Reflections on Audience Screening

I am really pleased with the feedback we received and the majority of people seemed to enjoy watching it.

Music, plot and title of the film were amongst the favourite aspects of the opening sequence. I agree with these points as I think the title really ties in with the plot and the music really fits the tone of the film. The plot is also something new and therefore offers something different to the audience.

Out of the 34 respondents, only 3 wouldn’t have liked to watch the film, but this was generally down to those specific people not liking this genre of film. Features that were suggested to be improved on included the location, building more tension, the nightmare sequence not realistic enough and the knife in the back pocket made it slightly comical (people suggested he should have put it in his coat pocket.) I agree with these points; however we wanted to make the house seem as normal as possible to reflect the main characters initial fake persona of being normal. Therefore we chose a house that would be realistic and believable for a young male living home alone.

The genre of the film was easily picked up on as most people classified it as a horror or thriller. Overall I am really happy with the feedback and with the majority of ratings between an 8 or a 9 out of ten it makes me feel more confident about our project.

Editing Continued…

Today was our final day of editing and despite the fact that we have a few tiny things to change/add in tomorrow, I am really happy with the sequence. It has all come together well and from the feedback that we received from other students and the teachers; it is more or less finished. Feedback from teachers included changing minor things such as slowing down a shot (where he opens the drawer), removing the first shot from the nightmare sequence (framing wasn’t good) and using the close-up instead, and improving some of the newspaper, photos and headlines shots (pace was too fast etc.) We also had some problems with our Production Company name and logo, it went slightly blurry when played, however we improved this as much as possible and it still works well.

Tomorrow is our final deadline and after a few small tweaks and a test screening tomorrow to receive more feedback, the sequence will be completely finished! I am really happy with how it has turned out.

Editing

It’s the second week back from our break and we’ve been extremely busy with editing. Last week we spent most of our time editing after we captured the footage we took in the holidays. Now we’re on our last few days of editing and the sequence has finally come together. We have edited all shots together, now we just have minor bits and pieces to add and edit in.

Last week we were really busy trying to edit in the shots that we retook on the Friday in the Holidays. These thankfully worked and we had no problems with them. I think the sequence now looks a lot better with these shots. We reshot the whole of the nightmare sequence, the news broadcast on television, the character’s reaction to this and the kitchen shots to get the dialogue right. We also re-recorded the dialogue of Ben whilst we were at school last week. This was put in the shots where he first answers the phone but we don’t see him.

Today we recorded the dialogue of Mr Michael to use as the speech for the news report on the television. This worked much better than expected when we matched it to the news broadcasting. Today we have also been working especially on sound and trying to get our credits to look right. I think the font that we have chosen for our title works really effectively and we have had good feedback about this. We are using the same font for the credits, how these were said to look quite flat so we are going to add an outline around it to improve it.

Last week and today, we have also been working really hard on the newspaper shots, photos and headlines. We have two points in the sequence where these shots fade in. We have finished the first ones where they fade into the sequence, which I think looks really good, but we are struggling a little with the second one. Therefore we have to work really hard tomorrow to finish it. We also have the credits to finish, but these are all in the sequence, so it’s just a matter of making them look good. Finally we have to improve sound by testing out different volumes, speeds etc.

So far I am really happy with the project and hopefully the final piece will be finished by tomorrow.

Final Shoot

During the two week Christmas holiday, we had a final re-shoot to film a few shots that didn’t work in our sequence due to problems such as lighting, continuity and general mise-en-scene.

Re-shoot List:
-Nightmare Sequence (problem with bed covers, need white plain ones)
-Conversation in the kitchen (problem with sound)
-News broadcast on TV (problem with colour before)
-Reaction shots to the TV
-The stairs shot (we changed the shot)

We managed to shoot all the footage in one filming session so it didn’t take as long as we thought it would. Now we have solved those problems with new shots, we can start capturing and editing these shots in order to make the sequence better.

Things we have to do after we have captured the footage:
-Choose the shots we like and edit these in.
-Add in all the credits with our chosen font.
-Finish all the newspaper shots and photos to help people understand the storyline more.
-Record the newsreaders voice to play over the news broadcasting on TV.
-Work on sound, dialogue etc.
-Finish name and logo for Production Company.
-Put in title of the film.

My Opinion on our Fonts and Sound

We have chosen our final font which I am really happy with. It looks like something that would relate to war with the imperfect looking letters. They look old and scratched with gaps in them which could signify gun shots or knife wounds that our main character uses to kill his victims. We have decided to use this font for our title of our film, as well as the titles and credits that will appear throughout the opening sequence. We have therefore chosen the colour black for practical reasons; so that it stands out in front of the action that will be going on in the foreground. We also chose this colour as when we tested a colour such as red, it looked to amateur and unprofessional.

The music that we have chosen for our soundtrack is Dark Wastelands by Tillman Sillescu. This was chosen as we believe it fits our sequence well. Some parts of it resemble the sound of marching soldiers which again relates to the prominent theme of war. The start of the sequence is also perfect for the beginning of our opening sequence as it’s quite subtle and we are going to have non-diegetic sounds of gun shots, screaming and bombs over the soundtrack while the protagonist is having his nightmare. It is also possible to increase the volume in parts where it is more important such as when the main character opens the draw in the kitchen and reveals the knife and poppies. This builds the tension. We can also decrease the volume where it needs to be less obvious such as when there is dialogue taking place, for example during the news broadcasting and when the protagonist is on the phone to his mother.

Overall I’m really happy with our chosen font and soundtrack and I think it fits really well with our idea.

Re-Shoot

We have decided to have a re-shoot which will be done in the Christmas holidays. This was done after we put the whole sequence together and realised that a few shots didn’t work well once in the sequence. We also had a few problems with lighting in the last few shots of the sequence because we ran out of time and it had got dark by the time we shot these.

We also had other problems such as the bed covers being too prominent and feminine. So as have decided to re-shoot the nightmare sequence with plain white covers so as not to distract the eye of the viewer and fit with the masculine view of the main character.

As a group, we have decided to change the shot of the character going down the stairs to make it shorter and therefore less boring. We chose to shoot the last few steps of the stairs and let the character walk into the shot and then pan across to the door of the bedroom. This takes out unnecessary footage that isn’t needed. The other shots that we have to re-shoot are the shots of the news broadcasting on the television and the reaction to this of the main character.

We have arranged 2 shooting days just in case we don’t finish in time on the first day. Hopefully this should be our last re-shoot and then we can just concentrate on editing.

Editing

We have managed to put our sequence together but have decided to reshoot some parts to improve the shots. We’ve still got quite a bit to do but we’ve added a soundtrack which I think works really well and ties in with the sequence. Once we’ve reshot in the holidays and replaced some shots with better versions, I think the sequence will look a lot better. We still have to add in all our titles, record the news broadcasting and design and put in the newspaper and image clips into the sequence. This will all be done when we return from our break. So far though it’s going well and I’m looking forward to seeing the finished piece.

Second Shoot

We had our second shoot on Saturday which went really well. We arrived at 12 and began filming straight away. This gave us loads of time to shoot every shot in our opening sequence, and also meant that the shots filmed last week could be re-shot, giving us more choice. We had planned already to re-shoot many shots, such as the waking up scene and the rummaging in the wardrobe, therefore it was very useful.

We started by recording the dialogue that Ben will say while he is on the phone to his mother. This means that if the dialogue is unclear in the shots we film, we can add this in after.

During filming, we managed to get more successful shots in less takes due to more organisation such as a shot list that we followed well, which meant we had more time to finish and spend longer on other shots. This also meant that we could film some shots that weren’t planned, such as from different angles and distances. This gives us a lot more variety and makes it much easier when editing.

We also filmed other types of shots such as altering the first few shots to the man having a nightmare and we see this while he’s sleeping as he’s twisting and turning. Then as he wakes up and sits up abruptly, it cuts to a shot directly in front of him and he’s breathing heavily. We also thought of an idea to have sound such as bombs and gun shots while he’s having a nightmare and this also stops suddenly when he wakes up. The soundtrack would then gradually fade in. This was just an idea that we thought of on the day, therefore we will see how it turned out during editing, and make a decision of whether to include it in or not.

Lighting in the house was a lot brighter than last week. This means the shots we film will be lighter, clearer and of better quality. Then if we want to darken any shots, we can do this on the computer whilst editing to get the effect that we are aiming for.

Shots that we couldn’t do last week due to not having the props were done today, such as the pan of the war photos and medal.

After receiving feedback yesterday from Mrs B about the poppies in the draw, we decided to line the draw with black material, and have five poppies lined up extremely neatly in a line under the knife, signifying that he has five more to kill. This would match the five men not crossed out in the photo, but circled in red.

Overall the shoot went really well, just hope its all ok when we edit. [There are a few photos on the group blog]

Next Week:
-Shot of the news on the television.
-Any re-shoots.
-Lots of editing.

Anticipation of Problems Summary

In the lesson today, our group came up with a list of things that we have identified as our strengths and weaknesses so far in the project. In summary, we found that:

• We thought our organisational skills were pretty good. We had one incident involving equipment, where Selina forgot to hand in the Group Folder along with the camera. However, in general we tend to plan things out beforehand, therefore we are very well organised on shoots; so as to assure that no time is wasted etc.
• Initially, we had a slight problem with communication. For example we had made plans without getting the teacher's approval. Also one of us was absent without informing the rest of the group therefore it was difficult to organise things. Nevertheless, we have all learnt from these errors and have improved our communication. Now we are extremely good at communicating with each other - we say how we feel, we update our blogs with thoughts and reflections and we all have each other's phone numbers, in case of emergencies. We feel that communication is now really one of our strongest points.
• We are particularly good when it comes to the technical side of things. Whoever is in charge of returning the equipment always knows to fully charge the batteries and lights, ready for the next shoot. We all know how to use the equipment we were given and we all have a very decent knowledge of camera techniques (i.e. framing, shot types, continuity etc). This makes the shoots run smoother and more efficiently as we all know how to use the equipment.
• Finally, and probably our strongest area, is the group dynamics. Because there are only three of us, it would be difficult for us to form 'divisions' within the group etc. Also because there are always so many tasks to be carried out, we all make sure we contribute as best we can; be it with the planning, shooting, editing or blogging. Whenever there is a problem, we usually all see it and try to tackle it together, respecting each other's opinions without being rude or getting personal. We have had no fights so far and we are really pleased with our progress.

The Real Shoot

We had our real shoot yesterday which went really well. We all arrived at 12 to finish paperwork for an hour or so. This was really helpful as it meant we could finish a script for Ben, with his dialogue on the phone to his mother. We tried to make it as realistic as possible and avoided the comical effect that we got when we did it during the test shoot.

We did manage to shoot quite a few shots, however we didn’t shoot all the shots for the opening sequence. This was firstly down to time, something as simple as a feet shot (when he got out of bed) took nearly 20 takes to get it perfect. Also the shot of the character going down the stairs was quite difficult as Ben is so tall, he kept banging his head on the ceiling above the stairs, this took another 12 takes. The lighting was also different to the test shoot, it was darker, therefore we had to use the lighting equipment which took quite long to get looking perfect in the shot. Apart from this though, we did take some good shots that will hopefully work, looking forward to watching it properly next week.

Another reason that we couldn’t shoot all the shots was that we didn’t have all the props necessary, such as all the poppies for the draw and the photo of the battalion and war medal for the pan across the shelf. However we plan to do these all next week.

Overall the shoot went really well and we know exactly what shots we have left to film, and hoping the shots that we took yesterday turn out good. There are also a few photos on the group blog.

Meeting Before Shoot

In our lesson today, we were preparing for our real shoot tomorrow.
A rough idea of what we did:
-Ben managed to complete a rough storyboard that we can follow for the shoot.
-We started our script, which we plan to finish and finalise before we shoot tomorrow.
-In the lesson, we also developed the war idea further, by thinking of props that we could add in, especially relating to war.
-We’ve decided to add in shots such as, a track along a shelf, showing a war medal, a photo of a battalion with certain faces marked out with a cross on the photo. Also a shot of the character opening the wardrobe to get changed and the audience seeing a solider uniform. This is right at the start so it will immediately give a slight clue to the audience.
-We’ve decided to film slightly later in the day, to get less bright daylight into the shots, in order to create the right atmosphere.
-Changed the shot of where he picks up the knife, to a shot of him taking it out of a draw in the kitchen.

I feel prepared for the shoot tommorrow, I think we have done everything that we need and that is urgent, we just have to complete the script for dialogue and finalise our shooting script, and we'll be ready to go.

Test Shoot Sequence

After watching the test shoot sequence, it gave me a chance to see what our final sequence will look similar to, what worked well and what didn’t work so well. It was quite simple to edit together as it is a continuity sequence. There were parts that I was very happy with, but I also noticed quite a few problems with it.

Problems we came across were:
-A few issues with continuity – some parts of the sequence don’t flow so well and it therefore looks unrealistic. The shots in the real opening sequence can be cut up with the shots of the flashes of newspapers and headlines; this could avoid any continuity problems that make the sequence look odd. We also need to watch for other continuity errors, such as the kitchen light was off in one shot, and the next shot it was suddenly on.
-The time of day - we shot the sequence during the day, which meant it was very bright. Despite the fact that we want to make the guy seem quite normal, with a normal day and starting off with him waking up, and then a shock at the end, we thought the sequence was slightly too bright, which didn’t fit the atmosphere that we wanted to create. For the real shoot, we can film it later in the day, to make it slightly darker.
-The script – for the test shoot, we didn’t have a proper script ready for Ben to read off of. Therefore it was made up on the spot, for the shots of him on the phone to his mother. This made it come across as quite comical and cheesy. For the real shoot, we will have to write a real script for him to learn and read off of.

Test Shoot

We had our Test Shoot today, we shot both original ideas that we had and have made a decision to go ahead with the idea about a killer getting up, getting ready and off to kill another. We made this choice because we came across many problems with the other idea. I’m happy with this decision and think this opening sequence could work really well.
On the Test Shoot, me and Selina shared the roles of camera person, director, sound and production assistant. This was because Ben was in all the shots. We shared the roles fairly equally, and managed to shoot roughly the same amount of shots, giving us both practice for the real shoot.

The problems with my idea were:
-Location. The garage was too cluttered to get to the corner and we couldn’t find another one to film in.

-Acting. During our test shoot acting was a struggle and we thought it would be difficult to find someone who was suitable and wouldn’t mind acting in it.

However, whilst filming the other idea, we didn’t really come across many problems and discovered that it was fairly easy to film. We also timed what he had filmed and it came to 1min 45secs, therefore with credits, titles and other shots added in, such as newspaper articles, it should be close to the 2mins. We have also developed the idea further and made decisions of things that we could add in, such as the man having a conversation on the phone with his mother, in order to add in some dialogue. It will also make it quite creepy as the man will come across as a ‘mummy’s boy,’ having a larger impact on the audience when they discover he is in fact the murderer. Also the shot of where he picks up the knife, we decided to change to him taking it out of a draw, whilst in the kitchen. We thought this would look more effective, as it shows him opening the draw, and he audience are unsure what for, them see the knife.
We have also had an idea to develop the plot, about maybe something to do with the Iraq War. The killer could have been involved in the war, and now he is out on revenge to the other soldiers who gave up.
This gives us potential to add in slight hints related to the war, such as a solider uniform, dog tags, poppies, photos of a battalion (marked crosses though them to signify who has been killed). Then the clips and flashes of newspapers and headlines will make the audience completely aware of who he is. The newspapers will be in black and white, therefore we could add the red poppies to make them stand out.

Before the real shoot we had to have:
-Storyboarded our final idea with all the detail and changes, this will help us visualise it on the real shoot and therefore help with the shots.
-Decide on an icon that will signify the murders and be left with the victims (possibly a poppy)
-Research into newspaper things – headlines.
-Write the script for the conversation on the phone.
-Think about the overall idea and develop it a little.
-Decide on all the props needed for the real shoot.
-Maybe start thinking about possible soundtracks.

Meeting

Next Meeting
During this meeting, we still couldn't make a decision on what idea to go ahead with. We gathered feedback from different people but they all had different opinions. We agreed with the positives and negatives that they put towards the ideas.
We have therefore decided to Test Shoot both ideas on Monday. From this we will see what types of shots work and which ones don't work so well. We can also test lighting and the location ideas for both openings.
From this Test Shoot, we hope to make our decision based mainly on what we found.
After we have made our decision, we will work towards finalising the location and sorting out the shots that we will do. We will also finalise our actors. If we choose the idea with just one character, we will just use Ben. However if we choose the other idea with the two main characters (the boy and the girl) we will also use Ben but will have to find a girl that will fit the role and can also act. She'd have to look like a typical, innocent female, that has got caught up in this situation that she doesn't want to be in. We would then test out the actor/s, take pictures and make them act scenes out. If we use the boy and girl, we would have to make sure they work well together and fit the idea.

Meetings

Second Meeting:
Our second group meeting didn’t have Selina; therefore we didn’t have her idea to compare. However, Ben and I went into more detail with the other idea and researched certain aspects of the opening sequence. We decided on parts we could add to the sequence to make it even more effective and planned some shots that we could test on our test shoot. We mainly concentrated on the shots that could be used in detail, and used the storyboard as a basic outline. We also thought about dialogue and sound effects. For the next meeting, we plan to make the choice of idea final and start going into more detail with that idea, for example different shots. This will then prepare us for shots that we could test on the approaching test shoot.

Group Meetings

First Meeting:
During our first group meeting for this project, Ben, Selina and I were concentrating on ideas that could be used for the opening sequence and whether it would fit our chosen genre of thriller/horror.
We had a few ideas that would work and managed to cut them down to my idea and Selina’s idea. However, we could not make a decision on which idea to go ahead with. We therefore decided to go off and consider our ideas in more detail and roughly storyboard them to make it more visual. We did this to make the process of choosing an idea easier.

Group Discussion – Initial Ideas

During our first lesson as a group today, we brainstormed some possible ideas and storylines that we could use for our film opening. As we were all interested in the thriller/horror genre and thought this could be the most effective as an opening, we developed ideas based around this. It has very specific generic signifiers so we thought we could produce something effective and recognisable for this genre.

As a group, we started by identifying and listing significant conventions generally seen in thriller and horror movies. This included:
-Typical themes – revenge, obsession, murder, stalking, being watched, fear
-Characters – male villain, woman victim
-Locations – ordinary home, abandoned buildings, alleyways, dark isolated places
-Key iconography – weapons (knives), blood, shadows, candles
-Lighting – dark, low key, unnatural light
-Camera movement - canted angles, zooms and jump cuts to create sense of disorientation, fear, paranoia
-Editing – alternating the pace of cuts to create and build tension
-Sound – screams, heartbeat, breathing, creaks, weather, creepy music

By the end of our discussion, we had produced a few ideas. The two that we most liked and thought would be the most practical are:
''Rose Killer'' idea - day in the life of the notorious killer, except we don't know it is him until the end
''Obsession'' idea - based on an obsessive man who killed his girlfriend out of his love-fueled fixation on her

We will develop these ideas further in a group meeting later.