Prelim Storyboard

Illustrated By: Toby Phillips
Ideas By: Lewis Hamilton, Callum Cole and Toby Phillips

Prelim Action Script

Toby plays the 'Elusive Man'.
Callum  plays the 'Contact'.

Elusive Man: "So glad you could join me, Mr Cole."
Contact: "The pleasures all mine."
Elusive Man: "I have an important job for you. Make NO mistakes this time..."
Contact: "I can't make any promises with a job like this...you know that."

This Dialogue takes place from shots 13 - 17.

Summary of Genres

A genre is a type or category of film or music.
There are 3 main types of genre, which are as follows: 
1. Major Genre - like action, romantic, horror...etc.
2. Sub Genre - smaller genres which aren't as well-known as the major genres, but are derived from them.
3. Hybrid Genre - a combination of major genres and sub genres that can create new ones, such as: RomZomCom films like 'Shaun of the Dead'.

A List of Genres (and an example.)
Romantic - Twilight
Comedy - Superbad
Zombie - Zombieland
Slasher - Scream
Action - Indiana Jones
Thriller - I Am Legend
Horror - Saw
Sci-Fi - Alien
Musical - High School Musical
Animated - Simpsons Movie
Drama (Social) - The Social Network
Fantasy - Narnia
Fiction - Transformers
Western - 'John Wayne' Films
Documentry - March of the Penguins
Gangster - Snatch

Research and Summaries of the Thriller Genre

A thriller is a play, book or film that depicts crime, mystery and/or espionage along with supense, action and excitment.
A thriller is commonly called a 'Psychological Thriller', because they can mess with your mind and get behind the actually meaning of the film, hence 'Psychological'. Thrillers commonly follow conventions which make them thriller films, a few examples are: the characters and the aura about them, music/sound and cliffhangers.

Linear films are films which are in the right order, e.g. beginning, middle, end. But a non-linear film is when the parts of the story are mixed up, e.g. end, beginning, middle, end. This can happen because a character retells the story of their life or something similar. The film Kill Bill Volume 1 is a typical example of a non-linear film. The whole story is in a strange order, where the ending actually happens early on in the film, and the beginning is shown later. This is very effective as the audiene knows some of what will happen towards tthe end, but as the end is shwon first, they want the find out the beginning.

Thriller Pitch Ideas

Questionnaire

Questionnaire

1.    Gender?

Male                                                                           [  ]

Female                                                                        [  ]

2.    Age?

10-13                                                                          [  ]

14-18                                                                          [  ]

19-24                                                                          [  ]

25-30                                                                          [  ]

31-40                                                                          [  ]

41-50                                                                          [  ]

Other                                                                                          [   ]

3.    Do you enjoy watching Thriller films?

Yes                                                                             [  ]

No                                                                                               [   ]

4.    What should be the key features of a Thriller Opening/Opening Credits? (Please Comment)

………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

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5.    What sort of victim would you most expect to find in a Thriller Film?

Male                                                                            [  ]

Female                                                                         [  ]

Child                                                                            [  ]

Elderly Woman                                                              [  ]

Elderly Man                                                                   [  ]

6.    What sort of locations would you expect to be featured in a Thriller Opening? (Please Comment)

………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

7.    What sort of lighting would you expect to find in a Thriller Opening? (Please Comment)

………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

………………………………………………………………………………………………………...














^^ The above Questionnaire has had to be changed slightly due to the way it is presented in Blogger.

Shooting of our Thriller Opening

We began our ideas for our Thiller Opening with our minds set on filming in Bulby Woods. It soon became apparent to us that this would not be an ideal location to shoot an Interrogation type opening, as the ares of path and grass were too great, not being able to give us the scene we wanted. So after checking out other areas and locations to film, we decided that Lewis' shed would provide much need key elements and features to effectively shoot a Thriller Opening.


The shed is small and compact with a single source of light - the window. Making this very easy to dim lighting, add light and create a closed-off, claustrophobic atmosphere. 


After clearing everything out of the shed and removing a few shelves to allow the camera and tripod to be positioned in certain places, we went about looking for the props Lewis had told us he had. Once finding that the initial props had been sold or were never there in the first place, we subbed certain props and carried on perfecting our film set, adding two lamps to give the shed some light and placing certain garden tools leaning against the walls of the shed to create a more worrying atmosphere, as the consisted of: a pick-axe, a sledgehammer, garden shears etc. 


Our first scene began with Lewis dunking his head into a bucket of water and myself pulling his head out. This had to be done first, as otherwise Lewis wouldn't have had water on him in the rest of the scenes. After a few failed attempts, too much noise and bad timing, we finally filmed the shot without any laughter. 
We let Lewis dry himself off quickly as it was fairly cold outside, especially in the shed, and with him almost drenched, we felt bad leaving him soaked and shivering the whole time.


The rest of filming went very well, with the addition of some added scenes which were originally not featured. We quickly put together the action script for  these new scenes and got them filmed right away. Overall, I am very happy with the amount of filming and the effects we believe to have created throughout our Thriller Opening.

Action Script for Thriller Opening

[Lewis' head is pulled out from a bucket of water by Toby]

[camera scrolls through the our names (Callum, Lewis and Toby) while images of murders appears on-screen]

[a light is turned on and the word "ROGUE" appears in the center of this light]

[Toby ties Lewis' hands behind his chair and walks round to his front to move the bucket of water of camera]

[while walking back to his previous position behind the chair, Toby begins to speak]

Toby: "So, why did you do it?"

[short pause, as he continues to walk]

Toby: "I said, WHY DID YOU DO IT?!"

[said with much more aggression, as Toby pushes on the back of Lewis' chair]

Lewis: " Alright, I'll tell you."

[said very reluctantly]

[the camera scrolls over various murder documents and photos linked to Lewis]

Lewis: "It wasn't my fault, I was set up."

Toby: "Well the evidence here tells a different story."

[camera cuts to left side shot Lewis looking up at Toby]

Toby: "Who else was involved?"

Lewis: "I don't know, it was an inside job."

Toby: "Well then, it would appear your of no use to me."

[camera cuts to right side of Lewis, with Toby initially excluded from shot]

Lewis: "What do you mean?"

Toby: "Well with you gone, there's one less criminal on the streets."

[Toby pulls a gun to Lewis' head just after "well with you gone"]

[Lewis looks up to find a gun pointing at him]

[scene fades to black, and ends, credits roll]

Thriller Story-Line and Plot

Written by: Toby Phillips
Ideas by: Callum Cole, Lewis Hamilton and Toby Phillips

Thriller Opening Storyboards

Illustrated by: Toby Phillips
Ideas by: Callum Cole, Lewis Hamilton and Toby Phillips

Document File used in Thriller Opening

Locations For Thriller Film Opening

 

These locations are good settings for a thriller film, as you could film effective chase scenes using the long, ruined roads and alot of tension can be created by the tight and immediate surroundings. The house is a good location to capture the fight for survival amoungst a group of characters.

Paramount Vantage

Paramount Vantage is a company that produces and distributes films, many of these along with Miramax Films. Paramount Vantage has produced films like No Country For Old Men and There Will Be Blood. The film No Country For Old Men is a great film to base my own thriller opening on, considering that throughout the film is based in a desolate place. The film opening i wish to portray is one set in a quiet, lonely place to give an extra sense that the victims are alone and helpless. 

BBFC

The BBFC is a company that licenses films and video games all Britain. A film cannot be sold or shown at the cinema or on TV without the BBFC having seen it. They license films based on their content. There are 6 different categories (U, PG, 12A/12, 15, 18, R18) that films are placed into, allowing only certain audiences to view the film. Below is a list of what the categories are comprised of:


U (Universal) - Suitable for all
‘U’ films are set within a positive moral framework and offer reassuring counterbalances to any violence, threat or horror. There are no references to discrimination, horror, drugs, bad language, violence, sexual behavior. Nudity is only allowed if there are no sexual references, meaning only natural nudity is allowed.


PG (Parental Guidance) - General viewing with parental consent
A ‘PG’ film would not disturb a child aged around eight or older. However, parents are advised to consider whether the content may upset their children based on how they react to different things. References to sexual content, drugs and such are still highly restricted due to the intended age of the audience.


12A/12 (Years 12 or under if accompanied by and adult/Years 12 and over only)
The category '12A' is only used in Cinema, meaning that a child under the age of 12 may only view a film if they are accompanied by an adult. The rating of '12' means that people below the age of 12 cannot rent, buy or view certain films or games because of the increased amount of sexual or mature content etc.


15
No one younger than 15 may see a ‘15’ film in a cinema or play '15' a game. No one younger than 15 may rent or buy a ‘15’ rated media. The mature content allowed in these films and games is increased dramatically, for example, nudity is allowed in sexual content without strong detail.


18
'18' is the highest age rating for films and games in the UK. Anyone below the age of 18 cannot purchase, rent or view a film, game or form of media. Media is normally given the rating of '18' because of sexual content in them.


R18
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 videos may be supplied to adults only in licensed sex shops.

Analysis of Psycho

 Throughout this assessed piece of work I shall be analysing the shower scene murder from the film Psycho. May different things can be deduced from what happens and the way in which: the camera, the different shot types, the sounds, the lighting and the mise-en-scene are used while the scene takes place. By analysing these key features of the scene, I will be able to give a detailed response, portraying my understanding and ability to break the scene down into sections.

This is a close up shot of the killer in the shower scene, holding a knife poised ready to attack. The close up is used to get closed to the killer without getting uncomfortably close. The face is blackened out to conceal their appearance, giving off a sense of mystery in which the audience will want to continue watching. Using the rule of thirds, it can be identified that the shot has been purposefully composed so that the killer is centre shot, and the background is blurred. This makes them the key point of focus for the audience. The knife is also a focus point, showing the tension in the fingers, of the killers hand while holding the knife, makes the audience realise what will happen next. The shot is very simple in terms of mise-en-scene. The water from the shower appears to mask the killers face, but the long hair give connotations that they are possibly a woman. The light in the shot is specifically used to emphasize the focus on the hand holding the knife, making sure that the audience are aware of it.

This shot is a high angle, mid shot showing the victim in the shower being stabbed by the killer. A mid shot is used to show the victim’s body, while only just capturing the killers head. The curtain pole conceals the killers face, once again creating mystery. Using the golden mean identifies that the knife and the victims head are in line with each other, making them the key points of focus. At this point in the scene the sounds are very high pitched notes making the scene seem even more real with each stab of the knife. This shot is the cut off point in the scene. Everything before this shot is calm and normal, like everyday life. But once the killing has taken place, the music, shot speed and action rises, making it abnormal and surreal. The shots high angle is used to emphasize the vulnerability of the female victim as she tries to prevent the knife from piercing her skin. The water from the shower is still running, which shows that the killer emerged to attack while the victim was busy, giving the element of surprise and portraying the cunning and twisted psychological mind of the killer.

This is an extreme close up shot of the victim’s eye as it dilates after the killing. This shows extreme detail, while low pitched notes mark the end of this horrible ordeal. The close up is used to leave out the bathroom and the state of everything after the killing has finished, making the eye the main, and only point of focus for the audience. This is the simplest shot in the scene, but possibly the most effective because there is nothing else in the shot to take away the audience’s attention.

These two shots are close ups of the shower plug-hole and the victims eye, also these are matches on action. The camera tracks the water going down the plug-hole, then fades out to the eye, by spiralling out of the eye to reveal the victim’s body slouched out of the shower. The similarities between the two shots are vast. The blood mixing with the water and the skin of the victim are alike. The dark plug-hole and the pupil and iris of the eye are very alike. These mean that the match n action works properly, instead of them looking nothing alike. The low pitched notes continue through this part of the scene, still showing the devastation and effect that the murder has had on the victim and to some extent the audience. These are once again very simple shots, making the audience focus on the only things on screen; the shower plug-hole and the victim’s eye, as it spirals out to reveal her body.

(Pictures couldnt be added)

Lesson Review - 08/09/2011

Today we further discussed genre types, linking film titles with there corresponding genre. For example, the film Goodfella's is a gangster film and Narnia is a fantasy film.
We also talked about the 3 types of genre that can be found in a film. Major, Sub and Hybrid.
Major genre is one of the main, mostly known genres, like Action or Horror. A Sub genre is one which has been created through a major genre, like Sci-Fi was created from Fiction. And a Hybrid genre is a mixure of genres that compliment eachother. A good example of a hybrid film is Saw, as it is a pychological thriller mixed with horror and slasher moments.

Lesson Review - 07/09/2011

Today in Media Studies, we discussed what a 'Thriller' is, and what they can include. A thriller is a play, book or film that depicts crime, mystery and/or espionage along with supense, action and excitment.
A thriller is commonly called a 'Psychological Thriller', because they can sometimes be confusing and hard to follow, and can make you think hard about whats happened, hence 'Psychological'. 
Thrillers commonly follow conventions which make them thriller films, a few examples are: the characters and the aura about them, music/sound and clifhangers.
We talked about examples of thriller films: the happening, Seven, Memento, Signs, The Others and Taxi Driver.
We also talked about linear and non-linear films. Linear films are films which are in the right order, e.g. beginning, middle, end. But a non-linear film is when the parts of the story are mixed up, e.g. end, beginning, middle, end. This can happen because a character retells the story of their life or something similar.
The last thing we mentioned was hybrid-genres. These are a mash-up of different genres, like Shaun of the Dead. This film is a Rom-Com-Zom, being a Romantic, Comedic, Zombie film, featuring all of these genres at different times. 

Being my first lesson of Media Studies so far, I really enjoyed the structure of the lesson and the things we have so far learn't. Hope theres more to come :)

First AS Media Studies Post

Hello world, this is my first post. 
Looking forward to what I'm going to be doing in AS Media Studies.