1. Question Two: HOW DOES YOUR TITLE AND
OPENING SEQUENCE REPRESENT
PARTICULAR SOCIAL GROUPS?
By Luke Newcombe
2. In my opening sequence I have represented the following social groups;
• Male teenagers of the ages 18 and above and are in a social group together
• Male teenagers approaching their late teens who are drug dealers
Both of these social groups have been represented through the various use of mise en scene,
firstly the use of costumes. The costumes used for the characters within my opening sequence
are modern items of clothing (12) that have either connotations of subculture from the past or
are stereotype items of clothing that are worn currently by different types of groups within
England. The first social group presented in my opening sequence is that of the male social group
who are drug addicts. The use of mise en scene here has been designed to portray a subculture
within England from the 90s, a culture which drugs featured prominently in and especially the
use of ecstasy. For example, all three protagonists wear items of clothing that featured with the
style adopted by this culture in the 90s, such as parka coats (13), Adidas original trainers (14),
Fred Perry clothing (15) and Dr Marten boots. The use of these items of clothing both relate to
the style worn by people of this age group within England currently, such as famous brands like
Adidas and Fred Perry and furthermore, this style of clothing has a direct link with the
Manchester music scene which had a large focus on the use of drugs. By having these items of
clothing that can be related to by the viewer and connected with different subcultures, which
have a direct link to the topic of my film, drugs, the viewer can relate to the footage more and
also it makes the opening sequence seem more believable, as friendship groups tend to wear
similar clothes to each other.
3. The second social group presented within my opening sequence is that of the
antagonist drug dealers. Similarly to the protagonists, the items of clothing
worn by the antagonist confines with stereotypes of drug dealers (16) and
people of a similar age within society today. Both the antagonists within my
opening sequence wear clothing and brands such as Nike joggers (17) and
Ellese jackets (18), along with Nike trainers. Common stereotypes of drug
dealers and teenagers of the age of the antagonist, late teens, would often
describe the items of clothing worn by the antagonists as a drug dealer outfit.
By over exaggerating and playing on common stereotypes within my opening
sequence I have clearly indicated to the audience who the protagonists and
antagonists are within my opening sequence, to add to that, as these items of
clothing are worn by people in the real world, there is an added sense of
truth within my opening sequence as it reflects the items of clothing worn by
this age group in society, keeping my opening sequence as close to reality as
possible as well as relatable to the audience as this type of clothing is worn
within society currently.
4. Within my opening sequence the use of props plays a prominent role in creating a
storyline for my opening sequence and also enhancing the footage in order to make it
seem more realistic. Throughout my opening sequence there are two major props
which are used, those props being fake ecstasy pills (19) and also a machete (20). The
use of ecstasy pills within my opening sequence creates a backdrop to why the
protagonists are burgling a house in the first place and furthermore gives an insight
into the type of characters the protagonists are, drug addicts. The use of pink pills also
makes the drugs seem more realistic as ecstasy pills are commonly brightly coloured,
by using brightly coloured pills there is a more realistic sense created that is as close to
real drugs as possible, making the props seem more believable for the audience. The
second prop used within my opening sequence is that of a machete. Instantly the
audience get a sense that the person possessing this weapon is an antagonist and
leads the audience to ask questions why someone needs a weapon like this in the first
place. Furthermore the use of a machete also leads the viewer to assume that the
character is a criminal, matching the character themselves, and also helps progress the
storyline and makes it seem more believable. The final shot shows the protagonists
being caught in the house they are burgling, however, as there are more antagonists
than protagonists it would be easy for them to overpower the antagonists, by using a
machete there is an added element of power for the antagonists who during the final
scene are shown to be in control. The props used can be related to by the audience as
they are based around typical stereotypes and connotations of the props expected of
the characters portrayed, due to the audiences perception of what drug dealers are
like. For example, pink pills and a machete indicate to the viewer that the characters
are drug dealers as these are stereotypical connotations of the type of props drug
dealers would have.
5. The dialogue used in my opening sequence is that of non-
diegetic speech between characters. The type of dialogue
used by the characters contains the use of swearing, fitting in
with the personality of the characters and also the type of
characters they are portraying. This is due to stereotypes of
people who live on council estates as they would be
associated with using this type of language, furthermore as
the characters are drug dealers and drug addicts, the type of
dialogue used is also fitting to their characters as well as their
age group. As teenagers are often known to use expletive
language when they communicate in comparison to older
characters who wouldn’t be expected to use this type of
language as frequently. By having this type of dialogue within
my opening sequence the audience can relate back to the
dialogue as it reflects stereotypes of this type of people within
society and the type of speech used by this group of people.
6. The type of angles used throughout my opening sequence is that of either
high (22) or low angles (23) during exchange of speech between characters,
with the remaining parts of the footage having eye line match in order to
show how during that scene there is no superiority and that as the characters
are of a similar age no one character has more authority than another. The
first use of a high and low angle is during the exchange of dialogue between
the two protagonists Brad Smith and Joe Gledhill. Despite Brad being seen as
the ring leader of the group during their exchange of dialogue he has a lower
camera (23) angle in order to show how Joe is the more physically powerful
character within the scene. Another scene which also shows a contrast in
angles is when the antagonist, Wajj, enters the living room. The camera is
positioned in a higher position in order to reflect his superiority over the
protagonists within this scene. Also, the eye contact of the characters here
shows Wajj (24) looking down towards the protagonists, further emphasising
his power. The use of framing within my opening sequence also reflects the
level of superiority a character has over another, despite this only being
shown once it clearly indicates which character has more control over
another. For example, the footage showing the antagonists in the kitchen
together has the main antagonist Wajj framed higher than the second
antagonists, Brooke, who is framed sitting down. The use of framing here
indicates to the viewer the authority of one character over another, despite
both of them being antagonists.
7. The body language used by the characters within my opening
sequence contradicts stereotypes of what teenagers would be
expected to act like. For example, none of the characters within my
opening sequence have a slouched body language (25), a common
stereotype of teenagers. However, this is due to the characters used
coming towards the end of their teenage years and becoming adults,
taking on a more grown own appearance in comparison to younger
teenagers. Although the body language used challenges stereotypes of
how teenagers would be expected to behave, the behaviour reflected
in the opening sequence matches that which would be expected of
criminals and protagonists. For example, the antagonists take a violent
approach when they find out their house is being burgled, matching
with the behaviour that would be expected of criminals and drug
dealers especially. The behaviour reflected by the protagonists also
matches typically behaviour which would be expected of people who
are burgling a house, taking an anxious and almost cautious approach
to entering the house and leaving as quickly as possible. The use of this
type of behaviour within my opening sequence reinforces the realistic
tone created as this type of behaviour would be associated with the
real world and the type of behaviour that would be expected of people
carrying out similar actions to that portrayed in my sequence.
