This is my media blog for AS Media Studies which will be updated every now and then throughout this course to produce a thorough account on the genre thriller. The blog will include background research to the thriller genre, a Preliminary Task which will be solely based on practicing camera angles and finally a final product (Main Filming Task). I have structured my blog into 3 simple sections; RESEARCH, PLANNING & FILMING and EVALUATION.
RESEARCH
What is a Thriller?
A THRILLER can be either a fictional or non-fictional story, play or movie. It is purposely formed and created in order to create a constant, suspenseful, emotional experience for the audience.
What other genres are linked to the Thriller film?
• Action Thriller
• Conspiracy Thriller
• Crime Thriller
• Disaster Thriller
• Medical Thriller
• Psychological Thriller
• Religious Thriller
As the thriller genre is sometimes hard to some up, they are normally combined with another genre to create a ‘sub-genre’.
What problems do you normally find when examining the Thriller genre?
One of the main problems when examining a thriller is that they mainly consist of being a HYBRID, which are often hard to distinguish from one another. A hybrid is similarly compared to a sub-genre; however, a hybrid is a conjunction of two or more genres.
Features of a THRILLER film
The features in a thriller are primarily used to create:
• Suspense
• Tension
• Fear
• Enigma
• Deceptive events/characters
Characters you normally find in a THRILLER may include:
• Convicts
• Criminals
• Stalkers
• Assassins
• Prison inmates
• Menaced women
• Characters with dark pasts
• Psychotic individuals
• Terrorists
• Cops
• Escaped cons
• Fugitives, private eyes
• Drifters, deceitful individuals
• People involved in twisted relationships
• World-weary men and women
• Psycho-friends
Frequent themes of Thrillers
• Terrorism
• Political
• Conspiracy
• Pursuit
• Romantic triangles leading to murder
Top 3 Thriller films rated by the American Film Institute (AFI)
1. Psycho - 1960
2. Jaws - 1975
3. The Exorcist – 1973
About the ‘Master of Suspense’ and his conventions to a Thriller
Alfred Hitchcock is an acknowledged film director in the film industry and is commonly known as the 'Master of Supspence'. He was given this name because he manipulated his audience's fears and desires and took viewers into a state of association with the representation of reality facing the character. Hitchcock’s first film was ‘The Lodger’ (1926) - a suspenseful ‘Jack-the-Ripper story’. He has helped to shape the modern-day thriller genre, which still show elements of his work but are also a contrast in how filming has advanced over the decades. that of a ‘Hitchcock thriller’. Thrillers nowadays use more complex apparatus as modern technology has evolved tremendously, and also have evolved into hybrids
Firstly, the types of leading characters that Hitchcock usually casted were often subjected to misogynistic abuse, threatening humiliation, or murder. Hitchcock would then explore the darker sides of their situation, including sexuality, guilt and punishment. He usually lets the viewer know that some horrible event would happen, creating unbearable suspense while viewers waited for the inevitable. Hitchcock's films also often placed an innocent victim into a strange, life-threatening or terrorising situation, in a case of mistaken identity or wrongful accusation.
He utilised various cinematic techniques, such as the tight and confined spaces to heighten emotion or restrictive train journeys, the glowing glass of milk and the staircase or use of profiles and silhouettes. He used. Moreover, in many of his films, there was the inevitable life and death chase concluding with a showdown at a familiar landmark for example, London's Albert Hall in, ‘The Man Who Knew Too Much’ 1956 and the Statue of Liberty in ‘Saboteur’ 1942. The renowned director often capitalised on a gimmicky plot element to catch the viewer's attention. This technique is called a McGuffin and propels the plot along its course. Usually, the McGuffin initially appears to be of utmost importance, but its purpose is to intentionally misdirect the audience. It would then quickly fades into the background and ends up being trivial, irrelevant, or incidental to the film's story.
Five early Thrillers that showcase similarities in terms of their victim
• Gaslight – 1944
• Laura – 1944
• The Spiral Staircase – 1945
• The Lady From Shanghai – 1947
• Sorry, Wrong Number – 1948
Despite the fact that these films were produced within a decade of each other, they all share the same attribute when involving the leading characters within their film. The leading characters are all females that are faced with some type of turmoil in the film. In addition to this all females that represented within these films are of a white ethnicity.
Gaslight
A young woman is haunted by the murder of her aunt in a London townhouse, who cannot be traced. Years later her husband has persuaded her to settle in the house, long uninhabited, to overcome her anxieties. She soon finds herself misplacing small objects, and before long her spouse has her believing she is losing her sanity.
Laura
New York City police detective is investigating the murder of beautiful and highly successful advertising executive Laura Hunt. He interviews a newspaper columnist who relates how he met Laura, became her mentor, and used his considerable influence and fame to advance her career. McPherson also questions Laura's fiancé and her wealthy aunt and her loyal housekeeper.
Through the testimony of her friends and the reading of her letters, McPherson comes to know Laura and slowly becomes obsessed with her. One night, the detective falls asleep under her portrait and is awakened by the sound of someone entering the apartment. He is shocked to discover it is Laura. Now it becomes even more urgent to unmask the murderer.
The Spiral Staircase
Set in early 20th century New England. It’s about a serial killer who is murdering disabled young women in the community. His next victim apparently is Helen, a mute girl who works as a live-in companion for wealthy, bedridden Mrs. Warren, who urges her to leave the house, as does Dr. Parry, who knows the reason for Helen's loss of speech and hopes to help her get her voice back.
The Lady from Shanghai
Michael O'Hara, against his better judgement, hires on as a crew member of Arthur Bannister's yacht, sailing to San Francisco. They pick up Grisby, Bannister's law partner, en route. Bannister has a wife, Rosalie, who seems to like Michael much better than she likes her husband. After they dock in Sausalito, Michael goes along with Grisby's weird plan to fake his (Grisby's) murder so he can disappear untailed. He wants the $5000 Grisby has offered, so he can run off with Rosalie. But Grisby turns up actually murdered, and Michael gets blamed for it. Somebody set him up, but it is not clear who or how. Bannister (the actual murderer?) defends Michael in court.
Sorry, wrong number
Leona Stevenson is sick and confined to her bed. One night, whilst waiting for her husband to return home, she picks up the phone and accidentally overhears a conversation between two men planning a murder. She becomes increasingly desperate as she tries to work out who the victim is so the crime can be prevented. Leona Stevenson is an alluring, wealthy, and irritating hypochondriac whose psychosomatic illness has her bedridden. Leona's only lifeline is the telephone, which she uses to excess. The film follows Leona, trapped in her lush apartment, as she tries to prevent an innocent from being murdered.
My opinion of how females are represented in Thriller films
Within thriller related genres, I think that women are represented in a way that they affect on everyone on screen as well as the audience. They’re normally portrayed as this beautiful, irresistible character that has an impact on most other characters within the film. Although she may appear to have the desired looks and lifestyle not all is as it may seem. The film normally consists of a plot that uncovers flaws in her social and personal life which often leads to something dark and mystifying.
Introduction to Computer-generated imagery (CGI)
CGI is the technique of computer graphics to create special effects in films, television programmes and computer games. It is used for visual effects because computer generated effects are more controllable than other more physically based processes, such as constructing miniatures for effects or hiring extras for crowd scenes, and because it allows the creation of images that would not be feasible using any other technology. It can also allow a single graphic artist to produce such content without the use of actors, expensive set pieces, or props.
Studios/Institutions that use CGI
• Blue Sky Studios
• DreamWorks Animation
• Pacific Data Images
• Pixar
• Walt Disney Animation Studios
• Sony Pictures Animation
• Sony Pictures Imageworks
An example of CGI in practice
Conventions of Blue Velvet Opening (18) - 1986
Blue velvet opens from a black screen into a motion image of blue velvet curtains swaying gently from side to side. The film director has used this idea of the curtains to simply reinforce the title of the film, and to open the film in a dramatic way, such as when curtains are pulled when a play is about to begin. After a few moments the opening titles typed in an old-fashioned font begin to roll. The director included many titles such as, the people starring, title name, executive producer, production designer, edited by, produced and directed by. As our final task in only 2 minutes I don’t think it would be practical if we included as many titles as this, as it would go on throughout our whole production and distract the audience as lots would be going on at once. Therefore, we shall select what we feel are the most important titles and use these in our opening thriller. This will allow the audience to read the titles without getting disinterested as there wouldn’t be that many.
When the film begins, it opens up onto a bright summer day, focussing on a patch of red roses in front of a white picket fence. This sets a calm and natural setting. The camera then shows a bigger view on the setting, which appears to be a typical American, suburban, neighbourhood. The camera then cuts to old-aged man who is watering his front lawn. Whilst he is doing so, a joyful non-diegetic soundtrack is played to exaggerate the blissful setting that is being portrayed. Cross cutting shots from the water tap to the old man are used to indicate to the audience that something is about to happen. This creates slight suspense for the audience, as they know something inevitable is about to occur. The old man suddenly collapses to the ground and the camera begins to move down in and through the grass. Whilst still perplexed over the man’s accident, tension begins to build even more than before as the ‘happy’ music begins to fade and a suspenseful soundtrack fades in. The imaging is dark creating tension, and soon reveals a horde of sinister looking beetles.
Conventions of Vertigo Opening (15) - 1958
Vertigo opens with a neutral suspenseful soundtrack playing, whilst the film opens onto a section of the lower half of a women’s face. The camera then moves up to the ladies lips where the titles begin, and a high pitched noise is used simultaneously as they appear. This builds up tension within the audience even though the film hasn’t actually begun yet, as the suspenseful music indicates that something drastic is about to occur. The camera then focuses on the right eye of the women and zooms into the pupil, where the image is then edited and turns to a sinister red effect. This suggests that the film may include an event where danger or even death will take place. Swirling patterns then overlap the pupil (now seen as a black screen as camera has zoomed in) of the eye, which create a hypnotising effect as the shapes and colours start to change. As more titles begin to roll such as, director of photography, sound recording, edited, directed and music by, the suspense soundtrack and rotating swirls continue. Seconds later the camera then zooms out of the pupil and focuses on the whole eye again, and the soundtrack that had been fades out and a soundtrack of a higher and faster pace fades in as the film cuts to the fist opening scene.
The scene begins with hands gripping onto a bar. At this point it is unclear what it going on as it relatively dark, which entices the audience to stay fixed to the screen. It is only until a long shot reveals that a man is climbing up a ladder which leads onto a rooftop. Two other men then follow, a policeman and a man dressed in a trench coat and trousers. An establishing shot is then used to show the area where the action is happening and creates suspense as the chase continues across the rooftops. The man in the trench coat suddenly slips, and falls down the roof luckily he saves himself by grabbing into the guttering of the building. A subjective point of view shot is used to engage the audience more so, as it puts them in the position of the man who looks down beneath him and sees how high up he is.
Conventions of Taken Opening (18) - 2008
Taken begin with a black screen with titiles sliding in from opposite directions. The titles are solid white which is the tone in which most titles have been, through the films i have currently studied. some of the titles involved; A film by '', '' presents and '' prroduction. It then cuts to a scene where it's a young girl's birthday in the style of a home-made video. A slow and emotional piano soundtrack is played over the whispered voices of the mother and daughter in the video. The mood of the music piece contradicts the mood within the video, as the characters seem to be enjoying themselves as they're laughing. It then cuts to a middle-aged man waking up from a sleep in his arm chair. This signifies that the previous shot was a flashback of an memory/event of what the man was dreaming about before we awoke. From this 5 minutes of the opening, we the audience are faced with a sense of enigma. " Why was he dreaming if this particular event?", "is he the father to that child?", "is there a deeper meaning to the event in the home video and will it have any significance to what the film may entail?" This is the type of reaction we want from our audience when they watch our opening, as it makes them hungry for more which proves it is successful.
Analysis of I, Robot (Crime Thriller) - 2004 (15)
CAMERA ANGLE, SHOT, MOVEMENT AND POSITION
• Wide shot
• Aerial shot
• Hand-held
• Point of view
• Pan
• Tilt
• Establishing shot
• Two-shot
Examples
• Tracking shots of escaping robot.
• Framing of robot as pull walls of lab apart and breaks through.
• Extreme close-up (ECU) of trigger of gun just before first robot is shot.
EDITING
• Fade
• Wipe
• CGI animation
• Long take
• Superimpose
• Slow motion
• Cut
Examples
• Use of panning shots to emphasise the vast number of robots that ‘Spooner’ and ‘Calvin’ are talking to.
• Use of cutaways from the Spooner and Calvin to other robots to show their response.
• Quick jump cuts during chase sequence before robot escapes from lab to create tension.
SOUND
• Music soundtracks
• Dramatic music to support action
• Dialogue
• Sound effects
• Theme tune
• Voice-over
Examples
• Use of high-tension music as robot tries to escape from lab.
• Use of sound effects such as echoing footsteps when Spooner searches through mass of robots.
• Over-amplification of gunshots reverberating around lab to add to the current atmosphere.
MISE-EN-SCENE
• Location
• Set design
• Costume
• Ambient/artificial lighting
• Properties
Examples
• Contrasts in colour palettes between humans and robots – human characters have a darker palette than that of robots.
• Futuristic lab – shows how much technology has advanced in the future.
• Lighting- harsh blue light for robot interactions and softer warmer light for human interactions – emphasises and displays the difference between the two races.
Analysis of The Day After Tomorrow (Disaster Thriller) - 2004 (12)
CAMERA ANGLE, SHOT, MOVEMENT AND POSITION
• Establishing shot
• Close-up
• High angle
• Long-shot
• Aerial shot
• Zoom/reverse zoom
• Hand-held
Examples
• Contrast between long shots to show approaching surge of water
• Mirror shot when bus driver looks inside mirror and sees wave of water coming from the street behind him
• Overhead shots to show how water surrounds library as it continues to advance.
EDITING
• Cut
• Fade
• Wipe
• Dissolve
• Superimpose
• Slow motion
• Synchronous/asynchronous sound
Examples
• Frequent jump cuts between water and people to establish tension
• Use of reaction shots to show impact of sight of surge of water.
• Linking shots with street bum and his dog to add extra emotional impact.
SOUND
• Soundtrack
• Sound effects
• Ambient sound
• Dialogue
• Voiceover
Examples
• Characters shouting – dimly heard above water/music adding tension.
• Use of theme music to signify climatic moments
• Contrast between relatively calm voices at the beginning as compared to when the danger of the water increases the volume of the people as they begin to shout – to intensify a sense of tension
MISE-EN-SCENE
• Location
• Set
• Costume
• Properties
• Ambient/artificial lighting
Examples
• Location firmly established as New York – yellow cabs, street bum, bus driver, uniformed security guards.
• The use of yellow carrier bag on the head of the street bum helps identify him quickly in the crowd.
• Costumes are used to help focus on main characters – most other characters are dressed in shades of black and brown whereas main characters wear more colours.
Analysis of Gothika (Supernatural Thriller) – 2003 (15)
CAMERA ANGLE, SHOT, MOVEMENT AND POSITION
• Shot reverse shot
• Close-up
• Pan
• Two-shot
• 180° shot
• Mid-shot
• Long-shot
Examples
• Camera pans right behind a metal fence, concentrating on a whispered conversation between two characters. This creates a tension as it appears that what they are talking about is something sinister and secretive, which involves the audience straight away.
• Close-up shows the emotion of the psychiatrist when she reflects on the situation she is in.
• Mid-shot to show that the house and the psychiatrist have sort of connection, which will be revealed shortly after – creates enigma.
EDITING
• Cut
• Focus-pull
• Dissolve
• Special effects
Examples
• Special effects to show victim and murderer on fire
• Titles at beginning of movie fade in and fade out – characteristics of a ghost
• Focus-pull shows contrast in the two characters on screen. Camera focussing on screaming asylum patient in the background, then camera is pulled and focuses on the calm psychiatrist in the foreground.
SOUND
• Asylum patients screaming
• Music Soundtrack
• Dialogue
• Dramatic soundtracks to suit action going on
Examples
• Sound of Asylum patient as she is dragged away to her cell – creates drama and tension for the audience.
• Tense dramatic music as psychiatrist escapes Asylum prison.
• Amplified sound effects used to ‘throw’ audience.
MISE-EN-SCENE
• Location
• Costume
• Set
• Props
• Ambient/artificial lighting
Examples
• Contrast in costumes assigned to characters - Asylum patients and normal people. Asylum patients stripped of their own identity. Hard to relate to their situation than people such as the psychiatrist who wears ‘everyday clothing’. (Main leading actress different ethnicity to that of the 'typical' female - Early thrillers research).
• Dark settings of when of Asymlum creates a cold, sinister and ‘ghosty’ atmosphere.
• Blood emphasises seriousness of crime event and creates tension and menacing drama.
Analysis of When a Stranger Calls (Thriller) – 2006 (15)
CAMERA ANGLE, SHOT, MOVEMENT AND POSITION
• Personal subjective view shot
• Close-up
• Pan
• Mid-shot
• Long-shot
• Aerial shot
Examples
• Pan is from a subjective point of view shot. Creates suspense as audience can only see what the girl sees when she panics and becomes anxious from the phone call from stranger.
• Close-up shows the emotion of the girl when she’s on the phone to the stalker/stranger, reflects the situation she is in and provokes a response from the audience.
• Mid-shots are used when in an intense atmosphere, which allows audience to become closer to the character. Long-shots and establishing shot used to establish that the girl is alone and is far from and signs of help.
EDITING
• Cut
• Focus-pull
• Dissolve
Examples
• Focus-pull on weapon, unclear at first what is it but then shot is focused – creates drama.
• Cross-cutting from girl character to stalker establishes continuity and creates suspense, tension and drama.
• Cross dissolve between shot to distinguish time lapse.
SOUND
• Ambient sound from outside
• Dialogue
• Dramatic, non-diegetic, tension soundtracks to create suspense for audience.
Examples
• Tense music emphasises dramatic event that is occurring.
• Non-diegetic sounds used to represent stalkers presence without seeing him.
• Ambient sounds are amplified, such as when the girl walks backwards and bumps into a door – used to unsettle audience and create further tension.
MISE-EN-SCENE
• Location
• Costume
• Set
• Props
• Ambient/artificial lighting
Examples
• Location of house (ordinary setting for audience allows them to relate to the type of setting easier) is in a private and enclosed area – emphasises isolation between girl and civilisation.
• Dark settings used to create drama and emphasise vulnerability of girl as her vision is affected due to loss of power in house and the time of day (night).
• The costumes of both the girl and the stalker are ordinary clothing. However, both outfits show contrast with one another’s, as colours of girl’s outfit are bright (average teenager appearance) and the stalker’s are dark – creates mystery behind character.
PLANNING & FILMING
PRELIMINARY TASK
Brief: to construct a 2 minute film consisting of the following shots; 180° shot, two-shot and shot-reverse-shot. The film must show a person entering into a room by opening a door, sitting down and starting a conversation with another person already sitting down and then finally exiting the room.
PLAN OF PRELIMINARY TASK
The actors that will be involved in our 2 minute film will be Neil Kumar (playing hired transporter) and Jasmine Bual (who will play the role of a Boss of an unendorsed business. Our location will be set in a classroom within the school, which will be represented as the Boss’s office. The mise-en-scene in our film consist of; hired transporter wearing a suit – shows he’s a middle-class businessman, the Boss wearing a styled dress – Shows her wealth and importance, ambient lighting and diegetic sound – shows realistic atmosphere, desk and folder – props to support the characters’ needs. The scheduled filming date will be on the 9th November 2009.
Our Preliminary Task
Click the link (Preliminary Task) below the video to view full view
Preliminary Task @ Yahoo! Video
Analysis Preliminary Task
Our first attempt at filming wasn't as successful as we wanted it so we decided to reschedule another shoot for 11th and 12th November 2009, learning from the mistakes that we had made. Our main error is that we had no tripod to film with so our footage was very shaky and looked amateur and unprofessional. However, in our rerun we found that the use of a tripod made the whole of difference and made our footage go from shoddy to professional. From the camera shots that we were using in our prelim, the tripod made them a lot easier to capture than when we were filming hand-held. It made the shots look a lot smoother from one transition to the other.
Main Filming Task (Thriller Opening)
Brief: to construct a 2 minute thriller film opening that creates a sense of enigma for your audience, using appropriate camera shots, angles, movements, sound, mise-en-scene and editing to do so.
Institution that will be producing our Thriller film
We decided that if our Main Filming Task was a live project then Warner Bros. Pictures would be the film institution that would produce our film. This is because Warner Bros. Pictures is a global successful film institution and has some of the most creditable film titles to its name. And so we think that if our film was produced by this institution then they will use all of their experienced and professional knowledge to make sure what is produced is successful.
Introduction to Warner Bros. Pictures
Warner Bros. Pictures is a renowned, international entertainment institution and is a global leader in the creation, production, distribution, licensing and marketing of all forms of creative content across all current and emerging media and platforms. The company stands at the forefront of every aspect of the entertainment industry which include; films, home entertainment, digital distribution, animation, comic books, licensing, international cinemas and broadcasting.
Plan for our Main Filming Task (Thriller Opening)
The thriller conventions that we have taken from our RESEARCH and will incorporate in our film are:
- Stalker - When a Stranger Calls
- Female leading role, but of different ethnicity (challenges convention) - Early Thrillers Research
- Subjective point of view shot - When a Stranger calls and Vertigo
- Dark setting - When a Stranger calls, Vertigo and Gothika
We decided to use these convention because we feel we can create a very successful film opening that will attract our audience. these conventions work well together and generally create a suspense atmosphere and enigma.
Our Target Audience
Our product will be aimed at both genders aged 15+. We decided on this audience as any age below 15 may find the context and content of our film disturbing and unsuitable for them to watch. Teenagers aged 15 and higher will also be able to relate to more of what is going on, as the characters in our film will be roughly the same age. Other media products such as the film Kidulthood and the TV programme Skins use this idea to attract and involve their audience.
Plot outline
A teenage girl who is intoxicated by alcohol, walks home from a night out at a friend's house party. As she staggers and stumbles to her house there is a stranger overlooking her from outside. The stalker watches the girl through her kitchen window, staring and observing her, then takes out a photograph of the girl from his coat pocket and begins to burn it. It is at this point where the story slowly unveils and the relationship between these 2 characters is revealed later in the film.
Brainstorm of ideas for title of film with audience feedback.
Our group constructed a survey for the rest of our media class consisting of 4 possible titles that we would use for our main task. they were: 'Always Watching', , 'Who's Watching', 'The Watching', 'The Pursuit' or 'The Vigilant'.
We constructed our survey as follows:
Please mark your favourite title that appeals to you most
Title Score
1. Always Watching IIII (4)
2. Who's Watching IIIII (5)
3. The Watching II (2)
4. The Pursuit IIIIII (6)
4. The Vigilant IIII (4)
From the survey we found that the title 'The Pursuit' was the most effective title for our audience and so we decided to go with their opinion and go ahead with the title.
Mollee Vasey – (Party Host)
This character has been chosen as she is hosting her own house party.
Jasmine Bual – (Main actress)
From my research I noticed that in a lot of cases females who play leading roles in a thriller were of a white ethnicity. To make ours a little diverse and different we decided to use a character of a different descent. This actor is our main actor and will play the role of the 'stalked'.
Neil Kumar – (Main Actor)
This character will play the role of the 'stalker', but is different to the 'typical' stalker as he is not wearing a hooded jacket which was something we were advised were not to do.
Sophie Lemm – (Party Guest)
Plays the role of the party guest at the house party, and possibly further appearances later in the film.
Samuel Lai – (Party Guest)
Plays the role of the party guest at the house party, and possibly further appearances later in the film.
Lewie Hare – (Party Guest)
Plays the role of the party guest at the house party, and possibly further appearances later in the film.
Chosen locations
The film opens up into a house party at the party host's house. Then we see the outside and surrounding area (street) as the party guest/stalked starts to walk home. Then finally near to the end of the film we see the stalked enter her house. These locations were chosen because they are ordinary settings in which appear in everyday life that the audience can relate to.
Sounds/Soundtracks
The only sounds that are to be incorporated into our footage is the loud party music played at the beginning (non-diegetic sound) and when the party guest leaves the house, an eerie soundtrack will played over the footage (non-diegetic sound). We decided to add this because it creates a build up of suspense which will provoke a response from the audience. The sounds also help emphasise the contrast in moods from the party and when the girl starts to walk home.
Lighting
The lighting will be all artificial as the the film is set in at a time where it is dark and any ambient lighting is absent. This lighting will come from the houses that will be used and street lamps from when the girl is walking home.
Mise-en-scene
Costumes - typical clothing of average teenager that audience can relate to.
Props - drinks (cans, glasses, bottles) lighter and photograph.
Setting - interior (house party, girl's house), exterior (outside on the street )
Script for film
INT- (House party scene)
Mid-shot: All party guests dance, drink and converse with each other as loud party music plays.
Mid-shot: Party guests still drinking, dancing and conversing with one another except Jasmine Bual and Mollee Vasey who walk forward towards the door, face one another and hug.
MOLLEE VASEY: Bye
JASMINE: See ya later
MOLLEE VASEY: Seeya later...bye
Mid-shot: All party guests dance, drink and converse with each other as loud party music plays.
Mid-shot: Party guests still drinking, dancing and conversing with one another except Jasmine Bual and Mollee Vasey who walk forward towards the door, face one another and hug.
MOLLEE VASEY: Bye
JASMINE: See ya later
MOLLEE VASEY: Seeya later...bye
EXT - (Outside, journey home)
Long-shot: Jasmine walks towards and past the camera in a drunken manner.
Mid-shot: Jasmine continues walking and turns right around the corner of the house.
Subjective point of view shot: Jasmine holds camera and walks past hedge leading to the path on the street.
Long-shot: Jasmine walks towards the camera in a drunken manner due to her alcohol consumption and turns right from the camera.
Subjective point of view shot: Jasmine holds camera and walks up sidepath towards her house (whilst breathing deeply) - shows that you are not in a right state of mind due to the alcohol, which has affected your breathing and anxiety levels.
Long-shot: Jasmine continues to walk down sidepath towards her house, whilst recieving her door keys from her pocket in her cardigan as she reaches the front door.
Over the shoulder shot: Jasmine thimbles with her keys to find the right one but drops them on the floor due to her impaired vision and anxiety. She manages to pick them up and unlock the door and enter her house.
Mid-shot/over the shoulder shot: Neil looks directly at where Jasmine has has just entered her house as he is stalking her.
Mid-shot: (transition signifies time lapse) Neil observes Jasmine through her kitchen window as she looks in the refrigerator for food.
Mid-shot: Neil reaches into his side pocket of his coat and takes out a photograph.
Subjective point of view shot/cloe-up: Neil unfolds a photograph of the girl he is currently stalking, takes out a lighter from his coat pocket and begins to burn the photograph. Neil then drops the burning photograoh onto the floor.
Close-up: The photograph burns halfway (fades to black)
END
SHOOTING SCHEDULE
We uploaded our footage on Wednesday 27th January and starting to edit until completion on Wednesday 20th February.Roles that were played and assigned
Samuel Lai - directing, filming, editing, acting
Sophie Lemm - lighting, directing, editing, acting
Jasmine Bual - acting, directing, editing, filiming
Sophie Lemm - lighting, directing, editing, acting
Jasmine Bual - acting, directing, editing, filiming
Limitations
When we began to film the scenes on the street, we noticed that the areas we were filming were very badly lit from the street lamps. As it was vital that there was light in our shots so you were able to see what was going on, we took it upon ourselves to improvise and overcome this situation. We managed to get hold of a portable flood light and used this as the light from the lamps.
Changes
We made changes to our type font. At first we used the font apple symbols. But due to feedback from others we found that it didn't truely match to that of the thriller genre. It looked very plain and boring. So we then went away and changed our type face to onyx; a font that we and others agreed was an improvement and definately showed character of the thriller genre.
music - freeplaymusic
Below is an image that shows what font we used at first and what we changed it to
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