Unit 21: Plan & Deliver a Pitch for a Media Product
LO1 Be able to generate ideas for an original media product based on a client brief
1.1 P1 Generate Ideas
1.2 M1 Generate Ideas
Slide 1 Hello Ethan Leigh here today talking about my potential ideas for a short Sci Fi film. In this video presentation about the Sci Fi Genre, i will look at how Sci Fi has changed and how it will influence my final product along with my audience.
Slide 2 The Sci Fi Genre has come a long way since it humble and foggy origins in the form of Cosmic horror, and even during its conception Sci Fi has always been about multiple genres working in tandem based on the social climate, this is why Dystopia has always been so prevalent in Sci Fi. When it comes to creating Sci Fi, however short you must consider which other genres will be influencing the film. Things as simple as shot types and background music can make the difference between the arrival of the alien in “The day the world stood still” and “paul” two very different films with similar concepts but wildly different tones.
Slide 3 The Sci Fi genre can become a major part of a film based solely upon its content and setting, the book “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” would be much more mundane without its setting in the nuclear post apocalypse and the titular androids. Sci Fi settings usually tie into the fictional universe that has been created. Whether that is an alternate timeline where the Germans were Victorious in WW2 or a comepletely forign galaxy that shares very little in common with our own such as Star Wars.
Slide 4The content has a significant impact on tone the laser guns from Star Wars are far less violent than the Boltguns of Warhammer 40k even though in essence the act of shooting someone is the same the more gritty content of Warhammer 40k allows for less family friendly Sci Fi. With how vast the Sci Fi genre is I wanted to map out the most broad concepts for my short Sci Fi film.
Slide 5 In relative terms the brief seemed easy enough to adapt however I focused on the key term “Presenting Science Fiction” and so I wanted present as many well known tropes of Sci Fi. The best way to present tropes is through the subversion however this runs a fine line between complementary parody and downright irritating. Sci Fi audiences traditionally for the most part were teenagers and younger adults however as of the last Ten years Sci Fi has become decidedly less niche and opened itself up to more general audiences and so I am going to produce my film for a more general audience most likely PG in accordance with the brief
Slide 6 My first idea was to blend live action with special effects in a similar way to the destiny 2 game trailer.This would allow for substantial use of special effects. Provide an effective looking product on a smaller scale. Capture the conventions of the Sci Fi genre.The special effects would be a major hurdle not to mention I lack the skill to replicate this style.
Slide 7 My second idea was a parody of the Aliens films. To Capture suspense and blend genres Allow for more creative camera angles Relatively easy to make people look the part it would be hard to create a convincing alien May require a lot of people to shoot
Slide 8 My third idea seemed the most viable, an Invasion Of The Body Snatchers or Doctor Who parody in our schoolThese films whilst simplistic in their concept are staples of the sci fi genre.Whilst the thing employed some of the greatest practical effects of any film to date it would be possible to recreate the supersense in a cheesy B movie style Doctor Who takes a lot a measures to keep production costs down which could be easily copiedWhilst parody has potential my project still has to have a stand alone identity.
Slide 9 I came to the decision to make the doctor who parody as a result of my brief making sure the my product was both family friendly and undeniably science fiction. My second idea was not necessarily family friendly due to its overwhelming horror theme and as such could not be used. My first idea was more suitable for my client brief as it allowed for a more family friendly look at sci fi however i found that itr would be too difficult to create given the extensive use of CGI.
Slide 10 My first idea was rejected for being too difficult to create My second idea had to be dropped as well for not matching the client brief by being too scary for children In the end my final idea strikes a balance between presenting science fiction and being suitable for all ages taking inspiration from the Doctor Who series which is beloved by adults and many children alike
Slide 2 The Sci Fi Genre has come a long way since it humble and foggy origins in the form of Cosmic horror, and even during its conception Sci Fi has always been about multiple genres working in tandem based on the social climate, this is why Dystopia has always been so prevalent in Sci Fi. When it comes to creating Sci Fi, however short you must consider which other genres will be influencing the film. Things as simple as shot types and background music can make the difference between the arrival of the alien in “The day the world stood still” and “paul” two very different films with similar concepts but wildly different tones.
Slide 3 The Sci Fi genre can become a major part of a film based solely upon its content and setting, the book “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” would be much more mundane without its setting in the nuclear post apocalypse and the titular androids. Sci Fi settings usually tie into the fictional universe that has been created. Whether that is an alternate timeline where the Germans were Victorious in WW2 or a comepletely forign galaxy that shares very little in common with our own such as Star Wars.
Slide 4The content has a significant impact on tone the laser guns from Star Wars are far less violent than the Boltguns of Warhammer 40k even though in essence the act of shooting someone is the same the more gritty content of Warhammer 40k allows for less family friendly Sci Fi. With how vast the Sci Fi genre is I wanted to map out the most broad concepts for my short Sci Fi film.
Slide 5 In relative terms the brief seemed easy enough to adapt however I focused on the key term “Presenting Science Fiction” and so I wanted present as many well known tropes of Sci Fi. The best way to present tropes is through the subversion however this runs a fine line between complementary parody and downright irritating. Sci Fi audiences traditionally for the most part were teenagers and younger adults however as of the last Ten years Sci Fi has become decidedly less niche and opened itself up to more general audiences and so I am going to produce my film for a more general audience most likely PG in accordance with the brief
Slide 6 My first idea was to blend live action with special effects in a similar way to the destiny 2 game trailer.This would allow for substantial use of special effects. Provide an effective looking product on a smaller scale. Capture the conventions of the Sci Fi genre.The special effects would be a major hurdle not to mention I lack the skill to replicate this style.
Slide 7 My second idea was a parody of the Aliens films. To Capture suspense and blend genres Allow for more creative camera angles Relatively easy to make people look the part it would be hard to create a convincing alien May require a lot of people to shoot
Slide 8 My third idea seemed the most viable, an Invasion Of The Body Snatchers or Doctor Who parody in our schoolThese films whilst simplistic in their concept are staples of the sci fi genre.Whilst the thing employed some of the greatest practical effects of any film to date it would be possible to recreate the supersense in a cheesy B movie style Doctor Who takes a lot a measures to keep production costs down which could be easily copiedWhilst parody has potential my project still has to have a stand alone identity.
Slide 9 I came to the decision to make the doctor who parody as a result of my brief making sure the my product was both family friendly and undeniably science fiction. My second idea was not necessarily family friendly due to its overwhelming horror theme and as such could not be used. My first idea was more suitable for my client brief as it allowed for a more family friendly look at sci fi however i found that itr would be too difficult to create given the extensive use of CGI.
Slide 10 My first idea was rejected for being too difficult to create My second idea had to be dropped as well for not matching the client brief by being too scary for children In the end my final idea strikes a balance between presenting science fiction and being suitable for all ages taking inspiration from the Doctor Who series which is beloved by adults and many children alike
LO2 Be able to create a proposal and pitch for an original media product based on a given brief
P2 Create A Written Proposal
Sci Fi Film Proposal
Prepared for 21st Century Productions
Prepared by Bread Film Productions
Executive Summary
How I met the brief - The key points of the were the family friendly target audience and the the presentation Science Fiction. As a parody of Doctor Who (A series beloved by children and adults alike) it was easy to get a feel for the tone, in that it will be frightening to younger children but nothing too intense, with a hearty helping of humor to balance out the darker moments. We thought in order to present the science fiction genre parody would be the most efficient
About us - Bread Productions have been involved in the making of a short film in the past. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sV6Mc54Lt40) This film was also a parody so we have some aspects of parody in our past and presented a more in depth look at genre and motif.
Our ideas - Our idea was to parody the famous Doctor Who series, by having a student from the future travel back in time to save a student from a rapidly spreading alien virus and having to avoid the infected students whilst traversing the contaminated school.
How the film will look - The film will use a wide variety of shots to make the school look as imposing as possible we would also like to avoid directly showing the infected students to create greater tension and to make the most of what few special effects we intend to use. The film going to have a lot of quick edits to make the pacing more frantic. The main reason behind my intended use of more creative shot types it to make the most of our relatively small cast as we need a time traveler, a student and a crew of zombies, however we only have two people.
Film Summary
Working film title - Arrival
Type of Product - My product will be a short Sci Fi film a snippet of the whole film to gain the approval of our client before I go on to create the full film.
Running Time 4 minutes
Synopsis - The plot is set in motion when declining grades cause teachers to poison the canteen food with a toxin intended to increase intelligence in its students. Instead the food turns the students into mindless beings sort on spreading the toxin and doing tests. One student is met with a time traveler who comes back in time to stop the toxin from spreading all over Liverpool.
Key Scene -
(The arrival of the time traveler) This scene will be the titular arrival the time traveler will appear in in a huge flash of light. The time traveler will be dressed in outdated 80s clothes even though he's from the future. The Student and the time traveler will proceed to argue over this outdated fashion and time travel. During this argument the student will list off time travel plot holes in popular media and the time traveler will argue against him with the comeback that they are movies. The student proceeds to point out the plot holes in this film. The audio of the student will fade out as the time traveler looses interest and zaps the student with a laser pistol, then travels back in time to rectify this mistake anew.
The Scene will show off the aspects of parody that are the main selling points of our film along with the strange and often dark off kilter humour that will appeal to children and adults alike.
Character List
Time Traveler - Tom Cooper
Student - David Cureton
“Infected Student” - Ethan Leigh
Conventions of Science Fiction Action Film Themes:
The Science fiction genre is for the most part about the Science fiction setting and props being used to make a character feel out of place. Even in Star Wars, luke is introduced to the Jedi a foreign concept to him. Other conventions consist of technology being prevalent in the plot and pseudoscience..
Setting / Locations: West Derby School, West Derby school Exterior. West Derby has an intimidating presence, the balconies overlooking the courtyard make the entire school look oppressive.
Personnel / Cast / Crew / Job roles:Tom Cooper as the Time Traveler, Ethan Leigh as the infected student with Petra Chestovich as our camera operator.
Equipment: Camera, Glows sticks for “Practical effects”, Face painting make up.
Script Sample
Ethan - Jesus we got another poor score from Ofsted. If this keeps up we the school is going to be closed down.
David - And that’s a bad thing because? This place has been going to hell since we got here is only a matter of time. What did they say anyway?
Ethan - (Reading the OFSTED report) “Parkview High School has been steadily declining in quality since the completion of the new building in 2010 and this decline has been attributed to the sub par intelligence of the students”... Rude.
David - Ugh what does it matter we are leaving soon anyway.
Ethan - What’s up with you?
David - I feel a bit sick I think that it was the school dinner.
Ethan - Well don’t look at me I had my sandwiches.
David - (In a patronising tone) Did your fiance make it extra special for you? I am going to go the bathroom I really don’t feel well.
Ethan - Sarcasm Thanks for sharing I’ll see you later David.
Budget:
I’ll try to keep the budget as low as possible maybe below 20 pounds. All we need is a few props that can be sourced from Discount stores such as the 99p store or B&M.
How I will meet the needs of the Target Audience:
My target audience is children and their parents as this is supposed to be a family friendly film so in essence no blood or strong language, we have went with a more light hearted plot that may be suitably scary for young children like the film Coraline
My consideration of Legal & Ethical Issues:
I will need to make sure not to use and insensitive language so as not to offend anybody. We haven't been able to to get a diverse cast as our school the base for our cast is lacking in such diversity considering it is an all boys school we are not going be able to source in many if any women to star in our film. As such our cast consists of three men and one woman who is operating the camera.
I am going to be using royalty free music so I don’t infringe on Copyright. I will also keep Products out of shot to prevent misrepresentation and infringement on copyright law.
Our actors will have to fill in an extensive permission slip as a result of being sixth form students my actors are on the cusp of being minors so it is better safe than sued. Along with that we are not going to disclose any personal information regarding our cast
BBFC:
With regards to our film it will be a family friendly film according to the BBFC a PG rating consists of General viewing, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children. A PG film should not unsettle a child aged around eight or older. Unaccompanied children of any age may watch, but parents are advised to consider whether the content may upset younger, or more sensitive, children. As such our film will not be too violent or Scary with little and infrequent strong language and no swearing.
P3: Plan & Prepare a Presentation/Pitch
Rough Sketches
Sci Fi Pitch Script
Slide 1 Hello and welcome to Bread Films presentation for our upcoming Sci Fi Film in partnership with Tom Cooper Productions, The Arrival.
Slide 2 Welcome to bread films productions pitch for our short Sci Fi film the arrival. Here at Bread films we have striven to provide films worth getting lost in tales that immerse our viewers and bring them back for more. The Arrival is our chance to get moviegoers lost on the not too distant future “The Arrival is a Sci Fi comedy in which a time traveler must save the last student of parkview high school before an alien infection spreads to the entire city.” The Comedy elements come more from the outlandishness of the scenarios our characters find themselves in rather than a long stream of “jokes” Parody is often used to simply point out aspects of genre rather than add a new insight. Our film will take a scathing look at the future, with more than a hearty helping of commentary on the continuation of current society into the future. Looking at how schools are no longer about education but jumping through mandatory hoops and how disposable everything including life is in a consumerist society *Bread films are not in any way associated with the socialist party.
I made this addition in order to express the aspects of parody that I previously mentioned in my presentation, I have honed in on how I will present parody in my film
Slide 3 Our initial plan went through meticulous drafting before we arrived at our final plan. Part of this planning was interviewing fans of Sci-Fi as well as general film goers to see how our film might appeal to the current mass market. Several scripts were drafted as well as multiple contingencies in the event that one of our cast was not able to work on the film. It was during this stage of development that we planned to keep our budget as low as possible only buying a few props. We had planned to avoid using many special effects as we have limited experience in that field. This draft was chosen over all the others as it proved to be the most engaging whilst still possible to create on a budget as limited as ours. This short addition was made to more clearly present why I chose the draft that I did. Necessity to compensate for a lack of skill and our incredibly small cast.
Slide 4 The arrival is about an alien serum that is place in school dinners to increase intelligence, instead it turns the students into mindless drones. A time traveler comes through time to save the last of the students and cure the plague before it spreads throughout the entire city with the hope that he can save a lone soul to fight the spreading infection. The arrival will balance the darker elements with humor to make sure that the film still leans towards the more family friendly aspects of the film.
Slide 5 The most challenging aspect of the brief was by far the target audience, creating a family film can be deceptively difficult. The film was not a case of a basic narrative to engage children for a short time but to create a film that can entertain the whole family. In films created by the giants of family entertainment such as disney they manage to engage through a truly captivating narrative, and in striving for excellence we at bread films are confident that we have done the same. The primary factor that make our film standout is the engaging narrative being used to grab the attention of
This small addition was made in order to smooth over just what made our film unique in the sea of my competitors saying “It will have a few surreptitious adult gags in the film” it will be a relief to the client to see a “unique” take on family friendly entertainment.
Slide 6 As previously expressed i believe that parody will be the most adequate way to express a plethora of the conventions of science fiction. Parody will allow for acknowledgement of these tropes also such is the nature of parody. The Film takes place in the not too distant future, education in Parkside High School has been declining in an effort to increase student education the Government put an alien serum found in an asteroid into school dinners research suggests that this will increase education. The serum turns students into information collecting husks. It's up to a lone time traveler to return in to the past and save a single student to stop this infection with varying results…Being a parody, our films representation of the science fiction genre will be to subvert what is expected. With that in mind, what sets apart good parody from bad Parody is adding something new rather than just pointing it out and saying “Isn’t that weird huh?”
Slide 7 We have conducted countless hours of extensive research into the science fiction genre (If watching netflix in a semi conscious state, that can medically be considered brain dead, is considered research) Our main sources of inspiration were the ever popular Doctor Who and the increasingly popular Rick and Morty. Our intention was to replicate the comedic parody nature of Rick and Morty in a family friendly manner, with similarly absurdist comedy without the adult themes and excessive violence
Slide 8 Bread films have had experience working with parody in the past parodying silent films however the sci fi genre is a relatively new challenge to overcome. In order to gauge the market we interviewed sci fi fans as well as conducting the research i previously mentioned. From this consumer research we found that parody is indeed welcome in today's oversaturated sci fi market as it would provide a welcome respite from the marked seriousness of the genre. Films like Guardians of the Galaxy are a prime example of this welcome parody. The film stands out due to its comedy however it is still a conventional narrative that allows viewers to become invested in the Characters.
Slide 9 In summation The arrival is a film inspired by the titans of modern family media, Disney through a mixture of engaging storytelling and and non patronising tone we can appeal to people of all ages. We are bringing an original story that will engage the viewer making sure that they leave the film talking about it. It is a mix of comedy and Sci Fi that I think you will agree is so popular today, that will lift this film above its competition and capture children and adults alike.
Slide 10 Thank You for listening if you have any questions please ask!
*Indicate Amendments made after completing potential client questions
Slide 1 Hello and welcome to Bread Films presentation for our upcoming Sci Fi Film in partnership with Tom Cooper Productions, The Arrival.
Slide 2 Welcome to bread films productions pitch for our short Sci Fi film the arrival. Here at Bread films we have striven to provide films worth getting lost in tales that immerse our viewers and bring them back for more. The Arrival is our chance to get moviegoers lost on the not too distant future “The Arrival is a Sci Fi comedy in which a time traveler must save the last student of parkview high school before an alien infection spreads to the entire city.” The Comedy elements come more from the outlandishness of the scenarios our characters find themselves in rather than a long stream of “jokes” Parody is often used to simply point out aspects of genre rather than add a new insight. Our film will take a scathing look at the future, with more than a hearty helping of commentary on the continuation of current society into the future. Looking at how schools are no longer about education but jumping through mandatory hoops and how disposable everything including life is in a consumerist society *Bread films are not in any way associated with the socialist party.
I made this addition in order to express the aspects of parody that I previously mentioned in my presentation, I have honed in on how I will present parody in my film
Slide 3 Our initial plan went through meticulous drafting before we arrived at our final plan. Part of this planning was interviewing fans of Sci-Fi as well as general film goers to see how our film might appeal to the current mass market. Several scripts were drafted as well as multiple contingencies in the event that one of our cast was not able to work on the film. It was during this stage of development that we planned to keep our budget as low as possible only buying a few props. We had planned to avoid using many special effects as we have limited experience in that field. This draft was chosen over all the others as it proved to be the most engaging whilst still possible to create on a budget as limited as ours. This short addition was made to more clearly present why I chose the draft that I did. Necessity to compensate for a lack of skill and our incredibly small cast.
Slide 4 The arrival is about an alien serum that is place in school dinners to increase intelligence, instead it turns the students into mindless drones. A time traveler comes through time to save the last of the students and cure the plague before it spreads throughout the entire city with the hope that he can save a lone soul to fight the spreading infection. The arrival will balance the darker elements with humor to make sure that the film still leans towards the more family friendly aspects of the film.
Slide 5 The most challenging aspect of the brief was by far the target audience, creating a family film can be deceptively difficult. The film was not a case of a basic narrative to engage children for a short time but to create a film that can entertain the whole family. In films created by the giants of family entertainment such as disney they manage to engage through a truly captivating narrative, and in striving for excellence we at bread films are confident that we have done the same. The primary factor that make our film standout is the engaging narrative being used to grab the attention of
This small addition was made in order to smooth over just what made our film unique in the sea of my competitors saying “It will have a few surreptitious adult gags in the film” it will be a relief to the client to see a “unique” take on family friendly entertainment.
Slide 6 As previously expressed i believe that parody will be the most adequate way to express a plethora of the conventions of science fiction. Parody will allow for acknowledgement of these tropes also such is the nature of parody. The Film takes place in the not too distant future, education in Parkside High School has been declining in an effort to increase student education the Government put an alien serum found in an asteroid into school dinners research suggests that this will increase education. The serum turns students into information collecting husks. It's up to a lone time traveler to return in to the past and save a single student to stop this infection with varying results…Being a parody, our films representation of the science fiction genre will be to subvert what is expected. With that in mind, what sets apart good parody from bad Parody is adding something new rather than just pointing it out and saying “Isn’t that weird huh?”
Slide 7 We have conducted countless hours of extensive research into the science fiction genre (If watching netflix in a semi conscious state, that can medically be considered brain dead, is considered research) Our main sources of inspiration were the ever popular Doctor Who and the increasingly popular Rick and Morty. Our intention was to replicate the comedic parody nature of Rick and Morty in a family friendly manner, with similarly absurdist comedy without the adult themes and excessive violence
Slide 8 Bread films have had experience working with parody in the past parodying silent films however the sci fi genre is a relatively new challenge to overcome. In order to gauge the market we interviewed sci fi fans as well as conducting the research i previously mentioned. From this consumer research we found that parody is indeed welcome in today's oversaturated sci fi market as it would provide a welcome respite from the marked seriousness of the genre. Films like Guardians of the Galaxy are a prime example of this welcome parody. The film stands out due to its comedy however it is still a conventional narrative that allows viewers to become invested in the Characters.
Slide 9 In summation The arrival is a film inspired by the titans of modern family media, Disney through a mixture of engaging storytelling and and non patronising tone we can appeal to people of all ages. We are bringing an original story that will engage the viewer making sure that they leave the film talking about it. It is a mix of comedy and Sci Fi that I think you will agree is so popular today, that will lift this film above its competition and capture children and adults alike.
Slide 10 Thank You for listening if you have any questions please ask!
*Indicate Amendments made after completing potential client questions
3. M2: Make a list of potential client questions and answer them. Use the answers to amend your proposal.
Potential Client Questions
Q How have you met the brief?
A I made a narrative that that appeals to a wide variety of ages. The narrative appeals to children without being patronising. Whilst appealing to adults with its humor and engaging narrative. Our film appeals to children through its comedic narrative. Our film questions many aspects of typical Sci-Fi and this deconstruction of the genre is where the majority of our comedy will be derived. The appeals to both children and adults as both age groups can find humor in effectively “poking fun” at conventional science fiction.
Q How will you create the many special effects you intend to use?
A I can access a vast library of green screen effects on youtube, from there it will be as simple as putting a green screen up behind our actors and shooting it whilst adequately lit. We can key out the green screen background and superimpose our subject onto a virtual background, allowing us to make effects for our “time portals’ or even spaceships in the sky.
Q Why was this draft chosen?
A This draft was chosen over all the others as it proved to be the most engaging whilst still possible to create on a budget as limited as ours.
It proved to be the most engaging as it brought the most original ideas to the table, our other drafts were all blatant parodies of other popular Sci-Fi films such as a poor Aliens parody.
Q What BBFC rating will your film aim for?
A The more mature jokes within our film and the limited fantasy violence will prevent our film from getting a rating of U so we are aiming for a rating of PG meaning that the film is still accessible to children with parental permission.
Our films is assured to be a PG as a result of the mild imatable violence present in the film it transcends the belt of fantasy violence as the “characters” who fight are inherently human regardless of what they are portraying. The film is too dark to be any lower than a PG, whilst nowhere near scary enough to be called a horror film, it has dark themes such as infection and loss of free will.
Q How will you make the school look like the intended setting?
A We will have stark sickly lighting with a filter put over in post production to make the school look like a contagion is present.
Other than that we will likely shoot from high angles such as the balconies, this will make the school look oppressive and sinister with the shots looming over head, emphasizing the extra terrestrial threat.
Q How will you present the Sci Fi Genre?
A Being a parody, our films representation of the science fiction genre will be to subvert what is expected. With that in mind, what sets apart good parody from bad Parody is adding something new rather than just pointing it out and saying “Isn’t that weird huh?” We endeavour to provide a more interesting and comedic look at conventional science fiction.
Q How is your film creative and imaginative?
A As previously stated parody is often used to simply point out aspects of genre rather than add a new insight. Our film will take a scathing look at the future, with more than a hearty helping of commentary on the continuation of current society into the future. Looking at how schools are no longer about education but jumping through mandatory hoops and how disposable everything including life is in a consumerist society *Bread films are not in any way associated with the socialist party.
Above on my original script are the amendments I made I have highlighted them in green.
Q How have you met the brief?
A I made a narrative that that appeals to a wide variety of ages. The narrative appeals to children without being patronising. Whilst appealing to adults with its humor and engaging narrative. Our film appeals to children through its comedic narrative. Our film questions many aspects of typical Sci-Fi and this deconstruction of the genre is where the majority of our comedy will be derived. The appeals to both children and adults as both age groups can find humor in effectively “poking fun” at conventional science fiction.
Q How will you create the many special effects you intend to use?
A I can access a vast library of green screen effects on youtube, from there it will be as simple as putting a green screen up behind our actors and shooting it whilst adequately lit. We can key out the green screen background and superimpose our subject onto a virtual background, allowing us to make effects for our “time portals’ or even spaceships in the sky.
Q Why was this draft chosen?
A This draft was chosen over all the others as it proved to be the most engaging whilst still possible to create on a budget as limited as ours.
It proved to be the most engaging as it brought the most original ideas to the table, our other drafts were all blatant parodies of other popular Sci-Fi films such as a poor Aliens parody.
Q What BBFC rating will your film aim for?
A The more mature jokes within our film and the limited fantasy violence will prevent our film from getting a rating of U so we are aiming for a rating of PG meaning that the film is still accessible to children with parental permission.
Our films is assured to be a PG as a result of the mild imatable violence present in the film it transcends the belt of fantasy violence as the “characters” who fight are inherently human regardless of what they are portraying. The film is too dark to be any lower than a PG, whilst nowhere near scary enough to be called a horror film, it has dark themes such as infection and loss of free will.
Q How will you make the school look like the intended setting?
A We will have stark sickly lighting with a filter put over in post production to make the school look like a contagion is present.
Other than that we will likely shoot from high angles such as the balconies, this will make the school look oppressive and sinister with the shots looming over head, emphasizing the extra terrestrial threat.
Q How will you present the Sci Fi Genre?
A Being a parody, our films representation of the science fiction genre will be to subvert what is expected. With that in mind, what sets apart good parody from bad Parody is adding something new rather than just pointing it out and saying “Isn’t that weird huh?” We endeavour to provide a more interesting and comedic look at conventional science fiction.
Q How is your film creative and imaginative?
A As previously stated parody is often used to simply point out aspects of genre rather than add a new insight. Our film will take a scathing look at the future, with more than a hearty helping of commentary on the continuation of current society into the future. Looking at how schools are no longer about education but jumping through mandatory hoops and how disposable everything including life is in a consumerist society *Bread films are not in any way associated with the socialist party.
Above on my original script are the amendments I made I have highlighted them in green.
LO3 Be able to pitch ideas on a proposed media product and respond to questions
P4: Pitch ideas to a client
M3: Show an understanding of feedback and be able to respond to questions
D1: Evidence evaluation of feedback to help develop idea
I have identified the following points as the key pieces of feedback.
Is this suitable for the time constraints?
How will you appeal to all ages?
How will you create the effects?
What makes my film unique?
How will I present the Sci Fi genre?
Responses to relevant feedback
I have looked back on my feedback and highlighted only the relevant feedback for improvements and not general feedback about how I gave my pitch. Below I have taken measures to act upon my feedback and amend my pitch.
Its this suitable for the time constraints?
I will amend my pitch to make sure that I convey that my narrative is suitable for the time constraints within the brief. The film will only consist of the trying to get the student out of the school, it is a relatively simple plot and can be executed very quickly. My film is cut up into four, one minute segments in which the time traveller tries to evacuate the student and ultimately fails. This mean that the film will be quite short whilst still conveying my relatively simple plot.
How
How will you appeal to all ages?
Admittedly this was the weakest part of my pitch. I wanted my film to appeal all ages due to an engaging narrative not just because it has a few jokes with double entendres. To amend this is relatively simple (in theory) The film is for the most part is a horror action film so the action and pace should be enough to engage all audiences, humor really shouldn’t play into it. However my film does use humour in its own strange off kilter way, the sheer absurdity if where the humour comes from in many ways will be more funny than the actual "punchline" an example of this would be how frequently the protagonist meets his, cartoonishly over the top, end.
How will you create the effects?
Well I don’t have the greatest experience with editing. From my limited research during the pre production of this film I saw it was easy to use sony vegas to create green screen effects. To amend my speech I would add in a slide that goes more into my editing process, using a green screen with sony vegas to highlight an area of negative space and replace the background with an effect.
Such effects can be found on youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjyzNY5qD3s&t=0s&list=PLeRGwsngMKZzz1RhCT3HqA4HWjI8WvvWw&index=1 This is an example of these effects. I felt that this amendment was required as part of showing evidence that I can in fact deliver on what is promised.
What makes my film unique?
As for what makes my film unique I would emphasize the fact that death of the main character happens very frequently time travel is used to clean up the mistakes of the inexperienced time traveler. I can create another slide explaining how death will work in this film as the time traveler fights more against bad luck than anything else. This, I believe, is truly unique as very few films treat death with such laksidaiscal disregard for life. I have made this amendment in oreder to appeal to my client. I need to sell my ideas and the best way to do this emphasise what makes my film unique, and so this amendment was crucial.
Below you can see the amendments I have made to my presentation.