Planning for lighting

When I am filming it should be during the afternoon so it should be starting to get dark because it is winter and the natural lighting should be good enough for soft lighting which is what I would like. I could use extra lighting however it could make the shots look unnatural and add an extra harshness to the image and therefore that could take away or change the intensity of the scene.

Possible Locations for Filming

For our film we can only have a maximum of 3 locations to film at so I have thought of 3 possible locations to where I can film.

1) An Alley Way

Filming down an alley way would be very simple and would be a simple location for the scene meaning the audience would be able to focus on the characters more as the imagery is simple and wouldn't give anything important to the story line. However this can be a hard location to film in as there is not a lot of space making it hard to get good camera angles. An example of an alley way I could use is the one down the side of Cloudside Primary School.

2)  A Field

A field is a conventional location of psychological thrillers so using a field as a location would be good. There is also a vast amount of space to be able to get many different shots and angles on the scene. A field could also help to create the enigma around the main character as the audience would wonder why he is in the field and also how he ended up there.

3)  A House

A house could be a good location to film at because I could set up the mise en scene however I liked which could help give clues to the audience about what is going to happen in the film. The mise en scene could also help to create an enigma.

Moodboard

This is a mood board of ideas I have had for the opening of my psychological thriller. I will use these ideas to try and shape what I want to do for my opening.

Research into Real Audiences.

To be able to gather research I sent out a survey I made on surveymonkey with the aim to find out what genders prefer psychological thrillers and what people expect from a film of this genre.

How social groups are represented in film

Sound Design

Sound design is the technique of specifying, acquiring and manipulating or generating audio elements. It consists of using prerecorded or composed sound effects or dialogue, this is when its edited to construct a effect or mood perfect for the scene,in the film, TV show, radio or live shows.

The girl with a dragon tattoo opening sequence has a good example of prerecorded sound being used.

Soundtracks in psychological thrillers

Soundtracks are music that was previously recorded and are added to films over the top of the image to try and add tension and atmosphere,also sometimes the initial recording could be bad quality sound wise so they could play over a similar clip.

How films attract their audiences.

Here is an emaze presentation I made on how films attract their audiences.

Potential Target Audience - Psychological Thrillers

Usually the target audience of a psychological thriller is 18+ because they contain characters which may disturb anyone younger. Many psychological thrillers attract females aged 18 - 35 because they enjoy the mystery more than physical conflict which is more aimed towards men. Things like emotional and mental conflict attract less males than females but the difference is only a small amount. Also, due to the fact I will be filming in a British location my film will potentially appeal more to British people as they will be familiar with the location used making it easier for them to enjoy the images in front of them.

Classifications in film (15 - 18)

15 rated films contain more bad language, violence and mature themes than others meaning that nobody under the age of 15 is allowed to watch any film with this rating. Many actions, thrillers and horrors are rated 15 because of the violence which occurs within the film.







18 rated films are for adults only. This means nobody under the age of 18 can buy or watch this film. Films are usually rated 18 as they have no 'boundaries'. However adults are free to choose what they watch.

Classifications in film (U - 12A/12)

Within the film industry there are all kinds of different films and some of them are classed as unsuitable for children or teenagers.

U, stands for Universal and means it is open for everybody over the age of 4 to go and see. There is no use of drugs and only occasionally nudity but no sexual context. Bad language will be infrequent and very mild.

PG - Parental Guidance

PG films are for general viewing however some of the scenes may be unsuitable for children under the age of 8. Unaccompanied children can watch these films but the parents are advised to consider whether the content will be okay for the viewing of younger or more sensitive children.

Films classified 12A and video works classified 12 contain material that is not generally suitable for children aged under 12. No one younger than 12 may see a 12A film in a cinema unless they are being accompanied by an adult. Adults planning to take a child under 12 to view a 12A film should consider if the film they are going to watch is suitable for that child. To help them decide,  No one younger than 12 may rent or buy a 12 rated video work. A 12 rated film has the same concept however even if the child under 12 is accompanied by an adult they still cannot see the film.

Production and Distribution Companies in Psychological Thrillers

This is an emaze presentation I have made to show which production and distribution companies are associated with films of the pyschological thriller genre.

Blue Velvet title sequence

The Blue Velvet title sequence is only 1 minutes and 24 seconds long which is very short for an opening title sequence. Therefore the first title comes 3 seconds in and just like se7en the titles pop up very quickly.

Se7en opening titles

This is a diagram I have drawn of the se7en title sequence. Compared to Jacob's Ladder it has over double the amount of titles and they appear a lot quicker on the screen. The first title is at 4 seconds and the largest amount of time between titles is 6 seconds.

Jacob's Ladder Opening Titles

This is my diagram of the opening title sequence of Jacob's Ladder. The titles are very slow which could be a clue on how the story of the film will go, for example the first title doesn't appear until 13 seconds into the opening and there is a 25 second break between title 7 and 8.

Shutter Island opening scene analysis

During the opening scene of Shutter Island, the scene switches between flashbacks and reality. This is shown through colour; colour during reality is less vibrant and darker whereas during the flashbacks the colours are more vibrant and 'happy' colours like green and yellow. This shows that the character's flashbacks take him back to a time when he was happy. This creates an enigma as the audience wants to know what happened to him.

High Key and Low Key Lighting

High Key:

A high proportion of fill light is known as high key lighting. High key lighting is brighter and more even. This style of lighting is used in mostly musicals and comedies so the sense of liveliness is enhanced or to enhance the intensity in a particularly dramatic scene.


Low Key:

Low key lighting is more shadowy and the shadows created create the effect. Low key lighting works well in Horrors or Mysteries. Low key lighting would also work well in psychological thrillers which is what i'm doing for my coursework so I will need to work on getting this lighting correct.

Memento Opening Scene Analysis.

During the opening scene of memento there are a lot of close ups. One of the main close ups is on a photo of a person who has been shot. This creates an enigma because the audience wonders about the photo and wants to know who took it. Also the colours during the scene were raw and intense to creat a realistic feel. The sound during the opening scene included mostly non-diegetic sound, the music used was intense and the title was in time with the music representing tone. The picture used creates mise en scene as a polariod picture is used and this is a memento of the crime which is the same as the title of the film.