Les Miserables: Opening Sequence

As stated in the title card, this film is set in 1815, in France.

The more powerful people are wearing smart looking police outfits, of a light blue colour. The prisoners are all wearing dirty, tattered brown uniforms, they are treated badly, and look in physical and psychological pain.  Most of the prisoners heads are shaven but most have long scraggly beards that are clearly not cared for or looked after. The police are wearing hats with neat hair. The actors of the prisoners are wearing make up to make them look tired and angered and the police are made to look strict and powerful.

The prisoners look exhausted and angry, as they are kept in such terrible conditions and that they are there in the first place. There body language shows they are trying to be strong by pulling the boat in but deep down feel drained. The police look smug and are placed higher then the prisoners, so they are looking down on them; they have power over them.

The main police officer is placed in the middle of the part of the boat he is standing on, he is important and powerful. There are many close ups of the prisoners faces, they are all placed to the side of the frame; they are unimportant.

It is dark and misty, this reflects the moods of the prisoners. There is only sunlight when it is behind Javert, he is the 'chosen' guard for them and has the power to be nice or nasty.

There is silence at the start, so that the audience can concentrate on reading the facts that appear in text. A big boom of music, the ship is extremely important, as this is the thing that distinguishes the weak and strong. The prisoners are all singing but with harsh sounds, through gritted teeth; they are angry and bitter. Javert patronises Val Jean; he is in charge and is more than happy to flaunt his success. There is an uplifting tone in the music when Val Jean retrieves the flag; nobody expected him to be strong enough to do it. This shows he is a strong character and may prove himself as strong willed as well as physically strong.

There is an extreme wide shot of the police man standing on top of the boat in the middle. As he is higher up then everyone else, and is looking down, he is powerful and thinks that all the prisoners deserve to be there.

There is also a close up of one of the prisoners. He looks angry and resentful of the man above him; he holds a grudge and wishes to perhaps get his revenge or justice.


There is another extreme wide shot, this time of all of the prisoners working together. They are united against the police force, even though they do not know each other, the one thing they have in common is hatred for the system, and those in power.

Film Pitch: Race of The Dead

Title Sequences

1. What is the definition of a Title Sequence?
A title sequence is the method used in the film industry to display the names of the cast and main production team.

2. What is the function of a Title Sequence?
It sets the mood for the film, and gives an idea of the genre, through the typography, music and illustrations that are incorporated in.

3. Name three films featured in the A Brief History of the Art of the Title Sequence?
Sherlock Holmes (2009), Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (2010), Saturday Night Fever (1977)

Name of chosen Film Title Sequence: Sherlock Holmes (2009)
The text is calligraphic and is made to look hand written on parchment. They used ink blots to make it look more realistic. They used dark shading from screen caps in the film to create foreboding drawings of each character. It creates a darker mood, especially combined with the dark, melodramatic music. It suggests that the film will be set in the past, due to the use of parchment and ink, and that it will have dark themes, perhaps containing violence and murder, due to the colour scheme and the tense, foreboding music.

Name of chosen Film Title Sequence: Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (2009)
The text is bold and striking, and uses contrast to make the text stand out. The first part of the title sequence took inspiration from the Star Wars franchise, as it uses text that reels off into the distance. From this, you can assume that the film celebrates nerd culture, and will possibly continue to make similar references. This will create a cheerful mood, as people will see it, and be amused by the reference. They used bold, bright colours to extend the cheerful mood even more. The music is quite rocky, and adds energy to the title sequence. It fore shadows a very upbeat plot.

Student Evaluation

I would grade this film quite high; about 50/60.

I like this piece because of the wide range of camera angles and the added effects in editing, like the slow motion, and the layering of various shots on top of one another. The music works well with the video, and the ending is very suspenseful, however not entirely necessary. 

To improve this piece, I would remove the last 15 seconds, as I think it works better with a calm and confusing ending. I would also taper off the music at the end into a melodic instrumental piece. I would also improve the title sequence, as it looks like they added it as an after thought, without considering it's aesthetics and effect on the overall piece.

Prelim Task - People Just Ain't No Good - Final Outcome

I worked with Beth Braine, Sam Craig and Ben Caleno.We split up the tasks between us, so that we shared the responsibility equally, for example, Sam found all of the music needed, Beth wrote the script, Ben wrote notes on the angles and camera shots and I drew the storyboard. We all brought props in to help film.

We planned our sequence by thinking of the stereotypical things you would find in an action, for example a good guy/bad guy combo, capes and violence. We then developed on these ideas and came up with the idea of a bullied girl at school who needs the help of a hero. We took into account Dyer's theory, as he believes stereotypes come down to power, those who have power stereotype those who don't, so in this instance I was stereotyped as the innocent, vulnerable girl who needed help.

We used a Sony HDR-CX190 HD to film it, Audicity to record the voice over in Sam's training montage. We used Adobe Premiere Pro CS6 to edit and cut the scenes together. When planning, shooting and editing we had to take into account the limited space we had, as we could only film on school campus. We then planned to film in three spaces: down by the lockers, on the playground and on the back field, by the gyms. We edited together in the classroom, each of us having a separate responsibility, for example I done the transitions, and Beth did the music, and then made sure everyone in the group was happy before we exported it.

I think our sequence was very successful as we all worked together and done what was necessary to make the filming run smoothly. The filming and editing went really well. In hindsight, we could  have used something like a trailer to hold the camera more steady to perfect shots like tracking. Also, there is one shot where Sam holds his hand out to help me up, and when the camera changes angle, he holds his hand out again. Small things like this need to be perfected if we were to do it again. The rest of the class thought our piece was comical, and we generally got good feedback, with constructive criticism to correct the shaky camera angles and the quality of the sound.

From completing the prelim task, I have learnt that team work is highly important and providing everyone a task within the production and editing helps to get everything done quickly and successfully. I think this task has significantly improved my editing and filming skills for the rest of my foundation coursework, as I have learnt how to include a lot of different shots into a long film by editing, add transitions, music and also work well with other people. Furthermore, I have learnt how to plan successfully and make sure every element of the sequence is considered within the planning, before we begin filming.

Prelim Task - People Just Ain't No Good

Prelim task 

For the prelim task, I worked with Beth, Sam Cr, and Ben. Our genre, action, was easy to create a storyline for, and was easy to write and film. If we done it again, I would try create better shots by using the tripod more often and something with wheels to create the tracking shot.

Barthes' Narrative Theory

Barthes gave a list of 5 codes that will be present in any narrative told. They are:

• The Hermuneutic code (HER)

This is the way a story won't tell the audience all the facts straight away, but instead dropping hints throughout the tale, leaving room to create mystery.

• The Enigma Code (ACT)

This is the way tension is built up to leave the audience confused and questioning the next plot twist.

• The Symbolic Code (SYM)

This is where new meaning arises thtough opposing and conflicting ideas.

• The Cultural Code (REF)

This refers to the audience's cultural knowledge, morality and ideology, in relation to the story being told.

• The Semantic Code (SEM)

This refers to any element in a text that suggests additional meaning, via connotations.