Storyboard Evolution

Before we film, it is of utmost importance that we have an idea of the exact shots we want to capture, so that we use all of our time efficiently. In order to clarify what shots we need, I drew up a detailed storyboard on the basis of all our previous ideas.

Storyboarding is an effective method of planning for film, because it allows ideas to be succinctly conveyed through the medium of still frames. Storyboards allow people to envisage the film in a way other plans, such as lists or charts, cannot.

The images below show our different stages of storyboarding, from our basic ideas to a structured plan.

I created this very basic storyboard in order to explain our ideas for the narrative, which were discussed in our first group planning session. The drawn images did not represent actual shots, but were simply used to explain what the scene would contain.


These are some examples of shots for key-scenes that Tom, Daniel and I drew for our second class presentation. I drew these particular frames as ideas for shots in the flashback sequence of the OTS.


These are the final storyboards that I drew just before we began filming. Drawing the frames enabled me to get a clearer sense of exactly what shots we needed, and as I completed each frame, I also wrote it down on a list that I will be able to use when we are actually filming.

Overall, the gradual development of accuracy and detail through the use of storyboards has helped me to understand precisely what we are aiming for in terms of raw footage. Whilst filming, I will refer to my list of shots in order to ensure that we acquire exactly what we need.

Flashback Script

After setting out my plans for the OTS's scripted dialogue in my Film Noir Characters post, I went ahead and started writing a basic script for the flashback sequence. I returned to the script several times, revising and re-writing the script with the inclusion of different ideas. This method worked well, because I wanted the dialogue to seem rich with vague information; information that wouldn't make total sense to the audience, but would appear to be incredibly important. As a result, I decided that the Femme Fatale should repeatedly refer to a past event without ever actually describing it.

I am happy with this final copy of the script, because it is concise and ambiguous, but still reveals a considerable amount about the type of characters involved and hints towards the themes of crime and justice. 

Please click 'full' at the bottom of the box for a full-screen view of the document.OTS Flashback Script

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Character: Building a Film Noir Cast

Noir is an interesting style of film, because the term 'Film Noir' was coined retrospectively, when critics noticed a stylistic trend of American crime and detective films in the 1940s and 50s. The trend was set as directors began to use German Expressionist cinematography to portray adaptions of pulp novels and crime sagas in American Literature. The films epitomised the opposite of the 'American Dream', and expressed pessimistic memes of depression, suspicion, moral ambiguity, disillusionment, moral corruption, guilt, desperation and anxiety. Therefore, in order to build an appropriate Noir persona, all of these ideas and emotions must be reflected in a character that is equally as dark.

In our basic OTS plan, the three characters are a Femme Fatale, the Femme Fatale's 'Goon', and a Victim. Whilst being Film Noir in style, our OTS will fit the Psychological Thriller genre. Most films, regardless of genre, introduce either the antagonist or protagonist in the OTS, and so we decided to involve a stereotype of Noir: the Femme Fatale, as our antagonist. We did not want to involve a protagonist for two reasons:

A) An OTS, particularly for a thriller, is supposed to tease the audience, and revealing the protagonist at this stage would give away a lot of information.

B) Moral ambiguity is a large factor in Film Noir, and concealing the Femme Fatale's true moral worth would instil an immediate sense of mystery as to which of the characters are good, and which are bad, or rather, which to side with, and which to not.



In film Noirs, the basic plot regularly revolves around a struggle for power, which may switch between characters and context's throughout the film. This is evident in this clip of The Blue Dahlia (above), from 4:00 to 6:45, where the power quickly switches from the hotel manager and the two 'Goons' to the Policeman. The switching of power makes the scene incredibly tense, particularly at the policeman's entry, because the audience is waiting for a conflicting power struggle to ensue.

The character above, with scruffy dress and a slightly apathetic expresion, makes a perfect Goon.

If the scripted dailogue is to work well for our OTS, I feel that it must include themes of a similar struggle for power. To achieve this, I will give each character a distinctly different way of acting in order to convey their different levels of status:

• I intend to write the Femme Fatale as a subtly arrogant character who is stern and sly in assuming her own position of power.
  
• Her Goon, as a kind of personal assistant, will submit to her regardless of circumstance. For this reason, and also in order to sustain a sense of mystery, the Goon will not speak during the OTS.
  
• The Victim will also be sly and cunning, but will be overshadowed and outwitted by the Femme Fatale for whom he is working.
  
• To show the difference in status between the Femme Fatale and the Victim, I will deliberately widen the Femme Fatale's vocabulary whilst constricting the Victim's. I will also ensure that the Victim speaks much less than the Femme Fatale, and rarely of his own initiative.

The more attention to detail that is paid to seperate areas of the production, the more professional the final product will look.