Shaun of the dead opening

Analysis
At first we see a black screen with non- diegetic music in the background, the music is quite spooky and mysterious something that would be used in old horror film but also the tempo slowly rises creating tension keeping the audience on their seats until we are finally introduced to our first character. We have a close up shot of man in a pub the use of these levels out the tension that was built and the start and shows the normality of the situation as the man is having a cigarette and drinking beer. This gives the impression to the audience that this is pre-apocalypse. We then progress on being introduced to more characters but also being introduced to comedy side of the film as we hear the character Ed cursing in the background in what appears to be a serious conversation between shaun and liz. Towards the end of the scene after multiple shot/ reverse shots we see and hear the conversation between shaun and liz with shaun stating 'things will change' the sentence foreshadows later events of the film. Not only that but we see the scene end with slowing music with police sirens in the background creating a mysterious feel as to what will happen next, we then see the camera zoom in onto shaun's face creating more tension which is emphasized by liz saying 'shaun?' in a worry matter. As the seen ends the audience is left in darkness which makes them think and question whats going to happen next whilst non-diegetic sounds plays in the background.

The next scene is one of my favourites as the way its said out gives the impression that the people are zombies already through the use of everyone doing the same thing and doing it in a quite montone way. The way in which its done i find quite humourous and interesting as no other zombie films have used this technique of fooling the audience into believing the people are zombies already. The humour is further emphaisized by the upbeat music with the later scene of a group of people dancing to it down a street in sync but also looking like they are zombies. Straight after this we have a medium shot of the house and a close up of a mans feet, from the way he's staggering it suggests to the audience that he is a zombie which is emphaisized by an typical zombie groan. Its only after a full tilt upwards that the audience realise that the character is in fact still human. Right at the end of the scene we see Ed playing on a game console and Shaun going to join this once again breaks down and balances the tension that was created before by showing normality, we once again see humour as we hear 'player 2 has entered the game' followed by Ed stating 'dont you have work?' and finishing with the sound of 'player 2 has left the game'.

Applying to filming
The photo to your right is a scene that i find quite funny as this is after the dead have come to life and everyone has been killed, yet shaun manages to ignore everything around him and still be able to buy coke and a cornetto even though there is obvious clues of death and gore all around. This is the type of idea i would like to apply to our film to help aid the comedy.

Film introduction underneath:

http://www.youtube.com/watchv=vZmjsWAfn14&list=PL35184FE1DFD8745C&index=1&feature=plpp_video

Zombieland opening

Analysis
We start off with a close up shot of the american flag with the whitehouse in the background, already it introduces to the audience where the films set. The use of non-diegetic music of the national anthem also emphasizes the fact it is in america, but the fact that the music played is shaky and out of tune suggests disturbance and mystery making the audience think what has happened whilst they listen to the over voice of the man. We then see the camera move into a handheld shot creating the feeling of something personalbut it also engages the audience as it is about to make them aware to what is happening. The fact that the camera tilts downwards to the guns hints to the audience that violence has broke out but for what reason is still unknown which emphaisized by the overturned cars and non-diegetic sound of car alarms. The use of this is good as it doesnt give to much away to quickly and makes the audience think and guess whats happening meaning they are kept at the end of their seats.We then see the camera turn quickly suggesting urgency and danger which is backed up by the non-diegetic sound,which finally intorduces to the audience what has happened and what the problem is. The use of humour with zombie staring at the camera and sorting out his teeth is quite unique as zombieland is one of the first zombie horror films to introduce comedy into it which makes the audience appeal to it more as its something different.

Next we see an introduction to the storyline and an overview of what happened. I really like the way this begins as it shows how the outbreak progresses but also introduces the characters beliefs like (rule 1 cardio). The way its structured is also clever as the fim is set out like a strategy guide and a story by giving tips and what the character would have done in the circumstance but also like a story which is emphasized by the narrative, i believe the effect of this engages the audience.

Ideas gained
From watching this i've gained an understanding of to create a zombie comedy and what features are needed. I really like the idea of showing the zombie apocalypse and narrating it the same time as it engages and helps the audience understand the concept of whats happening, not only that but i like the fact that the narrating character is sarky, blunt and sarcastic about the situation. Another idea i like is adding the rules and tips into the film creating a guide film, which i find quite funny as with the amount of zombie films that is out there you'd imagine everyone would know how to survive a zombie apocalypse if it arised, so the fact that a film has been made telling people how to survive in sarky way is personally hilarious to me and i would like to use that type of concept in our film.

To watch the full film or the opening 3 minutes i was talking about go to this website: http://www.movie2k.to/Zombieland-watch-movie-91812.html

Helpful guideline for my media exam project

As i wrote in the post below i'm using the concept ideas and techniques to help give me a basis and guideline on how to structure and create my own video. The success of 'How To Be Ninja' and nigahiga's other video's on youtube have helped me come to the conclusion of how to make my video work as it has the humour that i'm looking for that i will apply to my video but it doesn't have the educational purposes that will be placed into mine. I believe that if the final video is based on the humour of the one above it will be good and could be recieved by an established audience if Amir does upload it onto youtube but it can also be used for media classes for years to come if successful.

Media exam based video

Because we've been learning lots of work in our media exam side with Mrs Pattinson, i had the idea of making a video (either in my free time or on the next assignment with Mr Earl) based on Mrs Pattinson's exam side. It will cover all features and aspects of media including:

• Mise En Scene
• Editing, Camera
• Work/movement
• Sound
• Continuity
• Represenation.

With the help of both Amir and Sean we aim to create a video that is humourous as well as educational. Hopefully we will gain further more camera experience as well as further expanding of our own knowledge of the features of the exam. At the current time i'm spending my free time preparing the script, scene and gathering the multiple costumes and props for the video. As soon as the script is finished i will upload it onto here and any guidance on the script will be accepted and also the script will need to be done to a decent standard if the video is to be of success as it is educational so we cant miss any key areas out. After the successes of 'How To Be Ninja' and 'How To Be Emo' on youtube i thought that the concept of my idea would be good and would be recieved by an already established audience as Amir wishes for it t be uploaded onto his youtube account. My plan is to cast someone who i've used before in my video's as i  found from other previous video's that they are suitable for the video as well as the fact that i trust both of them to be sensible, helpful and profession so that they suit the character im trying to portray or explain the view of it. As for adding in extra effects, the effects will be added into the scene about editing with help from Amir as he has good knowledge on both after effects and adobe premiere. Also music will be added into the sound scene to show the representation of the music and how it does it. All extra information and progression of the task will be uploaded onto here for both audience purposes but also reflective.

Me and Sean (Mainly sean) have thought of the idea of a man being on death row. We shall see a glimpse of the man at his death and play the scene in reverse to show previous events and to unfold how the man ended up there (like in the video above) Using the effect like this allows us both to learn and expand our knowledge on different ways of adapting clips and scenes but also to interpretate our own ideas of a good clip. Were currently undergoing our storyboard and plan for the clip so we will keep you posted on our progress :) 

Filming Issues

We've had a few problems with shooting the scene through accidental occurances. We tried again to shoot the clips for the project again but decided together that it was best to edit the previous years filming. Through trying to shoot the sequence three times, we have all gained valuable knowledge from camera shots/movement, lighting and presentation. Also through our mistakes we have learned more about the equipment we used, so this way for our next project we know what we need to do to improve and also want not to do to comprise our filming.

Through watching this clip i have gained extenisve knowledge of use of lighting and editing and also how these aspects are used in the media industry but also how it is used by professionals. Hopefully this will aid my editing in the future and make it more easier to understand.