Emma Phillips Foundation Production

I decided to look on Vimeo for ideas from videos that people have already filmed in order to improve my thriller and gain knowledge and ideas for shots and scenes to not only boost the overal grade my thriller recieves, but also make it more convincing and professional looking.

The angle of the wall in the shot makes it look interesting, as well as the worn out wallpaper adding a sense of an abandoned building that has many stories to tell. I also think that the constant lower case text, that also ranges in sizes, is also very interesting to look at, as well as adding a spooky twist onto the film. This will influence the openings on my thriller because me and my partner, Nathan Roe, believe it looks very effective and professional, and has the kind of opening our media companies would look for and enjoy.

http://vimeo.com/12149468

When it came to filming our thriller, everything was relatively straightforward and pretty compliant to the main idea and plan we first had. However, filming during the snowy weather meant that acting was made difficult due to the -5 degree temperatures and therefore we had to stop filming and return home to put more layers on, in fear that the final acting appearance would not be convincing or professional.

Due to filming being started at around 9:30am, lighting was almost perfect and we were able to gain some very effective shots that, despite the cold weather, worked well with the snow on the ground. The snow also, when looking back at the footage, made the scene look yet more creepy and scar, adding to the overall atmosphere we first desired when planning the story line for our thriller.

The actors, despite the cold weather however, were very professional and often added their own input and ideas to what we could improve on and the range of shots we could include in order to improve the effectivity of our opening. They followed direction easily and often elaborated on given topics which overall improved the scene we had just filmed.

On the other hand, we did have issues with the battery life of our camera and therefore were rushed at some points to get the shot we needed quickly- adding to the stress and pressure on the actors to perform adequately. This did not matter however when we returned to Richard Powell's house in order to film the first scene of our opening as we were able to charge the camera and use it at the same time; therefore not loosing any time.

Creating props, such as the noticeboard covered in pictures of the victim (Aimee Hunt) and getting photo's we had taken that day of the scene and alledged rape scene off a memory stick also took up quite a lot of time when we were limited due to my partner, Nathan Roe having work at half past four. However, spending time on such things had a very positive outcome and added to the overall image and atmosphere we wanted to create.

By managing to film all in one day, we were able to eliminate many continuity errors, however we did have to watch this certain problem after returning home for more layers; by putting smaller layers under the coats/shirts etc that our actors were wearing.

Overall, I believe the filming of our thriller went very well and we were able to create the atmosphere we first intended too. We managed to chose actors that not only had performance knowledge, but also great media and filming knowledge as they are also media students, making them more dynamic and useful to us.

From last years examiners report and thriller openings we have studied as a class, we have concluded that our thriller must be different to anything seen before, of which has avoided all cliche's associated with this certain genre of film (such as woods, stalkers etc). However, it must include conventions of which are typical and that have been discovered through independent research. Our target audience must also be clear, using questionnaires to gain evidence and analysing each result thoroughly.

We must also include within our blogs strong evidence of planning through materials such as storyboards, scripting and through detailed organisation of shooting days.Animatics (serires of stills made into a short movie) may also be included in order to give details about the scene we will film in.

For extra points, we may produce our own production logo in order to make the thriller more realistic.As well as this, we need to consider costumes, props and locations in great detail, as everyday objects and people doing everyday things will do nothing for the atmosphere and mood we wish to create.

Mise-en-scene also needs to be considered greatly. We need to dress every set we use, and ensure we do not make errors such as leaving equipment in the view of the filming, as well as ensuring characters look realistic and persuasive. Continuity errors must be non-existant, especially if we take longer than one day to film certain shots.

We must also find an interesting way to show credits, as stereotypical credit rolls are uninteresting and will fail to gain us the marks we require. Instead, we need to create interesting credits with stills/shots in the background- giving some clues to the rest of the film. Music also needs to be carefully chosen, however we may use the voice over we planned.

The victim is at a party or bar and has something to drink. The attacker somehow slips a Rohypnol tablet into the liquid - perhaps when the victim turns their head or leaves their drink to go to the bathroom.

About twenty minutes after finishing their drink, the victim begins to feel very disoriented, or "drunk." Victims of Rohypnol have often only had one or two drinks, and they remember feeling much more drunk than they should have been.

The attacker volunteers to escort the "sick" or "drunk" person home. Once out of the public eye, the attacker may take the victim to a hotel, to the victim's home, or to other places.

Several hours later, the victim wakes up feeling very disoriented. They can't remember what happened after they left the party, but they may find evidence that something was done to their body while they were "asleep."

Many victims raped under the influence of Rohypnol are unsure whether or not they were raped, because they have no memory of the event. It can take several days to piece together a story from eyewitness reports.

Rohypnol has been used to rape both men and women.

From research like this, we can reflect such events within our thriller.
http://dawn.thot.net/rohypnol.html

Throughout our media product, we are going to include as many psychological experiences related to the current market to many social aspects within the form of  'Rape.'  Consistant flashback and blury footage will relate to the certain parts of rape but not give away too much of the incident.  Therefore, by doing this we can keep the audience in suspense, but also leave them thinking of what might happen next. In addition to this, the questions we want to pose throughout the movie towards the audience are; What happens next? Does the girl get rapped? Is the rapist still on the loose?

Our thriller has a unique selling point by being related to topics and debates that are currently very popular in the media. Rape and drugs such as "Date Rape" are common within our society at the moment and therefore creating a thriller based on such events will not only raise awareness, but also educate people as to the dangers doing everyday activities pose. Our thriller moral and plots can relate to anyone and therefore we aim to make people realise that dangers like this can just be around the corner, and that by not doing what your supposed too, incidents may occur with no one there to help you, because no one knows where you are.Young people across Britain need to be educated about such events, and we aim to do that.

We will begin filming at approx 9-9.30am in order to give us the best lighting conditions possible, as well as allowing us plenty of time to film each shot several times to make editing easier and ensure our thriller is realistic. We will use actors from a performance studies group to make sure acting is convinving and believable, and dress them all in school uniform (shirt and tie), so you can relate properly to the ideological plot we had in mind.

We will film the final still and scream on Sunday 27th in order to save time on the day.

Our plan for the day goes as follows;
November 30th
9am- meet at first location (bedroom shoot)

SECOND LOCATION- Derelict, unused area (for flashbacks)
10am- take photo stills to flash up during introduction/1st scene (In Baston)
10.15am- film second scene
3pm- leave Baston


PROP LIST-
Rope
Bag of "Drugs" (talken powder)
Rucksack
Diary
Alcohol bottles/cans
Water Bottle
Mobile Phone

ACTOR LIST-
Male lead- Kieran Gabitus
Female lead- Aimee Hunt
Extra's- Richard Powell

Our preliminary task contains;

•  close ups
• extreme close ups
• high angle shots
• mid-shots
• long shots
• diegetic and non diegetic sounds

Within our preliminary, we followed the "Rule of Thirds" in order to frame each shot.

Here is a questionnaire I have created in order to ask 20 people and gain sufficient information about the thriller genre of films, and the publics opinions on them. This questionnaire and the results I gain from it will help me when completeing my pitch, and in the general production of my thriller.

The BBFC's is a non-governmental organisation, funded by the film industry with a main aim to put a classification on every film and video game that attempts to make it into the public eye in the UK before it becomes open to everyone in cinemas and on DVD's etc.

The BBFC states;
"We give the public information that empowers them to make appropriate viewing decisions for themselves and those in their care. We help to protect vulnerable viewers and society from the effects of viewing potentially harmful or unsuitable content while respecting adult freedom of choice"

Universal- suitable for all ages

Parental guidance is advised

Aged 12 viewers and over

Children younger than 12 can view the media in prescence of an adult

Not suitable for people under 15 years old

Not suitable for people under 18 years old

"The ‘R18’ category is a special and legally restricted classification primarily for explicit works of consenting sex or strong fetish material involving adults. Films may only be shown to adults in specially licensed cinemas, and video works may be supplied to adults only in licensed sex shops. ‘R18’ video works may not be supplied by mail order. "

For my thriller film, I have decided to use "Universal Pictures" as my media institution, in order to produce and distribute the thriller opening I will have both shot and edited. I have chosen this particular institution due to their mass popularity and success all over the world,dating back from the 1910's, and undoubtedly their ability to make almost any film enjoyable and profitable by people of all ages and cultures. They are known all over the world for producing films that are both timeless and reflect my thriller film opening, such as Jaws, The Bourne Identity and Van Helsing. "Universal Pictures" have not only diversed into the entertainment business for in the interest of others, but they were also the first company to bring out Blu-Ray discs, as well as converge with Sony- with their first partnership films, such as The Mummy, changing film technology into the industry we know today.

The film “Memento” falls under the subgenre of a physiological thriller, of which is produced by Newmarket film studio. The film starts with an extreme close-up shot, where the camera focuses on a specific picture in the hands of the character we first see. This is then followed on by a tracking shot, which tracks up to the main character’s face. The tracking shot allows the audience to see the overall appearance of the main character, due to the slow speed of the pan showing his significance within the film itself.

Mise-en-scene
From the mise-en-scene, we are able to infer that the first character we see is the one we will follow throughout the movie. The significant choice of costume for him however, the colour of his suit being light cream as opposed to a violent colour such as red, may suggest a vulnerability about him; which we later go on to discover is his memory. On the other hand however, the gun in his hand, the blood on his face and the photo of the dead body he has, may portray him as a villain.

Lighting

In the opening of the film, there is low-key lighting, possibly to reflect the characters emotions. However, the use of dull light makes the expressions on the characters faces more noticeable, hinting towards their persona.

Editing
Generally, cuts are simple, such as the one used at the opening of the film, where the screen moves fro m the titles and credits of the film onto the opening scene.

Sound
Instantly, the mood of the film reveals negative connotations which links into the dark colours used in the mise-en-scene, adding to the tense atmosphere and making the audience believe something ominous is about to happen. This also matches the visuals well on screen, such as the credits fading in and out again. Within “Momento”, both diegetic and non-diegetic sounds are used for different effects. Non diegetic sound is used within the instrumental music, of which is played in the background whilst the title and opening credits are shown. Diegetic sounds however are shown through objects, such as the camera flashing sound and the pen scrawling whilst he makes a note of important things he needs to remember to achieve his aim of revenge. Overall, the commanding auditory and visual arrangement undoubtedly forms a successful, striking auditory experience. Furthermore, it creates an air of mystery and anticipation, which are key elements of the psychological genre.

A thriller opening generally starts with non-diegetic music that emphasises the atmosphere that wishes to be portrayed towards the reader. This music will use crescendo or get faster-paced as it gets closer to the bad event happening- all in an attempt to increase tension and make the film seem more realistic and involve the viewer more. During this time, credits stating information such as the film title, lead actors and directors may also appear against either a still or moving image of the setting the movie is taking place in. For example, in "Ragged Edge" the first credit appears against a still going from day to night against the Golden Gate Bridge, San Fransisco. The mise-en-scene at this point may contain poetic fallacy to the forethcoming event, such as a thunder storm at night time, using greys and blacks to emphasise the gloomy event coming.

An event may also occur during the first couple of minutes of the film opening, leaving the rest of the film open to explain who committed the offence, how, and why they did it. This means the narrative is not in chronological order and the plot may include flashbacks or disjointed time. During this event, the victim will appear helpless and vunerable, possibly sleeping before being disturbed by the culprit- which will be shown by reaction shots and high/low angle shots from either persons perspective.



The culprit themselves will remain unidentifiable, with no frame being on their face but instead on different body parts or shots from the back of them looking forward.



The thriller film itself will mainly aim to put forward a darker side of life, that aims to disturb the viewer and keep them on the edge of their seats, as well as distorting reality and showing the difference between normalcy vs the unexpected.

Within the front cover of this particular movie, the cars act like a focal point in the still, which then attracts your eye to follow the road to the distance focal point which leads towards the shadow of a building against a glowing sky, which I have inferred is a city. From first view, it is easy to see that something unnatural has happened, as cars are just left abandoned at the edge of the road. The viewer’s attention is also put towards the sky, with mass poetic fallacy of dark and gloomy clouds of grey and blacks, which contrasts the distant city with is glowing in the background. The words on the cover, “we've sensed it, now it’s happening” can be inferred that something, that people may have ignored for some time, has now finally happened- and that human race will suffer greatly due to it.

The first task we had to complete whilst starting As Level Media was to create a Preliminary piece of which was two minutes long, incorporating a range of shots and also editing to a high standard and to a finish. The piece itself had to include someone walking down a corridor, entering a room and then talking to someone about an event we could decide on. Throughout the process of planning and filming we were given a lot of freedom to explore our imagination and creativity, by doing so we came up with storyboards containing shots and angles, all of which had plenty of potential to be expanded on and improved.

All in all I believe my preliminary piece was a success for many reasons. Firstly, we were able to incorporate a range of different shots and angles, all of which added greatly to the overall affect of fear that we desired the audience to get from watching our media piece. We ensured we had the correct number of shots that we needed, even if it meant repeating the same shot many times until it was perfect, more than often with a time delay before and after the actor had started to speak, to ensure editing would be easier, giving time to cut and crop.

Through editing, we were able to gain a first idea as to how the Mac's work and how to gain the necessary affects required, as well as learning how continuity errors occur and how to overcome them. Effects, such as non-diegetic sounds (in our case, the door handle noise) were put into our piece in order to add a greater feeling of tension for the audience. Music was added in the background throughout the piece in order to add to tension also, as well as slow-motion movements, pans, slow zooms and a range of effects such as CCTV shots to give a natural appearance to the film.

If I was to repeat this task, I would have taken yet more shots in order to make the editing process even easier, as well as using light better in order to stop frames from being dark. However, I do believe that our first media task was a success, and I surprised myself how well we adapted to editing pieces and gaining the overall piece that we wished to have from the start.