Planning!
The Planning of our film..
Here’s some of the basics…
Conventions of a film opening..
- There are many ingredients which make up a film opening; in a film opening you must always show the production logos and distribution logos and state the main characters in your film. The logo is normally edited to suit the genre of the film for example- in a thriller the logo will appear dirty and distorted. The characters are introduced to help create a bricolage of a character which helps the mise en scene with its versimilitude.
- In addition to this an establishing shot must be made to set the scene and location of where your film is; by doing this you are giving the audience a sense of reality. The title of the film must also be shown as an establishing shot or an additional shot.
The opening must also give an introduction to the story line but not give away too much; it must reveal the main characters but also make the audience want to find out more at the end of it.
- Moreover dialogue must be used by the characters- this must be kept to a minimum to ensure not too much has been revealed.
- A film opening must also include different sound effects- the two types of sound are diegetic ( where the sound belongs in the scene) examples are; sound of trees moving and paper turning and non diegetic (where sound has been added for special effects) examples include: narrative and background songs. This will help complement what it in the scene and help to create suprise and tension.
- Also Different shots must be used such as extreme long shot- to give a wide view of the scenery, medium and close up shots.
- Furthermore different camera angles must be used; a bird’s eye view can make the scene look very unnatural and strange, an eye level angle makes it seem as though the human is observing the scene, a low angle is used to increase height of particular characters and give the audience a sense of confusion of powerless within the scene and an oblique angle is used to suggest point-of-view- when the camera becomes the eyes.
- Different camera movements can be used to help move the action along as well- examples of these are pan, tilts, dolly shots, hand-held shots, crane shots, zoom lenses and aerial shots.
Conventions of our chosen genre..
After much discussion we have come to a decision that our film is going to be a HORROR. This genre must strive to educe apprehension and fear making the audience grip on to their seats! An effective horror will use quick cuts and camera angle changes to create tension, anxiety and fright. When trying to portray the plot the genre mustn’t give away too much or to little- there should be a moment of climax where something tragic or chilling occurs; this could be a murder or an unexpected death; this usually anticipates all hell breaking loose and is encouraged by a variety of sound effects such as “boom’s”, “screams”, “thunder” and “electricity buzzing” along with background music which normally helps construct a more eery feel to the scene. We have chosen this genre because after watching many film openings we felt that horror was the one which kept our pulses suspended for the most- we felt it would be a great opportunity to combine all our imaginative ideas together to create something jaw dropping, exhilarating and stimulating!
http://www.bbfc.co.uk/classification/guidelines/15-2
Audience Research
We carried out a questionnaire on our target audience – we questioned many of our friends (16/17 years old) but also some parents and other adults.
Media Studies Questionnaire
Do you prefer…
Mystery Gore
Which setting do you prefer?
Graveyard Bedroom Bathroom Park
Are sound effects effective?
Yes No
What film do you prefer?
Grudge Saw Candy man
Who do you watch scary movies with?
Friends Family Boyfriend
What certificate would you class as a horror? (can be more than 1)
U PG 12 15 18
What is the best era for a horror?
Victorian 1940’s-1960’s 1960’s-1980’s Modern
How many main characters should there be in a horror?
1 2 3 4+
These are the results..
Inspiring Films..
The 3 films which inspired us were
1.Silent Hill– The first two minutes of this film interests the audience because it engages the reader instantly by setting the scene as a dark night. The dark atmosphere creates an eery-ness and makes us as an audience feel spooked when we find out a little girl has gone missing; this sets up the plot and instantly lets us know what will happen through dramatic irony which portrays that tragic things will happen. In addition to this the forest scenery creates a sense of darkness which makes us as an audience sense the haunted and creepy atmosphere. The forest idea has inspired us for our film because we feel that it will be a good place to set the scene for something dramatic to happen.
Mise-en-scene
The mise-en-scene when applied to film/cinema refers to everything that appears before the camera and its arrangement – sets, props, actors, costume and lighting. The way objects are placed carefully within the frame affects how the viewer views the scene. The mise-en-scene for the first two minutes of Silent Hill shows the scene to be outside in the darkness looking into the woods/ a remotely quiet eery area- the use of outdoor props show that this film was made on a high budget. This place is represented by having trees swaying and woodland area surrounding the house. The opening two minutes are very dramatic showing the mother to be screaming for her daughter- this represents the character to be distressed and worried. The mother looks middle aged- wearing casual clothing suggesting that her ideology shows that she is a parental figure; In addition to this the little girl has a creepy look about her- she is wearing her pyjamas suggesting that she is in a confused state of mind as it is night time. This fits in with the mise-en-scene being night time because her clothing suggests before she ran away she was in bed asleep. The verisimilitude shows the little girl to be anxious where she stands at the edge of a cliff- shouting something chanting. This creates an effect to us as the audience that the opening is eerie and mysterious.
Camera angles, shots, movements and compositions
The establishing shot is a close up of the mother’s face- which shows her to be screaming “Sarah!” repeatedly. This creates a sense of distress and anxiety which shows us as the audience that something bad has happened. The background is distorted which shows that the character central screen is playing an important role. The use of panning when the mother is running through the forest shows that the attention is on her- allowing us as the audience to feel her tension that she has lost her daughter. The over the head shot whilst the mother is running across the river shows that she is scared and is representing to us as the audience the fact that she has no power and is scared as to where her daughter might be. The repetition of the zooming into the mothers face and extreme close up when she discovers that her daughter is standing at the top of the cliff shows the terror in the mother’s eyes- this creates the effect to us as an audience that this is a climax builder to the story making it seem more tense. The use of enigma has made us as the audience feel that the opening has left us on a cliff hanger.
Sound
In a horror movie, sound is an intricate part to the movie. Silent hill is no exception. As the title’s appear diegetic sound is shown, where the mother is screaming in dialogue “Sharon!… wait for mommy!”, this creates a sense of apprehension that something bad will happen which therefore shows us as the audience that the theme is a horror film. The use of non-diegetic music is portrayed when the little girl is stood at the edge of the cliff, the music sounds deep choir with orchestral instruments playing in the background, this creates a sense of fear and dramatic irony which then helps us as the audience engage in the film-making it seem more frightful.
Editing
During the opening two minutes of Silent Hill the editing is most significant in the change from when the mother is outside the house to when she appears running underground, under the bridge. This cut creates an impact on the audience; making the scene seem more frightening. The use of cross cutting when the mother is on the other side of the cliff to her daughter shows the exchange in thoughts between the two characters which shows that the mother is feeling scared. The continuity to the first two minutes is very smooth- we can tell that the mother has moved from the location of outside her house, under the bridge and then to the cliff because of the smooth transaction in shots.
2. The Grudge– The first two minutes of this film interests the audience because an unexpected death occurs- this creates a sense of mystery and questioning inside the audience’s mind which reels us in to wanting to know more. The use of suspense has been very effective as the director of this film has plotted such a surreal incident in a normal every day situation, this confuses us as the audience and therefore makes us eager to finding out more. The Grudge has helped inspired us because it has helped us chose the idea of having an unexpected death which will hopefully ‘grab’ the audience and have them shivering to know more!
The Mise-en-Scene
The mise-en-scene in the first two minutes of The Grudge show the characters to be based in a modern apartment; this gives off the impression that they are in real life settings making us as an audience think that this is more realistic as it relates to our society today. The scenery is showing a city view. This makes us think of crime which then makes us as the audience think of it as a crime/mystery horror film. We are instantly introduced to one of the characters called Peter where his girlfriend asks him “Peter are you ok?” this shows that he could be distressed, which then gives the impression he is mentally unstable because he reacts by jumping off the terrace to the flat. This shows that the film has some disturbing themes to it- which gives off the impression that it is a horror film.
Camera Angles, Shots, movement and composition.
We see an extreme long shot of the view of the place the film is set which looks like a city; this helps to set the scene that it is a horror and also creates a peculiar mise-en-scene. In addition to this we get a close up shot of Peter’s face- this helps to bring out that he is anxious about something which gives us an insight to his state of mind- that he is psychologically unstable. We also get a POV shot when he looks back at his girlfriend- the look of confusion shows us as the audience that something bad will happen to this character. It gives us a sense of dramatic irony.
Sound
When the superimpose is used for the first minute the use of non-diegetic sound is used in the background. The music has a scary tone to it- portraying the theme of the film. This instantly shows us as the audience that the genre of this film is horror and it also shows us that the film will be chilling right from the start. In addition to the diegetic sound is also used; we hear the natural sound of the city bussling, where you can hear the traffic through the city- this shows that the setting is in a busy environment which helps to set the scene to us as the audience.
Editing
The use of superimpose is used as an establishing shot, the shot says “when someone dies in a grip of a powerful rage…” this is trying to give clues to the storyline which creates an effect on the audience that this is a mystery horror. The words “curse” and “death fade out- and are red in colour- the colour red is normally associated with blood which gives the impression that the grudge has some gruesome aspects to it.
3. House of Wax-The first two minutes of this film interest the audience by instantly showing drippings of wax coming of a stove; this disturbed first scene makes us as an audience feel as if this film has a weirdness about it. This hooks us in and therefore makes us want to know more- this sense of disturbance gives The House of Wax an image that the plot will be freaky and strange. The House of Wax helped inspire us because it gave us an idea that horror films should contain a sense of peculiarism.
Mise-en-scene
The opening 2 minutes is set in a kitchen. The kitchen is dark and dingy with a family inside. We cannot see the faces of the characters but we get close up shots of their body feautures such as feet and arms. This creates a mysterious effect and makes us as the audience feel that The House of Wax is haunting. We are indicated that this is a flashback as ‘1974’ appears on the screen- which helps to connect the audience to the plot. We see 2 little boys being tortured by their parents- we know this because one of them is screaming and groaning for help which also creates an effect that something disturbing will happen in the plot of the film.
Camera angles, shots, movements and compositions
We see the establishing shot is a close up shot of wax dripping of the table with the camera panning upwards. This creates the effects that something unusual and terrifying is happening. In addition to this we also see an extreme close up shot of the flame on the cooker. This is suggesting something fiery is happening which helps to create a chilling mise-en-scene. The oblique camera angle is showing that the little boy is inferior compared to the person looking down on him. This helps to show the narrative- that this boy is being antagonised.
Sound
Diegetic sound is used in the opening of the house of wax. This is when the pot of wax is boiling on the cooker- we can hear the sound of simmering and stirring which helps to make it seem more realistic and dangerous to us as the audience. It does this because it creates an eerie effect.
Non diegetic sound is also used. The sound of orchestral music is playing in the background- this makes the atmosphere more tense and creates an effect to us as the audience that something strange is happening. The volume of the sound increases as the little boy is being strapped into his high chair, we hear the boy screaming and as the screams increase the suspense also increases creating a scary atmosphere.
Editing
The use of superimpose “1974” helps set the scene and shows that the narrative is portraying a flashback. The camera cuts back and forth from the mask to the boys fee, this shows that a connection is being made in the narrative- depicting that something gruesome will happen with the hot wax and the little boy.
Our Target Audience and certificate..
We have decided to market our film to the age group 15+; this is because we are creating a horror which contains strong and menacing threats, mild use of violence and imitable behaviour but does not dwell on detail. These traits according to the BBFC should not be viewed by any persons younger than the age of 15 in cinemas or by rental.
Pictures of setting…
The setting is effective because it is set in a known place (the school) which makes it uneasy for the audience to watch.
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September 21, 2010 at 2:57 pm