short film proposal

Short film proposal

Yasmin Ally

• Working title:• Director: Grant• Camera: Richard• Sound: Michael, Oliver• Editor: Andy, Thomas, Callum

• Others: Kieran

Working hypothesis and interpretation

In life I believe that everyone should be treated fairly despite their gender, however the world’s stereotype of genders has also lead to a negative impact in the way some men and women are treated in relationships. My film will show this in action by exploring domestic abuse against men in relationships. Domestic abuse is largely frowned upon however only little people are aware of how it can affect men just as much as women and how often it can occur.

My film will hopefully raise more awareness towards the conflict between men and women and how domestic abuse towards men can occur, the possible long term affects it has on men and also given reasons as to why men are less likely to report cases of domestic abuse than women.

4

Raising Awareness

Ultimately, I want the audience to feel more aware and shocked that situations like this can happen towards men, despite their physique or status. Hopefully, the audience will be more attentive and understanding towards the fact that men are capable of being in a violent relationship, and that women are not always the victim in a violent relationship. 5

Audience Reactions

Topic

My film is about a man named Gary in his early 30’s who is married to Elizabeth who is abusive towards him, both verbally and physically. They both have a young daughter named Sarah, which in most abusive relationships, is one of the main reasons as to why Gary is still with Elizabeth and struggles to divorce Elizabeth due to the fact he may not be able to see his daughter.

Gary and Elizabeth both represent a modern relationship and demonstrate what happens behind closed doors within a violent relationship. The results of this relationship is likely to be more shocking as this time the violence is not directed towards the female, it is the male who is the victim in this relationship.

7

Character Representation

Many people may not believe that women can abuse men, however women can gain power in different ways. Sometimes, women can manipulate their husbands into staying in a marriage as they can abuse them through emotions. As men are portrayed to use a physical aggression, women are more likely to use relational aggression which can occur through a damage to the social status, which can therefore cause as much harm psychologically.

8


Usually, it is the female victims who are unable to leave a violent relationship due to financial threats whereas abusive wives are capable of threatening to damage the amount of contact a father can have with his child. This film will hopefully reveal the hidden issue that a lot of men suffer from which is often mocked and not taken seriously as a possible result of stereotypes.

9


Action Sequences

The first scene is of Gary getting ready for work. As he gets ready, he looks rather relieved to leave the house and go to work. As Gary walks past his daughter Sarah’s bedroom door, showing the audience that he has a daughter, he goes downstairs and takes Sarah to school on his way to work. From this point, both their lives seem ordinary and happy when in reality they are relieved to get out of the house.

Action SequencesThe second scene shows Gary coming home from work in the early evening looking frustrated due to the long day. As dinner is already prepared, Elizabeth shouts at him telling him his dinner is cold and that he should not have finished work so late. After Gary explains that he could not help it, he’s exhausted and says he could just heat the food up; Elizabeth begins to manipulate Gary into thinking he is ungrateful of what his wife does for him and how it affects Sarah’s upbringing. From this point of the film, it could suggest to the audience that perhaps he may not receive this abuse all the time or that their daughter Sarah is primarily the reason that Gary is still with Elizabeth.

11

Action Sequences

The third scene is of Gary becoming distressed on his own and beginning to cry. At this point, the audience begin to see how much the abuse he receives from Elizabeth affects him which will hopefully lead to the audience beginning to realise that this occurs rather often. Although Gary may only seem distressed to the minimum, this appears to be just the beginning for what the audience sees.

12

Action Sequences

The fourth scene continues on from the evening in the previous scene where Gary is distressed. This scene shows him laying in bed reminiscing back to when Sarah was a baby, introducing the audience to the period of time where he began receiving abuse from Elizabeth. This flashback highlights to the audience how long Gary had been abused for despite trying to do everything in his power to do what he can for his family.

13

Action SequencesThe fifth scene shows another night where Gary is prepared to overdose on tablets. At this point in the film it becomes clear to the audience how much the abuse affects him both physically and emotionally. You can hear Elizabeth knocking on the bathroom door calling Gary’s name and he swallows the pills before answering; he then proceeds to walk out as if nothing has happened. This section of the film leaves the audience confused as to what happens to Gary; does he survive the overdose? If so, does he gain the courage to leave Elizabeth?

14

15

Main CharactersHusband/victim: GaryWife/abuser: ElizabethDaughter: SarahBest Friend: ShaunBoss: DianneBrother: Edward

Gary, the main character, is who the film is based on. It is about his everyday life and how he experiences abuse both emotionally and sometimes physically. The film focuses on how Gary gets through the abuse from his wife and how it affects him, and also towards the end of the film Gary begins to try harder to get a divorce from Elizabeth.

Elizabeth is Gary’s wife. She is Gary’s abuser and the film highlights the ways she manipulates Gary into staying with her after continuously abusing him.

Sarah is Gary and Elizabeth’s daughter. She witnesses most of the violence however Gary does as much as he can to protect her. The abuse is not directed towards Sarah as much however she is used as the main reason as to why Gary must stay married to Elizabeth.

16

Conflict My short film is raising awareness for domestic abuse. The characters in my film represent the potential male victims across the nation and how it affects them, when and how it can occur. The film could potentially change the viewer’s perspective of domestic abuse victims and make them realise that not all victims are women. The developments I hope to see from this is the increase in awareness in the amount of male victims there are as domestic violence should be taken seriously regardless of gender. Hopefully the audience will become more attentive towards the fact that men are just as capable of being a victim of abuse as women.

Target Audience Profile Sheet1. What is the age range of potential viewers? The age range my target audience is late 20’s/30’s, this is due to the fact that married men with children are more likely to be of that age. People in their late 20’s are more likely to be wiser and mature towards situations such as domestic violence against men rather than those in their early 20’s, therefore the film will greatly impact them and their view towards treatment in relationships.

17

Target Audience Profile Sheet2. ABC1: My target audience will most likely be middle or lower class. This is due to the stereotype of middle and lower class households being more violent and aggressive towards one another, which could be a result of financial or social problems.

18

Target Audience Profile Sheet

3. What gender will the audience be?

The gender for my target audience will mostly be males and some females as the issue is about domestic violence towards men, my short film will hopefully influence victims to re-evaluate the situation they are in and whether or not that they should take action. 19


4. What will the occupations be of potential consumers? The occupations of my potential customers would be teachers, office workers, therapists, prisons and schools or colleges. This is aimed towards both a younger audience, which will hopefully help them to become more aware of what is and is not acceptable when it comes to a relationship, whereas locations that contain older consumers would help them to become more aware of possible abusers and victims around them. Therapists and personal doctors would also be an ideal consumer as they can help some patients that have previously been abusers, which can help them see the impact of their actions.

20


5. What factors are potential customers likely to consider before purchasing/consuming the short film?Some potential customers may have the fear of the concept of admitting that they are in an abusive relationship before purchasing the film, whether it is the abuser or victim. This could be a possible negative to distributing the short film as a section of the target audience may not take the matter seriously and refuse to watch the film.

21


6. How will customers find out about the short film you are distributing?I will use a range of different advertisements suck as television, billboards, buses and posters. The adverts on television will be shown mainly in the evenings when my target audience are not at work or school/college.

22

7. Will the cost of the product influence a customer’s decision to buy from you? Possibly as some viewers may believe that creating awareness for abuse is worth the money as it could educate people and prevent future abuse, however some may not want to pay a certain price whether they are from a different generation where violence is common, or have different beliefs in how men and women should be treated in a relationship, or even refusing to purchase the short film due to being abused but not wanting to acknowledge the truth.

23



8. List all the ways contact could be made with potential customers in order to gain qualitative and quantitative researchSocial networks, forums, online surveys and even websites that specialise in providing help for abuse victims can be provided with a link for asking the audience’s opinions on the situation.

24

Target Audience Profile Sheet9. Probable objections to your short filmSome viewers may think that the short film is sexist and may believe only women are the possible victims of abuse, arguing that men are more than capable of looking after themselves. This sort of objections could come from either older generations or some with strict beliefs in the gender stereotypes of men and women.

25


10. Risk of alienating your secondary audienceSome viewers from different cultures or generations may not believe that in this day and age that men are capable of being victims in a relationship. Also, some scenes of overuse of medication, distress and violence may upset certain viewers.

26

Audience Biases Some of the female majority of the audience may either feel offended that women could also be potential abusers in a relationship, or that men are completely incapable of becoming victims; that it is in their nature to be the dominant and abusive partner in the relationship. Also, the older generation may have difficulty in believing that men are likely to become the victim in a relationship as traditionally men are the most dominant in a relationship.

27

Audience BiasesSome men may also be in denial that they are being abused and may choose to ignore all possible signs that suggest they are a victim of domestic abuse, so therefore the typical stereotype of males could be an obstruction towards men becoming more aware of what is around them.

28

Structure

The short film will go be in a linear narrative that shows the audience the entire order that the abuse occurs. However, there will be one flashback that refers back to earlier on in the marriage when their daughter Sarah is a baby. The flashback emphasises how long the abuse has happened and how long Gary had been suffering, which will hopefully be made clear to the audience due to the fact that the film only shows Gary had only started being abused once their daughter Sarah had been born.

29

StructureThe flashback signifies that children can play a major role as a threat within an abusive relationships as the abuser can threaten the victim with the lack of contact they would have with their children if they were to file for a divorce.

30

Form and Style

In my short film I will use different lighting in order to portray the difference between genuine happiness and false happiness that is shown to the world around the victim. Lighting will be a useful tool to help portray my character’s personalities and the situations that develop around them.

31

Resolution I would like my film to end where Gary is in serious danger of Elizabeth which leaves the audience to question whether or not Gary manages to leave Elizabeth but as well still remains in consistent contact with his daughter. This situation will hopefully make the audience realise that domestic abuse is not a self solving issue, and that men can be victimised and held down into a relationship just as much as women could be.

32

Budget

33

My film will be distributed to schools, work offices, colleges and prisons which will be sold for the price £15. I will have to cover costs such as:•The hiring of the three actors per day; which could possibly be £100-£150 per person.•The catering costs.•Location and accommodation costs.•Payment for the camera crew (per day).

Logistics

34

The obvious problems with making this short film could be offending or upsetting the audience with the use of drug overtaking and abuse, along with being capable of meeting filming deadlines and organising all of the crew, whether it be accommodation, covering catering costs or on set.

SummaryThis proposal provides you with:

•All the names of the main characters included in the short film and an explanation of their background, their roles involved in the short film and the type of personalities they are supposed to represent in the film.•How the short film delivers my message about the conflict and the potential reactions I hope to achieve from the audience.•A set of scenes of the film describing the events that occur.•The developments I hope to see after the audience views the short film, along with the audience opinions.•My target audience profile sheet; showing a range of questions about my target audience given what the target is, the age range and possible objections and negative opinions some viewers may have after watching the film.•The structure of my film (which sequence the events happen in, whether it be linear or in flashbacks).

35

short film proposal

Education