360MC Research and Development/ 361MC Final Project

INTERIM PROPOSAL FORM

Demonstrate the development of your final project idea by completing this form. The feedback on your idea here is to help you work towards the completion of the final proposal form at the end of 360MC module.

STUDENT NAME: ______Andrew Daley____________

TUTOR NAME: _____________Clifton Stewart__________________

1. Title and Pitch

A clear, brief title - which can be modified at a later date if necessary - but which gives clear idea of the nature of the project

The Brother Code Jason recieves an urn with the ashes of his dead brother, then sets out on a journey to reconnect with his brother through life, death and beyond.

2. Pitch
Sum up your idea in 2 lines. Include the genre, format, duration, usp (unique selling point) and intended audience. A black dramady tale of reconciliation, regret and death as Jason recieves an urn with the ashes of his dead brother. Jason sets out on a journey to reconnect with the deceased Richard through life, death and beyond. Duration is 10-20 minutes, with an intended audience of 18-35 male/females, fans of comedy or quirky surrealist films.

3. Rationale
A brief description of the main issue/subject which your project will examine and the approach you intend to take. The main subject of my film is death, and how it affects everyone around you. It is about death being the ultimate end and sometimes not all questions are answered or tied up, how sometimes people cant grasp the concept of death or accept that it has physically occurred to someone they know. It explores the rational behind this and how sometimes people wont let go, or the lengths they go to in order to grieve or grasp the death of someone they love

4. Context
What question/s does your PROJECT answer or what new idea does it offer? Where does your PROJECT fit in the current Media environment? Give evidence of the research and opinion that support your claims. I feel The Brother Code challenges our own individual perspective of death, and how we think people deal with coping. The absurdity of Jason and his actions reflect the very real extents some people go to, such as throwing themselves on coffins or creating shrines, because they cant grasp that ultimate ending point. Jason physically cant let go because nothing was tied up, him and Richard didnt talk for 4 years and

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he wants to rectify that. How are you supposed to accept somebody is dead when you didnt even know them, or they never got to know you? I feel my project approaches this in a unique fashion, as the film begins with death and ultimately ends with life, but its that progressional journey along the way that I focus on, how exactly do individuals take that journey in order to cope and to what extents and boundaries do they push to achieve that. The Brother Code is about people, the emotions of individuals and how they express those emotions. I feel my film fits into a medium of allowing people to explore and connect to a subject that is sensitive or they may not be able to grasp. It is more of a tool to help the audience see that there is no easy way to deal with coping, and that everybody is unique and different in how they approach that process. It is as much an educational film for people wanting to be informed how others grieve or cope, as it is a film that empathises with those who are and gives them a device to recognise with that they arent alone, that what they are going through is real, with the film reaching out and connecting to everyone in a different form.

Bibliography http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/23/movies/23hold.html?_r=0 http://griefsupportindia.wordpress.com/2010/10/19/threemovies-to-watch/ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeanne-dennis/childrensmovies-discussing-grief_b_1340259.html

5. Distrubtion
Where do you think your PROJECT is going to play/reach an audience? Show evidence of your research into LIKELY sources of distribution. For the distribution of The Brother Code, I have been looking at a variety of options online and offline, paid and unpaid. The first is web distribution, on sites such as Virgin Shorts or Shooting People, both online competitions and with a means to receive something back from entering, and a large audience to get my film seen by more people. Other web-based means of distribution include the Vimeo On Demand and Youtube Demand schemes, to submit my film to be available on a rental/purchase platform online, so individuals can pay to screen it. Continuing from this, I also looked at distribution companies such as StudioCanal or Matchbox Films who distribute indie/short films on DVD if they have a big reach, this reach could be brought about through the online competitions/campaigns above and gain enough resale ability to distribute nationally on DVD. I also looked at distribution methods such as Netflix or iTunes

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(surprisingly cheap), or locked content websites such as distribber.com or IndieFlix. More can be found on my blogpost here http://andrewdaleyyr3.wordpress.com/2014/01/07/fmpdistribution For film festivals, I looked both at local, national and international festivals, to appeal to a variety of different audiences. Viewers either interested in English cinema and the style/genre, or viewers who want to experience a different style of film. These festivals included the Edinburgh Short Film Festival, Brit Flick Film Festival, Bottle Cap Film Festival, all based in the UK. I also looked at a variety of short film festivals, primarily based around UK Cinema or comedy/black comedy/drama internationally. Festivals included the Toronto Student Film Festival, New York NewFilmmakers, FILMINI International Short Film Festival in Bulgaria, Duhok International Film Festival in Iraq and the Busan Short Film Festival. More can be found on my blogpost here http://andrewdaleyyr3.wordpress.com/2014/01/08/fmpfestival-distribution/

6. Budget + Skills Audit

Give a realistic budget breakdown of your project and make sure you can afford to make it. Also explain here why you are the right person to be making this project what skills, knowledge and experience will you be capitalizing on?

For my preliminary budget I have set aside 1000 - 2000, which will be paid from my own pocket. A full budget rundown can be found on my blogpost below, however I roughly estimate to spend around 1500, with a larger budget of 11,000-12,000 if shot in a real scenario, not considering crew hire and cast fees. http://andrewdaleyyr3.wordpress.com/2014/01/02/fmpbudgetting/ For my skills audit, I am recruiting people to my crew in order to handle specific roles. I have recruited a sound engineer I have worked with previously, and another crewmember who is very good in a variety of positions so can fit into any job on the production. I have also hired a cinematographer/DoP Ive worked with before who has a similar eye to the style I like and think will bring an interesting aesthetic to the film. Other crew members include an artist for pre-pro storyboards/concept art, an assistant producer, a graphic designer for posters/flyers and an edit assistant for post production. Skills audit, I have covered this in a separate blogpost, discussing the pros and cons of each member. Cameras such as the DSLR 5Ds we have worked with extensively before, compared to the FS700 and the new audio mixing decks weve only had minimal practise, so will need to spend more time practising with these. Other skills include working together more on productions and

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test shoots before the final film so each member has a set job and can perform that with ease in a film set situation professionally. I feel that with the support of the other crew members, who I have worked with before, we form a good team and all share the necessary skills to pull off a good solid production. We all have experience in multiple roles so can share knowledge if any help is needed, and we can all cross into different roles, helping to speed the production up by either helping one another or swapping positions, or even filling other positions such as lighting/set that arent currently being done whilst kit is being set up or actors are organised. http://andrewdaleyyr3.wordpress.com/2014/01/02/fmp-crew/