Film title font research

After deciding on our title being ‘Everlasting Journey’, we had to decide on the type of font we wanted for our film title, for the opening of the film.

First of all we looked through: https://onlinetextgenerator.com/horror-scary-text-font-generator

The options were limited but these were the options:

As a group, we decided that the third option of font was the best, this was because it has a creepy effect, as it looks like there is blood coming off it, or as if the text had been written in blood. We could also change the colour of the font, as this will create more of an effect, such as actual blood dripping. This would then be a convention of the horror genre, as it would open with blood and gore.

The first text was too gothic, this was also too hard to read. This therefore wouldn’t create a great effect as the audience wouldn’t know the title properly. The second one had the same problem, also the text is too small and clumped together. The last font, wasn’t appropriate as it wasn’t bold enough to be seen and we may want to put other effects on it or around it.

Soundtrack research

Soundtrack Research – Non-copyright music:

We couldn’t link any MP3/MP4 music to the blog. However, researching on YouTube, we found, as a group a selection of song that could be appropriate for the opening. We decided to choose a base song, then we can always add on footstep sounds and train sounds over the top. Our only problems with choosing the music is the copyright issue, we just had to make sure that everything is copyright free.

This piece is ‘Scary Horror Music’ – (Haunted):

This first piece, has a slow tempo with an eerie, mystical sound. Which suddenly changes to a loud chord on the piano, this could shock the audience as it is very sudden, it also increases tension as the tempo increases slightly, making the audience think something is about to happen.

The second piece we looked into was Horror Aftermath:

This piece immediately caught my eye due to its title and it would make sense due to our story line. However, after listening to it and reviewing it, we came to the conclusion that is was too quiet and wouldn’t have much of an impact on the audience which, as a group we discussed that we would like.

One of the selection is ‘One way or another’ (‘Stalker Episode’):

This is our favourite one as it directly relates to the opening of our film, and as soon as we heard it, we all agreed that this would fit well. It is slow as we wanted, as it shows a lack of action, as the action has already happened. It shows victory for the killer, yet defeat for the victims. The lyrics ‘one way or another, I’m gonna get you’ also is appropriate as one victim gets away, this infers that there will be a sequel as the killer hasn’t completely finished his business.

Overall, we decided that the ‘One way or another’ (‘Stalker Episode’) would be the best, due to the song being well known so it would make the audience feel involved, but also it is creepy as it has a slow twist put on it with a deep voice, this makes the song sound eerie and makes the audience feel as if they’re a part of the film.

Making our preliminary task

What we have to do?

1.Planning our short story (05/12/16)

2.Writing our script (05/12/16)

3.Writing our shot list (05/12/16)

4.Creating a storyboard (05/12/16)

5.Using our storyboard to demonstrate what our film will be like in a video (08/12/16)

6.Filming our footage (08/12/16)

7.Uploading them from the camera and giving them appropriate names (08/12/16)

8.Editing the footage together to make our video

Here are some photos of us three creating our preliminary task:

Storyboard: Preliminary task

This is our storyboard for our preliminary task. We ensured to use all types of shots in our video to help develop our skills for when we capture the footage for our film.

Script: Preliminary task

Script:

‘Walking on sunshine’ plays (sarcastically) and appears to be coming from her headphones.

[Shot of girl walking up towards the building, pathway is a third of the way up the screen]

[Close up of her legs/feet as she is walking]

[A medium shot of her approach to the door and lifting her arm to open it]

[A match on action shot of her trying to open the door]

[Close up shot as she turns her face towards the and reveals her embarrassed expression as the door doesn’t open]

‘Bad day’ begins to play

[eye rolls at the camera for the predictability of the diegetic sound- breaks the fourth wall]

[Medium shot of her moving along the door to find another door and opening it]

[Long shot tracking her from the inside of the building as she walks towards her friends. The shot continues as she sits down and she removes her earphones

[Over the shoulder shot from girl 2 to the girl 1 – Use the 300 rule at this point]

GIRL 1: Awks lol

[Over the shoulder shot back from girl 1 to girl 2]

GIRL 2: That always happens to you!

GIRL 1&2: {laughing}

[High and diagonal angle captures their laughter as the shot fades out]

SCRIPT: PRELIMINARY TASK

‘Walking on sunshine’ plays (sarcastically) and appears to be coming from her headphones.

[Shot of girl walking up towards the building, pathway is a third of the way up the screen]

[Close up of her legs/feet as she is walking]

[A medium shot of her approach to the door and lifting her arm to open it]

[A match on action shot of her trying to open the door]

[Close up shot as she turns her face towards the and reveals her embarrassed expression as the door doesn’t open]

‘Bad day’ begins to play

[eye rolls at the camera for the predictability of the diegetic sound- breaks the fourth wall]

[Medium shot of her moving along the door to find another door and opening it]

[Long shot tracking her from the inside of the building as she walks towards her friends. The shot continues as she sits down and she removes her earphones

[Over the shoulder shot from girl 2 to the girl 1 – Use the 300 rule at this point]

GIRL 1: Awks lol

[Over the shoulder shot back from girl 1 to girl 2]

GIRL 2: That always happens to you!

GIRL 1&2: {laughing}

[High and diagonal angle captures their laughter as the shot fades out]

Name of film

For our name of film research, we came up with 5 possible titles (long and short) with different meanings. We used these 5 possible titles in a questionnaire to see what are audience thought was the most exciting and reletable to film. 

The results showed that 9 out of 15 people voted for 'Everlasting journey'. We believe this is because it is a unique, intriguing and mysterious title for a film. It doesn't give to much away and isn't short and snappy, some where in the middle.   

Film treatment

Our working title is ‘the everlasting journey’, which briefly summaries the ongoing chain of unlikely and torturous events that a group of young teenagers witness during a train trip. We have chosen a group of teenagers (2 boys and 2 girls) as our main characters because they are relatable to our target audience/ certificate rating also they are easy to victimise and present in a vulnerable manner. Our film opens with a flash forward to the end of the film, our reasons for this is to engage the audience immediately and add many enigma codes to make the viewers question what has caused this situation to occur. Within this scene we will entice the audience by showing them short cuts and close ups of the victims injuries, shots of the killer without identifying their face or who they are and a brief introduction to each character/ their storyline. After this scene there will be a short burst of clips taking the audience back to the start of the film, where they see the teenagers arriving as the station and interacting with one another in a positive way not knowing whats going to happen and their destiny this train will take them on. This use of dramatic irony will encourage the audience to keep watching as they feel like they know whats going to happen but they don't know why.

Script - Everlasting Journey

SCRIPT

***Scene 1***

[Opening Shot: Train pulls into the station and the shot stays facing directly straight forwards as it pulls up. Train doors opening at Stoneleigh Station and revealing the body of a possessed looking teenage girl lying in blood on the floor. The camera should appear to flicker and during this time a close up should appear on the screen for a tiny period of time (to be decided during the filming process.) The whole shot should be filmed on a tripod and there should be no camera movement until the train doors have shut again. This shot should be prolonged on purpose for essentially the duration of a train stopping. Other footage can be edited in here of close ups of blood and the girls eyes who could have spooky contact lenses in. This shot should be silent. There could be the enhanced sound of trains moving though.]

{Teenage Girl 1 stretches her hand out towards the door pleading just as the doors begin closing}

[The shot that has been still throughout the first period of time should then pan down towards the floor and capture the blood stained shoes of the killer/stalker/murderer.]

{Murderer drops knife covered in blood onto the floor}

[Match on action shot captures the knife from ground level as it hits the floor. Enhanced diegetic sound of a knife being dropped]

[Close up and extreme close up of knife edited quickly together]

[Murderer carries on filming from his perspective and carries the camera around the station]

[Close up shots of scars and appearance of other victims at the station all located at different points:

-Teenage Girl 2: tied up on station platform sign

[Over the shoulder shot of murderer talking to girl tied up and her facial expressions are captured as she appears to be screaming and frightened. Murderer has frayed, cut rope in his hand.]

-Teenage Boy 2: waiting room dead

[blurry shots approaching dead person who has a petrol can next to them and water on the floor to appear like he has had petrol poured on him. Match on action shot from side angle of murderer to a match being striken. Low angle shot as the match is being dropped and then cuts to black before you see it hit the ground.]

{Teenage boy 1 begins running into the distance and camera stays still as he gets smaller as he walks away whilst lights automatically turn on as he runs underneath them. This would leave a main character alive to potentially create a sequel.]

[Last shot is of murderer looking at his watch]

***Scene 2***

[Teenage boy 1 looking at his watch in daytime at exactly the same spot. Train is going past in the background to demonstrate normality]

{actors laughing and joking on the train platform}

OI OI

ALRIGHT MATE *SPUD*

BUZZING

[close up shots of actors on train, happy. They don’t know they are being filmed. Camera is shaking with the movement of the train. Focus should shift in and out slightly to create and enigma code of something happening.]

[Last shot is of teenage girl 1 as doors close behind her and she turns around smiling.

Additional photos and description of setting

The photos below show more of our main setting which is Stoneleigh station. 

This image shows the waiting room which we will potentially use as one place to show a dead body or for one of the victims who are hiding. This is good because the room is quite small and will exaggerate the feeling of the victim being trapped and make the audience feel uncomfortable. 

This image shows a longer shot of Stoneleigh station, it highlights two platforms separated by a stretch of grass with street lamps all the way up. At a night time this will be a much more spooky setting as it darker and their is less people getting the train. 

Consideration of representation in our film and stereotyping

Consideration of representation in our film and stereotyping:

Grace Sullivan (Girl teenager 1):

We have known Grace since she was around 6 years old, we grew up with her and know her attributes and qualities very well. She is very attractive, tall, skinny and has long brown hair which can be styled easily for her to fit any role. We choose her as our main actress as she would appeal to many of our male viewers. She is also very active and has played netball at county level for Surrey as well as doing gymnastics and dance for many years. This will help her in her role if we ask her to do anything physically straining eg. chase scenes. She also has experience with acting as she studied it at GCSE and achieved an A grade and continues to study it at A level. Within her GCSE performance she played a variety of roles and one of them involved being a stereotypical teenager.This is some of the reasons why we have chosen her to be our main actress, we see her as a well skilled/ rounded actress who will suit the role we have chosen her for. From the photo to the side you can see more of a full body image of Grace before her prom.

Our main characters (2 boys and 2 girls) involve teenagers aged between 16 to 17, we as a group and the media mainly present a typical teenager as rebellious and arrogant, for example this is presented in the TV program 'Waterloo road'. In particular teenage girls are stereotypically presented in the media as either sassy, popular and often socialites for example like the character Regina George in the film 'Mean girls'. Grace will reinforce the stereotypical teenage girl as she will act with a similar manner as any other 'mean girl/ socialite'. She will act superior and show attitude when talking to the other characters within the film, she will most likely want to be the center of attention but will rely on others when in danger. However the media and in many horror films girls are often presented as the 'damsel in distress' (weak and vulnerable) seeking help or to be saved. For example in the horror film 'Scream' they have used a dumb blonde female as the victim (Tatum Riley), this theory is also supported by the book 'Studying the media an introduction' by Tim O'Sullivan and Co, which states the dumb blonde stereotype might include - blondness, seductive body language and strong makeup" (Page 129).

Overall we believe Grace will be perfect for the role as she holds the skills to present herself as a typical teenage girl as well as make herself look vulnerable and innocent when involved in the more tense, horrifying and graphic scenes. 

To do list

We have many tasks that we wish to complete before the Christmas holidays begin so that we can film during this break. To assist with our time management, we have written a list of tasks for each member of our team to do and a deadline in which they need to have it uploaded by. These are as follows:

Eloise:

-Consideration of representation in our film and stereotyping (03/12/16)

-Take photos of Stoneleigh station (02/12/16)

-Film Treatment (06/12/16)

-Name of film (06/12/16)

Katie:

-(Needs to complete personal task of camera angle research)

-Soundtrack research (08/12/16)

-Font research (for titles) (08/12/16)

Gemma:

-Script (02/12/16)

-Shot list (02/12/16)

-Film Treatment (06/12/16)

-Take photos of Stoneleigh station (02/12/16)

Inspiration: horror and thriller directors

Horror and thriller directors:

John Carpenter: Who else could inspire us more than the legendary director of the film 'Halloween'. This old time horror classic demonstrates all the typical conventions of a horror film, from the creepy music to the unknown killer and we will replicate many of his techniques within our horror opening. Specifically, we like his technique of using long shots and lengthy pauses to scare the audience rather than the predictable use of gore and fast editing.

Influences on production

 Influences on production:

Character Influences - We gained the idea for our characters from the typical teenage friendship groups that you would see in a school environment. These characters can also be seen in films such as ‘10 Things I Hate About You’ and ‘Not Just Another Teenage Movie’ which had an influence on us to gage our characters. However, we are not going to overdo the stereotypes that are seen in these films, just maintain them at a relatable level. The benefit of this is that our characters are relatable, so our target market of 15+ teenagers would be more interested in seeing our film. It also meant that casting our actors would be easier as we were less concerned about their acting skills but more their personality traits.

Storyline Influences – We developed our storyline from a ghost story that a member of our group was once told by their scout leader. It involved an underground train being crushed by the ground above it. As soon as we had this idea of a train station we began researching into horror films with similar settings. For example, ‘Creep’ was set in a London Underground, like we wished for ours to be, and they had a horror, gory storyline to co-corporate with their setting. This made us aware that this sort of idea was possible so we all brought together our own individual ideas and wrote out a rough plan together of what we could do and it appeared to work.

Sound Influences – Our main sound, which will be heard throughout our opening to our horror film, will be non-diegetic music with violins and other creepy instruments. We were influenced by the majority of the horror market to incorporate this style of music as it created an eerie atmosphere. One particular film that uses this music is ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’. The lack of diegetic on screen sound to be heard will confuse the audience, especially if they can see the origin of a silent sound.

Camera shots – We have been inspired by many horror films to use abstract camera shots that include the actors holding the camera themselves, slanted camera angles, unsteady camera shots and more. One of our main inspirations was Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘The Hitchcock Zoom’ (or ‘The Vertigo Effect’ as it is otherwise known). This shot involves the camera zooming into a subject while simultaneously dollying (tracking) backwards (i.e. in the exact opposite direction). We love the confused psychological effect that we have seen it take in films such as Jaws and have aspired to use shots alike in our own creation.

Editing Techniques – We have been inspired by multiple horror films to edit our film in a way in which it scares the audience and compliments our style of footage. For example, we are going to use slow motion editing effects on our footage so that the audience know that something dramatic is going to happen. We are also going to use splicing (a series of fast shots together) so that it builds tension and shocks the audience due to the sudden change of style of editing. Films that have inspired us to do this as they use a similar technique are 'Paranormal Activity' during some parts.

Mise-en-scene – We have been inspired by films like 'Dawn of the Dead' to use high levels of gore to frighten our audience and make them feel like they can't watch. Although you won't see the cause of the injury during the opening scene, there will be a high level of focus on the blood and gore itself after the event. Furthermore, the setting of a train platform may make people think about death due to stories heard in the media about suicide etc, the connotations of this setting will help to build our atmosphere. Films that have inspired this setting are ones i have mentioned previously in this post, such as 'creep'.

Enigma Codes – We create enigma codes in our opening by beginning with the result of the action and leaving it unknown what the cause is. This creates an enigma code as the audience want to know what has caused the injuries. Films that do this include 'Final Destination'.

Rules of filming

The rules of filming:

180 rule shot:

This is a rule which states the camera should be placed somewhere within 180 degrees on a particular side of the invisible line of a shot containing two people filmed in sequence. If the camera crosses the line, confusion results for the audience because it makes it look like the people are switching places as one watches the film. If you turn the camera to much it could confuse and startle the audience making them lose interest.

 Shot reverse shot:

This shot involves one character looking to another character (often off-screen) and then the other character is shown looking back at the first character. Since the the characters are shown facing in opposite directions, the viewer unconsciously assumes that they are looking at each other.  

The 30 degree rule:

This has the purpose of creating continuity between different shots within a larger sequence of shots. When moving your camera between shots the camera should be moved a minimum of 25 to 30 degrees (with a maximum limit of 180 degrees) to avoid jarring transitions also known as jump cuts. This helps you seamlessly piece together a larger sequence of shots in a harmonious manner.

 Match on action:

This editing technique helps with continuity editing in which one shot cuts to another shot portraying the action of the subject in the first shot. This actions helps to create a visual bridge which draws the viewers’ attention away from any slight cuts or continuity editing.

Rule of thirds:

This is where the screen is divided into 9 sections (3 horizontal lines and 3 vertical lines) enabling maximum interest for the viewer across every axis. This makes the overall setting and what’s going on in the film more exciting. This is rather than splitting the screen into foreground and background, which can become predictable and boring for the audience.

Continuity:

An unbroken and consistent series of events that are edited together in a naturalistic way without breaking the story. If done wrong, it disappoints the viewer and silly little mistakes may be picked up on. For example, a character’s hand moves but their speech has stayed continuous.

Brainstorm for our opening horror film

Horror mood board

This is our horror moods board, on it we have all or most of our ideas. Some of the ideas we will not be able to use, however the purpose of this was to show our initial ideas. After finishing the mood board, it became apparent that most of the images were quite dark, therefore we had a dark theme on the mood board, and this highlights the horror genre.

In our film we used a lot of these ideas, we used ideas such as; train station, sound effects, low key lighting and bruises and cuts. We used the mood board for our inspiration, adding in these features increased the final quality of the film, as it created mystery and enigma codes. We featured the train station as our setting for the whole opening, we then used dark lighting so we filmed at night and had low key lighting from the train station. Cuts and bruises are a main convention of the horror genre, therefore we designed our makeup to look realistic and we used close up shots to show this.

Actor description and interview

Actor Description and interviews

Teenage Girl 1:

We have selected our main female character to be Grace Sullivan. She studied drama at GCSE and achieved a grade A, which proves that she is more than capable for the role. Her look, as well as being attractive to male viewers, is unique and portrays a vulnerable feeling. She has an ability to appear to be emotionally connected with a character and therefore we believe that she will depict our teenage victim role very well.

Interview –

Why would you be good for the role of main female teenage victim?

I would be good for the role of main female teenage victim because I have had experience playing roles similar to this before. I also do contemporary dance which main theme is feeling vulnerable so I am used to being in this role.

Have you considered how you could show the character successfully through your body language and voice?

I feel as though the character needs to be relatable for a wide teenage market, so in terms of my voice I would roughen it down as my well-spoken voice does not tend to fit this role. In terms of body language, when feeling vulnerable it is all about reducing your surface area. This could be by crossing your arms and legs or partly having your hair over your face to show insecurity as opposed to confidence.

How does you character relate to the usual characters commonly featured in this genre?

The fact that a vulnerable female character is commonly used in the horror genre means that I can relate to the character and gain inspiration for it through watching horror films.

Teenage Girl 2:

Another member of our group of teenagers is Gemma Flower. She also studied drama at GCSE and achieved a grade C. This demonstrates that she has some key skills needed to play the role. Her character, although more in the background, is still important for our opening scene as our female teenage audience may relate to her personality. Her role is important in demonstrating the contradiction between the safety that you feel when you're with your friends, vs when you are on your own.

Interview – Why would you be good for the role of a teenage girl amongst a group of friends?

I would be good for this role as I have had acting experience as a member of the chorus in school productions. I am very good at acting physically so this suits my role of not necessarily saying as much as other characters but still being able to portray the role.

Have you considered how you could show the character successfully through your body language and voice?

I would involve myself in conversation but not necessarily be the one in charge of it. For example, I would laugh along with jokes but not essentially be the one to say them. This means that my role would be important in showing a group of friends but not required for the main story line. I would be relatable for some members of our audience.

How does you character relate to the usual characters commonly featured in this genre?

My character doesn't necessarily relate to this genre, but it relates to the group of friends we are trying to portray to our audience. The character is essential in creating a realistic story.

Teenage Boy 1:

One of the members of our cast is Connor Bassett. He has not had any major experience in acting. However, his confident personality demonstrates that he could adapt to a role very easily. His character is important as every friendship group has a couple of main characters. We would like his character to be comedic and a leader figure. This means that he may influence other characters and their decisions.

Interview -

Why would you be good for the role of a confident teenage male?

I would be good for this role as I am able to adapt my personality to suit this character. I am naturally quite funny so would be able to use this to build a persona around my character. Although I am not a natural leader, my year 6 production acting skills may shine through into this role.

Have you considered how you could show the character successfully through your body language and voice?

I think that the most confident and leader characteristics are not being afraid to say anything and not being afraid to be seen. Therefore I will talk with a loud and manly voice, which isn't natural for me. I will also not cross my arms but stand certainly, looking open for a conversation.

How does you character relate to the usual characters commonly featured in this genre?

My character is normally seen at the beginning of a horror genre to help contradict the resultant at the end of the film where the characters cocky personality is now shy and intimidated. It is important to show the psychological effects of horrifying experiences such as these.

Teenage boy 2:

Prasanna is another member of our horror film. His role is to contradict the comfort felt in a large group of people versus when you are isolated. He should add a comedic factor to the first events in our timeline of our horror film when everyone is relaxed. He tends to follow the group and does what others do to fit in.

Interview -

Why would you be good for the role of a background teenage male?

Although this is different to my normal personality traits that is what acting is all about. I haven't had much more experience in acting than a toothbrush but I think my confident personality will help me to take on a new role well.

Have you considered how you could show the character successfully through your body language and voice?

My body language will be comfortable and not overly open or hidden. My voice will be slightly quieter than normal to adapt to this role. However, i will laugh along to jokes made by other characters.

How does you character relate to the usual characters commonly featured in this genre?

My character relates to a normal member in amongst a teenage group who has a friendly personality is happy to talk to most people. I believe there is someone like this in every group so I am a relatable character.