Final Project

Evaluation - Question 7

Evaluation - Question 6

Evaluation - Question 5

Evaluation - Question 4

Evaluation - Question 3

Evaluation - Question 2

Evaluation - Question 1

Filming for First Draft - Solutions

Although I did encounter problems during filming, I managed to find solutions which solved these problems.

• The first solution was the problem of my sister not being able to film for long as she was needed at work. However, I solved this by working quickly to produce good quality shots without compromising the continuity of the filming. 
• The second problem was the fact that the sound of my parents watching television could disrupt the narratiev of the opening sequence. This problem was quickly solved by asking my parents to not watch the television or make any unnecessary sounds during the filming. This was achieved and I had no background noise in the shots.

Filming for First Draft - Problems

I encountered some problems during the filming. These were:

• The first problem I encountered was the actual amount of time my sister could spend on filming. She was due at work so we were limited with the amount of time we could film for before she had to go to work.

• The second problem I ecountered was the fact that my parents were sat in the living room watching the television. This was a problem because if they had the television on too loud then it would disrupt the sound of the shots that I was filming. It would also ruin the narrative as the girl is meant to be home alone.
  

Planning - Props #2

These are the props that the burglar (me) will use during the opening sequence. I will only use one main prop. This one main prop will be a cardboard knife that I will use to confront the main character. Below is a picture of the prop:

Plastic knife:
The plastic knife will appear in the very last shot (shot 20). It will only appear in the last shot as the burglar confronts the victim and draws out the knife to attack her.
 

Planning - Props #1

Along with the costumes, props will be used to create a sense of mystery throughout the opening sequence. 

The main character (Rebecca) will have one main prop that she uses. This is a frying pan which she uses to combat the burglar. Other props that she will have access to are:

• the remote control which she uses to switch television channels 
• the television itself. 

Below are pictures of the props that the main character will use:

Frying pan

The frying pan will be used to combat the burglar and will feature in shots 13 - 16. The frying pan will not appear after that as the burglar will knock the pan out of the main character's hand.

Remote control 

The remote control will feature in shots 8 - 11. The main character will use the remote control to turn up the volume of the television and turn off the television completely.


Television                                   
The television will appear in shots 6, 8 and 10. The television  appear in these shots as the audience see the main character watching it. These shots with be intercut with shots of the burglar upstairs. The main character will then turn the television off.      
    

Planning - Costumes

There will be two characters in the opening sequence so, there will be two costumes.

- My sister Rebecca's costume consists of a white polka dot top which is paired with jeans. Rebecca is wearing casual clothes as in the narrative, she is lounging at home when a burglar breaks into her house.

- My costume will consist of black trousers and a hooded jumper. The hooded jumper will ensure I look mysterious. I need to look mysterious as I am playing the burglar who breaks into the house.

Draft Evaluation

Audience Feedback for Final Piece

This is the full audience feedback for my final piece. This gives a better insight into the strengths of the opening sequence and the improvements that could be made. 

Research for Low Budget Film Distribution Companies

This section of the evaluation is where I research some low budget film distribution companies that could potentially distribute my film.

There are four major short film distributors in the UK:

• Dazzle
• Futureshorts
• Network Ireland TV
• Shorts International 

(Information from http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/filmmaking/guide/distribution/distribution)

There is a whole list of low budget film distributors of British films that could possibly be interested in distributing my film.

Final Edit

This is the final edit of my opening sequence for a thriller film.

(All the sound that is included in the final edit is from freesfx.co.uk)

Filming for Second Draft - Solutions

The three main problems that I encountered were hard to overcome but each had a solution:

• As I did not use the same camera as the last time I filmed, I was worried about figuring out how to use it. Thankfully, the camera was not very different to the one I used last time and I managed to solve the problem before my sister arrived so the filming time would not be compromised.
• I was also worried about the continuity of the filming as the last time I filmed with my sister was before Christmas and I was unsure if she would have remebered what her costume was like. To solve this problem, I sent my sister a picture of her costume from last time so she could be sure that she was wearing the same outfit.
• The availability issue is that my sister went away over Christmas so I needed to film at a time when she was available. Luckily, my sister arrived back just after Christmas and she was free from work so I could easily film the extra shots.

 

Filming for Second Draft - Problems

After the first draft and feedback from peers and teachers, I decided that I needed to refilm and add in some completely new shots so I can achieve the greatest grade possible. Filming for the second draft took place on 15th January 2016. I was slightly apprehensive about fliming again because the last time I had used a camera was before Christmas. I did encounter some problems when filming. These included:

• Not having the same camera as the last time I filmed. I was worried about this because I had gotten used to using the other camera.
• I was worried about the continuity. The last time I filmed was before Christmas and needed to make sure that my sister wore exactly the same thing as last time so the continuity would not be ruined.
• There was also a slight problem with availability because my sister was away over Christmas so it was crucial to pick a time to film that suited her and came before the deadline so I had time to edit the opening sequence again.

First Draft - Feedback

I recieved feedback for the first draft of my opening sequence from three people. They were my friend, brother and sister. They all enjoy thriller films so I believe they were the perfect people to tell me what they thought of the first draft. Below are the pieces of feedback that each of them gave the first draft:

From this feedback, I can deduce that I need to slow down (or refilm) the pans at the beginning of the opening sequence. Also, I need to change the background music as it does not fit in with the thriller impression that I am trying to create with the opening sequence.

Editing - First Draft Sound

All the sound in the first draft of my edit for my final project is from www.freesfx.co.uk.
There are five major sounds that I contemplated using. Three of these were background music which fitted the genre of thriller. Another one was the heartbeat which is being used so the audience hears the victim's heartbeat as she goes to the confront the burglar and the final sound that I never used is the scream of a female. I did not use this sound as I decided it was too quiet to be heard over the dramatic background music.

Filming - First Draft

The filming of the final project was completed in one day though additional shots will need to be filmed if they are not of the right quality. The filming schedule was followed and this allowed my sister - who stars in the opening sequence - time to prepare for each shot. While my sister was preparing, it also gave me time to set up the camera for each different shot, whether this was using the tripod for a high or low angle shot or setting up a long shot.

Editing - First Draft

Below is the first draft for the edit of my final project for my coursework. Changes will need to be made for the final edit.




This is only the first draft of my edit and will need to be changed in time for the final deadline. 

Planning - Shot Plans

Here are the shot plans for all twenty shots:

1) External shot - place camera at bottom of the drive.
2) Internal shot - place camera at corner of dining room.
3) Internal shot - place camera at end of downstairs hallway.
4) Internal shot - camera placed right in front of picture.
5) Internal shot - camera placed in front of girl's face.
6) Internal shot - camera place at corner of living room.
7) Internal shot - low angle shot placed at foot of door.
8) Internal shot - placed in front of girl's face - point of view shot.
9) Internal shot - placed at top of stairs as we see the burglar's feet.
10) Internal shot - camera placed at corner of living room.
11) Internal shot - camera follows girl through to hall.
12) Internal shot - camera placed in corner of kitchen.
13) Internal shot - camera placed by girl as she grabs frying pan and exits the kitchen.
14) Internal shot - camera follows girl through hall.
15) Internal shot - camera placed at top of the stairs.
16) Internal shot - place camera by burglar's shoulder.
17) Internal shot - camera placed above victim's head.
18) Internal shot - camera placed below burglar.
19) Internal shot - camera placed above victim's head.
20) Internal shot - camera placed below burglar.

Planning - Titles

This section of the blog is all about the titles that will be used during the opening sequence of the thriller film. When choosing which titles to use, it is important that we do not just think about who is credited with making the film but we also think about the position of the titles on the screen, the font of the titles and the colour of the titles. 

Below is a list of the titles that should appear in the opening sequence and the order of the titles:
1) The name of the company that is bringing the film to the audience. For example, MIH Productions presents...
2) The name of the production company should appear first of all to tell the audience who the film has been made by. For example, A Friday Night Production
3) The next titles that appear will be those of the people starring in the film. For example:

• Rebecca Eloise
• Melissa Hogg
• (The first two names appearing in the list are those of me and my sister who are appearing in the film) 
• Jonathan Stevens
• Caroline Anderson
• Steve Harold 

4) The next title is that of the person responsible for the casting - Casting by Peter Hayworth
5) The next title is the designer of the costumes - Costume Designer - Kate Daniels
6) The next title is the person responsible for the music - Music by Danielle Redford
7) After the music comes the person responsible for the editing - Editing by Melissa Hogg
8) The next title is the director of photography - Director of Photography - Harry Kenneth
9) After the director of photography, the executive prodcuers are listed - Executive Producers - Tina Marshall, Harry Kenneth
10) Then the person responsible for the screenplay appears - Screenplay by Chris Lewis
11) The penultimate title is the director - Director - Melissa Hogg
12) The final title is the name of the film. This flashes onto the screen - Intruded       

Position of the Titles
From looking at old pieces of work, the position of the titles on the screen is important. So that the shots in the opening sequence are not covered up or the quality of them is not compromised, it would be best for the titles to appear at the edge of the screen. They will fade onto the screen so they appear calm. This is a contradiction to the film itelf which is centred around a very tense situation.

Colour of the Titles
The titles will need to stand out on the screen so white would be the best option. This means that the titles would be obvious on the screen and would not obscure the view of each shot.

Font 
The font of the titles will need to relate to the thriller genre. So, the font of the titles will need to be something quite unusual. Below are ideas for the font that could be used for the titles:

Yu Gothic - 

Times New Roman -

Segoe UI Black -

Planning - Filming Schedule

The filming of this opening sequence needs to be at a good time for both me and others acting in my project. As my sister and I are the only two actors in the project, it means that it will be easier to decide on a suitable time to film Below is the schedule for filming that I plan to follow. This will make the filming process efficient and organised. 

Planning - Risk Assessment

There are many risks involved in filming an opening sequence to a thriller film because if it involves a weapon, there is a chance that someone acting in the film could be unexpectedly hurt. Below is a table of all the possible risks that could be involved in the filming of this opening sequence and how they could be solved.

Planning - Storyboard

Now that I have decided on the narrative for the opening sequence, I can put together a storyboard of the different shots that will be used. Altogether, twenty different shots will be used to fill the recommended two/two and a half minutes of the opening sequence.

First side of storyboard:

Second side of storyboard:

Third side of storyboard:

Fourth side of storyboard:

 

Planning - Location Recce Shots

This section of the blog shows where the final project for this coursework will be filmed. By taking location recce shots, it helps me - as the person who is filming the project - to organise the shots and see where the best angles to film would be. This is done so the filming process is efficiently done. The opening sequence will be filmed in the same house and will mainly be filmed in four rooms: living room, kitchen, downstairs hallway and upstairs hallway.

Living Room
The living room will be used in shots 2, 3, 5 and 7. This will be when the girl at home alone is watching television and then hears mysterious noises upstairs. I decided to use this room as it seems calm and an unexpected place for a burgalry to occur.
 

Kitchen
The kitchen will be used in shot 8 when we see the girl home alone heading into the kitchen to grab a weapon so she can investigate the strange noises upstairs. The kitchen is used because it is where the victim of the burglary goes to find a weapon to confront the burglar with upstairs. The victim grabs a frying pan and heads upstairs.

Downstairs Hallway
This is used in shot 9. This location is essential because the girl home alone becomes frightened when she hears unexpected noises upstairs. In this shot, she is heading up the stairs to go and see if anything or anyone is on the landing.

Upstairs Hallway
This is used in shots 4, 6, 10, 11 and 12. Shots 4 and 6 show close ups of activity on the landing. This location is important because it is the scene of the murder in shot 12. The victim confronts the burglar and this climaxes in the victim being murdered by the burglar. This location is where much of the action of the opening sequence takes place.