For this story board, the music is just a random song that was on the software since we had not yet made our own composition for our opening sequence. The storyboard shown is almost a plan of how we imagined our sequence to look, therefore if we had made the music first it would not have matched the filming sequence. Timing would have been more difficult to keep in sync (the music next to motion).
Sleepy Hollow As this Is set in the late 17th century America just after the time of the revolution, the costumes are quite accurate to the period, although perhaps a bit over the top. The colours are kept quite subdued black, white, grey to reflect the dark mood of the film. the wealth of the characters is shown by the clothes they wear. Setting-the sets are very gothic, lots of creepy trees and mist. this is very much a horror set in newly independent America. Ichabod Crane, a police constable is the main character, he is sent to sleepy hollow to investigate a series of murders by a headless horseman. Props- the most terrifying prop is the huge axe wielded by the horseman, it is very like a traditional execution axe, the point is, he can swing it around like it weighs nothing. there is also a very dangerous looking knife which he throws, however, Ichabod relies on his notebook. Red Riding Hood Red riding hood is also a thriller and is based on the Grimms fairytale version of little red riding hood. Costume-the costumes in the film were loosely based on country clothes but there are more of the pretty fairy tale look. for example they would probably not have bright colours such as red or purple, but as there is no real set time for the film the clothes are only really there to be pretty. Most of the outfits are designed to make the characters look good. For example, red riding hoods iconic cloak and father solomens' rich purple coat, but the male characters are shown in quite handsome clothes, as this will appeal to the target audience. Props- the main props out of the many used in the film are weapons and jail equipment. the sword does pop up from time to time in the film but the chains are more prominent, because they enchain the main character up in the climax of the film, they are also made vital in a close up of the chains in the final scenes. Settings- the story is also based in a small country town near a forest and mountain. The season is winter with snow everywhere making the forest eerie and making shadows look bigger than they are. Having the village made out of wood with spiked ends and scary painting on the church, makes the whole thing have a dark medieval feel. Sin City Sin city is a film that explores the dark and miserable town, Basin City, and tells the story of three different people, all caught up in violent corruption. it is a neo-noir. meaning it is based on original noir films but with a modern twist. Costume - the entire film is in black and white with each scene having one item of red. This meant that all the costumes were over the top with detail ,to compensate for the minimalist black and white look. Most of the girl costumes were very sexy with chains and guns This is to appeal to the target audience as the film is based on comic books. Having one part in red meant that it stood out and made the film have a unique look. Props- all the main props are guns, knives and other such weapons. also all in black and white. the weapons made the film, as the story is all about gun crime and it made the film interesting and eye chatching to look at. Settings- the story is set in the city with tall buildings made of steel, brick and glass making it look very glamorous. the story takes us from home, streets ,rooftops and jails, making it a fast paced film with lots of interesting shots to look at. Throughout the editing process we decided to change then name of our project from 'The Keyhole' to 'Reminiscence'. We did some extra research on Hitchcock & Film noir names, collectively we came to the conclusion that this would be a more stylistic and appropriate name. Some examples of film noir names are: 'psycho' 'Notorious'
A Forest setting is perfect for a film noir. The silhouettes of the tree branches create a shadow effect, commonly found in Film noirs in order to add mystery and dramatic effect. The secluded setting offers an immediate idea of danger to audiences. The great mass of the forest makes any character seem small and vulnerable, this adds to the character ideology of a feminine woman that is commonly found in film nor thrillers. A wide location shot can set the scene and setting and sun rays peering through the branches can create a picturesque effect... (Unfortunately there wasn't much sun on the December day that we filmed!) Nevertheless, the cloudy fog created an eerie atmosphere throughout the forest and the black and white effect enhanced this. This image or nature shot can be used to break up action sequences of match on action. A simple fade transition can lead to a short image of woodland to reiterate the fact that the character is swallowed in the forest. We used a tripod to film a pan around of the sky through the trees. The spiral effect method worked well with the idea of the character sharing a memory or a dream like effect, linking with the name of our production, 'Reminiscence'. The black and white effect creates dark and scary imagery of the trees. This modern day woodland setting replicates the research we gathered from vintage film noirs that also contain scenes of forest landscapes. As you can see from the comparison, the black and white shots connote a dark and gloomy atmosphere adding tension as it creates a tense atmosphere for the audience to watch. Once our footage was at the stage of editing, we added a black and white effect in order to follow the style of a film noir - automatically our sequence became darker and more intense... the typical codes and conventions included in film noir thrillers.
Mid shot- Our first shot in Reminiscence will be a mid shot of Sarah's character, which will establish some of the environment she is in and the props around her, which will hopefully lead to connotations of the typical fem fatale. <--- An example of a mid shot. Zoom and close up of eye- Our next planned shot, was for us to zoom into the eye where there is now an extreme close up to then go to the taunting memories of Sarah's past. The inspiration for the eye close up was taken from the opening of Alfred Hitchcock's opening to Vertigo. A low angle shot- is put in, in order to capture the above surroundings and lighting within the area our character we be in. (will also return after pov shot). A point of view shot- will be used whilst running through the forest in order to raise intensity levels, and let the audience feel rushed and panicked, as if they where in our characters position. A wide shot- will be put in place to capture Sarah running through the woods panicking, it will therefore establish her body language and the environment she is in. A dutch tilt- is going to be used, since they are deliberately slanted to one side they create a strong dramatic effect, and helps portrays unease, which is them aim at this point for our character Sarah. Another wide shot put in place once again to create unease (this time panning). Close up- Firstly of Sarah spinning, to create a lost and confused sensation, and secondly a still close up of Sarah's face in the forest, concentrating on her eyes in order to capture her looking about. Our opening sequence does not consist of any dialogue as we believe actions speak louder than words, especially within a film noir, as it almost opens with some form of suspense.
The actions and emotions shown by the woman in the opening sequence will be enough along with, almost vintage, jazzy and scary music to create the perfect film noir opening sequence. This was a rough idea of what we were planning to do. At first we didn't know how to end it so we left it to when we were filming so we could see what looked best as an ending.
Most thrillers are currently being viewed by teenagers and adults. This may be due to a more difficult plot line and more mature themes, making it hard for younger children to follow and relate to. Most Thriller films are usually categorized as certificate 12A, therefor these films are not accessible to younger children. Here is a model example of a typical audience member for thrillers. She would come under group E as she is a student and unemployed. Younger generations enjoy thrillers due to the fast pace and thought provoking themes. Marketing of certain films can be easily directed to teenagers due to the vast network connections that teenagers are accessible to (Facebook, Twitter, Tumbler) Here is an example of someone in group B or C1 who would be a target audience for a thriller, as they are employed as a 'White Collar' worker or middle management. Thrillers appeal to this audience range as it acts as a form of stylistic entertainment. The sophisticated themes and cinematography that can be found in successful Oscar nominated films can travel through word and mouth and online to this target audience.
Sound is very important in psychological thrillers because they can create tension and make the audience more nervous about what is going to happen. Music also contributes to this as it is usually very odd and high pitched music that makes us think something is going to happen. Sounds that are commonly used in psychological thrillers are thunderclaps, owls, rain or footsteps. In this clip of Panic Room we hear a lot of footsteps from the burglars and the two women. This creates tension because it shows that there is a chase and we don't know why. We can also hear heavy breathing to show how scared the women are and it is emphasised to show that something is wrong. Then in this clip of Psycho before the rain starts we hear some very tense music, it is very high pitched and fast to show that something isn't right. Then the rain starts and we see the sign for the 'Bates Motel'. Rain has connotations of having a bad day and things constantly going wrong so from hearing the rain we know that there is something wrong with the Bates Motel. We took inspiration from a range of old Film Noir films such as: 'Kiss of Death','Gilda', 'Spellbound' and many more when deciding what props would make up our mise en scene. In the scene that we filmed in doors, we used the following props. In the scene that we filmed in the forest, we didn't have to rely on props as it was a natural setting.
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