Research And Planning - Auditions

Yesterday we held our auditions. Although we put the posters around college and hoped word of mouth would help, nobody showed up. We are going to look at our friends and family to be in our trailer and will 'audition' them soon.

Research And Planning - Music Research

At the end of our trailer we wish to use a 'creepy' song which sounds like something a child would sing, or something to do with a carnival. We are researching different songs to get an idea of what kind of song we will make.

Research And Planning - Script Draft One

Scene One- 

[Scene opens with two actors in a car]

Boy: it's working *raises camera to girls face* look
Girl: *gestures camera away* STOP
Boy: *laughs* so we're on our way to mottram farm, home of ghosts and crap, so we're gonna film what we find *moves closer to camera* LETS GO FIND US SOME GHOSTS


Scene Two- 

[Scene opens with the actors arriving at the gate]

Boy: *Turns camera to girl* you ready?
Girl: *Smiles and nods head

[Creak of gate opening]


Scene Three-

[Scene opens with the girl in front, walking ahead]

Girl: There's nothing even here
[slow zoom towards girl, girl appears to be alone]

Boy: *Grabs her shoulder, scares her*
Girl: For Gods sake [name] that wasn't funny *starts hitting him away, he laughs*

[Loud bang, boy drops camera]

Boy: Oh, sh- *camera goes static, voices are cut off*


Scene Four- 

[Scene opens with actors walking to barn]

Boy: I swear it came from here
Girl: Shut up, lets go, this place is creeping me out

*Camera goes static, barn door shuts, the two are in the dark, all falls silent- light comes on in corner along with loud noise, showing clowns face*

Scene Five- 

[They are running across a field, heavy panting]

Boy: Go, go go

*fast montage with loud noises and screaming from girl*

Scene Six- 

[Scene opens solely on the clowns face, creepy children's music in the background, clown smiles on a certain cue] 


-End- 

Research And Planning - Risk Assessment For Trailer

Research And Planning - Social Networking Feedback

I texted my friend Lois and asked her for her opinion on my blog, this was her response-

Research And Planning - Costume And Props List For Poster

For my poster I am going to show the main protagonist with the clown behind him; for this I will need-

• Normal Shirt
• Jeans
• Converse/Trainers
• Camera (for protagonist to hold)
• Clown Costume
• Balloons 
• Make Up
• Bunting (to hang in background, to set the scene) 

Research And Planning - Costume And Props List For Magazine

The costumes and props for my magazine will be very simplistic, as the only person shown will be the clown; thus meaning all I will need is -

• Clown Clothing
• Clown Shoes
• 'Creepy' Neck Ruff/Bow Tie
• Balloons 
• Make Up
• Hair Dye Spray (for colouring hair) 

Research And Planning - Chosen Font

The font I have chosen is Rosewood Std Regular. I believe that this font ties in with the general narrative of the film, as it looks like something that would be used at a carnival, however, it still appears to be quite creepy; thus meaning the font is fit for purpose.

Research And Planning - Film Name Font Ideas

Research And Planning - Location Recce For Trailer

Research And Planning - Audition Posters

We have put our posters around college to try and engage actors, this will hopefully gain peoples attention and let us have a range of people to choose from.

Research And Planning - Film Magazine

The magazine has simple text in simple colours, however because the text is quite bold it stands out. This is something I will do also. The protagonists aren't looking at the camera however I do not think this is suitable for my genre. "Total" is written in the F of film and looks professional- I will add one of these to my magazine. 

Research And Planning - Stephen King's It

As the trailer we are doing is based around a clown, I felt it was appropriate to watch some scenes from the well known horror film It. I have noticed that a lot of long shots and close up shots are used, as to establish when the character of Pennywise is approaching. This was very engaging as it was more 'scary' to see the clown at an eye line view, or to be able to take in his entire appearance. When Beth and I make our trailer, I will suggest that we use shots like this, as really worked well for the genre and so I believe it is a good starting point. In these scenes everything begins quite 'light-hearted' as to show the stereotype of the 'childrens friend' type of clown, and then suddenly this changes with a jump. This is more shockign and is therefore more fit for purpose, and is something I will try to add into our trailer as to keep the trailer engaging. Watching these scenes has given me a variety of ideas to use within our trailer to ensure it is of high standard.

Research And Planning - Audition Poster Two

This is the poster that Beth created that we will be putting up also. By having two different posters around the college we will engage more people and create more interest in our trailer.

Research And Planning - Audition Poster One

 

So that we are able to get the best possible actors we can, Beth and I decided to post an audition poster around college, ensuring we post them in places such as the drama department, as to draw in talented actors. The poster I have made is to the point and clear, but is also very engaging- this will hopefully help our search for 'perfect' people to play the roles much easier. 

Research And Planning - Film Magazine Draft Two

 

This is my second film magazine draft. I have kept the masthead at the top as I believe that this is appropriate for the film magazine, as it looks tidy and professional. The image on this draft is much more clear, it shows the clown behind the protagonist which shows the narrative and presents where the two characters stand in relation to each other. The colours I have used are lacking, as I felt as if my last draft had 'too much' colour. By  trying out different things I have now decided the three colours I will use for my final magazine are dark purple, red and black.

Research And Planning - Film Magazine Draft One

 

At the top of the magazine I have got a very clear masthead, showing the magazine is called "Exposure." I chose this name as to expose something means to show it, and so, this presents to the audience that all aspects of a film will be shown and presented, meaning the magazine is very engaging. I used half of the clowns face to draw in the audience, as this looks as if he is 'creeping up' on the reader, making it appropriate for the genre. I have included things that are needed for magazines such as the barcode and the price clearly marked also. 

Research And Planning - Film Poster Draft Two

 

This is the second draft of my film poster. Although I liked the simplicity of my first draft, I felt that it lacked in content. This draft shows the main protagonist with the scary clown behind, which shows the narrative well. On my first draft I had no 'information' whereas on this one, I have included social networking links and a website so that those who see the poster are able to find out more about the film, meaning more will watch it. 

Research And Planning - Horror Poster

The last house on the left uses a simplistic font with similar colours, except for the red which stands out.  This is something I may add as I think it looks effective. There is an image of the location in the centre that appears to be 'dark' - I could do this for my poster also. 

Research And Planning - Horror Film Poster

The Paranormal Activity 3 trailer is clearly horror, as the dark colours give this away. There is a static effect on the image which I think is effective and shows that it is a camera- this is something that I will use also. There is a shadow on the wall to show there is something 'creepy.'

Research And Planning - Film Poster Draft One

This is my first draft for my film poster. The name of the film is "The Carnival" and this is shown just under the 'scary' image of the clown. This is done so that when people are engaged by the picture, they will automatically look down to the name of the film next. I have kept this draft quite simplistic, however it is engaging and more eery lookign becauses of this.

Research And Planning - Costume List

Costume List-

Clown Costume - We have already decided on the clown costume and we are going to purchase it this weekend so that it will be here in time for us to start filming.

Teenagers - Normal looking clothes, normal teenagers. However will have some clothes that they do not mind getting dirty. The dirt will take into account that they could be falling onto the ground and that the weather might have been bad so they will need to know that the farm will be muddy and dirty.

The costume list for this Trailer is quite short as there are not many characters in our trailer, however the people that are in our trailer will have to be good and look authentic.

Research And Planning - Props List

• Balloons (so that the clown can hold them to make the character more realistic) 
• Old Signs (to show that there was once a carnival there) 
• Bunting 
• Cameras
• Phones
• 'No Trespassing' sign 

Research And Planning - Plan For Weekend

During this weekend, I hope to complete these tasks -

• Magazine Drafts
• Poster Drafts
• Buy Costume
• Buy Make Up
• Audition Posters
• Find Actors

I hope these will be completed for Monday (25th November 2013)

Research And Planning - Meeting Regarding Distribution And Production Company Names

Beth and I have had a meeting regarding our distribution and production company names, as we felt as if they were not that fitting for our horror genre. We have decided to make our production company name 'Midnight Productions' and our distribution name 'Windmill Studios' - both of these sound more 'dark' and therefore more appropriate for the horror genre.

Research And Planning - Chosen Costume

This is the costume that we have chosen for our clown. We are going to purchase it a long with some make up- with this we will be able to create a 'creepy' clown which is believable and scary, meaning the character will be engaging to the audience.

Research And Planning - Costume Research

We have been looking at costumes for our clown character. We have looked on ebay and amazon, as we feel that these are good places to buy from.

Research And Planning - Chosen Location

Our trailer is set on a farm, and so, the location we will be using is one that we have access to due to family connections. The farm has stables, so that we can take shots in them whilst they are dark, and also, an old barn, which we will use to take shots where the clown shows up and scares the teenagers. 

Research And Planning - IMDB Horror Genre Research

I have looked at imdb for what horror films are most popular. Most of the films have a 'real' feel about them. For example, the conjuring is set in a farm house and is based on a true story, and the Paranormal Activities have a camera set up by the protagonist. Both of these are related to our plot, and so I feel as if our idea is fit for purpose.

Research And Planning - Chosen Name

The name we have chosen is 'The Carnival' - we have chosen this as it goes with our plot, and as well as this sounds mysterious and creepy. The name is quite engaging as it doesn't give too much away, however, it does fit in with the general idea of the film.

Research And Planning - Name Ideas

We used solvr to come up with a name for our new film/trailer-

Research And Planning - Plot

Beth and I have had a discussion about our trailer, and we have came up with a final plot idea. We have decided to have the trailer set on an old farm, which used to hold county fairs. However, one night an act went wrong, killing one of the performers, causing the fair to be permanently shut down (and never brought back.) There are rumours surrounding the farm that the clown now haunts the farm, and so, a group of teenagers go to investigate, and take their camera with them. The trailer will set the scene and show the teenagers get lost/trapped in the farm, and the clown will show up, chase/haunt them etc.

Research And Planning - Maniac

After a meeting with my tutor, she said I should look at the film maniac, as this shares some of the ideas we were thinking of using for our plot. Throughout the trailer other characters talk directly to the camera, as if they are talking to the one who is recording- this is something, if we use this idea, we will do also, as I felt as if it looked very realistic. By using shots of the person who is recordings hands etc it makes the trailer more believable, so this is something we may do.

Research And Planning - Group Meeting: Plot Idea One

Beth and I had a meeting, and we discussed an idea for our plot. We are considering doing a trailer from the p.o.v from the person who is recording it, meaning the person holding the camera is 'searching' for a well-known killer, in an attempt to determine whether or not the killer is fact or fiction. The killer will be found and will start 'torturing' the camera man, by showing up where he least expects etc. We want the killer to be masked, and we are thinking of using the well known anonymous mask, and maybe linking the trailer to this somehow.

Research And Planning - Magazine Analysis Two

Genre-

The genre of this magazine is a film magazine. This can be seen as the magazine shows things which are stereotypical for film magazines, such as a (fitting) masthead, coverlines, a bar code and a close up shot of the main protagonist being presented. The genre if the film being 'introduced' appears to be fantasy/adventure, as the cover image shows a mysterious looking man reach out, and he looks as if he is 'not normal'

Narrative-

The medium close up shot shows the protagonist reaching out to the viewer, as if they want to take them somewhere. This could be presenting that there is some kind of adventure in the film, and that the audience will be viewing something they can get fully engaged in.
 
Representation-

 The character appears to be quirky, and so this alone represents that he will play a key role in the film, and that he is likely to be a 'well-liked' character.  He is reaching it is as if he is reaching out to the audience, as if to represent him 'grabbing' the audience, which represents how the audience will be 'linked' to the character/film and that they will be very engaged.

Target Audience-

One of the coverlines very clearly says Disney in large text- this shows that the film is aimed at a younger audience. However, as the protagonist appears to be presented in low-key lighting this shows that the target audience is not for those very young (eg, age 5) but more mature children, such as age 10. As it is unlikely for a child to go out and buy the magazine, there are other aspects, such as a piece about Danny Boyle, presented on the cover. This will be more engaging to the childrens parents, meaning those likely to buy the magazine are parents with young children, around 22-30. 

Research And Planning - Magazine Analysis One

Genre-

The genre of this magazine is a film magazine. This is evident as the magazine shows things which are stereotypical for film magazines, such as a (fitting) masthead, coverlines, a bar code and a close up shot of the main protagonist being presented. The genre if the film being 'introduced' appears to be fantasy/action, as the close up shot shows the protagonist looking mysterious, in black and white, which are both associated with something 'different' such as mystery.  

Narrative-

The way the protagonist is staring directly at the camera makes the viewer feel as if they are being 'looked at', and so this could mean that this character is asking for help, and this therefore could mean he gets into some kind of trouble in the film. The cover image does not give much away- and this could represent that something is to be found out, showing perhaps that something unusual will occur.
 
Representation-

 The character seems to be 'fearless.' He is good looking and does not seem to be in much (if any) distress which shows he is a strong character, who is the 'main' aspect to the film. The red coverlines hold connotations of blood/death, therefore showing the idea of darkness, which could be happening to the protagonist.

Target Audience-

The film Star Trek series (which is being presented) is mainly targeted at males, and usually appeals to 'younger' men, around the age of 18-26. However, by using an attractive protagonist on the cover this may also appeal to (older) teenage girls around the age of 16. The use of dark colours suggests that the film is mainly targeted at males, however, and I would say that they are the main target audience.  

Research And Planning - Production Company Logo Draft

We have produced a second draft for our production company logo, this one is more dark as we feel this is more suited to the horror genre.

Research And Planning - Publication Plan

Research And Planning - Meeting About Change Of Direction

After meeting with both my tutor and Beth we have decided to change the genre of our film to Horror, we have decided this because with Romance we would have to make sure that the film is portrayed properly which we would have to find good actors for, while we were going to hold an auditions casting session we still think that the film will not be able to be portrayed properly and not taken seriously. With Horror, as me and Beth both really enjoy horror films I think that we will find this easier to create and the outcome will be much better than that if we had created a Romance film.

As a consequence, we now need to do:

• New animatic storyboard
• New proposals
• More analysis' to do with Horror
• Genre posts
• Costume and Props lists updated
• New film name
• New distribution company name/logo

Research And Planning - Animatic Storyboard (With No Sound)

This is our animatic storyboard so far, we are going to add sound to it at a later date.

Research And Planning - Preparing Animatic Storyboard

To begin with, our storyboard was very 'detailed' and the drawings were very 'serious' and took a lot of time to create. We realised that this was very time consuming, as it was taking us a very long time to produce little work. Because of this, we decided to create a new storyboard with less detail, which will still serve the purpose and be clear but will not be as detailed. We drew the new storyboard over the weekend and we have spent this lesson animating the new storyboard. We are going to add a voice-over/sound during our free time.

Research And Planning - Plan For The Week

This is what I plan to do this week..

• 2x Film Poster Drafts
• Publication Plan For Magazine On Prezi
• 2x Film Magazine Drafts- codes, conventions, descriptions
• 2x Film Magazine Analysis

Research And Planning - Production Company Logo First Draft

During today's lesson I produced a draft of our production company logo with our chosen name..

Research And Planning - Location Research

For our location, we need to use 'public' places to show the couple out doing things, such as going to the beach, cinema, for food etc. We also need a home environment and establishing shots of a school- here are possible locations for this...



Alder Community High School- 

Hyde Community College-

Hyde Clarendon Sixth Form College-

Blackpool Beach-

Research And Planning - Meeting

Today Beth and I discussed how we can get some actors for our trailer. We have decided to create a poster advertising the auditions which will be open to all in the college, hopefully we will get a good response and be able to start an audition process in which we will find good actors for our trailer.

Research And Planning - Film Name Ideas On Solvr

Research And Planning - Plans For This Week

This week I will complete-

• Film Name Ideas On Solvr
• Animatic Storyboard And Post With Storyboard Pictures
• 2x Film Magazine Analysis'
• Meeting Posts
• Film Poster Drafts
• Extra Research Posts

Research And Planning - Storyboard Progress

We are currently working on our storyboard and plan to have it finished this week- this is how it looks so far..