Screenwriter research 1 - Vince Gilligan

Vince Gilligan is a producer as well as a writer known for writing a number of TV series such as The X-Files, Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul as well as the film Hancock.

Gilligan grew a passion for screenwriting at an early age, regularly attending his Grandfathers bookstore, picking up comics and sci-fi paper backs as well as expressing his love for classic movies, and on his bedroom wall he would display a variety of different movie posters. He would also go out and create short films with his younger brother using a super 8 camera supplied by family friends.

Vince Gilligan's talent for screenwriting was first discovered when Gilligan wrote the screenplay for Home Fries, which won a Virginia Governors Screenwriting award. Producer Mark Johnson was one of the judges and also became Vince Gilligan's mentor and introduced him to The X-Files creator Chris Carter. Gilligan then became the writer on the show for which he was nominated for multiple awards. Since then Gilligan has gone on to win 2 Emmy Awards, both for Breaking Bad which has also gone on to be regarded as one of the greatest TV series ever made.

His style of writing is somewhat unique, the idea of getting to know the character as the series progresses at a similar rate to the audience is fairly common amongst many screenwriters but the idea of embracing curveballs is something many writers like to avoid. It is risky business writing for a TV series, in series 2 of Breaking Bad, one of the actors dropped out after just one episode meaning Gilligan had to create a whole new character, Gustavo Fring.

"If you’re too rigid in your thinking you may miss some wonderful opportunities for storytelling." Vince Gilligan

Gilligan's work has influenced mine greatly as it was his show Breaking Bad that gave me the idea of creating a film based around drugs. The difference between his idea and mine is that his character, Walter White, is trying to get into the drug trade while my character, Reece, attempts to move away from the drug trade.

TV Drama review - Luther

Luther is a British crime drama starring Idris Elba as DCI John Luther, a brilliant yet damaged cop who is torn between his separated wife whom he still feels attached to and solving serial killings. The creator and writer of the series is Neil Cross and is produced and broadcast by the BBC. Neil Cross has explained that Luther's character is influenced by both Sherlock Holmes and Columbo. There are currently 14 episodes split into 3 series with two more episodes lined up in December for series 4.

I have seen a number of crime dramas before such as American series like NCIS and The Wire as well as British series like New Tricks and Inspector George Gently but I was willing to give Luther a try having never seen the show previously. I decided to watch episode 1 from the first season hoping that it have a hold on me and persuade me to watch the rest of the series, which it has. Though I do enjoy watching crime dramas, I do feel that they are very repetitive in style, for example NCIS is just a new criminal and a new case every episode with a quick snippet of backstory eventually leading to the season finale which ties up all the loose ends in the series creating one amazing episode and many ok ones. Luther on the other hand is different. There is a really immersive storyline throughout the episode that keeps the viewer on the edge of their seat, waiting to see what's going to happen next.

The storyline
"After a 7 month suspension, DCI John Luther returns to duty. With the assistance of DS Justin Ripley, he investigates a home invasion that resulted in the murders of Douglas and Laura Morgan who were found by their daughter Alice. After questioning her, Luther is convinced that she killed her parents and as much as tells her so. He has no physical evidence however and the police have not been able to find the gun. Alice is highly intelligent and is quite prepared to play psychological games with him. Luther meanwhile tries to repair his relationship with his wife Zoe from who he has been separated. She has met someone and has begun a new relationship news that doesn't go down very well." Written by garykmcd - IMDB

The dialogue is very well written and Luther's body language tells the story very well, the inclusion of Ruth Wilson as the genius, narcissist, sociopath Alice Morgan as the subject that John Luther attempts to catch is very well done. Ruth Wilsons character is the perfect match for John Luther, she is a seemingly uncatchable killer that Luther goes to great lengths to catch and in this episode, he does not catch her. This is a sense of originality that the series does not repeat with the same idea every episode and there will always be a twist to keep the audience engaged. Will Alice Morgan ever be proven guilty of her crimes?

This episode is very influential to my work as the show introduces the characters very well capturing every necessary detail and allows the viewer to really get into and understand what the characters are about. The meeting between the two characters DCI John Luther and Alice Morgan is very well done and is certainly something I would love to be able to replicate in the future.

Here is an inside look at the first episode of Luther

Short film review 3 - The Fly

Where as the other two films I reviewed are very dramatic and serious, The Fly is a very dark comedy about a getaway driver waiting outside of a bank robbery who must get through 3 minute of waiting for his crew to return from the scene. The getaway driver is put to the test when a fly enters his car and what starts as waving the fly away turns into a scenario of absolute mayhem.

The film is sort of like a slap-stick silent film as it is without any actual dialogue besides the odd grunt or argh and you really get a sense of joy from watching this dark comedy. Director Olly Williams really goes the distance with just how far this character goes with his tantrum involving this fly. The film is a classic example of show not tell as it relies heavily on the action rather than the dialogue as there is no dialogue.

The film was so much more than just the physical performance, the shots used were very clever and almost told the story on its own. An example of this is the dolly shot of the bank door every time the character looks over, conveying how impatient the character is in this situation. There were shots taken from almost every possible angle to capture every action and every viewpoint of every scenario in the film.

Though limited, Olly Williams is very well known in the short film community with his first venture into film making ending up as arguably the most successful short film to date (The Black Hole) which has raked up over 19 million views on YouTube and is studied by film students on a global scale.

The meeting in this film is a very clever and very subtle as the meeting is between the character and the fly. I had never thought about the idea of the meeting being between a character and a subject such as a fly and is certainly a good idea for the future. I could also implement the element of show not tell in my writing by using a scene that does not require any dialogue and tells the story through physical actions.

https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2015/09/21/the-fly/

Short film review 2 - Run

Run is a short film about an emotionally detached gang member named Marcus who is put in a difficult situation where he must put his trust in a young, rival gang member named Dean in order to survive. The film is directed by Trevor Stevens, a young actor/director/writer in what is his fifth and most recent short to date. It is reasonably long for a short at 17 minutes but it really develops the story and once it really gets going, it really gets going as it captures the relationship and trust that is formed between the two characters.

I feel that the characters themselves are very undeveloped and that the secondary characters are very one toned, there doesn't seem to be much change in character in any of the characters. However the short as a piece is very compelling with long takes, interesting locations and all round brilliant cinematography, it really grabs the viewer and keeps their eyes glued to the screen. It's not the smartest film in terms of development but it is a very watchable and enjoyable film none the less.

I especially like the ending, where Marcus eventually shoots Dean after Marcus' gang arrives with his son. The shot is done inside the car where you can see Marcus and his gang about to shoot Dean on the outside through the window and Marcus' sons reflection in the rear view mirror. It portrays the loss in trust the son has when Marcus shoots Dean despite the fact that it's clear he never wanted to shoot him.

I found the film very relatable to mine as it featured a drug dealer (Marcus) trying to escape the tense situation he's been placed in and the young drug dealer (Dean) who clearly feels out of place in his gang and wants to escape the gang life entirely. All this is featured in what is approximately 11 minutes of just 1 continuos shot (maybe edited in areas to give that effect) of them crossing paths with one another, escaping the gang war and eventually Marcus shooting Dean. The camera shots used were very clever and it is something I would love to be able to implement in future films.

https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2015/10/07/run-3/

Short film review 1 - Standing8

Standing8 is a short film about a boxer who must confront his biggest enemy after killing his opponent in a title winning fight, himself. The film is 15 minutes long and is written and directed by Michael Minard, a stunt coordinator turned director in what is his second short and first script.

Abdul is a skilled, up coming boxer with a big mouth and even bigger punch, dealing with the consequences of killing an opponent in the ring. The beginning of the film shows Abdul in an interview discussing his viewpoint on what went down in the ring. You get the sense that he doesn't care the slightest bit what he did exclaiming "I was just trying to win" with a big grin on his face. From this point onwards you notice that he is struck with guilt when he least expects them, often making him feel faint and during his pre-fight checkup, there are concerns that his past punishment is catching up to him.

I really admire this film-short, Minard really packed a lot into this film, a death, brain damage concerns, a confrontation with the dead boxers widow amongst other things. I feel that to get the most from this film, the film would need to be a bit longer as it feels a bit overcrowded, however it does flow very well and there is enough detail to keep you from getting confused as to what's going on.

Though the characters and scenarios are very exaggerated and melodramatic, Abdul's character is very realistic and can be very relatable to the right person, as is the boxing. With director Minard being a former boxer himself, he brings a unique depth and understanding of the culture and science surrounding the world of boxing, giving the short a realistic feel to it.

I do feel that I can take some ideas from the film such as the change in character and the many obstacles Abdul must overcome. The idea of Abdul trying to battle his own self issues is similar to the battles my characters must overcome in my short film. The meetings in the film are very short and to the point and there is a long list of characters so I do not feel I can take any meeting ideas.

https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2015/11/06/standing8/

Soft Review

Soft is a short film created by Simon Ellis in 2006 about a father who rediscovers his fear of confrontation at a very crucial time. The film follows a father and his son who have both encountered the same gang of people on the same day at different times. When the father discovers that his son was attacked by the same gang as the group he encountered earlier on, he almost begins to shrivel up and became too scared to approach the situation. Having just talked to his son about learning to stand up for himself, he finds himself in an ironic situation where he becomes afraid to approach the gang causing the son, Scott, to lose respect for his father.

I thought that this film was very well made and the characters were left in the right place, their faces told the story very well which is a great example of showing the story as a supposed to saying it. I also liked the camera shots they used. The camera crane shot was used to great effect, especially at the end when the neighbours walk out after the asbo was hit with the cricket bat. This is a great interpretation of how 'soft' and afraid the neighbours were to approach this scene and makes you wonder if trouble caused by the group is a regular occurrence in the area. Another camera trick I liked was the use of the low quality phone camera to film the gang beating up Scott. This adds an element of realism to the scenario and allows you to really engage with the situation.

I felt like I took a lot from this short film as there was a meeting between the two main characters of the story, the father and the son and it adds an element of irony to the situation with the father telling his son to stand up for himself while he struggles to approach major situations himself. There was also a lot of foreshadowing in the film that I feel I can use in the future, such as the cricket bat being visible at the beginning of the film with the father tripping over the bag that the bat was concealed in as a hint of what the character (his son) gets up to a well as what's about to come in the film.

Storyboards

In this session we spent some time learning about storyboards, how they work and why they're important. We also looked at some examples of storyboards from big Hollywood films such as Indiana Jones and Star Wars. Storyboards from major blockbuster films such as these are typically made in great detail in order to get a good sense of what the setting looks like and how the character reacts to these situations. These are called graphic storyboards. To the right is an example of a storyboard taken from Star Wars.

This style of board is very common in major film storyboards with some including captions and notes so the editor has a better idea of what's going on in the shot. However some storyboards are a little less detailed. These are called diagrammatical storyboards. Diagrammatical storyboards commonly use stickmen and very rough drawings of scenarios and are generally used in quick drafts before taking to a more detailed storyboard later on. However is not uncommon to use a diagrammatical storyboard as the final piece as in many cases there is just as much going on and the editor will still see everything that's going on with ease.

Another common example of a storyboard design is the plan view storyboard. This is where the scenario taking place is shown from a birds eye view and typically contains directions, for example where a car will drive to or what a character is moving towards. and some will even contain camera directions such as where the camera will be positioned, what shot type it will use and what camera movement will take place.

Some storyboards will even use photos and computer graphics to compile their storyboards and will even create an entire live action scene with animation in order to recreate everything they want in the final piece. To the left is an example of a storyboard created using photos for an advert and below is an example of an animated scene from Indiana Jones.

Camera Workshop 4

Camera Workshop 4 - 26th October

Today we did some more camera work on the set of the Jools Holland show with Fergus. We learnt about the 180 degree rule and how to implement it when filming. Though I have had no prior experience doing this technique, I knew of the 180 degree rule before.

In film making, the 180 degree rule shows two subjects opposite one another with an imaginary arc surrounding them showing where the camera must be. Should the camera be outside of the arc, this is called crossing the line.

Fergus (far right) teaching me how to operate some of the
functions on the camera

The task we were issued with in todays workshop was to create a short video using a script and including audio while sticking to the 180 degree rule. To help put this video together, I worked with Alex and Josh who were the actors and Leonardo who was working the sound. All in all I was happy with the shots I got though I was a little disappointed with the sound as some of the clips had quiet audio. Despite this there were some good audio pieces and I am still able to edit the piece without any issues.

I also had the chance to use the boom mic and I felt that I did really well and had very few issues keeping it out of shot while maintaining a good piece of audio. All in all I had a very good experience working with both the camera and the boom and felt I learnt a lot from this lesson.

Camera Workshop 3

Camera Workshop 3 - 19th October 2015

Today we started to look at trailers as well as different camera shot sizes, angles and techniques that would enable us to create a very effective opening sequence or trailer.

Camera Shot Sizes
There are a number of different shot types that you can film, some of which I have mentioned in previous post. These range from Extreme Close-Up (ECU) right the way up to Very Long Shot (VLS). To the right are the most common examples of shot sizes.

Very Long Shot (VLS) is used to show the entire character as well as their surroundings. It can be very difficult to make out certain characteristics from the subject.

Long Shot (LS) is used to show the entire character but not much else. In this shot the character will often fill the screen from head to toe.

Medium Long Shot (MLS) is used to show most of the character, typically from the head to the knee area.

Medium Shot (MS) is used to show roughly half the character so the head and torso.

Medium Close-Up (MCU) is used to show a small area of the characters body, typically the head and shoulders. This is typically used in Over The Shoulder shots and in interview situations.

Close-Up (CU) is used to show an even smaller area of the body, typically the head.

Big Close-Up (BCU) is used to show just the characters face meaning the chin and most of the hair is left out of the shot.

Extreme Close-Up (ECU) is typically used to show facial features, most commonly the characters eyes.

Camera Shots and Angles
There are numerous ways you can shoot a scenario, you can have multiple people in a shot, you can shoot from over the shoulder, shoot from a high angle etcetera. There is no limit on how you can take a shot but here are a few examples:

Two Shot is used to get two different subject in the same shot. This could be implemented in a number of fashions such as Close Up, Medium Close Up and Medium Shot. You can also have more than two people in a shot but this is harder to implement.

Over The Shoulder Shot is where the field of view shows what the subject is looking at/talking to from over the shoulder.

High Angle Shot (looking down) is where you are viewing a subject or a scenario from above, looking down. This can be done to make a character look small and weak.

Low Angle Shot (looking up) is where you are viewing a subject or a scenario from below, looking up.  This can be done to make a character look more empowering (See image below for an example).

Tilted Frame is where the camera shot is at an angle.

A low angle shot from Inglorious B******s

Camera Workshop 2

Camera Workshop 2 - 12th October 2015

Today was our second camera workshop with Fergus and we worked on the set of the Jools Holland Show in studio 5. For this workshop, we were issued the task to create a sequence around someone walking towards a chair. Once again we used the Sony EX cameras. We learned more about the features on the camera as well as some new features. One feature that we were taught was how to sort out the aperture and other controls such as gain, white balance and zebra.

Being new to camera operating, there was a lot that I learnt. The studio had a lot of areas that showed up as dark on the camera so to learn these new features was very useful and I feel as though I could take a lot from it as one of the areas I am planning on shooting at is inside and very dark. I found the zebra tool most useful as it shows you on the camera the areas that show up as too bright allowing you to get the most ideal shot for your video.

Our task in pairs was to create a video using a number of short sequences that would cut up to create one video once the video is edited. For this task I was paired up with Josh Bayly. We used a number of different shots and took in turns using the camera so I would film Josh and Josh would then film me. The different shots we used included a Close-Up shot of his feet as he walked from one chair to another side on, the same shot only with the camera following the feet from behind, one with the subject walking towards the camera, starting as a Long Shot and finishing on an Extreme Close-Up shot as well as a range of other shots from numerous different angles while sticking to the 180 degree rule (to be discussed in Camera Workshop 4).

The lighting in the room was consistent throughout the shot and I did not feel the need to change the aperture by huge amounts with each shot. I did find this difficult as there was a lot to focus on in such short time. I took my time getting the lighting in each shot clear but I did not want to spend too long as I wanted a good number of shots in this time.

Story-Telling - Memento

In a recent lecture, I sat and watched one of Christopher Nolan's first major hits, Memento (2000). The film was both written and directed by Christopher Nolan and starred Guy Pearce who played a man named Leonard Shelby, who must face the task of finding his wife's killer while facing the handicap of not being able to remember anything after about 15 minutes. To do this, Leonard must take pictures of certain people/scenarios and write notes as well as tattoo certain bits of information to his body to remind himself of the numerous points he has pointed out along the way.





What particularly interests me about this film is the way the story is structured, it starts at the end and works its way to the beginning. What impresses me even more is that it still manages to offer some unexpected surprises making the end result all the more significant. I feel that by structuring a film in this way you are able to create something that seems so incredibly complex and complicated from a story that in actual fact is very simple. For this reason I very much enjoyed watching this film as it really makes you think about what is going on as well as what is about to happen.

I do not feel that I can make any direct links from my short film to memento and I do not think I can take any ideas from the film however I do like the many meeting scenarios Leonard has in the film. As Leonard has no short term memory, It seems as though every time he talks to someone he is meeting someone new, even if that character has popped up numerous times in the film.

Draft script for Memento, dated 10/04/1999

Above is a draft script taken from the film Memento, written in April 1999, that I found using the website Script-O-Rama. I was recommended to use this website to find numerous scripts taken from films, TV as well as Anime by Simon as a way of finding script examples to help us with script layout as well as inspiration.

I found the script layout very helpful as it portrayed exactly how to lay out written messages as well as voice-overs, phone calls and parenthesis.