Week 17

This week we've been tasked with making a modern teaser trailer for a french wave film that we watched in class.

I picked La Jetee because I'm interested in it's post apocalyptic nature and I think that I will be able to create such an environment here in London using just a DSLR and editing software.

I'm going to film in various locations that have a desolate feel to them to portray a post apocalyptic environment. I'm looking for broken windows, graffitied walls, overgrowth and worn down buildings.

After about 2 hours of researching places to film I've come across 2 places that I could realistically film in without risking getting harmed or arrested for trespassing:

Southbank tunnel:

Tunnels have erie vibes to them and if I'm able to get shots of the tunnel with no people in it which should be a possibility if I go there on Monday around 14:00 according to schedule.

Battersea Power station:

Battersea power station is currently undergoing maintenance and other upgrading work which might make it an ideal building to film but if I'm able to get a shot with nobody there it will support the narrative. Battersea power station is a symbol of industry and if I use a sound track and good colour grading I can give it an apocalyptic feeling.

The rest of the teaser will take place in Belmont as 2 surviving scavengers are desperately trying to reach the shore in hopes of finding a boat to escape from the British isles. They're low on food and are suffering from radioactive poisoning.

They only recently resurfaced from the bunker they were sheltered in due to the lack of food.

This is a change I made from the narrative of La Jattee in my interpretation of the film. I would've liked to see what the landscape of Paris devastated by nuclear war would've looked like.

I will also include a shooting sequence which is more inspired by 12 monkeys than La Jette. The two survivors will be attacked by a sniper and theyre gonna be on the run much like how Brad Pitt was running away from Bruce Willis in 12 Monkeys.

This film will also be slightly inspired by The Road in terms of the mise en scene. The 2 survivors with be dressed in worn out clothes and carrying bags.

Belmont Station and Banstead Common

Belmont station is a small train station in Sutton which has a lot of overgrowth, run down walls and is always empty which supports my narrative. Banstead Common is a large open green area next to the station that has a lot of uncut grass, lots of trees and bushes which will also look good in the film.

Link to teaser trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OA6-lvn2uok

Evaluation

I think I did a decent job with this teaser trailer. I found fitting music which synched nicely with the footage. The colour grading supported the narrative like I intended to do. The bleached colour did a good job of indicating that the world has changed.

The only practical influence I took from the French wave for this trailer was the low quality voice over from La Jetee which supported the narrative and that the film is about escapism like the 3 french new wave films discussed in class.

The teaser trailer is made up of mostly pan shots. This doesn't have anything to do with the story, it's more a personal choice of how I like making films. The trailer does also include still shots and a POV shot which make the trailer more interesting to watch.

I still need to develop my camera operating skills a lot. I need to consider more things when I take my shots like ISO, colour grading and depth of field. The footage isn't as sharp as I wanted to. I honestly cant say why this is. I did focus my shots well but the footage still isn't as crisp as I wanted it to be.