After completing the rough plan, we delved into a more detailed story. However, we soon realized that we had too many subplots to fit within the two-minute timeframe and thus simplified it. Prior to the revisions, there were two protagonists - one representing failure and the other success. Our intention was to utilize binary opposition and exploit their personalities in order to create humorous situations out of tragic events.
This is the second version of the story:
The boy, Louis, is a troublesome student who causes problems throughout the school. One of his main issues is dealing with romantic situations. He attempts to express love to other girls, but all he receives in return is misunderstanding. However, unlike traditional high school film genres, Louis behaves more like a confident clown who doesn't care about others' feelings. We believe this personality would add more comedic elements to the story.
The script
This is the second version script that includes all the possible plots
Many of these shots may not be in the final edition, but we included them so we have a range of clips to edit.
A updated story board that roughly presents the ideal outcome.
I initially considered creating it as a series of dramatic sequences, but it would likely be more realistic to focus on the overall atmosphere and connect them together. Therefore, there will be extensive editing involved. While drawing the storyboard, I found inspiration in Wes Anderson's cinematography. The symmetrical composition and direct reverse shot can create a unique aesthetic appeal. Additionally, by employing focused composition effects and subject positioning (as suggested by Roland Barthes), the shots can convey connotations that make the opening smoother and more cohesive. For instance, in the three shots featuring students, we can control their distance from each other and position their heads at the same eye level.
Props
Since we realized that there would not be enough time to present detailed sequences, we discovered that utilizing props could potentially be a more effective method of conveying messages.
The symbolic code: Boba Tea
Both ordinary people and Bill Gates drink boba tea.
It is a melting pot of classes and races; a place where class distinctions fade
In the Time 100 Gala 2023
Canadian actor Simu Liu said "I just honestly don't know what billionaires drink. I'm assuming some sort of liquid NFT or Web 3 beverage," Liu said to Gates. "Don't forget to chew."
"I think he likes it!" Liu exclaimed after Gates took a sip.
Banana-comedian
banana is a crucial element in my plan that show absurd comedic effect.
Understanding the art
Maurizio Cattelan's work titled ‘comedian’ consisted of a ripe banana duct-taped to a wall, and was sold for $120,000 at Art Basel Miami Beach in December 2019. During the exhibition, the banana was eaten several times by the audience. For example, ‘a South Korean art student ate a banana that was part of the installation and taped the peel to the wall’. He claimed he was "hungry" after skipping breakfast (CNN). Performance artist David Datuna plucked the banana on display at the Perrotin gallery at Art Basel in Miami and gobbled it up. He then posted onto Instagram at the time saying "I really love this installation. It's very delicious." Later he defended the act, calling it an art performance and not an act of vandalism.’
As the museum later placed a new banana at the same spot. Kathleen Magramo, a news writer in CNN Digital Worldwide described the condition as, ‘For some — the chance to see a banana duct-taped to a wall is to be within touching distance of a sensational moment in recent art history. For others, it's an enticing snack.’ Cattelan not only elaborates on Duchamp’s theory of using daily object, but its controversial art form also induced audience interaction. This is an example that illustrates the nature of postmodern art, using a mundane fruit to mock high class serious art and the contemporary art market. It is a subject that carries jokes but leads to a profound critique, especially shown by its price and deep impact on the mass media. Unlike Warhol’s artistic approach that contains connotation guiding figures that promote the development of pop culture, the artistic value of this banana in this context is the open-ended discussion which causes people to reexamine art. Just as the title ‘comedian’ suggests, it is ‘a symbol of global trade, a double entendre, as well as a classic device for humor’. It challenges popular culture and even uses satire to question Duchamp’s readymade. ‘Humor is relevant in every moment of life’, and this nonsensical element creates an absurd aesthetic experience, which shocks the audience using iconoclasm.
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