Final Film

Evaluation Question 7

Question 7: Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product? 

My film making skills have developed and become a lot more advanced since the preliminary task. The only advanced shot we used in the preliminary task was the match on action shot of the character pulling the door handle and walking out of the door. Other than that the shots and transitions we used were very basic and often looked unrealistic. In the preliminary task we managed to include sound and titles however these were all very basic and at times looked amateur. Compared to the preliminary task, I believe that the sound and titles I used were much more effective and realistic. I believe my sound fit in quite well and gave the correct mood I wanted it to. My titles were planned out and were much more advanced than in the preliminary film we created.

The preliminary task helped to show me the basics of Final Cut and Live Type. It allowed me to play around with music and titles and gave me a chance to experiment. The titles used in my preliminary task only appear on a black background, where as the titles in my final film appear both on a black background and over shots. The skill of placing titles over shots is one I developed during the course of making my film. Also in my preliminary task I had one sound playing at a time, however in my final film I had a main background soundtrack which lasted for almost the whole of my film, and then I placed other sounds over the top of this soundtrack to emphasis the tension in certain places. I didn't know how to have more than one sound playing at the same time in the preliminary task, but I learned how to use this skill for my final film.

The background sound in the preliminary task is too loud and it is very distracting. I think it would have been better if we would've cut lots if not all of the background sound out so the audience weren't getting distracted by the loud noises. For example, the door slams very loudly when the characters are talking and it is hard to focus on the dialogue. In my final film I thought the background sound ruined the effect I wanted to create. The sound of the wind was too overpowering and I felt it would have ruined the build up of suspense that I was aiming for. Therefore I decided to cut out all of the background sound from my final film, I think this worked well and improved the quality. Another thing that varies between the preliminary task and my final film is the use of dialogue. The preliminary film uses dialogue, however the dialogue is slightly out of time with the characters lip movements. I think that the dialogue used in the preliminary film makes it seem a bit too staged and unrealistic. It looks too improvised and it ruins the casual style the film was trying to go for. In my film I didn't use any dialogue. In thriller films it is hard to make the dialogue convincing. It has to be scary/tense enough but not too fake and this is a very hard balance to achieve. I think the use of silence or eerie music in my film creates a far more tense effect than would have been created if I'd have added dialogue between the characters.

The use of the rippled transition at the end of the preliminary film is very cheesy and it makes the film seem amateur. The transition either looks like the film is aimed at younger children because it is very emphasised, or it looks like the ending of a flashback/dream. This is not the effect that we were trying to create for our preliminary film. I think we should have used a more basic transition and ended it in a different way. In my final film I only used a small number of transitions and when I did they were very basic, most of the time I just cut the shots together. I think the use of basic transitions worked well in my final film as it didn't ruin the tense atmosphere created by making it look too unrealistic. In my film I used a range of different shots. I tried to include some advanced shots. For example I included a shot reverse shot of the victim turning and looking over her shoulder and then turning back. I think this shot worked quite well as it looked fairly realistic and the audience could see from the characters point of view. Also I included a zoom, I struggled with the zooms as they were often too fast and unsteady but I think the one I included in the end was just right. I tried to consistently check that I was using the 180 degree rule effectively and I think I managed to in a number of shots.

For my preliminary task I worked in a group of 4, however for my final piece I decided it would be best to work alone. In hindsight I think this was the correct decision. I did find it very hard at the start of the project during the planning section and often fell behind people who were working in groups as they were able to share the workload out however I was left to do it all myself. Although once I'd caught up successfully I found it a lot better to work alone. During the filming stage of the project it was good because I could film exactly what I wanted and didn't have to sacrifice any of my ideas or compromise with anybody. Yet it may have been useful to have a peer to share ideas and possible improvements with. The editing was good because I could work on the film whenever I wanted to and didn't have to coordinate my time around other people. It was good for me to just work quietly on my film as I didn't get distracted and I could focus on achieving the film I wanted. I think working in a group would have been difficult and caused a few disagreements or a clash of ideas. I think I'd still decide to work alone next time, unless I found the right group with a similar idea and attitude about the film as me.

Evaluation Question 6

Question 6: What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

(This is the equipment I used to film my opening. I used a Sanyo camera and tripod.)

At first I found using the camcorder and tripod difficult as I had to re-position the equipment for almost every shot and had to constantly make sure that the angles and lighting were correct. However once I got the hang of it, I found the camera a lot easier to use. My actress helped my with the positioning of some shots and was good at listening to my directions. Therefore this was useful and helped to make things run more smoothly. Moving the tripod around was mostly fine, apart from in places where the conditions were muddy or unstable as it was difficult to position the tripod in a way where it would stand up safely and not get damaged. When I first attempted to use the camera I found it very confusing and difficult to work, however as soon as I actually got to the filming location and had a go at a few practice shots, everything was completely fine from then on. 

The Mac computers were very useful to me for this project in the fact that they provide a variety of advanced programs that normal PC computers don't. However throughout the project I found the macs difficult to use as I have always used a normal PC therefore it was very difficult for me to adjust to the way the macs work and it took me time to know my way around them. I had some experience of using the macs from my GCSE media course though and this helped me a lot and prevented me from being completely hopeless and new to using macs. The fact that we used macs for our whole project meant that it was often difficult for me to transfer files to my normal computer so I could continue work outside of school. This was due to the file types being too different or my computer not having the ability to use the same programs that the macs use. However I got round this by doing all my Final Cut or Live Type work in school on the macs and doing all my extra blog work at home on my regular PC. 

I got the hang of how to use Final Cut pretty quickly and was able to easily put my shots into a timeline and begin to edit them. I found transitioning the shots quite difficult and putting filters on shots was very hard as some of them looked too similar to the original shot and others too artificial. The problem I found with Final Cut is that having to constantly render my film every time I made a small change was very time consuming and it wasted a lot of my time as I had to sit and wait and was unable to make any further changes on Final Cut until my film was all fully rendered. 

I struggled to use Livetype at first as I often found it difficult to fill the font in the correct colour and if I made a change it was hard to undo it without the font changing too much or looking odd. However I got the hang of it after a while and I used it to successfully make all of my titles. I used the typewriter effect for most of my titles and I struggled to match the speed in which these appeared on the screen as I had to make so many of them and they were all such different lengths. This problem often involved me importing the font to Final Cut and then having to go back to the Livetype file later and edit it as it was either typed on screen too quickly, or too slowly, compared with the rest of my titles. I struggled to import my Livetype fonts onto Final Cut and to make them appear in the position I wanted on the screen, but after playing around for a while I managed to successfully place my first title over the shot I had chosen and from then on I had no trouble with importing fonts to Final Cut. 

Before this project I had never used either Slideshare or Soundcloud. Slideshare I found very simple to use from the first time I used it, it was the embedding it on to my blogger account that I struggled with. For some of the things I uploaded to blogger I had to change the format from "Compose" to "HTML" for the link to appear successfully on my blog page. I didn't know this at the start and some of the files I uploaded to Slideshare/Soundcloud only appeared on my blog as a link and not as the actual file. However once I knew about changing the format of my post to 'HTML' then I could upload things easily. I found Slideshare and Soundcloud useful as they allowed me to upload things on to my blog easily and in a better format than just attempting to upload a powerpoint or sound file straight from my computer documents. Both these websites were very useful with their "embed" links and these allowed me to easily copy and paste my files straight on to my blogger account effectively. I would definitely use both of these programs again in the future. 

YouTube was useful to me throughout this project. I created my own YouTube account to use for this and I used it frequently. The website was very useful when I filmed my feedback on the rough cut of my film. I uploaded the files straight from the camera on to YouTube and it worked very successfully with good quality images and sound. However YouTube caused me huge problems when it came to uploading my final film. YouTube kept on saying that the file type was not supported or when it did upload the film then it was blurry and poor condition. It took me many attempts to upload my final project on to the website and at one point I thought it wasn't going to work at all. Eventually though, I managed to make my film the correct file type and it uploaded successfully and had a good picture quality. 

Evaluation Question 5

Question 5: How did you attract/address your audience?

I have placed annotations and notes over my original film to identify how I have attracted and addressed the target audience for my film.

Evaluation Question 4

Question 4: Who would be the audience for your media product?

The target audience for my film would be older teenagers to adults. My film has a certificate of 15 years therefore it would be inappropriate for children younger than that. The stereotypical audience that my film will target is people who enjoy watching thriller films and like films with a lot of tension and build up. My film is of a 15 certificate because it has a narrative that many viewers would find upsetting and uncomfortable to watch, therefore it would never be suitable for anyone younger than 15. However it isn't that violent and there isn't too much blood or gore which is why it doesn't have an 18 certificate. My film would reach out to the same audience as films like 'Gone Baby Gone' or 'Taken' because my narrative is similar and these films focus on the use of suspense and tension, as does mine. My target audience would be older teenagers/adults who like films of the thriller genre and who would possibly go to the cinema to watch these films. The target audience would watch TV programs such as 'Spooks' or 'Whitechapel' as both of these have conventions of the thriller film genre and represent the conventions of the genre in a television series as opposed to a film. My film appeals to quite a wide audience as it has just the right amount of tension to be scary for those who enjoy watching films and being scared, however it doesn't have that much actual bloody violence, therefore it would be appropriate for people who don't enjoy slasher horror films also. Having a wide audience makes it hard to pinpoint exactly what their taste is or what their hobbies are. I cannot specify a certain music taste and say that all my target audience would enjoy it, because my audience is so large and varied. Common hobbies that my target audience pursue would be watching films and TV because I know they must enjoy films if they are the audience I am targeting to watch mine. Many of my audience are teenagers so they may play video games/computer games because teenagers are conventionally the social group who play these games. Many of my audience will play sports as teenagers and younger adults are known for being active and sporty, particularly in popular sports such as football and rugby. The character in my film is an older teenage girl, by casting her it allows me to appeal to the target audience of older teenage girls because they can relate to the character and her lifestyle as they are of a similar age and my character represents the stereotypical teenage girl. My target audience of teenage girls/young female adults would be likely to shop in fashionable and current shops such as Topshop and River Island, my male target audience may shop in Topman if they are the type to be bothered about their appearance. However if they have a more casual idea on how to dress and don't bother about their appearance that much then they may shop in sports shops for both equipment and clothing. The older adults my film targets may also shop in these shops but are more likely to shop in places like M&S or Debenhams and then in supermarkets for their food shopping.

Evaluation Question 3

Question 3: What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why? 

Evaluation Question 3 from COGray

Evaluation Question 2

 Question 2: How does your media product represent particular social groups?

(On the left: Thriller Film- The Call, Female Victim. On the right: My media Film- Hunted, Female Victim)

These are two characters who both play similar roles in thriller films. These characters both represent the social group of vulnerable teenage girls. The vulnerable teenage girl character is conventionally used in thriller films with the antagonist being an older male who wants to capture them or harm them in some way. This character type appeals to the target audience because many of the audience are teenagers so they can relate to the stereotypical lifestyle these young characters portray in thriller films.

Both the characters shown in the images above are dressed in clothes that represent stereo-typically how a teenage girl would dress. They are both dressed in jeans and jeans have connotations of a casual and laid back lifestyle, teenagers are known for wearing jeans when they dress informally in their everyday lives. Both the characters are carrying reasonably sized side bags indicating that they are going out somewhere or coming back from somewhere. The character in my film is returning home from school/sixth form, the character in the Call looks like she has just been out shopping or something along those lines. The character in my film has big curly hair which is unique. This unique style indicates possibly a slightly rebellious side to her, it shows her going against the normal way of doing things. The character in the Call has a fairly large side fringe which represents a mysterious personality and again not following the stereotypical mature style of dressing. Teenagers are known for going against what society perceives to be normal and breaking the rules from time to time and both characters are shown to do this very subtly by the way they style themselves.

The female character in my film is made to seem small and very vulnerable, she keeps getting the feeling that she is being followed and feels insecure about this. My character is alone in a quite and desolate location away from the public. It was filmed in the middle of the countryside so there wouldn't be many people there anyway. This builds up the tension for the audience because they know that the female character is alone and if something happens nobody will be able to help her. The character is shown to seem self conscious and worries when she is walking through this location. The field is completely deserted and so is the quiet rural road it leads on to. She feels as if she is being followed by someone but can do nothing apart from to keep walking away. The character from The Call is also in the isolated location of a quiet car park. Isolated locations add more tension to the film as it means the character feels alone with the antagonist and that there will be nobody around to save them when something happens. Almost empty car parks are conventional locations for thriller films as they give the antagonist lots of places to hide and lots of opportunity to creep up on the victim.

In both films the female character gets kidnapped by being dragged into the car of the antagonist. This narrative is common as the car allows the antagonist to drive away quickly and often to get away unnoticed because it looks normal. The social group both of these films portray are young females who are represented as not being able to defend themselves. These teenagers are perfect targets for the antagonist because they often travel to different places alone, and they are still quite young therefore they are portrayed as not fully being aware of the dangers they are at risk of. Teenage girls are sometimes displayed as being too naive and trusting of people they don't know properly. Both of the films show teenage girl characters who are naive and do not realise the danger the antagonist is to them until it is too late.

The character in the Call has the prop of a mobile phone, mobile phones are stereo-typically associated with teenagers. Teenagers are using their phones more and more to communicate with each others through social networking etc. Therefore this film is showing this stereotype by the way the character is speaking on her phone and is unaware of what is happening around her. She doesn't notice the antagonist in the car and carries on talking on the phone until it's too late, this shows her to be naive and unaware. The difference between the two characters is that the character in my film senses she is being watched/followed from very early on and tries to walk faster and even run away from whoever is watching her. However the character from the call is completely unaware and doesn't realise until it's too late for her to escape.

Evaluation Question 1

Question 1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?


I spent a lot of time analysing thriller openings and picking out the key conventions used in them. I tried to use many of these in my film opening to make it look like a realistic media product. I called my film 'Hunted' because I thought that it sounded dramatic and it got straight to the point. This title gives insight into what the film might involve but doesn't completely give away the narrative to the audience which I believe is good. I took the idea for my title from the thriller film 'Taken'. Taken was a very successful film and I think the title is effective as it is short and snappy and also dramatic as it gives insight into the narrative but it doesn't give very much away so the audience want to watch and find out more about the film.

The location I used for my film is conventional of the thriller genre. The thriller genre often involves quiet and eerie locations with not many people around. This adds more suspense to the film as the audience know that something could happen to the victim and there would be nobody around to help them. I used the quiet countryside location of a field for my film opening. I think this worked well as it made the victim seem more alone and vulnerable. They seemed more at risk from the antagonist because of the lack of people around. Many thriller films choose to use locations like this because they know the audience will instantly be nervous when they see the victim in these locations. A thriller film set in a similar location to mine is 'The Fields'. It is set in a quiet/eerie field and although the narrative is very different, the location still adds the same effect to the film and automatically makes the atmosphere more tense. My second location is a quiet country road that the field leads on to. This location has the same effect as it still makes the victim seem alone and at risk. Quiet roads or alleyways are used lots in thriller films as they are prime locations for antagonists to look for victims. The antagonist can go unseen and hide waiting until the right time to capture their victim. I think I picked the correct location to film in as it added to the mood I wanted my film to create. Although, the field I filmed in was very green and I happened to film on a sunny day therefore it may have looked a bit too happy or peaceful. This is unconventional of the thriller genre as usually it would be filmed in a brown looking field with dead grass in a cloudy or rainy day to add to the suspense even further.

I kept my use of costume and props very basic. My victim was dressed in a casual outfit of jeans, a coat and boots. I think this outfit connotes the thriller genre well as the victims in thriller films are often teenage girls. My character is dressed how a stereotypical teenage girl would dress and I think this works well as it emphasises that my character is just an ordinary girl walking home. The female victim from thriller film 'The Call' is dressed in a very similar way to mine. She is wearing jeans and a t shirt which shows she is dressed casually. My antagonist is wearing a hoodie. The costume used for antagonists in thriller films often involves them wearing a hoodie. Hoodies are often associated with gangs and crime etc because the media portrays them in this way. Hoodies represent danger and are seen as threatening because they often slightly cover peoples faces which adds the element of mystery and worries people. The only prop I used in my film is the victims handbag, I used this because it's a stereotypical prop used in thriller films as it is often carried by the victim who is often conventionally a teenage girl. Other thriller films would have probably used more props so my film challenges the conventions in this way. However I only filmed an opening so I couldn't use too many props without it looking unrealistic and staged.

Most if not all successful films use a range of advanced shots/editing to make their films a higher quality. I tried to use a range of different shots and angles in my film to make it more interesting and to show things from different points of view. I think I used my point of view shots well when I wanted to see something through the characters eyes. Point of view shots are often used in thriller films because it enables the audience to see something from the characters perspective and sometimes allows the audience to connect with the characters more. I tried to use a range of different shots and lengths but I don't think I used as many as thriller film openings would conventionally use. In my editing I used very basic transitions and most of the time I just cut the shots together. The cut transition is conventionally used as it allows a dramatic change from one shot to the next and this emphasises the tension the film is trying to make the audience feel. However I believe that the editing used in other thriller films would be much more advanced and smooth than mine as it would be done by professionals with hi-tech equipment and they would want to make the film as advanced but appropriate as possible.

The titles that I used are massively conventional of the thriller genre. I used the typewriter effect for my titles and they appeared in the bottom left hand corner of the screen. The typewriter effect is conventional of the thriller genre as it has connotations of a police narrative and many thriller films involve policemen/agents. My title font is similar to the font used for the titles in the thriller film 'Gone Baby Gone'. These titles are placed over the shots and appear at the bottom of the screen. These are a white colour like mine and are quite simple but effective. I think that my titles definitely used conventions of the thriller genre. However I don't think I used as many different titles as a stereotypical film would use in its opening and I think if I'd have used a few more, it would have been more realistic.

My opening starts off slow then there is a build up in tension and more and more happens until the climax at the end when the victim is dragged into the car and kidnapped. The slow and gradual increase in build up supports the conventional style that thriller film openings follow. They start by setting the scene and then the suspense builds further and further until the main climax happens. My film sets up my narrative by showing that the victim is being followed from the very beginning. From the start of the clip you know that the antagonist is a threat and you immediately see that the victim is vulnerable. This helps set up the narrative as the audience know something is going to happen to the victim and it will probably be the fault of the antagonist, but they are unaware of what will happen so it doesn't give all of the plot away and it still leaves an element of mystery and tension. When the victim gets taken at the end the audience know that the narrative will involve trying to stop the antagonist and/or trying to rescue the victim. Thriller films often set up the story line from quite early into the film, however they don't give too much away or it would ruin it for the audience and they would get bored. The key thing every film tries to do in it's opening is to grip the audience and give them a sense of the narrative, however still leave room for guessing/twists in the plot or the audience will find the film too predictable. I think my opening does this fairly successfully.

My opening suggests that the genre of my film is a thriller genre, because what thriller films aim to do is make the audience feel tense and keep them on the edge of their seat. My film is tense and the tension increases as the opening continues. However the audience know my film is not a horror film because there is no blood/gore or actual violence included. All of these are conventions of the horror genre so the fact they aren't included indicates immediately to the audience that the film isn't of the horror genre. The thriller genre relies on the use of suspense and my opening certainly includes a build up of suspense. Conventional thriller narratives often involve kidnappings during their openings as this sets up the narrative for the rest of the film. My film includes a kidnapping but not a brutal/violent kidnapping so the audience are able to tell that my film is a thriller film.

My female character is introduced first. She is introduced casually and seen to be minding her own business walking through a field. My antagonist is introduced in an eerie way. The shot used to show him has a blurred effect on it which shows  the character to be mysterious as you can't see his face properly and can only see an outline of him. He is shown to be walking behind and following the victim and she keeps turning over her shoulder to check behind her as she is nervous and scared. I think showing the antagonist to be following the victim is effective as it immediately indicates at what the narrative might be and shows that the victim is vulnerable.

My thriller film challenges the conventions of film openings as many of these will use special effects from the very beginning to create an atmosphere. These may include explosions etc to build excitement in the audience and to immediately make them want to watch on. However the film genre that will be more likely to use special effects is action-adventure as often these effects add to or link with their narrative. Thriller films don't always use special effects as many of these would ruin the mood they were trying to create. I used no special effects in my film therefore it backs up the conventions of the thriller genre however not the conventions of film openings in all genres.

Final Film

(Note: heartbeat sound effect starting at 0.28 seconds can only be heard properly through headphones)

Video Filters

 This top photo shows the original shot with no filters on it. I attempted to dim the lighting of this shot as the sunlight is too bright on my actors face and I felt darker lighting would make the atmosphere of the film scarier. However I tried a range of filters but I found problems with all of them.


This sepia filter changes the colour of the whole shot too much and makes my film look like a historic documentary or something similar.




This bottom filter makes the shot slightly more blurry which isn't what I would have wanted. Also the filter does very little to change the lighting of the shot. Many filters I tried made no difference to the shot being edited, and the ones that did make a difference, made too much of a difference and completely changed the way the shot looked (like in the second photo.) Therefore in the end, after experimenting with a variety of filters, I decided that it would be best to stick with the original shot.

Film Ident

This is the ident I have created. I've named my film company 'platinum pictures' as I think the name is memorable and makes my film company sound successful as platinum is a top quality substance. My ident has a silver font colour to represent and tie in with the name 'platinum'. The ident will appear on a black screen, a bright white colour flashes along my ident when it appears. This is shown on the letters 'n' and 'u' in the photo above. The font is bold so it will catch the audiences attention. I have used an alliteration so that the name stays in peoples heads and sounds catchy. I believe this is a simple but effective ident.

Feedback on Film Rough Cut

I found the feedback from my target audience very useful. They allowed me to see how I can change my film to make it more realistic and appealing to them and others of a similar age. They indicated that I should try and put filters on some of my shots to make them darker as many of them are too bright, this is something I will hopefully achieve to make my film more appropriate for the thriller genre. Someone raised the idea of adding more transitions which is something I will think about doing, if I can find convincing transitions and not really extravagant ones as I feel this will ruin the tense mood/vibe that my film attempts to give off. Everyone that gave feedback seemed to like the music used in my film so I will keep that how it is. The typography was praised so I will keep the same typography and effects yet I will add a few more titles as I feel my film has too few.

Rough Cut Feedback- 3

Rough Cut Feedback- 2

Rough Cut Feedback- 1

This is the first person I interviewed about what changes I should make to the rough cut of my film. Indya is a teenager and therefore she fits in to my target audience. It was very helpful to get feedback from people that fit into my target audience group as they will know what they like to watch and what improvements I should make to my film to make it into a product that appeals to them.

Film Title Font

This is the font I have picked out for the title of my film. This font is white and will appear on a black background. I feel this is effective as it stands out and is clear and easy to read. The white font on a black background screen is conventional of the thriller genre, many films of this genre use this effect for their film titles. I feel this title follows the conventions of titles in a thriller film well. This title uses the 'experience' effect from :Livetype. A white flash passes across each letter quickly from left to right (this flash effect can be seen on the letter 'H' in the screenshot of the title.) This effect is similar to the effect used on the title for the popular thriller film 'Gone Baby Gone'. This film is similar to mine in ways and therefore I have researched the film to gather information on appropriate titles and used ideas from it to help create my own.

Title Option 2

This is my the second option for my main film title. I think that this black colour looks effective as black is conventional of darkness and sadness which are two emotions that my film intends to make the audience feel. However this can't appear on a black background which I think is the most effective colour for the background to be. Also, many thriller film titles (in films that have similar narratives to mine) are in a white font and I want to stick to these conventions as far as possible.

Title option 1

This is the first title option I have for my film. This title will appear using a typewriter effect. I think this is good because the typewriter effect is conventional of thriller films often with some kind of police narrative and my film fits that description. However the typewriter effect is the effect I have used for the other titles in my film and I think it might be good for the actual name of my film to differ from the other titles included. I'm not sure about the red colour in this title as I worry that red is too conventional of the horror genre because it connotes blood and danger. Therefore I think I may have to go away and re-edit this font or pick a different font entirely.

Film Title

I have decided to call my film 'Hunted'. I think this title ties in well with my narrative as my antagonist goes around hunting teenage girls. This title sounds quite appropriate for the thriller genre. For example I have chosen a name similar to the popular thriller film 'Taken.' I think my title is very effective as it is one word and the word is quite dramatic and straight to the point. The name gives insight into the narrative, yet doesn't reveal the whole story line so it is mysterious and leaves the audience wanting to know more about the film.

Chosen Sound

The sound I have chosen to be used as non diegetic sound in the background of most of my film opening is soundtrack 1. I feel this soundtrack was the most appropriate in representing the thriller genre and in creating a tense and eerie feel to my film. Also this soundtrack is quiet enough for me to add sound effects over the top of it, yet not so quiet that you can't hear it. However this soundtrack was too short to last for my whole film so I decided to add soundtrack 3 in at the end of my film. I think both of these tracks fit in well together. Soundtrack 3 is used at the end of the film and it gets increasingly louder to build tension and then cuts out quickly to just silence. I feel this is a good transition and will emphasis the suspense of the film.

Sound option 3

This is my third soundtrack option. I like the mood this soundtrack creates and I think this would be appropriate for the build up to the ending of my film opening as the sound increases and as it gets louder it gets more dramatic. So this would be a good soundtrack to use right before or after the character is kidnapped. I do think the ending of the track has slight connotations of the horror genre as the screeching noise could represent a supernatural phenomenon, however if used correctly it could also represent the thriller genre successfully.

Sound option 2

This is the second soundtrack option for my thriller film opening. I think that this track creates an unsettling and eerie feeling and would be appropriate in making the audience nervous which is what my film aims to do. However I think that the louder parts of the soundtrack where the other instruments fade in and out is not appropriate for the mood of my film. The other musical parts make the soundtrack sound like it would be more appropriate for an action/adventure type film possibly with connotations of a pirate narrative. I think that the quieter parts of this soundtrack create the correct mood of the character feeling uneasy, yet the louder parts ruin the tense mood the first part of the soundtrack creates.

Sound option 1

This is the first soundtrack option I have chosen for my film. I feel that this soundtrack is simple yet creates a dramatic and eerie vibe which is what I want the audience to feel when they watch my film opening. The music is slow yet gets slightly louder at the end which adds suspense to the film. I think the soundtrack is appropriate for the thriller genre as it is unnerving and full of suspense yet it isn't too upbeat and loud like a lot of soundtracks used in action films. 

List of Titles

• Film Company name/ident
• From the producers of.....
• Actors 
• Casting
• Music
• Costume 

The film company name and the "from the producers of" titles will appear on a black screen at the start of my film, the rest of the titles will appear over my shots in the bottom left hand corner of the screen. 

Font Option 1

This is my first font option for my film titles. The effect I have placed over this title is the type writer effect. These titles will appear in the bottom left hand corner of the screen and will type on and then off of the screen. My film's protagonist is a police officer so the typing effect gives connotations of the police narrative and the thriller genre. This is a popular effect for the titles of films within the thriller genre.

Filters- Editing

Many of the shots in my film are too sunny and bright and therefore don't fit in well with the thriller genre because it makes the film seem too happy and upbeat. To solve this I am attempting to put filters on certain shots to make them darker and less bright. However it is very difficult to find the correct filter without making the shots look too over edited. I will keep playing around with the different filters and hopefully find one with the correct balance of light and dark colours.

Editing Film

I struggled with my editing today as when I imported my re-filmed shots on to my Final Cut document, they mixed with my original shots so I had to go through all of my shots and decide which ones I needed. Other than that my editing is going fairly well, I think the shots I have re-filmed are more realistic and give more insight into my films narrative and the idea that someone is following my character. Hopefully I can fit all of my shots together with transitions to look realistic and to have appropriate continuity.

Rough Cut of Film- Overview

This is the first rough cut of my film. I have decided to make a lot of changes to my film. First of all the ending is far too rushed so I am going to re-film a lot of that to make it look more realistic and more intense. The first minute is quite boring as it includes a lot of shots of just my character walking through a field with not much really happening. To overcome this I'm going to change, not all of my shots, but re-film some scarier looking shots that give more of a feeling of the character being followed. These shots may include some feet with big boots coming out through the bushes, or a blurred figure in the distance. I need to re-film the shot of the victims feet as she is dragged into the car as I feel it looks too unrealistic and staged, to make it look more realistic I may actually ask someone to pull her into the car. Many of my shots are too jumpy and need transitions in between them so my film flows better. I'm going to try and use an effect on the camera to film a shot of my character walking along the road with a blurred car in the background. I think once I have added these effective transitions and re-filmed parts to make the film more interesting and convincing, then my media product will be considerably better.

Shot of Bag

This is a screen shot taken from the rough cut of my film on final cut. I have decided that I have to re-film this shot of the bag left on the street. The bag in this shot looks too neatly positioned which makes the shot look unrealistic. If someone actually dropped their bag on the street it wouldn't be placed upright and neatly like this. Therefore, in order to make my film look more realistic for the thriller genre I have decided to re-film this shot along with a few others.

Editing

I am finding it hard to make this shot look like a realistic kidnapping. I hope with sounds and effects it will look more realistic.

Filming

I finished filming all of my shots today. The weather was very unpredictable but luckily we avoided most of the rain. Hopefully I'll be able to edit my shots together to make my film look realistic. The addition of sound will also help to make my film successful.

Filming

I started filming today. I only managed to get half of my shots filmed which is a lot less than I'd have liked. My original plan was to get all my filming done in one day, however now I can see that this was an unrealistic expectation as I underestimated how long it would take to set up etc. Another reason why we got so little filming done was that both my primary and secondary filming location were out of use due to different reasons, so we had to look around for a new appropriate location. I plan to get my filming finished tomorrow as now I have a clear location and I have experience using the camera and tripod so it wont take as long to set equipment up.

Filming

I plan to film tomorrow because both me and my cast are free and the weather looks alright from what I've seen. I'll take an umbrella to put over the camera and tripod if it does rain and I'll make sure to bring food and hot drinks so my actress stays warm.

Storyboard

Call Sheet

Date	Time	Location	Actors	Props	Shots
17/02/2014	11:00am	Field location	Katie	Bag	Shots 1-18
17/02/2014	1:00pm	Street location	Katie and Dad to drive the car (but he’s not actually shown in any shots)	Bag	Shots 19-47
18/02/2014	11:00am	Field/Street	Katie	Bag	Any extra filming I need to complete, any shots I need to re-do

- My film opening is only shot in 2 different locations so that's why my call sheet is quite simple and short. My aim is to get all my filming done in one day, if we start at a reasonable time which I've chosen to be 11am then hopefully we will be able to get filming complete all in one day. However I'm not sure whether we will be able to complete all the filming in one day so I have allocated an extra day for any unfinished filming. 

Location 4

• This is the final location I looked at. I have decided to film the main part of my film opening in this location. There are many positives of this location, firstly, the field is in a quiet and secluded area meaning that I can film effectively and create the eerie mood of the character being alone and vulnerable.
• Secondly, the field is fairly dry and not too muddy considering the bad weather that has recently occurred. Also the field has no livestock and this therefore means that no interruptions will occur in filming.
• This field is fairly basic and doesn't contain much which is good as I need a simple open space to make my film look as convincing and real as possible.   

Location 3

• This location seemed good at first due to the scary looking trees and the surrounding eerie atmosphere. However there is too much water surrounding this location and the water is too deep to stand in safely.
• Also I feel that filming in water, as well as the dangers of it, would look unconvincing for the style and mood I want my film to create. To film in water would cause many unnecessary problems and I think it would be easier to stick to the simple narrative I already have. 

Location 2

• This is the second location I discovered. I decided not to film in this location as there is too much mud and flooding which would make it difficult for my actress to film in. Also these conditions are not suitable for a tripod and there would be risk of camera damage. 
• The surrounding fields are usually full of crops and would therefore be unsuitable to film in. 

Location 1

• This is the first location I found. I have decided to film the road part of my film opening in this location. There are a number of reasons for this decision, firstly the road is fairly quiet and excluded from the public which gives off an eerie vibe but also this is good as it is out of the way of the public which means my filming wont be interrupted.
• Another reason for choosing this location was that there isn't much traffic on this road therefore there will be less risk of accidents or interruption from cars passing by.
• Finally I liked the big tree in this location because it looks spooky which is what I want the atmosphere of my film to be. 

Props

My film opening only involves one prop. This prop is the bag the victim is carrying. I have picked this prop because it represents to the audience the idea of her walking home from school which signifies her age and a bit about her background. The audience will see this bag and think of her using it to hold all her school work and books, the bag will be either a backpack or a shoulder bag which are both typical of bags students would carry. One of my final shots will be a close up of this bag being left on the ground after the victim has been taken so this will represent its significance to the audience.

Costume

Costume the actors will wear:
The character in my film will be dressed in normal everyday clothes that a teenage girl would conventionally wear. These would probably consist of jeans and a basic jumper because my character isn't supposed to look dressed up. I want my character to look casual and this will be reflected by their costume. Jeans are conventionally laid back and unprofessional items of clothing and I want the audience to read the character as being young and unprofessional. The costume doesn't give away too much about the character but it represents her age as being a teenager who doesn't yet have a full time job. The audience don't need to read too much about the character from her costume because other things represent the character well like props. The audience will be more informed about the type of character the young girl is, later in the film.

Casting

This is Katie who will be acting in my film opening:

Reliable?
The person I have cast to play the role of the victim in my film opening is my sister Katie. She will be the only character that actually appears on screen in my opening because the antagonist is never actually shown in any shots. This makes the task easier as I only have to coordinate when/which days to film with one actor and not have to coordinate when lots of other actors are all free. I will be filming in my half term and Katie has the same half term as me so therefore we will easily be able to correspond the times we are both free. Katie is a reliable cast member because we live in the same house and we're both easily able to get to the locations I've chosen to film in therefore there should hopefully be no complications.

Mise En Scene
The character in my film is a 15-16 year old teenage girl and Katie is 16 so I feel she will accurately represent the character I have pictured for my film opening. The character is meant to be a fairly young girl who is abducted whilst walking home from school, Katie goes to school still and walks home so I feel like she is fairly similar to the character I've picked and will be able to introduce the character effectively to the audience. Her hair is very curly and wild which represents her to be young and self thinking which is appropriate for my character. This idea that she is self thinking also indicates her to be vulnerable and at risk.

Preferred Reading
I think the audience will see the actor as being quite young and vulnerable. The idea that she is walking through an empty field alone will represent that she is at risk which is what I want. Her age of 16 is a good age as lots of people think of teenagers as being quite naive and helpless which is what I want them to think of my character.

Health and Safety

Risk	When		Planning
Hypothermia	Outside for long time in cold wind and bad weather conditions allows risk of hypothermia.		Make sure actor wears warm clothes with lots of layers, ensure that the cast have regular breaks to warm up, check weather forecast beforehand and attempt to pick a warmer day with better weather.
Road accident	Character has to walk along road in part of my film.		The road is quiet so traffic shouldn’t be too much of an issue but be sure to stop filming immediately and move off of the road if a vehicle is coming.
Falling over	Ground in field may be muddy and slippery due to bad weather.		Ensure that cast and crew wear appropriate footwear for walking in a field. Try to avoid the muddiest parts of field.
Water Damage	Camera or equipment could be exposed to water damage due to bad weather conditions.	Check forecast beforehand and only film on days where no rain is forecast. If rain starts then finish shot I’m on and pack up and reschedule to film on different day.

Film Pitch

Film Pitch from COGray

Mood Board

Mood Board from COGray



Slide 1 shows my mood board for the conventional locations in thriller films. All of these are quite mysterious and eerie looking locations because they are designed to make the audience feel tense. Places like quiet fields/wooded areas are common in thriller films because these places are meant to make the audience feel scared and alone.

Slide 2 shows the conventional props and costumes used in thriller films. The knife and the gun are both weapons, weapons are used frequently in thriller films and are often carried by the antagonist or sometimes by the protagonist who wants to use them to stop the antagonist e.g. a gun carried by a policeman. Torches and phones are often props used within the thriller genre. The phone is often used by the victim to call for help and the torch is often used in the dark/eerie locations discussed above. Rope can be used by the antagonist as well. The costumes shown are police and military costumes as many of the protagonists will have been trained in forces like this. Protagonists are often policemen or something similar with a history in dealing with violence/crime. The antagonist is often wearing dark looking clothes or possibly a suit to give connotations of their power.

Slide 3 shows the typography commonly used in thriller films. All of these fonts have darkly coloured backgrounds indicating the suspense narrative of the film. The typography is written in a bold font to stand out and to represent the themes of the film. The typography colour is either black which gives connotations of darkness and fear, red which gives connotations of blood and violence or a glowing white which signifies a supernatural theme in the film. 

Consolidatory Post

What to include in the cinematography and planning of my film opening?
To make my film opening convincing as a real media product I need to include:

• A key protagonist and antagonist. The two opposing protagonists and antagonists need to be clear from the very start of my film so the audience are aware of the different sides and are allowed an insight into the narrative. Almost all films of the thriller genre include an obvious protagonist and antagonist from the beginning of the film.
• I need to include titles that use the appropriate typography style to match my films genre and narrative. These titles must link in with these two things or the film opening will immediately seem unrealistic.
• My film must involve suspense and tension as these are two key elements of the thriller genre.
• My narrative will be likely to involve the antagonist making something bad happen and the protagonist having to solve this problem. This is a stock situation very typical of the thriller genre.
• The music must link in with the shots nicely to create the appropriate mood for the audience. In this case my music must be tense and eerie as I want the audience to feel suspense and worry.
• The costumes I use in my film opening should provide some insight into the characters and give a background on them. It may reflect their age, style or profession.
• If I can create one effectively then I should try and include my own ident for the very opening of my film to make it look like a real film company has produced this film. This makes the product more realistic. 
• My camera angles will have to reflect the importance of the character or their role in the film. Camera angles must be used very carefully to show subtle things to the audience e.g. the characters power.
• My location must be appropriate for my opening. I'll have to film it somewhere quiet and eerie to make the audience feel tense and uncomfortable. The location is very important in setting the mood of the film.
• The audience must be made to either fear or dislike the antagonist.

The Bourne Ultimatum

(0.00-2:55)
Key Character Types:

• The key protagonist is carrying advanced equipment and knows a lot about what to do in situations when someone is following you. He knows to be careful of security cameras and all of the skills needed to avoid the antagonists. This signifies that he has experience in situations like this which represents that he may have a job involving undercover work or something similar. This means that he would have a trained background of some sort which is conventional of the thriller genre as the protagonists in thriller films usually have some sort of trained background.
• The key antagonist is likely to be the man giving orders to the rest of the antagonist group and controlling them. He is made to look dominant and strong which are both stereotypical of antagonists in thriller films.
• Male character that is being chased is paranoid which makes the audience feel paranoid like they are waiting for something to happen. This makes them feel tension which is conventional of the thriller genre.
• The fight scene makes the protagonist look strong and intimidating. He manages to successfully fight off the group of antagonists even though he is outnumbered. The antagonists are surprised and worried by the protagonists ability which makes the protagonist seem dominant to the audience. 

Stock Characters:

• The stock characters will be others belonging to the opposing groups. For example other agents in the force the protagonist belongs to or other antagonists in the antagonist group. These stock character types are conventional of the thriller genre as they add more to the narrative.
• The stock character may also be a love interest of the protagonist. 

Narratives and stock situations:

• Antagonists have access to public security cameras and advanced monitoring equipment indicating that they have professions are involved in something where they would require advances software. This gives us insight into their background and the idea that they may be trained. They are fighting the protagonist who is likely to be an agent in a larger organisation. These two organisations are fighting each other, the idea of two large opposing organisations fighting each other is conventional of common narratives in the thriller genre.
• The protagonist is fighting to protect the male character being chased as the antagonist wants to catch him. The idea that the antagonist has caused a problem and the protagonist has to solve it is stereotypical of the thriller genre.

Genre Iconography:

• The antagonists are carrying guns. Guns are an icon of danger and tension which are both conventional of thriller films. 
• The hi-tech equipment used by the antagonists e.g. the hacking of the cameras, are iconic of the thriller genre because they hint at the narrative involving some sort of trained force battling another trained force. They give clues to the audience that the film may have a spy story line or set up.

Themes of the genre:

• The protagonist and antagonist are meant to seem fairly matched on their ability and past experience in undercover situations. Both sides have evenly matched equipment and training which shows the audience that it will be difficult for either side to be successful without a fight.
• Tension is conventional of the thriller genre. Tension is created in this clip by the mystery and suspense the audience feels when the male character is found and followed by the antagonists.
• The main protagonist and the main antagonist are both made to look dominant and powerful.