Lockers for Poster Update

I believe that I have been able to properly edit the locker photo using Photoshop.

Animatics Ending 2

Animatics Ending 1

Synoptic Day Plan

I plan to get the following completed on synoptic day:

Periods 1 & 2: Work on film poster and magazine cover, complete as much as I can.

Periods 3 & 4: Film all scenes I can, including the majority of Ellie's scenes and all of the newsreader's.

Periods 5 & 6: Import footage into Premiere Pro and watch back all clips I have filmed. Begin editing and piecing together everything I have, so that I know if I have to re-film/film extra scenes.

Script Update

Because teaser trailers are conventionally very short in comparison to normal trailers, I have decided to shorten my script to the first two scenes, rather than the final, 'Who's that rapping on my office door.' I have decided to cut this scene because it would be difficult for the sound to be good quality, given that my main character would be moving away and towards the camera whilst speaking.

I would have benefitted from using this scene, because American Gothic films were traditionally seen to derive from his poems, such as 'The Raven' and 'The Haunted Palace.'

I will therefore have to think of another way of ending my teaser trailer, so I will brainstorm ideas.

Magazine Cover Images

During my photoshoot, I took these three pictures for my magazine cover and decided to edit two in Photoshop before deciding on which photo to use. Having edited the bottom two, I have realised that the angle of the picture on the right is best for a magazine - the photo on the left appears to be looking down on my actress.

Title Fonts

In my search for finding a font for the title of my film, I decided to look on FontSpace and DaFont. These websites allow users to download free fonts to use in most softwares on the computer. Before making a decision on which font I wanted to use, I thought I would research into fonts used in horror films beforehand, before making a collection of some of my favourite fonts and choosing from there.

Saw II Font

Some characteristics of the Saw II title logo:

• Simplistic font, not cliched in the sense of blood trails, yet implies that the name of the film is written in blood (uneven writing, small amount of trails left between the 'S' and 'A')
• 'W' in the shape of a devil's pitchfork to create a sense of horror.
• 'Saw' slightly out of focus - well known brand image/name and emphasises two fingers, which has a greater effect on the audience, whilst telling them the film's genre.
• Shadow of fingers - very simplistic, creates a sense of realism.

These tag clouds were extremely helpful in finding relevant fonts

 

After much deliberation, I decided to use the first font, because the genre is not overtly obvious. I may add a sign such as an upside down cross so the audience understand the genre and so I can efficiently target the correct audience, as with the fingers in the Saw II font.

Script for Teaser Trailer

In order to make the storyline clear (so that the right audience is targetted), I decided to write a script for the teaser trailer.

Ellie Smith: Anyway, I've got to go see Miss about the work we were assigned - I don't understand what we have to do at all.

Sacha: Oh, okay, I'll see you later then.

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Newsreader: Breaking news. It has been reported that Ellie Smith, aged 11, has appeared missing since yesterday afternoon, where she attended Roadside School, Wandsworth. There are no current suspects within the police investigation and the abductor may be armed and dangerous. The victim was last seen wearing a uniform of a red jumper and grey skirt. If you see anything suspicious, please call 0800 435 7329 immediately.

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[knocking heard in the background]
Claudia: Who's that rapping on my office door?

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Once I begin editing, I may end up cutting down these scripts due to the time limit (30 seconds to one minute), however, I will film them all just in case.

Photoshoot for Magazine Cover/Poster

I have organised a time for the photoshoot with my main actress (Thursday 9th). Hopefully these photos will look similar to my mock ups.

In addition to this, I have already taken pictures of the school lockers for the background of my poster (below).

Lockers (with flash)

Lockers (without flash)

I have decided to use the second picture. My reasoning behind this decision is that I am creating a horror film, therefore want the poster to look as dark and mysterious as possible. I will also remove the white tags/stickers in Photoshop

Filming update

Due to the snow, I have been unable to begin filming. A couple of my scenes are outside, therefore - for continuity reasons - weather conditions must be stable before I start.

Moreover, I have had difficulties finding times suitable for both my actresses in my teaser trailer. This has proved to be one of my main barriers for filming.

How I made my production company animations

Location Shots

Location of Teaser Trailer: Burntwood School
 

Production Slate Changes...

I decided against using the 'Eagle Eye Productions' slate as my production company because I have not been able to find a video showing an eagle blinking which I could edit to my advantage. I have therefore decided to change this to 'Caveman Productions,' so I do not have to find real footage, instead I can just manipulate an image of a caveman.

Magazine and Poster Mock Ups

Film Poster Mock Up:

Magazine cover mock up:

 

 For my magazine cover, I have decided that the main character which will be on the front cover will not look off to the side, instead looking only slightly off centre to the right (i.e. not looking directly into the camera lens). This will help me create mystery for the character (because I can place the right side of her face in shadows), as well as giving a larger amount of address and interaction to the audience. Also, if the character depicted on the front cover is well known, the reader will automatically realise from a front shot, which would act as a unique selling point for the magazine.

Crow Sounds at the beginning of production

I have decided to use these crow sounds at the beginning of my production (during the establishing shots of the school) in order to create realism for the piece, as well as a feeling of foreboding.

I will therefore edit this clip in Adobe Premiere Pro, so that only the crows are heard, instead of them and the cicadas.

Film Poster Photos

With the main character of my production, I have organised a time in which to take photos for my film poster (Tomorrow lunchtime at 12:55). Although I am still in the process of finding a black cloak (a key prop in my production), I have decided to take as many pictures as possible, so that I can begin editing in Adobe Photoshop.

Production Slate Progress

In Adobe Premiere Pro, I have been trying to produce an institution slate. I have decided to call it 'Eagle Eye Productions' and aim to animate the picture so that the eye in the background blinks.

Institution Research

I have found out that the majority of horror films are produced by the institutions below.

Screen Gems has produced a variety of horrors, including 'Vacancy', the franchise 'Underworld' and 'The Roommate.'

Dimensional Films has produced a large amount of horror films and is especially well known for 'Halloween,' 'Children of the Corn' and 'Scream.'

'Saw' and 'Undead' are examples of the films Lions Gate Entertainment create. Although they produce a smaller amount of horror films in comparison to other genres, the films they do produce are very high profile.

From my research, I have found that the main colour used for production company's logos is blue.

Film Magazine Names

Below are a list of names I have thought about for my film magazine:

• Apollo
• Eagle Eye
• Featuring:
• Feature Film
• Pioneer
• Replay

I have decided to choose 'Pioneer' because the majority of magazines I have seen do not explicitly tell the audience its subject.
For example,

Although there are exceptions to the rule, such as 'Total Film,' I have decided to use the conventions of a film magazine.

Film Titles

I have researched recent horror film releases (2010) in order to find out if there are any trends which I may need to adhere to. Below are a list of ten horror film titles:

1. The Crazies
2. Frozen
3. A Nightmare On Elm Street
4. Womb Ghosts
5. Dahmer Vs. Gacy
6. Resident Evil: Afterlife
7. Sparrow
8. Hatchet II
9. I Spit On Your Grave
10. The Last Exorcism

As you can see, there does not appear to be any correlation between film names, probably because one of the main appeals for a film is the escapism (i.e. 'escaping' from the boring life; being transported into an exciting environment) factor, therefore if there were any parallels, the audience may be less likely to see it.

I have realised the audience do not want prior expectations when watching the film, instead, they generally wish to be shocked by unusual aspects of the film.

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Below are some of the names I have considered for my film:

• Aberration
• Double life
• Deranged

Storyboards

Below are my storyboards. In storyboards number 5 and 6, I wrote two alternative endings, in case the first ending does not work due to problems with sound.

Friday 5th November's Lesson

On Friday's lesson, we were taught by Alex, who took our class for a workshop on key skills we needed to know for using Adobe Photoshop. I found this lesson very beneficial, due to my limited knowledge of using a photo editing software. Among other things, we learnt:

• How to open and save an edited document
• The 'ruler lines' tool
• Removing background colours/images from a picture (so you're left with the person on a white background)
• Adding text, changing font

Below, I will show you how we were taught these skills and why they are important for me in my production.

Create new document:

Adding ruler lines



Progress Update: Music

Now that I have my treatment complete and am working on my storyboard, I decided to look up royalty free music and have happened across a website filled with different links for known uncopyrighted pieces:

Surprisingly, the array of music is considerably vast, so I will therefore look into an assortment of different types and deduce from that which tracks I will choose.

Character Profile

Name: Claudia Gyring

Biography so far: Born and raised in Austria, Claudia was the most ordinary child one could ask for. Having learnt English for most of her life alongside her mother tongue (German), she decided to move to the city of London where she completed her studies to become a qualified teacher and almost instantly was able to obtain a job at Burntwood School for Girls. However, spending twenty three years in the same institution is bound to take its toll on anyone, as she soon began to realise.

Age: Early forties

Career: School teacher

Best Qualities: Determined; ability to retain information; easy going yet relatively withdrawn in social situations

Hobbies: Playing piano; reading.

Treatment

Claudia Gyring is a teacher whose job is wholly unfulfulling. From waking up in the morning to going to sleep at night, her life had not changed for more than twenty years. Seeking radical change, yet unsure of how or what to strive for, she is driven insane by the humdrum of everyday life. Like the flick of a switch, she transforms one night, yet the majority of the time, she stays lucid and in control, only occassionally turning into someone unrecognisable - a woman of undeniable strength and anger. Sensing that everything has changed, she becomes an introverted individual, attempting to ignore her now frequent dreams of the Devil telling her to 'kill all who don't believe.' However, as she descends more completely into madness, Ellie Smith, an eleven year old girl in one of her classes, just so happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time: kidnapped, attacked and then stowed away in Claudia's office cupboard, she is almost scared to death.As newsreaders tell the public of her disappearance, Ellie must wait for help - that is, if the police get there in time...

Audience Research - Results

 

From these results with regard to film magazines, I believe it would be in my best interest to produce a mainstream film magazine, so as to reach a wider amount of my target audience.

Audience Research Questionnaires

Below are the questions I asked in my survey (I decided to see what the overall consensus was for favourite film genres before I made any decisions on what my production would be). I used a variety of methods to collect information, including the use of the leading social media website Facebook and Yahoo! Answers in order to target any age group which I had not yet approached. I also distributed my Audience Research questionnaires through MSN (which I found easier than handing them out manually) and by hand.

1. Gender: Male/Female

2. Age Group: 16-24/25-35/36-44/45-50/50+

3. How often do you visit the cinema? (please state)

4. What is your favourite film genre? Action/Comedy/Drama/Horror/Romance/Science Fiction/Other (please state)

5. What is your preferred medium for learning about new/upcoming films? Film magazines/Internet forums/Posters/Teaser trailers/Word of mouth/Other (please state)

6. Following on from question 5, what do you think is the most effective promotional method and why?

7. How often, if at all, do you buy a film magazine? Once a week/Every fortnight/Once a month/Once a year/Never

8. Following on from question 7, if you ever purchase a film magazine, which one is it?

9. What would raise your interest in a film? Cast/Director/Familiar institution/Screenwriter/Storyline/Other (please state)

10. What is your favourite film and why?