Meaning in the Light

     In order for me and my group to capture the emotional disparity within Asher we felt that colors/lighting was the perfect way to represent Asher.

Taxi Driver - 1976

    We want our film to have a cool tone that doesn't have many vibrant colors that could distract the audience while focusing on our protagonist, Asher. This cool tone is meant to resemble the difficulties and challenges that Asher goes through within the film and it capitalizes on this in the very first scene. It's meant to create an atmosphere that follows the emotional state that Asher is in, which contrast his physical appearance. This contrast between him and what the audience sees visually, in terms of color, acts almost like in similarly to Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver, where the main protagonist begins in a more normal state and with the films colors he turns into a mentally messed up character. We want to create a similar environment and have a tone that plays into Asher's emotions. 

    For the first scene where Asher is given a hard time by Austin, ultimately leading up to his murder, Asher will be wearing clothes that highlight his "innocence" and the tone of the film will tell the audience that there is something wrong in the atmosphere which leads up to Austin's end. It also works in a way that symbolizes his home environment, which is very depressing. 

    Then in the second and last scene, where we get a glimpse of Asher's home life, we are going to use darker tones that give into the idea that while Asher is this intelligent, oddly organized man, he still struggles with his home environment. In this scene he has some unusual things going on around to resemble him going through "Murphy's Law" and these darker tones will reveal the depressing ambience that follows him in his life. The lighting here, once again is darker than usual, so even though he's at his house we're going to likely add a tint with the use of Premiere Pro and tools like color grading, which is something I forgot to mention we will do in the first scene as well. It'll allow us to have more control over what our colors will look like, but we'll also focus on incorporating physical products/items that give this sense of tone in both scenes. 

Ray Ouladi - Color Grading Essentials in Premiere Pro

Developing Asher & Austin

     Asher and Austin are to completely different people in terms of personality and image. Asher shares a more formal and OCD like perspective of life, while Austin struggles educationally and has a more "out there" personality. 

    Asher, is 15 years old, a straight A student, only child, and has OCD which keeps him very organized and clean. He also dresses in a very normal student-like way, by wearing a regular white shirt and khaki shorts. This all builds up to hide his mental and psychological problems that are only seen through actions and not looks. The traits and characteristics portray him as a innocent and timid individual that wants no harm and is the contrary of what Austin is. Another thing that we felt would give this character an idea that something was unusual was his name. Asher's name feels as if this person has an outgoing, fun personality. Which in this case would resemble a weird fixation between how Asher is with people and how he is with himself alone. It helps build up the characters portrayal of a double personality. 

    Now, we have Austin, who is 17, has a single Dad, younger sister, is involved in boxing, well-known, and struggles in school. It may seem that even though Austin is not the main character his representation is not as valuable, but it is. He plays a part that constantly demeans Asher, and through his physical appearance it exemplifies the person he is. Austin wears baggy clothes, that makes him appear bigger to work as a reinforcer of his demeaning personality. His background, adds detail and lore on why he struggles so much in school as his relationship between his dad and sister is very complicated. Which works as a way to inform us on why he needs help from Asher on his school work. Also, this name was chosen to help visualize someone who is innocent, but once seen in person it builds a scary looking person that intends to abrupt the peace where ever he is. 

    Both of these, characters contrast each other physically and emotionally, and helps develop a difference between themselves. 

A Blueprint for Our Story

    Following on my previous blog post I feel that I should give a little more information on how my opening will go. I'll be doing this giving in-depth analysis on the first couple of scenes in the opening. It's also worth mentioning that I used the storyboard template from my, "Bringing it to the Board" blog. 

PART 1:

   Starting of the film, it fades from black, straight into Asher's legs as he walks across a park. The shot then cuts to a medium shot of the back of Asher. The shot after then shows Austin who's the "bully" from his side, walking the opposite direction of Asher. Then it cuts to a close up of Asher's face as he sees Austin walking towards him, where the camera cuts to a side shot of Asher's face. Then a medium/long shot of Asher and Austin, shows the moment where Austin intentionally bumps into Asher, to get a hold of him.

    During this sequence there's not much going on, but it helps the audience identify that these two characters do not like each other and or even have a past. Also, something that isn't showcased is that in this scene, Asher has a paper and pencil while walking. Which is a subtle foreshadow of what happens later on. 

PART 2:

    The second part of the storyboard, focuses more on the dialogue and conclusion of these two individuals. Here there is a square with, "Dialogue" which is to give us a blueprint on the familiarity that this part is going to have to when they bump into each other. Then the second square shows their conversation has ended, leading to Austin walking away after demanding Asher for something. As Austin walks away, Asher is paralyzed and stands still turning around to face Austin's back. Here the camera cuts to Asher's hand showing the pencil from earlier, to identify and tell the audience that he is "armed." Then the camera cuts to a long shot of Asher running very fast towards Austin, with his pencil in hand. Then it cuts to over the should-ish shot of Asher about to kill Austin.

    In this scene the whole point is to show the switch the flicks off on Asher, as he gets ridiculed by Austin. The pencil was the subtle foreshadow I mentioned earlier and it works to demonstrate how sick Asher is, through killing someone with a pencil. Furthermore, the murder scene is very abrupt and portrays a sickened Asher. 

PART 3:

     Now, to transition into the resolution between Asher and Austin, we see a black screen right after the pencil makes contact with Austin's neck. During this black screen we hear a thump to signal that Austin has been killed. Then we cut back to Asher to his scary, dangerous eyes, which is used to transition through a match cut of Asher, days prior to the murder. 

    The reason, why this is where this scene ends is because as a collective group we are still pondering on what and how we can represent Asher's psychological problems caused my "Murphy's Law." Our plan is to have him in his room showing unusual things that represent his problems, and here is the main part that we are trying to solve. We are likely to solve this issue when we finalize our script next week and have our foundation completely set. But, yeah so far this is what our storyboard looks like and I'll keep updating any changes as we go on. 

It's Just an Idea

     For this portfolio project that I'm working on with Vanessa and Brennan, we've come to think of different directions our story could go into. Some ideas were mostly based on some kid either discovering some mythical item, or finding a new "world." However, we landed on the idea that we we're going to base our story on a kid that got bullied by this older kid and the bullied kid would murder the older kid. We ran with this idea and started to develop it even more. 

    We evolved and expanded this story, by wanting the story to begin through its end like Bryan Singer's The Usual Suspects. In this film, the story begins with the ending and the film itself explains the events leading up to the mysterious conclusion between all characters. We found that showing the murder at the beginning of the film would be best to introduce the protagonist, Asher, whom, in this case would be the bullied kid. Then the rest of the films story would showcase the mental and psychological events leading up to the murder. This storyline, would show scenarios that are in relation to Murphy's law, where "anything that can go wrong, will go wrong." Meaning that Asher would go through traumatic events through the film, fueling him to the point of the murder. 

    One thing that I believe and have received feedback on is the cliche archetype that comes with a kid getting bullied and killing his bully. I say this because in the opening Asher gets confronted by the bully to give him his homework and that's what ends up fueling Asher's rage. So, from the perspective of what my group and I think, is that we should anchor somewhere else on in terms of a new idea. Meaning that we believe we should try and have a similar bases of the story, but switch up certain aspects where Asher instead of being bullied, he gets assaulted or something along those lines. The whole point of this is to make the scene feel more authentic in terms of how the audience feels about the encounter. Next week, we are going to try and develop the story just a bit more so we are able to then finalize our script, since we, in a way, are trying to make a more realistic interaction that creates a justifiable reason on why Asher kills this other demeaning kid. 

    Now, just after the part of the murder, we want the next scene to be the actual beginning of the story where we see the mental weaknesses that Asher has. As of now we want to create a match cut with whatever the first part of the opening ends with to transition into the beginning. Once we are set in this new environment we want to create and show things that Asher those that show his messed up characteristics. So, maybe Asher is researching something out of the ordinary that could possibly be incriminating or maybe he is playing with an object in a strange or eerie way. This is to build up and develop Asher's character, in order for the audience to know, straight away, that Asher has psychological/mental reasons on why he decided to kill this kid in the beginning of the film. It's almost a form of foreshadowing that works to slowly build up Ashers way of life. 

    As of now, this is what we have and feel our story is going to direct itself in. Hopefully by the end of week four we'll be set and finished with our script so we can begin our planning and production.  

FILMS THAT INSPIRED:

The Silence of the Lambs - 1991

The Usual Suspects - 1995

Zodiac - 2007

A Theory?

    Every piece of media has some sort of meaning and identity behind it. Theories, represent and satisfy the narratives that characters portray. One specific theory that follows this, is the Binary Opposition Theory by Levi Strauss. 

    This theory reflects the experience and roles within oppositions like good vs. evil or birth and death. It creates a juxtaposition between two things that are so far from each other but similar in their own way. By incorporating this theory elements in a story are built up by the comparison and contrast between two polar opposite ideas. 

    As my groups story becomes more polished it's become apparent that the kid who gets mentally and emotionally put down and is seen as this smart, caring individual, faces many challenges with good and bad. The second kid whose main focus is to demean the other kid, plays the role of a bad, evil person, and is portrayed as the driving factor that turns the first kid into a psychopathic killer. The good within the first kid is characterized by his eagerness to always be educated, but struggles to keep the composure by being fueled through hatred from the second kid. It works in a way that makes the audience wonder how and why the first kid is so mentally disrupt. This disruption accelerates the kids need to kill the other kid, which is slowly built up through the movie itself, but can be identified through the opening. Most of what this theory creates is the protagonist facing obstacles between two different entities that are polar opposites of each other. Due to this it makes it a hard but interesting theory to incorporate in the film as the protagonist (first kid) and semi-antagonist (second kid) are both evil in their own ways, but only the first kid has good inside. 

    Overall, this theory will be essential to the outcome and approach the film is taking itself in. The theory will grant a perspective that drives the narrative into a more in-depth idea. By using this theory correctly, the opening/film will have value and meaning that creates an impact to the audience, sending a message of the difficulties faced by the protagonist and the mental tolls taken by him. 

The First Meeting

    When creating a piece of art it's always important that you take time to reflect on your ideas. This can be alone or with a group of individuals that are creating something in the same space. Ideas from other people can help inspire yourself and others in the group. Just a few days ago me and a few other people from class went in a little group and discussed  our ideas for the opening. Here we tried our best to bring in new concepts to those lingering on what to do. It was a place where we saw different perspectives on peoples approach on the project, which to me was a really cool thing to see, because it reminded me that we all see things in a different way and we have our own thoughts, that can create a completely different outcome. 

    This difference in concepts is immediate by our first group member Carolina. Both my group and Carolina did thriller, but the difference was in how we approached the thriller itself. Carolina wanted to create a film that focused on a person that was falsely imprisoned and named "insane." She wanted to include several flashbacks that would develop the protagonist, which was something I noticed was very recurrent between most people's ideas. Carolina was not in much need of help, and had a structured plan and direction. Although, she did ask ways in which her flashbacks could be more effective, and this was something that as a group we tried to help her with.  

    Now, we have Andrea who focused on a post-dystopian society. She wanted to show a women walking around this new broken society in search for food. Then wanted to show flashbacks to society before all the chaos. Andrea also wanted to incorporate a scene with a family where it shows how the family is accustomed to all the dictator like government. Andrea was hesitant on who was going to be the protagonist, so we helped her reach the conclusion that the women at the start of the film would be the main character. This appeared to be helpful to her and allowed her to develop the story just a bit more. She also decided to give a website where you can get permission to use certain copyright songs (copyrightalliance.org).

    After, Andrea, Arantza talked to us about her coming of age film. In this film two best friends would be on their way to college, but through sickness one of the friends would die, leaving the other friend to live and experience college alone. Arantza had little doubts but wondered what was the best way that she could show the best friend was dying in the opening as a form of foreshadowing. We pondered and came to the conclusion that having her either cough blood or show any symptoms would be the best choice. She also shared a website that teaches ways that color can be used in a film. 

   

    Another person that focused on a coming of age film was Amanda. She wanted her film to focus on a girl that is heavily entertained by her sport and goes through a devastating injury, it also showcases memories that lead up to the injury. While, her idea to incorporate these memories was set in stone, she wondered what was the best way to add these memories in a way that help build up to the memory. We discussed this, and came to the idea that the memories should incorporate younger and older versions of the protagonist, where the memories become more and more serious. 

    Lydia was up next, trying to develop a film focusing on Sci-fi. Lydia wanted to show a scientist that is able to put on special glasses and see 5 days into the future. Where this becomes even more interesting is when the scientist looks into the future the special glasses malfunction and he sees himself dead, and the rest of the film is the scientist trying to avoid his own death. Here Lydia, was struggling on how to show the scientist emotions and reaction after finding out about his death. We advised her that the scientist should almost jump as a way to show the characters shock and confusion. 

    Then after Lydia, Eli, who also wanted to make a film involving thriller, began talking about her idea. Compared to the others she was not as solidified, but had a broad idea where it would focus on a therapist that would treat many different people that all went through a very traumatic event. The whole films idea is to showcase how the therapist would be affected and hurt through all its patients. Eli was a little hesitant on how to showcase that every patient had gone through this event, but we suggested that she would show common attributes between each patient. 

    Finally, we have Mateo, who wanted to create a crime/mafia like film, which was my personal favorite but that's because I'm a big fan of mafia movies as whole genre. What he mentioned about his film was that it was going to have a family eating dinner almost like in parts of The Sopranos, where they are extremely expressive of themselves, showing the importance of their family. What Mateo was uncertain about was his way of introducing the family, which we recommended to focus on colors and dialogue. This would create a better scene in terms of how the family structure would work in developing more of the story. 

    To me this meeting, between everyones opinions and advice, was very helpful in understanding ways that other people develop different ideas. People's way of creating is very fascinating, not just because it gives us content, but because it gives us different perspectives of how people see life. Personally, that's something that I appreciate about media in itself. It's honestly a great way to see that we all have a different lense and we can use it to express our thoughts. This was proven to me especially, when I presented my idea to the group and received feedback. For example, when talking about my idea involving a kid who kills his bully after being constantly harassed, and mentioning that my group was having a difficult time on how to show the kids murder, I was given different ideas. Amanda, told me that the screen should go black and then use shadows to show the death, as well as, a voiceover. Then, Carolina, said that the scene should involve the kid just killing the bully with a rock. These were good ideas and made me realize a lot ways that people have their own perspectives. Personally, I'm not sure what me and my group will do since we haven't really discussed the what we'll do for this part yet. 

    Through everything, I felt the experience was great as a whole. Focusing on ways that our thoughts can help develop others ideas, was a needed exercise that I hope to practice more, in and out of class. 

Bringing it to the Board

     During class last week, me and my group were trying to organize our film's introduction. The only times' I've done this was for my music video and one word film and while it was effective I don't think I truly did the best job. So, what I want to try and do for this project is research more of how to create an effective storyboard. While, organizing the broad drafts of the storyboard last week, I felt that there was not a lot of detail and focus on what the film's introduction was going to include. It felt like there were random shots that didn't hold much meaning. This is something that I want to improve on so it becomes more of a helpful tool rather than just images on a piece of paper. 

Storyboard Draft

    Storyboards are used as a way to give directors a guideline of what and how the films shots are going to be taken. They contain important visual information that acts as a blueprint when filming. It all begins by creating a shot list, which is a list containing all of the shots you want to capture. These shots are then listed in order, containing important information like the description of the shot: angle, subject, shot, etc. This list is then transitioned into the actual storyboard itself. The storyboard is what I previously mentioned to be the guideline of the film. This is the part where you actually introduce the visual aspect of the blueprint and bring your shots into eye. 

Storyboard Template

    By bringing the shots to "life" you can say a lot just from the drawing. Since, majority of films include movement it becomes difficult to introduce and shape these thoughts onto a piece of paper. But, by using several squares and arrows you can indicate the type of movement that the shots is using. Another way, movement can be portrayed is by adding text under the square to describe movement, shot size, and action. Meaning that while limited through single frames it is still viable way in which storyboards are used to guide imagination.     

    Although, I've only began a rough draft, I don't want to finalize one on my own and will try to continue to improve my storyboard throughout week 3. Through week 3 I hope to finish the storyboard just so I can stay on schedule. Also, I think it'd be a better idea to do it as a group since it becomes a source of different ideas from members. Just wanted to say that this is one of the reasons why I decided to be in a group; the ability to have different people work together and have different opinions can be a  valuable source that to me is very important when creating a piece of art. 

Heckmann, C. (2025, March 30). How to storyboard a short film — Examples and templates. StudioBinder. https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/how-to-storyboard-a-short-film/