Monday, 28 February 2011

Film classification

Certificate
The certificate of my group’s film is a 15 rating; I will be listing the elements of a 15 certificate within my group’s film, it goes as follows:
·        This film will have elements of horror like Strong threat, with one of character’s on the run for reasons unknown and we see second character following him and the audience knows he’s a dangerous person.
·        The film will not have drugs within it or suicide behaviour.
·        There no violence also within the film but there might be later on after the intro (if the film was to continued)
·        This film will have two great elements suspense & mystery, are aim is to have the audience wanting to watch more.
I do feel that the film is a 15 certificate and hopefully with as group can proof it by using some of the elements with common thrillers.

Cast/Props list

Cast List
There will only be 2 characters within the film and a cameo character, the cast list follows as:
Andrew Amphlett --- Mystery Character (no name) this person is the second character within the film as we (the audience) will not know who he is?  The person will wear black clothing.
Cameron McIntyre --- Mystery Character #2 this person is the main character within the film as we following him though the events leading up to the intro and he wears a backpack and causal clothiers.
The cameo character --- Mr. Smith this character is used once before the intro and will text mystery character#2, this character will appear through a mobile phone.

Costume and props list
The costume and props is very basic within the film, the list follows as:
·        Mystery Character – will need a black coat with hood.
·        Mystery Character #2 – will need a mobile phone, causal clothiers and a backpack.
All of the costume and props will have ready to use (or wear) for the filming days.

Film Poster Analysis


 Similar colour scheme used throughout, grimy appearance, dark colours, use of black for fade effect. The colour scheme is reminiscent of the papyrus like paper the serial killer uses to record his thoughts.

Uses ‘star appeal’ to help advertise the film as both main characters are played by established movie actors.

No advertising of date release or certificate suggesting this is a ‘Feature’ poster.

Tagline narrative ‘…sins…’ links with religious theme. The Repetition of ‘Seven’ links with the plot of serial killer through repetitive murder.



Basic colour scheme allowing character images to become main focal point of poster. The theme of the poster appears to be based on a ‘Wanted’ poster containing ‘Mug shots’.
It also carriers a hidden message as the audience is unaware that they are both the same person and so can be related to the ‘split personality’ of the main character.

The tagline uses three one word sentences for a bold, masculine appearance.
It appears to be a simplistic summary of the plot to the public which is deceptive as the plot is actually complex, similar to the main characters mixed personality.



The font is overlapping the image possibly suggesting further the ‘overlapping’ of personalities.
Uses ‘star appeal’ to help advertise the film as both main characters are played by established movie actors.


                             No advertising of date release or certificate suggesting this is a ‘Feature’ poster.



This is a teaser poster that uses an Angel to suggest that the thriller has a religious theme.
There is different use font (bold) for ‘Demons’ aids the suggestion that there is a confrontation with good and evil.

There is a use of star appeal to advertise the film as Tom Hanks is a well known Oscar winning actor.
The poster also advertises that it is based on an award winning book which will attract other media audiences.

There is an unspecified release date published that will notify the public of the film.

The colour scheme uses variations on the greyscale to follow religious thriller theme.  The choice of weather for the poster of clouds breaking appears similar to a ‘divine act’ image seen in other religious media forms for example          artwork such as ‘The creation of Adam’ in the Sistine Chapel, Italy.
 

Sunday, 27 February 2011

Film Classification

Film Classification
(Specific for Thriller themes)

‘U’ – This certificate is given to films that are aimed at younger children and families, therefore the content of which is suitable for all. Scenes should be suitable for minors and so scenes of threat or menace should be mild and short. Language should be mild and contain no negative imitable behaviour.

PG – This certificate is given to films that are designed for slightly older children, as some of the content may upset young children that are sensitive to less mild on screen violence and fantasy horror. Drug references must be brief and mild, or follow an anti-drug theme.

12a/ 12 – This certificate is given to films that are aimed at young teens that are less sensitive to moderate violence and horror however the sequences must be infrequent. Violence in particular must not be graphic but occasional gory sequences are permitted. Language can contain moderate, infrequent swearing.

15 – This certificate is given to films aimed at mature teenagers and young adults, language may contain strong frequent swearing, however repetitive use of the strongest language is unacceptable unless justified. Violence and horror can be frequent, strong and gory.

18 – This certificate is given to films that contain content that is aimed at adults only. The language can be of the strongest swearing and frequent. Violence and horror scenes are often very graphic, prolonged and frequent.

Equipment List

Equipment List:
·         Camera
·         Tripod
·         Props (clothing, masks, etc)
·         Scripts if we include dialogue
·         Tape for the camera
·         Character/s to act in the clip
·         Mobile Phone
·         Backpack

Location Report

Location Report

The setting for our mystery thriller will require an urban theme with lighting ‘hotspots’ instead of surrounding the scene, and a long straight road/path for our introduction ending shot.
We have decided that
Telford town center car park is the best possible place to do our filming as it is also close to the Hollinswood footbridge:

(insert pic)

This will be used in our distant POV shot. We will need permission to film on town center grounds, and despite our filming schedule being after closing times for the shops within town center, there will still be cars around as ASDA closing times are later. This may delay filming due to retakes.

The footbridge also links to a long straight footpath surrounded by high raise buildings and greenery which would be ideal for our ending shot.

(insert pic)

This will be used in a series of fast cuts for our ending sequence. We may need permission to film and notify neighbors nearby that we are filming for a Media project. Possible delays in filming may occur due to frequent use of path by locals, which may cause more retakes.

Film introduction Synopsis

Film introduction Synopsis

Our mystery thriller introduction will contain two main characters; ‘Cam’ and an anonymous character that will be referred to as ‘the chaser’. There will also contain a reference to a third character that aids the main character.
The opening narrative structure will place the audience in the middle of a scene, of which one character is anonymous, and another is abbreviated, to compel the audience to focus and ‘hook’ them onto the storyline, (a similar technique has been used in recent horror/thriller films such as ‘Saw’….)
The type of ‘thriller plot’, (Charles Derry 1988) we have decided to use is a combination of ‘moral confrontation’ and ‘Innocent on the run’. The main character ‘Cam’ is under threat from a dark chasing character that appears to be non-human. Cam is waiting in a poorly light area where he receives a message that he is being watched. He attempts to leave the area, where the follower appears in the distance only to the audience. This piece of dramatic irony will help engage the audience as Cam walks unaware of the follower.
The follower is revealed to the audience as a supernatural being as it appears to teleport towards the camera.
This is followed by the main title and credits.

Monday, 21 February 2011

Production Schedule

Production Schedule
We will be filming our opening to our Thriller after the first week of returning from Half term between the dates of March 8th and March 21st. We need to film in evening between the hours of 6:00 PM and 8:00 PM this is because we will need to film with natural darkness to save time, this will also mean less editing will be needed later adjusting lighting on 'After Effects' etc.
We will book the cameras with Celena on the day that we return from half term. We will not be filming on March 10th or March17th as these nights are both on a Thursday and the Town Centre is open until 8 PM on Thursdays, meaning that there may be a lot of shoppers and more people that will possibly interfere with shots causing unnecessary delays.
Timeplan
8th: 18:00 – 20:00 (filming the first 1-10 shots) Character establishing shots and possible beginning of 'chase scenes'.
11th: 18:00 – 20:00 (filming shots 11-20) ( Filming beginning of 'chase scene', and suspense building shots. 
16th: 18:00 – 20:00 (filming shots 21-30) Filming end of chase scenes and possible ending shots
21st: 18:00 – 19:00 (filming outstanding shots) Filming any additional shots we may need and retakes.
22nd-27th: 11:35 – 1:00 (Editing film)
28th-30th: 11:35 – 1:00 (Editing sound) Using garage band for soundtrack and using after effects for introduction.

31st-7th: 11:35 - 1:00 Evaluating production, re-do any outstanding work, re-draft neccessary work.

Target Audience

Target Audience
Our Thriller opening will be aimed at the 15 and over audience due to the sustained threat and suspense that is often associated with sub-genre of Mystery Thriller / Horror Thriller.
The ideal target audience for our film as we have all agreed, we think will be Males rather than females (in a 70 / 30 ratio) between the ages of 15 – 24 as the younger generation are the people that tend to watch Thriller movies more than older generations. We can demonstrate this chosen target audience should be correct because since our film is in the Thriller / Mystery / Horror genre, younger people generally watch horror films more than elder people. Mystery films are generally watched by young males rather than females as the way the majority of these movies contain violence, suspense and often blood/gore that a female audience may not enjoy.
In conclusion we feel that with these guidelines of what constitutes a thriller, a 15 certificate would be the most appropriate.

Thursday, 10 February 2011

Preliminary Task

Our footage was suitable for it's task as it demonstates basic levels of editing skill, through the use of a 'shot reverse shot' that requires cutting footage. There is use of diegetic sound through on screen dialogue and simple camera angles such as a close up of the door handle as it begins to open
.