Instructions

Welcome to the film set of Jaws! You are a new trainee, and you'll get to help out in several different departments today. Each department uses maths in surprising ways to create movie magic. Read the information for each department and use your maths skills to solve the problem and help the crew!

Camera Department: Film Stock Calculation

The director, Steven Spielberg, wants to have plenty of film to capture the perfect shots. For every 1 minute of film you see in the final movie, the crew actually filmed 10 minutes of footage! This is called a shooting ratio of 10:1. The final movie is 124 minutes long, and each roll of film can record 11 minutes of footage.

Your Task: Calculate how many full rolls of film the camera department needed for the entire movie.

Costume Department: Dressing the Extras

It's time to film the chaotic beach scenes! There are 80 extras who need costumes. The head of costume needs your help to get organised.

• 50% of the extras need to be in swimming costumes.
• 25% of the extras need summer clothes (shorts and T-shirts).
• The rest of the extras will be dressed as town officials (shirts and trousers).

Your Task:
1. How many extras are in each costume group (swimmers, summer clothes, and officials)?
2. If each swimming costume requires 0.75 metres of fabric, what is the total amount of fabric needed for all the swimmers?

Props Department: Miniature Models

Building a full-sized mechanical shark was difficult, so for some shots, the crew used miniature models. The model of the boat, the Orca, was built at a 1:4 scale, meaning every part of the model is exactly 4 times smaller than the real thing. The props team needs to make miniature yellow barrels to go with the model boat.

Your Task: If a real barrel used in the film is 90 cm tall, how tall should the miniature barrels be for the 1:4 scale model? Give your answer in centimetres.

Sound Department: Timing the Tension

The famous two-note "duh-nuh" theme music is key to building suspense. In one important scene, which is 2 minutes and 15 seconds long, the sound editor uses the theme music 5 different times. Each time it is used, it plays for 12 seconds.

Your Task:
1. What is the total time the theme music is playing during this scene?
2. How much time in the scene is filled with other sounds or silence?

Visual Effects Department: Shark Angles

To make the mechanical shark, "Bruce," look like it's swimming, its tail has to move at the right angle. For a normal, powerful swim, the tail moves from a position 30 degrees to the left of the centre line to 30 degrees to the right.

Your Task:
1. What is the total angle of the tail's sweep from the far left to the far right position?
2. For a very sharp turn, the tail needs to sweep through a total angle of 110 degrees. If it sweeps equally on both sides of the centre line, how many degrees does it move to the left of centre and to the right of centre?

Answer Key

Camera Department

• First, find the total minutes of footage shot: 124 minutes x 10 = 1,240 minutes.
• Next, divide the total minutes by how much one roll holds: 1,240 ÷ 11 = 112.72.
• Since you can't use a partial roll, they must use a whole one. They needed 113 rolls of film.

Costume Department

1. Swimmers: 50% of 80 is 40. (80 x 0.50 = 40)
   Summer Clothes: 25% of 80 is 20. (80 x 0.25 = 20)
   Officials: 80 - 40 - 20 = 20.
   Answer: 40 swimmers, 20 in summer clothes, and 20 officials.
2. Fabric needed: 40 swimmers x 0.75 metres = 30 metres.
   Answer: 30 metres of fabric.

Props Department

• To find the miniature size, you divide the real size by the scale factor: 90 cm ÷ 4 = 22.5 cm.
• The miniature barrels should be 22.5 cm tall.

Sound Department

1. Total music time: 5 uses x 12 seconds = 60 seconds (or 1 minute).
   Answer: The theme music plays for a total of 60 seconds.
2. Total scene time in seconds: (2 minutes x 60) + 15 seconds = 135 seconds.
   Time without theme music: 135 seconds - 60 seconds = 75 seconds.
   Answer: There are 75 seconds (or 1 minute and 15 seconds) without the theme music.

Visual Effects Department

1. Total sweep = Angle to the left + Angle to the right. 30° + 30° = 60°.
   Answer: The total angle of the sweep is 60 degrees.
2. Divide the total sharp turn angle by 2: 110° ÷ 2 = 55°.
   Answer: It moves 55 degrees to the left and 55 degrees to the right of the centre line.