Throughout the making of Hidden Within we have used a wide range of old and new technologies, some of which we have been familiar with and others not. Each of the sites we used such as, GarageBand and Final Cut Express took some time to grasp the concept of how we were to bring everything together and had to sit a few lessons to fully understand. From this I have learnt how to bring single sounds that from the aim we wanted to be intense and fit enigma code for the thriller, and then put them together in a sequence to have a soundtrack and effects behind the opening sequence. GarageBand helped enhance the atmosphere within Hidden Within and showed us the importance of music and sounds. Final cut express we used for editing, such as fading the credits between each shots to keep the opening sequence flowing. As well as not all cuts were use able so we were able to shorten each shot and add it to the sequence by cutting it and dragging it down.
Looking back at our preliminary task, it is clear that our understanding of camera and editing skills has improved vastly. To start with, we had very little knowledge of the programmes we needed to use for example final cut pro and garage band. We also needed a variety of different camera angles in order to get a high grade in our production. Our preliminary allowed us to experiment using the angles we learnt such as 180 degree angle, shot reverse shot, match on action and rule of thirds. Using these techniques, it really helped us with our final piece.
When planning the protagonist, location and equipment for Hidden Within, we took time and care by researching many opening sequences to inspire us. Se7en was a huge influence on our production as it gave us an understanding of what we wanted to produce. During our planning process, we carried out research by using surveys on our target audience to find out what elements they liked about our preliminary which helped us gain an understanding of what to include in our production. They also looked at our synopsis of Hidden Within which explained our plot which assisted us in making improvements with their feedback. In our final production we ensured that our characters were represented accurately to fit their role. Our protagonist was dressed in black clothing to create enigma and a dark atmosphere. This juxtaposed with our antagonist as she was dressed in youthful, colourful clothing to connote vulnerability and to represent her as the victim. In our preliminary, we did not take as much time to think about the costume choice as it didn’t create the same intense vibe. We followed a similar storyline in the preliminary and from this we could decide areas of improvement for our final production. The protagonist was mostly shown in low key lighting which connoted mystery and enhanced shadowing for the same effect. The antagonist was shown in high key lighting to represent her as angelic and innocent. Our experience using final cut pro shows development when comparing our preliminary to our final production. Our understanding of how to show relationships and interactions through editing was greatly helped with the use of final cut pro. When making our preliminary, our understanding of final cut pro was not at the same level as it is now and I think this is proven in our final production. It took us a while to navigate ourselves around the programme but with help from our teacher and friends, we soon got the hang of it. This was the same with garage band however, it was easier to use and took us less time to get used to.
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Hidden Within consists of one antagonist and a smaller protagonist role. In order for us to create an enigma code which will engage the audience with the narrative, during the opening sequence the audience never gets introduced fully to both of these characters. Throughout each mise en scene, quick short duration cuts presents the story behind the opening sequence without showing the main character head on with what’s mostly used in a wide shot, keeping the typical codes and conventions of a thriller. Our group used an outside student who was intrigued by thriller based films and also had some experience in acting as well as myself. The camera composition ensured that as a character he remained mysterious. The audience only see him in a montage of close shots. The close up of his eyes are a code and convention used in many thriller films and connotes mystery and darkness represented in the character. Juxtaposed to the dark stalker we needed the innocent, young girl victimise a binary opposite to enhance the danger and vulnerability. In contrast to the possessive, hidden male only shown with pan ups or a close up the girl is presented with the use of only wide shots in each mise en scene. This connotes the openness of her innocence, making her defenceless to the dominant male as well being less withdrawn to the audience so they are able to connect more with her than the stalker. Using a teenage female helps the targeted audience of similar age groups to identify with the character, and with this it creates a strong sense of empathy. Being able to experience emotions with each mise en scene are important to have for a successful opening sequence. We decided to use Harry in our film because we felt he would be challenging the stereotypical representation of a psychopath, researching existing media texts we could see psychopaths as old, ugly, creepy whilst Harry is youthful and attractive. As well as the voyeurism he connects with the targeted audience for being more realistic and familiar. We remained the stereotypical all black clothing which stalkers are mostly presented wearing in many films to continue with the codes and conventions. A great example that has similar characteristics and aspects to Hidden Within is The Lovely Bones. Both protagonists presented in The Lovely Bones resemble the same concepts to our pacific storyline of the stalker and young girl. She has the same connotations of our own character being innocent, youthful as well as giving a big insight into her life. However, the male stalker in The Lovely Bones is more cliché than Harry with his looks and behaviour, but both have the same hidden characteristics of making themselves blend into society. We felt that it was necessary to make a poster in order to deconstruct the micro-elements of out film opening and help with our analysis into the effects of colour and atmosphere. We wanted to make the poster applicable to a wider target audience and so we used a bright colour palette juxtaposed with a monochrome scheme to reinforce the idea of a psychological atmosphere. I followed the typical codes and conventions of recognisable film posters and then developed it further to suit our chosen sub-genre of thriller. I feel that it creates something that would be effective and show we have the idea of what is often used within marketing. This would be further than a teaser poster where only a few details of the film is shown to give a quick insight, and both would be used to attract the audience to seeing the film. With the code and conventions of the dark, mysterious expression on the protagonist face and the creepy location it is clear they would be seeing a horror, psychological based thriller.
1st shot- Institution logo and name
Non-digietic music will be played throughout 2nd shot- 3 quick shots of a mind board progressing with the murderer admiring his work all in a wide shot. With continuos low key lighting to enhance a dark atmosphere. 3rd shot- Credits, e.g 'produced by..' with a black screen background and white font inc. As well as scribbles and flashes edited in to maintain attention of the audience; making it more eerie and full of suspense. 4th shot- close up of the murderers eyes, moving whilst he works. 5th shot- 3 quick shots of tying pins and maps onto his mind wall. 6th shot- credits as before 7th shot- close up of flashes of suicide photos on the wall. 8th shot-pan down wall showing suicide newspaper clippings 9th shot- credits as before 10th shot-Close up of holding a strand of hair with tweezers and placing into a bag. Quick cuts of sealing the bag and then pinning onto the wall. 11th shot- credits 12th shot- time-lapse of crossing dates off the calendar, linking to the final opening when the date appears at the bottom. 13th shot- quick cuts of close up mug shots of victims and stalker-ish items (scribbles and music becoming more intense, repetition of shots + flashes). 14th shot- close up of tatty red diary, flipping through and focus onto different words. 15th shot- credits 16th shot- close up pan of dead girls hand with blood covering them. Low key lighting. 17th shot- Wide shot of the mind board again, slowly fading out with the title Hidden Within flashing in the middle of a darken background. Sharp noises. 18th shot- Music stops and instead diegetic music of the taps with distant sirens. With a close up of washing his hands covered in blood in the sink. I had a quick look into how effective films were able to make surreal scenes seem very realistic; come to life. Due to our production involving a great deal of editing with quick fast images, they need to have a darkened atmosphere something that would need to be inputed. I Am legend showed how editing can turn a normal looking human into a zombie without the use of makeup. As well as the surroundings, certain elements were added. But with the inspiration coming from American Horror Story's titles to have a similar idea for our opening scene, I found a clip of how and why it was made this way and positive feedback of the effectiveness.
Our production revolves around darkness therefore, the one character we are featuring needs to be wearing similar dark, black, mysterious clothes. However, you never see the front of his physique only the back. So the costume is going to be black jeans, black shoes and a black or grey hoody which will always be zipped up and over his head. With this it makes the character have a creepy, unknown vibe about him, also creating an enigma code as the audience will want to watch in the hope that his identity will be revealed.
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