Ideas Development
4. My Resources
The three clips here illustrate how the strength of a prop or location can define the quality of a piece. Clip I1 came about entirely because the student could access world war two memorabilia and wanted to exploit that. Clip I2, a music video has a strong sense of play with props and make up as well as a Hopper-esque seaside location. Clip I3 came about because the student’s father worked in a swimming pool and could gain access to it out of hours.
So it’s important that your students similarly examine their own lives and surroundings for possible resources.
Divide the class into groups and give each group a card detailing a different combination of actors, locations and props. Each group must come up with a single paragraph synopsis of a short film built around these parameters.
For example a group who receives this card:
2 female actors (1 teenage, 1 middle-aged) – A building site – An antique clock: might come up with this synopsis:
Comedy
A girl and her mother sit on scaffolding holding an antique clock. The mother explains how the girl’s father holds the clock so dearly that he can’t bear to be without it and it must be brought so he can see it straight after work.
The girls asks to hold the clock but drops it (we hear a crash and a scream)
The mother calls out the father’s name
Next, on a blank sheet, students should list their personal resources in terms of actors, locations and props. This requires creative thinking.
Actors
If the only available actor doesn’t have a great deal of acting skill, it makes sense not to include too much dialogue in your script. Keep numbers small. When you are relying on goodwill, every person involved is also someone who may hold things up for lots of genuine reasons. Family will generally be more reliable and the film may just feature the student himself or herself. Patrick Keiller’s film ‘ London ’ (1994) used no actors at all but did feature a voiceover-driven narrative.
Locations
It may help to photocopy a local map for your students. While some students will be limited to working around their home and school, others will have access to transport. The key thing is to get them thinking of places as locations. While there is no steadfast rule that a film cannot be made in school, to limit your student’s work to your school grounds is to ignore the potential of an interesting location.
Props
The entire film could be based around one interesting prop. Again, the key is to get them thinking about their own lives, friends, family and the objects around them as resources. The Art, Science and Drama departments in your school may be a valuable asset here.
In pairs, carry out the same task of ‘fleshing out’ an idea within these parameters.