Music Part 4: Music Choice

     Hello, and welcome to what I believe is my final major blog post on the music part of the portfolio project. Todays post will be regarding my final decision on the music that will be used within the introduction of the movie.

    I will start with the most broad classifications, then I will keep narrowing it down until I reach a final decision of what will be used.

    The first decision is whether the song will be instrumental, vocal, or completely diegetic. I'm not an active listener of vocal music, as I primarily listen to instrumental music. As a result I don't have much experience with that type of music, so I likely would not be able to find a good fit for the introduction. Getting permission would also be a pain, unlike instrumental music, which I will discuss later. Moving on, I don't think a primarily diegetic soundtrack would work in this scenario. I feel like a complete lack of music would not help set up the tone of the introduction. I feel this especially does not work when considering the man being told he has cancer is the major moment, and without music it would not have as much of an impact as I would like. The final option is instrumental. I have a large amount of experience with this type of music and I believe the lack of words lets people focus more on whats happening in the movie, acting as a supplement by increasing emotion while not taking the viewers attention. As a result, my introduction will use instrumental music.

    The next major thing to consider is whether the music will be created by me or if it will be a song that already exists. I've only just started learning the guitar (my electric guitar is pictured below) during the beginning of the school year, so I am nowhere near close to being the best. Thinking about this positively however, if I did it I would not have to deal with copyright issues and I would gain more experience with playing the guitar. The other option is a song that already exists. I believe this is the better choice, as the people who created these songs are most likely better at conveying emotion, and I have yet to create my own musical composition, therefore having no experience. This however, breaks down into a new problem.

My electric guitar

    The next issue involves how I will deal with the copyright of using an existing song. I can either ask the creator if I could use their song, or as a safer option, cover the song myself and give credit to the original artist. Asking the creator is a high risk high reward situation. There is a chance that the creator does not respond in time or they flat out say no, so  I would have to have a last minute backup plan just in case. On the other hand, If I covered it I would not have to deal with that issue, with the main issue learning the song in time. With several weeks of time, I think I am capable of learning a song to the point where it would seem at least partially professional in a film introduction.

    There are a few final parameters that did not warrant an entire paragraph of decision making. First, the song must have a somber tone. This is self explanatory, as a deadly medical situation would warrant a sad undertone throughout the entire movie, especially the music. Next is that the song can't be bombastic. It must carry a large amount of emotional weight while being somewhat quiet so that it does not counter the tone. Now, taking everything that I have talked about into consideration, I believe I have found a song that fits all of the qualifications. 

    

Zero Two's Theme

Zero Two's Theme (Guitar Cover)

    I have settled on Zero Two's theme from the Kirby series. I know most of you probably think I'm insane with my constant references to the Kirby series, but as I said before, its work with music is incredible. I chose this theme because of the sorrowful tone given to it by the story of Zero Two. (The giant eyeball creature shown above) While some parts seem intense within the guitar cover, it is mainly due to the choice of instruments. After choosing this song, I believe my acoustic guitar would be a better choice of an instrument. I might incorporate some piano as well, as it is also great at conveying the emotion of sadness. 

    So here's the plan of how it will be incorporated. It would play slower than the normal speed of the song, as it currently goes too fast compared to the story of the film. I believe the best way of incorporating it is by having it play on the acoustic guitar normally, and on piano during the flashbacks. It would also slowly get faster until stoping when the man is told he has cancer. A heartbeat would also be heard while the music is playing, increasing in speed alongside the music. I feel this is a unique and possibly effective way to engage the audience, but not completely draw their attention to the music. The music would not be the only thing heard though, as there would be normal hospital sounds in the background as well. (People talking, writing, doors opening and closing, etc.

    I'm very excited to see this idea through, and I plan to start practicing the song this week, starting with the chords and then moving onto the melody. I will most likely ask one of my friends to do the piano part though, but I might teach reteach myself piano if that's not possible. (I have not played it in years but I'm confident I could relearn easily)

    Thank you for reading the finale of the music section of my music section of the portfolio project. It has been very entertaining and I have learned a great deal about several technical elements of the music that goes into a movie introduction. Farewell, thank you for reading, and I hope to see you all again in my next post!

Music Part 3: The Effects of Music

     Hello, and welcome to my third blog post on the music of movie introductions. Today's post will be about how different types of music can create certain effects.

    There are three main uses of music that you can use for the introduction of a movie. The two that come to most minds first are vocal music and instrumental music, as they are good at setting tone as well as creating memorial moments. The final type is diegetic sound. It is not truly music, but it has the same affect. The lack of music can greatly amplify the weight of emotional moments, as well as increasing tension and building suspense. It does this by only showing the sounds that would occur in the situation, not including music that does not truly exist in that world.

   

Link to video that explains diagetic sound more in depth.

    Despite diegetic sound being an option, I feel it should only be used when it would sere the purpose of building tension, suspense, etc. If it's not used too often, there would essentially be an empty void of music throughout the movie. This could be well done, but it would be very difficult to pull off, resulting in music being a better option.

Japanese flute

Michael Jackson

    Another major piece of knowledge I learned is that it is a good idea to try and give a setting with your music. This probably sounds weird, but after learning this I realized how often it's done with movies. Imagine a movie taking place in ancient Japan. Do you think you would hear something like death metal or hip-hop while watching the movie? it would most likely use traditional Japanese instruments, such as a flute or other classical instruments. Likewise, there is a high chance you hear music by artists like Michael Jackson in movies that take place in the 80s.

    One goal for movies similar to those with the drama genre is to make the audience feel the impact of certain situations. The goal is to give them goosebumps. Often times, this is a critical point in the movie that is meant to carry serious emotional weight. The example I'm providing is the scene in Ratatouille where Anton Ego tries the ratatouille and gets a flashback of his childhood. This combines instrumental music with diegetic sound by having some music play in the background until he drops his fork, where the most prominent sound is the sound of the fork dropping. This is immediately followed by more light hearted music, representing Ego's happiness after trying the Ratatouille. To those who have seen the full movie, you can see how the combination of music techniques was able to amplify the already immense emotional impact of the scene. My favorite part has to be the fork dropping, because I interpret the sound as representing the weight of Ego's malevolent feelings falling when he is reminded of his past, which just gives me chills.

                                                    This is the scene talked about earlier.

    By practicing all these techniques I believe I can create a spectacular film opening. I already took some inspiration from the Ratatouille scene, as I plan to incorporate a mix of diegetic sounds and instrumental music to create a unique opening that will amplify the emotion of the big moment, which is the doctor telling the main character that he has cancer. The only technique I won't use in the opening will be the one that creates setting, as the introduction serves more as an exposition to the character rather than an exposition to the world.

    I believe I might add more part to the music part of the blog, but I will confirm if I do in tomorrow's blog post, as I don't know if the subject would warrant an entire post. Anyways, thank you for reading and I hope you continue staying updated with the blog. Farewell, and I'll see you next time!

Music Part 2: Leitmotifs

   

  Hello everyone! Today I will delve into one of my favorite techniques when it comes to the use of music in storytelling mediums. This technique is known as the leitmotif, and I can guarantee that every one of you reading has had the experience of listening to a leitmotif before, even if you don't think you have. 

    For those who don't know, a leitmotif is melody that is constantly associated with a certain character, event, etc. Another use is to create connections within sequels, or even prequels, to media that uses them. It is the German word for "leading motif."It is also a technique used in many major movies, such as the Star Wars series, The Godfather, Gladiator, and many Disney movies. I will now talk about one of the most known leitmotifs of all time, as well as a leitmotif that I have a large amount of experience with.

    The first one I want to discuss is the Spider-Man theme. Assuming you've been alive within the past century, you have probably heard the Spider-Man theme at least once in your entire life.

The Original Spider-Man Theme

 

    This is the original theme. You probably recognize it. This is because the melody used in it has become Spider-Man's leitmotif, constantly following him until even modern day. One of its most recent uses has been during the marketing of Spider-Man: No Way Home. (2021) Its usage is shown below.

SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME - Official Teaser Trailer (HD)

    Through the leitmotif, Marvel was able to create a memorable theme that stuck with this character for decades. This created memorable moments whenever it played, which in turn gives a sense of nostalgia for long time fans. The most important part of a leitmotif is how it affects the story though. It is able to increase the value of emotional moments by playing a familiar melody, as well as create suspense, hinting at events such as the return of a previous character or foreshadowing that someone or something will come back.

    I will now refer back to the Kirby series, as they do a miraculous job with the use of music in their games. I will be focusing on the leitmotif of one character, knows as King Dedede, a penguin that was initially an antagonist but later became an ally to the protagonist. His first appearance was in 1992, and as a result he has a large variety of themes that include his leitmotif, which has essentially become a part of his character.

Every King Dedede Theme

    Obviously the video is very long, but I recommend skipping to random parts and noticing how every theme shares the same melody. Every time this plays in game, it means you fight him, are in an area related to him, or fight someone related to him. No matter what the story is, this connects everything to him, showing how his leitmotif can be used to develop the story. I will analyze and compare two of his themes just to show how different these similar leitmotifs can be.

    

Giant Masked Dedede - Kirby's Blowout Blast Music Extended

    The first theme I will look over is the Giant Masked Dedede theme. It uses his theme to convey an antagonistic motive, as seen through the choir and electric guitar. This fits with how in this game he served as an antagonist. This is just a quick analysis, and the important parts will be more elaborated on when I compare it to another theme, but it is clear that the use of his leitmotif in this scenario was to make him seem like a threat. I will now move onto theme known as: The King's Turn to Shine.

King DeDeDe sacrifices himself to save a waddle de - YouTube

    

    The Leitmotif starts at around the 38 second mark. As you can see, even without the context, the leitmotif's tone was completely different while still retaining the same melody. (Known as Mt Dedede) It uses horns, as they are usually instruments that represent triumph and heroism. This represents how he sacrifices himself , assisting the protagonist with his journey and saving one of his loyal subjects.

    Finally, here comes the true analysis. Giant Masked Dedede and The King's Turn to Shine are two great examples of how a leitmotif can be used to represent a character, while at the same time conveying several different meanings regarding the character. In this scenario, the different meanings would be that one uses heavy metal to represent his antagonistic behavior while the other uses horns to represent his act of heroism. This is what I love about leitmotifs. It doesn't matter if the melody is played with heavenly instruments or even with an extremely dark tone. No matter what, that leitmotif establishes that they both connect to one central character. (Or idea, event, etc.)

    The reason I dedicated a blog post to this is that I want to include a leitmotif for the main character in my film intro. Obviously since it's an intro it would probably only be used once, but leitmotifs are huge parts of characters and including one would most likely make a more memorable experience, especially if done correctly throughout a film.

    Thank you for reading and stay tuned! The next part will likely be examples of how music is used within the drama film genre. Farewell again, and make sure to continue reading!

    The leitmotif starts at around 

Music Part 1: Tone/Story

      

    Hello! It's time to discuss one of, if not my favorite part of creating a film introduction. This is the music of the production. This blog post will be broken into four parts, with this part focusing on how music sets tone/expand the story.

    One of the best parts about music is that it can be used to fit everyone's tastes. One piece of music can be loved by one person but can be hated by another. This range of emotion also applies in other types of media, such as film or video games. Another factor to take into account is whether the song has lyrics or not. The lyrics can tell a story, whether it's given to you or as a hidden message. Sometimes, songs have no lyrics. These songs make use of certain instruments as well as other techniques to make the listener feel certain emotions. There's also a lack of music, which can build suspense or even fear depending on the context. Personally, I love listening to music from video games because of their meaning to their respective situations, as well as a lack of lyrics, which often makes me question every choice made during a composition. One company that constantly puts out games with meaningful soundtracks is Nintendo, so I will be using them as a primary example for music that can set certain tones and meanings.

    Music is able to completely change how a scene can be interpreted, and I personally believe the best way of doing this is through music with no lyrics. It makes use of the 2+2 method. In case you don't know, the 2+2 method means giving the viewer 2+2 and not 4. This is another way of saying don't ell them exactly what they're getting, but make them think to understand something. It keeps them more invested into something, which is exactly what you want to do when creating a movie introduction. This can change scenes completely, especially in emotional moments. For example, take the ending of Avengers Infinity War. (Link to the video below)

Infinity War Ending Scene

    The context of this scene is that Thanos, the character shown sitting down, won and successfully killed half of the universe. Many people who have not watched this movie often find this music confusing. If Thanos won, why is the music so peaceful? It is only after watching the movie that this makes sense, as that is when you discover the goal of Thanos. He believed he was right, and that he could finally rest, hence the very peaceful yet somber tone of the ending music, with the somber part representing how the Avengers lost and billions were killed.

     I shall now move on to an example from the Nintendo game, Kirby and the Forgotten Land. Be warned, as it contains spoilers for the final boss of the game.

     One of my favorite video game series is Kirby. This is because it makes an excellent use of background story telling. Instead of giving you 2+2, this game will give you (7^2 -4)/9 -1. The target audience of the games are children, but they make sure to cater to long time fans, and often include important details for those who look to delve deeper into the story. This is done through several methods, including hidden easter eggs, descriptions on menus, and most importantly music. The music of a video game theme is one of the best ways to tell a story, as well as set a tone.

        Before I move on, I want all of you to look at this picture. (Once again, spoiler warning for the final boss)

    

  

    What do you see? At first glance many would see a normal antagonist, as there are no main features that would cause someone to believe otherwise. Now, listen to one of the songs that play when you fight it. The first one is known as "Two Planets Approach the Roche Limit."

Two Planets Approach the Roche Limit (Version 1) - YouTube

    Here are some basic observations. Violin is used constantly during this song. Violin commonly represents elegance, and thus is constantly associated with angels. Choir is also used in the song, and is also commonly associated with angels. Both of these sounds, combined with the divine appearance of this entity can convey that this creature is of a higher power. When this creature is damaged enough, the music changes, although it stays similar. Here is the second version of the song.

Two Planets Approach the Roche Limit ~ Phase 2 - YouTube

    In this version, the main melody remains the same but there is more percussion and guitar incorporated. Not only do these instruments indicate a change in difficulty, but a change in emotion. This divine being has now been angered and its swift movements have evolved to be more frantic, as it's trying its best to kill you. It still retains some of its grace however, which is why the violins and choir remain, despite not being as prominent. The next part indicates a dramatic change in tone. This next song is known as, "Eternal Echo of the Thrilling Tour-our-our," and it plays during a crucial part of the fight.

Eternal Echo of the Thrilling Tour-our-our - KatFL Soundtrack ...    AAA        

30 minutes,

    As you can see, this track contains a completely different tone from the other two. This track is meant to freak you out, with the repeating "lyrics" representing insanity." The unnerving feeling is supposed to represent what occurs in the fight, as the creature undergoes an egregious transformation, becoming nothing but a ball containing its soul. (Picture shown below) Despite the tone difference, this track serves a completely different purpose from the other two. This one is primarily made to develop the story. It is not stated clearly, but it is a reference to the backstory of the creature known as Chaos Elfilis. As a quick summary, the creature was captured and used as a tour attraction for centuries, being restrained the entire time. In fact, these lyrics are taken directly from the audio of the tour itself. (Linked below) In general, the song is meant to represent the pure rage of the creature towards humanity, with the repeated tour audio representing its insanity of being trapped for centuries doing nothing but listening to the same thing EVERY day.

This is what the creature shown before transformed into

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7d5hPhMoPJI

(Link to the video where the audio of the tour came from)

    The final piece I want to show you is completely different from the other three. It is known as "A Full-Speed Farewell From the New World."

A Full-Speed Farewell from the New World - YouTube

    Clearly, this piece is meant to serve a completely different purpose. At this moment, the player is trying to strike the final blow to finish off the creature. This is why the song is so fast paced, as it is meant to be the finale, an end to the journey that you witnessed unfold by your hand. This song has that feeling of finality. This is not exclusive to movies either, and is often used in movies during the climax to serve as one of the most memorable moments.

    These are only a few examples, but I believed they were some of the best in showing how music develops tone and story. In the next part, I will talk about a major component of storytelling through music that I want to incorporate into my movie introduction. Leitmotifs! All in all, this has been my favorite blog post so far and it allowed me to incorporate two things that I love into this project. Once again, I believe music is one of the most important parts of anything from game to movie, and strive to do it justice in my project. Thank you for reading and I hope to see you all in my next post!

C

(This is where the tour audio is taken from)
    The final song I want to mention is completely different from the past three songs. It is known as "AFull-Speed Farewell From the New World."

A Futll-Speed Farewell from the New World - YouTub

e

The Target Audience.

     Hello! Today's post will be regarding the target audience in relation to the concept of the story. I still need to work out some details within the story, but with what I currently have, I believe that I have found the most fitting target audience.

    The story of the movie focuses on the character development of a man after finding out that he has cancer. This is a very touchy subject, and is meant to leave a large emotional impact on the audience. Alongside this, if the man is portrayed incorrectly, the entire movie will fall apart, failing not only in sales, but also in leaving that emotional impact that I strive to create.

    Now, the goal is to eliminate the age groups that won't be targeted. Obviously, the maturity of the film would immediately eliminate children as a target audience. Although maybe a stretch, I believe that teenagers could be eliminated as well, as they might not completely understand the emotions that go through someone's head when they or someone they love is diagnosed with cancer. 

    This leaves adults as the main target audience. Further information was shown in this website, however it may be outdated. I placed the link here just in case any of you want to see it, but I will not be referencing it here. All in all, I believe that adults are the best target audience for this movie, because they are old enough to understand the fragility of life, thus being empathetic towards the scenario. 

    This was another short post, but finding the correct age group for the target audience was very straightforward, especially when considering the tone and main theme of the movie. Farewell, and I hope you look forward to next week's post.

Shooting Schedules

     Hello! Today will will be a shorter post than normal, however the content does involve an important detail that plays a large part in the creation of the movie introduction. This is the shooting schedule, as it is essential to planning when everyone can meet to film the scenes for the introduction.

    Before I discuss that specifically, I need to discuss the starting plans of how the movie will be filmed. Currently, I plan to have some of my friends help me with playing some of the characters and filming if I decide to play a character. As a result, having an exact time and date where everyone can meet would be hard, considering their extracurricular activities as well as personal events. This makes a shooting schedule essential.

    Continuing what was said before, a shooting schedule is needed to make sure everyone has an exact time to show up and film the scenes of the movie introduction. Due to the project being due in April, the current plan is to have everything done during spring break, which lasts from March 20th to March 24th.

BCPS 2022-2023 Calendar

    The break would supply sufficient time to get all filming done, as well as supplying enough time in case someone has to cancel earlier on in the project. There would likely be no extracurricular activities as well, as spring break would be occurring.

    Once again, I am sorry for this post being so short, however spring break occurring before the project is due is a miracle, as it almost guarantees that my friends and I are able to gather to film the project. Thank you for reading and stay tuned for tomorrow's blog!

The Story Concept

    Hello, today I am going to go over the story concept I have for the movie introduction. The only disclaimer is that due to personal events I was not able to get the storyboard started yet, but most of it should be produced before the end of next week. I do have the general idea of the story though, and I will state what I know right here.

    

    The story would start with a man in a chair, looking as if he's contemplating something. There would be a heartbeat in the background, as well as music. There would be many flashbacks with his family, eventually turning into flashbacks of tests in the hospital. The heartbeat would grow faster, as well as the amount of flashbacks. By the end it's going extremely fast and you see the man in the chair start showing signs of a panic attack until one final flashback plays. A doctor steps out of a room and talks about how he ran some tests. He then tells the man that he's sorry, and the man has cancer. At that point, the music and heartbeat would go silent, with the only thing being heard is the heavy breathing of the man in the chair. 

    I assume that the two minute mark would end at about there.

    As said in the previous post, the story of the film is personal to me, and I would like to try to do it as much justice as possible, as many people don't know how much the three simple words of "you have cancer" can affect someone's entire mindset. Due to how important the tone is to a situation like this, I believe that the music needs to be a perfect fit for the situation to work. With this in mind, I have limited my song choices to only a few songs, but it would be better to discuss music in a future post.

    Another thing I have to prepare for with this genre is mise-en-scene. Luckily, my parents own a decent amount of medical instruments that could be used as props. The biggest issue would be a location, but if I look around enough, I will likely find a place that could could be used to look like a doctor's office. I also have to take clothing into consideration. This website contains some of the clothing that doctors where. Fortunately, I own similar clothing but it is still unknown who will play what role in the video.

Some clothing worn by doctors

    I should have more information on the story before the end of next week, so I believe that for the next post, you can look forward to reading about issues/obstacles and decisions when it comes to the incorporation of certain music in the movie introduction. Farewell, and make sure to stay tuned for more information on this journey to make a fantastic movie introduction.

Research Beginnings

     Okay, today is the day I truly start my project. To begin with, I believe I am finally ready to announce my genre: drama. I'm choosing this genre because it is the most fitting with my current story, which I will elaborate more on in tomorrow's post.

    Today, I want to look over a surface level review of my movie introduction's genre.

    According to the author of this website, "Drama film is a genre that relies on the emotional and relational development of realistic characters. While Drama film relies heavily on this kind of development, dramatic themes play a large role in the plot as well. Often, these dramatic themes are taken from intense, real life issues." 

    After looking through several genres, I discovered that my story seemed to fit perfectly into the drama genre, as it deals with a real issue that many struggle with every day. The plot focuses on one character who goes through a massive amount of character growth after being told of a certain issue. If this isn't one of the genre's main themes, then I'm not sure what it is. 

    Some examples of drama movies include: 

The Godfather (1972)

Logan (2017)

Blade Runner (1982)

    With movies like these serving as inspiration, I have a general idea of how I want to create my introduction, although I would like to incorporate a far more serious tone than these three movies. Due to the topic being personal to me, I know exactly what was going through my head in the situation, and already have a somewhat solid idea of what direction I want to go with the music. Furthermore, I plan to have the start of a storyboard by tomorrow, as said earlier within this post.

    Honestly, I mainly wanted this project to be well done for a good grade and to have a sense of accomplishment. Now however, something awoke within me. I WILL make this project worthwhile, and I believe the main reason for this is the story. What I plan to do involves a dark time within my life, but I plan to do it justice, as I feel that it will help me move on. I'm sorry to leave on that note, but I hope you all continue reading and join me on this now personal journey. 

    

The New Challenge

    Hello, and welcome to my first post regarding what I believe to be greatest challenge yet. I need to somehow create a two-minute introduction to a movie. I will be working alone, which does make the project seem like an overwhelming amount of work. Despite this, I enjoy working alone because it allows me to have more creative liberties when coming up when the storyboard. 

    Using this opportunity, I want to try making the story of the introduction be on a  topic personal to me. I currently have no ideas set in stone, but I am leaning towards making this a drama. If the idea ends up being too sensitive though, I will probably make something like a comedy or action movie instead. I also have an idea for the music if it is a genre, but it would require permission and I don't know if I want to go through the entire process of getting it. 

    Despite all of these thoughts, there is still an impending sense of dread in the back of my head. The due date of April 4th. 

    To be quite frank, I am a major procrastinator, and have somehow been able to maintain a decent grade despite that habit. I plan to stop that with this project. This is partially because I don't want to fail, but for the most part it's because I truly want this introduction to be something I can look back at in the future and think, "This actually turned out pretty good." 

    Currently, I have two main plans for next week. First, I will likely create a schedule for my project, making sure everything has a set date. For example, I might have the storyboard be finished by the third week. Second, I will make sure to have the genre picked by next week, with no exceptions. 

    Besides all the stress that comes with the project, I'm sure I will have fun. I might get my friends to proof read the story of the introduction, or even have some roles within the film itself.

    I urge everyone to stay and watch this story unfold, as I believe I am able to make my film a worthwhile endeavor that will help me not only earn a good grade, but teach me about time management and improve my filming techniques. Farewell, and I'll see you all next time.