Storyboard: The Finale

 I feel like a giant weight has been lifted off my chest now that the storyboard is done, and this project has a sense of direction again. We added more to what we have already done (illustrated in a previous blog post) and we finished the opening scene as well as the scene after it. One problem we had while making the storyboard was timing. There was no way for us to know how long each clip would be, and therefore we did not know how many shots to add or remove to the film opening. As of right now, all the shots we included seem necessary to build Malia's character and her storyline. My fear is that the shots will exceed two minutes and we will be forced to change the storyboard to cut down the time. This will be determined during the post-production process and we will figure out how to problem-solve from there.

New additions to the storyboard include more shots of the room, Malia writing her novel, her getting frustrated over her book, being late for school, and then the trip to the school itself. The frustration over Malia trying to finish her novel will communicate how important writing is to her, and how dedicated she is to perfecting her craft. Furthermore, Malia being late to school introduces the conflict between her being a writer and her being a teenager since writing often takes priority over schoolwork. Finally, the trip to the school itself will show Malia getting an email of getting accepted into a writing program to show the audience that Malia really is a serious writer and is quite good at it. Below I have attached pictures of the new and improved storyboard (it's digital and everything!!), as well as Julia and I working on it during class.

Casting & Location Scouting

      It is time to decide who will play our main character Malia. Her physical characteristics consist of brunette hair, brown eyes, tan skin, and a shorter height. Right away, Julia matches that description. When thinking of the character Malia, I feel like I always subconsciously saw her as Julia since their personalities align. So it was only natural that Julia plays the part. Since Malia and Julia are alike, Julia would really understand the part she is playing and we would be able to evoke more genuine emotions from her. As a result, Malia’s description would come to life since her aspirations and conflicts would be shown through Julia’s actions and emotions.

     As for where the film opening will be shot, we considered two locations for the main setting. We need a teenage girl’s bedroom which means it either had to be Julia’s or my bedroom. We decided on Julia’s bedroom just because she has 100 books which we can use as props (considering it’s on our prop list) without having to transfer them. In addition, Julia’s room has better lighting since she has a big window, which would make the shooting process easier. Another factor of Julia’s room is that she has many posters that will sell Malia’s characteristic of being a teenage girl. For the last thirty seconds of the film opening, the setting will take place at Cypress Bay High School since we want the scene to be Malia and a teacher or friend conversing about her novel. A problem I can already see us running into is how to get good sound quality in the noisy hallways, but we will consider this and do more research to avoid that problem. Overall, the film opening will have two main settings.

Fonts Are So Complicated

      Who would have ever thought that fonts are actually considered when making a film opening. Fonts are one of those features that you don’t really think are considered to much, but that cannot be farther from the truth. Over the weekend, Julia and I played around with different fonts on Canva to decide which one we wanted to use. We looked at different variations and picked out which one we thought would fit the vibe of the film more. We wanted a font that looked like a typewriter since our protagonist is a writer and a large portion of the film focuses on her deciding if she wants to continue down that path.

     We ended up narrowing it down to seven fonts. The one that called out to us was the second to last font called IBM Plex Mono Light. Unlike the other fonts, it was thinner and looks more minimalistic which is the aesthetic we want the font to give off. We chose it because it looks straight from a typewriter which fits the characteristics of the film. In addition we looked at different color variations of the title, while pink gave off the more girly coming-of-age look we wanted, we settled on black since we plan to have Malia actually type out the title. In addition, black helps keep the minimalistic look.

Storyboard Part One

     I failed. I said I would manage my time well but I failed sadly. This week I went on a field trip that I have been waiting to go on for two whole years, and sadly that means I have been lacking in the responsibility department. What I learned from this experience is that I need to find a balance between this project and my life if it’s going to work out. I need to start treating it as a creative passion project rather than a grade. 

     On another note, I was able to meet with Julia and make most of the storyboard for the film opening. We decided the first few seconds would focus on shots around the room. So the screen is black and the first thing you hear is typing noise, it then cuts to a shot of Malia’s fingers typing. After that the shots of books, college acceptance letters, posters, writing programs, and a book manuscript start. There is also a shot of Malia’s screen to show she is writing her book. We plan to start the opening credits a few seconds after the scene starts, but we are still researching what positions we should include, and what fonts we should use. The storyboard can be seen down below, and more progress regarding the storyboard will be provided. This is a learning lesson to be more dedicated and responsible.

Eat. Sleep. Pinterest. Repeat.

      For the past few days I’ve been exclusively using Pinterest, trying to make a mood board for the whole film of Unwritten (Title finally decided on!!) . I’m a very visual person, so I decided to map out the idea I had in my head of the opening and the aesthetics I wanted the whole film to have. In my mind, there are two ways to classify movies from the coming of age genre. The first one is early 2000s movies which aren’t as affected by technology and focus more on conflicts relating other high school girls. The second type is the modern coming of age which includes films like Ladybird, The Edge of Seventeen, etc. These films focus more on problems beyond just highschool. The aesthetic I want Unwritten to have is more of a modern coming of age film. The moodboard I made is attached below.

     The moodboard contains many images of writing and reading which represent Malia’s interests. What many of the images have in common are that the writing/annotations are all over the page to show how much Malia likes to analyze writing and the meticulousness that goes into her own writing. Malia is still a high school student so there are pictures of lockers, her around the school, or her with her best friend. The picture of the graduation caps and college acceptance letters make it clear that she needs to reach her decision soon, there is a deadline of when she can decide her path. This moodboard will help my partner and I maintain a cohesive look to the opening of the film, and understand Malia’s character at a deeper level. Consequently, we will be more detail-oriented when it comes to designing her room or dictating her actions since we have a better understanding of her character.

My Love For Puns Has Led Somewhere

      I think I just had a major breakthrough in regards to our film title. What if we call it *dramatic music* Writer's Block. Now, I know the cleverness of this name makes no sense considering I have omitted the plotline of the film so far, so I'll explain it now. Our coming-of-age film will follow the journey of a teenage girl who is having trouble deciding what career path she wants to follow for the rest of her life. Her brain says to study psychology, a well-paying job that will always have job opportunities. It’s practical and realistic. However, she has a talent for writing and in her heart wants to be a writer. While it’s not as steady, being a writer is Malia’s dream and she has been writing her novel since the start of junior year. The film will show the trials and tribulations of being a senior and high school as well as her internal conflict.

     Despite having this whole idea fully panned out, we only have a two minute introduction to show it. Our opening will start by establishing the setting of Malia’s room. It will establish that she is a teenage girl and will be messy to reflect how her mind runs a million miles per hour. She will be staring at her plot board intensely, which outlines the novel she has been working on since forever. A voiceover will play and give insight to some of the internal dialogue she’s facing. The shots of the room will specifically focus on Malia’s college acceptance letters, her writing program brochures, books, posters, etc. to give a look into her personality. Her internal dialogue is interrupted by her sister bursting in the room and saying they’re late for school, as the bus is heard honking in the background. Malia looks outside and her sentence is cut off by the horn of the bus which then cuts to the movie title: Writer’s Block or Unwritten. The next thirty seconds will be Malia talking to her friend or teacher about finally publishing her novel and continuing her path as a writer. The title Writer’s Block is so clever because it’s as if Malia is unsure about her future so she’s having a block, she doesn’t know how to proceed with her life.

A Look Into Malia's Room

      One of the main staples of our film opening will be our protagonist's room. The first few shots will focus on specific details in Malia's room to help build her character and personality through setting. Personal belongings can tell a lot about a person and can help the audience establish an idea of Malia's character before she even begins speaking. Since the setting will be part of Malia's character, we will make sure to focus on the different props we want to include in the room, and the story we want them to tell. Examples of props we will include are:

College Acceptance Letters

  We want to make it clear that Malia is a senior and the next chapter of her life is beginning soon. The college acceptance letters will make her age a bit clearer as the audience can conclude she is a teenager. The acceptance letters also give a sense that Malia's future and track in life have already been determined. The acceptance letters will all have one thing in common, they are all Psychology programs. The acceptance letters being drastically different to what Malia's room reflects, her love for books and writing, will foreshadow her emotional journey and self-discovery of what she wants to do with the rest of her life.

Writing Program Packets

      Flyers and brochures of different writing programs will show that Malia is not satisfied by her college acceptance letters and start developing that internal conflict over what she should pick to study in college: the realistic choice which has a set career path, or the more unrealistic choice which is a harder field to succeed in. Malia's interest and longing to be a writer will be emphasized by the writing program packets.

Books, Books, & Books

     We have already established that Malia wants to be a writer and to reinforce that, we will be including numerous books scattered all around her room. The quantity of books will show that Malia does not just see writing as a job opportunity, but as a hobby as well since she voluntarily reads so many stories. Malia's love for reading books is what manifested her desire to become a writer so we want to show the appreciation and relationship she has with reading.

    
A Plot Board

     The prop we will focus on the most in the scene will be the plot board. Malia will have a wall filled with numerous sticky notes and flash cards with writing all over the place. These flash cards will contain different ideas for the novel she is trying to write. To Malia, ideas come naturally and she wants to make sure she writes everything down which is why the plot board will take up so much room.In everything else in her room, the plot board will be neatly kept since Malia dedicated most of her time to writing and finishing her novel.

A Messy Room

     Overall, everything in Malia’s room will be messy and cluttered to mimic the bedroom of a teenage girl. Besides her love for writing, her room will contain records, posters, etc. to establish her age and being a teenager. The messiness will reflect the chaos of her life and the journey to self-discovery she is about to go on. The plot board being the only neat thing will make it clear that writing is her priority and that she is dedicated to perfecting her novel.