Natalie's Blog (4089)
http://natalie9890.blogspot.com/
Paula's Blog
http://pauladaveyasmedia.blogspot.com/
Sherry' Blog (4119)
http://sherrys-media-as.blogspot.com/
Abi's Blog
http://abi-loveless.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, 27 April 2010
Audience Survey (Post-screening)
We asked 9 people from our target audience to watch our opening sequence and answer 10 questions on it. Many of them were ‘Yes or No’ questions, but they still gave as a good idea of how our opening sequence. We also asked 2 questions that allowed the audience to respond with in depth comments on the opening sequence.
1. Did you understand the narrative?
This question was a little bit misleading, as sometimes you cannot simply understand a movie if you have just seen the first 2 minutes of it. This is why the majority of the audience voted ‘A little’. It was however a good response in that nobody said ‘No’. So our narrative must have some clarity at least.
2. Overall, how much did you enjoy the thriller opening sequence? (1= Not at all, 5= A lot)
Again, not a bad response. Nobody really liked it, but nobody hated it. Most of our target audience thought it was satisfactory which is okay. It just shows us there is some room for improvement in our production.
3. Would you watch the full film?
Our group spent a long time looking for music that reflected the mood of the characters and the environment they were in perfectly. We struggled for a while to find the right combination of music that was not only subtle, but pleasant to listen too. It seems that our efforts paid off with all but one person saying the soundtrack was effective.
7. Did it build suspense?
We picked the music so it would heighten the suspense, we attempted this though several other elements to. But we didn’t want to build the suspense up so much that it would be unbearable in the first 2 minutes. So again this is a good response, we only wanted to build up a little bit of suspense so that the audience would be curious as to what will happen next.
8. Was there any confusion whilst watching it?
1. Did you understand the narrative?
This question was a little bit misleading, as sometimes you cannot simply understand a movie if you have just seen the first 2 minutes of it. This is why the majority of the audience voted ‘A little’. It was however a good response in that nobody said ‘No’. So our narrative must have some clarity at least.2. Overall, how much did you enjoy the thriller opening sequence? (1= Not at all, 5= A lot)
Again, not a bad response. Nobody really liked it, but nobody hated it. Most of our target audience thought it was satisfactory which is okay. It just shows us there is some room for improvement in our production.3. Would you watch the full film?
A good response to this question, nobody said ‘No’ which meant that we successfully engaged the audience. Much of the audience voted ‘Maybe’, Obviously 2 minutes of a film is not enough to base a judgement whether to watch a movie or not. Usually an audience would want to watch it due to the advertising around the movie. We did create a trailer, but the audience did not get a chance to watch this before the movie was screened, it may have prompted a few more people to say ‘Yes’.
4. What did you think of the effects?
'The effects were relatively good'
'Lovely'
'I think they set for something good to happen'
'Good'
'They're good'
'Very effective at the beginning'
These were all good responses to the question, some vague. But nonetheless they all say the special effects were good. So there is no need for mass improvement in that area.
5. Did you know that it begins with a dream?
This is a definite area for improvement. As our group understood the narrative it appeared clear to us that it was a dream. She opens her eyes and is in bed so we expected the audience to piece two and two together. If we were to go back and improve on this we would definitely start with making it clear that it was a dream.
6. Was the soundtrack effective?
4. What did you think of the effects?
'The effects were relatively good'
'Lovely'
'I think they set for something good to happen'
'Good'
'They're good'
'Very effective at the beginning'
These were all good responses to the question, some vague. But nonetheless they all say the special effects were good. So there is no need for mass improvement in that area.
5. Did you know that it begins with a dream?
This is a definite area for improvement. As our group understood the narrative it appeared clear to us that it was a dream. She opens her eyes and is in bed so we expected the audience to piece two and two together. If we were to go back and improve on this we would definitely start with making it clear that it was a dream.6. Was the soundtrack effective?
Our group spent a long time looking for music that reflected the mood of the characters and the environment they were in perfectly. We struggled for a while to find the right combination of music that was not only subtle, but pleasant to listen too. It seems that our efforts paid off with all but one person saying the soundtrack was effective.7. Did it build suspense?
We picked the music so it would heighten the suspense, we attempted this though several other elements to. But we didn’t want to build the suspense up so much that it would be unbearable in the first 2 minutes. So again this is a good response, we only wanted to build up a little bit of suspense so that the audience would be curious as to what will happen next.8. Was there any confusion whilst watching it?
We weren't too surprised at this reaction from the audience. Admittedly if you do not watch the movie carefully and closely confusion can arise as there are very small and subtle hints in the movie that if you miss may throw you off. It is also not uncommon for there to be slight confusion at the start of the movie as usually it is cleared up as the narrative progresses. Obviously we did not have enough time to clear up the confusion, but if we had had longer we definitely would have cleared up some of the confusion.
9. Does the title grab your attention?
This was quite a good response from the audience. We would not say that the title was our strongest suit. It is a very interesting title that would grab your attention but what I think the viewers were responding to was the placement of the title. But we admit it could do with some work as we were unsure where to place it so it got a bit neglected and was the last thing we did before finishing. But overall, a good response.
10. What could be improved?
'Clearer narrative'
'The narrative'
'Narrative clearer'
'The talking interacting scene between characters a little confusing'
'Make narrative clearer'
'The shot of the two people talking talk louder'
‘I really liked the beginning, especially how the music builds up to the main character. The dialogues weren’t really clear though, but like how you made the opening sequence continuous at the end. Well done!’
So there are two main things the audience would like us to improve. The first being the narrative. We personally think the narrative works well, and if we had had more time (for the production) we would have cleared a few things up, but as it was such a short space of time it was difficult to get everything we wanted in there. We guess if we were to re-do it we could make it less busy and maybe have less scenes. The other thing was the conversation between the characters. Some people found it confusing whereas others just couldn’t hear it properly. If we were to sort out that scene we would definitely make it louder and try to add some clarity to the conversation if we could. But this conversation would have become clearer the more the story progressed.
But, overall wehink we did well to please the majority of our target audience. Our film seems to be aimed at a more niche audience as certain people in the people we surveyed liked it and others didn't. This is generally what happens with films that a released in the cinema as one film cannot possibly appeal to every niche group out there. If we were to make the rest of the film we would take into consideration what the target audience have said, sort out those things and make sure that the rest of the film would appeal to them.
9. Does the title grab your attention?
This was quite a good response from the audience. We would not say that the title was our strongest suit. It is a very interesting title that would grab your attention but what I think the viewers were responding to was the placement of the title. But we admit it could do with some work as we were unsure where to place it so it got a bit neglected and was the last thing we did before finishing. But overall, a good response.10. What could be improved?
'Clearer narrative'
'The narrative'
'Narrative clearer'
'The talking interacting scene between characters a little confusing'
'Make narrative clearer'
'The shot of the two people talking talk louder'
‘I really liked the beginning, especially how the music builds up to the main character. The dialogues weren’t really clear though, but like how you made the opening sequence continuous at the end. Well done!’
So there are two main things the audience would like us to improve. The first being the narrative. We personally think the narrative works well, and if we had had more time (for the production) we would have cleared a few things up, but as it was such a short space of time it was difficult to get everything we wanted in there. We guess if we were to re-do it we could make it less busy and maybe have less scenes. The other thing was the conversation between the characters. Some people found it confusing whereas others just couldn’t hear it properly. If we were to sort out that scene we would definitely make it louder and try to add some clarity to the conversation if we could. But this conversation would have become clearer the more the story progressed.
But, overall wehink we did well to please the majority of our target audience. Our film seems to be aimed at a more niche audience as certain people in the people we surveyed liked it and others didn't. This is generally what happens with films that a released in the cinema as one film cannot possibly appeal to every niche group out there. If we were to make the rest of the film we would take into consideration what the target audience have said, sort out those things and make sure that the rest of the film would appeal to them.
Tuesday, 20 April 2010
Digital Storyboards 2- Conversation:
(Click to enlarge, once enlarged click to zoom for optimal reading)
Digital Storyboards 1- Dream Sequence:
(Click to enlarge, once enlarged click to zoom for optimal reading)
Thursday, 1 April 2010
First draft of our opening sequence
This is the first draft of our completed opening sequence. Watching it back we have noted a few things that could be improved. We have also asked people to give us feedback on it and we will post this feedback soon once we have thoroughly analysed it.
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
Monday, 8 March 2010
Comparing other thriller characters
Jessica Alba is a character in ‘The eye’, who is blinded at a young age but restores sight through an eye transplant. Through these eyes she is able to see visions which indicate the future and is similar to our character played by Michelle Murray as the future she sees through her dream also comes true. 
Daveigh Chase plays a psychotic girl called Samara in ‘The ring’ who is forced down a well by her father. Out of spite she creates a video which contains supernatural elements and kills those who watch it. One of our key characters is played by Natalie Keeney who plays a mental girl whom appears in her dreams and reappears in reality. These two characters are similar as they are both psychotic and mental.
In the new film series Twilight, Anna Kendrick plays Bella’s best friend who is the main character who is a very bubbly and lively girl. Another aspect which adds to her character is that she tends to gossip quite frequently which is stereotypical behaviour for a teenage girl. Anna Kendrick’s character is very similar to Nadia Lalji’s as her character is bubbly, annoying and happy.
Thursday, 4 March 2010
Props
White T-shirt- for the mental institute character
We used this particular type of T-shirt to make it look like a straight jacket as the character wearing it is escaping from a mental institute.
Soy Sauce (as the blood)
We used this as the blood, even though it is not red it gave the effect that it is blood especially as the blood scene is on the ground in the dark, not showing its colour anyway.
Sketch Book
This prop was very important, as it is were the main character draws the setting she see's in her dream showing that this dream has am impact on her right now. The sketch book also tells the viewer what exactly she saw in the dream, when her friend asks her "Why are you drawing the Mental Asylum?"
Bag
This is a simple prop, to make the whole story seem realistic and that the main character is like any other girl with a big bag to school.
Large Folder
This is used to indicate to the the viewers that she is a creative girl, as it is a large folder that looks more like a art folder. This prob allows the viewer to have an idea of the characters personality.
Head Phones
These are used to allow the audience to know what sort of music the main character listens to showing what sort of a girl she is, as the audience listens to this as diegetic sound and then cuts as the friend enters the scene giving a great affect.
We used this particular type of T-shirt to make it look like a straight jacket as the character wearing it is escaping from a mental institute.
Soy Sauce (as the blood)
We used this as the blood, even though it is not red it gave the effect that it is blood especially as the blood scene is on the ground in the dark, not showing its colour anyway.Sketch Book
This prop was very important, as it is were the main character draws the setting she see's in her dream showing that this dream has am impact on her right now. The sketch book also tells the viewer what exactly she saw in the dream, when her friend asks her "Why are you drawing the Mental Asylum?"
Bag
This is a simple prop, to make the whole story seem realistic and that the main character is like any other girl with a big bag to school.
Large Folder
This is used to indicate to the the viewers that she is a creative girl, as it is a large folder that looks more like a art folder. This prob allows the viewer to have an idea of the characters personality.
Head Phones
These are used to allow the audience to know what sort of music the main character listens to showing what sort of a girl she is, as the audience listens to this as diegetic sound and then cuts as the friend enters the scene giving a great affect.
Equipment Used
Sony Digital Camcorder:
Camera Tripod;
Mac Computer;
(For uploading and editing via USB cable)
Camera Tripod;
Mac Computer;
(For uploading and editing via USB cable)
Role Of Group Members
Natalie: Mental Institute Character, music and Main Editor.
Paula: Location Scouting, casting, music, props, directing and camera.
Abi: Assisting Director and assisting camera work.
Sherry: Time management, Director and Camera.
Paula: Location Scouting, casting, music, props, directing and camera.
Abi: Assisting Director and assisting camera work.
Sherry: Time management, Director and Camera.
Film Schedule
Tuesday 5th January;
9:55 am -12:15 pm – Costume Purchasing (Paula & Abi)
1:15- 6pm- Filming at Locations (Paula house, scrubs, bus and road) (all four of us)
Wednesday 6th January;
9:55- 10:55 am- Reviewing & Uploading (all four of us)
Thursday 7th January;
11:15- 12:15 are- Catch up Filming (all four of us)
4 Hours a fortnight of editing from 11th January
9:55 am -12:15 pm – Costume Purchasing (Paula & Abi)
1:15- 6pm- Filming at Locations (Paula house, scrubs, bus and road) (all four of us)
Wednesday 6th January;
9:55- 10:55 am- Reviewing & Uploading (all four of us)
Thursday 7th January;
11:15- 12:15 are- Catch up Filming (all four of us)
4 Hours a fortnight of editing from 11th January
Wednesday, 3 March 2010
Music
Music played a large part in our production, we used it to create certain moods (especially enigma)in our opening sequence. We used two main pieces in our opening sequence:
Wake- Linkin Park: An instrumental from their album Minutes to Midnight. We decided to use this piece right at the very beginning of the opening sequence as the film fades in. It is played quietly behind the dream sequence; the piece gradually gets louder and more intense, building up the suspense of the dream. When the piece reaches its peak we can see that someone has been murdered.
The main reason we used this piece was to create suspense and a sense of enigma as the music builds up.
(Linkin Park- Wake)
Something in the Way- Nirvana: This piece is a melancholy song, played whilst the main character wakes up, leaves the house and makes her journey to and from school. The reason we chose to use this song in this position was to make the journey more interesting. The song also reflects the state of mind the character is in making the scenes seem more haunting. This piece again creates a strong sense of enigma as the droning singing and guitars fade in and out of the scenes. We cleverly placed this song so it appears as Michelle turns of her alarm clock and fades out when her friend pulls out her headphones. This makes the music appear diegetic to the main character.
(Nirvana- Something In the Way)
Wake- Linkin Park: An instrumental from their album Minutes to Midnight. We decided to use this piece right at the very beginning of the opening sequence as the film fades in. It is played quietly behind the dream sequence; the piece gradually gets louder and more intense, building up the suspense of the dream. When the piece reaches its peak we can see that someone has been murdered.
The main reason we used this piece was to create suspense and a sense of enigma as the music builds up.
(Linkin Park- Wake)
Something in the Way- Nirvana: This piece is a melancholy song, played whilst the main character wakes up, leaves the house and makes her journey to and from school. The reason we chose to use this song in this position was to make the journey more interesting. The song also reflects the state of mind the character is in making the scenes seem more haunting. This piece again creates a strong sense of enigma as the droning singing and guitars fade in and out of the scenes. We cleverly placed this song so it appears as Michelle turns of her alarm clock and fades out when her friend pulls out her headphones. This makes the music appear diegetic to the main character.
(Nirvana- Something In the Way)
Script
Michelle has weird dream, wakes from weird dream, goes to bus stop, and starts sketching.
Nadia: BOO! ....why are you drawing the mental asylum?
Michelle:...what?
Nadia: Y’know the mental asylum down Du Cane Road?
Michelle: huh?
Nadia: well, anyways, I have some really good news to tell you-
Michelle: *interrupts* erm, I really have to go, my bus is here...
Nadia: oh, okay, well I’ll see you later
Michelle gets on bus.
Nadia: BOO! ....why are you drawing the mental asylum?
Michelle:...what?
Nadia: Y’know the mental asylum down Du Cane Road?
Michelle: huh?
Nadia: well, anyways, I have some really good news to tell you-
Michelle: *interrupts* erm, I really have to go, my bus is here...
Nadia: oh, okay, well I’ll see you later
Michelle gets on bus.
Wednesday, 17 February 2010
Textual Analysis - Gothika
The opening sequence is started off with credits which are against a black background with white writing which appears and disappears with a blurry effect. They stop for a while whilst the conversation between the main character and the psycho lady. This is probably done because perhaps this certain part of the scene is important or significant towards the rest of the movie. The music is scary and very heavy on stringed instrument through the credits and the beginning of the sequence. The style of the music and the credits may have been done like that to get the audience to start feeling fear.
The first character takes up the entire camera shot with a close up shot which she talks straight into it. She looks scared and rough, but at the same time she looks like she is having pleasure, or about to. Of what we can see, she looks like she has been ill or she is mentally disturbed. Her clothes look too big for her, her hair is messy, her skin looks rough, she looks dirty, and her fringe isn’t cut straight. However, the character who is next to take the whole camera shot with a close up is completely opposite. Her hair is nicely done and well brushed, her skin is smooth, she looks clean, her clothing is nice, fitted, and looks warm. However, the tone of her voice and her body language towards the psycho lady is slightly patronizing. Her body language, as well as her facial expressions looks calm, relaxed, not really bothered, and rather bored. We realise that she is the main character because as well as this, wherever she goes, the camera follows.
Gothika is set in a mental hospital which is known by the background when the psycho lady, Chloe, is saying her short monologue. But even then the setting isn’t very clear until the camera shoots behind the wire where the main character and the psycho lady are. However, when the camera switches to the main character, we don’t officially know that they are having a conversation. Only when the shot is a long shot with the camera the other side of the fence, we see that they are having a conversation between each other.
The title of the movie is said twice by the psycho lady when she is being strained. This gives the audience the idea that perhaps Gothika is a person and is calling for help, or maybe she is using the word to curse the main character or those around her. With this, or any of the psycho lady’s words and actions, the main character does not seem affected or disturbed, or really bothered in any way. However, when the psycho lady grabs the main character’s wrists, it is as if she is trying to warn her because, maybe she knows what is about to happen to her.
Later on in the sequence, we find out that she is married to her boss. But we only know this because he uses the phrase, “keep an eye on my wife for me will you”, and even so it is hard to catch as it is said rather fast. But it isn’t otherwise evident that there is form of relationship between them two except from a few hints like two kisses, and the employee saying, “Sorry am I interrupting the happy couple”. We see the love and devotion from the husband to his wife, but not really vice versa. The husband is always willing to help his wife and you can hear and see the unconditional and irrevocable love for his wife in his voice, but this isn’t really returned by his wife. Whilst they are working their conversations are strictly about work and nothing personal.
As the sequence continues, information and the plot are revealed rather slowly which is quite good as it creates more tension and suspense for the audience. Suspense and tension in this sequence occurs more than once. For example, when the main character is in her office writing things about her patient, thunder begins, lights are gone, but they flicker. Then a figure from know where with a torch shines the light in the main character’s eyes. This creates tension as we don’t know who the figure is.
To conclude, Gothika’s opening sequence is slow moving and doesn’t reveal much, but it gets the audience in the mood for a thriller, and after you’ve watched it you will want to watch more.
The first character takes up the entire camera shot with a close up shot which she talks straight into it. She looks scared and rough, but at the same time she looks like she is having pleasure, or about to. Of what we can see, she looks like she has been ill or she is mentally disturbed. Her clothes look too big for her, her hair is messy, her skin looks rough, she looks dirty, and her fringe isn’t cut straight. However, the character who is next to take the whole camera shot with a close up is completely opposite. Her hair is nicely done and well brushed, her skin is smooth, she looks clean, her clothing is nice, fitted, and looks warm. However, the tone of her voice and her body language towards the psycho lady is slightly patronizing. Her body language, as well as her facial expressions looks calm, relaxed, not really bothered, and rather bored. We realise that she is the main character because as well as this, wherever she goes, the camera follows.
Gothika is set in a mental hospital which is known by the background when the psycho lady, Chloe, is saying her short monologue. But even then the setting isn’t very clear until the camera shoots behind the wire where the main character and the psycho lady are. However, when the camera switches to the main character, we don’t officially know that they are having a conversation. Only when the shot is a long shot with the camera the other side of the fence, we see that they are having a conversation between each other.
The title of the movie is said twice by the psycho lady when she is being strained. This gives the audience the idea that perhaps Gothika is a person and is calling for help, or maybe she is using the word to curse the main character or those around her. With this, or any of the psycho lady’s words and actions, the main character does not seem affected or disturbed, or really bothered in any way. However, when the psycho lady grabs the main character’s wrists, it is as if she is trying to warn her because, maybe she knows what is about to happen to her.
Later on in the sequence, we find out that she is married to her boss. But we only know this because he uses the phrase, “keep an eye on my wife for me will you”, and even so it is hard to catch as it is said rather fast. But it isn’t otherwise evident that there is form of relationship between them two except from a few hints like two kisses, and the employee saying, “Sorry am I interrupting the happy couple”. We see the love and devotion from the husband to his wife, but not really vice versa. The husband is always willing to help his wife and you can hear and see the unconditional and irrevocable love for his wife in his voice, but this isn’t really returned by his wife. Whilst they are working their conversations are strictly about work and nothing personal.
As the sequence continues, information and the plot are revealed rather slowly which is quite good as it creates more tension and suspense for the audience. Suspense and tension in this sequence occurs more than once. For example, when the main character is in her office writing things about her patient, thunder begins, lights are gone, but they flicker. Then a figure from know where with a torch shines the light in the main character’s eyes. This creates tension as we don’t know who the figure is.
To conclude, Gothika’s opening sequence is slow moving and doesn’t reveal much, but it gets the audience in the mood for a thriller, and after you’ve watched it you will want to watch more.
Textual Analysis Of An Opening Sequence: The Sixth Sense (1999)
The Sixth Sense was a well know psychological thriller that was released back in 1999, I have chosen to analyse this opening sequence as it is a film I have seen many times.
The first thing the audience sees are the companies that have produced the movie, this appears to be a reoccurring theme through all opening sequences. For the first 2 minutes and 54 seconds all the audience see is a black background with the opening credits appearing and fading out. The font they have used is pointed; hinting to danger. However, this is undermined by the use of a light blue colour for the text. The colour hints to the audience that the movie is chilling or cold, this blue does not represent calmness and so it makes the viewer feel on edge. All the text is the same colour and size as the title. All of the text is centrally aligned making it easy for the text easy to read as it is not jumping from one place to another.
As well as the credits are rolling there is quiet and eerie music playing in the background that eventually becomes louder. The accompanying music helps to build suspense, but it also keeps the audience engaged. The opening credits last for a long time and are not particularly interesting, so using ascending music makes the audience think something is going to happen; this is a clever tactic to keep the audience engaged whilst the credits roll on. Another tactic used is putting the actor’s names before the title of the film. Bruce Willis is a well know actor, if an audience know he is in the film it may entice them to continue watching. Once the opening credits have finished the opening shot is of the filament of a light bulb coming on. This shot is quite lengthy, this is again to build up suspense as the music playing throughout the credits continues. The rest of the room is dark as the light bulb comes on. A common convention of psychological thrillers is the use of darkness as it makes the viewer feel unnerved and creates a vulnerable atmosphere for the characters. The audience then here a loud bang, this again creates an unnerving atmosphere, as at this point we are still unsure of where the opening shot is set. The next shot shows a woman in a dress enter the room and look at bottles of wine. Even though she had put the light on the room is still extremely dark. Again the use of harsh lighting hints to the audience something is going to go wrong. The woman examines the bottles of wine carefully before choosing one, hinting to the audience that she is either fussy or likes to look at intricate details; this could become a prominent part of her character throughout the movie. We also learn that this character could believe in supernatural things or that she is afraid of something as when she hears a noise she jumps and runs up the stairs.
The lighting used throughout the opening sequence appears to be very harsh lighting. A lot of the shots are dark with artificial lighting to highlight things in the frame and to create shadows that would not necessarily be there in natural light. The prominent colours in the opening sequence are black and grey; this is because the opening credits were shown on a black background and the harsh lighting used creates shadows as well as leaving much of the room in darkness. There is not a great deal of camera movement in these few minutes, the camera frames change, but the camera is static for most of the shots.
If I were to try and guess the narrative from just these few minutes of the movie I would guess that this woman will become involved with some kind of supernatural being or event or that her house is home to something supernatural. These few minutes do not reveal much about the movie and hardly contains any action. This is similar to our plan for our opening sequence.
The first thing the audience sees are the companies that have produced the movie, this appears to be a reoccurring theme through all opening sequences. For the first 2 minutes and 54 seconds all the audience see is a black background with the opening credits appearing and fading out. The font they have used is pointed; hinting to danger. However, this is undermined by the use of a light blue colour for the text. The colour hints to the audience that the movie is chilling or cold, this blue does not represent calmness and so it makes the viewer feel on edge. All the text is the same colour and size as the title. All of the text is centrally aligned making it easy for the text easy to read as it is not jumping from one place to another.
As well as the credits are rolling there is quiet and eerie music playing in the background that eventually becomes louder. The accompanying music helps to build suspense, but it also keeps the audience engaged. The opening credits last for a long time and are not particularly interesting, so using ascending music makes the audience think something is going to happen; this is a clever tactic to keep the audience engaged whilst the credits roll on. Another tactic used is putting the actor’s names before the title of the film. Bruce Willis is a well know actor, if an audience know he is in the film it may entice them to continue watching. Once the opening credits have finished the opening shot is of the filament of a light bulb coming on. This shot is quite lengthy, this is again to build up suspense as the music playing throughout the credits continues. The rest of the room is dark as the light bulb comes on. A common convention of psychological thrillers is the use of darkness as it makes the viewer feel unnerved and creates a vulnerable atmosphere for the characters. The audience then here a loud bang, this again creates an unnerving atmosphere, as at this point we are still unsure of where the opening shot is set. The next shot shows a woman in a dress enter the room and look at bottles of wine. Even though she had put the light on the room is still extremely dark. Again the use of harsh lighting hints to the audience something is going to go wrong. The woman examines the bottles of wine carefully before choosing one, hinting to the audience that she is either fussy or likes to look at intricate details; this could become a prominent part of her character throughout the movie. We also learn that this character could believe in supernatural things or that she is afraid of something as when she hears a noise she jumps and runs up the stairs.
The lighting used throughout the opening sequence appears to be very harsh lighting. A lot of the shots are dark with artificial lighting to highlight things in the frame and to create shadows that would not necessarily be there in natural light. The prominent colours in the opening sequence are black and grey; this is because the opening credits were shown on a black background and the harsh lighting used creates shadows as well as leaving much of the room in darkness. There is not a great deal of camera movement in these few minutes, the camera frames change, but the camera is static for most of the shots.
If I were to try and guess the narrative from just these few minutes of the movie I would guess that this woman will become involved with some kind of supernatural being or event or that her house is home to something supernatural. These few minutes do not reveal much about the movie and hardly contains any action. This is similar to our plan for our opening sequence.
Thursday, 4 February 2010
"The Eye" Textual Analysis of Thriller Movie Sequence
The Eye is horror, physiological thriller movie, in this essay I will be analysing the thriller sequence, through its editing, mise-en-sene, sound and camera shots. I analysed this thriller movie sequence as the thriller sequence i will construct is also a psychological horror thriller.
The thriller sequence of the movie starts with the production company, which introduces slowly the movies producers. We see the logo of the companies, but with sound at the same time, the music at the start is slow, negative and builds in tension gradually, this gives the audience the “horror” feeling already. The production companies are introduced on screen for 31 seconds, this get the user waiting eagerly to see what the movie is.
After this the screen is blank (completely black), for around 2-3 seconds, which forces the viewer to stay concentrating as nothing has yet happened. The screen is black; this shows negativity, a grim atmosphere, and lets the viewer thinks of what he or she may be expecting to see. The first proper scene that we see is a quick snap of an empty, dark field; this builds suspense for the viewer, the sequence begins with a lot of fast editing to capture the audiences’ attention. The fact that we do not see any faces of characters till 1 minute 47 seconds, this creates even more suspense and lets the viewer packed full of excitement as we see the sequence packed full of action, with hands, footsteps, and screams but yet no character is seen fully. Using Mise-en-sene we see quick shots of children running around the field screaming in fear, a bulb being put on, a “scary” setting, glass breaking and whispering, these all are conventions of a horror movie, therefore instantly the audience relates it to the horror genre and knows what to expect. This gets the audience filled with excitement as they are expecting to see something, especially after the super natural being appears and scares the girl. We see an extreme close up of a girl focusing on her eyes and tears, this shows the great level of emotion and fear in the girls eyes, but we still do not see her full face. This leaves the audience waiting to see who it is and therefore continue to watch the movie in great attention.
Conventions of a horror movie shown in the thriller;
However by 1 minute 32 seconds a complete change of mood in the sequence occurs. The setting is brighter, more natural and we see the “real world”. We get introduced to the main character; “Jessica Alba”, even the music in the background is smother and much more relaxed.
The credits appear at the same time as when we see the character walking, so that we would identify who the main character is, and who else will be acting in the movie. The credits also appear depending on what is on screen, for example in the scene where she is playing the violin, the credits would say “music by ...” The credits are written in bold, white, Arial font, so it looks simple and yet easy to see in the dark background. The surprising thing is that the title of the movie does not appear in the thrillers sequence, which usually does not happen in movie sequences.
In the thriller sequence the main character introduces herself, rather than having the audience to try an understand her character. She speaks about herself, but not directly so that the audience hear her but she is not moving her mouth, as if she is speaking through her mind. This contradicts what happens at the start of the sequence and therefore challenges the audience and makes the viewer even more eager to know what will happen. Even though the opening sequence is around 5 minutes, the sequence is spread in about four different settings, the horror field and tent, the music theatre, on the street and a building. Therefore the thriller sequence is packed full of action, but it is yet minimal as it does not tell the storyline out, but gets the audience captured to the thriller.
The rain we see in the sequence when the main character enters a building (were her apartment is), restores the fact that it will not be all “happy”, as rain presents negativity and fear. The slow music that is played when the character is entering her apartment, builds suspense and fear for the viewer even though that nothing suspicious occurs or looks like it will occur. This lets the audience think to their self what may happen, and engage to the movie and even create assumptions of what may happen in the movie. The camera flow in the whole sequence is very smooth, and does not rush, but runs from one setting to another. The colours used in the sequence begin by being dark and dull, but when we are introduced the main character, its much brighter and the movie is seen in a different perspective.
This movie sequence is very different to many other movies, this is because it starts at disequilibrium in the first 1minuet 48 seconds, and then equilibrium, which make it very different to “typical” movies, this itself can engage the audience to the movie and make them watch on.
This a link of the thriller sequence that i analysed;
(analysis is based on the first 5 minutes of clip)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wVU8CRESp4
The thriller sequence of the movie starts with the production company, which introduces slowly the movies producers. We see the logo of the companies, but with sound at the same time, the music at the start is slow, negative and builds in tension gradually, this gives the audience the “horror” feeling already. The production companies are introduced on screen for 31 seconds, this get the user waiting eagerly to see what the movie is.
After this the screen is blank (completely black), for around 2-3 seconds, which forces the viewer to stay concentrating as nothing has yet happened. The screen is black; this shows negativity, a grim atmosphere, and lets the viewer thinks of what he or she may be expecting to see. The first proper scene that we see is a quick snap of an empty, dark field; this builds suspense for the viewer, the sequence begins with a lot of fast editing to capture the audiences’ attention. The fact that we do not see any faces of characters till 1 minute 47 seconds, this creates even more suspense and lets the viewer packed full of excitement as we see the sequence packed full of action, with hands, footsteps, and screams but yet no character is seen fully. Using Mise-en-sene we see quick shots of children running around the field screaming in fear, a bulb being put on, a “scary” setting, glass breaking and whispering, these all are conventions of a horror movie, therefore instantly the audience relates it to the horror genre and knows what to expect. This gets the audience filled with excitement as they are expecting to see something, especially after the super natural being appears and scares the girl. We see an extreme close up of a girl focusing on her eyes and tears, this shows the great level of emotion and fear in the girls eyes, but we still do not see her full face. This leaves the audience waiting to see who it is and therefore continue to watch the movie in great attention.
Conventions of a horror movie shown in the thriller;
However by 1 minute 32 seconds a complete change of mood in the sequence occurs. The setting is brighter, more natural and we see the “real world”. We get introduced to the main character; “Jessica Alba”, even the music in the background is smother and much more relaxed.
The credits appear at the same time as when we see the character walking, so that we would identify who the main character is, and who else will be acting in the movie. The credits also appear depending on what is on screen, for example in the scene where she is playing the violin, the credits would say “music by ...” The credits are written in bold, white, Arial font, so it looks simple and yet easy to see in the dark background. The surprising thing is that the title of the movie does not appear in the thrillers sequence, which usually does not happen in movie sequences.
In the thriller sequence the main character introduces herself, rather than having the audience to try an understand her character. She speaks about herself, but not directly so that the audience hear her but she is not moving her mouth, as if she is speaking through her mind. This contradicts what happens at the start of the sequence and therefore challenges the audience and makes the viewer even more eager to know what will happen. Even though the opening sequence is around 5 minutes, the sequence is spread in about four different settings, the horror field and tent, the music theatre, on the street and a building. Therefore the thriller sequence is packed full of action, but it is yet minimal as it does not tell the storyline out, but gets the audience captured to the thriller.
The rain we see in the sequence when the main character enters a building (were her apartment is), restores the fact that it will not be all “happy”, as rain presents negativity and fear. The slow music that is played when the character is entering her apartment, builds suspense and fear for the viewer even though that nothing suspicious occurs or looks like it will occur. This lets the audience think to their self what may happen, and engage to the movie and even create assumptions of what may happen in the movie. The camera flow in the whole sequence is very smooth, and does not rush, but runs from one setting to another. The colours used in the sequence begin by being dark and dull, but when we are introduced the main character, its much brighter and the movie is seen in a different perspective.
This movie sequence is very different to many other movies, this is because it starts at disequilibrium in the first 1minuet 48 seconds, and then equilibrium, which make it very different to “typical” movies, this itself can engage the audience to the movie and make them watch on.
This a link of the thriller sequence that i analysed;
(analysis is based on the first 5 minutes of clip)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wVU8CRESp4
"The Butterfly Effect" Textual Analysis of an Opening Sequence
I decided to analyse the opening sequence of the film The Butterfly Effect. It is a psychological thriller, so being in the same genre as our thriller, I thought it would give us some ideas on how to start it.
The film starts off by showing us the logos of the companies/conglomerates that were involved in the making of it, New Line Cinema, owned by Time Warner and Film Engine. The next clip is the quote from the Chaos Theory “It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly’s wing can ultimately cause a typhoon half way around the world” This could mean different things to different people, those who understand the concept of the butterfly effect/chaos theory are at an advantage, because this quote and the title gives them an understanding of what the movie is going to be about, to someone who has no knowledge of the theory won’t really know in-depth what the film is going to be about until the movie starts to unravel. I myself didn’t know anything about the butterfly effect, but because of graphics in the title of the film and the music, I could tell it was going to be some sort of thriller, but a clever one that questions the mind. When the quote is on, there is music in the background but it is only a short clip then it fades away. It is really fast-paced and different. Because the quote mentions butterflies, the audience have got butterflies on their mind and the music represents that in way, it sounds like the flutter of wings, and it sounds like wind, but it is quite distorted at the same time.
The first scene of the film takes place in an empty office of some kind, the blinds are all shut but you can see the shadow/blurred reflection of someone on the outside. The camera is tracking whoever is on the outside of the office, and the movement of the character gives us the impression that they are sneaking around, doing something/being somewhere they aren’t supposed to. The music being played in the background makes the audience uneasy, it goes with the unknown characters movement, music goes really high pitched and screechy just as the character is about to open the door, and when he does, he kicks the door open which really makes the audience jump, and it’s only the first minute of the film, this tells us quite a lot about the type of film this is going to be, it’s going to try and make up jump and keep you on the edge of your seat, this made me want to keep on watching. When the character enters the office, we see that he is wearing a blue robe, this usually symbolises a doctor/nurse or maybe a patient. The music turns into a really fast paced drum beat, this again compliments the characters movement as he is rushing about, moving the sofa in front of the door, this indicates that he is trying to stop someone from getting in, that maybe he is running away from someone, he then grabs a box, hides under a table and starts to write on a piece of paper. The music changes when he starts to write to a more calm and almost sorrowful tone. We then hear his voice for the first time, because he is reading aloud as he is writing, his tone is very worried and out-of-breath and the dialogue of what he is writing is very confusing. It is as if he is writing a letter to someone from a different time, “If anyone finds this, it means my plan didn’t work and I’m already dead” although as he is writing we hear the men on the outside of the office and we can see their shadow, they are clearly looking for him. The more he writes the closer they sound to coming inside. He then continues to write “ but if I can somehow go back to the beginning of all this, I might be able to save her.” The camera zooms in on “save her” this then falls into a blurry flutter of butterfly wings that is the title, this leaves us questioning what happened to the character.
I really like the title graphics, I thought it was really clever how they merged the butterfly with skull x-ray. I thought it also gave those who don’t know about the chaos theory an idea of what the film is going to be involving, the beginning shows us it was a fast paced thriller type which a twist, now that was see the x-rays of the skull in the title, we are given the idea that maybe this movie is to do with the mind. The music during the title goes with the flutter of the butterfly wings, it sounds quite innocent but eerie at the same time. The main colour of the title blue against a black background, this really adds to the effect that the music gives off.
Looking at the mise-en-scene, the next shot is an establishing shot of a suburban neighbourhood, there are kids riding down the hill, it’s a lovely summer day and you can hear the birds chirping, all of this is in contrast to the very first scene we saw, if the movie had started off like this, we would’ve gotten a completely different judgement on the film. The camera focuses on a young boy playing with his dog, then a subtitle appears saying “thirteen years earlier”. This makes us realise that the first scene is in the future and that we are about to be shown what happens and how the character got to that point, I think that it is quite a good effect, it lets people see a small part of the movie to come, in order to keep them hooked and answering questions, then throughout the movie it is answering their questions from the beginning clip.
As an audience we have gathered by now that the main character is the man in the beginning, and this is him as a young boy, we are then introduced to his mother fixing a car, when he complains that he is going to be late again, she is not worried or anything, this and the fact she was fixing a car contrasts the stereotypical character of a mother, usually it is the father that fixes the car, and usually the parents are the ones that don’t want their children to be late for school. The dialogue between the two characters when they are talking about the boy’s father makes us ask questions like where is he? And why is it dangerous for him to come out? This gives off the impression that the father is locked up somewhere, maybe he has mental problems. In the next scene the mother is dropping the boy off at school, but just as she is about to leave, the teacher knocks on her windows asking if she could have a word, her tone is strict but at the same time anxious, especially when she says it is very important, you can see that the teacher is very concerned, this makes the audience wonder what could be wrong. We’ve seen what the child is like, and he seems like a good boy, so it can’t be something simple like he is in trouble or something. This uncertainty of what could be wrong reminds us of the first scene, could it be linked to that? When we are shown what the problem is, we are left shocked, and I think this is the main point where all of the audience are hooked, even those who don’t know what the chaos theory is, because you want to find out, and seeing as you’ve already had a taste of what is to come in the movie, you can’t just watch half of it, you need to watch the whole thing in order to understand.
Analysing the first 5 minutes of this film has really given me an idea of what my opening sequence needs to include. I think the music is very important, it sets the whole mood of the scene, and it is very effective when it matches the movement of the character. In order to create an effective beginning we need to set the scene but without giving out too much information, I think it is best if we leave some things unanswered to create suspense and uncertainty, the audience need a reason to continue watching it. I think the title should reflect the film, like the title in this film the colours and music for the it gave me a good idea about the mood of the movie.
The film starts off by showing us the logos of the companies/conglomerates that were involved in the making of it, New Line Cinema, owned by Time Warner and Film Engine. The next clip is the quote from the Chaos Theory “It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly’s wing can ultimately cause a typhoon half way around the world” This could mean different things to different people, those who understand the concept of the butterfly effect/chaos theory are at an advantage, because this quote and the title gives them an understanding of what the movie is going to be about, to someone who has no knowledge of the theory won’t really know in-depth what the film is going to be about until the movie starts to unravel. I myself didn’t know anything about the butterfly effect, but because of graphics in the title of the film and the music, I could tell it was going to be some sort of thriller, but a clever one that questions the mind. When the quote is on, there is music in the background but it is only a short clip then it fades away. It is really fast-paced and different. Because the quote mentions butterflies, the audience have got butterflies on their mind and the music represents that in way, it sounds like the flutter of wings, and it sounds like wind, but it is quite distorted at the same time.
The first scene of the film takes place in an empty office of some kind, the blinds are all shut but you can see the shadow/blurred reflection of someone on the outside. The camera is tracking whoever is on the outside of the office, and the movement of the character gives us the impression that they are sneaking around, doing something/being somewhere they aren’t supposed to. The music being played in the background makes the audience uneasy, it goes with the unknown characters movement, music goes really high pitched and screechy just as the character is about to open the door, and when he does, he kicks the door open which really makes the audience jump, and it’s only the first minute of the film, this tells us quite a lot about the type of film this is going to be, it’s going to try and make up jump and keep you on the edge of your seat, this made me want to keep on watching. When the character enters the office, we see that he is wearing a blue robe, this usually symbolises a doctor/nurse or maybe a patient. The music turns into a really fast paced drum beat, this again compliments the characters movement as he is rushing about, moving the sofa in front of the door, this indicates that he is trying to stop someone from getting in, that maybe he is running away from someone, he then grabs a box, hides under a table and starts to write on a piece of paper. The music changes when he starts to write to a more calm and almost sorrowful tone. We then hear his voice for the first time, because he is reading aloud as he is writing, his tone is very worried and out-of-breath and the dialogue of what he is writing is very confusing. It is as if he is writing a letter to someone from a different time, “If anyone finds this, it means my plan didn’t work and I’m already dead” although as he is writing we hear the men on the outside of the office and we can see their shadow, they are clearly looking for him. The more he writes the closer they sound to coming inside. He then continues to write “ but if I can somehow go back to the beginning of all this, I might be able to save her.” The camera zooms in on “save her” this then falls into a blurry flutter of butterfly wings that is the title, this leaves us questioning what happened to the character.
I really like the title graphics, I thought it was really clever how they merged the butterfly with skull x-ray. I thought it also gave those who don’t know about the chaos theory an idea of what the film is going to be involving, the beginning shows us it was a fast paced thriller type which a twist, now that was see the x-rays of the skull in the title, we are given the idea that maybe this movie is to do with the mind. The music during the title goes with the flutter of the butterfly wings, it sounds quite innocent but eerie at the same time. The main colour of the title blue against a black background, this really adds to the effect that the music gives off.
Looking at the mise-en-scene, the next shot is an establishing shot of a suburban neighbourhood, there are kids riding down the hill, it’s a lovely summer day and you can hear the birds chirping, all of this is in contrast to the very first scene we saw, if the movie had started off like this, we would’ve gotten a completely different judgement on the film. The camera focuses on a young boy playing with his dog, then a subtitle appears saying “thirteen years earlier”. This makes us realise that the first scene is in the future and that we are about to be shown what happens and how the character got to that point, I think that it is quite a good effect, it lets people see a small part of the movie to come, in order to keep them hooked and answering questions, then throughout the movie it is answering their questions from the beginning clip.
As an audience we have gathered by now that the main character is the man in the beginning, and this is him as a young boy, we are then introduced to his mother fixing a car, when he complains that he is going to be late again, she is not worried or anything, this and the fact she was fixing a car contrasts the stereotypical character of a mother, usually it is the father that fixes the car, and usually the parents are the ones that don’t want their children to be late for school. The dialogue between the two characters when they are talking about the boy’s father makes us ask questions like where is he? And why is it dangerous for him to come out? This gives off the impression that the father is locked up somewhere, maybe he has mental problems. In the next scene the mother is dropping the boy off at school, but just as she is about to leave, the teacher knocks on her windows asking if she could have a word, her tone is strict but at the same time anxious, especially when she says it is very important, you can see that the teacher is very concerned, this makes the audience wonder what could be wrong. We’ve seen what the child is like, and he seems like a good boy, so it can’t be something simple like he is in trouble or something. This uncertainty of what could be wrong reminds us of the first scene, could it be linked to that? When we are shown what the problem is, we are left shocked, and I think this is the main point where all of the audience are hooked, even those who don’t know what the chaos theory is, because you want to find out, and seeing as you’ve already had a taste of what is to come in the movie, you can’t just watch half of it, you need to watch the whole thing in order to understand.
Analysing the first 5 minutes of this film has really given me an idea of what my opening sequence needs to include. I think the music is very important, it sets the whole mood of the scene, and it is very effective when it matches the movement of the character. In order to create an effective beginning we need to set the scene but without giving out too much information, I think it is best if we leave some things unanswered to create suspense and uncertainty, the audience need a reason to continue watching it. I think the title should reflect the film, like the title in this film the colours and music for the it gave me a good idea about the mood of the movie.
Monday, 4 January 2010
Film Synopsis
When Michelle Murray has a premonition of things to come she becomes both anxious and curious to find out whether her vision was true. Her premonition leads her on a dangerous and revealing journey into Wormwood mental institute, an abandoned Mental home with many patients still stuck inside its walls. Here she learns the about the fate of her friends and family and also learns of her own tragic future. Michelle is told all of this by a girl trapped within the mental home, but can she really trust everything she is telling her? Or is she being tricked into releasing the psycho within Wormwood’s walls?
Saturday, 2 January 2010
Break down of main idea
The film starts off outside a mental institute at night. We see a strange looking girl at the gates and then she disappears, we then see a hand in a pool of blood. The main character then wakes up to find it was all a dream, but she is clearly shaken. She then gets ready for the day and leaves the house. On her journey she encounters a friend and talks to her about the dream she had, her friend simply laughs it off and carries on with her journey. We next see the main character on a bus that passes the mental institute that was in her dream. She is both anxious and curious to go and investigate the building. The rest of the movie involves the main character and her friend entering the building and having a confrontation with the strange girl which changes the whole perspective of her life.
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