Adding music into a scene workshop

Part A

For this workshop my task was to place an existing song or piece of music into a film or TV show scene. The first scene that I chose was from the Tv show family guy when Peter was beating up a child. The music that I added into the background of the scene was some upbeat metal music that I found on youtube. This music fitted nicely into the scene because it was fast paced and aggressive so I placed this music over the part when Peter is repeatedly punching the teenager. I used the techniques of fading at the beginning and at the end of the music to make it seem as if the music was in the scene to begin with. I think that this scene went well. The second scene was from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 when Gwen fell to her death. The music that I decided to use and place over this scene was 'I Fall Apart' by Post Malone. The reason that I used this song for this specific scene was because of the nature of the scene. In this scene Gwen dies and Peter is distraught about it. The song by Post Malone was chosen because it is an upsetting song and fits perfectly with the death scene.  The software that I used to add music into the both of these scenes was Garageband. I think that both of these turned out well and the music suited each of the clips that they were put into to. If I was going to place music into the Gwen scene again, what i would have done is that I would have maybe added one more piece of music into the same scene as the scene was quite long.

Part B

For this part of the workshop I was tasked to make my own piece of music and place it into an existing scene from a film. The scene that i chose to place my created music into was the Gwen Stacey death scene from The Amazing Spider-Man 2. The software that I used to create my piece of music was Garageband on the Mac. I then used the whistle sound effect on the keyboard and created a sad piece of music which I personally think fitted perfectly into the scene. My only change is that I would have used more instruments/different sounds next time.

Dubbing workshop evaluation.

For this workshop me and Ali who I was working with had to find a scene from a movie or TV show and mute out all the sound. After we had deleted the sound, we re recorded all of the dialogue with our own voices and placed it over the characters that were talking in the scene. For this workshop, the main thing that we had to focus on was the timing and technical accuracy the lip syncing and editing. Most of the editing was done by Ali and he had to focus a lot on making sure that all of the recordings matched up with the two different characters within the scene. The computer software that we used to record our voices reading from the script from the scene was iMovie on one of the college's MacBooks. We recorded the script using this software and we also used the same software to place the recording over the scene and edit it so that the timing all matches. The area that me and Ali recorded in was one of the radio rooms. We decided to use this room because it didn't have any background sound to interrupt the recording and final outcome of the whole thing. The first thing I would say that went well with this workshop was being able to record the whole script quite quickly. The recording went well because it only took a few takes and was very simple to carry out. What went wrong i that we missed some things in our recordings such as deep breaths and sounds from characters that we had forgotten to record. The thing that I would do different if I was to do this again is that I would include all of the things that we missed.

Voiceover Workshop Evaluation

For this workshop we had to record our own voiceover which we then added over a scene from the film Children of MenFirst of all I wrote the script on Microsoft Word and the device that we used to record the voiceover was an iPhone 7. We used the voice memos app and the internal mic built into the iPhone was used as we didn't attatch an external microphone to the device. We created the voiceover to portray what the main character Theo was thinking at different points during the film. I think that the voiceover we created was effective because we were able to clearly express what Theo was feeling. The voiceover also created further suspense into the scene. I think that one of the things that went well was how quickly we were able to get everything recorded and placed into the computer so that we could edit it. In our group I was the person that wrote the script and decided which seconds in the clip, Ali then recorded his voice reading out the script with different tones for each of the sentenced to make sure that it added meaning to the scene and made it feel as if it was actually coming from Theo. The location where we recorded our script was at the bottom of one of the staircases in the college. This was a good location for us to record because it was a quiet setting and when we recorded, an echo affect was created which I think worked well with the clip. After we had finished recording the whole script, we sent the recording to our emails so that we could transfer it to the computer to begin editing it. The software that we used to edit our recording so that we could match it up to the correct times in the clip was Garageband. Ali was in control of the editing and he was able to put each part of the recording in the correct/matching part of the correlating clip. Next time if I was to this again I would make the script longer and include a lot more detail in it.

Unit 38 Soundtrack production for the moving image

Unit 38 Soundtrack production for the moving image

In this assignment I am going to be analyzing the elements of sound in different scenes from moving image productions. This will include scenes from movies and television programmes, postproduction studio sound and live location sound.  I will be talking about why certain sounds are used in specific scenes and using key terms to analyse these scenes.

When I am talking about the specific times, these are relevant in the linked YouTube video rather than the actual timings in the film.

The first film that I am going to be analyzing the film Children of Men specifically the car scene where they are being shot at. YouTube link for this scene:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfBSncUspBk . At the beginning of the car scene, the first thing that the audience hears is some energetic and fast paced music. This music in the scene is diegetic as it is coming from the stereo system in the car meaning that characters in the film are also hearing the music. I think that this sound mix was included in the scene because it shows all of the characters together and suggests that Julian and Theo are re-connecting with each other and makes the audience think that they might get back together. The music coming from the car can be heard up until 1.28. At this moment in the scene, a car can be seen crashing and an explosion is heard. As the crash is seen, the music cut off which highlights to the audience how sudden the crash was and how no one expected it. At 1.38 into the scene you can see people running towards the car and can hear the objects that they are throwing onto the car such as rocks. These sounds are also met with the sounds of everyone in the car screaming. The sounds of the characters screaming shows the audience how scared they are and the panic state that they are in. At 1.46 you can hear the people outside of the car shouting at the ones inside it showing their aggressiveness and their want to get into the car and hurt them, these sounds tell the audience about how dangerous the situation the characters are in is. At 1.50 when the character to try to escape by reversing heir car, a motorbike can be heard and is then shown following them. After this at 2.02 a gunshot is heard and Julian is shot in the neck, this sound is then followed by high pitched noise which I think is in the perspective of Theo and what he is hearing meaning that its diegetic. At 2.06 you can hear the other characters crying. The sounds of them crying were included to highlight to the audience how traumatised they are and how they have lost someone really dear to them. This type of sound also creates a depressing mood both within the film and for the audience as well.

The second scene that I chose to analyse thee sound of is from the film Kingsman. The scene that I have chosen to analyse for the film Kingsman is the church fight scene. YouTube link for this scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1WWDBTda2Y Right at the beginning of the scene, or 9 seconds into the YouTube video of it, sudden suspenseful non-diegetic music is heard appearing into the sound mix, which downs the tone of the film can be heard as the antagonist Valentine turns a wheel to activate the phone sim cards in the people’s phones in the church. This type of sound was used in the scene to tell the audience that something important is about to happen that would change the whole mood of the scene, and the tone of the music also makes them think further about what is coming up next. This sound is an example of studio recorded sounded as it was introduced into the scene after it had already been recorded. The sound of the beeping then begins to get faster and louder leading up to what occurs after. It is then followed by a high toned beeping sound at 10seconds into the clip coming from everyone’s mobile phones. This sound would suggest that what is about to happen is going to be huge and change the shape of the scene. The sound is one of the loudest in the scene to attract the audience’s attention to it. At 33 seconds into the scene, the sound of the beeping is cancelled out by a gunshot sound and then chaos begins to happen around the whole church and everyone is fighting each other to the death. The sound of the gunshot signals to the audience that the main thing is starting and that its going to get very violent. From 40 seconds up until 3.45 into the scene, fast paced non-diegetic rock music is playing in the background as Harry is killing everyone in the church.  The sounds when people are punching each other, being stabbed or getting hit by an object in the scene are hyper realistic sounds because of their exaggerated level of sound. I think that this type of music was included during this part of the scene because it highlights the mayhem and violence within the church and how Harry is able to kill almost everyone by himself. The type of music could also symbolise to the audience the adrenaline and anger that Harry is feeling during this scene. At 3.46 into the scene the fights all stop with one chord of an electric guitar to show the cut and end to the violence. At 3.55 into the scene the fighting has finished and only Harry is left alive and the use of piano music is heard playing which usually symbolises peace but in this case, it is the opposite as it wasn't a very peaceful thing to witness. Overall, the use of different sound and music in this scene was done to highlight the violence and intensity of it. There was barely any dialogue used in the scene and I think that this was an effective thing for the directors have put into the film because it means the audience would be able to focus and be more attracted to the fighting.

The third and final film that have analysed the different types of sounds used within it is, the horror film Get Out. The precise scene that I have chosen to pick apart the sound from is the scene when Chris first meets Rose’s parents Dean and Missy. YouTube link for this scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35edGMhrIho. The scene is introduced with the sounds of typical dialogue with all of the characters in the scene talking and introducing themselves to each other. During this, there are no other sounds in the sound mix, apart from small naturalistic sound effects, as the creators of the film wanted the members of the audience to be able to hear what they were saying clearly. Having no music playing in the background could have been done to make viewers think that this was an ordinary film because nothing unusual has happened yet and it hasn’t seemed like you were actually watching a horror film, as horror film usually contain frightening low-pitched music playing in the background to create a suspenseful and scary mood. This is an example of a typical sound motif expected to be in horror films which hasn’t been included yet in Get Out. At 32 seconds into the scene, Dean says “When I see a dead deer on the side of the road I think to myself, that’s a start”. This dialogue from Deans character is foreshadowing the type of person that he is and what he does later on in the film where he puts other people in black male’s body’s. I think that this dialogue was intended to show what is going to happen but not many people would know why it was put in the film, however viewers that are watching the scene for a second time such as myself notice what is being said more and how it relates to what happened further on into the film. From now until 1.35 into the scene there isn’t much important sound, just some naturalistic dialogue of Chris and Dean getting to know each other.  At 1.35 Dean says “Up here people are just as messed up in the head as in the city”. This is a key piece of dialogue because again it links back to the type of person that he is and that he is actually crazy. This constant type of dialogue from Dean is to hint to the members of the audience and make realise what type of character he is going to be. At 1.52 when Dean is touching his antiques, low toned and slightly suspenseful music fades into the scene to highlight the awkwardness that Chris is feeling and resembles how uncomfortable he is. This establishing sound is reduced whenever Chris or Dean are talking and is then re-established after they have spoken. This music gets louder slowly as Dean says, “Such a privilege to be able to experience another person’s culture”. After he says this, this is when the music in the background becomes clear and you can see Chris force a smile to make himself seem comfortable. At 2.41 into the scene Dean says, “He almost got over it”, when talking about how his dad lost a race to a black man. This narrative foreshadows the future of the film when we find out that his dad is in the body a black person. Also, he has a small laugh after saying this to try and make it seem funny and so that Chris won’t catch onto anything. At 2.41 Dean says “We had to seal it up, there’s some black mould down there”, referring to his basement. This another key narrative in the film as he is referring to bodies of black people and highlights his sinister character. This is then followed up by Dean saying “My mother loved the kitchen, so we keep a piece of her in here”. This is Dean referring to Georgina as Deans mother is living inside her body. As soon as Dean sys this, the music in the background becomes louder and higher pitched to create a frightening mood for the audience and Chris. Towards the end of the scene, Dean said “We hired Georgina and Water to take care of my parents, when they died I couldn’t bear to let them go”. This is another piece of foreshadowing, because its later revealed that his parents are living inside their bodies which is why he couldn’t get rid of them because they are basically his parents.

The last thing that I am going to be analysing the sound from is a Stacey Dooley documentary which is an example of live location sound because the dialogue from the people she talks was recorded live and wasn’t placed in after during the editing process. The video is called Stacey Dooley investigates drugs online and the YouTube link is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pkxa6vs9mIM. Stacey Dooley has recorded this live in scene and has decided to add barely any non-diegetic sound into the sound mix to add realism and emotional impact to her documentary.  The sounds that are heard in the background of her documentaries are mainly ambient naturalistic sounds such as wind and birds. I am going to be focusing on the scene at around 36.30 where Stacey has met up with a drug dealer who has just come from school. When she first sees the boy in his school uniform, you can hear the shock and surprise in her voice at how young he is. Another key sound from this scene is their accents. Stacey and the boy have different accents and Stacey’s one is a lot more mature than the boys one who sounds really young and childish. Meeting a boy this young selling drugs has made Stacey feel really bad and upset at how someone this young could be involved in these things and this would probably have the same impact on the viewers of the documentary. The boy’s immaturity is shown when Stacey asks him to stay and have a conversation with her, which he quickly refuses and says that the drugs were actually mints and painkillers. During this scene in the documentary, Stacey frequently expressed how upset she was that the boy was still in school and how wrong it was. This is a very important and key bit of dialogue from her because it is something that the viewers of the documentary will agree with her on and maybe even have an emotional response or connection to. This means that they will be drawn to her work and be inspired to take action or watch more of her documentaries.

Case study 2 - Kingsman

The scene that I chose to analyse for the film Kingsman is the church fight scene. Right at the beginning of the scene, or 9 seconds into the youtube video of it, suspenseful music as the antagonist Valentine turns a wheel to activate the sim cards in the peoples phones in the church. This type of non diegetic sound was used was used in the scene to tell the audience that something important is about to happen that would change the whole mood of the scene. This sound is then followed by a beeping sound at 10seconds into the clip coming from everyones mobile phones. This sound would suggest that what is about to happen is going to be big and the sound is one of the loudest in the scene to attract the audiences attention to it. At 33 seconds into the scene, the sound of the beeping is cancelled out by a gunshot sound and then chaos begins to happen around the whole church and everyone is fighting each other to the death. The sound of the gunshot signals to the audience that the main thing is starting and that its going to get very violent. From 40 seconds up until 3.45 into the scene, fast paced non diegetic rock music is playing in the background as Harry is killing everyone in the church. I think that this type of music was included during this part of the scene because it highlights the mayhem and violence within the church and how Harry is able to kill almost everyone  by himself. The type of music could also symbolise to the audience the adrenaline and anger that Harry is feeling during this scene. At 3.46 into the scene the fights all stop with one chord of an electric guitar to show the cut and end to the violence. At 3.55 into the scene the fighting has finished and only Harry is left alive and the use of piano music is heard playing which usually symbolises peace but in this case it wasn't a very peaceful thing to witness. Overall, the use of different sound and music in this scene was done to highlight the violence and intensity of it. There was barely any dialogue used in the scene and I think that this was effective because it means the audience should be able to focus and be more attracted to the fighting.

Unit 22 Single Camera - Marina - 11 Sep 2017

The feature film that I have chosen to analyse for this unit will be Central Intelligence, the television serial I am going to analyse is Luke Cage and the television series that I am going to analyse is NCIS: Los Angeles.

Factual Information

Central Intelligence

The director of the film Central Intelligence was Rawson Marshall Thurber. The film was released in the United States on the 17th of June 2016 and was released in the United Kingdom on the 29th of June 2016. The main cast of the film includes Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Amy Ryan, Aaron Paul and Jason Bateman. The actors that were cast in the film are some of the big names in Hollywood and their fame and popularity will help the film reach a wider audience. The film had a budget of $50m and although it had mixed reviews, it made a box office of $217m. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has 69% rating and average rating of 5.7/10.

Luke Cage

The TV serial, Luke cage was directed by Manuel Billeter and the serial was produced by Marvel Television and ABC Studios. All episodes of the first season of Luke Cage were released on the streaming platform Netflix on the 30th of September 2016. The serial was filmed in the city of New York and was set out to create a realistic interpretation of Harlem's atmosphere. The main cast in the show are Mike Colter, Simone Missick, Alfre Woodard, Rosario Dawson, Theo Rossi and Mahershala Ali. The actors involved in the show are not really big names like ones in Hollywood films but the TV serial was still very successful and because of this, it was renewed for a second season set to be released in 2018. Season one of Luke cage received a 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an average rating of 8.2/10.

NCIS: Los Angeles 

The TV series NCIS: Los Angeles was created by Shane Brennan and was directed by Tony Wharmby, Terrence O'Hara, Dennis Smith and many other directors. The series was released on CBS on the 22nd of September 2009. The main cast of NCIS: LA includes Daniella Ruah, Chris O'Donnell and LL Cool J. Including LL Cool J in the cast allowed the series to reach a wider audience and become more popular because he is also a successful rapper and would attract his fans to go and watch this TV series. The TV series became very successful and it has since been renewed for a ninth season set to release on the 1st of October 2017.

Format and genre

Central Intelligence

The genre of Central Intelligence is both action and comedy. These genres are shown in the film through the use of weapons, fight scenes and car chases. The comedic genre is shown through the two main actors especially the comedian Kevin Hart. The two are always telling jokes and find ways to make the audience laugh.

Luke Cage

The genres used in the TV serial Luke Cage is superhero, action and drama. Luke Cage the main character, is a superhero who tries to take down the villains Cottonmouth and Black Mariah. He wants Harlem to get back to normal and there multiple scenes of action with Luke Cage fighting people whilst they are shooting at him.

NCIS: Los Angeles

The TV series, NCIS: LA has a main genre of crime with the sub genres of action and drama. They are undercover agents who solve crimes and there are lots of action packed scenes with weapons, combat, car changes and interrogations.

Narrative elements 

Central Intelligence

The story of Central Intelligence is about two friends from high school that meet up in the future to save America. One of them, Bob Stone (Dwayne Johnson) is a CIA agent and brings Calvin Joyner (Kevin Hart) with him to help him stop terrorists from selling satellite codes. The film began filming on the 6th of May 2015 in Atlanta, Georgia and also throughout Massachusetts. The Central Intelligence follows a linear pattern. This is shown by how the same story is told throughout the whole film and is then solved at the end of it. This is supported by the fact that the film has a clear beginning, middle and end and is simple for viewers to understand whats happening and be able to follow it. The narrative that was used in the film is realist as their is no one that has superhuman powers and the film is set in the modern day.

Luke Cage

The story of Luke Cage is about him trying to stop a crime family based in Harlem. Luke Cage wants to stop Cottonmouth and Black Mariah from committing crimes in his city and wants to restore it back to how it was. The serial was filmed in New York City, specifically creating the environment of Harlem. Luke Cage follows a liner narrative and pattern because it has an ongoing story of Luke Cage stopping crime in his city trying to restore the peace. The serial has a non realistic narrative because Luke Cage has superhuman powers and is fighting crime by himself without approval from the police. At the end of the first season it shows Luke Cage stop Cottonmouth and then Luke Cage ends up in jail because of his past.

NCIS: Los Angeles

NCIS: LA is an example of a TV series meaning that it has a main story obtained and solved in each episode. In this TV series, the team are faced with different crimes in each episode and they have to work together to solve them. The team in NCIS: LA mainly operate undercover so the majority of the episodes show the characters undercover acting as things such as janitors. The TV series in filmed and located in the American city of Los Angeles in an NCIS office in a hidden location. The story includes flashbacks of one of the main characters past (G Callen) about he was shot and the sereis also shows him trying to find out who he is as he was an orphan. At the end of each episode the cases are solved and closed but Callen's past is still left to be solved.

Characters

Central Intelligence 

The two heroes in the cast are CIA agent Bob Stone (Dwayne Johnson) and his friend Calvin Joyner (Kevin Hart). The villain in the story is Phil (Aaron Paul) who tries to get satellite codes. The purpose of Bob Stone's character in the movie is to stop the villain from selling the satellite codes. Bob meets his high school friend Calvin Joyner and now that hes involved he has to help Bob Stone with his mission, The purpose of the villain in the film is to sell the satellite codes before being stopped by Bob Stone.

Luke Cage

The hero in the cast of the serial is Luke Cage (Mike Colter) who occasionally receives help from a police officer called Misty Knight (Simone Missick). Th purpose of Luke Cages character is to stop crime in the area of Harlem which he refers to as his city,  The main villains in Luke Cage are Cottonmouth (Mahershala Ali) and Black Mariah (Alfre Woodard). The purpose of the villains in the story is to make as much money as possible through crimes such as weapons dealings and drugs. The villains try to this without being caught by either Luke Cage or the police.

NCIS: Los Angeles 

The main NCIS agents in the TV series are G Callen (Chris O'Donnell), Sam Hanna (LL Cool J), Kenzie Blye (Daniela Ruah) and Marty Deeks (Eric Christian Olsen). The purpose of the agents is to solve the crimes that they are assigned to and to bring criminals to justice. In each episode of NCIS: LA there are different villains and each of them have different purposes.

Themes 

Central Intelligence

I would say that the theme of the film Central Intelligence is friendship and freedom. The theme of friendship is highlighted during the film because Bob Stone finds Calvin Joyner on Facebook and they meet again after several years. They then work together to stop terrorists from selling satellite codes with highlights the theme of good vs evil.

Luke Cage

The main theme throughout the TV serial Luke Cage is good vs evil. Luke Cage is the main hero in the show and he fights crime by himself. HE doesn't want recognition for what he is doing and he just wants Harlem to be free of crime.

NCIS: Los Angeles

I would say that there is no theme in this TV series as there is a new storyline every episode with different things happening and different characters involved.

Interesting scenes or camera shots

Central Intelligence 

The feature film Central Intelligence includes multiple different camera shots throughout the film. Whenever Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Harts characters are on screen together, there is never a shot of one being higher or superior to the other. This use of camera highlights their friendship and equality. There also multiple interesting scenes of flashbacks of Dwayne Johnson's character to tell the audience about his past.

Luke Cage

The TV serial Luke Cage uses lots of high angle and low angle shots when Luke Cage is up against criminals. I think that these shots are effective and were used because it highlights Luke Cage's superiority to them and informs the audience that he is control of these situations.

NCIS: Los Angeles


In the TV series NCIS: LA i think that the use of movement from the camera are good shots and effective. These shots are usually used when their are car chases as the camera often pans quickly between the vehicles and also zooms out. I think that these shots are effective because they highlight the intensity and adrenaline factor of these scenes. In the show there are also interesting flashbacks of agent G Callen's past because he is a very closed character who the audience and himself so not know about his origin and what the 'G' stands for.

Case Study 1 - Children of Men - David

Scene 1 Opening Scene 

The opening scene to the film Children of Men starts off quite differently to other films. Usually when you watch a film, the setting or someone is shown first before anyone begins talking. However, in Children of Men, you can hear a news reporter speaking whilst the screen is black before you eve  see anything. This was a creative thing for the director of the film to include as they knew that it was a unique technique that would draw closer attention from their viewers. Whilst the news reporter is speaking, she says, "the world was stunned today by the death of Diego Ricardo, the youngest person on the planet". It later reveals that he was 18. The use of this spoken word will be useful for the audience because it tells them that the film is set in a strange version of our current world and that the genre of the film is sci-fi. Another thing that this could do is make viewers want to watch even more of the film because they would be confused about how he is the youngest person in the world and is 18 years old.  They would want to watch on as it they would wonder what stopped humans from breeding. When the camera switches to inside the coffee shop and shows the TV, music with a sad tone begins to play and you can hear people crying over his death. The TV shows that the year of Diego's death was 2027 meaning that the film s set in the future. The only person other than the reporter who is heard speaking in this scene is the man who orders coffee and this lets the audience know that he is the main character because he was the only one speaking and placed in the centre of the screen. As the man leaves the coffee shop the camera begins to follow him and show the surroundings. The sounds that can be heard are mainly from vehicles and doesn't sound like the world has advanced very much. Later, the camera then turns to the mans  right and then an explosion is heard and shown on screen. The sound of the explosion was realist but I think that the sound of the woman screaming wasn't realistic because it was very high pitched and was about the same volume of the explosion.

Scene 2 Car Scene

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfBSncUspBk 

At the beginning of the car scene, the first thing that the audience hears is some happy and upbeat music. This music in the scene is diegetic as it is coming from the stereo system in the car meaning that characters in the film are also hearing the music. I think that this type of music was included in the scene because it shows all of the characters together and shows Julian and Theo re connecting with each other and makes the audience think that they might get back together. The music coming from the car can be heard up until 1.28. At this moment in the scene, a car can be seen crashing and an explosion is heard. As the crash is seen, the music cut off which highlights to the audience how sudden the crash was and how no one expected it. At 1.38 into the scene you can see people running towards the car and can hear the objects that they are throwing onto the car such as rocks. These sounds are also met with the sounds of everyone in the car screaming. The sounds of the characters screaming shows the audience how scared they are and the panic state that they are in. At 1.46 you can hear the people outside of the car shouting at the ones inside it showing their aggressiveness and their want to get into the car and hurt them, these sounds tell the audience about how dangerous the situation the characters are in is. At 1.50 when the character to try to escape by reversing heir car, a motorbike can be heard and is then shown following them. After this at 2.02 a gunshot is heard and Julian is shot in the neck, this sound is then followed by high pitched noise which I think is in the perspective of Theo and what he is hearing meaning that its diegetic. At 2.06 you can hear the other characters crying and how traumatised they are.