Production Roles - Miss Miller

When you start making a film certain things need to be allocated between several people, if you leave every job to one person then they will rush everything which will make the film look bad and lower its success however if you make it so that many people take on different tasks then all the work is distributed equally between the production roles. The main production roles that are necessary when it comes to making a film are:

• producers - Jess, Ryan and Charlie
• Directors - Charlie
• Actors - Molly Van-Wijingaarden, Ryan Samuels, Morgan Boughey and Ella Sawtell
• Directors of photography - Ryan and Charlie 
• Music producers - Ryan
• Screenplay writer - Jess
• MES co-ordinator - Jess
• Editors - Charlie and Jess 

We all discussed as a group at who would be better at doing what as we all had to do something that we had a previous interest for it to be good as if you chose someone to be screenplay writer when they wanted to do something else, it wouldn't be good enough. We distributed all the roles equally depending on what we all wanted to do.

I said to the group that I wanted to direct the film as the storyboard I had made seemed conventional enough to the other members of the group. I had a good understanding of all the shots that i thought were necessary for our film and I knew we could get them done easily and quickly as long as everyone co operated. I managed to get all the shots done to a suitable standard and the rest of the group were also happy with what I had done. The reason the group wanted to do this was because I had a better understanding of the shots that we wanted to achieve 

The actors for our group were very co operative but the level of acting could have been improved slightly. The one small problem we had was that some of the actors were not available for a lot so the first time we filmed we had to get their bits done first as that was a priority. Then one of our main actors couldn't do a lot of the filming as she couldn't for personal reasons so when we did have a chance to film we had to be quick because it got dark fast which made it hard for us to film. Having these people act was simple for us as everyone knew each other so it wasn't awkward for anyone at all.

Directors of photography was me and Ryan, Ryan wanted take charge for all the shots and i had just directed him on what to do. The reason we thought we should give it to Ryan was because he was enthusiastic about filming the sequence. Me and Ryan also work well together so he did a lot of what I asked him to do, he even came up with some suggestions for shots that could make it even more conventional to a thriller. The reason why we had two people work on this is because most of the time we need a second opinion on a shot so two people are adequate for this task. 

Music producers was an easy one to get past as Ryan was very enthusiastic on getting us all suitable music for our thriller piece, he knew the websites he would look at so that is why we gave him that task to complete. The reason why we gave this task to only one person is because it is a task better left to one, if we had a few more working on it then they might go away and get the same music which would just be a waste of time and efficiency.

We agreed that Jess should be the screenplay writer as she had come up with the narrative of our opening sequence in the first place. Jess also had some ideas to change her narrative as did we but she took most of the control in that aspect. We only kept it to one person because the narrative may get complicated if we got three people to write it and we are meant to keep the narrative simple as it is only a beginning to a thriller.

MES coordinator we gave to Jess as well because when it came to the storyboards she was the one who had included the most iconography and a good use of lighting, she even had the idea of the characters positioning and what the differences meant, so we gave that task to her. The reason why we only had one person do this was because she knew the cast better than me or Ryan so she could ask them to bring the iconography that she wanted them to have.

And finally me and Jess decided to do the editing while Ryan would find us music. We both take it in turns to do the editing, Jess does most of the fonts as that was the key thing that she created in our planning opening credits, and I merge a lot of the clips together and cut them if they are too long or if something just isn't needed. The reason why we used two people is so that we can get a second opinion on how it looks and Ryan sometimes offers his which is very helpful. This makes editing easier for both of us as we do different things that maybe one of us is better at doing than the other and can do it quickly.

I think that nearly all roles were done to a suitable standard the only thing i may suggest could have been better is the casts acting as sometimes it seems too over the top or they even seem like they just want to go home so that do it quickly. Other than that I think everything else went well as we did the editing and Ryan found the music quite quickly so getting to editing was easy for us.

Filming Schedule - miss georgiou

A filming schedule is important to have because it lets the directors or creators know what shot is or will be next to create, it gives the creator a chance to make it in a chronological order so that when it comes to editing it is quite simple. The directors can also look back at the filming schedule to know what the next shot will be as they may forget all about it. As well as directors, the actors can look at the filming schedule to understand what they have to do when they are on camera.

We followed most of the schedule when filming, we followed the order of shots that were on the paper in the correct and chronological order of the schedule as it was easy to do and very convenient for us. We followed the use of MES to a high standard with the bags, phones and the knife for the antagonist. We went to the location that was listed and all personnel that were listed were utilized in each shot. The equipment we have followed because it makes it easier to use a tripod than holding it with your hands. The date and time we had changed a bit as for us it was quite hard for us to finish all our shots on that day so we had to keep going back.

Risk assessment - Miss Georgiou

The reason we have to consider risks is because when filming a particular scene, some things could happen that were not meant to happen and this may lead to making the shot useless. It also helps so that the group can counter the problem quickly and efficiently making sure that all shots are acquired before it is time for everyone to go home or before it gets too dark making it hard for the camera to capture anything.

Before filming we have to take the hazards into account  as we may encounter one while filming and not have a clue what to do, however if we had created a risk assessment we could concur with the problem while filming. For example, if there is someone in the shot that is not meant to be in there and we accidentally forget to retake the shot, and then it comes to editing and find that that shot is the only one we have of it then we have to re shoot it which takes time, but if we had a risk assessment then we would know what to do and just stop them and say that we are doing a shot or filming a short sequence and then let them pass after we are done filming that specific shot. It's also good as it helps with planning as it lets us get over the more challenging obstacles that we may run into.

Group Storyboard - Miss Miller

Our group had all made a storyboard but now we all had to come together and decide what would be in the group storyboard that we would make for the actual shooting of the film. Our group decided that my one was the most conventional to a thriller so we made the group storyboard about my work but we incorporated Jessica's work in there as well. Ryan felt as if his work was not up to standard and didn't want to use it but he mentioned lots about sound so we kept that the same.

For the shots, we used mine as they agreed that I had a good idea of what I wanted to achieve or accomplish by the end of the filming, another reason we chose mine for the cinematography was because i made sure that the positioning of the antagonist would always be higher than Cathryn's positioning and we also used mine as the shots before the antagonist hits the scene are slow but after he makes himself present to Cathryn the shots we planned to have would be very quick thus creating a sense of panic in the sequence that element of being rushed puts the audience on edge.

As for setting or location and narrative description we used Jessica's storyboard for that as she has come up with and written a narrative for this sequence, so Jessica would have the best understanding of what would be happening between each individual shot. Me and Ryan would write and draw as she wanted them to be as it was her original story that we had made more conventional to a thriller.

For the soundtrack we used Ryan's storyboard as he was very detailed and very clear in his own storyboard so that when it came to the group one he was also very clear and precise on what he wanted for the soundtrack. Ryan had also stated that he would like to look into finding some interesting scores that we could then incorporate into our scene, he had even started looking for some before we had begun editing so sticking with his sound ideas throughout our piece will be good for our groups piece of work.

When it came to editing that was pretty much all of us as all edits in each frame were quite similar so we decided to use the ones that were more eerie or creepy as this would build up suspense for the audience. Me and Jess have offered to do the editing and Ryan will help when he has found the music to add to our scene so then he will edit it in. We also found that we had used quite a wide variety of edits in our storyboards to make it more of a thriller sequence, i would say our main inspiration would have to be se7en's opening credits sequence as this has a wide variety of edits as well as ours.

Another important element we were also similar to was the lighting as most thrillers have a good use of low key lighting in most sequences, we are trying to also add this into our sequence but we have found that it gets too dark too quickly at the moment so meeting up early is essential to making the film. The cameras will just have to be good enough for us to film because if they aren't then it might too hard for them to capture any footage.

For iconography we used Jessica's as she had much more than the rest of our group for iconography but there was one bit that we all had and that was the most important part which was the murder weapon, the knife. However the other props were needed as they would show just how helpless our character Cathryn is as she cannot defend herself with anything, which would make the audience feel more sympathy towards her, the group liked this use of iconography so we have planned to use it in our piece.

I think that this storyboard gives our group a lot of idea of what to film and how to film it. I think that we have managed to incorporate the best ideas into our piece that came from our groups storyboards and I also think that it is now more conventional than any of our own ones. If i had to change something it would probably be some of the cinematography but the group did say that most of it was conventional to a thriller so we stuck with it.

Opening scene Narration - Miss Miller

The scene begins with an eerie piece of music that connects well with the hand written credits. The shot is completely dark and then the credits introduce the production company in charge of funding the film and we are then taken to show who stars in the film as the main actors and actresses, then the directors are given their credits and this is where the audience find out where the sequence will be taking place as the black background with the hand written font in front will fade into a forest and slowly starts to emerge in the shot and will be low-key lighting. Then it introduces the title of the film for the audience that is "The Pathway" followed by this is the writer of the narrative of the film.

After this establishing shot of the forest we are then taken to an extreme long shot view of the group of girls with phones and bags as the iconography, they will be wearing casual clothes but they're brightly coloured as well, the lighting is quite bright and this lighting effect will be continuous throughout the rest of the sequence. While they are walking in the forest with the conventional forest sounds in the back ground the eerie music will die down now until you cannot hear it anymore. The camera stays on the girls but it fades to another shot of them walking up the forest, until they are all the way at the top, the girls then say good bye to one of their friends who then walks the rest of her way on her own, still with their bags and phones as the iconography. The camera then changes after to a shot of her walking away from the camera and we can that she is all alone. We then see a close up of her phone as she is walking still, the eerie music plays over the sound in the shot but the lighting is low-key again. The camera changes to a mid shot of her walking past and something snaps, she turns to see it but can't so she continues to walk. The camera then takes us to an over the shoulder shot of the killer wearing darker clothes than Cathryn and the angle is canted, the antagonist is positioned higher than her.

The next shot returns to Cathryn, who is texting on her phone, then looks up in shock at something in front of her. The eerie music from before is still going and lighting is the same as it was in the previous shot. The camera changes to an over the shoulder shot where we can see Cathryn is looking at a mysterious killer at the top of a hill in the forest. The antagonist is again positioned higher than her. It then cuts to a low angle shot of the antagonist but we cannot see his face therefore he is still mysterious. The shot then changes into a low angle where we can see Cathryn opposite the antagonist and as the antagonist lowers his right hand we see a knife in his hand, Cathryn then drops her phone in shock, the music still playing and the lighting is still the same, throughout this small encounter the edits are all linking shots of each other and the camera doesn't break the 180 rule.

The shot changes as the camera follows Cathryn in a panning style movement as she runs away from the killer, lighting is till the same and the music is still the same. We then cut a POV shot of Cathryn running with the sound of heavy breathing, she runs for a while until she gets to a tree, she then hides behind this tree in hopes she has escaped but the camera cuts back to a bit of distance from her as she peaks behind the tree, we see the killers knife slowly lower in the frame, he then slowly walks over towards her and as he is just about to reach her, the camera fades to black and that is where the opening sequence ends, after this scene it then follows Cathryn's narrative of how she may get out of the trouble she finds herself in.

Individual Storyboard - Miss Miller

Storyboards are very helpful when it comes to making a film as they give the creator or director a good idea of what they want to achieve when it comes to shooting their film. These should be made beforehand as these can be helpful later when it actually comes to making a shot as you can look back on these and quickly recreate the image that was in your mind prior to shooting.

We all, in our group of me, Ryan Samules and Jessica Day, had to go and make a storyboard individually. The reason we did this was because we needed to get our ideas down on paper as this would show how everyone is about the narrative of the film, because if someone didn't understand the narrative then they would be flustered when it came to the shooting of the film as they wouldn't understand what would be going on when we start filming.

For my storyboard I took inspiration from the film se7en as the films opening credits sequence was very dark and the writing that appears for the credits is also hand written or scratchy so that was something I took inspiration from when making my storyboard. For most of my shots I kept them all quite long as this creates the conventional theme of suspense that are appropriate for the thriller genre and also I like to take inspiration from Kubrick as well with his thriller/horror film the shining as most of the shots in that film last for quite a long time.

Another element I have seemed to grab hold of was to use quite little use of sound but most of the time it is diegetic sound of the forest. The reason I would like only this sound as it gives the audience the perception that not much is happening as it is just a normal sound in that environment, which can be related to the incident later, the fact that there isn't any help around shows that in this area attacking is common, just like the sound of the forest when you are in a forest. 

I think that my storyboard is good as I managed to capture a lot of the conventions that are typical in the thriller genre, I am pleased that I have managed to keep the pace slow and the first bit calm compared to the later scenes. I think my storyboard will be very helpful when it comes to our group creating the group storyboard, as the drawings were quite detailed of how it should be filmed later. If there were to be a change in my story board, it would have to be more frames as I felt a bit rushed at the end of the sequence trying to end it, so we will need quite a few more frames when it comes to the group storyboard.

Planning characters - Miss Miller

Characters in a film are used for plot conventions or to drive the plot forward, more importantly they're used for the audience to pay attention to someone or something within the plot that the audience can build a relationship with. When characters are performed well by the actors is makes the audience feel as if they are just watching real people react to these situations.

Cathryn is the opening sequence's victim, she is 16 and her background is that she is a student. Cathryn is stereotypical to the thriller genre as the audience get the feeling she is a victim as not much about her background suggests she is central to the plot also this is only an opening sequence, however the audience will sympathize with her as they know her fate. The audience establish a relationship for her because they feel sympathy towards her character and because she falls right into that criteria for our target audience as she is a teenager. The narrative will begin with her so it is quite important and also what will happen to her will be the major starting point of the narrative.

The antagonist has not got much to talk about, he is an antagonist which makes him conventional to a thriller and he is a male but the age is unknown and his background is also not known. As said before, his character is an antagonist and has all the different traits like a hidden identity, uncertain age, no idea of what he looks like. However the enigma behind the character is what the audience will relate to about him, they have no idea who he is so they suspect that it is somebody throughout the entirety of the movie, the audience then feel sensation of creepiness that the antagonist could anyone in the film, that he is always there. The antagonist is also essential to the plot because the is who the audience would focus on most, the fact that this character could be out there killing again.

In conclusion I think both characters display the conventions of a typical thriller well. The victim Cathryn should be who our audience feel for and relate to throughout the opening sequence. I think that the planning has been very good as it has given me a clearer understanding of what our characters are trying to portray in the opening sequence.

Planning opening credits - Miss Georgiou

Opening credits are important to a film because it lets the audience know who was part of the films creation and to let the audience know that are watching that film. They are also used to show the importance of some people during the film's production. Before we were instructed with the task of making our own opening credits we had to watch an example of a thrillers opening credits sequence, the film we watched was called "se7en" and the opening credits connote much about the films antagonist with only the credits to do so.

The main colors seen throughout the introduction were dark dull colors that sometimes had flashes of bright colors as well, the reason for this is because it shows how dysfunctional the colours are, the flashes of white connect well with the characters hands you can see throughout the beginning part as he doesn't seem friendly, the dark colours connote that the themes behind the film will be dark and depressing, this is conventional to a thriller and we will try to implement this to our film. The font of the writing is almost as if it has been hand written or even scratched in which can connote the unbalanced nature of the film's antagonist. The whole opening credits sequence creates enigma as you don't clearly see what he is doing or if he is planning to do something but it creates suspense as the music is very eerie to the degree that the audience thinks something will happen in any second. the order of appearance in the film goes in this order: production company, who made the film, main actors, title of film, other actors, casters, who did the music, who did the costumes, producers, writers then directors.


 

This was my opening credits sequence. The font was basic as I couldn't find one that I liked very much, but this font was good as it stands out from the background as both colors contrast with each other on my one, I made sure that dark colors were more present in the frame than the light colors as this makes the whole credit sequence feel more dark which can be related to the plot of the thriller, making this kind of style of credit sequence conventional to a thriller. I have followed the right order of the appearance that opening credits normally have by starting with the production company then leading to the main actors and then the title.

This opening credits sequence was made by Jessica Day. Jessica has managed to capture the style of font that thrillers use for opening credits' sequences very well and does look as if it has been hand written poorly which really makes it look creepy which shows the antagonist is mentally unstable, this is conventional to the thriller genre. The majority of colors are dark which is conventional to a thriller as it suggests the dark nature of the film or the character himself. Jessica had manged to get the order right as well by starting with the company and then the title of the film, we haven't all agreed on main actors yet so there is still that to get to. There really isn't much to say about negative aspects of Jessica's opening credits.

This is Ryan Samuels' work for an opening credits sequence. Ryan has manged to include the main colors in opening sequences for thrillers which is black and white but as you can see mostly black is present which is conventional to the thriller genre. Though Ryan managed to get the films title in he got the order wrong by starting with it, as he should have started with the production company for our film. Ryan's style for the credits isn't perfect either, as the font looks quite basic. 

The style we are going to work on without a doubt is Jessica's as the font is conventional to the thriller genre, the colors she has used are also conventional and she had managed to get the order that opening sequences right as well. The credits I hope we make for our opening sequence are going in this following order, production company or CM studios presents, then it should have the main actors or actresses of the film so Molly van Winegaarden then Ryan Samuels but not the characters names, these should appear after the production company's credit then it will be the title of the film the pathway, this way it doesn't look like a trailer. Shortly after that credit the title of the film should appear and stay on screen for a while in our case it will be "the pathway". Then the directors Charlie Stewart, Ryan Samuels after that it will say who wrote the story which is Jessica day, afterwards it will mention the less central actors in the film then it should end with director of photography. I think this order is more conventional to a thriller and we are taking a lot of inspiration from se7en and the fact that a trailer ends with the title, we have tried to avoid that by planning to put it near the start of the credits.

Planning sound - Miss Miller

Sound is important in films because if we didn't have sound we wouldn't understand the narrative or why certain characters are doing specific things on screen. Planning the use of sound is very important because when you start filming and there is unwanted sound in the background then you have to have a plan before you start filming so you know not to do it until the unwanted sound is gone. It can also help push the narrative forward as said before but it can also be linked to the conventions that are typical to thrillers for example eerie music in the background is conventional to the thriller genre.

Silence

This will be used when the victim or Cathryn is walking home and as she leaves her friends to go home down a different path to them. There will be backgrounds sounds of the forest but there won't be any talking or any music talking over the shot. This technique builds up suspense for the audience which is conventional to the thriller genre, the silence connotes that Cathryn is completely isolated and alone which means there is no help nearby therefore the audience feel understanding towards her character as they can visualize being in this situation themselves.

Off screen

This will be implemented after the silence shot, so afterwards it will cut to her walking through the forest and there will be rustling in the bushes or leaves crunching but as we don't see it it is off screen sound. As said before it will be crunching of leaves in a footstep pattern so one after the other. A relationship is established between the character Cathryn and the audience as both do not see the sound so it is as if the audience are in the situation with her walking through the forest which builds up a relationship between the character and the audience.

Parallel

This means that the sound will go well with the images on screen, this will happen after Cathryn has seen the antagonist and her breathing will become heavy and scared. This will show the threat that the antagonist holds and that the audience should be scared for her, which is conventional to the thriller genre as the audience further build up a relationship with Cathryn as they see the predicament she is in.

Non - diegetic

This is when the sound in a film or movie that isn't in world that the film is set but the audience can hear, so background music or narration playing, this will be when all the girls are walking home it will be quite eerie music. This connotes that something bad will happen soon, or that someone is watching them, but most importantly it creates a divide with the audience and the characters almost as if the sound is suggesting that the audience know the characters are helpless and the audience have to watch it and not do anything. This creates and establishes a relationship between the audience and characters as the audience feel empathy towards them.

With the use of sound in our opening sequence, I think that the suspense it creates will be intensified, the scene will be better as the music will create that tense atmosphere that the other elements would not be able to portray. The sound should be good as we have planned to use it in a way that is conventional to a thriller. I feel as if the planning of the sound is incredibly useful because when it comes to editing this we will be able to find the music easily and edit it in to the sequence quickly as well.

Planning Cinematography - Miss Miller

Cinematography is very important in films as it means that every image is part of cinematography and you cannot have a film without images. With cinematography also comes movements and angles that the camera is able to do which can convey the themes that the film is trying to delve into. Planning is essential because if you started filming a film without knowing what shots or angles or movements you want to do it turns the whole film into a mess and you don't really know what you going for in the first place.

The first movement to discuss is the hand help camera movement, it makes the frames look shaky, therefore making the entire scene seem disorientating or dysfunctional and it will be used in our piece when the antagonist strikes the victim or Cathryn. This type of movement is conventional to a thriller as they always want the audience to feel and immerse themselves into the scene, this then enables the audience to build a relationship with Cathryn as they are put in her perspective of the situation of not knowing what is going on around them.

The next movement or shot if you prefer will be a point of view shot and this will be when the victim is being dragged away by the antagonist through a thick ground of leaves in a forest, it is a point of view shot of her perspective. The effect we hope it creates is that the audience again are seeing on the same level as Cathryn is which further builds that relationship with the audience and the character as they see what she is going through and can almost see it through their own eyes as well. This is conventional to a thriller film as the creators always want you to see the danger and situation through the characters' eyes.

Next is an angle shot known as canted angle where the frame is twisted sideways at an angle, this will be used when the killer or antagonist has been seen by the victim while she walks through the forest. The effect of this should be that the character seems twisted and mentally unstable as the camera suggest all of this about his personality. This builds a relationship with the audience as right away they get an insight of him already as an antagonist and see he is not fully stable and they build a relationship of hate against him. This is conventional as in many thrillers the antagonist is always seen as twisted by the audience.

Another angle shot we want to create for the sequence is a high-angle shot of the girl walking through the forest on her own as she has just left her friends. This shot shows the inferiority of the character but also connotes that she is isolated and alone. In turn, this will then make the audience side and feel sympathy towards her which enables the audience to build this relationship between her and the audience. This is conventional to a thriller as the director always wants the audience to side with the victim and route for them.

Another angle that will be utilized in the sequence is an eye-level shot when she is walking through the forest on her own, most parts will just be about the girl on her own as this creates quite a calm atmosphere but also unsettling for the audience to watch. This shows that the audience are on the same level as her and that they understand her character and feel as if they are there with her walking through the forest. This builds up a relationship with the character on screen, therefore it is conventional in doing so.

Lastly is a low-angle shot of the antagonist after the girl has seen him after walking through the forest and it cuts to him. This shows that the antagonist is stronger and bigger than the girl and has more authority than her as well. the audience again build up that hate for this character but even they fear him like the victim, as they feel as if they are there, the killer poses a threat to both the audience and the characters or the audience think that the antagonist poses a threat to them. This is conventional as the director always wants the antagonist to seem big and fearful.

In conclusion, I think that our opening sequence will be effective as we have included the typical conventions of the thriller genre through the use of cinematography as well as creating emotions and feelings for the audience to feel for the characters through the use of cinematography as well. We aim to do this by building a relationship between the characters and the audience. I found this task very helpful as I now understand how to create effects and emotions instead of analyzing them and it helped me understand which shots and angles were more important in the opening than the others.

Planning editing styles - Miss Georgiou

Editing is important in thrillers as the style a shot can change into another one is very important to a film as it can convey the conventions and mood of the sequence in the film. The editing can either build up suspense with slow editing or can increase the pace of the editing which will create tension and makes the scene seem very dysfunctional and all over the place which can convey the mood of the characters which engages the audience as they feel as if they are there and more involved.

The first example of an editing technique that we will adopt into our sequence is the timing of shots. The timing of shots will be quick after the victim or Cathryn has been hit by the antagonist. This creates the effect that the scene is dysfunctional and this then relates to characters on screen as both are dysfunctional as one of them is panicking and the other isn't mentally stable. The audience then understand the character is panicking for good reason, and so they build a relationship with her character as they feel sorry for her in the situation she has found herself in.

The next example of editing we want to include is a fade at the end of the opening sequence when the victim is taken away by the antagonist and is being dragged through the forest. The fade would portray the end of the sequence but would leave it ambiguous enough so that the audience keep watching as they are intrigued to find out where the victim is now. This is conventional to a thriller films opening sequence as they always leave some parts of the story a mystery for the audience. The audience can relate more to Cathryn as they also don't know where she is, almost as if they are suffering the same fate with her.

Slow editing will be used at the start of the opening sequence when it all the friends walking through the forest. This is conventional to an opening scene in a thriller as they always start calm so that it builds contrast later on in the same scene. The audience can relate to this as they are there with the characters from the beginning and are there at the end, so this emphasizes that they have built a relationship with the characters to the point where they feel as if they are on screen with them.

Group planning - Miss Georgiou

In my group are Jessica Day and Ryan Samuels and we all have to do our regular group meetings as this can be very good for group members to get their ideas across for our opening sequence or we could elevate certain ideas so that our film seems like much more of a conventional thriller film. We talk about how these ideas can be incorporated into our film and how we can explore the different micro elements that can also be incorporated into the opening sequence.

In our first meeting we discussed the narrative of the sequence, we had all made our own narratives and had exchanged each one to each other to see what was the most conventional of the narrative ideas and Jessica's seemed to us all to be the most conventional narrative out of the lot as it had all the small elements like the setting being a forest, a hidden identity for the antagonist and a blonde female victim. We didn't go into much detail about inspirations but me and Ryan had agreed that our favourite thriller film was se7en as it very conventional to the thriller genre. We had agreed as well that the mood and tone of the start of the sequence will be calm but then it would shift to a more contrasting tone.

In our next meeting we then had to make several different A3 pieces of paper of planning that we were going to use for our film when we came round to making it. The fist A3 piece we outlined every element, so camera shots, mise-en-scene, sound and so on, to a basic degree so that when it came to planning these all individually, the elements that is, we could look back and go into more detail into each specific element later on. With each element we had to use techniques from that element that would make the use of it conventional, so for example, hand held camera movement for cinematography will be used to show the dysfunctional scene at hand which would be conventional to the thriller genre.

In our next group meeting we discussed mise-en-scene, for iconography the most important thing we added on there was the weapon we wanted the antagonist to be wielding which is a knife as they are more conventional to the thriller genre, plus the other characters like Cathryn would be using bags or phones, but they are not that important. Lighting and colours were dark and low key as these represent the dark themes behind the film and helps foreshadow horrible intentions that the antagonist will carry out later in the films narrative. the setting of the piece was agreed that it would be a forest as it can get very dark in the forest very quickly and is a conventional thriller setting. We also agreed that the antagonists positioning would always be higher or seem higher than Cathryn so it suggests that she is weaker or has less authority than the antagonist who always seems to be higher to the audience. We also discussed the body language of the antagonist and Cathryn, the antagonist would seem strong, however Cathryn would seem fragile.

For the next meeting we had to decide on the cinematography in our piece this meant we looked at a range of shots, angles and movements that we would want to incorporate into our scene. Without a doubt we all agreed that there should be a hand held camera movement in the scene to show the panic in the scene. I said that we should have point of view of the killer as this would show the audience his perspective but also develop the mysteriousness of the character further which creates enigma for the audience, they thought that this would be a good idea. We all agreed at least one shot of Cathryn would be a high angle of her to make her seem smaller to the audience, and we also said the opposite for the antagonist(low angle) to make him seem bigger.

Moving forward to the next meeting we had to discuss editing styles, this was definitely our hardest one as editing is quite hard to plan out before making the film, it makes it easier by planning it as when we have all our footage we can then edit it and because we have already planned our edits it won't be too hard or long. However in all our storyboards we have used the editing technique of fading out after a scene is done, the reason we have done this is because it shows a passing of time, and in our narrative the character Cathryn has quite a bit of a walk to go on her own and a fade gets across to the audience that quite a lot of time has faded. We also agreed the edits would be slow to convey the mood and the pacing of the opening sequence, as the audience would think it is a calm atmosphere being built.

For our next meeting we had to discuss the characters in our piece, this was relatively easy as we only had to talk in detail about 2 characters and their relevance in our opening sequence which was Cathryn and the Antagonist. For Cathryn our group decided she would be about the same age as our target audience, so around 16 years old, and would be a student still going to school. Cathryn is a woman that is stereotypical to the thriller genre as women are normally the victim or the person in danger, therefore Cathryn is conventional to the thriller genre. The antagonist can only be identified as male, no name or age or background is given, our group thought this would create enigma for the audience as this character could be anyone in the narrative which puts the audience on edge as they don't know who it could be.

After that meeting we came back to discuss the sound that will be used in our piece. We all firmly agreed that there should be a use of non-diegetic sound of eerie music as this would put the audience on edge as they would then think something bad is going to happen. our group also thought that a use of offscreen sound of leaves being crunched or a stick breaking would be conventional as it gives the impression that someone is following Cathryn but because Cathryn and the audience cannot see the thing that made the noise it builds up a relationship between the character and the audience as they are both in the same frame of mind at this point.

In our next meeting we looked at the opening credits of our film by taking influence from David Fincher's se7en by looking at that films opening credits sequence and we found that hand written fonts look more creepy than normal fonts. We also liked the fact that the music in the background that was playing is especially creepy and eerie for the audience that it gets to the point of it being unsettling, anyway we all had to go and see if we could create an opening credits sequence that could be as eerie as se7en's opening credits sequence, this was a challenging task but we did manage to do a good opening credits sequence for our film.

Group meetings and discussions were important as it gave us all a chance to know where we were with the whole project, it was a chance for us all to get a better understanding of what to do and what we will do when it came to filming. It was important as we could even suggest new ideas for the narrative that could make the production more conventional than the one we had previously, as well as helping us create new ideas over the whole production.

My relationship with the group was good, at first I thought it would be quite awkward as i was new but they were nice to me and I fit in well. However the relationship between Ryan and Jess is distracting to say the least, so i have to sit in between them so Jess doesn't get annoyed most of the time. I have to say that we do get the work done and we do all have ideas on the films narrative and how to film it.

Planning mise-en-scene - Miss Georgiou

Setting and Iconography

For our setting we will be using an isolated forest because help is always quite far away or just never around or near enough. Havering atte bower as this forest secluded and it will be seen throughout the whole sequence as this is where the sequence will take place. The use of this forest is conventional to a thriller as again it means that help is always far away which puts our victim in peril.

With the iconography we will use knife for the killer. The reason for this is because in our target audience research we found that most people prefer a killer with a gun as it shows more dominance and puts characters in more danger, but a knife seems associated with stabbing a death which can be quite gory for our audience. We will use this when the killer strikes the victim or Cathryn. This is conventional to a thriller because it shows the victim is in danger or peril which will make the audience side with her. The next use of iconography is her phone/torch that she will use to light her pathway and to see where she is going after she branched down the alternate pathway than her friends in the forest. This is conventional to a thriller as when it becomes too dark in thrillers, one of the characters has a light source on them that is their only bit equipment and help that they have which makes the audience feel as if they're not going to be able to protect themselves.

Costumes, hair and make-up

The antagonist will wear dark clothing, baggy and a hoodie at least, his face won't be seen so not much for hair and make up to be said but his hair will be messy. This will be throughout the introduction sequence to our thriller film. The reason he will wear dark clothing is because this makes him seem dark and scary but as the audience cannot see him, as in his face, it insinuates that he is rather mysterious creating enigma for the audience which is conventional in thriller films.
The victim on the other hand will have light colored clothes on with a pair of jeans, her make-up will be natural or subtle and her hair will be neat. this again will be throughout the whole sequence. This is conventional as in thrillers the victim is always seen as innocent as she is a girl this can further connoted by the color she will wear, white or light colors, these also represent innocence.

Facial expressions and body language

The facial expressions of the antagonist will be kept hidden from the audience as we still want to him to strike the audience as mysterious but his body will be bold and tall. This will be when he is first seen by Cathryn. This is conventional as it shows the antagonist to be more fearsome and mysterious which is conventional to the thriller genre.
In contrast the victim or Cathryn's facial expressions will be worried or upset and her body language will be sheltered of fragile. This will happen when the antagonist has seen her in the forest and is looking down at her, just after she has seen him. This will make the audience feel sympathy towards her character as the odds of her survival from this are quite low which is conventional to a thriller as the victim always seems to have slim odds of getting out of the situation alive.

Lighting and color

Lighting throughout the sequence will be low key. The reason behind this is because light sometimes suggests hope and little lighting can symbolize little hop, it can connote as well that the themes behind the rest of the film are dark or that the antagonist has dark intent with Cathryn.
The colors throughout will be dark during the whole opening sequence to our thriller, more spcifically black and brown, brown is for the trees and the mud in the forest. This is conventional as the colors within thrillers are always dark or gloomy to the audience and this is something that we will focus on when attempting to create our opening sequence.

Personality of characters

Cathryn or the victim will always be centre screen as this would make the audience focus on her throughout the sequence. While she is walking through the forest will be the best example we will implement on her being centre of the frame. This is conventional because as she is centre screen the audience will be seeing her most of time almost as if they know her which builds up a relationship with the characters and the audience.
The antagonist on the other hand will always be positioned above the victim to make her seem smaller and make him appear to have the authoirty in the situation. This will be when they both see each other in the forest, as this would be the area of positioning of characters that could be most highlighted in the sequence. This is conventional as the anatgonist must seem fearsome in thrillers and his higher positoning will emphasize this.

Preliminary Task - Miss Miller

In our group there is me Charlie Stewart, Jessica Day and Ryan Samuels. For this task we had to film a conversation that could be about anything. The whole idea of this task was to allow us to get used to the equipment and camera before we started to film our own thriller film's opening sequence, this meant we needed to understand how the tripod would allow us to create different angles for our film. We were given a set of shots that must be embedded into the conversation like a long shot and a closeup, therefore allowing us to get familiar with the equipment. After the filming was done we had to all work together to make sure the conversation looked realistic, so we all watched the film as a group and then decided which scenes were good and which were bad, we then edited the good ones together which made it seem like a normal conversation. Finally we watched it back to see if it was good, after that, we uploaded it to YouTube.

We were given a list of camera movements and shots that we had to do in this task. We had to do one close up, one long shot, perform a shot reverse shot and a tracking shot, we had trouble with the tracking shot so we decided that it should track one of us as we walk over to the other, the location we picked made it hard to do this as we were relying heavily on signals and when I should have left the building, we overcame this problem as it was a simple shot and didn't go on for that long. The close up and the tracking shot got us more familiar with the tripod's controls as we needed to twist certain attachments in order to make it more fluid to move, this was mostly used for the tracking shot going right to left this shot was at the beginning of the sequence we also managed to get the long shot as well so we were efficient with our time, the close up was facing down so this allowed us to get familiar with adjusting the angles, this was near the end when Ryan gets out his phone. One of the last shots that was a challenge at first was the shot reverse shot with me and Ryan when we are talking  I think our group were also very efficient and quick when it came to the filming as we were done quite quickly, Jess was a good director as she was quick at learning what all the functions of the camera and what it allowed us to do, she was very open to suggestions of different shots as we were a group so we worked well together in this task. We were concentrated before as we didn't think we would be able to achieve this task in time, we were distracted for quite a bit as it was very cold outside which may have made our filming skills seem rushed but I ensured that we took our time to make the shots better by asking Jess to re shoot a couple so we had a choice of shots to select from. Another struggle was working out what button did what on the camera, we had not worked with the cameras before so working out what did what was quite hard at first, but as we got to the location we then let Jess get used to the camera and she started to push buttons to see what they did. To avoid this when we do our own thriller opening sequence we will learn what all the buttons do before we start filming so that we know what to do at all times. Something that has helped us produce an opening sequence out of this task would be that we are now experienced with the equipment that we have used to do this task and knowing that it will be the same equipment that we're using is quite a reassuring fact as we will be experienced with the equipment. One of the last problems was that there was background noise that the camera was picking up for quite a while so we had to wait for the noise to stop so we could continue filming, to avoid this for our film we have chose to film it at quite an isolated location.

In conclusion, as the task allowed us to experience the equipment we will be using first hand, it eases our stresses as when we start to actually film the technology won't be new to us which will allow us to set up quickly and with ease, this then means we can get our shots quickly and edit them as soon as possible therefore leading to the finished piece of work for our film. We learnt what it is like to actually film a short sequence and has given us that experience. I think when our group does come round to filming the thriller we should keep the concentration to how it was for this task and film it in chronological order like we did for this task so it is easier to edit later. One thing I would do differently is work out how to delete videos or scenes that are not up to standard right there in the filming stage. In all, we learnt about the work that goes in to shooting a film by getting first hand experience but we have also learnt that efficiency is the most important when filming and that our group can be quite efficient when we need to be.

Research into Target Audience- Miss Miller

Research into target audience

The research we did needed to be carried out so that we could understand the audience that our film was targeting, for example what type of audience would like a hidden identity. We had to ask 40 people as this would determine who our audience is and 40 people would mean that there are a lot of different opinions about different conventions in a thriller, it shows that the research gathered is varied. The results that we have accumulated will shape our film to be what the most of the audience want as this would mean we are actually listening to the audiences opinions and as this for them, they would know best.

The first pie chart is a question about the people we're interviewing, the question is are you male or female, this determines which gender our thriller film will be targeted towards and as you can see we have asked more males which means our thriller is targeted towards males, though you can say it just the amount of the specific gender we talked to and that doesn't mean we are alienating the other gender, in other words, we just happened to interview more males than females.


The second question is a bit more important than the first, as this is something that is defining our target audience. their age so then we will look over our film idea and see if it will be an 18 or a 15 rated film. our target audience for this are 15 to 18 year olds, so to make sure our target audience are not being alienated we will have to hit the 15 rated criteria which means we will have to tone down some specifics in the film for example swearing may be very minimal to compensate for the dark theme that surrounds this film.


The third chart tells us the sub-genre that is best that goes well with a thriller film, so this tells us that psychological thrillers are prefered more than a crime or action thriller. What these results mean is that we would have to show something twisted about the human mind, as the story we have based ours on will have a dysfunctional antagonist so we may show the aspect that he is twisted and deranged. However we have to take into account that this is only an introduction to a thriller film so not much about the antagonist will be revealed so early on in the film. I would say we would need to incorporate a point of view shot with a hand held movement to convey his sick twisted mind and psyche.

The fourth chart shows our target audience prefers a female victim than any other gender. The reason behind this is because women or girls are commonly associated with being fragile and innocent, it isn't very nice to say that they're prefered but it has worked out that way throughout the history of thrillers. However, our target audience want the female victim so this is something that we will include into the intro as this is the common opinion for our audience. We will use a female for our introduction to be the victim.




The fifth chart represents what location or setting in a thriller film is most popular within the target audience we are reaching out for, the chart says that abondened houses are more of a popular choice, however this will be hard for to do as finding an abondened house is very difficult however abondened forests can be much easier to film in so we will implement this in our film by filming at a forest at night so not many people will walk past.


The sixth chart shows that gory thrillers, this means there is blood and human entrails that are exposed in thrillers, are more prefered. The reason for this is because the gore can emphasize the amount of danger that the characters are in as it makes it seem a bit more realistic. This will be something that must be included into our film but as said before we cannot alienate our audience so not too much gore as if we get lots of it on screen the film will become an 18 there fore blocking out potential target audience.



The seventh chart tells us that our target audience prefer our antagonists or villains to have a hidden identity or remain a mystery to our audience throughout the majority of the film. This means that when we start filming we will have to make sure that the antagonists face is not clearly shown, not much back story is given about him and that he doesn't talk as this will create enigma and suspense about him for the audience and both are conventions to a thriller film.




The eighth chart shows us what films our target audience liked previously and the chart says that from an inspiration standpoint we should be taking it from fight club which again comes under psychological but not a typical thriller the way we will film ours. What we need to do is watch fight club and take as much inspiration from that film as we can and try to input as much of the style of fight club into our film that we can.





The ninth chart shows the audience that we have questioned shows that a gun would be prefered as a weapon in our thriller film. We will use a gun in our opening sequence to a thriller film as the target audience have said that it is their favourite weapon to be used, however we need to make sure that their is no death at the beginning as this would then ruin the narrative that we have already set up for the rest of the film, but we will implement this for our film.





the final chart of the all the questioning we did was to ask the specifics of what they like about the thriller genre including the conventions you see throughout all of them. shock seems to be the highest on this list according to our target audience which means that when we start filming we will have to add some shock into the sequence to show that we are reaching out towards our target audience.




Finally here are some vox pops I filmed of three individuals where I would ask the questions that were part of the questionnaire. This is proof that I have gone out there and asked people for the opinion and beliefs about the thriller genre including what they prefer.

What I found most useful while doing this research is the fact that these answers mean that they are all shaping the film themselves and we're just trying to make produce and create an idea by using all this information gathered from the questionnaire, this therefore leads us to believe that this film will be successful as this is what the target audience want. We will have to talk about how to incorporate all of this information into our film but some may be too much of a problem to introduce so we may have to let a few ideas go. If i were to carry out this research again, I would make sure that there was communication with group members more often than there was for us, we did communicate just not very frequently.

Group narrative- Miss Georgiou

Group narrative

In my group is Jessica Day and Ryan Samuels.

Ryan Samuels-Boy and a girl are having a lunch picnic. Girl comments on how glad she is that the boy forgave her for the terrible thing she did. Boy looks away and we see that he looks menacing. Cut to flashback of the boy walking to the edge of the platform at a train station, about to jump but deciding not to at the last minute. Cut back to the present, the boy's girlfriend asks him to pass her the apple juice. Then we see the hamper and as the boy moves the apple juice we see a knife. Boy grabs it, screen fades to black, girl screams.

Advantages: It is easy to film and create. The audience understand the antagonists motives clearly.
Disadvantages: Doesn't show many conventions of a thriller.

Jessica Day-The opening sequence for this narrative would be of the friends walking through the forest, when their friend goes missing and getting the text from the antagonist, the focus would go back and forth from the characters and pictures of the chalk circles and weapons, that could possibly be used. The credits would be written in text font like the phone to show some of the narrative about the antagonist sending them messages. The rules could be being read out so that the audience are aware straight away that there is some sort of game involved.

Advantages: It builds up suspense which is a main convention of a thriller.
Disadvantages: It's brief, so it could be a bit more detailed.

Me-For my thriller film I am going to be base it around a wife who is in a room on her own. The audience see her facial expressions seem depressed at the beginning and she hears noises outside of the room that she is in. The woman opens the door to investigate the noise but doesn't see anything so as she sits back down she sees a silhouette of someone standing there. Then it cuts to black as he walks in the door, we hear struggling noises and then finally silence. Then we see a silhouette walk out then the camera pans to the woman's desk and we see blood all over it.

Advantages: Good narrative and good use of conventions within a thriller.

Disadvantages: It's hardest to make and it is not clearly detailed.

Group narrative: Based on Jessica's one but we will change it so that it is from the person who gets kidnapped instead as this was would increase the sympathy from the audience to the character being taken, we won't know much about the antagonists intentions, we will just see the friend being kidnapped. We will get rid of the game theme as this is quite cliched, and it would be too much to fit in the opening sequence. We may show a bit of the killer but not too much as we don't want to give it away as to who the killer is so early in the film. So it's about a group of girls who are on their way home until they come across a fork in the road and one of the girls must leave the others to get home. On her way home she sees a mysterious figure and tries walking the other way but upon turning around she realises the figure was dummy but the mysterious person is behind her. The girl blacks out and slowly regains consciousness soon afterwards as she is is getting dragged through the forest and then the sequence ends. We all agreed on this narrative as this wouldn't be too hard to make. It was Jessica's idea but we all discussed it and made small changes that we thought could have elevated the piece of work to a much higher standard.

Our group agreed that our story follows the theory of Todorov, this is when the story has an equilibrium to start with and during this there is disequilibrium to put the protagonist into action ande prove he is the hero, some films start with a disequilibrium and then they show the protagonist and shows his/her perspective as they try to save the day. Our film starts with a disequilibrium as the in the very beginning sequence we already see that there is a disruption in this world and someone needs to help.

Our group narrative is conventional to a thriller as it makes sure that the killer remains with a hidden identity which is a convention in all thrillers as they want the audience to pay attention to the character that is on screen as it could give little hints or pointers about their character. We also have the abondened forest which is conventional to the films setting as this always conveys a mood of isolation or that there is no help near or around. it appeals to our target audience because we based our film around the responses that we had got from the people of the public, we went with the ideas that got most of the positive responses, so we are reaching out towards our target audience.

Individual narrative ideas- Miss Georgiou

 Narrative ideas

The narrative to any film is very important as this will let the audience know why stuff is happening on screen, the narrative is also the part of the film that keeps the audiences attention. For example if there was a horror about a killer and showed only his murders then the whole movie would have no rhyme or reason, the audience do not know why the person is doing this and if he is even a bad person as these people he/she kills could be bad, yes you could say that most horrors start off with no narrative, but this is only to get the audience excited and ready as they will explain the narrative later.

For my thriller film I am going to be base it around a wife who is in a room on her own. The audience see her facial expressions seem depressed at the beginning and she hears noises outside of the room that she is in. The woman opens the door to investigate the noise but doesn't see anything so as she goes back to her desk and sits back down she sees a silhouette of someone standing there. Then it cuts to black as he walks in the door, we hear struggling noises and then finally silence. Then we see a silhouette walk out then the camera pans to the woman's desk and we see blood all over it. Then it slowly fades to black.

I will briefly explain the narrative of the opening sequence and mention where we would film it. I will also get their opinions on the narrative idea of my own and see if they think it is conventional to the thriller genre or if it is too much of a horror, but I will answer questions that they have about the narrative and whether or not it makes sense.

Inspirations- Miss Georgiou

Inspirations

Inspiration can come from many things, you need interest in something so that you can be inspired to create something. If you had given someone with no interest in films or filming and camera and said make a film, he wouldn't enjoy it nor would he even do it. Inspiration can come from a range of different things, most of time it comes from researching that specific field like thriller films for me. I had to keep analysing a range of different thriller sequences so I could get some inspiration for my own thriller film.

The first bit inspiration our group have taken is the opening credits scene in the film "se7en" as this scene is very creep, it creates an off putting atmosphere that isn't really seen much in other films. The reason I also found the credits creepy was because of the font the writing is in almost seems hand written badly by the antagonist himself which conveys that he is unstable and even unstable. The music is probably the most eerie I have ever heard and it conveys that suspenseful and creepy atmosphere tremendously, the whole of this opening sequence is just off putting and puts the audience in an unnerving state. The opening sequence does a fantastic job at creating enigma about this character as the audience have no idea who this is and this is how he is introduced into the film. The thing that stands out the most is the font it's in and the music in the background as both of these create such a creepy tone to the movie.

Another inspiration from the film se7en I wanted to use was the unidentified antagonist as throughout most of the film you don't even know what the killer looks like, you get very short sightings but you don't see his face until right the end of the film. For our sequence you will see our killer but you won't see the killer's face to let him remain a mystery for the audience throughout the whole sequence, this creates enigma which is a convention of the thriller genre as the audience are confused as to who this character is and why he has done it, but it keeps the audience concentrated.

My next huge inspiration when it came to making the scene and one I took much influence from was the here's johnny scene from Stanley Kubrick's the shining, for this scene i analysed the sound, the reason for this was because I always found the music in this film scary and this one scene highlighted that eeriness more than any other in the film. The music sounds all over the place, none of it is soothing or nice about it but that is the point it is supposed to be horrible, it puts the audience on edge and the whole scene illustrates just how mad Jack is in the film. That eerie music is not something I would want to replicate as it doesn't sound like it would fit in our film but it has given me the idea of using eerie music to make the audience feel on edge when they watch our scene.

Another big inspiration was the film directed by Martin Scorsese shutter island, the lighting was something I liked the most about this scene as throughout the whole thing it's low key or at least the majority of the scene that is. The reason that the lighting is conventional is because it leaves the audience wondering if there is something in the dark waiting to jump out at the protagonist or victim, it can even suggest how little hope there is for the character in the situation. This is something will we use in our sequence as low key lighting is conventional to a thriller.

My final inspiration that i would like to take into account is the beginning scene in the film Halloween. We only see a point of view perspective of the killer but it makes him that ever more mysterious as we see the actions he commits from his perspective almost as if the director wants us to understand his reasoning for these actions. However it also uses that element of an unseen killer as we don't see his face until the end of the scene where it turns out to just be a kid, which then creates engima as the audience want to focus on the narrative to why the little boy did this in the first place.

I think that noting down all my inspirations has been incredibly helpful, it has all been incredibly helpful when it came to getting ideas for a narrative, as then we could see what we would like to see in our film that has been in other films. I think the most noticeable inspiration that was used for ours was se7en as I had to say two inspirations that i thought were incredibly important to the sequence of ours, so if we hadn't had taken note of that film, then we may have missed out one of the most important conventions which is a unknown killer or antagonist.