This is England: Who made it and How?

What are Warp Films and Warp X?

Warp films are a side project from Warp records, and are an English company based in Sheffield and were set up in 1999 with help of funding from NESTA (National Endowment for Science Technology and the Arts).
Warp X are linked with Warp Films and Warp Records, and are based in Sheffield and have offices in Nottingham and London. They are pioneering new digital studio, they use cutting edge digital technology and low budget methods to produce high value films.

Who runs Warp? What was Warp created to do?

Warp is a small company, with only three full-time members of staff, and although they have limited staff, they have some of the best up and coming directors from Britain.
A Warp spokesperson said this about what Warp was about:

"Warp Films is an independent film production company which aims to mirror the ethos of its partner music label Warp Records. By keeping the creative process at the core of our approach to film making, Warp Films aims to create fresh and innovative feature length and short films to be viewed by a wide audience. Our current priorities are nurturing and developing existing talent, as well as discovering new exciting filmmakers." Directors:

Shane Meadows:
A lot of his influences came from "kitchen sink realism" that are from film makers such as Ken Loach and Mike Leigh but with a "post modern twist." He is a very relaxed director, he encourages his actors to perform at "one's pleasure" (ad lib) in order to make his films appear more realistic and get a better sense of realism for themselves. Many of his films are inspired by events from his youth, for example: Twenty Four Seven and Room for Romeo Brass. A lot of Meadows films are filmed in the midlands, and he is known for using unknown people to take part in his films, such as his friends and family.
Five of his films were shown at the 2007 Flourish Festival held in Uttoxeter to mark the release of This Is England.
Chris Cunningham:
He works in video, music and commerical. He made his directorial debut with the music video "come to daddy" this landed him in the spotlight within the music industry. Cunningham was headhunted after Stanley Kubrick saw his work for the 1994 film version of Judge Dread, to do with the building of robotic arms, Kubrick wanted him to work on the animatronic tests for the robot child in the 2001 film Artificial Intelligence (AI), he worked on AI for over a year, before leaving to start a career in directing.
Chris Morris:
His break came with BBC Radio Bristol and Greater London Radio (GLR), he was sacked from BBC Radio Bristol for allegedly being abusive to a caller. Chris' earliest talk of work came from acting in "The Frogs" at Sixth Form.

What relationship does Warp have with Film 4 and the Film Council?
Quote from www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/warpx

"The key aims of the project are to establish a more integrated approach to development, production and distribution for up and coming filmmaking talent and at the same time to provide economies of scale for low-budget feature film production.

The joint objectives of the New Cinema Fund and FilmFour for Warp X are:

• to source a diverse range of filmmaking talent and mentors;
• to develop a more integrated and cost-effective model for the development and production of low-budget films by accessing a core team of production, financing and business affairs expertise and taking into account the cultural and commercial needs of the UK film industry;
• to provide new opportunities to increase participation of groups currently under-represented in the UK film industry such as writers, directors, producers and actors who are female, disabled and/or from black and minority ethnic groups;
• to encourage filmmakers to explore social issues of disability, cultural/ethnic diversity and social exclusion through the content and range of individual film projects;
• to create much-needed progression routes into the UK film industry for identified filmmaking talent, who may have experienced some success through their first feature film or through short filmmaking, but who need further infrastructural and other support to make their next film(s) a success; and
• to provide an opportunity for and to encourage established filmmaking talent to reinvest their expertise in the talent of tomorrow, both in front of and behind the camera. "

Who else financed 'This is England'?
This is England was co-funded by the National Lottery through the UK Film Council in partnership with FilmFour and EM-Media, Screen Yorkshire, Ingenious Media and Optimum Releasing.

Production Companies for This is England
*Big Arty Productions
*EM Media
*Film4
*Optimum Releasing
*Screen Yorkshire
*UK Film Council
*Warp Films

How was This is England distributed?

• IFC Films (2007) (USA) (theatrical)
• IFC First Take (2007) (USA) (theatrical)
• King Record Co. (2009) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Madman Entertainment (2007) (Australia) (all media)
• NetFlix (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Nippon Shuppan Hanbai (Nippan) K.K. (2009) (Japan) (theatrical)
• NonStop Entertainment (2007) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Optimum Releasing (2006) (UK) (theatrical)
• Red Envelope Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2008) (Finland) (DVD)

Preliminary Task: Continuity Film

We were asked to do a Preliminary Task, and for this we were asked to do a continuity film that involved three camera techniques:

* Match on Action shots

* Shot/reverse shot

* The 180 degree rule

This is the video we filmed and edited:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=g73aj51gKaU

Match on Action:
This is where the camera switches between the characters two perspectives, but not in the sense of an over the shoulder shot, as you can still see the character it is like the audience become voyeurs; for example the audience see the character walking towards the door, and the next shot the character has come through the door.

We used a match on action shot in the beginning of our film, as this is where the shot made the most sense and was the most convenient.

Shot/Reverse Shot:
This is used when two characters are looking at each other. The first character is seen to be looking at the second character, and then after the first character has finished looking at the second character the camera then shows the second character looking at the first character. This suggests to the audience that the characters are looking at each other.

This shot was used in our film in the time frame 15 - 20 seconds, where you can see the first character looking at the second character.

180 degree rule:
If two people are being filmed from one direction the 180 degree rule can't be broken, because if not the scene makes no sense to the audience. If you want to change the position of the characters on screen, you must show the camera crossing the 180 degree line.

For our film, we decided to do something slightly different with the conversation and have it between a daughter and her mother, however the daughter doesn't know that the woman she is talking to is her actual mother, until the woman tells her.

I played the adopted daughter and Emily played her real mother, and Matt filmed. We filmed in the school canteen, however we were thinking of filming in a cafe to make the film more realistic, but many cafe's aren't that happy with people filming in there, and the noise level in the scenes would have been much louder as the cafe would have been busy.

We were also asked to write a script, this made it much easier to film, because we had some idea of what we were going to say.

Script:

Characters:
Emily- Lauren’s mother
Lauren- Daughter of Emily, adopted by someone else, Emily’s her real mother.

Emily: Hello
Lauren: Hey
Emily: [nervous] I got you a drink…
Lauren: Oh thanks, what did you want to talk to me about?
Emily: [nervous, faltering] Well, this isn’t easy for me…
Lauren: I don’t have long, I’m meeting mum in about 20minutes.
Emily: [exasperated] she’s not your mother! I am!

[Cut]

Analysis of Sequence:
The sequence involves the first character walking through a door, using a match on action shot. As the first character and the second character are engaged in conversation, we have used a shot/reverse shot in order to show the audience who the characters are talking to. During the entire conversation we followed the 180 degree rule in order to avoid confusion. The set up of the sequence and the speed in which we completed it was helped due to the simplistic nature of idea; a conversation between two people in a "cafe." The simple nature also helped make the sequence effective and belivable.

Technology/Equipment:
We used a varied range of equipment and technology; video camera, tape, tripod, Adobe Premier Elements. After we had completed the filming we transferred the raw footage over via a Firewire Cable onto our media computers hard drive and used Premier Elements to edit the footage into a more sequential and enjoyable video.

Editing (Premier Elements):
In order to edit our video we used the schools editing suite and the software that is on the computers, Premier Elements. We used Premier Elements in order to separate the best parts of the footage from the unwanted parts; the software also made it easier to have smoother transitions between takes, i.e fade to black; we were also able to add a title sequence to the beginning to give the audience some idea of what the film is about; it also provides information to the examiners as to the length of the film and our candidate information. We were also able keep some footage, that wasn't wanted in the main sequence, but made some funny outtakes without transitions making the cut between shots quick and more amusing.
Once the editing was completed we exported the film into standard computer format (.avi) and then had to upload it to www.youtube.com in order to make it more accessible to examiners and teachers. The link for our video is at the start of the post.


Overall the filming and the editing went well and was effective. Even though we covered all the shots that we required in the brief, we only had one of each shot during our film, rather than varying the amount of the different shots. Throughout the filming, our camera skills weren't vastly improved, this is partly due to the fact that only one person could film at any one time, therefore the two characters in the film had no chance to use the camera because they were being filmed, however this was able to be corrected during our Thriller filming as two different people played characters and there was only one scene where the two characters were in the frame together. We did, however, gain an improved knowledge of Premier Elements and we can use this knowledge to make the transitions and the composition of our thriller alot better. Another thing that we considered during this filming and that we put into practice for our thriller was using the tripod more in order to make the filming more steady; the unsteadiness in certain parts of the footage became more apparent during editing due to the larger resolution.
We managed to complete the task, considering in the beginning our limited knowledge with the camera and the editing equipment, and managed to improve our skills using the camera and Premier Elements that we can take through and use in our Thriller editing/filming and for future videos.

Overview of Thriller Planning: "Divided"

(This was planning for our original thriller film, before we decided to change due to inadequate footage, and our original cast being unavailable for a second shoot).

Planning Thriller Film:

Camera angles and movement:

Shot 1: Close up of the two immigrants, a reaction shot to see their expressions.
Shot 2: Two immigrants standing on the dock, extra long shot-can’t see their expressions.
Shot 3: Cut to another extra long shot, can’t see faces/facial expressions of the three new people that are in this shot-mysterious.
Shot 4: Cut to Close up shot of “mystery” people, reaction shot of “boss man” can see his expression, no reaction shot of other two men, not completely clear of their faces.
Shot 5: Cut to extra long shot of a struggle. Distance the audience from the violence.
Shot 6: Cut to Close up shot of immigrant woman and “boss man,” reaction shot of immigrant woman, “boss man” in shadow.
Shot 7: Cut to Close up shot of immigrant woman in car (behind window), can only see her outline, no reaction shot, as can’t see her expression.
Shot 8: Cut to extra long shot of car driving away in the distance.
Shot 9: (Two Part) First Part: Extra close up of immigrant man’s face, then Zoom Out to establishing shot and extra long shot of the man’s body.

Lighting:

Shot 1: Chiaroscuro lighting, light on their faces and dark background, to bring focus on their expression.
Shot 2: dark non-ambient lighting, to keep effect of fear and tension, light enough to see people, no features.
Shot 3: ambient lighting, shadowy, gives sense of uncertainty.
Shot 4: Chiaroscuro, light on “boss man’s” face, the “cronies” in shadow, dark.
Shot 5: Dark non-ambient can see the struggle, still gives feeling of tension.
Shot 6: Chiaroscuro, light on immigrant women’s face, “boss man” in shadow, dark, gives “boss man” oppressive present behind woman.
Shot 7: Ambient lighting, can’t really see people, just outline, sense of elusiveness.
Shot 8: Ambient lighting, can just see the headlights, distance themselves from the audience, far away from everything that happened.
Shot 9: Ambient lighting, early morning, sense of a new day that won’t carry on for immigrant man.

Casting:

Immigrant Man: Andy Drane
Immigrant Woman: Sara Novak

Beefy Guys:
ס Matthew Tyrrell
ס Richard Jordan
Boss Man: Ben Howard
Witness: Lauren Jordan

Characters with a back story:

ס Sarinka and Rapheal are brother and sister, they are from Eastern Europe, they have come over for a better life, and more money. Sarinka and Rapheal have a deal with Ben to provide illegal documents.

Costume-Generic reflects characters:

Immigrant woman:
 Head Scarf
 Jeans
 Kaftan Top/Tunic
 Silver/Gold pumps/shoes

Immigrant man:
 White T-shirt
 Light denim jeans
 White trainers

Beefy Guys:
 Dark jeans
 White T-shirt
 Suit jacket
 Trainers? Black informal shoes?

Boss Man:
 Informal trousers
 White T-shirt (tighter than beefy guys?)
 Suit jacket
 Informal shoes



Brief Synopsis of Plot:

 Opening scene of immigrants-scared expression on woman.
 Immigrants walking down dock
 Meet with 2 beefy guys, and guy in charge.
 Struggle between immigrants and beefy guys-gestures
 Three guys walk off with immigrant woman, forced into car.
 Guy thrown into water (not seen)
 Car drives off with woman, into the distance.
 Body of guy on beach, early morning.

Locations:

Great Yarmouth:
 Unglamorous
 Fits with plot, immigrants and docks.
 Generic due to unglamorous location.
 Docks threatening and oppressive at night.

Props:

 Rapheal has a rucksack.
 Sarinka has an over the shoulder bag (both are overnight size).
 Car-BMW, dark blue.

Objects:

 Boats.
 Crates.
 Number plate (it has BEN on it).

Sound/Soundtrack:

 Splash in the water.
 Woman screaming after splash in the water.

Title of the Film:
We decided on the film name Divided, as it gives the audience some idea of what happens in the film, however doesn't give too much away.

Storyboards:

Mise-en-scene: Sleeping with the Enemy

How the utilises the generic codes and conventions of the thriller film Sleeping with the Enemy, 1991, USA:

Front Page: Sleeping with the Enemy

Name: Sleeping with the Enemy
Director: Joseph Ruben
Release Date: 12th April 1991
Country Made: USA
Awards: Nominated for 4 Saturn awards, Won 1 BMI Film Music Award.
Genre: Drama Thriller
Production Company: Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Males	6,095	5.6
Females	2,455	6.3

Even though more men voted compared to women, more women preferred the film. I think this is because the film is about domestic violence and this issue predominately affects women. I also think that more women preferred this film, as it shows a weak woman becoming strong, and the women watching admire this.

Males Aged 30-44	2,781	5.5
Females Aged 30-44	909	6.3

Many of the women that preferred this film were in the age range of 30-44years old, i think this is because they are a similar age to the main character and therefore can relate to her issues. This similarity in age between character and audience also gets the audience more involved, as they can relate to her age and the problems that people have in marriage, because many people in the age range of 30-44years are either married or in a serious relationship.

"I think most people tend to overlook how well-done the first 20 minutes of this movie really are. Martin carefully builds a creepy atmosphere, relying on brief glances, moments of silence and quietly expressive performances (especially by Julia Roberts) to help the viewer understand that, behind the image of a perfect couple, something is really wrong." written by G (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102945/usercomments)

Sleeping with the Enemy is a movie that has all the generic codes and conventions of a typical thriller film, although there is different take on the codes and conventions. I agree with what G says "I think most people tend to overlook how well-done the first 20 minutes of this movie really are. Ruben carefully builds a creepy atmosphere, relying on brief glances, moments of silence and quietly expressive performances (especially by Julia Roberts)" this does help the audience realise that the marriage isn't perfect, even if it does look this on the outside. The small glances and touches that Martin (Patrick Bergin) gives Laura (Julia Roberts) build up the uncomfortable and tense atmosphere that the audience feels when watching the film. Also the use of close ups on Laura's expression involve the audience and make them feel what she is feeling at the time.
There is continuous use of establishing shots, this shows a different side to thriller films because even though, locations are normally unglamorous and dingy, in this film the locations (the coastal house and the Iowa house) are glamorous and bright, but with a unglamorous and dark atmosphere that is created by the constant tension that Laura feels. I think this different use of locations creates unpredictability within the film, as it's not an obvious way of showing an unglamorous situation. The sense of claustrophobia is shown differently as well, as the beach house is bright and very open with large windows, however the location is isolated and is very open and barren, and shows that it is just Laura and her abusive husband Martin in that area this shows the audience that even though it isn't instantly obvious, Laura is in a claustrophobic, trapped situation.
The main theme's running through the film are dominance, power, and control these are shown through the music and again what G says "the brief glances, moments of silence." When Martin walks into the scene, the atmosphere and the music drops and becomes more sinister, this suggests that he doesn't just control his wife Laura, but also everything else-the music in the scene, the lighting, the mood. Another way power, control and dominance is shown is where Laura and Martin are positioned and the costume that they wear, for example: In one part of the film, Martin is shown close up and on the right third of the screen in focus, and Laura is shown behind him on the left third of the screen out of focus, this suggests that he thinks he more important and more worthy to be seen by the audience than Laura.
The costumes that Laura and Martin wear, also show the power that Martin has over Laura, because when they are attending a dinner party, they are both wearing black, but when Laura was getting ready she was wearing white and Martin asked her to change into black, and then the next scene they were both wearing black. Another way that Martin controls Laura is through humiliation, because in one scene he undresses her in front of the large windows, and her body language clearly shows discomfort, but Martin suggests to the audience that he doesn't care and that his wants are more important than Laura's dignity. However, at the end of the film there is a power switch, and this is shown through the positions of people, throughout the film Martin has been in the front and Laura has been behind him, showing his power, however in the last chapter Laura and Ben are shown before you see Martin's body, and this shows that the focus has been changed from Martin to Laura and that she now has control of her life back.
As well as costumes, names are important in this film because Laura and Martins names aren't out of the ordinary, they are everyday names there isn't anything special about them, which is exactly what makes them special. People can relate to Laura's situation with Martin due to their names because they are so everyday and mundane, the audience will know someone by the name of Martin or Laura and therefore can link the characters issues to their life, which involves the audience and keeps them watching.
In this film, there are use of flash backs, however i think that there is one particular piece of dialogue that is a flash forward "can't conquer our fears by running away" this is where Martin is talking about Laura not wanting to go on a boat, but it could been seen by the audience as a flash forward for what Laura's plan for the future is, running away? escaping?
There aren't many intertextual references that i noticed, however there was a scene that was similar to the shower scene in Psycho, this shows female weakness in situations, especially when they're alone and that they always need someone to look after them or protect them. There is also a reference to West Side Story, when Ben is dancing and singing about the Jets from the play West Side Story, this suggests that Laura has moved to a more cultural area and upperclass area as the people know about theatre.
During the film most of the music is similar to or the same piece from the opening title, this gives the audience the impression that maybe nothing changes, maybe Laura is always stuck with Martin, she doesn't actually get away even though she attempts it? The music from the beginning matches the first scene, as the music is almost calming and serene and the first scene is outside with nature, this gives the audience a false sense of freedom and happiness as you assume this is location is in tandem with Laura and Martin's relationship. This same piece of music, from the beginning, is also played at the end of the film and suggests a sense of closure and finality, because Martin has been killed by Laura, and she can been seen embracing Ben in the background, this implies that it is his end and her beginning, and that he's end had to come for her beginning to start.

In Sleeping with the Enemy women are represented as quite strong characters, because even though Laura is a subject to domestic abuse, she breaks free of this and the director uses Laura to show other women, that they can escape their abusive husbands, however Ruben does make the end of abusive husband Martin somewhat cliche, as Martin is shot by a desperate, scared, and hurt woman. Ruben also dismisses the idea of a strong man protecting a weak woman, because in the last scene Laura is protecting an unconscious Ben from Martin, so there is a huge role reversal from the typical man saves woman, therefore in this film woman are represented quite positively.

Front Page: Psycho

Name: Psycho
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Release Date: 16th June 1960
Country Made: USA
Awards: Nominated for 4 Oscars, DGA, Satellite Award, WGA Award (screen) and won Edgar, Golden Globe, and achieved 2nd and 3rd place in Golden Laurel Awards.
Genre: Horror Thriller
Production Company: Shamley Productions

Males	71,978	8.7
Females	14,582	8.6

This film predominately appeals to the male population compared with the female population, although only by 0.1%. I think this because the women in the film are perceived as weak, because in the first scene Marion is on her back which is a submissive position, and have a tendency to rely on men. This type of film appeals to the men more, especially as Hitchcock uses voyeurism and close ups which really involve the audience with the characters emotions and what they are thinking, for example: when Norman is looking through the hole in the wall at Marion undressing, this plays on their sense of masculinity and their urge to protect women. Whereas women may see this a rather derogatory, however they don't completely dismiss the film, as many women realise that the time it was written and released women were seen as inferior, and female viewers see the film in context.

Males under 18	2,001	9.2
Females under 18	577	9.2

However, the female age group you would assume would see the way woman are treated in the film as derogatory have the same average as the male age group. The under 18's women have been brought up in a society where men and women are perceived as equal, and therefore you would assume they would be the age group to not understand the context of when the film made, and would be more likely to argue against it. However the female under 18's population appear to understand, possibly because they have never had to live through it, and therefore feel unattached, compared with the female population 45+ years.

Males Aged 45+	7,009	8.9
Females Aged 45+	1,602	8.7

The female population of the age group 45+years have a 0.2% lower average than the men, and 0.5% lower than the females under 18. This could be because of again how Marion Crane and Norma Bates are seen as weak, and many women 45+ have probably have seen their mothers treated like this, and therefore feel more attached to this issue than the under 18's.

"Director Hitchcock does a great job here, he keeps the camera right in people's faces which gives it a claustrophobic feel." written by Paul Andrews

Psycho is a classically made thriller, with all the typical codes and conventions. I agree with what Paul says about the claustrophobic feel, the continuous use of close ups does give the claustrophobic sense. This continuous use of close ups also engages the audience with the characters as you can see their expressions, and you can engage with the character's issues and situations.
The use of close ups are also used to link certain objects with the characters, especially Marion in the beginning. For example: the camera moves from Marion to the money which suggests to the audience that they are linked. There is another close up of Marion packing her bags, this is a visual connection and helps the audience realise what is going on, as they can link the money, Marion and the bag packing altogether, due to the visual aid. During the shower scene there are continuous use of close ups and extra close ups, this again engages the audience with the action. Close ups on the neck, suggest the vulnerability of Marion and the extra close ups of the murder give the impression of intimacy as you never see the body fully, just parts of it.
Hitchcock uses aerial shots and lots of point of view shots to engage the audience and involve them into the action, this also links to what the cinema experience should be which is voyeuristic, you should be able to really engage and feel involved with the character and their situation, and this is one thing that Hitchcock does superbly in Psycho.
In many generic thriller films, dates and times are seen as important as the location and the character, because again it is about audience engagement. In the first scene, as well as having establishing shots to involve the audience, the date and time is included, this suggests that there isn't much time left until something terrible happens, the audience especially get this sense when they see a different time and/or date and they can work out and link this to past events, which keeps them on the edge of their seats.
Another generic feature that is used in Psycho are the locations, and similarly to 'Sleeping with the Enemy' the first location is glamorous, however it is what happens there that makes the location appear unglamorous. In the case of Psycho, Marion is having an affair with a man, which is secretive and perceived as dirty, unglamorous. However the second main location is the Bate's Motel, which is unglamorous due to the situations that happen there and the outward appearance of the motel.
The costumes in Psycho play a large part in deciphering characters change in personality, especially with Marion in the beginning of the film. In the first scene she is wearing white underwear this implies that Marion is pure, similar to a dove this links to her last name which is Crane and part of the bird family-like the dove; however in the sequence before she leaves town Marion is wearing black underwear, this represents her fall into crime.
Within this film names of people are important, compared with the names in 'Sleeping with the Enemy' which suggest no deeper meaning and are there to involve the audience and make the situations more personal, in Psycho the names have a deeper meaning particularly with Marion Crane, who's name relates to Norman's hobby, which is the stuffing of birds (taxidermy). Marion appears in the first scene as weak and submissive due to the fact she is on her back. And when she is eating with Norman he says "birds are passive things" this ties in with her as her last name is Crane, and his hobby is killing and stuffing dead animals, this suggests to the audience that this could be Marion's anticipated fate.
In the shower scene, you don't see Marion actually close the curtain, you just hear her do it, again in this film sound plays a large part in setting the atmosphere and mood. Even though you don't see Marion close the curtain, the sound of it gives the feeling of tension and apprehension, because it suggests to the audience that Marion is closing a door, trapping herself in the bath and because she is naked this makes her appear vulnerable. Marion 'trapping' herself in the bath is another generic thriller convention, because it's a claustrophobic space, this adds tension to her situation. The sequence where Marion is having a shower, as well as the running water there is rain outside, this gives the impression of her washing away her sins, her crime because water is pure and clean.

Mise-en-scene: Psycho

How the director Alfred Hitchcock utilises the generic codes and conventions of the thriller film Psycho, 1960, USA: