Spike's Film Blog

With my idea asserted, a few tasks face me before I can realistically write my actual script: namely the introduction of a logline, plot synopsis, the use of a 3-act structure in relation to my story and the conception of what I want my film to do : the reasons and ambitions behind my thoughts. Logline:  A DISTURBED YOUNG ADULT FINDS HIMSELF INEXPLICABLY DRAWN TO THE DISTANT CRY OF A WAILING CHICKEN. This seemed to offer enough intrigue and a taste of the surrealist aspect of my story; enough basic substance of plot to offset the lack of distinguishable ambition. At the very least it's distinctive enough in my view to make the reader think through it again, if only subconsciously. Plot Synopsis: A young man begrudgingly wakes to the muffled sound of wailing chickens in distress. He resists at first, but when the noise becomes louder he cannot help but be drawn from his bed outside, to investigate the noise. He trawls through the garden, before confronting a chicken coop at th...

The next stage in development was the writing of a coherent screenplay - naturally, this needed practise and some guidance even despite my (albeit limited) previous experience, as this piece was to be assessed by professional standards. Taking three primary ideas (a nightmare narrative, a dark comedy of natural vengeance, a schoolboy drug kingpin), I evaluated each and essentially decided to begin to write the beginnings of each, with a mind for available resources, to decide which I would pursue in a creative and organic sense. By far the most vexing to write was the darkly comedic story; I found it almost impossible to relate the boy's body language and actions in a way that wouldn't come across as cheesy or cartoonish and at every turn, I doubted the abilities of myself as a director and of my friends as actors to pull off the subtle comedy that would be required. Blending the aspects of characterisation with moments of slapstick violence also proved difficult and as such,...

Gearing up towards scriptwriting and planning, we've had three talks from people more in the know: the first from a young filmmaker called Ryd Cook, the second from an aspiring scriptwriter and the third from an ex-student who has found success with his own recent shorts. Each gave some clarity as to the steps we need to undertake in the planning, development, shooting and editing of our own pieces. Ryd Cook is a young filmmaker currently working in cinematography and acting, but with over 10 years experience around the industry: his talk was the most eye-opening, given the naivety by which I entered the room. He took us through each process involved in the assembly of a film, even one as short as the 5 minutes runtime we have been given; the sheer quantity of steps was what set in at first.  I have some experience with the creation of screenplays and as such, this area is familiar to me - but on top of that storyboarding, shot lists, equipment checks, editing etc. I had little s...

After the evaluation and exploration of each of the eight set texts in turn, I find myself looking towards the ideas stage of my project. What kind of film do I want to make? As a task of brainstorming, a few conceptual ideas should lead my thinking: An original idea? A news story/ historical event? Development from one of the set short films? Adaptation of an existing novel/ short story? As much as these all intrigue me, I am heavily inclined towards presenting something that I have created, an original idea. A news story could be interesting, but would likely lead me down a route of crime-based ideas, something both uninspiring to me personally and probably outside of the realms of possibility with the resources I have. Similarly, the prospect of recreating something from the past immediately brings to mind the limitations of costuming, sets, acting and a dozen other factors. I don't mean to completely dismiss these modes, because I believe that with enough passion and a s...