One very significant prop that we will be using for opening is a bench, this is used for the tracking shot of the two girls. This is what the entire narrative revolves around. We will be using a bench in Georgie's garden (where the scene will be filmed), but we will be re-positoning it so the it is in front of the house. For this scene we will also get our actors to wear black hoodies in order for them to appear more mysterious and to introduce an ominous element into the beginning of the film.
Another prop we will be using is a mirror for the scene where the main character is looking distressed at her reflection. We will be filming this in Georgie's bathroom. The mirror will be key for this scene as it reflects her battling with her mind.
For one of the happier flashbacks, we will be filming the two girls taking a photo together on a phone. For this we will use either mine or Georgics iPhone. Other props we will be using for happy flashbacks include blankets, pillows and cushions to make the characters seemed relaxed and comfortable.
For the scene of the two girls reading books together we carefully selected books which would subtly link to the plot of our opening. The books we chose were 'The Shock of the Fall' by Nathan Filer, which explores a narrative around grief and madness, as well as'A Hundred Pieces of Me' by Lucy Dillon which explores memories and the past. As these books are aimed at the same age group as our target audience there could be a chance that they are recognised it and therefore this would give them a sense of what the narrative is.
On day one we were filming the rotating bench scene. For this we needed Lauren to look gaunt and vacant. To create this look we used purple and yellow eyeshadow to create the bags under her eyes. We also added red eyeshadow close to the bottom waterline to give her eyes an irritated effect, as if she had rubbed them a lot. We added yellow, grey and a slight purple tone to her cheeks as it made them look hollow and empty as if she hadn't been taking care of herself. We used purple and yellow eyeshadow to create the bruise on her chin. Lastly we covered her lips in concealer to get them paler, we then covered over this with some purple in the edges of her mouth to make her seem void of all colour and life.
Filming Day Two:
Character One
Character Two
For the second day of filming we used an hour at the beginning of the day to get the makeup done. In the morning we were filming all the happy flashbacks, therefore we needed to create a innocent look for both the girls. We used a thin coverage foundation, as we didn't want to take the youth from her face. We used an eyebrow pencil to lightly fill in her brows and added a golden eyeshadow to her eyelids with a small amount of highlighter added to her cheeks. Our aim was to enhance their natural features. We wanted them to appear to not be wearing a lot of makeup, therefore we stuck with a natural look. For Lauren Barlow, who was playing character one, we added a red lipstick as whilst it still looks innocent with the rest of her makeup, the colour red also connotes danger, this therefore foreshadows whats to come for her character.
Later in the day we filmed the darker flashbacks. For this we needed to alter Lauren's makeup to a similar look like the one we created on the first day of filming. We used all the same techniques for her makeup from day one of filming. On top of that we took a wet cotton bud and smudged her mascara she had previously been wearing from her earlier makeup look down her cheeks to create the effect that she had been crying and rubbing them.
To film our opening, we will be using the camera EOS 700D. We were fortunate enough to borrow this camera from our friend, who is also playing the lead role in the film. This camera shoots in very high definition which we think will be a large advantage to us. This camera also has a function allowing us to easily adjust the focus a lot easier. On the days we are shooting we will also use a SD card to hold all our footage to later upload onto a computer.
Along with the camera we used the Velbon CX 888 tripod. This is a tripod that I had already owned. this helped us in the filming process as it helped steady shots as well and shoot at different angles. For the bench scenes we will be using a bike to balance the camera on due to it being a tracking shot.
In the post-production stages we will be using a Mac computer as well as a Macbook Pro laptop to edit on. These devices have a retina display meaning we can watch our clips in high quality.
We will be using the software iMovie to edit our film opening as this is software that both me and Georgie feel confident using after using it for our preliminary.
On our first day of filming, we decided to focus on the tracking shot of the two girls sat on the bench. We had limited time to film as our actors were only with us for a small amount of time due to other commitments they had. We used half an hour in the morning before filming to do Lauren's makeup as we had to make her look vacant and void.
To create the bench scene, we tried a variety of different techniques to see which would create the smoothest shot, as a tripod would be useless. First we tried holding the camera in our hands and walking around the bench, however this turned out extremely bumpy and in the shot you could clearly see the steps of the camerawomen. We thought about many different objects we could use to create a steadier shot, we considered a wheelbarrow and an office chair however in the end we decided a push bike would be easiest. This technique was effective because whilst I held the camera steady on the seat; Georgie was able to steer the bike, therefore giving us good control of the movement of the camera.
We then had to capture some close up shots of Lauren Barlow (Character One) sat alone on the bench, one of these was her looking straight into the camera. We initially tried using a tripod, however we couldn't get this close enough to her face due to the positioning of the legs of the tripod against the bench Lauren was sitting on. To get the camera close enough to Lauren's face without using the zoom, we had our other actress lean over while we placed the camera steadily on her back and got the close ups. This allowed us to get the close ups and extreme close ups thats we wanted without having to compromise the quality.
Filming Close Ups
The bike we used to film the bench scene
Me balancing the camera while
Georgie steered the bike
This is our storyboard we created. This allowed us to discuss ideas and different shots to use as well as how we would set certain shots up. We draw the shots as well as writing in the box below what type of shot they were. We also wrote in the bottom corner the length of time the shot would be on screen for as well as what type of sound, editing and camera movement there would be. This will help us when it comes to filming as we will know how much timing of a shot we need. It also will help us in the editing process placing our shots in the correct order. We used a wide range of shots, we focused a lot of our plot into the tracking shot of the girls on the bench. However we did also incorporate lots of close up and medium shots as well. Overall this gave us a clear structure of our film opening.
Our opening will have a clear shift of tone and mood around half way through as flashbacks become darker. The beginning, during happier flashbacks will have peaceful and calm instrumental music, along the lines of the music from a jewellery box. We decided not to include lyrics to the music as we wanted the opening to have no dialogue as we use visuals to tell the story. We thought a lullaby would be perfect for our opening because it adds an eery tone due to its connotations of corrupted innocence. At the same time the tone of the opening changes, so will the music. We took inspiration from the montage from the disney film UP as the music really carried the clip and dramatically changes the mood and tone of the clip.
The Woman In Black (2012)
The music in this scene really holds the whole clip together. The music, with the lack of dialogue creates a really eery tone. I hope to add music like this during the darker memories of my opening.
We will also be adding diegetic sounds like bird song and laughter into the happier memories and beginning shots of the bench. This will add a sense of calmness, almost like the calm before the storm. In darker memories, we will static sounds and a high pitch sound of a kettle boiling. This adds tension and creates an uncomfortable atmosphere.
Fortunately, this step was not necessary in the pre-production stage of our film opening as the majority of the scenes will be filmed on Georgie's property in her home or garden. We will be filming other scenes such as those on the streets will be filmed in public areas that we won't need permission to use.
To communicate with the other member of my group, Georgie Whitehouse, we set up an online Facebook chat as way to contact each other any time of the day when we thought of an idea. On this chat we spoke about camera shots and angles we could use as well the score for the opening. As it got closer to filming we discussed makeup, props and locations. This was a useful medium of communication as we could exchange screenshots which inspired us and useful photos that we needed.
To communicate with our actors as had a separate Facebook chat including both actors, me and Georgie. On this chat we explained to them the outline of their roles and we sent them links to clips similar to what we hoped to achieve. We also arranged filming times, and told them locations and what they would need to bring with them to set on the day of filming. This was effective as it was an instant form of communication and we could reach them very quickly if it was needed. It also allowed the actors a way to ask us questions and contribute their own ideas towards the scenes. This was helpful and they are in our target audience.
As our film is a psychological thriller we knew we would have a high classification due to the typical conventions and themes such as mental health that will appear in our opening. Our film will demonstrate many psychological issues as well as an implies murder so therefore it will not be suitable for a young audience. When researching classifications on the BBFC website we realised the age rating 15 would be most suitable for our film.
The following elements are typically seen in a 15 rated film:
Strong violence
Frequent strong language (e.g f**k)
portrayals to sexual activity
Strong verbal references to sex
sexual nudity
brief scenes of sexual violence and verbal references to sexual violence
discriminatory language or behaviour
drug taking
Although many of these different elements do not appear within our film, we will be including some such as strong acts of violence and explicit language. We have chosen against classifying our film as an 18 as we won't present elements such as sexual violence or strong portrayals of sexual activity within our film. This would also limit the range of our target audience. Its also very common for psychological thrillers to be rated a 15 an example being Limitless.
Our opening will include happy flashbacks and sadder, more intense flashbacks. To express the difference in the main characters mental state in different memories, we will use two different makeups looks to reflect her feelings.
Character One during happy flashbacks and character Two's makeup throughout the opening:
For the happy flashbacks we will use simplistic makeup to make them look young and fresh faced. We want them to look innocent therefore we will use products with a light coverage such as BB in instead of foundation as heavy makeup won't be necessary. I will use products such as mascara, blush, eyeliner and natural eyeshadow to enhance their natural features. This will make them look healthy and happy. I will also use highlighter on them both as it will create a dewey and luminous fresh look. This look will contrast to the bleak, demented look character one will have during the darker flashbacks.
Character One during darker flashbacks:
For the darker flashbacks the character will be very vacant and tired. Therefore I will use red and purple toned eyeshadow under the eye to create bags, implying a lack of sleep. We won't be using makeup products such as bronzer, highlighter or blush as these will add colour to the face. I want to create a very bleak pale complexion therefore these products won't be helpful. I will add grey toned contour to the hollows of her cheeks as this will create the illusion that she hasn't eaten regularly. This will show the audience that the character hasn't been looking after herself due to the emotional trauma she has been through.
For our film opening we have decided to use different props to help convey the storyline. One prop we will use is a garden bench. This will be for the two girls to sit on during the tracking shot. This is quite an ordinary piece of equipment and won't be hard for us to get hold of.
Another prop we will use is two fictional books. These will be used during the scene where the two girls are lying on the floor and reading. We have decided to use these props to hint at the themes within our production. We will be using books which have plots relating to darkness, memory and depression. This means we have subtle hints about the fate of the characters throughout the opening. The two books we have decided the use are: 'The Shock of the Fall' by Nathan Filer and 'A Hundred Pieces of Me' by Lucy Dillon. These books are also aimed towards teenagers meaning they have a better chance of being recognised by our audience.
We will be using an ordinary iPhone for the scene where the two girls take a photo together. This phone when filming will either be mine or Georgie's.
Bench Scene:
For this scene we needed a large area as this would be the scene with the large tracking shot around the two girls at on the bench in a semi-circle with the girls facing away from the camera. We chose this area as it was in front of an old house which would reflect past memories which would be filmed inside. This area will also be very accessible to us as it is Georgie's front garden, who is the other member in my group. The dead trees in the background also create an eery atmosphere for our opening.
Flashbacks:
We will be filming these flashbacks in rural remote areas. This will make it easier to film as there wont be many people about. for the location we chose the main road in the village Middleton Cheney. This road is normally empty. This will allow us to convey the idea that the flashbacks are taking place inside character 1's mind. This is also convenient for us as it is next to Georgie's house, there will make it easier when transporting equipment.
For the flashbacks that will be filmed inside we will use Georgie's living room as it has good lighting during the day and has a homely feel to it. We will also use props such as blankets and cushions to add to the cosy feel. We will also use other rooms such as the bathroom to film a scene where Lauren looks into the mirror.
As well as makeup, we will also use clothing to represent the emotional state of the characters during different parts of the film.
Happy Flashbacks:
For the happy flashbacks, both characters will be wearing clothes made from bright, warm colours. They will wear ordinary, comfortable clothes to add a sense of realism to our film as we want the girls to look like normal everyday people. We will also include elements of clothing which add a pop of colour. This will express the happy mood of the characters. This will contrast the darker clothing from the sadder flashbacks. It will seem as if nothing could disrupt the happy lives of these two girls.
Darker Flashbacks:
For the darker flashbacks and the bench scene, character one will change into darker clothes. She will wear black trousers and a black jacket. The lack of colour in her outfit and face due to makeup, will represent the lack of emotion and joy in her life. As her mental health declines she will care less about her appearance which will be shown through her clothing. During the bench scene both characters will be wearing darker clothes as it adds to the enigma of the opening. The black clothing will dig up feelings of death, grief and loss for the audience who will, with each flashback, put the pieces of the plot together.
This will be the main character throughout our opening. The opening will be surrounding her and the decline of her mental health. This character will enter the story a happy, healthy teenager with a strong friendship with character two, however over time she will become a vacant shadow of the person she used to be.
Lauren Barlow - We have chosen Lauren Barlow to star in our opening. Lauren has experience in acting as she currently studies Musical Theatre at Stratford College. She has a lot of experience in performing arts as she has taken on leading roles in school productions and has performed in front of large audiences such as Wembley Arena. With a lot of acting experience we felt she would be able to understand the complexity of the character and would be able to portray it well. She is also fits our age range perfectly.
Character Two:
This character will be character ones best friend. This character will deliver the main psychological element to our opening as she will be what provokes the mental decline of character one. Although it isn't directly shown exactly why their relationship declines, this keeps the narrative open for the audience to question what happened to the second character, some evening questioning the existence of her. This character could be a genuine friend, or a figment of the first characters imagination. This will also be implied by the constant appearance of the second character whilst the first complete breaks apart.
Lauren Bricknell - We have chosen Lauren Bricknell to play our second character as she has also had a lot of acting experience as she has taken leading roles in local performances. She also studies musical theatre at Stratford college and has a great understanding of representing different characters. We felt she would understand the character well and she also fits the characters age range as she is a teenager.
Our opening will be based on the friendship between two best friends as their relationship slowly falls apart resulting in the decline of character 1's mental health. We will present this story through flashbacks of memories between the two. These will be linked back to one continuous shot of the two sat on a bench. The memories will begin happy showing the two characters full of life and energy. Gradually these memories will turn sour and become sadder, eventually leaving character one in a vacant, emotional unstable state. The bench scene will start behind the bench with the two actors backs facing the camera. The camera will then turn in an anti-clockwise circular motion towards the bench. As the camera gets closer to the bench, it will show character two missing and character one will be sat alone staring into oblivion. There will be a close up to reveal her face looking vacant and hollow. This will then cut to black, followed by the title sequence. The themes present in our opening will be: friendship, mental health, trauma and death.
Our opening will be from the perspective of character one. Therefore we will focus on the emotions she is feeling during them. For example in the happy flashbacks we will focus on her smile and her happiness. Whereas in the sadder flashbacks we will focus on the loss she is feeling and the trauma she is experiencing. Character two will be character one, our protagonists, best friend. She will be a happy, healthy teenager. In the sadder flashbacks this character will jump in and out, therefore making the audience question her existence. We decided to make both character female as they are seem as innocent, this would have a greater impact when character one becomes emotionally corrupt.
For the scenes filmed on the bench, we will be filming on a large garden in front of an old looking house. This will represent her looking back at past memories, as the house will hold a lot of her history. For flashbacks set outside we will be filming if rural, remote areas e.g a village on quiet streets. This will make it more personal as the scene won't be full of distractions from other people on busy streets. This could also enforce the idea that these events are taking place inside her head as the setting they are in is deserted. We will be suing natural lighting during these scenes to make them seem realistic.
Other flashbacks will be filmed inside. Happier scenes will be filmed inside a cosy living room, this will give a sense of fondness and happiness. We will use props such as pillows and blankets to also make the scene appear cosy. This will reinstate that the two friends were both comfortable and happy during these times.
Some darker flashbacks will be filmed inside. This is so that we have better control over the lighting of the scene. For these scenes, the lighting will be bleak, dull and gloomy to reflect the feel of the the characters in the scene. We will also film a flashback of character 1 looking into the bathroom mirror, the lighting in the bathroom will be uncomfortable, stark and similar to that of a hospital. This will give the impression the character is disorientated and sick.
We will be using a wide range of shots during our opening. For the bench scene we will use a medium tracking shot moving anti-clockwise around them. During flashbacks we will use lots of close ups to clearly display the emotions of the character during the time. We will also use a close up of character 1's face as the last shot in the sequence as she looks directly into the camera, thus breaking the fourth wall. We will use over-the-shoulder shots while they are arguing.
During the editing stage, we will use filters and adapt the tone of shots to also help set the mood for some scenes. For example we will darken, put full, grey, blue tones over darker depressing sadder scenes. Where as happier scenes, we will brighten and whiten colours to make them seem dreamlike. We will also add in flashes to white and black transitions between clips to represent gaps in time and memory (between the present and past).
1. Block - Deciding where the actors will be standing and where the camera will be positioned.
2. Light - This is time for the DOP to light the set and position the camera. 3. Rehearse - Time for camera rehearsal of the first set up with the actors and the crew 4. Adjustments - Time for making lighting adjustments and other adjustments needed. 5. Shoot - Shooting the first scene (repeat the process) Blocking a scene is simply working out the details of the movements actors make in relation to the camera. You must make sure the actors, crew and camera all move smoothly and harmoniously together. This is often done to create a path for a character and make sure everything fits together. It saves time and ensure everything will play out the way the director wants it to.
One thing I really liked about the film the Perks of Being A Wallflower was the title font they used at the beginning of the film. The white typewriter font (courier) on the black background looks simple and classic and creates a sense of nostalgia which I think would reflect well in my own film.
Another section of this film that inspired me for my opening was the
scene with Charlie's mental breakdown. This subtly plays memories from Charlie's past which have resulted in the deterioration of his mental health. An example of one of these was the car crash which killed his aunt. This short flashback is what inspired the shot flashes of memories throughout the opening. It links to past to the present for the viewer and makes it clear that the mental breakdown is a result of all his memories flooding back at once. These flashes back and fourth between the present and past display Charlie's fragile state of
mind. There are also subtle actions throughout the shot of Charlie walking down the street, for example him pulling at his tie, therefore suggesting he is struggling to breath. These hint at whats happening without outright telling the audience.
Another element of this clip which I thought was good to add into my own opening was the minimal dialogue followed up by the phone call to his sister. This tells the audience that the flashbacks are inside Charlie's head. The phone call with Charlie not being on screen suggests to the audience that Charlie is very far away from reality. Followed by the shot of his empty room makes the audience think something has happened to him. The editing of this is what really inspired me, the way the shots are fitted together to create an emotional impact is very successful. There isn't any extreme flashes or transitions to suggest its a memory it just displays the clip which makes it more powerful as these memories are very prominent in the characters mind as this is what sends him over the edge.
Teen Wolf - TV Show
In this television show one of the character called Stiles, becomes possessed and faces a mental battle between the good side which is Stiles's character vs the darker spirit that has possessed him. He becomes very aggressive and troubled as he slips further away. This gave me inspiration as Stiles went from a normal, happy relatable teenager into a trouble, unrecognisable and frightening character, this is similar to the main character in our opening. We want to create a similar tone in our opening like the tone on Teen wolf of lost happiness, emptiness and loss of hope.
The makeup of this character also inspired me as it really emphasises a lack of sleep of the character with the red around the eyes. It signifies restless nights and a unsettled mind which is what we want our main character to come across as. It also creates a large impact on the audience as its disturbing. The cold toned filter and low key lighting also create an eery tone and emphasise the darkness of the character. This is something we will use for our own opening.
Up (2009)
The film Up opens with a 5 minute montage of Carl and Ellie's love story. The montage starts with happy memories from the beginning of their relationship and some of their first happy memories together. However throughout the montage these scenes get sadder first with the news of the couple not being able to have children and secondly Ellie's death which ultimately leaves Carl alone.
The music is one element of this that really inspired me. In the beginning during the first few happy memories the music is happy and cheerful. However once the memories become sadder, the music changes tone and becomes sadder with it. The music is noticeably the same tune but slower and sadder. This really pulls the whole montage together making it extremely emotional to the audience. I think the music is what makes this montage successful and we thought we could use a similar process for our montage opening.
Another element which I liked was the lack of dialogue. This makes it more believable as a memory. This also leaves room for the music to capture the emotions and the tone. Less dialogue works well with montage and this is something we will consider when creating our opening.
500 Days of Summer (2009):
I got inspiration from these two clips as they show both the same sequence of events, one clip on a good day and one clip on a bad day. They show the same scenes with the same people in the same location but the events on the different days reflect the different mood he is in. This is something we will include in our own opening as it reflects the change within the character. This film 500 Days of Summer also inspired me through its non-linear narrative as you see flashbacks out of order. This makes the film really interesting as when Tom (the main character) tells people (usually his sister) about his memories with Summer they are exaggerated and perfect, this leads the audience to think his relationship with Summer was perfect. However later in the film we see the same flashbacks without the distortion of seeing it through Toms eyes. This shows that the memories weren't that perfect. This tells the audience how delusional Tom was and that he was more in love with the idea of being with Summer than Summer herself.
This use of a non-linear narrative would work well as we are trying to tell a story in a short space of time. We also want to be able to create a clear change of tone even in the same locations. This will show the clear emotional shift in the character.
