Planning: Developing Ideas in groups (Ms Heath & Ms Gibbings)

Group Planning

Yasmin's Idea
A newly father becomes obessive of his daughter as he is isolated from his family and is kept away from his daughter. The father is seen as a psycho as he takes pill for his aparrent 'illness'.

Characters

• Mum & Girl.
• Judge
• Random people
• Psycho Dad

Elements Included

• Non-Diegetic sound
• Close up
• Old broken down house
• Low key Lighting
• Slow editing.

Relande's Idea
A child who lost his father before he was born is grown up in a world full of questions. While growing up this young boy slowly starts to develop super powers. As the child gets older he starts being able to controll his powers which eventually leads to him following his fathers path of a crime fighter.

Characters

• Young Boy
• Mum
• Principal
• Grandfather

Elements Included

• Low key lighting
• Parallel Sound
• Jump Cut
• Off Screen Sound
• School
• Streets

My Idea
A innocent young girl who begins to see figures and shadows in her home, she informs her parents of such events but they dont believe her. Until they themselves start to experience the signs of paranormal activities in their home. Strange things begin happening to the family.

Characters

• Mum
• Dad
• Innocent little girl
• Random friends/family

Elements Included

• Old Abandoned House
• Low key lighting
• Non/Diegetic sound
• On screen sound
• Facial Expressions (express how the persons is feeling)

Our Chosen Idea

• My group looked at each others idea's and then came to a decision of using my own narrative as we all feel it is conventional to a thriller/horror film due to the mystery theme and the sense of suspense amongst the audience.
• This is conventional because it will always have the audience guessing whats going to happen next. A lot of coventional elements are used in my thriller such as lighting, character positioning etc..

Planning: Pre-Production Paperwork (Ms Begum)

What is Pre-Production Paperwork?

Pre-Production paper work is the planning stage which every producer must face before the actual production of the film. Pre-Production work is essential as it will help you organise all your shots which will prevent your production crew from being confused with what there suppose to do. In addition, this links back to healthy and safety as in the Pre-production paperwork, you identify all possible hazards then you come up with solutions to combat these.

Paperwork you have to create.

• Location Recce
• Risk Assessment
• Production Schedule
• Location release form
• Client release form

Production Schedule

Production Schedule is there to sum up exactly whats going to happen in the filming schedule, from the days you'll film to even the  scenes your going to film. The production schedule is given out to everyone in the production crew as this gives them all the information they need to know. However, a production schedule must be created with care as it needs to be easy to follow and understand to avoid any kind of mistakes.

Location Recce

A location recce is a summary of the chosen location you chose to film your thriller film. A location recce document must be given to everyone involved in producing the film as they'll have more information about the location the film will be shot at. Location recces also must include visual information so that the production crew can visualize what there doing, it would also be beneficial if you discussed all reasons and choices for the location your filming at.

Risk Assessment

          

A risk assessment is a short analysis of your location and all the potential risk that you may encounter while filming at that chosen location and how you plan to overcome those risk. This document should be given to everyone in the production crew as it gives them an insight on the risks that they could encounter. In a created risk assessment it is important that you show an analysis of you're location risks and how you plan to avoid them.

Client release form

                                 
A client release form is a document which talks about the legal terms and agreements the producer has made with any actors in the thriller film. This document will be given to everyone in your production crew.
                                   
   

Location Release form

                                                                    

A Location release form is a document that discusses all the terms and agreements for the filming crew to film in their desired location. It is essential this legal document is giving to the Company, council or people to prove that you have agreed to the terms and conditions. In the location release form, you must show your understanding of yours and their rights.

Conclusion

Creating a Pre-production paperwork is essential when thinking about the production of our thriller. The creation of this legal paperwork has allowed us to give our cast and crew members much more information on the production they are involved in, this is too avoid any major obstacles that we may encounter along our way.
In addition, This paperwork has given me a better understanding of the filming world and how it isn't as easy as it looks. Although some legal agreements was complicated, we were still able to finish them and hand them out to every crew member.

Planning: Opening Scene Narrative (Ms Hawkins)

 Opening Scene Narrative 
Of The
Awakening

The scene begins with the screen black, it then suddenly changes into the actual first person filming as it then looks like someone has turned on the camera. The camera then slowly walks into a door which leads to the dining room of the family home. The 'Person' walks in the room and turns his attention to the 4 picture frames he see on the fireplace. The person then views all the pictures one by one, even crossing an x on one of them, the character which had been crossed out isn't clear because just as the camera was going to view the picture frame the thing heard talking. This is when the camera fades to black which suggest the thing holding the camera had turned it off.

The camera angle then changes to a high angle shot as we see the family arriving home, we also notice Sarah and Frank, the mother of Amy arguing about an event that had happen earlier on. Sarah, tells Amy that she should not go in the kitchen for whatever reason, before continuing her argument with her husband frank. While they are still at it at each other they are oblivious to what Amy is doing as Amy walks the kitchen. Amy reaches for a cup to make herself a drink until she hears a knock on the glass door. Amy then suddenly puts the cup down and decides to look outside. As Amy draws the curtain away, the scene changes to Amy's Dad giving up on arguing with his wife until he hears Amy screaming, there is going to be a close up on his face to capture his emotions as he says '' Amy '' before running to her aid in the kitchen. 

The scene changes to the dad running in the kitchen and once there he then kneels down on his knees and holds Amy's hand asking her whats wrong, Amy then tells him that she saw a man in the garden. The dad quickly dismisses her claims and saws that it was just her imagination and maybe she should just go to bed. As he guides Amy back to the dining room he says, '' go bed ill be there in a minute ''. Frank then goes back into the kitchen and walks to the side of the curtain where Amy thought she saw someone standing. As the dad moves the curtain, the camera switches to a point of view, panning shot as the camera main focus is at the door of the old shed, then it slowly moves to the right where Frank then see's what he thinks looks like a figure of a man which then moves behind the shed. Soundtrack will be used her to build tension which will lead up to scare the audience. 

After the dad see's what he think is a figure of a man, the camera then zooms up on his face to capture his emotions. As he starts to slowly walk backwards towards the kitchen cupboards, his wife then walks in the kitchen and looks at frank and then asks him '' are you alright? you look as if you've seen a ghost ''. Frank immediately assures his wife that its nothing, as he turns of the light and walks his wife into the living room, the voice of the two individuals start to lower and lower as the camera focuses on a little gap in the curtain. the music is slow paced, and gets quicker and louder as the camera moves towards the curtain then a eye emerges in the gap of the curtain. Loud noises will be used her to try and scare the audience. The opening then ends and goes onto a black screen where he hear screaming and the title screen comes up saying "The Awakening".

Research: Narrative Ideas (Miss Hawkins/Ms Heath)

My Narrative Idea

An innocent little girl who begins to see shadows and figures in her home, she tells her parents and they don't believe her until they themselves start to see these moving dark figures in and around there house. Strange things start to happen to them until one day the figures start to get a bit too real as the situation escalates.

Group Members Ideas

Yasmin's idea: A very ill father who was kicked out of his home just after the birth of his first child, the then becomes overly obsessive of his child.

Relande's idea: This is basically about a child who lost his father before he was born, slowly growing up with special powers, as the child gets older the better he is of controlling his powers and he then walks in his fathers footstep as a crime fighter.

Group Narrative

We all came together looking at each others idea's and the group decided to use my narrative as it is conventional to a thriller/horror film due to the mystery theme and the sense of suspense amongst the audience. We all were also very confident that we could make a good thriller trailer out of my narrative idea which is why we all decided to use it.

Film influences

Paranormal Activity

This film was one of the main influences in creating my narrative plot due to both it and my narrative being similar. For example, in paranormal if you've watched it, you would of notice that the young girl starts to have experiences with these figures, which is very similar to my thriller as the same thing happens. In addition, all the paranormal activities in my thriller happen in the house which is the same as Paranormal Activity.

Sinister

Sinister is also another film my narrative is based off as we tried to replicate some of the montage scenes in sinister and place it in our own narrative. The main character of sinister is the father which is very similar to my narrative as the father is the main character which is the person who has the most encounters with the mystery shadow. In addition, the lighting used in the hole sinister movie was very low key which allowed it to remind my audience of the genre of the film and what to expect. In my thriller trailer, you will start to notice the scenes get darker and darker as this will allow tension and suspense to build and also allow the audience to sense trouble and danger.

Conclusion

Looking at everyone's narrative has allowed me to spot out the strengths and weaknesses then apply it to my own narrative to make it easier to follow for the audience while being convention and effective.

The research and information i have gathered from my film influences has also allowed me to pick out idea's in which i could use on my own thriller in the bid to make it as conventional as possible.

Planning: Final Idea (Miss Begum)

Group Choices
My Group all came together and created 3 separate idea's of what the narrative of the film trailer should be. We decided to choose the best idea which was most creative but also conventional to a thriller film.

Firstly, Yasmin's Idea

This is Narrative idea was called 'Psycho Obsession'. This was about a father who is very ill was throw out of his home after the birth of his first child. As the child had gotten older, the father's overly obsessive behaviour had also started to increase.

Advantage - Although the plot is hard to follow, once all the pieces of plot is put together by the audience when watching the film, the audience will then have a better understanding of his the fathers past.
Disadvantage - The narrative is a plot of a Psychological which can be very hard to follow which means the audience will get confused.

Secondly, Relande's Idea

• The title of this Narrative idea was called 'The Descendant'. The idea came from the films Batman and Looper due to the powers people possess. This is basically about a child who lost his father before he was born, slowly growing up with special powers, as the child gets older the better he is of controlling his powers and he then walks in his fathers footstep as a crime fighter.

Advantage - This is a very conventional thriller, which see's the young boy growing up and becoming a hero like his father.

Disadvantage - The narrative of this is way too long, and if we try and shorten it, will confuse the audience as a lot of the important part of this young boys life will have to be cut.

Lastly, My Narrative idea

• The Title for my Narrative idea was 'The Awakening'. It was influenced from the films Orphan and Paranormal activity. This is basically about a  young girl who starts to see shadows and figures in her home, her parents fail to listen to their daughters complaints until one night they are forced to believe here as the shadows & figures become all too real.

Advantage - Conventional to a paranormal film such as Paranormal activity due to the location and the theme.

Disadvantage - The narrative is a bit too predictable, meaning there wont be unexpected suprises for the audience as they can already tell whats going to happen.

Our Chosen Narrative/Plot

The Awakening and it is about a young girl called am who lives with her mum Sarah and her father Frank. Within this film we start of by seeing four pictures on top of a fireplace showing family pictures within different seasons. The audience will not see the person holding the camera which will create tension and suspense amongst them. As we move through the opening scene, we will start to understand what is happening within the household and how the sightings of this mystery figure has escalated and starts to threaten the family. These clips will be accompanied by slow paced music as the audience will start to see Amy becoming more and more disturbed by what she she see's standing outside the house looking in on her. She screams and her dad comes running in, as he reassures Amy that there was nothing outside he guides her back to the living room, until he goes back to look outside and sees the figure for himself before it disappears, he then becomes disturbed about he was seen however, as his wife asks him whats going on, he fails to tell her as he doesn't want to scare her, instead he just comforts her and says it was nothing.

The next day the storm causes a black out and the parents call in an electrician who arrives to fix the power. Unfortunately for the family and the electrician the doors will not open which means someone has locked them. They start to hear noises around the house and see what looks like shadows moving around the house. 

All the sounds and images build up the tension and suspense in the audience when the family is looking down a corridor they see a shadow walking slowly around the corner, just as it's about to turn around the corner the opening then ends and goes onto a black screen where he hear screaming and the title screen comes up saying "The Awakening".

There is then a scene showing the news saying that there is a storm that is about to hit, due to this her parents lock all the doors and windows etc.

Characters

• Amy - Young Girl , Age 9
• Sarah - Amy's Mother, Age 35
• Frank - Amy's Father, Age 37
• Mystery Character

Mise En Scene

Natural Lighting will be used in the stages of the trailer showing Amy's Family life however, the lighting then changes to low key lighting as the mood of the actual trailer then escalates and changes to something more dark and sinister. 
We will use camera shots such as close up, and reaction shots to capture the emotions on the characters face to allow the audience to have an idea of have that person may be feeling. This also allows the audience to put themselves in their situation.
We will use editing techniques such as a montage, fade to black and  straight cuts to try and preserve the continuity of the thriller mood.

Film Influences

• Orphan - Orphan is similar to my narrative as the main focus is about a innocent young girl who is misread and ignored by all the adults until the situation escalates into something with disastrous consequences.
• Paranormal Activity - This film has had a big influence on the location i chose, as my location for our thriller will be in a house where paranormal things start to happen to the family, which is similar to Paranormal Activity. This will have a chilling impact on the audience as it invades their sense of safety as everyone see's their home as a safe haven.

Why is this opening conventional to a thriller?

This is conventional as it allows the audience to guess what is going to happen next as the trailer will have them having different expectations of the outcomes e.g, film ending.

Firstly, this is conventional as one of the main elements i used was low key lighting as this expected to be seen in a thriller film at some point and also it helps set the mood.

Secondly, body is used accurately in my thriller as this tells you a lot about the type of person the character is in the film, This is because of the way they present themselves.

Lastly, another thriller conventional element used in my film was facial expression as they portray the characters emotions to the audience and allows them to get a sense of what there feeling.
 

What Themes does your thriller represent?

The Themes my thriller represent is mystery as throughout the trailer, there is a mystery figure seen however, no one is yet to identify him and even see a clear enough image of him.

The theme of revenge will also be explored in this trailer as we come to see that this mystery figure is seeking revenge on everyone who lives in his house which was once burned down.

What response will i get from my audience?

• The response i will get from my audience will be a lot of tension and suspense pumping through there body as the trailer will leave them wanting to watch more as I plan to reveal a lot but not too much. This way the audience will be forced to watch the film to have their questions answered.

Conclusion

Looking at everyone else's idea, i was able to pick out the advantages of disadvantages of their ideas then using the information i had gotten from that, use it to mend my own narrative and make it conventional.

Research: Mise en scene (Miss Heath)

What is Mise en scene?

Mise en scene is all the different visual elements from properties to scenery which are put together in a scene to represent either a movie or a play for example.

Mise En Scene is made up of five elements:

• Lighting & Colour
• Settings & iconography
• Body language & Facial expressions
• Costume, Hair & Make-Up
• Character/Object Positioning.

Character/Object Position
The position of a character can indicate the importance of that particular character by the way he is portrayed in the frame. This is also used to draw the audiences attention to a object that the director wants to make the subject of the scene.

Lighting and Colour
The lighting and Colour which is used in a scene is often done to reflect the characters mood or in some cases allow the audience to interpret the mood of the actual scene.

Facial Expressions and Body Language
The body language and facial expressions of a character are very important because they portray the emotions of the character. These emotions gives the audience a clear indication of how the character must be feeling.

Setting and iconography
Settings and iconography are used to relate back to the film, whether the film was created in modern day time or say 50 years ago. Settings nowadays are usually filmed in a set if the director cannot find a suitable location to film a scene.
iconography could be the things you'd expect to see in the actual setting for example, if a group of directors were filming in a real factory you'd expect to see broken glass and cardboard boxes, loud noises and machinery all over the place.


Costume, Hair & Make-Up
The Costume, Hair & Make-Up a character uses will tell the audience a lot about the characters personality and they way they present themselves. From looking at the way the character presents themselves by looking at the Costume, Hair and make-up the audience can start to infer about the kind of job that person may be involved with for example, A man with no make up, low cut hairstyle and wearing a suit can tell the audience a lot about him.

Mise En Scene, You'd Expect within a Thriller.

Costume, Hair & Make-Up

• Dark clothing.
• Dark Make-Up.
• Unusual Hairstyle depending on Role withing Film.

Setting and iconography

• Abandoned location
• Weapons 

Lighting and Colour

• Low key lighting
• Back Lighting
• Under Lighting
• Colours Red & Black to represent blood & death.

Facial Expressions and Body Language

• Superiority Body Language
• Physically Body Language
• Vulnerable Body Language
• Terrified Facial Expressions
• Focused Facial Expressions
• Confident Facial Expressions

Position of Character/Object.

• Centre of Frame - to highlight importance.
• Body language of Character to another - Shows Authority and Power.

Trailer From Thriller Film '' Awake ''

In The Awake trailer iconography is used to create meaning as the iconography of the hospital was of everything you'd expect to see in an actual hospital, This ranged from hospital equipment's to even head-wear. This makes it easier for the audience to infer what date the film is suppose to be at, whether it is modern or late.

The trailer starts of with the scene of a young man and a women kissing in a bathtub, in the scenes follow you can still see that the young man is still the main focus of the scene which highlights his importance.

Judging by the way he is dressed, the audience can infer that he is a young wealthy man. The fact that he is seen wearing casual stylish clothing and suits also relates to the fact that he may be very wealthy. This allows the audience to ask a lot of questions which can only be answered once watched the film. This is conventional as it draws the audience in the film then shuts them out which basically implies you need to watch the film to find out more.

There is a lot of natural lighting lighting used in some of the scenes in the trailer as it meets the audiences expectations of an hospital. However, the lighting changed in the scene where the young man was being put under for his operation which highlights the seriousness of whats going on. This is conventional as it allows the audience to interpret the mood of the scene.

Conclusion

From my analysis of this film and creation of this post, I will now be able to use my understanding of Mise En Scene to create an very effective Film trailer. I will make sure the iconography i use is conventional to the narrative and also the genre of the trailer. I now see weapons aren't the main focus of a thriller film as you don't need a gun to pump action and suspense in you're thriller even though this s everyone's popular choice of iconography, It has influenced me to do something different and think outside the box.

Planning: Sound (Miss Begum)

Planning: Sound in my thriller (Miss Begum)

Sound Planning

I believe sound is a very important aspect in all films as it is a micro element that provides atmosphere within a scene, and can cause a desired response from the audience.

Sound is important to think about in all films, especially thriller films as it helps build tension within the film, and it also gives the audience a better understanding of whats going on in the scene and what they should expect to see.

Some of the conventional uses of sound in thrillers are:

Non-diegetic sounds can be used to scare the audience as they cannot see where the sound is coming from. Non-diegetics sounds are commonly used in thriller films to scare the audience when tension is being built. Non-diegetic sound such as voice-overs for example are used to explain events that have occured in the film that the audience were unable to see.

Diegetic sound is sound which is part of the film world. diegetic sounds can be either, the voice of a character or sounds made by an object in the scene. You can find diegetic sound either on screen of off screen depending on the source the sound is coming from.

Off screen sound is whent here is sound in a scene you can hear however, you cannot see the source of the sound.

·         Off-screen sound: for example footsteps of someone/killer who is approaching the scene to kill…

The sound I plan to use in my thriller consists of the following:

1. Non-diegetic sound will be used when the husband is walking up to the window at a slow pace, this is when the soundtrack will start to kick in. I have chosen to use this because this will help increase the audiences curiosity which will keep them engage in the film. This will also have them feeling tense as they are expecting something to happen however, aren't sure whats going to happen. This is conventional to the thriller genre because this builds tension amongst the audience which is then followed up by a loud noise to scare the audience.

2. Diegetic sound will be used in almost every scene in my thriller as you will always hear the voice of a character speaking. we've decided to use dietetic sound as we wanted to make our thriller as conventional as possible as the audience all expect to hear the voice of a character talking, if this is not done it would just kill the hole mood of the thriller.

3. On screen sound will be used in my thriller when the Husband places an object on the table while he is looking outside. On screen sounds are conventional as they are what the audience expect to see in a thriller

4. Off screen sound, this will be used in my thriller to put the audience in a stage of insecurity as they won't know where the sound is coming from or whats going on. This will then lead on to us scaring the audience with using loud noises and leaving a chilling effect amongst them.

5. Parallel sound will be used in my thriller as during the thriller trailer you will hear the noises a car would make while driving past etc. This sound will happen seconds after my potential scare scene where we use non diegetic sound to scare the audience, as this will leave them feeling shaky and that is when i plan to use the parallel sound to scare them and the character.
This conventional as in everything, the audience will always expect to hear some kind of parallel sound.

Conclusion
This post has allowed me to recap on all the possible sounds i will be using in my thriller and also come to a decision on what specific moment will be using these sounds.
It has also allowed to me think about the different types of sounds i could use in my thriller film in order to make it conventional while appealing to the audience.

Planning: Editing Planning (Miss Begum)

Planning: Editing Planning (Miss Begum)

Editing is important in films because It entertains the audience by using different cut scenes to grab their attention. I believe it is important to think about the editing, especially in thriller films because editing determines the mood of the scenes. e.g. a chase scene will use fast pace editing which would create a adrenaline rushed feeling amongst the audience.

Some of the conventional uses of editing in thrillers are Slow paced editing which is when different shots are put together in a sequence at a slow pace. This is used to capture the most important events during a film e.g. fight scene.

Another conventional use of editing in thrillers is fast paced editing which is when different shots are put together in a fast paced sequence. Fast paced editing is used to imply that they may be some kind of terror in a scene and often leaves a drop of anxiety and uncertainty in the audiences mind.

Lastly, Speed of editing is another conventional use of editing used is most thrillers, as it merges together two different frames depending on what direction it may be trying to achieve. Speed of editing also determines the pace the film will travel and the atmosphere of the film or the particular scene.

The editing I plan to use in my thriller consists of the following:

1. Fade to Black will be used at the start of my thriller when the screen will be black then it will then the camera will turn on, having the fireplace in its focus, then suddenly the camera will be moved to focus on the body on the floor before it is then dragged away and the fade to black will then appear. I have chosen to use this as it contributes towards building suspense while dragging the audience into the film. This is conventional to a thriller genre because it will build help build suspense and tension in the scenes and amongst the audience.

2. Reaction shots are used to let the audience see a close up of the characters facial emotions. This does not only create tension amongst the audience but also allows them to infer what may happen later on in the film linking back to this. Reaction shot will be used in my thriller when the husband comes face to face with the mystery shadow before he disappears into the darkness.

3. Montage are used to create excitement and are often seen in chase scenes. I plan on using a montage in the fast editing scenes near the end of my film as i thought this would be most effective. The idea of using a montage in my thriller hit me when i watched the trailer of my film influence Sinister.

4. Straight cut will also be used in my thriller production. Straight cuts are used in thrillers to maintain the continuity of an action. Straight cuts will be used in the dinner conversion scene between the husband and wife.

Conclusion
The this post has benefited myself and my group a lot of it allowed us to recap on the things we learned during the research task then apply it to this task. We also were able to start thinking of which editing techniques we will use in which specific scene and how we could make it effective enough to help create suspense and tension throughout the thriller.