Final

FINAL PRODUCT

Coursework Thriller Film Opening Evaluation Question 4

How did you integrate technologies - software, hardware and online - in this project?

Software

Adobe premiere pro - This is an editing software that allows us to move clip and sound sequence, and implement different effects to an extent.

This program allowed us to color grade our product, as all of the footage at first was different in color making very weird and usually looking. After tweaking the color to a more sunset feel, the outcome was much better.
Credits were also made on Premier Pro,we just added text to where we saw fitted, we didn't use any fade or moving effect as it look and felt weird so, we instead use in combination of cuts and sound to place the credits to create a sudden effect.
The program also allowed us to cut and crop footage which was very useful as it allowed us to shorten the opening to the time set and made a smother transition between shots

Voice memo

Voice memo was used after filming as, the sound on the footage taken was not great, due to background noise. Voice memo is basically the program used to record sound, which is an app on the I phone. We only used this once as there were little to no dialogue in our product.

Hardware

Camera = Canon 80D

Canon 80D is an DSLR wih a 

• 24MP APS-C CMOS sensor with Dual Pixel AF
• 45-point AF system with all cross-type points
• 3" 1.04M-dot articulating touchscreen
• 1080/60p video capture
• 7 fps continuous shooting with AF
• Weather-resistant body
• 7560-pixel RGB+IR Metering Sensor
• Wi-Fi + NFC

This is my own camera, and i chose to use  this camera because it allowed me to shoot 1080p at 60 fps which made my footage smoother and more pleasant to watch. It was also weather resistant, which meant if it rained we would be able to still film with it.

Lens = Tamron 35mm f1.8

This allowed us to make Bokeh footage like this:

 The lens had VC(vibration control) which helped stabilize shots.

We also had a tripod to stabilize the shots.

Microphone= Rode Video Mic go

This mic helped us record background sound for some of our shots and canceled redundant sound when its not needed.

I phone 6s

This was used to make time lapse during filming process and record dialogue in after production on voice memo.

Online

YouTube-

We used YouTube from the start to find ideas to finding soundtracks to go with our opening

Purple Planet-

Purple Planet is website that contains not copyrighted music, we used the site to search for and find soundtracks for our opening

Blogger-

Blogger is what we use to record our progress own, this allows us to go back a see what we've done, and what could have been improve.

Google maps-

We use google maps to identify the location of where we are filming.

Conclusion  

How was technology integrated?

After using Google maps we went to our location

Then we started filming, we set u the time lapse with our phone to show our filming process:

After filming we transfered both the footage and audio from the mic's and camera's SD card to our computer. Then we opened premier pro and inserted the files into the software.

After editing we went on the internet to find suitable soundtracks for our product from both YouTube and Purple planet. After finding one we would download it and import it to our project.

When we finish editing we try to improve it, one of the dialogue in the opening was extremely quite, barely understandable, so we voice over it using voice memo and puting the audio on the product.

Coursework Thriller Film Opening Evaluation Question 3

How did your production skills develop throughout this project?

Editing

At the beginning i only knew how to edit on the basic software like i movie, movie maker and what it could do was very limited. After learning how to use Adobe premiere pro the possibility of what we could do increased as we could add custom effects and had access to external plugins that could enhance our product.

These are some evidence of editing

Colour grading

Sequences 

 Camera Work

At the beginning i barely use any cameras other than the one on my phone. Through the production process I gathered more techniques from peers and the teachers and improve dramatically. This includes basic camera operation, to more technical shot types and lighting. I was not always behind the camera as i was the main actor but here are some footage of when we were filming:

Visual Fx

We didn't really use visual effect as, our thriller opening was slow pace and we wanted to make it mysterious. But we did try a little to make credit on After effects but found it to complex.

Convections

We learnt a lot on thriller conventions in class, but we implemented dose elements to our film to enhance the film opening . Like These shots

 Handheld, blurred background

Shaky cam 

Creativity

This improve tremendously, as we spent many lesson discussing the different ideas we had before we made the film. The different type of shot in the film opening and transitions was an example of this.

Coursework Thriller Film Opening Evaluation Question 2

How does your product engage with audiences and how would it be distributed as a real media text?

 Engage with audiences

Similar concept Tv series and movies
DEMOGRAPHICS

Similarities:

GENDER = MALE
AGE = 25-39
SOCIAL GRADE: ABC1
LOCATION = London and Central Scotland
PROFESSION = ENTERTAINMENT
POLITICS = Left wing

LIFESTYLE

Similarities:

HOBBIES = Video games/Technology involved

SPORTS = None

GENERAL INTEREST = Movies

NICHE INTEREST = Watch movies at home

PETS = Cats

BRAND

Similarities:

CUSTOMER OF = Sony/Playstation

SHOPS AT = TESCO

GENERAL INTEREST = KICKERS/VANS

BANK = None

CAR = No interest in cars

PERSONALITY

ENTERTAINMENT

TARGET AUDIENCE

What the audience may like in our opening?

From this information we gathered, these are the following reasons why they would find our film opening appealing to watch

Distribution 

from the information we gathered, we found out that our audience would go to the cinema for this sort of film, so a theatrical release would be appropriate.

However, "apparently 81% of adults between the ages of 18 and 35 have Netflix accounts, representing a 9% increase from just two years previous, representing a 9% increase from just two years previou", so we have to acknowledge that market. Therefore looking at Lionsgate Premiere, this would be an appropriate choice for a distributor as they specialize in taking theatrical release to online streaming.

Coursework Thriller Film Opening Evaluation Question 1

How does your product use or challenge convection and how does it represent social groups and issues.

Social groups and issues

Our product shows a dispute between one social groups. One is the victim who is upper class wealthy, and secondly the killer who is also high upper class. This challenges normal thriller convection as most will have a fairly clear line between good and evil, however I don't want that in our product. Sometimes the so called "vigilante justice" is necessary and that is what i wanted to explore. If this was a real movie I want the audience to think along with the movie, what is right?, what is wrong?. These two character right from the start are set up to be very grey. One is the boss of a ruthless organisation which we can assume only concern themselves with their own well-being. While the killer is someone who cares about other and dose what is right instead of what benefits him.

Examples of films that dose this:

Elysium

This film shows how a boss of business dose not care about anyone else but him self.  Even when one of hes worker is going to die. This worker then wanted to kill him as he didn't think he was worthy to live.

Product use or challenge thriller convection

The antagonist ensnares the protagonist in an increasingly complex web until the protagonist feels isolated and helpless

Our opening has challenge this convection to an extent, as the title "antagonist" or "protagonist" has not really been shown or identified in the sequence. The audience will only meet one guy, Roger. Roger in this case is somewhat a antagonist but was never made cleared in the opening . Instead of the the protagonist feeling isolated and helpless, Roger feels isolated and helpless:

These are evidence of Roger feeling isolated and helpless:

In these scene we can see that Roger is alone and isolated, no one is in reached to help him.

The killer who has been "following " Roger is the protagonist (We know this from when he was talking on the phone with someone). This differs from a lot of thrillers where the killer usually the antagonist. The killer is killing for a purpose, weather its the right thing to do or not is up to the audience.   

Movies or series that follow this similar concept

DEXTER

"Dexter Morgan is a forensics Expert, but that's what he seems to be, as that not what he really is. Dexter is a serial killer that hunts the bad." IMDb

Breaking Bad

"A high school chemistry teacher diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer turns to manufacturing and selling methamphetamine in order to secure his family's future" - IMDb

Night crawler(2014)

"Louis Bloom. a driven man desperate for work, muscles into the world of  L.A. crime journalism, he blurs the line between observer and participant to become the star of his own story." - IMDb

The narrative centres upon a crime E,g theft, murder

Our opening has followed this convection, as it is based on murder. The story of the film is a killer who has been affected somehow by the extreme upper class, to the extent that he thinks killing them is the best solution. 

Evidence of murder - 

 After being pulled from the last shot, in this shot the camera start shaking therefore suggest hes struggling. Which mean someone has locked his neck preventing him from breathing and he is trying to free him self.

 In this shot we see a dark shadow, but if u look carefully we see someone being dragged by the shirt , not moving and probably dead.

Now clearly shown of his feet being dragged across the floor or dragged.

The protagonist is fallible and has a Achilles heel that is exploited.

Our film dose show a weakness in the protagonist, but isn't clearly shown. Time is his weakness, we have shown in the film opening a representation of time.=

As we can see  the clock shows that its just before six o'clock, through this we were trying to suggest that the killer can only kill after six or its his preferred time. This can be further used to exploit him in the actual film if it was made,

Film Opening explained.

At the start of the film we see a man walking, there is no information to show who he is or where he is going. Instead this pulls the audience attention to the setting and environment of the film opening by which is shown with a long shot. First of all the audience will know that its a sunset therefore setting a mystery mood and builds up tension, to further add to this, the feeling of isolation as the man is alone also creates a worrying affect which may make the audience feel vulnerable or unprotected, these are all examples of thriller convections. In the other hand the warm color of the sunset may also contradict this as a warm color can represent love and protection which challenges thriller convections. Another shot that is similar to this is The Guest

This next shot continue showing the setting, now we know he is near the lake. This differs from any thriller opening, as it is set in a nice and good location, this challenges normal thriller convections. Another movie that uses a similar setting is zodiac, where the couple gets stabbed near a lake. One thing that differs from the last shot is that the sun is lower which suggest or hindsight in a way that danger is coming which can further build up tension.

In this shot we learn more about the character, a extreme close up of the watch may suggest the guy is wealthy, this challenges thriller convections as this guy is having a good life and at a good place, why would anything bad happen to him? The shot also shows the time which may suggest something is going to happen or he's waiting for something which again further build up tension.

Another shot showing the lake but now with sunlight fading which may suggest time is running out. Everything is getting darker which can mean death is somewhat coming closer.

This shot is the last shot that we see the sunlight and the watch. If u closely we see a sun flare on the watch, which can represent the time has run out, nothing can protect him now. The idea of the watch representing something come from zodiac, as the watch represented the killer.

The next shot cuts to the shoe of the man, this may suggest to the audience that its "rock bottom". This is when things get from good to bad.

This two shots are similar to the ones the opening of The Guest, through the walking of the character and without seeing there faces, we can build suspension. The audience raises question of where is he going and what he is doing.  The shot also expresses the isolation and emptiness feeling of the place as it uses a wide angle shot to show the location or the landscape. 

The second shots uses are more close up shot, which blurs the background, this was purposely done to limit what the audience and see, as we wanted to hindsight that something was going to happen. This shot was also handheld to build tension.

Another similar shot from The guest is also used, this shot just give the audience a sense of pace and connect to the character. Like if hes panicing or just normally walking etc.

This is similar to the scene in Cape Fear, it makes the character intimidating 

This last three shot is the killing scene, this last shot explains everything. It shocks the audience with a sudden cut in sound and the disappearing of the person. Then shows the character of being polarised, dead and being pulled away.