New storyline

As we didn't allow enough time we had to change our opening sequence. We were unable to access the locations we aimed to use, the graveyard and the basement.
We ended up using the college site, we used the toilets for where the two girls were arguing and for Mel's hand and newspaper scenes we used a billboard outside a classroom.
The whole storyline changed:
It starts off showing mels walking to her wall - where she has been stalking Abi
The camera focuses and shows all of mels work she has been doing
It flashes back to the girls entering the toilets
They begin to argue and shows theres conflict between the two of them
The camera shows mel is watching and she knows that the girls are arguing
Throughout all the flashbacks - mel is shown to be writing a letter too Abi, saying she knows
We left it as a cliffhanger so it builds tension up and makes the audience what to continue to watch

Ready to evaluate

Page grabs have been taken off different programmes that we have used, for example photo shop, garage band, final cut express.
On the evaluation we are going to include the way in which we created things, we used the internet and certain websites which we will show in the powerpoint and explain all the little details.

Feedback from our roughcut

Pros -
Good use of sound - diegetic and non diegetic
Good graphics - the animation at the begining
Credits are good and fit in well
Good use of fade outs
Good variety of shot types
Editing in general fits well with sound
The title at the end is well presented
The flash transitions flow well

Cons - 
Fairly hard to follow
One clip is out of focus
Costumes could be better


Own feedback - aims-
Music wasn't suitable in some areas - redo and make some more music
First title maybe keep on screen for longer
Need to blur out Abbies face in all the scenes not just on one of them
Shots in the bathroom - try and make them zoom in and out - move about more!!
Shots upon shots - fading into each other
Mels face is too comical - cut it a lot shorter
Maybe do voice over for abis bit

Dialouge

We aim to have very little dialouge and use music and actions to tell the audience what is happening.

In the flashback Abi has we will have little dialouge to show that the characters are arguing.

Speech-
Abi - as approaching sister - shouts 'why did you do it, just tell me why?'
Sister - backing away- 'i didnt, i didnt i swear' -emotional and shocked as her sister is accusing her
Abi - 'theres evidence, i know you did it' - pushing sister
Sister - falling to floor - crying 'im sorry Abi, im sorry!'

Sound effects/ Music

We will create some music - some suspense music to go on throughout the opening, preferably low tone, quiet music that will gradually build up some tension yet emotion towards certain characters and make the other character seem mysterious. We aim to use garage band to create the music, yet use similar ideas to what we earlier found on youtube.

We will record some of our own sound effects-

1. muffled speech- for the flash back
2. eerie instrumentals- to be played throughout the stalker scenes
3. For tittle sequence- maybe techno beats or dark intrumental

Shooting schedule/timings/actions

1.Footsteps down thee stairs, camera focusing on the feet only, gradually getting more of the body in whilst ‘Mel’s’ moving towards the chair to sit down….
2.Over shoulder of Mel – of her hands grabbing the scissors (title)
3.Close up of hand cutting the paper – ‘O W …’ (title)
4.Flash of black paper with ‘I K N’ on

5.Abi’s feet walking away from the camera (title)
6.Back of Abi walking towards gravestone (title)
7.Side of Abi, falling to her knees

8.Mel’s hand rustling through things to find the glue (title)
9.Back of Mel – spotlight on her, showing the dark gloomy room (title)

10.Abi’s face close up, eyes shut – emotional/sad

11.Flashback - of Abi and sister (Zoe or Rachel) arguing, big row
12.Flashback – pushing shoving each other, crying, emotional
13.Flashback – Mel shown in background seeing this happen - her eye

14.Abi’s close up face again – opens eyes, shaken up (title) hands on head

15.Mel just finishing the paper, spelling out ‘I KNOW…’

photos we're hoping to use in the opening as props

NEED TO DO

take pictures of the location - got cellar - need graveyard
need photos of rachel
notebook, pens, newspaper, scissors, clock possibly
create music similar to what we want in the film
think of a name
begin to think of titles - rachel

maybe change round our storyline -
less imagery of mel and more focus on abi at graveyard
her eyes shut - flashbacks - shock/upset face after
flash back of abi and rachel arguing - pushing etc


overall storyline - abi argue with sister (rachel) possible involved with death or murder
mel knows something about the death and is threatening abi to report it and haunting her

some props we are planning to use similar ideas to

Some examples of music-

Music which can be played throughout shots:
when focusing on obsessive character these types of music will be played (suspense, thrilling)



2 - when focusing on the two girls we need more erie music and when at obsessive character we want more suspense and dramatic music



3 - sections of the third video i found gave me key ideas of racing, faster music for when the camera is focusing on the girls walking



4 - this video is more focusing on the movements of the obsessive character and some sections are good for movements of the camera work showing emotions of certain characters

Storyline - basic ideas

We are going to base out opening on similar effects to what the thriller 'Seven'

- we aim to have plenty on little quick snappy shots

- they will be using diaries, date/times
- shot at clock expressing times changing
- bible - cross - writing - old diary

- person in dark gloomy room, showing bad person
- other two characters within a more happier yet isolated area

- filming girls just walking to place - their feet, over shoulder to half their face
- two characters within the park - meeting up, quick flashback to them
- using one character to be the OCD obsessive person

Walt Disney Production Logo

This creates a fun, friendly, exciting, fantasy land, creative feeling.
It aims for younger children, they will be enticed as it creates the feeling of magic. They are most likely to be cartoons if not then very young children based films.

InsaneTK Production

This logo makes me feel they present sci-fi films, also more intellectual films. The writing seems quite modern and sophisticated due to the lights shining behind the writing making it luminous. This is more for a older generation.

Star Harbor Production Logo

This production logo makes me feel they produce younger aged group films/movies, there is a little boy so this represents the age group. Also the shooting star makes me feel it may be fantasy and fun. It is in cartoon, so it seems they range the films at groups below teenagers.

After watching students work

Top tips -

use range of shots
if use handheld then not too shaky
leave it so audience has questions - not all resolved
plan well + quick - film, leave time to re-do shots if need be
use costume
storyboard
decent script
make actor act appropriately
music - not to dramatic - low and distant
location
shoot a lot of footage + retake a lot
good fonts - keep consistent - not near edge of screen

Leon

There is light flowing music, one instrument playing through the title sequence.
Doesn't fit too well with the thriller to start with as it seems a happy atmosphere, however we don't see any characters.
The titles stay in the centre of the screen, at one stage as the camera zooms through the street, the titles stay in line with the lines in the road.
I like the way the camera pans over a forest leading onto a busy city which shows the location of where the story will be held.
I didn't like the way we weren't introduced to any characters - it was all scenery and not much story line.

The Game - Thriller

The first opening sequence is watching some characters which are setting the story allowing us to be one step ahead of the other actors.

Intense music was being played throughout the opening and the characters were silent.

Over the shoulder is used to show how important the conversation is, different close ups are used to show the men's attitudes - one is not worried about laws etc as smoking inside a Californian restaurant. 

It has flashbacks when he is in the car, the camera zooms to the end of car then back to the flashback making it seem these times were extremely important to the man. 

The single man, who lives on his own, has his dinner already prepared for himself and his own champagne with birthday cake. It shows he is focused on his career and he seems lonely.

He is lying on the sofa thinking of the past where you see a little boy who we assume is him and he is on his own standing on the roof. 

Lighting - dark lighting sets the mood - spot light upon the main man

When the man is being followed the camera looks onto his mirrors so we see what he sees, adding drama

Evaluation of thriller preliminary task

We failed to use match on action shot, the continuity worked well until Mel put her hand upon the door handle, we crossed the 180 degree rule therefore the audience were not sure of who was opening the door - Rachel or Mel. It is uncertain so we are going to re do this task hoping to improve and complete the three continuity editing rules.

Research for thriller

Continuity Editing:


Shot reverse shot - is a film technique to show one character looking at another character who is off screen at the current time, then the other character is shown looking back at the first character. 


180 degree rule - is a basic guideline in shots, when two characters within the same scene should always have the same left/right relationship to each other. The camera should now 'cross the line' (imaginary line axis connecting the two subjects)


Match on action - an editing technique when an edit takes place in the middle of an action. For example - if a character lights a match in the first shot, the same character will draw it up to a cigarette in the second shot.