Set Design Creation🎬🌙

Set Design 

Introduction: 

    So, I began filming my production last night (soo many bugs) at Regional park which is the location I ended up choosing since there was good lighting and a lot of parking lot space to work with.

Design:

    Designing the set was actually a lot more fun than I thought. My parents and I had recently bought cones, Do Not Cross tape, fake glass, and red and blue flashing lights to act as police lights flickering in the background to enhance the film engagement. I taped the caution tape around a light post to make it higher, then taped them around cones to make a little area of the caution tape where we could put all of the props in. I also laid out some of the fake glass and spread out the different props that the main character would be picking up. My dad had an old camera that we used to take "pictures" of the "evidence" from the crime scene. (the camera didn't really take a picture, only the light flashed). This camera added on to the overall set design because it made enhanced the FBI agent character /thriller theme. We went to Regional park at around 7:30PM and left around 9:50PM so we only filmed for about two hours. I filmed all of the necessary outside parts around the FBI agent and crime scene however I still need to film the other few scenes. 

Design cons:

    In the set design process I did come across a few hardships. One was that the cones were extremely small meaning I had to record a lot with low angles or mid shots waist up. It didn't allow me to get too diverse within scenes but when I did, I made sure to switch props around to make it still seem realistic. Another con was the red and blue flashing lights. I bought four bike lights that came in just red and blue flashing lights to act as a police car in the film however I had to move them to a lot of different places while recording which was a lot more annoying than  using actual lights. I also had to ensure that the lights wouldn't really be in the frame when filming which made some of my shots come out different than what I had expected. Other than this, everything within the outside FBI agent scenes were very fun and I added a lot more than i thought I was going to.

Here are a few pictures of my set after I finished setting up, getting ready to begin the filming process:

 

Summary:

    Overall I think everything in the set was amazing and I am so happy with how everything turned out. Creating a "real" set for a "real" film was just something I never thought I would do. The set came out as everything I wanted it to be. Even though there were cons and some stuff didn't work out as planned, I managed to build around it and my the film even greater than what it would've been!

 

 

Costuming options (🕵️‍♂️or🤵)

 Introduction:

    In my other blog posts I have explained the main character and that I am going to have my dad play the character. I have made several images in my mind for costumes and ways to dress up and play the role of the FBI agent. I have two options for costume design and have been struggling to pick between so I thought writing about it could help me understand the pros and cons a little better.

Research:

    Every time I went to research FBI agent clothing or costumes the only thing that came up was kiddie Halloween costumes. I felt kind of stuck at this point until I remembered that I have watched films with FBI like characters and I looked back to remember what they wore since it looked very realistic. The first film I have watched is Criminal Minds where the main characters played the role of FBI agents investigating, tracking people and their profiles, and finding dangerous people. Their traditional outfits were normal black suits or button downs with dress pants. This is where I got the inspiration when I looked through my dads closet to see what he had. I really enjoyed this show so other than the costume ideas, it gave me a lot of inspiration for the production of my film.

    Another film that I have previously watched was Law and Order. This show was so interesting to watch and showed off true FBI agents/detectives at work. The typical outfits of the main characters were also suits as in Criminal Minds which made me want to go for black suits more since it seems professional for the professional job that FBI agents have. The characters job in this show was to be investigators working with the special victims unit and solved cases and crimes throughout every episode. They worse these types of outfits daily in every episode showing the formalness of their characters. I want to follow this theme and make my main character look as FBI Agent as possible which is why these outfits are great ideas as well as the Criminal Minds cast costume design.

These two shows both gave off the same vibe with the plot and outfit since the characters are all FBI agents working to figure out criminals next moves. I have decided to go with the suit/button down instead of a traditional beige coat and a hat which is what the kiddie costumes showed when I look it up on Google. (I'll inset a picture of the unreal looking FBI agent costume below) The outfit does have potential and it may not have been as bad as you think but to make my film more convenient I would like to stick to a suit since the actual FBI agent themed shows I have watched, the characters wore suits. I want to follow this realistic film type as many people may think this coat and hat outfit seems silly (including me).

Summary:

    It was very fun researching about some of my favorite shows and I have definitely picked my answer which is the suits or button ups because they really didn't have any cons when listing about them in this blog. The only outfit that had cons was the silly costume that I didn't really like in the first place. I can give this costume one pro though, its that the coat and hat combo was the first thing that had come to my mind when even thinking about an FBI Agent, meaning this outfit probably made a big statement on people. I am going to document my filming processes in my next few blogs so you will get to see a glimpse of the overall outfit pick!

Resources:

Order, C. to L. and. (n.d.-b). Law & order. Law and Order. https://lawandorder.fandom.com/wiki/Law_%26_Order

IMDb.com. (n.d.-b). Criminal minds. IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0452046/plotsummary/

AceShowbiz. (n.d.). Criminal Minds synopsis, TV summary and spoiler. Criminal minds synopsis, TV summary and Spoiler. https://www.aceshowbiz.com/tv/criminal_minds/summary.html#google_vignette

Audio/Script! 📜📃

 Introduction:

    Today I will be talking about the audio being included into my film and my overall script. I have researched scripts and picked out some of my favorite parts to share throughout all the different films I've seen.

Audio: 

    Audio, voiceovers, and foley can be tricky when editing films but I think I have somewhat of an idea of what I would like to do. One option I thought about is finding a noncopyrighted foley audio of people speaking or crying that I can put in the background of my film to make it more realistic instead of one person at the scene. This would make the film so much easier for me to do instead of manually gathering a bunch of people where the acting may not even look real in the end. Overall this idea is one of my top picks and favorites.

    Another idea I had was for mainly audio where I wanted to include non diegetic sound over the film. This sound would be noncopyrighted and have an eerie tone to it enhancing the overall atmosphere. I thought this could be a fun idea and pretty easy to edit in which is a reason why this is also an overall  pick among other ideas I have looked at.

    Some audios and foley sounds I have found did not give me the right vibe or even match the film it was edited on. I didn't want this to happen with mine which is why I will need to research multiple foley audios and regular noncopyrighted music to ensure this won't happen. I have researched some audios I could use in my film that I will put below this for anyone reading, to decide what they think about it! These were some of my favorite foley sounds. (Remember this will be a background audio so it won't be heard at full volume.)

1st Foley Audio

2knd Foley Audio

Background music

    These are the two foley audios I may use within my film. The first one is overall just better and I think it would lay out a lot nicer than the second one also because I don't like the white noise in the background. There is no need for extra white noise since my film is taking place outside meaning there shouldn't be other noise except for what is happening in my film. The background music is what I will use behind the film in specific parts as shown in the script. I am still scouting for more music but for me I liked this one.

Script:

    Moving on from the foley audios I wanted to share my script just so you can get a glimpse of what my film will look like! I researched a part of a script from on of my favorite movies, Ferris Bueller's Day Off because I think it gave me a lot of inspiration. I made my script on Google Drive so I will add the link below for you to see. (Below is also a picture of part of the script from Ferris Bueller's Day Off)

(This is one of my favorite scenes within the whole movie!)

My script:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EpedVwSPouVEx0hMV9dkV6NqgWiGbgRcxD6hamoA55c/edit?usp=sharing

Mise-en-Scene elments (set/location of filming) 🏞️🌃

 Introduction:

    Since I have already established the props and characters going into my film, I decided to move on and focus on where the shooting with actually take place. Below are a list of several ideas and how I think they can all help me in the production process.

Brainstormed set #1:

    When developing the plot of my film, I immediately thought of the roundabout near the park of my neighborhood. The reason I chose this area was because there was a lot of empty space that will be available to my use since nobody parks at the park at night which is the time I am planning to film. It would be very easy to lay out all of the props and set up without having to worry about cars coming and having to clean everything up to then putting it all back to continue filming. (what a hassle that would be). The only cons I have is that the area is kind of on the smaller side making the filming process a little harder since I wouldn't want the actual park area in the film because it wouldn't make sense with my plot, and that the props would probably be placed very awkwardly in the small frame of the camera. In sum, This area of street is very convenient for my use of filming and will allow me to be very efficient. I wasn't able to get a picture of the space I want to film here but to paint the picture, it would be a small 5 lane parking lot curved around a small round-a-bout island of grass.

Brainstormed set #2:

    My second idea was going to be a parking lot of a closed store at night since cars wouldn't really be out there parked at that time. This is a good idea since parking lots of stores/restaurants are large and there is a lot of free open space considering the fact that I want a lot of room to film. It would be nice to not have the view of a park in the background making this place a little bit better than my first idea. Wide open space is key for developing my film because there will be a lot of walking around and numerous amounts of objects and set props on the floor that will need to be spaced apart from each other. Overall, I think this idea of filming in a larger space will bring me more benefits and I will be happy with myself when I can ensure my film has enough space to be made.

(I just found this picture on google for reference of the space I want for filming.)

Summary:

As I read over my thoughts for both locations I think I will need a day or two to decide fully. Both locations have their pros and cons. The first locations con is that it is a smaller space making the filming process less efficient. The con of the other location is that there still may be cars out even at night since restaurants and stores close either from 5PM or later. The first location also has less benefits, for example, I won't be able to set up the props spaced out so the scenes may turn out looking cluttered. I want as much space as possible to make the background look more real instead of filming with a playground in the back. After I begin filming and I start to document about that, I will explain why I chose which parking lot I choose, but for now I will have to test both options and see which one I like better.

Set design (props)🕵️

 Introduction:

    As I transition into the process of starting to film, I need to ensure that I make the set of my film look realistic. There are many props I wish to integrate into my project to pull the film all together. I will explain each set prop, how I wish to use it, and why I think it's relevant to the opening.

Props:

    The first prop I would like to include is caution tape or Do Not Cross tape, and cones. I think that this would immediately give meaning to viewers as they can tell that some sort of crime or murder has taken place, I will use the caution take to go around the cones as some sort of barrier to make this happen. When you see caution tape in a movie you can already infer that something went on. I will utilize this tape in a cross looking formation as well as the cones being numbered around the scene. Numbers on the cones shows each part of the scene where there is some type of evidence or important information. Using these props will help develop the overall theme just in the beginning. 

    Another prop I will use is sugared glass as a floor design. This "glass" will be spread among the floor of the street as if glass was used part of the crime. Sugared glass is a fake glass made of melted sugar that acts as glass in movies to make scenes look more real. This product is useful over real glass anytime throughout films since it lessens the injuries on set when filming. This sugared glass will help me to develop the overall plot to my theme by giving questions to the viewers like, "what happened with the glass" or "how was it used". 

Summary:

    Overall, These two props are going to be used heavily throughout my film opening to enhance the overall theme and act as a visual element. I plan to buy these products this weekend and begin my filming process too so I will document how I utilized these different products and if I use any other popular thriller movie props. If there are any changes to my props I will also document, but for now I will be updating later!

Resources:

Thewowinfo.com. (n.d.). The secret behind the glass bottles used in movies. thewowinfo.com. https://www.thewowinfo.com/movie-facts/the-secret-behind-the-glass-bottles-used-in-movies/

Ricapito, M. (2019, May 29). Crime scene tape: The back story. A&E. https://www.aetv.com/real-crime/crime-scene-tape-the-back-story

My character development process 👻

Introduction:

    This week I will be focusing on my characters and the mise-en-scene elements going into my film opening. I thought a lot about what the overall mood would be and I came up with sort of a dark type of mood since the film will take place at a crime scene. Below is the elements of the main character that will be starring in the opening.

    When developing my character I thought about who would be attending a crime scene and my conclusion was an FBI agent. I thought that a police would be too general so an FBI agent was the best fit for my liking. An FBI agent in my head would wear sort of like a black suit with sunglasses, an ear piece, and black/brown boots. I created a mood board using pictures that I have found online to give a better view on what I want my character to look like. For my main character I am going to have them dress up in a suit and I will buy a few accessories that match the FBI type, including a fake badge and an ear piece (if I can even find one online). These elements will help contribute to the overall mise-en-scene of the main character which will make the overall opening look way more realistic to viewers.

Naming:

    When figuring out my character, I also brainstormed the name for my main character in case I add some last minute dialogue. I searched through a lot of different pictures containing lists of names for boys. In the end, I found the name "Brooks" and thought this was a nice agent name. This would be the last name of the character and most likely be called "Agent Brooks" within the film. FBI agents aren't typically gone by their first names which is where I found that this name would stick with my character. I am not planning to have many characters within my film however, I may have some background people to give the scene a realistic look because it would be kind of weird to have one person cleaning up a crime scene. These background characters wouldn't be talking directly in the shots but they can be talking amongst themselves in the back of the scenes, meaning they won't need direct names. (I may make names and give lines to these background characters if I want some more action within the film but it is unlikely).

Summary:

Developing my character is a huge part in the process of creating my film. As soon as you understand the character and what you want to do with them, then everything kind of falls right into place. Since I knew I wanted to include a mysterious person (FBI Agent). I knew the plot would revolve around something also mysterious and suspenseful (crime scene). I will blog if I change anything or add any new main characters to the film within this week! 

Storyboarding!

Introduction:

    So today I made my storyboard. These are important because they will serve as a guide to what you want to film so you don't forget any details. I liked making my storyboard because I was able to add in any special details that I didn't think about before. The only thing I didn't include in my storyboard was how the credits are going to be edited in with my film. I know my title will be when the screen goes black at the end however my credit sequence will obviously be in the beginning I just don't know yet how I want to incorporate them. I am a very bad drawer (I'm trying to get better!) but I think I stated everything pretty clear Well, here is my storyboard I hope you enjoy!

Storyboard:

• Sorry for the sideways pictures, I tried to make them right side up but it wouldn't let me. :) 👽

Summary of my project!

 Introduction:

    From what I know for now, I would like to call my film, "The Object". I think this really ties into the main plot of what I am trying to create in my film. This blog post is basically my whole idea for my film opening. I hope you enjoy!

Film summary:

    I want my film to be about an FBI agent who is trying to clean up a crime scene but every object they touch, brings them into a flashback of when that object was being used. I plan to do this by lots of editing techniques but I'm unsure how I will edit quite yet. For the cliffhanger in the end of my film, I want the FBI agent to pick up the last object found and maybe the flashback is unusual. When I say unusual I mean that the flashback could be of one of the dead people from the crime scene saying something like "help" and then the screen goes black. This would establish great suspense as the viewer would ask themselves questions like "how did that happen" or "now what". I want to achieve this kind of recognition by the audience so I brainstormed to develop this idea. I have many ideas for my opening shot and one is that the camera will be a close up and tracking shot of the shoes of the FBI agent walking on the road toward the crime scene with glass shatters everywhere, police car lights, and other street noises. I want to make the film seem as real as possible including props like caution tape, garbage bags (bodies), and fake blood. I then want the camera to move up so that the audience can see a clear view of the agents face as he approaches the scene. This idea was a fun one to create and I am happy I put my creativity to the test! 

    I am in the process of creating my storyboard so not all of my angles and shots are developed yet because I still need to figure that all out but what I explained was my clear idea of my film. For the rest of my film theoretically if it was fully developed I was thinking to make the FBI agent notice that he is closely related/friends with one of the people killed off in the crime. I would have the agent searching for the person responsible for the crime throughout the movie while also going through numerous obstacles before in the end, successfully finding the psycho killer. Obviously this isn't a full idea and I was trying to think about what I can do for the whole film so I would know how to end it when the two minutes are up. I really like my idea and I'm excited to have it all come together soon!

(Inspiration except for the outline of the body since I think it just looks somewhat silly)

My chosen media theory 👌😊

 Introduction:

    So today I brainstormed about media theories and took a look at the handout we got earlier in the year. I want to pick the narrative ones because I think that it fits best with filming an opening. Here is what I picked and found out:

Todorov's Narrative Theory of Equilibrium:

    I would like to incorporate Todorov's Narrative Theory. This theory has three main parts to it and as I read through them, I realized my film is already looking like a lot of what the theory states. This theory has three parts, Equilibrium, Disequilibrium and, New Equilibrium. Equilibrium states that the audience is introduced to characters and beginning of the story. This means that the story will start balanced which is what the word equilibrium means. The next is Disequilibrium which states that something punctures the equilibrium or in other words, something like disruption/any other actions before the film reaches its climax. And the last part is the New Equilibrium meaning that the character has resolved their issues but sometimes they don't resolve them and it fully depends on the character developed and the rest of the plot.

How I will use this theory:

    As I read this theory and studied it, I noticed that a lot of my plot surrounds itself with the three parts of Todorov's theory. For the first part, Equilibrium, I plan to show the characters in the beginning of the film and everything is well balanced (at the crime scene). Equilibrium is the definition of a calm or balanced state which will help the viewers to understand what is going on before all of the suspense/reach of climax. The next part which was Disequilibrium, that will be the time when the FBI agent starts to touch objects in the crime scene to clean it but has flashbacks whenever they touch something there. This shows the disruption of the calm state from when the FBI agent woulda arrive at the scene. The last part was the resolution or New Equilibrium. For this part, my film is obviously going to leave off on a cliffhanger (not decided how yet) so there won't be a resolve to what goes on with the objects from the crime scene.

Example:

    As I was researching more about the theory, I found an example from the movie Moana. This movie utilized this theory throughout the whole film. The Equilibrium or calm state of balance was used in the beginning (as stated that it should be) as the island was calm and everyone was helping to fish, cut coconuts, and live freely. The Disequilibrium hit when the coconuts were rotting and there wasn't any fish left in the sea. This was the disruption that destroyed a piece of their island. Moana went to restore the heart of Te Fiti with Maui to make their island bright again. The last part is New Equilibrium meaning in Moana, the main character, healed her island and showed her people about their passed and their voyages, creating a new voyage for them.

    Since the theory was explained in these movie terms, it helped me understand it better since I really enjoyed watching the Moana movie and never watched it in the way of seeing these parts of the theory. Now, I feel that whenever I watch a movie that incorporates this theory, I will be able to see it clearly and understand the plot of the movie way better.

Summary:

    I think that incorporated this media theory and following it will help to better develop my film a lot better since I have something other than the script to follow. This theory was very helpful and I recognized how to begin and end the film so audiences won't be confused in any way. I plan to follow this theory all the way through my film opening to ensure every distinct part of the three equilibriums are used.

Resources:

Media Studies. (2024, March 1). Todorov’s narrative theory of equilibrium and disruption. https://media-studies.com/todorov/

Group meeting #1 reflection :)

 Today I was able to get into groups and collaborate my ideas and help people develop theirs. This was a great opportunity to get some feedback about my idea and get encouraged to try new ideas that my group members shared with me. We all helped each other in significant ways and shared ideas to everyone's project to help them out a little to steer them in a good direction. Everyone's ideas were so different and creative and I can't wait for when they finish!

    

    Layla's story is a CoA film. She developed her character and she wanted to make it about social media insecurity and that her credits were going to be the character scrolling on social media. I think this idea was so cool and it would be so fun to see when it comes together. we gave her some great tips that would help to establish her plot and credit sequence. For example, Nicole gave a good idea to put the credits within the scrolling of social media. This idea was so good and everyone agreed!! This CoA film has a such a good plot to it and I am so glad we got to help Layla in her process.

    Nicole's film is going to be a romantic comedy about two girls that go from not really knowing/liking each other, to lovers. Nicole wanted to start the scene with something that would catch the viewers attention like a car crash. Me and my group incorporated many ways to help this seem very realistic. Our ideas were to make it a car crash on the first day of school and then they have classes together. This would mean the two "enemies" are forced to like each other. I think these ideas were so good along with the credits. Nicole said she wanted to do the credits inside the car like in the rearview mirror. This would tie so good into her overall film and I loved that idea!

    Isa's film is also going to be a CoA film. She developed her characters because she said that after the characters are planned out then everything falls right into place. I like this idea and agree because developing the character is one of the hardest parts. Isa's idea for her credit sequence is to be incorporated onto objects. She showed us a few examples and said that they could also show more information about the actual characters. I like her idea and I'm excited for her to develop her plot more. All of us really liked her idea since she knew what she wanted straight away for her film.

    For Andres film, he wanted to do an action thriller film. He said he has always liked action thriller growing up so he knew a lot about how they are filmed. He wanted to make a movie about a group of people sitting at a poker table doing illegal things but each person is their own character, meaning they are all dressed very differently. Andre pointed out that one could be a cowboy so this helped us to understand how vastly different he is going to make each character. He wanted to do so many things and had so many ideas but we explained that there will have to be editing on top of editing for the types of credits he wants to add. He wanted the camera to pan to each character then blur the background and add little aspects of each individual character. Everyone thought this idea was so cool and I am so excited to see this come together.

Diego wanted to go for a Horror film. He wanted his film to start off in the everglades with a person trapped there stuck in some sort of loop. We helped him develop his plot more since the ending of his idea seemed like it wouldn't leave on on a cliffhanger. We showed him an example trailer of a horror movie that did kind of the same thing he wants to do to explain that our idea was for him to make the end the beginning if that makes sense, meaning that he could record the ending then when the film is done he could write something like "one month before.." We all thought that this would add great suspense to his overall film.

    In the end my group members helped me to think of more ideas to make my film more realistic. I said that I wanted my story based on an FBI agent going through the stuff at a new crime scene and that glasses from the crime scene would allow the FBI agent to see dead people and they told me different ways to edit and to incorporate good lighting into my film. They gave me the ideas for instead of the glasses where the character can see dead people, it could be anytime the character would touch something. Another idea that was given to me was about how to get a good flashback. One idea was that every time the character touches an object from the crime scene, the camera would zoom into the characters eye and make some sort of tunnel to the flashback. These ideas add so much more suspense overall and I really enjoyed hearing everyone's input to my idea. I really liked group meeting one and I hope to see everyone's final project looking amazing!

Location, Lighting and color scouting 🤭

 Introduction:

   Hello Cambridge! So, I have been trying to figure out where I want to film my opening and I've thought long and hard and came to the conclusion that I want to record in my moms office. My mom owns her building (she's a surgeon) So there are many long hallways within the building that could create a lot of suspense. For the film I'm trying to create, I researched some locations used in thriller movies to help me.

Film example:

     The Shining (1980) is the only film among many I researched that really stood out to me. This movie is about a writer that goes crazy from being so solitary. He took a job as a winter caretaker at a closed hotel. This job included isolation which he thought would help him to finish writing his book however it made everything worse. Jack needed to support his wife and child and he thought that the source of income would be his future book. Jack is originally the "good" guy in the film however turns into the antagonist soon after going mental. Jacks son Danny was a psychic that saw many horrifying things from both previous time and the coming times in the film. 

    The Shining (1980) was mostly filmed in the dark atmosphere of the hotel as there were many hallway shots with the lighting very unsettling. This helped me to further develop how I want to create my film. I want to make sure the lighting is mostly natural light and low-key lighting however that's just an idea so it may change depending on the time I am actually filming. The hotel was old as I could tell by the choosing of wallpaper and carpet. These elements gave the film the old fashioned look it has. Even though I'm not going for an old type of film, I gathered information about the colors and design I will use to make my film appear the year I want it to be. I want my film to give off recent but not too recent vibes meaning I would like to make it seem like it's set either in 2010-2015 or around 2020-2023. I am most likely going to be filming in dark long hallways or outside in the night light to give off the eeriness of the film. 

    Overall, this movie helped me come to the conclusion of what I wanted to choose for my location, lighting and coloration for my film opening. I will try to stick to this guide and look for further examples from thriller movies that can help me in the future when I start to film.

Resources: 

IMDb.com. (n.d.-b). The shining. IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081505/plotsummary/

LitCharts. (n.d.). The shining summary. https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-shining/summary

Establishing my schedule👍😁

Introduction:

    From this point I have about a little over 7 weeks to create, edit, and finalize my portfolio project. Since there is so much to do in order to complete the project fully, I need  to create a schedule  that I can refer back to so I make sure to get everything done. I broke up what I need to do and brainstormed how long I think I will take to do each task I need to do. I made sure to leave a good amount of time to create and finish my CCR (creative critical reflection) so I can finish that in time to have a week for edits.

Time based schedule:

Week one: (1/29-2/2)

• First blog post discussing initial plans for project
• Second blog post discussing possible genres
• Think of the overall storyline

Week two: (2/3-2/9)

• Pick genre
• Brainstorm who will be playing my film
• Find out location best for my chosen genre
• Figure out the times when I can go and film at the locations I need.
• 4 blog postings about different films, credit sequences, and this timeline plus a blog from my choosing.
• Develop the characters looks (clothing/makeup)
• Develop script/storyboard. (Even though its two minutes long, I need to know what I would want to do throughout the whole film).

Week three: (2/10-2/16)

• Start my production
• Watch through and make any changes to the filming process
• Use valentines day to film at my chosen place since no one else will be there (it's my mothers office)
• Four blog postings about reflection from group meeting, research of media theories to include, my project idea fully summarized, and script/storyboard.
• Try to finalize production

Week four: (2/17-2/23)

• Begin to edit film
• Utilize foley or add any non-diegetic music in the film
• Four blog posts about the character I develop, two posts about the mise-en-scene being incorporated into my film, and a post about the audio and sounds being used.

Week five: (2/24-3/2)

• Start to finalize the editing process
• Four blog postings of my choice about production process.

Week six: (3/3-3/9)

• Review film opening after all edits have been made
• Four blog postings. One of my choice, two of the production practices, and one about my research for the creative critical reflection (CCR).
• Start CCR

Week seven: (3/10-3/16)

• Work on developing the CCR
• Another four blog postings. 3 about my research for the CCR questions and one discussing the CCR production ideas.
• fix any minor/major setbacks

Week eight: (3/17-3/25)

• Finish with time left to spare during this week
• Last four blog posts for the project -My production of CCR, my post production for the CCR, a final reflection on the whole project, and post links to the CCR.
• Safety week (make sure everything is done)

Summary: So, I will try and keep up with this schedule because it took me a lot of time to figure everything out and how long most things will take me to do. I like being creative and taking my time so I took that into consideration when saying how fast things will be done because I like to take my time to make sure everything comes out great! Hopefully all goes well and this timeline becomes a success.

Also, I wrote out a schedule on paper however, it isn't as in depth as the one here but I will show it anyways.

My three credit sequences!

 Introduction:

    Hey! I have been doing some studying on different credit sequences that fit into the thriller genre and here's how it's going! Credit sequences are used to explain who worked behind the scenes of films. Mainly, you will typically see the director, producer, and other people that helped film or create scripts. Different genres use different types of credit scenes like including different colors and fonts to fit that chosen genre. Since my genre is thriller, I have researched a few different credit sequences from different movies that I intend to utilize.

Credit Sequences:

    The first credit sequence I found was from the movie Godzilla (2014). This films opening credit sequence matched with the vibe of the video playing behind it. The text is in a dark grey color with a regular font size. The video behind the credits went so well with it because its a black and white video showing the true darkness of the film already. These credits along with the narrative behind it established the films tone and the mystery behind the historical papers and writing shown behind the credits.

    The next film I researched on is The Exorcist (1973). This film opens with the credits in large letters with a deep red color. The red color shown in the opening sequence establishes the extreme gore that is within this film. The composition of the actual story being told behind the credits was about people at a dig site and one person finds a figure that unleashes the demon inside. This relates to the credit sequences since the red coloration in the credits is establishing the thrill and what demonic things there is to come. This opening is unsettling as the music in the background created an eerie atmosphere. This already starts to build tension before the film starts.

    I then researched the film Psycho (1960). This film is old however it incorporated many unique designs and animations for how the credits go in and exit the frame. Usually credit sequences seem boring and not a lot of people actually read them, however, it was very interesting after they added fun movement. The grey lines appearing on screen also allows audiences to interpret what they think will happen and to stay mysterious. The colors of this sequence were black and white which may relate to the time this film was created. Another feature I wanted to mention was the non-diegetic fast pace music behind the video. This enhanced the anticipation for viewers as they view the sequence.

Resources:

BrainGlutton, JohnT, MidnightRadio, Delphica, Walloon, Number, Johnny_L.A, Thin_Ice, jk1245, Don_Draper, Scumpup, PoorYorick, & Ianzin. (2005, January 23). “The exorcist”: What was the point of the prologue? Straight Dope Message Board. https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-exorcist-what-was-the-point-of-the-prologue/286299

Landekic, L. (2023, April 24). Art of the title. Art of the Title. https://www.artofthetitle.com/

Writer Ben Radatz                                  Published        December 13, 2011. (n.d.). Psycho. Art of the Title. https://www.artofthetitle.com/title/psycho/

My three movie inspirations!!

Introduction:

    Since a lot of my friends know I am in Aice Media Studies, they know I am taking part in the portfolio project. This is relevant because they have recommended me a few different thriller themed films below that have been very inspirational!

Movies:

    The movie Parasite is movie that was released in 2019 about an unwealthy family that lives in a small basement. The sons name is Ki-woo and was offered to become a tutor for a wealthy family's (the Parks) daughter. This unwealthy family (the Kim's) decides to attempt to take over the Parks' staff so they can make money. There are many dark secrets about the Parks' home that they begin to catch sight of. These dark secrets were thrilling and suspenseful as they unfolded the real truth of the Parks house keeping the audience engaged. There are many mise-en-scene elements that I have taken into consideration for when I begin my filming process. In the opening scene I immediately noticed that the basement is filled with trash and filled with many items that have been scattered all over. This made me come to the conclusion that the Kim's were not wealthy. The film utilized many camera movements like panning which helps the viewer understand the characters movements. Many over the shoulder shots were used to create a sense of intimacy for audiences. This movie gave a lot information to me as I now know some different camera angles to create suspense. Initially, I didn't think that this film would help me in particular however, I came to the conclusion that the kinds of lighting and movements like tilts and pans will help me in the developing process.

    The next movie I wanted to talk about it called Bad Times at the El Royale and it was released in 2018. This thriller film is about a group of unknown people that all meet at the El Royale hotel. These unknown people come in a group of six with many secrets that are kept only to themselves. This film takes place in the late 1960s surrounded by a disastrous night in the hotel. The opening scene takes place in a hotel room with a man trying to hide something followed by him being offed by another man. There is a lot of nostalgia in this film including the look of the hotel room because of the 60, themed decorations. The low-key lighting created the eeriness and suspense which enhanced the overall mise-en-scene throughout the movie. The movie mainly used POV (point of view) shots showing the perspective from the main in the hotel room which allowed the viewers to stay engaged. As the man is trying to hide something, a high angle was used showing the vulnerability of the scene. There were many different scenes that enhanced the suspense which is why the movie is a thriller. There were many surprising actions building the tenseness of the audience. This movie allowed me to understand how to create a suspenseful atmosphere for the viewers so that I can accurately keep them engaged. Since I'm going to attempt murder someone by poisoning, I know the different lighting to use to establish and eerie atmosphere.

    The last film I want to share is A Quiet Place, released in 2018. This film is based on a family that has to fight to survive against alien like organisms. The movie opens with a family (Abbott family) that is searching for resources in a town that has been evacuated and empty. The youngest of the family finds a toy that makes much noise however the alien creatures have sensitive hearing. This is what causes the initial problem as later the youngest child gets killed because of the little bit of noise that was made. The mise-en-scene of the film like the pure daylight use, was made to made the atmosphere look as realistic as possible. The clothing was dirty and well worn showing the family had no time to care about looks with the tragedies happening around them. The composition of the film established the intimacy and suspense all throughout the scenes. Numerous shots were utilized like when the camera followed the family (tracking shot), or when I could sense the fear of the characters as they were scared (close up shot). Many of the scenes of this film created a tense feeling for me to watch. The random moments of pure silence made me sit on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next. I want to create this feeling for the audience of my film opening. I am going to use the close up shot like in this film but not to create fear, I want to show distinct details that wouldn't have been known if they were in the close up shot. I plan to use a tracking shot (unless anything changes) in the final few seconds before then end of my opening to leave the audience off on a cliffhanger.

Summary:

    

    Overall, these three films have helped me develop further into my developing process as I now know more techniques I plan to use in my opening. I have learned more about the thriller genre and more about the techniques and planning that needs to be used when creating. I will update soon about the credits and other important parts of my film so until then, Goodbye!

Resource links: 

Parasite movie review & film summary (2019). Roger Ebert. (n.d.). https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/parasite-movie-review-2019

IMDb.com. (n.d.). Bad Times at the el royale. IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6628394/plotsummary/

IMDb.com. (2018, April 6). A quiet place. IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6644200/

My genre and movie research!

Genre:

    As soon as the portfolio project was introduced, I knew I wanted my film to be very suspenseful so I have decided to go with the thriller genre. I wasn't stuck deciding between multiple genres because everything else seemed like it wouldn't be fun for me to make. I have never been super interested in watching thrillers however, I think I can be really creative with the film I want to develop. I have started my research on some thriller films to understand the genre and how to utilize it better throughout my film.

    The thriller genre typically consists of a lot of suspense with many different types of shots and mise-en-scene elements to keep the viewers at the edge of their seats and engaged. There are many different types of thriller for example, technological thriller which represents the dangers of technology like hacking, however I just want to focus on the regular thriller genre.

Thriller films composition:

    My film is going to be about baking and adding a poisonous substance in it for a special someone. I researched how thriller movies are filmed and found that out according to Slideshare, which explained various shots that create the suspenseful feeling of these types of films. A shot example is the Point Of View shot which allows the viewers to see the film through the characters eyes. I plan to utilize this so the audience can see the baking process through the characters perspective knowing each ingredient that gets added in. I have researched two movies that will help me to develop the mise-en-scene and overall structure of my film.

 Movie research:

    The movie Phantom Thread is a film about a women poisoning a fashion designer to make him vulnerable on her. The main character Alma, poisons Reynolds using highly toxic mushrooms. Reynolds does not fight this because he needs her to control him. This movie was released in 2017 as a drama, however I was only looking into some of the elements that can be considered phycological thriller. Within the trailer I enjoyed how the shots were filmed and how in the beginning there were many faster cuts with suspenseful music, enhancing the engagement for me. I want to incorporate these types of cuts into my film to ensure I will keep the audience entertained. This was good to watch as it inspired me to come up with ideas for my film along with the over mise-en-scene.

    The movie Gone Girl is also a phycological thriller that was released in 2014. The main character Amy drugged her abusive ex-boyfriend as a plan to frame him for her death and the reason she was kidnapped. Amy did this to make sure that the story she is making is believable for the police and society. I researched into a film like this one because they utilized many close ups that created a sense of intimacy which is what I would like to incorporate into my film. The lighting in this film was very low-key and created silhouettes that established the mystery and eerie atmosphere that keeps the audience at the edge of their seats wanting to know what comes next.

Resources:

 IMDb.com. (n.d.). Gone girl. IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2267998/plotsummary/

IMDb.com. (n.d.-b). Phantom thread. IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5776858/plotsummary/