IM GOING INSANE

GOT no sanity left.

While I gotta say this time to myself has been extremely nice I'm terrified of what's to come. It feels like time has stopped. Everything is so weird. I don't think anything will ever be the same after this. It's so crazy. The fact that we're not on official lockdown yet is also so frustrating because people are still going out and not helping to the spread, not flattening the curve and IT'S SO FRUSTRATING. I do not understand how people can be so ignorant and selfish! I've come to terms with the fact that this will go on for a while. But i don't know, it is just so odd. And the fact that is global makes it so much scarier.
In this times of uncertainty, I'm reminded of why I wanted to do my project in the first place. This feelings are not new to me. This not knowing is not new to me. This lockdown strangely is not something I haven't gone through before in Venezuela. No toilet paper and people going crazy is not new to me. Empty supermarkets are not new to me. What is new to me is this hysteria, that is not there yet but is palpable. I can see the snowball rolling, I can see that everything is going to go to shit soon, and we all know it, we're just awaiting the inevitable I guess.

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Why is a 23 year old playing a teenager?

I think this was long overdue.... so here is the research for coming of age films 


Genre Research: Coming of Age

1. Coming of age: focuses on the psychological and moral growth of a protagonist from youth to adulthood. They tend to focus on the dialogue or internal monologue over action, frequently set on the past. Usually the subjects are teenagers. Change is an important characteristic of this genre. 
2. Genre conventions - content : 

• teen entertainment but also social problems 
• personal, autobiographical works from directors
• dramatize situations that encompass the child's initiation into new realms of psychosocial experience and the adolescent's and postadolescent's encounters with the delights and problems of modern life
• leitmotif of identity formation 
• promotes the cultural fantasies of a commercialistic society
• capacity for social criticism, irony, and self-reflexivity
• usually features a young character, typically  a teenager, who gets confronted by a mature conflict   
• goes on a quest of self-discovery
• feels alone and rejected by adults in life 
• young protagonists who feel lost and confused
•  through the guidance of an older mentor, or on their own
• they face countless hurdles to the stage of adulthood

     3. Genre Conventions- production:

• non-diegetic voiceovers from protagonist
• represent the character's inner thoughts and feelings and their conflicts with an issue 
• catchy indie/pop soundtrack 
• bright, bold, interesting colors
• usually shot in the daylight 
• Take place in everyday settings 
• make it more realistic --convey a sense of youth 
• usually simple shots
• sometimes they break the fourth wall 
• close ups are rare ab character struugle

    4. Institutional Conventions- marketing:

• marketed by focusing on the teenager/young adult in the movie key art 
• use of bright colors to catch the audience's attention
• advertisements on social media platforms, such as Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and Tik Tok
• ads consist of the main character of the film speaking directly to the audience, informing them that the movie is out in theaters and they should go watch it.
• trailers usually use montages 
• ads are usually short to catch the viewer's attention 

    Film example #1: 

Eighth Grade directed by Bo Burnham 

• This film makes you feel like you're 13 years old all over again
• mid-close ups as the camera follows her and she speaks on the phone makes you feel disoriented and confused much like she's feeling 
• disconnect between her and father
• disconnect between her and her school life
• deals with problems by poising herself as the expert in "Kayla's Korner"
• The birthday party scene, makes it feel like a horror movie, using slow motion, electronic music, and closeups, which is perfect.
• every social scenario has emotional peril
• full of subliminal commentray
• so grounded in reality
• about what it feels to be 13

Film example #2

Booksmart directed by Olivia Wilde

• Two girls that worked hard through high school, want to prove they're fun and party the day before graduation, realizing they might've missed out.
• representation tropes are relatable and not divisive
• characters evolve past the stereotypes
• they learn they refused to know their classmate because they wanted to feel superior
• characters are accepting and multidimensional
• long takes that allow for the characters to be immersive
• pacing is amazing
• comedy
• color grading is light hearted 
• editing is pretty standard
• follows known storylines in a unique way 
• very updated to teenagers today

More examples:

The Diary of a Teenage Girl by Marielle Heller

The Edge of Seventeen by Kelly Fremon Craig

Ladybird by Greta Gerwig

Submarine by Richard Ayoede

Dazed and Confused by Richard Linklater

My Girl by Howard Zieff

Sixteen Candles by John Hughes

Y tu Mama Tambien by Alfonso Cuaron

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Bliography:

https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations/AAI3056276/

https://www.filminquiry.com/beginners-guide-coming-age/
https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/eighth-grade-2018

https://filmschoolrejects.com/booksmart-acceptance/

What's the beginning of Zombieland again?

PROFUSELY worried. 
It feels like the beginning of an apocalyptic film. There is so much chaos and panic. It is completely worldwide now. It's affecting everyone. I have no idea what to believe. It seems as if we don't know everything. Why are countries panicking so much if it's just an intense flu for the majority? The economy is going downhill everywhere. Non developed or developing countries are going to struggle immensely. It's so odd. People are still acting normal in Florida. 
They canceled school. The closed all Broward schools entities. BECON TV is closed, so no equipment. My guidance counselor actress is pregnant so she is self quarantining, as well as the two kids that were supposed to act and the friends. I haven't asked my actress because I'm scared of the answer. I'm not even sure I'm allowed outside. Obviously my project is not the priority here. I don't know what I'm going to do. I could just use my camera, and buy extra stuff from Amazon, but where or better yet what am I going to film? 
I'm afraid I'm going to have to change my whole story. I was going to post my case study and screenplay but now it just feels silly and naive. I'm going to wait a little to see where things go. It doesn't look like they are going to get any better. Maybe I can make a film about my cabin fever in the self-quarantine. Looks like we're back to square one. Sadly. 
Everything is uncertain right now, are we even going to take exams? are we having graduation? are we going back to school? am I starting college when I'm supposed to? Is the global economy going to crash? How many people actually have corona if there is no testing being distributed to everyone? What's going to happen? 

the world is ending xx stay safe everyone, don't be selfish, and wash your HANDS!

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Let the music draw in your head

SO, I went to a concert!! It was amazing. It was for local bands and they were all SO good. I was in search of a song that I could use for the bathroom scene, and I was at the perfect place. Last year, I asked a small Chilean band to use the awesome tune, and they accepted, so I have no doubt I can do the same this year. The show was composed of four local bands, all of them played original content and covers. The first one was called Greyt Adventure, and they had kind of a 70s vibe. The second one was called The Carmics, which was more of a rocky cage the elephant style. The third was more of a folky rock, and the fourth one was called We are the Boas, and was very indie rock. 

There was one moment were I knew I had heard the perfect song. I knew it had to be a song that was strong, that started intensely, that was danceable, and it had to be Rock. I filmed all the bits that made me visualize the scene. 

So the song I liked the most was 'Self Control' by The Carmics. I Dm'd them so we are currently waiting for the response so we will see 

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SHOTS SHOTS SHOTS

BLEED out the inspiration.
So of course I had to get inspired by the king of kings, the father of color grading, aesthetic, mise en scene, creativity, the ONE, the ONLY, Mr. Wes Anderson.
I want my shots to be perfectly symmetrical. Th character will most of the time be in the center.

I also want the scenes to be very awkward. She'll be leaving abruptly, and the characters are always going to just be there, looking at her when she gets places. They are all going to have that odd vibe except her. Kind of contrasting her and her dilemma and the rest.

For the friend scene and the guidance counselor scene, I want to use these scenes from Grand Budapest Hotel as inspo. I want everyone to be in the shot for at least one exchange of dialogue.

For the bathroom scene, I want to use something like the bathroom scenes from The Royal Tenenbaums. I want the camera to be where the mirror is supposed to, and the girl to dance really awkwardly to it. Kind of wanting to let go, and give in to the music but not doing it. Taking a little from the final scene of Jojo Rabbit, by the amazing Taika Waititi

For clothing, I want each of my characters to have something that characterizes them. Even though we are just going to see them once, except for the protagonist, I want each and every one to have something different. The protagonist will have her anklet, and really heavy black eyeliner. The rest are still in the making, but I'm waiting to go thrift shopping to get inspired. Here are some characters that have the vibe I'm going for with the main character.

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Visualizeeee it

ME is very excited to show you. I've been storyboarding for the last few days, and I think I'm pretty much ready to move one to the screenplay. I realized I'll probably be shooting next week, so I need to start  getting my
mise-en-scene aspects ready, and casting the extras! I had totally forgotten about that part. I'll be going thrift shopping this weekend to look for wardrobe and little things I can add here and there.
I'm almost done with the coming of age case study and I'm doing mood boards for each character, I'm also downloading small clips of what I want for each character like something similar to make it easier for the actors, cause the vibe is a little odd.
 Without further a do here is my storyboard:

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Baby la vida es un CICLO

MAKE me the best screenwriter ever in an hour please.

I'm stuck. I have been trying to think of the perfect conflict or occurrence to give my film the right spine and direction to finalize the idea perfectly. The bike is going to stop at the end. It is all about her wanting to escape the cycle she is in, her circumstances but not being able to until it all stops at the end with the long and continuous shots of the bike wheel throughout.

I have visualized what I want the logo to be as of right now. It symbolizes the idea of escaping your circumstances, of not feeling trapped, of making things better. I'm actually getting it tattooed soon. This film is being really helpful and cathartic for me. I have shifted into being more personal, less convoluted with ideas, but more about me and the frustration I felt. That is why NOW I'm feeling extra frustrated I can't come up with anything. I want the scene to be the one that lets you know she wants to escape the cycle but can't.  It has to be the most powerful one. The one that tips the iceberg. It could be her seeing something mundane that triggers her. Maybe a news story. A candle. Something is broken and she can't fix it, or she can't make something stop. I thought about including in the scene with her friends the little sister of one of them using the hula hoop, and the protagonist not being able to concentrate because it doesn't stop.
Since I was so stuck I decided to ask my friends what cycles meant for them. This where their responses:

Other ones were socializing, and money. Even though most were not what I meant, such as Bad Bunny and The Lion King, it was refreshing to see other people's perspective on a topic. I think I'm a little closer to reaching my idea, I feel it, it's definitely there it just hasn't come to me. I will update when it does, which will be hopefully soon. I'm still working on the storyboard, will show soon. 

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Thought bubbles that vanish instantly

THEY don't know whats coming.

I have been working on my outline to finalize my idea and reach my finalized one to be able to start thinking about other aspects.
 here's the link to what I have so far: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JRvOf2B0PxY2Z3Msie9m3k3Wnii63MbrveV54Pijxy0/edit?usp=sharing

I decided to use the biking scenes as transition scenes throughout the film. The film will be carried through the shots, rather than the content or dialogue  really. I decided to start the color grading really blue and warm it up throughout until it is almost purely red to symbolize her exploding and letting go. She will be pretty much emotionless until the very end where she finally lets everything that has bottle up go. I think I'm either going to go the really choppy editing and hand held route, or the extremely perfect and symmetrical but still choppy route, kinda like Wes Anderson.

I'm just missing one scene. The climax of the story. I'm still thinking on it but it's all coming together. I'll start storyboarding soon to later do the screen play after, since it'll all be about the shots and their composition. The mise en scene is going to have to be on point. I also spoke to my cousin who produces music about him creating a track for my film, or rather many, that go to the storyline. I have to send him sample tracks and the storyboard ASAP, but he says he needs about three days to get it done, he just needs a draft from the content, that's still a long way from now but still. Everything is starting to catch up to me and I need to get it together pretty soon because I feel super behind. But it's okay. As long as I still shoot and edit in spring break, which is in a week basically, it'll all be according to schedule.
I will be posting the storyboard and screen play next week, as well as the last case study of coming of age films.
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