Initial Idea Locations - Jack

Ideas of filming locations have been brainstormed by the group, and we have drawn up ideas of establishing shots showing a set of back alley streets and bins to emphasise the characters distress.
Here are a few ideas of loactions we will scout and upload to the blog.
We will hope to find similar enviroments in which we are aloud to shoot.

Story Outline Initial ideas. - Dave, Jess & Jack

From brainstorming themes and ideas from thriller openings, we have a basic idea of the story outline and theme of the overall thriller. The theme will be based on Crime/Gambling/Addiction.
The outline of events will show a main male character thrown from the back door of a casino dramatically hitting the tarmac, as the camera establishes the distress of his situation. The editing will show this to be a manipulation of the narrative structure as this will be showing the closure and resolution of the story in the opening.
A switch of location and position of time will see the character lose his final game in a poker/black jack game. this indicates to the audience the characters position and status.

Pre-Production planning

List of Roles by Jess:

Jack- Storyboard, Locations and decisions about locations.
Dave- Script, Lighting decisions
Jess- Health and safety, prop research
Will- Synopsis, Location and location decisions.

will-Evaluation

To conclude our preliminary exercise there were a number of areas that we did well on, but also there are a number of areas that we need to improve on in the main task. Areas that were good included getting all the requirements into the film, match-on-action ect. Also we worked well as a team by exchanging phone numbers, Facebook pages and met up when we were free to film, edit and do all the written work that needed doing. The places that need improving are not going over the time limit; ours was double what it needed to be. So next time we should focus on just getting the key elements, so to make it short and snappy. Also we have to work on meeting deadlines. Overall though I thought it was a good first attempt with room for improvement.

Evaluation - Jack

In conclusion to the prelim, i feel as a group we all worked well together to execute the task and demonstrate our knoledge and skills with in film making and videography.

We were each assigned roles with in the group to test our understanding of the skills and processes needed in the criteria of the preliminary excercise.
I was assigned the role of story boarding the short film. This meant that as a role i had to undertake the task of imagging how and where the audience see's the story and to put it down on paper. I think i illustrated the stories features well but was lacking in annotating a describing the shots and enviroments imagined. this is a deffinate process i will work on and progress with in the future.

Media Thriller Openings - Jack

1) INCEPTION


Theme- Crime/Mystery

Camerawork:
-Close ups/Extreme close ups used to establish environment and character.
-Slow movement in frame creates calm atmosphere.
-Close ups introduce new character to location.

Editing:
-Slow-motion used well to show dramatic waves when establishing the scene.
-Quick-Cuts straight to characters close up. Creating mysterious atmosphere, immediately raising questions for audience.
-Flashback used to introduce new characters to audience.

Mise en scene:
-Hair and costume show character/victim to be distressed, lifeless and unconscious.
-Lighting is high key, able to show all details of the featured victim and surroundings also introduces viewer to enviroment ans set of story.

Sound:
-High tempo, heavy pitched orchestral music dominate the scene building tension.
-As well as a sense of the music being contrapuntal, being mixed with a scene of calm waves on the beach.

I feel the scene opens the film well, instantly giving the audiences clues as well as motivating questions immediately. Gripping the viewers, eagerly anticipating answers all ready.


2) LOCK, STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS

Theme- Crime


Camerawork:
-A handheld camera positioned in the audiences POV works well to give the audience a sense of reality with in the scene.
-Shot/reverse shot used well to convey dialogue between two characters.

Editing:
-Cuts conveniently placed between breaks in script and dialogue.
-Opening titles correspond with context of character and scenes environment.

Mise en scene:
-Costume works well to reflect character personality and the role played by opening actor.
-Set is chosen well to describe situation and position of character in story.

Sound:
-Dialogue opens the scene again describing characters position in society.
-Contrapuntal music is used to show action and rhythm within scene.


3)INSIDE MAN
Theme: Crime



Camerawork:
-Opening frame shows a close up of victim narrating storyline, establishing a location and set.

Editing:
-Frames switch to show a wider view of location and set, establishing the audiences idea of location of character.
-Manipulation of time is shown as the resolution and closure of film is shown at beginning. Immediately putting audience out of context of story and plot.

Mise en scene:
-Lighting of opening frame directs viewer’s attention to centre screen and subject. -Does well not to distract the viewer from anything else seen in the set.
The set enforces the audience to question the characters story and situation

Sound:
-Little sound is used as character narration directs the viewer’s attention to opening story line. Minimal and uncomplicated sound editing works well not distract audience’s attention.

44INCH CHEST:

Theme: Revenge

Camerawork:
-Slow and still movement establishing long shots, describe a still but distressed enviroment with in the opening frames.
-Close ups show to work well in portraying the disgigured and broken room.

Ediging:
-Quck cuts between frames show the many angles of the set to familiate the audience with the opening set.
-Manipulation of time is used again showing the closure of the scene at the opening, motivating questions upon its audience.

Mise en scene:
-Low key lighting is used well to highlight certan areas of the frames which realy on audience attention. for example a smashed tv screen describes the level of conflict.

Sound:
-Contrapuntal music is used again, displaying characters/enviroment out of context to the disruption of the scene.

Will Thriller opening

Having problems inserting my images into my previous post.

Will-Thriller openings

First Movie
44 inch chest (in class)
Camerawork

Throughout the opening sequence there are a variety of shots, angles and movement that help to create a tense thriller opening. One camera shot used is a close up used, see right that is used to see the facial expression of the man; they want to do this because he is shutting his eyes and opening them, as if he is about to die, so this creates the question is he alive or not? Also just before this sequence above there is a camera movement that is a pan, this is used to set the scene, often known as an establishing shot, which is key to a thriller opening.

Editing

In the opening clip there is a number of editing techniques used that are common to a thriller opening. There are a lot of quick cuts, to show the room all smashed up, they do this because they want to get as much action as they can in the short amount of time they have to play with. They do this to keep us captured by; in this case, making us detectives at a crime scene to try and decide what happened here.

Mise en scene
In the clip there are different elements of mise en scene which have been used to create a tense thriller opening. So the props have been smashed to show destruction, also there is a dog in the scene that looks scared to show that a fight has just gone on.

Sound

Throughout this clip there is no dialogue until the credits, so this makes us ask questions because we can’t find out what has just gone on. Also with the use of the soundtrack, non diagetic sound, it helps to build up suspense and emotion.

Second Movie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJmbvcYKXdI
Goodfellas
Camerawork

With the shot on the right there is a point-of-veiw zoom in, they here something in the trunk and go out to see what it is, this shot builds suspense because it’s the unknown and there cautiously approaching it and its making the audience ask what has happened?
Editing

As with 44 inch chest there are a lot of quick cuts, but this time it’s to see the characters reaction to the situation going on around them, this helps with making us ask questions because with the quick cuts it looks as if the characters are as clueless as the audience as to what’s going on.

Mise en scene
The props used, part of mise en scene, are murder weapons to illustrate the villain and the victim, to show who’s in control of the situation. If the audience know early on who the villain is and who victim then it helps them to build a relationship with the characters which helps them to understand the story more.
Sound
In the clip there is diegetic sound at the start, so the sound of the car and the noise at the back, this is done so because if there was background music we wouldn’t be able to hear why they stopped, so we would be left confused, meaning no tension building.

Third Film
Dark Knight
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GA4h-xqfrcw
Camerawork

The shot to the right is a from a birds eye view angle, and it’s a long shot. These are know as establishing shots and are used to show the location and surroundings, in this case to show the audacity of the task there doing, which builds tension because of the sheer scale of it.

Mise en scene
Again I am speaking about the props, but it’s only because I think that when used well they work very well in a thriller opening. The prop that hits hard in this scene is the use of masks, these are there to scare the audience and it works well because they actually do look quite scary.

Editing

In the clip there is use of continuity editing, which is used to make the story go smoothly but sequencing the narrative in chronological order, in this case, a technique used was diegetic sound.

Sound

As I mentioned before there was use of diegetic sound, the one that thrills the most is the smashing of the glass window on the skyscraper, and this tension was built up by the soundtrack, non diegetic sound, and then ended with diegetic sound, which worked well.

Fourth Film
Cape Fear
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66m1KIHl1tA
Camerawork
There is limited camerawork in the opening of cape fear, there’s just a still shot the whole way through, but with the lack of camerawork it makes the audience ask the question what is cape fear? So this will make them want to watch more to see what the film is actually all about.
Editing

The editing that is done in this scene is, that they have edited in pictures into the water. So are attention is focused in on the water then we start to see pictures in the background, see right. This makes the audience confused as to what the pictures symbolize and again keep them watching.

Sound
The soundtrack is the main feature in this opening sequence, its non diegetic, and is tension building music, that provocts the audience into feeling uncertainty.

Fifth Film
Inception
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VXkUzf1et4
Camerawork

There are a number of different camerawork techniques used in the opening scene, one of those was the close up shot at the start where the main character is just lying there washed up on the beach and he is lifeless, too the right. This shot makes the audience feel uneasy and confused because they don’t know what’s happened to him and how he got there.

Sound
There is allot of diegetic and no diegetic sound used to create suspense. Like the soundtrack at the start of the clip which is quite a powerful piece that builds tension and suspense.
Editing
As this piece goes on the cuts become more frequent, so they start of quite slowly on the beach and as the action builds there are some very quick cuts like at 1:08 on the clip.
Mise en scene
In the clip there are some major contrasts, like with the characters, one minute your seeing little children playing with sandcastles, a prop, and the next thing you you’re looking at an guard with a gun, witch is a prop.

Evaluation - David

Overall, I believe that as a group we worked very successfully in creating the short film we produced for our preliminary exercise. We all were assigned different roles in the group at the start of the exercise so that we were all organised and knew what to do with the tasks that each of us were assigned.
My role in the group was to be the location scout. When the storyboard was complete for this exercise, I performed my role by taking various pictures around the college premesis for ideas of which locations we can select for the filming of our exercise in relation to our storyboard. I also analysed the shots that were uploaded to the blog in order to present clearly the ideas and uses we may have had for the locations around the college. Later, we made a group decision over which locations we would use for the filming in relation to the storyboard.
In my opinion, each task that was given to each member of our group was performed successfully and as a result I believe that the exercise was completed successfully majorly because of the organisation of the group and because we made many decisions as a group to make sure everyone was happy with the decisions each of us made.

Evaluation- Jess

The thriller opening we produced was good as we added in correctly all the uses, we used the match on action correctly and the 180 degree rule also worked well as we did not break it.
I think we worked brilliantly and efficiently as a group; we all had a role and stuck to it. We all met up when needed and on time.
During the editing we all had a go we cut all unneeded parts and added in a music track which was Jacks and even though it was contrapuntal music it worked well.
We all provided each other with ideas and every idea was taken into consideration.

preliminary film - jess

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=b2gdKLTHzEk

Research Task - By Jess Jarvis

My first thriller is se7en.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEZK7mJoPLY

The introduction looks sort of old as the character is creating a canvas which is on tea stained or just old. The fact it looks old gives us the audience the feeling of creepiness and uncertainty as you want to find out why he’s making it and what it’s got to do with the story. The font (scratchy handwriting) and jittering of the titles create an uneasy feel. They also suggest something creepy about the film. It gives some insight to a character that seems untraceable and unseen.

Camera work: It begins with an extreme close up on a paper or book turning; the pages turning creates the illusion of time passing. There is a point in the opening scene when there is an example of foregrounding as there is an extreme close up of a persons fingers holding a piece of metal, following the shot of the book unfolding, this shot may have been done to convey its importance in the film and maybe a key component throughout. As you watch on you see only the hand crafting and cutting up photos. This makes the audience ask questions as to why the person is doing this and what are they doing it for.

The straight cuts make the opening of the thriller go faster and create tension and suspense. It also makes it seem as though time is going quickly and maybe as if the victim’s time is being cut short.

Sound: The music track sounds like technology, it is parallel music as it goes with the film being shown as the film is of someone creating a picture; it’s as though he is crafting. The music goes very well with this as it sounds like someone who is making something as it screeches in places and sounds like technology being re wired.

Props: pen, canvas paper, pictures, the film of a camera.

Lighting: The lighting lights up the characters fingers with backlighting to make them stand out maybe or to draw audiences attentions to the object they are holding.

Second thriller is the Dark Knight:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OYBEquZ_j0

Camera Work: It begins with what looks like a lot of clouds unfolding which enables the audience to feel as though they are looking down from the sky. It is then followed by an establishing shot of the scenery which consists of loads of buildings and it then zooms in on a specific building which has blacked windows on the outside but we then see that inside is two young men in masks aiming a gun out of the window. I think that we should begin with an establishing shot in our thriller opening as it allows the audience to understand and adapt to the scenery. It is here that it is clear we can see out of the building clearly in the inside and they aim the gun at a man holding a mask. I can see that the mask is important as it is a foregrounding shot, which enables the audience to see that the mask may a key prop in the film.

Editing: The main editing is straight cuts, this enables the audience to feel the fast pace of the action which is happening in the film.

Sound: In this clip there is a lot of non diegetic sound like the sound of the window smashing, the guns shooting but there is some diegetic sound like the cars driving passed as they are actually in the film.

Mise en scene: costume: the main part of the costume is the masks; I can tell because they are focused on a lot in the film. They are all men dressed in black with what looks like a clowns mask on; they look very theatrical but also really scary as you can’t see their faces and their identity is undetectable as they are all clothed the same and they cover their whole body. The fact they are wearing black normal clothing makes the audience feel the realism of the film.

Third thriller is physco:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NG3-GlvKPcg

Camera work: In this film there are many establishing shots, I think they were done to show the character in context. There were many close ups so we could see the characters facial expression.

Editing: There were straight cuts to make the film seem more fast pace to make the audience feel the tension. I think we should use straight cuts in our thriller opening so we can get the same impact on the audience.

Mise en scene: At the beginning of the film the lady character is clearly wearing a rain coat, the film is also in black and white which enables the film to look old and maybe more creepy. It allows the film to look creepier as the black is always considered to show darkness and evil, and the white may be to show the purity of the lady and to convey innocence.

Sound: sound affects include incidental music to create impact on the audience. The music in this film is parallel as it goes with what is presented on screen.

There were many sound affects, which have been emphasised like the scream of the girl to envoke empathy for the girl and to shock the audience.

Fourth thriller is new moon:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYBF3HKzrmE

With Bella Swan’s 18th birthday she awakes up from a dream in which she sees herself as an old woman. She expresses her distaste with growing older than her boyfriend Edward Cullen, a vampire who stopped aging physically at 17.

Camera work: I think the camera used was a hand held as it is a little shaky. There were a couple of establishing shots to show the character in her context, it allows the audience to see the character with the surroundings. There was a close up on the girls face when she looked in the mirror to show her facial expression was sad. Her body language was floppy which tells the audience that something is obviously wrong with her. When the boy come into context the girl begins to look happier, this tells the audience that he must also be a main character.

Editing: The editing includes straight cuts as it makes the film more adventurous.

Sound: Some of the sound in new moon was diegetic as it was a sound in the film it wasn’t added in after the filming. The music was slow to may be to make the audience feel sad for the character.

Mise en scene: props: a mirror with an old lady looking in it, her facial expression showed us that she was upset as her eyes were teary and she had a frown on her face. There was low key lighting which made it look as if she was dreaming or having a flashback.

Fifth thriller is 44 inch chest:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuMNJVImHe4

Camera work: We see from an establishing shot that the house in the film is full of smashed objects and glass all over the floor. The close up on the mans face was done as they may have wanted the audience to feel shocked as the characters eyes suddenly open when the character looked as though they were dead. There are some stills with objects moving in the background, for example when the camera was really still it still had feathers floating as if there was a wind coming from the smashed windows maybe.

Tracking shot going into the living room and we see there is a man on the floor, this may have been done sudden to invoke shock, or maybe to make the audience feel empathy for him.

Editing: The editing had straight cuts to make sure you see all of the room.

Sound: The music track was contrapuntal music as it did not fit in with what was shown in the film.

Mise en scene: The mans facial expression in the film was as though he was dead as he was still on the floor with his eyes shut, as his stomach did not seem to be moving. His outfit was just looked like old rags just chucked on without a thought. The props were things like a smashed television, smashed windows, glass everywhere and it makes the audience ask questions as you want to know what happened? How did he end up there? This is what engages the audience to want to watch on. I think this may be a good idea to use in our thriller opening.

Media Thriller Openings - David

Film: 'The Bourne Identity'   

Link: http://www.220.ro/trailer/The-Bourne-Identity-2002-1-8/xpbRzJspdD/

Editing:
.Cuts between body in the ocean and the crew(Parallel editing) - this indicates that the crew are clueless and have no awareness of the body floating on the ocean which creates tension on wondering whether the crew will actually realise what's out there and retrieve the body.

.Constant cuts of crew retrieving body - this builds up the tension which portrays the scrambling effort of the crew to try and get the body on board of the ship.

Camerawork:
.Zoom in on the figure of a body - this creates the possible illusion that the male character is dead which captures the audience's attention.
.Shot reverse shot between sailor and body - this helps portrays the feelings of shock and wonder the sailor is feeling when he spots the body in the water.

Mise en Scene:
.Crew members are wearing cheap, filthy costume - indicates that the crew are not wealthy and may be threatening characters towards the male character whom is rescued.
.Murky yellow lighting below deck in the ship - creates an atmosphere of warmth and safety as the body is brought on the ship which suggests the character is now safe and eases tension of the audience slightly.
Sound:
.Sound effects - Thunder - develops a mood of threat and creates tension.
Rain - creates a dismal, depressing mood.
Wind - this is used to create a spooky and isolated atmosphere.
.Music - Keyboard/organ increases in volume from the establishing shot - develops tension and perhaps creates a visual image of death or a funeral taking place as the body is in view.


The intro of this film contains various shots of a body which creates a feeling that at first he is dead so we become curious to why he is in the sea in the first place. The intro also contains elements of threat and confusion when the character appears hostile but has no memory of who or what he is which fits well into the text of a thriller because questions are now raised by the audience over who he is and where he came from.
The narrative structure of the film appears to be meddled with in a way because this film has started right in the middle of this character's story where he is floating in the water, so we do not understand who he is so the audience is urged on to continue watching the film in order to find out why the character was found in the ocean in the first place.

Film: 'Man On Fire' 
Link: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5v56h_manonfire-part1_shortfilms

Editing:
.Constant cuts - creates tension/confusion and emphasises the speed of the action that is taking place when the young man is kidnapped which then a feeling of shock is produced form the audience.
.Overlapping dissolve shots - develops feelings of dizziness which also suggests confusion and make the scene appear like it is all a memory or a dream.
.Still images - allows the audience to see and recognise the characters faces clearly which may mean they play an essential part in the film and also allows to see their emotions of distress clearly.
.Many slow motion shots - creates a dreary effect and allows the audience to recognise the character's significance in the film.

Camerawork:
.Establishing, panning shot of old city - this gives the audience a clear view of the location of the scene so that we understand that this location seems to be suffering in poverty and looks like a location where crime may take place on a regular basis.
.Zoom ins and outs of a family picture - this arouses this audiences curiosity and confusion through the use of the zoom ins and outs which creates a somewhat panicky feeling concerning the family in the picture.
Mise en Scene:
.Young man wearing suit - his costume shows that he is upper class and wealthy and therefore creates tension because perhaps he is a perfect target for criminals.
.Young man is wearing make up that makes his face appear dirty - this creates concern for the character because it is obvious by looking at his appearance that he is unhygienic, unhealthy and looks like he has been treated in bad conditions.
Sound:
.Music - High bass drums - creates a spooky, mysterious mood which develops feelings that something immanent is about to occur.
.Sound effects - Church bells - builds up an atmosphere of death and perhaps foreshadows a funeral of a person's death.
Kids laughing - combined with the tense drums and the church bells, the kids laughing creates a feeling that maybe innocent, oblivious kids are under threat of danger.


This intro to this film makes a very good opening to a thriller because many aspects of mise en scene and sound etc create intense feelings of tension and confusion of the events taking place in the film and as a result this immediately sets the mood of the film which includes the emotions of seriousness, shock and curiosity which therefore constructs a good thriller intro out of this film.
The narrative structure matches that of a thriller because the intro of this film is an example of what happens to a family's life when someone loved is kidnapped and the story of this kidnapped person only lasts for a few minutes which the story would normally last over a period of a week or longer. In this case this is very effective because all the emotions that a family go through the experience of a kidnapping of a loved one is squished and portrayed in just a few minutes which make the intro very emotionally intense for the audience and captures the audience's attention.

Film: 'The Net' 
Link: http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/-nVuCySMqTc/


Editing:
.Dissolved shot to another location – this indicates the change of location and also creates a dreary effect that creates a feeling that the man who has committed suicide is probably passing into the afterlife.
.Opening title dissolves into the first shot of the film – this also creates a dreary effect and carries an element of dream-like curiosity.


Camerawork:
.Low angle of a male character walking down stairs – this makes the character look powerful and important and perhaps shows that he plays an essential role in the film.
.Extreme long shot of car driving off into the distance – this allows the audience to view the location of where the film is set. This also develops a feeling that a long journey is about to begin
Mise en Scene:
.Male character wearing a suit – this makes the character appear upper class and wealthy which probably indicates he has a very well paid and important job and therefore questions are raised by the audience involving what exactly is his job.
.The prop in the male character's hand is a gun – the sudden appearance of the gun in the character’s hand creates shock and curiosity of what dreadful act he is going to commit with the gun.
Sound:
.Music – Music/drums increase in volume when gun is in view – builds up tension intensely and greatly reinforces the shock of what is now obvious what the male character is going to do next.
.Sound effects - emphasised sound of a gun shot – this reinforces and greatly emphasises the feeling of shock that is created from the character’s suicide.


This thriller opening matches contains decent aspects to what makes a thriller because the audience do not get the full picture over what’s happening because we haven’t a clue what the man in the suit was talking about over the phone nor why he decided to shoot himself. This therefore leaves so many unanswered questions towards this shocking event which as a result, influences the audience into watching the film to discover more information and answers for what’s going on in the film.
The narrative structure is presented in a way so that we have a very brief insight on the life of the character who commits suicide which the audience with very little information on what’s going on which greatly increases the level of curiosity on the audience’s behalf. We are then transferred into viewing the life of another character in the following scene so we already get the feeling that questions about the man’s suicide may be answered by following the life of this next female character.

Film: ‘Taxi Driver’   
Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWTv8toR3Ug


Editing:
.Slow motion of pedestrians walking – creates a feeling of tiredness and dreariness that the driver may be experiencing which causes concern to be developed towards the driver.
.Black screen fades into smoke – this creates a good smoky effect that sets a mysterious mood to the film.
.Dissolve shots – to indicate the passing of time that the taxi driver is experiencing so we see what he feels like he’s been driving in a very relaxed mood for a long period of time.
Camerawork:
.Tilting low angle of taxi – this makes the moving taxi very noticeable and therefore the low angle makes us feel that the driver has some form of power which puts the audience on edge.
.Extreme close up of man’s eyes – allows us to clearly identify his relaxed yet suspicious emotions just from the extreme close up shot of his eyes.
.POV shot of the driver in the taxi – this is used so the audience can experience the warmth and relaxation in the car that the character is feeling.

Mise en Scene:
.Smoke fills screen – almost creates a visual image of hell at the beginning which may indicate something disruptive and evil may happen imminently.
.Flashes of different shades of light on man’s face (red and blue) – this could represent the various emotions of what the man is feeling including anger, depression yet relaxed and perhaps makes the character look secretive and mysterious. This therefore arouses curiosity over who the man is from the audience’s point of view.
Sound:
.Music – tense music (drums and strings) is played when shots are viewed outside of taxi – this could indicate that outside of the taxi, the real world is a dangerous place compared to the character’s own world inside the taxi and the high tempo of the music reinforces the tension and anxiety of the scene.
-soft music (piano and saxophone) is played when shots of the inside of the taxi come up on screen – this could emphasise that the taxi driver feels relaxed and almost safe inside the taxi and the simultaneous change of the tense music and the soft music creates the element of confusion which is probably why the change of tenseness in the music is used.


The way this thriller intro is filmed develops various feelings of anxiety and bewilderment over who the main character is and the constant use of smoke and flashes of coloured light in the scene captures the audience’s attention and the tension keeps slowly building up and down again which challenges the audience’s curiosity towards the film which therefore makes this intro a good opening to a thriller.
The narrative structure of this intro matches that of a thriller because we immediately step into the life of this character without any dialogue to assist in knowing about the character’s personality so therefore, we do not even know if this character is good or bad, hero or villain which raises the level of interest towards the film.

Media thriller openings - David

Location - Jack

A well thought-out location is a vital feature to include in filming. It can change a story line or tell an audience further details about a character ir plot.
I feel, given the restricted space of the college, we used the set and locations well with in the excercize. each shot of the location in the preliminary excerize match on previous frames shwoing an continuing and consistent sequence of locations.
This can be shown from the match between each cut in film.
A strong location can tell the audience alot about a story, this is going to prove a key feature in the final excercize.

Match on Action - David

Match on action is essential in this preliminary exercise and allows us to change the location of the following shot of when a character opens a door which therefore allows the film to be successfull in terms of continuous editing.
We used match on action in various parts of our filming. We did this in order to make sure the pace of the filming was continuous and so that it wouldnt seem unrealistic in the way that the characters enter through doors from time to time. We ensured, as a group, that match on action was used when the two characters (David and Will) were told to use the same body positioning and body language when going through a door with both shots when filming, so that the actions of the characters going through the doors are familiar on both shots. This was ensured because when we edited the filming later and joined the two shots together of the characters going through a door, the body positioning and body language of the characters were familiar on both shots so that the action of the characters was successfully continuous when going through a door.

Continuity Editing-Will

Continuity editing is the predominant style of editing in narrative cinema and television. The purpose of continuity editing is to smooth over the inherent discontinuity of the editing process and to establish a logical coherence between shots, so to make a smooth continues clip. There are common techniques of continuity editing that we used in our film. One of those was Diegetic sound; this sound has to occur in the story line, so for us there was the gun shot. Another common technique we used was match-on-action, this is where there was action before a questionable cut is then picked up were the cut left of from the previous shot, so for this we had me (the victim) walking up to the door and putting my hand on the door then cut, to me walking through the door but from the other side, but we had to maintain the previous shot, so if I started to open the door with my right hand in the first shot, I had to be doing it in the second. Those two techniques were the only ones we used, as a group we thought they worked well to help the flow of our movie, in our thriller opening we would hope to use some more techniques, so flash back, fade out etc.  

Media Thriller Openings - David

180 degree rule- Jess

The 180 degree rule is when two characters are in dialouge in the same scene should always have the same left/right relationship to each other. If the camera passes over the imaginary axis connecting the two subjects, it is called crossing the line. The new shot, from the opposite side, is known as a reverse angle.
In our film we used the 180 degree rule and we used it correctly, the image to the left is a diagram of how it works. It was myself and Jack which filmed this piece. We did it to allow the audience to see the characters point of view so that when the antagonist  was talking to the protagonist we could see their reaction and the same from the point of view of the protagonist.We feel as a group it worked well as when we watched it back we felt as though we could relate to the characters.

Sound - jess

 Sound in films are essential asset to set the mood of the film sequence; it communicates the film to the audience. It does this by developing the various feelings of the character and the environment portrayed on the screen.

The sound track was contrapuntal as it started off when the villain hit the table, this was when the whole thing started.We also included diegetic sound when we used the gun shot at the end of the thriller, it was diegetic as we added it in after shooting the film. We used the gun shot to impact on the audience.

Media Thriller Openings - Jack

Editting Finished

Final cut of all the final frames and sound sequences done all in one session of the editing suite.
Jack

Filming

Most scenes and frames have been shot all ready and editing has begun so v. close to finishing shooting final scenes and final project.
Jack

Storyboarding

Props

Chairs
Tables
Gun
Plastic bag