Activity Evaluation 7

Final Project

1. Tracking Shot - the victim is followed with the camera, the shot must be steady and the person in the frame must be kept near the centre of the image.

2. Establishing Shot - the shot shows an introduction to the new location, this is to clarify to the audience where the film is taking place and links the different shots.

3. Close up - the shot highlights the importance of the object and forces the audience to focus on the bible.

Preliminary Task

Looking back at our preliminary task, although some shots were used there wasn't much variation and most were simple. There were points where we did not consider what was in the previous shot and so several objects/lighting do not match up on the following shot. The 180 degree rule was broken at points and as this was the first experience of editing, the editing at times seems rough and so conversations do not look or sound as natural.

Activity Evaluation 3

For this activity we used soundcloud to answer the question "How does your media product represent particular social groups?"  In order to listen to the answer please follow the link below:

Activity Evaluation 3 OFFICIAL

Activity Evaluation 1

Generally these shots in particular are quite typically associated with the thriller genre as they are used in order to introduce the the storyline and characters in the film. It is also used in order to scare and entice the audience. 

1. Point of View Shot

This shot is typically used for a stalker and can appear as a point of view shot. This is to introduce the character and also the murderer and to begin to assemble the storyline of the film. The character already appears to be vulnerable as she is unaware of the person standing behind her. This shot sets up the storyline as it introduces the idea of the characters appearing to commit suicide on their own which attracts and engages the audience as they are unaware of why they are doing this.

2. Opening Credits

This shot is used in order to present the credits, in terms of the particular design of the credits we wanted similar credits to those used in Seven which was our inspiration for the opening sequence. This is why we used a dark background, when experimenting with different fonts and effects we found the final design to be most suitable for us. The image of the bible in the background was used to connote the storyline.

3. Tracking Shot

For this particular shot it was used in order to add variety to the shots and also in order to add context to the sequence as the audience may appear confused if the shots jump from one location to the other, this shot links both locations together.

4. Establishing Shot

This shot is used in order to introduce the new location, this location is isolated and is a typical location for a thriller as the victim appears most vulnerable. The shot is still for a couple of seconds and builds up tension and makes the next shot appear more dramatic as the audience is unaware of what the victim is about to do.

5. The Victim in the woods

This shot reveals part of the storyline and adds tension as the audience are still unaware of why the victim has committed suicide. This shot is typical in a thriller genre as it is difficult to film as the actor would be placed under harm, this is the easiest way in which to reveal what has happened and to get the desired effect. 

6. Last Shot

This is the last frame seen by the viewer and it clarifies parts of the sequence shown earlier. The genre is shown clearly through the storyline, music and camerawork as the murderers face is never shown, only his body. The flashbacks to the victim also emphasises the man seen in the sequence is the murderer. The prop seen in the clip, which in this case is the bible, highlights the murderers religious beliefs and also links a previous frame in which the victim's arm is seen branded with a cross. The setting/location of this frame connotes the murderers mental instability. 

The last shot seen is the title of the film which slowly separates out of the screen, this is the only time other than the credits, that special effects are used. 

Filming Day Two

On Saturday we began to film the rest of our opening sequence, starting at our first location at Spring Park.

Several shots were filmed including shots of the victim hanging from the tree which will includes several shots being edited together as it wasn't safe to have the actor actually hanging. We also composed a tracking shot of the victim's body being carried off and some diegetic sound from other characters in order to give some context to the sequence. 

We then travelled to the next location which was Bethlem Royal Hospital and filmed the tracking shot of the murderer escaping the hospital. 

 

When we were watching back the film several parts had to be cropped as you could see part of the victim's arm holding onto a tree and another at Bethlem as someone else can be seen in the shot. We have also had to put some shots into slow motion in order to lengthen the shots in order to fit with the non-diegetic sound we are planning to lay on top, and for them to look more effective. 

However we have discovered that some shots need to be re-shot in order to get more variation and a piece of music that we were initially going to use has now been removed so we need to look for more music to use.

Filming Day One

We began filming several initial shots containing our victim. We discovered that once we were actually filming we had some new shots that we could incorporate into the original storyboard, such as a shot of the victim looking up at the tree which she is later hanging from, this reveals to the audience that the death is due to forced suicide from the murderer. There is also a high angle of the victim on the floor pleading to the murderer, with the additional shots it can make the plot clearer to the audience and also adds mystery to the sequence as the audience are unsure as to how the murderer makes the victim commit suicide.

The shots that we filmed today include; a tracking shot of the victim, a close up of the victim appearing to be followed and also a shot where the victim is actually being followed as the camera moves along behind the victim, which appears creepy and adds tension as if the murderer is actually behind her.

We are currently devising a schedule to arrange with our team and actors a second date to do further filming outside of school.

Film Schedule

We are currently in the process of developing our film schedule. This will ensure that we are organised when we begin filming so we will know what actors, costumes and props will be needed at which points and we can approximate how long particular parts of the filming will take. We are making a different schedule for each of our three locations to ensure we are organised and prepared.

An example of the kind of film schedule we are hoping to produce for each location

As we have started the process of filming during lessons we must begin to finalise our filming schedule. We are in the process of confirming with our actors the new dates and times that we have arranged after the previous problems encountered with our filming schedule.

We are currently discussing our filming options and have decided our best choice to film would be on Saturday 3rd March. We have contacted our actors and are waiting for rsvps on the date. Hopefully this will mean we will be ready to edit our opening sequence this time next week in our lesson on Monday.

Props

This bible will be used in the scene in Bethlem Psychiatric Hospital where the murderer has escaped. He will be holding this bible to show his obsession with religion. We will probably get this prop from a charity shop. The prop may be used in a particular shot as a close up in order to present a part of the murderers identity without showing the murderers face presenting mystery and links to the genre of the film. 

The rope will be used in the scene where the police find the body of a woman hanging from a tree. This will show that the murderer has forced the victim to commit suicide as killing her himself would go against one of the commandments "Thou shall not kill". This prop will be particularly difficult to use as we want the shot to look effective without causing harm to the character.

This prop will be used to carry off the body of the victim after she has been found. It may be difficult to get an actual stretcher for our filming so we may have to use something slightly different depending on what is available to us.

This is the prop that the forensic would be holding to record the information about the victim's body. This will make the forensic appear more professional. This will also hold a polaroid of the body and a close up will be used of this photo to show the commandment that the murderer has branded on her arm.

This prop will be used to cover the body of the victim when it is being carried off on the stretcher. This is key because it means we do not have to make the actor actually look dead, we can just cover her with a sheet to hide her face. However, her arm will be sticking out the side of this sheet to show the writing on her arm of "Thou shall not commit adultery".

Possible Title Fonts

We are beginning to search for possible fonts to use during the opening sequence as credits. So far we have found the following fonts from http://www.dafont.com/:

Cold Night For Alligators

Face Your Fears

Nyctophobia

Pulse Sans Virgin

Any updates or further research will be recorded here once we have begun filming.

Initial Filming Plans

We are currently attempting to schedule when filming should take place. We need to consider; when the actors we have chosen are able to attend the filming sessions, when all members of our group are available to participate in filming and when the equipment we need in order to film is available for us to use.

After considering this we have developed some initial times when it may be possible to film, however this is only when each member is available to film and we still need to contact cast members in order to see if they are available for these times.

Once the actors have confirmed that they will be available to film during these times we can then develop the filming schedule.

There are several locations that we need to use in order to film our title sequence:
1. Bethlem Psychiatric Hospital (The murderer is needed for these shots)
2. Spring Park (the victim, policemen and forensic are needed for these shots)
3. Music Rooms, which will be used as the interior of the hospital (a policeman and a psychiatric nurse are needed for these shots)

We have also began to compose a list of props and costumes needed:

1. Bethlem Hospital - the murderer needs a bible that he holds in his hands and in terms  of costume he could wear black formal clothing

2. Spring Park - the props needed for this scene include rope, an object similar to a stretcher to carry the victim off, a clipboard holding the photograph and a sheet/cloth to cover the victim. In terms of costume the policemen should wear dark clothing in order to look like a uniform whilst the forensic should wear a lab coat

3. Music Rooms - the prop needed for this scene is the collage hanging on the wall and the uniform for the psychiatric nurse should be a lab coat

We are unsure of how long the filming sessions will be but we will generally be filming quite early in the morning in order to get the desired effect/lighting.

Casting Shots

After holding auditions for the roles of the characters we found that the following people were most suitable to their roles;

Murderer:

Jonathan Traynor

Aged 19

We chose Jonny for this role because we felt he was a suitable match to the character as he has a very alternative style and could be seen to have similar traits to the character in real life. There are certain aspects of the actors personality that he will be able to draw on in this very challenging role! He was also willing to work with us and take things seriously as he has already done his A-levels and knows how important this will be towards our final grade.

Policemen:

Thomas Miles

Aged 17

We chose this person because he has a flexible schedule and will therefore be available for filming which will be helpful when it comes to filming. He also lives near the location which will mean that filming can  be on schedule and as he studies media as well he will have an understanding of the shots and reasons for certain shots. 

Victim:

Wynmon Wong

Aged 17

We chose this person because Wynmon is in the group and will therefore know the plot well and know the shots that we have proposed to use, it is easier to use someone in the group as they would already need to be there to assist in filming etc.

Forensic:

Ella Rose Priest

Aged 16

We chose Ella because she studied drama meaning that she has had experience with performing and can be professional, which makes filming easier and efficient. She is confident with filming and good with working in groups. 

Psychiatric Nurse:

Ellen Maslin

Aged 17

We chose Ellen because takes drama A-level and will therefore be professional and already have experience in filming and acting and will therefore be able to act well and minimise the amount of mistakes/takes we may need to film in order to get the most appropriate shots.


Runner:

Layan Akkad

Aged 17

We chose Layan because she is already in our group so she will be there for filming anyway which is efficient and as she has already studied drama she is confident to perform on camera and work with others.

Any updates of casting changes will be recorded as we begin filming.

Shot Experimentation

The most difficult shots we will need to produce is the shot of the victim hanging from the tree. We tested out trying to get the victim to hang from the tree by using a scarf rather than using rope which is what we will be using for the final film. We can't get the victim to actually hang from the tree as this would be dangerous, instead we wrapped the scarf around the victims waist and pulled the rest of the scarf through the collar of her clothing so we still get the look of the victim hanging.

Location Shots

Spring Park

This location can be used in order to present the first victim of the murders. This location is effective and efficient to use to film in as it is quite and will have minimal interruptions and as we will be filming quite early in the morning the setting will portray mystery and isolation as the weather will hopefully be quite dark or foggy and will work well with the surroundings which are loads of trees covering pathways and will make the location look quite remote.

Bethlem Psychiatric Hospital

This location is important as it reflects the murderers unstable mental health and will also reveal to the audience his obsession with religion and also how he is responsible for the murder and there will be nine more. This will make the audience fear him as they do not see his face through out the opening sequence and will create suspense.

The murderers room (A music room in school)

As it is not possible to film inside the hospital it self, we have decided to film in school in one of the music rooms as they are small and claustrophobic making it even more effective at portraying the suddenness and weirdness of the wall in the room. This room also makes it easy to film in as there is
nothing on any of the walls so we can film relatively easily without trying to not film/avoid certain walls as they contain objects. The wall will contain religious items making it look like a shrine and there will also be drawings/pictures and newspaper/words containing the planning of the ten murders.

Storyboard - First draft

During shot 1 there is an establishing shot which is a fade in from the credits, in the background of this shot and up to shot 14 our music choice "icy weather" will be played. During the fade in between shot 1 and 2 dialogue will be heard which then leads into shot 2 which is a long/mid shot which is a slow pan, low angle of one of the victims. Shot 3 is an action shot which is also filmed as a mid shot of one of the policemen and a forensic, shot 4 shows the body being carried off leading to a zoom in on the victims arm whilst there is a voiceover of the forensics report. Shot 5 leads on from shot 4 as it is a close up of the photograph of the victims arm, these two shots should transition smoothly and should look almost like one shot.

Shot 6 is a shot reverse shot of the conversation between the policeman and forensic. Shot 7 is a closeup/pan presenting the murderers footsteps and there is a voiceover of the nurse reading over the murderers file. Shot 8 is a long shot continuing on from the previous shot of the murderers feet, the voiceover is also continued throughout this shot. Shot 9 is an extreme close up of the murderers hands containing a bible, this can be presented in slow motion, with the voiceover still heard in the background. Shot 10 is a slow motion/mid shot of the Bethlem sign and the murderer leaving the grounds. Shot 11 is a mid shot of the murderer and following on from that is a shot of the nurse as she opens the door to the murderers room, this can be an over the shoulder shot.

Shot 12 is a point of view/long shot shown from the policeman's point of view as we can feel the same surprise that he does as the shot shows the writing on the wall of the room. Shot 14-16 has a different soundtrack which then contains extreme close ups of the words "Thou shall not" "spring park" "murder" "ten commandments" and finally "the prophet" these are all jump cuts which are quick and tense.

For shot 10-11 it could be possible to use parallel shots in order to show the murder leaving Bethlem and then a shot shortly afterwards of the policeman entering the hospital.

Possible Titles

The Prophet
The 10 Messages
Forced
Uncontrollable
Thou shall not
Psychopath

After discussing possible names for the sequence we have decided to use the name 'The Prophet' as it is quite a powerful title and links to the genre and plot of the film. The title represents the delusions that the psychotic man is experiencing of the idea that he is the 'next prophet'.

Screenplay

EXT. SPRING PARK WOODS. 8AM

WOMAN walking dog in the woods. Looks up to see a hanging body and screams.

EXT. SPRING PARK WOODS. 8:30AM

Police arrive on the scene and POLICE OFFICER 1 questions frantic WOMAN.

POLICE OFFICER 1

(reassuring WOMAN)

Are you okay ma'am?

WOMAN

(panicking, barely able to speak, pointing at the body)

Over there!... Over there!

EXT. SPRING PARK WOODS. 9AM

POLICE OFFICER 2 and FORENSIC watch the body being carried off.

POLICE OFFICER 2

What is the situation?

FORENSIC

(reading from clipboard/file)

Name: Karly Anne Hayden

Age: 31

Cause of Death: Still waiting to be identified but was found hanging from a tree in Spring Park Woods at 08:02 am. Suspected forced suicide although her left arm appears to be branded with the words "Thou Shall Not Commit Adultery".

POLICE OFFICER 2
Looks like some kind of religious nut then?

FORENSIC
Most likely.

EXT. GATES OF BETHLEM HOSPITAL. DAY

Flashback of PSYCHIATRIC PATIENT walking out of the gates of psychiatric hospital as he escapes.

PSYCHIATRIC NURSE (V.O)

(reading out the patients file to the police officers)

Name: George Marcus Meadle

Age: 36

Major cases of schizophrenia and a diagnosed psychopath 

He is highly religious and has spent a majority of his time in the "rubber room" due to violent religious outbursts.

INT. PSYCHIATRIC WARD. DAY

POLICE OFFICER 

I know you have all this, but what makes you think its this guy?

PSYCHIATRIC NURSE
(opening the door to patients cell)

Take a look at his room.

PSYCHIATRIC NURSE shows POLICE OFFICERS 1 & 2 the walls of escapee patient's cell. Walls display drawings of plans to kill 10 victims according to the 10 Commandments.

A Detailed Study Of The Usual Suspects

Detailed Study Of The Usual Suspects on Prezi

Influences

The film that inspired us the most to choose a psycho thriller genre is the David Fincher film, Seven. The opening sequence of the film is dark and disturbing, much like we wish ours to be. The idea of a serial killer using the seven deadly sins as his modus operandi inspired us when planning out the plot of our story. With this, we decided to base our film on a recently escaped psychiatric patient who believes he is the next prophet, sending messages from God by killing 10 people who do not obey the 10 commandments.

The opening sequence of Seven involves the killer carefully planning each of the murders. We planned to use a similar approach in our sequence consisting of a number of shots, possibly a long shot, of a wall in our killer's room containing similar plans for the 10 murders.  

The credits themselves are interesting in terms of the type of font which was used, contrasting with the background. This may also be used in our opening sequence although we haven't looked for any specific fonts yet. 

Target Audience and Plot Development

We decided that the target audience would be male and female aged 15-25. This is partly because of the genre and plot of the film. We believe that the film would appeal to both males and females because there is a good variety of different characters in the film i.e. the main character is male but his victims are all females. However the target audience can depend on the way in which we film the opening sequence. If we decide to do it with a more religious aspect, it may appeal to an older audience of both male and female. Although, our initial idea was to focus more on the killing of the victims rather than the religious reasons why. We have used the 10 Commandments purely as a link between the murders rather than as a focus point of  the film. This will possibly rule out older audiences as it has a slightly niche storyline but gives it a horror aspect that people under 25 will enjoy.

In terms of developing the plot, we are considering altering the ways in which the victims are killed. Initially we planned that a mentally deranged man kills ten people who do not follow the 10 Commandments, however we came to the conclusion that this contradicts the man's agenda as one of the 10 Commandments is "Thou shall not kill". We now believe that it will make more sense for the man to psychologically force the victims into suicide. We will develop this idea more so that we will have a clear idea by the time we compose the opening sequence.

Music and Location Choices

Music

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJkP2C8Bg6Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCtgTpxgwjc

We chose these two pieces of music as we wanted something classic but creepy, as these will be very affective and reflect the genre of the piece.

Locations

Bethlem Psychiatric Hospital - We thought that possible shots could be used of the killer leaving the hospital and this would make the shots more realistic.

Spring Park Woods - This can be used as a possible setting for the first crime scene which is the opening scene.

Pitch

A psycho thriller inspired by "Seven". A mentally deranged man believes he is the next prophet, killing 10 people who don't follow the 10 Commandments.