✩Discussions, Improved Ideas, and Extras

In AICE Media today, we were split into groups to get feedback from our fellow classmates about our plans for our openings. When I told my group about my plot, they all mentioned how it was pretty similar to the movie, Tenet. I had heard of the movie and watched the trailer, and though I’m very interested in the plot, I never found the opportunity to watch it. Everyone in my group said that I should watch it to make sure my film’s plot doesn’t get too close to Tenet’s plot. So, the next thing I’ll do to progress on my film will be to watch Tenet (and likely make a blog post about it). I don’t think Tenet and my plot have the same aesthetic though, Tenet appears to have more of a sci-fi/action feel whereas my idea tends to lean more into a coming of age feel. I will still take a look at the movie (especially because I’ve heard it’s really good) to see if it gives me any ideas.

(The poster for the aforementioned movie, Tenet)

Another thing my group recommended me was in regards to the actual opening shots. I told them that I wanted my opening to feel like a coming of age movie so that the integration of fantasy elements made the film more intriguing. I was given the advice to have Julia sitting in a coffee shop, doing her thing, and then she can bump into 404. This idea to open the film is neat, and I think starting with Julia already doing something rather than the stereotypical “getting out of bed to get ready for school.” I would like to note that I forgot to mention to my group that I didn’t ever want my main characters to meet, they would be talking via text/phone calls. So, as much as I think having them meet up right at the beginning could be cool to play off of, it’s not what I had envisioned. I could still make it work though, and tie it into my original idea where 404 is passing by locations that would be important later in the story.


I can start with an establishing shot of a coffee shop (or some similar building) where we can see a character seated nearby. The camera then shifts over to this character, 404, who is looking at her phone with something like sadness or remorse. She then puts her phone away, gets up, and walks away, turning back to the building briefly. As she continues walking, she passes by Julia. From there the focus shifts away from 404 to remain on Julia as she enters said coffee shop/building. I imagine her listening to some music (which means I need to find some non-copyrighted music and/or reach out to an artist which is a little scary lol) and then Julia receives a text message (or phone call, I’m still deciding) from an unknown contact that says something along the lines of “I have to go, I’ll miss you.” This leaves Julia confused, and she texts (once again, or calls) Forrest about this strange message. They pick up and essentially tell Julia that it’s just a random number, nothing for her to worry about. I think that would be the end of the opening. It would introduce something weird that would later be expanded on, but on the first watch, the audience would not suspect anything about this interaction.


I have two more things to quickly touch on before I finish the post:

1. I spoke with some of my friends from other media classes and we spoke briefly about collaborating on the project. I’m not sure if this is something we are seriously going to act on, but it’s comforting to know I have some friends willing to help if I reach out to them.
2. Since I envisioned Julia listening to music as she walks into the building (mainly to avoid any awkward silences in the film), I need to find some music. At the moment, I have three options:
• Instrumental tracks from Homestuck. I’m pretty sure they don’t have copyright but I will have to check on this, and also dig through the vast number of songs from the comic to find the one that fits.

(The cover of one of Homestuck’s albums titled “coloUrs and mayhem.”)

• Songs from Wilbur’s album “Your City Gave Me Asthma.” I also don’t think this has copyright, and though most of the songs wouldn’t fit the film, the song “Since I Saw Vienna” is one of my personal favorites, and has a nice tune that is simple enough that it might work.

(The cover of Wilbur’s album, “Your City gave me Asthma.”)

• OR a song by mxmtoon. I know she has excellent, chill music, and the song “Fever Dream,” feels so perfect, but I am pretty sure I would need to reach out to her in order to get permission to use her songs. Reaching out to her would be a little out of my comfort zone, but I would do it if I needed to.

(The cover of mxmtoon’s single “Fever Dream,” which was later the first track on her album “Dawn.”)

And that's it! You’ve reached the end of the post :)

(Fun fact: I wrote this whole post while at the beach)