Group planning of group roles.

This was our first idea of the roles each member of our team would take up:

• Photographers - Josh/Shane 
• Props designer - Lewis
• Musical director - Kelly
• Director - Shane/Josh
• Script - Kelly
• Lighting Manager - Josh
• Costume designer - Shane
• Location manager - Lewis/Josh
• Producer - Kelly
• Actors - Shane, Kelly, Josh, Lewis, Mrs Bobbett, Mrs Twydell and son
• Casting - Shane
• Assistant director - Lewis

Group certificate

for our film we wanted our main target audience to be between the ages of 15-24 as we thought this was the ideal ages of people who would go to the cinema to watch a horror film, therefore we had to choose to make our film rated 15 or rated 18, we looked at both the advantages and disadvantages of both and we came to the concultion we wanted to make ours a 15.



making our film a 15 this meant we was aloud to get away with a lot of things however their was certain things we could not add into our opening scene and title sequence that an 18 could. The rules of making your film a 15 is that you are not aloud large amounts of graphic violence however you are aloud minimal violence in the film which ours has on the teddy bear. You are also not aloud huge amounts of bad language use in your film you can use some words that do not offend others however some words and large uses of words will not be aloud, we decided to not have any bad language in our opening scene or title sequence. We was thinking about making our film rated 18 however this would have been harder to stick to the guidelines and would not appeal to the target audience we wanted to aim at.

Group production scheldule

we planned to film the shots we need in around 3 days wanted to use 1 day to film our title sequence as we only needed around 45 seconds of footage and we decided to film the opening scene also 1 day leaving one other day to go back and film any added shots we felt we needed or any shots we needed to improve. We also felt we would need one or 2 days to complete the editing and make our first draft film.

Group filming style

In our film we wanted to make it as stereotypical to a horror film as we could without making it the same as others. we thought when planning what would be used in a stereotypical horror and what wouldn't be used and we tried to make a good combination to make a good horror film. In the end we used Hollywood style filming and used a lot of stereotypical features like typical horror character, with a covered face and evil eyes. We also decided to keep it stereotypical with the setting we used, we wanted to make it a dark setting with the lighting coming from the candles, this is because the candles in a shed is a high danger that could cause fire, also because it made the environment dark and look rough like it was abandoned which is typical for a horror film as the killer usually does not live under well conditions and has maybe had a bad background. We also wanted to make the music stereotypical to a horror film so in the editing we decided to find some music that would fit the horror genre and the shot types to make it Hollywood filming style.

Group production company logo

I have done research on production companies that are already in use, we looked at some big companies and some not as big companies. we wanted something simple but effective and this is what we made.

Group planning (storybordes)

we thought to get a good indication of what we needed to shoot, we should draw up a storybored. this would tell us how long the shots where what they would roughly look like and what the diolouge would be what music would be playing, what transision ect.we tried to do the storybored shot by shot to make it very accruate to make it how we thought our film would end up, here are our story boreds we drew up.
firstly this is the story bored to our title sequence.

we then done storyboreds for our opening scene.

Group actors for our film

In our film we will need our characters for acting as we need many roles to be filled.
the roles needed throughout our film will be:

• A mother to tell off a child.- miss twydell
• A child to be told of by his mother. - miss twydells son
• 2 police officers extras that will stand in the background.- extras kieran, liam
• A news reporter- miss bobbett
• A young student, lives on street of the most recent murder-josh davis
• A teenage couple who play a telephone call prank- shane mcdonald, kelly leung

we all wanted to be in the film as it would make it our own however we knew we couldnt feel every space therefore we had to ask people to act aswell. we have asked our teacher miss Twydell and her son to act as the mother and child, we have also asked our other female teacher miss bobbett to play the news report, and the two police men will be played by extras. the rest of the needed people will be played by ourselfs.

Group props we plan to use in our horror film.

the  props we feel we will need in our horror film to make it successful are :

• dolls- as the killer will be playing with these.
• tools- these will be needed as these could be used as weapons for the killer.
• telephone- this will be needed as at the end the phone will ring.
• gloves- the killer will use gloves to make him more hidden and mysterious.
• police tape- to go around the crime scene.
• microphone- for the news reporter.
• tv- as they will be watching this on the news.
• balloon
• calender- for the title sequence shot.
• picture/picture frame-for the title sequence shot.
• birthday cake-for the title sequence shot.
• candles-for the shed to light it up.
• birthday card-for the title sequence shot.

these are all the props that we will use in our title sequence and our opening scene however there may be more used but i shall add them in on a later date as that will be improvements made.

Group settings we will be using.

the settings we will be using are:

• shed at my house.
• the town centre
• an abandond pub
• living room
• bedroom
this is a picture of the town centre we may use however we        want a establishing shot of this.
this is a picture of the shed we planto use for the shed scenes.
this is a picture to show the abandond pub we plan to use.
this image is the hall way leading up to the bedroom and living room.



Group shot list.

•  Close up
• Mid shots
• Established shots
• Shot reverse shot
• Extreme close up
• Long shot
• High angle shot

These are the shots we will be using in our filming we want to use the close ups on objects and peoples body parts to make it more mysterious.

The mid shots will be used to show the majority of the actor however do not want to show is whole body.

the long shots will be used to show the actor and the background to give an idea of the surroundings.

An establishing shot will show people the settings and area.

The shot reverse shot will be used when two actors are talking.

We want to use an extreme close up on a weapon or a body part like an eye or creepy smile.

The high angle will be used to look down on something that could be represented as small and vulnerable.

Group ideasfor our plot.

Reminiscence - Plot

We thought that if our 2 minute short section was to be as successful as it could be then we would need to develop a plotline for a full sized movie so that we know exactly what needs to be achieved in this opening section that we are to produce.

Killer Haunted by siblings death on there birthday, feels anger towards the role parents played in this. After killing own parents develops a taste for murder and decides to punish those he deems to be incompetent parents.
(These ideas will be pursued in the title sequence of the clip)

Every year on the month leading up to the deceased siblings birthday, murders take place on parents with children aged 6-11. The victims body is then adorned with a doll as a reminder of the dead sibling. In order to test the remaining parents love for their child the killer leaves a clue to the childs location.

Latest Killing occurs on the street of a teenage babysitters house, the concerned friends of this teenager proceed to ring them in order to confirm their safety. They then travel to the babysitters house for a houseparty. During the party, the child is left unattended and the killer (a guest at the party) snatches the child and slaughters the majority of the household.

Killer leaves an adress for the survivors to follow if they want the child back, it is revealed that at each location a sacrifice must be made for the next location to be revealed. They must reach the final trial by midnight if the child is to live.

se7en title sequence

Se7en title sequence analysis
first 20 seconds

1sec-5sec: close up on a book. With a hand image in the background going to turn the page. We then see “new line cinema presents”come up in a horror font and white writing, the background is dark and creepy.

6sec-7sec: It is a plain black background with white writing in the corner with the production companys name. “arnold koplson production”.

8sec- 10secs: We see an areial shot on a book. It fades from black to the hands both flat on a sqared grid. The hands look deformed and abnormal, this gives us a horror feel.

10sec-11sec:  We see the same image as above however we see “a film by David Fincher” the writing is the same which was used earlier in the sequence.

12sec-13sec: We see three flashes of images it is hard to discover but I feel the images are of a drill being put together by the actor, however we do not see the actor only his hand. This makes it mysterious, which could mean the film will be too.

14sec-15sec: Again it is a fully black background with just the white writing in the centre of the screen this time is is giving us a famous actors name “Brad Pitt”.

16sec-17sec: We see three flashes of images of a mans finger and a razor, and the man is peeling the skin of his fingers, and you just see the skin falling off. His hands are not nice and seeing skin being cut of is not a nice image.

18sec-19sec:  Again we see a blackout image with white writing again of a famous actor “Morgan Freeman” the writing is flashing and un-tidy like hand writing.

20sec-22sec:  We see flashs of two images they are extreame close ups on something but we can not tell what.

Target audience of your horror/thriller.

 steriotypically females would not usualy watch horror films as they are thought to be scary for girls to watch however females that do like horror films are just like the above. as they are teenage around the age of 17-18 and this is stereotypical as they would probably watch it in a social group or maybe with their boyfriends.

They would probably have a part time job and be in education still .
If they were at the older end of the age range they could be in a full time job but either would make them in the target audience range for horror films as they are between the ages of 16-24.

The females also stereotypically like shopping and make up however the steriotypical female for horror films probually doesnt like this and is maybe interested in death and ghosts. Also females are stereotypically into comedys, romantics, and dramas and not usually in to the actions and the horror which males audiences usually are.

the sterio typical audience for horror films, is also teenage audiences however the male audience is more known for watching horrors and not films like romantic films and dramas they are more likly to watch comedys action films and horrors. this is because they are suppose to be manly and not scared easy also not freaked out by blood and death. The produces make horror films and aim their films at 17-18 year old males because they will be the ones who pay to watch the film at cinema and watch them on dvd. they will also have other intrests like music sport video games and this is the steriotypical male. the males will also watch the films in a social group or maybe with their girlfriends.

Independent research on titles, plots, actors, directors, settings

there are many horror films in the indistury however some are more known and famous then others. the famous films usuauly have the best plots throughout the film as the plot is often what the veiwers enjoy in a film. the plots, actors.directors and setting all add up to make a good horror film and if you do not have all of these then it will not be as successful as films with these.

A good plot in a horror film
a good plot in a horror film from our research tells us that most 15-24 year olds like a horror film that are more based around sci-fi then films that are more realistic this means that people enjoy such films as paranormal activity which was a big hitting horror that is a film about a ghost rather then films that are maybe all about murders and horrific problems that could result in death. however also in our research people do like to see a death in the plot of a film this will make us think about adding one into our film plot however will not be in the opening scene or title sequence. usually the films with a good plot behind them for example paranormal activity that has a good plot about a ghost haunting a family most nights and sometimes through the day which at the end results to a death in the family, paranormal activity like our film was a low budget film that went on to make a lot of money because the plot and idea in the film was soo good. paranormal was made on a low budget of $15.000 and went on to make $193,355,800

 Good actors for horror films.

Many films are usually watch because of the actors in them, most low budget films will not have well known actors and will have actors that not many people know and will therefore have to have a diffrent USP then other horror films that are out at the same time. The actors are important some films such as The Expendibales, which contained lots of well known actors would be watch by people who like them actors, however this would have been a very high end film costing a lot of money just for the actors. however films such as again paranormal activity who used actors no one had hurd of because they was not famous at the time, costed a lot less however made a lot of money through something else. when we did our research we asked who is your favorarte actor and the replies where all well know famous actors such as Brad Pitt and Angelina jollie.

Research on directors.

all films need a good director however some directors are better and more well known then others. people will watch a film just because of the person who directed it for example steven speilberg is a very well known director who is famous for his film making and people will go watch a film and expect it to be good because he has directed it. previous well known films he has done is such films as Saving private ryan and a more recent one of warhorse. A horror film that done well was saw which was directed by Darren Lynn Bousman who is a well known director through his films with saw because he done so well in them however in paranormal activity the director was not well know as it was a low budget film and could maybe not afford a great director, the director of paranomal activity is Oren Peli. we will be directing our film our selves therefore we will not be as good at it as these however the director will not be our USP ours will probually be its genre and it being the best in its category.

research on horror settings.
the setting in a horror film is sometimes the forgotten object because they are concentrating on perfecting everything else in a film however the setting is very important. with the setting their is so much that has to be right for example the lighting the souroundings have to be perfect for the shot. there are many steriotypical places for a horror film some of these are maybe, a church, the woods, or an open feild this is because they are open places they are maybe dark and dull which adds to the atmoshphere in the movie. we want our settings to be dark and dull the make it more tension and so the audinece knows about the genre of the film. A famous setting for the film Phyco is the famous house and the famous shower scene. these were good choices as the house looked scary when they showed it from the outside also the shower was sourounded by a curtain therefore the female could not see what was coming from around her, also it is an unexpected place for a murder to happen adding to the suspence of the death.

research on sound in horror.

sound in horror is used to add tention for the audience. it is known that 70% of the viewers excitment comes from the sound so it is very important when i do my own horror opening. i researched sounds and thought firstly i would like to use in my horror, some kind of scream or cry for help. this is used to scare the audience as it will sound like someone is in trouble or getting hurt. this is good because you will not have to see whats happening just by the sound the audience will be able to tell that someone is in trouble. this would be diagetic sound however i would like to exagerate it when editing to make it louder and maybe add a echo.

i also thought using tention building music when leading up to a scary part or a murder in the film this is because the music would add tention for the veiwer. this music would be non- diagetic and would be added over the top of the filming. however also silence is a good tention builder as if the veiwer cant here nothing then it makes then think and wonder what is going to happen, then all of a sudden maybe a loud bang will be sounded. this would scare the veiwer as they would not be expecting it, i got this idea from paranormal activity.

title sequence sound. i feel the music over the top of the title sequence is important as if it is a happy jazzy song then it will not give the impression of the film being scary however if it is maybe a slow and creepy tune then the audience will automatically know what type of film it will be. i also thought we could maybe use cringy sounds through out the title sequence for example someone rubbinng the nails along a bath tub, or someone cutting through something i think this would be good as they are sounds many people do not like the hear, they would then gather from this that the film will be something that may not be pleasent.

other sounds i could use on my horror film. i also done research on popular horror films and found that popular uses in a horror film are such sounds as, creeks, bangs, wispers, wind, thunder. i would like to use things like this in my horror film, i think the thunder would be good as horrors are usualy filmed at night and often in the rain therefore the thunder will give the veiwer the idea that it is not a nice night and something bad could happen. i also feel that a creek in a door or on the stairs could be good because it shows something is old and it is typical for a horror film to have this. i feel it is vital that if i do a jumpy horror film that their is a loud bang in it because it scares the veiwer if it is loud and unexpected. i would like to use as many sounds to make my film scary as possible as i feel it plays a big part in a succesful horror film.

research on horror props.

in horror films there is many props used throughout the film to add to the tention and excitment of the film. i found in many horror films they use lots of masks to hide the identity of the killer. this is effective as people will be scared of the mask and will not have any idea of who is behind it. for example in the film scream the mask is used to add to the tention because the mask is plain white with black eyes, nose and mouth this is good because the face would stick in the veiwers head and they would then be scared if they saw it again.

props that are also used a lot are murder weapons. this could range from anything however often a gun of a knife is used. for example in the film phyco the famous shower scene where the female is killed through a violent attack of a knife was effective as it is a slow and violent way of dieing adding horror for the veiwers however a gun is quick and simple with not much blood and is not as effective. also in scream the killer used a knife in all his attacks.

gloves and hoods are also a good horror prop to use because firstly the gloves will cover the killers identity meaning no finger prints are left therefore the police in the film will not have a trace of how to find the killer. hoods are also good because it covers the head of the killer up meaning that you see less of him and then he is more hidden and leaves the viewers feeling confused.

There is no steriotypical murderer in a horror film however when filming my own i would like the antaganist to have the feature mensioned above and would like him to have a hidden identity to make it more mysterious and confusing for the veiwers as they wouldnt know what he looks like.

Production company logos and types of films

i will be researching many different film production logos. this will help me in my horror film as i will have to make my own logo and name my own production company. below their will be research on Dreamworks, paramount pictures,vertigo films, take two productions, retro films, warp-films, universal and 20th century fox.

Dreamworks.
this production logo connotes that they make dreams come true hense the name dreamworks. also with them being up in the clouds maybe shows that they are higher then everyone else and any other production company. also their is a child sitting on the moon this shows that the company makes many childrens films and makes then feel good like they can do anything for example sit on the moon.                 

Paramount pictures.

this logo shows that paramound thinks they are at the top of the mountin, meaning they are better then anyone else. in the background is also shows they are above the clouds meaning they are high and a popular company. they also have a circle of stars around their name this shows maybe how many starts they are rated and with it being a circle it could mean it is never ending, also starts usually represent excellent meaning they are excellent at film production. also the name paramount is powerful is it could mean they are on the top of a mountin.

Vertigo films

this logo is very bland and their is not much detail on the logo this maybe shows they are not the biggest company and they do not make the biggest films. however the writing is black and is on a red background and this maybe shows they show horror and action films. the writing is also block capitals and which also shows is is serious and might not show as many comedys.

Take Two productions
this companys logo looks like it could show old fashoined films as it looks bland also because the image is off a film that is not often used now as CDs and DVDs are more popular, also the name "take two" maybe means it is showing repeats of films and making new versions of films already out on the market. this company is not a very big company and would not come close to paramount pictures ect.

Retro films
the name retro films connotes that is shows old films as retro is mainly thought of in the 1980s period. also the picture is of the top of a clapper board, this maybe shows they are a low budget company that maybe shows films just starting out and trying to be found in the production business. it is simple colours black and white maybe connotes films that are shown in black and white before colour tv's was invented.

Warp film production

this logo shows, in the background an image of what appears to be the earth or the world, therefore connoting they are out of this world and bigger then the earth. also we see the writing is accross a banner which looks like a lightning bolt, this connotes power and presence, this maybe shows that they are a powerful company that shows good films. the colours are black and white to make it stand out.

Universal 

this logo shows that "universal" is a big company. their image a picture of the earth with the background being out of space this connotes that they are out of this world and bigger and better then any other company. their is also a glow used around the earth to make it shine, this makes the earth stand out as the main image. also the font and colour of their name makes it stand out and makes it look important, it is silver and gold also all in block capitals showing that is is worth a lot, like gold and is a big and bold company.

20th century fox
this logo is good and also shows how big and important they are in the industy. firstly the spot lights around their name connotes their importance as if you are in the spot light it usually means you are the main priority. the name is made to look like it is solid gold as the colour is gold and shows an expensive company that makes expensive films. the angle of the shot is a low angle show to make the logo look big and powerful, the name of the company is right in the middle of the screen to show its importance. it is also on a raised platform connoting it is number 1.

1408 title sequence and opening scene analysis

0-14 secs- the opening starts with a plain black screen, with white writing in the centre of the screen. the writing tells us the production company. the black background is used because black connotes danger dark and gloom. the white writing shows up on this and contrasts it.

15-28 secs- two more screens come up with diffrent names on them, therefore the credits are being shown.

29-30 secs- the black background fades into a road, this is an extream long shot so we can see all the souroundings which looks deserted as there is only trees and a big warehouse this shows there is no where to run. there is also heavy rain and thunder this is steriotypical for a horror film as they have used patheticfallacy so the emotion of the film is set straight away. we then have a name of the actor appear on the screen.

31-45 secs- the camrea pans accross the road as the car moves closer. the next actor appears for a short amount of time before the title appears at the same time as the car stops right before the camrea. the title is writen in a white font has been given a shadow effect to make it look ghostly.

46-50 secs- the car then starts to reverse back and then stops at the sign it has missed. this shows us he is confused or lost. there is a high angle shot on the car and this makes the car look small and vaunrible.

50-56 secs- we then see a close up of the male in the car he is holding a map and looks confused, this shows to us he is lost and the area is deserted which means he could be in danger. we also hear on the radio a male voice shout "gates of hell are open" this used negative language and makes the audience feel he is in a dangerous place.

56-1:02 secs- we then see the male hold a tourch out the window to look at a sign post which reads " you are now leaving fairfeild county please come back!" this sign makes us feel that something negative is going to happen if he carries on. the "please come back" makes us feel he might not make it back.

1:02-1:09secs - we see a mid shot again of him looking at the map this shows confusion of where he is heading.

1:09-1:15secs-  the car then turns around and starts to reverse to show us that the driver has gone wrong and needs to turn around. their is then an close up on the car wheel, which gives us the idea that something could go wrong for example he could get a puncher and with him in the middle of no where he would have no one to help and would be stranded.

1:15-1:25secs- we then see the car pulling up at a house, the credits are still appearing on the screen with actors names, there is very low key lighting making the house look scary and like it is a bad place to stay, this is also suggested as the house is sorounded by trees meaning there is no where to go apart from into the trees making us feel he is in the middle of no where.

1:25-1:30secs- we then see a long shot with the male walking across this long bridge. the long bridge shows there is only one way in and out of this house meaning there is not many ways of exit if something horrific happens. we can also see the trees in the background making the lighting very low key which adds to the tension, also the rain has not stopped and is still heavy.

1:30-138secs- we now see a POV shot coming from the bushes, this makes us feel someone is watching him and hiding giving us a sense of mystery, and we feel danger for the male walking into the house. it is still low key lighting however the house we see in the background is well lit and looks like it is a safe place.

1:38-1:52secs- the mise-en-scene changes when he walks into the house. their is a much more safe feeling as the house is very old fashioned and looks safe with home like colours. we also see the male walk straight into the house without knocking meaning it is a open house.

1:52-2:00secs- the camera then turns and we see a male and female standing at the counter. they are elderly and look innocent like nothing could go wrong. this makes us feel safe. we can still tell the house is old because the furniture in the background, this also makes us feel not many people stay at this hotel because they have not changed anything to be more modern. there is a shot reverse shot between the male and the owners and then we here the older male say "you probably want to hear about the haunted history" this then makes us automatically feel the house is now not so safe and that him staying their could end bad.

Results of questionnaire

Horror/thriller film research.

name:........??......................

age:..........??.......................

                              gender:....??........................                              



question	answer
Do you prefer horror or thriller?	horror had 7 people thriller had 3.
How often do you go to the cinema?(on average)	majority voted around once a month.
Do you prefer realistic horror or sci-fi horror (ghosts and aliens)?	4 voted realistic horror 6 people voted sci-fi horror.
What is your favorite film?	1)paranormal activity. 2) Mr beans holiday. 3)over the top. 4)paranormal activity. 5) Shaun of the dead. 6) the hangover. 7)die hard . 8)the expendables. 9)the hills have eyes. 10) see no evil.
What is your favorite genre?	3voted comedy 4 voted action 3 voted horror.
Who is your favorite actor?	1) Samuel L Jackson 2)Brad Pitt 3)Rowan Atkinson  4)jason statham 5) Eddie Murphy 6) Collin firth 7)Rowan Atkinson 8)sylvester Stallone 9) Angelina Jolie 10)Will Ferrell
How much would you spend on a night out at the cinema? (on average)	average replied £20-£30
Do you like deaths in films?	8 replied yes 2 replied no
If you could name a horror film what would it be called?	1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10)

Questionnaire about film habits

Horror/thriller film research.

name:.............................

age:................................

gender:...........................

question	answer
Do you prefer horror or thriller?
How often do you go to the cinema?
Do you prefer realistic horror or sci-fi horror (ghosts and aliens)?
What is your favorite film?
What is your favorite genre?
Who is your favorite actor?
How much would you spend on a night out at the cinema? (on average)
Do you like deaths in films?
If you could name a horror film what would it be called?

10 people will be asked to complete this questionaire and there answers will be recorded this is for my research for films and the things people enjoy.