Final Flats Time lapse

• After my first time lapse attempt, I knew that the idea of some flats or a similar location during a sunset is a common conversion. 
• I learnt from past mistakes in my previous time lapse and knew I needed a faster interval between pictures being taken, so this time I chose 30 seconds, and over the course of half an hour approximately 60 pictures got taken. 
• I also learnt that the image needed to be more stable. I created a stand on a bench to place my phone on so that it wouldn't move.
• I then stabilised the video after so it looked more professional.  

Montage Inspiration - Adulthood Trailer

• The montage within the Adulthood trailer begins at 0:21 and finishes at 1:03 and in this time gap there is a number of different shots, I will construct a list of the different shots below.

1. Party scene
2. Couple kissing however if you watch the film you know it actually a hidden drug deal
3. Multiple fight scenes from the previous film
4. Graveyard shot
5. Shot within a block of flats
6. Shots showing features of London e.g. overground trains
7. A Punch
8. Teens running away

• The effectiveness of this montage isn't just the shots used but the transitions between them, there are many shots which fade to black or fade into the next shot, as well as certain shots which are edited to the music by including little features such as flashes or key framing to zoom into the shot, this affect was used to do certain things such as add focus to characters reaction.

• The best type of music that helps add suspense to British urban dramas, especially ones set in London are London grime songs themselves, the song used for the montage is Bashy - 'Kidulthood to Adulthood' which is a grime song, by keeping the song local it makes the film tie more into real life due to the fact that the song is real.

Opening Credits Research

4.3.2.1 and Shank 

 

These are the first pieces of text that we see come up in both of the trailers in 4.3.2.1 and Shank. Instantly the audience first see the titles of other movies related to the genre, allowing the audience to know instantly what the genre is, as well as if it's from an acclaimed producer. The two films they pick 'Adulthood' and 'Kidulthood' are iconic for the Urban Drama genre, therefore if the audience enjoyed these films, they know that they will enjoy the films featured. 

 

 The next point that both the trailers share in common is that they then feature the basic storyline and plot of the film within a few (or one) short sentence/s. The typography that they use relates to the film also, with 4.3.2.1 the iconic London background is shown as a dark silhouette image, and there is an emphasis on 'they' and 'target', showing the film has a group of protagonists and a 'target' based plot.  

Shank uses London again to emphasise the genre of the film, and the date that is not too long away in the future. The line 'the gangs have taken over' would strike a nerve from the audience as gangs pose to be a problem in society. This short declarative statement is combined with the bold font that has been chosen, against the dark and off brown colour. 

4.3.2.1. uses the movie title as an opportunity to create a tag line, with 4 girls, 3 days, 2 cities and 1 chance. This gives more background knowledge to the viewer and creates a tense atmosphere. 

In comparison to this, Shank integrates the movies release date into the tag line and plot overview. The three separate statements are used at different stages of the trailer, but they make sense fully when put together 'This march, there is one rule, kill". The use of the verb 'Kill' implies violence in the film and is used in a way to attract the young audience to this Urban Drama film. The Kill also adds to the implied meaning of the movie's title "Shank" which would only be understood by the youth of today. 

Shank uses the actors names in order to gain credit and recognition for the film, as well as known characters of the film to be recognised by the audience. 

 

Both film titles are used towards the end so that the audience remembers the title. They both continue with the same theme as the other parts of the credits, and share the same typography and backgrounds used. 

Both trailers then continue on with the credits with the main tag line of the films, Shank opts for a longer tag line which takes up 2 spaces within the montage trailer, whereas 4.3.2.1 uses a shorter tag line. Yet both are still related and are important to include into the trailer as the audience will remember them as one of the last things that they see in the trailer. 

Shank then reiterates the release date of the movie. What I found interesting was that 4.3.2.1 didn't mention their release date, and after my research I find that to reduce an audience's desire to see a movie if they do not know when it will be released in the cinema.

Final details of production companies, and actors are mentioned here which is a common convention for all opening credits, and I feel that for total effectiveness we also need to recreate something like this. 

Trailers with voice overs

Trailer 1: Terminator Salvation

In the terminator salvation trailer there is a voice over that covers the vast majority of the two minute trailer, the voice is of the protagonist john connor basically telling the viewers his story and how they got to this point in the war with the robots.
This voice over is merely to give the viewers a small insight to the story and how it relates to the previous terminator films, as in this one it relates back to the story that happened in terminator 1 etc. It also is overshadowed by the immense action going on in the shots behind it, therefore you receive the indication that what happened prior to this film isnt as relevant as what is about to happen, and as it is the last film in the series they make the voice over seem diminished to allow the action to shine through.

Trailer 2: After Earth

The after earth trailer has multiple voice overs, mainly the voice overs in after earth consists of speech that rolls over into a conjoining scene within the trailer so each voice over is intended to have a different impact on the trailer as a whole, however, once again the purpose of the voice overs are to tell a story quickly to allow the viewers to capture as much of the story at once before watching the film.
There is two halves to the voice overs, there are the voice overs before the crash and after the crash, in doing so you separate the two halves of the trailer as in the first half the voice overs are setting up the story line and in the second half the voice overs are speech used in the film, these voice overs are used to intensify the action in the shot.

Trailer 3:Star Trek Into The Darkness

The voice over in the latest star trek trailer is extremely short as it matches the pace of the trailer, in the beginning of the the trailer you hear the words "You think your world is safe" as these words are being said the scenes going on in the trailer are very peaceful, when you match this with the words you get the impression that these peaceful scenes that we have seen are soon to be interrupted by which ever character is speaking. When the voice over has ended the remaining scenes are all jump cuts through out the rest of the trailer which shows the voice overs also acted as a set up for the main segment of the trailer.

Payback Season Deconstruction

Football

• As we saw in Green Street, football is a very important game to the British, and in this trailer we see the fame and power that can come through being good at football. The mid shots show us this by showing the celebrity status that can be founded by good footballers. By having establishing shots in the background of the football stadium, it allows the scene to be instantly recognisable to the audience.
• A grime soundtrack is played behind the shots, and a voice over is used in comparison with this. I have found this to be very common within Urban Dramas, and I believe that we would also have to stick to this convention in order for our Urban Drama trailer to be successful.
• Another common convention for this genre with editing includes combining jump cuts with montage editing, allowing a story to be set out. Therefore we are able to see the lavish lifeless that the football player leads from a variety of different scenes.
• A common media stereo type is that successful footballers are good looking - taking the success of David Beckham - and the main protagonist is dressed in a very suave way that conforms to this. Props such as fast expensive cars and champagne are used together to emphasise this stereotype, and to promote a feeling of jealously from the audience for this lavish lifestyle.

Trouble Caused

• The dominance of power with the main protagonist is shown at the start with the low angle shots. However when opposition is met, this power is threatened and therefore his shots become high angle, therefore diminishing him, and then his opposition is shot with a high angle. Showing that juxtaposition of power that is now between them. 
• The soundtrack is still played as non dietetic sound, however the voice-over is no longer heard, and we hear from the characters instead. This soundtrack is played at a much faster pace, adding more tension to the scene where power is being threatened. 
• Crosscutting between the opposing characters is an effective way to show that they are not on each others sides, this also allows us to see the anger that is felt by the opposition, against the fear that is felt by the main protagonist. 
• We can tell that the once lavish lifestyle is no longer present as much due to the mise en scene of the characters costumes, where tracksuits becoming more prominent and worn by many more character. The gold chain that some characters use are also a common convention that we place upon certain stereotypes. 

Running Scene

• Running scenes/chase scenes are also very common, however in this trailer it doesn't seem that the character running is being chased. We can see this from the medium shots combined with close ups as the camera pans back with him, we can only see the character on his own. 
• The trailer is now in it's climax during this section, and we can tell that the music is becoming more fast paced, and the genre of grime is becoming more clear. 
• Montage editing is still in place, and the cross cutting during these scenes becomes faster. Visual effects are also used to emphasise objects in a scene, they are also slowed down which juxtaposes to the fast soundtrack. 
• Violence is used and therefore weapons are also used like batons. The stereotypical media location of flats is also seen in the background. I think this is another convention that we are going to have to include within our trailer. 

Youngers Trailer Deconstruction

The British urban drama TV show Youngers shown on E4 displays exaggerated conventions found in a typical urban drama.

 

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Location Camera angles feature establishing shots of London, and this trailer is no exception, as we are firs met with the sky line of several high rise flats, shot at night-time, making the genre instantly recognisable for the audience.

Urban drama's allow the audience to have a social relationship with the character with the medium shots combined with close ups that are used. This allows the audience to make their own judgement on the characters, and having them shot close to the camera makes them more relatable to the target audience of a younger generation. 

Family relationships are also often shown within urban dramas, and the two shots of the teenagers and their parents shows how there is a level of respect for the parents, and how they mean a lot to the teens. Long shots of chase scenes are often found and raise the level of tension within a scene, however on this estate, a car is used instead of two people running, adding a more modern and more tense effect to the scene.

Sound The sound we hear first mimics that of an explosion or a gun shot as violence is a common convention, but as the trailer goes on, no violence appears to be shown. A voice over is also used throughout the trailer which is not uncommon, it aids the trailer in having a story line that the audience can follow along with.

This voice over is combined with a combination of music tracks from the same generation, more commonly featuring rap, or grime music. Characters used in urban dramas are conventionally black or mixed raced boys.

The mum featured has a strong African accent that is exaggerated to show how her traditional views juxtapose the views of a westernised teenager. "Endz", "Bruv" and other slang words are used that also aid the genre. 

Editing
Montage editing is used as with all urban dramas, this allows a story to be set out and the audience are able to meet the characters that will feature within the programme, and the jump cuts show the various situations that the characters are faced with. 

Mise en Scene
Mise en Scene is very important when it comes to urban dramas as characters become defined by what they wear and what they surround themselves with. In urban drama's, the tracksuit/snap back combination is very common and conforms to the media representation of young people.

However we see a character in a suit, this subverts from what we expect, and moves him away from the same expectations that are placed upon other characterised.

The type of car that is used is important as well, as connotations of a boy racer type come with it, however it would not be such an expensive car, as that would be unrealistic to use within the drama. 

Sket - Trailer Deconstruction

This establishing shot is what is setting the scene for the film, Urban dramas are

meant to be shot in urban, inner city locations so London is the best place to do them. The most important shots to be used are establishing shots as it gives the viewer an accurate image of what to expect, e.g. if it is in the rougher areas of London you would expect more violent scenes, involving gangs, weapons etc.

The mise-en-scene of this shot is very typical and it shows her to be an outsider as she is not conforming to the dress sense of the area. The three males about to approach the female are all dressed in black, baggy clothing, similar to the hoodie culture that took london by storm and depicted how many youths dressed in recent days. This also shows us how youth activity flourishes at night making it a dangerous place. This is another shot that uses stereotypes of youths.

The typography of the photo is very important because of two things, the colour as well as the boldness of the text as they clash with each other however they conform to the story behind the film. 

The pink shows the femininity within the females that are portrayed in Sket and the bold writing shows the strength they must show in order to survive in a male dominated society, these two factors together create the typography used in this trailer.

The sound which goes along with this shot is really powerful as the woman in this shot is dead and all you can hear is the sound of a hear rate dropping on the monitor to a constant tone, this then cuts to a reaction shot of the sister where she is angry at the death. The point of this shot is to show the death in one quick action as the death is what sets the plot up for its big finale.

This shot doesn't only make this man appear vulnerable because he has been kicked down the stairs but also because of the angle that it is shot at, it is shot from a very high angle which makes him seem powerless both because of his silly position and because we tower over him as the viewers.