Main Task and Evaluation

Timeline of horror genre

A timeline of horror movies from mary lawson

Treatment

We filmed our media product in the day time which meant that it was very bright and on original viewing it did not give off the horror feel we wanted to portray:

We decided to use the colour wheel to change the overall colour of the footage to a blue colour, this made it look more dull and gloomy, just as we had wished:

We then used the luna curve feature along with the feather tool to create an vignette of light within the footage that accentuated the dark gloomy background:

We added audio over the top of the footage, this was background music for the duration of the opening with added audio with things such as panting and the scream at the end:

We added in credits throughout the film opening with the use of key frames:

Producing a company logo

To begin with, I found a picture of a cartoon tree on Google and opened this in Photoshop. I chose to use a cartoon tree instead of a real one as it would be easier to outline this and I felt it would look better as a logo.

As I wanted to fill the image of the tree in black, I used the pen tool to select and outline the image of the tree. I made sure that I followed the edges of the tree as accurately as possible, but it was not a problem if it was slightly off as it would be filled in black anyway and so you would not see the original image.

I then used the fill tool and a pure black colour to fill in the outlined tree. I then inverted the selection tool so that the background was selected as I wanted to delete this area of the image. Below is the before and after of deleting the background.

I then went onto 1001fonts.com and found a font that I liked and felt would be suitable for my logo. We chose the 'SMZ' as it was the first initial of each team member and we felt that the name 'smz productions' sounded catchy.

In Photoshop, I placed this quote beneath the image of the tree. Below is the final image of our logo.

Planning for shoots

Hair and makeup- All cast members to have natural hair and makeup, straight hair all hanging down, no bright lipstick/eyeshadow, very plain and simplistic.

Costumes- 3 antagonist characters to wear all black, black boots, black jeans, black top and a black jacket if weather essential. 1 protagonist character to wear all black as above, however should wear a grey speckled coat to symbolise a difference between the two.

Props- Sticks made into stick men, twigs to rip up, paper to write credits on.

Locations- Forest.

Call Sheets

The following documents are the call sheets for the shooting of our film opening. These are important to the production of the media product as it informs everyone involved where they need to be, when and what to wear. It also ensures us as a company that everyone who needs to be on set will be there on time, therefore we can start shooting straight away and we won't have to waste time and money for our production company. 

Head Shots

These are the head shots of all cast members of our opening titles, we took head shots of each actress so we had a clear idea of how we wanted them to look in the final edit.

ECE CELIK- Protagonist

MARY LAWSON- Antagonist

SINEAD GRACE- Antagonist

AIMEE TYRRELL- Antagonist

Talent release forms

Before we started shooting our film opening we ensured we had consent from all actors involved, this consent gave us permission for them to be filmed and to be taken out of college during times of filming. It also meant that we were able to upload the media product online to be viewed by many.

Location Release forms

This document shows that we have permission to film at the setting we required. It is important that we have this document because then the owners of the property are aware of the fact we will be shooting there and so we will not cause disruptions to their land.

Risk Assessment

These risk assessment forms enable us as a company to identify any risks that will be present when filming and means we can prevent them before hand. The main risks for us were tripping hazards as we would be on uneven ground full of logs and twigs. The precaution we would take for this would be to clear the area we would be filming on and ensure that pathways were clear if we were going to be running through. Another risk was the long hours that filming may have taken, to overcome this we decided to split the filming over a few hours every few days. As we are outside bugs and insects may be present which means we need to check we are not placing any equipment or walking on any animal nests/burrows. As a company we need to ensure none of the equipment we use gets damaged or lost, therefore we need to keep all of the equipment with us at all times and to stay away from the equipment when filming (apart from camera person) as to not damage the equipment.

StoryBoard

A story board is important for the production of the film opening because with it we can visualise how our final piece will look. It also ensures that everyone is aware of exactly how each shot is being filmed and where props/actress' need to be placed, this makes for quicker film time and for our company, less time and money.

Camera Shot List

These documents are the camera shot lists, these are useful for the production of our film opening because it shows us exactly what we will be filming and what needs to be happening in each shot, this saves us time when filming.

Location Scouting

We are shooting our opening titles at Todd Brook field, situated by Asda, opposite the Leisure Zone in Harlow Essex.

As the field is a public area we are able to film there without permission being given. We will be filming on this location on the 16th February 2016 between the hours of 11 and 3.

Textual analysis of three examples of chosen task

American Horror Story textual analysis from mary lawson

The Craft Film Opening Analysis from Sinead Grace

Blair Witch - Textual Analysis from Zoe Brant

Synopsis

The opening of the film starts with a lone girl standing in a open field, staring at the woodland. She's confused to why she is there, and why she is wearing a outfit of black. She then slowly turns and walks towards the forest, and begins to stroll though quite calmly. Unknown to the girls knowledge, she is not alone in the woods, as three other girls emerge. The new three girls are witches, and the fourth girl is their new recruit. The three witches start chanting and breaking twigs as the lone girl continuities to make her way though the woods, she passes signs that the witches are about. The signs are little wooden crosses hanging from trees. One of the witches then hears the lone girl after she accidentally steps on a few twigs. the witches then go back to chanting and crackling until the lone girl gets closer. When the lone girl finds herself in front of the witches, they all top and start smirking at her. Suddenly the lone girl screams and the screen goes black. this leaves the audience wondering what is going to happen next. Will the girl run away or will she join the witches?

Final script

Scene opens by panning around a field at a long shot, showing the forest in the distance, the camera then does a jump to the forest and pans around an empty forest. All is quiet, peaceful and eerie. The camera then jumps back to the field.A person can be seen stood in the middle, staring at the forest. Jump shot to a close up of the person with a confused expression, looking around frantically. They are dressed entirely in black, and look down at their clothes. The shot changes to an extreme close up of the person's hand picking at their clothes, as if they are confused as to why they are dressed like that. The shot then changes to a mid-shot from behind the girl as she starts to walk towards the forest. 

Once in the forest, the pace of the cuts between clips begins to speed up. We also hear the heavy panting of the girl over the top of the clip to add dramatic effect. At first, it starts at a steady pace. It begins with showing  the girl looking around the forest, then switching to a shot of three figures dressed in black walking through the forest - their hair is covering their faces, they almost look like shadows within the forest, They are walking behind each other in a line, the camera uses different shots of their faces, feet, hands, lips and eyes. As they walk the sound of crunching leaves can be heard, and they get louder and louder. As it switches back to the girl, it is a close up of her feet as she walks, snapping twigs along the way. It again quickly cuts away to a clip  of the three figures, who quickly stop in their tracks and look sharply to their left, before turning that way and continuing to walk. Behind them in their trail in the background there are stickmen hanging from different trees, the camera then does a close up of one of the stickmen.

The three girls then stop in a clearing. In the middle stands a lone cauldron.  The three girls surround it and hold hand showing no emotion on their faces again. They each have their heads bowed and looking at the floor. After a few seconds the girls start silently screaming and chanting as the introduction pot the eerie music starts , the next jump shot is of a match being striked and thrown to the ground under the cauldron whilst the other two girls are ripping a doll up and rags and throwing them into the cauldron. Whilst the action is going on jump shots will be used to show close ups of the girls faces, they are smirking or crackling.

This is when the shot cuts begin to speed up. The shots include different angles of the lone girl walking towards all the action and clips such as burning matches, china dolls and rags being ripped apart and water dripping from a leaf on a tree (this will connote sadness and danger). These shots will also include the names of the actors and crew involved carved into the trees or written on burnt paper on the floor. When the jump shots finish, it will cut to a close up of the first girl as her expression turns from confusion to fear and she starts to scream.The other girls spin around and see her, after a few moments they all start laughing, it's a dark, evil laugh. The sound of the heartbeat stops and the screen cuts to black. There will then be a static sound over the black screen. The title of the movie will then fade into the black screen.

Focus group questionnaire

1. Do you like horror films?

2. What do you like to see in a horror film?

3.What is your opinion of witch horror films?

4. Can you give us feedback on our plot?

5. Do you think it is suitable for the age rating of 15?

6. Name a particular horror film you like and what your favourite part of it is?

7. Do you like dialogue within a film opening or just background music?

8. Have you seen American Horror Story: Coven, The Blaire Witch Project or The Craft before? If you have, what is your opinion of any of them?

9.Would this film opening make you want to carry on watching?

10. Any additional comments?

Questionnaire feedback from mary lawson

Main Influences

The main influence for our film opening was American Horror Story: Coven. We liked the idea of the characters being dressed head to toe in black, it took a twist on the stereotypical idea of a witch with ragged hair and warts, and took a modern take on it. We hoped by making it modern that audiences would be able to relate to it and connect to the media product.

Our opening will be filmed in a forest, much like some of the clips in the opening of AHS. We felt that the forest portrayed loneliness and also fear of the unknown. The editing of this particular clip shown below includes darkening the shot to make it black and white.

One particular scene from the American Horror Story opening that we really thought would fit with our media product was the part where the three hooded black creatures walked through the forest slowly. We felt it added a lot of mystery while being easy to symbolise what is being shown. It signals a cult type group of people working together, in our case, witches.

Secondary Research into audience

http://www.bbfc.co.uk 

The U symbol stands for Universal. A U film should be suitable for audiences aged four years and over. However, it is impossible to predict what might upset a particular child, especially at this lower end of the category range. Violence will generally be very mild. A U film may include brief fight scenes or moments where characters are placed in danger. However, moments of emotional stress or threat will be quickly resolved and the outcome will be reassuring.

There may be brief scary scenes and moments where the characters are placed in danger. As with violence, however, these scenes will be balanced by reassuring elements, such as comic interludes or music. ‘Baddie’ characters may carry or use weapons, but there will be no emphasis on these. 

PG stands for Parental Guidance. This means a film is suitable for general viewing, but some scenes may be unsuitable for young children. A PG film should not unsettle a child aged around eight or older. Parents should consider whether the content may upset younger, or more sensitive, children. 

Accompanied viewing cannot be enforced in the home, so the 12 certificate remains for DVD/Blu-ray, rather than the 12A. The 12 is also a simpler system for retailers. It means they cannot sell or rent the item unless the customer is over the age of 12. Some horror films are passed at this category. Moderate physical and psychological threat is permitted at 12 or 12A as long as horror sequences are not too frequent or sustained and the overall tone is not disturbing.

Films classified 12A and video works classified 12 contain material that is not generally suitable for children aged under 12. No one younger than 12 may see a 12A film in a cinema unless accompanied by an adult. Adults planning to take a child under 12 to view a 12A film should consider whether the film is suitable for that child.

Any of the following can be shown in a film classified 15: Strong violence, frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***'), portrayals of sexual activity, strong verbal references to sex, sexual nudity, brief scenes of sexual violence or verbal references to sexual violence, discriminatory language or behaviour, drug taking.  At 15 there can be strong threat and horror as long as there is no sustained focus on sadistic or sexualised threat.

18 works are for adults and can contain strong issues such as; very strong violence, frequent strong language (e.g. 'f***') and / or very strong language (e.g. ‘c***’), strong portrayals of sexual activity, scenes of sexual violence,strong horror,strong blood and gore,real sex (in some circumstances), discriminatory language and behaviour.

The R18 category is a special and legally-restricted classification primarily for explicit works of consenting sex or strong fetish material involving adults. Films may only be shown to adults in specially licensed cinemas, and video works may be supplied to adults only in licensed sex shops. R18 videos may not be supplied by mail order.