Cast

Name - Malachi Dempsey-Clark

Role - "jock"

Background information - Malachi has the least experience out of the cast, but is playing a jock, which means little emotion needs to be shown, we chose him as jock due to his physic, although Malachi played a key role in my preliminary film and is reliable, and very eager and optimistic to work with.

Name - Edward Morgan

Role -"Geek"

Background information - Edward has performed man key roles in school musicals and is dedicated to his roles, also he lives close to the filming location and can be relied upon to arrive on time.
Currently working on his Drama A levels he is a very keen actor and often offers useful input and new ideas.

Name - Sophie Paul

Role - "Drama queen"

Background information - Sophie has starred in many out of school performances, and has played roles similar to the one we set her therefore will be able to play her role to a adequate standard, she is very open minded to new ideas and is very passionate about acting, also lives in the close vicinity to the shooting location and will be very reliable to get hold of.

Name - Joe James

Role - Killer

Background information - Joe has acted as the antagonist in other performances and changes his mindset the act out the role very well, also his tall and slender figure is perfect size to make an intimidating fearful killer.
Joe takes pride in the roles he plays and can be relied upon to arrive on set without delay and with an enthusiastic working attitude.

Lighting

We are planning to film in 2 locations in the same area, this is useful as the natural lighting will be at a similar level in both places.

Key :
Red - Path of characters 
Yellow - possible shooting spots
Blue - good level lighting 
Pink - low level lighting 

This plan shows the places where lighting equipment may be required, in the tunnel part of the filming area, perhaps in the last 2 filming locations on the trail, lighting would have to be quite primitive due to the lack of power supply and inconvenient terrain, primitive being a widespread torch without a direct obvious beam.

Dialogue ideas

As I was put in charge of writing the script I thought it sensible to write a post on possible ideas and themes the script shall hold.

The dialogue of the characters should reflect the stereotypical roles we chose.
For example for the "geek" character will speak in a intellectual somewhat condescending tone, perhaps his tone will be fairly quiet and timid, although the personality for this character will be more emphasised by his Mise En Scene.

By far the most over ruling speaker will be the "drama queen" her dialogue will be melodramatic and loud, her actions will be light hearted and will constantly be seeking attention whilst acting somewhat aloof to the reaction of others.

The jock's dialogue will make him come across as rather arrogant, using harsh words and harsh terms, attempting to make him look more masculine in the face of danger, perhaps to mask his fear.
His dialogue will have to juxtapose that of the Geek, as they are sworn opposites and this should be emphasised.

A smart idea i thought could be to have the characters on their mobile phones for the majority of the scene, as it is a proven modern stereotype that teens spend far too long on their phones and this can be exploited, for a mocking effect against the teens and makes them seem ignorant to the present situation.
 

Set Roles

Alfie -

- Script writing
- Location permission

Charlotte -

- Risk assessment
- Target group/research
- Classification

Katie -

- Special effects
- Makeup

Shared group efforts -

-Storyboard
- Casting videos
- Test footage
- Call sheet
- Communication

Props

(will be replace with actual image of the object soon!)

We are using a short 1 handed hatchet to be used as the weapon choice of the killer, an axe is a short, brutal weapon and is often associated with a slow gory death in slasher films, also the shape of the axe is very distinctive and easily recognised, the weapon is a representation of violent murder and vicious intent

Cost - N/A (already have an axe in my possession)

(will provide actual picture ASAP)

The train whistle will be worn around the killers neck as a iconic feature, it will also be used to create a non diagetic sound effect even before the killer appears.

It is a vintage style whistle and is a representation of the classic style and archaic ways of the antagonist.

Cost- N/A already owned

What could go wrong?

Organisation 

-The film set we chose may be privately owned.
-Equipment may be misplace on set after filming.
-Rented equipment may be lost which would result in fines.
-We may not meet our filming schedule and may return to school with a lack of footage.
-Actors or crew members may be absent at the last moment.
-unexpected weather could cause numerous problems on set.

Communication 

-My instructions may not be clear enough to understand.
-Me and other students may not contribute ideas to the rest of the group.
-Often with things like this, it is easy to loose patience with members.
-May be difficult to contact crew/cast members via mobile phone at essential moments.
-Unannounced changes can cause issues for members.
-Basic human needs such as rest/hunger may not be met resulting in a sap of mood.
-A lack of communication with teaching staff.

Technical Issues

-Equipment may not be charged and could die on set.
-A lack of knowledge about equipment may result in poor footage.
-Equipment may be put in the right settings.
-the lighting or sound quality may not be to a sufficient standard.
-an unstable landscape or wind may cause the camera to shake .
-Health and safety issues may not be understood by the equipment user.
-Attempting to force appliances into the camera could result in damage.

Group work issues

-Individuals negligence effecting the entire group effort.
-mixed opinions may lead to division in the group.
-distribution of jobs may be biased against some.
-lack of listening skills.
-The group being unwilling to compromise.
-Procrastination.
-Lack of support in the group.
-Being insensitive /rude to members of the group.
-allowing personal problems to effect filming.

Treatment

Our opening will be based around the stereotypically used idea in slasher films, that is a group of young people enter an ominous location (old train tunnel in this case) and they encounter something out of the ordinary (train whistle) and one member (in this case the "jock") goes of in search of the source, and the others later discover his body and also encounter the killer and it turns into a pursuit in which they all inevitably perish as well.

This should make the audience feel terror, terror at the horror faced by the characters and terror for the scenario, the killer's Mise En Scene will also cause terror to the audience as he will look intimidating and merciless (will go into greater detail on prop post).
The opening will also make the audience feel empathy, empathy for the hopelessness of the situation and sorrow for the unfortunate events occurring to these young people.

The narrative will have to sound natural, as if it was an ordinary conversation between three young people, this can range from talking about celebrities, news of the time and currant life events, while taking into account that some things may seem offensive to certain audiences.
The narrative could also be related to anecdotes from the characters, something that gives the audience an idea about their personalities, maybe even to give the audience an emotional attachment to the character that further increases their shock when they are murdered.
The dialogue will always be diagetic as the camera will track the characters.

We will be featuring 4 characters, a group of 3 young teenagers comprising of the stereotypical casting in a slasher film; a jock (a physically fit sporty man, over confident and often arrogant), a "geek" (a skinny physically weak, intellectual character, who would be the first to suspect danger and will be over analytical of the situation much to the annoyance of the jock) and lastly the "Drama queen" (a young girl who often exaggerates the situation and is the most potent to being easily scared, will scream often and will rely on the prowess of others for protection).
And of course the killer, the entire film will revolve around this character so it would be wise not to release too much information about him in the opening and to leave the audience in suspense to his identity as is commonly done in Slasher films.
The killers role will be to create the feeling of threat for the audience and move the plot forward, the killer will the be main variable that keeps the film going.

The film is set firstly in a open country field environment, in which we will do an establishing shot of the area, and introduce the characters, and then for a certain circumstance they are forcing to walk down a dark, long, over grown train tunnel (pictured in location post).

The lighting of the scene will have to be dimmed at certain points during filming, and a filter may be used to dim the scene in order to create a gloomy atmosphere, despite the colourful Mise En Scene of the characters, they should appear more grey and hopeless to create tension.

We want to use the camera to emphasise the panic of the event, as the plot escalates the camera angles will change more quickly, this is to exaggerate the panic and confusion and increase tension for the audience, this also highlights the emotions shown by the actors.

Editing will be used to combine all the different camera angle shots into one sequence that will seem very fast pace and to give the audience a better view of the Mise En Scene of the surroundings and scenery, for this Shot Reverse Shot will be crucial to set the scene and add the feeling of panic, along with an added incidental non diagetic sound track.

Location overview

For our chosen shooting location we chose an abandoned train track located in Chacombe a quiet and rural village, which will perfect as cars rarely pass by and there is little chance people will pass by causing interference during filming.

The filming location is located in the centre of the picture

  we took images of the location and possible shots, the area is fairly bright and may need a filter to darken the area to make it appear more ominous.

In order to test these shots we took small clips of possible takes in order to test how it looked on camera.
we firstly took a clip of the characters walking down a path, but the camera was inside a hedge to achieve the effect that somebody was watching them through a hedge, the shot was taken at a low angle and panned left to follow the characters.

Afterwards we took a shot from a low angle at the bottom of a slope, it panned to the right to follow the characters as they walk down the slope.

Film Pitch

Film opening - Initial ideas

Slasher mood board

Genre analysis - Jeepers Creepers

Film name - Jeepers Creepers

Age certificate - 15

Production studio - United Artists

Distribution company - Capitol Films, United Artists

Director - Victor Salva

Box office takings - $513,292

This opening started like the majority of Slasher films, with 2 young people unaware of the horror that they about the face, in this case the brother and sister are casually driving down an empty road, the emptiness and tranquillity of the scene would leave the audience uncomfortable as they would be aware of the events that may occur in this genre of film, the 2 are shown from a close up eye level view from the driver side of the car, in order to easily present the 2 characters in dialogue.

Things start to escalate when the protagonists notice something that they should not have, in this case a figure disposing of a body, shown from a extreme long shot panning from the left to make the impression the car is passing, the dialogue of the protagonists shows their realisation and panic as the scene begins to escalate, an incidental non diagetic classic slasher screeching sound track is played to raise suspense.

an extreme long shot of the killer panning to the right of him is shown, but the angle of the killer does not change as it rotates, this shows that he is staring directly at the protagonists and therefore straight at the audience, the Mis En Scene of the killer is rugged dark scarecrow style clothing which reveals no form of expression or emotion, which makes the killer seem dark and heartless to the audience, the van he is stood next to is a classic style van which is rusted all over and dark, this looks like some form of stereotypical murder vehicle, the brother and sister's Mis En Scene is that of a modern look, the girl wearing a modern sleeveless top, the boy in a t-shirt, the way they behave is stereotype of siblings which is bickering, even in the sight of the danger.

The mobile phone fails to work, technology failing to work or any device that could assist the victims is a common effect used in a Slasher film, often in a time of crisis where it would be desperately needed, this leaves a feeling of hopelessness to the audience.

The view switches to an extreme long shot of the van starting to pull out, at this point it is clear that there is danger present and a form of chase is imminent, along with the escalated incidental sound track this creates a great feeling of suspense for the audience.

The camera angle switches to a low angle stationary camera which shows the protagonist's car starting to travel at great speed, then to a similar angle but instead of the killer's car, this is to emphasise the idea that the killer is starting to gain and increases the suspense, which is a tool used in Slashers but more often on foot rather then a vehicle chase.

A front angle, eye level close up of the driver is shown as he grabs the wheel in assurance with a great level of fear in his eyes, this is to try and express the pressure put on the driver at this moment, and also show the killer starting to catch up. 
   
  






  

Genre analysis - Friday the 13th

Film name - Friday the 13th

Age certificate - 18

Production company - Paramount pictures

Distribution company - Paramount pictures, Warner Bros

Director - Sean S. Cunningham

Box office takings - $5,816,321 

The opening starts out calm and like many slashers takes a very immediate turn for the worst, this is made apparent in order for the audience to empathise with the victim in this scene.
Similar to Halloween the camera is shown from the POV of the killer who is driving, this is to show the Victims panic as the scene escalates, and to keep the killer's identity hidden so it can be revealed later in the film, although the scene starts from a camera panning left and tracking the Jeep's movement, this sets the scene effectively with little dialogue needed which is good for a fast pace moving slasher film.

A incidental non diagetic brass instrument plays which is a traditional tool used in Slasher films in order to raise the suspense and alert the audience that a tragedy (often murder) is going to occur.

The scene escalates greatly when the scene changes to a camera panning left this time from the rear to emphasise the Jeep speeding up, this leads to the victim making a rash decision in this case jumping from the vehicle and like in most slashers this leaves the victim injured and thus more vulnerable, this would leave the audience on the edge of their seats, and more fixed to the upcoming chase.

After the victim leaps from the vehicle it shows the vehicle reversing back towards the victim, it does this from a camera positioned in the back giving a extreme long shot focused on the victim to give te impression that its an over the shoulder POV from the driver, this answers the audience's suspicions that the driver is a threat to the victim, yet still not revealing anything about the killer.

The start of the chase is shown from the POV of the killer, which gives a rear view of the victim attempting to escape, the victim is shown stumbling and tripping as the killer draws closer, this is another classic element used in slashers to make the victim look helpless and panicked, this is also exaggerated by the incidental sound track which speeds up to show the escalation of the chase.

Another effect used in slashers is shown here, when it goes to a extreme long shot panning to follow the victim, to make it appear as if the killer has been escaped, and the incidental sound track ceases, to give the audience the feeling that she is out of the danger and everything is clear, until she finds herself face to face with killer, although the killer's boots and trouser leg is only shown to the audience, it is shown through the victim's reaction which is to stumble in horror that this is the killer.

Genre analysis - Halloween

Although I researched Halloween for one of my opening researches, I decided to evaluate the first 2 minutes of the actual film rather than the open credits.

I chose to research Halloween again as it is one of the original films comprising in the "Slasher" genre.
The opening is filmed from a POV camera view from the killers eyes, this allows the audience to witness the horrific events from a point of view that allows them to see the fear in the victims eyes without releasing any information regarding the killer, this tool is used to increase suspense and terror in slasher films.

The victims in this opening are a young couple alone engaging in sexual activity, this is a very stereotypical cliché for victims in Slasher films, their Mis En Scene is also very typical, the male seeming quite sporty and fit, wearing a sport like jumper, while the girl is wearing a skirt and cardigan with her hair tied up, this is to make her look unintelligent and vulnerable, the setting is a average American home, with the couple sat kissing on the sofa unaware of the killer watching them.

When the lights turn of in the room a high pitched screech is played to inform the audience that something dangerous and scary is going to occur, and the high volume would make the audience jump in shock which is a very common tool used in a Slasher genre film.

The incidental non diagetic sound track played as the killer stalks through the house is also very stereotypical for the genre, as it is used to build up suspense for the audience.

The killer reaches for a Kitchen knife, which is extremely iconic and stereotypical for a slasher film, and is often used to signify that a murder is going to occur.
To add to this the young woman is left alone, and this leaves her as the traditional "damsel in distress".
  

Genre Research - Definition of genre

Genre the French word for "type" and that's what they are, a genre is a type of film to put it bluntly, genre is used to show what sort of film the audience is viewing and the film makers are presenting, for example if the film features cow boys, sheriffs and saloons and related clichés it is classed into the genre of Western.

To be classed into a genre the film would have to show the fixed elements listed in a genre type, for example most thrillers feature jump scares and such.

Genres have been created originally for profitable purposes, as film companies would produce a highly successful and profitable film and would like to achieve the same success in their next production, so the idea to just create a film using the same principles and ideas that made their last piece so popular to achieve the same success.

This in turn would be useful for the consumer, as they would know what type of genre they would enjoy and would be able to identify this by what genre the film was listed into, so they would be able to view a film they would know contains their pleasures, for example a horror fan could expect dark imagery and scares in a horror genre film.

Sometimes a film can contain elements from other genres and they would be classed into sub-genres, for example a romantic film which has a humorous and comedic plot would be classed as a Romantic-Comedy as it contains elements from both of these genres.

  

Genre choice

I have decided to base my film opening and genre research on the "Slasher" sub genre film.

Slasher films are normally based around the elements of a human (to a certain degree) killing other people in gruesome and dark ways, the plot normally unfolds throughout the film and the killer's purpose is often revealed to be quite disturbing and shocking.

The killer is often armed with a knife, axe, machete or any sharp cutting instrument, this is the reason for the name Slasher. 

The general audience for Slasher films are young adults ageing from 16-18, this is due to graphic content and threatening imagery.

Example Slasher Films :-

Halloween  

Nightmare on Elm Street

The Hills have Eyes 

Film opening research - The Shining

Film name - The Shining

Age certificate - 15

Production studio - Warner Bros

Distribution company - Warner Bros

Director - Stanley Kubrick

Box office takings - $622,337

The opening starts rather boringly with the production/distribution company shown in its ident format with no animation nor soundtrack,

It opens with a moving wide shot, moving across the lake showing the mountainous region, this emphasises the isolation of the setting, which is also the theme of the film, this is accompanied by a slow sounding brass instrument score, this works well with the journey through isolation, but is a juxtaposition as its a tense horror style score, in comparison to a seemingly peaceful remote setting.

The camera follows a car from a birds eye view, this is to emphasise the feeling of isolation to the audience, as no other cars or buildings are present in the scene, also the road is going through a thick forest, this can be seen as a horror film stereotype, the birds eye view also exaggerates the great length of the road, and distance from civilisation.

The shot returns to a moving wide shot as it presents more derelict mountainous scene, during this the opening credits showing the director, 2 of the main cast this is shown in a simple blue typography so it is easy to read as is moves through the shot, the title of the film is exaggerated in capitals, to emphasise their importance to the audience, afterwards more of the cast are presented.