SCREEN PLAY- THE OPEN WINDOW
Our first task that we were given was to read 'The Open Window', which was a short story we were given written by Munro (Saki), and to recreate the story into our own screenplay. We were required to research other screenplays in order to maintain the initial structure. Throughout the task, the aims were to pick out the key points of the story and create a screenplay which consists of 15 shots.
- EXT. FRAMPTON’S CAR ON SAPPLETON’S PROPERTY - DAY
FRAMPTON NUTTEL drives onto the property of MRS SAPPLETON. As he drives in he looks up anxiously, through the car window, and sees the niece peering down at the car through a curtain on the top floor.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
The NIECE opens the front door and welcomes Frampton into the house and encourages him to sit down when entering the dining room. He notices his surroundings by looking around. There is a great fireplace that has not been lit, from the looks of it, for a while. The great oak table surrounded by matching oak chairs seemed to be perfectly laid out. Apart from all this, the house seems to have an undefinable masculine atmosphere. He hardly notices the open window. The niece announces:
NIECE
My aunt will be down presently, Mr Nuttel.
When he sits down she asks him a set of questions while she is standing over him. Frampton replies awkwardly to all of the questions that he is being asked as he feels quite intimidated by the way she has to look down on him.
NIECE
Do you know many people around here?
FRAMPTON
Hardly a soul. My sister gave me a letter of instructions to some of the people here.
NIECE
(Curiously wondering why she is asking him these irrelevant questions)
So then you know practically nothing about my aunt?
FRAMPTON
Only her name and address.
NIECE
(sadly)
Her great tragedy happened just three years ago.
FRAMPTON
Her tragedy?
NIECE
You may wonder why we keep that window wide open on an October afternoon.
(Niece points to the large French window that opens to the lawn)
- INT. DINING ROOM – DAY (ALSO DINING ROOM – NIGHT)
The French window is wide open and looks out over the lawn.
FRAMPTON
(Confused)
It is quite warm for this time of year but has the window got anything to do with the tragedy?
The niece smiles sadly before starting her story. She seems to be comforting Frampton as if he is the one that had experienced the tragedy. He looks up at her waiting for her to inform him of the incident.
NIECE
(Slow and dramatic)
Out through that window, three years ago to a day, her husband and her two young brothers went of to their day’s shooting...
Throughout the time that the story is being told there is a flashback from a dark, windy night. Mrs Sappleton walks slowly towards the doors in her night gown with tears leaking down her face. She stands at the window... The light wind is causing the curtains to blow inwards into the house. She stares out into the night sky, with no emotion shown on her face… just hope.
NIECE
(Continues)
They never came back. Their bodies were never recovered; that was the dreadful part of it. Poor aunt thinks that they will come back some day, they and the little brown spaniel that was lost with them, and walk in at that window just as they used to shouting ‘Bertie, why do you bound?’.
(The story is interrupted by the niece’s sobs she has her face in her hands and is looking down to the floor)
The flashback finishes with just a view of the open window. Frampton sits up halfway as if he considers whether or not to comfort her.
NIECE
No, I’m fine…
(She straightens up and continues her story)
That is why the window is kept open every evening till it is quite dusk...
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
The niece’s facial expression changes to a glare and her piercing eyes slice straight through Frampton.
NIECE
(Continues menacingly)
Do you know, sometimes on still, quiet evenings like this, I almost get a creepy feeling that they will walk in through that window –
(The speech was interrupted)
Mrs Sappleton bustles into the room and her apologies break the eerie atmosphere. The niece’s head snaps around in a second of surprise. Mrs Sappleton repeatedly apologises for her late appearance.
MRS SAPPLETON
(Apologetically)
Do forgive me, I have been quite busy recently and I was not expecting any visitors!
Frampton stands up to greet her fully aware of the niece’s presence behind him. He smiles at Mrs Sappleton in a way to say that she has nothing to apologise for.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
All three of them are standing up facing each other, standing on either side of the window. Frampton feels as if the window is dividing them into two groups as the aunt is not aware of his knowledge of the window. He feels out of place and as if he is intruding in her personal business and therefore he stands awkwardly, not knowing what to do with his hands. Frampton faces the window, with the niece still behind him and Mrs Sappleton faced them but constantly had the corner of her eye towards the window.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
Frampton feels extremely awkward as the aunt starts to tal k about her family and the open window as if nothing had ever happened.
MRS SAPPLETON
(Happily)
I hope you don’t mind the open window, my husband and brothers will be home directly from shooting, and they always come in this way. They’ve been out for a snipe today, so they’ll make a fine mess on my poor carpets.
Frampton feels awkward and looks around to avoid catching Mrs Sappleton’s eyes. He feels the niece shuffling behind him which makes him feel even more awkward; as if he knows too much. She has a slight smirk on her face, which can be seen behind Frampton’s shoulder, when the aunt mentions the family.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
Frampton makes a desperate attempt to change the subject and he starts to talk about himself and his conditions in order to ease the tension. Mrs Sappleton is looking out of the window and out into the distance as if she is in a daydream. Frampton doesn’t notice the lack of attention from his host and carries on speaking. The niece is out of view.
FRAMPTON
The doctors agree in ordering me complete rest, an absence of mental excitement… Oh and the avoidance of anything in the nature of violent physical exercise…
(He trails of his sentence as he realises that not even a fragment of the aunt’s attention is on him and their conversation)
Mrs Sappleton’s eyes were out in the distance waiting for the return of her ‘long lost’ family. Frampton doesn’t say a word as he does not want to interfere in her thoughts. He sits there awkwardly waiting for the aunt to speak. As she does not say a word he looks around fir the niece in to help him in his situation. Mrs Sappleton suddenly shakes her head as if to snap out of a trance and looks up at Frampton in surprise.
MRS SAPPLETON
(Apologetic)
I’m so sorry! I was listening to you but my mind seems to be elsewhere today.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
At this point the aunt is not looking towards the window but towards Frampton who is facing the window.
FRAMPTON
It’s fine… really…
(Trails off as he looks past the aunt and into the distance outside the window)
The aunt goes out of focus and he concentrates on something moving in the background. He sees three tall figures and the shape of a dog. He starts to panic and does not believe what he’s seeing until they start to get closer and closer.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
His eyes show extreme fear as he looks around for the niece. His eyes are wide open with shock and beads of sweat start to stream down his forehead.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
He looks over to the niece to see her reaction in hope for reassurance. When he looks at her she is staring at the same three figures as he is with her eyes wide open with fear and, what seems to be, in a state of shock. Mrs Sappleton seems to notice what they are looking at and turns around. Her voice can be heard in the background…
MRS SAPPLETON
(happily)
Here they are at last! Just in time for tea and don’t they look as if they were muddy up to the eyes!
Mrs Sappleton stands by the window looking out at the family happily. Frampton hears an echo in his head repeating and getting louder by every step closer the three figures took.
FIGURES
(Echoes)
Bertie, why do you bound. Bertie, why do you bound! BERTIE, WHY DO YOU BOUND!
Frampton stands frozen with the echoes of the voices pounding his brain.
- EXT. SAPPLETON’S LAWN - DAY
Frampton turns to run out of the house through the window. He runs towards the camera and the niece and the aunt are in the background, looking at him, confused at his reaction to seeing the other members of the family. Frampton runs as fast as he possibly can in the opposite direction to the three figures still in shock horror.
- EXT. SAPPLETON’S PATH & THE ROAD - DAY
He runs down the path as fast as he can to get as far away from the creepy house as soon as he possibly can. In his drastic attempt he stumbles a few times and even falls to the ground at one point after colliding with an unknown cyclist. He looks behind him in case he is being followed by the ‘ghostly’ figures and rushes to get up in order to carry on running. He runs out into the distance without stopping to look behind him even once.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
The aunt is looking out into the distance in the direction of where Frampton ran with her arms open with confusion. The husband and brothers look over their shoulders in the direction of which Frampton ran also looking confused.
HUSBAND
Here we are, my dear…
(Curiously)
Who was that man that bolted out as we came?
They all walk back into the house as Mrs Sappleton turns to answer the question that she had just been asked.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
The aunt stands to answer the question with the niece behind her out of view. She replies to her husband while walking out of view of the camera.
MRS SAPPLETON
An extraordinary man, a Mr Nuttel. Could only talk about his illnesses and dashed off without a word of goodbye when you arrived. One would have thought he had seen a ghost.
- INT. DINING ROOM - DAY
As Mrs Sappleton walks out of view of the camera diagonally, the niece is in view smirking with an evil look thinking up her next story.
NIECE
(Still smirking devilishly)
I expect it was the spaniel. He told me he had a horror of dogs. He once went to a cemetery somewhere in the banks of the Ganges where a pack of pariah dogs attacked him. He had to spend the night in a newly dug grave with the creatures snarling and grinning just above him; enough to make anyone lose their nerve.
STORYBOARD- 'THE OPEN WINDOW'
Following the screenplay, we also produced a storyboard of our 15 shots. This was done in order to visually create our interpretation of the short story.
OUR PLAN OF THE HOUSE IN 'THE OPEN WINDOW'
We also created a layout of the house as our interpretation of the story was changed to create a simple storyboard. We created this layout in order for the readers to easily visualise our interpretation of the setting.
ANALYSIS OF OPENING SCENES
Another part of our research and planning was to analyse three given openings and two of our choice. The first three films were 'Children of Men', 'Se7en' and 'Panic Room' which we discussed in lesson as well as including our own interpretations. The other two films that we chose to analyse were 'Apocolypto' and 'Saving Private Ryan'.
OPENING ANALYSIS- 'CHILDREN OF MEN'
The whole opening of ‘Children of Men’ is shot in a single shot of ‘London in the future’. This is done in order for the audience to see the setting and what London looks like in the movie compared to how they know it to be. The movie is set in the year 2027 (the future) and it has been represented in an extremely negative way through the use of sound, lighting, camera work, mise en scene and editing.
There are two types of sound in the media industry: non-diegetic sound and diegetic sound. Diegetic sound is also known as ‘natural’ sound, therefore, this is sound that associates with the movie directly and to some sort of action that is in the context such as speech. On the other hand, non-diegetic sound is the music that may be played in the background that has no direct association with the movie. The sound, in this opening, has been constructed so that there is not a lot of non-diegetic sound throughout the opening. Most of it consists of diegetic sound such as the T.V in the cafe and the explosion at the end of the scene. The reason that the opening includes a lot of this type of sound is in order to allow the audience to get used to the setting and the sounds that are associated with this setting as it is not the average ‘London’ that the audience are used to knowing. There is some non- diegetic sound in the background when ‘baby Diego’s’ death is announced on the television. This creates an element of sadness and puts emphasis on the reactions and the emotions to the characters in the cafe when hearing the news.
There are also two types of lighting used in the media industry. These are known as artificial lighting and natural lighting. Artificial light is man-made while natural lighting is usually used when outdoors as there is usually plenty of sunlight outdoors. Although a lot of the setting is based outdoors, a lot of artificial lighting is used. This is to create a dull and grey atmosphere. The lighting gives the audience certain expectations of the rest of the movie, for example, it confirms the genre; the dull lighting suggests that it is a thriller or a horror in the same way that a movie with bright and vibrant lighting would more likely be a comedy than a thriller. The lighting also can manipulate the audience’s emotions into feeling a certain way about the events in the movie; they will look at the events in a negative way.
There are also two types of lighting used in the media industry. These are known as artificial lighting and natural lighting. Artificial light is man-made while natural lighting is usually used when outdoors as there is usually plenty of sunlight outdoors. Although a lot of the setting is based outdoors, a lot of artificial lighting is used. This is to create a dull and grey atmosphere. The lighting gives the audience certain expectations of the rest of the movie, for example, it confirms the genre; the dull lighting suggests that it is a thriller or a horror in the same way that a movie with bright and vibrant lighting would more likely be a comedy than a thriller. The lighting also can manipulate the audience’s emotions into feeling a certain way about the events in the movie; they will look at the events in a negative way. The future is represented in an extremely negative way with the use of lighting, sound, editing and mise-en scene. The lighting is extremely dull and grey which creates a depressing atmosphere. There are moving adverts on buses which suggest that technology has evolved even further but on the other hand the carriages that are being driven suggest that there is a lack of fossil fuels. There is a lot of garbage on the streets which gives a sense of pollution in the atmosphere. Also, the non-diegetic sound that was played when it announced that ‘baby Diego’ had died was soft and gave a sense of sadness.
Although the majority of the opening scene is filmed in one camera shot, there is still a huge range of camera shots, angles and movement used.
In the beginning of the scene, the camera faces the people in the cafe from a high angle point of view. This is done in order to see the characters looking up at the television. It also gives the audience a full view of the characters’ emotions. At this point, we are unsure whether the camera is hand-held or whether it is steadicam. Shot/reverse shot
The camera then tracks the character out of the cafe and onto the street. The movement of the camera suggests that it is steadicam as it weaves around people swiftly while still tracking the main character.
The camera then pans around the character. This is done for several reasons such as to show the character pouring drink into his tea/coffee. Also, it gives the audience a more in-depth visual image of the way that London looks in the future. The final, and most important, reason is to have the camera face the direction of which the explosion goes off.
The mise en scene plays an extremely important part in openings as the objects in the background of the opening should give the audience some sort of narrative clue to the rest of the movie. In this opening, there are a lot of objects in the background that give the audience narrative clues. For example, the many rubbish bags in the background create a strong sense of pollution as well as creating a sewage smell; almost like London used to be in the past.
There are buses with moving advertisements which suggests that technology has evolved. On the other hand, there are cars driving past but they are old and battered. This suggests that, although technology has evolved, there is a lack of fossil fuels and therefore the technology has also, in some way, gone backwards.
The opening was all filmed in one shot in order for the audience to be able to visualise the world and era that it is set in. When the news is being told in the cafe about ‘baby Diego’s’ death, shot/ reverse shot is used. This is used in order for the audience to see the people in the cafe’s reaction. There is also added text on the bottom left hand corner of the screen as he walks out of the cafe. This is done to inform the audience of the time that the movie is set in. The shot affects the pace. As it is all done in one shot, everything is quite slow; we follow the pace of the main character. This builds up the tension up until the explosion because the audience is waiting for the climax and the bomb is unexpected at that point as the pace is slow. On the other hand, he does not fit all our established ideas of what a protagonist in a film should be. This is because he is unshaven unlike a typical ‘hero’. A stereotypical protagonist would be clean shaven and nicely dressed as he is usually seen as an idol. Also, he seems to emotionless when the ‘youngest person in the world’ dies. As a ‘hero’ he is expected to have a reaction to the death. Another reason is that when the bomb went off, he didn’t run to help when there was an explosion; he jumped to the side, unlike a stereotypical protagonist.
Women are not being represented in a negative way but the storyline suggests that they will be represented to be emotional and worthless as they have lost the reason for their living; to reproduce.
Camera Shot/ Angle/ Movement
There is a very small range of angles used in this opening and all of the shots are close-ups. This is in order to confuse the audience as they cannot see clearly what is happening. It also helps identify the genre. Most of the angles are high angles. This is done in order to look closely down onto a certain object. There are also some shots where the camera is left on a table and shoots a close up of a book with pages being turned. The objects that are shown in this opening hold many narrative clues. The camera stays still in order to emphasise the movement and the actions of the character that is being filmed.
Sound
The opening mostly consists of non-diegetic sound giving it a sense of movement and motive. It also sets the pace of the opening as the slower the background music the slower the pace. Eventually, the music gets faster and the pace increases. The non-diegetic sound fits in perfectly with the opening as there are diegetic sounds (that are also a part of the background music) such as metal ‘cranking’ which is shortly followed by a shot of metallic machinery. Also, during the end of the opening, the lyrics to the music say ‘...closer to God,’ while there is a shot of the character cutting out a part of a newspaper saying ‘God’. This gives away narrative clues to what the movie may be about.
Editing
The clips are quite short and they affect the pace of the opening. The clips get shorter as the music gets faster. The short clips also create a blurred effect on the overall image as it is hard to recognize what the shots are trying to show. At the end of the opening there are lots of random words that pop up such as ‘Foot’ which are irrelevant to the movie. Also there is an image of an eye which is the last shot. This may be the ‘all seeing eye’ which suggests that the movie is revolved around religion; more narrative clues. Also, the credits are in a childish font which could be a bit of irony from the director.
Lighting
Artificial lighting is used as it is quite dull and limited; it seems to be located indoors. This also satisfies the conventions of the horror/ thriller genre. There are also lots of shadows that hover over the objects. This creates a sense of movement from the main character. There seems to be a lot of red lighting which suggests that the location of the setting is in some sort of photographic studio.
Mise en Scene
There are lots of images of books with pages being turned. This may be some sort of symbolism or it could simply mean that it is relevant to the character. There are also lots of images of dead people which manipulate the audience into thinking that the character is a bit weird. This also helps the audience recognize what genre the movie fits under as the way that the objects are constructed manipulate the audience into
Characters
The character has not yet been identified as the only part of him we have seen is his hands. We do not know if it is a man or a woman character but the shot of the hands suggest that it is a man. It is also unknown whether or not the character that is shown is the protagonist or the antagonist but the fact that he is dominating the opening indicates to the audience that he is the main character. The context suggests that the character may be a photographer as there are lots of shots of photographs and tapes being cut. The fact that there are lots of photographs of dead people seems a bit twisted and the man may be a dodgy character or it could possibly just be his profession.
Locations
The setting is located indoors which can be identified as the lighting is extremely dull. The clues from the context such as pieces of machinery suggest that it is located in a basement or some sort of room where you can develop photographs. This is because there is a lot of red lighting which suggests that it is set in a photographic studio. It also indicated the profession of the character.
Narrative/ Plot
There are a lot of narrative clues throughout the whole opening of the movie. The machinery in the opening indicates to the audience that it may play an important role in the death of the ‘victims’. Also, there are a lot of subtle references to God and religion in this opening such as the ‘all seeing eye’ at the end, the lyrics to the background music say ‘...closer to God.’, and the cutting out of the word ‘God’ out of a newspaper.
Genre
The genre can be identified through many of the elements that are put together to create the opening such as the camera shots. The shots are all close ups which creates a sense of blurred images as the audience cannot see them clearly. The context suggests that the genre of the movie is a horror or a thriller.
ANALYSIS- 'PANIC ROOM'
There are a range of different shots and angles used in this opening. The main three shots that are used throughout are establishing shots, wide shots and long shots. These are used for the audience to get used to the background and the setting. The long shots and wide shots are used to give depth and width to the surroundings and to put emphasis on the size of the city that the movie is set in. There is a lot of camera movement such as when the camera pans around a building. This is done so that the audience can see the setting in a 3D motion.
Sound
Sound
The sound is mostly non-diegetic through the opening. It is quite light and very slow-paced. The pace of the movie and the shots match the background music. It sounds quite dramatic and quite creepy to fit in with the conventions of the thriller genre. There is some speech at the end of the opening which introduces two characters into the movie. The audience will assume that these are the main characters as they are the only characters in the movie so far.
Lighting
The setting is outdoors so we expect that artificial lighting is going to be used. However, the lighting in this opening seems too vibrant and there seems to be a slight contrast between light and dark. This could be symbolism for the fight between light and dark; also known as good and evil.
Editing
There is a lot of use of transitions with the lettering that is used. The lettering fits in well with the scenery as it looks like it is a part of the background as it is constructed in a way so that it is parallel to the buildings. The shots are quite long and drag out a bit. This is done in order to get a clear view on the setting.
Mise en Scene
There are lots of skyscrapers and the billboards in the background which informs the audience that the movie is set in a huge city. The yellow taxis suggest that the city is somewhere in America. There is not a lot in the mise en scene as it seems to be an average city in America.
Characters
The only reference to characters through the opening is the dolly shot at the very end of the opening sequence. This doesn’t give the audience much information about whether these people will dominate the rest of the movie, whether they are protagonists or whether they are antagonists. The characters talk about a big house and are well-dressed and well-spoken. This suggests that they are upper class.
Locations
The setting is located outdoors and is set during the day. It is a modern days setting as the cars seem modern and there are a lot of skyscrapers which suggests that the city is very developed. It also looks quite busy.
Narrative/ Plot
The opening does not give away much about the plot. There seems to be dramatic irony about the name of the opening as it is set in a wide and open space while the title ‘panic room’ seems chlostrophoebic as the word ‘room’ suggests a small space. Also, the title gives away a bit of the narrative as the audience expect it to be some sort of thriller to do with a room. The speech at the end of the opening also suggests that the ‘panic room’ is somewhere in this house that the woman talks about.
Genre
The opening doesn’t give away much about the genre but the title ‘Panic Room’ suggests that it’s a thriller as the word 'panic' fits in with the conventions of this genre. The sound also backs this up as it sounds a bit dramatic and tense.
COMPARISON OF 'PANIC ROOM' AND 'SE7EN'
We also wrote a comparison of 'Panic Room' and 'Se7en'. We did this because we wanted to show the clear conventions between the two films which share the same genre.
Camera shots/angles/ Movement
On the other hand,
Both films use a range of different camera angles but
There is a lot of camera movement in
‘Panic Room’ fits in well with the conventions of the horror/thriller genre as it sound quite creepy and slow paced which creates tension. ‘Se7en’ uses the same sorts of effects to create tension. It also consists of a lot of diegetic sound which fits in well with a shot used, such as a ‘cranking’ noise is shortly followed by a piece of machinery. ‘Panic Room’ includes speech at the end of the opening which gives away a lot of information on the characters. On the other hand, ‘Se7en’ doesn’t include any speech at all as the character‘s identity is being kept a mystery.
Sound
There is not a very big difference between the uses of sound of the two openings as they both consist of mainly non-diegetic sound, both openings have sound that fits in with the genre and they both have a slight amount of diegetic sound. The use of sound in
‘Panic Room’ is set outdoors where natural lighting would usually be used. The lighting used is much brighter than the dark and dull lighting that is used in the opening of ‘Se7en’ and there is a big contrast between light and dark which is an important theme In the film. In ‘Se7en’ there is a lot of use of shadow which puts emphasis on the movement on the character. ‘Panic Room’s’ opening on the other hand doesn’t have much sense of movement. ‘Se7en’ which symbolizes blood and death.
Lighting
Both of the openings use artificial lighting although
There is also a lot of use of the colour red in the opening of
‘Panic Room’ the lettering blends in well with the scenery. The transition used creates an effect where the lettering looks as if it fits in well with the setting and it seems to be directly parallel with the buildings. Also, the font is quite big and bold to fit in with the conventions of a thriller/ horror. On the other hand, the font that is used in ‘Se7en’ is quite small and ‘childish’. This seems quite ironic as the plot of the film goes against every element of a child’s film. Also, the lettering is completely separate to the rest of the opening. ‘Panic Room’ are quite long and they drag out a lot. This is done in order got for the audience to be able to see the setting where the film has taken place. Also, the pace is very slow and it stays the same throughout the whole opening. However, ‘Se7en’ has a much faster pace and it increases throughout the opening. this is because the shots start off short and they get shorter and shorter as the pace of the music increases. Also, in this opening there seem to be many more ‘irrelevant’ shots that are there for the audience to interpret through symbolism although they seem to look completely irrelevant. ‘Panic Room’ consists of simple iconography, unlike ‘Panic Room’.
Editing
Both of the openings consist of lettering however they use different fonts and transitions in order to create different effects.
The shots in ‘Panic Room’ such as skyscrapers, billboards and yellow taxis do not give away any narrative clues. However, they do tell the audience a lot about the setting. The skyscrapers and billboards suggest that it is set in a huge city and the yellow taxis suggest that it is set in a city in America. All of these elements establish the setting of the film. On the other hand, the iconography in ‘Se7en’ is unclear to how it could be relevant to the film although it does give away a lot of narrative clues.
Mise en Scene
The iconography in
‘Panic Room’ were introduced at the end of the opening sequence. They seem to be protagonists, even though it is not definite, as they show their face which suggests that they are genuine. The character that is introduced in ‘Se7en’ has not yet been identified as nothing but his hands are shot in the opening. Also, he is slicing layers of his fingers to hide his identity. This suggests that he is, in fact, an antagonist.
CharactersIn both of the openings, it is obvious that the characters in that are shot in the opening will be the main characters in the rest of the film as they have dominated the opening. The characters in
‘Panic Room’ gives the audience an idea about the genre of the film but nothing else other than the sound used gives away the genre of the movie; it doesn’t fit in well with the conventions of a thriller/ horror. On the other hand, the opening of ‘Se7en’ is a typical thriller/ horror opening as it fits in well with the conventions of this genre.
Location
Both movies are filmed in completely different locations. 'Panic Room's' opening is located outdoors and the setting of the location is quite obvious as the mise-en scene consists of skyscrapers, yellow taxis and massive billboards. It is set in a city in the USA. The lighting suggests that the opening is set during the day. On the other hand, 'Se7en' is located indoors as the dark lighting suggests. We are unable to identify whether or not the opening is set during the day or during the night. The red lighting also suggests that the opening is located in some sort of photographic studio.
Narrative/ Plot
Both of the openings give away some narrative clues but 'Se7en' consists of more than 'Panic Room' does. The title 'Panic Room' suggests an enclosed space which is quite ironic considering that the opening is located in a huge space in the area of a whole city. 'Se7en', on the other hand, consists of a lot of shots of machinery which indicate that they may play an important part in the film as the shots are close ups and emphasise the objects. The lyrics of the opening also give away a lot of the plot as the lyrics are '...closer to God...' This seems to be a crucial part of the movie as the word 'God' is seen to be cut out of a newspaper and the 'all seeing eye' can be seen at the very end of the opening (one of the last shots). This all suggests that the plot of 'Se7en' deeply revolves around the theme of religion.
Genre
The title ‘Panic Room’ uses mostly long shots, wide shots and establishing shots in order to establish where the setting is and to put emphasis on the size of the city that the movie is set in. ‘Se7en’ uses the complete opposite types of shots: close-ups and extreme close-ups. This gives an entirely different effect as it is then harder for the audience to see what is being shown in the shot and this provokes confusion and questioning. ‘Panic Room’ significantly uses more. ‘Panic Room’ uses high angle shots, low angle shots and eye-level shots. This is done in order for the audience to see the setting from every single angle in order for emphasis to be put on the size of the area. ‘Se7en’ also uses eye-level shots but uses mostly high-angle shots. This is in order for the audience to show status as the character seems to feel as if he is inferior. It is also done in order to keep the character’s face a mystery. ‘Panic Room’ as the director wants the audience to get a clear view of the setting, unlike in ‘Se7en’ where the whole opening revolves around the sense of movement within the setting. The camera stays still when a shot is taken in order to put emphasis on the movement within the setting. This is done successfully as the pace of the opening also affects the sense of movement.
We also wrote a comparison of 'Panic Room' and 'Se7en'. We did this because we wanted to show the clear conventions between the two films which share the same genre.
Camera shots/angles/ Movement
On the other hand,
Both films use a range of different camera angles but
There is a lot of camera movement in
‘Panic Room’ fits in well with the conventions of the horror/thriller genre as it sound quite creepy and slow paced which creates tension. ‘Se7en’ uses the same sorts of effects to create tension. It also consists of a lot of diegetic sound which fits in well with a shot used, such as a ‘cranking’ noise is shortly followed by a piece of machinery. ‘Panic Room’ includes speech at the end of the opening which gives away a lot of information on the characters. On the other hand, ‘Se7en’ doesn’t include any speech at all as the character‘s identity is being kept a mystery.
Sound
There is not a very big difference between the uses of sound of the two openings as they both consist of mainly non-diegetic sound, both openings have sound that fits in with the genre and they both have a slight amount of diegetic sound. The use of sound in
‘Panic Room’ is set outdoors where natural lighting would usually be used. The lighting used is much brighter than the dark and dull lighting that is used in the opening of ‘Se7en’ and there is a big contrast between light and dark which is an important theme In the film. In ‘Se7en’ there is a lot of use of shadow which puts emphasis on the movement on the character. ‘Panic Room’s’ opening on the other hand doesn’t have much sense of movement. ‘Se7en’ which symbolizes blood and death.
Lighting
Both of the openings use artificial lighting although
There is also a lot of use of the colour red in the opening of
‘Panic Room’ the lettering blends in well with the scenery. The transition used creates an effect where the lettering looks as if it fits in well with the setting and it seems to be directly parallel with the buildings. Also, the font is quite big and bold to fit in with the conventions of a thriller/ horror. On the other hand, the font that is used in ‘Se7en’ is quite small and ‘childish’. This seems quite ironic as the plot of the film goes against every element of a child’s film. Also, the lettering is completely separate to the rest of the opening. ‘Panic Room’ are quite long and they drag out a lot. This is done in order got for the audience to be able to see the setting where the film has taken place. Also, the pace is very slow and it stays the same throughout the whole opening. However, ‘Se7en’ has a much faster pace and it increases throughout the opening. this is because the shots start off short and they get shorter and shorter as the pace of the music increases. Also, in this opening there seem to be many more ‘irrelevant’ shots that are there for the audience to interpret through symbolism although they seem to look completely irrelevant. ‘Panic Room’ consists of simple iconography, unlike ‘Panic Room’.
Editing
Both of the openings consist of lettering however they use different fonts and transitions in order to create different effects.
The shots in ‘Panic Room’ such as skyscrapers, billboards and yellow taxis do not give away any narrative clues. However, they do tell the audience a lot about the setting. The skyscrapers and billboards suggest that it is set in a huge city and the yellow taxis suggest that it is set in a city in America. All of these elements establish the setting of the film. On the other hand, the iconography in ‘Se7en’ is unclear to how it could be relevant to the film although it does give away a lot of narrative clues.
Mise en Scene
The iconography in
‘Panic Room’ were introduced at the end of the opening sequence. They seem to be protagonists, even though it is not definite, as they show their face which suggests that they are genuine. The character that is introduced in ‘Se7en’ has not yet been identified as nothing but his hands are shot in the opening. Also, he is slicing layers of his fingers to hide his identity. This suggests that he is, in fact, an antagonist.
CharactersIn both of the openings, it is obvious that the characters in that are shot in the opening will be the main characters in the rest of the film as they have dominated the opening. The characters in
‘Panic Room’ gives the audience an idea about the genre of the film but nothing else other than the sound used gives away the genre of the movie; it doesn’t fit in well with the conventions of a thriller/ horror. On the other hand, the opening of ‘Se7en’ is a typical thriller/ horror opening as it fits in well with the conventions of this genre.
Location
Both movies are filmed in completely different locations. 'Panic Room's' opening is located outdoors and the setting of the location is quite obvious as the mise-en scene consists of skyscrapers, yellow taxis and massive billboards. It is set in a city in the USA. The lighting suggests that the opening is set during the day. On the other hand, 'Se7en' is located indoors as the dark lighting suggests. We are unable to identify whether or not the opening is set during the day or during the night. The red lighting also suggests that the opening is located in some sort of photographic studio.
Narrative/ Plot
Both of the openings give away some narrative clues but 'Se7en' consists of more than 'Panic Room' does. The title 'Panic Room' suggests an enclosed space which is quite ironic considering that the opening is located in a huge space in the area of a whole city. 'Se7en', on the other hand, consists of a lot of shots of machinery which indicate that they may play an important part in the film as the shots are close ups and emphasise the objects. The lyrics of the opening also give away a lot of the plot as the lyrics are '...closer to God...' This seems to be a crucial part of the movie as the word 'God' is seen to be cut out of a newspaper and the 'all seeing eye' can be seen at the very end of the opening (one of the last shots). This all suggests that the plot of 'Se7en' deeply revolves around the theme of religion.
Genre
The title ‘Panic Room’ uses mostly long shots, wide shots and establishing shots in order to establish where the setting is and to put emphasis on the size of the city that the movie is set in. ‘Se7en’ uses the complete opposite types of shots: close-ups and extreme close-ups. This gives an entirely different effect as it is then harder for the audience to see what is being shown in the shot and this provokes confusion and questioning. ‘Panic Room’ significantly uses more. ‘Panic Room’ uses high angle shots, low angle shots and eye-level shots. This is done in order for the audience to see the setting from every single angle in order for emphasis to be put on the size of the area. ‘Se7en’ also uses eye-level shots but uses mostly high-angle shots. This is in order for the audience to show status as the character seems to feel as if he is inferior. It is also done in order to keep the character’s face a mystery. ‘Panic Room’ as the director wants the audience to get a clear view of the setting, unlike in ‘Se7en’ where the whole opening revolves around the sense of movement within the setting. The camera stays still when a shot is taken in order to put emphasis on the movement within the setting. This is done successfully as the pace of the opening also affects the sense of movement.
ANALYSIS- 'APOCOLYPTO'
Apocalypto opening- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHMQkXygt64
The camera shots start of on the level of something crawling through the floor, zooming into the wilderness. You feel like you are a creature sliding through this tranquil setting. The angle of the first shot is low near the ground; this is because you see feet running past the camera which adds to the curiosity factor. The movement of the first scene is slow and builds tension but it is then contrasted to the second part of the opening scene. In the next scene you feel as if you are one with the jungle and you are part of the hunting scene. The camera shots are fast and in a point of view perspective. The shots are fast and they are close ups of key features such as faces of the tribal men, running feet and the pigs teeth. These are all great shots to create suspicion because we still haven’t been fully introduced to the characters.
The sound begins with a low drum beating and lots of loud animal noises such as Birds, Monkies and Flies. This adds to the creation of the scene and the visual build up and what the director wants the audience to feel which is to feel part of the scene and become one with nature. Secondly, when we see the feet running past for two seconds this breaks the calming atmosphere, we then return to the tree rustling and the animal callings. Then suddenly this is where the pig appears! The screaming sound it makes shocks the audience and contrasts the calming sensation of nature the scene was once creating. We then feel the hunter’s desperation because the drumming becomes louder and faster. We also hear another sound which adds to the culture of the scene which is tribal ritual noises; this could help the audience know the genre through all these sounds.
The mis-en-scene creates a great opening to this film and the visual side of it is breathtaking. The colours are green based; the plants are wild and have grown freely. The lighting is bright considering it is based at the bottom of the jungle; it’s a beautiful setting which adds to the calming atmosphere. When the camera zooms into the bushes before the pig scene we see a butterfly fly across the shot, this is to show the final beauty of the scene before we are introduced to the films story which contrasts everything this jungle is beautiful, free and alive.
The characters we are introduced to in the opening scene are ambiguous. I analyzed the first scene for two minutes and we were only shown glimpses of the characters which were unusual. I think the first scene was more about creating the settings and atmosphere. Although from what we could gather from the characters they are hunting, bare footed and native. We establish this because the close up shots we see they are tanned skin, they have cream cloth wrapped around them as their clothing and long black hair. All the character features add up to resemble a native of some kind. They seem out casted in a remote area because firstly if they lived in rural areas they wouldn’t be hunting pig with knives, you realise they know this jungle from the several hunting traps they have set, this could mean this is their home.
The narrative is difficult to suggest, we only gather a sense of what it could be from the quotation at the beginning of the film. ‘A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has been destroyed itself from within’. W Durrant. We gather from the key words from the quote we collect an assumption of the narrative, plot and genre. Such as civilization shows a sense of community, where as conquered could symbolize battle, war or sadness. The same as destroyed we create in our minds a feeling of struggle. The themes throughout Apocolypto would be survival, desperation, peace and harmony towards the jungle.
The visual style in Apocolypto that Mel Gibson has created relies on the mis-en-scene such as the dense jungle, the fast close up shots, the hunger for the hunt.
The genre of Apocolypto is action, adventure and drama.
ANALYSIS- 'SAVING PRIVATE RYAN'
The first shot we see shows the importance of the film, we see an American flag blowing in the wind, it looks faded and worn which could symbolise what this films about; the heartache and loss of American soldiers. The camera shots are held for a long space of time, this is to emphasize the length of the war and to leave suspension for the audience as to see where this family is walking to. The most frequent camera shots are long shots to show the surroundings of where they are. The final shot would be a close up of the elderly man’s face as it zooms slightly into his cold blue eyes this then would lead onto the next scene which includes the sea. This links the two and is a great transition.
When the film first starts we hear this trumpet song being played with marching drums in the background. It sounds like an anthem for the war, the marching drums suggest that the men are marching to this song; it all links to the genre conventions of the film. We don’t hear much in the the first scene except this song playing all the way through. It is a very effective way of capturing the audience to simply watch the image and understand this elderly mans pain through his movements and facial expressions and not the sound or conversation.
The editing in this scene is simple. The cuts aren’t made to often because the director has prolonged the shots for a reason. Most shots in the opening scene last longer than five seconds which is unusual, but I think this is effective because this makes us focus on the understanding of what has gone on and the emotions of the characters.
The Mis-en-scene is everything in the shot, at first we see the flag flying above; this shows the audience what the base of the film is going to be about. We also see water behind the characters as they are walking, this also links to the war itself, the battle firstly consisted of the soldiers on the boats fighting on water, The director cleverly uses objects to transition the scenes and to make the scene flow. When the family get to the graveyard for the soldiers we see rows of white crosses lined accurately on this well kept field, these are symbolic of the lives of the soldiers as they rest in peace. The reason I think the director did a shot of the whole field is to demonstrate the amount of lives lost in this war.
The characters in the first scene are very important. You see a family walking down a path. An elderly man who walks in front; an elderly woman who strolls behind; a middle aged man with a woman walking next too him and three younger girls and a boy, they resemble an American dream family. These characters show the audience that this elderly man despite his trauma of the war has made his family. You can see the order of importance and understanding of the day as he walks fast to the destination, the elderly women walks behind him understanding his pace whilst the others especially the youth are confused and curious. This shows us that the war happened some time ago that’s why they haven’t got much knowledge of what is going on. You can also see how times have changed now the man has got older and the war is over because as the man is walking up the pathway towards the military cemetery you see two asian characters walk past. This wouldn't of happened in America if they didn't win that war and create equality.The location is similar to a park. It has large well kept fields, a river next to it and large over powering trees. I think the director chose this location because of its simplicity and calming atmosphere.
The narrative is simple from the symbols shown throughout the opening scene. We gather that there has been a war and that many soldiers lives were lost because of the flags and graves. There isn’t much speaking so we as an audience have to guess what is suggested. The themes in the opening scene of Saving Private Ryan are loss, war and memories.
The visual style is very conventional. Steven Spielberg uses shots such as tracking to show the pace of the scene. The opening scene is split into four main subjects the elderly man, his family, the American flag and the military cemetery. This is present in Spielberg’s films as he focuses on family bonds and how to capture them. Towards the end of the opening scene there is a shot where the elderly man has collapsed sadly in front of the grave and his family stand grateful and sympathetically behind him. The cross in front of them is out of focus which draws the attention to the man himself.
The genre of this film would be War and the sub-genres would be action, drama and history.
PRELIMINARY TASK
We had a preliminary task to complete before we did the construction of our final task. The reason for this task was to show three three different types of editing techniques. These were: Match on action, 180 degree rule and shot /reverse shot. We will also link these editing and filming techniques to our final thriller/horror opening.
 |
| Match on action |
 |
| Shot/ reverse shot |
 |
| 180 degree rule |
We created a storyboard for our preliminary task which included all three shot types. We also used this to visualise what our prelim task would look like and it was also a guide through the construction of it.
SCREENPLAY
We wrote a screenplay in order to have a more detailed understanding of our prelim task and what it consists of. It also has speech so that the actresses know what they are meant to say and what tone of voice they are meant to say it in; overall it makes it look more realistic.
INT. INSIDE WORK BUILDING
AFTERNOON
SARAH walks down the corridor towards the interview room. As she walks up to the door she opens it and walks straight to the table, she looks over at the timid girl sitting at the other side of the table fiddling with her pen.SARAH
Hello, my names sarah I will be interviewing you today.
(KATIE smiles nervously)
KATIE
Oh, hello.
(SARAH sits down)
SARAH
Right let’s get started.
What makes you think you would suit this job role...
(SARAH Looks down at her sheet scanning for her name)
SARAH
...Katie?
(Smiling)
KATIE
Well, I’ve had a lot of experience in this field. I think...
(Camera stays still but the talking fades out
along with the scene itself fading to black)
FINAL PRELIM VIDEO
This is our finished prelim video.
FINAL TASK
SCREENPLAY
This is our screenplay for our final thriller opening. We have written this so that we have a better understanding of how it will be filmed and so that we can use it as a script for the actors. The filming will then be a lot smoother and it will be easier to edit later on.
COSTUMES
We have taken photos of the costume of both the antagonist and the protagonist. Costumes are important in recognizing the traits of the characters, in recognizing stereotypes and also in understanding the roles of each character.
PROTAGONIST
The protagonist is wearing all black clothes in order to emphasise her depression and her mental state of mind.
To achieve the role of the depressed Protagonist we
added dark circles around the eyes to show lack of sleep and dark straight hair which shows that she doesn't care what she looks like.
The choice of clothing for this character was to keep it simple
and reflect her mood. The dark and plain garments show that she isn't happy and her style shows that with baggy and unflattering tops.
ANTAGONIST
We chose to dress this character in white to contradict her character,the white flowing garments show the innocence of the girl but her motives are different.
The close up of the characters face shows her dark eyes and blood dripping from her mouth and head. To achieve this look
we bought fake blood from a fancy dress shop and used black eyeliner and eyeshadow to create a bruised damaged look.
TARGET AUDIENCE
We browsed the 'Pearl and Dean' website and found that it was quite useful in comparing target audiences of previous movies that are of the same genre and quite similar to ours. We picked a few movies that we believed are similar to the one that we are creating and analysed their target audience.
The first movie that we compared target audiences to was Paranormal Activity 2. This is because the movie uses similar hand-camera techniques that we use and it is also comes under the paranormal thriller genre as does ours. According to 'Pearl and Dean' the main target audience is 15- 24 year olds who are mostly males. This backs up the results we received from the questionnaire and it gives us a clearer idea of who to target the movie at.
PEARL AND DEAN
AGE CERTIFICATE
The sounds we chose was a mix of sound clips from the software 'Garage Band' we also used a sounds from a website which is especially used by schools and colleges.
http://www.soundzabound.com/
Most of the sounds were made by 'Garage band' so we had a more hands on approach to our instrumentals.
COMPARING OF A HORROR/ THRILLER MOVIE AND MY OWN.
THE RING
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB5Jdp8kK7c
(This is a link to the TRAILER of 'The Ring' NOT the OPENING. This is done because we are analysing the key ideas of the whole movie opposed to just the opening.)
This is our finished prelim video.
FINAL TASK
SCREENPLAY
This is our screenplay for our final thriller opening. We have written this so that we have a better understanding of how it will be filmed and so that we can use it as a script for the actors. The filming will then be a lot smoother and it will be easier to edit later on.
1. INT. CLOSE UP - DOOR HANDLE
Close up of the door handle shaking and moving.
2. INT. PAN DOWN SHOT - CORRIDOR OPENING DOOR
The shots starts at the ceiling and slowly pans down to see BECKY struggling to open the door. The location is unknown and it is also unknown where the door leads to. BECKY shakes the door handle and pushes against the door which is making a lot of noise. She manages to open the door and goes to walk through.
3. INT. MATCH ON ACTION - FACING THE DOOR
BECKY opens the door with a sigh of relief and carries on walking towards and past the camera through a corridor.
4.INT. UNDERNEATH THE STAIRS - WALKS DOWN THE STAIRS TO THE BASEMENT
BECKY is walking down the stairs and all that can be seen at first is her boots walking down the stairs. She walks past out of sight and her shadow can be seen on the wall behind. Another shadow can be seen following her a few seconds after on the same wall but there is nobody to be seen. Dramatic eerie music starts to play as the shadow follows her.
5. INT. TRACKING SHOT - BECKY WALKS TOWARDS THE BOX
BECKY walks towards the box in the corner of the room anxious that somebody is following her and she turns around to look behind her. She slowly walks towards the box and uncovers the sheet that is covering it to reveal old newspaper clippings. The music still is playing in the background.
6. INT. CLOSE UP - NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS
BECKY goes through the newspaper clippings with the title ‘KNOW HER KILLER?’ with her hands slightly shaking. music in background still.
7. INT. POINT OF VIEW - SCRUNCHING UP PAPER
BECKY looks down and scrunches up the newspaper clipping that are in her hand.Music in background still.
8. INT. REACTION SHOT - BECKY'S FACE
She looks down as if she is trying not to cry and then she turns to face the other direction. Music in the background still.
9. INT. MIRROR SHOT - BECKY WALKING TOWARDS
BECKY walks towards the mirror with the papers in her hand. She doesn't notice the blood on the mirror. She looks down at the papers with her head in her hands and then she looks up and notices the blood. She reaches out to touch it and as soon as she does the lights start to flicker. She gasps and acts hysterical and bends down and falls to her knees. In the mirror, she cannot see that MEL (the GHOST) can be seen for a split second until she disappears. The lights turn off completely and she is engulfed by darkness. Ambient sounds in the background.
10. INT. MID SHOT - LOOKS AT MIRROR
The lights turn back on for a second and BECKY looks up at the mirror to see the word 'MURDERER' written in blood. She gasps and the music in background is loud and dramatic.
11. INT. LIGHTS FLASHING
The light can be seen flashing in the background until it, once again she is engulfed by the darkness. The music goes silent for a few seconds of darkness.
12. INT. FACE VIEW SHOT - NIGHT MODE
BECKY is in the dark facing the camera and looking around to try and see something. A white figure can be seen in the background walking behind her. She reaches out into the darkness to see if anything is there. There is sudden scraping sound against the wall on the other side of the room. She gasps and turns around and the camera follows. Only darkness can be seen. The camera turns to face BECKY again and a white figure can be seen rising behind her. BECKY Screams.
TITLE SHOT
The title pops up with a final dramatic note from the music. The title reads ‘TITLE’.
STORYBOARD
LOCATION
This is the storyboard of our final thriller opening. We have done this in order to have a better understanding of each seperate shot and how they will flow to create a professional opening of a thriller. It will also help us when we edit the opening as the order of shots will be clear.
LOCATION
We have taken photographs of the location that we have filmed our opening in. It is all filmed in one area so we have taken photos of where the main filming took place.
The Stairs leading down to the basement
Basement
Cobwebs in the corner
Stairs
Setting up the Tripod
Blood smudged in mirror
COSTUMES
We have taken photos of the costume of both the antagonist and the protagonist. Costumes are important in recognizing the traits of the characters, in recognizing stereotypes and also in understanding the roles of each character.
PROTAGONIST
The protagonist is wearing all black clothes in order to emphasise her depression and her mental state of mind.
To achieve the role of the depressed Protagonist we
added dark circles around the eyes to show lack of sleep and dark straight hair which shows that she doesn't care what she looks like.
and reflect her mood. The dark and plain garments show that she isn't happy and her style shows that with baggy and unflattering tops.
ANTAGONIST
The antagonist is wearing white to contadict her role. This causes the audience to question this role and whether she is actually the innocent one in the feud.
Applying makeup to enhance the role
we bought fake blood from a fancy dress shop and used black eyeliner and eyeshadow to create a bruised damaged look.
TARGET AUDIENCE
We browsed the 'Pearl and Dean' website and found that it was quite useful in comparing target audiences of previous movies that are of the same genre and quite similar to ours. We picked a few movies that we believed are similar to the one that we are creating and analysed their target audience.
The first movie that we compared target audiences to was Paranormal Activity 2. This is because the movie uses similar hand-camera techniques that we use and it is also comes under the paranormal thriller genre as does ours. According to 'Pearl and Dean' the main target audience is 15- 24 year olds who are mostly males. This backs up the results we received from the questionnaire and it gives us a clearer idea of who to target the movie at.
We also chose 'The Ring 2' to compare our target audiences to. This is because there are similar conventions between our ideas and what 'The Ring' consists of. This is because we based a lot of our ideas on this movie such as the antagonist being a young girl and subverting the genre. According to this, the main age range of the audience once again is 15- 24 but the gender is different. This audience was expected to be more female dominated which is unusual for a thriller.
AGE CERTIFICATE
We both decided that our openings age certificate would be a 15; based on the certificates of the similar movies in 'Pearl and Dean'.
SOUNDThe sounds we chose was a mix of sound clips from the software 'Garage Band' we also used a sounds from a website which is especially used by schools and colleges.
http://www.soundzabound.com/
Most of the sounds were made by 'Garage band' so we had a more hands on approach to our instrumentals.
COMPARING OF A HORROR/ THRILLER MOVIE AND MY OWN.
THE RING
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB5Jdp8kK7c
(This is a link to the TRAILER of 'The Ring' NOT the OPENING. This is done because we are analysing the key ideas of the whole movie opposed to just the opening.)
'The Ring 2' is very similar to our opening (and the basic plot of the whole movie) as it shares many of the conventions that come under the genre of a thriller. It is a very good movie to base ours on and even to take some ideas from to put into our opening.
The similarities between 'The Ring' and our movie is that they are both paranormal thrillers that use a young girl for the antagonist. The typical antagonist in a thriller movie would be a male who would play the part of a serial killer...etc. The reason that we chose to use a young female killer was to subvert the genre slightly and to create something more original and more interesting to watch. Also, the thought of a young girl being the centre of all the drama creates a more intense sense of fear.
The image of the girl is also quite similar to the girl from 'The Ring'. The girl will also have long black hair that covers her face to represent a evil and demonic child. but, she will also be wearing white (representing purity and innocence) which will contradict the image and cause the audience to question whether she is the antagonist or the protagonist.
(Video of the 'climbing up the well' scene)
This image is from the scene of the movie where the girl, Samara, crawls up the well at an astonishing speed. This scene is very well known as the image of a girl clawing up a well is very frightening. We are developing this scene and using it in our opening. This will be used when the girl wearing white can be standing at the top of the stairs out of the corner of her eye while she runs towards the cupboard. She will then look up at her again and the girl will be speeding down the stairs (We are still not sure whether she will be crawling down the stairs or whether she will be speed walking).
(opening scene of 'The Ring 2)
Our target audience was clearly shown through the results of the questionnaire that we handed out to all different ages and genders. The questionnaire we got back showed a clear target audience which would watch our film; the age group was between 17-24 and the gender was mainly male.
Target audience
FILMING- FIRST TAKE
We filmed our first take of our thriller/horror on 25th November. Unfortunately, we came across a number of problems that we must try to avoid the next time we do our filming.
THE PROBLEMS THAT AROSE
lighting
The first of our problems when we were filming was that when we filmed out doors the lighting was not very good. This was due to the dark setting and that we had started filming quite late when it was already dark outside. We solved a part of this problem by changing the setting to underneath a streetlamp which made the lighting much better. Unfortunately, when we shot the scene in the alley, the lighting was terrible. We then found the 'night vision' button on the camera and we decided that the overall film would look much more effective and scarier if it was to be filmed using this effect throughout.
tape/disc
After filming the movie, that we had saved on a disk that is inserted into the camera instead of a tape, we realised that this cannot be uploaded onto the computers. There also was no USB for the camera. This meant that we would have to reshoot the whole of our opening once again. Unfortunately, this also meant that we would have to use provided cameras that did not have the night vision effect and we would therefore have to find another way of solving the problem with the bad lighting in the alley.
weather
The weather makes a huge impact on our filming as most of it is set outdoors. It is said that there will be snow fall next week when we reshoot our film opening and this may affect the opening majorly. We will have to look up the weather forecast for next week and set a final date on when we are going to reshoot our opening.
WHAT TO DO NEXT?
We have booked a camera for wednesday the 1st December. In order for there to be a minimal amount of problems in the second take, we have looked up weather forecast to make sure that the weather is suitable for filming.
According to the weather forecast, it is not going to snow but it may rain slightly. This may cause a few problems for the filming because of the camera being in the rain and when retaking certain shits it may not be consistent. On the other hand, we can work around these problems by having a cover over the camera to avoid any age.
2/12/2010
Unfortunately, we were unable to film yesterday due to the extreme weather conditions as the buses were all out of service and it was impossible to travel.
14/12/10
Due to weather and time management we haven't been able to reshoot our opening. This will be filmed and edited over the Christmas Holidays.
24/12/10
The camera has been booked and we are filming our opening on the 27th through to the 28th.
