Filming: Take One

Hi All! 

Very excited news in today's post, we have begun filming! Asher and I were able to finally pair up our schedules and put everything else aside to start filming our masterpiece. We utilized most of the locations planned out in our film, with a few add ons, such as Asher's dining room, his backyard and the park in his neighborhood. 

First, we shot in Asher's guest bedroom. This room looks most like it belongs to a female, and to make it more representative of a high school room, Asher and I did a little redecorating. We relocated much of his decorations into the guest room, or Nora's room, including: framed art, desk supplies, stuffed animals, framed pictures, Asher's Himalayan salt lamp (I didn't know what it was at first either), and of course an extra decor which was Nora's bottle of pills. 

We took footage of Nora being on the "Addy," which includes her being very focused in her work and very involved. We took many shots and various angles to have plenty of footage to work with. Here is an inside still shot: 

Nora in her bedroom.

We then proceeded to film in Asher's dining room to shoot some more of the scenes where Nora will be on Adderall. She will be shown taking the pills and doing her homework and studying intensely. 

After that we shot a few scenes in a spare, empty room and transformed it into the therapist's office. We were going to use Asher's dad's office in this scene, but he was using it at the time and it didn't look as good as we had imagined it to do. We made it look like a therapist session by rearranging the couch and the throw pillows and adding degree's to the wall to make it look more like an actual office. 

Asher and I then took some of the shots outside. We shot a scene in the backyard and in the park. We used the backyard in the day and at night and took some pretty cool shots using the lights hanging on the fence at night. We ventured to the park and got unique footage of Nora and her friend on the swings. 

One of our favorite and most fun to film, were the shower scenes. They came out just as we envisioned them too. The inspiration for us came from the famous shower and murder scene in Psycho. Megan was such a great actress to work with because she was willing to do anything and was such a great sport about it all. She didn't mind getting soaked in the shower and having us film parts of her that others would probably feel very uncomfortable doing. None of the shots show nudity, except they imply it which was the goal. They came out great and I am so excited to edit them and show them to all of you.

Here is a behind the scenes scoop on the Adderall, or Addy, we used in our film: we made our own! Asher bought empty vegan capsules off of Amazon Prime because we needed to use something that our actress could actually take (Megan is vegan so it was even harder to find). To make our placebo pills, we filled them up with red sugar. Adderall extended release is orange or blue, but since we didn't want it to be exactly the same because we don't have permission to use them, we chose to do red. 

Making Addy

It has been so much fun filming with Asher and Megan and I'm so excited to continue. Stay in touch!

Shots Fired

Hello everyone! 

As Asher and I have been thinking about how to organize our trailers, we created a very rough drafted shot list. The reason I say "very" is because this is an overall idea of how we want our trailers to play out. We will use some of our shots in both trailers, while others will be used in only one. Also, we will be adding other shots and incorporating them into different scenes that are not on our list. Many of our shots are suitable for a drama film, while others defy some conventions. 

Here is a picture of our drafted shot list: 

Drafted Shot List

After thorough research, we have decided to announce what our two trailers will be targeted towards and how they will be marketed. The two trailers that films usually create have to be differentiated in some way, and most of the time they do this by making them appealing to two different audiences. 

Asher and I are going to create our two trailers based off of our genre and of our audience. One of our trailers is going to be more drama-driven; this means it's going to rely on the typical characteristics of a drama to engage and persuade viewers to come and see our film. This trailer is going to be marketed in movie theaters and film festivals because those who are extremely passionate about movies will understand and appreciate these aspects of our film. 

Our other trailer is going to be more emotionally-driven. This trailer is going to use the character(s) as the main point of the trailer so that the audience can build a relationship with the character. Asher and I will be using pathos to draw in our target audience so that they stay hooked to watch the film. We will be marketing this trailer across various social media platforms to appeal to that niche of generation-Z who are on their social media accounts on their all the time.

Here is a summed up version of the research Asher and I compiled of the typical characteristics and conventions of both: 

Trailer #1 (Genre-Driven- Movie Theater/Film Festival Festival):

1. Trailers displayed at the movie theaters and at film festivals are usually 1:30 to 2:00 minutes. These platforms are suitable for a genre-driven audience who are interested in the characteristics and conventions used in the film. This audience is commonly described as “movie-goers” because they tend to go and see films at these platforms rather than streaming them or watching them at home. Therefore, one of our trailers will be more geared towards focusing on the drama and that one will be presented at these locations.

2. Film festivals and Movie Theaters are a great way to advertise the film because most likely the audience is going to come back to see more films. Our trailer will be displayed at other drama movies that are released before our film so that the same audience is exposed to it. This is commonly how previews are organized at movie theaters and at film festivals- they are displayed before the same genre so that the same targeted audience comes to see it.

3. Indie films do not have that must of a disadvantage as very popular, and wealthy franchised films because it’s about marketing and how well the trailers are produced. Trailers are also typically released within 100 days before the film.

Trailer #2 (Social Media Trailer- Instagram/Snapchat/Twitter):

1. Trailers tend to be 1 minute in length, as social media users tend to be more quick with their consumption decisions. Also, some media platforms such as Instagram regulate the video lengths that can be broadcasted on their application (Instagram allows for videos to be 60 seconds or less). Thus, our social media trailer will be a 60 second trailer.

2. What is nice about social media is that you can broadcast so many different trailers and types (full length, shorter, teaser, etc.). Unlike TV movie trailer commercials  which on average are 30 seconds or less, social media's like Twitter and Snapchat allow for longer full length trailers for a fraction of a cost, as TV costs big bucks to feature commercials on differing networks while social medias cost no money to create and post on their own pages and are not expensive when advertising when compared to TV.

3. Snapchat it is especially important as advertisements on snap usually feature a teaser trailer that, if chosen by the consumer, can be "Swipped Up" to view a longer length trailer, making the consumer feel like they are in control with what advertisements they see (all relates to marketing to Millenials and Gen Z with creating brand loyalty and advertising without advertising).

Both of our trailers will also be distributed on Youtube as well. We feel that this platform has an audience for both, and there should be an area where the two trailers are together for our overall target audience to see. 

I hope you enjoyed our drafted shot list and our reveal for our trailers! Stay in touch to get an exclusive inside look to some of the sneak peaks to our film! (Hint: Asher and I began filming!)

Finding Nora

Asher and I went through a very thorough process of picking an actress. We didn't just want to choose anyone just because they would be willing to act. No. We needed someone who we both equally felt embodied the characteristics of Nora. We thought of a few candidates for the role, but none of them worked out as well as our chosen actress... drumroll please... Megan Vitko! 

View some of the photos of Megan below and see how awesome Nora is going to be: 

   

Megan graduated early from Cypress Bay this year, so she is me and Asher's age and has time to film. She is very fashionable and creative and just the gal we've been looking for. We think that it is great that she is very in-style and has a preferred look because we feel that it will be relatable. Our representation is very important to us because we want our target audience to feel a connection and relate to Nora as a real high school student. We has discussed many times that we need our film to be 100% accurate. We are tired of watching films that have a very poor representation of high school students, so we are going to avoid doing that and please the rest of the population who hates this too. 

We are going to be filming next week (so incredibly excited) and I will reveal how we are going to organize our two trailers, including our drafted shot list. 

Check back soon! 

Soul or Sound Searching?

Who knew sound would be so difficult to find? Asher and I have been searching for the perfect music to pair with our trailers and we have yet to find something we like. We had this proposed sound in our heads of what we wanted to find, but it is becoming extremely hard to pick out. 

Before we started this project, I heard a song that I really wanted to use; however, it would be extremely difficult to get permission to use the song. I wanted to use Sia's song, "Angel By the Wings." Listen for yourself so you can understand and have a feeling for the mood and tone of how we want to set up our trailer, even though we are not going to be using this song.

I fell in love with the chorus and the melody of the song. I already had a clear vision of how I was going to organize the trailers and how I wanted them pan out. My favorite part is the build up to the climax of the very high intense notes because it is so emotionally driven. I liked the fact that it starts out slow and gradually builds up, engaging the listeners and making them feel something for the piece. Immediately when I heard this song months ago, I called Asher and told him to listen to it. He too fell in love with it. 

Although this song would be great, we hit some major bumps in the road in the realization of what it would take to use the song. We learned all about asking for permission for copyrighted material last year in our AS Media Studies class, but since my project was a magazine last year, I didn't have to worry about it or delve into it too much. But now that I am going to use music in my project this year, it became a prominent issue. 

Asher and I did attempt to ask for permission for the song from the Label, Monkey Puzzle Records, however, it was much more than just asking to use the song. First of all, they are impossible to get a hold of. Second of all, we had no idea that it literally costs thousands of dollars for us to use it. We love the song, but we don't love it that much. So during our periodical meeting with our teacher Mrs. Stoklosa, we told her how we wanted to use the song and all of that, and she recommends that we just use copyright-free music. She suggested we try two sites: Purple Planet and Bensound. Another reason I am okay with not using the song is because the usual conventions for a drama film is that they don't use lyrics because it distracts the viewers and takes there mind off of the film itself. 

I am still really bummed out that we couldn't use that song, but Asher and I are keeping an open mind and listening to countless of Royalty Free Music on end, but have yet to find something that we like. Everything we have found is way too dramatic and theatrical. I'm not going to make my trailers cheesy whatsoever, so I am going to continue to try my hardest in finding something amazing for our trailers. I am looking for a distinct piece that is going to not only "wow" me, but my audience as well. I know it's out there, I just have to keep searching. 

Asher and I are very motivated and devoted to making this trailer the best that it can be, so stay in touch, because we may or may not have found who is going to be our lead actress to play Nora!

Scouting Settings

As Asher and I delve more into the production aspects of our trailers, we decided a good place to start would be to choose possible location settings. We began by describing spots that we have both imagined filming in and then we brainstormed about where these settings would be feasible to film. We think that having about 5 main, unique settings would be a balanced number for our trailers. 

Location 1: School Campus 

Since Nora will be in high school, we clearly need a school setting, so it's a good thing Asher and I attend a high school. We not only attend any high school, we attend Cypress Bay High School. Cypress is like a mini college campus. With almost 5,000 students, 3 buildings (one of which is three stories), and over 50 portables, I'd say we have plenty of very accurate representations of the high school Nora will attend. 


Location 2: Bedroom 

We will be using Asher's house, specifically his bedroom and bathroom, to shoot these scenes. We both agreed that he has a very stereotypical looking high school bedroom- artsy posters, messy desk, framed pictures with friends and family, etc. His room will be great for our target audience to relate to and it will feel like it is actually Nora's bedroom. We will use this setting to establish the more emotionally driven scenes because often times high schoolers go in there rooms to be dramatic about their problems, sorry but it's true. 


Location 3: Glass Shower

Asher and I are so so so excited about this setting! We will be getting some very raw and vulnerable shots here that will show the real, engrossed emotional pain Nora is going through. Asher has a very nice glass shower in his house that will be easy to film around so we will be able to make our vision possible. 


Location 4: Doctor's Office 

Our idea for the doctor's office derives from the plan of introducing to our audience that Nora has a serious problem. We haven't decided whether or not we want to make it a therapist's office or a doctor's office only because it depends on where we shoot it. Asher asked his therapist if we can use her office to shoot these scenes in, but she can not give us a straight answer yet because she has such a busy schedule, which is understandable. So our plan-B is that we use Asher's house again and shoot in his dad's office. We can redecorate certain parts and include only what we need in our shots to make it look just like a real-life doctor's office. 


Location 5: Woodland Area 

I think I am most excited about the shots that will come from this setting. We will be filming in Markham Park which is a very woodsy-looking park with 666-acres of land. Markham has such versatile locations that Asher and I can make use of. We have so many cool and interesting shots we want to do here and I have such a clear vision of how I want to do them. It's going to be great!


So those are our main five locations we are going to be using. If we add any more, they will most likely be quick scenes that will serve a purpose of why we added and/or changed any. I hope that you enjoyed our locations and I can't wait for you to see the real deal. 


Until next time!

Person B

After conducting our interviews with our two subjects, Asher and I noticed there are many similarities regarding why they started and why they continued, but there are also many differences between the two, mainly on how much they use of it.

The following is the interview with our second subject, make sure to read the entire interview to understand the affect Adderall has on a person.

Interview with Person B:

Q: When did you start taking Adderall 

A: “I started at the end of junior year for AP and AICE Exams.”

Q: When was it first introduced to you?

A: “I can’t remember exactly, but I know it was from my friends who took it.”

Q:How many times have you taken it?

A. “Only about 12-13 times.”

Q: What is the milligram of each pill?

A: “I take 25 mg, extended release, which lasts about 6-8 hours.” 

(Keep in mind that prescribed Adderall is only 10 mg and is not extended release.)

Q: How does it make you feel when you take it? 

A: “Everyone describes it as extreme focus, and yeah that’s what it is, but it’s more like you can’t stand to not be productive. Like for me personally, I feel good and I feel happy when I am productive and when I can achieve something with my time. Like when you’re on it, you can’t stand to just be sitting there and doing nothing and being unproductive, you need to be doing something.”

Q:What does it feel like when you’re on Adderall and you’re doing nothing? 

A: “It feels like, for me, that it is a waste of time and energy.” 

Q:Are you worried at all about the side effects? 

A:“Like Addiction? No, because it’s not like if you just take something once or a couple of times you’re going to get addicted.” 

Q: Do you generally do better in school when you take Adderall? 

A: It’s doesn’t necessarily mean that I get like miles better test grades because I take a prescription that I’m not supposed to be taking, but it just makes me feel better that I can be productive and focus better in school on stuff that I need to learn and be a more successful person doing so. I can do the things that I want to be able to do, if that makes any sense.” 

Q: Do you want to continue using it in college? 

A: “Umm… I mean obviously you’re immediate thought is yeah, yes I want to because it would help a lot and it would help me focus on the things I need to do. But at the same time, it’s like what are you gonna do? Are you gonna go out and convince some random doctor in your new city to like give it to you.” 

Q: Do you normally convince your doctor to give it to you? Or how to you get it?

A: “Oh, no, no, no, I don’t do that with my doctor. I get it from my friends.”

Q: Adderall is usually referred to as a studying steroid, do you feel like that statement is true?

A: “So the thing about that is, as least for me, when I think about steroids in sports is that is changed your physiology, without any extra effort you get better results that you normally wouldn’t get. With Adderall, you need to put in the exact same effort and the exact same mind power and motivation into that to get the results you’re looking for.” 

Q: So how do you feel when you have a lot of homework and studying to do, but you don’t end up taking Adderall? 

A: “For me, it takes me a significantly longer amount of time to do anything because I am constantly getting distracted and I get distracted very easily, like I’ll look at my phone every couple of seconds.”

Q: Do you usually feel motivated? 

A: “Yeah, but it just makes me happy to have that extra boost to my motivation. I think you have to be a special type of motivated to want to take a drug like this.” 

Q: Have you ever got to the point where you are too focused and end up spending too much time on something?

A: “Yeah when I was doing a lab last week, like it had to be perfect. I was in that mindset where it had to be perfect, even though it took me a substantial amount of time. And sometimes I’ll get caught up on a problem on tests and realize that now I only have 10 minutes left for 20 multiple choice questions.”

Q: What are some of the side effects you feel on it?

A: “It completely curves my appetite to the point where I have no motivation to eat. Like I don’t eat when I’m on it. Usually I’ll binge eat when I’m not on it because I’m bored or because I’m not doing anything. So it completely takes away that distraction and motivation to want to eat.” 

Q: Are you scared of the side effects taking a major affect on your life? 

A: “No, because at this point I know that I’m not addicted and I know that I have a certain cap on what is appropriate for me to ask for and how much to take. For me, it’s not like I have a constant supply that would make me worried.” 

Q: Is all of it even worth it? 

A: “I guess not. It’s not like, at least for me, where a lot of people spend a substantial amount of money on a pill or something like that. But money aside, if I were to get addicted I don’t think it would be worth it. But at this point, I think it’s worth it in the amount that it is.”

I hope you enjoyed the testimonials Asher and I were able to gather. These three interviews were extremely crucial in helping us understand Adderall, beyond research and scientific information. This provided us with real, personal, and raw information and responses. Now Asher and I can design Nora's personality and the obstacles she will face with a much more knowledgable and accurate representation.

Talk soon!

Person A

Hello everyone!

Asher and I went scouting for people who take Adderall, but who are not prescribed it. It was difficult because some people do not want to be questioned on the subject, and others are not very honest so it would not be an accurate representation of what we need to reproduce. We found two people who were willing to sit with Asher and I and answer any questions we had for them.

We promised our subjects that they remain anonymous, for obvious reasons, and no information about them will be disclosed.

The following interview if with our first subject: Person A.

Interview with Person A:

Question. So why do you take Adderall?

Answer: “I want to do well in school. I started my junior year, I work about 30 hours a week, and it is all just really stressful and it helps me.”

Q: Do you feel like you do better overall in life with Adderall?

A: “Yes. Definitely. I don’t need sleep so it cuts that out. I’ll maybe sleep a few hours a night, but not usually. I’d say I get four hours of sleep per week. So everytime I get tired I just take another one.”

Q: What is it like being on Adderall?

A: "I can become very stimulated. I get paranoid. My heart rate increases so much. It curbs my appetite so I don’t need to eat and take time to do that. I feel just very paranoid like everyone is watching me. I’m walking in the hallway freaking out like shaking. After two days of not sleepy fully I just break down and cry. I just take a really high dosage.”

Q: What dosage do you take?

A: “I take a 45 mg or a 55 mg depending on what I can buy or is available. I think some people take 10 mg but I need more. They are about $10 a pill. I get it from a dealer.”

Q: What’s the biggest difference on and off Adderall?

A: “I get very focus to the point where it consumes me. Like I could be on a math problem for an hour or I’m focused on a dot on my paper for like an hour. It did hurt me on a test, but Adderall usually helps me on my tests when I finish them.”

Q: Are you going to continue using it?

A: “100%.” 

Q: Do you feel like you are addicted?

A. “I don’t know... pretty borderline.”

Q. If you were to stop how would your life be affected?

A: “I don’t think it I’d be affected that much. I mean I remember things better on it but I think I’d be fine. I mean I only take it for school. 

Q. Are you worried about the potential health risks and side effects?

A. “Sometimes. Like if it curbs your appetite like that’s not healthy. Like the way it affects me is not healthy either... so... oh well.. That’s what the school system does to you.”

Q: “How did you start taking it?”

A: My friend introduced it to my my junior year and it helped me in school and I just didn’t stop.”



Stay in touch for the exclusive interview with Person B!

All Exclusive Podcast

Happy Monday!

As I mentioned in my previous post, Asher and I have created a podcast for the development of Nora and for the betterment of the progression of our own planning process. We have found a candidate that is a prescribed Adderall user: Julia Brilliant. Julia is a good friend of ours and she is also an A level Media Studies student. She has ADHD, and since being prescribed Adderall her educational and personal life has been affected for the better. 

To capture the best experience and to grasp this personal testimony to its full potential, it is advised to listen to the following all exclusive 15 minute interview in its entirety, with Julia Brilliant, along with Asher and I!

Enjoy! 

Studying Steroid

As Asher and I were brainstorming plots for our drama, I recalled some information I discovered earlier in the year. Not even realizing it would be a great idea, I just casually mentioned it to Asher, and immediately he fell in love with the idea- the idea based on Adderall. 

"Adderall contains a combination of amphetamine and dextroamphetamine. Amphetamine and dextroamphetamine are central nervous system stimulants that affect chemicals in the brain and nerves that contribute to hyperactivity and impulse control." 

In other words, Adderall is a prescribed drug that is used to improve focus, attentiveness, and organization. That is why it is used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and certain cases of narcolepsy. However, just as any other medicine, it can be abused and can become addicting. The side effects of this drug, especially long term, are terrifying and irreversible. While Adderall has some positive effects on people who need it and who are prescribed it, it has many powerful negative effects that can change a person forever.  

Adderall is used to increase certain hormones in the human brain to secrete to the rest of the body. These hormones, and neurotransmitters, include dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine (also referred to as noradrenaline). They all work to ultimately create positive emotions, drive, and motivation. They are responsible for creating and regulating feelings of pleasure and emotion. 

Neurotransmitters Adderall Affects

Adderall works to influence one's brain into thinking that it is receiving these neurotransmitters at a normal quantity, but it is actually receiving them in much larger doses than the body is use to. So over long periods of time of taking this drug, and taking it when one is not supposed to, it alters these brain chemicals and changes them forever, and here's why:

The brain is tricked into thinking that the body has received enough of these neurotransmitters and that they are present for the brain to use. However, since Adderall has affected the rate of which these hormones are secreted, the brain stops producing them altogether. This drug stripped these neurotransmitters, and the natural production of dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine is no longer made. 

This side effect is just one of many that Adderall produces. The long term effects are much more dangerous than the short term effects, even though those are incredibly harmful physically and psychologically too. 

The problem with Adderall is that no, more than ever, it is being used recreationally and is being retrieved illegally. It is becoming an extremely prominent drug among generation Z and millennials (coincidentally our target audience), specifically high school students and college students. They use this drug to enhance their focus for studying, concentrating on tests, and staying awake for all-nighters. 

"Adderall is abused as a 'smart drug' across college campuses."

Adderall, as I like to call, is a studying steroid. I tend to view this drug as a method of cheating because it alters one's brain to have a higher performance than it normally does, giving others an upper hand than the students who actually study and try their hardest. 

Asher and I have never taken Adderall, however, we both have more friends than we'd like that take it, and not because they are prescribed it. It is becoming a problem in my school because students are getting a hold of it more frequently and it is traveling throughout our campus by word of mouth. Even though we have done our fair share of research on Adderall, we thought it would be best to have testimonials on both people who are honestly prescribed it and on people who take it recreationally. We feel that these interviews are crucial to the development to our film and to adapting the personality of Nora, our main character. 

Our plot will revolve around the idea that Nora is one of those people who take it recreationally and to increase her success in school. However, she neglects to understand the effects this causes and it takes a severe toll on her life, turning it completely upside down. 

Asher and I had a meeting to check up on the planning process of our project with our AICE Media Studies teacher, Mrs. Stoklosa, and she is very fond of our idea. She, too, agrees that Adderall has become a large problem in our school. We also had a group meeting with our peers in our class to discuss the development of each one of our projects and they loved the plot. They all said that is was a smart choice to focus on this drug because they all either have friends who take it or have heard stories about people who have. They understand how important this topic is becoming, and they all thought it was refreshing. Asher and I were very happy to hear that others loved our idea as much as we do, and that just gave us even more motivation to produce a complete and utter realistic representation of the effects Adderall has on our generation. 

Check back for more updates on our research on Adderall and Nora's experiences. 


Talk soon! 

Naming our "Baby Girl"

Hi everyone! 

Previous Design

First, I want to address that I did redesign my blog to match more of the overall theme I am trying to cover with my film promotional package. I think that it is important for your blog to match the style of your project, and match the style of you. As you may remember, my previous design matched my AS level project, a cooking magazine, so I used a dark wood background to capture the essence of my product. Now that I am doing a promotional package for a drama, something completely different than before, I chose a background that alter's one mood. I think the rain drops and the shades of blue are a great way to feel those intense somber and serious emotions. 

 Since we want to use the true conventions of a drama, we were going for some pretty emotional and intense ideas. As were brainstorming, we decided to do some character mapping first. We both thought this would help stir up our creative juices and help keep things flowing because we can branch out ideas based on what character we decide to create rather than starting from scratch. I did some research and this is actually how most plots are created, by making the character first. So Asher and I decided to name our future baby girl. 

We both want our main character to be female, either in her last years of high schools or first years in college, and we want her to follow the more unconventional route. I think this will help target our audience because most of late generation-Z and millennials either are still in school or just finished school. We don't want her to be a stereotypical pretty popular girl that everyone loves, but we also don't want her to be some stereotypical nerdy, loser-ish student who gets bullied and then makes her mark in some way. No none of that. Asher and I decided, it would be best to make our character a somewhat average student who is going through daily struggles and has a serious conflict. 

Asher and I were thinking of her characteristics, and before we went for her looks, we needed to choose a name. We went to a baby-name search generator and answered a bunch of questions of how we want our potential "baby" to be like. After numerous quizzes and questionnaires for our baby girl, we found some names we absolutely hated and some names we didn't agree on. That was the most important, and hardest part, because we needed to find a name for our character that we both liked so we can continue branding her and fitting her into our story. We finally chose a name for our "baby," a.k.a. the future star of the best drama of 2017, is... drumroll please... Nora Brawn! 

Nora will be put in some very difficult situations, that she may or may not overcome. Some of our ideas for our plot are as follows: 

• Family Issues 
• Abusive Relationships
• Drug Problems

Those are just some of our ideas that I will explore in depth in my next post, but I'll let you in on a little secret... we didn't end up deciding on the first two.

Stay in touch because Nora's drug problem might not be what you're thinking...

Continuous Find For Genres

Hello happy readers!

Now that we know what genre we are going to pursue, there are a few more things I need to narrow down to start getting this ball rolling. As I mentioned in my previous posting, there are many types of sub-types of Drama. As Asher and I explored the list, there were a few that we were interested in creating. Our top two were Melodrama and Comedy-drama. 

We thought Melodrama would be something that would be fun conducting, however, after looking more into it we decided to toss it.

"Melodrama Films are a sub-type of drama films, characterized by a plot to appeal to the heightened emotions of the audience. Melodrama, a combination of drama and melos (music), literally means "play with music."

Making our film a Melodrama would not do justice for representing our style. It is not the type of film I am looking to promote because it involves too much focus on music, unrealistic pathos-filled plot, and relies on primarily a female audience. For many reasons, this is not going to work. Some of the main reasons are because we want to make our film absolutely realistic and an audience for both men and women. 


A comedy-drama is something that we also seemed interested in. We looked into a few and our main example for a comedy-drama is The Edge of Seventeen.

We both enjoyed this film and thought it was a really great representation of high school students and teens in general. It has many awkward comedic aspects to it that are attractive, but it requires an acquired humor, that truthfully, Asher and I do not really possess. This type of drama usually relies on the humor to draw in the audience and create an outlet for them, inducing laughter. Another convention of this sub-type is that they usually have a happy ending, and we have not decided if that is what we want. We also wanted our film to be much more serious and intense, which is not a characteristic of comedy-drama. So, possibly the only convention we would adapt from the Edge of Seventeen is the very accurate representation of the film. But other than that, we are also ruling out this sub-type of Drama. 


So at this point in time, we are sticking with a pure Drama genre for our film promotion. We think this is the best bet for us because it contains the serious aspects we want. Until we discover another sub-type or genre, we are keeping this as our main point of focus.


Talk to you all soon!