Monday, 2 May 2011

Establishing shots

I took two establishing shots at two extremely different locations.
The weather conditions are opposites like the location.I decided to do this to see how weather conditions effect filming.

clip 1 BEACH
I choose to take an establishing shot in the beach as the weather was very hot and I wanted to compare this to the establishing shot in London.I found that i had to film away from the sun as this effected the filming and made the clip difficult to see.Also filming on the beach was very noisey but this could be altered by muting the camera.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ybB6MhDlq4

Clip 2 Mountain
I then took the opportunity to film in a completely different location by filming in the mountains.Likewise when filming this clip I had to face away from the way which the snow was blowing as once again this made the clip difficult to see.And once again there was the same issue with the wind blowing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWQiUOF3cdY


Both clips show the opposite weather conditions.This shows how we had to time our establishing shot as we could not film the shot with the sun in the clip and we had to keep watch on the weather conditions.As you can see they can easily effect an establishing shot.

Mise en scene comparison

Both videos show to diffent types of audience anaylsing and comparing our mise en scene in 30days earlier to their favourite thriller films.

clip 1
audience profile

male
interested in film social network , has studied media

Clip 2
female
intersted in business and sport has never studied media

I choose these two people as they are of a different gender and have different interests.Also I took into account that one has had recent studies in media so this should have a different outcome on his answer.

Clip 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00C2UN9Jqrk

Clip 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DizsRuU07J8

Monday, 11 April 2011

Evaluation

Below is the directed link to my official website containing all my evaluation responses:


Friday, 8 April 2011

Soundtrack To 30 Days Earlier



Breakdown of soundtrack:

The software I used to create the soundtrack was Apples GarageBand and Adobe Soundbooth CS4. The beginning pulsating synthetic sound you hear was created using the tools of GarageBand, I used the keyboard tool, and Imperial Pad Synth Texture sound to create an eerie dramatic connotation. This is then followed by a voice over that I recorded using a Sony HD camera's attachable microphone, I then edited this sound to create a more tense and dramatic feel. I did this through the use of Adobes Soundbooth CS4, I shortened the duration and lowered the tone to create an even darker sensation. A clap of thunder is then heard with the sound of pouring rain, I created this sound using two layers, I first of all used the keyboard tool and used the Nature sounds, however this caused me problems at the time as the clap of thunder was too long. Therefore I used the track volume tool to fade out the sound and then fade back in the sound of the second clap. This was overlapped with the sound effect of pouring rain, also under the Nature sound section. The following section of the soundtrack was a sample that was within the datdbase of GarageBand named Time Lapse. This was essential within our opening sequence as it created connotations of familiarity, peacefulness and tranquillity yet there is also an undercurrent of tension, which blends in excellently with our thriller genre. An eerie synthetic sound is then heard, I created this eerie sound through the tools of GarageBand. I used the Synth Pad named Cloud Break and recorded the sound through the keyboard tool. This is then followed by an even more thrilling sting and up beat tempo. These sounds I gathered for this section were from the software called Pro Scores, which provided over 300 template sounds. I combined the sounds of FX1 and Athmo 18.1 to create the upbeat, tense connotations throughout the chase scene. A rock bass guitar is then added to the fray to create an elevated sense of action and turmoil for the protagonist, I created this effect using the samples already within the database of GarageBand. I overlapped the sample Edgy Rock Bass 07 with Natural Drum Kit 07 to create these connotations. Towards the final seconds of the scene where the protagonist is cornered i used the track volume tool to increase the sound of the drum kit to show the audience how much trouble the protagonist is in.

Footage From London

We gained lots of footage from london and tried to bring in key recogniseable sights and landmarks that made it instantly recogniseable that we were within London.


Such as the establishing shots of The Olympics Stadium, Tower Bridge and an Underground sign opposite the Tower of London.




It was vital for us to capture these key landmarks in london so that our audiences would a great unserstanding that the scene was set within London.




Final cut to soundtrack of 30 Days Earlier

Thursday, 7 April 2011

Wednesday, 6 April 2011

Tuesday, 29 March 2011

'30 Days Earlier' - Updated final cut


Due to the bad aspect ratio of our final cut, we have to edit our sequence thoroughly for the best quality. This is the updated final cut with a large aspect ratio and better quality than previous uploads.

Monday, 28 March 2011

Tuesday, 22 March 2011

Monologue


The first video is a clip to show Aaron Masons monologue which is featured at the beginning of 30 DAYS EARLIER.I decided that this would be a productive idea as by doing this we would know how effective the monologue is. Also the audience feedback helps us edit the monologue so it suits the audiences expectations.The audience group age ranges from 16-17 years old.Some of the audience were previous media students , I chose this deliberatley as these students will recognise the representation of Aaron Mason.The other students have had no recollection with media other than the daily media, but they have never analysed the media.Once again I chose this audience deliberatley as they will be able to judge the monologue on how effective it is to them and if it creates the same effect as monologues they have heard on films that they watch.

I began by asking the audience whether the monologue sound realistic like one they would hear on thriller films which they have seen. And why the monologue is realistic? The audience answered by saying “ that the monologue sounded very natural.”I then went on to ask that if they heard the monologue in a film would it make the film more intense? One member of the audience said yes, because it makes the audience want to know what has happened to the character and they begin to identify with the character. I then asked if the tone of voice made the monologue more intense ? The audience went on to answer that “Aarons to of voice is very quiet and needs to be louder also more emotion needs to be added to Aarons voice”
All of these comments were took on board and we went to record the monologue again but with these alterations.

Monday, 21 March 2011

DVD Cover





I created a DVD cover for our production of 30 Days Earlier. I was using the software Adobe Photoshop CS4 to merge various images together to create a capturing, unique cover. I used various well knwon film covers to help me create and develop upon the final product.

Ladder 49 inspired me to create a sense of mystery and give the audiences questions immediately straight from the strat at looking at the cover. I asked my self in viewing the cover who was the fireman on the bottom of the cover? i went further into developing this in creating the DVD cover as a series of sillouettes, my aim was to create a sense of mystery and give the audience questions running through there mind.

Here is the Front Cover for ladder 49:



Wednesday, 9 March 2011

Backstage at Marj Productions

I filmed a clip of us filming the a scene in the opening sequence.This clip reflects us devolping and testing possible ideas.It also shows us working together as a group and footage of the sequence being made rather than just the finished sequence.Also majority of the films produced today feautured backstage cuts , this is to show the audience the making of the film and what life is like on set.Even though we are a group of three and we are basic filming rather than mainstream I think it is interesting to see the making of the scene.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HzMoL2-rP0A

Tuesday, 15 February 2011

Final credits


I used Video Co-Pilot to help us create our final credits for a professional and vibrant look compared to our original credits in the rough cut. I followed one of Video Co-Pilot's tutorials for their blockbuster titles. The credits zoomed into the screen in bold with a bright flash when they appeared. After finalising our font and text for the titles, I decided to stylise the titles and emphasise the lighting effect with an special effect of rain. The effect gave a darker, grittier look to the credits, which is what we originally wanted. I also believe the transitions we have used between the credits is effective and overall the blockbuster feel has been achieved.

Thursday, 10 February 2011

30 Days Earlier possible credits


Here is a possible credit sequence I created a few weeks ago as we were editing the final cut of our sequence. We have since scraped the credits and picked far more professional and stylised credits created on Adobe After Effects. Though, I do like this credit sequence as I mixed it with the opening shot and narration, a technique we didn't think to use for our opening sequence.

Thursday, 20 January 2011

Matthew Wright

Due to unforseen circumstances, one of our influential members of our group will unfortunately not be able to carry on with this course. This was a result from a complication that arose from a simple medical operation, that has unfortunately left Matthew Wright with paralysis of his left leg. He will be sorely missed, and we wish him all the best.

Get well soon Matt!

Sunday, 9 January 2011

Location research - alleys



This is my primary research into possible locations we could use for the re-shooting of our alley shot. Our original shot didn't show a great deal of the beaten-up protagonist and the area itself didn't seem dark enough as we intended. In this video, I ponder whether we could use other areas instead of alleys and the micro elements we need to think about when filming.

Saturday, 8 January 2011

A delve into Garage Band

We believe that the music is highly important to bring out the tension that we want the audience to experience throughout the opening sequence of 30 days earlier. Yesterday I had a chance for my first quick look into Apples software, Garage Band.

Firstly, as a new comer to the world of Apple Macs, it was quite overwhelming and confusing to navigate throughout the interface of the software. After a quick tutorial by someone that has previously used Garage band before, I was well on my way into the basics. I shortly after found the software to be great! It supplies you with a wide variety of instruments, sounds and tools to play around with, such as:
  • Bass
  • Drum Kits
  • Guitars
  • Horns
  • Mallets
  • Organs
  • Pianos and Keyboards
  • Sound Effects
  • Strings
  • Synth Basics
  • Synth Leads
  • Synth Pads
  • Synth Textures
  • Woodwinds
Whilst playing around with the software and listening to all of the instruments and sounds provided, I had a rough idea with which instruments could bring out the tension for our production. All 4 Synth categories had some great options to bring out the creepy sounds that you would hear within a typical thriller production. These sounds could be the base of our sound throughout the production to give the audience a high level of tension as it brings a level of confusion and eeriness to their emotions.

As well as this, the software provided some great sound effects. This gave me a handful of ideas to incorporate real life sounds, to bring a sense of realism to the audience and an even higher sensation of tension throughout the opening sequence. I found a series of radio sounds under the category of sound effects, which gave me an idea to bring out a sense of familiarity to the audience's own life's with the protagonists life, due to the fact that we all listen to the radio during some part of our day, whether its via the car, kitchen or morning alarm. I will be looking more into Garage band shortly throughout the coming weeks, hopefully ill be able to create something for the production that will combine well with our recent filming.



30 Days Earlier trailer



This is the trailer for our title sequence. I edited together many of our original scenes along with a few scenes I created for a more dramatic effect and to give a back story to the sequence. I couldn't find any sutiable music for the trailer, so instead decided on using no music to see if it would create a tense atmosphere with only close-up shots and quick cuts.

Thursday, 16 December 2010

Film Certification














After deciding on the narrative, I decided to determine what certification our film should have. To find out exactly how we should certify the film, I took secondary research.


Film Certification

Film Certificates are used to restrict certain age groups being exposed or possibly harmed by scenes in a film. The British Broadcast of Film Classifaction is an independent, non-governmental body which has classified british cinema films since 1912.


U - Universal films

Films with this certification are suitable for four years and over. U Films are usually set within a positive framework and offer reassuring counterbalances to any violence, threat or horror.

PG - Parental Guidance

Films with this certification is general viewing, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children. This is why it is required for parents of young children to accompany them. A PG film shouldn't disturb a child aged around eight or older.

12A/12

12A certification has taken over from 12 in recent years. 12A allows children younger than 12 to watch a film, though they have to be accompanied by an adult. 12A films can contain mature themes, discrimination, soft drugs, mild swear words and moderate violent/sex references. 12 certification only exists with video works. No one youunger than 12 may rent or buy a 12 rated video work.

15

No one under 15 can watch or buy a film with this certification. Films under this category can contain adult themes, hard drugs, strong words, moderate-strong violence/sex references and mild non-detailed sex activity.

18

Only adults are permitted to watch a film with this certification. Films under this category have no limitation on bad language that is used, hard drugs are generally allowed and strong viloent/sex references along with non-detailed sex activity is allowed.

-Research taken from bbfc.co.uk and wikipedia.com-

After gathering all the relevant research, I examined the certifications along with the narrative of our title sequence to see which would suit our film best. We have chosen for a 12A certification as the film contains mature themes, some moderate violent references and no swearing or discrimination. I feel though that film suits best with 11 upwards due to the plot and references we have included.

Whilst we thought about the right certification, we also wanted to expand on our original target audience and appeal to family audiences as they are currently the largest cinema audience, with many films targeting family audiences.








Rough Cut feedback report


I showed the opening sequence to a small range of people and documented their reports. We choose to use both forms of documentation as we thought that when filming responses the feedback may not be as clear as they we be asked specific questions where as these responses were done independently.

Rough cut Questionaire for feedback


The questions above will be asked to a wide variety of people and we will be filming the response. The questions are of a wide range as we wanted to get as much feedback and suggestions as possible to make our film as appealing to the audience as possible.

The shoot - props, costumes, locations and filming

We prepared our requirements for the shoot two weeks beforehand whilst we were still planning what we were going to use.

Props
We had to carefully plan when and where we wanted to use our props as they were essential to the sequence, mainly because most of them had credits on. We did include more props than we expected and removed some that we realised weren't particularly necessary. To make our sequence more realistic, we decided to use a contemporary mobile phone as a prop in one of the establishing shots, as audiences recognise it easily. We also used a coffee cup momentarily in five of the shots to give this effect. The problem we had with our main props (posters with credits) was where to place them at Shad Thames. We soon decided on placing them on walls nearby to each other and we also spaced them evenly. Our other props were the two newspapers with credits. Matt and I used them for most scenes, covering the credits on the establishing shot and then holding them completely out so Jade could get a good view for the camera. We also had to be careful where we going to lob the newspapers as there were puddles and mud scattered across the street, this was for mainly continuity and in case we decided to scrap a shot.

Costumes
The costumes were easy for us to pick out as we already set on having the location of London and we wanted to fit in with the large public there. After researching and using our general knowledge of the area we decided on all of us to wear suits and smart wear to fit in with the commuters around London and to follow what would suit our main character: a man going off to work. Matt went for a different approach and wore a large beige coat with smart trousers as he wanted to subtlely give connotations with his costume that he was hiding something and wanted to look menacing.

Locations
We already had an idea which locations we wanted to use in our sequence as we wanted to give the audience understanding to where the film was set, by filming famous landmarks around London. We filmed at the Tower of London then Tower Bridge and the River Thames for this and also filmed the upcoming 2012 Olympic Stadium to give the audience a further understanding to when the film is set. The locations we needed were hard to find included the dead-end alley and a small street. Seeing as we didn't know our way around London properly, we weren't sure where we would find an alley. We decided to use Google Maps and find a suitable street that wasn't too crowded and had enough space to film the chase scene. Soon after searching, we decided on filming at Shad Thamesas it was perfect to place up our posters on plain walls and didn't have too many people in the area. When we were at Shad Thames, we found a nearby alley next to The Dean Swift that was desolate and small, which gives a claustrophobic feel to the scene.

Filming
The filming itself was quite easy as we all had previous experiences filming and took turns at filming scenes to see which of us captured it the best. Establishing and panning shots were relatively easy as we took a slow turn when panning and managed to capture a great deal of the location. We also used my own professional tripod when filming, which had great height and an in-built level meter which helped us to film scenes better. Whilst at location, we decided to take a more creative approach with filming, such as taking risks and capturing a moving shot of the 2012 stadium on the train. We also experimented with a quick pan when filming at the dead-end alley to give the audience a better view of the location and to keep with our current theme of constant live action and using no cuts.
The hardest part of filming for the sequence was the long shot track of the chase scene as we had to risk freehand filming to keep up with the live action and the realistic effect with our sequence. Thankfully, Jade managed to film it properly as she took extra care by filming the scene an extra twenty times to capture all the details and to remove the freehand effect. Another hard shot in our sequence was the mid shot track of the charatcers running. Matt and I took turns in filming this as it was hard to keep the camera steady whilst capturing the running. Again, we didn't want the freehand effect and we managed to refrain from this by holding tightly onto the tripod and camera.

Wednesday, 15 December 2010

'30 Days Earlier' - Rough cut


This is the rough cut of our title sequence. Unfortunately, we had problems with processing the intended monologue and our first draft of music. We have taken in all the feedback and our currently working on improving the sequence.

Updated Marketing




















I have swiftly edited the posters for our distribution of the title sequence with Ryan now in the lead role. I focused on making the posters darker and more innovative than the originals. Also, I created a few merchandise items for promotion.

Marketing in thriller movies


Thriller movies are usually marketed worldwide due to many recent thrillers coming from America. For example, 'The Dark Knight' was promoted heavily with a range of posters and even a viral campaign with the webiste WhySoSerious.com that aimed to interest fans by having them earn what they wanted to see. Fans 'earned' by sending emails which in turn unlocks pixels of pictures from the film. This convergence in promoting is effective as it appeals to the young generation and keeps with the technological times. It also gives fans an interactive experience to view teasers instead of traditionally waiting for releases.


Another film which had effective marketing was 'V For Vendetta', as cast and crew members attended several press conferences where they addressed issues. The film gained publicity due to the controversy that the author Alan Moore, of the original graphic novel didn't want a film to be made. Whilst this was slightly bad for the director and producers, more audiences were interested in the film due to the controversy. I believe this marketing is effective but risky as controversy surrounding a film can cause a major loss at the box office.


Tuesday, 14 December 2010

Updated posting schedule

As Matt has unfortunately departed from our group, we had to evenly pass out his posting schedule amongst us. The new schedule is as follows:

Ryan

Genre survey
Target, intended audiences
Shot list
Draft storyboard
Photo storyboard
Footage from London
Editing
Typical thriller props
Typical thriller camera shots, angles
Music
Evaluation

Jade

Suitable non-copyright music
Mise-en-scene survey
Possible locations
Possible props
Mood board
Casting
Typical thriller costumes
Typical thriller locations
Title sequence characters
Sequence script
Ideas for credits
Audience feedback for rough cut
Evaluation

Alex

About us
Music survey
Preliminary task
Rough cut
Possible costumes
Actor survey
Title sequence narrative
Thriller conventions
Time management, shooting schedule
The shoot
Finished product
Evaluation

Monday, 13 December 2010

Photographic Story Boards

Here is our photographic storyboards that were created after our hand drawn story board. This basically gives us a greater understanding of how we are going to film our production.










Editing

We had a few choices when it came to editing our rough cut and our forthcoming final piece. There was options of simple programs such as Windows Movie Maker, though this didn't have the requirements we needed for cutting pieces. Instead, we chose to use the popular Adobe Premiere Pro as it included effective transitions we could use and also is great for cutting shots. We have also used other Adobe programs such as After Effects for a realistic and dramatic effect in our title sequence.

Target Intended Audience

We originally wanted to certify our production as a 15, however this would have restricted us to people ages 15 and over. Therefore we came to the decision that it was key for us to certify our prouct as a 12A film. This would mean we would have a range of all ages and bring in the biggest audience. As well as young adults, teenagers would be our main consumer. As well as this the office workers, cosmopolitan people working within cities will be drawn into this production as they can identify themselves with the characters involved and the location in which it is set.

Audience profile:

Young adults of both genders, aged from 15-30, from working to middle class (C1 - B demographic) who love thrillers and the story-lines that appear from this genre. Like most audiences, they enjoy social networking and receiving new technology for social interaction and to receive information. The main gratification this audience seeks is escapism and identifying with texts.

Marketing







We created work on advertising and a DVD cover for our opening sequence during planning. This is currently being updated with the number of changes we made during production.

Editing

Mood board


This is the mood board we created with all our title sequence ideas.

Thriller conventions


I researched the forms and conventions of the thriller genre to understand what we would use and develop on in our title sequence. What I discovered included:

Sound
Sound in thriller movies is typically eerie and mysterious. Though, music in sub-genres can be varied such as physcological thrillers. An example of this would be 'The Beach' with the relaxing and paradis-themed music throughout the film to reflect how the characters feel on the beautiful island and also later in the film to show to the audience aurally how the characters feel whilst under the influence of illegal drugs. Other sub-genres include include action thrillers, an example of this being 'The Dark Knight', with loud and anticipating music to build the tension throughout and also to emphasise The Joker's insane and violent behaviour. Another sub-genre which is interesting is revenge thrillers. A specific example of this is 'Kill Bill: Vol.2', which has a unique soundtrack that is similar to Broadway show Chicago. In fact, the film seems more like a play than a movie. I found this incredibly clever as it invests something new to movies and also attracts audiences as it is different.

Titling
Titling in thrillers are also varied depending on the narrative. In 'Reservoir Dogs' The titling is bold and in white and fit well with the seemingly cartoon effects used. Futhermore, the colour changes constantly to stand out and represent each of the main characters effectively. Whilst typical titling in thriller movies audiences would usually expect is bold white titles on a black background. This creates a dramatic effect and creates tension as to what the film is about, as it is unclear at this stage. Films with titling such as this includes 'No Country for Old Men' and 'The Dark Knight'.
Editing
There is two common transitions used in thriller films to create a certain effect. Many thrillers use jump cuts to different scenes of action for a fast-paced effect and to allow the audience to make assumptions of the narrative. This is used in the original 'Get Carter' for a violent effect. The other transition commonly used is a fade through black to create a dramatic effect in a film. The fade is usually slow and may sometimes have titles across to give relevant information to the audience such as the time and place of the next scene. This is used in 'No Country for Old Men' in the opening scene for a quick dramatic effect along with the monologue introducing the characters.

Opening Sequence ideas


The ideas include:
LocationLondon, Southend , Alleyways , Beach, Tower Bridge , Embankment.
Film name 30 Days Earlier... , Stalk, Figures, Disapeared.
Inspiration- Panic Room, Sixth Sense, Mystic River, Hard Candy, The Departed.
GenreThriller, Horror, Action, Romance, Comedy, Fantasy, Mystery.
Lighting Hollywood lighting, Hard low key lighting, Bright to create a surreal atmosphere.
CreditsUrban style credits, Credits displayed on poster, Displayed on poster, Along the bridge, Flying towards the screen.
Shots Establishing shot, Push/Pull, Tracking, Extreme close ups.
CharactersBusinessman, Gangsters, Police, Detectives, Gangs.
Music Diegetic-Police Sirens, Cars, Crowds, Screams
Non Diegetic- Fast paced, Jazz genre.
Costumes Business Suit , Pajamas, Ragged Shirts, Glasses, Hats
Props Newspapers, Alarms clock, Cigarette, Cars


This is the ideas for the opening sequence. We brainstormed the ideas above.We came to a decision that we wanted a location that would be easily noticed so the viewers can identify with the film. We also concluded that the genre will be thriller so all our ideas were influenced on this. Our house style has been included throughout our production pieces.The style for the opening sequence poster is red and black this was done to make the design clear and to match other peices of work.Also I think the colors used reflects the genre well.As both colors have connotations of DANGER which is the impression we wanted to give.

Time management












We created a strict schedule for our shoot at London on Monday 15th November. We devised different time slots for the specific areas whilst containing a sense of flexibility to ensure we would get the best possible shots. We also gave use enough time by leaving for our journey at 09.00 and gathered the filming equipment fifteen minutes beforehand.

Possible locations

Posting schedule


We devised a posting schedule for all of us in the group, to even all the posts. Obviously, this isn't a full planfor all the posts and another schedule should be posted soon when we gathered more ideas. All together we have accumulated the 30 posts evenly to each other, with all the post having interesting information on our planning and production.

Ryan
Genre survey
Target, intended audiences
Shot list
Draft storyboard
Photo storyboard
Footage from London
Editing
Audience's feedback to rough cut
Typical thriller props
Evaluation

Matt
Actor survey
Title sequence characters
Sequence script
Ideas for credits
Possible costumes
Music
Rough cut
Typical thriller camera shots, angles
Evaluation

Jade
Suitable non-copyright music
Mise-en-scene survey
Possible locations
Possible props
Mood board
Casting
Typical thriller costumes
Typical thriller locations
Evaluation

Alex
About us
Music survey
Preliminary task
Title sequence narrative
Thriller conventions
Time management, shooting schedule
The shoot
Finished product
Evaluation

Possible Thriller Costumes

Arran Msasons final costume.The costume was deliberatly ripped , rubber in mud and had false blood added to it to create the right mise en scene.Also by making the costume look as though the character has been atacked it indicates to the audience that he has been attacked with out seeing the attacking.

A few ideas were devolped on what the antagonist could wear.We figured that he would have to look smart to reflect to more sinister look as if he were dressed in casual clothing he may blend into the background.

Sunday, 12 December 2010

Typical Thriller Props

Props are vital within the thriller genre in creating different connotations to the audience.

Weapons:

Weapons are a well known prop used throughout a majority of thriller films. They are commonly used to fend off the bad person or solve the dilemma of a situation for example in the Lord of the rings trilogy the use of a bow or a sword. However weapons can also be used to portray a sense of a character being vulnerable or in a certain level of distress for example the characters within dawn of the dead have a limited amount of weapons which lowers there levels of secuirty and safety.

Key prop to highlight thoughts:

Props such as pictures or lettersa can show a characters chain of thoughts and what they are planning on doing or how they are feeling. For example the use of the protaganists key attention to receiving and finding letters within P.S I Love You.


Blood:


Within the thriller genre blood is a common sight. This is typically seen within the sub genre of a horror-thriller to show someones pain and torment that they are currently going through. Films such as Saw and Hostel use blood excesivly to show the level of torture the victim is going through.



Typical thriller camera shots and angles

There are many camera shots and angles used by directors to create the feeling of a thriller.

High level low angle shot/Low level high angle shot:

This method of camera angles and levels is a great way to show
a characters current position. This can be used effectively to show a characters status, a low status can be created via a high level low angle which makes the audience feel something is above them, this is in comparison to a low level high angle shot which can create representations of a higher class due to connotations of being below the character. They can also be used to create connotations of vulnerability or
power. For example a low level high angle shot will show a characters high level of power as it gives the sense that everything is below them and they overpower everything. Whereas a character can be given a portrayal of vulnerability through a high level low angel shot which gives the audiences connotations of being above them and the character being in a low place.

This shot shows how the low level high angled shot gives connotations that this characters powerful and has authority.



















This shot of our production shows how we tried to create connotations of how vulnerable the protaganst is.













Long Shot that pears through an obstruction:

A long shot that pears through an obstruction is
common within the thriller of genre, this creates the sense and feeling that someone or something is looking at the character/'s in sight.

Here is an example with the camera shooting throu
gh a gate onto characters.












Push Pull Shot:

A push pull shot also known as the Hitchcock shot due to the man who created it is a great method at which to create connotations that a character has realized something or is in a state of shock. The way in which to create this is to either pull the camera in to the character via the use of a track whilst zooming out w
hich will make the character seem as if they are staying in position whilst the background is becoming larger this emphasises that the character is seeing the bigger picture. On the other hand you can do the opposite and pull the camera back on the track and zoom in which will make the background smaller effectively creating a sense of shock or making an understanding that the character is in trouble.

This method was used in jaws and here is a clip to show you how the connotation is created that the character has now realised whats happened:




Extreme close up:

Extreme close ups are also commonly used within the genre of thriller, they are used for many reasons such as to emphasizes the use of a signifier, or on a character to show there current emotions, of maybe joy or sadness.

This extreme close up shot of Harry Potter emphasizes the characters seriousness:


Friday, 3 December 2010

Title sequence narrative

The following is a complete outline of the narrative of our opening sequence:

Arran Mason is lying lifeless in a dead-end alley. He’s horribly beaten and obviously unaware of his current location. As we get to see more of him, he narrates what has happened, though he doesn’t give hardly any information to why he is beaten. The only major point he gives away is this: ‘It started thirty days earlier...’

Along with this line, there is an instant flashback to when ‘it’ all began. Arran is at home preparing for a monotonous day of work with the help of his caring wife, though he only reluctantly allows her. Soon, he is making his way through London, just passing Tower Bridge. Arran fails to notice two shady men keeping a close eye on him. As Arran gets closer to his workplace, the men follow tentatively. Whilst he is walking down a mildly-crowded street, Arran suddenly realises the two men’s presence and desperately tries to escape them by running.

Later on in the deadly chase Arran mistakenly runs into a blocked alley and tries to confront his two enemies. Unfortunately, the men are stronger than he expected and is now completely powerless...

Thursday, 2 December 2010

Shot List


We creaqted a shot list for our production so that it gave us a clear understanding of what camera shots and angles we were going to use during the filming of our production. The camera shots and angles are vital so that it creates that right mediation of the characters. Take for instance the close up at the end to show our characters lost emotion and struggle that he feels.

Drawn Draft Story Board












We created a drawn draft story board so that we had a clearer vision of what direction we wanted to take our production.