Short Film vs. Feature Length Film

 Although Shane Acker worked on both the short film and the feature film, there are many things that had to be added or changed in order for the short film to be stretched into the almost 90 minute movie. The storyline needed to remain as similar as possible with extra details in the longer film. The two plots I came up with are as follows.

Short film: 9, the rag doll, figures out that a monster has been stealing the souls of others like him. He sees this when the souls appear out of the artifact he receives from 5. 9 knows he needs to confront the monster instead of run away.

Feature film:When 2 is taken by the post-apocalyptic "beast", 9 is determined to save him with the help of the other rag dolls he meets on his journey. On this adventure, he and his partners learn new secrets of what caused the ending of humanity and how they can save it.

Along with the storyline, there were a few other differences between the two films. Unlike the short film, the feature film used a narrator at the beginning and dialogue throughout the rest of the movie. In the short film, the audience depends on the expressions of the characters to tell the story, but the narrator sets the scene and the rag dolls continue within the story. The feature film also includes multiple characters. The short film follows 9, 5, and the beast while the feature film includes 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, the beasts created by the brain, the brain, and the scientist who narrates the story. While both films feature a backstory, the short film goes back to when 5 dies and 9 is left alone while the feature film backstory is about how humanity ended.

Whereas the two films differed in some areas, they had to have similarities for the audience to recognize that the feature film is adapted from the short film. The lighting remains the same in both. The dark, eerie mood sets the scene for the post-apocalyptic world (same setting in both movies). The shots are also very similar (close ups and pan movements) to show the expression on the rag dolls' faces and the movements they are making. Both films also use diegetic sound to build a moment. For example, when the beast is coming, the audience can hear the sound of metal crashing.

Research 9: The Feature Film

 After much success at film festivals, Shane Acker had the opportunity to turn his short film into a feature film with the help of producers (Tim Burton, Timur Bekmambetov, Dana Ginsberg, and Jim Lemley) and Focus Features. The story begins with a narrator talking while a human is creating 9. When 9 comes to life, he doesn't speak and the audience only hears diegetic sound (footsteps, metal crashing).The audience is also able to hear the beast before it shows up (metal scratching and growling). Closeups and extreme close ups are used to show the expression in his eyes before (and when) he's able to talk. Close ups were also used to show the detail the human put into creating 9. During the rest of the film, these close ups and diegetic sound remain, however there is dialogue. When 9 meets 2 (another rag doll) he finds a voice box from a doll and gives it to 9 so he can also speak. As well as close ups, the film features many establishing shots, point of view shots, and pans. The establishing shots are used to show the audience the setting which switches from the outside into different hidings inhabited by the rag dolls or the antagonist. The pov shots were used to see the world from the perspective of the rag dolls. This way, the audience feels just as small as them. The pan movements were used to raise the level of tension by moving the camera fast from character to character or setting. The music also contributed to the emotions in the moment. In the beginning, it was very ominous and somewhat slow, but when the characters are running it intensified. The music also lightened when the characters were content or when 9 met 3 and 4. The dark lighting also makes the post-apocalyptic setting recognizable.

The introduction of 2 starts the slow introduction of the ret of the rag dolls (1-8) and all of their personalities. Two common traits in them are curiosity or kindness. These traits are seen in 9 , 2, 3, 4, and 5. Others have bravery, intelligence or are even timid or controlling. The characters' traits develop and change as they face new challenges.

Plot: When 2 is taken by the post-apocalyptic "beast", 9 is determined to save him with the help of the other rag dolls he meets on his journey. On this adventure, he and his partners learn new secrets of what caused the ending of humanity and how they can save it.

Research 9: The Short

The short film 9 was created by a student at UCLA named Shane Acker in 2005. From watching the film, the story is focused around a rag doll named 9. The story starts in the present, with 9 scavenging and then studying an artifact in his hand. The audience is also introduced to some type of monster in search of something or someone. Then, the story shifts back to 9 and the artifact. The next few scenes are a flashback of when 9 was first given the artifact (when 5, another rag doll, risked his life to save 9). The audience, as well as 9, learns that the glowing of the artifact signals that the monster is close and that it steals the souls of the rag dolls. The overall plot of this short film is clear after the flashback ends and 9 has to face the monster for the first time on his own. 

Plot: 9, the rag doll, figures out that a monster has been stealing the souls of others like him. He sees this when the souls appear out of the artifact he receives from 5. 9 knows he needs to confront the monster instead of run away. 

The film created/director uses different camera angles and movements along with editing, sound, lighting, music, and setting to convey the tone of the film. Acker often uses close ups and extreme close ups to show the emotions in the eyes of the rag dolls. There is no dialogue so this is one of the ways the audience knows what the characters are feeling. To go along with this, the creator uses a lot of eye line matches and shot reverse shots to see the rag dolls' eyes and the artifact or their surroundings. The setting seems to be a post-apocalyptic world where only the rag dolls and the monster exist. The lighting is dark and the surroundings look like ruins of a possible city. The music also gives the audience feeling. In the beginning, it's slow and ominous but when the monster is around, it is more fast-paced. Acker also uses diegetic sounds to emphasize the silence when it comes to dialogue. Some of these sounds include shuffling of feet and metal crashing or squeaking. 

Genre Choice for Film

 After researching three genres my group and I came to a decision. We chose the genre drama. We chose this because it relates the most to our film. The storyline of our short film is similar to other films in the genre drama, so we saw it fit. We were inspired to choose drama out of the other researched genres because of its accuracy. Comedy, doesn’t  apply at all to our film. Our film doesn’t use comedy in any dialogue and doesn’t use anything for a purpose of laughter. With thriller, while some aspects of our film are surprising, it isn’t a nail bitter. Nothing about our film will keep an audience at the edge of their seats, like thriller films do. And even though we do have an unexpected plot twist, it’s not enough to call this film a thriller. Our pitch doesn’t need to be tweaked. After the research, my group and I still stuck with our original plot and ideas. It was however very interesting to learn about the other genres and their common tactics.We still always felt compelled to the drama genre and knew that that would be our end result. Another reason why we picked drama is because of the similar CLAMPS. Drama tends to use dull lighting and the sounds tend to play cake the scenes. This is similar to what my group and I want to do for our film. We have many ideas on using sound to our advantage by adding intense music and sound affects. Since this is similar to what drama films do, we again found it fit to call our film a drama film. Overall, my group and I are ecstatic to start planning and filming our drama film.

Genre Research: Thriller, Comedy, and Drama

 For the Thriller Genre, the common camera movements are, Low angles which are used to display power in a character, high angles are used to show vulnerability, and eye level is used to show tension between two characters. The movements traditionally consist of, panning and zooming because this generates tension during the film. In thrillers close-up shots are mostly used to create more tension, while wide and long shots are avoided because it takes away from the tension of the movie. The common costumes in thriller films are extremely diverse, but many films choose to use deep, dark colors so it can set more of a mood. The lighting is usually darker in thriller films, so low-key lighting is used throughout. The audience for thriller films are usually 18+ because there is violence, blood, mental illnesses, etc. Makeup is usually a minimum but on certain characters like monsters or nuns etc. use a lot of make-up. Props are a big part in thrillers because they can help create more of an eerie mood. In thrillers settings remain the biggest part because, they help create the tension because they use places like forests, old houses, and very dark areas. The editing process in thrillers typically consists of these major edits; jump cuts, elliptical editing, graphic matches, and fast/slow paced editing. Using sound in thriller films help create and set the mood for the audience. sound really does change the way a film is perceived. For example, in a quiet place, the director decided to choose sounds that are mostly diegetic sounds for the purpose of making the film more thrilling.  The elements of thrillers that I like are, the feeling of uncertainty, suspense, and how it makes you always think what's going to happen next. The elements of thrillers that I do not like are the terror scenes, I usually do not like "pop-up scenes" which are parts of a film where an object goes into the frame very fast. 

 For the Comedy Genre, the common camera movements are push/in out clips, perspective shots, for camera movements, most are just the most basic ones. The main movements that are being used are zooms, tracking shots and tilts. Zooms help show emotion in actors faces, tracking shots (in comedies) are usually running or car scenes and tilts can sometimes show costumes/makeup. The most common costumes in comedies consist of bright, bold colors. For example, in the movie Zoolander, extremely bright and excessively bold colors are used to produce an emotion about the characters. Lighting in comedies helps move the plot along, so using high key lighting is the best option. The audience for comedies is very diverse; some comedies are meant for families, but most comedies are also 18+ due to language, substances and many more. Props are used in many comedies because a lot of directors will use a prob as something that helps move the storyline along. Editing comedies is tricky because you do not want to leave any humor out, multicam editing helps ensure that they get each scene correct. Sounds in comedies are usually non-diegetic sounds, or sounds added into the film so that the audience can thoroughly understand what’s going on. The elements of comedies that I enjoy are, how it makes me happy and the laughter that comes from watching them. The elements I do not enjoy in comedies are that sometimes the storyline is often slow, and most comedies are very similar, just with different actors.

The drama genre often focuses on real-life events. Drama film is a genre that relies on the emotional and relational development of realistic characters. Common camera angles, movements, and shots found in a drama include close-ups,  long shots, over the shoulder, medium shots, extreme close-ups, bird's eye, point of view, pan, tracking shot, and wide shots. Close- ups are used to emphasize the expression on the face of an actor. Long shots and wide shots can be used to show the character and their surroundings. Usually the actor or object focused on will be in the center while anything else is in the background. Over the shoulder shots can be used for dialogue or to see the emotions of a character as they Arte told something by someone else. Medium shots show the characters facial expressions as well last body language. Extreme close-ups can add a sense of intensity or focus to a scene. Bird's eye can be used to gain perspective and show that one is of lesser meaning than another. Point of view can be used to let the audience experience how the character feels as they do something. Pan shots are commonly used for transition or to show off a setting in drama films. Tracking shots are used to follow the actor as they go through something (whether it's an activity or just walking). Common sound in drama films include, diegetic sound, dialogue, and voiceovers. Diegetic sound is used to keep the film as real as possible. Dialogues between characters are common whether they are positive or negative (they can allow ones feelings to be presented). Voiceovers are common when there is a narrator telling the story. There is a wide range of types of dramatic movies which allows them to differ greatly when it comes to mis-en-scene. When it comes to costumes, characters are usually dressed in normal clothing whether it's streetwear, business attire, etc. In some cases, the drama could be a period piece or happen in a made up world. In this case, the costumes would be created based upon that (capes, ballgowns, etc.). The same idea goes for makeup (can be normal but if it's a drama about drag queens, the makeup will be extravagant), setting (can take place in modern day New York or medieval France) and for props (could be something as simple as a pen or as fun a a wand). The lighting can differ based upon the mood but usually makes the movie even more dramatic. The actors have to be able to have a range of emotion, not just be funny or energetic. Drama films can vary which also can lead to variations of editing. However, drama films use a lot of cutaways, jump cuts, shot reverse shots, and eye line matches. The cutaways and the jump cuts are often used to show that time has passed. The shot reverse shot and eye line matches are often used when the character visits a new place or meets someone new. When it comes to drama films, I love that there are so many different types and that you never know what twists and turns it will have. I dislike when the movies are bad but not not intended to be (sometimes it's too cheesy). Some drama films include Titanic, A Star is Born, Harriet, All the Bright Place and Juno. More example are included in the picture below.