1980's Shoot prep & filming

*This is a copy of the email I sent via facebook to all the members of the upper school and sixth form choral drama group. All these girls are extremely confident and experienced performers and thus i new it was vital to secure them in order  to create a sequence that had natural rhythm and effective choreography. We have managed to secure a large wardrobe of costumes for example : neon leg warmers, bright vests, leotards, block tee's, leggings, high shorts, denim jackets etc, for our cast to wear; and also are going to provide refreshments and a reward for their generous participation (client care is of course just as important as the shoot itself). 

 Ellen Fraser



                  Hello choral drama people, (and please forward this on to anyone you have on facebook but i haven't included / remembered or any friends who are interested in drama or dance esp ) for my A2 media film we have to make a music video, and for my piece i am including a montage of sequences from different historical eras as my protagonist (main girl) travels back through the decades to find herself (the idea probably makes no sense to you right now but thats irrelevant for the moment). The reason i am explaining all this is because tomorrow lunch we are filming the 1980's scene in the gym, and we (me and my media group) already have quite a few people to come down and take part but are desperate for others, we want people to dress in : leotards, leg warmers, bright tights or leggings, sweat bands, or coloured hair pieces, tight shorts, big denim jackets or cardy's / jackets etc basically 1980's http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?num=10&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&tbo=d&rls=en&authuser=0&biw=1360&bih=555&tbm=isch&tbnid=aZbdx3PZv5R5HM:&imgrefurl=http://www.simplyeighties.com/&docid=tHdVoEUhgvYnAM&imgurl=http://www.simplyeighties.com/resources/81_physical_98.jpg&w=322&h=478&ei=Txy1UJPXKIHO0QWl-YC4CA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=337&vpy=4&dur=257&hovh=274&hovw=184&tx=108&ty=89&sig=115379148672381749777&sqi=2&page=1&tbnh=136&tbnw=91&start=0&ndsp=25&ved=1t:429,r:10,s:0,i:126 http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?start=25&num=10&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&tbo=d&rls=en&authuser=0&biw=1360&bih=555&tbm=isch&tbnid=GKb2JL2E06qBrM:&imgrefurl=http://mediarelations.illinoisstate.edu/report/1011/nov30/rec.asp&docid=MKacseNUA0tNCM&imgurl=http://mediarelations.illinoisstate.edu/images/600-00917063w.jpg&w=550&h=462&ei=Txy1UJPXKIHO0QWl-YC4CA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=4&vpy=238&dur=420&hovh=206&hovw=245&tx=96&ty=110&sig=115379148672381749777&sqi=2&page=2&tbnh=141&tbnw=188&ndsp=34&ved=1t:429,r:25,s:0,i:19
if anyone would be able to come to the school gym at 1:25 (lunch tomorrow) and be in the video then my and my group would be SOOO grateful, all we want people to do is literally dance along to a song & it would only be for a small while, like i say if anyone would be able to come or get their friends to come i would love you forever, thank you & don’t worry if no-one can make it.

 20:12
Ela Pincham
: sounds really cool, I may be able to come :)  xxx





 20:25


Sofia Victoria El-engibawy

 : Will be there.





 20:25


Rosie Barwick

I'll come :)xo





 

  20:26

Thea Goozée

okay;) : same i'll brign leggings and i will look for leg warmers


 

 20:40
Rosie Barr: I have some physics thingy but I'll defo come if I can get out of it xxx

21:43 Hannah Brownie : sounds awesome i will try and find stuff to wear...i might have rehersal not sure so will have to double check but will try my best to be there xxxx

22:03 Tara Drummie : COUNT ME IN.




22:04 Rosie Barr : Yay Tara, we can skive physics together! ;)xx

22:07 Tara Drummie : yeaaa:') got it all sorted and in my bag:)))


22:16 Lotte Nash : I’ll be thereee :D

SHOOT
Our shoot went really well, everyone was so efficient, positive and proactive which made the filming so much easier to complete. Hair, make-up & mis en scene were a hug part of this scene - they helped to define the generic features of the era & create sterotyped iconography for our audience to relate to in order to catch on to the interextual link. We spent ages kitting everyone out with a huge variety of colourful tops, leotards, leg warmers, tights, jumpsuits, hoodies, jackets, trainers and so on. We did everyone's make and transformed the teen girls into brash, eccentric, 80's divas - hot pink lips, glittery blue eyes & hair in high pony tails, half pony tails, or curled.  The location - a retro style gym, (along with the flash of colourful movement created and choreographed by myself and the other 'GEAR' girls before we started) helped to really bring the era to life. Everyone was so relaxed and co-operative and this was the atmosphere we really hoped to create, we wanted to ensure that our cast members felt at ease, as well as performing with energy & authenticity. We brought a fellow peer along to photograph the shooting, which enabled us to really get involved with our own work & stick meticulously to the story board with out additional tasks to complete. Thus moreover we managed to shoot each shot that we aimed to produce and now have a vast array of angle and different movement (camera) styles to sift through & choose our final footage, however in terms of some of the close up / extreme close up reaction shots & emotional expression we may be lacking in. Largely we concentrated on mass clips and making the extras feel as at home as possible & thus may need to consider later on when fully examining the footage if it's at a high enough standard for our liking. 

Shoot #2 1950's diner

Today we filmed our second shoot in Frank B's diner in Kingston, the location was perfect for our 1950's cheesy Americanised theme, and the staff were overly hospitable, which made film much easier & less stressful (on a tight time frame & budget). The restaurant was practically deserted allowing us to fully utilise and embody the 50's style without any additional customers, dressed in contemporary costume to interrupt our work. 

It took a long time to plan costumes in order to all correspondent to one another & the era to match the vibrant mis en scene and props. We relied upon the diner's bold decoration to amplify the performance style, as we couldn't produce proper actors the music & dance vibe helped to loosen up our chosen cast members (only some of whom had performance history) & receive short snaps of confident displays of energy. 

We made sure we stuck meticulously to our storyboarded shots (shooting in a mere 45 military minutes) in order to keep an orchestrated structure to our work & thus majorly followed through on our previous planning (we had carefully constructed each image through bullet points & then sketches). 

Shoot prep

                 

          

                                            

(26.11.12) Our second shooting date is imminent, for which we will be heading to our chosen location for our 1950's sequence (which is an applicable styled diner called Frank B's). Therefore we have been prepping our appropriate costumes and planning the make-up and hair styles for each cast member who will be featured in the shoot (Rhianna Price, Ellen Fraser, Esme Fraser, Amy Garnett.) 

*Ellen Fraser : three quarter length baby pink stripped skirt, button puffer sleeved woollen blouse, white ankle socks & plimsoles, high pony tail & hair ribbon. 

*Esme Fraser : Vintage high waisted jeans, cropped cotton jumper, high pony tale & hair scarf. 

*Rhianna Price : knee length cotton navy stripped skirt, black tee-shirt, hair in a twirled bun & head scarf. 

*Amy Garnett : High waisted tight salmon trousers, pulka dotted cropped blouse, plimsoles / or a tailored floral puff dress & baby pink cardigan with plimsoles & a pong tail

First Day of Filming

This afternoon after - weeks of planning, discussing, debating, arguing, resolving, mind mapping, mood boarding, costume hoarding, cast searching...(etc) we actually began our filming!It was amazing to actually see our ideas work and come to life after so much written prep  & pre planning- 
When making such a film, research & planning is of course such a necessary & engaging task however its not the same creative buzz as we recieved when we actualy begun formulating that material and transforming it into the product of all that hard work.
 When our sketches became a performance (the blueprints of our overall piece), our excitement and interest reached new levels (though the two stages are practically equal in energy)!
                    

We started chronologically, with our opening shots in modern day London. We managed to shoot x5 different snippets of a day in our first location (Dukes Avenue in New Malden - typical London suburbs), and then another scene set in 'Costa Coffee' on New Malden High street (after previously securing the permission of the owners of course). We attempted to capture a diverse range of shots using a variety of possible camera movements & angles & levels, in order to reduce the possibility of later stress or hassling re-shoots. Knowing that if we can manage to spread out the shooting dates and fully commit to the meticulous detail then our final piece would be progressed with energy not motivational loss. We were aware of the difficulties of our projects, the multiple locations, costumes & characters and wanted to be able to film everything with accuracy, style and equal enthusiasm. 

We got shots of : 
our protagonist & her boyfriend (the lead singer in our staged band) in bed in the morning, making brownies / taking them out the oven, cuddled up eating cake together, curled up on the sofa watching a movie under a blanket,getting ready for a night out - costume choosing & makeup, going for a "romantic stroll" down the street together & finally walking off to go for a night out in their finery. We aimed to use the idea of film within a film - or photo within in a film, to creating moving images (framed as pictures) of a montaged relationship condensed into the first x19 second of 'If You Wanna' (By 'The Vaccines'). 

 

After securing the internal shots we went to Costa coffee & worked on a variety of shots of the couple ending their relationship after tribulation over their future & identities (juxtaposing the cheesy montage sequence before & amplifying the drama whilst highlighting the start of the lyrics & leaving the audience filled with enigma for the rest of the song).

 

Costume choices :  Pyjamas & dressing gowns, smart evening dress & tucks, contemporary jeans & hooded jumper / coat, jacket & jeans with trainers. In relation to wardrobe decisions it came down to so much more than throwing anything on from our cupboard's to represent the modern day. A key part of our entire concept was to express exaggerated stereotypical, noticeable outfits that would clearly convey to our audience a generalisation of the specific era. We thus chose an ensemble which would be visually appealing and in complete contrast with our time traveled to by gone eras. 


                       


Lighting choices : We didn't manipulate the lighting in our first shoot as much as we will need to for many of the others, of core concept was of a natural, authentic, serious yet playful relationship, thus we aimed only to use sunlight (which created a beautifully dappled effect highlighting our actors features and creating a romantic ambiance for their morning lie in scene) as well as a few additional bright tap controlled lamps. 
Mis En Scene: For each small sequence we also tried to include many signifying items which would allow the audience to easily contextualise & recognise the location and make sense of the couple relationship through this string of shots (though evidently at other points in the video we will employ confusion or ambiguity aiming to provoke re-play and entertainment for our audience, at this point we wanted to open them up to the pretences of the narrative thread). 

Postmodernism #2 - In The Media

 

                   

                   

                   

 

                    

JEAN BAUDRILLARD 

In Simulacra and Simulation, introduced the concept that reality or the principle of the "real" is short-circuited by the interchangeability ( the quality of being capable of exchange or interchange) of signs in an era whose communicative (Relating to the conveyance or exchange of information) and semantic acts (Relating to meaning in language or logic) are dominated by electronic media and digital technologies. 

Baudrillard proposes the notion that, in such a state, where subjects are detached from the outcomes of events ( but still aware of them - political, literary, artistic, personal, or otherwise), events no longer hold any particular sway on the subject nor have any identifiable context; they therefore have the effect of producing widespread indifference, detachment, and passivity in industrialised populations (effected by but unable to change or alter). He claimed that a constant stream of appearances and references without any direct consequences to viewers or readers could eventually render the division between appearance and object indiscernible (impossible to distinguish), resulting, ironically, in the "disappearance" of mankind in what is, in effect, a virtual or holographic state, composed only of appearances (with no substance).

Simulacra and Simulation

Simulacra and Simulation is famous for its discussion of symbols & signs, and how they relate to contemporaneity (modern day life). Baudrillard claims that our current society has replaced all reality and meaning with symbols and signs, and that human experience is of a simulation of reality 

(imitating the behaviour of a situation or some process by means of something suitably analogous - comparable / similar in certain respects, Similar or alike in such a way as to permit the drawing of an analogy- comparison. - imitation of reality in a hyperbolised state)  Moreover, these simulacra are not merely mediations of reality, nor even deceptive mediations of reality; they are not based in a reality nor do they hide a reality, they simply hide that anything like reality is irrelevant to our current understanding of our lives. The simulacra that Baudrillard refers to are the significations and symbolism of culture and media that construct perceived reality, the acquired understanding by which our lives and shared existence is and are rendered legible; Baudrillard believed that society has become so saturated with these simulacra and our lives so saturated with the constructs of society that all meaning was being rendered meaningless by being infinitely mutable. Baudrillard called this phenomenon the "precession of simulacra". The first stage is a faithful image/copy, where we believe, and it may even be correct, that a sign is a "reflection of a profound reality" , this is a good appearance, in what Baudrillard called "the sacramental order". (we believe what we see is real or a reflection of what is real) The second stage is perversion of reality, (alteration of something from its original cause state or meaning) this is where we come to believe the sign to be an unfaithful copy, which "masks and denatures" (alters the natural qualities of) reality as an "evil appearance—it is of the order of maleficence" (doing wrong or causing evil). Here, signs and images do not faithfully reveal reality to us, but can hint at the existence of an obscure reality which the sign itself is incapable of encapsulating (enclosing or expressing) (EG: body image in the media using editing software or ads with fake outcomes?). The third stage masks the absence of a profound reality, where the simulacrum pretends to be a faithful copy, but it is a copy with no original. Signs and images claim to represent something real, but no representation is taking place and arbitrary images are merely suggested as things which they have no relationship to. Baudrillard calls this the "order of sorcery", a regime of semantic algebra where all human meaning is conjured artificially to appear as a reference to the (increasingly) hermetic truth (Insulated or protected from outside influences).  The fourth stage is pure simulation, in which the simulacrum has no relationship to any reality whatsoever. Here, signs merely reflect other signs and any claim to reality on the part of images or signs is only of the order of other such claims. This is a regime of total equivalency, where cultural products need no longer even pretend to be real in a naïve sense, because the experiences of consumers' lives are so predominantly artificial that even claims to reality are expected to be phrased in artificial, "hyperreal" terms. Any naive pretension to reality as such is perceived as bereft of critical self-awareness, and thus as oversentimental. First order, associated with the premodern period, where representation is clearly an artificial placemarker for the real item. The uniqueness of objects and situations marks them as irreproducibly real and signification obviously gropes towards this reality. Second order, associated with the modernity of the Industrial Revolution, where distinctions between representation and reality break down due to the proliferation of mass-reproducible copies of items, turning them into commodities. The commodity's ability to imitate reality threatens to replace the original version (eg cgi films), especially when the individual person is only concerned with consuming for some utility a functional facsimile.(exact copy) Third order, associated with the postmodernity of Late Capitalism, where the simulacrum precedes the original and the distinction between reality and representation vanishes. There is only the simulacrum, and originality becomes a totally meaningless concept (copy of a copy)

Postmodernism

Postmodern texts consciously play with meaning and are designed to be read by literate, widely read audiences who will pick up on their repetitive use of intertextuality. Many texts openly acknowledge that, given the diversity in today's audiences, that some may not understand concepts, though they can still receive pleasure from viewing them and thus the texts can present a whole range of oppositional readings simultaneously. Many of the visual puns used by advertising are viewed as postmodern works; as postmodern texts often employ a range of referential techniques such as bricolage (Construction or creation from a diverse range of available things), and will use images and ideas in a contrasting way to  their primary functions (eg using footage of Nazi war crimes in a pop video). Postmodernism is often viewed of as a buzz word and is often misinterpreted or used. Many media texts are deliberately constructed as postmodern. 

Postmodern theory challenges the modernist’s beliefs of “master narratives” associated with “progress,” “truth,” “human improvement,” “high art,” “science,” “technology” — the assumption that these “narratives” will lead humans to a greater sense of happiness and fulfillment. Postmodern perspectives are apparent in many works of contemporary art, film, architecture, fiction, and music. They aim to challenge and even use parodies or mimics of traditional forms but for no politically slandering impact or progressive cause. 

Jean Baudrillard (a leading theorist of Postmoderism) explains that we are living in a word of “hyperreality” (mode of existence in which reality and simulation are experienced as being without difference.) constructed largely of surface media images that challenge and undermine modernist notions of reality and truth. 
Baudrillard’s analyses point to a significant reversal of the relation between representation and reality. Previously, the media were believed to mirror, reflect, or represent reality, whereas now the media are coming to constitute a hyperreality, a new media reality which is “more real than real” , an ideology of a constructed perfection where “the real” is subordinately less important to us than the representation which leads to a steady deterioration of the meaning of 'the real'. 

Baudrillard accuses “The Implosion of Meaning in the Media,” (sudden inward collapse) and states that rapid increase of signs and information in the media destroys meaning through rendering and dissolving all content — a process which leads both to a collapse of honest meaning and the destruction of distinctions between media and reality. 

Our society is littered with media messages, information and meaning “implode” transforming into meaningless “noise,” pure effect without content or meaning (postmodern). For  Baudrillard: “information is directly destructive of meaning and signification, or neutralizes it. The loss of meaning is directly linked to the dissolving and dissuasive (deterring from) action of information, the media, and the mass media .... Information devours its own contents; it devours communication and the social .... information dissolves meaning and the social into a sort of nebulous (hazy) state leading not at all to a surfeit (excessive amount) of innovation but to the very contrary, to total entropy (lack of energy)” 
(Baudrillard cites the example of Disney World as an artificial construction of reality)

Pastiche = 
Combining together different styles and content from different periods within the same text, creating unusual combinations of borrowed styles from different eras. Music videos use a montage of images from classic films, advertising, television, or rap, and filmed with unusual, non-traditional techniques. 

(^ something we aim to do in our video borrowing material from all across the 20th century, using a variety of media texts to support our exploration)

Breakdowns of master narratives featuring the final triumph of good over evil through science or human problem-solving, as well as a clear distinction between reality and fiction. ( Blue Velvet, Pulp Fiction, Mulholland Drive, Run Lola Run, and Memento) - PM. The texts continually elude definitive interpretation of “true meanings,” by parodying and playing with alternative narrative development and assumptions about the meaning of images. The seemingly tranquil town in Blue Velvet is anything but tranquil. 

Pulp Fiction uses three different versions of a the same crime story (borrowed from detective novels and B-crime films). Mulholland Drive, Run Lola Run, and Memento all create alternative narratives based around the same events, challenging audience assumptions about “what really happened.” - enigma unanswered▪ 'Mulholland Drive 'denotes the story of one version of events based upon a traditional story of an virginal female who arrives in HW to become a big shot star, which is then juxtaposed  against a darker version of the same event. 'Run Lola Run' portrays x3 alternative versions of the same event. While 'Memento' shows events occurring in reverse, dealing with issues of memory and time. They all oppose and openly challenge traditional narratives or ways of knowing conveys the important role of the media in shaping perceptions of reality — that experience is disputed and constructed through media images and discourses. (written / spoken communication of debate)

Media forums can create mass reproduction of texts, creating copies for which there is no original (nothing is ever invited merely borrowed / stolen and then adapted and twisted). This is what Baudrillard (1983) described as a “hyperreality” based on simulation of reality. Much of contemporary art plays with the idea of endless copies or parodying of texts that only create a simulation of reality that focuses on the image or surface of reality (no deeper meaning or intended purpose) 

Consumerism and commercialisation can also be viewed as postmodern in that it both celebrates and parodies consumer products, as evident in Target advertisements which portray multiple images of consumer products. 

There is often a fragmentation of sensibility and the plurality and variety of perspectives evident in the often random juxtaposition of images (subjective work) in music videos or contemporary art. Using parodies and different versions of reality by incorporating multiple references to images from previous films or texts - for example the opening of the TV series 'Desperate Housewives'. This fragmentation and focus on surface images creates self-reflexivity — the need to reflect on the lack of coherent meaning, as well as an ironic humour.

 



 Popular culture and media image dominate the age and thus they dominate our sense of reality. The world is now 'intertextual' (images, copies and simulations  are so global that there are no authentic originals left in this day and age) The result is that popular culture has replaced art and 'high' culture (the set of cultural products, mainly in the arts, held in the highest esteem by a culture) and the contrived (deliberately created) and the simulated (manufactured) have replaced the reality of experience and history. How and what we consume has now become much more important than what and how we produce (-An audience over an author).

Postmodernism is about style. Pastiche, collage, bricolage (the mixing and re-using of images, signs and symbols) are emphasised at the expense of content or substance.

Time, space history and place have become less secure - more confused - chronology doesn't matter. The forces of global communications and networks are eroding national cultures. This causes tension and uncertainty. - we know everything about everyone - mystery is history

Postmodernism is sceptical about absolute truths, artistic, scientific, historical or political, so a secure sense of time and place is becoming more difficult to sustain. Once secure theories are now open to question and doubt. - the personal is political.

     

http://www.e4.com/schoolofcomedy/

  

* Simulacrum = An image or representation of someone or something.

               

(interesting powerpoint i found)

• ". . . [postmodern] cross-over between: (1) the fine arts/avant-garde tradition (abstract), (2) the mass-media [e.g. TV program and commercial, fasion catwalk, film pastiche]  (3) vernacular culture (or sub-cultures), (4) the new technologies (mainly electronic)" (Wollen 229)
• ". . . videos are said to forsake the usual oppositions between high and low culture; between masculine and feminine; between established literary and filmic genres; between past, present and future; between the private and the public sphere; between verbal and visual hierarchies; between realism and anti-realism, etc." (Kaplan237) 
• 1. [MTV's] fusion of high art and popular culture discourses

2. The abandonment of grand narrative structures . . .in the nonrealist construction of the video clips and in the MTV text itself
3. intertextuality and pastiche
4. Intertextuality and pastiche . . . blure historical/chronological distinctions, so conventional notions of past, present and future are lost in the pot-pourri of images, all of which are made to seem contemporary. 
5. 'schizophrenic' abandonment of rational, liberal-humanist discourse which creates a nihilistic (The rejection of all religious and moral principles, often in the belief that life is meaningless/ Extreme skepticism, according to which nothing in the world has a real existence.) amoral (no moral sense) universe of representation  -- lack of political social engagement or new forms of politcal resistance (Goodwin 45-46)