Updated statement of Intent

The film I will create is based in the streets of London following the supposed spike in knife crime of recent times. It follows a young boy caught in the crossfire and finding himself becoming involved with the violence. The film follows his journey as he is dragged in and tries to find a way to survive and escape the violent lifestyle. 

I am aiming to reinforce stereotypes but put them in a context which is different to the way they are portrayed within mainstream media in order to draw sympathy from the audience. This will relate to Perkins theory that not all stereotypes are true. I intend on doing this through the perspective of the protagonist. Although he commits violent crimes, the reasoning behind it will subvert stereotypes, making the audience feel sorry for him as they will see he is trapped in a cycle. This will cause audiences to think about how they would react in the same situation which allows them to relate to the characters, which relates to Blumer and Katz's 'Uses and Gratification' theory as people will be able to personally identify with the characters within the film as they may see scenes which they are able to identify with. This may cause audiences to become attached to the characters which is the 'personal relations' part of the theory. It will appeal to an audience in the age range of 14-25 as the surroundings and themes within the film will be familiar to them and something they are used to seeing. If it isn't, as they live in the same environment, they will be seeing another persons viewpoint on controversial issues that are in urban London. 

 I was inspired to create this coming of age drama by the Kidulthood trilogy films as they relate to issues within lower to working class London. Other coming of age dramas such as 'Yardie' also inspired me to create this film as I will incorporate similar issues within these films which supports Steven Neale's "repetition and difference" theory. Propp's "character theory" can also be applied as each character will fit one of the roles, however I intend for them to fit the category for more than one role. An example is that the protagonist will obviously be the 'hero', the friend of the protagonist may also be seen as the 'villain' or the 'false hero' as he  drags the protagonist into the issues he is having. This can also relate to Todorov's equilibrium theory as everything seem normal however the friend's involvement drags the protagonist into trouble causing the disequilibrium.  As there arent any females within the any of the scenes, i find that the audience may be mainly male as they will be able to relate to it more. I aim to try and incorporate Paul Gilroy's 'Black Diaspora' theory as the black community is very divided. This is something which has been seen throughout London through the current 'knife crime epidemic' as there is a lot of black on black crime. Gilroy's theory of double consciousness can also be incorporated as black people watching the film will be watching a representation of them self within the media.

Within these urban coming of age dramas, I noticed that they use mostly natural lighting in order to deviate away from making the film look too glamorised. A lot of lowkey lighting will be used in order to create a darker more sinister image.  Especially as this will be a low budget film, I wont have access to using studio lighting in most of my shots. The use of local popular culture such as music, slang and clothing. . I plan to film on an estate, on a football pitch and inside a house. Most of the scenery will be on an estate as this is where most of the characters will see and interact with one another. The football field will be primarily to focus on the protagonist and his best friend rather than involving more of the cast as they are the only characters who genuinely play football. 

The trailer would mainly be advertised on YouTube as it is an accessible platform in which a lot of people can view it. Another way of advertising a film such as this would be to find a way to incorporate certain scenes into music videos. This gives exposure as people who listen to the artist will see the trailer while listening to their favourite music, giving them more of a focus they would have to turn off the song to stop seeing scenes from the film. They would also question which film it is from giving the perfect opportunity to promote the film. Music stars also have leverage within youth popular culture, so by using them to promote it, the chances of success will be higher. As it is a low budget film, the best place for it to be would probably be on YouTube as it is free so more people can view it, increasing the potential views. Using social media will also boost the films profile as a lot of the target audience will be active on these platforms. Starting a trending hashtag across Instagram and Twitter would spread word quickly and prove an effective way of promotion. UK rap YouTube channels such as GRMdaily and Link Up Tv could distribute the film as the music used in the film will be on their channel. The music they distribute also covers similar experiences the characters in the film have so the themes in both the music and on the screen are similar. These two channels also play a big part within popular culture, especially at the target audience. Having them promote the film would also help allow it to reach a wider audience.