Planning: Shot List

Planning: Initial Ideas

Initial Ideas

My idea:
Narrative - a young female who gets raped and is extremely effected mentally. She then has a mental breakdown and seeks revenge to the people/person who raped her, killing them and then having an addiction to killing. Killing anyone when she thinks about the time she was raped.

Title - 'Wounded by a single touch'

Sub-genre - Horror, psychological

Characters - Female victim/antagonist, rapist

Narrative structure - Todorov (Beginning, middle & end)

MES:
Iconography - Knife
Setting - Ally way
Lighting & colour - low key, red

Marlyns idea:

Narrative: A young female who is pregnant with a possessed baby in which the baby then effects the female mentally causing her to blackout and commit murder at any random time. She then finds out about her doings and then mentally she gets worst.

Title - 'From the inside'

Sub genre - Psychological

Characters - Female Serial killer

Narrative structure - Todorov, Barthes

Schelahs Idea:

Narrative - Young students are sent texts on their birthday greeting them ''Happy birthday. Look behind you''. They are then attacked with a baseball bat, kidnapped then murdered.

Sub genre - action , Psychological

Character - Antagonist

Narrative - Todorov

MES:

Iconography: Baseball bat
Lighting: Low key
Costume: Dark, scruffy, hoodie

Conclusion:
As you can see, all of our idea are relatable through several features, of the characters, sub genre, narrative and narrative structure etc. Through sharing ideas, we then decided that we all wanted to create a psychological thriller.

Planning: Micro Elements - Ms. Begum

Micro Elements



 Cinematography 

Cinematography consists of three main features; Shot sizes, angles and movement.

These are used to portray different values and ideologies of a characters representation and also help set a mood of a location.

-The shots I am planning to use in my thriller are shots such as extreme/close ups, medium & long shots etc. For example I will use a close up shot on my protagonist to allow the audience to view the characters facial expressions clearly in order to let the audience see the different types of emotions the character portrays.

-The types of angled shots I will be using are mainly high angles and low angles shots. These types of shots are used to portray which characters are superior or inferior. I am planning to use low angled shots for example, when my antagonist is overpowering the protagonist in which then I will use high angles shots on the protagonist to show that they are inferior.

-I am planning to use movement shots such as tilt shots to introduce a character and allow the audience view clearly their whole appearance.

Sound

The types of sounds I am planning to use are both off/on screen and non/diegetic sounds. The off screen sound I am planning to use is fast and intense soundtrack to try and disturb the audience. I will also use slow and gritty soundtrack to make the audience sympathy.

The on screen sound I am planning to use are stabbing sounds, phone ringing, door slamming etc. This will create emphasis on the situations of the scene.

Editing

I will be using both slow and fast paced editing. I am planning to use slow editing throughout the majority of the film but when their are intense climax's I will use fast editing to create a more intense and suspense scene. I am also planning to use some jump cuts to emphasise the suspense and also create suspicion towards the audience.

Mise en Scene

Iconography

The iconography I am planning to use are mainly sharp objects such as scissors, knives etc. that my victim/antagonist can use to harm other characters within the film. These objects will also be

 used to portray who the superiority of a character.

Costume

The costume I am planning to use for my main character are white, mental patient uniform. I want to use this to create both an innocent but dangerous look in order to make her seem pure towards other characters but create a worried effect towards the audience when she encounters other characters.

Body language & facial expressions

The body language to be used by my character would be fast and fidgety movements to make her seem unusual and mentally unstable. The facial expressions will be aggressive and intense to also portray her as chaotic.

Setting

As my narrative contains a mental institution. I want to create a mental hospital effect towards the audience, meaning I would need empty, blank rooms, hallways etc. with everything being all white. This would be ideal when trying to recreate a hospital as I am not able to film in an actual hospital.

Lighting and colour

The types of lighting I am planning to use are bright high key lighting when my character is placed in her hospital cell and also use low key lighting when their are intense conflict scenes.

The types of colour I am planning to use are bright colours such as red in order to portray vengeance, blood, danger etc.

Planning: Storyboard

Storyboarding

 Importance of storyboard

This part of the planning is essential because the main purpose of this, allowed me and my group to know what to do specifically when filming and creating our final product. Storyboarding helped us significantly as it allowed us to plan and know what type of scene and imagery to create that included the different types of iconography, connotations, lighting, dialogue and more. This part of the planning made sure that we would create exactly what we wanted.

-Advantages of storyboard

Storyboarding helped me to know specifically what was needed and what our group wanted to create in a scene. This significantly helped with the planning stage to get ideas on paper. This was also helpful because it saved time when filming as  we had a guide to follow, further this will also help in the editing stages. Storyboarding also allowed us to experiment with our creativity in creating images.

-Conventions of the storyboard

The conventions included all the small details such as the type of lighting, iconography, cinematography, type of shot we wanted to use and more. This helped us to know what we wanted to create before filming.

 

Overall, storyboarding was beneficial because of several reasons that allowed me to create our production as soon as possible. This provided a less time consuming process which made it easier for me and my group to create the final product.

Planning: Preliminary task - Mr. Smith

The purpose of preliminary task:

- The purpose of the preliminary task was to introduce us to filming so that when it comes to our final
production, we would all know how to play our roles whether it is operating the camera or editing the footage after.. This was mainly for us to get used to filming and learn several filming techniques to help us create an effective short thriller film.

- This task was not planned so we had to improvise and make a quick scene in a short time. This gave us practise in improvising in case we need to when filming the final project.

The scenario:

- The scenario for our preliminary task was two people from our group having a conversation. We experimented on using different types of shot sizes and angles that we had learnt in class. We then tried camera movement when one of our characters were walking towards a different location. We also tried some movement shots to give show a better view of the location and also to show the change of location.

Group roles:
Our group consists of 3 main people;
- Shelah: main character/ editor(Actor 1)
- Marlyn: main character. (Actor 2)
- Joshua: (Me) Camera operator


You can find our preliminary task on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9J3AFDSCwcE&feature=youtu.be

 

Difficulties we encountered:

The location chosen for our preliminary task was in the music department of our school during class times. So we had times in which we had been disturbed by students walking pass and by loud noises occurring around the music department. Because of this, we had to stop, wait or retake the scene we were filming.

When we had completed filming our short preliminary task, we had to edit the film to approximately 30 seconds. The software we used was very new to all of us so we had to learn how to operate the software in order to complete our task. Another difficulty we encountered was importing the files from the camera on to the software(FinalCutPro).

Conclusion:
The preliminary task has allowed me to learn how to operate a camera and know what it is like behind the scenes in what is needed to do to make a film.. It has also allowed me to learn how to use a new software that is used for editing many video clips together. This task has been very beneficial because it has helped all of us to now know how to film and edit, in which we need in order to complete the Thriller film we will make.

Planning: Pre production paperwork - Ms. Begum

Pre production paperwork

In our groups, we each had to take on a role in creating professional paperwork before hand, in order to allow us to film in chosen locations, public etc. The paperwork would then be handed to each member of the production groups as well as the cast taking part in our thriller film.

Production schedule:

- This is a summary of what exactly is going to happen in our filming schedule. This document will be given to each and every person taking part in our film. This document will allow everyone in our production to know when and where we will be filming and also what would be need to be brought in order for us to create the scenes we want.

Risk assessment:

- The analysis of our location/s and what risks might arise and how we plan to overcome those risks. This document will be given to everyone in our production in order to ensure their safety when filming.

 

 

Location recce/ release form:

- This is a summary of the location/s that we have decided to use for our thriller. It will show the directions for members of the production to get to the chosen location and also why it has been chosen. This document will also be given to everyone in our production so that they know more of our chosen location and how to get there.

 

 

Client release form:

- This document is for each client in our production including the cast, director and film crew. This discusses the terms and agreements for any actors in our thriller.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Planning: Mise En Scene - Mr. Smith

Mise En Scene



Mise en scene is very important in creating a film production as it sends messages to the audience that make them connote the significance of the mise en scene used. This also allows the audience to engage within the scene, portraying different ideas that make them have different emotions towards the several types of mise en scene. The mise en scene that we will use in our thriller will consist of lighting, setting, iconography, costume, facial expressions and body language.

Lighting

Low key lighting will be used throughout our thriller because it is conventional to the thriller genre. I have chosen to use this because it builds up tension and creates suspense towards the audience and also create different connotations from the viewers.

Setting

The setting we will mainly be filming in will be Oasis Academy Hadley. We will mainly be using a room inside the music department of the school. This location is relevant to our thriller because it is a square empty room in which we need as our main character is being filmed in a ‘’mental hospital cell’’. So we can design this room to temporarily be all white. The room is empty so we won’t have trouble moving furniture or equipment in and out. The room being all white will connote that the girl is exposed and cannot escape which makes the audience feel sympathy but negative towards the girl because of her actions that caused her to be in the mental hospital.

Iconography

The iconography we plan to use are regularly used but dangerous; a knife and scissors which will be used to attack the main characters boyfriend. Make up will also be used to show the injuries and blood so that it will make our scene look more realistic. I have chosen these because it is conventional to a thriller genre and helps connote different ideas towards the viewers.

Costume

The costume for our female victim/antagonist will be dressed moderns with youth trends. She will be in bright colours which will connote her freedom and innocence. After this character has been sent to the ''mental hospital'', she will be in all white, loose uniform to show that she is a prisoner and also to connote the good intentions that turn bad.

The antagonist in which we portray sexually abusing the main character will be dressed in messy, dark, casual wear. The antagonist dark clothing and hoodie to hide his identity connotes the mystery and bad intentions of this character.

Body language & facial expressions

The body language of the main character in the beginning will have a good posture be open to show that she is a friendly and approachable person. After she has been sent to the mental hospital, her body language will be calm, closed and fragile to show that she is not approachable and anti social.

The body language of the antagonist will be stiff and aggressive as he is committing an abusive gesture towards the main character. His facial expressions will be both angry looking but smiling as he is getting pleasure out of it and is teasing the girl.

Conclusion:

These are all the mise en scene I am planning to use for our thriller production. This planning before filming will make it easier for us to film because we know what will be used in our scenes and what the actors will need to be dressed in and act like.

 

Planning: Character Representation - Ms. Begum

Character Representation

My thriller will consist of three significant characters:
-The main girl
-The rapist
-Male nurse

The main character, played by Christine, is an average normal looking girl aged around 18. Her identity will be hidden by making her nameless and by hiding her face with her hair when she is in the mental hospital. Throughout the beginning of our thriller, she will be dressed in bright colours and have neat hair and make up to show that she is the character with good intentions. Then when she is sent to the mental hospital, she will be dressed in white and have messy hair. The change of hair and make up will connote that she has been through a bad situation and doesn't or cant bother to make herself look nice. The body language of this character in the beginning will have a good posture be open to show that she is a friendly and approachable person. After she has been sent to the mental hospital, her body language will be calm, closed and fragile to show that she is not approachable and anti social.

The rapist, played by Trey will have short camera time but a big effect on the main character. This character will be portrayed as a big strong man aged around the 30's. His identity will be hidden by the low key lighting and hoodie that he will be covering his head. the body language of this character will be stiff and aggressive as he is committing an abusive gesture towards the main character. His facial expressions will be both angry looking but smiling as he is getting pleasure out of it and is teasing the girl. The costume will be dark and messy to show that he is less fortunate and has bad intentions.

The male nurse, played by Cee Jay will be the last character shown to be interacting with the main girl. The role of this character is to be looking after the girl in the mental hospital and also dies by the hands of the girl. The costume for this character will be white and neat to connote the good intentions he has. This character will be kind and generous to the character, which makes the audience feel sympathy towards him as they know what the girl is capable of. the body language of this character will be open and have a good posture to show that he is approachable and has good intentions. The facial expressions of this character will be happy and smiley to show that he is a friendly person.

Planning: Production Roles - Ms. Begum

Production Roles

 

Introduction

• In the making of a film production, there are nine main roles that are most important in completing a film production.
• Each role is very different, but needed in order to help all the other roles to make it easier for everyone.
• The roles below will show why they are the most important in making a complete production.

Filmier/Camera crew: The person/people in charge of operating the camera to show appropriate shots and sizes when shooting a scene. They are also known as camera operator, videographer depending on the job they are doing and the type of technology involved. Their role also works alongside with the story boarders role as they need to shoot a scene in the same image as the story boarder wants. This role has been assigned to me as I have had experience in filming various types of videos and short films.

Producer: This role mainly assists the director in production. Their role is to assists the directors decision making and run around making sure all roles are fulfilled. So they would need to have good communication skills as they are interacting with the other workers. This role has been assigned to Marilyn as she has good communication skills and makes other workers feel approachable towards her.

Director: The directors role is to direct everything that happens in a scene, so they have to make sure that the actors are saying their lines right and also saying it in the right tone and expression. They also make sure that everything else in the scene is correct according to a story board or how the director wants the scene to look like. This role has been assigned to Marilyn as she has good communication skills and is a good direct speaker which is ideal for this role. This has also been assigned to her as she plays a big part planning out how the scenes should look like so she knows what and how the scenes should look.

 

Lighting Operator: The lighting operator is in charge of using appropriate lighting in a scene to make the scene look more ideal whether its a bad situation and has to have low key lighting. Their role is to make sure that the lighting is right for different scenarios. This role has been assigned to Shelah as he has volunteered to because he is good with electronics so this job would be most appropriate with his skill set.

 

Location manager: This role is in charge of finding suitable and appropriate locations for specific scenes. This role is important as it is needed to make a scene ideal to the plan and storyboard. This role has been assigned to Shelah as he has already given locations and ideas of locations for several scenes in our production.

 

Costume, hair and make up: The people in this role is responsible for the appearance of all the actors. This role is important as it makes the scene look more ideal with the characters having different types of costume and make up that is appropriate to the scene. This role has been assigned to Marilyn as she has experience in applying make up and has a good sense of fashion in which this is ideal or this role.

 

Storyboard organiser: This role is very important as they plot and draw out how a scene should look like and what should contain in it. This role is also important as it allows everyone in the production team to view how the scene is supposed to look like before filming. This role helps the camera operator a lot as it shows them what type of shot sizes and angles to shoot the scene from. This role has been assigned to me as I have a good layout of how the scenes should look like and what should contain in it. I also have clear drawings of how the scene should look like so it is easy to see how the scene should look like when filming.

 

Editor: This role is responsible for making a scene look professional. They are also in charge of cutting, making the right and appropriate editing for different scenes. They also add the most important scenes and cut certain scenes to make it the right time length of the complete production. This role has been assigned to me as I have the equipment and experienced people to help and provide me with the skill to create a great production.

 

Sound editor: This role is in charge of putting the right types of sound and music that matches specific scenes and also matches with the editing. This role has been assigned to Shelah as he knows and told the team what type of sounds should be used for specific moments in a scene.

 

Conclusion:

I have gained a better knowledge of production roles which will benefit me in what roles are needed in order to make a good production. This also will also help me with my roles as it allows me to know what I need to do and what I need to contribute to, to make my thriller as good as possible.



Planning: Final Ideas - Mr.Smith

Final ideas

 

The scene starts with the introduction of the main character. There is a girl shown to be in the middle of a blank, spaced out room with only a bed and a toilet. Immediately the setting connotes that this girl is being held in a prison like location. The audience can see that the girl is on her knees crying with her head down and her body is fragile in what resembles a foetal position to reflect her innocence. Her face is also completely covered by her long messy hair to hide her identity. The character is presented in a loose white costume which represents her purity and the freedom she has. The camera positioned directly in front of the girl starting with an extreme long shot, slowly zooming in closer and closer. Within around 2 seconds of the zoom in, a flashback is shown of her past, when she had been raped a short quote is remembered ''it's like nothing ever happened''. This is said in a happy tone but used in a bad event to show the audience that the rapist is comfortable with his actions as if he has done it before and is comfortable with it.

As the scene develops, the zoom in carry's on directly in front of the girl then with a sudden change of screen, another flashback. This flashback shows her and her boyfriend having a good time, smiling then they start kissing and the boyfriend makes his actions more aggressive forcing the girl. The girl is refusing but the boyfriend carry's on getting more aggressive, overpowering the girl to what she does not want to do. The quote said by the boyfriend is similar to the rapist '' Don't worry, it'll be like nothing ever happened''. Then a blur of fast images that sum up her being raped is shown whilst on screen overlapping sounds are heard of her screaming and the quote being repeated again and again on a loop. The fast images then get faster as well as the sounds are getting faster.

The scene then goes back to reality carrying on from being intense to calm, then another thought of a point of view is shown of the girl seeing her boyfriend on the ground dead with blood pouring out of his stomach. She lifts up her hands seeing blood scattered all over and scissors gripped in her right hand. The scene then shows her being taken away by police and her crying with confusion ''I didn't do nothing!''. This flash back then leaves the setting of her house with her at the back of a police car and sirens and flashing lights from the police car are shown.

(Still in a flashback) The girl is then shown to be getting booked in to a mental facility in which a zoom in to the number plate of the cell the girl will be placed in ''B13''. The door is opened which then immediately goes back to reality in which the camera shows a medium close up of the girl in the same position as the start but she is quiet now, and is still showing no movement.

Towards the ending of the opening a nurse is shown to be walking down the corridors of the facility with a smile, holding a tray of food. The man  holding the trey is then scanned before entering the cell ''B13''. The man enters the room and his first words are ''how are we doing today'' trying to be kind and opening towards the girl as if they have talked before and he is comfortable with being around the girl. The man carry's on trying to make convo but the girl doesn't reply at all with no voice or movement. The man then gives up kindly with trying to make convo and bends down 'saying don't worry you'll be alright. It'll be like nothing ever happened''. (knife in nurses pocket)

At the end the girl the lifts her head up and a fade to black is shown with off screen sound of a grown man screaming and sound of slicing and body parts crushing and squashing. The fade to black then goes into a straight cut with the view of the girls eyes in which we see the nurse dead on the floor with blood pouring from his body and the girl with her hands up with the scissors in her right hand.

The scene completely ends with a straight cut showing a close up of the girls face with her hair out of the way so we can see her eyes wide open. Her facial expressions are serious and aggressive. After several seconds of showing an aggressive look, a smile is then triggered by the girl ending the scene.

Planning: opening scene narration - Miss B

Opening scene narration

The scene starts with the introduction of the main character. There is a girl shown to be in the middle of a blank, spaced out room with only a bed and a toilet. Immediately the setting connotes that this girl is being held in a prison like location. The audience can see that the girl is on her knees crying with her head down and her body is fragile in what resembles a foetal position to reflect her innocence. Her face is also completely covered by her long messy hair to hide her identity. The character is presented in a loose white costume which represents her purity and the freedom she has. The camera positioned directly in front of the girl starting with an extreme long shot, slowly zooming in closer and closer. Within around 2 seconds of the zoom in, a flashback is shown of her past, when she had been raped a short quote is remembered ''it's like nothing ever happened''. This is said in a happy tone but used in a bad event to show the audience that the rapist is comfortable with his actions as if he has done it before and is comfortable with it.


As the scene develops, the zoom in carry's on directly in front of the girl then with a sudden change of screen, another flashback. This flashback shows her and her boyfriend having a good time, smiling then they start kissing and the boyfriend makes his actions more aggressive forcing the girl. The girl is refusing but the boyfriend carry's on getting more aggressive, overpowering the girl to what she does not want to do. The quote said by the boyfriend is similar to the rapist '' Don't worry, it'll be like nothing ever happened''. Then a blur of fast images that sum up her being raped is shown whilst on screen overlapping sounds are heard of her screaming and the quote being repeated again and again on a loop. The fast images then get faster as well as the sounds are getting faster.


The scene then goes back to reality carrying on from being intense to calm, then another thought of a point of view is shown of the girl seeing her boyfriend on the ground dead with blood pouring out of his stomach. She lifts up her hands seeing blood scattered all over and scissors gripped in her right hand. The scene then shows her being taken away by police and her crying with confusion ''I didn't do nothing!''. This flash back then leaves the setting of her house with her at the back of a police car and sirens and flashing lights from the police car are shown.


(Still in a flashback) The girl is then shown to be getting booked in to a mental facility in which a zoom in to the number plate of the cell the girl will be placed in ''B13''. The door is opened which then immediately goes back to reality in which the camera shows a medium close up of the girl in the same position as the start but she is quiet now, and is still showing no movement.


Towards the ending of the opening a nurse is shown to be walking down the corridors of the facility with a smile, holding a tray of food. The man  holding the trey is then scanned before entering the cell ''B13''. The man enters the room and his first words are ''how are we doing today'' trying to be kind and opening towards the girl as if they have talked before and he is comfortable with being around the girl. The man carry's on trying to make convo but the girl doesn't reply at all with no voice or movement. The man then gives up kindly with trying to make convo and bends down 'saying don't worry you'll be alright. It'll be like nothing ever happened''. (knife in nurses pocket)


At the end the girl the lifts her head up and a fade to black is shown with off screen sound of a grown man screaming and sound of slicing and body parts crushing and squashing. The fade to black then goes into a straight cut with the view of the girls eyes in which we see the nurse dead on the floor with blood pouring from his body and the girl with her hands up with the scissors in her right hand.


The scene completely ends with a straight cut showing a close up of the girls face with her hair out of the way so we can see her eyes wide open. Her facial expressions are serious and aggressive. After several seconds of showing an aggressive look, a smile is then triggered by the girl ending the scene.