Evaluation: Question 3

All movies are composed to suit a specific group of people. These people are the target audience of the movie and the potential customers. Each movie is produced in a particular way to appeal to their particular target audience.

Different genres have different audiences. People prefer some movie types over other others. For example, i enjoy action movies and dislike horror. This may be the complete opposite for others. Age, gender and ethnicity play huge roles when it comes to target audiences. For example, Disney movies are generally targeted for children rather than adults.

A thriller has many aspects which makes it more suitable for some people to watch rather than others. The presence of murder, abuse and various other disturbing scenes might suggest that the movie is aimed at adults rather than children. Even though gender isnt a huge aspect in the target audience for thrillers, stereotypically it would seem that male's are more interested in these types of movies rather than females.

Evaluation: Question 1

Evaluation: Question 2

Evaluation: Question 4

Evaluation: Question 5

Evaluation: Question 6

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?


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Internet- Blogger:
Blogger has been a vital part of our project. It gave us a platform to share and collect our ideas within a group and also let us expand on it together. I've learnt how to use the tools provided and how to upload things of my own such as gifs, images, videos and a prezi. I did this to make the work look more interesting and also felt that it was useful to include several features of technology.

Vimeo- When we finished our final product we needed a platform to upload it. This is a video tube very similar to youtube. This enabled us to share our work with other students and gain feedback.

Software-
Soundtrack Pro: We used this programme to make a soundtrack for our film opening. With this programme I learnt how to change the pitch of individual sounds, how to split sound into different segments and how to change the volume of a particular sound at different times. We was able to obtain a nursery rhyme and edit it to make it more suitable for a thriller. To do this we changed the pitch and added other sounds from the library to compliment the lullaby.

Final cut Pro: This programme helped us build the opening. All our shots, video clips and titles were edited and added here. Final cut pro helped us put the shots in the particular order we wanted them in and let us add transitions and also special effects to the particular clip.

Quark: I used quark to set a guideline for the order of the shots of our thriller opening. This taught me how to create a storyboard and add writing to it.

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Equipment:

Flip camera: I used a flip camera to record students feedback and also 'behind the scene' footage. This helped us work on the criticisms we revieced from fellow classmates.

Still Camera: The still camera was very useful when taking pictures for the storyboard. This helped us get certain images and put them in the order we want them in. This set the guideline for the final product. We also took several pictures of our props, actors as they were performing, and ourselves as we were filming.

Video Camera: To film our opening we used a  JVC pro HD GYHM100E. We used this for the entire filming process and learnt how to use and function a camera properly. Focusing the lens was one of the features we had to learn and it was certainly not an easy task. At times the footage would be blurred as we couldnt use it properly but by the end of the learnin period this skill was also mastered.

Evaluation Question 7

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the final product?

When filming the preliminary film my editing, filming and knowledge of software was much weaker than it is right now. I had very little experience with any of these aspects of media and found it difficult to start with. However, after guidance from our teachers I found that these skills were rather easy to gather.

Camera Work- During the beginning of the course I only had a general idea of the very basic shot types, this made the work look sloppy, unorganised and very basic. Now I have broad knowledge on different shot types and the effect and influence they have over both the audience and the film itself. I've learnt that the camera-work is one of the main aspects when portraying the status or representation of a particular character. I now understand that different angles and recording methods also have great influence on the clip.

Storyboard

For our preliminary task we used quark to set guidelines for our storyboard. This helped us set a basic criteria and add captions too.

The storyboard was an important part of the process and gave us a general idea of the type of shots we wanted to use for the actual movie opening.

Mise en scene

In our preliminary task we used very basic props with the 'anything will do' mind set. We thought it would have the same effect as props specific to the topic, but we was wrong. For our final product we invested in fake blood, new clothes and various other tools that we thought would make the opening seem more professional and also interesting. 

Lighting- To start with, we had trouble timing our filming. As we started filming it was still day-time in London, though this changed rapidly. As we were filming in winter it got dark very quickly and affected the lighting. this resulted in half the clip being during day-time and the other half during at night. Eventually we thought our timing through and made sure we adapted well to the weather and lighting changes.

Editing- For our preliminary task we had absolutely no knowledge on how to use software such as Soundtrack Pro so we used sounds from youtube, this made the clip lose originality and made it seem very ordinary. For our final product we were able to use sounds from Soundtrack Pro's library. We added a lullaby which made the opening seem very unorthodox and unique, in my opinion this made the opening seem more original.
We also were able to add special effects and transitions for our final product. This made the clip look more professional and helps maintain the interest of the audience but also creates suspense. We wern't able to do this for our preliminary task as we had very little knowledge on how to use the software provided.

To conclude, over the learning period we have broadened our knowledge on the software provided to us and also the equipment we were given. We are now much more familiar with the cameras and editing methods so we are able to make our work presentable and more professional.

EDITING Title research and adding titles

This screenshot shows us in the process of adding titles to our sequence.

we decided to intercut our titles with  our titles because we thought it would be most effective to show titles along with our shots. Furthermore this helped us cut down on time and meet a generous 2Minute length. This helps keeping the audience engaged and interacted and does not drag.

We made sure the names of actors and people who took part was larger than the title, for example.

'Starring' was in a smaller font size to 'Baris Timur' (our actor) this helps the audience focus straight onto the names as most conventional thriller movies do so.

Our font was 'ringbearer' and we thought this gave emphasis on our titles, we also thought this font was somewhat simple and fit our psychotic thriller really well.

EDITING Sound

We first used a very small part of a piece of uncopyrighted nursery rhyme, which we then edited to make our own by distorting it and adding echo and playing with the pitch. This helped us get a freaky and psychotic feel to the film opening. we then repeated the sequence and made it even more creepy using similar effects to show the contrast.

After we done the opening soundtrack with the nursery rhyme we then used two sound sequences which we found from soundtrack pro. As we wanted to make it our own and make it stand our we edited the distortion levels and echo effcts to fit our basement scene.

We needed to add foley sound as we needed to put a scream right at the end. we found a perfect scream and adjusted it so it syncs perfectly with our clip. we then played with its pitch levels to make it seem darker.

Finally, we exported it to final cut pro to add the finishing touches which we were not able to do on soundtrack pro. Doing this helped us get the best out of the soundtrack and make sure it syncs properly with  our film.

EDITING adding effects

These screenshots show us adding effects to the clips on the timeline. we primarily used colour contrasting and brightness effects to signify the flashback scenes.

we used the light ray effect as we thought it helps portray the flashbacks best.

We used the sepia effect of the scenes from childhood to imply that they are from the past so that it isn't too confusing.

We adjusted the speed for effect at some points (fast/slow motion) We used slow motion on the shot of the knife being brought down on the girl.

We used overlay on the psychos face at one point to create a ghostly effect.

EDITING Constructing timeline

This is us putting the clips together, it went well but we have changed the sequence quite a lot since the story board as Dan pointed out a few errors.

We also thought of new ideas along the way which have effected the sequence positively.

First day attempt at filming...

On Sunday 10th February we went to Alexandra Palace to commence filming out Thriller..

However we had a few difficulties ...

We weren't able to film Alexandra Palace as we found our that for security reasons we couldn't film the building, there was also an antiques fair on which meant it was very busy and the whole building looked too unrealistic as it had signs on it and traffic lights around etc.

So we had to re-think our location, but luckily we came across this hut on the grounds which is ideal, it has a path leading directly to it and looks eerie.

This is us trying to set up the camera and start filming BUT the rain was too heavy so eventually we gave up and decided to film during the week instead because by filming in the rain we were putting the equipment and quality of filming at risk

New props

Here are the new props we will be needing for the changes we are making to the opening

The newly added location - Leila's kitchen 

Production schedule

Filming will start properly tomorrow! (Tuesday 12th January)

TUESDAY 12th

• Filming of basement scene in college as well as the flash backs of the basement from 9am-12:15 pm

THURSDAY 14th

• Filming at Alexandra Palace during lesson time and before since we all have a free lesson from 1:15pm

HALF TERM

• Go in to college and film anything we have left or need to re-film 
• Start editing process

PLANNING - Storyboard and animatic

PLANNING - Title sequences that influenced us

Quite a few title sequences contributed to our final idea, here are a few of them and the aspects we liked and want to adapt from them to use in our opening...

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Seven

• We initially liked the idea of a highly stylized opening that seven demonstrated but we decided this would be a bit tricky to replicate. We also liked the idea of dangerous tools and the sense of lighting used which has influenced us and the idea of not seeing the person's face.

The Shining

• We thought that tracking a moving subject up a hill from different camera angles builds a lot of tension so we are going to use this idea while the man is walking up the hill.

The Butterfly Effect

• The use of the concluding scene as the opening is very clever as it creates a sense of intrigue for the viewer making them wonder what has happened and what is going on.

Orphan

• Family related drama where somebody has a secret - we have adapted this idea for our treatment - the man doesn't blame his father for killing his mother and is a completely different character to whom he portrays himself to be.

PLANNING - Treatment

Outline of the plot:

Starts with the opening of the man walking back to the building in which the woman is tied up and suffering, this is actually the ending of the film. After the title sequence we are taken back to his childhood where he has been growing up in a very wealthy family in a huge home, he witnessed his mother be brutally murdered by his father which has caused him to become mentally affected.

The film follows him growing up and shows him becoming increasingly strange.. He falls in love with a girl and shares his past with her, however he is not telling her the whole truth. We find out that he does not disagree with what his father did to his mother and as this unfolds he starts to show signs of mentality. He becomes abusive and possessive over his girlfriend and it becomes obvious that he has got a mental illness.

Eventually his girlfriend refers him to a mental hospital but he overhears her on the phone, and plans tto attack her and take her to off to the now deserted building that has been his hideout for years. This takes us back to the opening.

PLANNING - Target audience

We are aiming for our story line to be a psychological drama thriller although from the opening you might assume that it has a sub-genre of horror. Therefore this will influence the target audience and vary it to thriller films with different sub genres.

Our thriller will appeal to people who enjoy analytical thinking and a lot of tension and suspense. A person who enjoys intrigue however doesn't want to watch three hours of hard hitting action or gore.Therefore we have decided that our thriller will be made for the target audience of a mature and intelligent 18 to 30 year old male or female.

This bar chart shows that psychological thrillers are the sub-genre most prefered by people in general, therefore our thriller will be able to appeal to a wide range of people although it does have a specific target audience.

PLANNING - Costume and props

Today was prop collection day!

After having a group discussion we decided that these are the props we will need:

• Big metal scissors
• A dagger/knife
• Lots of fake blood 
• Rope
• Thick metal chain
• Dark makeup to make it look like the girls makeup has been smudged
• A water spray to make it look like she is sweating

For costume:

• Black trousers and hoodie for the man
• a casual outfit of jeans and a top for the girl in the flash back scenes
• a brown sac for her to be wearing when she is tied up

Here are the props we have collected:

Fake blood and frothing mouth blood

Scissors and a fake knife which looks quite real

rope

chain

hazard tape

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PLANNING - Locations

We will need two different location for our opening, firstly there is the palace and path that the mysterious man will be walking up and towards.

We have found an idea location for this which we are very excited to use as the path goes up a hill and leads directly to the mansion. It is called Alexandra Palace and luckily it is very near to where we all live so it will be a convenient as well as effective location to use.

Some pictures we have taken of this location:

This is the path we initially planned to use for the man to walk up, however there might be cars driving on it depending on the time we film and there is a road to cross inbetween it and the building which could interfere  with our shots so we have found a smaller path as a back up which we could also use.

The back up path

A few shots of the actual building which is meant to be deceiving as it looks like a castle from outside but is actually derelict and dangerous inside.

A few scenic shots of trees we will use in the opening establishing shot

Our second location is the basement style room for inside the building, we found the perfect location in college it is full of scrap wood and metal materials with concrete floors, brick walls it looks just like a warehouse:

Where we are planning to have the girl tied up

We might have the man enter from this direction

The dim lighting in here is perfect