Location

Here is some snap shots of the church that we used in our thriller.
We used this church to symbolise the death of the girl and the mourning.
It also gives an eery effect as this is where she possibly could have been buried and the murderer is visiting her grave.

Evaluation

1) In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Our media product uses, develops and challenges forms and conventions of real media products in a variety of ways. Firstly, we used a crime at the core of the narrative. This was the muder of our dead girl, this was centered around the past, memories, jelously and revenge. We also used a complex narrative structuren with clues. In our thriller you see quick shots of the after effect of the murder, which we don't grasp the concept of why the girl is murdered, thus adding suspense. We then challenged the next convention which is a narrative pattern of establishing enigmas which the viewer expects to be resolved. We don't really know why the girl was murdered or why she wanted revenge, therefore it is different from a typical thriller film. Next we challenged the fact that the protagonist should get in trouble with the antagonist. We didn't really have a protagonist because they were both bad in a way as they were both seeking revenge of some kind. As well as this we have used themes of identity, in the happy park scene we see that they could have been possible friends or even lovers. So therefore they may have been an argument of some kind, this leave the viewers still in suspense. Also we used themes of mirroring. We did this by making them have the same motives, which is that they are both out to kill and have revenge on one another. We then challenged the protagonist with a flaw which is then exploited by the antagonist. The problem is that it is hard to tell which character is which as they are both bad in a way and could be good in a way. So basically they are both bad and their flaw is one of the "7 Deadly Sins". The muderer's flaw could be "Envy" as this may be the reason she killed the girl and the dead girl's flaw could be "wrath" because she seeks revenge or it could be pride as she might have needed to justify her death.

2) How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Our media product represents conflict between young girls/friends which can get out of hand very easily and become dangerous. Our thriller shows how girls can be extremely jealous, over reactive and hold grudges. Many women, more than men, tend to think that someone is out to attack them personally even when nothing is going on.

3) What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

I think that a small media institution would distribute our media product as it would not qualify for a big hollywood movie. This is because we didn't have all the equipment needed to make it extremely exciting and lifelike. I think if we did have the right equipment, well known actors and better music soundtracks it might have a chance, because it is a typical well known type of genre; relationship thriller. Friends or lovers fall out and one ends up dying because of a grudge.

4) Who would be the audience for your media product?

The audience best suited for our media product would be women and men, aged from 15+. This is because there is no nudity, usage of drugs/alcohol, onscreen violence or swearing. However it could potentially come across as slightly scary to children so 15 would be the ideal minimum age.

5) How did you attract/address your audience?

We selected a certain genre type that our media product would fit into and then thought that the people who would be interested in the latest thriller, people who have seen similar films in that particular genre before. We attracted/ addressed our audience by using similar ideas of other films and by using fast and jumpy cuts to make them jump. Also in the last scene before the title sequence we see Grace "The Killer" turn around slowly which created suspense. This helps attract the audience because they would be waiting for something to happen, this is also very helpful because thats what the typical thriller audience loves to watch.

6) What have you learnt about technology from the process of constructing this product?

I have learnt a lot about technology from constructing this product. I have learnt how to properly use a camera alonside the tripod, this includes; getting the right angle, distance and also to make a certain object seem more important than the rest. In editing i have learnt how to use the imac and all the techniques that come with it. I have learnt how to cut, paste and make shots bigger or smaller and also i have learnt how to add certain effects to them. I found that using the camera and then editing was quite easy and simple, even though i have never used any of it before.

7) Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the product?

I have learnt, from the progression from the preliminary task to our media product, how seeing the expression on each of the characters faces is extremly important as it sets the mood and atmosphere of that particular scene. I have also learnt that by getting the distance and angle right you can pretty much make a bad scene look really good.

COMPLETED wooop!!!

Today we finished our Thriller WOOOOOOOP

well done everybody we did it :) :) :) :D :D :D

We added the title screens and the credits to the beginning and the end of the sequence.

This included all of our names and candidate numbers. At the end we put the name of the thriller which is R3VENG3

We added a soundtrack to it!!!

But not from Moby Gratis because they still didn't get back to us

We had to search for a soundtrack which was non copyrighted which we finally found on ;

www.akmmusic.co.uk

we had to pay for it but that doesn't bother us that much because it is really good

we gave up on mobygratis after a while because we was running out of time

plus the soundtrack we have now is sooo much better :D

Now the final task basically is to complete the blog and the evaluation of our project.

Again WELL DONE EVERYONE!!!!

MOBY GRATIS WHERE ARE YOU???

there is still no reply from moby gratis!

in result to this it means that if we still have no reply soon then we will have to find an alternative soundtrack to our thriller :(

we have talked about possible alternatives such as;

making our own soundtrack on garageband on the computer

this wouldn't be the best idea but we have had experience with using it before so it should be ok :D we also used it for our preliminary task which turned out surprisingly catchy :P 

Editing

After the easter holiday we all got together to do the editing 

(this is the part where i saw the second day of filming)

there was a couple of things that needed to be twigged but apart from that it was good by itself

We chose the best shots and added in affects.

There was some difficulties due to clips not being long enough but we got round it.

we put some scenes in black and white to show that the muderer was looking back at a memory in the past. (obviously)

after we did finished part one of the editing we decided to add sound so we requested a sound off of moby gratis 

The next step is to basically improve and complete our thriller :D

easter holiday

hello its now after the easter holiday

i didn't get a chance to blog as i was in spain for most of it

n i left it a bit late after i came back haha i forgot about it haha

well its not funny but hey :S

Anyway before i went to spain grace, jess and i met up and filmed some shots

we did the happy park, bedroom and  stair shots/scenes

our cast includes, Grace, me, grace and Paris

Paris is the dead girl and Grace (not in our media group) is the killer

Grace (in our media group) and i played extras in the happy park scene.

this of corse was all filmed by jess!! well done!!!

personally i think we did excellent in shooting the thriller as we all inputed on how it should me shot ie. the angles and what type of shot it should be.

On the second shooting day unfortunately i wasnt there but jess and grace filled me in

basically the shot the rest of the shots out side the church near to where jess lives

which again they turn out exceptionally well :D well done again :D

all in all the filming was a sucess and went better than we expected ^_^

I would like to say well done for everyones participation and co-operation

Tuesday 31st March 2009

On this day we did some practice runs on our opening to our thriller.

This helped us to see the angles and effects that we could potentially use.

We found that the camera is quite hard to use at times when we are moving it, as it jolts and isn't very smooth.

Comtumes and Props

Here are some images we are going to use as our props and costumes.
They are not going to be these exact ones but hopefully very similar!!

I got this photos from the internet.

 Dress for the dead girl.

Black eye make up for the dead girl.

Photo frame that shows the past.

                      A heart necklace for the dead girl to wear.

These are only a few props and costumes i have to look around and get some more.

Preparation For Filming

Today Jess and i (because Grace wasn't in)(she's ill) sorted out when we were free so we could see when and where we could start filming.

We have text Grace to see when she is also free and decided that we are going to start filming asap!!!

Unfortunately this is only until Thursday 26th March :( :(. 

Anyway we have to ask my friend Hayley Gooding when she is free hopefully on the same day, so we can get a move on with our filming.

We have to start filming the park scene first because we have to get a snap shot from it which later on fits into the picture frame.

Next we are planning on shooting the church scene which is located near Jess's house which is in Collier Row.

Before we start filming on Thursday 2nd April we need to buy the frame prop and also prosess a snap shot out of the park scene.

On the run up to our filming dates we are going to discuss the costumes that our "soon to be film stars" are going to wear.

Our Animatic

This is our storyboard, which places in order the shots we are going to use in our thriller project. We have roughly sketched out each shot and then on the right, made notes on the type of shot we plan to use, and the sound which will be included along with the shots.

Here is our animatic that we have produced.

Hope you enjoy!!!!!

This is our completed version on our animatic.

On Tuesday 17th March we uploaded the sketches of each individual shots from our storyboard.

We bluetoothed the pictures over from Grace's phone onto imovie.

Today we put together the individual shots in a moving sequence.

After this we posted it on youtube, then embedded it on here!!

Preliminary Task

We have now edited all of our camera shots and put it into order.

I think that it looks really good, well apart from my bad acting!!! HAHAHAHA!!!

We added some music to the opening and ending to give it a better effect, which i now see that it makes it more comical.

We have also uploaded it onto youtube but we are having a bit of difficulty putting it onto our blogs.  

Preliminary Task

Grace and i have been going through some ideas for our preliminary task and we first came up with an idea for two people to meet up and talk about a potential murder. The two talk about it but do not mention any detail so really you could relate it to anything, this giving it suspense which would draw the viewer in more.

This did not work as we ran of things to say without giving away what actually happened, so we changed the idea to a random discussion between Grace and i. We also wanted to add comedy to it so we did this in the opening.

   

4 down to 3

It is sad to see that one of our group members (Rebecca Saberton) has left sixthform and is not in our group anymore.

But do not worry there is still me, Grace and Jess ie; "The Three Amegos" :D

We have not yet decided on all the shots or location!

it starts off with a shot looking at the sky which then pans down to a killer either swinging on a swing or sitting on a bench in a park.(with church in view) Killer is looking down at a happy picture which happened in the past of them having fun and mucking around with friends.

Graphic match to when it actually happened and you see them having fun. Shot goes back to killer on the bench or swing then over over-shoulder shot to show picture still moving but then drops and cracks. As the frame drops maybe the motion will be slow. Close-up of cracked picture then mid-shot of killer on bench or swing we see a dead girl standing behind them. Killer gets up and turns to look behind them. See expression on both faces, different shots. Killer goes to run away.

Point-of-view shot to see girl has reappeared in front of killer. Close up of her eery smile. Same shot of killers horrified eyes. POV again of girl in front leaping at camera/killer.

Pitch black screen and all you can hear is the scream of the killer and then more screams and then up comes the title of the movie 'R3v3ng3'.

We have been discussing different shots and locations for this. We have yet to decide what they are going to be. We have got our main character (dead girl) and still deciding on other characters. Also we are thinking of using a birds eye view to look down at the killer and the dead girl just before we see the eyes and mouth.

Taaa daaa!!!

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

Here is the last scene from the blair witch project!

I find that it is the most effective part of the movie. This is because it shows terror of the two students and gives off a very eery atmosphere.

Hope you enjoy!!!!!!

Blair Witch Project

I was looking through some horror legends when i came across the Blair Witch Project.

I found it really intreaging as the effects of using a hand held camera gives a real one to one feel, leaving the impression that the viewer is part of the documentary. The panic and sadness of the events that happen are extremely moving and makes you wish you could help.

I thought that the most scariest parts of the movie was when there was alot of screaming in the dark. You cannot see what is going on so this lets your imagination run wild. I maybe could use this as a possibility for the opening of my horror movie.

Another effect that i thought made this film really realistic was because they are using hand held cameras which shows us how frightened they really are by how much they shake. Also when they run or have a fight you cannot see the whole picture so again this adds more atmosphere to the scene.

Analysis of Shower Scene in the film 'Psycho'

Director: Alfred Hitchcock

Made in 1960

The scene starts off with the woman getting into the shower.

When she turns it on the camera looks up at the shower head.

Diagetic sound of the water coming down, no non-diagetic music at all.

The camera keeps going from the woman and back to the shower head, the editing is quite quick so it shows there maybe something quick that might happen later on.

After this the camera shows her with the shower curtain behind her, we see that someone has opened the door.

The person gets closer to the curtain but we cannot make out their face.

They pull the shower curtain fast out of the way to show that they are holding a knife.

At that point a non-diagetic music coming on.

It sounds very sharp and it is similar to the sound you get when you scrape a sharp object along another sharp object.

We then see the terrified expression on her face, she then screams, and then the camera zooms to a close up of her mouth.

The camera quickly shows the person (still not being able to see there face as it is all in the dark) holding the blade high ready to stab her.

We don't see the knife actually pierce her skin.

The non-diagetic sound of high pitched noises is still there but this time with a sound of the the knife going through something.

Camera shows her feet and the bottom of the bath tub with blood dripping heavily down.

The person then walks out the room leaving the woman to die alone.

After this we then see her hand scrape down the wall and at this point the sounds switch to a non-diagetic music which sounds sad because it has a low pitch.

She then raises her hand towards the camera a if crying out for help but then she grabs the shower curtain to stand up but t breaks and she falls to the floor.

The camera shows us her feet in the air.

We then see her blood flow towards the bottom of the bath near the plug hole.

Then the plug hole graphic matches to an extreme close up of her eye.

The camera zooms out very slowly with a slight spin to it.

We now see her tears from her eye and her face flat on the floor. 

Analysis of the Opening Title of 'Shadow of a Doubt'

Director: Alfred Hitchcock  --  1899 - 1980

Film made in 1943

The opening starts with people dancing. 

They are very smartly dressed and you can tell it is in the past because of the old style of clothing.

Then it the image dissolves into an industrial scene. We see a big river and bridge, burnt cars and a very dirty landscape.

The music that was very cheery and theatrical turned into a dramatic and eery non-diagetic music.

While this happens it dissolves out again to a rundown street with children playing.

  

Analysis of Opening Title of 'Se7en'.

The opening starts with a ticking machine which shows how slow everything in this scene is slow moving.

Then the camera moves onto someone's hands.

The graphics in the writing is all disturbed and has no structure. 

Then it shows us someone cutting off the top layer of skin on their finger tips.

After this image we see various images of cuttings, writing and pictures of people.

It seems as if someone is making a scrap book of killings or what they are about to. (plans)

Red colors are used to show various different things; such as: it could symbolize anger, blood, death or even danger. 

The editing in this scene is very quick, this shows us that a lot of events may happen in the rest of this film.

Thriller Conventions

A crime at the core of the narrative (often murder, but not necessarily).

A complex narrative structure, with false paths, clues and resolutions.

A narrative pattern of establishing enigmas which the viewer expects to be resolved.

A protagonist who is systematically dis-empowered  and drawn into a complex web of intrigue by the antagonist.

Extraordinary events happening in ordinary situations.

Themes of identity

Themes of mirroring

Themes of voyeurism

Protagonist with a flaw which is exploited by the antagonist.

Titles often reflect an aspect of the protagonists psychological state.

There is often a scene near the end of the film which the protagonist is in peril.

Mise en scene which echoes/mirrors the protagonist's plight.

In my group there is me, jessica, grace and rebecca.

We discussed ideas for a potential media thriller.

Our first idea was; opens with a girl rocking back and forth holding her knees, crying in a darkly lit room, looking into a cracked mirror with a small stream of light shinning on one side of her face, making shadows on the other side. Or the mirror crack in half separating her reflection into two parts.

The camera would zoom into focus on her eye for an extreme close up.

Next shot would be a graphic match where the camera fades from the same girls eye to a flash back to a sun into a happy memory of her past.

Camera follows her having fun and having a laugh.

Our second idea was; a person is found lying on the floor disorientated and unconscious.

People try to help them but they don't see another person hiding in the shadows round the corner.

The camera in a high angle shot looks down at the person lying down on the floor, then sweeps from their feet to their head.

Fade in the person round the corner, seems as they are standing above them looking down at camera (low angle shot here)

Zoom in to the strangers mouth as they smile and laugh, all other features are hidden by the shadows (chiaroscuro)

Camera spins around the victims as if it symbolizes their world turning upside down

This could then have a graphic match to earlier on in the story where the victim wakes up to a fresh new day all happy and cheerful, not knowing what is darkness is around the corner.