Research and Planning - Name Ideas

Recently, me and Elise have been discussing possible name ideas for our trailer, and one that we came up with is 'Identity'. We believe this name continues the mysterious theme (as everything is unknown), which is highly relevant to both the genre and the plot. Furthermore, the name influences the audience to start thinking along the lines of the film - 'who is the murderer?'

Research and Planning - Costume and Props

Below are two gifs I made of all the possible costumes and props that we will need in the production stage of our trailer:

Detective Suit - Forensic Suits - Police Costumes - Casual Teenage Clothing (male and female)

Mobile Phones - Weapon - Paper Documents - Detective Board - Forensic Tent - Webcam - Press Camera - Police Tape

Research and Planning - Equipment and Software List

Below is a gif I made of all the possible equipment and software that we will need in the production stage of our trailer:

DSLR Camera - Additional Lighting - A Track - Tripod - Garageband - IMovie - Indesign

Research and Planning - Production Schedule (1)

Below is the first draft of mine and Elise's production schedule. Here we have set a few deadlines appropriate to how far along we are at the moment and when we can get things done by. On this production schedule you may notice that some sections are completely highlighted. This includes items such as 'additional research posts' which we will be running throughout this year (therefore why they are completely highlighted). Also, while we are making our trailer, me and Elise have agreed to try and complete/take as many as photos as possible for our separate magazines/film posters. The reason for this is because all of our actors/actresses will be there, as well as in costume and makeup. However if we run out of time to take the photos because of filming, or they're not the greatest quality, we will arrange a new date to retake the photos.  We will try to keep to this schedule as much as possible.  

Research and Planning - Cinema Trip (Annabelle) 3

Another thing I took on board during our cinema trip, were all the upcoming film trailers we were shown before our film. These trailers consisted of Horrible Bosses 2, Horns, Night Crawler and Babadook. These film genres range from comedy, thriller/horror and pure horror, however the thing they all have most in common is the age certificate; 15. Therefore, by showing these at the beginning of the 15 rated film (Annabelle) the producers/distributers are advertising there film to the right age/target audience, insuring they get the most out of there film when it is released.  Below are all the trailers we were shown.

Horrible Bosses 2:

Horns:

Nightcrawler:

Babadook:

Research and Planning - Cinema Trip (Annabelle) 2

On Thursday the 16th of October, our media class took a trip to our local cinema (Cineworld - Ashton Under Lyne) to see the 2014 horror, Annabelle. During the day, there where many things I took note of, that will help both my trailer and poster/front cover film on a film magazine, as well as my understanding in film all together.

Like I predicted in my previous post, I picked up certain techniques me and Elise can use in the production of our trailer (in areas such as sound, mise en scene, editing and cinematography). For example, in some parts we could use similar sound ideas to create a tense atmosphere for the audience, as well as low key lighting to portray what genre film it is. Furthermore, I would quite like to keep the poster for our trailer simple, similar to the Annabelle one. Here they use the doll taking up the majority of the poster, along with the title, dates and all the names of the production/exhibition companies. Thinking about this, I would like to use the main protagonist (such as the detective or one of the kids) in a similar way; something that's simple yet effective! 

Research and Planning - Location Ideas

Whilst making these notes on what shots we would like in our trailer, both me and Elise all started discussing possible locations where we could film these scenes. 

One of the locations we would like to film is a field behind Elise's house. It is a public space (to walk dogs and such) however very little of the public use it. Therefore, when filming it's likely we won't come into contact with members of the public, as well as keeping it realistic to the story. Furthermore, the general scenery of the field has a spooky feel to it, so we believe it would suit well to our thriller (or more specifically where the body is found). Just before we start to film our trailer, we will both take test shots of the locations we would like to use and possibly show them to target audience members, so we know for certain we are heading in the right direction. 

Here is a photograph of a field that looks similar to the one we are thinking of using:

Research and Planning - Animatic Storyboard Shots

Last week, me and Elise spent an hour and a half discussing shot for shot what we wanted in our trailer and how it would plan out. This is the first draft of our plan (which during filming we might change due to new ideas or incapability) for our trailer. From this we will now make an animatic storyboard, importing the pictures of each scene onto iMovie, to have a feel of how the trailer will pan out (as well as edit transitions and timing). However, we will not be able to start our animatic storyboard until after half term (alongside the rest of our coursework). Below are the notes we made:

Research and Planning - Social Media Feedback

Using the social media site twitter, I asked two questions (seen below) that when answered will help me when planning and making my trailer:

These are the three responses I received:

All three of the responses I received has again confirmed what I (and audiences) would expect to see in a thriller film. Me and Elise will take into consideration the setting ideas they have given me (somewhere isolated/remote). I will also keep in mind the type of editing the audience expects when it comes to me editing our trailer. 

Research and Planning - Researching Roles

To guarantee I perform to the best of my ability when taking the lead in editing, I researched the role. This is the result I received on google:

Now I know exactly what this role consists of, I will have to once again familiarise myself with the software we will be using (iMovie). Despite this, I feel confident that I will not struggle, as I have in the passed used this software to create short films (such as for my film in film studies and at the end of last year when recreating a trailer). 

Research and Planning - Discussing Roles

In the past week, me and Elise have been discussing the roles that we have to consider being, to make our trailer the best of quality it can be. Taking into consideration our strengths and weaknesses, we have decided that Elise should lead in sound, and I should lead the editing stage of a trailer. This is simply because I consider sound to be my weak point, where as it is Elise's strongest, visa-versa with editing. Furthermore, we have decided that areas such as cinematography and mise en scene should be shared between us. We would both like the experience in these roles and think that our trailer would benefit from us both contributing our ideas into these areas. 

Research and Planning - Cinema Trip (Annabelle) 1

For our media cinema trip, we have decided to go and watch Warner Brothers 2014 horror Annabelle on the 16th of October. This is because the majority of groups in our class are making a horror genre trailer. Despite the fact that me and Elise are not using the horror genre, we can still pick up certain techniques within the film (through sound, mise en scene, editing and cinematography) as thrillers tend to have a hybrid genre of horror along side it. For example, in areas such as lighting, both thrillers and horrors use low key lighting. On this trip, we will be taking notes to as a resource when looking at film marketing at the exhibition stage. As well as the trailer, this will also help us when we come to make our own film posters and magazine front cover.       

Here is the trailer for the film Annabelle that we will be watching:

Research and Planning - Treatment

Here is the treatment me and Elise created using Prezi. This discusses the plot we wish to follow through and how we will achieve this end product.

Research and Planning - Cinema Trip (Gone Girl)

On Monday the 6th of October, my film studies class took a trip to our local Cineworld at Ashton under Lyne. We are currently studying director David Fincher's films so took this opportunity to watch one of his latest masterpieces at the cinema to furthermore use as a case study at a later date; Gone Girl.

"With his wife's disappearance having become the focus of an intense media circus, a man sees the spotlight turned on him when it's suspected that he may not be innocent."

Overall this thriller was incredibly gripping and intense, something that both me and Elise believe should be interpreted into our trailer to make it look more attractive to our target audience. The film further confirmed our genre research and what we would associate with a thriller through aspects such as the editing, mise en scene, sound and cinematography that ran throughout the film. (Some of these stereotypical ideas consist of low key lighting, simplistic score that created an intense atmosphere, fades to black/white and close ups)

Research and Planning - Update

After a series of discussions, me and Elise have decided to act upon Proposal 1, "A classic thriller with a modern twist where a body is found dead in a field. A documentary styled trailer documenting a group of teens journey. A detective is also called to solve the mystery." a modernised thriller. We think this is a very approachable plot that we can easily manipulate into an intense and attractive trailer. We a very excited to start planning and filming! :) 

Research and Planning - Proposals

Mine and Elise's trailer proposals presentation:

Research and Planning - Good and Bad Trailers

Good trailer:

'The Purge' (2013) is an example of what I think makes a good trailer. The narrative of the film (what the purge is and why it happens) is explained extremely well simply by using titles that fade in and out between peaceful shots. However, once the purge has been announced, CCTV shots and flickering editing are used to heighten the crime and violence in this film, so the audience watching know the genre type and type of scenes to expect. After this, we are easily introduced to our main characters with a voice over, and not long after the disruption takes place (they let a man into their home on purge night). As the trailer progresses, diagetic sounds such as gun shots, knifes and a cars engine are used to once again illustrate the type of crime and action to expect. A series of straight cuts and jump cuts are also shown. This use of editing heightens the genre and fear, as you are never shown extreme violence or action scenes. As an audience member, I was on the edge of my seat as I never knew what to expect. This fear and wanting to know what happens is what makes this trailer so good, as it achieves it aim in attracting an audience as they are left wanting more!

Bad Trailer:

Despite this being an amazing trailer for the thriller film 'Into the storm' (2014), it can still be classed as a bad trailer for me. This is simply because of the difference in budget. Into the storm was distributed by Warner Brothers (a conglomerate company) and its budget alone was over $50million. This enabled the film to use high concept technology and special effects to create this intense action/thriller film. In comparison, our trailer will consist of a very small budget. We will be borrowing all the equipment needed from college, and the editing will be done using simple software such as iMovie. All this means that our trailer will not consist of any high quality special effects (if any at all) unlike 'Into the Storm'.

Research and Planning - Target Audience Prezi

Research and Planning - Survey Monkey Questionnaire Results Analysis

After analysing my survey monkey questionnaire results I noticed a few things. Firstly, only one participant was aged 16-18 (the others two 19-22) and furthermore only one was female (the other two male). I will have to take both of these into account as age and gender can play huge factors in influencing the questionnaire answers. Also, the variety of gender and age participants widens my audience feedback range, allowing me to gain a larger in sight.

One of the next things I noticed when analysing these results, are the original film genres my participants like the most (one answered horror, the other two action). Both of these genres can be seen as being very similar to the thriller genre, making me question wether I should allow my end product to have a hybrid of genres alongside thriller (such as action and horror) so I gain and entertain a wider audience. 

When I asked the question 'What colours do you associate with a thriller?' all the results thankfully illustrated my original genre research of the colours I would also expect to see in a thriller film; Blue, Red, Black and White. Therefore I know that when I make my thriller trailer, dark, cold colours should be used as they are popularly associated with the thriller genre.

What's more, when I asked the question "What certificate do you expect a thriller to have" once again, all the participants answered with the same answer; 15. I will therefore (unless any additional research says otherwise) use the 15 certificate as my rating of my finished trailer.

Another thing I asked on Survey Monkey, was the question 'What sort of music do you associate with a thriller?' The responses to this were "climatic", "dramatic and chilling" and "tense and dramatic music". From this, I will have to further research and investigate the type of music thrillers tend to have in trailers, so when it comes to making our own music we know how to interpret these themes into it.

Finally, another aspect I will further have to research and discuss with Elise is the setting we will use in the trailer. The results I received back were all different, meaning my audience all thought of different stereotypical thriller settings. I will have to go online and research more trailers of thriller films, and the settings they have to gain a wider understanding!