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Janet Adebiyi-Ojo
AS Film Studies Production Planning: Screen Test with Notes
As part of my AS Film Studies portfolio, I have further developed my
planning following my textual analysis of Kidulthood (2006 UK) and
Freedom Writers (2007 USA) where I explored the various
representations of teenage protagonists in the two films. I plan to produce
a creative artefact where my characters will be represented in similar
ways as the protagonists I analysed in my textual analysis through the use
of microelements. I intend to make a short piece of film, where the main
themes I aim to convey are crime drama and conflict.
For planning and research purposes, I have produced a screen test for the
protagonist and antagonist in my film. I have auditioned a number of male
candidates to play the role of Ashley and Jay, judging them on how well
they were able to act out the two characters and how well they were able
to compose themselves in front of the camera. The main factors I
considered when choosing my two males was their ability to act under
pressure and remain focused and professional, as well as someone with
the correct physical appearance, facial expression and body language.
Brief description of Ashley McKenzie:
Ashley is a 16-year-old teenage boy who attends Oaks Park High School.
He is currently in his last year of secondary school and is preparing for his
GCSE examinations. Ashley has previously been involved with the local
gangs and petty crime, but has recently begun to realise that he gets into
a lot of trouble because of the people he surrounds himself with. Ashley
knows that he does not want to be a part of the gang anymore but is
having trouble explaining that to the gang leader, Jay. The character of
Ashley a black Afro-Caribbean and dressed in a blue tracksuit and a white
t-shirt. They need to be able to confidently show facial expressions of
anger and frustration during the last scene where they have a fight with
Jay and stab him. Accurate mise-en-scene is essential in my creative
artefact in order to portray the clearest representation of the teenage
male.
Description of Jay Khan:
Jay is an 18-year-old Asian British boy who is the gang leader and a
previous student at Oaks Park High School. He has been involved with
gangs from a young age and never really concentrated in school, which is
the main reason why he was excluded from school before completing his
GCSE examinations. Jay now hangs around the Newbury Park area with his
other gang members. The character of Jay should be dressed in black

jeans and a puffy jacket, as well as being a similar height to Ashley. They
need to be able to show different facial expressions such as intimidating,
perplexed and in pain for various scenes in my creative artefact.

The following extract is from my script and has been chosen for
the auditions of the character of Ashley. This is the scene after a
normal day at school and Jay is waiting outside Ashleys school
gates to talk to him.
--------------------EXT: OAKS PARK HIGH SCHOOL, SCHOOL GATES AFTERNOON
ASHLEY is walking out of the school gates with his friends, DANIEL
and LUCAS. He notices JAY and tells the other boys he will catch up
with them in a little bit.
JAY
Yo ASHLEY, come here a sec let me chat to
you fam
ASHLEY
JAY, you cant keep waiting outside of my
school for me, the teachers are beginning to
ask questions. Whatever it is you want me to
do, Im not doing it bro. Im sorry

---------------------

Actor 1: Jaydon Charles

This actor is a young black 17-year-old male originally from Jamaica. He
has dark brown eyes and black hair, and is 5ft10. Jaydon has an athletic
build and has a suitable appearance for the role of Ashley McKenzie.
Jaydon has had experience in acting in a relatives media project last year.
After observing actor 1s performance, I was able to identify how the actor
delivered body language and the use of facial expressions effectively.
Jaydon showed great confidence when acting out Ashleys role and
seemed to enjoy playing the role of Ashley. He was very good at
remaining focused throughout the audition and was able to look directly at
the camera when instructed to. Jaydon also has the same height that will

be suitable for the character of Ashley, as he can play the part of the 16year-old teenage boy. He showed great enthusiasm and confidence and
despite the fact that he knew he was being filmed, he never looked
directly into the camera unless instructed to. Jaydons level of
professionalism is commendable and he portrayed the character for my
creative artefact very well. His use of accurate body language and facial
expressions also added to my final decision. For these reasons, I chose
Jaydon Charles to play Ashley.
Actor 2: Kaide Wright
This actor is a young black 17-year-old male
originally from Barbados and Angola. He has dark
brown eyes, a low haircut with black hair, and is
5ft9. This actor has had no previous experience in
acting or film making, but showed enthusiasm
when he was asked to audition for a part in my
film.

After observing actor 2s audition, it was clear to see a distinction between

his and Jaydons performance. After the first view of observing actor 2s
audition, I was able to see that his deliverance of body language and
dialogue was not portrayed in the way I would have liked it to be. Kaide
found it difficult to stay composed the majority of the time however; he
was able to accurately use the correct facial expressions depending on the
scene. He also found it difficult to act an assertive personality when telling
Jay to stay away from his school in the audition. Despite the fact that
Kaide was easy-going and cooperative, he failed to meet the requirements
for the character of Ashley McKenzie. For these reasons, I did not cast
Kaide Wright as Ashley.

-----------------------The following extract is from my script and has been chosen for
the auditions of the character of Jay. This is the scene where Jay
notices that Ashley has pulled out a knife and is perplexed and
questions Ashleys next actions.
EXT: ALLEYWAY LATE AFTERNOON
ASHLEY walks to the alleyway with the knife in his hand.

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JAY has a perplexed look on his face and pauses.
JAY
Bruv, what you doing? Put that down man, stop playing games
Ashley pays no attention to what JAY is saying; he aggressively
stabs the knife into JAYS stomach and drops the knife.

-----------

Actor 1: Ranvir Jandoo

This actor is an 18-year-old male originally from
India. He has dark brown eyes, black hair and is
5ft10. In terms of his acting and film making
experience, Ranvir gained a C grade in GCSE Drama
2 years ago, but has not taken part in anything
related to acting since then.
Ranvir showed great enthusiasm when auditioning for the role of Jay. He
was very willing to keep trying again, showing great courage within his
audition. His posture and body language was good, however, he was
unable to convey the correct facial expression for the specific scene and
sometimes found it hard to control his laughter. His facial expressions
were not filled with the emotion of anger and frustration which would need
to be portrayed on a very good level as the scene he was auditioning from
is when Jay is stabbed and drops to the ground. As the performance
continued, Ranvir was able to show feelings and emotions a little better,
nonetheless, he didnt appear to have the unique quality I was looking for
that would give my target audience an effect when illustrating his role on
camera. For these reasons, I chose not to cast Ranvir Jandoo as Jay.

Actor 2: Dev Umeria

This actor is an 18-year-old male, originally from
India. He has brown eyes, with dark brown hair and is
5ft11. He has a mature face so his appearance will be
suitable for this role. Dev has had previous
experience in acting and says he really enjoys taking
part in film projects.

Dev had a very good audition when acting out the role of Jay. He showed
great confidence and also showed evidence that he was enjoying what he
was doing and felt comfortable with the requirements I asked of him. His
facial expressions and body language were clearly presented, so it was
easy to understand different feelings and emotions in different scenes of
my creative artefact. Dev is also a similar height to Jaydon, showing that
the two boys are of similar age, which is what I was looking for. I chose
Dev to play the part of Jay because I feel he will be best suited for this
role. He has easy access to the costume he would need to wear for my
creative artefact. For these reasons, I chose to cast Dev Umeria as Jay.