Meet Cute Research

 Hi, so before I start to develop the script, I have begun to reserach some films that have made the characters meet in a similar way than that of my own project. One that I found in which the meet cute is very similar is from the film series, Emily in Paris. 

This video is the exact clip of when the two characters meet. I found this clip on YouTube.

The silly aspect of when the two meet by the girl mistakenly thinking her apartment was her neighbors is what my Meet Cute is going to be like as well. So, since my own opening is going to be a little like this one, I thought I would analyze what shots/ dialogue were used in the scene. 

To start off, a low-angle shot of Emily attempting to get into the apartment is shown. I believe this was to show how similar the outside of their apartments appear, and how easily one might mistake one for the other. An over-the-shoulder shot of Gabriel abruptly opening the door as she is attempting to open it shows his confused expression as to why someone is trying to get into his apartment. A series of counter shots were then used to show dialogue between them. 

I believe that, similar to how they showed a low-angle shot of the outside of the door, my group and I could focus the camera on the door to her apartment as she was leaving to run an errand. Specifically, the number above her door. On the way back to the apartment, we could focus the camera once again on the number of the new apartment door to emphasize to the audience that it is not the same as the one she came out of earlier, but very similar (for example on digit off). The use of an over-the-shoulder shot is also something I would like to use in my own opening, as it gives a view of the guy's reaction while also showing the girl's attempt at opening the door in the same shot. This could establish awkwardness as well as a comedic aspect of her getting to the wrong apartment, which in turn goes along with the genre. Lastly, the use of counter shots is also something I would like to incorporate as it expresses the dialogue and back and forth between the two characters. I was thinking of even using a POV shot, for instance when she first drops her keys and bends down to pick them up. The more variety in the shots, the more interesting/appealing it will look to the audience.

Another thing I wanted to note about this scene was sound. At the start of the clip, the sound of the key jamming into the door was heard. I believe that filming that myself might be difficult to have it heard so well. This leads me to think that my group and I should start looking for sounds of keys opening doors, or think of making a Foley sound ourselves. I think doing the latter might prove to be very fun and make the project a little more personal. I mentioned in past blogs that I plan on using upbeat background music at the start of the film, but have it abruptly shut off when the two characters meet by the sound of the door opening. However, now I have to think about how I would have that music play while she is struggling to get the door open. I want my audience to hear her getting frustrated, and to not have her words be drowned out by the sound of the music. So, either the sound of the keys would have to overlap with the sound of the background music, or maybe I would have to turn off the music altogether before the scene of her trying to get to the door commences. I would rather not do the latter, as I thought the idea of having her music turned off as soon as the door opens was cooler and made the moment more dramatic. This has just shown me that I need to discuss this matter with my group and get their input on how we should move forward.

Finally, the dialogue used in this clip was simple and realistic. The girl began by apologizing and saying she believed that it was her apartment. I would like to have a similar interaction, but slightly different. For one, the guy is supposed to help her pick up her keys from the floor when he opens the door, so I was thinking of her thanking him for helping her and then apologizing for getting the wrong apartment. Similar to that of the film series, the two would go into a small conversation about how she just recently moved in and is still getting used to the new college atmosphere. However, my plot would differ from the series by having their conversation cut short by the girl coming from the male lead's apartment. Still, seeing an example of a similar interaction helped me get an understanding of how awkward one would be in that situation, and how that would affect dialogue.

With this research in mind, I think it's safe to say that my group and I could go ahead with our storyboard and our script, so stay tuned for that!