Part 1
Soundtrack 1
Tick Of The Clock by reannatime
Soundtrack 2
02 Symphony No. 3 Passacaglia - All by 4ears
Soundtrack 3
03. Dream Is Collapsing by taklam
Listen to these 3 soundtracks (at least the first two minutes), embed
them onto your blog (follow the link, then click on 'share' and copy and paste the embed code into the html window). For each of the samples answer these questions.
1) What response do you have to the music, how does it make you feel and why?
2) What qualities does this music have that would make it suitable for
a Thriller? (mention rhythm, volume, crescendo, major and minor notes,
instruments used.)
3) What part of a Thriller do you believe this would be suitable for
(setting mood, chase seen, stalking, waiting)? Be as creative and
specific as you like.
Part 2
Watch this video about Hans Zimmer, the composer of the Dark Knight
soundtrack discussing the creation of the Joker’s Theme
What was Hans Zimmers intention when making this soundtrack? (0.30 for clues)
What qualities did Hans Zimmer want the music to have (try and find at
least three)?
How do you feel about the final score and explain why you feel it
work/doesn’t work.
Evaluate what you have learned from this task and how it might impact
on choices made when coming to create your own soundtrack.
You have been asked to create an Opening Sequence and Credits for a
Thriller and this task will show the examiner that you have paid some
attention to the second half of the task - THE CREDITS. There's a
choice of two credit sequences to look at which you must then analyse
to identify what type of credits you get in a typical Hollywood film
and in what order, and therefore should include in your own
construction. (Work in pairs - if you're in a group of 4, one pair
should do Panic Room, the other pair Dragon Tattoo)
1) Watch either of the two credit sequences below and make note of the length of the sequence.
2) Take a piece of A3 and draw a timeline across starting at 0.00 mins
and ending at 1.50 mins (Panic Room) 2.24 (Tattoo). Then watch through
the clip again and make a note of every different credit that appears
and what time they appear. e.g. 0.14 Columbia Pictures , 0.27 A
Hofflund/Polone Production etc
It should end up looking at bit like this.
being distracted by taking pictures of yourself). Drag the photo onto
your desktop, open it with Preview, then go to Tools > Flip Horizontal
to ensure it's not a mirror image.
4) Start a blog post called Credit Structure Analysis and include the following:
- The video you looked at, embedded
- A brief description of the task you carried out
- The picture of the A3 timeline you created
- A list of the credits you have identified that you should have in
your opening - it should look like the list below (actually it is the
list below, I've done it for you)
Studio
Production company(ies)
Main Stars
Film title
Co-Stars
Casting by
Costume Designer
Music by
Film Editors
Production Designer
Director of Photography
Produced by
Written by
Directed by
Every Creative Media discipline has its key practitioners who have shaped the development of the field and it is important to look to the work of artists you admire for lessons in developing your own style. Contemporary titles designerKyle Cooper has directed and produced more than 150 film title sequences, and is credited with almost single-handedly revitalizing the main title sequence as an art form.
The New York Times Magazine called the title sequence he created for Se7en one of the most important design innovations of the 1990s. He is the founder of internationally recognized design and production company, Prologue Films, launched in 2003.
title sequence that you have learned from listening to Cooper. 2. Next, go to www.Artofthetitle.com and find Cooper's influential
opening sequence for David Fincher's Se7en. Watch it TWICE and write
250 words giving your own reasons why you think these titles might
have been considered so revolutionary. Illustrate your argument using
screen grabs from the sequence.
Choose an opening from a Thriller film. This can be from your own DVD collection or from another source. Watch the opening scene – this is should be the first 3-5 minutes of the film and should come to a natural conclusion (hopefully).
If you are struggling to find a suitable film choose one of the following clips from youtube.
The Machinist
No Country For Old Men
Cape Fear
Donnie Brasco
Enemy of the State
Analyse the opening in the following ways:
1) Look at the opening and try to identify as many of the conventions of the thriller that are used or alluded to in the opening scene. Back up each point with close reference to the opening. For a reminder of the conventions look here.
2)Explain how the opening creates atmosphere/mood, representation of characters and locations, tension and story. Use your TV Drama terminology and understanding to help you and make reference to the 4 micro elements (editing, mise-en-scene, camerawork, sound).
Illustrate your post either with the clip embedded or relevant screenshots.
