For this task, my group, including me, Dan Armstrong and Joe Smith were asked to film and edit a short scene to show what camera skills we had. The clip was to be short, no longer than a minute long but was set in place to give a better understanding of our main task to allow us a chance to get more familiar with the filming equipment and camera whether being in front or behind it. It also gave us a chance to use an editing programme to give us a greater knowledge on how it works and the steps taken into making a short clip. By doing this it should benefit our final clip and main task as we were able to have a test run on the whole process we are about to begin.
For the filming, our teacher put in place a few details our clip had to feature so we had a narrative to play around with and make our own. It involved filming and editing a character walking and opening a door, crossing the room to join another character, before having a few lines of dialogue and then exiting the room. These were the only guidelines put in place so the location, cinematography, other micro-elements and dialogue content was for us to customise and make our own. However to make our clip as good and professionally as possible we all agreed to include as many micro-elements as we could, however it must be appropriate the shot we are using.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c61PKo4qoyg
After filming our short clip we then returned to our class and uploaded our video content onto the macs, after searching through the possible clips we had shot to make sure the best ones were used we then inserted them into the editor and arranged them into order. Once that step had been carried out it was time for us to edit the shots to try and merge them as seamlessly together as possible to maintain continuity and flow. To do so we soon realised a lot of the shots needed to be cut accordingly to stop our whole clip becoming one big jump shot. Carrying out this step we realised how hard it was because we were unfamiliar with the editing software however nearing the end of the task we could all spot where clips needed to be edited or cut further and had a greater understanding of how to make the final product of our minute long clip as good as we possibly could, editing-wise, which can greatly enhance and scene.
Monday, 25 November 2013
Opening Scene Analysis - Miss Georgiou
An opening scene is key to a good, successful film because it introduces the story and tries to engage the audience. By stating the key characters and location from the outset it allows the audience to familiarise themselves with the characters so they can relate an emotional distance and feel involved with the storyline.
How does the opening sequence from Halloween inform the audience of the codes and conventions of the thriller genre?
Narrative
The opening of this film is set on Halloween in the 1960's. The scene opens with a view of a house. The shot focuses specifically on the house and not the street, making the location unknown and adding a sense of uneasiness and eeriness to the scene because the location is never revealed to the audience. By showing nothing around her as she's in the bedroom it adds to the tension and idea of her death being inevitable since there is nowhere to escape from which also sends a panic through the audience as they don't know how she will escape. It then switches to two teenagers fooling around in the living room however we see this through the window from the outside of the house which adds to the idea that we are seeing the scene through the villain/killer's eyes (POV) which creates an interest between the audience and the main character and adds an element of powerlessness and suspense within the audience as they watch the scene play out and they have no control over anything that is happening. The person who's point of view the camera is following then enters the house, suggesting the idea that they are coming for someone and that something is going to happen, building the audience up for a shock. You also notice that the person is familiar to the layout of the household since they walk straight through to the kitchen and retrieve a knife from the drawer without any confusion, this intrigues the audience as we can see what's happening but the murderer's identity remains a mystery and so by showing their point of view, we seem more connected to the villain than the victim in this instance as the audience feels like they and the killer are one because they can only see the situation through the killer's eyes. This also makes it harder for the audience to sympathise with the victim as they can relate to the murderer more easily. Once the girl has been killed with a knife taken from the kitchen, we see through the POV shot that the murderer makes their way outside to be greeted by returning parents of the household. The father then walks closer to the camera during that point of view shot (getting closer to the villain) and takes off the mask to reveal it to be the girl's little brother and he is standing outside the house with a bloody knife in his hand in front of his Mum & Dad.
Cinematography
A weapon is used in the form of a knife (a common convention in thriller films), this makes the scene more realistic and the audience can relate to the situation more through the clip being set in a house and the weapon that is used can be found in a typical household. As a result, the audience can relate more to the scene as it is a familiar and everyday object than other weapons i.e. a gun. A knife is also more commonly used as it creates a more gory, bloody death as multiple wounds are usually inflicted to cause death. This allows there to be more suspense as the scene can be dragged out as a death by knife is slower and more theatrical than other methods of killing in the thriller genre.
A weapon, in particular, a knife is very conventional to the thriller genre as they allow the villain and victim to have more contact during their fight scene so it adds a struggle to increase the suspense and tension in a killing scene. This means that the killer can also act silently which adds to the suspicion and tension. This also means in order for an incident/murder to occur they have to be very close together which opens a hole for a chase scene to come in and makes them more tense due to the close contact between the villain and victim.
Characters
The victim in the opening scene is a female. This is a stereotypical convention of a thriller as a female is typically seen as the weaker sex and so by trapping a female it makes the member of the audience feel more empathy towards them, creating a bond built on fear for the victim as the female gender portrays vulnerability more effectively than a male. However more typically a blonder female is used as they manage to portray more innocence to the audience emphasising their position as the victim.
Another minor character in the scene is the girl's teenage boyfriend. Through them both being teenagers it adds to the conventional idea in a thriller as they both seem to be very naive and more innocent than an adult, however being more prone to being alone and therefor more vulnerable than children (unless they are alone), which makes them a perfect example as an age category for thriller actors and actresses. The teenagers are very stereotypical, being completely oblivious to the fact that the back door is open and they are being spied on.This allows the audience to relate to the character and can put themselves in the same situation and the audience can feel more empathetic towards them, building a stronger character-audience relationship as well the fact that everyone feels completely safe and comfortable in their own home. By seeing it through a different perspective they can now see that the feeling of automatically being safe when in the company of others and this makes you question that sense of security.
Editing
There is very limited edititng used in this film as through following the point of view of the villain, the audience is forced to follow his journey and entrance into the house making the shot stay continuous. However, although a lack of editing is used, a mixture of timing of shots are used. At the beginning all the movements and editing was at a slow pace as the villain was outside creeping about which allowed him to seem as though he was trying to remain undetected and lurk in the shadows. This shows the audience that the murderer has planned it out because their actions seem persistent and cautious which gives the audience the impression that the murderer is making sure everything inj the lead up to the murder is executed perfectly so he can do what was intended and get away. However, in contrast to this as soon as the murder has taken place the timing of shots become more fast paced which gives the audience the impression that the murderer has panicked and the killing didn't go exactly to plan. This fear and panicy get away makes the villain have an inferior persona which makes them seem naive and not as cunning as we first made out. The fast shots interlink qith the rushed exit made by the killer, making the audience anticipate the killer being caught because typically villains in thriller films always walk towards their victims with a sense of arrogance and confidence but the panicking from the killer makes us believe that maybe the murderer wasn't as calculated as we first thought.
How does the opening sequence from Halloween inform the audience of the codes and conventions of the thriller genre?
Narrative
The opening of this film is set on Halloween in the 1960's. The scene opens with a view of a house. The shot focuses specifically on the house and not the street, making the location unknown and adding a sense of uneasiness and eeriness to the scene because the location is never revealed to the audience. By showing nothing around her as she's in the bedroom it adds to the tension and idea of her death being inevitable since there is nowhere to escape from which also sends a panic through the audience as they don't know how she will escape. It then switches to two teenagers fooling around in the living room however we see this through the window from the outside of the house which adds to the idea that we are seeing the scene through the villain/killer's eyes (POV) which creates an interest between the audience and the main character and adds an element of powerlessness and suspense within the audience as they watch the scene play out and they have no control over anything that is happening. The person who's point of view the camera is following then enters the house, suggesting the idea that they are coming for someone and that something is going to happen, building the audience up for a shock. You also notice that the person is familiar to the layout of the household since they walk straight through to the kitchen and retrieve a knife from the drawer without any confusion, this intrigues the audience as we can see what's happening but the murderer's identity remains a mystery and so by showing their point of view, we seem more connected to the villain than the victim in this instance as the audience feels like they and the killer are one because they can only see the situation through the killer's eyes. This also makes it harder for the audience to sympathise with the victim as they can relate to the murderer more easily. Once the girl has been killed with a knife taken from the kitchen, we see through the POV shot that the murderer makes their way outside to be greeted by returning parents of the household. The father then walks closer to the camera during that point of view shot (getting closer to the villain) and takes off the mask to reveal it to be the girl's little brother and he is standing outside the house with a bloody knife in his hand in front of his Mum & Dad.
Cinematography
A weapon is used in the form of a knife (a common convention in thriller films), this makes the scene more realistic and the audience can relate to the situation more through the clip being set in a house and the weapon that is used can be found in a typical household. As a result, the audience can relate more to the scene as it is a familiar and everyday object than other weapons i.e. a gun. A knife is also more commonly used as it creates a more gory, bloody death as multiple wounds are usually inflicted to cause death. This allows there to be more suspense as the scene can be dragged out as a death by knife is slower and more theatrical than other methods of killing in the thriller genre.
A weapon, in particular, a knife is very conventional to the thriller genre as they allow the villain and victim to have more contact during their fight scene so it adds a struggle to increase the suspense and tension in a killing scene. This means that the killer can also act silently which adds to the suspicion and tension. This also means in order for an incident/murder to occur they have to be very close together which opens a hole for a chase scene to come in and makes them more tense due to the close contact between the villain and victim.
Characters
The victim in the opening scene is a female. This is a stereotypical convention of a thriller as a female is typically seen as the weaker sex and so by trapping a female it makes the member of the audience feel more empathy towards them, creating a bond built on fear for the victim as the female gender portrays vulnerability more effectively than a male. However more typically a blonder female is used as they manage to portray more innocence to the audience emphasising their position as the victim.
Another minor character in the scene is the girl's teenage boyfriend. Through them both being teenagers it adds to the conventional idea in a thriller as they both seem to be very naive and more innocent than an adult, however being more prone to being alone and therefor more vulnerable than children (unless they are alone), which makes them a perfect example as an age category for thriller actors and actresses. The teenagers are very stereotypical, being completely oblivious to the fact that the back door is open and they are being spied on.This allows the audience to relate to the character and can put themselves in the same situation and the audience can feel more empathetic towards them, building a stronger character-audience relationship as well the fact that everyone feels completely safe and comfortable in their own home. By seeing it through a different perspective they can now see that the feeling of automatically being safe when in the company of others and this makes you question that sense of security.
Editing
There is very limited edititng used in this film as through following the point of view of the villain, the audience is forced to follow his journey and entrance into the house making the shot stay continuous. However, although a lack of editing is used, a mixture of timing of shots are used. At the beginning all the movements and editing was at a slow pace as the villain was outside creeping about which allowed him to seem as though he was trying to remain undetected and lurk in the shadows. This shows the audience that the murderer has planned it out because their actions seem persistent and cautious which gives the audience the impression that the murderer is making sure everything inj the lead up to the murder is executed perfectly so he can do what was intended and get away. However, in contrast to this as soon as the murder has taken place the timing of shots become more fast paced which gives the audience the impression that the murderer has panicked and the killing didn't go exactly to plan. This fear and panicy get away makes the villain have an inferior persona which makes them seem naive and not as cunning as we first made out. The fast shots interlink qith the rushed exit made by the killer, making the audience anticipate the killer being caught because typically villains in thriller films always walk towards their victims with a sense of arrogance and confidence but the panicking from the killer makes us believe that maybe the murderer wasn't as calculated as we first thought.
Monday, 4 November 2013
Target Audience results - Miss Miller
Target Audience Results
The gender pie chart shows that we asked more males than females, this is good because stereotypically thrillers are enjoyed more by males because of the conventional 'scary' nature of thriller films. It is good that we asked close to an equal amount of females and males (55% - 45%) because we need to get unbiased results by asking a wide variety of people.
This chart shows that we asked a wide age range of people from 12 to 23+ to get a variety of responses for what they'd like to see so we could average the data to find out what type of thriller would appeal to most people. Overall we asked a majority of 16-18 year olds (62%) so we can aim it mainly at their wants and what they'd like to see in a thriller film.
This shows that it is a close call between films with certificates of 18 & 15 to what people would like to see, 15 has 45% while 18 has 43% but 12 only has 12% which means we probably should be aiming for a 15 rated opening scene. So we'll have to look at our research into age certificates to see what we can involve in a film rated at 15.
When we asked what people favourite thriller was from the list of: Shutter Island, Scream, Psycho, Inception or other, Shutter Island got the most votes at 30%. This suggests that they may like psychological thriller films since Shutter Island falls into the psychological category. Inception was second with 25% so we could try to incorporate to involve features from a plethora of different thrillers to appeal to a wider audience.
We then asked what type of thriller people would like most, to which the majority (43%) replied with horror, and only 15% said psychological. This contradicts the last pie chart when the majority said they liked Shutter Island which is a psychological film. So we could merge the psychological aspects with horror. This would then appeal to a much wider audience of people.
We also asked them if a conventional female victim would interest to which 67% replied yes, the rest being a yes or maybe. This means we can follow conventions and incorporate a female victim.
Inspirations for Opening Scene - Miss Miller
Inspirations for my opening scene
For the last few weeks I have been analysing several different thriller clips and the different techniques used in them, such as, mise-en-scene, cinematography, camera angles and sound. The clips that I have looked at have given me lots of ideas of what to incorporate into my own opening scene.
I first analysed a clip in 'The Conjuring' and looked at the different examples of cinematography used, such as, mid-shots, handheld camera movements, shallow focus, close ups and a two shot. Handheld camera movements and shallow focus appeal to me most from this clip that I'd like to try to incorporate into my own thriller film opening. Shallow focus is used very effectively in the clip to create a sense of insecurity, being unsafe and a fear of whether the objects/people in the blurry background you can see, in this case, a pair of hands, is her daughter or a 'supernatural being'. The handheld camera movement is used to create a jerky, unsteady motion to give the audience a sub-conscious feeling of being in danger and expecting something to happen, this creates suspense and tension amongst the audience. The mid-shots that are used show a lot of background and the character from the waist up, not only does this show where the character and what they are doing but also an insight in their personality and character through their clothing and their body language.
I also analysed a clip from 'Scream 3' called 'The cutting room' and I focused on the effectiveness of the editing styles that were used. Editing styles such as a reaction shot, jump cut and a variety of timing of shots, such as being slowed down or sped up, are used in the clip. I can implement a similar reaction shot to the one used into my own thriller opening since it is a simple yet effective convention of a thriller film. I can use a reaction shot to show what situation the character is in, how they are feeling while also allowing the audience to sympathise with them by putting them themselves into that relatable situation. This will help build a relationship between character and audience while also helping the audience to understand the narrative more clearly and easily.
I first analysed a clip in 'The Conjuring' and looked at the different examples of cinematography used, such as, mid-shots, handheld camera movements, shallow focus, close ups and a two shot. Handheld camera movements and shallow focus appeal to me most from this clip that I'd like to try to incorporate into my own thriller film opening. Shallow focus is used very effectively in the clip to create a sense of insecurity, being unsafe and a fear of whether the objects/people in the blurry background you can see, in this case, a pair of hands, is her daughter or a 'supernatural being'. The handheld camera movement is used to create a jerky, unsteady motion to give the audience a sub-conscious feeling of being in danger and expecting something to happen, this creates suspense and tension amongst the audience. The mid-shots that are used show a lot of background and the character from the waist up, not only does this show where the character and what they are doing but also an insight in their personality and character through their clothing and their body language.
I also analysed a clip from 'Scream 3' called 'The cutting room' and I focused on the effectiveness of the editing styles that were used. Editing styles such as a reaction shot, jump cut and a variety of timing of shots, such as being slowed down or sped up, are used in the clip. I can implement a similar reaction shot to the one used into my own thriller opening since it is a simple yet effective convention of a thriller film. I can use a reaction shot to show what situation the character is in, how they are feeling while also allowing the audience to sympathise with them by putting them themselves into that relatable situation. This will help build a relationship between character and audience while also helping the audience to understand the narrative more clearly and easily.
The third clip I analysed was from 'What lies beneath' which was a good clip to use to look at the conventions of the thriller genre which included low-key lighting which is effective at adding suspense and terror to the situation. Many reaction shots are used to show characters reactions and facial expressions so the audience can relate. The use of non-diegetic sounds adds lots of suspense and increases the pace of the scene. It also adds emphasis through the use of parallel sound.
The clip I looked at for my research into sound in thriller films used, silence very effectively when the movie reel player was switched off left the audience to prepare for a shock. Non-diegetic and diegetic sound is used very well as well as eerie sounds when the face is seen in the trees to add emphasis and give a sense of terror and shock to the audience.
I will need to think about all the techniques mentioned above to incorporate into my own opening scene to make it as thrilling, suspenseful and intriguing as possible to keep the audience interested. Non-diegetic and eerie music used as a soundtrack if a vital convention used in thriller films and I think it is imperative to use in my own opening scene.
The clip I looked at for my research into sound in thriller films used, silence very effectively when the movie reel player was switched off left the audience to prepare for a shock. Non-diegetic and diegetic sound is used very well as well as eerie sounds when the face is seen in the trees to add emphasis and give a sense of terror and shock to the audience.
I will need to think about all the techniques mentioned above to incorporate into my own opening scene to make it as thrilling, suspenseful and intriguing as possible to keep the audience interested. Non-diegetic and eerie music used as a soundtrack if a vital convention used in thriller films and I think it is imperative to use in my own opening scene.
Research into Sound - Miss Miller
Research into Sound
Sound is a very important convention and aspect to think about in a thriller film, it is incredibly effective and building tension and keeping the audience in suspense. The sound of a thriller is usually parallel to the narrative of the film which is done to manipulate the audience on how to feel while watching the film, whether it be happy, sad, scared or in suspense, in ways that a character in the film cannot.
Throughout the clip, lots of instances of diegetic and non-diegetic sound are used. For example the sound of the movie reel player adds a sense of uncertainty because of the loud and off-putting noises it makes. Then once it is switched off, silence was used very effectively to make the audience feel more involved and prepare for a shock.
An eerie and loud soundtrack is also used when the face appears in the trees which shocks the audience and lets them relate to the character as once he looks back again, the figure is no longer there, which leaves the audience to wonder whether it was actually there in the first place.
An eerie and loud soundtrack is also used when the face appears in the trees which shocks the audience and lets them relate to the character as once he looks back again, the figure is no longer there, which leaves the audience to wonder whether it was actually there in the first place.
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