This is our Risk Assessment

This is our call sheet

Evaluation Update.

Georgina is now back in school so we were able to finish most of our evaluation. Our idea for her part was for her to be interviewed as if she was the editor. It starts with the interviewer introducing himself and what he wants to achieve from this. The interview itself is Georgina answering her question on the evaluation. I feel that it was effective and innovative to have a different idea for that part of the evaluation. I believe it worked because it was different to our radio interview meaning it is more interesting for people to watch. It also is a different way of getting our information about the media product and evaluation up on the blog.

Tom Meek- My Thoughts

After seeing our final piece i am very pleased with the final result. I feel we have produced and filmed a very successful piece that depicts our chosen genre of the 'Teen horror' Our mise-en-scene I believe was key in creating the feel of the horror genre with the make-up. I feel we have met the criteria asked by the teacher and believe we have been successfull in the piece of coursework.

Storyboard

This is our original storyboard for our film 'Stream', however when looking back and comparing our storyboard and final piece we have made some changes which help the film to fit our chosen genre.

'Stream' - Storyboard

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GD,TM and SL stills

Evaluation update

We were aiming to film a directors interview for our evaluation. We planned to have Tom acting as an interviewer and then changing costume to answer the questions posed. However, we decided that it would be more effective to use the style of a radio show.
Tom read the questions and I (saskia) read the answers, 3 of the questions were written by me and the other 3 by Tom. As Georgina is not currently at school, she has written a longer answer for the last question and when she returns she will record a voiceover for this.
We then plan to present the whole piece as a radio show. As the questions are being answered and talked through, depending on the question, we will show stills, screen shots and video clips from our preliminary task, final piece and any research that we completed.
Our whole evaluation should come together as one piece combining a range of technologies using the questions that we answered to narrate.

TM,SL and GD- The Pitch

twgsb media stream

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Evaluation of Pitch

The point of the pitch is to get green light for our media idea. We succeeded in this as we then went on to film and edit our piece. I believe we had success in this because we planned and practiced the pitch before hand, this enabled us to say exactly what we needed to say without messing up the lines and being confident with what we were saying. Our lines were backed up by a powerpoint which gave our audience and teacher something to looked at and helped them understand what we ment.

All in all I believe our pitch was a success and helped show others our media concept and gave us the confidence to go on and film our media product.

Evaluation Proposal

We used our brief evaluation questions to film a directors interview. We are going to use premiere elements to use clips of Tom posing the questions. We will then use his voice answering the questions as a voiceover to put over still images or certain clips from our opening which he is describing.

Final Piece

Final Piece

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZmLEs_QBDY

Here is the link to our final opening which is now exported and on youtube.

Update. 29/03/10

During the editing process we have made many changes and the shots are in a different order. We have also used different sounds to the ones posted below on the blog. We will explain what we have changed in our evaluation.
We also did one more shoot where we shot at our school. This included girl#2 walking around the school after the title '3 days earlier'. This starts the film and during this the song 'White Horse' by Taylor Swift will be played.
The deadline is tomorrow and we simply need to sort the final sounds tomorrow and make any final adjustments in our lesson and lunch hour if needed.

Changes

We uploaded the footage from the montage that we shot and decided that it was not necessary for our plot and was not effective. We therefore decided not to use it. As stated previously, we also made the decision to re-shoot the river parts. The storyboard has completely changed now...
1. The montage at the beginning has been removed, although we have one part of the montage at the very beginning which is mud being washed down the sink.
2. We have different shots in the river location than before
3. The party scene has stayed the same and in the same order although it will not appear alltogether in the opening.
4. We will use the river scene and the boy will have many flashbacks which will be all the flashback footage in parts in each flashback in chronological order.



Here is a basic outline of our new storyboard...
MCU of plug hole with mud washing down
Fades to shot of the sun behind the clouds
Cuts to a jump cut of the boy walking
Pan up the river
See girls feet
Pans up the girl
Close up of her face
Close up of side of face
POV of girl from boy
MCU of boy closing eyes
FIRST FLASHBACK - walking to party
MCU of boy opening eyes and breathing heavily
MCU boy closes eyes again
SECOND FLASHBACK - walking into party
CU flash image of girl
THIRD FLASHBACK - flirting scene outside party
MCU of dead girls face
MCU of boys face
FOURTH FLASHBACK - MCU of girl#s face at party
POV from boy lifting up phone
XCU of phone with background picture of boyfriend and girlfriend, dials 999
MLS of boy on phone
'hello'
MCU of boy looking up at sky, camera pans up to sky
Glass smashes
Credits.

(This is just a rough outline of the new storyboard and I am sure it will change as we continue with the editing).

Possible sounds

Breathing:
http://www.freesound.org/tagsViewSingle.php?id=1322&start=15
http://www.freesound.org/tagsViewSingle.php?id=1322

Breath.wav
L_mb-breath-1 004.aif
L_mb-breath-1 005.aif
L_mb-breath-1 013.aif
L_mb-breath-1 016.aif
L_mb-breath-1 022.aif

Atmospheric sound:
http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=33987


Park sounds:
http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=18765

Music played in the flashback:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tbk16dKSGGA

Transition to flashback:
http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=21920

During flashback, music playing with voices over:
http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=39470

Group: River Shoot #2

After watching our footage that we shot on our river filming sesion by the river we came to the conclusion that not only did we not shot enough footage, there was not a a big enough variety of shots. We made the decision as a group to re-shoot the river scene as well feel this is the most important part of our film opening. Once we reviewed this new footage we felt we had much better quality footage and was well worth reshooting the scene.

Group: Preliminary Task

This is our Preliminary Task.

The Preliminary task helped us in preparing for the real film opening. It showed us how long it will take us to film and edit our opening.

Group: Copryright Permission

In our film opening we wanted to add some music, however there was an issue with copyright. This is the left we wrote and sent to EMI Records to seek permission to use their song in our film opening.

Group: Copyright Permission

We have emailed the company that distributed the song 'Taylor Swift - White Horse'. We asked for permission to use this song in our film.

SL - First filming

We did our first piece of filming yesterday evening. This filming was of the flashback of the boy character. We had two different locations which were
1. walking by a pub to the party
2. in the back garden of the party
We slightly changed some of the shots from the storyboard as follows:
1. We added in an extra shot from the back of girl#1 and the boy walking to the party.
2. We added a panning shot of girl#1 and the boy walking up to the party and the boy knocking on the door with someone opening it. As the door opens, loud music is heard.
3. The shots outside the party were kept the same.

We managed to successfully include the pan down where the glass smashes and we are definately going to use the sound effect of the glass smashing as it is extremely effective.

Although we shot in the dark, we used lighting from the pub and nearby lights, and porch lights and house lights from the party.

We are next going to film this weekend on Sunday and this will be at Dunorlan park. We will be filming the river scene.

TM- Analysing an opening sequence

The Hole (2001)

Genre

This film Belongs to the Teen Horror Genre. I know this because of the characters that are used in this film. They are all late teen showing that this film is aim at teens and is within the teen genre. When watching this opening I am intrigued to watch more. This is because of the tension that is built up with in the character fulfils the generic expectations of the text using little to no sounds and keeps the focus off the characters face. The text conforms to the characteristics of the genre in to ways. The first is the setting which is used. The setting is a school showing that this film is based around children or teenagers. The other characteristic is the girl that screams down the phone. It is obvious from the Mise-en-scene used that she is a young woman. Her features are quite young which suggested the genre of the film.

Film Language

The Mise-en-scene is used in the extract is to create mystery within the narrative. She is wearing a masculine looking coat which is covered in mud and leaves, showing that she has had some trouble or pain in the recent past. The setting is very rural with no cars or people present at this time. The setting is common in a horror film because she is alone in a very empty place with little help from anyone. There is also a school which looks very old and scarey. The shot sizes, in this extract, convey a sense of mystery about the girl and the place they are in. There is a shot where there is selective focus. We can see a poster on the wall of a missing child and in the background out of focus we can see this girl walking down the road. This may show the audience that she is the missing girl. Sound is used in this piece to create tension. The sounds are distant and very strange showing that there is a hidden meaning behind her walking. There is little to no dialogue in this sequence so we don’t learn anything about her as yet. But towards the end of the sequence she screams down the phone suggesting a hidden meaning to the story. This non-verbal language is used to intrigue the audience.

Narrative

Within the narrative the tension is created by the silence of the character and setting. There is little to no sound from either. The Narrative is structured in a very strange way. As it would appear the action has already happened so the audience then asked themselves what has happened to her and why? This technique is common in the genre and many films because it is intriguing. The major themes of the narrative are missing children. There are posters all over the road and walls all asking “Have you seen these people” This creates the theme of the whole film, missing people. The diegetic and non-diegetic sound create the tension in this extract. Footsteps and eerie music are the reason why this extract is so affective.

Representation and ideology

In this extract there is only one character. It is hard to put an ideology to her because she is so mysterious. But from what I see she could be the typical loner girl that doesn’t have many friends. I only can see this because she is on her own and she looks like she doesn’t take care of her self. And from watching the rest of the film it is quite apparent that this is the case. No social groups are represented in this piece this is because there is only one character so it would be hard to find a social group that is represented.


Media Audiences

The certificate is an 18 which gives the target audience of late teens early twenties. The audience can gain a sense of tension about the start of this piece. The uncertainty of the extract only makes it more interesting to watch for most people. As a young millennial and a teenagers I like this extract, the director has made it so there is little story line at the start making it much easier to watch for me and many others. The realness of the scream is really terrifying and creates the story line off it.

Institutional context

The bankable star that has been used is Kieran Knightly. She is an A list star that is very well known throughout the film industry. This is important because it sets the standard of the film straight away meaning it will encourage more people to watch it. The studio that produced it was Pathé Movie Company this is an industrial film company. They have a trailer and poster for the film.

GD: Film Treatment

The film starts with several images of compressed showing girl#1 applying her make up starting with her lips then continuing to show the make up application of her eyes During this sequence the audience will be able to see a photograph of girl#1, girl#2 and a boy all together. This photo allows the audience to understand the relationship of the characters in the film and this is the first we see of the other characters in the film. Also whilst girl#1 is applying her make up there is a song playing in the backgroud. It will be this song that is used as a sound bridge between the two locations. The next shot is the first time we see girl#2 however she is dead in the stream with make up running down her face and evidence of a struggle is present. We hear the same song that was being played in the background of girl#1 but now the sound is muffled and much quieter as is it was being played through headphones. It is only now that we see the boy standing over the girl while breathing heavily this would possibly connote to the audience that the boy was the killer. However during this time there is a flash back and the the audience almost goes into the thought of the boy which is when the audience see the dead girl and the boy as a happy could and the boy and the girl applying her make up arguing or possibly breaking up this may therefore changes the audiences opinion on who the killer may be. It is after this that the credits being and the film starts.

W had some ideas for the rest of the film that the film could be recorded as if the boy was the killer however the film develops we find out that it was girl#1 that had killed girl#2 and this was her way to try and regain the relationship that she had, had with the boy before he broke her heart.

GD: Film Location

I had this an idea for the location of our film because I believe that it looks how want our film location to look as well as conforming to the stereotypes of a horror movie especially if we used the "gothic" style fountain in some of the shots.

SL - Treatment for opening sequence

We have not yet decided on a title for our film but we have a number of possibilities:
Stream
Resentment
Spite

As we have chosen the genre of Teen Horror, our opening sequence will portray typical conventions of this genre. These conventions include love, jealousy, romance, hatred and betrayal.

The establishing shot of the film is set in girl#1s bedroom. She is infront of the mirror and behind her is a photograph of the 3 main characters (2 girls and one boy). The first image we see is an XCU of her bare lips taking up 2 thirds of the screen so that the picture behind her can be seen in the other third of the screen. Time is then compressed whilst she applies lipgloss to her lips. It then fades to black and gradually zooms out of the girls eye from the black pupil and stops when her eye fills the screen. Time is compressed again whilst she applies makeup to her eye. It fades to black again and then the same thing happens with the other eye and it then zooms into her eye right up to the pupil and the screen goes to black again. Throughout the application of the make-up the girls whole face is never seen and music is playing quietly in the background. The camera then slowly zooms out of girl#2s eye. Her make-up is smudged and her eyes are lifeless. We can hear faint breathing and the sound of the song that was played in girl#1s room playing from girl#2s ipod headphones. The camera zooms out slowly, the music getting fainter and breathing heavier. It becomes apparent to the audience that the girl is lying dead in the river, her clothes a mess and make-up down her face. She is soaked and covered in mud. A point of view shot is then used from a mysterious figure (the boy from the photograph) and a handycam is used as if he is looking at the girl through his eyes. The breathing is deep and heavy. It then pans round the boy 360degrees and then to the side of his face which is in shadow. It zooms into his eye and into the pupil and goes black. He then has a flashback which is in a noir style as it is black and white. The screen is split into 2. The image on the left is the boy and girl#1 arguing in a room. The image on the right is the boy and girl#2 together meeting up for a date looking extremely happy. During this flashback, undecided music is played. The flashback stops and the screen fades to black. There is a MLS of the girl in the river again from the boys POV and we hear the boy breathing. His breathing gets slower. He then brings his hands up to the camera as if he were putting them to his face and covering his eyes. The screen fades to black and we hear the boy breathing for a few seconds. It goes silent and the title and credits appear in green connoting jealousy.

GD: Film Analysis - Wrong Turn

Genre:

This film belongs to the teen horror genre. While watching this genre the audience expects to see a character or storyline that they can relate to as well as sequence of horror or the building tension. Within the opening sequence of "Wrong Turn" (2003, Rob Schmidt) we see two people in their late teens early twenties rock climbing which however turns sinister within a short period of time when one of the pair finishes the climb and is killed by an unknown character whose laugh is the only thing we hear. This opening sequence fulfills the audiences expectations. The text in this sequence conforms to the characteristic of the genre because you are placed alongside with the character and are builing up tension and not mocking the genre.

Film Language:
The mise-en-scene in this sequence conveys meaning because we see the deserted location that should be an area of peace and tranquility when a small occurance turns it into a sinister location with a different mean. Also the use of the rope shows the weakness of the girl however by seeing her struggling with rope and trying to free her self it help the build tension for the sequence. There are lots of long shots which are used to show the vulnerability of the climbers as the audience can see how hight up the two characters are. There are also extreme close up of the girls hands and feet when she is climbing to show that she is struggling and finding it a challenge. The are also close ups of the rope machanism when the girl is being pulled up to building tension and show she is not in control. The sound used anchors the fear that the character is feeling as we hear the fear in her voice and the screams which is an aural signifer of the horror genre. From the characters dialogue we learn that the typical genre stereotypes are fulfilled as the male is confident and sees his friends struggling as a joke and has a relexed approach when she asks for his help. The female character plays the damsel in distress as she is not only struggling with the rock climb but she is screaming for help and wailing in fear.

Narrative:

Within the narrative the tension is created by the screaming of the girl when she falls the first time and then again when she is being pulled by the rope mechanism as screams are often associated with fear and danger. Tension is also created by the noise of the rope mechanism because the girls life is potentially under threat if she is pulled to the top of the rock face therefore by focusing on that sound tension is created. Within the opening sequence the sound is the one thing that we know about the killer of the young male therefore this creates tension as we associate this sinister laugh with danger and fatalities. From the dialogue we are positioned not to like the male as he finds his friends struggle amusing and therefore the audience may to feel a connection to this character however we are made to pitty the girl because of her whimpering and "pathetic" noises.

Representation and Ideology:

In this opening clip we see the typical American "jock" character being represented as we see a male who is pysically fit and attractive taking part in a sporting activity with a pretty girl who is relying on him to help her to the top of the rock face. We also see the typical damsel in distress who is relient on her male counter part for support. However ironically at the end of the sequence it is the "jock" that gets murdered by completing the rock climb first and the female who manages to save herself save from the same fate as her friend.

Media Audience:
The target audience would be young adults as the films certifcate is an 18 however I think it may appeal to those slightly younger i.e. the teen market because they could imagine themselves in the same situations as the characters within the film. I personally enjoyed this opening because althouth there was clearly a death it was not to graphic however I think that a slightly older male who appriciate a more graphic and obviously bloody death scene however I don't think that would work as well to build tension throught the film.

Institutional Context:

Eliza Dushku starred in this film which may have been important it gaining an audience as she as starred in other successful teen movies which would appeal to a similar audience. This film was distributed by an industrial company (20th Century Fox) which could have proved vital for the success of the film.

TM- Mood Board.

SL - Analysis of opening sequence

Dog Soldiers (2002)

Genre:
The genre of this film is action/horror.
When watching a horror film the audience expects suspense and then action that provokes their fears. The audiences generic expectations are fulfilled by this opening sequence as tension is built when the couple in the tent see the zip slowly opening and then horrific action occurs when the beast outside kills the woman and the blood is splattered on the man.
The text conforms to the characteristics of the genre as it meets the generic expectations in many ways such as:
Lighting – darkness and lit by a full moon
Characters – ordinary people
Action – horror and death occurs

Film language:
Mise-en-scene conveys meaning in this sequence as it is set in a deserted place in the dark. It is common for an ordinary object to become the centre of the action and the slow unzipping of the tent is what creates the tension and suspense. There is also a visual link between the zip of the woman and the zip on the tent.
Techniques:
Mid shots are used to show the two characters together and make it obvious that they are a couple.
When the couple are in the tent and the zip starts to open, the camera slowly moves closer to show their expressions and the terror on their faces.
Handy-cam shots are used when the woman is dragged out of the tent to place the audience in the action.
Sound anchors the images as we hear the diegetic sound of the zip opening as we are watching the couple. This sound bridge makes the audience wonder what the noise is and there is then a motivated cut to the zip being undone. The ominous and quiet music also creates an atmosphere.
When the zip is being undone there is no dialogue. This shows that the characters are extremely scared. They also tense their bodies and a MCU of the two characters shows their worried facial expressions.
The director uses the visual technique of a full moon. A full moon can often be associated with wolves and other terrifying aspects. This also shows that it is dark outside and late at night enhancing the atmosphere.

Narrative:
The narrative is simple as we simply see a couple on a normal camping trip in Scotland. Then, unexpectedly, a creature comes along and kills the woman. There is no twist to the narrative in this opening sequence it is completely straight forward.
The audience is positioned with the couple as they are the first people that are introduced as characters and the audience hears their conversation and intimacy.
We can identify with the couple as we see them talking and being together for a while. The creature that kills the woman is alienated as it is unfamiliar to the audience and a killer.
There are three major themes in the narrative:
Love
Fright
Death
Tension is created and maintained as when the couple are in the tent they hear the noise of something outside and the zip slowly unzips with the audience waiting in suspense to see what is outside. The tension is then maintained as the audience does not know if the creature is going to leave the man next or kill him too.

Representation and ideology:
There are no social groups in this sequence, although there is a couple.
It is obvious that the couple value their love as they are evidently alone together on a trip and this is also seen through their intimacy in the tent.
The man is shown as protective over the woman as he tries hard to pull her back from the creature that is trying to kill her.
Again, in terms of semiotics, the full moon could connote danger or bad luck. In some stories and films, werewolf’s come out when the moon is full.

Media audiences:
The target audience is for older teenagers as it is rated a 15 in most countries including the UK.
The audience can gain a sense of horror from this as they know that a woman is being killed as they see the blood splattered on the mans face. Although it is not too horrific as the killing is not seen.
As a British teenager, i enjoy this type of horror film as the audience is aware of the action although the gore is not seen. The suspense of the zip opening is captivating and enticed me into the film. However, a male of a slightly older age may prefer a slightly more graphic opening where everything is seen and there is immediate action.

Institutional context:
No bankable stars have been used in this film. However, this may enable the audience to focus more on the action and the characters in the film than the person playing them.
The film was produced by Kismet Entertainment Group who are an independent film production company. The main objective of the Kismet Entertainment Group is to create unique, cutting-edge amusement.
The film has a trailer, poster and website.

TM- Genre Analysis

Chosen Genre

Our chosen genre is teen horror. This is a sub-genre of horror. The horror genre as a whole is designed to scare and provoke your worst nightmares. This selection of films does this in a quite brilliant but unique way.

• Scream (1996),
• I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997),
• I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998),
• Ginger Snaps (2001),
• Dead Silence (1998),
• Killer Instinct (2000),
• Spliced (2003),
• Freddy vs. Jason (2003),
• Serial Killing 101 (2004)
• Fear of the Dark (2002),
• Hangman's Curse (2003)
• Cursed (2004),
• Final Destination,(2000)
• The Hollow (2004),
• Predator Island (2005),
• Devour (2005)
• Jeepers Creepers (2000)

All of these films bring a new technique in to the horror genre. The films that I took specific technical styles from were;

Final Destination (2000)

This film is a sub-genre of horror, it is teen horror. The style which I like from this film is the flash back technique that is used. The girl sees into the future and the horror that unfolds but then it cuts back to her showing it was just a thought. I like this technique because is it is so simple to achieve yet so effective in creating mystery and enigma.

Jeepers Creepers (2000)

This is another teen-horror which involves to teenage friends that discover a room full of bodies. The man the made the room is a monster of some sort. The technique I liked is the costume that is used for the monster. He wears a hat which covers his face most of the time, only revealing it times of fear and loathing. This simple piece of costume creates tension by the mystery of his face. We don’t really know what he looks like.

Alien (1979)

This film is an alien horror which involves a team of people that find evil aliens that kill them. The technique I liked was the use of prosthetics in the form of the alien that jumps at your head. The alien looks slimy and horrible. The prop helps create the sickening feeling when you watch it. It looks so realistic, this helps create enigma within the film.

The Typical Narrative

The typical narrative of a horror film is having things that the audience can identify with. This could be a ghost or an alien for example. This helps create suspense and enigma by making the audience relate to the film. If the audience can relate it will be much more foreboding for them, believing that the film could really happen. There are a few techniques which could be uses for this; the techniques are in the characters thoughts and feeling, making the audience relate to them.

Stereotypes within the film

In a horror film there are many stereotypes used, this could be;

• The jock
• The nerd
• The popular girl
• The weird boy
• The rebel
• The nice guy

A big stereotype in a horror film is the “Killer in a mask”. The film which has used the killer in the mask is “Freddy vs. Jason”. A hockey mask has been used to cover Jason’s face. This creates suspense and mystery about the film. The mask has now become iconic with many films trying to recreate this piece of horror.

Setting

The setting in horror films is most of the time quite similar. The setting that is mostly used is the forest scene. This is very effective because there is a sense of alone and fear in woods. You are so rural; no-one can hear your screams. Another setting which is commonly used is the hunted or old house. These houses connote fear and loathing because of there history and because they generally don’t look welcoming.

Iconography

Visual – in horror films, an ordinary object is usually a centre focus for the terror. Ef a knife in the film “Psycho”
Aural – These are sounds such as creaking doors, footsteps or simply just the wind howling
Oral – These are noises from people e.g. a scream or a strange voice

Costume

The costume is much depended on the story or setting of the film. For example a cape and mask would create mystery in the film. This was apparent in the film scream. It makes the audience would to watch and see who is the killer. A school is very depended of costume. The people would be wearing school clothes or casual clothes. This really helps set the genre of a film. This film with the school would be a teen horror because of the characters and their costume.

Lighting

The lighting in a horror film could be crucial in the success of the film. The lighting should be dark and mysterious. The lighting really needs to set the moods and themes of the film. For example low lighting will help keep the secrets of the film. In the film “Jeepers Creepers (2000)” the lighting helps keeps the killer’s identity a mystery.

Colours

The colours in a film help connote certain things. The colour red for example only connotes one thing, Blood. The colour black also connotes evil and suffering.

SL - mood board

Feedback #1 CF

Well done - so far a very communicative and enthusiastic use of the blog. Use images where possible and finish off the technical analysis with the two questions, however a great start.

TM -Technical Analysis- Ginger Snaps

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx0smKQtG6A
The film starts off with an establishing shot of a big housing estate. There is distant a distant sound of wind. It then cut to another shot of the housing estate. The shot has now pinned in on a few houses suggesting this is where we are going. Medium close up of a sign saying Bailey downs and in the background there is a field, a tracing shot is then used to move past the sign and into the field allowing the viewer to see a house. The wind noise is still in the back ground.

There then a cut to a garden fence where the camera pans left allowing us to see the garden. Wind noise has stopped. There is a barking sound in the back ground. The camera stops on a boy who is digging in the sand. A mid shot is used. The camera cuts to the mum racking the leaves with the sound to match. A handy cam is used so follow the mother to put the leaves into the bin bag. Sound of the leaves going in the bag, with a close of her hands putting the leaves in. It then cuts to the child in the sand pit looking at his hands, a mid close up is used. He then puts his hands to his face and blood is reviled by his nose.

Then there is a pan up on the mother to show her still putting the leaves in the bag, then shows a mid shot her face. A handy cam is used again to show the mother walking towards the child looking please with what she had done. Distant noises are used in the background to create an ominous tension. A Tracking shot is then used to show something moving toward the back of the child. We know this is the mother. A medium long shot is used. It then cuts to show the mother behind the child smiling. We can now see the blood on his face. The same distant noises are still playing in the back ground. There is then a mid shot of the mother looking at what is in the child’s hand.



Then cuts to show the child’s upper body and the mothers arm reaching for what’s in his hands. We then see an animal paw within a mid shot. A low string instrument it’s then used while she has the paw in her hand. It then turns into a high pitch sting instrument. This is used to create tension.. a mid shot of the mother picking the child up is then used. There is then a long shot through a metal fence of the two people giving it a sense that someone is watching them. The distant high pitch sting instrument is still playing. It is now joined by the wind noise again. There is then a mid long shot of the mother holding the child.

The music then gets louder and there is a reaction shot of her face. As the music reaches its peak we are now are a mid close up of the mother and son. She then lets out a long high pitched scream. A crane movement is used to go along the floor and uncover the dead dog lying on the floor. The crane movement then continues to show a path of blood coming from a hole in the wall. The music has intensified and the women still screaming. The crane action continues into the hole where it cuts to the title sequence. The music stops and changes into an eerie distend song. In the title sequence there is a black background with white font. A mist of blood is behind the writing.

The Soundtrack

The sound is very prominant in the film Ginger snaps. I helps so create enigma by the low key tones used. The distant noises of wind and howling really creates tension. The acting and mise-en-scene dont necessarily connote horror at the start, it is the music that helps create the asmosphere.

My thoughts

This technical analysis work has helped me understand how many shots go into a film, In just 2 minutes there is so much to see and write about.

GD: Technical Analysis - Scream

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFCStOMqpfk&feature=related

1. The film starts with the opening credits. The screen is black when you hear the sound of a telephone ringing followed by a loud "bang" noise. After this the sound of girl screaming is heard while the the word "Scream" in a blood red appears contrasting against the black background the word then starts to increase in size and starts to blur with the screaming still in the background which is stereotypical of a horror film. There is a close up of the phone shown with the girls hand going to pick it up after it starts to ring. The shot then cuts to a close up of the girl talking to the mysterious man on the phone, she puts down the phone and walks away into a different room but rather than the camera following her the camera stays in it position and we Drew Barrymore's character walking away from the shadow from the french windows. An establishing shot is then used to show the location of the house while outside you can hear the repative drone of the crickets you can also hear the creaking of the rope swing with which gives the location a sinister feel to it. This shot also let the audience know that this is set in the night as it is dark and thi again starts to create tension. The camera then moves to the inside of the house, we then hear the phone ring again and then hear the the convosation between the girl and the man on the phone, the camera is filming at a medium close up we can also hear the non digetic sound of the popcorn will the girl is on the phone. The camera then pans around the island in the kitchen and follows the girls movements. A medium close up is still being used when the girl pulls a knive out of its block which is followed by the noise of the blade scraping. A close up shot is then used to show the expanding popcorn packaging on the oven hob along with the black iron kettle. As the girl walks through the house the camera is following her at this point she is still talking on the phone about horror movies which is when we see her locking the doors as she walks past them. While the camera is following the girl it never changes from a mid shot. She then puts the video in the VCR player which is when the creepy man says the iconic line of the movie, "I want to know who I'm watching" which is when the eerie music which is associated with horror movies begin and the medium close up becomes a close up to show the girls reaction to this threatening line.

2. The costume used in this opening sequence would be easy to replicate as we only see one character who is wearing casual tracksuit bottoms and oversized jumper which is appropriate as she is home alone about to watch a scary movie with comfort food (popcorn). The location of the house is rural and this becomes apparent after the establishing shot at 1:03 as well as when the girl is on the phone to the unknown male he sales how that it would take to long for the police to get here to save her. The house also has a large number of windows or large glass doors which helps to build tension as you are anable to see anything but darkness through them but the audience are almost expecting something to happen behind them.

3. There are only ever 2 layers of sound happening at one time whether it be the noise of the popcon and the phone ringing or the sound of the knives scraping the block and the girl speaking. This is possibly done so that that all of the audiences attentions are focused around the phone call which is becoming more sinister as it goes on. Whenever the phone rings rather that letting it simply fade into the background it has been made louder because the director wants you to imediatly understand the importance of the phone.

4. From this technical analysis I have realised that there are far more shots in an opening sequence than I originally thought at that the opening sequence has to catch the audiences attention in the first couple of minutes otherwise the rest of the film may not have as big impact as wanted. Also from this analysis I have realised that in a horror film that it doesn't not rely on a fast cutting rate to create tension.

SL- Technical analysis - the eye

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wVU8CRESp4

A black screen fades to an establishing shot of grass and trees outside in the dark with an eerie noise in the background. It then fades to black again and we hear a loud noise almost like a gunshot. An image fades in from black of someone running in the dark and then quickly flashes back to the black again. This is repeated twice with eerie music. The black then fades to a rundown house with a child shouting and ‘BRUJA’ is written on the house in red connoting danger, blood or death. It then fades to black again and then becomes light as there is a MCU of a light bulb and a hand reaching up to turn it on. The light bulb sways and we can hear the ‘clunking’ sound of the light bulb and a boy still shouting. It then fades to black again. There is a close up of an object however it is not clear to see what it is and there are voices murmuring in the background. A MCU of someone’s feet are seen with the shadow of their legs on the ground and we can hear a voice whispering. It fades to black again and there is another ‘shot’ sound then the picture of the grass and trees is shown again except there are 3 boys this time. Ominous music is played and we see the boys shouting and throwing objects. It then fades to black again and then to a panning shot of the back of someone’s head and the sound of glass breaking. It then fades to black and then again to the boys outside throwing things and shouting with the sound of glass breaking. It cuts to a wall with a shadow of someone’s head and shoulders and then fades to black again. The children fade back in and we can still hear them shouting, see them throwing things and hear the diegetic sound of glass breaking. Handheld camera shots are used as the camera movements are jerky as we see the boys still throwing things, however not as clearly as it seems misty and the picture is unclear. It fades to black yet again and then a mid-shot of someone’s hand picking up wires with the crashing and shouting noises still in the background. It fades to black again and then a close-up of someone’s hands fiddling with some wires and the background noise becoming fainter and sounding like echoes. It then fades back to black. We then see a worms-eye-view mid shot of a chair and someone moving it and then standing on it seeing only the bottom of their legs and feet. It then cuts to a close-up of a pole and someone’s hands wrapping wires around the pole with the echoing crashing noises in the background and the sound of the person grunting and struggling. It then cuts to black again and then a MLS of a window with cobwebs fades in and we just hear a quiet ominous sound. It fades back to black again. We see a mid-shot of the person’s foot on the chair and can again hear the crashing in the background. It zooms in to a close-up of the foot and then fades back to black with shrill music and then the same window is shown again with a crash in the background. It then cuts to an XCU of a girl’s face looking terrified and crying. We can hear her crying and the shrill music is still playing. It then quickly cuts back to the window but with a faint, strange and ghostly looking figure in front of the window and then again quickly cuts back to the girls face and back to the ghost and window again. The ghost screams and jumps towards the camera baring its teeth and it then cuts to a worms-eye-view of bricks and the chair being thrown with the sound of a crash. It then cuts to black again and becomes quiet with some eerie music in the background. Credits then start in white on the black background.

The main aspect of this opening that i found interesting was the transitions as these were done by fading to black and then to another location or something/someone in the same location. This darkness created tension and increased the pace creating an unnerving atmosphere.

SL - Genre analysis images

SL - Genre Analysis

Chosen Genre
Our chosen genre is horror. Horror films are designed to frighten and to invoke our hidden worst fears. Horror films feature a wide range of styles, from the earliest silent Nosferatu classic, to today's CGI monsters and deranged humans. There are many sub-genres of horror:

slasher

teen terror

serial killers

satanic

Dracula

Frankenstein

We have chosen the sub-genre of ‘Teen Horror’. We will follow some conventions of this sub-genre as teen horror films and take inspiration from films such as Happy Hell Night (1992), Scream (1996), I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997), Disturbing Behavior (1998), I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998), Cherry Falls (2000), School's Out (1999), Ginger Snaps (2001), The Glass House (2001), Wishmaster 3: Beyond the Gates of Hell (2001), Dead Silence (1998), Killer Instinct (2000), The Brotherhood 3: The Young Demons (2002), Swimfan (2002), Spliced (2003, Freddy vs. Jason (2003), Serial Killing 101 (2004), Fear of the Dark (2002), Hangman's Curse (2003), Cursed (2004), The Hollow (2004), Predator Island (2005), Witches of the Caribbean (2005), Venom (2005), Devour (2005).

Scream is especially interesting as a psychopathic serial killer stalks a group of teenagers, just like it happens in films. A teenage girl becomes a target of a killer who has stalked and killed one of her classmates. This film is a teen horror film with many sub-genres such as crime, teen, mystery, murder, gore etc.

Some selected teen horror films
‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ (1997) involves 4 teenagers who try to cover up a hit and run. When they receive a note saying ‘I know what you did last summer’, they realise that a mystery person knows what they did. This plot enables tension to be built as throughout the film there is a mystery as to who it is that knows what happened last summer.
‘Cherry Falls’ (2000) is a horror, mystery, thriller film. A serial killer is killing off virgins in a small town high school. This film highlights teen issues and is also mysterious as this killer is on the loose creating tension and pressure on the teenagers.

Ideas for techniques
We are currently planning to create an opening scene which establishes a perfectly normal night where two friends are walking back from a night out in the dark taking pictures and joking with each other which is common of teenagers in our society. We plan to create tension by using certain techniques such as time stretches to allow the audience to see that something abnormal is happening, yet the characters do not react meaning that they are unaware of any abnormality. By using hand held camera shots to portray the killer recording the friends, and decreasing the volume of their voices and the focus of the camera, we will be able to create the sense that someone or something is watching them. Yet it is not until the friends are in the house developing the pictures that an abnormal figure appears behind them in the pictures.

The teen horror genre
Typically in teen horror films, everything is established as normal and there is no evidence of any odd happenings. Gradually, things happen that become more and more strange creating great tension and suspense and a sense of mystery and terror. Teen horror films are targeted at teenagers or young adults and the plot is usually based upon specific interests of teenagers such as first love, rebellion, alienation. These issues could be set up to create enigma or suspense as one of these issues is set up for example rebellion, then consequently something will happen as a result of this rebellion.

Characters
Typical characters for this type of film would be:

The Jock/Cheerleader
The Princess
The Geek/Nerd
The Rebel
The Misfit, or The Outcast
The Average Girl/Boy (the boy/girl next door)
The New Girl/Boy
The Loner

As an example, in ‘Scream’, an average teenage girl is babysitting on any normal night and she is targeted by a phone call and her mind is then played with.
The archetypal villains are usually mystery characters that are not seen but either heard or evidence of their presence is noticed.

Setting
Typically, teen horror films are set in deserted places whether it is a school or a house or just being outside far away from other people.

Iconography
Visual – in horror films, an ordinary object is usually a centre focus for the terror. For example, the telephone in ‘scream’. Innocently answering a phone call caused the terror awaiting her.
Aural – Strange noises would be heard such as creaking or banging in another room.
Oral – A scream could be heard, usually of a child or a girl. Strange voices are used e.g the phone voice in ‘Scream’.

Costume
The costume depends on the setting of the film. An example could be at a school. You could have the ‘geeks’ who would be dressed smartly and a complete opposite which would be a ‘jock’ who would usually be wearing sportswear or designer clothes. It is also typical to have the stereotypical ‘cheerleader’ who wears designer girls usually bearing a lot of flesh and is extremely flirty and often the ‘dumb blonde’.

Lighting
Such horror films are usually set in the dark as it is more mysterious and ‘scary’. This is as most things will not be easily visible which creates suspense as a character could appear at any moment.

Colour
The colour red is usually associated with death and often connotes danger or blood.
Black is mysterious as it is a dark colour and oppositely, white is a pure colour and usually associated with innocence.

Fonts
The truth will out
Terror production
Living dead 2

GD: Teen Horror - Mood Board

GD: Font Examples

This is an example of the font that I mentioned in the post below, called Nachos&TV

GD: Genre Analysis - Teen Horror

1. Our chosen genre is horror however within that genre our group were interested in trying to create a teen horror. The typical conventions of a teen movie or teenpic is plot that is based on issues that are relevant and that teenagers can relate to. Most teen movies contain issues such as first love, rebellion, conflict with parent and alienation however most of these issues a glamourised and often conform to stereotypes. Our film wouldn't contain to many of these conventions possibly first love but mostly friendship but mostly friendship doing what most teens do and finish the day by taking photographs for memories of the days events. An example of teen horror movie would be "Prom Night" (Nelson McCormick, 2008) as its plot consists of something that every teen could relate to, prom night. I find this film interesting because unlike other teen movies it is gritty and although the lead character survives the film doesn have the sugar coated happy ending that is often expected from a teen movie. Another teen horror movie that I find interesting is "Scream" (Wes Craven, 1996) because of the way it ties in other classic horror and thriller movies by the victims talking about their favourite horror movies in the opening sequence and also by quote lines from the iconic horror movie "Psycho" (Hitchcock, 1960).

2. In our film we were looking to use some handheld or mobile phone camera footage to give the impression that the characters are being watched and this would start to build tension within the audience as they are one step ahead of the characters who are unaware that they are being followed and watched. We were also considering using time manipulation while walking down the road. We would also show the development of the polaroids so the audience is in the same positions as the characters which would also create tension.

3. The typical opening of teen horror film is setting the scene so the audience can relate to the film and this would therefore create a sense of tension and fear. This may be set up by talking about or covering activities that the audience can relate to. However an enigma could be set up by time manipulation or through the use of hand held cameras.

4. Within teen films the stereotypical characters are the jock, the queen bee, the geek/nerd, the rebel, the outcast, the girl next door character and the loner. However in the traditional teen movie the "popular" characters almost never come out on top it often the outcast that is succesful in winning the girl or saving the day for example Peter Parker in Spiderman.

5. The typical setting for a teen movie is either at a school or party however a horror movies tradition location would be surrounded by mystery so either a haunted house or dark alley way however I think that almost any location can be made suited to a horror movie by the use of lighting, camera angles and sound.

6. In a teen horror movie the iconography you expect see would be as follows;

visual: blood, shadows, the moon, groups of friends, a strange figures.

aural: foot prints, heaving breathing, ringing phone, distorted laughter.
oral: screaming, shouting, crying.

7. The costumes in teen horror movie would have to show the audience the age of the characters and therefore you wouldn't want to have the characters dress to formally or inapropriate for their age. Also in teen movies what the character wears also shows which "click" they are in and all creates stereotypes and therefore before deciding what clothes your characters wear you need to decide on your characters personality and where they are the jock or the outcast for example a jock would wear casual clothing possibly Abercrombie and Fitch or his school sports kit but he would take pride in his appearance. Whereas an outcast wouldn't care about their appearance and would have messy hair and their clothes would be dull and they would have an overall unkept look about them.

8. I like font Nachos&TV because it looks like scratchy writing which is widely used in horror films for example in "Amityville Horror" (Andrew Douglas, 2005)

SL - First thoughts for treatment

The initial genre that we chose was horror and we are now thinking of doing Teen Horror. This is our first rough ideas for our treatment.

SL -Horror film tips

This was taken from the website http://www.wikihow.com/

It includes a number of tips that may be useful then considering the genre of horror.

GD: The Eye (2008)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wVU8CRESp4&feature=related
i like the opening of this film as it create a large amount of tension as you are completely unaware of what is going to happen. Also the way the scene is film in darkness creates a tension as you are not completely aware of the surroundings. Personally this is how I imagine a horror film to open.

SL -Room 1408

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8o-r5dO0Mk&feature=fvw
'Room 1408' is a horror/thriller film.
A man who specializes in debunking paranormal occurrences checks into the fabled room 1408 in the Dolphin Hotel. Soon after settling in, he confronts genuine terror.
There aren't any good camera or editing techniques in this part of the film however the paranormal occurrences are worth looking at as they add to the drama and suspense of the film.

TM -30 Days of Night

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNeArW2BICw This is the introductiong from the film " 30 Days of Night". Picked this film to show you because I like the camera work and music. It really gives a sense of Foreboding which i think depicks the style we are going for. With just the camera work and music alone.

GD: Thriller FIlms

Thrillers are a type of film which promote intense excitemen, suspense and a high level of anticipation. However thriller films often contain similar characteristics and features.

There are different sub genres within the main thriller genre;
Spy thrillers: the hero is typically a government agent who must take action (often violent) against rival governments.
Pollitical thrillers: the hero must stablise the government that employs him.
Military thrillers: the hero is typically a man in uniform who operates behind the enemy line or as a part of a small team.
Conspiracy thrillers: this is where the hero confronts a large and powerful group of enemies whose extent only he recognises.
Technothrillers: here the technology is made essential to the audiences understanding of the film plot.
Legal thrillers: this genre is where the lawyers are the heros and they confront their enemies both inside and outside the courtroom.
Forensic thrillers: the heros are forensic experts whose involvement with an unsolved crime puts thier lives at risk.
Physcological thrillers: the conflict between the main characters is mental and emotional rather than the obvious physical.
Horror thrillers: this is where the conflict between the characters is mental, emotional and physical.
Serial killer thrillers:
Romantic thrillers:
Supernaturdal thrillers: this may be where the conflict between the two characters and usually which one has supernatural powers

Most thrillers are formed of a combination of the above genres, with horror, conspiracy and psychological tricks used to increase tension.

The first real icon of thriller films was British filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock and his undoubtably most famous film was the classic 1960's film, "Psycho" and the 1963 film, "The Birds".

TM -Scream

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFCStOMqpfk&feature=related This is the opening to the film Scream. Its one of the classic thiller opening. Thrillers are all about creating tension and fear. This film does this expertly. Im not saying we should try to make this because I personnally believe we can do better.