Titles

- Very Damaged

- Assassins Dub

- Fluoxetine

- Rough Linen

- Project Y

All of the above are titles that my group as possible going to be using, we choose these titles under the influence of other film genre titles font choices. They have all been unique from very plain to extravagant, that is why we chosse the above few because they may be the best for what we are trying to create.

Conventions of a thriller

There are various elements that a thriller possesses. The connotations are mainly suspense, tension and excitement. A thriller tends to get the audience on the edge of their seat because of all the things that are happening withing the film. Most thriller ask for the audience watching to have some intellect because there may be some things that they may not understand, but there are little clues that the film makers give away to help with audience but this also makes them ask question about why certain things within the film are happening.

Brief

The task that I have been set is to make and create an opening sequence for a genre of my choice. The genre I choose to make my opening sequence with is 'thriller', the reason for that is because thriller is one of my favourite types of movies and also it would be a easy topic to make an opening sequence with. mThe poeple I am working with are Jenny Hill and Elenya Grant, they both have quailties that I think are going to be very useful when making our title sequence, such as Jeny acting skill and Elenya artistic over view to the shots in the opening sequence.

Story Board

This is the drawn up version of what the finished opening title sequence will look like.

Script and Casting

Script:

As a whole we chose to have only one line of dialogue at the end of the opening sequence this is because it adds to situation as a whole in addition to this no dialogue also asks the audience more questions and the fact that they are inquisitive would add to the rest of film as the story line progresses, and the line we are using is "don't worry this won't hurt a bit". we choose this because it was simple but affective.

Casting:

Casting we an easy decision because we are using the whole of the people actually making the video and also we are going to get one other person to play the other kidnapper. This is also a good idea to have the other person because he drives which is a big part of the opening sequence.

We choose to use me and the other boy as the two kidnappers, we choose them because this would make the opening sequence seem more realistic; we were pondering using two girl kidnapping a boy but then thought of the realism within that and decided that it wouldn't be believable.



so now we are using one of the girls in our group Jenny Hill, the reason that is because she does drama so the acting will be to at least to a good standard, although Elenya has done acting in school productions before so either one that we uses it would have been a high standard.

Here is some of the costumes that the characters will be using:

Sarah Smith

Kidnappers:

Character description

In our opening sequence, we are only introduced to three character as these are the protagonists of the opening sequence as a whole. The two men are in their early 20'sas they are the more dominant characters. They will be dressed in dark clothes, the reason for this is because dark dull colours represent danger and a mischievous character. They will be wearing labouring clothes such as worker boots and dirty tops so they look the part of a typical building making a trip to B&Q to collect some tools however they are preparing for a kidnap, this is so they blend in the background also they are both tall making them seem over powering.

The victim is going to be 18, we don't know much about this character however she is a typical young student who enjoys going out with her friends. We see her putting makeup on in her room, therefore she cares about her appearance, just like any other teenager growing up. She is dressed for a night out, wearing heals,jeans, a nice top and her hair done up. This shows she clearly isn't aware of the later events. We have sympothy for this character because she has been taken. The audience does not know much about her personality as she is constantly controlled throughout the opening, she has no say in anything but we can see her fear.

Shooting Schedule

Shooting schedule

Date: 23th January 2011
Location: B & Q
Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes

Date: 25th January 2011
Location: House
Duration: 1 hour

Date: 27th January 2011
Location: Long Road
Duration: 30 Minutes

Date: 30th January 2011
Location: Hostage Location
Duration: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

Shooting schedule

List of Props , Costume and Location

Location Research

I thought that this would be a good location to do a thirller film because even though thriller don't have to be dark or scary although this would still be a good. This is because this location would compliment the thriller theme well.

I think location would again compliment thre thriller theme more so than the last, for the reason that this building is an abbondoned warehouse so it could be a good place to hold someone hostage. This paticular location could be used for all themes especially 'Thriller' and it would also marry well with 'Action' also.

Sound

Sound although some times over looked it is a very important part of making a film. There are several reasons for why the backing track in a film helps to make the film better because music helps give an insight to what is going on in the scene and help create emotion amongst the audience. That being said the songs cannot be random because a sound engineer working on a film will put slow mellow music if someone has just died for example the music chosen has to match the contents of the scene are the two should marry together that is why music is such a big part of a film.

For my opening sequence project I am doing a thriller so the music I choose could be a loads of thing as long as it matches what is going on in the scene, and is relevant to the rest of the film because thrillers are seen as being serious films so you couldn't have point less music in your piece. I thought the following would be good choices:

http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=29715

I though this sound would be good because it is a heart beat and it shows the auidence how the actors are feeling when they are waiting for the girl to come out of her hosue so they can kidnapp her.

http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=15824

I thought that this sound would be a good because it becomes more dramatic as it progresses so this givs the impression that the people in the screen are on a mission and they have places to be and things to.

Shot lists

this is just a sheet with three shot that i think i would definitely like to use for my actually opening sequence. The reason in which we chose for a title to appear on a black screen is that from the perspective of inside the boot , when the boot closes it will cut to a black shot to show the darkness inside the boot. The effect of this is very threatening and definate.
The second shot is the establishing shot which shows the audience the setting and gives them an idea of the location in which the film is taking place. Many thrillers take place in everyday locations , the effect of this is that the audience do not expect anything to happen in such a normal, everyday place.
The third shot shows the audience the costume through a close up , also the shot is just a well framed shot , being interesting rather than just showing the audience a mid shot of his whole costume. Another interesting shot is the shot where the camera pans across all of the tools in which the criminals are planning to use during their kidnap. As the camera pans across the tools in which they are going to use become more menacing , making the audience guessing which is going to come next.

Film Synopsis

The film is basicallt about two men that are planning a kidanapping. The story starts off witht the two men walking out of a D.I.Y shop, with materials that opoeple would use to kidnapp someone, put the materials in the boot of their car and drive away to the vitims house. once they spot the unfortunate girl they at ho,me they kidnapp her and take her to their hide out ewhere they are going to keep her. thats where the opening sequence stops but if the story was to continue it thw girl would break free because of the lack of attention from the kidnappers, keep was able to contact someone who could help her and then they break her away although the kidnappers break free; then ther4e is a twist in the fact that the kidnapper become the ones that are running because the girl that was kidnapped was the girl friend of a gangster and he isnt going to stop until he catches the girls kidnappers.

double indemnity( Billy Wilder,1944,US)

How the setting/ location is revealed:

the setting and location is very easy to see, it is night time in a city, the Mise en scene is that you can see street lights on and that it's dark due to the time of day. This is a good setting for a thriller as night and dark places are mysterious and are stereo-typed as dangerous so it has the audience on edge, and also has them wanting more.


Costumes and props:

The man in the opening sequence is wearing a coat and hat which covers which disguises him , the audience don’t get a proper glimpse of him him properly until he is in the office, this makes him seem mysterious and has the audience asking questions about his actions.

Interesting camera work:

There is very well prosecuted and interesting editing of the transition from the opening titles to the opening of the film. The audience can see the silhouette of the man and it has filled up most of the screen and then it fades into the film, this is affective as it makes the man seem important so the audience want to find out who he is and why he is an important character.

Title and font style:

The titles are interesting because they go up over a silhouette of a man on crunches coming towards the screen and the font is very simple although affective, this is affective as it doesn’t reveal too much and is very mysterious which is what you would want from a thriller, the audience start asking questions.

Story - how the opening sets it up:

The scene when the man records what he has done, sets up the story as he reveals that he has killed a man which is important as it's letting the audience know information about the character and gets the audience on edge and asking questions like; 'why did he kill someone?', 'who did he kill?'

Genre-how the opening suggests it:

the opening sequence doesn't give away too much information or clues about the story which keeps the audience interested and wanting to know more, there are lots of shots from behind the main character which make the audience question who he is and why we are following this character, what did he do to become this important in the story.

How characters are introduced:

firstly the man is driving at a rapid speed which gives the audience a glimpse of how he is urgently trying to get somewhere, the audience find out it's a man when he gets out of his care and follow him into a building, waiting to find out what he is doing there and who he is; this in turn keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. The main character is presented as very mysterious his costume covering him and the camera following him from behind.

Sound:

Frantic music playing whilst the car is driving fast makes it seem urgent that the person gets to where they are going as it goes with what we are seeing on the screen. It helps show the genre of the thriller as it makes the audience more interested wanting to know what is going to happen when the person gets to the destination and why it's so important.

Brick(Rian Johnson, 2005, US)

Film Title:

first of all the title of the film is portrayed in a very simple, and it becomes easy to read, although this turns out to be very effective and means alot as well. The simplicity of this means that not to many things are revealed to the audience leaving them with the fear of the unknown. And, it is also meaningful as just before the title comes up we see the hand of a dead body suggesting that the title and that dead body are linked, this in turn asks questions to the audience what is the meaning of the title and the connection the corpse and the title share to the audience. The white writing against a black background, spaced apart gives a very chilling portrayal as white against black isn't seen as a positive tone, but a negative tone, making the audience feel on edge and unsettled.

Setting/Location:

The setting is revealed as a location near a high school, but the first setting we see by a sewer is portrayed as dark, dull and upsetting, which in this shot clashes against everything around it as the sun is shining, its broad daylight and seems like a modern environment. This may baffle the audience because it makes them think how can a murder take place in a highly populated area without being noticed by anyone but this one person. The dark shadows present a cold feeling and as a result the audience feel a state of shock. This means that the film makers were successful with what they were trying to do with the introduction which was to get the audience to ask themselves questions.

Costumes/Props:

All the people you see are wearing modern clothes but I think that the things that are more important are small unnoticeable things like accessories because they could be the key to identifying who is who throughout the film. Also, there was a piece of paper providing the character with a location that he assumed was a meeting point, this prop is vital to linking the boy into the next setting and gives subtle clues as to whats going to happen next, yet, at the same time it makes the audience think deeply about what could happen as they have been kept in the dark so far. Also, the dead body has vibrant clothes on showing that the dead body of the woman was young and vibrant which is ironic because shes now dead in a dingy sewer.

Editing/Camera Work:

An effective shot used is when the boy is at the phone booth talking on the phone when suddenly he begins to looks around, this is achieved by a handheld camera movement in order for it to see natural and to suggest to the audience that he doesn't want to be there. Also at the beginning we see a close up of shoes which fill the whole frame limiting what the audience can see, instantly making them want to see more, drawing them in and making them inquisitive to find out who that person is and why they are there. Another effective shot is the close up of the dead woman's leg which seems to be muddy or dirty, which makes the audience ask why, as she isn't dressed for those kind of activities (she is dressed formally), suggesting she expect to end up the way she did or doing what she did to end up dead. This makes the audience even more suspicious as to whats going on and this sense of suspicion is increased by them not being able to see what the dead woman's face looks like keeping her mysterious. We then see a extreme close up of a cigarette that was dropped by another un seen character, with the boy in front of it we see an arrow pointing to the boy, suggesting that there is a link between the cigarette and boy giving the audience a clue in to whats going to happen next but not revealing anything else, building the suspense and tension.

How The Opening Sequence Sets Up The Story:

The opening sequence sets up the story by providing the audience with very subtle clues about whats going to happen but not revealing any solid evidence that leads straight to the answers the audience are looking for making them want to watch more, keeping them on edge and engrossed in the film. It also sets up the story to be very calculated because all the clues that have been given so far have been physcological meaning that mental games are being played rather than just brutal attacks as were used to seeing.

Genre:

The genre is thriller and the opening sequence suggests this by keeping the audience in the dark, tense music, mysterious characters and a murder or death, all this keeps the audience constantly thinking and complies with the stereotypical conventions of a thriller, therefor making it a successful film.

initial ideas continued

There are certain shot in the a film called 'The disappearance of Alice Creed' and there are certain shot that I liked that i would like to use in my own opening sequence, for example a shot of the two kidnappers putting their kidnapping tools on the floor.

I think this is a very interesting shot because it gives the audience and idea of what the kidnapping is going to be like and what things thy my or may not do to the girl.

I also liked the idea of using a vehicle to carry the victim and also to carry the kidnapping equipment. So we are going to use a shot of the men walking in a car park with the tools in their hand similar to one below.

If you picture two men walking down the car park road then that would be we what we plan to do.

We also plan on doing a shot of the kidnappers in the car getting ready to kidnap the girl from her house but we are plan to do a lot of shot from this part of the scene and we may decide to use a shot similar to this. We just want to slightly mimic some of the shots, but we are going to add different things like many shots of the kidnappers and the innocent girl getting ready in her house.

initial ideas

Wallander (McCormack, 2008, UK)

Title of the film

For the opening sequence of Wallander we do not see any titles because it is not necessarily a film, its a show on the telly which was originally set abroad. The setting is revealed by the helicopter flying over and showing just the ocean, and then it shows the land where the two main characters are. At first the characters are shown as little figures, almost looking at ants, and then it slowly zooms into them walking away from a taxi.

How the setting/ location is revealed

The establishing shot pans over the sea onto land and shows the car and the two girls walking, this is typical of a thriller as it ges the audience asking questions such as; 'whats just happened?' and 'why are they in the middle of nowhere?' This shot also reveals to the audience that the characters are in quite a deserted place and when they see the next shot of the injured man and then the girls walking away it indicates that the man will quite possibly die as it would be a very small chance that he will be found quickly.

Costumes and props

We only see costuming of the two girls as they walk away from the cab. One of them is dressed in a very gothic style, with a leather jacket, jeans, and we see is covered in blood holding a knife. The other is also dressed in black but is just casual, with a jumper. This is effective because the colour black can help represent that the two dark characters.

Interesting camera work

There is lots and lots of interesting camera work used in this opening sequence as it is very modern. Firstly there is an establishing shot of the whole setting so that the viewers are subtly introduced into where the opening sequence is set. Then it cuts to an over the shoulder shot behind the two girls walking away from the cab, because of the way the shot is angled you cannot see that the girl is covered in blood, you can only see that she is walking away, but the hyperbolic sound of footprints makes the girls seem like they are walking away frantically from something. They are not saying anything as they walk which also means that they could be in the wrong and makes them suspicious because they are leaving a dead man in a car, and don't even seem bothered. There is then a shot taken from inside the car which shows the two girls walking away from a blood spattered car with a dead man in, because you can actually see the girls walking away carelessly it shows that they are something to do with the murder.

Title and font style

White, large capitals which stand out which make them look important, maybe like a warning and they are also really simple and don't give away too much information which keeps the audience interested and want to carry on watching to learn more.

Story

The story is kept very secret to an audience member. All we understand from this opening sequence is that there is a cab driver who has been severely beaten by two girls, and later we see one of them drop a knife which then the viewer immediately understand that this driver has been stabbed during this assult. This does what any successful title sequence does, which is leave the audience asking questions, such as, why have they stabbed him?, what did he do to motivate this?, who are these two girls?, why did they do this?

Genre
It is clear that it is a thriller because we are kept asking questions as to why this event has happened, but also we have seen that there has been a murder which is iften incorporated in most thrillers. It also leave's questions being asked and having a lot of tension which most thrillers do.

Characters that are introduced

The two girls are introduced first, but much like most thriller movies and sticking to the conventions of a thriller, their faces are hidden and we only see the back of them for a short while. This is key to a thriller movie because it leaves the audience wanting to see more. When you see the faces of the girls they immediately look rebellious and look like they are trouble, your typical troublesome youth, also because they are in an empty area they look more suspicious because they can get away with anything as there is no one around to see. When the mans face is revealed it is clear that he was brutally attacked by the two girls and because the girls are covered in blood they also look dangerous.
By having one of the women in focus and the other out of focus it creates this effect on the viewer that one of the girls is more important in the film. This is very effective because without saying anything they have represented one of the girls as having more power over the other.

Memento(Christopher Nolan, US, 2000)

Title of the film

The audience can firstly tell that this video is a thriller before they even get to see any action with the credits. The film makers do this by using the colour Blue to show the title of the film. This indicates in itself that this is a thriller because the colour blue is normally associated with thriller film just as dull colours like black and grey are to horror. The film makers most likely done this to ell the audience that this is a thriller so the audience knows what it is in for.

Setting / Location

The audience can see that the setting an location for the film is in a bath room type place they know this because on the picture that is fist shown they can see white tiles which are normally found in areas like a bath room for example. They may have set the introduction in a bathroom because they wanted the audience to ask them selves questions about what is happening, what has happened and what is going to happen.

Costumes / props

The only prop that is used this Memento is the man standing there holding a Polaroid of someone that has just been shot for most of the opening title sequence. This was deliberately done to the audience so they would start to ask them selves question about the events that have take place there and so that the audience would try to puzzle things together. Although this Polaroid is a very relevant one because the next scene revolves around this picture which reveals how the man got there with that picture.

Interesting camera work and editing

One of the interesting pieces of editing is the way the film makers have done everything in reverse. The audience may not have seen it first of all but the Polaroid degrades in the amount that it has progressed into becoming a picture and the film makers continue this in the next scene. Once the picture starts the degrading they may come under the assumption that they are about to find out how the man got that picture in his hand and also hat happen to man in the picture.

Title and font style

The title was a very plain title. The things that it has that is normal things such as the title is bigger than the rest of the there credits to firstly indicate that is the title and probably the most important thing but it is also in the colour blue which is again to show that the film is thriller.

Story – and how the opening sequence sets up the story

The story is begging to be set up toward the end of the opening title sequence. When know this because the Polaroid begins to start degrading in the amount it has set which gives an indication to the audience that they are about to find out the event that took place and then the story for the rest of the film builds there.

Genre

One of the way that the audience can tell that it is a thriller film is because firstly the titles are in the colour blue which is a commonly used colour for opening credit is thriller films. Also thrillers tend to get the audience asking a lot of questions and the Polaroid again gets the audience asking a lot of questions about what is going on in the film.

How any characters are introduced?

There are not really any character introduced because all the audience can see for the whole introduction is the man holding the Polaroid this in it self isn’t really enough to say that the man has been introduced because you can only see his hand and that is all the information about the man himself.

Analysis of Memento(Christopher Nolan, US, 2000)

The audience can see that this is a thriller film they know this because of certain thing that the people who made the film done with cinematography, mise en scene, sound and editing. The job of an opening sequence would to keep the audience interest and give away slight hints to the rest of the story, without giving away too much that would ruin the film.

One of the first thing that you get to see in the film is the Mise En scene and how clever the film makers were with this. You can tell it is a thriller because the colour of the first credits with the distributers name on it is blue which is the colour normally associated with thriller films. Also They decide to start the film off with a man holding a picture of somebody that has been shot, they do this so the audience would start to ask them selves question about the events that have take place there and so that the audience would try to puzzle things together, this is also an indication also that this is a thriller film because they do that a lot and most thrillers often get your heart rate up but at simultaneously ask the audience questions at the same time.


The other technique used to indicate that this is a Thriller film is sound although there are not any way to show how sound played a part in making this a thriller it did. The way in which they done that was they played a very slow mellow type of music with what I think may be violin, to create a pathos within the scene so the audience being to think and fell sorry for the man lying on the floor shoot to death. The music has a very big impact on what is happening in the story and how the audience feel about it. They also use cinematography to indicate that this again is a thriller. They do this by having a close up on the picture and the mans hand they use this as a hint to show the audience and so that the audience would ask themselves questions, this is a common connotation in most thriller is sometimes intellectually demanding which is why they are mostly rated 15 and above. Close ups are not individual to thrillers they are also sometimes used in other genres of film also again to give away hints to the rest of the story.


Lastly also use editing to show that this is a thriller. As I said earlier the job of an opening sequence would to keep the audience interest and give away slight hints to the rest of the story, without giving away too much that would ruin the film, and the editing does that by reversing the film itself so then that help the audience to know that there is story building up here and also that they are about to find out what happened to the man for him to be holding that picture and also what happened to the man in the picture as well

Questionaire

Q1: What is your gender?
Female: Male: (please tick)

Q2: What is you age?
Age:

Q3a: What is your favourite Type of film?
Please rank from 1-5. 1= most favourite 5= Least favourite
Thriller: Action: Romantic: Horror: Science fiction:

Q3b: Please state why you have picked that type:
(please give three reasons)

Q4: Would you like to see two types of films join together?
(For example Action and Comedy)
(Please tick)
Yes: Sometimes:
No: Only for certain films:

Q5: Which setting would you prefer to see a thriller?
(Please circle)
Grave yard Crime Scene Investigation Foreign country Ghostly house

Q6: What is your most preferred type of film?
(please tick)
Action Thriller Syfy Horror Romantic comedy
Comedy

Psycho IV: The beggining (Mick Garris, 1990, US)

The title of the film:

The title of the film when it is shown it is just in black although I progresses in time when it splits into two with a crack affect on the writing and also it turns red then the beginning comes up underneath the progressed writing. The titles size is bigger than the rest of the credits in the opening title so this could be and also the fact that it changes could be a sign that the film may changes as well and that there may be blood spilt.

How the setting/ location is revealed

The setting and location is had to tell because there are only close ups of everything so it would hard to get because the close ups may be seen to the audience as clues to what is about to happen and what the title sequence is about. It could be one a two places a man in hi kitchen cooking a cake or maybe a man at a radio station recording. This is probably representative of the life of the two main protagonist and there separate lives we may get to see how they intertwine later in the film.

Costumes and Props

The are various different props EG main using a knife which is relevant to the film but there are different things that may leave the audience confused like what the making food in the kitchen has to do with a radio station but the audience may be under the assumption that all will be revealed later in the film.

Interesting camera work / Editing

The camera work throughout the title sequence is extremely interesting because there are only close Ups throughout the title sequence this could be seen as clues for the rest of the film.

Title and font style

The Title is the largest font and it cracks and splits in half then turns red maybe that is representative of what may happen later on in the film.

Story – and how the opening sets up the story

The opening title sequence raises a lot of questions because you see the man cooking and the man at the radio station. The audience would try to piece the two together but because the shots are all close ups it is like and investigation of clues for the audience to work out.

Genre

We know the genre is thriller because of one thing which title ‘Psycho IV’ This would tell the audience that the film is a thriller because of the meaning of psycho. Also because of certain things through out the title sequence that the man is doing like Cutting and oranghe this could be seen as cutting a human.

How any characters are introduced?

The are not really any character introduced because you never actually get to see a whole person only little glimpses of the people so no one is really introduced although we see people in the opening sequence.

Special shot

One of the shots tthat stuck out for me was the shots of the red stuff going down the sink which may have been blood but the audience wouldn’t be able to if it was or not.