Question 7

Question 6

Question 4 & 5

Question 3

Question 2

Question 1

Completed Project

Entrapment Music Score

Audience awareness (Cinema Inquiries : News Update)

It seems since my last post about audience awareness it seems odeon has e-mailed back but not with good news...

On Thu, Nov 22, 2012 at 12:35 PM, ODEON Guest Services <GS@odeon.co.uk> wrote:

Dear Tom,

Thank you for your email.

Unfortunately we do not carry this information to share.

Should you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to email us again or call 0871 22 44 007* between 11am and 8pm.

Regards,

Mark
ODEON Guest Services

* Calls cost 10p per minute plus network extras.


On Tue, 13 Nov 2012, tw.shepherd1995@googlemail.com wrote:
> I would prefer it if you could reply back to this email as fast as possible.
> If possible could i have a short list of your most popular selling film genre.
>
> Tom Shepherd

Animatic

This is the animatic of our storyboard.

This was only created to get a basic idea of the timing. 

(A very simple animatic with no real flow or sound)

Production Logo

The finished production logo...

...Tadaa

Equipment list

This is a list of the equipment we will need;

• 1x Fish eye Camera
• 1x Steadicam rig
• 1x Camera
• 2x Spotlights with a diffusion filter 
• 1x Tripod

We will need this equipment for the 8th of December.

Production Logo WIP

Just a few work in progress pictures of our amazingly awesome...ish production logo.

Risk Assessment

Audience awareness (Cinema Inquiries)

I sent an e-mail to the Odeon and Cineworld franchises inquiring as to their resent statistics of sales for different genres. Odeon has not replied but Cineworld has replied with a disappointing e-mail saying that they only have information on sales that is not genre specific.

Audience Awareness (Stats Analysis)

Recently I been doing some basic research into what genre of film has the largest audience. I done research about the statistics as to which has the largest audience in relation to it's worldwide grossing total. This figure only gives a basic idea of the audience size as the price of film tickets change but as the total gross is made up of multiple releases it gives an idea of the popularity of a film and it's genre.

Top 20 films of all times

(worldwide gross)

1. Avatar (2009)
2. Titanic (1997)
3. Marvel's The Avengers (2012)
4. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 (2011)
5. Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
6. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
7. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
8. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)
9. Toy Story 3 (2010)
10. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)
11. Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
12. Alice in Wonderland (2010)
13. The Dark Knight (2008)
14. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)
15. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
16. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 (2010)
17. The Lion King (1994)
18. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
19. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
20. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

From these twenty we can get a basic understanding as to the most popular genre of film. 

In the basic look it would seem that action is one of the most popular genres. It would also seem that films using  CGI or animation have a higher audience than live action films. 

Little Addition

Today we created a Facebook page to get other peoples opinions. We are going to allow other people to give us ideas, advice and overall help to make this thriller opening great. Here is a link to the Entrapment page. 

Storyboard

Storyboard for Entrapment-

Experiments & Evaluation

POV Experiment-

An evaluation of our POV experiment shows us what we need to change to better the effect. We need to increase the distance between the posters so that there is enough time to get back to a center line. We need to allow enough time for the fast motion between credits. Other than these changes I think the POV will be successful with a bit of revision of the small details.

Here is the evidence for a future disaster...

Location examples

Examples of various locations that the opening could be set in.

W.I.P Titles and Credits

Thriller Concept (Individual)

For my concept idea of a thriller I need to think about the location, how many actors the idea would need and I need to keep in mind that I am only on a low budget with simple technology.

Idea One - Entrapment
An abstract montage of flashing images and short actions. The idea is based on the opening to Seven but could have elements of Phone Booth by using establishing shots of building from a low angle to create a feeling of entrapment. I could edit the shots to look burnt and old while using overlays on the establishing shots to make the building seem fierce. All the small spaces and tall building would hopefully put across a metaphor of Entrapment.

(Screen shots from the film Phone Booth to give an example of what angles and shot sizes I hope to be using for the establishing shot)

Idea Two - 
Idea two will be less abstract more realistic. The more realistic feel should make it easy for the for the viewer to relate to the film making it seem real, as though what is seen could happen to them. So obviously as this is meant to be more realistic showing hundreds of different, overly edited clips might distract the viewer from the point and have the wrong effect. What could be a good idea to add realism would be to have the camera at eye level and do the main shots as a point of view (P.O.V) mixed in with a few establishing shots and titles. My idea is to have someone walk through a crowd of people in a ordinary street. Having the camera film their point of view I planned on having the title and credits stuck to the walls along the street.

The best example of what I want to achieve comes from the opening cutscene of the game Dead Island only without the zombies (They've been over used recently).

Identifying order task

In this task we were told to rearrange a few short shots from the film 'No country for old men' into the order that we think they come in.

Evidence of Folie and Audio in GarageBand

Explanation 
Here is a screenshot of the soundtrack that Lewis, Liam and myself made in GarageBand. We worked together in an entirely productive way to create a thriller opening. The tracks named 'No Effect' are edited recordings of a corkscrew and and banana slicer. The blue bars underneath the tracks are the volume sliders. These increase and decrease the volume of the track according to the position of the node. The four 'Fingersty...ric Bass' tracks are used to create the sound of a heartbeat getting faster and faster. 'Bondi Breath' is a another audio effect we used to create a eerie background rumble and then we used the 'Star Sweeper' effect to mimic a 'Flatline' sound. 

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo analysis

My write up of notes on the film The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

I am currently unable to find a working copy of the opening title sequence to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I will add one as soon as I am able to find a working copy.

Title-

• Various strange sans serif fonts used
• The text is unique to the film
• Video footage is noticeably overlayed
•  There is a juxtaposition between the text colour and the background colours
• The credits are only on for a short time 

Mise en scene-

• Dark close ups involving shadows and minimal lighting
• A knife is seen being used 
• Photograph creates an enigma

Camerawork-

• There is a low depth-of-field which is used to blur the background
• An eye-line shot shows what the man is looking at
• An over shoulder shot is used to make the audience feel like they are part of the crowd
• An enigma is created when the camera tracks a girl without showing her face

Editing-

• Titles fade in and out following the music
• In scenes showing sadness the scene "slows down" and there are less transitions
• At times the sound changes before the scene transitions. These overlaps are used to create antisipation 

Sound-

• Long quite notes add suspense
• After a man opens a letter a high flute suddenly comes in to show the characters realization of an sad event 
• Violins give a feeling of sadness to accompany the mans crying
• The violins add tension with a use of low, long notes
• As the scenes go on the music becomes more depressing before fading away 

Narrative-

• Dramatic, looming feel, sadness, something has happened 
• The framed flowers and the man crying at them gives us the impression that they have something to do with the story 
• Tension is created because of the room full of silent people, like a court room 
• The presence of a news reporter implies that the news story is relevant to the film story

Genre-

• The dark lighting and various enigmas show that the film is a thriller

Seripico Analysis

My Write up of notes on the film Seripico (Made in 1973)

I am currently unable to find a working copy of the opening title sequence to Seripico. I will add one as soon as I am able to find a working copy.

Title-

• Serif font 
• Quick momentum to create the feeling of emergency 
• A simple white text on a black background
• All the credits are at the start with the important parts of each credit, such as the names, are in a larger and bold font 

Mise en scene-

• The first shot is set in a police car with dark lighting to create a sense of enigma
• The clothing and hair of the characters establishes that the film is set in the present time of when the film was made (1973).
• Use of dull colours
• Lots of shadows and use of dark lighting too create an enigma
• To start the setting is a urban town at night but this changes to a well lit assembly hall and then onto a hospital with a blue/green tint of lighting as the scene progresses   

Camerawork-

• Most of the scenes are made up of close ups
• The main shot is tracking shot that follows the drama through the hospital. This use of shot makes the viewer feel as though they are following the drama and involves them in the film
• Close ups of peoples faces as they here about whats happened allows us to see their shock and gives the impression that it's either an unusual occurrence or that a tragedy has just happened
• Shaking cameras give the impression that it's an amateur filming the drama as though they were just passing by, saw what was happening and just started filming  

Editing-

• Titles Quickly fade in and out from black at a pace similar to a slow heart beat
• Cut-a-ways are used a lot to raise the tension and create an enigma but this also allows the scenes to move quicker
• Physical transitions are used, for example; before a cut-a-way a curtain is drawn obscuring the view of the camera before the scene changes. This exadurates how involved the viewer is in the drama

Sound-

• Police sirens put the viewer on edge instantly due to their loudness and connection to crime
• The sound of car wipers match the beat of a heart and slowly the tempo rises
• Typewriters can be heard 
• Sirens die down when they reach the hospital. This gives the feeling that they are now safe which slightly lowers the tension
• Children can be heard screaming in pain as the drama moves through the hospital
• Light hearted music allows you to feel calmer about the situation
• Though the light hearted music is calming it is also ironic to the drama that is unfolding making the viewer feel uncomfortable about the situation 

Narrative-

• The story seems to be about a possibly legendary policeman that has been shot and from the title sequences I would guess that someone, possibly a partner or friend goes looking for the mans killer.
• I get the feeling the policeman is a legend or highly respected man from the reaction of the people on the phones hearing about him being shot as they seemed confused and surprised that someone was able to shoot him

Genre-

• From what I can tell I would guess that the film is a mystery, crime, thriller
• I can reach this verdict from the event that is happening, the props that are being used and the camera shots that are used

Enigma-

• This film features a high feeling of tension and enigma due to the dark scenes and unrevealing close ups that are used through out the title sequence 

Vertigo Analysis

My write up of notes on the Alfred Hitchcock film Vertigo.

An empty screen is the first thing the viewer sees. Suddenly the light level in increases to reveal a face in black and white. The light allows all of the woman's facial imperfections to be seen. The reason of showing the woman's imperfections might be to show how see has nothing to hide or how she has been hiding something but now it is all out in the open for everyone to see, metaphorically speaking.

As the camera pans over to reveal more of her face the music starts to pick up and then suddenly erupts into an explosion of sound. The use of shock and suddenness that is used in the title sequence may be in reference to how suddenly the story changes or how suddenly a characters life changes for the worse.

Unusually two actors names are shown before the title of the film. This wouldn't be as unusual if all of actors were shown then the title or if the title had come last after the credits but in this case only two actors names are shown then the title, only to carry on showing other actors names after. This shows how important the actors are or how famous and well known these actors are (which is apparently very).

During the unusual set out the camera pans up the woman's face to reveal her eyes. Her pupils are extremely diluted giving the feeling that she is fearful of something that we as the viewer can't see creating the all important enigma of the thriller genre.

The camera then pan and zooms to the left to her right eye changing to an extreme close up that really shows her fear. Her eyes shift left and right creating a feeling of unease as it gives the sense that even the character doesn't know whats going to happen.

Again the camera zooms this time even closer to her eye. Suddenly her eye widens, her pupil shrinks and a red filter covers the screen as the title appears.

As the title fades a swirl seems to come out from her eye which then engulfs the entire screen and from the center of that swirl comes another and from the center of that swirl comes another, this continues until the end of the title sequence with the pattern becoming more and more complex. To accompany these patterns the credits are shown along side until the end were it reverts back to the extreme close up of the woman's face still in shock.

North by Northwest Analysis

My write up of notes on the Alfred Hitchcock film North by Northwest.

The sequence starts with a screen flooded in green. The colour green has conitations of envy, greed, guilt and  even nature. These all show aspects of the film, even nature, only this makes an appearance in the form of human nature and how we would rather have someone else take the blame than ourselves.

The green is interrupted by lines cutting through the green. This could represent life in that some people run parallel to others never meeting, never knowing of each others existence yet they live a parallel life. These same lines are then interrupted by lines from the top and from the bottom. This could be showing how people intercept each others lives. It could also be that the lines are representing a metaphor of life cut short. The converging lines also give a feeling of entrapment.

The music (mainly consisting of violins) follows the lines that intercept the green. As a new set of lines comes in so does a new set of cords from the violins.

Dissolving from the green to a city skyline it becomes apparent that the lines were following the edges of the window frames on the side of a building. The iconic setting and props allow the viewer to get a quick idea of the location the film is set.

Another dissolve this time to a long shot a street at rush hour. The people and the clothes they are wearing establish the time period that the film is set.

The high angle of the camera, used for most of the shots in the title sequence gives the viewer a feeling of power and superiority over the people seen crowding into subway tunnels and onto buses.

The people are dehumanized as they are seen violently striking at people just to get taxi. 

The titles and credits themselves could be said to be simple with the only striking thing about them being the angles they are placed at.

Se7en Analysis

My write-up of notes on the David Fincher film Se7en (made in 1995)

Sound:

The director of this film uses the sound to put the viewer on edge and to make them uncomfortable. An in-depth analysis of the sound could be that each extra bit of synth or scratching (aside from the main soundtrack) could be the directors idea of how each of the deadly sins sounds.

The different sounds give the viewer different feelings such as;

• The electronic volts used near the start give a feeling of anger and fear this could be a representation of the sin Wrath
• A sound similar to grinding gears can be heard that gives a sense of pain. This sound could be teeth grinding together this could then be attributed to Gluttony.
• The sound of a creaking door is so overly cliche that to the horror/thriller genre that it'd be weird for it not to make an appearance in this film. The creaking sound could be linked into Lust as the creaking could also be of bed springs
• Sloth could be linked to the dial-up sound preferring to let the phone ring on instead of going to answer it. This sound is also quite cliche to the horror genre mostly appearing when two people are having a conversation over the phone (normally the main character warning the other person about their impeding doom) then one of the two suddenly being murdered
• Drums can be heard as a bass-line to the soundtrack using a rythem similar to a heart beat. The drums sound like army marching closer and closer. This military likeness could be linked to Pride
• The constant electronic screams and scratching sounds might be what the director believes the sin Envy sounds like, preferring to show Envy's anguish and how insane it can drive a person
• I don't believe that there is just one sound for Greed and that it is linked into all of them showing how engulfing Greed is or showing that in the directors point of view it is the most common sin committed in our modern lives

Images:

The director uses the imagery in a creative way to put the viewer on edge and covey feeling of disgust, distrust and overall fear. The imagery it's self look ruined on purpose through the use of filters and overlays. This tarnished and wrecked look puts people in an uncomfortable state. This technique is used in anime a lot to show power or strife.

These various images, techniques and effects are used to put people on edge;

• For a start there are no shots of an actual persons face only black and white photos of victims
• Shots of bible passages are a constant theme in the sequence showing the films link to biblical themes and it's wrath of god scenario
• Needles and Thread make an appearance in the scene. Instantly anyone whose seen the human centipede is put on edge. They could also be linked to surgery and scarring for life
• The only thing human that can be seen in the sequence are a persons hands with the fingers wrapped in tape. This is obviously the antagonist as he is trying to keep his identity unknown even to DNA standards
• Newspaper clippings also show up a couple of times. Another cliche to thriller genre being used as ransom notes or death threats. In this case though the only word the is cut out of the newspaper is 'God'
• Film clips or old camera films are seen being cut up. This could be an attempt to get rid of video evidence that shows the killer
• Scenes of the antagonist writing. The writing it's self is weird and creepy as the writer prefers to write three lines to a segment. An overlay is used this gives the seeming normal task of writing a more sinister look
• The credits themselves are creepy just because of how they are written. The text is a very sketchy like it has been scratched onto the page with an empty Biro. The effects used also help to make the writing look creepy, using overlays, cut-aways and  even simple font changes to put the viewer on edge       

Marnie Analysis

My write up of notes on the Alfred Hitchcock film Marnie (made in1964).

Title credits: It is not uncommon for old films to have the title scenes at the start though it is rarely done in modern cinema. in the title scenes of Marnie the first thing the audience sees is the production company's logo, which in this case is Universal Pictures. It becomes quickly apparent that the film is a suspenseful thriller because of it's choice of soundtrack that accompanies the credits. The credits themselves are a play on the fact that the film is a novel adaptation. They are shown in a book which flips one page after the other. The credits go through all of the main cast and crew.

Scene One: (2:00) As the credits end it suddenly switches to scene one, the music stops and all that can be heard is footsteps. The scene shows a close up of a woman's bag being held tightly under someone's arm. The bag instantly stands out as it contrasts with rest of the persons gloomy outfit being a bright yellow. The camera tracks from behind the person, following them as they walk on-wards. The camera slows down yet carries on tracking the person. This slowly changes the shot in a seamless fashion from a close up all the way out to a long shot. This change allows the viewer to see more of the surroundings and more of the person, revealing that the person is a woman and that she is at a train station in a seemingly industrial district. The setting is important as it gives the imprecision  that she is 'boxed in' and alone as there are no other people around. Up to this point the viewer will not have seen the woman's face once, this adds mystery to the character and builds tension.

Scene Two: (2:31) The setting quickly changes from being a quiet lonely train station to a loud and busy office. The contrast in sounds is effective for startling the viewer and adds more tension to the moment. The man shouting seems to be very important due to the suit he is wearing, this is because the human brain instantly recognizes a suit as a state of power, and that the person wearing it is of a high status. The office it's self could also be a sign of his power as it is very large and well furnished. The man (who we can assume owns the office because of his position behind the desk) seems to be lonely. This can be picked up on by looking at his surroundings as there are no signs of any family photos in the office. At the start of the scene the man is heard shouting "Robbed, Cleaned out" this connects back to the previous scene and gives the viewer an understanding as to what the woman has done but also what might be in the bag. As the scene goes on three more "minor" characters are introduced to the scene two detectives and one secretary. You can work out who the characters are from the clothes they wear or what props they are using can show what a persons role is in the film without them even having to use dialogue. The detectives ask the man if he knew who could have stolen his money. He replies that he does know and describes the person. His description is in-depth to a point that it is creepy and apparently laughable judging from the reaction of the detectives and the secretary. As Sean Connery walks into the room he pulls focus away from the rest to show how important to the story he is. As the Boss notices Sean's presence he stops shouting and his voice softens. This gives the idea that Sean is more important than the boss. The director or director of cinematography made an odd choice of camera shot when he chose to have the camera pan and zoom to give Sean a close up. At the point 4:36 there is a mistake made by the camera man that causes the camera to rock. 

Scene Three: (4:49) The scene then cuts to the woman with another close up of the bag clutched firmly under her arm. This only increases the importance of the bag in relation to the story. Much like the first scene this starts as   an extreme close-up on the bag, tracking it and the woman. The camera also slows but this time at a faster pace. The woman is now walking down a hallway. The hallway could be in any type of building like a office or a apartment complex but we can assume that the building is a hotel as right next to the woman is what appears to be a bell boy carrying her luggage. In the time that it took her to get from the train station to the hotel we can assume that she has already spent some of the stolen money as the bell boy is carrying boxes that the woman didn't have when she was at the train station. In this short scene the director, Alfred Hitchcock, makes ones of his signature appearances as he comes out of one of the rooms along the hall way near the end of the scene.

Scene Four: (5:03) We go from inside the hall to the inside of the woman's hotel suite. Going from an exterior shot to an interior shot gives the illusion that we are now looking inside one of the rooms attached to the hallway. At the start of the scene the camera pans over the woman's bed showing off her various purchases which includes a new suitcase and lots of new clothes. The camera stops panning when it reaches the now open yellow bag which allows the viewer to finally gain an answer to what it is that she has stolen. The scene carries on to show the women neatly packing away her new clothes into her new suitcase while just throwing her old ones into her old suitcase. She also empties out all the money into her new suitcase. The woman then takes out her ID and swaps the ID card for one of the others she has kept stashed in a secret compartment in her compact mirror. She chose to use the name Margret Edgar. Afterwards the scene cuts to a shot of her washing her hair in the sink. The water starts to turn black as dye washes out of her hair. The camera now stands still in the position of were a mirror was. The newly named Margret stands up and flicks her, now blonde, hair back over her head to reveal her face.

Scene Five: (6:29) Quickly the scene changes to a tracking shot of the woman's legs following her as she goes through crowds of people. As the viewer you acquire the sense that you are following her as people cut across in-front of the camera. The scene seems to be set in another train station only this one is a lot busier than the one at the start of the film. We follow the woman to a row of lockers were the camera pans up as she puts her old suite case into one of the lockers and locks it in. The camera carries on panning upward till it gets to her face were we see that she is looking at something. This is were the camera does a point of view shot to show that she had been looking at a drain in the floor. She walks over to and stops next to it. A close up of her hand is shown which shows her holding the locker key which she then drops down the drain and walks off with the camera still focused on the drain. Analysis ends at 7:06.

Trial Continuity Video

This is a short film produced as an exercise in Continuity. The film involves two characters - Liam and Tom - travelling from two separate locations to meet together and shake hands. With Liam, his travel was shown in one shot, and his identity revealed instantaneously, almost presenting an image of 'victim' in him. We then move with Tom in an elevator (with obligatory elevator music) - an over the shoulder shot hides his face, but highlights the location, giving a sense of villainy to himself.. Two shots (again hiding Tom's face) show Tom leaving the elevator, and a final shot reveals the identities of both during the handshake. Then, a two part conversation (?) occurs, and the film ends.