To prepare for my own script writing, I looked at the scripting for the show 'How I Met Your Mother'. I had the first few pages to the script and noticed that they only keep in certain parts of the original script. This could be due to several reasons, the first could be that there were parts which may not have sounded right during the read-throughs, it could be that they can't remember the script word for word, that they may tweaked the script and so on. So after finding this out, I have accumulated a few ideas on how to write my script. I have also looked at other scripts and seen how they are written, and how they are laid out. Twilight Script:
FADE IN:
1 EXT. RAIN FOREST, OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK, WASHINGTON - DAWN 1 Moss-draped. Shadow-drenched. Tortured tree trunks twist
upward, reaching for rare sunlight.
BELLA (V.O.)
I’d never given much thought to how I would die...
Suddenly, every creature in the forest is deadly silent. Neither
bird, beast nor insect make a noise. A predator is near.
Then, in the distance, hear a tiny SNICK - a twig snapping.
Abruptly, we’re on the move. Fast.
UNKNOWN P.O.V - MOVING
Trees start whipping past us at a dizzying speed, branches
are dodged with preternatural agility. And we’re speeding
up, chasing something. It's exhilarating. Terrifying.
Finally, up ahead, we get the first glimpse of our prey -- A DEER -- running for its life as it darts through this maze of a
forest. It sprints forward, but we gain on it. Beyond the deer,
SEE the forest’s edge ahead, white sunlight glowing against the
trees. The buck races for the light. We're just behind it,
about to emerge from the shadowy darkness -- The deer LEAPS into the light in a high arc, hovering (suddenly
SLOW MOTION) against the WHITE GLARE of the sun... then BAM! The deer abruptly plummets out of frame at an unnatural angle,
leaving the WHITE GLARE to fill the screen. HOLD ON WHITENESS --
BELLA (V.O.)
But dying in the place of someone I love seems like a good way to go...
This is the beginning of the opening scene in Twilight. I chose this part because it's a good example of stage directions from the director to explain how they want the scene to be set up. It also shows how much detail needs to be put into a script. I also saw that there were many tweaks done to some of the scenes, which tells me that scripts have to be drafted more than once before they actually start filming. I also saw that there were over 100 scenes, but that's for a whole movie, it may be quarter that for a trailer, but it has showed me that there are a lot of scenes within a movie, and how long a full script is.
Donnie Darko Script...
VOICE
Helluva night for a walk... huh,
Donnie?
Donnie stares off into the distance.
VOICE (CONT'D)
Tonight is very special, Donnie.
DONNIE
What?
VOICE
I've been watching you.
(beat)
Do you believe in God, Donnie?
Donnie doesn't answer. He holds his stomach, taking deep
breaths.
VOICE (CONT'D)
God loves his children, Donnie. God
loves you.
There... standing on the seventh hole is a six-foot-tall
figure dressed in a grotesque bunny suit.
Donnie stares at the Bunny nervously as a wave of nausea
overcomes him.
BUNNY
My name is Frank.
(beat)
I want you to follow me.
DONNIE
Why?
FRANK
I'm here to save you.
(beat)
The world is coming to an end, Donnie.
Donnie doesn't answer.
FRANK (CONT'D)
Look up in the sky, Donnie.
He looks up into the black night.
FRANK (CONT'D)
28 days... 6 hours... 42 minutes...
12 seconds. That is when the world
will end.
This is a part of the script for Donnie Darko. I thought this was a good example of dialogue, and how it is laid out on a script. It also shows the stage directions, and the sounds or music involved in that scene. It also is a good example of introducing a character within a scene, and how descriptive the character description is. This is probably to help out the costume department gain an idea of what the director wants. I chose these two scripts as they are similar to the genre I want to look at. These scripts have given a good idea of how to set mine up, and what to include.
In preparation for our trailers, we looked at several different trailers, and looked at the four main areas - Lighting & Colouring, Sound, Use of Camera and Editing. The trailers we watched were Donnie Darko, The Hobbit and The Heist. The idea behind this was to practice analysing the different aspects of a trailer, and get us thinking about how we might want to do our trailers.
Donnie Darko...
Donnie Darko was the first trailer we watched, this is a Drama, Mystery film, which is quite dark and spooky. First off is the lighting, it starts off light, natural and bright, becomes darker around the main character, the lighting becomes grey, stormy. There are then flashes in time with the lightening, the more spookier the character becomes, the darker the lighting. The colours have tints of blue, grey, brown, nothing too bright. Next is the sound. There is a voice over, this starts off as non-diegetic then becomes diegetic as we then sees who is talking, the background music is quiet and atmospheric, this is so that the dialogue is heard as it gives important plot points which give the audience a reason to go and watch the movie. The music then speeds up nearer the end as it gets even more dramatic and as the credits speed up.
The use of camera is interesting, first off is a low, canted angle shot, pans and crane shots are used follow the action, high angles used to show vulnerability, two shots to show a conversation close ups are used to show the emotions and reactions of the other characters, low angles to show power, establishing shots to introduce settings, zooms to highlight main characters, over the shoulder shots to also show conversations. Finally there is the editing, one of the first shots are sped up, to show the passing of time, flash transitions, fade ins & outs, some shots were slowed down, and a lot of special effects were used, they may have included this in the trailer to show off the movie. Near the end of the trailer the transitions match the music, the font used for the credits is a sans serif font, bright blue, which has an eerie feel to it, to match the genre of the movie. I thought the background music was effective as it gave an eerie atmosphere and added to the tension of the scenes shown. I also liked how it was quiet, so it didn't take away from the dialogue., but you could still hear it. Furthermore I liked how as the cuts got quicker, the music got quicker, with it gradually building up nearer the end. I also like the beat of the music, it reminds me of a heart beat, adding to the tension, and engaging with the audience.
The Hobbit 2 - The Desolation of Smaug...
The lighting is used in The Hobbit 2 trailer to give a sense of ambience, make the setting look really stunning. It's very warm, ambient to show that it's early morning, it then has a tint blue to highlight that this setting is cold, it then goes colourful which makes the setting seem like the setting of a fairy-tale. It then turns darker, during the fighting scenes, greys and browns are used to signify danger, death and war. The lighting looks very natural and not artificial, it also goes darker when in the more scarier settings, in the cave scenes the lighting seems ambient and warm, this could be to show that the cave is lit up by torches.
Sound is used effectively throughout the trailer. Again, the voice-over starts off non-diegetic and becomes diegetic when we see one of the main characters talking, music also quickens as action quickens, lot's of ambient sounds such as swords clinking, dragon growling, water splash and so on The background music starts quiet, atmospheric, to add emphasis on what is being said, it then quickens in pace, as the action on screen quickens, lot's of synchronous sound, dialogue is clear and can be heard over the music, it then stops when the final credits appear, the music is orchestral, changes between calm, and dramatic to give the sense that it is going to be an epic movie. The use of camera is also very effective in this trailer. First there was a pan to show the location and the setting of the movie, there was then a reverse zoom to show off one of the stone structures, an aerial shot was then used to introduce another setting, reverse zooms were used to gradually introduce the audience to yet another setting/location, a medium close up was then used to introduce the first of the main characters, it was used again to introduce the next character, with a zoom to show his reaction to what was said to him, there was a quick tilt, then a pan to follow the actors/action, there were a lot of medium close ups used to show the emotions and introduce not only the characters but the actors, there were also a lot of reverse zooms used, again to introduce place settings, or to remind those who watched the last movie of where it took place. Low angles were used to show vulnerability, and include the audience and make them feel as if they are the ones about to get crushed, aerial shots were used for the same reason as the reverse shots. There were also a lot of still camera shots, but with the actors moving in the shot, this is so that the shot is not still and uninteresting.
Finally is the editing. In the beginning of the trailer, there were a lot of fades in to black as the shot changed, this adds to dramatic effect, they then used cuts in between shots, a couple of focus pulls were also used to draw the audiences attention from one thing in the shot to another. C.G.I was added during post production, big, clear sans serif font was used for the credits, it also looked 3D as we zoomed in, eye-line matches were used to keep continuity during a conversation, and to show the audience what the actor is looking at/who is talking to in the scene. I think the lighting & colour in The Hobbit was very effective, as it gave the trailer and film for that matter, a fairy-tale look and made it look colourful and bright. I also thought that the contrast between the lighter scenes and darker scenes was effective, as it balances out. The lighting used at the beginning of the trailer gives ambience, and gives a real sense of location and setting. It also gives the mountains in the scene a majestic feel, and emphasises the fairy tale like settings.
The Heist...
The lighting used in The Heist is natural and bright in the beginning, then has a orange tint to it. When they are talking about their master plan, it becomes darker, signifying danger, it is also darker when one of the characters is trapped signify enclosure and danger. The majority of the lighting was natural, and bright so you could see what was going on in the scene. The next is the music. The music starts off quiet, then builds up throughout the trailer. Again there is a voice - over which starts off non-diegetic, then becomes diegetic when we see who is talking, and what they are talking about. The music is also in time with the cuts between shots, and matches the speed of the action, it then fades out at the end. Because it fades out in the end, you can then hear the gun shots, and the breaking of glass, it also goes quiet during the middle, then build up again as the action builds up.
The next is camera use, there are establishing shots used to introduce the settings/locations. There were a lot of two shots used, and over the shoulder shots used to show conversations between the characters. There are a lot of camera movements such as pans, tilts and crane to follow the action and the main characters, a high angle was used in a shot to show vulnerability, medium shots used to introduce characters, aerial shots to clearly show the either the chase or the vehicles approaching the building. Finally close ups were used to show the emotions and reactions of the characters. Finally, is the editing. In the beginning there are fades to black in between shots, quick cuts and jump cuts are used to show pace and time passing, eye-line match used to show what characters are looking at, and shows conversations. The film also uses the traditional red, black and white colours for the fonts, and the titles. These colours are typically used in films within this genre. Shot reverse shots are used to again show conversations/interactions with the characters.
In the trailer for The Heist, I think the use of the camera was effective, especially for an action film. There was a variety of shots, showcasing all elements of the film, even an aerial shot worked well showing vehicles traveling to the museum, establishing shots worked well in introducing the scene, the location. The shots during dialogue are very effective, as it allows the audience to follow the conversation easily, and it allows it to flow. I like the use of angles, how it makes the characters seem vulnerable at times, and how it follows the action.
A storyboard is a visual organiser, typically a series of illustrations displayed in sequence for the purpose or pre-visualising a video. web-based training or interactive media sequence.Storyboarding came from Walt Disney in the 1930's, by the late 1930's every major film studio was using storyboards.
Media that use storyboards:
Film
Television
Animation
Fiction
Business
Interactive media - web development, software design, instructional design & technology
'There is no right or wrong way to storyboard; developers & instructional designers use a variety of different templates and methods.' Nicole Legault
Reasons to use a storyboard:
Helps a Subject Matter Expert fill in their expert content.
Designer can rearrange the content into an effective sequence.
Can be given to a developer who will use it as a blueprint to a developer who will use it as a blueprint to develop the final product.
Assists instructional designer in sequencing the instruction.
Possible things to include:
Navigation - GUI, Includes the buttons needed to navigate through the program.
Course contents - Must have a frame with a sample of Table of contents, outline and map.
Quizzes/Testing
Audio scripting
Learning objectives
Module name
Storyboard Design Guidelines:
Make sure the that the media used supports the LO's.
Cognitive Load theory - for interactive media, try and minimise the text & images occuring at the same time.
Make sure that quizzes & testing are aligned with LO's - ensure that they will provide valid evidence of understanding.
Tools to create a storyboard:
Microsoft Word - widely available & understood software, not easy to rearrange content.
PowerPoint (most popular) - widely known & understood, widely available, slide sorter view makes it easier to rearrange frames.
