Editing Ideas- I Saw the Devil

In this trailer for I saw The Devil I really liked the editing at the start. I like how the writing appeared on screen as a flash and how the snow was being pulled backwards instead of falling forwards like it normally does when the words 'was taken from him' were on screen. I felt this was really effective as before it was falling normally but as soon as something bad happened it changed and then the pace also changed. I also like how further on in the trailer the snow appeared red, which could suggest blood.
I would like to incorporate some ideas from this trailer in our opening scene, for example I would like to make something rewind when something bad happens. In our opening scene there is a girl looking at some photos, and then something happens like she is in his room and then after that I would like the next scene to be the photo scene but instead this time instead of going forwards go backwards then the pace of the sequence should quicken.

Sound Ideas- Black Swan

Black Swan Trailer

In this clip at the beginning I like the soft but eerie music. It is really simple and effective as it creates tension without being too obvious and you also know something is wrong and is contrapuntal to the onscreen action as it's a girl doing some ballet. Then it gradually moved on to woodwind and louder drum beats which stand out. This creates tension as it is a repeating section. I also like at the end where there is a sound bridge of silence then the music is low oboes which creates a sad atmosphere. The ideas we can use for our opening sequence for the sound is that; we could make the music not too obvious and overpower the action, however this would only work if we had a voice over. I would like to incorporate some light soft but eerie as I felt this sounded really good and built tension well. 

Explained Pictures

This is Tanzy drawing the story board.

 This is Conor and I editing the clips together and putting them in order which took a lot of time as we wanted to ensure it all made sense and we also had to get used to the software as it can be difficult.

This is Tanzy doing so shot tests as she wanted to get used to the equipment and testing out lighting, here is high key lighting as it is bright. In this particular picture we are looking at whether it would look better if we zoomed in on the diary, track in or simple have a close up shot of the diary.

Risk Assessment

A risk assessment is what you need to do to identify all the things that could go wrong while you are doing a certain activities. I have explained the possible risks that could happen during filming or before hand and have then said what I could do to prevent these risks affecting the final opening sequence or hurting any members of my group. I had to think of all these risks so that nothing would happen to the group during the filming, this was quite hard as you usually do not think of all of these risks when normally filming.

Target Audience Questionnaire Feedback

1) The most amount of people we asked were male

2) The largest age range was 15-19years old


(3) We found most people watched a thriller once a month



(4)   Enigmatic (mysterious, difficult to  understand) Narrative and Tension based scored the highest in what makes a good Thriller to them.



(5)  A- Inception D- Shaw Shank Redemption scored the highest on question 5 asking what is their favourite film.



(6) Most people want the film to be gradually unveiled in the opening sequence to keep the enigmatic code.

I found these results very interesting and I will take these into consideration whilst filming and putting our ideas together. As these results are very important and they will also limit our ideas to what people want so things like tension building, a strong narrative and main character/ 

Problems I encountered

One problem I faced was getting the lighting correct as we wanted it to be low key to create an enigma code but I also wanted the audience to see the mise en scene which was pictures of the couple, love letters and red hearts.
I overcame this problem by instead of having the camera still, I asked Tanzy to do a tracking shot and ensure that the mise en scene could be seen. as for the lighting we used a spot light which was dimmed by putting black sheet over it.

Another problem was whilst editing Conor and I found that the opening sequence did not make sense and was confusing. So I quickly came up with the idea that we should include a diary which says on what date the girl is doing. For example at the end it just reads 'kill' in capitals and then the next shot is of the guy being tied up.

One other problem I encountered was slacking of some members of the group. I overcame this by either carrying on with the shooting or editing or by trying to motivate the member to be involved and help, sometimes this worked but other times it didn't, hopefully our end product will not show this.

Story Board

 

Here is a rough sketch of our story board which helps us remember what we want to shoot and how we want it to look and what shot sizes we use in each scene plus it helps us stick to the rule of thirds.

 

Our shots:

1) over shoulder shot of girl receiving text

2) Extreme lose up of text message

3) Close up of girl looking at pictures/letters

4) Close up of a diary

5) Long shot of girl rocking and playing with some boy's clothes

6) medium close of of girl looking at pictures/letters scattered on floor

7) Long shot of girl looking through a window

8) Long shot of girl standing in corner of his bedroom

9) Close up of diary saying 'KILL'

10) Tracking on boy tied up

11) Extreme close up of her eye

12) Title sequence

Shooting Schedule

Monday 19th November- Initial Ideas e.g. shot of phone text message reading it's over
                                                                          silhouette of character
Monday 26th November- Changing ideas e.g. silhouette didn't work so unused
                                                                                  filmed: sitting on floors with pictures,
                                                                                  'Him" being tied up,
                                                                                  Rocking& holding his clothes
                                                                                   Eye opening 
Monday 3rd December- Adding to shots e.g. needed more shots of the pictures on floor,
                                                                               'stalker shots' (being in his room/ through                                             
                                                                                window)
Monday 10th December- Final shots e.g. Diary shots to link them together

Lighting of the props shot

This brief picture shows how we will set the lighting for our tracking shot of the props.

Roles of Team

Camera Operator: Tanzy. Her job involves working closely with the director to ensure all shots are what they expect and accurate to the shot list and story board.
Key Skills include:

• a good sense of visual composition, perspective and movement
• physical co-ordination and strength
• ability to combine creativity with technical skills
• precise attention to detail
• effective communication skills
• ability to collaborate, and to work as part of a team
• diplomacy and sensitivity when working with artists and crew
• knowledge of the requirements of the relevant Health and Safety legislation and procedures.

Director: George. The director will have a crucial
SkillsDirectors must have exceptional artistic vision and creative skills to develop an engaging and original film. The ability to act as a strong and confident leader. Directors must constantly make decisions, but must also be able to delegate, and to collaborate with others. Excellent communication and interpersonal skills are vital to get the best from the film making team. They must have good attention to detail, and the ability to remain calm and think clearly under great pressure.

Editor: Conor. Editors check the technical standards, as well as the emerging sense of story, and the actors' performances. Because scenes are shot and edited out of sequence, select the best takes and edit them together to create scenes. Then Conor will add all sound on top of the film sequence
Key Skills include:

• ability to be creative under pressure;
• imagination and an understanding of narrative;
• excellent communication and interpersonal skills;
• developed sense of rhythm and timing in story telling;
• highly developed aesthetic visual awareness;
• ability to lead a team;
• patience, attention to detail and good organisational skills;
• knowledge of the requirements of the relevant Health and Safety legislation and procedures.

Actress: Louisa. The Actress are the visual interpretation of our story board and visual ideas. She also has to ensure she portrays the character well so the audience has a true understanding of how the director and our teams wants to show her. The actress will also have to put forward on her ideas on how she thinks the main character should act and how the character would behave.
Key Skills:

• Accommodate script changes
• Learn Lines
• Temporarily assume other identities, and also to be made up, dressed, positioned and directed by others.
• Assume a different body shape or language, depending on the age and fitness of their character
• Good observation, in order to learn from others' body language- create believable characters
• Be aware of Health and Safety issues

Technician roles e.g. lighting, sound, props, costume designer will be played by everyone as we all have opinions on how we want our opening sequence to look like. Everyone is also involved in decision making and the overall image of our production however we all do have allocated jobs to ensure everyone view is taken in to consideration e.g. editing will use shots that we all agree is the best.

Mood Board

 

 

Here is my mood board which explains the initial ideas which we came up with through images and words and one phrase. This helped me figure out what I wanted from our filming and what I want to put across to the audience which is a psychotic heart-broke women and her thoughts. It also helped me think of what I want to include in the opening sequence which is different pictures of them, located in a small and cramped room and I would like to include a shot of  her eye. I also want to put across her emotions and how she will feel.

How to Build Suspense and Silence of the Lambs

To Build Suspense

• Peaks and valleys-  These are when there are sudden intense moments in a film then there are calm parts
• Music- in many old fashioned films organs were used to create suspense such as in Dracula however now they have been over used so there are mainly strings being played to build suspense.
• Shot Sizes- varying the shot size can build suspense also as tracking inwards from a medium shot to a close up could show worry. It is unlikely to see long shots being used to create suspense unless used in a certain way for instance how the editor cuts the shots..
• The Cuts- How the editor cuts the clip can create suspense as for example: if you see the villain from  far away then cut to the victim then cut back to the villain closer to the victim to before, this shows the audience something bad is going to happen as you didn't see them move.
• Lighting- Low Key lighting is normally used as it creates shadows so the audience can only see part of the shot which creates mystery and spots lights are normally used for the same effect.

Silence of the Lambs suspense techniques

• Heavy Breathing
• Point of View shots
• Camera focuses on main character, this makes you feel like you are part of the scene
• Use of night vision- the main character can't see anything but villain can see her
• Long shots are not used
• Use slow motion to capture every movement but the switch back to a faster pace

From looking into how to build suspense I now feel more confident on building it myself, I hope to use the right type of music and shot sizes in our opening scene and also include some peaks and valleys to keep the viewer engaged in the action as well as building suspense.

Prop Ideas

Here we have outlined some our initial prop ideas we are thinking of using in our Thriller opening, we are thinking of using the idea from the thriller 'Seven' where there was many short frames and mainly focusing on props rather than the characters. So for us to create our own we need many props.

 

 

 

Our Thriller Ideas

Here are some of our first thoughts of thriller ideas, we came up with some like a kidnapping of a small child after doing some research into it (watching other thriller opening scenes) we decided we didn't want to carry on with it as it has already been made many times and we wanted to do something a little different. So we came up with a couple breaking up however the female is still totally in love and attached to the guy, and she can't get over him. The opening sequence will consists of many short frames of her, pictures of them together, pictures of just him, his clothes, notes and teddy bears.

Target Audience Questionnaire

 

Target Audience Questionnaire

(1) Are you male or female?

(2) How old are you?

(3) How often do you watch a Thriller Movie?

(4) What makes a good Thriller film to you? A- Enigmatic (mysterious, difficult to  understand) Narrative B- Tension based C- Realistic Acting D- Realistic Narrative  C- Sound and Lighting

(5) Which of the following films are you favourite? A- Inception B- Seven
C- The Machinist D- Shaw Shank Redemption E- All of  the above

(6) For the opening scene would you prefer to see what the film is about completely or for it to be gradually unveiled?

I will be using this to find out roughly what people enjoy and what they look for in a Thriller film for certain age ranges and then  incorporate some ideas in our Thriller Opening.

Shaw Shank Redemption

Shaw Shank Redemption Opening Analysed

Editing

• Clear white on black text, in old fashioned text gives the feeling that it may be in the 1950s- this sets the scene.
• The font also looks like prision bars which gives an insight into the film
• Slow pace shots, makes you pay more attention on the details
• Pauses- build tension 

Lighting

• Up light on driver's face in car gives off shadows which make him look evil and they only use one light in this shot.
• Low key  builds suspence in flash back
• Low key in court room makes it feel bleak and looks colourless
• Uses yellow filter which makes it seem old fashioned.

Sound

•  Sound bridge- begins speaking in the flash backs then you see it in the scene where they are actually talking. This makes it more perfessional
• Music's aim is to build tension
• Digetic sound in car (music on the radio)
• Non diegtic at beginning then becomes part of the scene through car radio
• It reflects the scene- as it adds to the atmosphere.
• Mainly use orchestral strings and rumbling drums which all creates tension

Camera Angles

• Low camera angle when he gets out of the car as it focuses on the feet, makes a different perspective
• Medium close ups in court room to focus on emotion
• Medium shot in court room on prosecution in consequence makes him have authority and it also allows viewer to see the audience
• Uses tracking in court room. Goes from prosecution to the accused, shows intmidation.
• High angle in court room. Makes the accused look small and see from judge's angle

Mise en Scene

• Red dress- this makes the wife seem more 'sexy' and passionate but also has a side of danger.
• All props reflect the time period (1950s) which makes the film more believeable.

From analysing this opening scene it has made me think about the use of props and how important they are on setting the scene and what an impact they have on the film and how it looks. So I will be sure to pay special attention to them. I liked the different camera angles in the opening section because they were perfessional and after talking in depth it made me realise it does change your perseption on certain characters. I would like to use some tracking in our film to ensure the audience is looking at what I want them to look at for example certain pictures or letters. I also liked the sound bridges as it introduced the new scene smoothly without disjolting it so I would also like to include them. The opening scenes also made me think about the font and how it reflects the whole film and what impression it gives off, so I will keep this in mind when choosing it.

The Machinist Opening, Analysed

The Machinist Opening, Analysed

Lighting:

• Low key- creates shadow effect
• Up lighting(light pointing up onto face)- creates inverted shadows
• Backlighting

Editing

• Extremly slow pace, roughly 6-10 shots in 3minutes20- this makes you pay more attention to every detail.
• Eyeline match (character looks at something then camera cuts to exactly what they see/saw

Camera Angles

• Close ups
• Medium close up(still see surrounding and emotion)/ over shoulder- creates a thought of a person behind them.
• Long establishing shot then panning in- find out hwat's happening to them
• Voyuerism (looking in at someone e.g. through window)

Mise en Scence

• Reflections: reflecting city lights on window while focusing on main character& reflection of his face in mirror (over shoulder shot)
• Sensory deprivation (focusing camera on something and blocking your view of something else)
• Cuts and brusies on main character's face- creates 'thug like' feel

Sound

• No speech
• Heavy breathing
• high pitch wind instruments then gradually adds woodwind- creates tension, layering instruments
• sea crashing against rocks
• Low pitch drones in the music
• Sound bridge (at beginning introduces the sound in darkness then has first picture)

While watching the opening scene of The Machinist I found out new techniqual terms and I also liked the ideas of having back lighting to create a silhouette and having reflections to create tension and I found the eyeline-match technique worked very well at creating  tension and getting the audience envolved.

Lighting Effects

Lighting

Soft light creates shadows:

The light is comming from the right side of her face to create light shadows on her left side on her face.

Hard lights:
 
creates a heavy shadow effect which will feature in our thriller opening sequence
Glamour lighting is used in romance: we may use this lighting if we flash backs to when our main characters were in a relationship.

Low key- Dark lighting, we will use this lighting throughout the sequence to create tension and because it is a main connotation of Thrillers.
High key- bright lighting, we may use this to make a contrast with the main lighting to enhance scences and make them stand out more.

3 point light direction:
 

Textual analysis of title sequences

Se7en Opening Credits    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfcHoXTlMX0 -Insidious Trailer
Here I analised three thriller title sequences to gain ideas for our
Thriller trailer. I liked the ideas of having harsh eerie music featuring when the credits appeared rather than having a narrator. I also felt that low key lighting helped create a creepy atmosphere and I also liked the idea of having pitch black sections then suddenly something appearing. I also thought tht having flickering text worked well and made the audience feel unconfortable.

180 degree rule

The 180 degree rule is essential in keeping the viewer focused and avoiding confusion of the view.
The rule is that once it is established where the actors are that the camera can not cross the line but it can move on the same side of the line as otherwise it'll appear that the actors are looking in the same direction rather than each other.
The diagram will make the explanation clearer:

 

 

Match on action is a very simple but also an essential tenchique, where the perspective of the camera changes during a scene and the scene continues to flow.
       For example when a person walks through the door then sits down the camera will follow every move. The shot useually lasts for 2-3 seconds.

Camera Shots