Final Foundation Portfolio idea

Research and planning :

After spending quite some time on researching opening scenes and how various different films accomplish producing such scenes, I started drafting ideas for my Foundation Portfolio. 

I realised that there is no fixed way of starting a film, so in comparison to my previous idea, I wanted this final idea to be more detailed - in regards to the context of the scenes - and to be able to tell the life story of my main protagonist right away. Moreover, with the fact that it is winter time, the weather and settings do not allow for a scene in the forest to be filmed (with bright green nature to symbolise growth and prosperity). Therefore, I created a new and better idea for my opening scene. 

Idea :

My film delves into the life of a young adult living a pay check to pay check life; desperately wondering what the future has in store for her. Due to her struggles and worries, she is unable to live in the moment. The only time that she gets to daydream about serenity and stability, is during her early mornings before work. She spends her time looking directly at her aspirations, desires and goals through a store's window. 

From my idea, I'm categorising my film to be of the genre "drama", with no sub-genres. This is because it deals with a serious representation of a life situation that portrays my character in conflict not only with herself, but also the situation that she is in. 

Inspiration and ideas shown through collage board :

My protagonist will be played by my sister - who's a student at university right now. Therefore, I'm planning to film all of this in December, during break. The winter season will also be perfectly portrayed on camera to show the coldness of the film. 

The main opening scene will be filmed at my house and I will keep in mind the set design in order for it to follow my concept and make the best use of space as possible. 

The make-up look will be natural and I'll ensure for it to look good on camera and in the lighting that will be used. 

Props will also be used, such as sticky notes, posters and payment bills. The composition of these elements will be visually appealing and as visible as possible on  camera. 

I will also try to incorporate the rule of thirds to create more natural images and create a relationship between the protagonist and her surroundings. 

The outside scene will start with a match-cut from the previous scene in the bedroom. It will be filmed on an early morning in front of an expensive store in order to show the protagonists' aspirations. Different camera angles and perspectives will also be used - which I will explain in more detail later in the blog. 

All elements, like camera angles, lighting and editing will be explained on a separate post later in the blog (once I'll gain more knowledge in these aspects and start filming).