Our group used garage band to hear some of the sounds that we could use in our opening sequence. This has given an accurate guideline for what we would like to involve in our opening sequence. Most of the sounds are very dark and eerie which gave us a lasting impression which we would want the audience to feel. There is a variety of different sounds such as screaming and piano accompaniments which are slow as well as others being fast paced and spine chilling.
0 Comments
I tested 2 different ways of creating a gouged out eye looking types of special effects make-up. One of then was with liquid latex and cotton and the other is just face paint. I tested both on my friend, Katie. Liquid Latex technique![]() I started by putting some liquid latex around her eye sockets ![]() I then put some cotton wool over it and put more latex on top to make sure it stayed Face paint technique![]() the face paint was more simple to do and only took a minute but it is not a good looking ass the other technique Conclusion![]() Here is both of them together (liquid latex on the left eye and just face paint on the right). The left on obviouly looks more realistic and gory compared to the one with jut face paint on the right. Although the liquid latex looks better there are some risks e.g. the actor wearing this make-up cold be disoriented from not being able to see and fall over The face paint technique would be more safe as the actor can still open their eyes and see. Also it takes less times and supplies to do. Even though it as benefits, it still doesn't look good In conclusion, the liquid latex technique is the one we will use. The dangers of it have been considered and we have decided that there will always be at least 2 people around the actor at all times to make sure she is safe while in the make- up and if it comes down to it, it would be okay of she just had one eye with make-up too. This poster was designed and made for our opening and to go with what we think the film would be after it. From our research we know that most psychological thrillers have a very close up face on the poster because the main element to psychological thriller is the main characters thoughts and emotions. There is also horror elements to some psychological thriller which we have also chosen to do- you can see this from the little girl in the back of the picture.
I chose to analyse this past students work because it really interested me as I like the music, shots and plot that is in it. This work got an A* and I feel that analysing this work will help me to achieve a higher grade as I will see what sort of standard I need for my work.
(click 'read more' to see the full analysis) In order to learn different way how we can present our thriller and edit it we looked at past students work and analysed them. We wanted to see what aspects we could take from them and apply to our thriller's. This is a group of students work from two years ago. The first thing shown is an extreme close up of someone's eye with a clock reflected in it. The eye has connotations of the window to the mind, and the fact that there is a clock reflected in it can give the audience the impression that his mind is set on time. Short an d effective non-diegetic music plays and abruptly stops when the edit cuts to the products companies name. They have edited their production name to fade out into a black screen with each letter fading away individually; almost as if it was computer generated. The font is very simple and effective. The screen stays black with no music is played in the background. The edit cuts to a two-shot of two boys having sheets taken off of their heads which could link back to the lack screen the titled faded out into to reflect the darkness which their were in. It almost as if the rule of thirds is used to show the two boys lift their heads. The edit cuts to a blood stain on the wall as the sound of heavy to slow breathing is introduced. Already the audience knows there is danger as blood and the colour red in general represent danger The edit cuts to a low angle shot of a deteriorating ceiling and then cuts back to a close up of one of the boys with a drop of sweat tracing his worried face. the edit cuts again to broken glass whilst the sound of breathing slows down further. There is a small amount of blood on the glass when it cuts to another edit. The fact that the glass is even shattered instantly put the thought of more danger in the viewer's head. The cuts zoom into the blood on the glass and cuts to an arm with blood on it. The blood is actually on the white shirt which the boy is wearing and you cant see any injured so the audience could question why he even has blood on his arm. The edit abruptly cuts to a medium close up to one of the boys in the chair who seems to be the one breathing heavily.The shot cuts to a close up of his mouth where you can see his missing tooth. The breathing came across as non-diegetic at first and has now changed to coming across as diegetic. The edit cuts to a viewpoint shot of the floor and the boys feet, panning up to someone walking into the frame The edit cuts back to the two-shot and you can see one of the boys look down. the one boys looks to the one who was doing the heavy breathing which has stopped. He taps his pocket, trying to get the other boys attention as her looks at him. Eventually he looks back at him and they exchange glances and come to a decision of what they plan to do. The one grabs a pen, looks to the other boy for approval and hands it to him. He acts quickly in the mid-shot and stabs him in the leg with the pen and they run from the mother mysterious man in the room. The room is seen to be a health hazard and abandoned which makes it look like the two boys were kidnapped by this strange man. As they run non-diegetic music intensifies whilst the edit jumps between the shots of the running feet and the man who has just been stabbed in the leg. A wide shot shows the two boys running into the forest and this cuts into a tracking shot which complements the panic in this scene. You are able to see a close up of the boys face. All of a sudden the man who was stabbed in the leg appears and has managed to get hold of the other boy which doesn't make to much sense in my mind as he wasn't seen chasing them. The background is blurred just after the man yells and you can only see the close up of the boys face (rule of thirds) Just after he turns around more titles cut in and the same non-diegetic music from the titles before jump in. There is a cyclical theme as the pen which was used to stab the man before is in the grass at the end, covered in blood. The name of the film 'Excemption' is shown at the end when the one boy runs into a close up in the camera frame. Mise-en-scene:First of all the clock creates an impression, as it is reflected in someone's eye; this has connotations of the window to the mind which is what could be the centre focus of this mystery person. Sheets are pulled off of two boy's heads; this is often associated with a kidnapping. Already the audience can see the condition of the walls, as they seem to be dmaaged and slightly broken. ![]() The blood splattered on the wall automatically makes the viewer believe there has been some form of brutality. The colour red has many connotations one of them being danger and pain. This could suggest that the two boys are going to be murdered or harmed. The colour red jumps out to the audience as it juxtaposes the white. ![]() The sweat trickling down the boys face reflects how much fear he feels towards the situation at hand. Sound is not necessary at this stage to describe what is going on. The use of broken glass suggests that this is what caused the blood to be on the wall. There is next a shot of of blood on the broken glass which would complement this theory. The glass bottle would have been a previous weapon as the blood seems to be dry. So far all the shots have the same use of colour scheme: greys, black and red. These are very effective colours in the sense that when they are put together they create an effect which makes everything else in the shot stand out. ![]() In this shot there us a white sleeve with some blood splattered on it. This again makes the blood stand out more as the white juxtaposes the red. The colour white connotes purity and the fact that the red has been splattered on it shows how the danger has invaded the purity. Any thought of hope is taken away as the pain and danger has been introduced. ![]() The lighting is very dark and makes the audience focus on the hand in this shot. This could have connotation of isolation and the unknown. The low key lighting is very mysterious and makes you question what the boy intends to do. ![]() In this shot there is some cloth hung on a wall and the room looks slightly trashed which shows the audience the bad condition of this location. The colours are still very dark and eerie though its still clear as to what is in this shot. ![]() The clothes these people are wearing and very casual which creates the impression that this type of situation could happen to anyone. They all seem to be wearing whites and blacks which are very clean cut shades to be wearing which sort of contradicts the location. ![]() The audience can get a grasp of the fact that these people are in the middle of nowhere. This adds to the thought of isolation and that this is a kidnapping. Camera:As I have mentioned previously in my overall analysis there is a mixture of close ups, mid, long and head shots. This all makes things easier for the audience to see the full extend of what is going on. In the image on the bottom left hand corner there is a two shot, showing the two boys head shots. The focus in the close up of the pen has a lot of depth . A long tracking shot is used to follow the boys whilst they are being chased. ![]() There is also a use of match on action to show that the boy is tapping his seat to get the other boys attention. Editing and logo:![]() The editing is very quick paced which reflects the mood of the scene: panicked. The title sequence is edited in a very robotic manor which sort of doesn't match what is going on in the scene and each letter fades out individually. Though the fact that the fin is white on black goes back to the black and greys used in the mise-en-scene. I have mentioned the order of how things have been edited in my overall analysis above. The image above shows not just how they have edited but also their logo for their production company. This, to me, isn't really a logo, however it is simple and very effecting. The juxtaposition of the white on black creates a very easy. The logo isn't the first thing seen in the sequence either which doesn't matter because it still comes across as very professional. The logo is shown again at the end of the sequence which sort of makes it come across as a trailer instead of an opening sequence. Sound:The sound used in this has a way of making you think of the mind and singling it out. It complements the extreme close up of the eye at the start. When the sound non-diegetic music when the production company name comes up it make the centre focus the production name. The way the diegetic sound of breathing progresses and takes over all of the other sounds in the scene allows the audience to share the panic felt by this boy. It also complements the editing: its as if each breath he takes cuts the edit to a new shot. The breathing stops and the sound of the boys hand tapping against this seat is heard. This adds to the match on action used to make the focus what he is doing.
Just before the boy stabs the man in the keg with the pen the same sound used at the start is used. This signals the chase and heavy non-diegetic music begins. The beat of the music used makes you think of running footsteps. Under the sound of the music you can hear the two boys running and breathing. During the chase you can sudden;t hear the kidnapper shout as he has hold of the one boy. He holds a pen to his head as the music stops in a way that sounds like gun shots. The music stops for a moment. As the titles roll in the audience is taken though shots which come across as a thought process or a re-wind. Music similar to the start plays through this. The music is subtle yet effective. There are a variety of styles of music used in this opening sequence. This is a group of students work from last year. The first thing that is shown is the production logo, which is eye catching as it is big and bold, and not too much in your face. The first shot of the opening sequence after the logo is a wide shot of two silhouettes of two people fighting. the non-diegetic music that is playing in the background of the opening sequence is very high-pitched and is made using instruments with high-pitched notes, e.g. the higher notes on a piano and violins. The high-pitched music gives the impression of danger and can help to build up tension and make the audience prepare for a jump scare. This music carries on throughout the whole opening scene. After the shadowy fight shot, the camera then cuts to a slightly high-tilted angle looking down on a girl who is looking at pictures and crying. The high-tilted shots makes the girl seem weak, vulnerable and powerless. The girl looks at a screwed up photograph and the shot then cuts to a side shot of a man putting a ring on a girls finger, probably the girl from the shot before looking at the photos. It then cuts back to the girl and she's picks up another photo, and the camera cuts to another shot of the couple together, this time kissing. The shots cut from the girl and her photos to scenes of the couple a few more times, and it becomes clear that these are the girl's flashbacks. The next shot after these show that the girl is not alone anymore, as there is a figure in a grey hoodie, and then the last flashback is of the couple eating dinner, the back to the hooded figure and the girl, but this time it shows the girl being beaten up by the hooded figure, then the screen fades to black so you don't know whats happened. The words "Don't Look Back" appear on the black screen in bright, bold, big lettering so it stands out and catches the audiences eyes. This is an opening sequence that makes people want to go and see the rest of the film, but I found it hard to tell that they were flashbacks, and it was only the annotations put on the film about how the flashbacks had a different filter, so this is something we should think about when making our film opening to show what is happening now and then.
Finished creepy doll propThe finished doll looks creepy and weird which is what we were hoping for when making this.
We researched different opening titles to get a grasp of what we needed to do in order to have titles that created a lasting effect; also titles that would help people appreciate and notice our psychological thriller. The titles in the opening sequence of Juno are very childish which give off the impression of this being a film about children or just parenthood. It comes across very simple, however we wouldn't want our film to have a font such as that The titles do follow the girl as she walks which is an element of the editing we like because it allows the viewer to focus on her more. Everything blends in, however the colours stand out making them easily seen as well as it is easy on the eyes. On the title of se7en there is the juxtaposition of the white font on a black background. These binary are what stand out to the audience. The writing looks as if it is hand written which complements the books shown. The fact that there is the number 7 used in the title seven juxtaposes itself. The could have connotations of things going against normality. We liked how this psychological thriller used these fonts and such to give off a great lasting effect. The scratchy and the slightly duplicated letters in the first screen shot I have put here fits the genre of this film as this would be associated with a psychological thriller. The titles for 'Halloween' (a horror-thriller) are very straight forward and match the colour of the jack-o-lantern. That doesn't create as much of an effect as vertigo. However, the music takes over the majority of the opening sequence. The titles for the psychological thriller 'Vertigo' gives off a lasting effect as the double walled font stands out against the red.
We have created a costume list to show what we would like to create. ![]() In the third scene the girl will be wearing this when she gets out of bed. This is a very simple white pyjama top which doesn't represent that much; however you could interpret a link between this and the white dress which is going to be worn . Though there is that interpretation, the main reason we gave the girl a white shirt because we thought that this would be something that an average teenage girl would wear. ![]() For the duration of the second scene the girl will be wearing grey shorts and though grey has dull connotations we though that pyjama shorts are just something that most girls wear to bed- maybe not specifically grey. We wanted to make the costume design as casual as possible =. ![]() We are going to have the little girl in our film wear a slightly vintage white dress to add a creepy, eerie effect. The doll, we will be using, will be wearing a similar dress in order to sort of bridge a link between the two. This will add to the theme and maybe add a sense of resolution as to why the doll is actually there whereas there will still be that enigma as the we want the audience to still question why this girl and doll has been introduced already into the plot. All the photos of the props here are the actual things which ewe will be using. We took photos of the real props so that people could get a feel of exactly what we are trying to do. ![]() The bath is used in the second scene. It will be slightly dirty to create a creepy atmosphere. It will be filled with water as the girl is drowned by an invisible entity. There will be fake blood on and in the bath also. ![]() The bed is the main focus of the third scene as the girl wakes up in it and the doll is seen lying in a puddle of blood. The bed is positioned next to a wall in order to have the focus being on the bed and not the background. ![]() Blood is the recurring factor in our thriller. It will be found in the bath scene, the hallway scene as well as the last scene on the bed. It will be used as part of the costume as it will be covering the little girl as well as the doll. ![]() The calendar will be on the wall next to the doll in the 3rd scene. It will have the word 'therapy' written over todays date. This creates the question of whether the girl is actually crazy? and what is the normality in this scene? ![]() This is the actual doll we will be using. The doll represents the little girl in the first scene. We used cotton wool an dPVA glue in the place of prosthetics in order to achieve a horrific 'gouged-out eyes' look, this will also be applied to the little girl in the first scene. the doll will be covered in fake blood, which links to the recurring theme in the scenes. In the bath scene there will be fake blood on the girl's hand and on the bath tub. In the hallway scene there will also be a puddle go blood. We used fake blood on the doll in order to link these together. The doll will be wearing a rag in place of a dress to create an archaic feel in our modern thriller. These are videos of three people that we asked on what hooks them up to thrillers. From these videos we can tell that that people around the age of 16 do like thrillers which is good because the target audience for our thriller would be 15 and over.
Mise en scene
Setting &props: The setting of the opening sequence is held in a parking space, parking spaces are often used in thrillers as they are very hidden. Parking spaces are always an area where there are not many people walking and so it is not a very public space so criminals know that they can commit a crime there as there are not many people around and so the young boy is on roller skates when it is illegal. The boy is also holding dynamites this could be a representation that the boy is young and rebellious this also supports the idea that crimes are held in parking spaces due to the lack of people there. Costume and hair: The boy is wearing a hoodie which shows that he is a teenager who doesn’t really care about his appearance and he looks suspicious as if he is about to commit a crime. There are also two men who are wearing a black and white suit which shows that they are quite important and seem to be working for the FBI or police. The suit makes them look very professional and higher class than the young boy, the two men are also wearing black sunglasses which makes them look more serious and suspicious. The men wearing glasses could make the audience feel uncomfortable because we can’t see their eyes at one point which could also make us question about their identity. Sound: At the start the music is very eerie and can make the audience suspicious about the surrounding and the boy. From the sound there is a build-up of suspension. There is a change in the pitch of the sound which suggests that there is going to be different actions happening. When there is action happening such as the men chasing the boy there is more of an upbeat sound to keep up with the speed of the men and boy. The idea of the music going faster suggests that there is more action happening than the beginning. Camera: The opening sequence starts with the camera shaking this could show that someone is watching. There are also a very wide shot of the parking space, this could just be to show the area that the boy is in so that the audience can know the surroundings and just to show the space that the is in. Then there is also a wide shot of the boy however it then turns into a mid-shot to show the boy more then it turns into a close up so that the audience can really see the boy’s face and what he looks like. There is also a point of view when the boy is trying to run away from the two men, this is to show the audience where the character is going. Editing: The background music is very well kept with the action of the character so that the audience can keep up with both the music and plot of the story. There is also a consistent continuity in the plot and there is always something for the audience to look at for entertainment. The shot duration are not very long, this tells the audience that every action is happening at a fast pace and time is going faster by each shot. ![]() This is the last location which we will be using; it is the bed where the character would be sleeping. The most suitable time to use this area would be in the afternoon. This area would be suitable because its comfortable for the character and we would have enough space for the camera to film also the bed is right next to the window so we would be able to get very good natural lighting. ![]() This is the second location that we will be using which is the hallway. This is where both our characters will be standing. This is a suitable area for our filming as there would be enough space for the camera and the characters and we would be able to get good natural lighting as the main door would be near the camera so we can get enough lighting. ![]() This is one of the locations which we will use to film. We will be using a bath to put the girl in. The most suitable time to use the bath is during the day as people would normally use the bath at night or morning. As a group we will make sure that the bath is dry when setting our area as it can cause a hazard of someone falling if there was still water. The bath is very suitable to use for our production as it is big enough for a person to fit in and enough space around to set up the camera. Twitter is one of the top social media networks, therefore we decided it would be a good way to start advertising our film. This was the tweet we put up on twitter, and we got several replies back from it, showing that twitter is one of the best ways to advertise things, nearly everybody has twitter meaning nearly everyone can see this tweet, and get feedback.
Following from our previous post we have asked a few people to fill out the survey for us here are some of the results that we got back. From our survey we have found out that most people watch thrillers often and that most people also like psychological thrillers. This survey really helped us to find out when people would watch thrillers and what they really think of psychological thrillers as the audience opinion would help with our production. The survey has also really helped us with finding out what affects them the most when it comes to watching psychological thrillers as we really want to have the opening sequence to have an effect on audience we have found out that the audience are most affected by a disorientation shots, this helped us to include at least two disorientated shots so that the opening sequence can have more of an effect on the audience. From out survey we have also found out what type of non-diegetic sound we can include most of the answers are that the audience prefer a juxtaposition music this affects our production because it shows that in our opening sequence we need to include juxtaposition music. Overall our findings have been successful and the survey has really helped us to find out what things we can improve in our opening sequence and what the audience might not like or do like. The survey has affected our production because we might need to change some of the diegetic sound for example most people said that they find ticking clocks the most affective in psychological thriller so we might need to include a ticking clock so it can have more of an effect on the audience. Juno: EditingOverall analysis: The scene opens to a girl wearing ordinary casual clothing, holding a jug of juice in her hand as she walks along the pavement. The opening scene shows her journey to her destination which creates an enigma; this makes the audience wan to know where she is going and what she is set to do Another point the audience could already question is why is she randomly holding a jug of juice even. You are able to see her face every now and then along her journey. This opening sequence could suggest that the film would be appropriate for younger viewers. Editing: The editing switches between live action and animation. The animation complements the simple sound of the non-diegetic music. It comes across as very childish and playful which links with the story actually being about having a baby. The audience can see that this could have been inspired by some sort of children's cartoon book because of how easy and simply on the eyes it is to follow. The edit smoothly cuts from live action into the animation without any choppiness. The animation isn't even that skilfully drawn; instead it's very simply and childishly drawn. The tree in the shot bridges the gap between the parallel universes of animation and reality. This could connote the possible child or childish act in future. The way the edit presents her walking is very cartoon-like and has a very video game feel to it. It's very simple,however effective. The edit slides into a cut of her looking up, still in an animated format. It has been edited the audience can see one clip of her feet stood not moving, then smoothly slides up so you can still see her feet stood and see a reflected version of her feet walking.This shows that time-lapse photography has been used. This avoids the need of having to cut edits and keep the shot flowing. Another point is that the girl looks as if she is 2D walking in a 3D world when she is animated. The way the shops are edited in a drawn out way is very childish and amateur. The credits are very childishly drawn out which again link with the theme of children or just parenthood. Back to the future: Mise-en-sceneOverall analysis: The scene starts with the production companies logo in the galaxy which links with the fact that the company is Universal. The titles roll in with the diegetic-sound of clocks ticking. The audience can see the room and hear the radio in the background. A character is introduced and plays loud music with his guitar on a huge speaker. He is seen destroying things with the speaker. Mise-en-scene: The scene starts with shot of the galaxy which links with the production companies name. The audience can see one clocks but as the shot zooms out to a wide shot you can see the hundreds of clocks which the resident has. There are different variations of clocks: some old whereas other modern, This could connote the contrast between the past and present in the future. The different designs the clocks have could have connotations of the owner having a wacky, extravagant personality. There are two newspaper clippings of a 'Brown Mansion Destroyed' which could reflect the bad past that this person had. There are even old portraits of men hanging which could link back to the different variations of clocks and that this person could be living in the past. The messy bed shows how the person isn't organised and the are other things which are out of place: such as the coffee cup, with a letter underneath. The audience can see the random machines that this person has so that could give away that this person is a scientist. On the tv screen that this person has shows a news reporter talking about missing plutonium on the screen. There is burning toast which keeps bouncing out of the toaster which has connotations of absence. There are all these gadgets and light bulbs and even a machine which opens and puts dog food into a bowl. This confirms the thought of the person being a scientist. The bowl is filthy, which again has connotations of absence. Someone walks into the absent home and you can already see how they are dressed as a teen: very modern and trendy. They're holding a skateboard. The audience isn't aware if this is the boys house. You can't see his face yet. He pushes his skateboard away and the audience can see some plutonium which goes back to the news report of stolen plutonium. He picks up a guitar and plugs it into a mega'sized speaker and goes to strum the strings and is blown away. Halloween: SoundOverall analysis: This is a thriller with elements off horror. The iconic non-diegetic music starts before the titles fade in which has connotations of the unknown and isolation: not being able to see what you're in for. A carved pumpkin appears in the darkness and when it appears the music increases and takes over. The fact that the jack-o-lantern is there is very expected as the film is called 'Halloween'. The jack-o-lantern has connotations of evil and is scary to the viewer; this also puts the audience on edge. Very low key lighting is used which adds the eerie effect this gives off. The shot closes up to the jack-o-lantern with its light flickering. It closed up to the eye which has connotations of the window to the soul. The scene goes to trick-or-treaters speaking. Then there is a long to close up shot of a front door. Sound: Non-diegetic instantly starts the scene off with nothing else to be seen which ahas connotations of isolation and the fear of the unknown. The music sounds slightly like ticking which puts the audience on edge. The high pitched sound of the piano and other components really make this a spine chilling opening scene. The music complements the darkness and the use of only the jack-o-lantern. The music picks up and gets louder once the jack-o-lantern appears which make the audience's focus turn to the it. The music seems very jumpy as too much adds to the thrill. Behind the high pitched sound of the piano is the deep and subtle music which sounds as if something evil is lingering or waiting to jump out. After the close ups of the jack-o-lantern there the edit cuts to a door and once ha happens the music turns down so the audience of the children trick'or'treating. Children tend to be used in horror as they give of that very freaky and creepy effect so to hear that but not see them gives off the impression of a horror-thriller. Sherlock Holmes- CameraOverall analysis: The sequence starts with the production companies logos being shown as part of the cobbles streets. Old fashioned non-diegetic music plays whist this takes place, this plays through and bridges the gap to the sound of the horse and carriages. It moves from the cobbles shot straight into the horses and carriages. The music is hurried which complements the pace of the carriage. This could be a chase which creates and enigma which makes the audience want to know here the chase is heading. The audience sees a man running away from, what looks like, the horse and carriage. Camera: Instantly the camera starts off with a shot that pans to a close up of a cobbles street showing the production titles. The lighting is low key as the close ups are shown. The camera seems to be at a point of view shot at first and then goes onto panning up to a long shot of a horse and carriage and houses. Rule of thirds is seen slightly as the horse move into frame. The camera stays still as the horse and carriage move into the shot. The camera follows the carriage in a tracking shot. This could even be interpreted as a point of view shot yet again. The camera is at a mid distance. The camera speed into a close up of the back of the carriage. It goes to the inside of the carriage. We are able to see different angles of the chase. The camera follows the man running at a tilted angles. We cuts between wide shots and head shots in this clip. The way this has been filmed adds to the connotations of the chase and the unexpected. From watching it further, as the camera shows the two men in the carriage you can see the 180 degree rule as they sit facing each other. There is a mixture of head shots in the carriage and of the man running at the end. There is even a wide shot of the dark and gloomy sky. This connotes the dreadful atmosphere. We wanted to research different aspects of opening sequences in general to understand how the micro-elements can really pitch everything. Two of these are thrillers (Halloween and Sherlock Holmes). There other two were different genres which had elements of editing and mise-en-scene which were effective. As a group we felt it would be better to study different genre's as well as thrillers to get a feel of what should be expected in an opening sequence.
Here I will be researching production company logos form two opening sequences from two different films. The first opening sequence is Superman Returns: ![]() The first production company logo we see is Warner Bros. Pictures, which is a subsidiary of the conglomerate Warner Brothers. Warner Brothers is one of the big six production companies in the world. Warner Brothers has many subsidiaries, some very famous and some that only a few would have heard of; Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros. Interactive entertainment, Warner Bros. Television, Warner Bros. Animation, Warner Home Video, New Line Cinema, Castle Rock Entertainment, and DC Entertainment. Warner Brothers also own half of CW TV network. The company was founded the the four Warner brothers, Harry Warner, Albert Warner, Sam Warner and Jack Warner. Warner Brothers was founded in 1905. ![]() The second production company logo that we see is Legendary Pictures. This is an american film production company which was founded in 2000 by Thomas Tull. In 2005, Legendary Pictures began and agreement with Warner Brothers to co-produce and co-finance films together. They also began a similar agreement with Universal Studios in 2014. Legendary Pictures also has quite a few subsidiaries, Legendary Entertainment, Legendary Pictures Films, Legendary Pictures Funding, Legendary Pictures Productions, Legen Pictures, Lpsco, and Lpod. The second opening sequence is Spider-man 2: ![]() The first logo we see in this opening sequence is Columbia Pictures, this is also another of the big six film companies in the world. It is also a distribution studio of Sony Pictures Entertainment. It was originally founded in 1918 as "Cohn-Brandt-Cohn Film Sales" by two brothers, Jack and Harry Cohn and Joe Brandt, Jacks best friend. Their first feature film in August 1922. In 1924, they changed the company name to "Columbia Pictures" and two years later went public. The name Columbia was used as it is a national personification of the United Sates, which is also used for the logo. Since the 1920s, it is the world's fifth major film production company. ![]() The second logo we see in this opening sequence is Marvel. Marvel is a subsidiary of the conglomerate Walt Disney Studios. Marvel is mostly known for its Marvel comics and Marvel Television units. It was founded 17 years ago, on June 1998. Currently, Marvel have an film agreement with 20th Century Fox and Columbia Pictures. They also have a theme park licensing agreement with Universal Parks and Resorts. The opening sequence of Psycho starts with the logo for Paramount, and then the picture fades into a black scree. This could be to show that credit is being given to Paramount and the logo is at the start so everyone can see it first. After the screen has faded to black, music starts which sounds very fast and high pitch, making the picture of bars that appear on the screen next seem very sinister and dangerous, even though they are only just stripes. If the music had been calming and sweet, it would have made the bars/stripes also seem calming and something different entirely. The bars also look a bit like the bars you get on prison windows and cells, which helps show that this film is wrong and has crime in it. the picture also never stops moving and is very fast, just barely giving us enough time to read the names and writing, which suggests to the audience that film film will most likely have a lot of action and drama, and therefore appeals more to the audience. From the title of the film, "Psycho", the audience have most likely guessed that this film a about a psychotic person and that the colours that are used in this opening sequence, the grey and black, can show that this is not a happy, romantic film, and is very dark and depressing for the audience to watch. This could also be to show how a person is feeling, that they are feeling depressed and sad and only see the negatives in life. Although most of the colours are dark and dull, the titles and names are in white. This could be to show the binary opposites and good and evil in this film. Whites connotes innocence and goodness, and black connotes evil and secrets being hidden, and grey connotes compromise, of not being black or white, but between the two colours. The black and grey screen connotes isolation and being vulnerable. The stripes also travel in different directions, this could be to show that the film has unpredictable plot twists, and maybe even to show that the psycho is unpredictable.
![]() Se7en - This opening sequence starts simply with a wide shot od a man in bed whilst all is silent. He switches on a metronome. That diegetic sound is heard whilst the camera zooms in on him. The scene changes to slightly high pitched, chilling non-diegetic music. The credits roll in and look hand written which compliments the images or books and other objects being shown as well as the non-diegetic music. The dark colours in this scene connote mystery and evil. ![]() The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo- The scene instantly goes into dark images and randomness. Everything is scattered and quick paced as high energised music is played in the background. There is fire which could connote that a fire has been started in the plot. The darkness also has a creepy and mysterious factor to this all. ![]() The Shining - A psychological thriller. The opening scene shows a car drive along roads. A lot of this is at birds eye view. Low music connotes mystery. The car driving on its own could connote isolation. ![]() Silence of the lambs- Dark, gloomy atmosphere as woman runs through a forest. Adventurous like music is played. At this stage you can't tell that this is a psychological thriller. It starts off completely normal and as if it will turn out different than what the genre is. ![]() The Usual Suspects - Starts off with matches set alight. The rest of the scene is very dark and menacing as well as connoting evil. ![]() Each name was rather bright and stood out whilst the sequence starts off with dark colours. The film itself mirrors things a lot and has patterns. The opening sequence gives away a lot of what this film is about whilst Skyfall is played- which is sung by Adele. This is our final script for the opening sequence of our film 'PSYCHOSIS'. We have tried to write it up in detail and we are happy with the outcome.
As a group we came up with some ideas for our opening sequence and how we were going to film it and the styles we will be using
We will be filming our opening sequence in colour as we were thinking that it would show the fact that this is a modern film and that it would give off more of an effect. We were thinking of filming neo-noir, however we didn't feel like it matched what we wanted. LOCATION: We would like to film in a house or in a just a hallway. We like the idea of filming in a hallway of someone's house and a bedroom or even a bathroom as we feel that these all give off a great effect in a thriller. The font we will be using for the titles will be in either black or white but plain and simple to reflect that this will be a psychological thriller. We were inspired by David Fincher who has directed dark and ominous thrillers that focus on the psychology of men, such as in Se7en, The Game, Fight Club and Zodiac. These are successful psychological thriller which he has directed. FILM IDEAS: PSYCHOSIS: Titles fade in from a black screen whilst a knocking at the door is heard. All is silent whilst the sound of knocking takes over and progresses as if it is in sync with a heartbeat. Suspense invades the scene as the door slowly opens in an anticipated manner whilst the devilish creaking of the door is sounded. (The camera will be stood at the person’s point of view to put the thought of: “who is on the other side of the camera?” in the audience’s head.) When the door opens it reveals a hallway with the majority of it in darkness; it emanates eeriness. For a moment all is silent…. Breathing breaks in and it’s rather frantic. At the end of the hallway a light switches on and little girl appears under it. She is looking down at the floor in a white dress whilst her hair is covering the majority of her face. The light switches off and the girl is not able to be seen. The breathing gets louder and echoes slightly. Nothing else is heard yet again. The light switches on again and the little girl seems to have moved forward slightly; still her head is looking at the ground with her hair covering her head. This repeats a couple times as the breathing gets louder and louder and more frantic. Suddenly the girl is close and the light dimly shows her face. She seems rather innocent and the sound of crying is heard. The light switches off once again and at the moment the light switches on again she is slightly further back once more but somethings changed… Her eyes are gouged out and the sound of laughter is heard. The light goes off and she is on the floor with her eyes in the same state with blood on the floor. As you look closer there’s is a jump between someone’s eyes and the girl. Someone wakes up with a scream but they are not in a bed. They’re in a confined space… a coffin. The girl wakes again and she is in bed… Just a dream. However… there is a doll next to her head with its eyes scratched out and blood surrounding her head… END ALTERNATIVE ENDING FOR PSYCHOSIS: Titles fade in from a black screen whilst a knocking at the door is heard. All is silent whilst the sound of knocking takes over and progresses as if it is in sync with a heartbeat. Suspense invades the scene as the door slowly opens in an anticipated manner whilst the devilish creaking of the door is sounded. (The camera will be stood at the person’s point of view to put the thought of: “who is on the other side of the camera?” in the audience’s head.) When the door opens it reveals a hallway with the majority of it in darkness; it emanates eeriness. For a moment all is silent…. Breathing breaks in and it’s rather frantic. At the end of the hallway a light switches on and little girl appears under it. She is looking down at the floor in a white dress whilst her hair is covering the majority of her face. The light switches off and the girl is not able to be seen. The breathing gets louder and echoes slightly. Nothing else is heard yet again. The light switches on again and the little girl seems to have moved forward slightly; still her head is looking at the ground with her hair covering her head. This repeats a couple times as the breathing gets louder and louder and more frantic. Suddenly the girl is close and the light dimly shows her face. She seems rather innocent and the sound of crying is heard. The light switches off once again and at the moment the light switches on again she is slightly further back once more but somethings changed… Her eyes are gouged out and the sound of laughter is heard. The light goes off and she is on the floor with her eyes in the same state with blood on the floor surrounding her head. This fades out into a white space and fade back into a girl’s eyes. She looks as if they are underwater. They struggle under the water and let out muffled screams. She acts as if she is being held down but there is nothing there. She reaches out to grab something and her attempts fail. You can see she is in a bath. Blood stains her fingertips with a subtle amount on her palms. The camera goes from the top of her body down to her feet as she struggles. The scene fades out into a white space again and fades back onto her feet however she is no longer in a bath. You can see he r sit up in bed and she is completely calm. She puts her legs over the edge of the bed. She sighs and rubs her eyes. She walks away and behind where she was sitting, you see a small doll with no eyes and blood on the sheets were it is. There is a calendar on the wall with days crossed out until the day where it says ‘Therapy today’ in a circle. The titles psychosis will be shown at this point when it cuts to a black screen. STALKING: START: A girl appears from an alley way in the darkness of the night. Street lights are dimly switched on as she walks through the streets. She hears something behind her and turns to look but there’s nothing there. On the other side of the street another girl stands expressionless looking off into the distance with vacant eyes. The girl dismisses her and continues to go on with her journey. A hooded figure appears behind her but she doesn’t see them as they linger. They don’t walk they just stand there facing her direction as she walks. Every now and then they appear when is walking but she is unaware of them. Eventually, she arrives at her home. She enters the door with a sigh. As she shuts the door the hooded figure is seen whilst it slowly closes. She sets her keys down and her other belongings. Her parents aren’t home so she is completely alone. She has a dog and after she greets it, it keeps barking at the window. The girl looks outside of the window and there’s nothing there. As she turns her back the hooded figure reappears. She goes to her room to change and hears something at the door. The door is slightly agar… She says “I swear I didn’t leave this open?” She shrugs and walks up to the bathroom and washes her face. She looks in the mirror then goes to wash her face. As she bends down to the sink the hooded figure appears behind her. The dog barks but is stopped abruptly. She runs to find the dog and can’t find it. The hooded figure appears behind her and reaches out to her. She wakes up in bed shaking and terrified. END After researching logos from other film companies, we decided that we like simple but effective logos. We agreed that we would all want our logo in black and white, with possibly another colour if the need was felt to have one. The text had to be readable and suitable for the film we would create. -Making the logoI (Georgina) was the one to make this logo because I have previous knowledge of how to use Photoshop well and I had a very strong idea for the logo that everyone else also agreed with. I started with a black background and then put the words 'GEMINI' and 'PRODUCTIONS' central in the image and in a simple, bold font. To make the pair of twins back to back, I got a silhouette of a side profile and traced it on Photoshop in a new layer so it would be white and not black. I then duplicated the layer and flipped it so that the silhouettes would be backwards and exactly the same. -The Final Logo![]() Our final logo was made with Photoshop. The logo is kept very simple but still looks good. The words were kept in a simple and easy to read font so that the audience could know and remember the name easier. The picture in the logo is of a pair of twins back to back. Gemini, in astrology, is known as the twins. We used a pair of twins back to back because we didn't like the actual sign for Gemini and it didn't look as good as this one did. 1. 0.00-0.04- flashes of green lightning and thunder sounds 2. 0.05-0.06- the ‘LGF’ logo flashes up smaller then big, in time with the lightning flashes and the thunder sounds 3. 0.07-0.08- the ‘Lions Gate films’ flashed up underneath with the sound of sharp metal being rubbed together quickly one time. 4. 0.08-0.10- ‘a lions gate entertainment company’ appears from left to right underneath 5. 0.10-0.13- The logo zooms in and fades to black
10. 0.28-0.32- ‘Twisted Pictures Presents’ comes up on screen then goes off with no transition effect
11. 0.33-0.36- ‘A Burg/Koules/Hoffman Production appears on screen then fades out. 12. 0.37-0.43- ‘A Film by James Wan’ fades onto screen, moves around like it’s in water, then fades out. 13. 0.43-0.50- A blue light in water floats over a man’s face, momentarily lighting it up and then floats out of shot 14. 0.51-0.57-‘Saw’ fades onto screen, then the letters float around like they’re in water and fade out. Camera: the opening sequence first starts with a close up tracking shot of a chalk as it's being dragged along the paper. There are multiple shots like this throughout the opening sequence. This creates the feeling that to the audience that there is a bigger picture to the lines on the paper and that they are of a fairly high importance to the rest of the film because of the tracking shot, as it is making the audience stay focused on the object the entire time. The close up shots that aren't tracking shots make the audience look more at the lines on the paper rather than the chalk being dragged. This makes sure that the audience know that the line are just as important to the rest of the film (therefore keeping the feeling that there is a bigger picture to be shown) as the person holding the chalk. Since the opening sequence only uses close up shots, you don't see the person holding the chalk or the picture that the person is drawing with it. This makes the audience feel suspense and like there is a big mystery which is common in thrillers. The amount of tracking shots in the opening sequence make it feel chaotic and a little manic, therefore making suspense felt by the audience again.
Mise en Scene: There is a high contrast between the chalk and the paper as the paper is white/yellowy white and the chalk is black. The contrast here makes the scene eerie because high contrasts creates a feeling of uneasiness to the audience. The chalk being dragged along on the paper slowly and then quickly (or vice-versa) creates suspense ad the audience would then expect something to happen due to the pace of the movement but it doesn't, leaving the audience to then feel uneasy. The black in the sequence connotes darkness and evil and the white paper connotes purity and good. In the start of the opening sequence, there is only one black line being drawn per shot but by the end of it there is scribbling and more black being drawn on the paper. This could be foreshadowing for how the film/ the main character could start of mainly pure but get darker and more evil and the movie goes on. The faster movement of the chalk towards the end of the sequence makes the audience feel like there is more action/excitement/fear to come in the film. Sound: The start of the sequence has slow and calm piano music which creates a calm atmosphere to the audience. As the music progresses, more notes are added to make the music faster and louder but this happens at a slow pace and is barely noticeable. this means that the audience would get more fear from the music but not know why, leaving them confused and in suspense for more. Eerie sounds (possibly wind) are added lightly as 0.42. These are common sounds in thrillers that create a fear of the unknown for the audience as the object making the eerie sound sis not on screen. Near the middle, there are more gaps between the notes again but his time it is chords instead, making the music louder and seem shorter which creates even more suspense of what's to come because of the contrast between the music before with lots of notes that flow, to hard hitting chords. The song gets faster again after being slow and eerie at 1.30. Again, this creates a contrast to different sections of the song. Towards the end of the clip high notes are played repetitively, faster and louder than in all the song before. The high notes sound out of place when they are all together repetitively as the rest of the song was mostly played lower. At the very end there was the sound of a smashing glass which is sudden and shocking to the audience since there is no glass in any of the shots. Smashing glass is common in thrillers an especially in psychological thrillers. Editing: The start of the sequence fades from black which makes the scene eerie from the beginning at black connotes evil. There is a long shot duration when the shots fade into each other, leaving the last shot still slightly visible when it goes into the next shot, making it seem calm. The shot durations get shorter and shorter as the sequence goes on, creating more suspense. When it gets to the shortest shot duration, it's almost like there are jump cuts, making it seem chaotic and leaves a fear for the unknown to the audience. This is a storyboard for the ideas of our opening sequence for Psychosis with annotations. SHOT NO.1 SHOT NO.2 SHOT NO.3 SHOT NO.4
|
Gemini Productions
Categories
All
|