Script

Projector: Title Page “Fact in Fiction Film and the American Dream” Including generic pictures from three key films and a quote ‘… bring us closer to that remote era…’ (Item 12)

Presenter: Fact in fiction film is a very popular genre that is becoming more and more apparent in modern day cinema. The American dream continues to be a social topic within all genres of films. However, including this ‘idea’ within a film based on truth allows an audience to feel they have a true representation and therefore making the film a vehicle of promotion. Adapting real events for the big screen reveals many problems but also lots of opportunity; with no boundaries on how many alterations they can make, directors come across the problem of either creating a film true to the event or most effective on an audience.

Clip: ‘Facemash and the Algorithm’ Scene from The Social Network (Item 3) - 3’49”

Projector: List of points being covered in the presentation

·      Biographical Film

·      Social Issues in Film

·      The American Dream

·      Fact in Fiction

·      Impact Of and On the Audience

·      Conclusion

Projector: “Biopic Film”

Projector: “It’s been around for a long time” Posters of all the 2016 best picture nominees

Presenter:  Studying the origin of biographical film helps me to understand my topic fully. I am very aware that fact in fiction films is not a modern genre of film due to the first successful biopic being released in 1933 (item 10). However, through my initial research of my topic I know that biographical films are a very popular genre for film makers. An estimated 50 biographical films have been released in the UK this year alone (Item 10) One of these then went on to gain the Oscar for best picture being Spotlight, and out of all the nominees for best picture (8) 4 of them were biographical. This tells me that as a genre it is highly respected also very popular among film makers and the critics. By finding out this information in biopic films it helps me to analyse and develop my topic further as I can gain a fuller understanding into what and why a biographical film is than just a moving image.

Projector: “Social Issues In Film”

Presenter: Each of my chosen film has chosen to use the American Dream as an underlying theme throughout. For The Social Network and Apollo 13 in particular the idea of the American dream is very present whether through achievement such as the youngest billionaire in the world (Mark Zuckerberg) or an organisation (NASA). Titanic’s portrayal of the American dream is more subtle simply shown mainly through the character of Jack Dawson and the partly on the whole voyage of the Titanic.

Clip: “Re-entry” from Apollo 13 (Item 2) – 5’49”

Projector: “The American Dream”

Projector: “Fact In Fiction”

Projector: “Blurring and Merging”

Presenter: In each of the films I have chosen to study actors are portraying the real people from the events. As a result of this Apollo 13 and The Social Network are blurring the line between fact and fiction. By having no fictional characters in either of the films the directors have decided to keep the fact as true as possible simply through the real people. This brings up the idea that _________________________________

Projector: “Titanic’s Reel and Real” (Item 8)

Presenter: However, in Titanic James Cameron decided to merge fact and fiction through the characters in his film. Creating a fictional love story between two fictional characters but putting them in the mix with real people from the time James Cameron is allowing himself to more easily input his own artistic license.

Projector: “Effect of Blurring and Merging”

Projector: “Impact Of and On the Audience”

Clip: “I’ll never let go Jack” from Titanic (Item 1)

Presenter: I will explore what effect the audience have on the making of a biopic film and what effect a biopic film has on an audience and why. Having such scenes as the opening to Titanic it shows the forensic filmmaking undertaken by a director to keep the ‘magic’ of a film and however not the whole truth is always used in these biopic films (Item 11) and this therefore creates the question of why for over 100 years the consumers and critics enjoy watching fact in fiction films so much.

Projector: “Conclusion”

Titanic - First links

Planning for my presentation script I am going to create links between my research and my chosen scenes so that I can begin to piece together my argument and bring the whole thing together to fully explain my thoughts and ideas backed up by the correct evidence.

Looking firstly at Titanic I want to firstly focus on the consumer demands and the result of this on the fact and fiction in the film. This is all backed up by my secondary source 'Titanic' by BFI. Right from the very beginning with my first key scene, fact is mixed with fiction. James Cameron's choice to use real footage of the wreckage and directed scenes and merging them together is key example of artistic licence. The use of artistic licence is also represented by the tow main characters, Jack and Rose. By creating fictional characters Cameron is then allowed to create back stories with empathy and personalities which are either relatable of likable. By doing this, Cameron merges fact and fiction in a way that blurs the line and makes the audience question the difference. I feel this is key part of my investigation as it highlights the need to adjust a story for a better cinematic experience and therefore abide by consumer demand.

The scenes I have chosen I the film perfectly highlight the need for fiction in this film. Although Cameron wanted to get across the tragedy of the event he also is allowing himself to show good times on the ship, particularly when a 1st class lady is introduced to the 3rd class decks and has an amazing time dancing with new people especially Jack. However, by the end of the film the spectator is rooting for Jack and Rose to stay together and continue to love each other. By having the scene however Jack dies, James Cameron is enhancing emotion felt by the audience. The fact that Cameron included a fiction death does not suggest that the real event was not tragic enough but however that consumers demand for an experience only made available though fiction. This helps me to understand why James Cameron blurred the line between fact and fiction.





Catalogue

Films:

Item 1: Titanic

Titanic is a fictional recount of the true events of the Titanic. Director James Cameron has mixed fact with fiction throughout the entirety of the film as fictional characters live the true events of the disaster. This film is very relevant in helping me to explore fact in film due to the nature of blurring the line of fact and fiction for a cinematic effect. As a result this film shows signs of portraying the American dream and being exposed to 'cinematic license'. I think this film will be useful in helping me to assess the effects of fact in fiction and why fiction is considered a more effective way of portraying true events.

Item 2: Apollo 13

This film is a documentation of the 'successful failure' by NASA concerning the disaster of Apollo 13. In the film fact is bought to life through the big screen and therefore 'artistic licence'. However, this film uses the real people in the event and tries to be as authentic as possible to the true disaster. As a result this film is relevant to my study as it is way to promote an organisation: NASA and this therefore leads me to assess the truth shown in the film. With a clear goal to show the American dream I feel this film is highly relevant to my chosen topic due to the fact I have access to accurate true fact I can compare with the film and therefore I am able to understand where fiction has been used for the audience and why.

Item 3: The Social Network

With technology slowly becoming more and more important in the world David Fincher took it upon himself to show the world the story behind the creation of Facebook. This is relevant to my topic as it is a factual fiction film made for an audience to understand and enjoy. This therefore means that an element of fiction will have changed some of the fact and therefore 'artistic license' become a key player within the film. The reason I have chosen this film is because through the events of the film it is a clear representation of the American dream. With this in mind I have to consider where fact and fiction cross over and therefore I will be able to assess how far the film has been modified to create 'the perfect story' rather than the possibly boring or condemning true story.

Internet:

Item 4: NASA

NASA (2009) NASA https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/missions/apollo13.html #.WBnumM_tmko (Accessed: 2 November 2016)

I felt that using the NASA website was the most reliable source for finding the true fact behind the Apollo 13 disaster. This is because the organisation would have had a minute by minute recount of the events and they would also have extra information. This is relevant to my topic as it allows me to compare the facts in the film to facts or the real event and therefore asses what fact has been modified for the big screen and why I think that is.

Item 5: Business Insider

Carlson, N (2010) At last -- the full story of how Facebook was founded. http//www. businessinsider.com/how-facebook-was-founded-2010-3?IR=T (Accessed: 2 November 2016)

This website tells the full story of the founding of Facebook and therefore is an ideal source for me to compare the films fact with. This is relevant particularly as it highlights the controversy of the events. This is useful as it helps me to see where in the film characters (the real people) have been 'let off' instead of being portrayed as the bad guy. As well as this the controversy highlighted may show me that the film was more fictional in its portrayal of the American dream which is very relevant to my topic. I also feel it will help me to gain a fuller understanding of what the American dream is. As a result I feel that this website is useful in helping me assess the ways in which each of my chosen films has decided to portray the American dream. I hope that this will therefore lead onto further development in my research as it may reveal reasons for manipulation in fact by the directors of the films.

Item 6: The American Dream Is Killing Us

Manson, N (2016) The American dream is killing us. https//markmanson.net/American-dream (Accessed 2 November 2016)

I feel that this website is very relevant to my topic as it helps me to gain a fuller understanding of what the American dream is. As a result I feel that this website is useful in helping me assess the ways in which each of my chosen films has decided to portray the American dream. I hope this will lead onto further development in my research as it may reveal reasons for manipulation in fact by the directors of the films.

Item 7: Universe Today

Howell, E (2015) Universe Today. http://www.universetoday.com/101531/ken-mattingly-explains-how-the-apollo-13-movie-differed-from-real-life/# (Accessed 2 November 2016)

This website is very useful as I feel it is reliable. The source offers quotes from the real people who were involved in Apollo 13 and therefore I am able to compare these to the facts given in the film. As well as this the source is relevant to my topic as it highlights a specific scene in the film that is not accurate and therefore I can assess why this is and develop my research of the films fact further to hopefully reveal more scenes like this.

Item 8: Chasing the Frog

ChasingtheFrog (2016) Titanic movie vs. Titanic history - pictures, survivors, facts. http://www.chasingthefrog.com/reelfaces/titanic.php (Accessed 2 November)

This website is not only relevant to my topic but it is also interesting. This is because it highlights the key characters in Titanic which were real people from the event. This therefore gives me evidence that James Cameron mixed fact with fiction in the film. The reason this is relevant is because it helps me to understand that the film does have some elements of fact in it however the film also includes fiction for the cinematic audience.

Item 9: Chasing the Frog

Chasing the frog (no date) http://www.chasingthefrog.com/reelfaces/thesocialnetwork.php (Accessed: 2 November 2016).

This website is very useful for not just Titanic but also for The Social Network. I feel this is relevant to my topic as it will help me understand the differences between the people in the film and the real people and as a result I can identify what has been modified about the characters and why. The reason this is useful for The Social Network as well is because it helps me relate it as much as possible to the American dream due to the choice of portrayal of the American people in the film.

Item 10: Film Reference

Advameg (2016) The biographical film - historical films - actor, cinema, story. Available at: http://www.filmreference.com/encyclopedia/Criticism-Ideology/Historical-Films-THE-BIOGRAPHICAL-FILM.html (Accessed: 17 November 2016).

This website gives an overview of the beginning of biographical films. Therefore this is very useful to me as it allows for me to gain a better knowledge of the topic as a whole and therefore understand the development biographical film has made and understand fact in fiction films better.

 

Books:

Item 11: Titanic: Anatomy of a Blockbuster

Kevin S. Sandler and Gaylyn Studlar, Titanic: Anatomy of a Blockbuster. 1999

This book is relevant to my topic as it highlights the fact that the whole truth is not used in Titanic and that actually the film is not respected by all. This is useful as it shows me that the film although trying to appeal more to an audience through using fiction is as a result less respected as a representation of the events. Therefore this book is relevant to my topic because it highlights the problems faced by film maker when creating films about events and therefore I can develop my argument further using this evidence.

Item 12: Titanic

Lubin, D.M. (1999) ‘Titanic’. London: British Film Institute. Page 23

I feel that this is one of the most useful books for my topic as it highlights issues for all the films. Although basing the fact on Titanic it is also common in both Apollo 13 and The Social Network. The book highlights the fact that films have to accommodate for an audience and therefore fact cannot always be stuck to if it is not exciting enough. Due to this the source is very relevant and extremely helpful in allowing me to understand modifications made by the film director for the big screen.

Item 13: History of Britain and Ireland

Grant, R.G., Kay, A. and Kerrigan, M. (2011) History of Britain & Ireland: The definitive visual guide. New York: DK Publishing (Dorling Kindersley).

This book has historical documentations of the events that have occurred in Britain and Ireland since the Stone Age. As a result there is a historically accurate recount of the events of the Titanic. This is relevant as it allows me to compare the fact form the film and the fact form the real event. I feel this is useful as it will help me find out what has been modified for the big screen and the impact of this on the story.

14: America on Film

Benshoff, H.M. and Griffin, S. (2009) America on film: Representing race, class, gender, and sexuality at the movies, Second edition. MA: Wiley-Blackwell

This book will help me to focus on the American Dream part of my topic. This is useful because the book highlights issues concerning the American Dream as well as class which I relevant specifically in Titanic.

15: Cinema and History

Chopra-Gant, M. and Kornfeld, M. (2008) Cinema and history: The telling of stories. London: Wallflower Press.

This book will be very helpful when studying the idea of fact in fiction film as the book highlights why we put history in film and what these films are like. By reading this book it will give me a broader knowledge on my topic and therefore a better understanding over all.

 

Articles:

Item 16: Sight & Sound

Martin Walker, 1995, Sight & Sound. http://sightandsounddigitaledition.bfi.org.uk /launch.aspx?eid=2a55121e-583a-4324-a202-66029513f7cf (Accessed 6 October 2016)

This article is relevant to my topic as it explains ways in which the film makers tried to make Apollo 13 as authentic as possible. It also explains how NASA was a key part in the film as well as the actual event which relates to the American dream. This is useful as it helps me to understand the extent a film maker will go to keep authenticity but then question why they then go on to modify the truth.

tem 17: Sight & Sound

Henry K. Miller, 2010, Sight & Sound, http://sightandsounddigitaledition.bfi.org.uk/ launch.aspx?eid=82d37d2b-a614-4255-a12c-6cdd99617d76

This article gives a review of The Social Network. This is relevant to my topic as it helps to highlight the key events portrayed in the film and therefore simply helps me to get a fuller understanding of the plot. This is useful as the story of the film is very confusing due to its facts and true nature of the events. This is relevant because it makes me realised that much of the story may have been enhanced to be more confusing and therefore more entertaining.

 

Videos:

Item 18: YouTube

Brain Linehan’s City Lights (2015) James Cameron Interview 1997 titanic Brian Linehan’s city lights. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQkdGEdHUec (Accessed 29 September)

This is an interview with James Cameron explaining his process of making Titanic. This is very relevant because he explains why he included a fictional love story but he also goes on to say that he wants to keep the fact. This is useful because with this information it will be more interesting to find out what fact was a lie in the film and why he chose to manipulate the truth after revealing this.

Reel Face vs Real Face

Much like Titanic, The Social Network has the ability to show real face verses the actors face. This helps me to understand that the people in the films are real and the the films do have elements of truth.

There is more on the website specifically comparing the two actors and real people.

Chasing the frog (no date) Available at: http://www.chasingthefrog.com/reelfaces/thesocialnetwork.php (Accessed: 2 November 2016).

The Lifeboat Proceedure

Although the film Apollo 13 is well respected and liked by astronauts it is not completely accurate. It is said that Ron Howard exaggerated the events simply for the wow factor. One particular thing n the film that wasn't highly accurate was the "lifeboat procedure" and Mattingly actually says "The movie made it appear as if we invested lots of stuff". This tells me that the film uses real fact as a base line and simply though the knowledge of film and audience the director has enabled this and made for a film that excites people. This helps me ti understand further why fiction film about fact changes some of the truth.

Howell, E. (2015) Universe Today. Available at: http://www.universetoday.com/101531/ken-mattingly-explains-how-the-apollo-13-movie-differed-from-real-life/# (Accessed: 2 November 2016).

Real Faces of The Titanic

This helps to back up my investigation into the fact that James Cameron decidedly mixed fact with fiction in Titanic

ChasingtheFrog (2016) Titanic movie vs. Titanic history - pictures, survivors, facts. Available at: http://www.chasingthefrog.com/reelfaces/titanic.php (Accessed: 2 November 2016).

The Fact Behind Facebook

Having The Social Network as one of my chosen films I need to have an understanding, other than from the film, of how Facebook was created. This will help me to identify artistic license and overall how far the film tells the truth.

The creation of Facebook is controversy. It was initially started up on 4th February 2004, by Mark Zuckerberg a Harvard student. It was then called "thefacebook.com". It is now just called Facebook is used by "400 million people a month" according to Business Insider. Zuckerberg was accused of stealing the idea from three other Harvard students. This turned into a lawsuit which actually shows some of the allegations to be true.

More can be read on the website.

Carlson, N. (2010) At last -- the full story of how Facebook was founded. Available at: http://www.businessinsider.com/how-facebook-was-founded-2010-3?IR=T (Accessed: 2 November 2016).

What Is The American Dream?

As part of my investigation is into how the American dream is shown in my chosen films I felt it was a good thing to do to see what is defined at the American dream.

The American dream is "the belief you... can become exceedingly successful, and all it takes is the right amount of work, ingenuity and determination." - Mark Manson

This relates nicely to Titanic, with the separation in classes and how well of Roses family is. With the idea that Cal looks down in Jack because he does not earn his keep within the world and therefore does not deserve the American dream is highlighted in the above quote.

This also relates to The Social Network, as that film shows a young man working hard and using intelligence to make in the world and he therefore achieves the American dream through becoming a millionaire. The film only slightly touches on the corruption this can cause in a person but it's end loops back round to the fact he is a success.

The idea that American was a land of power 300 years ago allowed for the idea of the American dream. So because of Unlimited Land, Unlimited Cheap Labour, Unlimited Innovation and Geographical Isolation there was no stopping people from dreaming big and believe they could achieve it.

This is nicely highlighted in Apollo 13 simply through NASA. With the constant relation landing on the moon first, the film is s imply representation of Americas super power and how far advanced their country is.

Manson, M. (2016) The American dream is killing us. https://markmanson.net/american-dream (Accessed: 2 November 2016).

The True Fact of Apollo 13

After watching Apollo 13 I am now aware of how much much the film includes. However, I am not certain that all this fact is true or whether the fact has been changed for a better spectator response. Therefore I am looking at the NASA website to obtain the correct fact.

Basic Fact:

Apollo 13 was meant to land on the Fra Mauro area (the moon). An explosion occurred causing the ship to be unable to land and simply orbit the moo back to earth.

Crew:

Commander - James A. Lovell Jr.

Lunar Module Pilot - Fred W. Haise Jr.

Command Module Pilot - John (Jack) L. Swigert Jr.

Launch:

April 11, 1970; 1:13 p.m. CST

The Explosion:

At 55 hours and 58 minutes into the launch oxygen tank 2 blew up causing oxygen tank 1 to fail also. The quote "Houston, we've had a problem here" was said by Swigert at 9:08pm, April 13. The crew were 200,000 miles from earth.

Much more fact can be sifted from the website and i will continue on to compare the fact in the film and the real events. The website is especially useful as it includes real quotes form the people. I'm interested to see if any of them were used in the film (apart from the famous: Houston we have a problem.)

NASA (2009) https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/missions/apollo13.html#.WBnumM_tmko (Accessed: 2 November 2016)

Apollo 13 - Second Key Scene

Descending to earth: 02:02:00 - 02:10:32

Micro Techniques and Relevance:

- Multiple locations are used in this scene to show the magnitude of the event and how much of American pulled together to help out.

- The soundtrack is very patriotic and has an air of success about it yet the well being of the astronauts is still unknown by the spectator until the end of the scene.

- Red light is used to show the heat of the ship as it gets closer to earth, unknown if this is what it will really look like. However, I feel it is artistic license to get a point across.

- Titling is used to show location of where this ship will land: South Pacific. Date is also shown: April 17th, 1970. This may have been done to remind the spectator that it is a real event and even though the un-realness of the events has swept over them they have to reminded.

- A somber camera tracking shot is used when two men are discussing the possibilities that the men may not make it back alive. This shows that there was little faith in success.

Characterization and Relevance:

- We are shown two sides of NASA at Houston, one side is commanded by Gene who is the definition of the American dream and one side that shows the doubt and constant worry for money. By having these two conflicting sides it helps to bring the film to reality.

- The men in the ship show respect for one another and I feel this is to represent the real men and help to define them as characters at this particular moment.

- The families of the men are extremely happy and this shows the relief for the whole of the film simply through the way they act when the men land.

Messages and Values:

- The message of the scene is that persistence is key and the fact that no one gave up in the process let to a success. Later backed up in the film with the quote "NASA's most successful failure".

- The American dream is a message throughout the scene as it shows the safe arrival of the men who are now heroes along with the whole of NASA.

- Another message is family and loss, although there is no loss in the scene a feeling of loss is felt when they are considered to have not made it.

Narrative Devices/Features and Relevance:

- The scene uses suspense as it actually mirrors the time it took for everyone to find out if they had survived. So the four minutes and twenty seconds the people at the time waited so did the audience. This is to help the audience experience and understand the events far better.

- Restricted narration is used as the spectator is not shown the inside of the ship and only the people on earth so once again the audience is made to experience the wait.

- A feeling of sudden relief is created though the narrative of the film as the feeling is felt by all the characters.