2. Genre
The genre for our film is a British Social Realist Drama. Social realism focuses on
topical issues that are occurring in a stereotypical modern society, which is
represented by different ideas. The genre often focuses upon truth and honesty:
These being the aspects that give the genre its realist name. Themes such as
drugs, money, sex, religion and typical day-to-day activities are conventionally
portrayed within the narrative of a social realist film. It focuses on life’s struggles
and often portrays the working class activities as heroic. Dealing with the work
area also adds to the realist aspects as it is nothing to high key or high class.
These types of films are conventionally low budget; an example would be Billy
Elliott and Fish Tank, both films that do not feature famous actors or actresses
(the use of unknown actors). The representation of characters through the use of
unknown actors supports the realist aspects of the genre due to the fact that
these actors could potentially be anyone as they are not famous icons.
3. THE PLOT
We mind mapped our ideas in order to allow us to have a variety to
choose from. Having elements of sadness within the plot line allowed us
to fit in with the genre itself. However, we wanted to make our ending
extremely happy and satisfying for the audience in order for them to
allow their emotions to change as the film progresses (from low to high).
The plot of our film involves a young boy who has been in a wheelchair
all of his life because he was born with deformed limbs. His mum died
when she was giving birth and his Dad could not cope with a disabled
child on his own so he left his son with the responsibility of a care home.
Jamie, the main character playing the deformed boy, has had a hard life
and has struggled to cope with the given circumstances. He has
attempted to commit suicide several times and he does not see any
point in his current life. Then, his care worker, Julie, suggests that he
tries out for a wheelchair basketball team in order to place some
positivity within his life. Due to the closeness of Jamie and Julie
relationship, Jamie takes Julie’s advice and makes the team. He finds
his true talent and destiny, and he also makes lots of lifelong friends. He
and his team end up winning gold at the Paralympics and he becomes
an icon all over the country.
4. Characters
Jamie – Young boy with deformed legs. In the opening of the film
we see him being born, and by the end of the film he is a
Paralympics champion.
Keith – Plays the role of Jamie’s dad. He only stars in the
beginning of the film, and his exit involves him abandoning his
young disabled son.
Julie – She is like a mother to Jamie. Playing the role of his
beloved care worker. She looks after Jamie and is the one who
pushes him on to becoming a member of the wheelchair
basketball team.
Rhys - Jamie’s friend who suddenly turns against him when he
starts to spend less time with him and when he becomes a
champion.
Kim – Jamie’s love interest.
Will – The school bully who does not like disabled people.
6. Opening sequence
The first scene – The first scene consists of Jamie being born. This has been
censored and the actual birth is not explicitly shown. Jamie’s birth was a water birth
and the first shot is a point of view shot from the baby under the water. The camera
would be hand-held as it is a low budget film and it also adds to the realistic aspect of
the genre. It also makes the scene appear more chaotic. The soundtrack would be the
piano backing track of ‘Mad World’ and the dialogue would be of a baby screaming.
The second scene – The second scene involves Jamie’s Dad Keith discovering that
his wife is dead. The soundtrack would still be playing in the back ground and the
actually lyrics would start to play; However the sound would be blurred as if Keith does
not know what is going on and to make the audience feel is frustration, despair and
confusion. The camera would still be hand-held to make it appear chaotic and realistic.
The camera would pan across from Keith, to the dead wife and then finally to the baby
to represent the connection to each other that the three have. It would vary from slow
to fast, again to show the chaos of the whole situation.
The third scene – The third scene would show Jamie himself. It would be a birds eye
view shot from above of the baby and would slowly and carefully zoom in on him to
portray how delicate he is. The backing track of Mad World would still be sounded in
the back ground. Baby Jamie would also be crying.
The forth scene – The fourth scene would be the final shot. This would consist of Keith
standing from afar facing the opposite way. It would be a long shot: This is to show
how distant he is from his new born son. It also sets the tone and atmosphere for the
upcoming events in the film – sadness.
7. Summary of camera shots
Point of view shot from Baby Jamie – to show how he is entering the
world and to censor the birth
Close up of Baby Jamie – to show his new born face
Close up of Keith – to show is facial expression
Panning shot from Keith, to the mother and Jamie
Birds eye view shot of Jamie
Zooming in shot of Jamie – to show the delicacy of him
Long shot of Keith and the corridor – to show the distance of him and
his son
Long establishing shot of the setting – to set the scene and the tone
8. Target audience
Our target audience is more varied than, for example, a rom-com. This
is due to the diversity in the themes we can include for our narrative.
The themes that are most appropriate for our genre would include
things like sex, drugs, relationships, school and so on. It is so varied
that at least one theme would relate to or interest the public in some
way or another. Due to another theme of this genre being sadness,
some would say that our genre of film would not appeal to many people:
This is why we made the decision to add a sporty element to the
narrative of our film. This would appeal to the younger generation of film
watchers, alike to the Olympics which would too interest more people.
Americans are often known for enjoying happy and positive films, alike
to many people in Britain. We felt it necessary to include a happy ending
in order to appeal to more people. However, it all depends on the
gratifications of a person and the type of mood they are in (chance).
9. Improvements
When pitching our presentation to our class they came up with several
suggestions in order to potentially make our film more successful and
appealing. Including…
A villain
A love interest
A bigger problem other than his disability
