Plan B TEDx Lecture

I think Plan B's beliefs are to not judge a book by its cover. He also says to think about what a person might have gone through or been brought up through to be the person they are today. He also believes that society and politics have demonised the youth today as the media just want us to know what they choose, and sometimes not the real side to the story. A prime example of this is when Plan B talks about a story from when he was filming iLL Manors. The story was about how a group of drug-dealers were about to beat up Ben Drew and how Drew stood his ground which in turn let another group of drug dealers to come to the aid of Drew. From what Drew tells, the media left out the best, and good, part about standing his ground and just focused of the group of drug-dealers about to "kick [his] head in"

I think the target audience of the lecture is people of the socio-demographic of E, D, C1,C2. This is because Plan B talks mainly about children with backgrounds similar to his. However, I think that mainly the middle class are present at this lecture as The Guardian newspaper organises these lectures and the main readers of this newspaper is the middle class. This group would come under the psycographic of aspirer's as they aspire to know more about situations that are foreign to their own. This is different to the psycographic of Drew's films.

Drew says that the media twist the truth to meet their own gain. He also said that they only tell parts of the whole story as I explained in the above paragraph. This links back to Cohen's theory of 'Folk Devils' and how the media is demonising the youth into a 'Folk Devil' and how the media is stereotyping he youth into being a pain and a disturbance.

MEST2 Progress Report 30/01/2014

Individual:

WWW: Script finalised

EBI: Magazine front cover and double page spread to be started.

Next steps: To start front cover

Group:

WWW: two thirds of filming completed

EBI: photo shoot to be done

Next Steps: Script to be altered to make opening sequence longer - Photo shoot on one of filming days - film opening sequence.

Filming date: We filmed on 28/01/14 and filming will commence today (30/01/14) and 2/02/14 and maybe 3/02/14

iLL MANORS Trailer Analysis

In a film trailer, the general codes and conventions are showing what genre the film is, perhaps through pace of editing (e.g. fast-paced editing for action trailers), and establishing a storyline. The end of a trailer is always the climax, mostly through a montage made up of the most exciting parts of the film itself.

Once the trailer is made, the studio will then distribute said trailer to the public through a variety of platforms. Such platforms can include the films website, YouTube, before movies in the cinema, TV and/or social networking sites.

In iLL MANORS, trailer codes and conventions are used by giving an overall summary of what the film is about. This is seen throughout the trailer (drugs, guns, gang-life, prostitution). Also, A voice-over is used to help explain what is happening on screen. The soundtrack is original and the aggressiveness of the soundtrack helps keep the audience stimulated and it feels very pumped. The title of the film is shown at the end followed by the date of release as well ad quotes from reviews.

I think the movie's target audience is generally young, around 16-30. The social demographic of E, D, C1 and C2 is also part of this target audience. An alternative target audience may be the middle class as this class may want to aspire to knowing about such situations that are explored in the movie. I think the unique selling point of the trailer is the original soundtrack used to narrate the trailer. The trailer is edited together at a relatively fast pace, but the audience can still make out important parts of scenes. The constant showing and use of drugs, guns, gang-life and prostitution allows the audience to put together a narrative. The main protagonist is the first character to be seen in the trailer. This shows to the audience the importance of this character from the off. Other main characters are shown throughout the trailer, even Plan B himself makes a quick appearance. This lets the audience recognise who's film this is and who directed it. The release date is shown at the end of the trailer for "June 6th". The voice-over is actually part of the soundtrack released off the back of the film. It allows a two birds to be killed with one stone. The soundtrack/narration is done by Plan B.

Ill Manors Film Review

Director: Ben Drew (Plan B himself). He has directed a short film called Michelle. He also directed the music video for 'Pieces' (a collaboration with Chase & Status)

Main Stars: 
-Riz Ahmed
-Ed Skrein
-Keith Coggins
-Lee Allen
-Nick Sagar
-Ryan De La Cruz
-Anouska Mond
Most of these stars have acted in other films, but Riz Ahmed is most notable in Four Lions.

Plot: Ill Manors is an Urban Drama that follows the lives of 7/8 main characters. These main characters are split into 6 small stories that intertwine with each other in such a way that it becomes one much larger, bigger story. Each short story is represented by a different hip-hop track and the whole movie is narrated by Ben Drew (Plan B himself)

Characters: 
-Riz Ahmed as Aaron
-Ed Skrein as Ed 
-Keith Coggins as Kirby
-Lee Allen as Chris
-Nick Sagar as Marcel
-Ryan De La Cruz as Jake
-Anouska Mond as Michelle
The quality of acting was very good as the actors knew what to bring to the roles as they may have gone through these same situations.

Genre: The film is a gritty, urban crime drama. My expectations of this kind of film is are definitely met from the off. The constant dark mood with glimmers of light helps to keep the audience in a type of suspense that has you biting your nails, whilst sitting on the edge of your seat.

Soundtrack: I very much enjoyed the soundtrack as it was very original. The story became more believable and realistic with this soundtrack.

Audience: I think this film is aimed mainly to the youth. Perhaps a C2, D or E demographic can be considered as characters from low class areas are shown throughout the film and this lets audiences relate.


Review:

iLL MANORS is a film directed by Ben Drew (Plan B). This was the first time Drew directed a feature length movie. He has, to my knowledge, also directed a short film called 'Michelle'. Drew started out as a young rapper, where he released his first album: Who Needs Actions When You Got Words. He then went on to release his second second: The Defamation of Strickland Banks; which entered the charts at number 1. His third album was released as the soundtrack to the movie in question: iLL MANORS.

The film follows the lives of 7/8 main characters. These main characters are split into 6 small stories that intertwine with each other in such a way that it becomes one much larger, bigger story. Each short story is represented by a different hip-hop track that narrates that particular story.

We have the protagonist, Aaron, played by Fix Ahmed. He is always trying to do the right thing. Next we have Ed played by Ed Skrein; a thug who will do anything to get his phone back. Next, we have Chris played by Lee Allen; a drug dealer seeking revenge on the murder of his little sister. Next is Kirby played by Keith Coggins; an  ex-drug dealer who has just been released from prison. Now we have Anouska Mond who plays Michelle; a drug addict working in prostitution. Jake is played by Ryan Due La Cruz; a young teenager who's found himself dream to the local gang. Lastly, there is Katya who is a prostitute trying to escape her life to save her newborn baby. The quality of acting was very good as the actors knew what to bring to the roles as they may have gone through these same situations.

The film is a gritty, urban crime drama. My expectations of this kind of film are definitely met from the off.  The urban feel is received very well through factors such as language, clothing, locations, etc. The constant dark mood with glimmers of light helps to keep the audience in a type of suspense that has you biting your nails, whilst sitting on the edge of your seat.

I very much enjoyed the soundtrack, especially because it was original. A new sound was used narrate each small story. This stood out for me especially because it allowed a lot to be said in a short amount time. Also, the story became more believable and realistic with the soundtrack as everything was explained to the audience then and there.

I think this film is aimed mainly to the youth. Perhaps a C2, D or E demographic can be considered as characters from low class areas are shown throughout the film and this lets audiences relate. However, audiences from middle to upper classes may watch iLL MANORS to be informed of this kind of lifestyle.

Progress Report 23/01/14

Work completed in last 7 days:
- Script
- Shot list

Next steps:
-Start filming on 26/01/14
- Photo-shoot on 26th or 27th
-Start editing on 28/01/14

Responsibilities:
- Making sure that filming goes ahead on planned days
- Getting the photo-shoot done on planned day

Ill Manors: The Making Of

1) What does this tell us about Plan B's intentions in making the film?

I think Ben Drew wants the world to see the real side of East London and how it isn't all to do with the Olympics. He wants to show that its not all in black and white either; that actions have repercussions, repercussions that can put people in situations they don't want to be in. Lastly, I think Ben Drew wants this film to show the youth what can happen if you make the wrong choices.


2) What do we learn about the production process for Ill Manors?

The film was very low budget and this can be seen throughout the film, but this is also emphasised a lot throughout the making of documentary. I think this film being low budget was a benefit, in terms of only being able to hire semi-professional actors/actresses who have gone through or may be going through what the characters of the film go through. Also, in terms of using real locations, low budget was, again, a benefit. This is because it adds a feel of authenticity to the film.

3) What can you tell about the possible target audience from this short documentary?

I think the main target audience is the youth. This is because I think the youth are the demographic that can relate the most to this film. An alternative target audience could be the middle class, more specifically: reformers. This is because reformers want to change and also want to change the people around them.


4) Does the film successfully do what director Ben Drew (Plan B) set out to achieve? Explain your answer with reference to both the film and the making of documentary.

I think Ben Drew has achieved what he set out to do. He tried to show the real side of East London and the real side of some types of people. Such as when a part of the film is set in a crack den, they actually filmed in a crack den. This adds a realism to the film which helps to cause of showing the real side.

MEST2 Progress Report - 16 January

Work completed since 6 January:

- 1st draft of script

- Basic storyboard done (needs to be altered when final script produced)

- Basic shot list produced

Incomplete pre-production tasks:

- Mise-en-scene

- Produce final script, storyboard and shot list

Next steps/Action plan:

- To have all incomplete pre-production tasks done before first filming date (25th January)

- To start editing by 28th-30th January

- Photo-shoot to be done on 25th January

Date filming will be complete:

- 27th January (if extra filming needs to be done the 3rd of February will be used)

Date editing will be complete:

- 14th February (may be a week or so earlier if no filming to be done on 3rd February)