Planning- Filming Schedule

Planning- Filming Schedule

9am

Laura meets Becky at her house to make sure we have all our props and costumes before we leave for filming. We will both finalise plans and then have something to eat before we leave.

9:45am

Leave for Tesco to meet Bailey and Scott at 10:00am. We will then walk to the Red Hall for 10:10am. 

10:10am

Arrival at the Red Hall.Inside the Red Hall, we will hand over the money over to the woman who let us use it. Then we shall choose a room which we are going to film in and set up our equipment. 

10:30am

All equipment will be ready to go and Laura and Scott will be ready in their costumes. Bailey will have prepared the camera ready to begin filming. We will then start filming. We will mainly focus on filming the reveal of the setting and Laura's body at this stage.

12:00pm

Lunch break. We will also discuss what we are going to do after we have finished eating. We will prepare any new props and talk about what we want to film during the other half of the day.

12:45pm

Finished lunch, we will now prepare to shoot the rest of the video. We will now focus on Scott's part in the opening. We will use the torch to create highlights of Laura's body and to visualise Scott. This may take around 45 minutes.

13:30pm

After we have filmed Scott's parts we will then move on to Becky's part. It will not take long to film her parts as she not in it as long as Scott and Laura. This will roughly take and hour.

14:30pm

Finished filming. We will pack all our equipment away and tidy the room we used. We will then turn off all the lights close all the doors and then post the keys back through the letter box, once we have locked up. 

15:00pm 

We will return to school to talk to our media teacher and make sure we give back our equipment. At 15:15pm we will all go home and Becky will begin editing the opening using her iPad.

16:00pm 

Finished!

 

Planning- Storyboard

Storyboard

 

 

We have decided to use this as our storyboard for our opening, instead of the original storyboard becuase we had to work around the changed circumsatnces. We made an error on the filminmg day of ripping up Laura's clothes before we shot her flashbacks. This meant we had to remove the flashbacks and continue to shoot from what we had. However i think that this storyboard shows that we have gone into more detail than the other one and that we can cope when we had to change our storyboard idea.

Planning- Risk Assessment

Risk Assessment For the Filming Day

Planning- Actor Contract

To Potential Actor,

The current year 12 Media Studies students are working on an important project for their coursework, which will count towards their final grade for A levels. The coursework will consist of a film opening for a crime-thriller film. This will include taking pictures and videos of models, which will be set in certain locations.

The film genre is a thriller and will be aimed towards people aged 15-25, male and female.

I am writing to you to request permission to use the pictures and videos of yourself for the opening.

Please indicate your decision by deleting the option that does not apply and signing at the bottom of the slip below. Your signature confirms that I have permission to use yourself as a model in our opening.

Kind regards,

Scene-Screen Productions

As Media Student

I do/do not give permission for the use of my photos and video in the film opening

Signed…………………………………………………………………………

Date………………………………….

Planning- Actors

Actors

Bailey – Bailey is going to take the role of being the director and the person in charge of the camera. Bailey has chosen this role as he is used to acting as he takes drama so he knows what will work and what wont, also it is different from what he does normally, which is act,  therefore will be interesting to have a different role  than what he is used to. Bailey will be successful as a director as he can see what happens therefore seeing if it is right or wrong so we can change it and make it better. As Bailey is the director/cameraman he will be in control of the lighting to make sure that the shots that we need are as clear as possible and in the correct place so the continuity editing will be correct.

Becky – Becky will be one of the protagonists in the thriller opening but towards the end. We have decided this role for Becky as she is confident therefore will be good at acting for this opening and creating tension. As she is female it lives up to the stereotype of being a protagonist and being easily defeated, in most thrillers is what happens. As Becky is only being seen in the end it is better for her to play this role as she has the correct items of clothing that she can wear so it fits her character, of being pure as well as secretive so the antagonist doesn't know that she is there.

Scott – Scott is the only antagonist in the opening as he has a strong build like an antagonist would. He is the tallest and broadest out of everyone therefore has the most power and can be seen as being dominant towards the protagonists which is a stereotypical antagonist that fits to the thriller genre. From Scott’s height it will show the power that he has over the protagonists therefore would look realistic as in person he looks stronger and well-built to be able to act like he would have the ability to commit something that happens in this storyline compared to Laura murdering Scott which wouldn’t seem convincing as women in the media do not have the control and strength like men do.

Laura – Laura is the other protagonist which the thriller opening will focus on parts of her body that have been attacked. We chose Laura to have this role as she is a female meaning she could easily be targeted. Laura doesn’t usually act and is being the camera therefore we chose to change roles to make it interesting for everyone else by doing something out of our comfort zone. Laura has long hair therefore we could use it to cover her identity so not much is revealed in the first two minutes of the opening. The make-up will be done by Laura and Becky as they already have the resources therefore know what will work and how to do it, instead of having to buy the resources that we need.

Planning- Justification of Locations

Justification of Locations

We have decided to use these locations because we felt they represented the thriller genre best. The reason for this is because in a typical thriller film, the setting of the film normally sees a group of people assembling at a particular house that could be owned by one of the characters. By using the Red Hall we can use an old and run down room to create a crime scene. The room will help to set the scene of where Laura was murdered and we can control how much light is in the room. We can also use the darkness to highlight parts of Laura's body with a torch. The Red Hall also looks like a haunted house which creates an enigma as you don't know what could be inside. The house offers us room to spread multiple props and have newspaper all over the floor. We can also have photographic evidence of how Laura died as we film. Also when Becky enters the hall, we will get to look around some parts of the house as she makes her way to finding Laura's body. The pictures of the bridges represent the second location we are considering to shoot at. We may possibly shoot some of the shots at a bridge to show where Laura was murdered.  The bridge is quite modern as it has graffiti over it and has litter and rubble around it. This fits into the thriller genre and the conventions, as thrillers today are modernised a lot and some natural props are used to help set the scene and create an image in the audiences mind.

Planning- Thriller Opening Pitch (Presentation)

Thriller Opening Pitch

Planning- Props Justification

Props Justification

 

Props that are going to be used:

Torch: Focus on specific parts of the bodies that have been injured - close ups of the injuries but the torch is the only light seen, creating tension and mystery because of the low lighting.

Table: For Laura to lie on as this is where she is seen as being dead.

Rope: May use rope to be surrounding the person showing how they are trapped as have no power, use of a high angle shot here to hint how much power the antagonist has.

Newspaper: To add a modern twist and create tension by cutting out the letters to spell 'death' and other dark words.

 

Why are the props typical in a thriller genre?

The props that we are going to use is typical of a thriller genre and they show meaning of being trapped and can control what people do. The knife and the torch are used in a typical thriller genre as knives are used for violence and the torch creates mystery so identity's are hidden making it more suspicious which will build up suspense for the audience.

 

Through the use of props that we are going to be using it will give off a message of how dangerous the place that they are in actually is and the mystery will hide identities and the story of what actually happened so the audience has to work it out for themselves which will keep them interested in watching the thriller.

 

The props that are going to be shown are violent so it will represent the antagonist by being threatening to anyone else that they see as they will be unsafe. As well as having hidden identities the location will not be shown so again the sense of hidden parts to the thriller that will not be revealed and not all questions will be answered. Therefore the props being as violent as they are will make the setting seem worse than it is as it would look run down and come across as a dangerous area to be.

 

In our opening we are not going to be using a lot of props as we want it to be naturalistic instead of using too many props to cover up the story of what is happening, as well as showing acting.

Planning- Costume and Make Up Justification

Costume and Make Up Preparation

Laura:

Fake Blood/Red Food Colouring-Represents her blood as Laura will have blood on her from her murder.

White Top- Tomrepresent her innocence and her purity. These colours also helps to connote a female protagonist, as they are quite vulnerable.

Leggings-Represents Laura's character and her personality. The victim is typically a female in thriller films so we want Laura to look innocent and modern as possible.

Red Converses-Connotes danger as she has been killed.

Dark/Dead Make-Up- Represents her death and death itself involved in the opening.

Becky:

Modern Everyday Clothes (Black Jeans, Burgandy Top, Converses and a Coat)- No reference to the thriller genre as much as Laura's clothing. However thriller films are very modern so the everyday clothing would show this.

Everyday Suitable Make-Up

Scott:

Smart Clothing (Trousers, Shirt and Tie)- This is much like the Jokers clothing in Batman and is the most common outfit for the antagonist to wear. This is why we have chosen to have Scott dress this smart. We will make his outfit look rough and run down.

Coat with a hood- To add suspicion to the opening. With Scott being the antagonist we wanted his identity to be hidden by having his hood over his head. Scream is a perfect example of how masks and coverings are used in thriller films.

Fake Blood- To show the victims blood and the killers hands.

Bailey:

Modern Clothes (Jeans, T-Shirt, Coat and Trainers)- No reference to the thriller genre as much as Laura and Scott's clothing. However again thriller films are very modern so the everyday clothing would show this.

No Make-Up

Vox Pop

Flashback Preliminary Video

Title Sequence Inspiration

Thriller Title Inspiration: Silent Hill Revelation

I particularly like the text in this screenshot, because the typography used is rustic and bold. It is also sans serif. The camerawork is a mid shot of the name of the actor and the blurred figure in the background is out of focus. Editing in this shot has been used by using the camera focus to blur out the figure so the audience is suspicious and it creates mystery. The sound used in this clip was very depressing and had sounds of screeching knives in the background. The main prop in this shot is the figure and the lighting focuses on the actor’s name. The setting is not known at this point. The foreground has been used to show the audience clues of what's in the film. The background has been used to reveal more of what's happening.

The camerawork is a mid shot of the disfigured manikin girls, suspended in the air. Editing in this shot has been used to suspend the manikins and their weapons. This was done using a freeze frame. The sound used did not change and was again very depressing and had sounds of screeching knives in the background. The main props in this shot are the manikins and the lighting highlights there existence. The setting is still not known at this point. Again the foreground has been used to show the audience clues of what's in the film. The background has been used to reveal more of what's happening.

The camerawork in this shot is a close up of the weapon cracking into the floor. Editing in this shot has been used to spread out the pieces of the floor, which again have been suspended in the air. The sound used in this clip is continuous. The main props in this shot are the manikin’s feet and the weapon. The lighting is very bright in the background and allows us to see much of the surroundings. The foreground has been used to show the audience a shot of the weapon used in the film. The background does not show as much in this shot.

Camerawork in this shot is a low long angle, of the name of the game creator and again the blurred manikin’s in the background. Editing in this shot has been used to blur out the manikins so the audience is suspicious. The sound used in this clip is still continuous throughout. The main prop in this shot is the manikins and the lighting highlights the manikins, but does it in a way so they are shadowed on. The setting is still not known at this point. The foreground has been used to show the audience a shadowed clue of what's in the film. The background has been used to reveal more lighting to darken the figures out.

Camerawork in this shot is a close up again, of a manikins cracked face. Editing in this shot has been used to hold the action of the face cracking, in a still point in time. The sound used in this clip is still continuous throughout although it has picked up at this point. The main prop in this shot is the manikins face and the lighting highlights what has happened to the face, but shadows the rest of the background. Therefore we still cannot get a clear picture of where all of this is taking place. The foreground has been used to show the audience a smashed face to represent danger in the film. The background does not reveal as much to the audience in this shot.

 

Which production company would you use to produce your thriller?

History:

Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation (or Lionsgate) is a Canadian-American entertainment company. The company was formed in, Vancouver British Colombia, on July 3, 1997, and is headquartered in Santa Monica, California. As of November 2013, it is the most commercially successful mini major film and television distribution company in North America and the seventh most profitable movie studio. Lionsgate Films are not to be confused with Robert Altman's former company, Lion's Gate Films, although both names refer to the same Vancouver landmark, the harbour entrance which is known as First Narrows or Lions Gate.

Films Produced:

• Texas Chainsaw (2013)
• Horns (2013)
• Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)
• Saw 3D (2010)
• Blitz (2011)
• Hell (2011)
• The Cabin in the Woods (2012)
• Magic Mike (2012)

Lionsgate make thriller films like these and they mainly specify in this genre. Lionsgate is a suitable institution to produce our thriller film because, the company specialises in making most thriller films and have a very similar target audience which is typically a young range of people aged between 15 and 30.  Lionsgate work within the thriller genre and have created some fantastic films. This will hopefully help our group to make a successful and creative thriller opening. Lionsgate have expanded from television to having their own record label. This also reassures our group that Lionsgate are a trusted and well known company, that are very successful and a very good inspiration for our group.

Mise-en-Scene Analysis

The opening of this thriller films is quite unique compared to any other thriller opening as it is futuristic in design. By presenting a thriller film with a landscape of a spacious field, it could make the audience feel confused and unorthodox in comparison to any other thriller film. There is a significant amount of lighting in the beginning of this thriller opening, which also contradicts the typical style of a thriller and it genre. Furthermore a typical opening would be dark, mysterious and differential which surprisingly what the storyline of the film is about.  We then begin to pan across to a wrecked and rusty boat. This brings us back to the present as it reminds us of an original marine ship.

As the continuation of the opening develops we then begin to see, what looks like a wall wrapped around a city. This implies a protective and possibly defense mechanism to the people of the city. Further titles enroll and we eventually find out where the setting of the thriller film is. The city of Chicago itself looks run down and does not present a positive outlook to what’s happened to it. Further in we get a clearer picture of what chaos has happened and a glimpse of some of the people who live and work in the city. They seem to be wearing bland colours which blend in with the circumstance that has occurred in the city. Finally the addition of the trucks could suggest aiding supplies which expands on our idea of what the film is based upon and what a thriller film really stands for.









Props and Costume:

Their was not a lot of props used in the opening of Divergent. The props that were used in this opening was the boat wreckage, the wall around Chicago and the trucks that appeared at the end of the clip.  As the clip begin to pan across to a wrecked and rusty boat, this brough us back to the present as it reminds us of an original marine ship. The costumes in the opening were very bland and blended in with the colours of the city. This is also typical of a thriller genre and connotes the genuine feature of the thriller film.

Lighting:

As i have already said the lighting was very light and not typicall of a thriller film. Most thriller films would have dark and bleak lighting which represented the thriller genre. The lighting at the start of the opening was very dark and contrasted the text, however the light lifted when the shot panned up to the landscape scenery. This is the only type of lighting that has been shown in the opening.

Location:

The location of this thriller film did represent the thriller genre when we saw the wall around Chicago. The location at the start of the opening contrasted the thriller genre because a thriller film would not typically be located in a landscaped field. To be located in a fast moving and futuristic city like it was in this opening is not unusual for a thriller film. This is becuase it creates another layer to build up the narrative of the thriller film.

Vox Pop Analysis

Vox Pop Analysis

Question 1: If you were to make your own thriller, what would you include in it?

Responses:

“Suspense and tension.”

“Fight scenes.”

“Explosions and some car chases maybe.”

“I think I would include a lot of chase scenes, guns, a lot of fighting stuff like that.”

Overall this questions responses shows that people want fast paced action movies that include lots of fight scenes and guns. When we make our preliminary film we will have to include a fast paced plot with some fight scenes and possibly a weapon being used. We will have to have a clear hero/ victim(protagonist) and villain/killer (antagonist) and roles portrayed by other member of the group that will blend in with the rest of the scene.

Question 2: What’s your favourite thriller and why?

Responses:

“High Plains Drifter because it’s very intriguing.”

“Fast and Furious 3 because it’s got a chase in it which I like a lot.”

“Psycho because it’s got a lot of action in it.”

“Probably Silent Hill because it’s got a lot of good characterisation and the back story is really good.”

These questions responses show that people like fast paced action movies, mysterious and jumpy movies and that some people even like western movies. When we make our preliminary film we will have to some sort of theme throughout so that the audience will know what the genre or sub-genre we are trying to achieve and hopefully satisfy and please that audience. Our actors will have to be believable and display a wide range of actions based around the genre to make the opening effective and likable as possible. We should include good camera angles or unique locations to create an iconic and effective thriller opening.

Question 3: What do you like to see in a thriller?

Responses:

“Suspense and tension.”

“Action.”

“Action and some adventure.”

“I like to see a lot of action so it’s a very fast paced movie with a good soundtrack.”

The results from this question show again that the audience enjoy action and tension in thriller movies. It has become apparent that we have to include some kind of fight scene or killing in our preliminary task in order to fulfill the audience desires. It’s also important that we have a good soundtrack and/or sound effects to accompany our video as this will add the extra tension that the audience wants to experience watching the opening. We want the opening to be unique and powerful to create a defined and well directed scene that the audience will love and that we can enjoy making.

Summary:

Overall I felt we got very helpful responses. We will try to make our thriller opening powerful and unique by, adding unusual editing techniques, different transitions and a good soundtrack. This should help our opening because it will add an enigma and tension to our production. I also believe that the responses allowed us to see what our audience would expect to see in a thriller film and what would make them want to watch ours. Overall it was very fun to make our vox pops and I really enjoyed doing something different for the course. It was interesting to get other people's opinions and it turned out to be very sucessful.

Media "Flashback" Preliminary Evaluation

Media Preliminary Evaluation: “Flashback”

I felt the planning of our preliminary task went very well. We managed to come up with a unique and realistic storyline idea for our first small media project. I believe this would develop our media skills and knowledge range of media as a group. We were able to capture a range of dynamic and fitting shots that would continuously run smooth throughout the clip. We included a consistent flow of continuity in our shots, this was so that we had a continuous flow of action from when Bailey and I begun walking up the stairs to when I left the room at the last part of the clip. We also made sure to keep to the 180° rule throughout shooting our short film. I feel that overall our preliminary task went very well. We used schools video recorders which shot 480p SD video. I feel that we implemented the titles very well, using a close up shot of our lanyards moving away from the camera until our names and faces were revealed. We felt that this was quite professional and it improved our video dramatically. Overall with various camera angles and effective titles at the end of the video we feel that our preliminary video is unique and appropriate for what we've been asked to do. I found that one of the skills I picked up during this production is how to use iMovie. This included how to form the clip and how to add additional transitions to the clip when necessary. I also manage to have a taste of acting in the clip which gave me confidence to continue being in front of the camera in future.

All of our shots were positioned using the tripod so we could maneuver the camera whilst filming. The high angled shot of Bailey and I walking up the stairs was the hardest to film as Laura had to get into the correct position each time, if she hadn't this could have looked messy and unprofessional. The outcome of this was a slightly jerky, but luckily the stabilisation done on iMovie was able to compensate for any sudden movements. To overcome this issue we could have used a handheld camera however this may have made the jerkiness even more noticeable. We edited the clip on iMovie to make sure that all of our shots ran fluently. I believe that I have gained some useful skills from this production. I now have a better understanding of how to edit future productions on iMovie. I have also found out how to add transitions and sound into the clip on iMovie, which I think will prove useful later on in the course. I think next time I am working in a group I will try doing some camerawork and focus on the directing and camera skills. Finally I will make sure to assist my group in choosing the best type of shots so that we can gain more marks for using a range of techniques and skills to get the best possible outcome of future productions.

 This is a high angled mid shot that is made to look hazy and over exposed. Bailey and I are the main focus in this shot. This shot uses the rule of thirds having Bailey and I in the centre third. We used this angle to make us look more vulnerable in this scene.

 This is a close up of Bailey and I grabbing the handles and opening the doors. This shot focuses mainly on our hands and the door handles, but you can still see some of our bodies. We used this shot type to create mystery and suspense for the audience.

 This is a mid shot of Bailey and I walking through the doors. We used this angle to show continuity and whereabouts Bailey and I are in relation to the previous shot. It also allows the audience to see my suspicious facial expression in comparison to Bailey's.

 This is a mid shot of Bailey and I inside the room sat on chairs. I had just handed him the poisonous sweets which Bailey is unaware of. We used this angle to allow the audience get a picture of where we were in comparison to the other shot. Bailey is in the foreground of the first third and I am in the center third.

This is a high canted angled shot showing Bailey dead and sprawled over the floor. We used this shot to add tension as the audience had just seen me murder Bailey. This shot uses the rule of thirds, with Bailey lying on the left hand side of the frame in the background. We are clearly able to see the poisonous sweets scattered across the floor. The audience can also notice i have now left the scene.