Thursday, 19 November 2015

15 • Feedback From Our Ideas



After looking at the feedback it is clear that some of the aspects could do with improvement in oder to make the ideas more believable and realistic.

Idea 1
Children with guns, for this idea it is rather inappropriate to have the imagery of guns associated with children. Because of the current sociological views that the general public have with associating children with killing machines. With school shootings on the rise in America it would be in bad taste to associate these two aspects. And so this idea needs work in order to correctly find the correct age group to have along side with these props. In order for the idea to be a considered valid.


Idea 2
Police Woman In Forest With this idea it is mainly the pursuit of being against the mainstream and creating something unique and different that is holding back the idea. I realised that I did not want to make something cliche and the idea of a woman in the forest would come across as being rather in fit with the established conventions established by the institutions. This was a problem that we had to address before this idea could be considered a valuable asset to our ideas. 



Wednesday, 18 November 2015

14 • Four Ideas For A Thriller






Children With Guns - ( Working Title )
MOVIE | A bank heist gone wrong, causes an unknown man, with a bag full of cash and a loaded glock G45 on the run through the surry hills. After the police catch up with him, he needs to ditch the cash. Throwing the bag as far away as possible. Meanwhile Jake and Thomas are walking back from school, when they come across this mysterious black duffel bag in there path, what could be inside.


SCENE | We see the man fleeing from the police, he runs past trees, buildings etc. He is carrying a black duffel bag, zipped closed. We hear sirens and the tire screech of a car. The man panics and throws the bag over a large evergreen hedge.
We then are introduced to two young boys 8/9 years of age, walking together carrying two book bags. Talking about school, and playing the new Call Of Duty when they get home. When something blocks their path. A large black duffel bag. They are curious, and so drop their book bags and investigate the mysterious bag. When opening the bag the two boys discover several wads of banded bills, all stained yellow, and a black small handgun. This causes some excitement to the boys. They have several nerf guns and home but nothing this heavy and cool. They have seen guns like this before though and start creating an imaginary scenario, in which they have been placed in. Cowboys, police and army men. They take the gun out of the bag and start pointing the gun around. “bang bang” “you’re dead, Jake I said you're dead come on when I shoot you have to pretend to be dead okay” “ Uhhhhh you’re no fun, when can i have a go!” This continues as the boys get more and more vigorous with the firearm. Throwing it back and forth. And continuing to shoot each other. Then Black out…




Police Woman In Forest - ( Working Title )
MOVIE | Detective sergeant Vicky Daytime, has just completed her S.H.O.U training certification. And on her first call to action in pursuit of an alleged Human trafficker. Her actions leads her into the Surry forest, where she does not capture the suspect, Vicky is suspended on suspicion of manslaughter. And is sent to the Surry correctional facility. Where she and her fellow inmates, plan and daring prison break to prove her innocence. Little does she know, her fellow escapes were accomplices to the man that caused her downfall.


SCENE | ( occurs all in one take ) We follow Vicky through a narrow path that cuts through the forest, She is carrying a very bright torch that illuminates her path. She continues through the forest, gradually increasing in speed and eventually getting into a full on sprint through the woods. We know something is either following her, or she is chasing someone. Her pursuit continues. She falls and her light smashes on the ground. She then proceeds to get out cell phone and uses the flashlight on the phone. She is now stationary, And looking around covering the full 360 degrees. We hear only the panting breath of her body. Then crunch, crunch the snapping of branches, we then see silhouettes of a man in the distant branches. The figure comes closer and closer with every turn, closing in on her. As she panics she pulls out her standard issue G45 Glock. And aims she pivots on her feet panning around. Closer and closer the man comes to her, she increases the tempo of her breathing and as he comes closer she sees him and fires. She empties the clip in the gun and until only the one in the chamber remains. She turns, aims turns aims. The man attempts to grab her and she fires the last shell square in the head he falls and she is drenched in the blood of the man, as he collapses on top of her.




Car Crash Fake Death - ( Working Title )
MOVIE | Two con men, band up to take on the world, in this psychological thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat throughout. Having stolen a police cruiser and the tools associated, they are now on their way to pull the biggest heist, LA has ever seen. These band of brothers need to put their differences aside in order to collectively take on the system. But along comes Vicky, a high ranked C.I.A agent with a passion for catching criminals. Will she be able to catch the dynamic duo in time?


SCENE | A car crash has occurred, with the driver and his passenger, in the wreckage. Smoke rises from the carnage and we hear screams of a baby crying in the back of the car. Police sirens build up and arrive to the car crash. A male ( overweight ) police officer steps out of the car and proceeds to check the crash, calling in to overwatch, and saying he has the situation under control, “Yeah i'm at the crash now, might have to send the meat wagon, looks like a double homicide” then the officer hears the screeches of a young child in the forest beside the car, He walks passed the car, investigating the two men sprawled over the interierreere of the car, Blood trails over to what looks like a baby,car seat about 5 metres from the left hand side of the car, the officer bends down to inspect the car seat. Pulls the iso fixing back and is surprised to see a beats pill, placed in the chair, playing the sound of a baby crying. One of the men from the wreckage, is now pointing a G45 Glock at the head of the officer, And requests he stands up. The second man from the wreckage grabs the cuffs from the officer's belt and proceeds to cuff his hands together. The men are wearing yellow latex gloves. And proceeded to undress the officer and place him in the wreckage.




Cake Bomb - ( Working Title )
MOVIE | The Wachowskis on the surface are a family like any other, but under the skin, Michal Wachowski is a kingpin of the carloto mafia in Vancouver, Constantly threatened by outsiders looking for a way to topple his empire. Everything was running smoothly. Until people started to work out his weakness. His kids.

SCENE | In a dark room, a pastry chef is baking a cake, he whisks eggs flour sugar, using an electric hand whisk, he pours the cake batter out from the mixing bowl and into a baking tray, meanwhile Jake Wachowski is enjoying being at the centre of the universes, it's his 9th birthday party, balloons presents toys galore, it's a beautiful sunny day the family is around nothing could be better. Back to the chef, we see him place the cake into the oven but the and take it out it has risen but the cake is hollow, we then see the chef layering on icing to the cake layer upon layer, the chef takes care in his work and proceeds to build up the amazing structure of cake. after the assembly of the cake is complete we see the chef place a black package with wires hanging around it and a fuse that the man pulls through the lid of the hollow cake. more icing is applied and, and using a black icing writing, the words happy 9th birthday jake. The cake is boxed and we see the cake placed into a white vav. we then follow a POV of the cake as it is taken out of the van and walked through jake's house.

13 • Genre, Sub-Genre And Hybrid Genre




Genre • In film theory, film genre (/ˈʒɒnrə/ or /ˈdʒɒnrə/) refers to the method of categorizing films based on similarities in the narrative elements from which films are constructed. Most theories of film genre are borrowed from literary genre criticism.
e.g. action, adventure, comedy, crime and gangster, drama, Epic/historical, Horror, music/dance, science fiction, war, westerns. 


Sub-Genre • A subdivision of a genre of literature, music, film, etc.. There was also the breaking down of the music into subgenre after sub-genre, to the point at which it became somehow incomprehensible. One of the most tried and true of the movie subgenres is the heist film.
e.g. Disaster Movies, Superhero Movies, Martial Arts Movies, Video Game Movies, Hardboiled Movies, Courtroom Movies / Legal Thrillers, Contemporary Fantasy Movies, Urban Fantasy Movies, Dark Fantasy Movies, Fairy Tale Movies, Epic Fantasy Movies ( source )


Hybrid Genre • A cross-genre (or hybrid genre) is a genre in fiction that blends themes and elements from two or more different genres. As opposed to the (literary and political) conservatism of most genre fiction, cross-genre writing offers opportunities for opening up debates and stimulating discussion.
e.g. Action comedy (action and comedy) Comedy-drama or dramedy (comedy and drama) Comedy-horror (comedy and horror) Comic fantasy (comedy and fantasy) Comic science fiction (comedy and science fiction) Crime fantasy (crime and fantasy) Dark fantasy (horror and fantasy) Romantic comedy (romance and comedy) Romantic fantasy (romance and fantasy) Science fantasy (science fiction and fantasy) Science fiction Western (science fiction and Western) Supernatural drama (supernatural and drama) Tragicomedy (tragedy and comedy) Weird West (Western and horror, science fiction and/or speculative elements)

Tuesday, 17 November 2015

12 • Conventions Of A Thriller 2


Due to the thriller genre being so diverse, there are a number of subgenres to categorise different types of thriller in, based on their traits. Below is a list of 7 of some of the most popular thriller subgenres and what the basic elements of them are, as well as examples of some well known films from each. I will then go into more detail on two of these subgenres. 

• Conspiracy Thriller •

A hero or heroine, stereotypically journalists, who are caught in a large, powerful organisation who use terror and crime to keep their secrets. This company will usually be brought down the protagonist. Some movies that fit this genre are Angels & Demons (which also fits into the category of Religious thriller), JFK, The Game andBourne Ultimatum (which also fits into the Spy Thriller Category).


• Crime Thrillers •
Crime thrillers focus on failed or successful crimes on screen. More often or not, the film focuses on criminals rather than the hero and often has a psychological element to this genre as well. Films in this category includeReservoir Dogs and Inside Men. 


• Disaster Thriller •
This particular subgenre usually follows a select group of people or a person 
that has survived either a natural disaster (hurricanes, earthquakes or volcano's for example) or a human made disaster (e.g nuclear warfare) in which most of humanity has been wiped to the brink of extinction. Movies in this genre include 2012, Contagion, The Day After Tomorrow and Poseidon.

• Mystery Thriller •
This genre relates to Crime Thrillers, and usually focuses on the detective or the private investigators work to solve the mystery. The audience usually finds out information as the protagonist does, which creates drama, tension and excitement with the audience. Films that fall into this category are: Shutter Island, Sherlock Holmes, The Illusionist and Se7en.

Psychological Thriller
A psychological thriller plays with the audiences minds as it reflects the main characters unstable emotional states. It creates suspense through showing the mentality of the character. Some popular films in this sub genre are: Psyco, The Shining, Black Swan and One Hour Photo. 

Religious Thriller
The plot of this type of thriller connects religious institutions, holy objects, questions and mysteries. These film usually unravel the good and bad points about religion, particularly Catholicism. This subgenre is often met with hostility with people of the religion that the film is centred around due to possible criticisms of the religion that the film suggest. Religious Thrillers include: The Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons and The Devil's Advocate. 

Supernatural Thriller
Supernatural thrillers usually involve an out-of-this-world elements, to which burdens or has a relation to the protagonist in some way, in which they must overcome. This genre is closely connected to religious thrillers, in the way demons or sprits can posses antagonists. Other common plots involve aliens. Films in this genre: The Others, Paranormal Activity, The Sixth Sense

Sunday, 18 October 2015

9 • Prelim Task Part One


Today we embarked on the Prelim task, in which we were tasked with creating a short film from an existing story board. My group and I used the 180 degree rule to respect screen direction and assigned each member of the group with specific roles and jobs. Two would be actors, and one would be in control of camera and the other would be director. We looked at the story board and decided that there we three essential shots we would require in order to obtain the Prelim directly to thte to story board.



When setting up the camera we decided that we would manually set the white balance and exposure in order to get a true image. Then set the marks for each actor then started rolling the camera. We took 3 takes for every angle that included a wide and two over the shoulder shots one from each subjects side. For every shot we ran through the entire story board in order to make sure we had safety shots for every part of the story board, and did not miss anything out.



We ran into several continuity issues, with scripts and actors not being able to learn lines, to combat this next time I would assure that the actors have the script before the day of the shoot, so the actors can get a better idea of the script and actually feel comfortable in performing their lines.
Each of these 12 box's also caused some serious problems. As they felt very structured and caused us to conform. When using the cameras we used tripods to lock down the image and create steady shots, although we did find that use of a steady cam might have been useful or something that would allow us to get smooth and constant shots without the structure of a tripod.



  Things I have decided to do differently for the thriller task. Is decide location and sort out production lighting before the day of the shoot. I found that having to film in a very stark and messy classroom was very un cinematic and caused some problems. But these are all issues I should be able to fix in after effects with some colour grading but for the actual thriller I will try and get most of the practical lighting done in pre-production instead of post.
All in all though I feel that this was a great experience to prep us for the real thing.


Created By Henry Russell
Edited By Henry Russell
~ Sources ~
*Henry Russell




23rd September 2015
Hurtwood House