During my research I've selected the next components of planning a film. You know well that every creating process is very individual. But, when making a film, you need to keep in mind a lot of components (if you want to make a really high-quality film, of course). So I've made such a comfortable working scheme for myself that I don't get lost in all this. When I think of my new film idea I just work it out by this sheme, step-by-step, and everything looks pretty and clear after that. So take a look
Design (+ rhytm, tempo, measure + everything)
This is the most important part. Here you're creating your idea and the ways of it's realization. Unique vision + unique combination of all components, described below.
Imagine that your film is a cake. I think this step would be the part when you're planning whether you want strawberry cake or chocolate, covered with glaze or with cream... I mean, how you want your cake to taste and to look like (when it's done).
I think, the very first thing a filmmaker should do is to sit and listen to himself.As for me, it comes to me altogether in the same time. Characters, situations, scenes. Visual and rhythmical. Filmmaker, I believe, like every talented artist, should be sufficient personality, with the whole world in his soul. And it's not so easy to get this world out of the depths of your soul to the surface. But once you got it, it's time to make it material. It's time to get to the next step.
1. Gathering of material.
This is my favourite part. If you would make a cake, here's where you would need to make a list of the products for cooking your cake. Flour, eggs, what else?
Bring on your thoughts, Ideas, Life position (philosophy) + other arts achievements – adapted. This is about your imagination and associations – for example, look at the antique sculpture. Imagine this is a character of your film. What it's scene it would be like? What this character would say and how? What would be his/her pose?
To bring your foundations (genre) to life and to invent this “something” new, fresh and unique – use history, all kinds of art. Poetry, literature - pick and transform anything that inspires you - music, sculpture, painting, or whatever you see around. To me, scenes and characters can come in one moment, when I see an interesting person in the street, look at the sky, or even occasionally feel some barely noticeable scent...
What I picked: I absolutely love Oscar Wilde's prose, witty, ironic, with it's aesthetical reality and artistic characters and this exceptional XIX-century bittersweet romantical idealism. Native Ukrainian poetry inspires me a lot, too. Interesting phenomenon mid XX century emigrants. They have such a neo-mythological motives in their poetry. Even such structure: image mythologems (allusions, allegory) + decadence + grotesque + cyclical composition. I guess I'll use it in some short film (or few). I also love comedies of 1910's – 1920's – 1930's. Operetta. The Rennaissance summer of life. Antique sculpture. And my films will include all these elements, decorated with cream of my life philosophy (which can change from film to film ;-)). While I see in most of the films heroes fighting with evil powers, that don't depend on them, or with themselves, I want to show the creating power of human's feelings and thoughts, how life-changing and beautifully artistic their nature is.
2. Genres.
Here I mix all my products in order to cook my cake, shake up the cream and put together my masterpiece.
Here the story is being formed. The plot, cause and effect connection, genre frames and stuff like that.
First what I do here – I choose between two things – comedy and tragedy. Then – like in the candy shop – pick whatever you like, but wisely. I like to choose genre by tempo. It's about your general impression from the film – you sit and watch it relaxed or tensely (heartbeating — slow or fast). I also like to construct action comparing it to simple musical tempos, so I added it here. It doesn't mean all film should be made in one tempo. No way! (Even tho I saw films like this – watch Aronofsky's “P” - the effext of drill in your brain during all the film – horrible impression). The normal film should include different tempos, but one – dominating. More about tempo and rhythm I'll write later on. It's so interesting!!! So,
what tempo dominate in the film?
- Fast (allegro, vivo, vivace, presto – and faster)– action, adventure, crime, war, western, horror, thriller, sci-fi
- fast/slow (could be both – fast (above) changing with moderato, andante, alegretto and slow – grave, largo, adagio, lento) – fantasy, comedy, drama, family, musical, mystery
- mostly slow and moderate (see above) - romance, drama.
- How do we apprehend (perceive) this world? (It can help in makin right accents in script and directing)
- Imagination – fantasy, fairy-tale...
- Feelings – Romance, drama (classic, sentimental, lacrimal, tragedy), melodrama, thriller, horror (includes impressionism – positive, expressionism, symbolism – not too positive, burst of feelings - but far from psychology)
- intellect – sci-fi, moralite, could be adventure...
- What force dominates? (mostly for drama)
- Destiny (“Precious” - good example)
- intrigue
- characters, passion
- situation
- Life spectrum that dominates.
- Politics
- Social
- Philosophy
- Religion
- Psychology
-Realistic life position (every day life - “Motherhood”, for example)
Better choose one here. It's like a base of the story. Here you can make interesting mixes: “The Infidel” movie by David Baddiel – Comedy (situation + character) + Religion + It's quite realistic, like all movies now.
It also matters what do we express more: idea (romantic, social, political, religious - we are not looking for the reason, just - idea. Reality is adapted.), or exploring of life when we look attentively at characters and situations (objectively), trying to find out the reasons.
What I picked: Romantical Comedy, perception by – feelings, intellect, force – intricated intrigue, characters, situation. Spectrum – Philosophy.
3.Interrelation (musical) aspects mastership
Knowing all the things I described above, I try to merge it all harmoniously and then compose into the screenplay and visualisation of it. I think musical harmony n film – like in a song. It's from big to every little acror's look.
It's time to get to the details. If I gathered many different things in step 1 and put them on some foundation in step 2, here I'm perfecting it till absolute feeling of unity, into complete universe order. I work on rhytm, tempo, high and low places, from the whole acts to scenes and every little actor's glance or camera move. One of the most important principles – a sensual (emotional) imression of the film grows in spectator's heart, whether it's action or pause, emotion or nothing at all on the screen.
The interrelation of the idea, plot, acting, visual, sound, editing, rhytm, tempo and meter of the film can be visualized in different ways. You can imagine it like cooking the cake, or, for example, painting a picture – colors and tones, forms, lines and their positioning... Simpler idea – to imagine it like a perfume, when you are composing the fragrance notes (helps with characters and “atmosphere” on the screen) – Top notes (perceived immediately – form initial impression), Middle notes (form the “heart” of a perfume) and Base notes (bring depth and solidity to a perfume).
There was a time when I was very interested in astrology. So I found it cool to compare the building of my drama conflict and characters etc. using astrology terms. By the way one famous ukrainian theater director (in the beginning of XX century) widely used the term “aspect” (it's about the angle at which the planet are located in relation to each other – quadrature, sextile, opposition – they all mean different things). Also, the description of the planets influence on people helps a lot with enriching characters and destinies.
But, the best way that I found – is meditation. It's so incredible how silence (not even thinking!) and listening to yourself brings to the surface of your mind everything you've ever tried to express, but didn't know how! Today I felt it very clear.
4. acting (according to 2 and 1 and design + the system of special skills – artistically)
Acting is one if the most important things in the film. That's why I prefer to pay much attention to it. To plan it wisely. I want actors to be the diamonds in my film's jewellery.
The details on this see in my next posts.
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