Conventions of Film Openings

Title Sequence Timeline

Iconic Sounds in Chick Flicks

Chick flick openings are often accompanied by an upbeat feel good song. The backing tracks that feature are usually feel good songs to create a positive atmosphere.

This is exemplified in the opening credits of 'Legally Blonde.' The backing track is Prefect Day by Hoku. The song is upbeat and gives the impression of a positive storyline.



Other types of music that chick flicks often include is 'pop rock' which features in films such as mean girls and St Trinians. 


Aside from backing tracks, there are sounds that are often heard in many chick flick films. These would include the sound of a bell ringing if the film is set in a high school;



Chick flicks often feature party scenes, therefore background noise would have to be included to make it seem realistic;

Sub-Genre Synopsis

Guy Com 
A guy com is a chick flick created to appeal to a male audience as well as female. Like any other chick flick, guy coms include people dealing with their feelings, their future and relationships, however the films tend to focus around what males enjoy, like sport and strong language. Some examples of guy coms would be '17 Again',  'The Hangover' and 'American Pie'. 

Rom-Com 
Rom-coms are films that are centred around romantic ideas such as true love. However, these ideas are accompanied by light-hearted, humorous plot lines which make the films more of an easy watch. Some examples of rom-coms are 'What Happens In Vegas' and 'Love Actually'. 

Tearjerkers 
These films are the perfect watch if you fancy a good cry. Films like 'The Notebook' are a great example of tearjerkers. They are films based around family and being in the midst of an emotional crisis. 

Audience Expectations

We went around our school asking girls aged 16-18 what they would expect from a chick flick. Here's what we found out; 

Gigi King, 16, says "I'd expect  a chick flick to include lots of girl stuff, gossiping and should have a romantic story line" 

Becky Thorne, 17, says "Chick flicks should definitely include two people falling in love and having to overcome an obstacle. They should be funny and the best chick flicks would be starring High Grant and Sandra Bullock"  

Shona Reilly, 16, says "There should be lots of girly conflicts; cat fights and back stabbing. There has to be a romantic interest who is desired by more than one individual. Girl Power should be a big focus, it should feature strong and independent young women!" 

Alexa Rusakoff, 16, says "From a chick flick I would expect there to be a lot of girly banter; there should be plenty of ongoing gossip and a lot of flirtatious encounters. Slumber parties and house parties resulting in break ups and make ups. In the end the girls will stick together and help each other out, there's always a happy ending" 

Many other girls within our target audience agreed with these statements and all felt strongly that the film should be comedic and include a love interest. 

Nine-frame Analysis- From Prada to Nada

The first shot of this sequence shows a blue sky and palm trees, this sets the scene for the upcoming action. The name of the production company is credited across the screen. This shot as well as the upcoming shots in this sequence are accompanied by non-diegetic sound, this being Katy Perry's 'California Girls.' This track also help to set the scene.


 The next shots clearly identifies where the movie is set, it shows a Beverly Hills sign, this could be considered conventional for a chick flick. The credits continue across the screen. 



The third shot is similar to the first shot in the sequence, showing a blue sky and surrounding palm trees. 

 Shot 4 gives the viewer an insight as to what life is like in the area the film is set, showing a women sunbathing and being waited on by a butler. This gives us an idea that money will be a theme in this movie.

 In the next shot, the lifestyle of the people in Beverly Hills continues to be displayed, showing a grand house. At first, this could be perceived to be the house where the action is set, however we shortly see that this isn't the case. 

 The following shot shows the back of the house, where there is a tennis court, this further explores the lifestyle in which the film will focus around. 

The seventh shots displays a second house, surrounded by palm trees and fitting for the area. 

 Once again, in shot 8, a third house is shown, this is so that the viewer gets a clear enough insight on exactly what life in Beverly Hills is like. 



In the final shot, one last house is shown, although just as grand as the others, it is more picturesque, making the viewer take more notice to it. Hinting that this is where the initial action will take place. 

Nine-frame analysis- Fast Girls

                                               

The first frame is the production company credit which fits in with the conventions of a chick flick and is an aspect of creating my movie introduction that I will need to think about. This shot lasts for 20 seconds.



Next, The British Film Institute is credited as this was the company that funded the film. This shot lasts for 8 seconds.





In the third frame, we see an initial shot of what we assume to be the main character as well as surrounding photographs, this gives the viewer an initial and minimal idea of what the character in like and maybe hints towards the character replaying the past?



The fourth frame once again, kept the identity of the main character hidden by not revealing her face, therefore we see a shot of the character from behind. The following clips are accompanied by diegetic sound of the radio in the background.

 Finally, in the fifth frame, a shot is shown of the character from the front. Like many conventional chick flicks the character is shown getting ready.

However, unlike many chick flicks, during these few shots the cutting is much faster briefly showing different aspects of her getting ready.

The seventh shot shows a reflection of the character continuing to get ready, the shot is only two seconds long, within a sequence of other very short shots, this could give the viewer the assumption that the character is in a rush or is careless in regards to appearance?

As we come to the final few shots of this sequence, we see the character grabbing her belongings. The alarm clock displays the time 6.13am, showing that although the film only shows around 30 seconds of footage, in real time the events would have gone on for 13 minutes as the clock displayed the time 6.00am in the first shot.

In the final shot, the character who we now assume to be the main character is seen putting her headphones in and quickly leaving the room in which she is in.

Conventions of a Chick Flick

Chick Flicks are movies with a target audience of teenage/young women. These movies tend to be upbeat, fast moving and usually contain comedic elements. The main characters in Chick Flicks are almost always female, and the character must be precieved as strong and independant who must overcome obstacles to achieve their goals. There are a lot of these movies that also classify as Romantic Comedies, this means that often there is a love story within the plot of the main film. Chick Flicks aimed twoards teenagers and young women can vary by the location that they are set in, for example, chick flicks aimed at teenager are often set in high schools and are base around the common interests of teenagers, these being parties, friendship, crushes etc, examples ofd these films are Mean Girls, A Cinderella Story and Never Been Kissed. This contasts to chick flicks aimed at young women as these are usually set around the work place and tend to include a lot based aroubd rivalry at work, e.g. The Devil Wears Prada.   

The Origins of Chick Flicks

The concept of a film genre created specifically to appeal to females has been around since the early days of cinema. 

A well known 'Chick Flick' made in 1961 is Breakfast At Tiffany's directed by Blake Edwards and starring Audrey Hepburn. It is considered a chick flick as it fits many of the genres key conventions, these being dealing with loneliness, obsessive materialism and happy endings. 

The film would also fit the criteria of a romantic comedy. 

Many modern chick flicks are based on the Disney Animation Cinderella which was made in 1950. Films that could have been inspired from Cinderella include Pretty Woman, made in 1990, directed by Gary Marshall; this is because it fits the plot of a young woman from a negatively perceived background finding her 'Prince Charming.' 

Another film clearly inspired by the hit Disney animation is 'A Cinderella Story' made in 2004, directed by Mark Rosman and starring Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murray. The two plots are parallel to one another; a young woman from a poor background is mistreated by her step-family eventually finds love and lives 'happily ever after.' 

Even Shakespeare has influenced many modern chick flicks. Shakespeare often included gender confusion in his plays for comedic purposes, this is shown in 2006 movie She's The Man, directed by Andy Fickman. Amanda Bynes plays the character of Viola who dresses as a boy to cover for her brother who is skipping college. She ends up falling in love with her room mate played by Channing Tatum, everything is resolved in the end and the film ends happily. This is similar the Shakespeare play As You Like It. 

Finally, Dirty Dancing is another famous Chick Flick made in 1987, directed by Emile Ardolino.  The film is about Frances "Baby" Houseman spending the summer in a holiday camp with her family and falling in love with the camps dance instructor Johnny Castle.  

These films are relevant to my coursework as the all exemplify at least on of the key convections that should feature in chick flicks, these being the love story included in the plot, the materialistic obsession at least one character possesses and of course the happy ending. These are all features that I want to include in my film opening. 

Directors

Mark Waters- Director of Mean Girls

Born: June 30, 1964 (age 49), Wyandotte, Michigan, United States 

His brother is Daniel Waters who is a screenwriter. He is married to actress Dina Spybey this shows that Marks family are in the movie making business. 

Mark and his wife have two daughters, this could be a reason for the production of some of his hit chick flicks. Movies that Mark Waters has directed include; Mean Girls (2004), Freak Friday (2003) and The Ghosts of Girlfriends past (2009). 

Robert Luketic- Director of Legally Blonde

Born: November 1, 1973 (age 40), Sydney, Australia 

Robert Luketic was the first of two children, he was noticed at an early age, winning his first award for 'Best Film' at the ATOM Film Festival when he was only 15. 

Movies: Legally Blonde (2001), Monster-in-Law (2005), The Ugly Truth (2009) 

Nancy Meyers- Director of The Holiday

Born: December 8, 1949 (age 63), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Meyers was the youngest of two daughters raised by her mother who was a volunteer and homemaker and regathering who was an executive at a voting machines manufacturer. Meyers second film What Women Want (2000) was at one point the most successful film ever directed by a woman.

Movies: The Holiday (2006), The Parent Trap (1998), Father of The Bride (1991)

Opening Credits Idea

The opening credits in the Disney film 'The Lizzie McGuire Movie' caught my eye because they are fun, like every chick flick should be. The bright colours complimented by the up beat backing track made the scene light hearted and easy to watch. I was also keen on this idea as it would be a new experience to work with animation.

Film Opening- Initial Ideas

For my two minute film opening, I'm interested in working within genres such as Chick Flicks or Rom-coms. This would be an ideal option as chick flicks are primarily female casts which would make the production of the film a lot easier when it comes to casting.

Conventional Chick Flicks tend to have similar openings, they often show the main characters getting ready with an upbeat classic song as a backing track, as most girls will relate to this. This is shown in the following clip;