Saturday 15 December 2012
Friday 14 December 2012
Pilot Evaluation
By completing the pilot shots of our thriller in our room, we discovered some things which wouldn't work.
Firstly, because there are three beds and other furniture in our room, it would be a struggle to fit in the room with all the added equipment. Also, the room is in an old, ornate house and we want our character to be more normal and have a more modern-style room. So, we've decided create a set in the studio so that we can create the room we've envisaged and one which is appropriate for our story line.
By testing out the different shots we decided on in our storyboard, we realised the close up shot of the filament bulb of the lamp was very effective and would be ideal for the titles of the cast and crew. We had an idea where the camera zooms in on one square on the Rubik's Cube so that the whole screen becomes that colour and from here, the screen changes colour a few times, whilst the titles are showing, until it turns grey and connects with the next shot of the boy's pyjamas. After discussing this idea, we came to the conclusion that, as the colour may look effective, they have no relevance to the story or key themes and have therefore decided to cut this shot.
We found that the tracking shot across the Airfix models on the desk would be very effective, however, after attempting it a few times, we realised that it's one of the hardest shots to get right but will be worth it in the end.
A lot of our thriller will be done by editing, so on the day of filming, we might not need as much time as other groups, however we understand that the editing afterwards will be a long process so we're trying to plan and schedule that to ensure that we get everything we want to have, finished and ready, in the time limit.
Firstly, because there are three beds and other furniture in our room, it would be a struggle to fit in the room with all the added equipment. Also, the room is in an old, ornate house and we want our character to be more normal and have a more modern-style room. So, we've decided create a set in the studio so that we can create the room we've envisaged and one which is appropriate for our story line.
By testing out the different shots we decided on in our storyboard, we realised the close up shot of the filament bulb of the lamp was very effective and would be ideal for the titles of the cast and crew. We had an idea where the camera zooms in on one square on the Rubik's Cube so that the whole screen becomes that colour and from here, the screen changes colour a few times, whilst the titles are showing, until it turns grey and connects with the next shot of the boy's pyjamas. After discussing this idea, we came to the conclusion that, as the colour may look effective, they have no relevance to the story or key themes and have therefore decided to cut this shot.
We found that the tracking shot across the Airfix models on the desk would be very effective, however, after attempting it a few times, we realised that it's one of the hardest shots to get right but will be worth it in the end.
A lot of our thriller will be done by editing, so on the day of filming, we might not need as much time as other groups, however we understand that the editing afterwards will be a long process so we're trying to plan and schedule that to ensure that we get everything we want to have, finished and ready, in the time limit.
Thursday 13 December 2012
Sound
At first, we're only going to have quiet, diegetic sounds to set the scene, such as a police car and light traffic. We chose these sounds to show that he lives in an urban area, communicating the idea that he's an everyday, normal boy. We debated having music coming from outside of his room, suggesting that he lives in a block of flats, but decided that this might look as if he'd been woken up by the noise, whereas actually, he just wakes up due to his Autism and we felt that this miscommunication could mean that the audience doesn't understand that the character has a condition.
We're going to bring non-diegetic music in when the camera pans along t he table with the Airfix on it, to mark the moment and therefore suggest to the audience that the planes are vital to the storyline.
It will have a moderate beat and won't be quite beaty, most likely some percussion.
When the camera suspends before going into the computer screen, we're going to pause the music to heighten the suspense, apart from having one continuous note which will increase in volume until the 'second-half' of the thriller starts (when the camera goes into the computer screen) At this point, we're going to bring in faster paced, technological non-diegetic music to reinforce the idea of the thriller.
As one member of our group studies Music Tech, we're going to create our own sound using the equipment we have available.
A non-diegetic will be the only speech in the opening of our thriller and we're going to use Bob Getty because he has an American accent- we want to change the boy's nationality to American because it's more relevent to 9/11.
Script
"US foreign policy is akin to Government-sponsored terrorism these days … It was not a mistake that there was a huge security stand down on September 11 last year … I am SOLO. I will continue to disrupt at the highest levels … "
We not going to have any diegetic speech, however this is the speech we will use for the non-diegetic voice-over; it will begin when we see the character typing to show that these are the words he's writing. This extract is the message which Gary McKinnon left, however, I feel we need to edit it slightly. Firstly, because if we were going to use Gary McKinnon's exact words, our character would have to be an accurate representation of McKinnon- a middle-aged Scottish Systems Administrator with Aspergers- and our character is not. Furthermore, because our character is a teenager, we will need to edit the speech so that it fits with his age; some of the language "akin" "these days" wouldn't be used by a Britich teenager.
"US foreign policy is prone to Government-sponsored terrorism... It was not a mistake that there was a huge security stand down on September 11 last year... I am SOLO. I will continue to disrupt at the highest levels."
This is the final edit of the non-diegetic speech we will use.
We not going to have any diegetic speech, however this is the speech we will use for the non-diegetic voice-over; it will begin when we see the character typing to show that these are the words he's writing. This extract is the message which Gary McKinnon left, however, I feel we need to edit it slightly. Firstly, because if we were going to use Gary McKinnon's exact words, our character would have to be an accurate representation of McKinnon- a middle-aged Scottish Systems Administrator with Aspergers- and our character is not. Furthermore, because our character is a teenager, we will need to edit the speech so that it fits with his age; some of the language "akin" "these days" wouldn't be used by a Britich teenager.
"US foreign policy is prone to Government-sponsored terrorism... It was not a mistake that there was a huge security stand down on September 11 last year... I am SOLO. I will continue to disrupt at the highest levels."
This is the final edit of the non-diegetic speech we will use.
Costume
As one of the effects of Autism is having sleep issues, insomnia and waking up in the middle of night to carry out tasks, our thriller is set at 3AM, so he'll be wearing pyjamas. To corroborate with the idea of the boy being obssessed with planes, we've decided that he'll be wearing pyjamas with cartoon planes on them. This will reinforce his obssession and also make him seem more childlike.
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| Here is an example of similar pyjamas. |
Wednesday 12 December 2012
Research into Set Design
Boy's bedrooms
This is our research of
boys bedrooms in order to know what a teenage boys have in their room and what
colours and objects may be found in order to inspire our characters room. As our
character loves technology we must insure that the room displays lots of
technology and gadgets.
As you can see the rooms have prominant colours schemes of blues, greens and blacks.
As you can see the rooms have prominant colours schemes of blues, greens and blacks.
The Cast (one man band)
The character of the autistic boy should be played by an actor who is:
- Able to act vulnerable yet mature
- Good Actor
- Appealing to a young audience
- Able to be tried in America for an adult
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| Chosen Actor: Andrew Irving We've chosen Andrew as our actor, firstly for me, because he fits the image in my mind's eye, but also because he's a young actor who we think will be able to portray the symptoms of Autism effectively. As he is 17, he will appeal to our target audience and he also fits the common stereotype that teenagers are fixated on computing and therefore the scenario appears more likely to occur. |
Props List
- A bed
- A computer desk
- A table
- A bed-side lamp
- A digital clock
- Airfix equipment
- 10 Rubik's Cubes
- A computer, mouse and keyboard
- Posters
- A chair
- A bed-side table
- Pyjamas
We want to have an Airfix model on the table to do a perspective shot, where the model plane appears to be bigger than the boy; this would connote that planes absorb his life and that they secrets, concerning the planes, which he will uncover are much bigger than him. We're going to use a Boeing 767 model as this is the type of both planes which crashed into the twin towers.
The reason for having a computer desk is, mainly, to put the computer on; however, we chose a wood desk so that it'll look homely, therefore making the location clear (his bedroom). This will also be the location for the Rubik's cubes and we chose to put them here so that they're close to t he computer, suggesting that two things he loves, code breaking and computers, are soon to come together.
The Rubik's Cubes connote that the boy likes and is very good as problem solving and as this type of puzzle is renoun for being really hard, it will show that the boy has superior knowledge to normal people. This will hint at the idea that he can crack codes which average people can't which links to the storyline.
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The alarm clock may seem to be unnecessary, but it is actually an important hint at the boy's Autism. From research, I found out that Autistic people often find it hard to sleep through night and get up and do activities. We will set the clock to the early hours of the morning to show that he's woken up in the middle of the night to hack into the database.
Posters will be around the room to show the boy's obsession with aviation. We will have a mix of both commerial and war planes to show that, even though he's interested in 9/11 and the commercial planes involved, the idea of war and conflict is also present in his mind.
The lamp will be the main source of light in the room and so the room will be dark. Subtly, this will suggest that something dark and secretive is going on, however is won't be too obvious and the room will still seem homely.
Thursday 29 November 2012
Additional Research
The Asperger’s effect
We investigate the changing attitudes to
autism
First, take the AQ testPsychologist Simon Baron-Cohen and his colleagues at Cambridge’s Autism Research Centre have created the Autism Spectrum Quotient, or AQ, as a measure of the extent of autistic traits in adults. The test is not a means for making a diagnosis, and many who score above 32 and even meet the diagnostic criteria for mild autism or Asperger’s report no difficulty functioning in their everyday lives. A high score on the AQ test is not by itself diagnostic.
Louis Theroux - Extreme Love, Autism
We are aware that we have to represent Autistic people accuratley, so, as well as researching characteristics, we have watched some clips from Louis Theroux's documentary on Autism.
The documentary isn't available on YouTube, however, this link will take you to BBC 2's page where you can watch clips from the programme.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00r97tf
Also, here is a documentary about Aspergers which I found on YouTube.
The documentary isn't available on YouTube, however, this link will take you to BBC 2's page where you can watch clips from the programme.
Also, here is a documentary about Aspergers which I found on YouTube.
Characteristics of Autism
Uneven Motor Skills
Autistic children exhibit uneven motor skills. Some may not be able to perform even the simplest of tasks, such as hop or stand still on one leg, use a spoon or fork, or dress themselves. However, the same children may exhibit other gifted characteristics, such as drawing, playing music or arranging toys in a complicated manner. Their motor skills follow no set developmental pattern, and while they may perform exceptionally well in certain areas, their performance in other, more common areas is often grossly inadequate.
Many people with autism, and their carers, suffer from sleep problems, such as insomnia.
Problems with sleep issues:
Problems falling asleep
Frequent waking during the night
Early morning waking
Short duration sleep
Irregular sleep patterns
Bed-wetting or soiling
Daytime sleepiness
Causes and other sleep issues:
the neurochemical make up of children with autism. For example, it is possible children with autism may have an irregular pattern of melatonin secretion
the physical make up of some children with autism. For example children with Rett syndrome have breathing problems, which may affect their ability to sleep
the inability of children with autism to use social cues to synchronize their sleep/wake cycle. They may simply not understand that it is time for bed or when it is time to get up.
underlying problems such as anxiety or behavioural difficulties. They may be frightened of the dark or of being left alone by their carers.
sensory sensitivities. Some children are extremely sensitive to things in their immediate environment, such as fluorescent lights
allergies and food sensitivities. Children with autism may be especially sensitive to foodstuffs like sugar, caffeine and additives which can keep them awake.
Repetitive Behaviour and Routines
Children with autism often show issues in the area of routines or repetitive behaviors. Many children demonstrate an obsessive need for sameness. They may have great difficulty when home or classroom routines are changed, possibly throwing huge tantrums. They may insist upon having everything in the same place all the time and get very upset if anything is moved. Sometimes a verbal child may show this desire for sameness in a preoccupation with a certain subject or area of interest to the exclusion of all others.
Physical Characteristics
Many children with autism exhibit what is called self-stimulatory behavior: rapid, repetitive motor movements such as flapping hands, flicking fingers, or spinning things.
Autistic children exhibit uneven motor skills. Some may not be able to perform even the simplest of tasks, such as hop or stand still on one leg, use a spoon or fork, or dress themselves. However, the same children may exhibit other gifted characteristics, such as drawing, playing music or arranging toys in a complicated manner. Their motor skills follow no set developmental pattern, and while they may perform exceptionally well in certain areas, their performance in other, more common areas is often grossly inadequate.
Many people with autism, and their carers, suffer from sleep problems, such as insomnia.
Problems with sleep issues:
Causes and other sleep issues:
Repetitive Behaviour and Routines
Children with autism often show issues in the area of routines or repetitive behaviors. Many children demonstrate an obsessive need for sameness. They may have great difficulty when home or classroom routines are changed, possibly throwing huge tantrums. They may insist upon having everything in the same place all the time and get very upset if anything is moved. Sometimes a verbal child may show this desire for sameness in a preoccupation with a certain subject or area of interest to the exclusion of all others.
Physical Characteristics
Many children with autism exhibit what is called self-stimulatory behavior: rapid, repetitive motor movements such as flapping hands, flicking fingers, or spinning things.
Wednesday 28 November 2012
Analysis of Opening Sequences 2
The Andromeda Strain
This classic sequence of opening titles is one which we draw inspiration from for our own opening sequence. The black background denotes dark and sinister themes and the use of white writing not only highlights the contrast between good and bad but also suggests a glimmer of hope. The red writing insinuates blood, death and danger, themes which are prominant in the film as it's about a deadly alien epidemic which must be destroyed quickly.
The use of lots of writing and the institutional-style font, suggests that the film involves issues with medicine and documenting progress; we especially see this from this frame: "WORK IN PROGRESS". The use of blue writing not only suggests something cold and negative is going to occur but also links with the idea of hospitals and medicine.
This classic sequence of opening titles is one which we draw inspiration from for our own opening sequence. The black background denotes dark and sinister themes and the use of white writing not only highlights the contrast between good and bad but also suggests a glimmer of hope. The red writing insinuates blood, death and danger, themes which are prominant in the film as it's about a deadly alien epidemic which must be destroyed quickly.
The use of lots of writing and the institutional-style font, suggests that the film involves issues with medicine and documenting progress; we especially see this from this frame: "WORK IN PROGRESS". The use of blue writing not only suggests something cold and negative is going to occur but also links with the idea of hospitals and medicine.
A common theme which our film shares with The Andromeda Strain is the idea that higher powers are decieving the public and keeping secrets from them; in this case, the government is keeping the epidemic secret to avoid wide spread panic. The word "SECRET" repeatedly moves along the screen and the blocks of text moving in a linear ways have a technological feel so them- they're numerical and therefore relate to the techno theme. Furthermore, because of this, we've drawn inspiration from this sequence and intend on using linear movement paths for our credits in order to keep the techno feel. Also, the slow movement is a feature we're going to use as it suggests slyness and therefore secrecy: themes which are prominant in our film.
Tuesday 27 November 2012
Analysis of Opening Sequences
AUDITION
In the trailer for the film Audition, we can tell it's a horror due to to nature of the images we see; needles, sharp instruments, screaming people, a body bag, hacking, scratches on legs, a girl waiting for a man to call and the same girl hiding behind a tree.
The taster of the film is that it's a gory one and we get this through the, previously listed, mise-en-scene. The ideas of waiting and hiding are ones which are characteristic of thriller/horror films so we can therefore assume the film fits into these genres. The colouring is dark and the use of red connotes blood, death and gore which are very prominent themes in horror films. This connotation of blood is further reinforced by the black and white splattering and dripping effects used to show the titles. The use of the contrasting colours, black and white, clearly show conflict and foreshadow the events in the film and all these things are how we can tell the film is either a horror or a thriller. Plus, at the beginning, there is an establishing shot of a deserted location - a telltale sign of a thriller film.
THE SKIN I LIVE IN
This trailer is also very obviously for a thriller/horror film and we can see this through a variety of pointers. The initial idea of watching/surveillance is shown, which is a characteristic of a thriller, as is the idea of obsession, which is shown by the man licking the screen and his clear obsession with science and testing. The science area of this trailer tilts the film in to the horror genre, however it's predominantly a thriller. The visual of a hostage being sprayed with a water canon and the abduction of the girl all catagorise the film as a thriller, as well as the section of running and catching - predator and prey. Guns are shown at least 6 times, which further shows that violence is a key theme in the film, as do the images of fighting.
In the way of colouring, the trailer doesn't have much to connote the genre, although the bulk of the trailer is dimly lit. Overall, from, mainly, the mise-en-scene of the trailer, we can see the film is a thriller, with aspects of horror.
In the trailer for the film Audition, we can tell it's a horror due to to nature of the images we see; needles, sharp instruments, screaming people, a body bag, hacking, scratches on legs, a girl waiting for a man to call and the same girl hiding behind a tree.
The taster of the film is that it's a gory one and we get this through the, previously listed, mise-en-scene. The ideas of waiting and hiding are ones which are characteristic of thriller/horror films so we can therefore assume the film fits into these genres. The colouring is dark and the use of red connotes blood, death and gore which are very prominent themes in horror films. This connotation of blood is further reinforced by the black and white splattering and dripping effects used to show the titles. The use of the contrasting colours, black and white, clearly show conflict and foreshadow the events in the film and all these things are how we can tell the film is either a horror or a thriller. Plus, at the beginning, there is an establishing shot of a deserted location - a telltale sign of a thriller film.
THE SKIN I LIVE IN
This trailer is also very obviously for a thriller/horror film and we can see this through a variety of pointers. The initial idea of watching/surveillance is shown, which is a characteristic of a thriller, as is the idea of obsession, which is shown by the man licking the screen and his clear obsession with science and testing. The science area of this trailer tilts the film in to the horror genre, however it's predominantly a thriller. The visual of a hostage being sprayed with a water canon and the abduction of the girl all catagorise the film as a thriller, as well as the section of running and catching - predator and prey. Guns are shown at least 6 times, which further shows that violence is a key theme in the film, as do the images of fighting.
In the way of colouring, the trailer doesn't have much to connote the genre, although the bulk of the trailer is dimly lit. Overall, from, mainly, the mise-en-scene of the trailer, we can see the film is a thriller, with aspects of horror.
Monday 26 November 2012
Voice Over for Thriller
I suggested we use this quote of Gary McKinnon's message which he left on the systems he hacked as the voice over for our thriller sequence. I think it gives a good impression of the film but doesn't give too much away so that the film could either be about the story of what happened when the boy hacks the computers or what happened afterwards.
Here is the quote:
"US foreign policy is akin to Government-sponsored terrorism these days … It was not a mistake that there was a huge security stand down on September 11 last year … I am SOLO. I will continue to disrupt at the highest levels … "
It is from this we derived the title "SOLO".
Also, the use of a voice over may set up an enigma at the beginning of the film, which will increase interest, curiosity and draw in an audience.
Here is the quote:
"US foreign policy is akin to Government-sponsored terrorism these days … It was not a mistake that there was a huge security stand down on September 11 last year … I am SOLO. I will continue to disrupt at the highest levels … "
It is from this we derived the title "SOLO".
Also, the use of a voice over may set up an enigma at the beginning of the film, which will increase interest, curiosity and draw in an audience.
The Original SOLO
Our inspiration for our thriller comes from the actions and events surrounding a Scottish man, Gary McKinnon.
Gary McKinnon (born 10 February 1966) is a Scottish Systems Administrator and hacker who was accused in 2002 of perpetrating the "biggest military computer hack of all time," although McKinnon himself – who has a diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrom – states that he was merely looking for evidence of free energy suppression and a cover-up of UFO activity and other technologies potentially useful to the public. On 16 October 2012, after a series of legal proceedings in Britain, Home Secretary Theresa May withdrew his extradation order to the United States.
McKinnon is accused of hacking into
97 United States military and NASA computers over a 13-month period
between February 2001 and March 2002, at his girlfriend's aunt's house in
London, using the name 'Solo'.
The US authorities claim he deleted
critical files from operating systems, which shut down the US Army’s Military
District of Washington network of 2,000 computers for 24 hours. McKinnon also
posted a notice on the military's website: "Your security is crap".
After the September 11 attacks in 2001, he deleted weapons logs at the
Earle Naval Weapons Station rendering its network of 300 computers inoperable
and paralyzing munitions supply deliveries for the US Navy's Atlantic Fleet.
McKinnon is also accused of copying data, account files and passwords onto his
own computer. US authorities claim the cost of tracking and correcting the
problems he caused was over $700,000.
While not admitting that it constituted
evidence of destruction, McKinnon did admit leaving a threat on one computer:
"US foreign policy is akin to Government-sponsored terrorism these
days … It was not a mistake that there was a huge security stand down on
September 11 last year … I am SOLO. I will continue to disrupt at the highest
levels … "
US authorities claim that McKinnon is
trying to downplay his own actions. A senior military officer at the Pentagon
told The Sunday Telegraph: "US policy is to fight these
attacks as strongly as possible. As a result of Mr McKinnon's actions, we
suffered serious damage. This was not some harmless incident. He did very
serious and deliberate damage to military and Nasa computers and left silly and
anti-America messages. All the evidence was that someone was staging a very
serious attack on US computer systems.
Friday 23 November 2012
Preliminary Rough Cut
This is a rough cut of our thriller; we filmed it in my bedroom, however it's only the first half. In the real thing, the second half of the sequence would show the boy sitting down at his computer and would then lead into the hacking sequence.
Thursday 22 November 2012
Shot by Shot Guide
1.First we see a bird’s eye view of the tidy boys room, with
the boy in bed asleep. The room is covered in posters of aeroplanes and Air fix
models neatly placed on a desk next to his computer. This aeroplane theme runs
throughout the room and is an occurring feature to the boys persona.
2.Next we see a medium shot of the boy sat on the bed,
looking wide awake. The abrupt movement of him sitting up connoting he had a
troubling dream.
3.We then see a close up of the boy leaning over and turning
the bed side light on. He flicks the switch, then the shot changes too….
4.A close up of the filament in the light bulb. The filament
then exposes to a bright white colour which feels the screen.
5.The white screen then zooms out to reveal a poster and
continues to zoom out until we are back to the previous shot of his profile.
6.The camera then rotates around the back of the boys head,
using the back of his head as the rotation point.
7. The camera zooms
into the Rubik’s cube to show he has focused his attention onto it. Then the
camera zooms into a single square.
8.The colour that is focused on the Rubik’s cube fills the
screen, the colour then changes, sliding on a colour scale.
8. a) After the screen has gone through the colour scale and
the titles have been shown, the final colour will be light grey.
9. From this shot of the whole, grey, screen, we slowly zoom
out to reveal that the grey is the colour of a cartoon plane on the boy’s
pyjama bottoms. The camera keeps zooming out until the boy’s feet and calves
are in view.
10. This shot continues into tracking shot of the boy
walking across the room until he is in the left of the frame. The camera follows his feet and, to do so,
rotates 90 degrees and also reverses under a table and we see the table leg
come slightly into view – out of focus. The tracking shot is from an inferior
level so when he walks to the other side of the room to the computer and desk,
the perspective makes him look smaller than the table leg. From this view we
also his hand reach to the left.
10. a) Here will be a match on action shot of his hand
picking up the unfinished Rubik’s Cube and his hand moving back towards his
body.
10. b) We then return to the previous shot and see the rest
of this movement.
11. The camera then tilts/pans up the table leg to reveal a
model plane on the table. Here, because of the perspective, the plane looks
life-size compared to the boy.
11. b) The camera then pans along the table and as it looks
through a magnifying glass, the boy’s head is warped and magnified – signifying
his intelligence. The pan finishes with him on the right of the frame. We see
his arm start to reach out…
12. Match on action of his hand putting the completed
Rubik’s cube down and moving his hand away – we don’t see the surface the
puzzle is placed on… (the colour we see from the front of the cube is red, to
signify danger.)
12. a) until the camera zooms out to reveal that the
completed Rubik’s cube has been placed on top of an organised pile of around 8
other Rubik’s cubes. The screen then snaps into black.
13. Then, with the black background, a green ‘1’ is typed on
to the screen. Then slowly, a ‘0’ and then, with increasing speed, green binary
code fills the screen. The black background is then replaced by the image of
the out of focus silhouette of the boy typing.
14. Then, the camera rotates 90 degrees and, through
editing, will go through the layers of the computer and come out the other side
to show…
14 a) a medium close up of the boy’s profile, lit by the
light of the computer. The camera then tracks behind his head, suspends for a
moment and then appears to fly into the screen and delves into a world of
numbers.
SE7EN TITLE SEQUENCE- text appearances
I've logged all the appearances of text in the title sequence of Se7en to note the way the text has been ordered and, in this case, it's in order of importance.
From researching which names appear and it what order, I now know the titles which should appear in our credits. For example, I know that the producer, director and lead actors should come first and then the other actors, casting director, musical director, costume designer, editor, director of photography and writer(s) come afterwards, in that order. The director can either be at the start, the beginning or both as they are regarded as the most important role in the creation of the film.
Wednesday 31 October 2012
Cooper's Influence
For our thriller idea, we're focusing on an autistic boy who works frantically to crack a code which leads him to a powerful database of information. When I watched the opening credits for Se7en, it really inspired me and gave me ideas for the opening credits for our own thriller sequence.
I really like the scratchy, non-diegetic sounds effects and think they are responsible for the majority of the creepy atmosphere the audience experiences. I'd like to try to mirror these sound effects, but replace them with computer noises and tapping (on the keyboard). Not only can these set the scene and really heighten the impression that; firstly, the boy knows a lot about computing; but secondly, the sense of excitement and suspense can be increased via the use of beeping and tapping noises which increase in tempo and pitch.
I also really liked the way Cooper portrays the anonymity of the man in the sequence of Se7en through his use of camera angles and editing. A shot I particularly like and would possibly like to replicate, but with our own twist, would be the one, shown below, of anonymous hands, out of focus, turning pages which are in focus.
I really like the scratchy, non-diegetic sounds effects and think they are responsible for the majority of the creepy atmosphere the audience experiences. I'd like to try to mirror these sound effects, but replace them with computer noises and tapping (on the keyboard). Not only can these set the scene and really heighten the impression that; firstly, the boy knows a lot about computing; but secondly, the sense of excitement and suspense can be increased via the use of beeping and tapping noises which increase in tempo and pitch.
I also really liked the way Cooper portrays the anonymity of the man in the sequence of Se7en through his use of camera angles and editing. A shot I particularly like and would possibly like to replicate, but with our own twist, would be the one, shown below, of anonymous hands, out of focus, turning pages which are in focus.
This is a shot and use of editing which I can imagine being applied to the boy - we see anonymous hands typing from the point of view as if we are in the computer screen, so we see an anonymous body and hands typing frantically - out of focus - but in focus we can see numbers and letters being types in to the command box.
From watching Kyle Cooper's work, I have many similar ideas which I'd like to talk to the rest of my group about and possibly try out.
Monday 29 October 2012
Kyle Cooper
"almost single-handedly revitalizing the main-title sequence as an art form".
Kyle Cooper is a director and designer of film title sequences; he holds an MFA in graphic design from the Yale School of Art and a BFA from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Imaginary Sources is the name of the creative agency he co-founded in 1996 which creates title, opening and end credits for films and programs. Se7en,Spider-Man, and The Mummy are just three of the 150+ films he's directed and produced in his years. Prologue Films is his second agency which he founded in 2003 and it was with this new agency he created title sequences for Iron Man, Tron: Legacy, and The Walking Dead. He was a finalist in the National Design Awards in 2008 and has earned five Emmy Award nominations and one win for his work on the 81st Annual Academy Awards. He also holds the title of Honorary Royal Designer for Industry from the Royal Society of Arts in London.
He designed the opening titles for the film Se7en which I find very interesting. As Se7en is a thriller film it's very interesting to see the effects Cooper has used to create suspense and provoke curiosity without giving away much detail about the film. The editing is well thought out, with the mix of dirty green and blood red colouring, giving the idea that gratuitous, dirty and violent deaths have occurred. We also see this again through the editing, it's jumpy and sharp looking. The non-diegetic music is scratchy and in some parts sounds like screaming. The non-diegetic heavy beat increases throughout the title sequence therefore increasing the suspense and tension. All the sounds used to create the music sound like sharp objects or weapons which corroborates with the idea of death and murder which appears to be very relevant to the film. The non-diegetic lyrics come in right at the end just as we see the word "GOD" being cut out from a dollar. The lyrics say "You've got me closer to God" which insinuates death has occurred. The visual reinforcement of the word "GOD" suggests there is a benevolent force is present throughout this film. The images we see are disturbing - we watch some body collecting evidence from murders and compiling it all into a book. The use of the needle and thread to bind the book together gives a very human feel, as if the person is about to stitch up a wound. When we see the person cross out a boy's eyes in a photo with a thick black pen, the impression created is that anonymity is very relevant to the film; and this idea is reinforced by the first image we see of blank ages being turned, which are in focus, by hands which are out of focus.
He designed the opening titles for the film Se7en which I find very interesting. As Se7en is a thriller film it's very interesting to see the effects Cooper has used to create suspense and provoke curiosity without giving away much detail about the film. The editing is well thought out, with the mix of dirty green and blood red colouring, giving the idea that gratuitous, dirty and violent deaths have occurred. We also see this again through the editing, it's jumpy and sharp looking. The non-diegetic music is scratchy and in some parts sounds like screaming. The non-diegetic heavy beat increases throughout the title sequence therefore increasing the suspense and tension. All the sounds used to create the music sound like sharp objects or weapons which corroborates with the idea of death and murder which appears to be very relevant to the film. The non-diegetic lyrics come in right at the end just as we see the word "GOD" being cut out from a dollar. The lyrics say "You've got me closer to God" which insinuates death has occurred. The visual reinforcement of the word "GOD" suggests there is a benevolent force is present throughout this film. The images we see are disturbing - we watch some body collecting evidence from murders and compiling it all into a book. The use of the needle and thread to bind the book together gives a very human feel, as if the person is about to stitch up a wound. When we see the person cross out a boy's eyes in a photo with a thick black pen, the impression created is that anonymity is very relevant to the film; and this idea is reinforced by the first image we see of blank ages being turned, which are in focus, by hands which are out of focus.
Sunday 28 October 2012
Target Audience Interview
This is a video of the interviews we did of members of our target audience.
Our Research
We have researched which type of films people aged 15-24, our target audience, prefer and if there is a difference between what girls like; and what boys like.
From our investigation we have discovered the following facts.
Boys
1.The majority of boys want a film that's exciting.
2. Their favorite genre is Thriller.
3. They are influenced by what their friends say.
4. They like watching films that are realistic.
Girls
1. Most girls want a film that makes them think and has a lasting effect on them.
2. An attractive lead actor is preferred.
3. They are interested how the trailer represents the film before they watch it and said that the trailer determines whether or not they would watch a film.
We also interviewed people within the age range of 25-55 as we wanted to see whether age effects peoples' choice of film. These are the results we gleaned.
1. They like films that are believable and realistic.
2. The film's reviews by established critics effects whether they watch a film or not.
3. They want a film which makes them think about "life, love and the universe".
From our investigation we have discovered the following facts.
Boys
1.The majority of boys want a film that's exciting.
2. Their favorite genre is Thriller.
3. They are influenced by what their friends say.
4. They like watching films that are realistic.
Girls
1. Most girls want a film that makes them think and has a lasting effect on them.
2. An attractive lead actor is preferred.
3. They are interested how the trailer represents the film before they watch it and said that the trailer determines whether or not they would watch a film.
We also interviewed people within the age range of 25-55 as we wanted to see whether age effects peoples' choice of film. These are the results we gleaned.
1. They like films that are believable and realistic.
2. The film's reviews by established critics effects whether they watch a film or not.
3. They want a film which makes them think about "life, love and the universe".
Friday 19 October 2012
Back to Square One
So, after pitching our idea and coming to the conclusion it's just too
complex, we're now thinking of ways to develop our new idea.
I had some inspiration recently about the type of puzzle we could use; I was on the computer and I clicked on a link on YouTube which for some reason wouldn't work and this came up:
After giving up trying to get YouTube to work and going on Facebook, from reading many irritated statuses, realised everyone's YouTube had gone down; which sparked an idea.
The autistic boy could be in the same situation, but instead of ignoring it and going on Facebook, like everyone else, he starts decoding the numbers and types them into the cmd box on his computer. We could use shots of perhaps 5 other people who, when their YouTube stops working, just get up and leave or go onto other sites; where we'd show the boy becoming interested. I imagine this shot being profile, in a dark room with his face only lit by the computer screen.
Then it goes black and the opening credits come up. We could do close up shots of the numbers and of his eyes flickering to show him working through the code and in conjunction with this, a quick non-diegetic soundtrack, with a fast beat, could come in. Over the top of these images, the opening credits can still come up. At the end of the sequence, the F.B.I data base would come up and he's got through the passwords. As soon as the image of the data base comes up, the non-diegetic music would stop, the screen would then fade to black and in cmd style font, the title of the film would be typed out.
Here is an example of a cmd command box:
I had some inspiration recently about the type of puzzle we could use; I was on the computer and I clicked on a link on YouTube which for some reason wouldn't work and this came up:
After giving up trying to get YouTube to work and going on Facebook, from reading many irritated statuses, realised everyone's YouTube had gone down; which sparked an idea.
The autistic boy could be in the same situation, but instead of ignoring it and going on Facebook, like everyone else, he starts decoding the numbers and types them into the cmd box on his computer. We could use shots of perhaps 5 other people who, when their YouTube stops working, just get up and leave or go onto other sites; where we'd show the boy becoming interested. I imagine this shot being profile, in a dark room with his face only lit by the computer screen.
Then it goes black and the opening credits come up. We could do close up shots of the numbers and of his eyes flickering to show him working through the code and in conjunction with this, a quick non-diegetic soundtrack, with a fast beat, could come in. Over the top of these images, the opening credits can still come up. At the end of the sequence, the F.B.I data base would come up and he's got through the passwords. As soon as the image of the data base comes up, the non-diegetic music would stop, the screen would then fade to black and in cmd style font, the title of the film would be typed out.
Here is an example of a cmd command box:
I have yet to pitch
this idea to the rest of the group, but I hope they'll like it and have ideas
to add to and improve it.
Notes and Feedback
Here are the notes we got from when we presented our thriller idea:
We decided it'd be easier to completely change the idea than to try to alter it as we went into so much depth it'd be hard to change the plot of a story we were so set on.
We've decided to make a thriller which is a mix of a supernatural thriller and a conspiracy thriller.
The idea is that there is a young autistic boy who is doing some sort of child's puzzle and manages to find a code which links to the F.B.I. He almost has a sixth sense when it comes to codes and numbers because, due to his condition, he can't sense emotions very easily but he can decode numbers because they make sense to him.
I found the presenting process very positive as it helped us to learn how to confidently present an idea and it also meant that we could get some perspective and not get into a storyline where we're not out of our depth.
We're currently thinking of ways to shows the autism of the boy, we're thinking about what type of puzzle he'll be doing and who he will call, but the skeleton of the idea is there and we like the idea.
- It's too complicated - You'd have to go to Uganda to do the idea any justice, otherwise it wouldn't work.
- Keep it in the back of your mind.
- Try to change to idea to remove the abduction.
We decided it'd be easier to completely change the idea than to try to alter it as we went into so much depth it'd be hard to change the plot of a story we were so set on.
We've decided to make a thriller which is a mix of a supernatural thriller and a conspiracy thriller.
The idea is that there is a young autistic boy who is doing some sort of child's puzzle and manages to find a code which links to the F.B.I. He almost has a sixth sense when it comes to codes and numbers because, due to his condition, he can't sense emotions very easily but he can decode numbers because they make sense to him.
I found the presenting process very positive as it helped us to learn how to confidently present an idea and it also meant that we could get some perspective and not get into a storyline where we're not out of our depth.
We're currently thinking of ways to shows the autism of the boy, we're thinking about what type of puzzle he'll be doing and who he will call, but the skeleton of the idea is there and we like the idea.
Monday 15 October 2012
Coming to Conclusions
The day before we had to present out thriller ideas, our
group had yet to decide upon an idea, so we all met for a good few hours to
think it through and in those hours, we finally had a brainwave.
We got chatting about conspiracy theories, something which
we’re all interested in and I’ve always been interested in Third World
countries; I’ve researched it, done speeches about it and, last year, went on
an aids trip to Uganda. Whilst there, we found that there is a very obvious
divide between the very rich and the very poor, so I thought our thriller could
be a possible explanation of why this is happening.
I have a piece of footage from that trip, where about 8
English students are playing with about 25 Ugandan children under and
parachute. We all lifted it up and rushed underneath and I have a film of this from our perspective – as if the viewer is under the parachute as well. All the colours
are vivid and the camera is almost spinning and you can see the English and
Ugandan people playing happily together. Similar to this, however the parachute is a lot smaller so you can see people's expressions. Also, I suggested we edit it so it's bright and vivid, like a dream-like memory.
I suggested we use this piece of
footage as the opening with a non-diegetic voiceover, which sets the scene and
presents the happy side of Africa. The voiceover narrates what’s going on, but
has a dark tone so the audience knows something’s amiss, suggesting the darker
side of Africa and therefore the conspiracy is foreshadowed.
We all liked this idea and developed the second section of
the opening sequence to show one of the students being abducted because she
found out the secret. We talked about the idea and got into more depth about
the shots we’d use and finally decided that this is the idea that we’re all
interested in and would like to put forward.
To pitch the idea, we all created aspects of a powerpoint, which I animated and compiled. It was quite wordy, however when we presented the idea it was verbally communicated and the powerpoint was more of a prompt for us.
The idea behind the thriller is to suggest to the audience
they should look a little deeper into society, something which we are all
interested in doing.
Sunday 14 October 2012
Subgenres of Thrillers
THRILLER SUBGENRES
Conspiracy Thrillers
Typically, the protagonists of films in this subgenre are amateur journalists or inexperienced investigators who stumble upon large conspiracies. This usually ends up with them becoming part of a major investigation so the audience sees the story delevop as well as the character. Whodunnit and detective stories are typical of this. Conspiracy thrillers usually focus on a major crime which has been hidden from the general public by propaganda, lies and rumours.
Political Thrillers
Political thrillers focus on corruption, warfare and terrorism as a general point; and these films are very similar to conspiracy thrillers, the fundamental difference being that the secret which is uncovered is involved with a political crime committed by people who are in power against the general public. For example, a powerful political group will use propaganda and lies to fulfil their ulterior motives to establish total power or financial gain.
Spy Thrillers
Techno-thrillers
Techno-thrillers tend to cross over with science fiction; the plot is usually based on fictional technologies- martial arts, life forms and other worlds and consequently the ideas in the film are therefore very contemporary. Often, these films are set in the future, either distant or near. This catagory is a close relative of science fiction.
Supernatural Thrillers
This subgenre includes aspects of fantasy and horror films but gets the thriller element because the plots of these films are unpredictable, with lots of twists and shocks. Generally, ghosts and the dead are the main focus of these films and they are reached by the protagonist through some psychic ability or sixth sense.
Conspiracy Thrillers
Typically, the protagonists of films in this subgenre are amateur journalists or inexperienced investigators who stumble upon large conspiracies. This usually ends up with them becoming part of a major investigation so the audience sees the story delevop as well as the character. Whodunnit and detective stories are typical of this. Conspiracy thrillers usually focus on a major crime which has been hidden from the general public by propaganda, lies and rumours.
Political Thrillers
Political thrillers focus on corruption, warfare and terrorism as a general point; and these films are very similar to conspiracy thrillers, the fundamental difference being that the secret which is uncovered is involved with a political crime committed by people who are in power against the general public. For example, a powerful political group will use propaganda and lies to fulfil their ulterior motives to establish total power or financial gain.
Spy Thrillers
The Spy thriller overlaps with the action genre as there's usually a lot of violence involved, however the thriller aspect comes in because the spy's motive is usually to defeat evildoers. Technological thrills and exciting escapism are two more aspects which firstly, add an element of science to the films, but secondly, separate the spy thriller from the, blankly violent, action genre. These films are popular worldwide as they create obvious heroes for the audiences to empathise with.
A typical example of this are the James Bond films.
Pshychological Thrillers
This type of thriller has a heavy focus on the mental and emotional states of characters and often portray events through the eyes of more warped characters. The films are often hard to get your head around and require a lot of concentration. These films often incoperate mysterious aspects which add to the drama of the films. As these films focus on people's warped views of the world, the plot often involves strong elements of horror. The suspense in this subgenre is created by the use of deceptive dramatic techniques, which takes the audience on a more personal journey because, in order to understand the film, they must empathise with the psychologically disturbed character(s). A great example of this is the film Identity.
Techno-thrillers
Techno-thrillers tend to cross over with science fiction; the plot is usually based on fictional technologies- martial arts, life forms and other worlds and consequently the ideas in the film are therefore very contemporary. Often, these films are set in the future, either distant or near. This catagory is a close relative of science fiction.
Supernatural Thrillers
This subgenre includes aspects of fantasy and horror films but gets the thriller element because the plots of these films are unpredictable, with lots of twists and shocks. Generally, ghosts and the dead are the main focus of these films and they are reached by the protagonist through some psychic ability or sixth sense.
Friday 5 October 2012
My First Thriller Idea
My first thriller idea is
set in a busy tube station in London.
I will aim to film it in a documentary style so it appears to be realistic in order to thrill the audience more as the situation they witness will appear to be a possibility in their own lives. The lighting will be bright, like a vivid memory, and I will edit it so it’s skipping a lot, almost dreamlike.
The finer details would be left uncertain and I will do this by leaving things out of focus, such as the faces of certain characters to create a sense of mystery. It will be a restricted narrative because we know the child gets taken, but we don’t know who by because the memory of the faces is blurry.
I will aim to film it in a documentary style so it appears to be realistic in order to thrill the audience more as the situation they witness will appear to be a possibility in their own lives. The lighting will be bright, like a vivid memory, and I will edit it so it’s skipping a lot, almost dreamlike.
The finer details would be left uncertain and I will do this by leaving things out of focus, such as the faces of certain characters to create a sense of mystery. It will be a restricted narrative because we know the child gets taken, but we don’t know who by because the memory of the faces is blurry.
The ‘distinctive’ item which four of the characters wear in
the trailer will be something like a badge or they’ll all have a tattoo or a
gold tooth, something which bonds them together as a group, but still subtle.
These characters will have dark clothing on whereas the children will be
wearing lighter colours. The mother will wear something in between the two,
suggesting she’s not totally innocent and there’s a reason why her child has
been taken.
Here is a story board:
Thursday 4 October 2012
Wednesday 3 October 2012
Editing Our Preliminary Task
As this was our first time filming a proper sequence it was also our first time editing material, which meant the quality wasn't brilliant but I learnt a lot from the experience.
We edited our sequence using Final Cut Pro and the first thing we learnt to do on this program was to check in and out; by clicking the cog on the left of the screen and selecting 'Check Out', we then had to save the work to our Desktop. To check out, the order is reversed to save the work back on to the server.
We learnt about and created Logging Bins and learnt the appropriate names for them. The Bin named "Rushes" is for the best clips and the ones we wanted to work with and the Bin named "Logs" is for all the clips, to keep them in one place.
When editing I enjoyed the challenge of trying to make the clips fit together seamlessly and this was quite a large challenge for us as the continuity was quite bad. This meant that when trying to edit clips together the action didn't fit so we had to spend a long time trying to cover up these mistakes. Things such as one of our actresses not standing on the marker meant that between shots she appeared to be jumping around the room.
I thought our idea matched the storyboard well and I thought we made the most thrilling sequence we could with the script we were given.
I suggested an extra shot of the victims hand and head hitting the floor (match on action) which worked really well because of two things; number one, it was used to cover up a continuity error; and number two; it made the sequence more interesting and stylised.
If I could redo the preliminary task I would use more shots, such as the over the shoulder shots so that we could incorporate the 180 degree rule. I would also have spent more time making the sound run through the shots more fluidly as in some parts, due to poor continuity, speech was cut off. We started to run the speech through shots to cover up these issues however we ran out of time.
We worked well as a team and each had a go at editing and I feel we all have a good understanding of how to use Final Cut Pro. I'm keen to film another sequence and practice my editing skills to ensure that our thriller is a really good, well edited and throughout piece of work.
We edited our sequence using Final Cut Pro and the first thing we learnt to do on this program was to check in and out; by clicking the cog on the left of the screen and selecting 'Check Out', we then had to save the work to our Desktop. To check out, the order is reversed to save the work back on to the server.
We learnt about and created Logging Bins and learnt the appropriate names for them. The Bin named "Rushes" is for the best clips and the ones we wanted to work with and the Bin named "Logs" is for all the clips, to keep them in one place.
When editing I enjoyed the challenge of trying to make the clips fit together seamlessly and this was quite a large challenge for us as the continuity was quite bad. This meant that when trying to edit clips together the action didn't fit so we had to spend a long time trying to cover up these mistakes. Things such as one of our actresses not standing on the marker meant that between shots she appeared to be jumping around the room.
I thought our idea matched the storyboard well and I thought we made the most thrilling sequence we could with the script we were given.
I suggested an extra shot of the victims hand and head hitting the floor (match on action) which worked really well because of two things; number one, it was used to cover up a continuity error; and number two; it made the sequence more interesting and stylised.
If I could redo the preliminary task I would use more shots, such as the over the shoulder shots so that we could incorporate the 180 degree rule. I would also have spent more time making the sound run through the shots more fluidly as in some parts, due to poor continuity, speech was cut off. We started to run the speech through shots to cover up these issues however we ran out of time.
We worked well as a team and each had a go at editing and I feel we all have a good understanding of how to use Final Cut Pro. I'm keen to film another sequence and practice my editing skills to ensure that our thriller is a really good, well edited and throughout piece of work.
Wednesday 19 September 2012
Preliminary Filming
In our preliminary task, we used the idea of someone being forced to break someone's neck to fit the storyboard we were given. I suggested the idea because in our theatre lesson earlier in the day, we'd learnt how to fake it as part of a stage combat session and as it's such a violent action I thought it fitted the genre: thriller.
We chose to use the set of a house which was set up in the studio because it had deliberately been made to look derilict and abandonded, a theme of setting which often crops up in thriller films. The set also gave the atmosphere of the sequence a fair amount of tension before any action occurred.
We used three actors so that all of our group could experience being behind the camera and we each had a try at being different roles, such as director, continuity person and cameraperson.
Firstly, we filmed a wide shot of the whole room, being careful to frame the shot correctly so as not to show any of the studio (the room only had three walls). We did this to have a full view of all the action occurring; all three actors started offset and entered through a door so it was essential the audience can see this.
After we'd filmed the wide shot, we moved the camera to to our right and filmed the action from a low, inferior, angle. We framed the shot so that we could see the face of the people in the foreground and tried to film the person in the background out of focus.
We also filmed a close up of the victim's face while we were at this angle, which meant we could see her expressions and reactions fully.
Next, we used the 180 degree rule and moved behind the right shoulder of the character who was in the background. We filmed it from a superior angle to show that they have more power than the other two. I also suggested we use the use of levels to show the status of the characters and I think this worked well as the victim was on sat on her knees, the person holding her was kneeling up and the person in control of the situation was stood.
We chose to use the set of a house which was set up in the studio because it had deliberately been made to look derilict and abandonded, a theme of setting which often crops up in thriller films. The set also gave the atmosphere of the sequence a fair amount of tension before any action occurred.
We used three actors so that all of our group could experience being behind the camera and we each had a try at being different roles, such as director, continuity person and cameraperson.
Firstly, we filmed a wide shot of the whole room, being careful to frame the shot correctly so as not to show any of the studio (the room only had three walls). We did this to have a full view of all the action occurring; all three actors started offset and entered through a door so it was essential the audience can see this.
After we'd filmed the wide shot, we moved the camera to to our right and filmed the action from a low, inferior, angle. We framed the shot so that we could see the face of the people in the foreground and tried to film the person in the background out of focus.
We also filmed a close up of the victim's face while we were at this angle, which meant we could see her expressions and reactions fully.
Tuesday 18 September 2012
Filming A Sequence
The first time we got to film a short sequence, I was in a group with three other people. This meant that we all got the opportunity to try out the different roles involved in filming.
Firstly, I was acting, so I learnt that continuity is very important and it makes the experience much easier if the actor is switched on and remembers continuity details.
Secondly, I was the director, which meant I had to call "Standby" to which the other members had to reply "Standby".
The director says "Roll over" to the cameraman to signal them to start the recording.
Then the cameraman called "Rolling" and I followed with, the famous, "Action!"
We explored a variety of shots and while I was the director I got to choose the type of shot we used and how it was framed. I really enjoyed doing this and it was a fun challenge to try to introduce aspects such as the rule of thirds when framing a shot. As well as this, we all checked the exposure, focus and zoom were all in check and each time we set up a new shot, we readjusted the focus (and obviously zoom)
We filmed one wide shot, a few medium shots and a few close ups.
Our sequence was of a girl picking up a phone from a chair, looking at the time, chucking the phone back on the chair and walking away. (everyone had the opportunity to play the girl.
We filmed one wide shot of the whole sequence, to show the location and proxemics; a medium shot of the chair, for which we lowered the tripod to get the chair and camera at the same level; a close up of the actor's face, to show her reaction and a close up of the time, which was the focus of the sequence. This close up is what delivers the information.
I really enjoyed every part of the whole process and I found it to be quite simple. I learnt that continuity is very important and it is something I now strive to pay attention to.
Firstly, I was acting, so I learnt that continuity is very important and it makes the experience much easier if the actor is switched on and remembers continuity details.
Secondly, I was the director, which meant I had to call "Standby" to which the other members had to reply "Standby".
The director says "Roll over" to the cameraman to signal them to start the recording.
Then the cameraman called "Rolling" and I followed with, the famous, "Action!"
We explored a variety of shots and while I was the director I got to choose the type of shot we used and how it was framed. I really enjoyed doing this and it was a fun challenge to try to introduce aspects such as the rule of thirds when framing a shot. As well as this, we all checked the exposure, focus and zoom were all in check and each time we set up a new shot, we readjusted the focus (and obviously zoom)
We filmed one wide shot, a few medium shots and a few close ups.
Our sequence was of a girl picking up a phone from a chair, looking at the time, chucking the phone back on the chair and walking away. (everyone had the opportunity to play the girl.
We filmed one wide shot of the whole sequence, to show the location and proxemics; a medium shot of the chair, for which we lowered the tripod to get the chair and camera at the same level; a close up of the actor's face, to show her reaction and a close up of the time, which was the focus of the sequence. This close up is what delivers the information.
I really enjoyed every part of the whole process and I found it to be quite simple. I learnt that continuity is very important and it is something I now strive to pay attention to.
Monday 17 September 2012
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