Teen Movie homework on "The Inbetweeners Film"

The Inbetweeners

Plot: Four teenage misfits - Will, Simon, Jay and Neil - have finished their A-levels and are about to leave Rudge Park Comprehensive, much to the relief of Mr. Gilbert, their sarcastic, cynical sixth form tutor. Within their final week of school, however, Jay's grandfather dies, Simon is dumped by his girlfriend Carli and Will discovers that his divorced father has unexpectedly married his much younger mistress. Depressed, the boys decide to go on holiday together and Neil books them on a trip to Malia, Crete.

Their accommodation in Malia is awful, but the boys meet four girls - Alison, Lucy, Lisa and Jane - in an empty bar during their first night out. Their initial meeting goes less than smoothly- Will chats to Alison and pokes fun at her clichéd "Greek waiter boyfriend", Simon bores Lucy to death talking about Carli, Neil has a non-conversation with Lisa, and Jay "gets stuck" with the bubbly, if somewhat overweight Jane. The girls go on their way after Neil pulls two older women, but arrange to meet the boys the next day. Outside the bar, Simon sees Carli across the street. He talks awkwardly with her before being run over by a quad bike ridden by James, an obnoxious club rep and Carli's new squeeze. Carli reveals she is going to a boat party later in the week, and Simon pledges to meet her there.

Target audience: Those that watched the film and the TV series generally were at the age of 15-25 years old and signified those who were approaching 6^th form or those who had just left university.

Characters and stereotypes:

·      All the 4 main characters are white. Represents the stereotypical English town, where there are very few other races.

·      All main characters are male. It shows they are dominant and very diverse. These boys see females as sex objects.

·      All the boys verge on middle to upper class.

·      Will seems to be a typical nerd/loser and pedantic.

·      Jay described as a liar. Portrays himself as cool, when he is relatively unpopular.

·      Neil is described as dopey.

·      Simon seems desperate.

Opening title sequence order:

·      Film 4

·      Young Bwark productions.

·      Main actors:

·      Simon Bird.

·      James Buckley.

·      Blake Harrison.

·      Joe Thomas.

Box Office.

Budget: £3,500,000 (estimated).

Opening Weekend: $35,955 (USA) (7 September 2012).

Gross: $35,955 (USA) (7 September 2012).

Link: file://localhost/Users/student/Documents/Resources/Teen%20Drama%20Titles/High%20School/Inbetweeners.m4v

Target audience research (Teen Dramas)

Audiences

An individual or collective group of people who read or consume any media text. It is also a group of people who participate in a show or encounter a work of art, literature (in which they are called "readers"), theatre, music (in which they are called "listeners"), video games (in which they are called "players"), or academics in any medium.

A target audience is a specific group of people within the target market at which a product or the marketing message of a product is aimed at.

Marketing departments of film studios have found new and creative ways, often unrelated to a film's content or quality, to attract audiences. Merchandising inspired by the film, such as action figures based on a film's characters or the licensing of film concepts to fast food chains, increases the public's awareness of a film. In addition, promotional tie-ins with television shows, radio stations, and magazines as well as popular-music sound-tracks (with accompanying music videos featuring scenes from the film) create a "buzz" around a particular film that can attract audiences who might otherwise not know about it. With the rising influence of the Internet and movie-related Web sites, audiences can learn about the type of reception a film is getting at test screenings or, in the case of smaller, independent films, on the festival circuit before it is even released in theaters.

Teen dramas Is a sub-genre of comedic television programs targeted towards preteens and teenagers. In general, these type of programs focus primarily on characters between 12 and 18 years of age and routinely feature characters involved in humorous situations (either realistic or fantasy in style, depending on the program's plotline), and often focus on the characters' family and social lives. The primary plot of each episode often involves the lead character(s) that the program centers on, while secondary plotlines often focus on the character (s') parents, siblings (assuming the main character has any and they are not one of the leads) or friends – although the secondary characters may also or instead be involved in the episode's main plot.

Extension activity - Who makes title sequences?

Extension Activity – who makes title sequences?

·      A title sequence is the method by which films or television programs present their title, key production and cast members, or both, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound. It usually follows but should not be confused with the opening credits, which are generally nothing more than a series of superimposed text. Film title sequences have been a showcase for contemporary design and illustration.

·      Title designers, senior and lead programmers and technical designers create sequences. Technical designer John Mckellan is a designer for creative assembly. He was at CA for just over four years now, starting just as the project was beginning pre-production. He came in to cover mostly 2D and video work, graphic design and UI-related art, proof of concept videos, that sort of thing. Prior to CA he participated a few motion graphic jobs, some short film, and a lot of graphic design freelance.

Erin Sarofsky’s opinion on his concept ideas and relationship with the producer.

“We were asked to come in to see the movie and meet with Jennifer Bergman, the producer. We saw the film and talked about the technical requirements, but did not get any creative notes. They wanted to see what we came up with without any influence from them. I did press for some, because I find my best work comes when I really understand what the director is looking to achieve, but it was clear that we would have to brainstorm from square one. A week later, at the pitch, we met the creative team”.

He also gave his assessment on how he presented his options and how he ended up choosing his direction for filmmaking. “How I sequence a presentation is very important to me. When arranging the boards, I think about what I want to talk about and how I want the conversation to go. In the past, the Russo’s and I have had similar opinions about things, so I felt like my instincts were going to be on target… So I started the presentation there. Throughout the pitch, the team kept going back to one specific board. That first one. You could tell that every other concept we explored just made that one stronger. In addition to its graphic, bold simplicity, they loved how the concept was a nod to the fact that the film is, at its core, a spy/political thriller. And they loved that the look would be totally unique in the Marvel franchise”.

Extension Activity

Extension Activity (Who makes title sequences?)

The people who can make title sequences can vary as many people from all different fields as many things can inspire them to make title sequences. one of many people is Aaron Sorenson who is from North California and began his career in San Francisco.

Research: Sub-Genre Conventions

Analysis of Sun-Genre Conventions - Macro

MICRO- The way the films look - Semantic
MACRO- The stories the films tell - Syntactic

Macro Conventions - The macro aspects of a film includes

• Who produces it
• Audiences for the film
• Cast, plot lines, characters
• General ideas about the order or way in how the story is told

1. Title sequence - The breakfast club (high school drama).

What is the key plot idea introduced in the title sequence? 

• Saturday detention within a high school
• Five completely contrasting characters, students
• 5 distinct stereotypes
• Questioning why the students are in detention

In what order is the story line introduced? 

• Conflict between them because they all have different personalities
• Background/stories about why they're all in detention
• Conflict between the arrogant superior (teacher)
• Anticipate conflict but then they all become friends

What characters are introduced?

• A brain
• A princess
• A athlete
• A criminal
• A basket case