Planning for our Film- Actors

Actors:

Our first actor will be a sterotypical mum played by Susi Cracroft

Aged: 30-40

Our second actor is is played by George Marshall, he will be playing the role of a possesed child.

Aged- Between 8-10 years.

The relationship between our two actors is suitable as they are mother and son in real life. This helps add to the realism of the film and also makes the relationship seem more naturel on camera.

Planning for our Film- Target Audience

The target audience for our film is going to be:

Males aged 25-35 as the age certificate for our film is 15.
Its going to be primarily aimed at single males as they will have more money to spend on themselves.
Its also aimed at males who are employed as they will also have more money to spend.

We chose to give our film and age certificate of 15 as its suitable for the content which will in our film. Our film will contain aspects of the supernatural and therefor would unsuitable for younger audiences.  

Planning for our Film- Title

The title of film is called "Intruder"
We chose this name for film as it connotes the idea of someone not being welcome. The fact that our film is set within a home and the idea of a home representing a place of safety can make the audience feel uneasy and unsafe as this is where are film takes place.

Planning for our Film- Storyboards

 Storyboards

This was the original concept for our film

Shot 1:
Shot 1 shows our production company name appearing which then fades to black, with a static effect and non-diegetic sound effect.

Shot 2:
Shot 2 is a panning camera along an extreme close up of some police tape. Our 999 call then begins to play in the background.

Shot 3:
Shot 3 begins to show our actors names which are shown to appear on the police tape as the camera is still panning across it. The 999 call is still happening in the background.

Shot 4:
Shot 4 is a will be a close up on a police siren which will feature our actors names. The sound of a faint siren will play in the background and the rest of the 999 call will be finishing.

Shot 5:
Shot 5 is a shot of a police statement book in which the officer will be filling out. The book will then show more actors names which will act as part of the title sequence. Our diegetic sound between the officer and mother will begin to play as it fades to black

Shot 6:
Shot 6 will make use of shot-reverse-shots in order to show an interview that's happening between the distressed mother and the policeman. The diegetic sound of the conversation between the mother and policeman will play until the next scene. The camera is placed so the audience will see the policeman's point of view and will switch to the mothers in the next scene.

Shot 7:
Shot 7 will use a split screen effect to make it look like a CCTV effect. The possessed boy will then begin walking down the stairs. The possessed boy will appear in different parts of the screen to make it appear multiple cameras are recording him all at the same time. Non diegetic sound will play to fit the current scene, the music has a dark theme and quite whispers in the background to strengthen the idea of a possessed child.

Shot 8:
Shot 8 goes back to the conversation between the mother and policeman. This time the camera is shown to be the mothers point of view. The conversation picks up where it left off in the last scene they were in.

Shot 9:
The final shot shows the possessed boy walking into the kitchen before staring directly at the camera. When the boy stares at the camera a static effect is added in to make it appear he has some strange power. The non diegetic sound of the quite whispers is still heard in the background.

Planning for our Film- Plot/Narritive

Plot/Narritive

A distressed mother calls the police after a series of on going nightly events leaves their house in a state.

Thinking their house has been burgeled the police install CCTV cameras in the house to find out whats happened.

The footage is then watched back and the mother discovers that her 10 year old son has caused the state of the house.

Working Title Films Research

Working title film company was founded by Time Bevan and Sarah Radclyffe in 1983, however Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner are now co-owners of the company  Working title films HQ is now based in London. The company started out by producing low budget films and a few television programs. The company gained mainstream success after an unexpected film gained global box office success, this film was called "Four Weddings and a funeral"

In 1999 Universal Studios agreed a deal with Working Title films which was worth around $600 million dollars. As part of this deal it entitles Universal Studios to 67% of working title films and this deal runs all the way through until 2015. The remaining 33% of the shares belong to the founders of the company, The BBC and private investors. Many of working titles recent films are co-produced by Studio canal.

Conventions of the horror/thriller genre

When a stranger calls

Mise-en-scene

• Body Bags
• Dark Lighting- adds fear for the audience
• Fair Rides
• Red Balloons- Signifys Danger
• Silohette

Sound

• Screams
• Children Laughing
• Phone Ringing
• Sirens- Asynchronus- Signifys Danger
• Eerie Music

Characters

• Stranger- Killer
• Policeman- Dominant- All male- Stereotypical

Editing

• Flashes into each shot
• Fade to black
• Fast paced

Narritive

• Someone being killed
• Stalked by a mysterious person
• Being uncomfortable

Cinematography

• Handheld camera- Emphasises the genre- Not steady adds uncertainty
• Jumpy
• Close up on policeman- Shows his disgust

1408

Mise-en-scene

• Dark night
• Heavy rain
• Haunted hotel- stereptypical of the horror genre

Sound

• Thunder/rain/wind
• Eerie music at night
• Melodic during the day
• Siren in the background when hes in the car

Characters

• White american male- Brave
• Creepy hotel couple

Editing

• Flashback
• Elipses when hes in the hotel room
• Cross fade

Narritive

• Being lost
• Haunted

Cinematography

• Close up on cigerrete- shows its importance
• Establishing shot on hotel- in the middle of the forest- links in with the genre

Film Questionaire

Analysis

From the research that I conducted I was able to find out that the age group that watched films the most were ages 21-30. This is because they have more time to spend watching films than older age groups, the second group which watched films the most were ages 10-20 although it consisted of teenagers more than younger children. Employed people were most likely to visit the cinema as they have the money to be able to pay for it. Teenagers were the next people most likely to visit as they have part time jobs and a way to pay for the cinema. The most preferred genre of films were action/adventure and it was primarily males who chose this option due to the fact that this genre appeals to them more than the other options. People were most likely to view a film at home than in a cinema, the reason why less people chose the cinema is the fact that the pricing is rather expensive and the nearest cinema is long distance away. I found that this is what influenced peoples choices when they were deciding whether to go to the cinema. The most popular days of the week that people would visit the cinema would be a Friday or Saturday as they have more free time as its a weekend and would not normally visit one on a weekday. Finally I asked how often people would visit the cinema and the most popular result was monthly, the reason for this is due to the high pricing and the travel distance.

Film Logos

Paramount

• The stars connote that only well known actors appear in their films.
• "Paramount" means being more important than anything else.
• The mountain suggests that they are at their highest peak.

Dreamworks

• The little boy fishing on the moon can suggest that they are fishing for ideas
• The little boy may also represent that everyone has an inner child
• The company name "Dreamworks" connotes that they primarily focus on fantasy/adventure films for children

20th Century Fox

• The spotlights connote that they are a important company and produce high quality films.
• The statue suggests that they are a big and well know company.

Universal

• The name universal suggests that they are know all the world, it also shows that they produce films all over the world.
• The image of the world can connote that they have distributed films worldwide.

Pixar

• Since Pixars films are aimed at children the logo is very simple.
• The fact that the lamp is facing the viewer connotes that they have the audience in mind when producing films.
• The lamp matches Pixars style of films which is animated

Preliminary Task

The Task

The task we were given was to film and edit a piece of footage of someone approaching and opening a door and then having a small conversation with someone. We had to demonstrate that we understood how to use different shot and editing types. Shots and editing techniques which had to be include in our preliminary task were:

• The 180 degree rule 
• Shot Reverse Shot
• Continuity
• Match on Action

What Went Well

Overall our task was successful as we demonstrated and made use of all the rules which we had to use and shows that we know how to use them.

How to Improve

In order to improve my pieces of filming I do in the future, I need to make sure that i make the editing tighter so that it flows more fluently. I also need to make sure of what we include in the frame as one point of our film shows a fan in the center of the frame and distracts the viewers attention. 

The Number 23 Opening Sequence

The Number 23Title Sequence

0-4 seconds- Black screen then fades into opening

6 seconds- Black writing appears on what seems to be a piece of paper in bottom right corner of the screen, "New line cinema presents"

11-16 seconds- More writing appears in its place "Contrafilms/firms Films Production"

16-19 seconds- Directors name appears "A Joel Schumacher film"

19 seconds - Actors names begin appearing on screen "Jim Carrey"

20-26 seconds- "Jim Carrey" name begins to move up the screen, the numbers 2 and 3 then appear filling half the screen up. This makes the audience know its going to be important.

26-33 seconds- The tittle appears in dark red font and slowly turns into blood drops
33-65 seconds- Facts and equations are displayed on the screen all of which feature the number 23. This signify s how important the number is. Names of actors are also inter-switched between the facts.
65-70 seconds- Blood slowly begins to fill up the screen
70-92 seconds- More facts are displayed and are coloured in red before the blood flows over them.
92-94 seconds- "Casting by Mali Finn, csa"
94-101 seconds- More blood fills up the screen, helps to create tension and suspense for the audience, also creates a dark atmosphere
101-105 seconds- "Music by Harry Gregson Williams"
105-112 seconds- "Associate Producer  Linda Fields Hill"
112-119 seconds- "Costume Desinger Daniel Orlandi"
119-123 seconds- "Editor Mark Stevens"
123-135 seconds- More facts are displayed among the blood stained paper.
145-150 seconds- list of executive producers appears.
150-160 seconds- "Written by Fernly Phillips"
160 seconds- The number 23 appears behind a full blood stained screen.

Se7en Film Opening Notes

Film Opening Notes

Se7en

Information-

·         Music producers

·         Casting directors

·         Produced By

·         Co-produced By

·         “New Line Cinema Presents”

·         Actors names

Image-

·         Close up shots on what he’s doing this shows that he’s devoted to his work and what he’s doing is very detailed.

·         Disturbing images- Scribbled out faces and crossing out of words such as God and intercourse

·         Close up on him turning pages in a book

·         Iconography- Razorblade and a needle.

Sound-

·         Strong, slow beat throughout the opening

·         Low pitched beat

·         More sounds are added as the opening progresses

·         Dark sounds overpower

·         Discordant

·         Beat gets faster as it progresses

Font-  

·         Shaky font emphasizes fear.

·         Font looks handwritten shows that its rushed

·         White font contrasts with the black background. Black connotes fear.

·         Font has a random layout.

Editing-

·         Quick cutting helps speed up pace.

·         Fade to blacks

·         Blurred effects adds tension and communication

·         Subliminal Images

·         Editing does not fit the pace of the sound.

Working Title Films Research

Green Zone

The Initial Idea:  The storyline for the film came from a screenplay written by Brian Helgeland, which was based on a 2006 non-fiction book entitled “Imperial Life in the Emerald City.”

Director: Paul Greengrass

Cast:

Matt Damon

Greg Kinnear

Amy Ryan

 Jason Isaacs

 Khalid Abdalla

Budget: Estimated $100,000,000

Opening Weekend Takings:  $14,309,295 USA 14^th March 2010 (3003 Screens)

Awards:  

·         World Soundtrack Awards- Nominated in 2010

·         Visual Effects Society Awards- Nominated in 2011

·         Central Ohio Film Critics Association- Nominated in 2011 for the COFCA award

Dates Released: Green Zone was released in cinemas on the 12^th March 2010 and released on DVD on the 22^nd June 2010.

Genre/Narratives: Action, Drama, Thriller

Reviews: 6.9 on IMDB

Independent Research- Film industry research

Roles of a producer

• Most films are made by production companies. The executives "green light" a project, they then assign a producer to the film. The producer's job is to bring it all together. The producer hires the director, the screen writers, and all of the other technical crafts-persons who work on the film
• Producers raise money for the film
• Overlooks the film into its distribution stages
• Keeps the creative side and business sides of the film together

The idea and Script

• Needs to be start with a big idea for it to go ahead
• Must have a well thought out story and be well told
• The director may improvise with the script if they wish to
• All films must have a beginning, middle and a climax

Investment:

• Its easier to have a financier, as they have more control over the money 
• Co-production helps to get other investors and share the film
• Having multiple investors means smaller amounts can be invested, yet the main funder will still remain in control and have the most authority 
• The national lottery funding helps film companies
• If a film is filmed within a foreign country the film company will go to the regional funding for help

The Package:

• The director and producer need to bring together a cast and team
• The team must be able to work with each other, or else the film wont go ahead and the chemistry with the actors will be all wrong
• The package includes the idea for the film, the script, the budget, producers, directors and the cast itself

Distribution:

• Every film has its release date, which has to be met by
• The film is distributed to as many people as possible or the desired target audience, using advertisement methods such as billboards, trailers and social network advertising
• Brings films to cinema and market

Premiere Magazine Cover

Premiere Magazine Cover

• Premiere as a masthead- Bold, Red and a white glow around it.
• I chose the name "Premiere" as it is focused on the film industry and premiere connotes it being first. The magazine is aimed to inform people of all the upcoming films.
• "Premiere" is written in dark red writing connotating the idea of a red carpet. I chose to put "Premiere" in the spotlights as it emphasises the idea of the filming industry.
• I added a white glow around "Premiere" which gives it the effect of looking 3-D
• The tagline for our magazine is "Straight form the red carpet, to you!" This shows that all the news is first hand and is coming from the red carpet itself.

Target Auideance

• The target auideance for our magazine is aimed at young adults to adults aged 18-40. Our magazine is primarily aimed at single, working males as they have more money to spend on themselves.

Main Image

• The main image of our magazine is me and Charlie. We chose to photoimpose a picture of a cinema behind us as it linked in with the theme of films. We looked away from the camera to make it appear as if we were watching a film.
• Our magazine also features smaller images which are recognised as film iconography, this includes pictures of a star, film tickets and a film strip. This helps the reader instantly recognise that it is a film magzine.

Colours

• The colours I used for our magazine were mainly dark colours such as black and red. These colours were picked as they are sterotypical to males. The black was used as it connotates a darkend cinema whereas the red links back in to the red carpet theme.

Other Information

• The price for our magazine is £2.50 and is a monthly issue, this was a suitable price for it as many other monthly magazines were in the price range of £2.50 to £4.00.
• Our magazine is monthly as it features reviews about new and upcoming films.