Filming notes

I used this picture as a template as to what I wanted my eyes to look like for the film. It was a simple smokey-eye, which was the original plan for my make-up. I didn't want to go too extravagant because the character's personality is not extra-vert.

Girls who wear make up and like to keep up appearances would find my character suitable to their social setting for example I think my character is the most girly out of everyone therefore certain social groups (like girly- girls) will find that they have something in common with my character. We used this as a tool to create a response in the audience and it helps create a dependency for the survival of the different characters. the dependency helps reel the audience in and its what's going to make them sit at the edge of their seats and hope that their favourite character comes through.




This was one of the accessories I used for filming, I used this gleaming bracelet to add pops of colour which was part of my character's personality.
The jewellery contributes to the characters personal style and this helps represent the interest of certain audience members, in the film the others are fairly dressed down however Eva is more extravagant, it was important we made this difference clear as it ensured that although the girls were all friends and shared similarities in interests we all had different traits and personalities. It is these different traits and personalities that allure the audience. These small touches add to the overall enhancement of the portrayal of the character and it enable the audience to grasp the character in a more detailed way.

Target audience demographic

Audiences that enjoy thriller films could choose to see our film as that's the main genre in the film. However we decided to narrow it down the likely age range that would go to watch this Thriller, here are some of the reasons why they might be there to watch it. On average the most common age range to go to the cinema is anyone between the ages of 16 and 24. Because of this we decided it would be a good idea to try and target these specific people so that if we were going to film the rest and put it in the cinemas then it would gain optimum profit. We have made the film appeal to both males and females. 

To make the target demographic easier to analyse I have split the groups into 3:

• 16-17 Girls
• 18-24 Girls
• Boys - this is more general as boys in the same age range from 18-24 have the same common interest as oppose to females.

Girls.

We have targeted 16-17 girls because they mostly like to go to parties or aspire to go to them when they enter university (freshers weeks are aimed at targeting young party fuelled adults). This is the stage when they are going through sixth form or college which could be a stressful time and they like to have fun. The girls in the film are also young actors and are based to be from this age group. The girls in the group have different personalities and that is why they have become great friends, they are able to play against each others strength. This movie would also appeal to girls as they like the idea of having a loyal group of friends. This may help boost confidence of those girls that feel they are alone. We have targeted 18-24 year old's because they are the most common ages to go to the cinema, we have adapted the start of our film to target them as the actors are young and they are playing as young girls. Another thing that would appeal to this age range of girls is the dress sense because they are all different styles which are popular at the current time. The girls in the film are meant to be girls at university and college who tend to go out to parties frequently.


Boys.
In general boys are attracted to things that would give them an adrenaline rush which is apparent in action adventures, horrors and thrillers. The film should also appeal to girls which makes it easier for the boys to take their girlfriends out to see a film that they would both enjoy. If the boys did use this as a date film, it gives them the chance to console their scared girlfriends during and at the end of the film if needed. There is also a sexual nature to the film which would appeal to the boys because there are attractive girls going to the 'IT' party in Uni and there will be girls of all different natures. This could include some ‘slutty’ girls like the character of Cassie going to the party. 

Song difficulties

We had advice from our teacher when discussing the song choices and we have decided that we will no longer use the Lana Del Ray cover because it is not sad or eery enough. Instead like one of our other songs, we are using garage band to create an more spooky perilous sound. We have also thought this would be good as it will show our diversity in finding and making different materials for our film.

Songs for the ending of the film

Film, ending song


This is one of the songs for the film. This song appears for a few seconds when the audience sees that Megan's character, Scarlet has died. I have created this song on garageband an app on the mac computers. It was important to create our own music as it creates a wide variety of things used throughout the movie and to show our understanding of the scene. In the search for finding an appropriate clip of music, the original music was copyrighted so we were unable to use it. The cover's of these were not appropriate enough and didn't create the effect of sadness that was needed. Therefore i created my own music and feel it is useful to use.

Mise-en-scene

In this short clip we discuss what the mise-en-scene is. throughout we had a few disagreements to do with settings and certain aspects of the mise-en-scene. Abi's bedroom is no longer going to be used due to personal difficulties that disallow us from filming there so instead she is using a friend's room. We had disagreements about lighting but settled on the agreement that we needed low lighting and curtains closed to show the continuity of the time.

Animatics

This is our animatics. the film 'Who's Next' will be hopefully be based on this animatics creation. These drawings have become the basic outline of what we want our film to look like. It is useful to have the animatics as it gives us a guideline and allows us to tick off certain events that come throughout the movie. Although this is a guideline, we decided not to do exactly what it has on the animatics. For instance, Kimberley (Cassie) is drawn with her hair up in the animatics however we have put her hair up and to the side in the actual filming. We have also changed some characters makeup to suit a wider audiemce. However the makeup wasn't a major focal point within the animatics. In addition, when we were filming, the animatics proved useful as they helped us to tick off one of our requirements- match on action, two of our characters use a mascara in the mirror to help continue the shot and add fluency.

Institutional features

The institution we have decided to use in the production of our film is Summit Entertainment. This production is  based in the USA. Since 2006, Summit has become an independent production company after working with Lions Gate and Universal. Although they had officially launched as Summit Entertainment in 1993 as a production, distribution and sales organisation.

Some of the films that Summit have produced include:
Sorority Row (2009) - Thriller film - directed by Stewart handler.

The Twilight Saga (2008) - Romantic Fantasy Film- directed by David slade.

The Hurt Locker (2009) - American War Film- directed by Kathryn Bigelow.

The Darkest Hour (2011) - Science Fiction Thriller Film- directed by Chris Gorak.

Sinister (2012) - Supernatural Horror Film- directed by Scott Derrickson.

Escape Plan (2013) - Action Thriller Film- directed  by Mikael Hafstrom

Part of the reason why we chose to use Summit productions was because their genres tend to be based around thriller and fantasy movies for example: Twilight and the movie sequels. Because of the fact that our film is a thriller we chose to use this particular production company. We were looking to use The production company: Universal, however we decided against it as Summit seemed to be a more close-knit genre of film type. After lots of research we have found that, 'Sorority Row' is most like our movie. Because it has similar aged characters (uni grads) and there are sexual scenes- females dressing provocatively, kissing etc. The age audience is also of an older limit as the film is filled with cruel and horrific scenes of death.

The film that we are creating we have chosen the genre as a Thriller film because of the features that it contains, for example the murderous mystery man. The features that we are including in our film is that there is a realistic and natural representation of 4 young girls who  are excited and are getting ready for a massive party. The killer is not a natural representation of every day life as we have indicted that he is sociopath on the war path. Although you  hear about people who kill within the news and media, sociopaths appearing in everyday life is a rarity, which creates a more intense feel for the audience when they watch our short film. The film could also be seen as a detective type film 

Props log

Our props log ensures that we film without fearing we have forgotten any props. Within our short opening film we will need:

• Fake Blood

• White Bed Sheets

• A Knife

• 4 Mobile Phones

• Alarm Clock

• 3 Mirrors

• 2 Mascara’s

We need fake blood in our film to show the death of Scarlet. The blood will be smeared all over her chest and on her bed sheets. We wanted to use a lot of blood because we want to show the deep wound created by the knife and to show she will be bleeding a lot. We will also have the blood on the murder weapon, the knife,  to show that it was used to kill her. 

We are going to use white bed sheets,  as this will will emphasise the redness of the blood and you can see the juxtaposition of the blood and the plain bed sheets. White is also a pure colour which could signify her innocence, this will create sympathy for the audience as she did not deserve to die. The blood red colour could symbolise the sins of the murderer and the pure white sheets could show the oxymoron of Scarlet's innocence.

We are going to use a kitchen knife as the murder weapon. In the film the murderer will be holding the knife with blood all over the blade. We decided to use a knife as the murder weapon, because it is intrusive as it requires the killer to be up close to the victim. This was obviously easier than using a gun as a gun would be hard to come by and  fake gun would be hard to convey. With a gun you can use it from a distance, so it's less personal. Knives are also a common household item, so anybody could have one.

We will need four mobile phones because that is how we are going to communicate with each other, it also shows the modern times as we will be basing our movie in the future, it also shows the girls independence as they rely on each other and not a central house phone providing by their parents or guardians. 

We are planning on using a digital alarm clock as an alarm and a way to tell the time as it will tell Eva when to call Cassie and the other girls. 

We will have three mirrors, one for Scarlet, one for Riley (Abigail) and one for Cassie (Kimberley). Scarlet's mirror will have her dress hanging on it, Riley's mirror will be used to put her Mascara on and Cassie's mirror will also be used to put her mascara on. The mirrors are a way of continuing the scene, between the two changing of the characters.

We need two mascaras that will be visible in the shot because you see Cassie and Riley putting their mascara on. This is also how we are going to link their scenes, at the beginning of the film. 

Production Schedule

Filming Schedule.

Date	Location	Animatic Frames	Actors	Props	Camera Filming
PlanA-30/10/13 PlanB-02/11/13	Megan’s Bedroom	2, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15	Megan Daniel	Fake Blood White Sheets Knife Phone Mirror	1needed. Abigail
PlanA-14/11/13 PlanB-16/11/13	Kimberley’s Bedroom	3, 8, 9, 10, 17	Kimberley	Mirror Mascara Phone	1needed. Chantelle
PlanA-15/11/13 PlanB-17/11/13	Abigail’s Bedroom	4, 5, 9, 10, 18	Abigail	Mirror Mascara Phone	1needed. Megan
PlanA-17/11/13 PlanB-19/11/13	Chantelle’s Bedroom	6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 19	Chantelle	Phone Alarm	1needed. Kimberley

Editing Schedule.

Editing Dates	A-02/12/13 Period 2 B-03/12/13 Period 5 C-04/12/13 Period 4 D-05/12/13 Period 1 E-09/12/13 Period 3
EMERGENCY DATES	A-10/12/13 Period 2 B-10/12/13 Period 5 C-12/12/13 Period 2

Costume ideas

Costume ideas:

Megan/Scarlet: Orange or white vest top and black leggings and black socks. Scarlet is not going to be wearing her dress straight away so she wears a orange vest and leggings, she is a girl but enjoys being comfortable and casual, only dressing up on occasion. Within her personality she is also sensible, however as she dies before the movie progresses the audience only sees her looking casual. Makeup: pale pink lipstick, dark eyes, liner. Scarlet is the grunge girl in the group, she likes to experiment with dark makeup and although she doesn't dress up a lot she tends to wear a lot of dark makeup.

Chantelle/Eva: Black laced dress with Burnt orange platforms. Eva, my character, wears a black laced A-line dress. She is very girly and the dress emphasises her bust like Cassie, she enjoys partying and is experienced when dealing with going to parties. She is the oldest in the group and therefore the ring leader. Her outfit is of course a branch of her personality. A little pop of colour here and there emphasises her control and sensibility in situations. Makeup: Brown smokey eye-nuetral lip colour, lashes, this make up signifies that Eva is a girly girl, she doesn't go all out on the makeup hence the little black dress and subtle smokey eye, which can portray that her character however party girl, is still sensible.

Kimberley/Cassie: Black bottom and leopard print top of the dress and leopard print shoes/heels. Cassie's character includes a moderate girly- girl who enjoys attention, which is why she always wears leopard print and red lipstick. She is the eccentric slutty character out of all of the girls and she along with Eva is the most experienced when it comes to parties and events. She wears the leopard print blouse on top to emphasise her bust. Her outfit is important throughout the opening scene to represent her personality. Makeup: Red lipstick, eye liner, mascara, blusher. The red lipstick teamed with the leopard print deems Cassie as the sultry sensuous character of the team, although she is the youngest, she is not afraid to explore her sexuality which could foreshadow the killer's fascination with her.

Abigail/Riley: Cream polka dot top half and a black bottom half dress and black sandals. Riley is the most sensible girl out of all of the group, for example-although she is going to a party she is wearing flat shoes. This could foreshadow that throughout the film and near the end she might be one of the girl's who survive the killer's perilous murder spree. Makeup: Eyeliner, lashes, pink lipstick.

Daniel/Killer: Black hoodie and jeans and trainers. The killer's attire is pretty self explanatory, he is going to wear black and dark trousers to represent his dark nature. He wears the same thing throughout the movie showing no change, this can relate to his mindset in which he won't stop until he fulfils his task of murdering the whole group of friends.

The character bio

Characters: 

Chantelle(me) as Eva

Kimberley as Cassie

Abigail as Riley

Megan as Scarlet

My character is the girly girl leader of her friendship group that enjoys partying. Eva is the oldest of the group, aged 20 she is the one supposedly with the most control due to her experience in years over the other girls. In the short film she sets the alarm and is in charge of calling everyone up to see where they are. This brings relevance as it could foreshadow the events further into the film e.g. it could suggest that she survives the killer's murderous ways due to her worldly experience and street smart attitude. However, this is just a suggestion which hooks the audience and encourages them to invest emotionally in her future. It creates hope and makes the audience want to see her live. The relevance of the alarm is used as a tool to suggest that although Eva is strong minded and shows leadership skills, she needs some help in putting her plans into action. This creates another dimension into the foreshadowing of the film and could suggest that her dependancy on others could inevitably lead to her downfall- and her death. Eva's personality is splintered with many different layers; she is not just what meets the eye, her likeable personality is what makes her the most popular person in her friendship group but its her determination and drive that intrigues people toward her. She also tends to be overly obsessed with her looks which is why in the film scene you see her all done up (eyelashes, eyeshadow, 6" heels). She always wants to look her best which could be an intriguing factor towards the killer/stalker.

Kimberley's character: Cassie, is the slutty dressing, confident girl of the group. We thought it important to employ this type of character in the film as it constructs with the target audience we are trying to hit. sexual themes throughout the film appeal to a more mature audience which is why we included her type of character. Cassie is the youngest of the group which could suggest why she dresses and acts the most provocatively. For instance, she could be trying to redeem authority lost through her young age. The killer is also a guy and her sexual nature could be seen as an object of his affection. This could suggest to the audience that she will be killed next, which evokes excitement throughout the film whilst the audience try and depict what is going to happen next. Cassie is also the one with a strong head on her shoulders. She might be the youngest but that doesn't stop her from laying down the law and defending her friends. In the phone call we see her rationalising with the other girls telling them to calm down and not to worry which gives us insight into her logical thinking.

Abigail's character: Riley. We have been having some difficulties with including riley into the scene as there has been a personal change which means we have not had time to film the scenes for her yet. In this case we need to get her scenes filmed by next weekend, if we can not do this then we will have to cut her part in the movie out. However, for now Riley is a girly girl with a boyish style. She is the in-between age in the group; not being the youngest or the oldest. Riley is a strong and independent thinker which gives her a supposed advantage over the others when the killer is trying to shut them up and cover up his wrong- doings. Like Eva she is worried about where Scarlet is in the phone call and this alerts her prickly detective senses. A character like Riley is important to include in the film as it deploys a sense of hope for the audience and creates a new spectrum for the film. Riley's character is used as the tool to bring the film from thriller to detective and her attitude and knowledge conveys and contrasts different personalities within the group.

Megan's character is called Scarlet, she dies in the opening scene so subsequently is not a main character in the film. Scarlet is the more garish girl in the group who enjoys rock music (hence the Paramore cover at the start of the film) and is quite grungy. Although, she enjoys girly things and is the girl who attracts the killer in the first place which suggests she is quite feminine. Her character is used to represent a specific target market, however using a grunge girl as a main character wouldn't attract enough interest and most people can not relate to her type of life style/culture.

Song ideas

To find a playlist for the backing track was very difficult because it meant I had to find multiple songs, in the process this was hard because there were so many songs that fitted what we were trying to achieve. We wanted to find an eery, yet beautiful and peaceful backing track with no singing. 

• The first song we chose had singing, it is called decode and it is a Paramore cover, this film has featured in the film Twilight in 2008 which is also a film that we studied as part of our institutional features. On Youtube we found a cover by MEMELii, a girl that has done a quality cover. We are going to use this song for the start of the opening scene, it will play throughout in the background whilst the girls are getting ready. We did find other covers but they were too slow or didn't fit the scene.
•  We decided the second song, where the character Scarlet dies will be - Lana Del Rey- Young & Beautiful. We found a perfect  cover on Youtube by The Theorist. Which employs a sorrowful tone throughout the scene when Scarlet dies. The second song we decided on (young and beautiful) starts of slow but still captures the effect we want and it creates a pure nostalgic feeling which is important as it represents Scarlet's death(in the film). 
•  I am currently constructing one last song for when the title 'Who's Next?'. The song will be 13 seconds long because the scene will only be about 10 seconds of screen time. I am cutting and chopping different piano extracts on garage band to create a unique piece of music which employs the grave, creepy, sombre tone of the opening movie title. Before I started to make my own set of music, we sampled with different songs that I had searched on Youtube. Songs we were thinking of using included: 

1. Valerie- The Weeknd
2. Blue ocean floor- Justin Timberlake
3. Skinny Love- Bon Iver. 
4. The Zone- instrumental remake by anthony Luangray
5. 5 senses- Jeremih

These songs however didn't fit the bill because they were either too slow to start or didn't have the right meaning which would convey through the song.

Who's next? script

Chantelle - Eva
Abigail - Riley
Kimberley - Cassie
Megan - Scarlet

Summit Productions.

Fade to a black screen.

Cuts to Scarlet in her bedroom and white writing ’Starring Daniel Arkell'.

Zooms to a close-up of Scarlet’s face.
Pans down to her hands and phone.
Presses play on the phone (Paramore decode cover).
Cuts to Cassie pressing play on her phone with white writing ‘and Kimberley Dalton'.
Pans up to her face.
Zooms into her eyes, putting on mascara.
Wipes to Riley’s eyes, putting on mascara with white overlay ‘Produced by Felix Matthews'.
Zooms out and pans around to the back of the dress.
Zips up the dress.
Dissolves to Eva’s back where she is zipping up her dress.
Alarm goes off on her phone and there is white overlaying writing that says ‘Directed by Peter Smith'.
Eva turns off the alarm and calls Cassie.

Screen splits into 2.

Cassie: Hey Eva.
Eva: Hey Cassie, are you ready?
Cassie: Yea, are the others?
Eva: I haven’t called them yet. I will call Riley now.
Cassie: Okay.
Eva calls Riley.
Screen splits into 3.
Riley: Hello?
Eva and Cassie: Hey Riley.
Riley: Hey girls, what’s up?
Eva: Are you ready to go?
Riley: Yep, all set, how about Scarlet?
Cassie: We haven’t called her yet, let’s call her now.
Riley: Okay, I’ll ring her.
Scarlet’s phone rings
Screen splits into 4.
Eva: Why isn’t she answering?
Riley: I don’t know, she usually picks up straight away.
Eva: Oh my god, what if something’s happened?
Riley: What if… ?
Cassie: Girls calm down, she’ll probably ring us back later.
Hangs up.
The 4th screen (Scarlet’s) enlarges.
Pans around the room to Scarlet laying (dead) on her bed.
Cuts to a close-up of a bloody knife.
Zoom out to see the back of the killer as he leaves the room.
Dissolves to a black and grainy screen, the title 'Who’s Next?’ in blood red writing cuts in quickly.
Quick and hasty cuts to individual pictures of the three girls.

Target audience research and questionnare

1. What age are you?

Under 12 [    ]

Over 12 [    ]

Over 15 [    ]

Under 18 [    ]

18-25 [    ]

26-30 [    ]

31-40 [    ]

41-49 [    ]

50+ [    ]

    2. What is your gender?

Male [    ]

Female [    ]

Other [    ]

   3. Do you go to the cinema, if so how many times a week?

Never [    ]

Once a week [    ]

Twice a week [    ]

Three times a week [    ]

Four times a week [    ]

Five times a week [    ]

5+ [    ]

  4. What times do you go to the cinema?

10 am-12 pm [    ]
12:01 pm- 2pm [    ]
2:01 pm- 4 pm [    ]
4: 01 pm- 6 pm [    ]
6:01- 8pm [    ]
8:01 pm- 10pm [    ]
10:01- 12 am [    ]
12:01 +  [    ]

  5. What film genres do you like? (you may tick more than one)

Comedy [    ]

Horror [    ]

Western [    ]

Animation [    ]

Thriller [    ]

Crime [    ]

Sci-fi [    ]

Other__________

  6. What age actors would you like to see?

0-12 [    ]

13-19 [    ]

20-30 [    ]

31-40 [    ]

40+ [    ]

 7. Who are your favourite actors? Please write, One male & one female

_________________________ ___________________________

 8. What makes you watch films at the cinema?

  Captivating trailers [    ]

  Special offers [    ]

  To see your favourite actors [    ]

 9. Do you ever watch films online? (netflix, love films)

 Yes [    ]

 No [    ] 

 Sometimes [    ]

 
  

    

Preliminary task

The first preliminary task that we worked on included someone walking through a door, going to meet someone and sitting on a chair. We had to include match- on action (continuity), 180 degree rule and reverse shot. Our group used two cameras in order to record both people, this gave us more leeway as it enabled us to record both characters more efficiently. However it took longer to edit because we had to transfer both media cards instead of one. We had a lot of difficulties doing this first task as we found that through editing we could see one of the camera men in the window reflection. We also had to cut and edit parts of the video that we didn't need, this proved difficult as it meant that some of the shots lacked continuity, so it meant listening very carefully and matching up the motion pictures exactly. One thing we had trouble on was making sure the separate clips were meshed together appropriately. Our first time of doing this proved difficult because the screen flashed black in between the scenes as we hadn't meshed the scenes together properly.

Short film opening ideas

Who's next? My upcoming movie will be airing soon this year! Characters: Eva(Chantelle), Scarlet(Megan), Casey(Kim), Riley(Abby). Credits: Will show up over the faces of each character. E.g. Eva played by Chantelle. Four friends, who are getting ready for the biggest party of the century are met with a tragic scene of death and despair as their friend Scarlet, (played my Megan Voisey) is brutally stabbed to death before the beginning of the party. Will the three best friends work out what happened to Scarlet to end there dooming fate. Who will be next. Find out and watch soon. The plan: the film opening consists of two minutes of motion pictures and the story is that of above. four girls are getting dolled up for the party starting consecutively Scarlet, Casey, Riley, Eva. During their time getting ready Eva becomes suspicious that the girls are going to be late for the big arrival of the party, she calls them on what is meant to be a four-way conversation. A black screen where Scarlet is meant to be is emphasised by the screen being taken over by a grainy blackness. We then focus on Scarlet's bedroom (the supposed scene of horror) We then see scarlet lying over her bed with her phone on the floor. dead. the camera shot pans over the killer and zooms into the dress she was meant to be wearing before she was brutally stabbed. the camera will then pan into the knife and the motion picture will fade out. It will then be replaced with a two second flash image of the three surviving girls and the words of the title: "Who's Next?" will come up. under neath this also we will preview a 'coming soon' at the bottom of the page. Chantelle.

Hunger games

Film reviewed: the hunger games The hunger game is based on the writer’s novel: the hunger games by Suzanne Collins. Movie genre: Sci- fi, its sub genres throughout the film include action, thriller, and romance. The film captures scenes of segregation e.g. each ‘house’ (village) are separated and in the hunger games tournament they fight against each other. Throughout the film, they feature Action & thriller sub genres that includes: the gory killings that go on as part of the game. It could even be a sub-genre of black comedy as the city people are entertained by the thrivellous murders that goes on as part of the game. It also includes romance where we can see friendships and relationships are formed between Katniss and her counterpart. Aimed at audiences: 15 to 25. This is because the characters are young adults from ranges of 6-20. It is however too gory for under 15 year olds and may not catch the attention of over 25 year olds as it is quite a teen action packed film. Does it achieve its purpose in attracting the certain audience? Yes, due to the fact that young adults include teenage boys and girls, there needs to be a collect balance of genres and subgenres that these particular target audiences are aimed. E.g. there is romance: for the girls. Action and gore: for the boys and trials and thrill seeking scenes for the others in the target audience. Overall it is a successful movie and has captured its target audience so well that it has a sequel coming out. Its newest movie is coming out in November 2013. (part 2) make sure you catch it!