Planning- character representation (Miss Heath)

Our thriller narrative is an extreme cult that sacrifice humans as part of a ritual. Character representation is important in communicating the story clearly, Our main protagonist is a young female who seems innocent and the type of person the audience will empathise with, also allowing our target audience to relate to the ages of  16-30 year olds the she is an 18 year old who is a victim to this horrific ordeal. The antagonist is a group who abduct innocent, weak and vulnerable people. They are built males giving the impression that they are capable of doing harm and are scary figures in the film.

hygerta played the helpless victim murder in a what she though a random act of violence she is tracked and monitored by the group of antagonist keeping a tab on her actions. She wonders home after a night on the town. After binge drinking and partying she makes a last stop for a fizzy drink oblivious to the drink being swapped and spiked she chugs it down and falls unconscious and carried away by the antagonists. The audience feel sorry for her as it is unclear to why she's been abducted other than she's had a little much to drink and had a good time. Our thriller is created conventionally with the use of having the stereotypes of women being the victim and being the helpless and defenceless protagonist. hygerta is also an attractive girl who will make the film nicer to watch making the audience pay attention to what is going on on-screen.

The antagonists whose identity is never revealed in the opening their goal is to sacrifice humans who mistreat luxuries and that are weak and offer them as a tribute through a secret ritual. Myself and Onat are conventionally  male who are physically bigger and stronger. We use our bodies to represent the antagonist character we need too also using the conventional black attire to intimidate our victim also making the audience fear for the protagonists safety. Onat and myself stalk and monitor donna keeping tabs on what she is doing and prepare an attack against her. We are seen doing this in a series of locations and in an area usually higher than hers creating a more dominant look. Throughout the thriller we see them dressed in all black clothing representing evil and also hoods hiding there identity which plays a huge part in the narrative of the story. It is important that we did this because the effect of a hidden identity on the audience places them in an uncomfortable position which is where our thriller would like our audience to be.

Analysing each character an looking at each trait carefully alowed me to understand and appreciate how the audience perciev  the characters. aving believable and engaing charcters is important in making the feel of the film desirable.for that is what is needed to draw out the feeling of escapism.

Research-Questionnaire and results (Ms Gibbings)

Questionnaire and results

in order to produce a thriller appealing to the audience we made up a questionnaire for the general public to answer and give feed back which will then be contributing factors to creating our thrillers. Doing this will make our thriller as enjoyable as possible. 

 

 

 

These charts allow us to identify our ideal target audience and cater to what will appeal to them also establish our age certificate our thriller will be

 

this research is benificial to our project as it will enable us to create a conventional and effective thriller

Post- Production: Audience Feedback (Miss Begum)

Audience feedback is valuable in understanding how effective our thriller film was to our target audience. Knowing if the thriller appealed to them is an indication of whether the thriller held generic conventions as they would appeal to the target audience.

Before filming my thriller we as a group carried out external research and obtained audience feedback through the use of questionnaires. This allowed us to identify and implement conventions that would appeal to our target audience creating a successful thriller due to the opinions of what they say they want to see which will make a appealing thriller.

the final feedback i got was from a focus group of people aged 15 - 25. The screening was to these people as this would be my target audience and would be beneficial to creating an effective and conventional media product that being our thriller 'The Ritual'. Having this focus group was also beneficial as we discovered what went well and what could be improved for the future

Positive comments

Yasmin aged 17 said "I really enjoyed it the lighting was conventional to the thriller ad effectively created a mysterious and tense atmosphere"

This comment was useful as we established what we did well and allowed us to realise the success of our thriller.

Jamie aged 18 mentioned "The soundtrack was effective as it made me feel on edge and out of place due to its eerie feel and sudden sounds shocking me"

This was beneficial as we know now that our aim with the sound track was successfully achieved and in fact complimented our thriller

Sophina aged 22 said "Overall i really enjoyed it the fluidity of the editing really helped the production and appealed most visually with the outstanding iconography and setting used"

With this we know our target audience found our media thriller exciting and was conventional due to the target audience’s response to the on screen narrative.

Constructive comments

Joe age 16 said "The camera shots could have been better with a wider use of angles and movements"

Using more angles and movements could improve how the audience receives the information on screen and increase and evoke responses from the audience.

William aged 24 said "the narrative structure could be a little clearer as it proved confusing at times"

A clear narrative is important as the audience will be able to make sense of whats going on and be able to enjoy the production to its fullest.

Charley aged 18 said "The use of costume was limited however it worked well in some places"

The victim did not have a huge change in outfit but as she was abducted it made sense for her to keep the conventional white colours but look like she has been roughed up.

After receiving feedback from my target audience I do believe I have created an exciting conventional thriller film. I think this because the audience responses matched my goals, and also agreed with what we were trying to convey.

In conclusion the fact that our media product has been a success it means that we now know how to cater to our desired target audience and will allow us to improve and work more efficiently in future. This also benefited our film company as we know what makes a good conventional genre specific film.

 

Post-production: Soundtrack of the thriller production (Miss Begum)

A soundtrack in a thriller is important in a thriller as it is used to reflect the content on screen and manipulate how we process the on screen story varying  the responses given back from the audience. the conventional responses from an audience when watching a thriller film is anxiety tension and the sense of feeling nervous. a soundtrack can be used to create these feelings complementing whats on screen. visual as well as aural stimuli would stimulate these feelings.

My soundtrack consisted of a slow paced melody that gradually built up in tempo building suspense and tension creating an eerie atmosphere. this is conventional to a thriller also as the atmosphere felt errie it made the audience feel tense and on edge. the build up created responses from the audience as they would begin questioning what was going on and anticipate whats going to happen next.

In producing the soundtrack to my thriller we used a programme called garage band allowing us to create sound to compliment our thriller movie. garage band allowed us to select different instruments to create the ideal effect for our thriller like the sounds of a church organ or high pitch guitar rifts.

 

 

 



My groups soundtrack was influence from a number of popular films such as 'Se7en' the distorting sounds definitely had an impact on how we shocked the audience and created mystery. An example of this was a flashing image appearing and a sound effect to startle the audience amplifying the surprise. Also 'The Exorcist' was an influence to us as the slow tempo and eerie feel it gave off was similar to what we have created. these films definitely helped create the feel of a confusing religious thriller.

Being able to create the soundtrack and effectively create the on screen thriller and have them compliment each other and go hand in hand was good. The ideal atmosphere we were looking for i believe was successfully done and evoked our desired audience responses.

Overall the soundtrack was a success as we created our desired atmosphere and produced a soundtrack that would evoke emotion from the audience.



Planning: My Storyboard (Ms Begum)

before my group began to film a storyboard was drawn up to act as a basis and guideline to what we would film and what our shots will turn out an look like. Creating a storyboard before filming is useful and important as the crew and actors know what micro elements need to be used in certain scenes and how the narrative would unfold.

creating this storyboard allowed me to identify and emphasise what needs to be done in terms of micro elements an narrative to ensure a conventional and exciting thriller.

Planning: Pre-production paperwork (Miss Begum)

 

the production schedule is a useful sheet allowing the crew to be aware of where when and what we are doing and also who needs to be there. it is helpful in organizing what needs to be done and will increase productivity due to a carefully planned out task.

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the client release and consent form is important in getting the media crew together to effiecently create the media product this will also enable us to use actors and create a thriller to our full potential.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

this is the formgives the rights for the actors and crew to film in the owners location. it covers them for any damage to the location that may occur it will inform the owner of what will be happeninmg on the site for the time. 

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Planning: Production roles (Miss Heath)

 

Production roles are important in creating our thriller as this allows us to divide up duty of creating the film. Having certain roles will allow us to efficiently produce a film with specialists working on parts of the film. the roles of producing our film is broken down into 7 parts and will be distributed between 4 of us however 3 of us will have 2 roles and 1 will have just 1 role.

Film Director - Jasmine Swaby, Jessica Dodson, Kay Gbadamosi & Onat Hasip

Directing the film can only be done with input from all the crew and will effectively improve the end product due to the divided effort put in by the entire crew. The story comes from all of us making it only right that we all devise and put it together

camera operator -Jessica Dodson

The camera operator will be Jessica as she is talented with a camera and has good knowledge of shots angles camera effects and how the camera works. She will be able to effectively portrait a scene with the use of shots and is able to take ideas and use initiative to make a shot better.

Actors - Kay Gbadamosi (Me) Onat Hasip & Hygerta

I currently study A2 Drama and have experience in this field and will enable me to perform in the desired manner to effectively depict our thriller.

Location Manager - Onat Hasip

Onat is the ideal man for the job as he has great ideas as to where to base the thriller and is extremely skilled in organising time to use the location

Sound technician - Jessica Dodson & jasmine Swaby

This duty is best suited by Jessica as she has a high interest in music and sound as a whole she is capable of producing sounds that will evoke the desired emotions we need in our thriller.

Storyboard Manager- jasmine Swaby

Jasmine will be able to handle the large task of storyboard manager as she has the art skills enabling her to create an easy to follow and accurate storyboard.

Planning our thriller was made effective and efficiently due to the dividing up of the work. This allowed the creation of the thriller to flow easy and make the best possible thriller our abilities would allow us to. On the whole this will improve the end product as we have a team who specialise in a section and making it 100%

 

Planning: Sound in my thriller (Miss Begum)

Planning: Sound in my thriller (Miss Begum)

sound in significant the production of a thriller as it is a micro element that can be used to make the genre of a film obvious and create the desired atmosphere amplifying the mood. sound gives the audience a sense of what is happening and sets the scene for them, and that is why it is extremely important when using sound in creating our thriller so we evoke the desired emotions out of the audience.

sounds can be used to create tension adrenaline and amplify certain emotions. in creating the atmosphere through sound for a thriller it would be conventional to use

• contrapuntal sounds to confuse the audience when making a psychological thriller. for example having a up beat piece of music whilst a character is dying.
• diegetic sound is commonly used to create a realistic atmosphere for example having an old radio play while a stalking scene under low key lighting will be effective in a thriller
• off screen sound in a slasher thriller to divert attention and quickly throw the audience off guard and scare them.

The sounds in the production process of my thriller would be:

• non diegetic sound will be used in the beginning in the opening credits where we will have playing a backing track to enhance the mood. as the names of cast and crew come up the audience will have there minds prepare for the thriller.
• diegetic sound will be used in our thriller where we begin the preparations for the rituals where the equipment is being sorted out. this effect should create a realistic and Eary atmosphere for the scene
• Off screen sound will be used in the thriller when the camera is focused on the victim and  footsteps are in the background and a door is slammed. this will all build the atmosphere and tension around the scene.
• On screen sound will be used in a close up of footsteps along the street will be used highlighting the stalkers. the audience will respond to this with a build up of tension and fear for the oblivious female victim.
• The use of parallel sound will be used to set the scene and create a realistic atmosphere. this will be done when the protagonist is walking through the park and there is natural noises of the outside world for example light chatter kids playing and birds chirping. 
• diegetic sound will be used when the antagonist wakes up and is dazed and confused to the scenario she has found herself in the heavy breathing and groans will make the audience understand her feelings

Research: Narrative Ideas (Miss Hawkins)

Narrative

Narrative- is the structure of how a story is told in order for the audience to make sense of what is happening. from previous events in the story the viewer is able to make sense and construct in our mind the story itself, seeing a beginning middle and end.

Fairy tale structure

the typical structure of a fairy tale would be. damsel in distress -------> hero emerges -------> hero tries to save damsel -------> hero is deterred from doing so -------> hero overcomes problem -------> hero saves damsel -------> hero and damsel live happily ever after.

Vladimir Propp was a russian critic who was deeply interested in folk tales and their structures. he published a book on folk tales and there narratives. He noticed that the folk tales were very similar in many aspects. For example they were based around similar characters and their problems. he identified these characters and actions as 'Narratve functions'
The functions of characters this theory included was:

• The Hero- The protagonist that seeks something
• The Villain- The antagonist trying to deter the Hero
• The Donor- The character that supplies magical items
• The Dispatcher- the character that sends the hero on their quest through message
• The False Hero- Gets in the way of the Heroes through making false claims
• The Helper- The character who aids and helps the Hero
• The Princess- The damsel in distress which acts as  reward for the Hero and object of the villains plan
• Her Father- The rewarder to the Hero  for their efforts

10 points of a folk tale story:

1. Hero arrives in town
2. Hero sees the Princess (the Prize)
3. Her Father does not like Hero
4. Villain sees the Princess and plans his kidnap
5. The princess is kidnapped 
6. the Dispatcher messages the Hero by orders of the Farther
7. The donor supplies the Hero for his mission
8. The false Hero attempts to stop the Hero
9. The Hero overcomes all odds and rescues the Princess
10. The Farther finally rewards the Hero with the princess  and live happily ever after

problems with this theory like a lot of of theories is that it does not apply to all fairy tales but maybe the majority of old folk tales but still has exceptions to this theory none the less. this theory when established was very male orientated making the hero male, thus making this theory able to be applied to folk tales with female Heroes. this theory applies to old fairy tales like beauty and the beast and modern films like shrek.

Tzvetan Todorov also was involved with the narrative theory only that he simplified it whilst making the theory more complex with his interpretation of film texts and their equilibrium and disequilibrium.  this theory of equilibrium and disequilibrium is that in the beginning the fictional environment starts with everything being ok (equilibrium) then some sort of problem arises causing a disruption (disequilibrium) and then finally returning to equilibrium in the end.

Arisotle was a philosopher tat believed that a story can teach us a life lesson if percieved in the right way and basis his theories on themes of a film. for example one distinctive theme that would also be useful in creating our thriller would be 'character goal' having our antagonists goal to capture and sacrifice her to what they believe is a hiher cause sending the life message that achieving your goal should be above everything else even if they are dark and corrupt.

Research: setting (Miss Heath)

Settings

Setting is an element of mise en scene that is made up of 4 other elements which are based on the set. Setting is important to highlight the the genre and complementing the genric convention at the same time. the scenes setting is important in creating the right atmosphere in illustrating the story and message.

The film romeo and juliet (1968 version) is a period drama and in this scene is set in and around an old castle. the historic monument, places the audience in the time and allows them to relate to the culture. the settings are important in making the scenes believable. as a believable setting alows the audience to take in all the information.

Using a posh hotel in a movie as a base will signify that the chacters may be dealing with wealthy  people or even havig the antagonists lair/hideout in a manson will punctuate their wealth and make the audience fear and look up to them for he may have unlimited resources.



The battle takes place in a wealthy looking tower, owned by the enemy. The fact that the building is owned by the enemy emphasizes the bravery of the daring protagonist. Also the building being a wealthy one makes the battle more interesting as the enemy may have the money to by powerful resources of defence. All the contributing factors of setting, are why the audience will question and fear for Prestons’ safety.  

In reseaching setting in films i found by watching a variety of thrillers that conventionally mysterious place are used where the audience is left baffled and left in a state of where they feel helpless. this has inspired me to use locations where it is dark and the audience wont be able to distinguish a clear location and make them feel lost and disorientated.

The dark room is conventional to a thriller and would be an ideal location for setting my own film as the minimal lighting will create an earry feel, and set an atmospher that will make the audience on edge evoking emotions of tension and fear.

This research is useful in helping identify conventions for my own thriller in terms of location and the importance of location and setting.

Planning: Preliminary task (Miss Begum)

The Preliminary task was done for the purpose of experimenting and getting to grips with the equipment. how the camera operates and different shots we were capable of taking, also to find out who is best suited for the jobs of editor and camera operator

we decided on an idea of a character being on the run and hiding as it allowed us to use a variety of angles and shots and the tempo and speed of action could be changed as this scenario is common in the thriller genre and will be helpful in when we create our final thriller
                                                                                                 

                            

High angle                                                  point of view                                     pan shot

When selecting production roles we found that I would be a definite actor as I have experience in the particular field and are capable of portraying the desired role. I will also take and the role of editor although the editing will be divided up between me and onat other roles we found due to this task was camera lady. we established that Jessica was best skilled with the camera and possessed the skill needed to take on this role.

creating this task was helpful towards our group as it allowed us to establish a few of the best roles for creating our thriller. we also discovered what angles movents and shot sizes worked well and what didnt work so well. also the task gaves us all a chance to attempt what we will specialise in allowing us to get a head start on working together to creating a magnificent and effective thriller

                      





  

Research: Costume (Miss Heath)

Costume

 

 

Costume in a film is used for establishing characters whether it be hero, villain, upper class, lower class or victim. Costume is used to represent this and make the character easier to read and determine what there goals are. it is also used to determine what genre the film is for example having old victorian dresse will mean it is a period film and characters wearing combat uniforms could mean action or war.

 

The character luke skywalker from the film Star Wars wears a loose fitted shirt with utility belt with white trousers and combat boots. this typicall means that the genre of the film is action sci fi due to his gadgets on utility belt loose fitting clothes meaning he needs to be nimble for a fight. Also the fact that he is wearing white represents him being a hero.

 

 

 

 

  The mysterious ghost faced killer from Scream wears a black hooded cloack with a mask hideing his identity along with gloves and black boots. not only is the black colour of his costume conventional to thrillers he is also in a cloak representing the thrilling figure of a ghost.

Officer John Mcclane wears a rough white open shirt with white vest that represent good and a hero also combat trousers this represent a strong protaganist character that is ready for action he also has a LAPD badge on a chain around his neck signifying he is an officer of the law and holds authority and power. The audience respond to his costume as a reflection of hiss attitude a rugged cop who is capable of handaling difficult situations.








Costume in this scene is conventional to its genres stereotype as the audience witness their protagonist wearing an all-white suit white shoes and white gloves. White represents good and purity so this automatically makes the audience take Preston side due to the conventional outfit. The antagonists who fight Preston however are all dressed in black leather whereas the lead antagonist in the large room wears an all-black suit with black shoes. This clearly represents how the antagonist and protagonist are opposites and are enemies.  The use of suits and leather represents wealth and uniform. This information is received by the audience, making the narrative easy to follow. When the audience see white, they associate Preston with a saviour figure in constant to the antagonists black uniform which they associate with evil.

Planning: Cinematography (Miss Begum)

Cinematography is important in films because as a variety of shots make up interesting an effective scenes I believe it is important to think about the cinematography, especially in thriller films because and using a certain type of camera shot or camera movement can make the scene all the more thrilling for the audience the difference between having a low angle making the protagonist seem dominant and a high angle making the protagonist seem weak makes all the difference in creating the desired response from the audience of  fear for the weak protagonist or joy for the strong accomplished protagonist.

Some of the conventional uses of cinematography in thrillers are made up of shot sizes for example close ups camera angles like low angles and movement like pan shots.

a close up shot is conventional to thrillers as they can be used to capture all the detail on the faces on a victim in agonising pain or being petrified.
the low angle can also be used in the same way to represent strength and uneven dominance used to evoke the emotion from the audience of fear for anyone that will have to face them.
a pan shot can be used to capture all of one movement it shows all the detail in that movement and may reveal important information.

The cinematography I plan to use in my thriller consists of the following:

1. Close-up will be used when we introduce our main character as we have a close up shot to shot the confusion  and fear on her face we used this shot as its both conventional and effective hoping to evoke a balance of confusion and concern from the audience.

2. A high angle shot will also be used to assert the dominance of the antagonists over the protagonist while she is laid on the table looking up at the the villains tied up. the response we hope the audience will have will be fear for the victims safety.

3.establishing shot displaying the area setting the scene and creating an atmosphere. the establishing shot will be of the boarded up house making the house seem abandoned and secluded.

4. A long shot will be used when our antagonist is at her table and in the background have her stalkers watching her in secret the shot Will make her look defenceless clueless and oblivious.

5. Pan shot will be effectively used in our thriller to keep track of the action and display the area and how unsafe and vulnerable she is capturing all her nervous steps highlighting her body language as she walks through the bare park.

6. Zoom shot will be used to highlight the claustrophobic atmosphere the innocent protagonist is feeling when she is cornered by the villains. this will show her fear and show detailed emotion on her face

7. A mid shot will be used in the making of a thriller to show the antagonists huddled and planning on the helpless protagonist well being. the mid shot will make the audience feel apart of the scene as the view would be the size they would get in that situation.

Research: body language and facial expressions (miss Heath)

Body language and facial expressions  is one element from mise en scene made up of 5 different aspects. body language and facial expressions are used to show the emotions and the type of character is. This can be shown through a variety of methods for example an open body posture shows that the character is welcoming and friendly and a scared facial expression can represent fear.

Body language

The use of body language is key in punctuating a genre and sub genre: for example:

martial arts action

The protagonist Bruce lee has a well toned lean and strong body, leading the audience to believe that he is capable of fighting a lot of battle that will come his way. he is also in a stance that enhances the feeling of power as he looks ready for a fight.

Action Adventure Crime

The protagonist in Sherlock Holmes holds a stance where he seams confident and calm, the traits an audience expect from an investigator and makes the genre clear. his hands in his pockets also represent his care free nature and makes the audience question if he is the man for the job.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Thriller drama

fantine in les miserables is sitting alone with her hands between her legs with a hunched back. Her closed posture shows that she is unhappy and portrait a little extra information about her feelings. the audience see this and feel sympathy towards her.

 

 

 

facial expressions

The use of facial expression in film is important for when a characters feelings need to be shown without dialogue, examples of this is:

 

Action sci-fi

 The hero of this film "The Terminator" has a very stern and macho facial expression. he appears focused with his jaws clenched and no smile he looks aggressive and as though he is on a mission.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crime Thriller

Antagonist the joker from the dark knight is a sociopath with a sadistic look on dis face which imply he has evil and wicked intent on his mind, this is inferred from his cheeky and disturbing smile and gaze. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Horror

Jason fro Friday the 13th wears a mask hiding all facial features and identity. this makes the audience feel like this psycho murderer can kill without flinching showing no emotion. his piercing gaze adds to his terrifying persona.

 

 

 

 

 

Equilibrium analysis

The facial expressions of the protagonist are especially important as his face is exposed, whilst the villains wear tinted helmets hiding all facial expressions. This creates a sense of mystery around the villains leading the audience to question if the enemies are simply emotionless machines that do not have any remorse or emotions, thus making Preston stand out as the audience can relate to and respond to his emotions. His facial expressions reveal a message of determination and seriousness. The audience are given a glimpse of this just before he begins his attack as he composes himself, which the audience respond to with excitement and nail biting nervousness due to the velocity of the situation. The body language in the scene displays that all of the villains have the same intent. This is because all of the characters are specially trained officers who are in combat and are prepared for an attack with high performance, agility and power. Preston has also been trained in the same way, so he shares similar body language. For the audience witnessing this allows them to infer that the showdown will be epic due to him fighting men who are on his physical level. This increases the audiences concern for his safety as each solider is a reflection of his own physical ability.