Planning - Plot

Hello readers, and welcome back! Last time, I came up with the narrative for my brief, establishing a general idea of its central incident, characters, and setting. The next step to go from here would be fleshing out these ideas into a structured plot which will end up being used in my finished opening. In today's post, I will be simply outlining the plot of my brief in chronological order, establishing characters and events, as well as some techniques that can be used for each respective part.

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Before I begin detailing the plot's structure, I want to finalize the central incident which will be depicted in the movie and will set the rest of the hypothetical film in motion. Last post I mentioned my interest in a plot involving an impersonator, who commits the crime as somebody else. I really like this idea, and have decided to incorporate this with a kidnapping. The victim should be of higher power and/or importance, so I will have to keep in mind the character's wardrobe should reflect this in some way, like a suit/dress or jewelry. As for the perpetrator, it would only make sense for them to impersonate someone of significance as well, as their main goal with the crime is putting the blame on another. This element could go on to be the basis of the protagonists investigation, revealing more facts that do not relate to the crime, slowly revealing the true identity of the antagonist.

As for the plot, I want it to begin with an establishing shot of where the crime is taken place, basked in the moonlight and city streets. The location does not have to be somewhere secluded as mentioned in my previous post, as the antagonist would most likely be the one following the victim to somewhere extravagant, like a gala. From here the victim could arrive to the area in style, as they walk into the building where the party is held (either a hotel or ballroom), they are quickly pulled to the side by the antagonist in the shadows. The audience should be able to make out some sort of formal attire, as well as some identifiable feature (possibly a cosmetic such as a pin with a logo, or headpiece) well known for the character the perpetrator is trying to impersonate. 

This is how I would imagine the ballroom exterior to look like, though with more formal features. Looking at how it looks I feel as though it is going to be difficult to replicate something like this without going to one myself for the filming process. Source: Mark Spencer Hotel

To heighten the stakes of this crime, the impersonator could hold out a weapon, either a gun or knife, towards the victim as they drag them down an alleyway. This moment could be where the victim takes a notice of the impersonator's trademark feature, causing them to call out the name of that who is being mimicked, revealing their identity.

In the same scene, the antagonist should act more reckless than the audience would normally expect for a culprit, bumping into walls and garbage containers, creating a lot of ruckus. This detail would hint at the idea that since they are impersonating someone else, it would be in the antagonists best interest to create some sort of attention, so that the original may be captured in their place.

As they exit the alleyway, there would be some authorities in the distance that take notice of the antagonist, chasing after them to inevitably fail due to a secret turn or similar action the antagonist made that put them in the clear. During this chase, the antagonist could purposely drop the identifiable cosmetic on the ground, giving the authorities as much information to figure out who is behind the crime as they think they do. 

This image gives a general idea of how I want the authorities to be stationed (though instead from the front view and from the perspective of the alleyway's exit), as if they were on stationary patrol. 

Source: Getty Images

A pull in-shot could be used to give attention to the cosmetic, transitioning using a graphic match of the impersonation victim wearing the same one. A pull out is used to reveal that they are either in a court hearing or having their mugshot taken in a jail house.

The clip then finishes with a transition to the protagonists office. The office should use low-key lighting to represent the character's morally gray personality. Their face is covered as they are preoccupied working through cases and/or sorting files until there is a knock at the door. The protagonist will then rise from their chair and walk towards the door, with the camera tracking to them until it stops at the nameplate, revealing their name. This same scene with the nameplate could potentially be used to present the title of the brief.

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Despite being yet again a shorter post in which I simply brain dump, I attempted to create an even better visual for the final product of my brief, including some elements in camera and mise-en-scene that came to mind as I went coming up with ideas for the plot. Looking back at what I wrote, I feel like I made a rather creative story that adds some unique and distinct elements from the typical noir story, as well as those in its sister genres such as crime. However, I feel as though a lot of the setting is dependent on the urban location where the story takes place, and I am currently not sure how I can effectively portray an area like this without going out and shooting in one myself. But with enough time and thought, I know I can improvise effectively so that the plot is produced exactly how I imagine it, so that it can truly fit into the genre of noir.

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That is all I have for today. Next time, I will be holding off on the planning process to create my project proposal, representing my brief and what I aim to do with it. Appreciate you tuning in, see you again!