The costumes are an important part of the sequence because they need to represent the characters personality and they are the first thing the audience will notice about the character especially because we are planning on using little dialogue. We decided on what the each character should wear fairly quickly because we all had the same idea of what we wanted the characters to wear.
Firstly we wanted both the characters to wear normal everyday clothes so that the audience can relate to the characters which makes it seem that the story of the thriller could actually happen in real life which will hopefully frighten the audience. We also want both characters to look casual, which can be shown by the costumes. They are also meant to seem like ordinary normal people as well. We also wanted both of the characters to wear similar clothes so show that they are similar characters because they have a similar personality and lifestyle and I believe that if they wore the similar clothes then this point will be demonstrated well. As both characters are male we decided that they should wear dark colours because they are stereotypically male colours and show masculinity and power and dark colours also make it seem more scary because it gives the sequence a dark atmosphere which fits in with the thriller genre.
As we do not have a budget we cannot purchase any new clothes, which means we can only use clothes we already have or which somebody else lets us borrow for our sequence. We also thought that the murderers costume should definitely be dark to show that he has done something evil. The murderer is wearing a causal dark grey top which also has some black elements to it, and he is also wearing darkly coloured jeans, these colours have negative connotations and represent such things as death and this fits in with the genre of thriller. Black also symbolises mystery and it is a mystery as to why the murderer killed the victim which is why this colour fits into our thriller. The colour black is worn by the murderer and it represents evil, crime and power and the murderer clearly has power which is why he committed the evil crime of murder. These colours can also show the murders personality as being dark and evil. He also has his sleeves rolled up which suggests he was just performing an action and didn't want to get his sleeves dirty, this action could have been the murder.
The victim is also wearing a casual top, however his top is green which has connotations such as jealousy, which shows that the victim was possibly jealous of the murderer and tried to do something to the murderer which is why he murdered him. The victim will also wears jeans which are a similar style to the murderer which again shows that their personality is similar. The blue jeans the victim is wearing brings the connotation of sadness which is shown by an innocent man being murdered. Again the victim similar to the murderer has his sleeves rolled up and by this and similar clothes it shows that they have a similar dress sense and a similar personality.
Sunday 20 February 2011
Risk Assessment
We had to think carefully about where the location of the filming will take place and the props we used in filming because we needed to make sure that we were being safe and everybody's safety is extremely important. We needed to make sure that none of the equipment we were using gets damaged and that none of us get injured. This is why I have looked at all the possible dangers that could happen, who/what the danger affects and ways to prevent this risk from happening.
Damaging the camera - There are different ways that the camera can become damaged. These are mainly by the camera being dropped or by spilling something on the camera such as the milk or water that we will be using in our sequence. The chances of this happening however are minuscule because we will be extremely careful when using the camera to prevent this from happening. However it the camera is damaged it could have many consequences because it could stop us from accessing footage we have already recorded and stop us filming more footage which will delay us. Another way of preventing the camera from damage is by using a tripod because this will stop the risk of the camera being dropped. However it is not very efficient for us to use a tripod because of the different camera angles that we will be using. When the camera is not in use we will make sure to keep it in a safe place and in a case to prevent damage to it.
Losing equipment - Losing equipment can have extremely bad consequences because if we lose the camera we will have lost all the footage we have recorded which means that we will need to spend time finding the camera or recording it all again, which is a waste of time. However the chances of losing the equipment is very unlikely because we will not be able to lose it whilst we are using it because we will be careful and when we are not using it we will store the camera in a safe place and remember where we have placed it. If we lose the milk/kettle/mug/gun etc. it will be extremely easy for us to replace these props because they are easy to obtain because they are not expensive.
Damaging the mug - This will not have any serious effect because Oliver has a set of these mugs which are all exactly the same so even if we broke one we would have an identical one to use instead. However we will be careful when handling the mug to prevent this from happening.
Milk/Water spilling - We will also be very careful so that we do not spill any liquid on the floor because if we do there is a serious safety concern because we could fall over and becoming seriously injured.
Hot water - We also need to be careful when handling the hot water because if we spill it on ourselves it will be extremely painful and we could have a severe burn so we need to prevent this from happening. We are filming next to a sink during when the hot water is being used which is useful in case somebody does burn themselves because they will then be able to run it under cold water straight away to avoid a serious burn.
As we are filming at Oliver's dad's house this means that it is private for us to use. This therefore means that we do not have to worry about disturbing the public or worry about being hit by vehicles because we are not filming on a public road, which will prove to be beneficial when it comes to filming. We also filmed when no one else was in the house to prevent Oliver's family also being at risk which is useful because it ensures their safety. As we have looked at all the preventions to possible dangers that could occur when filming I believe that it is safe to film because we know what we need to do to avoid these risks.
Damaging the camera - There are different ways that the camera can become damaged. These are mainly by the camera being dropped or by spilling something on the camera such as the milk or water that we will be using in our sequence. The chances of this happening however are minuscule because we will be extremely careful when using the camera to prevent this from happening. However it the camera is damaged it could have many consequences because it could stop us from accessing footage we have already recorded and stop us filming more footage which will delay us. Another way of preventing the camera from damage is by using a tripod because this will stop the risk of the camera being dropped. However it is not very efficient for us to use a tripod because of the different camera angles that we will be using. When the camera is not in use we will make sure to keep it in a safe place and in a case to prevent damage to it.
Losing equipment - Losing equipment can have extremely bad consequences because if we lose the camera we will have lost all the footage we have recorded which means that we will need to spend time finding the camera or recording it all again, which is a waste of time. However the chances of losing the equipment is very unlikely because we will not be able to lose it whilst we are using it because we will be careful and when we are not using it we will store the camera in a safe place and remember where we have placed it. If we lose the milk/kettle/mug/gun etc. it will be extremely easy for us to replace these props because they are easy to obtain because they are not expensive.
Damaging the mug - This will not have any serious effect because Oliver has a set of these mugs which are all exactly the same so even if we broke one we would have an identical one to use instead. However we will be careful when handling the mug to prevent this from happening.
Milk/Water spilling - We will also be very careful so that we do not spill any liquid on the floor because if we do there is a serious safety concern because we could fall over and becoming seriously injured.
Hot water - We also need to be careful when handling the hot water because if we spill it on ourselves it will be extremely painful and we could have a severe burn so we need to prevent this from happening. We are filming next to a sink during when the hot water is being used which is useful in case somebody does burn themselves because they will then be able to run it under cold water straight away to avoid a serious burn.
As we are filming at Oliver's dad's house this means that it is private for us to use. This therefore means that we do not have to worry about disturbing the public or worry about being hit by vehicles because we are not filming on a public road, which will prove to be beneficial when it comes to filming. We also filmed when no one else was in the house to prevent Oliver's family also being at risk which is useful because it ensures their safety. As we have looked at all the preventions to possible dangers that could occur when filming I believe that it is safe to film because we know what we need to do to avoid these risks.
Props
As the opening sequence is not very long, I have decided not to use many props because they are not needed.
Gun - We decided to film a close up of a gun on the kitchen work top which is then followed by a shot of the dead body.This gives the audience the idea that the man has been killed by that gun.Murders are a common theme in thrillers and creates a scary atmosphere and fear among the audience.Also when researching for my thriller I found out that the majority of people I interviewed believed that a gun is a good prop to use for a thriller and I have put this to action. Obviously the gun is a toy and is definitely not real. The gun is the most important and the most effective prop used in our thriller because it is the murder weapon and is only revealed at the end of the sequence. We used a toy gun because it would be too difficult and too dangerous to use and obtain a real gun.
Mug - The coffee mug is shown a number of times in our opening sequence. As we were filming in the kitchen we just took a coffee mug from there. However we did choose carefully on which coffee mug to pick and we decided on the one we used because it was plain and a dark colour which fits in more with the tone of the thriller. We also made sure that the mug was clean as well.
Milk/Kettle - Again as we are filming in the kitchen it was easy for us to obtain these two items to use in our thriller. We needed the milk and kettle because the sequence involves the murderer making a cup of coffee and then drinking this coffee after murdering somebody.
Credits - The title of the thriller is shown on a background and the background is extremely interesting. Oliver's dad is a teaching assistant and the students he taught had to write a story and one student just repeatedly wrote 'dead' because that is how he said he felt at the time of writing the story and he is only in year 4. This was easy to obtain because Oliver's dad had it as the class had to hand the work in. We then thought that it would be a could idea to use this as the background for the title instead of just a plain black background because it is more effective and death is a key convention in thrillers.It also reminds me of a scene in the thriller classic 'The Shining' (1980), where the character who we think has been writing a novel, has actually been writing one phrase over and over again on hundreds of sheets of paper.
We also had other props on show such as butter, plants, bins etc. and this was done to make our thriller seem like normal everyday life which means the audience can relate to the thriller more and therefore making it scarier for the audience because they believe it could now happen to them. There is also a shot used showing the kitchen which shows normal kitchen appliances to reinforce the fact that this could be normal everyday life. There is also some alcohol placed on the kitchen table which could imply that the murderer has drinking problems which is one of the reasons he has just committed a murder. All of these props are extremely easy for us to obtain which is very useful. The props are an important part of he mise-en-scene and are key in thrillers. They can be very effective if used in the right way.
Gun - We decided to film a close up of a gun on the kitchen work top which is then followed by a shot of the dead body.This gives the audience the idea that the man has been killed by that gun.Murders are a common theme in thrillers and creates a scary atmosphere and fear among the audience.Also when researching for my thriller I found out that the majority of people I interviewed believed that a gun is a good prop to use for a thriller and I have put this to action. Obviously the gun is a toy and is definitely not real. The gun is the most important and the most effective prop used in our thriller because it is the murder weapon and is only revealed at the end of the sequence. We used a toy gun because it would be too difficult and too dangerous to use and obtain a real gun.
Mug - The coffee mug is shown a number of times in our opening sequence. As we were filming in the kitchen we just took a coffee mug from there. However we did choose carefully on which coffee mug to pick and we decided on the one we used because it was plain and a dark colour which fits in more with the tone of the thriller. We also made sure that the mug was clean as well.
Milk/Kettle - Again as we are filming in the kitchen it was easy for us to obtain these two items to use in our thriller. We needed the milk and kettle because the sequence involves the murderer making a cup of coffee and then drinking this coffee after murdering somebody.Credits - The title of the thriller is shown on a background and the background is extremely interesting. Oliver's dad is a teaching assistant and the students he taught had to write a story and one student just repeatedly wrote 'dead' because that is how he said he felt at the time of writing the story and he is only in year 4. This was easy to obtain because Oliver's dad had it as the class had to hand the work in. We then thought that it would be a could idea to use this as the background for the title instead of just a plain black background because it is more effective and death is a key convention in thrillers.It also reminds me of a scene in the thriller classic 'The Shining' (1980), where the character who we think has been writing a novel, has actually been writing one phrase over and over again on hundreds of sheets of paper.
We also had other props on show such as butter, plants, bins etc. and this was done to make our thriller seem like normal everyday life which means the audience can relate to the thriller more and therefore making it scarier for the audience because they believe it could now happen to them. There is also a shot used showing the kitchen which shows normal kitchen appliances to reinforce the fact that this could be normal everyday life. There is also some alcohol placed on the kitchen table which could imply that the murderer has drinking problems which is one of the reasons he has just committed a murder. All of these props are extremely easy for us to obtain which is very useful. The props are an important part of he mise-en-scene and are key in thrillers. They can be very effective if used in the right way.
Brainstorm
Me, Oliver and Jonathan were quite exciting when it came to planning our thriller because we were eager to being filming and planning took us one step closer to this. We all had a lot of ideas which were very creative and interesting. We have thought a lot about different aspects for our thriller. We have looked at props, costumes, camera angles, sounds, plots, sub-genres, editing and locations to help us decide what our final idea will be for our thriller which was difficult because we had a various amount of different ideas to choose from. However these ideas that we have come up with are not final and we may change something through the process if we think it will have a better effect but we probably won't make any huge changes. We also chose ideas which were typical and conventions of thrillers so that our thriller would fit into the film genre of thriller. This brainstorm helped us decide on what to do for our thriller and help us to create it. We also decided to have a murder occur in our thriller to make it more exciting and we also chose the sub-genre for our thriller which means it is a psychological thriller because this makes our thriller more interesting.
Locations
We spent quite a while deciding on a suitable location to film our thriller. Firstly we decided that we did not want to film our thriller in school because this was not the setting we wanted. This meant that instead of coming to our lesson in college we could film at our desired location. We then decided that we wanted to film at a house because this would be an extremely suitable location for the plot of our thriller. This meant that we could choose whether to film at my house, Jonathan's house or Oliver's mum's house or his dad's house. The best time to film our thriller would be when we had a free house this is because no one would be able to interfere with our work and progress. Me and Oliver thought it would be a good idea to film at his mum's house but Jonathan wanted to film at Oliver's dad's house and after some discussion we decided to choose Oliver's dad's house to be our location for our thriller. This is because Oliver's dad's house looks more old fashioned when compared with his mum's house which looks more modern. The old fashioned look automatically made our thriller a bit more interesting and effective. We decided to use the kitchen because it was on the back of the house facing the garden. Also the back door was clear glass which meant the victim and the villain could see each other before the door opened. We also used the lounge which was where the dead body sitting on the couch was.
The gate which the victim walks through is slightly creaky which makes the atmosphere more mysterious, which is why it fits in well with our thriller.
The alley which leads to the front door also creates a mysterious atmosphere. This is because the house looks fairly old fashioned which makes it more gothic and scary.
This is an image of the kitchen in Oliver's house. We believe that is a suitable and excellent location which will look good in our thriller. It also leads onto the lounge, which can be seen by the final shot where it slowly moves to the lounge from the kitchen.
This is an image of the lounge in Oliver's house. We decided to use this as the setting for the dead body because it suits the theme and atmosphere of the thriller. It is also the location of the final shot, where the murderer is lying dead on the sofa.
The gate which the victim walks through is slightly creaky which makes the atmosphere more mysterious, which is why it fits in well with our thriller.
The alley which leads to the front door also creates a mysterious atmosphere. This is because the house looks fairly old fashioned which makes it more gothic and scary.
This is an image of the kitchen in Oliver's house. We believe that is a suitable and excellent location which will look good in our thriller. It also leads onto the lounge, which can be seen by the final shot where it slowly moves to the lounge from the kitchen.
This is an image of the lounge in Oliver's house. We decided to use this as the setting for the dead body because it suits the theme and atmosphere of the thriller. It is also the location of the final shot, where the murderer is lying dead on the sofa.
Audience Research - Questionnaire
I decided to create a questionnaire in order to find out information which I could use to help me create my thriller. My questionnaire involved 14 different questions which will give me a good insight as to what to base my thriller on. I decided that I would ask 30 different people because this will give me a fairly wide audience which means I can generalise my results however looking at 30 people on a large scale it is a fairly small sample. I asked my friends and family in person and over the internet for my results.
1. Are you male or female?
- Male (15)
- Female (15)
I decided to ask the same amount of males as females so that my results will represents both genders. I chose to ask 15 of each gender, it did not happen by fluke. However after I had 15 of each gender I chose the rest at random. I needed to ask both genders so that I had both gender's opinions and a wider audience.
2. How old are you?
- Child (3)
- Teenager (9)
- Adolescent (9)
- Adult (7)
- Elderly (2)
I asked people of all ages because this gave me a wider audience and a view of what people of different ages believe which could possibly help me when I am making my thriller. The majority of people I asked were between the ages of a teenager and an adult because they are the people who will most likely watched thrillers. This age group were most likely to be asked because they are the digital natives who are the people who watch films the most. I also asked a couple of children and the elderly just to give me a wider view on people's opinions.
3. What colour would you prefer the thriller to be in?
- Black & White (7)
- Colour (8)
- Both (15)
I decided to ask this question because there have been thrillers which have been shown in colour or in black & white. So I asked people which colour they would prefer the thriller to be shown in and most people said both so I might possibly use colour and black & white in my thriller.
4. Would you prefer the character to be revealed or hidden in the opening sequence?
- Hidden (21)
- Revealed (9)
Some thrillers have had the characters revealed in the opening sequence whereas some thrillers haven't. I wanted to see which my target audience found most effective so that I could possibly use it in my thriller opening.
5. Would you like the opening sequence to be open or mysterious?
- Open (7)
- Mysterious (23)
I wanted to know whether to reveal the plot to the opening audience or if I should keep it mysterious. If it is mysterious than the audience will want to continue watching but I don't want the audience to get bored so I will need to reveal a little bit of the plot in the opening sequence but I do not want it to ruin the thriller by revealing too much.
6. Would you prefer the lighting to be dark or light?
- Dark (16)
- Light (14)
I predicted that most people would prefer the lighting to be dark rather than light because it creates a sense of mysterious and sets the tone of the film. Dark lighting also makes it seem scarier whereas if it is lighting it will not seem as scary. Dark lighting will also make the character seem isolated and in a constricted area. I will probably use fairly dark lighting in my thriller for this reason.
7. How often do you watch thrillers?
- Every week (7)
- Every fortnight (13)
- Every month (6)
- Every 6 months (4)
I needed to know how often people watched thrillers in order to help me create my thriller. The results are as I expected because I predicted that most people would watch a thriller every fortnight.
8. What is your favourite film genre?
- Comedy (7)
- Thriller (8)
- Horror (6)
- Action (7)
- Other (2)
I predicted that most people would've said thrillers because that is what my questionnaire is based on. However comedies and action films are also really popular with my audience.
9. What is your favourite thriller sub-genre?
- Crime Thriller (7)
- Conspiracy Thriller (3)
- Mystery Thriller (5)
- Psychological Thriller (12)
- Other (3)
I had predicted that most people would've chosen psychological thriller because they are the most popular sub-genre for a thriller. Looking at the results the sub-genre for my thriller will most likely be psychological thriller because this is the type of thrillers most people enjoy to watch.
10. What props could I use for my opening sequence?
- Gun (21)
- Mobile Phone (4)
- Knife (2)
- Other (3)
Looking at the results from this question I will most likely use a gun in my opening sequence because most people see a gun as the most effective prop used in thrillers. This could also fit in with my thriller if I choose to do a psychological thriller.
11. Would you prefer to have a lot of dialogue or a little dialogue in the opening sequence?
- A lot? (11)
- A little? (19)
Most people I asked preferred thrillers with only a little bit of dialogue in the opening sequence. This is why in my thriller I will only use a little bit of dialogue because this proves to be more effective with my audience.
12. Would you prefer the lead role to be played by a male or female?
- Male (18)
- Female (12)
I predicted that most people would choose to have a male play the lead role in a thriller because it is conventional of thrillers. However women have also started becoming lead roles in thrillers now. Looking at the results from this question I will probably choose to have a male play the lead role in my thriller.
13. Would you prefer the the victim to be male or female?
- Male (12)
- Female (18)
I also predicted that most people would choose to have a female play the victim because this is also another convention of thrillers. However this makes women seem weak and vulnerable which is an old negative stereotype.
14. Would you prefer the villain to be male or female?
- Male (16)
- Female (14)
I also predicted that most people would choose to have a male character play the villain because this is another convention of thrillers. This is because men seem more powerful which is a positive stereotype of men. I will most likely choose to have a male play the villain in my thriller because it is more common for this in thrillers.
This questionnaire has given me some good ideas as to what I can include when it comes to creating my thriller.
1. Are you male or female?
- Male (15)
- Female (15)
I decided to ask the same amount of males as females so that my results will represents both genders. I chose to ask 15 of each gender, it did not happen by fluke. However after I had 15 of each gender I chose the rest at random. I needed to ask both genders so that I had both gender's opinions and a wider audience.2. How old are you?
- Child (3)
- Teenager (9)
- Adolescent (9)
- Adult (7)
- Elderly (2)
I asked people of all ages because this gave me a wider audience and a view of what people of different ages believe which could possibly help me when I am making my thriller. The majority of people I asked were between the ages of a teenager and an adult because they are the people who will most likely watched thrillers. This age group were most likely to be asked because they are the digital natives who are the people who watch films the most. I also asked a couple of children and the elderly just to give me a wider view on people's opinions.3. What colour would you prefer the thriller to be in?
- Black & White (7)
- Colour (8)
- Both (15)
I decided to ask this question because there have been thrillers which have been shown in colour or in black & white. So I asked people which colour they would prefer the thriller to be shown in and most people said both so I might possibly use colour and black & white in my thriller.4. Would you prefer the character to be revealed or hidden in the opening sequence?
- Hidden (21)
- Revealed (9)
Some thrillers have had the characters revealed in the opening sequence whereas some thrillers haven't. I wanted to see which my target audience found most effective so that I could possibly use it in my thriller opening.5. Would you like the opening sequence to be open or mysterious?
- Open (7)
- Mysterious (23)
I wanted to know whether to reveal the plot to the opening audience or if I should keep it mysterious. If it is mysterious than the audience will want to continue watching but I don't want the audience to get bored so I will need to reveal a little bit of the plot in the opening sequence but I do not want it to ruin the thriller by revealing too much.
6. Would you prefer the lighting to be dark or light?
- Dark (16)
- Light (14)
I predicted that most people would prefer the lighting to be dark rather than light because it creates a sense of mysterious and sets the tone of the film. Dark lighting also makes it seem scarier whereas if it is lighting it will not seem as scary. Dark lighting will also make the character seem isolated and in a constricted area. I will probably use fairly dark lighting in my thriller for this reason.
7. How often do you watch thrillers?
- Every week (7)
- Every fortnight (13)
- Every month (6)
- Every 6 months (4)
I needed to know how often people watched thrillers in order to help me create my thriller. The results are as I expected because I predicted that most people would watch a thriller every fortnight.
8. What is your favourite film genre?
- Comedy (7)
- Thriller (8)
- Horror (6)
- Action (7)
- Other (2)
I predicted that most people would've said thrillers because that is what my questionnaire is based on. However comedies and action films are also really popular with my audience.
9. What is your favourite thriller sub-genre?
- Crime Thriller (7)
- Conspiracy Thriller (3)
- Mystery Thriller (5)
- Psychological Thriller (12)
- Other (3)
I had predicted that most people would've chosen psychological thriller because they are the most popular sub-genre for a thriller. Looking at the results the sub-genre for my thriller will most likely be psychological thriller because this is the type of thrillers most people enjoy to watch.
10. What props could I use for my opening sequence?
- Gun (21)
- Mobile Phone (4)
- Knife (2)
- Other (3)
Looking at the results from this question I will most likely use a gun in my opening sequence because most people see a gun as the most effective prop used in thrillers. This could also fit in with my thriller if I choose to do a psychological thriller.
11. Would you prefer to have a lot of dialogue or a little dialogue in the opening sequence?
- A lot? (11)
- A little? (19)
Most people I asked preferred thrillers with only a little bit of dialogue in the opening sequence. This is why in my thriller I will only use a little bit of dialogue because this proves to be more effective with my audience.
12. Would you prefer the lead role to be played by a male or female?
- Male (18)
- Female (12)
I predicted that most people would choose to have a male play the lead role in a thriller because it is conventional of thrillers. However women have also started becoming lead roles in thrillers now. Looking at the results from this question I will probably choose to have a male play the lead role in my thriller.13. Would you prefer the the victim to be male or female?
- Male (12)
- Female (18)
I also predicted that most people would choose to have a female play the victim because this is also another convention of thrillers. However this makes women seem weak and vulnerable which is an old negative stereotype.
14. Would you prefer the villain to be male or female?
- Male (16)
- Female (14)
I also predicted that most people would choose to have a male character play the villain because this is another convention of thrillers. This is because men seem more powerful which is a positive stereotype of men. I will most likely choose to have a male play the villain in my thriller because it is more common for this in thrillers.
This questionnaire has given me some good ideas as to what I can include when it comes to creating my thriller.
Thriller Research
Thrillers are ‘One of cinema's largest, all-encompassing genres, this type features films whose main ingredient is suspense, excitement and tension.’ [8] There have been hundreds of thrillers which have been created and some of these thrillers have been hugely successful whereas others have failed.
The most famous thrillers include:
-
Pulp Fiction (1994)
-Se7en (1995)
-Fight Club (1999)
-Psycho (1960)
-The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
-Vertigo (1958)
and some of the thrillers which have failed are:
-Compelling Evidence (1995)
-The Sobbing Stone (2005)
-Blood Deep (2005)
As you can see by the date that these films were released it is clear and easy to realise that thrillers used to be extremely successful but in this modern day they are failing slightly and not reaching their potential. However thrillers are still fairly popular.
As well as influential films in the thriller genre there are also influential directors, actors and actresses which have had a great impact on the thriller genre.
The most famous directors of thriller films include:
- Alfred Hitchcock
- David Fincher
- Stanley Kubrick
- Martin Scorsese
- Christopher Nolan
- Brian De Palmer
- Ridley Scott
-Quentin Tarantino
The most famous actors and actresses in the thriller genre are:
- Jack Nicholson
- James Stewart
- Cary Grant
- Janet Leigh
- Leonardo Di Caprio
- Robert De Niro
Thriller is a genre of film which ‘promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety, and nerve-wracking tension’ [5] which are used as the main elements to scare and shock the audience. There are also subgenres for thrillers and the primary subgenre is psychological thrillers and other popular subgenres for thrillers are political thrillers and paranoid thrillers. Fight scenes and chase scenes are common conventions for thrillers to excite the audience and they also hide important information from the audience to build suspense and to scare and surprise the audience. Death is also a code and convention in thrillers and it also creates mystery.
There are many different subgenres of thrillers but the main subgenres are:
- Crime Thriller,
- Conspiracy Thriller,
- Psychological Thriller
- Mystery Thriller
There are other subgenres of thrillers which are a Disaster Thriller, an Erotic Thriller, a Legal Thriller, a Medical Thriller, a Political Thriller, a Rape and Revenge Thriller, Religious Thriller, a Supernatural Thriller and a Techno Thriller. I have chosen to look at the different subgenres of thrillers to help me decide what genre of thriller mine will be and I will mostly likely use the main genre of thriller and create a psychological thriller because these are interesting and exciting.
There are a various amount of different codes and conventions for thriller films. These codes and conventions are what make the thriller. ‘An atmosphere of creeping menace and sudden outbursts of violence, crime, and murder characterize these films’ [9] and ‘Thrillers often present a vision of the world and society as dark, corrupt and dangerous.’[10] Thrillers are usually mysterious so that the audience do not know what is going to happen next. Thrillers usually have fast cuts which are simple because this builds up tension and suspense but it also keeps the thriller flowing so that the audience don’t get bored and are constantly on the edge of their seats and they don’t know what is going to happen next. Thrillers are used ‘to provide thrills and keep the audience cliff-hanging at the 'edge of their seats' as the plot builds towards a climax.’ [6] Some of the shots however are sometimes long and this is done on purpose to build suspense. The plots in thrillers aren’t usually clear and this is done to keep the audience guessing so that they don’t know what is going to happen. The lighting used in thrillers is usually dark and dull and the lighting is also used to create shadows to make the thriller more mysterious and also to scare the audience. Fight and chase scenes are also usually common in thriller films because they are exciting. Thrillers use ‘suspense and atmosphere to cause feelings of dread in their audiences.’ [1] Thrillers are also supposed to ‘thrill’ the audience and keep them on the edge of their seats. A common convention of thrillers is death because most thrillers include at least one death because this is seen as scary and there are also dangerous situations. Another convention of thrillers is that the male characters are usually the villains and the female characters are usually the victims which can be a negative stereotype of women because it views them as vulnerable and weak. ‘The main characters are also traditionally men’ [7] however women lead characters are becoming increasingly popular but thrillers are still mainly male dominated. Thrillers usually take place in ordinary cities so that it scares the audience because the audience will then be able to relate to the film. These are the main codes and conventions of the thriller genre but some subgenres of the thriller genre have slightly different codes and conventions so that it fits in with the subgenre.
The target audience for a film is probably the most important aspect that will make a film successful because the bigger the audience the more successful the film will be. This is why I need to decide a target audience for my thriller and it will be better if it has a wider target audience because this means it will appeal to more people and more people will view it therefore it will become more successful. I need to decide which audience to target my thriller at. There are many different audiences such as different ages and genders and I need to aim my thriller at the correct age and the correct gender to make it more successful. To give my thriller a wider target audience I will most likely direct it to all age groups and both genders. Most people believe that males prefer watching thrillers more than females but this is not always the case.
Opening credits and sequences for thriller films are extremely important because they set the tone of the film. In my thriller I only have a maximum of two minutes which means that I don’t have a lot of time to show the credits for my thriller however this makes it easier for me to edit. According to Wikipedia the most common opening credits order is: (Name of the Distribution Studio), (Name of the Production Company), (Producer's Name) Production or/and (director only) A Film By (Director's Name),Starring, Film's Title, Featuring, Casting, Music, Production Design, Editor, Director Of Photography, Producer, Story, Writer, Director. [4] As you can see there are a lot of credits that I need to include in my thriller because I want my thriller to look professional.
Sources
[1] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thriller_%28genre%29
[2] – http://www.imdb.com/chart/thriller
[3] - http://www.imdb.com/chart/thriller
[4] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opening_credits
[5] - http://www.filmsite.org/thrillerfilms.html
[6] - http://www.filmsite.org/thrillerfilms.html
[7] - http://www.illiterarty.com/genre-thriller
[8] - http://www.allmovie.com/explore/genre/thriller-942
[9] – http://www.allmovie.com/explore/genre/thriller-942
[10] - http://www.allmovie.com/explore/genre/thriller-942
[11] – http://pinartarhan.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/pulp-fiction-poster.jpg
[12] –http://mymoviebanners.com/pics/fightclub/fight-club-3.jpg
[13] - http://www.nndb.com/people/664/000026586/hitchcock_drella.jpg
[14] - http://www.realbollywood.com/news/up_images/11115700.jpg
[15] - http://www.nndb.com/people/722/000022656/jn75.jpg
[16] - http://images.buddytv.com/articles/movies/profiles/janet-leigh.jpg
Wednesday 9 February 2011
The Silence of the Lambs
'The Silence of the Lambs' is another American thriller which was produced in 1991. The film is a hybrid as it is a thriller and crime film. The film was directed by Jonathan Demme and stars many famous actors and actresses such as Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn and Ted Levine. The film was released on February 14th 1991 and received much critical acclaims and many awards. As in all thrillers there are a various amount of different camera angles, editing techniques, sounds and mise-en-scene is used. These are all purposefully chosen by the director to create a certain atmosphere and to build tension.
The first shot of the opening sequence in 'The Silence of the Lambs' is an establishing shot. The shot reveals the setting and location which is a forest which is overlooking a lake and this shot is used for a few seconds to set the scene for the audience. The camera then begins to track downwards which makes the setting seem darker, constricted and much more isolated. These two shots create an important atmosphere and the audience are focused on the setting. The background music at this point has a slow tempo which helps the audience focus on the visual side of the opening sequence. Throughout the opening sequence there a variety of different tracking methods which are used such as frontal tracks and side tracks. These tracks are important and useful because they begin to quicken the pace of the film. The camera then focuses on a character climbing up a hill towards the camera so the character becomes bigger and bigger to audience as they start off in the distance and slower get closer. The sound at this point in the opening sequence is also slow paced which helps the audience focus on the character and the mise-en-scene.
The character has been established as a female by a mid-shot which shows the setting and the characters clothing as dirty and her facial expressions as quite afraid and confused. A tracking shot is again used as the female character begins to run and this allows the audience to guess what she is running away from or what she is running to. The more the character runs the further she is away from the camera and this is to demonstrate the fact that she is alone. As she is running the music begins to speed up to build up tension and suspense and to match the movements of the character which are fast paced and the music is also slightly mysterious which is a common convention of thrillers. The camera then shows a close up of the characters shoes and then cuts to a close up of the characters face. A climbing wall is used which the character climbs over, this can be slightly confusing to the audience, and as the character climbs over it the camera pans from right to left. Tracking shots are also used to engage the audience because it makes the audience feel like they are following the character.
The sound is another key aspect to thrillers and adds fear to the film to frighten the audience. There is non-diegetic music which is playing throughout the opening sequence which starts of slow paced but then the tempo builds and as the character is running the sound is than more fast paced and the sound creates a mysterious and scary atmosphere and this is what the director had intended the sound to do which also make the audience feel uncomfortable. Diegetic sounds are also being used in this opening sequence via ambient sounds. There are a variety of different ambient sounds being used throughout this opening sequence such as birds, footsteps crushing leaves, insects such as crickets and the wind and these are all used to add to the atmosphere which is created by the non-diegetic music and these sounds also make the character appear isolated, afraid and vulnerable which is an old negative stereotype of women saying that they need someone to protect them. Also the non-diegetic music used starts before the first camera shot is used which is done to already set the tone of the film before anything visually has been revealed. Another sound used is the breathing of the character to show that she is out of breath, this also shows that she must have been running for sometime which is why it creates suspense. Another diegetic sound used is the ambient sound of the bird flying away as the women reaches the top of the hill which could imply something dangerous and scary could happen.
The majority of the shots in the opening sequence in 'The Silence of the Lambs' are fairly long. The first shot used is faded in and lasts for just over a minute and the second shot then lasts for around fifth-teen seconds. These long lasting shots create a slower pace which is not conventionally of thrillers. However after these long lasting shots are then replaced by shots which last for about seven seconds because the pace of the editing is increasing with the pace of the music. The cuts used during this opening sequence are straight cuts. These are the most common type of editing and are extremely simple and this editing technique is another convention of thrillers. Unlike 'Se7en' there is a large setting and location for the opening sequence of 'The Silence of the Lambs' which makes it more revealing.
There is only one character shown in the opening sequence which means that she must be an important character to the film. The location is important because it is outside in a forest which means that the character is isolated and alone and a connotation of a forest is murder and this film being a thriller the audience will begin to think this event will occur. Mist is also used in the setting to make it seem more scary as well as using an empty lake and an empty forest. The lighting is dark and it is at sun-set which makes it seem that the character is trying to escape the forest before it becomes too dark. The film looks like it was filmed in autumn because there are leaves falling off trees and leaves on the floor. Also the weather is dark and dull which is common weather for autumn time. The character's costume isn't stereotypical of what the audience would expect a women to be wearing because women are normal wearing skirts and are dressed up however the character is wearing casual clothes which are a jumper and a pair of jogging bottoms.
Only one character is revealed in the opening sequence of 'The Silence of the Lambs' and this character is female. Also because only one character is introduced it implies that this character is one of the most important and main characters in the film. However the director might have chosen to only reveal one character in the opening sequence so that the audience continues watching. The character does not say anything during the opening sequence but we can tell that she is running however this does not give the audience an idea about the character's personality etc. The character is also wearing casual clothes which the audience would not expect women to be wearing especially in the 1990's.
The narrative and plot are not revealed in the opening sequence of 'The Silence of the Lambs' because the director does not want to reveal too much about the film at such an early stage because they want the audience to continue watching. It is difficult to work out the plot or narrative in the opening sequence because we only see one character and that character is running. The audience does not find out anything about her or what she is running from or what she is running to and this keeps the audience engaged as they can guess why she is doing this. The slow background sound and long lasting shots also help the audience think and guess about what the character is doing this and why because it gives them time to think and does not distract them and the sound also gives a sense of mystery and the music used allows the audience to realise that the film is a thriller because it can slightly scare some of the audience.
Typical codes and conventions to the opening of thrillers usually use fast paced editing. However instead of using fast paced editing in the opening of 'The Silence of the Lambs' the director chooses to use slow paced editing which means that the shots used last longer and this is unconventional for a thriller. The music is usually fast paced however in the opening it is fairly slow to match the editing and camera shots which are being used and the director has chosen to do this on purpose to create and scary and isolated atmosphere. The credits are displayed in the colour black and a connotation of the colour black is death which implies that death will occur in this film. Also in thrillers women are usually the victims and in the opening sequence the only character revealed is a women which implies that she will probably be a victim. Another convention of thrillers is a dark, isolated location and setting which is done superbly in the opening by having a isolated forest next to an empty lake and it is also set in the evening in the season of autumn making it more scary and the character more vulnerable and alone.
I watched this film on my DVD and the only video available on http://www.youtube.co.uk/ of the opening sequence of 'The Silence of the Lambs' was flipped and this was done to avoid copyright.
The first shot of the opening sequence in 'The Silence of the Lambs' is an establishing shot. The shot reveals the setting and location which is a forest which is overlooking a lake and this shot is used for a few seconds to set the scene for the audience. The camera then begins to track downwards which makes the setting seem darker, constricted and much more isolated. These two shots create an important atmosphere and the audience are focused on the setting. The background music at this point has a slow tempo which helps the audience focus on the visual side of the opening sequence. Throughout the opening sequence there a variety of different tracking methods which are used such as frontal tracks and side tracks. These tracks are important and useful because they begin to quicken the pace of the film. The camera then focuses on a character climbing up a hill towards the camera so the character becomes bigger and bigger to audience as they start off in the distance and slower get closer. The sound at this point in the opening sequence is also slow paced which helps the audience focus on the character and the mise-en-scene.
The character has been established as a female by a mid-shot which shows the setting and the characters clothing as dirty and her facial expressions as quite afraid and confused. A tracking shot is again used as the female character begins to run and this allows the audience to guess what she is running away from or what she is running to. The more the character runs the further she is away from the camera and this is to demonstrate the fact that she is alone. As she is running the music begins to speed up to build up tension and suspense and to match the movements of the character which are fast paced and the music is also slightly mysterious which is a common convention of thrillers. The camera then shows a close up of the characters shoes and then cuts to a close up of the characters face. A climbing wall is used which the character climbs over, this can be slightly confusing to the audience, and as the character climbs over it the camera pans from right to left. Tracking shots are also used to engage the audience because it makes the audience feel like they are following the character.
The sound is another key aspect to thrillers and adds fear to the film to frighten the audience. There is non-diegetic music which is playing throughout the opening sequence which starts of slow paced but then the tempo builds and as the character is running the sound is than more fast paced and the sound creates a mysterious and scary atmosphere and this is what the director had intended the sound to do which also make the audience feel uncomfortable. Diegetic sounds are also being used in this opening sequence via ambient sounds. There are a variety of different ambient sounds being used throughout this opening sequence such as birds, footsteps crushing leaves, insects such as crickets and the wind and these are all used to add to the atmosphere which is created by the non-diegetic music and these sounds also make the character appear isolated, afraid and vulnerable which is an old negative stereotype of women saying that they need someone to protect them. Also the non-diegetic music used starts before the first camera shot is used which is done to already set the tone of the film before anything visually has been revealed. Another sound used is the breathing of the character to show that she is out of breath, this also shows that she must have been running for sometime which is why it creates suspense. Another diegetic sound used is the ambient sound of the bird flying away as the women reaches the top of the hill which could imply something dangerous and scary could happen.
The majority of the shots in the opening sequence in 'The Silence of the Lambs' are fairly long. The first shot used is faded in and lasts for just over a minute and the second shot then lasts for around fifth-teen seconds. These long lasting shots create a slower pace which is not conventionally of thrillers. However after these long lasting shots are then replaced by shots which last for about seven seconds because the pace of the editing is increasing with the pace of the music. The cuts used during this opening sequence are straight cuts. These are the most common type of editing and are extremely simple and this editing technique is another convention of thrillers. Unlike 'Se7en' there is a large setting and location for the opening sequence of 'The Silence of the Lambs' which makes it more revealing.
There is only one character shown in the opening sequence which means that she must be an important character to the film. The location is important because it is outside in a forest which means that the character is isolated and alone and a connotation of a forest is murder and this film being a thriller the audience will begin to think this event will occur. Mist is also used in the setting to make it seem more scary as well as using an empty lake and an empty forest. The lighting is dark and it is at sun-set which makes it seem that the character is trying to escape the forest before it becomes too dark. The film looks like it was filmed in autumn because there are leaves falling off trees and leaves on the floor. Also the weather is dark and dull which is common weather for autumn time. The character's costume isn't stereotypical of what the audience would expect a women to be wearing because women are normal wearing skirts and are dressed up however the character is wearing casual clothes which are a jumper and a pair of jogging bottoms.
Only one character is revealed in the opening sequence of 'The Silence of the Lambs' and this character is female. Also because only one character is introduced it implies that this character is one of the most important and main characters in the film. However the director might have chosen to only reveal one character in the opening sequence so that the audience continues watching. The character does not say anything during the opening sequence but we can tell that she is running however this does not give the audience an idea about the character's personality etc. The character is also wearing casual clothes which the audience would not expect women to be wearing especially in the 1990's.
The narrative and plot are not revealed in the opening sequence of 'The Silence of the Lambs' because the director does not want to reveal too much about the film at such an early stage because they want the audience to continue watching. It is difficult to work out the plot or narrative in the opening sequence because we only see one character and that character is running. The audience does not find out anything about her or what she is running from or what she is running to and this keeps the audience engaged as they can guess why she is doing this. The slow background sound and long lasting shots also help the audience think and guess about what the character is doing this and why because it gives them time to think and does not distract them and the sound also gives a sense of mystery and the music used allows the audience to realise that the film is a thriller because it can slightly scare some of the audience.
Typical codes and conventions to the opening of thrillers usually use fast paced editing. However instead of using fast paced editing in the opening of 'The Silence of the Lambs' the director chooses to use slow paced editing which means that the shots used last longer and this is unconventional for a thriller. The music is usually fast paced however in the opening it is fairly slow to match the editing and camera shots which are being used and the director has chosen to do this on purpose to create and scary and isolated atmosphere. The credits are displayed in the colour black and a connotation of the colour black is death which implies that death will occur in this film. Also in thrillers women are usually the victims and in the opening sequence the only character revealed is a women which implies that she will probably be a victim. Another convention of thrillers is a dark, isolated location and setting which is done superbly in the opening by having a isolated forest next to an empty lake and it is also set in the evening in the season of autumn making it more scary and the character more vulnerable and alone.
I watched this film on my DVD and the only video available on http://www.youtube.co.uk/ of the opening sequence of 'The Silence of the Lambs' was flipped and this was done to avoid copyright.
Se7en
‘Se7en’ is a 1995 American thriller film, which also has horror moments contained in the film. The film was directed by David Fincher and written by Andrew Kevin Walker, it was also distributed by New Line Cinema. 'Se7en' also stars many well-known actors such as Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman and Gwyneth Paltrow. The film involves a series of sadistic murders which have taken place previously. ‘Se7en’ was commercial success and received positive reviews from the majority of critics. In the opening sequence of 'Se7en', the director uses different camera angles, sounds, editing techniques and mise-en-scene for a variety of different reasons such as building tension and suspense.
The first shot the audience sees is a close-up of a book which appears to be old with pages blowing in the wind which has already created mystery in the film as the audience do not know what is written in the book. Close-ups are used throughout the opening sequence to reveal different objects which are important to the story of the film and also suggests that these objects will be used throughout the rest of the film. Shadows are also used in the opening sequence. A picture of a man is also used which is covered by red and the connotations of red are blood which allows the audience to assume that a murder will occur int he film. Also the lighting used throughout the opening sequence is dark which also implies mystery and danger. The sound used throughout the sequence is quite tense and dramatic and the director has chosen this music on purpose for a particular effect. The background music sets up the rhythm to the film and gives it a pace.
The sound at the start of the opening sequence is slow with a beat with some other sound effects added in. Around the midpoint of the opening sequence the tempo of the sound increases slightly and the beat happens more frequently at the same time the editing becomes quicker because it signifies the upcoming events that it is building up to and creates tension and implies that these events will be bad which makes the sound become more interesting. Different ambient sounds are also used throughout the opening sequence such as the wind and screaming which have all been added in to make the film scarier to the audience and this creates a mysterious and frightening atmosphere for the film. The music played during this opening sequence in the background is quite sinister which gives the audience a hint as to what to expect in the film, this means that the music is foreshadowing the events that are going to happen in the film. The soundtrack used makes the film seem much more frightening for the audience. The font of the credits and the way they appear on the black screen by fading in also show that this film is a thriller because the font is white which makes it stand out and is also easy to read.
Characters and locations are not really revealed in the opening sequence of 'Se7en' and the director has chosen to do this on purpose so that it does not reveal too much of the story and to make the audience continue watching. Within the opening sequence of 'Se7en' a man is revealed to the audience and because of the tasks that the man does in the opening sequence the audience can guess the mans personality and realise that he is slightly disturbed. Some of the activities he does in the opening sequence which give this sense of personality to the character is that he is shown cutting the skin of the tips of his fingers and he also highlights passages and phrases in the bible. The connotations of a man performing activities such as these are mentally unstable and religious.
The narrative and plot is also not really revealed in the opening sequence of 'Se7en' and this is done on purpose by the director so that it does not reveal to much of the story to the audience and to make the audience continue watching because they want to find out what happens. During the opening sequence of 'Se7en' it is difficult to work out the plot and narrative of the film. The narrative and plot of the film is unclear to the audience which creates a sense of mystery as the audience do not know what to expect and this also creates and builds tension. However although the narrative and plot are unclear, we can tell that the film is a thriller because of the music played in the background and what the character is doing during the opening sequence which is not normal which already makes the audience slightly scared.
Typical technical codes and conventions which are used in thrillers are also used in 'Se7en'. Usually in thrillers like 'Se7en' the editing is fast paced and this is used to build tension as it shows that events are happening quickly which doesn't give the audience time to think about what is happening which makes it seem more of a surprise and therefore scarier to the audience. Also the fast paced editing used can also show the state of the mind of the man in the opening sequence as he is slightly crazy. Towards the end of the opening sequence a black cut is used which displays some credits and the colour black is significant as it is a convention of the thriller genre and a convention of the colour black is death which means the audience can assume that a death will occur later on in the film. The fast paced editing also reveals a variety of different props in the opening sequence. This therefore doesn't allow the audience time to think about what is going to happen and this is done on purpose by the director.
The mise-en scene in the opening sequence allows the audience to see what type of film this is however the opening sequence of 'Se7en' is not very revealing which makes the audience want to continue watching. Shadows are another convention of thrillers because they don't reveal the character which makes it more frightening for the audience. Shadows are also used in 'Se7en' to create tension and mystery because the audience does not know who they are seeing and this also engages the audience because they want to find out who the character is, which therefore makes the audience want to continue watching. During the opening sequence the audience only see the hands of the character but not the face or the body which also makes the audience want to carry on watching. The location of the opening sequence appears to be in a dark isolated area which is also quite frightening for the audience because there must be a reason why the man is living in a dark isolated area. The colours used throughout the opening sequence are dark dull colours which implies that nothing positive will happening and that there will be negative events in the film which are to come which creates a mysterious atmosphere. The pen used to highlight passages from the bible has black ink and the colour black indicates death which is why the colour black has been used. The character also cuts out the word 'GOD' from the newspaper as the lyrics from the music playing are 'you bring me closer to god'. This also links with the character highlighting passages from the bible and also shows that the character is religious and an event which happens in this film must relate to this.
Saturday 5 February 2011
Preliminary Task
17/01/10, Storyboard - The class was able to choose groups to work in and each group could contain no more than four members. I chose to work with Jonathan Hawes and Oliver Morrol, we also used William Stevenson as an actor from another AS Media class. Firstly we came up with a list of ideas to choose from such as an interrogation scene, chess competition etc. and then chose the best one which was an interrogation scene. We then came up with a story to pursue. The story we decided upon was a man interrogating a murderer who ate murdered the man’s daughter and had possibly eaten the daughter. Once we had chosen a story we began to produce a detailed storyboard which showed in detail the camera angles, editing techniques and some of the sounds that we will be using in the production of our preliminary task.
21/01/10, Storyboard – We carried on with our storyboard for the first part of the lesson so that it contained more detail such as the different camera angles we would be using whilst recording. For the second part of the lesson we went around the college and school to find a suitable location which is available to begin filming our interrogation scene. We then looked at the Mise-en-scene such as which props to use for the scene and we chose what to keep in the camera shot and what to take out. We also carefully planned out and chose which dialogue would be used when filming to add more effect.
The two images above are pictures of our completed storyboard which consists of 16 different shots however we had to change some of the shots slightly which included removing some because they would’ve have been too difficult to film in the location which we had managed to use. Although this happened we didn’t see it as a major setback and whilst filming we also came up with other ideas to use as a replacement. The storyboard indicates which props we have used and also parts of the costume such as the murderer wearing a hoody which makes him seem more dangerous and mysterious and also making him look similar to a thug. Also in the storyboard we added some editing techniques which we knew we would be using when it came to edit the footage we had recorded. The ‘black screen’ is an example of this because we decided to use this because it created tension and suspense because the audience do not know what has happened. Another point which was addressed in the storyboard was camera angles and techniques which we used, these included close ups, point of view, low angle, panning and a few more different shots. The storyboard made it much easier to film because we already knew what we were going to record which helped a lot. I believe that the first shot of the murderer in handcuffs breaking free was very dramatic and created a sense of fear for the audience and involved a close up shot being used. The next shot involved another close up of the eyes of the murderer which made the murderer seem more evil which was again used to add effect and a sense of fear for the audience. Another close up of the image of the young girl and the murdering smelling it also creates a sense of fear for the audience and shows that the murderer is dangerous and weird and that the little girl was innocent and the use of it being a little girl makes the clip more emotional. The point of view shot was another exciting shot which shows the murderer being grabbed from the other mans point of view this gives the audience a sense of that characters feelings and emotions. The black screen is very effective and engages the audience and allows them to guess what has happened and the close up shot of the hand covered in blood also allows the audience to guess the ending to the clip as we purposefully chose not to reveal this.
24/01/10, Filming – Once we had completed the storyboard and found a suitable and available location to film our preliminary task we began filming. One of the key props we decided on using was a pair of handcuffs used to keep to murderer locked up to show that he is in jail and has committed a sin and using this prop allows the audience to establish this view on the characters as a villain and someone slightly crazy and insecure. Also with the use of the handcuffs being broken by the murderer it implies that the murderer is strong and it is unsafe for him to be around. Another addition to the clip was when we used paint at the end of the clip which was used to show blood to indicate to the audience that someone has been killed, however we decided not to show the audience who had been murdered but instead left it up to the audience to decide which will also engage the audience and gives a sense of mystery to the clip. Whilst filming we used several different camera shots and techniques to make it look more professional. The only negative aspect of the filming was that we didn’t think enough about the costumes that the characters were wearing. Another prop which we used was the image of a little girl which we used as the victim in this scene which was the daughter of the man questioning the murderer. By using this it added prop it added more emotion to the scene because it was the man’s daughter who had been murdered and the image made this seem more upsetting and dramatic which is what we had intended the image to do. We also screwed up the image and had the murderer smell the image to add a sickening effect to the clip because we wanted it to be slightly scary and weird and the silence helped this to be created.
28/01/10, Editing – Once we had finally completed and finished all the filming we then began to edit what we had filmed. Firstly we edited everything that we have recorded into different scenes and made named each clip to make it easier to edit the film. Naming all the clips made it much easier to put the clips in chronological order so it the clip made sense. We then cut a couple of clips slightly so that time was not wasted in the film for no reason. After we had done all this we added some editing effects to make the clip look much better when the shots changed and this also made the clip look much more professional. Another effect that was added whilst editing was a slapping sound which occurred when the murderer was slapped and this was used to make the clip seem more dramatic. The editing was fairly simple and straightforward and this was made possible because of the fantastic editing software which we used. However before we added some effects and editing techniques we experimented with different ones until we found which we believed the right techniques to use because of the atmosphere which is created in the clip. Also to add effect and create tension we used fast paced editing which builds up the suspense and makes it look like a serious event is about to occur. The black screen was another editing technique we decided to use because this engages the audience to decide what happened and also adds effect because they do not know what has happened. We also decided as a group not to have any background music as we thought that the silence in the background made the clip more dramatic and exciting.
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