Media Production Evaluation

Below is my Evaluation of my final production for the coursework section of my AS Media course:

Independent Film Research

Inspirational Thrillers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ywOPNNii9w - Orphan Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ta1Sn6MtC9w  - Run Lola Run
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kYQwHhvDEA  - The Strangers Trailer

BBFC Certification Information

Because of the information above, we have decided to certify our production at a 15, as it does not meet the standards of an 18 and is closer to that of a 15 than a 12.

Key Concepts of Thriller Films

Front Cover Analysis (pt.3 of 3)

Here is the analysis of the last front cover, the film 'Jaws' DVD cover.

Front Cover Analysis (pt.2 of 3)

Here is my analysis of 'The Blair Witch Project' DVD cover.

Front Cover Analysis (pt.1 of 3)

Here is the first of the three cover analysis posts that I will be adding today, it will be of the film 'Black Swan' and I will analyse all of the graphological and aesthetic features that I believe to be significant to the film and the plot.

Props, Actors and Costumes

Here are all the above aspects of the production that we incorporated:

The first appearing actor was Simon Davey, who is seen here wearing some standard middle class workers uniform clothes. This costume was adopted in order to represent the every day life clothing of the standard middle class person. Due to the cuts between the shots including this character and the young female character, the character appears to be a paternal character which is another stereotype of a typical middle class man. These combined allow the character to be seen as more relate-able to a wider audience as it broadens the target audience of the production.

The character is seen to be holding one of the two explicitly outlined props, this being the mug. The mug shows the word 'shy' on it, which is used in order to represent the character's persona and also to challenge the common stereotype of males being very strong willed and strong physically, as the word, being but a small part of the prop, represents his vulnerability better than any other mug at our disposal.

This is the character that we chose to be the killer, played by Steven Douglas. We chose the dark coloured clothing in order to present possibly the darkness of the character's heart, as he is a killer with no motives. The costume we also thought could link to the characters in 'The Strangers', the sinister torturers who hide in the shadows of the house.

Here is the knife we made obvious in a shot, along with the 'shy' mug. This is made particularly obvious in order to engage the audience into believing that this will have some significance in the scenes to follow.

Finally, this is the final character that we employed in the sequence, the stereo-typically naive and vulnerable teenage girl, who is followed in the alley setting by the killer. She is represented well in our view as we made her wear her own clothes, to show that she is the typical teenage girl in the middle class environment.

Health and Safety Recce

There were three noted locations within the production of the thriller opening, these being the kitchen, living room and alley locations. In order to ensure actor safety, we made the following procedures:
Kitchen:

Here we removed any close-by knives from the setting to prevent interference with them and to prevent any damage to the actors/actresses. This procedure also allows the acting members to be available for additional filming.

Living Room:

Realistically, there were no threats in this area besides any possible objects on the floor, or the cup of tea visible. These were either removed entirely from the setting or they were moved out of reach and movement of the acting members. There was also a bearded dragon lizard in the same room, which was carefully returned to it's enclosure so that it was not trodden on, or so that it did not distract any of the actors/actresses.

Alley:

Here, we spent a good while checking for any broken glass or other dangerous objects which would greatly harm the actors. Once this had been checked, with a positive outcome of no danger, we also checked that there was no animal leavings and were sure to inform the actors of the location, purely for their comfort and content.

Therefore these procedures were followed and allowed the safety for all the crew throughout the production.

Silence Of The Lambs

During Friday's lesson of Media studies, we watched the movie 'Silence Of The Lambs', an example of a very well executed psychological thriller.

The Narrative follows the FBI Trainee Clarice Starling befriending the psychologist and mass murderer 'Hannibal the Cannibal' in order to gain information that may help Clarice and her colleagues to find the at large 'Buffalo Bill'. This is a man who, during the time of the movie and as it progresses, captures women and keeps them alive for around three weeks before shooting them, skinning them and then dumping their bodies.

As the movie progresses, there is a clear significance of the transvestite people, one of the many targets of Hannibal and 'Buffalo Bill'. This is then made clear as Bill is a transvestite himself, and is skinning these vistims in order to make himself a suit out of his victim's skin to give himself the appearance of a woman. This can be quite shocking to the audience, andproved to be so when the group watched it.

The way in which Clarice Starling is portrayed within the movie is very good as she is a good example of a strong looking woman who still carries the appearance of one attractive to some. This is first apparent when she is seen walking through the cell block in which Hannibal is stationed.

Hannibal, on the other hand, has the appearance of a calm older man who does suit the part of a psychologist. It is unclear at the start that he is capable of being a serial killer, but soon, after seing many of the facial expressions he gives, we can almost see the malice within him. Also, the way he talks is a give-away of his murderous past and intentions. He is throughout the film, depicted as a sneaky, cunning and very well thought out killer, who is bent on revenge and his hunger for human flesh. He is not, however someone who kills anyone he sees, he seems to be someone who he believes to have reason to die. It is very clear, also throughout the film, that he is very much capable of getting inside peoples' minds and is very much able to guess peoples past and their future intentions with his very successful past in psychology.

It is from these aspects that the movie succeeds in being a very well thought-out psychological thriller. A reason for this may be the flexibility of the narrative, as it had come from a novel, the directoe and the producer are able to give their imaginitive guidance to the narrative and have no trouble in knowing where the plot is going. The main plot is out of their control as they will have little pressure upon themselves to create a well thought-out narrative.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQKs169SL0I

Rough Cut Questionnaire & Response

This is the questionnaire that we presented to the group, so that upon viewing our production, they could give their thoughts and also some condtructive criticism in order for us to appropriately edit our sequence.

1. What connotations does the title of the film 'Forty Two' convey?

It seemed unanimous among the group that the title conveyed a sense of danger at the house number 42. However one person suggested that it would be the age of the first victim and a key theme of age would run throughout the film.

2. What codes and conventions of the thriller are conveyed through the opening sequence?

Many here said blood, fear, murder and mystery in response to this question.

3. What narrative features are present?

Again, among the group, the majority said that there was a sense of mystery, unexpectancy and murder, three things typically found in the thriller genre.

4. How effective do the camera angles and movements help create meaning?

1 2 3 4 (4 being the most successful)

Throughout the group, everyone suggested that the camera angles and movements well represented the meanings of the movie. Therefore many people voted this be rated a 3 out of 4.

Most of the people who were involved in our questionnaire believed that the best shots of the intro were the ones 

shot in the alley way.

The most effective piece of criticism gained from this section is from the person who said that we should shoot the house number 42 so that it is more central in the screen.

5. How effectively does the sound create meaning?

1 2 3 4 (4 being the most successful)

Throughout the group, most people would agree that the sound (bearing in mind it is unfinished as yet) fits to a score of 2 or 3 due to the diegetic sound gathered so far.

Again, the majority of the groups said that the most effective sound in the sequence so far was the emphasised wind during the chase scene.

Unanimous again was the decision of the groups that the sound that should be improved the most was the one where the male character was sitting in the living room, and the lack of sound in the opening title sequence.

6. How effectively does the mise-en-scene create meaning?

1 2 3 4 (4 being the most successful)

The majority here went down the middle and marked the mise-en-scene with a score of 2 or 3, meaning that there are still improvements that can be made, and will be made. For example, we can make a point about emphasising the most effective aspect to make the feel more obvious as it may appear at the moment.

The groups were torn between the either the knife that went missing or the costume of the killer being the most effective aspect of mise-en-scene. The fact that the knife went missing may need to be emphasised as only half of the class group seemed to have noticed it at all. One person, contrary to the others, suggested that the close up of the mug was the best aspect, perhaps due to the word 'shy' upon it which may suggest something about the initial persona's character. 

The groups agreed that we need to improve the lighting aspect of the sequence because the while the male is stirring his drink, it is clearly dark outside, whereas when he is in the living room with the same cup of tea, it appears to be daytime outside the window which happens to be in the frame. This will need to be improved soon in order to decrease the confusion upon the audience.

7. How effectively does the editing create meaning?

1 2 3 4 (4 being the most successful)

Most people gave the editing a score of 2, as it is as yet, unfinished, however most people said that the most effective aspect, if any from what we have shot and collected, was the quick cut between the clam living room where the male was unaware of the killer near him, and the chaotic chase scene between them.

It seems that most groups thought very similarly about the production and the good parts, and most helpfully, the work yet needed in order to make it a good success. Because of this, almost all groups said that the transition editing between the living room and the chase scene should be added, in order to add or remove smoothness depending on what feel is needed.

All in all, I take all of these criticisms on board, and will work hard on making these adjustments. This will altogether make the sequence more fluent and more successful. So I thank all the people who helped me by giving some advise and constructive criticism for their help and to let them know that their word shall not go unheeded.

Production Costumes

Here are the images of the costumes chosen for the thriller production. The images have been taken straight from the production in the forms of screenshots.


Here is the image of the killer's clothing in order to both conceal his identity and to maintain a certain sense of normality.


Here is the image of the costume chosen for the initial male victim, chosen because of it's easy to replicate nature and it's availability for the filming. It also shows  that the character is part if an organisation (even if it is a small part) and that he is moderately insignificant in the grand scheme of things.


And here is the costume of the other victim, the blonde female in order to place her into normal teenage society and to make her, also seem insignificant.

Thriller Proposal

Mise-en-scene:

The main choice we have made in this area is the 'unreal looking' way in which the killer presents him/herself. This best fits with the suspense-thriller hybrid genre. Also, the use of a different weapon in each murder can easily fit into the mise-en-scene area and also the enigma code area. If blood is needed within our sequence, we have chosen to edit the scene into black and white, so that we are able to use chocolate sauce as this will be much easier to find than some fake blood at any time other than Halloween. This is also used in order to present a sense of disjointedness and unreality. The advantage of using chocolate sauce, besides the fact that it is much easier to find than the fake blood, it is also a very similar texture and consistency to real blood and will look much more realistic than tomato ketchup. Dark setting (such as night time) are important as they can easily create tension and fear and also fit nicely into the thriller genre. The darkness of the killer's costume (black hoodie and a face covering scarf) create an ominous  feel and can also be a part of the enigma code as the audience will want to now who it is. We have decided to set the first scene in the first victim's house in order to create a sense of insecurity in their own homes, as this is supposed to be a 'safe haven' type place., not a place which gets broken into without you even knowing, and the place that you get murdered by someone unknown to you. We have also chosen a setting underneath Felixstowe pier, which can easily create darkness and tension, this is helped by the shadows and he anonymity they create with all of the pillars beneath it. The weapons that are used in the murders are going to be explicitly highlighted within some scenes (along with some other fake hints) so that it shows the killer's resourcefulness as they can use the environment to their advantage and make do with the weapons that are present at the time.The fact that some weapon like items will be highlighted, despite the fact that they will not be used can add to the enigma code features as the audience will want to know which  one of these weapons will be utilised by the killer.

Narrrative/story features:

The sequence is said to start with the first murder, this is to establish the mood of the film. The film will, however, follow the idea of Todorov's stages of equilibrium, as the first murder will take place within the other character's equilibrium. The disequilibrium will come in when the majority of the characters know about what has been going on without them previously being aware. This allows the tension of the murders to increase as the time passes within the narrative.The dark, illusive character also adds to this tension that the killer presents as the audience will need to know who the killer is in order to have some self satisfaction in their judgement.

Enigma Codes:

The two main enigma codes that we have incorporated within our main story are the next victim and who the killer is or maybe even, why he wishes to kill these people. The fact that one is who the next victim is, is almost obvious as many thrillers do use this enigma code. This may not be as rewarding to the audience to guess who the next victim is as they will more than likely believe that most of the characters will end up dead before the end anyway, despite the clues that are predicted to be left behind by the killer.  However, if the audience are to try and guess who the killer is, they will find much more comfort in their intellect should they be correct as this is a very rewarding thing to be able to do, and is sometimes the reason that intellectuals watch thrillers, almost as though they see it as a 'test'.

Character types:

Without the use of a stereotypical hero, the murderer will be foiled by the final victim, the one that all other deaths lead to. This will result in either the death or the imprisonment of the killer. There is, however a fairly stereotypical killer as they will be dressed in almost all black, representing the darkness of their heart. Despite this approach, the killer is also to be wearing some blue jeans in order to represent their own normality and make them seem unlikely inside to commit such crimes. The killer will also be male, the again stereotypical gender of the thriller movie's villain. There will also be a seemingly vulnerable female character used as a victim in the opening sequence as this gives off many different impressions because blonde women are considered to be more vulnerable than men or women with a different hair colour. Within the entire narrative (which will not be filmed) there will be a number of characters which well fit the theory of classic fairy tale characters set by Vladimir Propp. Due to there being more than one antagonist within the theory, the killer is needed to seem as sinister as possible in order to distinguish him from the others.

Todorov's stages of equilibrium:

We have decided to use the standard stages of equilibrium, however, we have just decided to use it in a 'cycle' type way, the opening begins with the slow introduction to disequilibrium from the equilibrium. After this, the main narrative will go back to an equilibrium, only to be ruined by yet another murderer, after the demise of the  previous one. This represents the beginning of the cycle all over again.

Editing Reference

Here are the editing processes that I will refer to in my thriller movie opening production.

+Transitions- Straight cut, Cut, Wipe, Fade.

   >Cut- a splicing of two shots together.

   >Fade in/out- gradually darkening/lightening the shot to/from black.

   >Dissolve- briefly superimposes one shot into another.

   >Wipe- a boundary line moves across the scene from one direction to another (both images are briefly on     

          screen together)

+Sound- non diegetic (music and soundtracks), sound effects (consider how sounds are enhanced)

+Movement in time.

+Movement in narrative.

+Continuity and place.

+ Bordwell and Thompson's 'dimensions of editing':

   >Graphic- making sure that everything in the scene is graphically matched. So keeping all of the props in the    

         shot in the same place all of the time that this setting is used. This prevents some audience confusion.

>Rhythmic- if there is music in the background, make sure that it keeps in time between scenes, with an 

         uneven beat, the narrative will have an uneven effect.

>Spatial- being in the same place, not saying that an hour later the character is on the other side of the world.  

          and not all of a sudden becoming dark outside.

>Temporal- These include flash backs and flash forwards, they need to be clearly distinctive from the rest of 

          the shots and scenes. For example, in Run Lola Run, unreal flashbacks and flash forwards are 

          in a red screen colour, this makes them obvious that they are not at the same time as the other scenes. 

Shot Types For Production Reference

Here I have collected some images and the relevant information regarding some typically used shots within movies. I am going to use these as reference in my thriller opening production.

Establishing shot- often used to set the scene, shows the audience/viewer the setting of the scene or movie in general. 

Very long shot- The subject is visible in this shot, but the emphasis is still on placing the character in the scene.

Long shot- Typically shows the subjects entire figure, shot taken in relation to placing the character in their surroundings.

Medium (Mid) shot- The subject is often framed from the waist up, these are often poor at showing facial expressions but a lot better at showing body language.

Medium close up- between a medium and close up shot.

Close up shot- Used to show an action or expression, the body part or the face pictured typically takes up the whole screen.

Extreme close up- exaggerated version of the close up shot, shows part of the face or body, to focus on certain expressions/speech.

Two shot- usually a comfortable shot of two people, framed similarly within the shot.

Over the shoulder shot- looks from behind the receiver (over their shoulder) at the speaker during an on-screen conversation.

Sound For Production Reference

Sounds effects- explosions, gunshots e.t.c
Music-conveys the emotion and rhythm
Silence-creates humor, focus on facial expressions/body language
Environmental (Ambient) sounds- birds, traffic e.t.c
Synchronous sounds- match on-screen action
Asynchronous sounds- no on-screen source visible
Contrapuntal sounds- clash with the video in tone/mood
Dialogue- adds realism and character

Diegetic sounds- sounds that are present in the world of the character and can be heard by the characters in
the scene. These are, in short, sounds that are not edited into the sequence.

Non Diegetic sounds- sounds that are not present in the world of the characters, therefore must be edited into the sequence. These include sound effects, music, asynchronous and synchronous sounds and contrapuntal sounds.                         

Editing (Continued)

As the editing process was started last week in the lesson times, we are hoping to get the majority of the sound editing done today, ready for the rough cut showing in Friday's lesson. This is essential as in the showing, there will be a lack of tension and mood should there be no sound. We are going to edit in some sounds that would seem to the audience as diegetic, whereas because they have been edited in, they will of course be non-diegetic sounds. Other than this, we will be adding the non diegetic sounds such as the tension-adding music and sound tracks.

Storyboarding

Over the past week and the weekend, I have been completing the storyboard for the final production and adding in the extra shots that we are needed to film in the near future. Today I will be adding some colour to the appropriate shots in the way that I believe we should edit the sequence into different colour patterns in order to make the scenes seem disjointed and off set from one another as the beginning is the introduction of current events, followed by some past events. The sequence is finished however, with the beginning of the current event from the beginning of the sequence.

Thrilller Movies Studied

Through the planning process and the research, I have watched a selection of Thriller movies for both inspiration and research on the typically included codes and conventions. Some of these movies that I have watched include "Man on Fire", "The Sixth Sense" and "Orphan". The movie "Man on Fire", starring Denzel Washington is an example of both a suspense, and an action thriller about the relationship between a young girl and her bodyguard in a city where children go missing on a daily basis. The base of the story line contributes to the genre of a suspense thriller as the audience are often left wondering whether or not the young girl will be kidnapped or not. Obviously, in order to follow the standard movie structure, the girl must be kidnapped at some time, which acts as the chaos or the 'disequilibrium' section of the movie. The suspense is then transferred to whether or not the bodyguard will find the girl and in which one of his investigations. "The Sixth Sense" is a movie in which the genre is that of a psychological thriller as the audience must have a very psychologically adapted in order to predict the final outcome of the movie. Personally, I lacked the insight to predict it for myself and was, however pleasantly surprised at the end. The movie was a very good example of effective camera angles and visual editing, this very well created the sense of the supernatural. "Orphan" however is an example of a psychological thriller with hints of horror conventions.It again is a very good example of camera angles, but the most important thing, it thought, was the effectiveness of the edited music, which contributed greatly to the suspense and tension of the plot line as the character begins to get darker in personality. From these, I have gathered a broader knowledge of the key codes and conventions of the genre and this will help me in the editing and extra filming process in the production of the coursework piece.

Christmas Holidays

Before the christmas holidays began, we were partially into the planning process and the filming. filming progress was slow over these holidays as the group lacked any common free time. On the day that we did film, we made great progress and more than doubled our current footage length. In the first lessons back, we uploaded our new shots and we are currently in the middle of editing. Today we managed to get the initial title sequence in and working on Final Cut Pro.