Costume Design and Props

When planning, I focused more on how costume design and props could help communicate my character, Leo, and his mental states without depending mostly on dialogue. Since having only one actor is limited, the mise-en-scene elements are essential in showing his inner conflict he's dealing with. Also, this decision made the process of my planning way easier, since I had to think more about what props I already have access to and where I would realistically be able to film my opening at. In addition, I started to view short films and running videos to give me an idea on how these other creators used simple visuals to convey meaning.

Costume Attire:

His costume design includes simple, runner attire: headphones, plain athletic shirt, running shorts, and running shoes. The reason I decided the choose this is evidently obvious since it makes Leo lean toward realism and authenticity instead of being overly dressed. As the run is happening, his clothes become visually drenched with sweat, representing the strain of long distance running while also showcasing the pressure he places on himself. I came to a decision for the same costume to be incorporated in both the running and garage scenes since it helps guide the two timelines and strengthens the plot that his mental breakdown is the result of the run.

In order to do this, I planned on using actual athletic clothing rather than making and costuming something myself, either from my brothers closest or a sports store. Moreover, I was thinking about the weather and the time of day so the sweat and musk on the clothes conveys a natural tone rather than a forced one. 

This is what I'm thinking on purchasing:

Props:

The props also play a huge role into reinforcing his mindset. I wanted to suggest that the running shoes show his pain and sacrifice but moreover his ambition and routine. The baseball bat that he's going to use in the garage contrasts this by depicting built-up anger and loss of control. His grip on the baseball bat with his hands having a tremor shows his internal struggle and lack of ability to meet his expectations. Altogether, the costume and props aid the viewers acknowledge Leo's character through visual storytelling rather than using description. 

These are worn-out baseball bats I'm influenced on utilizing:

I wanted to avoid messy scenes and more so keep the focus on some repeated props, so I'm pushing toward keeping the props minimal but impactful. Overall, these immensely specific costume design and props were planned carefully to make sure that Leo's mental health is disclosed through his action, movement, quality, letting the audience to understand his breakdown more thoroughly.

Sources:

Nike men DRI-Fit RLGD Reset Shirts Black Athletic jersey tee shirt DX0990-010. eBay. (n.d.). https://www.ebay.com/itm/285238392360

Is my bat dead or defective? let’s find out. www.justbats.com. (n.d.). https://www.justbats.com/blog/post/is-my-bat-dead/

Meeting Leo

 Naming Leo

Choosing a name for the main character is one of the most important part into this process to make him feel realistic. I chose the name Leo because it's common, simple and associated with determination somewhat, which can express his demeanor as a long distance runner. I wanted to pick a name that was believable for a young athlete and didn't distract that from the story; therefore, I researched athletes and found a couple with the same name. Some notable runners that inspired the name were Leo Manzano, an Olympic medalist, and Leo Young who is a standout competitive runner. Since Leo is the only character in the opening, his name had to feel relatable and grounded so the audience can "connect" with him easily. 

Creating the Character

Leo is portrayed as a runner who is dedicated to his main goal of qualifying for the Boston Marathon. He is disciplined and motivated physically, which is shown through his endurance despite his exhaustion, that I'll be making visual. However, through he struggles mentally with doubting himself and fear that he may never get to the point of reaching his goal. I wanted his character to match with the psychological pressures that athletes place on themselves, especially in a sport that prioritizes perseverance and competition.
This character is developed through the contrast between locations. By running outdoors, the scenes are showing his focus and determination, whilst the garage scenes disclose his emotional and deep breakdown. The baseball bat that I'll be utilizing as my prop symbolizes his built-up anger and out of control self, while his running shoes represent his passion and pain that comes with the sport. Having Leo wear the same clothes in both timelines place a tone that his mental collapse is a result of the run. 

(Chris Stevens Along with his wife Chelsey, 2024)

Emotional Arc

Through the opening, Leo switches from being determined to being dissatisfied and finally collapsing emotionally. Even after he completes his run, he feels like he didn't fulfill any of his emotion, displaying the mindset of competitive runners who never are fully saturated with their work. His dialouge, which is limited, demonstrates how he absorbs his pressure instead of embracing it, making his breakdown feel effective. This journey of his emotions allows for the audience to know that Leo's important struggle isn't the run, it's the toll of chasing perfection. 

Sources:

About Us. Leo Manzano Online Store. (n.d.). https://leomanzano.com/pages/bio

Chris StevensAlong with his wife Chelsey. (2024, September 15). Markham Park. Florida Hikes. https://floridahikes.com/markham-park/

Plot Idea

 For my portfolio project, I've came to a decision to focus on both the mental and physical challenges of running. I went far into researching and exploring how this sport can be draining and consuming in an individual's life, showing the character pushing themselves through confinement and fatigue. My goal is capturing the sensation of this persistance, instead of making it competitive or about school.

My opening will begin during the middle of the character's run, using sound and visual elements to publicize the burden and severity. I'll be reinforcing close ups, long shots, and flashbacks to affirm both physical effort and mental stress. Basic dialogue will involve the audience to experience the emotional and momentum through my cinematography and sound design, creating an immersive and exciting sequence. Also, I'm planning to experiment with the pacing in editing to repercuss the flow of the run and the weariness building up over time, allowing the viewers to sense the physical and mental weight.

My inspiration origins from sports films and indie psychological dramas, like Peaceful Warrior (2006), that focus on endurance, compulsion, and mental conflict. I'm interested into utilizing realistic lighting, handheld shots, and dutch angles to present intensity, and I want to make the opening feel like it's the beginning of a film rather than a standalone 2 minute film. By concentrating on visual storytelling, I can analyze slight emotional clues - like the tension on posture, rhythm of breathing, or the way the environment can feel depressing. For example, while he's running, he's looking back at his old self where he used to look healthier and earn metals for the way he used to endure his runs. Therefore, this makes the audience sympathize with the protagonists journey. I will be printing out images of the pins/papers runners wear on their shirt and looking for metals that can truly emphasize he is looking back at his past-ambitious self.

Here's a costume design from the movie Race (2016) that inspired my idea:

Watch race online. Prime Video. (n.d.). https://www.primevideo.com/detail/Race/0GUT92HF2X7ZP2VZXLC09Z3E53

By deciding on running as a both authentic and significant struggle, I can show a character vs. self, displaying the themes of loneliness, strength, and determination. Also, this opening provides me to practice sound design and editing techniques to strengthen emotional distress and pressure. Overall, this approach gives a strong structure for my script and storyboard, letting me frame a visually and emotionally interesting film that hooks the audience in, understanding the experience of the protagnist from the very first minute.

Integrating Media Theory

 For my opening, I started to research all the different outcomes and meanings of the media theories integrated into film. The one that stood out towards me was Todorov's Narrative Theory, which examnies the format of stories and how they develop from three parts: equilibrium, disequilibrium, and new equilibrium. I used the BBC Bitesize guide on narrative theory (BBC Bitesize) to help me interpret the key factors and how they can and are applied to media texts.

Todorov's theory relies heavily on starting with a state of equilibrium, which is then disrupted by an dispute or event. The story advances as the protagonist attends to the disruption, then, the new equilibrium is set, which may be indifferent from the original. This scheme aids creators to carefully plan out their narratives and grants the audience to ensue a stable story progression. 

I plan on integrating Todorov's theory into my opening by demonstrating the protagonist (the runner), already experiencing disruption through the physical and mental struggles of running. Although it is only the opening, the lack of balance between the runner's emotional state proposes tension and conflict, which produces the narrative theory for the rest of the film. By setting this earlier on, I can shapes the audiences perceptions and give them a feeling of the story's format, highlighting how Todorov's theory can advise storytelling visually and develop a character.

Utilizing this theory will guide me to assure that my film opening has a clear narrative ambition, all in a short two minute scheme. From the first few seconds, this will grant the audiences to consume and interact with the runner's journey emotionally. 

(Steve S et al., 2021)

Sources:

BBC. (2022a, December 14). Traditional narrative theory - what is narrative? - GCSE media studies revision - BBC bitesize. BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zqdhrdm/revision/3

Published by Steve S                            View all posts by Steve S, S, P. by S., S, S., & View all posts by Steve S. (2021, December 2). Todorov – Narrative / narratology theory. Media Studies @ Guilsborough Academy. https://guilsboroughschoolmedia.wordpress.com/2020/11/11/todorov-narrative-narratology-theory/

Group Meeting

 It's already the third week of planning for my opening and we started it off by assembling a group meeting. My teacher put us into groups with 6-7 students who includes Kai, Macie, Caesar, Kai, Nicole, Gaby, and Ava. The whole purpose of this group meeting was to share our blog links, explain our plot ideas, and help one another to overcome obstacles we are facing. This meeting was helpful since it guided it to view how other students are approaching their film openings and let that reflect on our own decisions.

During the meeting, Nicole shared her coming of age film about a girl who struggles with an addiction to drugs. She explained to us that she was unsure about whether the topic would be accepted by the teacher because it's dealing with a sensitive/strict topic. Altogether, we discussed ways that can guide her to create a theme without being too direct. We also helped her come up with her title, The Cost of Happiness, displaying the emotional tone of her story while still being vague.

Ava shared an idea that was somewhat similar to what Nicole was doing that involves a girl sneaking out. This conducted us to discuss how hard it can be to come up with ideas that feel original when many people are working with the same genre. 

Gaby talked about her struggle with representing the grief of her story that loses a family member. We suggested how to visually show the loss instead of explaining it directly. We created some ideas by using symbloic imagery like a photograph, a vase filled with ashes, or a funeral scene. Also, she mentioned about wanting a actor who resembles the person who died, and we explained how that character could show up to the funeral to create an emotional impact without any dialouge that would link to it. 

Macie shared what helped her create an idea to her opening and introduced an MadLib, which I've never heard of. This helped her by showing how creative tools and type of prompts can make you develop any idea easier when someone feels stuck on what they're doing. We also shared our blogs so everyone can see eachother's progress and journey so far.

MadLib template:

When I shared my own idea, which is focusing on both the mental and physical challenges of long-distance running, Gaby and Ava gave me helpful feedback. She suggested specific locations to film the running scenes and advice on how to shoot them to make the scene feel realistic. My group also enjoyed how I included my next steps and personal thoughts in my blog, but recommended that I should be more specific in my explanations so my ideas are more clear. Overall, this meeting benefited me tremendously to my own portfolio project experience. Listening to other peoples struggles and research ideas helped me reflect and rely that on my own project and consider how I can improve in the future. The feedback I've recieved will help me go more in depth in detail with my filming and planning. Also, this meeting reminded me that group collaboration and constructive criticism are important and essential to this process. 

Sources:

Nicknadel. (2013b, June 27). Make your own superhero movie, mad libs-style. ScreenCrush. https://screencrush.com/superhero-movie-mad-libs/

The Screenplay

 This post is about my screenplay to my opening. A screenplay is a special, formatted written text for a film, television show, video game, dialouge, character actions , and actions for production. This presents  as the plan for the film and transmits the story to be prepared visibly and narratively right before filming starts. 

For my project, the screenplay is focusing on the mental and physical stress of running and is planned to engage the audience in the protagonists struggle from the first moment. I have analyzed multiple screenplays and visual technqiues of storytelling to assure mine follows appropiate arrangment and clearly communicates the expected shots, emotions, and actions. 

Click this to view my screenplay! This script goes into depth about how this character is going to enact his struggles. 

Until next time,
SL

Scouting Locations

One of the most important factors into creating a powerful film opening is the setting. The location needs  to be chosen very carefully due to the impact it creates: setting the tone, motive, and character. Since my project will be about a runner and their mental health, I want to incorporate a space that's naturalistic and can visually tell the story of their livelihood and the journey they take on.

Ive been analyzing different films about running, mental health struggles, and more to see how the setting impacts and help shape the outcome of the story. For example, movies like 4 Minute Mile and Chariots of Fire who use the gym, outdoor tracks, and streets in a city to show both their discipline and personal life struggles. The background and environment both typically act like a character themselves.

Edelstein, B. (2014, August 4). Film review: “4 minute mile.” Variety. https://variety.com/2014/film/reviews/4-minute-mile-film-review-1201273615/

In chariots they ran. (n.d.-c). https://www.runnersworld.com/runners-stories/a21566047/in-chariots-of-fire-they-ran/

Potential Location for my opening:

- City streets: Utilizing this setting while the character is going on a early morning run or training alone can emphasize the loneliness that this runner will face. I could also film toward the sunset making the scene feel personal.

- Stadium: The Panthers stadium is a great place that could show their later on goals, pressure, and determination while being in a formal setting. Long shots would be great here.

- Bedroom- Small, claustrophobic spaces can show how the loneliness gets to them or could also persuade setbacks and preparation.

Choosing the perfect location will easily guide me to tell the story visually which is one of my main goals. I want the audience to sense the hostilities the characters fighting and motivation without inserting any dialogue immediately. For my opening, I'm thinking about starting it off with a silent, calm reflective scenario on a trail in the Everglades, showing the runner's dedication and inner head space before any dispute. 

Next Steps:

I plan on visiting parks and streets that are local to see how they would look on camera at different times of the day. Also, I'll be taking pictures to contrast all the locations to choose which feel the most cinematic and fit emotionally connected to the story. From that point on, I'll start my storyboard and thinking about how the costume design and props will suit the environment.