You’ll Never Walk AloneEvaluation Part One

Behind the Title of the Film

The title of the film has several meanings and inspirations behind it. My main inspiration for the title was that the film revolves around Liverpool Football Club and “You’ll Never Walk Alone” is its mantra. There is also a key metaphor behind the title. The protagonist in my opening sequence has had to come to terms with the fact that his brother has passed away. “You’ll Never Walk Alone” is a powerful phrase as it emphasises the fact that although his brother is no longer with him in person, he is still there with him in spirit.

The phrase “You’ll Never Walk Alone” can emphasise the concepts of togetherness, teamwork and unity. It therefore can be reassuring to audiences that they too will always be in the company of others, whether it is through physical contact or a more spiritual form.

You will find that throughout the film, there are constant subliminal links to the title.

Setting and Location

I decided to film my opening sequence somewhere that was familiar to me and somewhere I could relate too. Having played sports at the Linford Christie Stadium for several years, I knew that I could expose and show more emotion as I had experienced the tense pre-match atmosphere in those exact changing rooms. Also, because my opening sequence is predominantly football-inspired it was key to shoot in a location that was a professional football environment in order to maintain continuity.

I feel that although football pitches are not completely exposed and we only really see the changing rooms, it also helps actors to let their true motions come through as they feel immersed with the setting.

The Walk to the Changing Room

The walk to the changing room at the beginning of the opening sequence is a key part or the production. Including the cross dissolve, the walk has a large amount of screen time, approximately 7 seconds. The clip, like the title, can be interpreted in different ways.

In some ways, the title of the film is contradicted by this clip as the protagonist is in fact walking alone. Though by walking alone, the character shows that he has come to terms with the fact that his brother is watching over him.

The true meaning behind the long walk is that it symbolises his long and tough journey through life and the events that have happened in the past. The walk shows that although he had to go through a lot of pain, he is getting close and close to achieving his dream. The walk is a metaphor for his life and him reaching the changing room is a metaphor for him achieving his dream.

The walk can also depict the emotions that he felt on the road to this achievement. Walking outside expresses that at one point he felt exposed and damaged due to the death of his brother. By walking into the dark tunnel he shows that he is ready face his fear and accept that his brother is on longer physically present. In this clip, the light at the end of the tunnel (traditionally a convention of death) is used to show that by over coming his fears, a positive outcome awaits.

Costumes and Props

In an attempt to make the main focus of the opening sequence the emotions of the protagonist, I had to use props that enhanced this focus. Though due to the fact that football pitches are not visible, I felt is was important to highlight that the film revolves around

footballing events. This is therefore highlighted by the use of football kit and a football. Football is a sport where people come together and support teams as one. The football symbolises a community, a crowd. A link to the title can be made here as by carrying the ball,

the protagonist is indicating that he is not walking alone and that he once again feels like part of a community. By keeping the ball close, he able to emphasise his emotional attachment to the sport.

Camerawork and Editing

The first shot used in the opening sequence was an over the shoulder shot. This can be seen in the screenshot on the left. I felt that in order to captivate the audience and build up anticipation, it was important to give them a way of empathising with the character. The over the shoulder shot is perfect technique to do that as it makes the audience track and follow the movement of the protagonist. Through this camera shot, the audience can feel at one with the character on screen and this allows them to feel as though they are going on the journey with him. By immediately feeling like they are accompanying and developing a connection with the protagonist through the film, the audience once again emphasises the mantra of “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” The audience therefore can create a bond and feel part of the footballing community.

Camerawork and Editing (Part 2)

Arguably the most effective camera shots are the ones seen in the changing room scene. I wanted to create a scene that really brought out the characters emotion, one that really allowed the audience to engage in the moment and experience that build up of tension that is faced before an event which has such importance and meaning. I felt that in order to create this atmosphere, I had to forget about the setting and focus specifically on the character. The perfect way to do this was through multiple close up shots (as seen in the screen shots to the left and bellow). The close ups are much slower and longer shots and this makes the audience think and question. By slowing the shots down, the audience is made to focus hard and this creates a build up of tension…

… By using the close ups, very little information is given to the audience and instead, the focus is on how the protagonist is feeling. It is through this that the audience can start to understand the importance of the events that will occur after the scene. When all put together, I feel that the slow editing and close up shots form a key device which creates tension and allows the audience to empathise with the character.

Black and White

I wanted to do something unique. I wanted to find that “gap in the market” that would project my opening sequence higher than others. I had done a lot of research on YouTube, trying to find that one aspect that had not been been used before. In doing this, I did not stumble across one AS Media opening sequence that used a black and white effect. I decided to utalise this advantage and use black and white as my film’s unique selling point. In order to enhance my knowledge on black and white film, I looked over my first blog entry which was based around the history and development of film. After this, I decided to try find an opening sequence which used black and white so that I could see it in action. In doing this, I came across the opening sequence of Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull (link seen bellow). This clip showed me that black and white can be used as a way to focus on a character and how he is feeling. The clip became one of my inspirations behind deciding to do a black and white film.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3N4uXfnH2aA

By using my Final Cut Pro skills, I was able to put the black and white effect on the scenes necessary and use it to full effect.

Historic Content

One of the main inspirations behind the whole opening sequence is the Hillsborough Disaster, 15th April 1989. This event saw the lives of 96 innocent football fans taken. I felt that to create a strong and emotional sporting-drama, I had to use a tragic historic event as a spring board. This therefore enables the film to not only reach a broad sporting-drama fan audience but to also reach a group of people who have been effected by the disaster. The inclusion of the historic content also gives the film another unique selling point as not many films involve actual footage from a part occurrence.

I wanted to make the historic footage stand out and this was another advantage of the black and white format. Having anything in colour over a black and white background would stand out. With this in mind and the desire to make the disaster stand out, I decided to make it the only part of the film that was enhanced by colour. As a result, the audience is drawn to the footage and they can begin to understand why the character is portrayed as someone who has been negatively effected by a tragic event.