING	STAGE DIRECTIONS	NO. OF CHARACTERS	SET DESIGN
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Fantasy)	We see a boat in the middle of a lake with two people in it. The setting is in the countryside.	We see the two men fishing. One of them falls in and we catch a glimpse of a ring. The man pulls the ring out of the water and the two fight over it until one kills the other. The camera zooms in on the man holding the ring.	Two – Smeagol and Deagol	The scenery is idyllic and peaceful, since it is set in the countryside.
Les Miserables (musical)	An on screen caption tells us that the year is 1815. The setting is in a prison yard, where we see prisoners pulling a ship into the dock.	We see the camera rise up out of the water and rain falling down. The convicts are pulling a ship into port.	Two main characters – Javert and Valjean. All conversation happens mainly between these two.	There are stone steps in the prison yard and the inmates are standing in water. The ropes pulling the ship in are heavy and thick.
Thunderbirds (Action)	The setting is in a school classroom at an all boys school. We also see a brief glimpse of the outside of the building, which is green fields and other buildings	The camera zooms in on one boy in particular who is staring out of the window, not really paying attention to what the teacher is saying. It switches from the teacher to this boy, following their conversation.	The are three characters focused on in this scene – the two main boys, Alan and Fermat, and the teacher	The desks are all in rows, and there is a board at the front behind where the teacher is standing. It looks like your typical classroom.
E.T. The Extra Terrestrial (Sci-Fi)	Our scene is set in a forest at night time.	The lights of a landing aircraft filter through the bushes and leaves. We see the outline of a strange creature leaving the aircraft.	The main characters in this film are a little boy, Elliott, and an alien from space called E.T	The scene is very dark, with rustling leaves as our main character runs through them. We never see the character’s face clearly.
The Fault in our Stars (Romance)	The scene takes place in a backgarden, specifically on the ground of the garden.	The camera switches from a view of the stars in the sky to a teenage girl lying on the ground, seemingly watching the stars as a voice over is heard.	The main girl is the film is Hazel, and it is her we see in this scene.	The scene is at night time, so we can’t see much except for the grass the girl is lying on and the lights of the house behind her.

 

 

 

Warner Bros. Studio Tour: The Making of Harry Potter

On Wednesday 13^th January 2016, we took a trip to the “Making of Harry Potter: Warner Bros. Studio Tour”.  We got to look around at all the sets and prop, try to answer the questions on the quiz our tutors had given us to do. I tried Butterbeer again and bought a scarf. On the way home the tutors added up the quiz scores and our group won! Our prize was a chocolate wand.

However, the main purpose of this trip wasn’t just to look around the studios, we were assigned a special scriptwriting workshop whilst we were there. In this workshop, we were told about how many different careers there are in the filmmaking industry – from scriptwriting to costume design to prop making. We were also shown some of the costumes and props used in the Harry Potter films.

We were set an activity – they gave us pieces of card with scenes from the first Harry Potter film on them and told to put them in order. If we had done it correctly, then the backs of the cards would spell out “HARRY POTTER”.

We were then told the brief outline of how scriptwriting worked, telling us that in pretty much all story outlines there is the hook, the first plot point, the midpoint, the second plot point and then finally the resolution. We also had to see where these factors applied to the first film.

In our groups, we were handed props that we had to make a story out of.

OUR STORY:

GENRE: Crime/Action

CHARACTER: Robber named Richard (block of gold was the prop for this part)

SETTING: Italy (the prop for this idea was a globe)

HOOK: Richard steals an expensive recorder that belonged to a famous musician (our prop was a recorder)

PROBLEM: The police force sent spies after the robber to follow his activities and catch him (our prop was a pair of binoculars)

SOLUTION: Richard uses a bow to knock out the spies who are chasing him and escapes with the recorder to another country (our prop was a violin bow).

Overall the day was amazing and I had lots of fun. It was great to go there again and see things that i didn’t see the last couple of times i came, like the Hogwarts Express. Here are some photos of the day:

Screenplay Glossary

These are all useful/important terms to know when scriptwriting.

Beat: This is the timing and/or movement of a film or play. In screenplay, usually it represents a pause in dialogue.

Character Name: In screenplay, this lets us know who the character is. It can be an actual name, an occupation or a description. It gives the audience a first glimpse into the character.

 Continuing Dialogue – This is dialogue spoken by the same character that continues without interruption onto the next page of the script. It is usually marked with “cont’d”.

 Continuous Action – This is when the action continues from one scene to the next and is included in the scene heading

 Dialogue – This is the general name for the speeches between the characters

EXT. – Short for Exterior. This lets us and the director know that a scene is taking place outside.

 INT. – Short for Interior. This lets us and the director know that the scene takes place inside.

 MATCH CUT – This is a transition in which something in the following scene directly matches a character or object in the previous scene.

 O.C. – Abbreviation for Off Camera. It tells us that the character is present in the scene but is not actually seen by the camera.

O.S. – This is an abbreviation for OFF SCENE, telling us that the speaker is not actually in the scene but can still be heard.

Scene – This describes an action taking place in one location and in a specific time. Scenes move the story along as well.

Scene Heading – This is a brief description of the location and time of day in which a scene takes place.

 Shooting Script – This is a script that has been prepared to be put into production

 Simultaneous Dialogue – This describes the action when two characters speak at the same time and would be written side by side in columns.

 SUPER – An abbreviation for “superimpose”. This means laying one image atop another, for example words over a filmed scene

 TITLE –  This is the text that appears onscreen informing us of a key element of the movie, i.e. a change of location or date, or perhaps a person involved in the making of the movie.

 Transition – A notation in the script informing the director of a transition from one scene to another.

 V.O. – Abbreviation of “Voice Over”. This means that the speaker is narrating the action onscreen.

 

Narrative in Film

Narrative is the way in which a story is told in both fictional and non fictional text.  There are two main narrative theorists that we looked at: Tzvetan Todorov and Vladimir Propp. Todorov was a Bulgarian literary theorist and Propp was a Russian literary theorist.

Todorov’s theory suggests that all narratives follow a three-part structure. They begin with equilibrium (where everything is balanced) then progress as something comes along which disrupts that equilibrium, then finally reach a resolution where the equilibrium is restored. Propp came up with the theory that in each narrative there are a certain number of characters that are easy to spot. For example:

The Protagonist (Hero) – This is the person who leads the narrative and is usually looking for something, i.e. a quest or trying to solve a mystery.

The Antagonist (Villain) – This is the person who opposes the hero and gets in their way

Heroine – This is usually the person who is some sort of prize or reward for the hero.

Father – An authority figure who offers the hero a reward in return for completing their quest. The reward can vary from a prince or princess to money or a new job

Helper – This is the person who helps the main hero, acting often as a sidekick.

Donor – This is the person who gives the hero something to help them complete their quest. It is usually a talisman, clue or a special power of some sort.

Mentor – Thus person teaches and guides the hero and sends them on their way. Also known as the dispatcher.

The protagonist in the narrative also doesn’t always have to be male. They can be female as well.

 

TASK ONE

STAR WARS

HERO: Luke Skywalker

VILLAIN: Darth Vader or Emperor Palpatine

HEROINE: Princess Leia

FATHER: Darth Vader (Anakin Skywalker)

HELPER: R2-D2 and C-3PO

DONOR: Obi-Wan Kenobi

MENTOR: Master Yoda

FALSE HERO: Han Solo

 HARRY POTTER

HERO: Harry Potter

VILLAIN: Lord Voldemort

HEROINE: Hermione/Ron

FATHER: Mr Granger

HELPER: Hagrid

DONOR: Ollivander

MENTOR: Albus Dumbledore

FALSE HERO: Neville Longbottom

 TASK TWO

Todorov’s theories can be applied to the Harry Potter franchise. The first book in the series starts off with an equilibrium – our protagonist, Harry, has no knowledge of his magical heritage. Then Hagrid comes along and shows Harry who he really is, and Harry heads off to Hogwarts where he meets new friends (who will later on become central parts of the story). Everything is fine as Harry tries to find his way at Hogwarts, but the threat of our main villain Voldemort hangs over him. Then the equilibrium is ruined when Harry and Voldemort (acting through one of Harry’s professors) have their confrontation in the dungeons. Then equilibrium is restored when Harry defeats Voldemort. This same idea follows in all of the Harry Potter books, especially in the final book when the final confrontation happens and Voldemort is defeated once and for all.

Mise-en-Scene in the Harry Potter movies

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s stone

Scene: Gryffindor wins the house cup

Setting:

• Takes place in the Great Hall, which is large and airy and looks ancient
• Flaming braziers are attached to the stone walls
• House flags hang from the ceiling
• Long tables where the students sit

Costume:

• Students are wearing old fashioned robes, as are the teachers
• The teacher’s robes make them look almost wealthy – they are more elegant, whilst the student’s robes are plain and simple

Lighting:

• The room is lit by fires and candles, making it partly dark but still light
• This is quite an old fashioned way of lighting a room

Characters:

• We see the houses together with their housemates
• The expressions start off with the Gryffindor table appearing bored and uninterested, whilst Slytherin are happy. The moods then switch and Gryffindor end up being happy whilst Slytherin are left miserable

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Scene: Harry and Voldemort’s Final Confrontation

Setting:

• The scene takes place in the ruins of the school courtyard. Rubble and dust can be seen everywhere, pointing out that a great battle has taken place
• There is no proper castle anymore, it takes place in a literal battleground
• There are also screen cuts, going from the courtyard to Ron and Hermione battling the snake in the actual school, which is in a similar state to the courtyard where Harry and Voldemort are

Costume:

• The character’s clothes are dirty and torn, showing that they have been fighting
• The main character (Harry) isn’t wearing his school uniform but his own clothes, suggesting that he wasn’t originally at the school
• The main villain’s robes (Voldemort) are dark grey and flowing. The colour could represent the darkness inside him

Lighting:

• This scene is made up of shades of grey and blacks, and is very dark. This emphasises the seriousness of this scene and how important it is since this is the most important moment of the entire franchise

Character:

• The two characters are shown to be in a confrontation. Harry has cuts on his face whilst Voldemort appears unhurt.
• Both characters facial expressions are similar in terms of their determination to kill each other. You can see the anger on their faces as well, emphasising their dislike for each other
• In one part of this scene, Harry appears to show some remorse at the demise of his former foe. This could suggest his feelings of regret that he couldn’t persuade Voldemort to try for remorse.
• When he is finally defeated, you can clearly see the shock on Voldemort’s face, as he clearly had not expected to lose to Harry.
• We also see a moment of realisation on Voldemort’s face as he knows that his pet snake (which contained part of his soul) has been killed, and he knows that with the snake’s death his end is coming.

The two scenes have completely contrasting moods to them. The setting of the scene from the first film is in a well lit room, giving off a feel of warmth and comfort. The characters are seen to be happy as they celebrate their victory, except for the characters who lost – they appear annoyed and disappointed. However in the last film, the tone is a lot darker and more serious. All the warmth and happiness from the first film is completely gone, replaced by scenes of destruction and despair.