Similar Media Works

These are the slides that I have completed for the Similar Media Works Presentation. They will be collated and combined with the slides that the other group members have worked on individually to create the final presentation. I used the internet to research information on Psychological Horror (our chosen genre) and look into synopsises of various films of the genre to determine conventions that were employed within them. I also analysed a section of a psychological horror film so that we could apply effective parts of films that have already been produced to our own ideas and to build on our intial thoughts.

Psychological Horror

Creating the Similar Media Works profile has enabled us to observe and analyse projects similar to ours that have been produced comercially and have been succsessful. This helped us develop our own ideas and draw on the effective parts of the films we anaylsed. We also researched coventions and audience expectations of psychological horror films to enable us to incorporate these within our own piece.

Horror Film Remake- The Shining 1980

We remade an extract of the film The Shining to enable us to experience first-hand the production of a short film of the genre we will be producing for our final product.
Before filming we created a shot list so we were fully aware of the order of each scene, where it would be filmed and which characters would be involved. This was particularly important to practice, as creating a detailed and concise shot list will be integral to our final product.
I personally felt that the shot list was extremely important during filming as it meant we could film scenes out of sequence, making the remake quicker and easier to shoot.
Creating this remake also enabled us to experience using filming equipment such as a dolly for moving the camera to follow someone walking.
We could also use the film remake to draw on which types of shot work well within the genre so we can begin to consider the type of shots we will use in our final product.
When we had completed the filming process, we then uploaded the clips to be edited. As this had to be done outside of lesson time, this enabled us to practice good time-management skills- something that will be vital when we come to producing our final product and indeed any other related projects.
This project has allowed our group to realise our strongest points within the production process. I feel that my strongest points are planning and analysing the project and I feel I need to work on practical skills such as filming and editing.
Although I still don't feel completly confident with editing, this project has allowed me to practice these skills and hopefully as time goes on it will become easier.

Initial Storyboard and Narrative

Today we had a very successful group meeting where we addressed the plot of our piece and produced a narrative and draft storyboard. I suggested that during one particular scene we filmed from the antagonist's point of view, creating tension for the audience. The rest of the group liked this idea and it will be included within our piece.

Following on from the discussion I had with another member of the group about the technicalities of the murder within our piece, Abi had the idea that we show a montage of previous scenes at high speed as the girl is murdered, but without actually showing the killing explicitly (linking to my original idea from the previous meeting) . This shows how we collaborated our ideas to come to an overall conclusion of how we should approach an element of our film.

Aside from the group discussions I am currently working on producing the Gannt chart for the group and my allocated sections of the 'Similar Media Works' presentation.

I feel that we are working succsessfully as a group so far and that if we continue to work in this fashion we should keep to our deadlines .

Preliminary Task Evaluation

Preliminary Task Evaluation
1. I think there are many points in our film where continuity could have been improved:
• When the establishing shot of the ‘bar’ is shown, a group of people are sitting around a table talking, in the next shot they have gone.
• Laura had been sitting at the back table in the previous shot, in the shot where I walk in she is standing by the wall and can been partially seen in the shot.
• When I walk in the scene cuts from standing up to sitting down straight away- I couldn’t have sat down that quick…
A point where we did demonstrate continuity well was when the shot cuts from a medium shot of taking the cup to a close up of me drinking from it (match on action) and the cup stays in the same place between shots and flows properly.
2. Match on Action- When I take the cup and the camera cuts to a close up of me drinking from it with the cup in the same position. This is used to make the scene as true to life as possible so objects and movements don’t jump between scenes.
Shot reverse shot- As the characters talk, the camera cuts between close ups of their faces. This makes the conversation seem realistic and allows the audience to clearly see characters facial expressions.
180-degree rule- We made sure when we were filming that the cameras stayed in the same positions throughout the scene and didn’t go behind the characters at any point. This was relatively easy as the characters stayed in the same position throughout their conversation. Had we have been moving this would have been more difficult to control. This rule is used so that the audience doesn’t get disorientated with characters switching sides during the scene.

3. I think during the filming process we worked pretty well as a group although some people seemed to contribute more than others. People helped each other if they were unsure of where to put the camera etc. When it came to editing the film some members of the group were reluctant to input their ideas or use the program (although this could have been because they were unsure how to use it).When it came to finding music for the piece, group members who had not contributed much before shared their views- perhaps they felt this was their forte within the editing process. Next time we would draw on this and use people for the sections they feel they perform best in filming, editing etc.

4. If we were to film this piece again we would definitely work on improving continuity. To do this we would make sure we had enough takes of the scene to use if there were problems with any of the shots. The issue that we had this time was that we did one take of some shots and once we uploaded them to the computer, found that people were in the wrong place or cameras could been seen in the shot and we didn’t have time to film it again.

5. I think if we had planned our film better we would have made less continuity errors. We didn’t consult our storyboards at all during the filming process so that would definitely be something to improve on next time as they are a vital part of filming a scene.

6. We attempted to use transitions within our film but as the program kept freezing and wouldn’t show the scenes we wanted to put transition between, this proved difficult and we decided to leave them out.

7. I had never used editing software before this project so I learnt a lot about the basics of film editing such as cutting and using different tracks for each camera which I ‘m sure will prove fundamental during the course.

8. Through making this film I have come to realise how the technology we have today has vastly improved the quality and efficiency in which we create media. If we were creating this short film 50 years ago, it would have been a much more lengthy process and definitely wouldn’t be a project that we could undertake within school. Technology has made it easier for everyday people to create their own media.

Preliminary Task Video

Initial Ideas

Yesterday we met as a group to discuss our ideas for our product. We agreed that we were in producing a psychological thriller/horror. Before deciding on a storyline we first came up with various elements we wanted to include within our piece. This included amongst other things, filming techniques. I suggested that we used 'Blair Witch Project style' camerawork whereby the shooting style has an quality. Through my analysis of the opening sequence of this film, I found that this technique was effective to bringing the audience closing to the action and making them feel this as a group but some members felt that using this technique would make our film lack professional quality. Eventually we agreed that if we used this filming style sparingly-perhaps only once within the piece- it could be effective.

When we decided on our storyline, I suggested that the murder at the end is alluded to rather than shown explicitly (in keeping with genre). Another group member disagreed however, feeling that we would have to show the murder. The technicalities of this issue will be discussed at a later date when we work on the plot in more depth.

Another member of our group suggested that we began our film with an establishing shot of the crime scene and that the rest of the film is a flashback from this point. We agreed as a group that this would be particularly effective, and I personally felt that it was a good way to build dramatic tension from the outset of the film, much like The Blair Witch Project and indeed many plays including Romeo and Juliet and Blood Brothers.

Inital Ideas

Today we met to discuss as a group our initial ideas for our product. We agreed that we were interested in producing a psychological thriller/horror. Before deciding on a storyline, we first came up with various elements that we wanted in include within our piece. I suggested that we could use ‘Blair Witch Project style’ camerawork within our piece as I discovered through my analysis of the opening scene that this style was extremely effective in bringing the audience closer to the action and making them feel more involved. We discussed this as a group and some members felt that it would be hard to create this effect without our piece looking messy. Eventually we agreed that if we used this shooting style sparingly-perhaps only once within the piece- that it could be effective.

When we decided on our storyline I suggested that when the victim is killed at the end of our opening sequence, that we should allude to the death rather than show it explicitly to create a more sinister tone. Another member of the group did not agree with this however, so I suggested that we did not show the actual murder, but cut back to the victim dead so the audience is fully aware of what has happened without actually witnessing the murder. This will be something to discuss in a following meeting.

Another member of the group suggested that our film opening should start with an establishing shot of the crime scene and that the rest of the film should flashback from this point. We agreed as a group that this would be particularly effective and I personally felt that it was a good way to build dramatic tension from the outset of the film, much like The Blair Witch Project and indeed many plays including Romeo and Juliet and Blood Brothers.

Analysis of opening scene of Blair Witch Project

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAkKyDfEUnU- stop at 2.30

The film opens with a black background and the logos of the companies involved with the production of the film fading in in white. The logos shake as though being filmed with a handheld camera-hinting at the style in which the film is shot. The shaking also gives connotations of being scared. The logos fade out and the title of the film appears again in white and in a simple font. This also fades out and a short background to the film appears. This is again in a simple white font on a black background and is still shaking as though being filmed. The effect of using white font gives connotations of innocence and naivety and the black background of evil and the unknown. It is important that a simple font is used so that the information is legible for the audience. The effect of explaining the outcome of the film at the beginning builds tension and makes the audience question when and how the characters will meet their fate, rather than what is going to happen. There is no soundtrack throughout this opening sequence which builds tension for the audience; it will make them feel uncomfortable, especially if they make a noise while the rest of the audience is silent and taking in the information. An additional reason why using silence is effective is because it enables the audience direct their full attention to the information being displayed on screen. As the information fades, the background stays black for a few seconds then cuts to a handheld camera being moved around, then focusing on the blurry outline of a girl.

We are aware from that outset of the film through the use of simple camera angles and editing techniques, the use of a handheld camera and no soundtrack or effects that the plot will be shot 'amateur-style', creating a greater sense of connection between the audience and the characters.

As the girl and the person filming her begin talking, the dialogue fades in creating tension as we see they are just normal friends and are completely oblivious to what is going to happen to them. As the camera focuses on the girl and zooms out , we see that she is in an ordinary living room with white walls and black furniture. This continues the colour scheme from the opening sequence and therefore the connotations of good/evil, that are associated with these colours. When the camera zooms out to a mid shot we see that the girl is wearing a black jumper suggesting that she is a fairly bold, confident character, but also hinting at her fate. The room is lit naturally from the window and from a tall lamp to the right of the shot. The lamp creates a subtle shadow making the situation seem slightly sinister.

When the shot cuts to the pile of books, we see that the top book is called ‘How to Stay Alive in the Woods’. The audience will understand the irony of this, having just been notified of the final outcome of these characters. The book has a black and white cover which continues the ongoing good vs. evil theme. When the girl reaches to move the book we see that she is wearing a white jumper and black gloves this again connotes to innocence and evil meeting. The book with the article about ‘what happened at Coffin Rock’ appears to have some kind of red smudge on it, giving obvious connotations of blood and danger. The girl’s field notebook is yellow- the first bright colour we have seen so far. The use of this colour makes the audience consider whether the truth of what’s going to happen will be revealed through what s written in this notebook. Through her tone of voice the girl is portrayed as very blasé when she talks about the books and what lies ahead, leading to an increase in tension as the audience cannot warn her of the dangers she faces.

When the shot cuts to outside the scene is much brighter although the car the character is getting out of is black hinting at the characters’ ultimate fate. By using a long shot as the boy gets out of the car we are made aware of the environment around him and can see that the characters live in an ordinary town and the colour of the leaves on the trees show that it is autumn. The season makes the situation more ominous as the audience are aware that it will be colder and darker than had the film been set in the summer. The boy is wearing a blue jacket which suggests despair or hopelessness. When the camera cuts to him filming the girl we see that he is shooting in black and white which again continues the black and white colour scheme and their connotations. Through this section of the opening, the use of mid-shot enables us to see that both the character's are wearing warm clothing, adding to their vulnerability and causing the audience to empathise with them.

When the shot cuts to the man inside the house the lighting is very bright suggesting that the characters are safe and protected whilst inside. When the friends drive to pick up the man providing the filming equipment, we see him leave the house through two red double doors which again denote blood, danger and evil. To the right of the doorway we see a skeleton making the audience realise it must be Halloween and causing the tension to rise significantly. The effect of the loud music blaring from the car shows that the characters are completely oblivious to what they’re getting themselves into and also coveys the fact that they are just normal teenagers-leading the target audience of the same age to put themselves in their position.

The scene inside the supermarket is very bright which is a complete contrast to the lighting the audience will experience when they characters are in the woods and the lighting that has been seen so far. The bright colours seem to symbolise comfort and safety.

Throughout the opening section of the film, the characters use colloquial speech and are portrayed as ordinary teenagers. These factors, as well as the effect of using a handheld camera to shoot the footage convey the feeling to the audience that the situation could have happened to anyone and helps them empathise with the characters and consider how they would react in this situation. It also helps the audience relate to the characters and feel more involved in the plot. The effect of the whole opening scene is that it builds tension right from the outset of the film. The 'Romeo and Juliet-esque' element of revealing the the outcome of the plot at the beginning sets the tone of the film and will build dramatic tension throughout.