Who would be the audience for your media product?

My initial idea was for the audience for my media product to be around a similar age to the actors in starring in the thriller. We chose to do this as audiences are often more interested in something if the actors are a similar age to them. They can feel intimate with the actors as they are at the same part of their life and can place themselves in the shoes of the actor in the story. The audience will be around the age of 16-23, this target however doesn't say anything specifically as to who is going to watch this, it isn't based on one target audience it can easily be varied if people find it to be there cup of tea.

We have chosen the age certificate to be 15 as some of the content could be seen disturbing to children younger. There is a mental illness that the killer is filmed and proved to be going through with falshbacks through the scenes. This slowly begins to drive him slightly crazy and he begins to illusinate things, objects and certain people that just aren't there. This cannot be understood by a younger child as it is quite complicated for people to grasp as it requires thinking about what the actors is thinking, a skill of interpreting that isn't fully developed in a younger childs brain. The images will just be of a distress to them visually and  scare them so a certificate is just a warning. Also the other horror/thrillers we viewed that had similar content also had a 15 age certificate which proves that our judgement is around and about the right one. 
We aimed our thriller at a middle/working class group, however this does not mean other social groups will not enjoy it. We aimed it at a middle class social group due to the fact they have the largest population therefore there will be a larger audience, and higher viewing figures. We did this by assessing certain problems that are common in the world today. For example the mental illness issue that some people can relate to and others want to know more about. In order to make the thriller more interesting to the audience we over exaggerated elements of this.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

- My thriller represents different stages of a teenage life and how they can be portrayed. The victim is a young girl aged thirteen and the fact that she has been murdered, suggests that young teenage girls are naïve and can be seen as weak. However it also represents their innocence in contrast to the killer who shows teenagers/young adults in a bad light. Instead of using the typical ‘youth’ stereotype with the dark costume and the baggy clothes, I chose to dress the killer in jeans and a vintage leather jacket.

- This makes the killer’s image more mysterious and intriguing, as he looks like an ordinary male to the audience. I did this to show that there is no stereotype of a ‘villain’ or a ‘murderer’ and that anyone is capable of it. I also did this as I wanted to audience to constantly question what was happening in the opening sequence, therefore making them want to carry on watching to find out the answers.

Sound

The sounds that we ended up using were taken off of a 'free sounds' website where drones and certain, quick sounds are available to download. Exporting these onto Adobe Premiere Pro CS4, placing them onto the audio tracks beneath the visuals, and deleting the ambient sounds of the raw recordings in the films.

We didn't use that many sounds, keeping it as simple and as blunt as possible seemed right to us as it will focus the audiences attention more towards the quality of the filming.

The low drone starts the film off to create sudden suspense and get viewers glued to their seats. A metallic crash of a noise with echo is hit to create more drama when the camera cuts to Matthews close ups. This exceeds all expectations as to when the next noise will come, meaning that it can be expected after the first time.

The girl laughing is also put it when she appears to be in Matthews surroundings which is there to send a chill down the audiences spine.

How did you attract/address your audience?

Attracting an audience can be done in the first 3 minutes of any film, the opening sequence. Grabbing the initial attention and maintaining it is a skill that many directors do well. However, It's a challenge trying to achieve this because if it goes over the top, it looks an awful lot like a trailer. Putting too many cuts and shots into a opening sequence can make it seem silly and lose any focus of the audience.

• The Questionnaire that both me and Amelia set out around college set up a foundation of what we were going record in our Thriller. The stereotypical thought of a thriller from teenagers our age (16-18) shown up in our results that is agreed. Majority of the numbers had said a young, innocent girl usually has a vital role in what mischief is occuring. Aswell as that, the setting was most common set on a woods or abandoned area of some sort, which they both are involved in this thriller.

• The low drone sounding music that is being played in the background whilst the titles are showing creates tension straight away to the viewers as they being to wonder what's happening and what will happen.

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

• I believe it is important to think about what media institution would go with my target audience, and what kind of media institution would distribute my product. Even though the opening sequence has only been filmed, I have to take into consideration that this will eventually be distributed as a film.
• Thinking about this, I thought about the kind of media institutions that would want to distribute a thriller aimed at teenagers and young adults. There are often thrillers shown on the sky movie channels, however they are often not aimed at specific audiences and cover a larger target age range.
• This may be of a problem sky movies do have specific channels for specific genres that could go with my thriller theme. However sky is a large conglomerate company that only shows movies of a high cinema standard. My thriller opening sequence is obviously not at a high quality cinema standard therefore it may be best suited to a small independent company. My thriller as a final edited product seems to hold quite a lot of elements of horror in it which means it could also go with the horror genre, and be distributed that way.

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

My media product seems to challenge forms of conventions of real media products with how the way the opening sequence is set out. The opening sequence includes sequenced and quick paced flashbacks which may confuse the audience as to what to storyline is and what will happen further on. However we wanted to do this so the opening sequence will also be part of the end sequence. The end of the opening sequence is also the start of the opening sequence where the movie will then play out the story that then lead to the outcome of the opening sequence. The end sequence will include part of the opening sequence, however this time the audience will understand the plot. We did this in order to create suspense that will draw the audience in and make them want to carry on watching the movie.

The fact we decided to make an opening sequence that would also appear and the end of the movie used conventions of real media products, as this concept was used in ‘Usual Suspects’. The forest location also uses forms of conventions of real media products as is it a typical location for horror/thriller movies.

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

I have learnt and grown in various different areas of media since I began to plan my preliminary task.

My knowledge in camera work, effects and softwares have increased a lot since the filming of the prelim task on a little, poor quality flip camera.

It is strange now as when I sit down, relax and watch a film or TV drama, I tend to subconsciously analyse what is being purposefully done with the sound, mis en scene and camera. I can identify certain techniques and rules that have been obeyed by the filming crew in the programme and why exactly they did it. I understand that some shots create more of a different picture than others and where they become necassary or over the top.

This is also my first real experience with a proper HD camera where I'm set out to complete a task a big as making a Thriller opening sequence. I enjoyed it very much and it has appealed to me, I can see myself doing plenty more work that is similar. I'm creative by nature as I study music and take interest in any other art that I come across. It also opened up my eyes as to how much work a film crew including actors, directors, producers and editors go through to achieve a maximum credential product. It cannot be done independently so people skills and other individual aspects and traits have to be highlighted. Leadership is a must amongst a crew. Everything down to the smallest edit on either visual and sound can make something out of contrast to what is wanted by the director and their cognitive process.

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

Final edit

Thriller (Relapse)

This is the first draft that was handed in on a deadline of Friday 8th March. I met this deadline successfully, however I have now received a good amount of constructive criticism on how and where I can exactly improve. I achieved a working grade of D+. The picture quality for the first draft also wasn't transferred and exported in HD which explains why the picture seems to be blurry and skip now and then.

The establishing shot needs to be cut as the beginning of the right to left pan jerks about a bit then hits a smooth shot.

Majority of the time that I spent before the first deadline was cutting all of the clips to meet the suspense that is created in our ideas on the storyboard. However the narrative in the draft seems to be too over complicated and can lose the audiences attention if they become confused too easily. This is perfectly fine to correct as the clips just need to be shuffled around and done corresponding to the scenes written on the storyboard. We have good quality shots now they are in HD, they just need to be put together in the right places like pieces in a jigsaw.

The titles were also just a complete first draft. We will use and try various other softwares to get the maximum quality out of the titles edits. Also the effects that are put on the titles aren't timed as well as they could be. A problem consists that they tend to appear on shots and scenes that a colour contrast clashes and makes the titles seems a bit unclear.

We have some raw filmed shots that we still need to put in. For example a close up of the victims hands going on the shoulder of the killer. This shot can be put in slow motion to create intensity.

There is also a vast amount of editing to be done with what effects we use. The straight cuts used to go to different shots are too straight forward and boring, it won't present a variety of skills to anyone watching. Things like the colour contrast need to be looked at aswell if colours are clashing with eachother which seems to be what happens on a couple shots, especially with the sunlight coming down.

Titles

 

The titles used on the first draft were to see what they look like in different positions. The colour of the font that we used seems to clash with the sky in the background. We changed this and made our own titles for our production and pictures company.

The software we used was Adobe title maker. Exported the image like the actual leaf on 'Red leaf productions' titles and created the picture on a blank gloomy, grey background. Whilst using certain effects like dissolves and fades, we could use the titles to look like it corresponds to each scene. The camera cuts away from the shot to show the two custom made titles. This all happens during the establishing shot which makes it flow better rather than just one shot.

For the actual 'Relapse' title, we kept that glowing, tinted blue font as we thought it seemed to presented a bit of shock. The rest of the titles like introducing the actors are also the same font. The two companies that we mention at the beginning, we felt needed more of an entrance and spotlight so we made their own logos. The rest of the titles need to be the same as Relapse.

 

Costume/Mise en scene

Killer: The killer will be wearing distressed, ragged jeans preferably black and a plain jumper or leather jacket. This will represent his obvious rebellious ways as he has committed a murder. The leather jacket makes him seem more older than he actually is which is what youth tend to dress like.

Victim (Young girl): The girl will be wearing a floaty dress and cardigan to represent her age and her innocence. In the bath scene, a dress will be worn but not be very visible to the camera so using a different outfit for actual location filming will show the sense that the killing of the girl happened at a seperate time to where she comes back to haunt her killer.

 

 

Actors

Killer: Matthew Sharples

• Age - 17
• Character name: Victor Morrison

Victim: Robyn Strong

• Age - 12
• Character name - Lily

Location

Results from my questionnaire backed up my preference to film in two seperate locations and use them both for a variety of scenary.

The first location will be shot on the railway. We chose the railway as the location is often used in thrillers and horror movies. This stereotypical thought of thrillers/horrors being filmed on abandoned locations are proven through the results of the questionnaire.

The second location will filmed in the woods to the side of the railway. Both the locations are deserted areas where other members of the public are not often seen, this will help add the fear and suspense we want the audience to feel during the sequence. The use of filming different scenes in the woods aswell as the railway adds the effect that the opening sequence portrays an early confusing storyplan. This goes straight into the thriller and makes the audience start to think about what is going on.

Thriller Risk Assessment

Before filming my Thriller I need to assess the risks of filming it.
Location:

• The location is far away so my group and I need to plan how we are going to get there
• Filmed in woods so need to clear a path so the actors don't slip and fall
• Also filmed on an abandoned railway which is hard to get too (have to climb over fences to get there), need to make sure the crew or the actors don't harm themselves while climbing.
• The weather could also be a risk as it could prevent us from filming if it is raining or snowing

Costume:

• Need to find a costume that fits the actors
• Make sure the costume is appropriate for the Thriller
• As the part of the filming is done in a wooded area, any loose piece of clothing could get caught on trees etc

Actors:

• Need to find a time everyone is available
• Responsible for getting them to the location
• Make sure they turn up on the day we plan to film
• It isn't compulsory for anyone to act, must feel comfortable on camera to prevent any poor acting

Thriller Storyboard

- The storyboard for my thriller filming is looking into every aspect into its smallest detail for the first time. A wide range of techniques and skills need to be recognised, all camera angles need to be evaluated as to what will be right for the quality of each shot. As we now know the location and what we roughly want to film, it becomes easier to visualise what order the shots will be in. Cognitive thinking and mental rehearsal of what is going to be filmed can enable me to think about what ambient sounds or music is going to be used at what points.

• Firstly there will be an Establishing Shot of the Abandoned Railway (location) with the antagonist in the background. With the Antagonist in the distance this will add a mysterious element to the piece. The camera will then zoom in to an extreme close up of the antagonist that dissolves into a flashback.
• Flashback will be shown in a long shot with the antagonist walking through the woods. During this ambient sounds will be heard in the background.
• There will then be an eye line match of the antagonist looking around the woods to show the audience what he can see.
• Another close up of the antagonist will be shown going into a flashback. The flashback will include a range of high angle extreme close up shots of the victim under water.
• There will be fast cuts back to the antagonists reaction and the the extreme close ups of the victim. This is to create suspense.
• A close up of the victim (girl) under water will be shown in slow motion, when she opens her eyes and raises up out the water.
• The scene will then go back to the woods where the girl will be seen in a low angle shot walking where the antagonist is walking.
• The antagonist will appear in a medium shot looking round to show his increased fear and to build up the suspense.
• The camera will pan up as the girl walks towards it so the audience are able to see her costume and facial expressions.
• The antagonist will then be shown in a long shot running to then wood which will remain in a long shot of him climbing onto the railway.
• There will then be a medium shot of the antagonist looking sideways at the girl, which will then transfer into an over the shoulder shot of him looking at her (so the audience can see what he can see).
• The over shoulder shot will then be shown over the girls shoulder looking at the antagonist, which will flow into a two shot of them showing the antagonist walking back onto the track.
• After a close up shot of the antagonist will be shown so the audience can clearly see his emotions.
• Finally the camera will zoom out to a long shot of the girl walking towards the antagonist, and then this shot will be repeated without the girl to show she is actually in the antagonists mind.

Thriller plot

The thriller plot is finalising what is our vision of where we want to film, and what will be seen in the shots. The storyline after numerous brainstorms and ideas that have been over complicated get finalised into one main plot at this stage.

Previously, ideas that we have wrote up have been over thought and far too complicated for our skills at this level. In a way this has it's flaws as it is time consuming with us having to go back, however shows our initiative for a good eye for detail. 

Thriller mindmap

- This thriller mindmap that me and Amelia both did was to just state the clear factors that we need to take into consideration.

The most common feature of thrillers is low key lighting. Through watching various opening sequences of different thrillers, ambient sounds are used with low key lighting. This creates mystery in the audiences thoughts. Imagination can lead to the plot becoming more complicated than it actually turns out to be, and making the audience intrigued to watch it more than more once.

Audience Questionnaire and Results

1: Are you male or female?
Male: 5
Female: 8

2: How old are you?
10-16: 3
17-19: 10
20+: 0

3: Have you ever watched a Thriller?
Yes: 13
No: 0

4: If yes how often do you watch them?
Weekly: 7
Monthly: 5
Few times a year: 1
Other: 0

5: Do you think it's better viewing a thriller in the cinema?
Yes: 9
No: 4

6: What location would be best suited for Thriller?
Woods: 2
Abandoned Railway: 8
House: 2
Other: 1

7: What Character would you rather play the victim?
Young Girl: 6
Young Boy: 2
Older Girl: 1
Older Boy: 2
Other: 1

8: What Character would you rather play the murderer?
Young Girl: 1
Young Boy: 3
Older Girl: 1
Older Boy: 5
Other: 3


These questions will help to decide the final plot for our thriller.

We asked a selection of students from our college to answer these questions. A few of these are doing media themselves so they have an understanding of what we are attempting. The answers that we have obtained from this were in our favour and finalised our initial brainstorms and planning.

The most influential question that we asked was the location of the thriller. This was answered to what we had planned, to be at an abandoned railway.

The characters that we have chosen are also preferred by our questionnaire participants which gives us more confidence to what we have planned to be good ideas.

A trailer? What is this contraption?!

The movie trailer stands alone as its own work, and usually completely independent from the film, It defines, in about two minutes or less a story that has absolutely nothing to do with the movie itself, but makes us believe that it does. Hints are given that may make the audience think that they can just predict what will happen, but are easily mislead. Catch phrases from the film are an element in which many films advertise in the trailer as it sticks in the viewers mind and can sometimes even irritate them that much that they need to go and see the whole film.

- It is often that in sequels, new characters or antagonists are introduced. The new scene and new opponent that faces the reinforcement of the law always captures a viewers imagination. An example of this is the big bad Bane in the Batman film 'The Dark Knight Rises' directed by Chirstopher Nolan in 2012.

 

The whole objective of the character Bane is to cause mayhem throughout the world and defeat the samaritan hero that is Batman. This one shot of Bane is a low angle shot, looking up to him. This gives him the sense of even more strength.


- It is commonly used that major blockbusters hit the big screen with big names such as Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds can instantly attract any audience. This therefore doesn't really need much advertising as the majority of people know what their acting abilities are like. This is a very simple but effective advertisement, explaining that a two minute long action packed trailer doesn't need to be made.

- 'Star Wars - Revenge of the Sith' directed by George Lucas in 2005. Like many trailers coming  towards the climax, a cut is used to some text at the end. The text shows all the details in one shot that you'd want to read quickly about who is in the movie. This also has a very simple but effective method of attracting audiences with likeable names in the picture.

Taken Trailer (Olivier Megaton, 2012)

The Taken trailer is a perfect example of how it can entise a mass audience to come and watch a film. Fast paced cuts and effects such as fades and dissolves at the beginning of the sequence maintains a flow that can sometimes take your attention away from the rest of the trailer if not done correctly. Too many fast cuts that are just jammed together like a puzzle can sometimes be misleading to a viewer and cause distraction to what's actually happening.

 

The body language and speech throughout the trailer help to recognise the characters relationship. If filmed and acted correctly, aspects such as body language can indicate how strong characters relationships actually are and what role of importance they serve to the plot of them film. Throughout the trailer there is many props used to help build tension. One major prop is a phone because throughout the whole clip many characters use a phone to contact each other which could suggest that communication is a massive key throughout the film and that they may not in fact know the other person on the end of the phone.

Throughout the trailer there is a non-diegetic soundtrack quietly playing throughout which is also played beneath certain bits of diegetic sound. The diegetic consists of a lot of speech which I found to build tension for instance the screen from the daughter when she's dragged from under the bed.

Mise-en-scene at the beginning of the trailer suggests a typical setting and normal as the locations throughout the trailer doesn't look different from everyday life at the beginning demonstration normality as the main locations are houses.

There are many different camera shots and angles which helps draw the audience into the action. In the trailer there is an establishing shop of Paris which helps show the audience the different location which is used through the movie. As there is many conversations throughout the whole trailer as well as the movie so shot reverse shot is used a lot to demonstrate conversations as well as over the shoulder shots. Also in the trailer there is a close up of the phone which shows an points out to the audience that it may be a very important prop and may have a big impact throughout the movie.

 

Inception (Christopher Nolan, 2010)

- a Legendary Pictures film
- Syncopy

Low brass instrumental when opening sequence begins. Dark, dull lighting with Legendary Pictures dropping into the picture, this all contributes to creating a tense atmosphere. The feeling that something quick paced and action packed is coming. No texts are introducing any of the cast before the film.

 

After the initial production titles an establishing shot pans from right to left, shooting the tides of a beach. The classical brass instruments that are playing in the opening sequence stop as it cuts to the beach. Ambient sound plays, noises of the waves clashing together are heard. This is a very calming and peaceful shot. This quick contrast of sound used and use of a quick cut indicates how easily a mood can be changed in a thriller, used often.

We then see Leonardo Di Caprio washed up on the beach. Slow tempo, single notes are hit on a piano. As he looks up, the camera is purely focused in on a close up of his face, portraying his emotion. It is obvious to the audience that his thoughts are troubled as he is struggling to remember or come to terms to where he is.

Disorientated music accompanies his emotion as he looks up and sees two children playing on the beach. This simple shot is peaceful to look at, a jump into any action packed scenes hasn't happened, it's a slow build up creating suspense. However it is still uncertain to where he actually is and why he is there. This mysterious and sudden cliff hanger makes the audience think from the very beginning to use their own imagination to why this is happening.

He is captured off the beach and taken into a strange and unseen room. The setting of the room is bright and warming. The design of the room is to an Asian traditional style, Asain men are also speaking amongst themselves with subtitles shown to the audience. Leonardo's character sits down in his clothes in which he was founded in on the beach and within a short cut, he is sat in formal clothing like the rest of the men. Questions are now being asked by the audience as to how this has been achieved and why

Se7en (David Fincher, 1995)

New Line Cinema presents:

an Arnold Kopelson production
a film by David Fincher

Brad Pitt
Morgan Freeman
Se7en
Gwyneth Paltrow
Richard Roundtree
R. Lee Erney
John C. McGinley
Julie Araskog
Mark Boone Junior
John Cassine
Reginad E Cathey
Peter Crombie
Hawthorne James
Michael Massee
Leland Orser
Richard Porthow
Richard Schiff
Pamala Tyson

* Casting by Billy Hopkins/Suzanna Smith, Kerry Borden

* Music by Howard Shore

*Costumes designed by Michael Kaplan

* Edited by Richard Francis - Bruce

* Production designed by Arthur Max

* Director of photography Darius Khondi

* Co producers Stephen Brown, Nana Greenwald, Sanford Panilch

* Co executive producers Lynn Harris, Richard Superstein

- Executive producers: Gianni Nunnari, Dan Kolsiud, Anne Kapelson
- Written by: Andrew Kevin Walker
- Produced by: Arnold Kopelson, Phyllis Carlyle
- Directed by: David Fincher

• Sans Serif text writing - Tends to be more modern. All the texts that appear in the opening scene are fractured and dislocated. They scratch away from eachother, no real organisation to how they are presented which purposefully portrays the image of a strange, wierd story plan. The black background used to cut away from the shots create suspense. Dark, dim colours and lighting always make suspision in the audience to what's happening and what they're missing. Mystery can make the audience think more about it which can sometimes be worse than actually seeing anything bad happening.

• Distressing shots are used throughout the opening scene of the main questionable Antagonist. It's unsure to the audience at this point as to who this person actually is and what purpose does he serve to the rest of the film. First impressions are quite horrific as close-up shots of childrens photos with their eyes blacked out can play on the minds of the audience. The 'David Fincher' text is clear to make out, however the 'A film by' text just before it is blurry and mirrored.

The Usual Suspects (Bryan Singer, 1995)

In a lesson, we were told to make notes on the thriller The Usual Suspects  (Bryan Singer,1995) Making these notes will give us a better understanding of what factors are involved to make a thriller:

• Antagonist, the criminal. With this, there is usually reinforcement of the law e.g - Police officers
• No vibrant colours used, dull contrast
• Slow takes, establishing shot used in the opening sequence pans from left to right very slowly to maintain tension
• Classical music is used. Strings being played at high or low pitches is daunting. Nothing is ever really upbeat, creates suspense
• Dim lighting, shadows and various other horror movies elements are used in thriller filming
• Low key lighting creating mystery
• The opening sequence is used as a sort of mouthwatering prospect to grab the audience's attention. It does not give any of the storyline away, also keeping the audience thinking.
• Quick changes in tempo and pitch in the music focuses on an immediate change of mood or to indicate that something is going to happen.
• Contrast of scenes that differ from mise en scene, lighting and sound - highlights changes.
• Tends to be that there isn't really any attention focused on any ambient sound, only in certain scenes to create an effect. e.g dog barking whilst silience occurs for intimidation. Main focus is on dialogue throughout.
• During dialogue, slow zoom ins on characters' facial expressions to portray their emotions to the audience and creates more intimacy.
• Shot reverse shot and over the shoulder shot are often used during dialogue.
• Cuts of the shots are done in time to the music and beats of the music. When tempo changes, the camera cuts to another shot. This represents a sense of realism to how the person watching would react in that situation by looking around them.
• Don't show the entire enviroment in some shots as playbacks are a common use in thrillers. This compares to pieces of the puzzle being put together towards the climax of the film. Pieces that have been left out on purpose but evidently are there when shown at the end.

Final edit of Preliminary task

The end product of my preliminary task is satisfactory. In the short space of time that was given to brainstorm, plan and film it, I feel that I have learnt valueble lessons on what to take into consideration when filming. This was also my first experience with editing clips and unwanted footage on the software 'Adobe Premiere Pro'. Effects are used in the Final Prelim task such as Fade in, Dissolve and Slow-motion. This has given me a better of understanding of when and why effects are put into place. The flashback moment in this clip is when a close up of the antagonists face occurs. He is looking back at when he robbed the phone which we fade into and therefore make slow-motion, making it more obvious to the audience of what he is doing. The change in colour contrast from colour to black and white portrays a flashback.

The camera that we used to film this was a 'HD TTS Camcorder' which as you can tell doesn't catch the full visual display very well, along with poor capture of sound and dialogue. In order to achieve maximum effect with filming the thriller, better equipment needs to be obtained to do so.
Ambient sound occurs throughout, noises in the background like people chatting in the common room is sometimes heard which can cause distraction to the audience. This suggests that the location of filming needs to be made independent to you and can be managed under a certain amount of control. The establishing shot is also rather shaky. This is the flip camcorder being on quite a poor unstable tripod.

The actors that we used aren't real actors either, getting hold of the actors we wanted was the last minute job on our list. Planning went elsewhere to what we wanted to film and not who we wanted in it, which needs to be considered when filming the thriller.

We obeyed the unwritten rules of filming as we didn't disrupt the 180 degree rule.

Storyboard

- The storyboard was the last few changes that were made to the prelim task before we started filming. Illustrations of the facial expressions explain how the characters are reacting. This can give us more of a mental image to work with and what shots need to be used and when to capture the right moments.

- We used clear instructions and guidance tips alongside the drawings. This made us think into more depth of what shots we wanted to use at what specific times. Laying out the filming process like this can help you develop an understanding of what might need to come next. If it isn;t planned and just spontaneously filmed, mistakes can't be avoided or changed. Planning all these scenes can put you in the situation that you will be in mentally and allow you to replicate a dilemma if something does go wrong and how you can change it.

Prelim dialogue

- The script that I had initially written changed a great amount whilst we were shooting. The language is far too complicated, it isn't what a student would normally use on a daily basis. This little error however has taught me that in order to film something, less is more. The amount of detail that can be focused on different factors such as Camera, Editing, Ambient sound and Miss en scene can make create a lot more for the scenes with little dialogue.

- It is quite awkward to think of dialogue to be exchanged between two characters when a storyline isn't really established. 3-5 lines of dialogue isn't really enough to call a full conversation so using various different shots and camera angles of the conversation made up for what was missing.

- I do think that the thriller trailer task will suit me more as I feel I have have quite a good attention for detail with what elements of the enviroment I want in the shots. It is obvious that in the prelim task, practise of the camera shots was the priority and to get used to using one. Dialogue in the thriller also should be easier to write as a broader storyline can be established and conversations can be made to match this storyline.

Rules and shots used in the Prelim

- This was a note taking and research page that I did to follow any unwritten rules that TV drama's use for dialogue. The 180 degree rule must be taken into consideration. It is easy to confuse the audience when the camera shoots behind themselves in the same take. The enviroment seems to change perspectives from where the camera is shooting. An invisible line should be envisioned when filming to achieve this.

I also took notes on the exact shots that I would use in the prelim task. Using too many shots and cuts during a simple exchange of dialogue can cause distraction to the audience for what is happening. Angles of the shots used more than once must be the same aswell as it is an easily detectable error for the audience to pick up.

An explanation of why the 'establishing shot' is used is on this sheet. It is used to portray the characters enviroment and emotions before filming. Tight shots are used to help the audience engage with the characters as te camera gets closer and closeer, focusing purely on facial expressions.

Brainstorming Prelim

The A3 Brainstorm sheet turned out in the end to be over complicated. The ideas I came up with to do with miss en scene and sound are all ideas I can use effectively in the likes of my thriller trailer as with the prelim task, time was limited to finish shooting.

Camera action and shots that are in this brainstorm sheet are used in the prelim task. A selection of various shots and cuts maintain the dialogue to be free flowing and seem more like a reality situation.

A basic storyline was created to enhance on the storyboard. The whole idea was for a rebellious sixth former to have robbed another students phone. Confrontation eventually occurs with the victim finding out who robbed it and getting it back.

Miss en scene was a thought that we looked at quite closely. Attempting to portray a stereotypical image of a 'criminal' type character with trendy jeans, leather jacket and cigarette. This would make identifying the criminal easier, turning attention of the audience to be aware of what is happening.