Location Permission

Location Permission

Before filming, we had to be granted permission to film in certain locations from the owners of the properties. Knowing we would have to do this, we created our own location permission slip as evidence to show we have been granted permission to film in these locations.

Permission to Film the Bedroom scene in My house:

Permission to film the living room scene in one of James' family members House:

Permission to film the Bathroom scene in Harry's House:

With all these signatures, we are allowed permission to film in these locations on the dates stated in the agreement.

Character Descriptions

Daniel Markus

Gender: Male

Age: Early 30's (between 30 - 34)

Hight: Average

Build: Tall and Slender

Sexuality: Homosexual

Daniel Markus, our protagonist, was a superintendent in the Police Force. He had trained and was highly skilled in hand to Hand Combat, Shooting Firearms and High Speed Driving. Our Protagonist Daniel, was also in  a civil partner relationship with Edward Finch. We decided for our protagonist to be homosexual as it defies traditional conventions of a Thiller opening sequence. This also challenges traditional negative sterotypes of homosexual males as a gay male superintendent  defies societies stereotypes towards gay males. After the death of his partner, he has turned to a life supported by alcohol. He has lost all life ambitions and motivation as he is consently greaving over his lost partner.  

Edward Finch

Gender: Male

Age: Early 30's

Height: Short/Average

Build: Average

Sexuality: Homosexual

Edward Finch, our protagonists partner, was in a civil partner relationship with Daniel Markus. He is all but a dream to Daniel as his death triggered consent nightmares about his death causing Daniel to spiral into a life of depression. He is only seen in photos and information about his isn't revealed until later on in the film where his true identity is revealed.



Casting

Casting of AS Opening Sequence:

Daniel Markus - Charlie Kealy:

Charlie Kealy will play the Protagonist 'Daniel Markus'

Scott Galloway - Edward Finch:

Scott Galloway will play the character 'Edward Finch'

Shooting Schedule

Shooting Schedule

This is our shooting schedule that  me and my group had created to show each day that we are filming along with what scenes we are filming, what prop/customes will be needed and which setting/location we are going to film on. This is a vital part of our equipment and we will use and follow this down to the letter. We do this because if we dont read it properly and we don't bring the right props or if we turn up at the wrong location or time then you will let your group down and will shorten or ruin the shooting time arrangements.

Props, Costumes and Locations

Props:

The props listed below will all be used in our opening sequence:

• Alcohol/Whiskey Container

• Shot Glass
• Picture Frames

• Pictures of characters Daniel and Edward (Charlie and Myself)

• Fake Newspaper

• Alarm Clock

• Fake Blood

• Different Medals

Costumes:

Daniel Markus:
This characters costume's will be:
Rough Slobby Clothes:

• Dirty White vest (plain)
• Dark Trousers
• White Socks

Casual Clothes:

• Blue and White Canvas shoes
• White socks
• Dark Blue Denim trousers
• Grey T-shirt
• Leather jacket
• Flat Cap

Smart Clothes:

• Brown Leather Shoes
• Black Socks
• Black Smart Trousers
• Brown Leather Belt
• White Shirt
• Blue Tie

Suit:

• Black Leather Shoes
• Black Socks
• Black Trousers
• White Shirt
• Blue Striped Tie
• Black Jacket

Edward Finch:
Casual Clothes:

• Black Shoes
• White Socks
• Plain/Grey Trousers
• Green Checkered Shirt
• Green Parker Coat

Suit:

• Black Leather Shoes
• Black Socks
• Black Trousers
• White Shirt
• Tie
• Navy Jacket/Blazer

Locations:

Our opening will be filmed in these locations:

Living Room: The Living room scene will be shot in this location.

 

.

• Bathroom: The Bathroom scene will be shot in this location.

• Bedroom: The Bedroom scene will be shot in this location.

• Park: The dream sequence will be shot in this location.

• Alleyway:

Each room is located at either mine, James' or Harry's house with the alleyway and park is local to use therefore we can easily access it.

Animatic

The clip above is the Animatic of my groups storyboards of the hot we will take when filming our opening sequences. The title we added are also the titles we will use in our opening.

Titles:

Font:
We used 'Serif' font as we felt it would create a serious atmosphere towards the audience and make the audience ask questions such as whats going to happen, what does the font suggest about the characters and the font will give suggestions about what genre the opening is.

Fade:

The fading out of the text emphasizes the seriousness of the atmosphere created by the font. This also helps the audience get clues about what genre the opening sequence is.

Colour:The colour blue which we used for our text creates a mysterious tone towards the audience and crafts a stern yet eerie tone towards the audience as the blue suggests sombre emotions of the character/s.

Overlaying Music:The overlaying music that accompanies the titles in the background enhances the seriousness of the atmosphere created by the text. This helps the audience create ideas about what the opening will be about and what genre it is.

EBI's from class mates: Our animatic was watched by our class mates and they gave us so ebi's to work on and to use to improve our opening sequence.

Slower paced titles:
Our audience thought our titles where to quickly paced for the genre of our opening sequence. They said the transition between titles where to quick, therefore we are going to slow the transition down between each title to add to the atmosphere created by the overlaying music.
Titles played over moving image:Our audience thought some of our titles should be played over the opening sequence itself. Therefore we will add some titles over the moving images as this will add another dimension to the opening sequence, allowing the audience to watch the sequence yet be informed about who was involved in the making for of it at the same time.
Flip Distribution and Production company logo around:We had placed the Distridution and Production around the wrong way, we will switch these around so everything is in the right order.

Storyboards

Storyboards

Below shows all the storyboards my group draw out which demonstrate all the shots we are going to shoot in our opening sequence.

With shots 29/30, the glass of whiskey will be tracked up and followed it to show the protagonist drinking the drink. This can demonstrate that the whiskey has become a key part in his daily cycle. 

Another well thought through shot is the birds eye view of the protagonist, laying by himself in his bed. The use of the double bed suggests the protagonist is alone due to the loss of a partner and the use of the props of his clothes scattered everywhere suggests that he is very lazy or that he may not care about his appearance or cleanliness of his room/house.

As well as this, shots 22/23 are an action match of the water running out of the tape and the alcohol pouring out of the bottle. This demonstrates how depressed the protagonist really is. It creates the idea that as he is drinking it just after he has done his teeth that drinking the alcohol is becoming part of his life and his daily routine. This will also leaving the audience asking what caused this to happen and why is he doing what he is. 

 

Why Storyboards are important

Why my group use Story Boards

My group found storyboards very helpful when discussing and drawing up the entail shots, plan and story line for our opening sequence. By using storyboards we were able to visualize where everything is going to be placed (e.g: Props, Camera/Shots and Lighting) and how the character will act in it also with the correct costume we all decided on. This will be a clear indicator to what our opening sequence will essentially look like and we can also make any changes during this stage if we feel necessary. 

Final Sound Choices

These are our final song choices for our opening sequence:

In our opening sequence, we will use this piece of music when the protagonist is walking around the house. The piece has a very slow pace and low pitch score which creates a sombre and depressing atmosphere towards the audience. This allows the audience to emphasis with the character. The score is repeated over and over which demonstrates that is seems as if the protagonist is just living his life with no real meaning or purpose. This will make the audience feel sorry for him as he seems to have no real meaning to his life.





We will use the score in this piece of music during the cross cutting nightmare sequence at the very beginning of the opening. The use of a choir adds a surreal and unrealistic atmosphere towards the audience which allows them to realize what is going on isn't real life. This can also suggest that the protagonist may only be happy when he is dreaming about his partner and spending time with him in his dreams.
 

Sound Planning

I have found 3 pieces of music that my group could us when creating our opening.

Sound Clip 1:

The score in the sound clip creates a serious and tense atmosphere towards the audience, this would be used in the part of the sequence where the protagonist first see's the shadow in the TV screen and goes to defend himself. This will catch the audiences attention and excite the audience as it reflects the action that is being shown. Also the use of the drum bet symbioses danger and make the audience afraid for the protagonist.

Song Hours

Sound Clip 2:

The slow and even pace of the sound clip create a calm yet sympathetic atmosphere towards the audience. This piece of music would be played whe we see the action match between the tap and the whiskey bottle. This will make the audience sympathsies with the protagonist as he is depressed, alone and had turned to alcohol for comfort.



Sound Clip 3:

The use of incidental music and the soft string instruments creates a somber atmosphere towards the audience. This piece of music could be used when the protagonist first wakes up, right at the beginning of the sequence. This could make the audience ask question such as why is he alone and will make the feel sympathy towards the protagonist.

ADD SONGS ON AT HOME!!!

Film Synopsis

Plot Synopsis:

Key Frames

I have drawn out some key frames from my opening sequence. I have picked and drawn out these key frames as thy are impotent shots in our opening.

Picture 1:

Frames one is the sketch on the left. This shot is a birds eye long shot, of the protagonist in his bed. This is in the beginning of our opening and is one of the first shots the audience see. This shows the protagonist is lone in his bed with clothes scattered our the room (e.g on his floor and on the end of his bed). This can show that the protagonist might be lazy due to his sloppiness of his room or the fact that he may be depressed and lonely. This can create a sympathetic atmosphere towards the audience as they might feel sorry for him as something may have happened causing him to lose his partner or be alone. 

Picture 2&3:

                              

Frames 2 and 3 are action matches of water running out of a tap and the it will cut to whiskey pouring out of a whiskey bottle. This will be near the beginning/middle of the sequence and will give the audience a first look at what the protagonist is really like. This will create a sense of confusion and an upsetting atmosphere towards the audience as they will unsure why he is drinking whiskey as part as his daily routine but are worried as they don't know what made him like this and what will happen to him. 

                                        

Harry's Picture 1:

Harry has drawn a low angle shot of the protagonist as he is walking past where the camera is placed. As the protagonist walks past the camera really closely, the audience notices all the protagonist awards that he has gained and this will give hints about his past. This also will withhold information as the shallow focus will make it hard to see what the awards are actually for. This will create an integrating atmosphere towards the audience as the audience will want to find more about what the awards are for and more information about the protagonist.  

Harry's Picture 2:

Harry has drawn a long/master shot of the protagonist sitting in an arm chair next to an empty one. The fact that the other arm chair is empty suggest that someone has been lost or is missing. This will create a very sad atmosphere towards the audience as they feel sorry for the protagonist has he is upset and drained by the loss of someone.

James Picture 1:

                                 

James has drawn a Mid Shot of the protagonist in bed, being woken up by his alarm clock. This is the first time the audience see the protagonists facial features and expressions. The shot emphasizes his upset about his nightmare and what has happened in reality. This will create a sombre and upsetting atmosphere towards the audience as they are confused about what has happened but feel sorry for the protagonist as he seems upset and almost lifeless. 

James Picture 2:

James has drawn an extreme long shot of the protagonist in his bathroom, doing his morning routine whist the camera slowly tracks along the floor. This demonstrates how the protagonists life has just been crafted into a boring routine that is done all day everyday and nothing more.This creates a a mundane tone towards the audience as the feel symphony towards him as his life has become lifeless as he just completes his routine everyday.



Vox Pops analyses

As you can see from our groups Vox Pops, we have gathered different audience ideas about many aspects of a thirller opening sequence. From the responses in the Vox Pops clip, we are going to incorporate these ideas into our opening sequence

Question 1 - Do you expect to see fast or slow paced editing in a Thriller opening sequence?:

From the evidence in the clip, we see that 4 out of 5 people said that they expect fast paced editing. We will use this in our opening sequence to create an intense atmosphere towards the audience.

Question 2 - What props do you expect to see in a Thriller opening sequence?:

From the evidence in the clip, we see that the audience are expecting props such as weapons, most commonly knifes. We will use this in our opening sequence as this will emphasis the seriousness and tense atmosphere created towards the audience. This will also leave the audience asking question such as what is it do? what is it going to be used for, will it affect the protagonist and will the protagonist use it?. 

Question 3 - Do you expect the titles to be played over a moving image, a black screen or animated?:

From the evidence in the clip , we see that 6 out of 6 people all agreed that the titles should be played over a black screen. We will use this as it will emphasise the mood set by the props and sounds and will also add a seriousness to the opening sequence. This will also give out hints towards the audience about the genre of the film.

Question 4 - Do you expect to see low-key or high-key lighting in a Thriller opening sequence?:

From the evidence in the clip, we see that all the people interviewed agreed that they expect low-key lighting as it will emphasise the characters depression and isolation. We will use this as it will also leave the audience asking why is the protagonist depressed, what caused this and why. 

Question 5 - What plot do you expect a thriller opening film to follow?:

From the evidence in the clip, we see that from all the interviewee's, we see that they expect a clear storyline and twists in a Thriller opening sequence. We will use this evidence to defy and challenge sterotypes which will leave the audience asking questions and wanting to watch on. 

Inital Ideas

Below I have scanned in the mind-map of the different elements of my groups Thriller opening sequence. This shows all the different elements of my opening sequence which we will incorporate when filming our opening sequence.

What Titlies?

During the opening sequence of a film, there are many different titles appear on screen with the names of ll the people who have helped make the film.

Distribution Company Logo:
The distribution companies are companies that a responsible for the marketing of the film.

 'The Sixth Sense'

 'Panic Room'

Production Company:
The production company provides the basis for the film being made.

'The Sixth Sense'

    

 

Titles 'Presents':

The titles are used to introduce and show what distribution and production company made the film.

'The Sixth Sense'

'The Dark Night Rises'

Main Actor:

This title is used to show the main actor who stared in the film.



'Panic Room'





'The Dark Night Rises'

Title Of Film:

This title is used to show the name of the film.

'Back To The Future'



     'Panic Room'

 Actors/Actresses Names:

These titles are used to show other impotent actors/actress that stared in the film.

                            'Momento'

'Back To The Future'

                                                                             

Two More Actors:  

These titles are used to show more actors that have stared in the film, but these are less importent. 

  'Back To The Future'

'Spiderman'

 Cast By:
These titles are to show the people who casted the actors for the film, these titles are done wth the least importent at the top and the the most importent at the bottom.

'Spiderman 2'

 'Momento'

Costume Design:

These titles are used to show the people who designed all the costumes for the cast in the film.

'The Sixth Sence'

'Panic Room'

Music By:
These titles are used to show the people who composed the music for the film.

     'Spiderman 2'

 'Momento'

Edited by:
These titles are to show all the people that edited the movie together.

 'Panic Room'

 'The Sixth Sence'

Production Designer:

These titles are used to show all the production designers that worked on the film.

 'Spiderman'

 'Momento'

Director Of Photography:

These titles are used to show the name of the director of photography for the film.

 'The Sixth Sence'

 'Panic Room'

Executive Producer:

These titles are used to show the names of the executive producer that has worked on the film.

                          'Momento'

                        'Lord Of War'

Producer\Produced By:

These titles are used to show the name of the person who produced the film.

 'Lord Of War'

 'The Sixth Sence'

Written and Directed By:

These titles are used to show who wrote and directed the film.

 'Momento'

 'Panic Room'