2ND FILMING SESSION

After editing the first half of the filming we had completed, we realised that we needed to return to 'The Plunge' to refilm some shots that didn't turn out the way we had hoped in the editing stages.  We also needed to finish off filming the remaining part of the chase scene.

Firstly, we wanted to refilm the close ups of each of us, where we say the lines "What's that?" and "I don't know", as the natural daylight was too dark and it seemed impossible to incorporate such low levels of light.  After realising that it was possible to make the shots appear darker in the editing stage without actually filming them in dark, we proceeded to film in the evening, even though the sun had set, as we could still make the lighting darker on the final production. Having finished refilming these two shots, we started filming the reaction shots as I walk away, and although it did begin to rain heavily, the sound didn't really affect the dialogue, and in someways emphasised a pathetic fallacy.

We set to work on the notoriously tricky tracking and running shots.  We used a flycam to help assist us in making the shots less jerky and the movements more fluid. It took a couple of attempts for us to get used to manouvering the flycam, however, after a while, it proved easier and more effective to use it rather than try and steady the camera on the tripod. Having said that, we did use the tripod for long shots and extreme long shots, in order to give a variety to our shots. The shot that Megan filmed (the medium/close up tracking of me weaving in and out of the trees) benefitted the most from the steadycam/flycam, as the terrain was quite bumpy and the fact that both myself and Megan were both running, increased the potentially shaky filming.

The shots I found most difficult to film were the final shots of Megan in the river, as the natural day light was too dark, so we used the night vision option on the camera itself.  This turned out to be quite effective in the final editing stage. However, at long range the camera became blurry, so most of our shots had to be from, at a maximum, a medium shot, which was not what we had originally planned. However, it still worked out effectively.

FILM CLASSIFICATION

Films are rated by The British Board of Film Classification which is an independent, non-governmental body that have been classifying cinema films since it was set up in 1912. The BBFC was set up by the film industry as an independent body, to bring a degree of uniformity to the classification of film, nationally.

Statutory powers remain with the local councils, which may overrule any of the BBFC’s decisions, passing films they reject, banning films they have passed, and even waiving cuts, instituting new ones, or altering categories for films to be exhibited, under their own licensing jurisdiction.

Traditionally, thrillers or films in the thriller/horror hybrid genre are usually rated at the minimum of 15, and sometimes over. The BBFC validates their reasoning for giving a rating of 15, on these grounds:

This was taken from the BBFC website.

Discrimination
The work as a whole must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour.

Drugs
Drug taking may be shown but the film as a whole must not promote or encourage drug misuse. The misuse of easily accessible and highly dangerous substances is unlikely to be accepted.

Horror
Strong threat and menace is permitted unless sadistic or sexualised.

Imitable behaviour
Dangerous behaviour (for example self harming) should not dwell on detail, which could be copied. Easily accessible weapons should not be glamourised.

Language
There may be frequent use of strong language. The strongest terms may be acceptable, through context. Repetition and aggression in language is not permitted.

Violence
Violence may be strong but should not dwell on pain and infliction of pain. The strongest, gory images will not be acceptable. Strong, sadistic or sexualised violence is also unlikely to be acceptable.

Due to these guidelines set out by the BBFC, I believe that our film, Fascination, would receive a rating of 15. Although it has a strong threat of suspense and terror, it does not show any 'gore' or real violence, only enigmas that create images for the audience, whose imaginations may be more vivid than the on screen image itself.

FIRST FILMING SESSION

Last Wednesday we filmed the first shots for our production. Immediately, we thought that the location was absolutely perfect, as it created the ideal atmosphere, and allowed us to film shots from a huge variety of angles. We found that the most suitable filming hours were between 5-7pm, in order to embody the correct lighting. However, we found that this posed its problems. The light alters within these hours, therefore the lighting may alter from shot to shot. To solve this we are going to film extra cut away shots, i.e. a sun set, in order to insinuate the passage of time and make sure that the shots filmed at each 'get together' coincide with the time we previously filmed the similar shots. This issue is something to consider when editing also.

By the end of this session, we had filmed 50% of the shots.

PRODUCTION LOGOS

Finding an appropriate and suitable production company name, title and logo for our film was key in establishing the tone, and to help set the scene for the beginning of the film. We created two prototypes of production companies and logos.

The first being an RB Production, the intials RB were from the director's name Rizwana Bibi. This idea was crafted from Miramax, with the two co-founders' parents being named Miriam and Max, hence the combination Mira-max.

As the director plays a huge role in the film itself, we thought it would be appropriate. The logo of the striking serif black font on the red background connoted all the imagery and colours that we wanted to incorporate, however, as film making is an artistic form, we thought the idea of it being so simple and using the red, plain background as most student thrillers do, was rather clichéd.  We wanted to escape from that.

Whilst researching into film logo's, it was most noticable that each company used similar colours for effect, but most also had an image to accompany each. Like New Line Cinema has the cut off film strip;

20th Century Fox the bold, brass letters

Dreamworks the man on the moon;

Disney, Cinderella's Castle etc

So we decided that we also needed a bold and emotive image to accompany our production company. Hence the Rust Studios Production company was produced. Whilst not actually deciding a name, we wanted the idea of blood and violence to be very strong, but the idea of using an image of blood seemed tacky and unprofessional.  So, we then took inspiration from rust.  This has many connotations itself.

Rust can connote many different things. The most obvious and aesthetically thought provoking is that the image looks like scratches, or as though a layer of skin has been peeled away to reveal flesh and blood. Again, adding to the semantics of violence, horror etc without it being blantantly obvious. Looking more deeply; when metal erodes, this is when rust begins to appear, which could actually be a metaphor forof the victim's life and situation, decaying as the thriller progresses. The scratches are also important.  It can be viewed  as though someone has produced them in fear, or whilst trying to escape, again suggesting a plot thickening, even in the first few seconds.

RISK ASSESSMENT

Health and safety on set is very important when filming, as accidents do happen, equipment can be damaged and cast and crew can be severely hurt.  Despite our film being set in a forest which has lots of dangerous elements to it, the actors, myself and Georgie, and the director Rizwana, marked out and devised a route which was the safest and most convenient way for us to walk down what proved to be a treacherous and slippy hill.

In particular, with the 'chase scene' in our opening, health and safety concerns were at the forefront of our thinking.  However, before undertaking each shot, we created a clear path for each runner, in order to avoid any accidents occurring.

PROPS

With regards to props, our piece demands very little. We decided that doing this would provide a much more exciting and thrilling atmosphere, enormously important when creating a successful thriller.
As previously mentioned, we based our opening on a sequence within the US drama ‘The Killing’. Within this sequence the Killer possessed a large torch, used to hide his identity, so creating enigmas, and to create fear and anxiety. Therefore, we wanted to encompass this in our production.

Below are images of the torch we will use.





We quickly realised that for the torch light to be noticeable on screen, it was important that we used one of this size and power. It was extremely fortunate that Megan had this.

STORYBOARD

SHOT LIST

1. LES/PAN/TRACK/ POV OF KILLER shot of two girls walking through the forest.
2. M/CU of both girls walking towards the camera, flash light appears in the back focus.
3. MS of both girls walking away from the camera as Georgie turns to notice the light beaming on them and stopping.
4. M/CU RETURNS with only Megan continuing to walk towards cam as Georgie has stopped until Megan notices, stops and turns herself.
5. MS RETURNS (facing away from camera without tracking, slightly high angle) the two girls look confused.
6. MS of Georgie - to say line "What’s that?" same shot then switches, focus on Megan, who then says her line “I don’t know”
7. POV OF KILLER/MCU of both girls. Georgie says “Hello?”
8. M/CU of girls behind. The light still bobbing and moving in the trees, the two girls partially silhouetted.
9. POV SHOT GEORGIE as she turns to Megan.
10. POV SHOT KILLER looking at the girls. Dog's bark is heard, see the girls looking at the direction it came from.
11. MS of both girls from the front as they turn their head to look back at the light.
12. POV from Georgie looking to the right, as she looks back to the front, the light has been switched off.
13. MS OF BOTH GIRLS, Georgie turns to walk away from the light.
14. M/CU OF GEORGIE WALKING TOWARDS, THEN PAST CAMERA. Megan turns towards camera and starts to walk, Focus on Megan, she says "Where are you going?"
15. CU TRACKING of Georgie’s face as she walks away, saying "I'm not staying here, I'm going home"
16. MS of both girls. Georgie walking away, Megan takes one final look at the light and begins to catch up to Georgie
17. MS TRACKING Georgie in focus as Megan catches up behind her. The birds then squawk and flap/ scary creepy noises etc and both girls stop and look to the left, at the trees.
18. MS/ TRACKING as the girls briskly walk away.
19. MC TRACKING Georgie briskly walking.
20. MC SHOT TRACKING Megan briskly walking.
21. MS from behind both girls, Georgie turning round to look.
22. MS OF BOTH TRACKING BEHIND THEM Megan looking at Georgie then turns around too.
23. POV OF KILLER as light is turned back on. Girls now briskly walking.
24. POV OF MEGAN looking at Georgie and back at the killer, and light.
25. CU SIDE ON of girls' feet running in the grass, now jogging.
26. POV OF GEORGIE running and turning around.
27. POV OF KILLER light focusing on girls' expression.
28. MS FRONT ON of both girls' feet as the speed is now fast and they are running.
29. MS SIDE ON TILTING UP to girls' faces.
30. MS SLOW MOTION TRACKING girls running towards camera.
31. SIDE MS TRACKING focusing first on Georgie, then panning to Megan.
32. MS SLOW MO TRACKING girls turning and running.
33. POV TRACKING from the killer running towards them with the light highlighting the girls' facial expressions. Light focuses on the girls' feet as Georgie tails off.
34. POV MEGAN looking at killer.
35. CU Megan's feet running.
36. CU of Georgie who is, at this point, hidden behind a tree trunk.
37. POV of killer looking at the opposite side of the tree.
38. ECU on Georgie’s eyes as we hear a twig snap.
39. CU of Megan's feet who is attempting to run through the lake.
40. MS of Megan as she stops in the middle of the lake.
41. MS of Georgie starting to run again, then CU of Georgie’s feet as she continues running
42. CU of Georgie’s face as she runs.
43. MS of Megan turning, looking around, whip pan, swirling around her as she looks nervous.
44. POV MEGAN panning quickly.
45. CU TRACKING Megan's face.
46. POV as water movement heard..
47. CIRCULAR MS TRACKING of Megan.
48. POV more water heard.
49. CIRCULAR CU TRACKING Megan.
50. CU TRACKING Georgie’s feet.
51. LS TRACKING Georgie running away.
52. POV KILLER looking at Megan in the water, more water heard.
53. MS SIDE ON Georgie still running "MEGAN"
54. CU Megan's face
55. MS CIRCLING TRACKING Megan spinning, to listen, to shout.
56. MCU of Megan on the line ‘Georgie?!’
57. LS of Georgie still running from the mysterious light.
58. POV of killer looking at Megan as more water movement is heard.
59. MS Georgie still running shouting ‘Megan!’
60. MS of Megan looking at where the shout came from.
61. Spinning MS/CU of Megan as the water movements become more frequent and louder (the continuous sped up hand held shot)
62. On the same shot, finish circle MCS Megan “Who’s there?!”
63. LS of Megan in the water, looking around
64. MS of Megan, only her heavy breathing is heard. Then a muffled scream from Georgie.
65. The shot lingers for a while, to create tension.
66. The light appears behind (in the same shot).  Megan turns.
67. POV of killer towards Megan, Sped up, finish of Megan’s loud intake of breath.

LOCATION - THE PLUNGE

Last week, we decided as a group, that we would individually search the local area for a suitable location for our piece. Following this, we discussed our findings and finalised our choice.

We decided that 'The Plunge', near to my house, was most suitable, as it not only encompassed both the

forest and river element, but as there were a number of small hills and slopes, it would provide us with the means to shoot a variety of angled shots. In twilight, this would provide an eerie and menacing setting for our production.

Here are some photos from my expoloration of 'The Plunge'.

INSPIRATION

There were many things that inspired us for our opening, in particular these 2 clips,

The first is from the French film 'Them' which is actually a horror film, but the beginning scene creates a multitude of tension as well as setting the scene for the entire film, which is what a good opening should do. Their use of the forest and twilight filming was also interesting.

Link to trailer for 'Them':
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFTbcDRkG1o

Another very influential clip was the beginning of the US TV series 'The Killing'.  It is also set in the woods, and the interesting use of the torch light really appealed to us. The vulnerabilty of the girl was something we wanted to expand on, as it is commonly known that the female is usually the victim.

Link to trailer for 'The Killing':
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IZUWkghFeQ

CAST AND COSTUME

Originally, the cast was going to consist of all three of us; Rizwana, Megan and myself, with the concept of Rizwana going missing, to enable her to film the majority of the tricky shots.   However, this meant that the suspicious circumstances of her disappearance was not in keeping with the suspense and enigmas in our film. Thus, we changed the script to only include two characters, namely Georgie and Megan. We decided to use our own names as the characters are not too dissimilar to ourselves and it would make the film more realistic.

Regarding both characters, we decided that it would be best if we both wore casual clothing, which would also be acceptable and suitable for going for a walk in the forest. Similar to the images below, Georgie would wear a green barbour jacket, or jumper and black leggings and wellies.



And for the character Megan who, like Georgie, is the archetypal teenage girl. She is also wearing black leggings and white pumps, but with a casual, blue hoodie and white t-shirt.

Both costumes compliment the girls' age, and are reflective of typical, everyday outfits.

NEW SYNOPSIS

Synopsis
Fascination

Three teenage girls walk through a forest to get home. Rizwana drops an object and hears a noise within the trees, and then mysteriously disappears. Megan and Georgie then realise she’s missing and tensions start to rise. We hear a noise/tree rustle; the two girls are spooked and begin to run.
To try to ‘play the game’ he kills some of his victims, who are young, teenage women, but abducts the rest for his own personal pleasure. Unexpectedly, the three girls are not dead and the help the rest of the hostages to escape

Proposed setting

‘The Plunge’ in Edenfield – forest and river
Time – dusk, enough light but still setting the mood

We then decided to change the storyline as we thought Rizwana disappearing mysteriously wasn’t plausible.  It didn’t make sense, and therefore didn’t reflect the mystery and suspense we wanted to create.  We then decided to change the storyline to two girls walking home through a forest.  The two girls notice a flashing light behind them and turn round to see what it is. The girls are spooked and quickly walk away from the light, which then gradually turns into a chase scene. Georgie separates from Megan and hides. In the meantime, Megan runs through the lake and hears Georgie shouting out to Megan and screaming in the background. Tension and suspense increases when Megan turns around and sees the spotlight behind her, and ends on a black screen.

To try to ‘play the game’, he kills some of his victims, who are young, teenage women, but abducts the rest for his own personal pleasure. Unexpectedly, the three girls are not dead and the help the rest of the hostages to escape.