Wednesday, 15 December 2010
planning: Shot list
This is our shot list for our film opening. It describes each shot in the opening and what they are of. This could change as we get feedback.
Updates: Opening Animatic
Here is the animatic that we made for our opening sequence. We used adobe premier to make this and then added copyright free music this.
Updates: Opening synopsis
Here is the initial idea for our opening however, it is likely to be changed as we get feedback.
A girl is alone in the woods at night. The only sounds heard are diegetic sounds of various animal sounds, other than that there is silence. There are plain black screen with titles over it. It then wipes to another shot of the girl. This then wipes back to a black screen with titles. It then goes back to another shot of the girl. As the girl walks further through the wooded path she becomes increasingly scarred and tensions builds. She hears a noise behind her that sounds like footsteps, she looks around and nothing is there. She hears it again but this time when she turns around there is a silhouette of something in the distance. This thing starts running towards her. The girl then starts running screaming etc, the person keeps gaining on her. The girl then gets lost at a dead-end in the woods. The person catches her up and grabs her. We then hear a shriek from the girl as the camera is turned away so that we don’t see what happens. It then cuts to another plain black screen with the name of the film on.
A girl is alone in the woods at night. The only sounds heard are diegetic sounds of various animal sounds, other than that there is silence. There are plain black screen with titles over it. It then wipes to another shot of the girl. This then wipes back to a black screen with titles. It then goes back to another shot of the girl. As the girl walks further through the wooded path she becomes increasingly scarred and tensions builds. She hears a noise behind her that sounds like footsteps, she looks around and nothing is there. She hears it again but this time when she turns around there is a silhouette of something in the distance. This thing starts running towards her. The girl then starts running screaming etc, the person keeps gaining on her. The girl then gets lost at a dead-end in the woods. The person catches her up and grabs her. We then hear a shriek from the girl as the camera is turned away so that we don’t see what happens. It then cuts to another plain black screen with the name of the film on.
Friday, 3 December 2010
Genre research summary
In the genre of horror, the titles used follow a general pattern. Many titles are red to connote red or danger. They also seem to be quite slow pace to create a sense of suspense and tension. The contents of the titles is usually quite little, where it would perhaps only contain the name of the film and possibly a few producers/directors names.
The music used in opening sequences tends to be quite slow paced to create an eerie and spooky atmosphere and therefore creating tension. However, there is sometimes no music at all, with possible some talking or diegetic sound, this also builds a sense of tension.
Usually, in opening sequences, we see very stereotypical characters, this allows us to know a fair bit about the character without the film having to show their background. However, sometimes we get the opposite where the characters are quite plain so there is nothing really to know about them apart from if they're male or female. This allows the story to show who the characters are and what they are like.
The settings of horror film openings generally tend to be places that are isolated , where no-one is around to help or seem what is about to happen, therefore a sense of isolation and vulnerability is created. The lighting is usually quite dull, mainly because it is at night that most openings happen but also so an eerie and spooky feel is created.
Nearly all the time in horror openings the enigma theory of creating questions and a mystery is employed. For example in the opening to '28 days later' we see the main character alone in empty streets in a large city. This makes the audience want to know more and to watch the rest of the film.
Editing can vary in horror film openings, it can either be very fast paced to connote a sense of panic, but also it can be quite slow to create a spooky and eerie atmosphere. The kind of shots used tend to be close ups of characters so that not too much of the character is given away. However in ' The shining' for example we get an extreme long shot of the car, but this is also used so that not much is given away.
Usually, in opening sequences, we see very stereotypical characters, this allows us to know a fair bit about the character without the film having to show their background. However, sometimes we get the opposite where the characters are quite plain so there is nothing really to know about them apart from if they're male or female. This allows the story to show who the characters are and what they are like.
The settings of horror film openings generally tend to be places that are isolated , where no-one is around to help or seem what is about to happen, therefore a sense of isolation and vulnerability is created. The lighting is usually quite dull, mainly because it is at night that most openings happen but also so an eerie and spooky feel is created.
Nearly all the time in horror openings the enigma theory of creating questions and a mystery is employed. For example in the opening to '28 days later' we see the main character alone in empty streets in a large city. This makes the audience want to know more and to watch the rest of the film.
Editing can vary in horror film openings, it can either be very fast paced to connote a sense of panic, but also it can be quite slow to create a spooky and eerie atmosphere. The kind of shots used tend to be close ups of characters so that not too much of the character is given away. However in ' The shining' for example we get an extreme long shot of the car, but this is also used so that not much is given away.
Wednesday, 1 December 2010
Audience research focus group
To get feedback on our initial ideas, we created a focus group on Facebook and uploaded our genre mood board so that some people could see it and give feedback.
Kurt Jackson and Callum Moore commented on this and give us feedback, which you can see in the screen shot below:
Both Callum and Kurt are stereotypical teenagers who are into the same sort of things that can be seen in our audience mood board. This is why they were chosen for feedback as they represent our target audience.
They also both agree that the opening sequences that we have chosen to analyse give some good pointers for when it comes to filming our horror film opening, as they use many advanced techniques and also are some of the best of the genre.
Not only this but they both enjoy horror films and they say that they would probably enjoy our opening sequence if we were to follow the elements seen above and in the opening sequences we chose ('Scream' and '28 Days Later').
Target Audience
Below is a moodboard we have made to show our target audience. It shows what sorts of things they are generally into as consumers:
Demographically, the social grade(s) that apply/ies to our particular target audience would be grade C1-C2 . This would generally be people our own age (16/17) up to people about 20/21 of both genders.
Psychographically, our film will appeal mostly to Hedonists. People our own age will generally be Hedonists, as you may be able to tell from the above moodboard, however it could also appeal to a mainstream audience and possibly even individualists.
Demographically, the social grade(s) that apply/ies to our particular target audience would be grade C1-C2 . This would generally be people our own age (16/17) up to people about 20/21 of both genders.Psychographically, our film will appeal mostly to Hedonists. People our own age will generally be Hedonists, as you may be able to tell from the above moodboard, however it could also appeal to a mainstream audience and possibly even individualists.
Film Openings; Genre specific analysis
We analysed two different film openings for the genreof horror and looked at how the methods of producing meaning are specific to this particular genre.
We looked at the openings of 'Scream' and '28 Days Later'. The former follows a restricted narration as we are only following one particular character in the scene. This helps to create suspense/tension as we only know what this character knows and nothing else. This means that when an event happens it comes as a shock to the character and viewer and makes the scene scary.
Likewise, this is evident in the opening to '28 Days Later'. We again follow only one character therefore creating ellipsis in a way, meaning we are scared and get shocked when something happens to the protagonist.
In 'Scream', the character we follow appears to be a stereotypical American teenage girl. This adds the scene as it makes her seemingly vulnerable and in need of protection. The fact that she is alone in the house also adds to this tension.
This sense of helplessness is shown in '28 Days Later' too because we get very high angle crane shots when he is wandering around the deserted London because this gives us the idea that he is small and vulnerable in comparison to the huge buildings around him.
In the same movie, the non-diegetic music that is played at the start creates a gloomy/eerie mood which again suggests that this is a horror film in contrast to a comedy or action film.
In 'Scream' however, we do not relly get any music, diegetic or otherwise. This is effective though and creates tension and achieves the same effects as the other film opening as the lack of music in the scene connotes a sense of being alone and helpless.
In 'Scream' we do not get much of an introduction to the protagonist other than her name and some other general information about her. This gives the reader the impression that she is not a very important character and that she is about to meet her demise. This, again, connotes a sense of fear and builds up tension in the scene as the audience is wondering when she is going to be killed and where.
In '28 Days Later', however, we get various close-ups of the main protagonist to show the audience that our attention is on him and he is the one we will be following throughout the story and that he wont die straight away but instead we will learn more about him later on. We also discover a little about his character through his actions on screen, however we don't learn much about him again connoting isolation along with the deserted city streets
We looked at the openings of 'Scream' and '28 Days Later'. The former follows a restricted narration as we are only following one particular character in the scene. This helps to create suspense/tension as we only know what this character knows and nothing else. This means that when an event happens it comes as a shock to the character and viewer and makes the scene scary.
Likewise, this is evident in the opening to '28 Days Later'. We again follow only one character therefore creating ellipsis in a way, meaning we are scared and get shocked when something happens to the protagonist.
In 'Scream', the character we follow appears to be a stereotypical American teenage girl. This adds the scene as it makes her seemingly vulnerable and in need of protection. The fact that she is alone in the house also adds to this tension.
This sense of helplessness is shown in '28 Days Later' too because we get very high angle crane shots when he is wandering around the deserted London because this gives us the idea that he is small and vulnerable in comparison to the huge buildings around him.
In the same movie, the non-diegetic music that is played at the start creates a gloomy/eerie mood which again suggests that this is a horror film in contrast to a comedy or action film.
In 'Scream' however, we do not relly get any music, diegetic or otherwise. This is effective though and creates tension and achieves the same effects as the other film opening as the lack of music in the scene connotes a sense of being alone and helpless.
In 'Scream' we do not get much of an introduction to the protagonist other than her name and some other general information about her. This gives the reader the impression that she is not a very important character and that she is about to meet her demise. This, again, connotes a sense of fear and builds up tension in the scene as the audience is wondering when she is going to be killed and where.
In '28 Days Later', however, we get various close-ups of the main protagonist to show the audience that our attention is on him and he is the one we will be following throughout the story and that he wont die straight away but instead we will learn more about him later on. We also discover a little about his character through his actions on screen, however we don't learn much about him again connoting isolation along with the deserted city streets
Genre moodboard
First ideas
I will be working with Miles Hardman on this project.
Target Audience: C1, C2, D and E (teenagers - middle aged males and females);
Potential Ideas: Third person narrative, opening scene to give idea of character types, 5 stage theory (?), gloomy, spooky mood/tone from the use of slow duration shots in contrast to quick cuts to connote action;
Location: Possibly wood at night, somewhere with an eerie feel to it to create tension.
From script to screen: How does the credit sequence from Dexter work?
Eric Anderson's ideas started off as simple concepts. He first realised how much he's fascinated with crime scene photography. He said that ' as a kid I loved looking through my grandfather's True detective magazine collection.' He thought that crime scene photographs gave mundane objects an overwhelming and sinister importance. For example this image is just an ordinary window until you find out that it was that window that Martin Luther King was shot at from.
I think the actual opening sequence shows this sense of normality with a dangerous flip-side, by filming very ordinary objects and actions very close which creates a very sinister feeling. These shots also have a very shallow depth of field. In the opening we see drops of blood in a sink and also some eggs being cooked. This could be a very normal thing to have a bleeding cut after a shave but the close ups of the blood drops make it seem violent and sinister.
Noir lighting is used to add atmosphere. This is done by using very precise and focused lighting, this could represent how the character is also precise in being a serial killer, it also makes the opening and the character seem quite evil. However there is also lots of shadow and darkness in the opening that is quite dominant over the light. This gives the opening a dark and spooky feeling to both the character and the program. The shallow depth of field used help you focus on the details on the meat for example. This adds a tense atmosphere and makes the shot quite disgusting so the viewer feels squeamish.
The original Xploding Plastix track was originally chosen for the title sequence, however it created a feeling that the producers thought was not right for this opening. It was then replaced by another piece of music which worked very well and had the right feel to it.
The original piece made the fact that he's a killer too obvious.The music connotes an almost comical feel giving the opening titles a sort of split personality. This is also very prominent within Dexter as a character because at one point he is a dark, mysterious killer, however at other times he is a supposedly innocent forensic detective.
He also like that work of Two other people; He spoke of ' David Byrne's book 'Strange Ritual' full of wonderful photos of nothing, and how in the simplest way, Mike Kelley made the cutest most usual things incredibly naughty.
But a big concept that Eric thought about was that if you flip the name Dexter upside-down then most of the letters are the same apart from a couple. This represents also how the character is like. He has a normal side but when he becomes the serial killer(the flip side of himself) he doesn't under-go a big change, he's still the same person just that something different, something's wrong. This is also shown in the opening because very normal things are filmed to look like they are sinister.
The original piece made the fact that he's a killer too obvious.The music connotes an almost comical feel giving the opening titles a sort of split personality. This is also very prominent within Dexter as a character because at one point he is a dark, mysterious killer, however at other times he is a supposedly innocent forensic detective.
Research: Juno opening sequence
We researched more specifically into the opening sequence of Juno. Here are different conventions from Juno and what each connote:
The music used in this clip is quite childish. The singer, Barry Louis polisar, produces children's music and not serious grown up music connoting that she's not part of the grown up world even though she's a teenager who is meant to be grown up. The songs lyrics gives images of love and romance which possibly connotes how this character is alone and wants love in her life.
Lots of the opening sequence is animated, this connotes again that this character is quite childish, this is because the animation is in a style that looks like its a doodle by a young person. As well as showing that she is a childish character, it shows that the whole film could be quite childish. This could also show that she's different to everyone else because as she's walking she goes into a world of her own that is once again quite childish looking.
Also in this animation part everything seems very simple and colourful compared to what possible she's sees as being a complex and dull world. Also throughout the animation nothing bad happens, she seems happing just living in her own world. However, when we come out of the animation we can see that she's goes into a drug connoting that something slightly more serious is happening. Therefore this opening sequence could be seen as a representation of the journey she is taking in life where sooner or later she has to grown up and we can see this from how she's first of all in her own little world but then has to grow up when a more serious matter arises where she has to go to the drug store.
If you look just at the character, you can see that her clothes seem quite colourful and in her hand is jug of Sunny-D which is a very average, stereotypical child's drink connoting that she is a child in a grown up world and that she wants to be different, which is why we see her in her simplistic and different view of the world.
Also, if you look at the scenery around her you can see that it is very average and quite plain. This could connote how she views the world around her to be very average and dull or it could also connote that she is an average girl who lives a very average life. You could say this because she is walking down an ordinary street wearing average clothes.
The music used in this clip is quite childish. The singer, Barry Louis polisar, produces children's music and not serious grown up music connoting that she's not part of the grown up world even though she's a teenager who is meant to be grown up. The songs lyrics gives images of love and romance which possibly connotes how this character is alone and wants love in her life.
Lots of the opening sequence is animated, this connotes again that this character is quite childish, this is because the animation is in a style that looks like its a doodle by a young person. As well as showing that she is a childish character, it shows that the whole film could be quite childish. This could also show that she's different to everyone else because as she's walking she goes into a world of her own that is once again quite childish looking.
Also, if you look at the scenery around her you can see that it is very average and quite plain. This could connote how she views the world around her to be very average and dull or it could also connote that she is an average girl who lives a very average life. You could say this because she is walking down an ordinary street wearing average clothes.
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