Final Cut of 'IMPLACABLE' - AS Media Coursework Opening Sequence

Final Cut of 'IMPLACABLE' AS Media Coursework Opening Sequence

Below is the final cut of the opening sequence I have produced for my AS Media Coursework. As seen in the final version below, a lot has changed, added and improved since the pre cut that was uploaded a number of weeks ago. 

IMPLACABLE - Shot list

IMPLACABLE - Shot list

Below are the shots of my opening sequence listed by name and what happens within them.

Shot	Size	Description
1	MCU	Opening shot shows the two villains discussing when they will attack their victim
2	Over the shoulder shot and panning shot	Victim walks out of his workplace and the camera pans wide to show him walking off
3	Backward tracking shot	Shot of Ben walking towards the camera while it tracks him, the villains can be seen in the background
4	Forward tracking shot	Camera shot tracking behind the two villains while they follow their target.
5	Panning shot	Camera pans from one angle to another showing the victim and villain walking in the same direction down the street
6	Long shot	Camera shows Ben crossing the road at a fair distance
7	Long panning shot	Shot showing the two villains beginning to cross the road while panning
8	Long panning shot	Continuity from the last shot showing the two villains crossing the road, approaching the camera and walking off with the camera panning.
9	Backward tracking shot	Camera facing Ben while tracking backward while he makes a phone call, the two villains appear in the background following Ben
10	Forward tracking shot	Shot tracking behind the two villains as they follow their target. Ben begins to pick up some pace and then runs.
11	Point of View shot	POV shot of Jamie chasing the target.
12	Close up shot	This shot shows Jamie running after Ben. The shot concentrates on his face.
13	Long panning shot	Ben runs fast towards the car with the villains behind him. The camera pans round when he runs past the camera and jumps into the car as it drives off.
14	Two shot	The two villains, exhausted, briefly talk as they say they can follow their target with their car.
15	Long shot	Shot shows Ben arriving into a car park near to his house in his friends car.
16	Panning shot	The car stops and Ben gets out the car and walks off.
17	Backward tracking shot	Shot showing Ben looking relieved as he walks towards the shortcut to his house. In the background, the two villains emerge and again follow Ben.
18	Long panning shot	Ben walks past while the two villains begin to walk slightly faster as the camera pans to show them.
19	Long shot	Ben walks past the camera into the alleyway
20	Backward tracking shot/Two shot	Camera shows the two villains looking at each other and nodding
21	Long Shot	Shot of the two villains entering the alleyway while beginning to pick up pace.
22	Point of view shot	Point of view shot of Toni with Jamie beside her running up to Ben
23	Backward tracking shot	Camera that is in front of Ben shows his face turned towards the villains as they grab him and put him up against the alley wall.
24	Side shot (Right)	Side shot of the villains confronting Ben with their ultimatum
25	Side shot (Left)	Shot on the other side with the two villains continuing to confront Ben.
26	Side shot (Right)	Shot reverses back to the right side.
27	Point of view shot	POV shot from Ben's view as Jamie ends the confrontations with the words 'Your time starts NOW'

IMPLACABLE - Costume and Makeup

IMPLACABLE - Costume and Makeup

When designing the costume and makeup for a thriller film you have to consider the structure and context of the opening title sequence. The portrayal of certain characters through how they dress and the make up they have on can completely change their position in the film. Mise en scene has to be effective but realistic at the same time. In my sequence I have put the characters in orthodox clothing, clothing that doesn't look unordinary and suits everyday life. With this in mind, the audience could relate the situation as one closer to reality as the characters are like them.

 

 

As my sequence is filmed in real time, the character will not change attires as there isn't a significant gap in time in which they would need to. Ben Page starring as Tom Hardy is wearing the clothes that are expected of a young adult. He is wearing a Hollister branded coat, a symbol of modern society with fairly smart trousers. These clothes are fairly casual but to him, the day is just like any other, in his mind nothing different would happen. Moving over to the villains attires, Jamie Petagine starring as Barry McGeedy is also in smart/casual clothing. I chose for him to be in this attire to not to give anything away or to make matters too suspicious to the victim at first. Toni Thompson starring as Selena Sanchez is also is a smart/casual attire for the same reasons to not make the matter suspicious as they follow down the victim. This actually relates to some real life situations the attackers are not going to be dressed in black and white stripped jumpers with balaclava's on because that would look very suspicious to anyone who see's them. The two villains want to follow the victim to a quiet area before they strike their attack but they don't want to give anything away otherwise it won't go to plan
Even though in many feature films, the villains may look like actual villains, I did not to follow that path as I thought it would give too much away. With the two villains in my opening sequence looking orthodox, I though this would give another sense of enigma as the audience will be thinking 'who are these people?', 'what do they want?' without them automatically thinking that they are going to kill the villain by the clothes they are wearing.

 

As far as makeup goes, I have not payed too much attention to that aspect as it would not really be noticed as the camera equipment used to capture the scene wouldn't be strong enough to find that detail. If I was creating a high tempo action scene with fighting, I would have put some attention into the makeup aspect as it could be seen and appreciated.

 

IMPLACABLE - Production

IMPLACABLE - Production

In the last few weeks, I have been in the production stage of my opening title sequence which is where myself and a few friends which have agreed to play parts in my opening sequence have been in the midst of producing the film. As I am the director of the sequence as well as the camera man, I was able to choose suitable locations that the film would take place in which I had previously performed research on. The filming stage of the production is for obvious reasons the most important part as it is what the rest of the production balances on. I made sure myself that the filming executed was to a high standard that looked professional as well as believable to the audience watching. Below are some images of the filming taking place in various different locations and settings.

The locations and atmosphere that has been stated in the shot list and treatment has been implemented into the production. These to a great degree helped structure the filming as well as keeping it in order with no surprises. Without the planning stage, the production including location and atmosphere, two vital areas of the sequence, would not be as well structured which may have caused the film to looked rushed and unprepared however fortunately this was not the case. Now that all the filming has been completed, I can look back and safely say it was a success relating to how it was planned and executed.

 

IMPLACABLE - Pre Cut Opening Sequence

IMPLACABLE - Pre Cut Opening Sequence

 Before releasing the final version of my opening sequence, I had to release a pre cut version which was in the midst of being produced. This particular version was created the first few weeks into editing showing how much has changed between this cut and the final version.



IMPLACEABLE Planning - Prop list

IMPLACEABLE Planning - Prop List

Within the opening sequence, a few props will be used to make the scene gain a bit of realism and link it closer to reality. The first prop that will be used will be a couple of newspapers that the villains will be pretending to read when they are waiting for the victim to leave his workplace. This makes it look a little more discreet on their part. The next prop will be the earphones the victim puts on when walking down the village, this also links to everyday life.

A mobile phone will be used to call up the victims friends to come and pick him up. The next one is not really a prop as such but an integral part of the scene. A car will be used to come and pick the victim up and drop him off in a different location. The final prop that will be used is the gun that the attackers will use when threatening the victim in the alleyway. This adds tension while also adding realism.

The props that will be used in the sequence are listed below;

- Two newspapers

- A mobile phone

- A car

- A pretend handgun (A BB gun painted in black)

Pre Production - IMPLACEABLE planning

Pre Production - IMPLACEABLE planning

 

 

 

Ben Page: Target

 

Jamie Petagine: Villain

 

Toni Thompson: Villain

 

 

Locations; Kings Langley Village, Kings Langley school (Alleyway between the English blocks)

Directed by Stefano Towell 

 

Tasks;

 

Prop list; Stefano Towell

Camera work; Stefano Towell

 

Storyboard; Stefano Towell

 

Location Recce; Stefano Towell

 

Risk Assessment; Stefano Towell

 

Costume and Makeup; Stefano Towell

 

Shot list; Stefano Towell

 

Treatment; Stefano Towell

 

 

Character names;

 

Ben Page - Tom Hardy

 

Jamie Petagine - Barry McGeedy

 

Toni Thompson - Selena Sanchez

Preliminary Task

 

Preliminary Task

 

In groups that no more that 4 we will perform a continuity task involving filming and editing a character opening a door, crossing a room and sitting down in a chair opposite another. Character with whom he/she exchanges a couple of lines of dialogue. This task must demonstrate; match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180 degree rule.

The continuity task involves timing and editing, a character opening a door, crossing a room, sitting in a chair opposite another character with whom they exchange a couple of lines on dialogue. This task should demonstrate match on action, shot/reverse shot and the 180 degree rule.

 

Starring: Lewis Smith and Kieran Pritchard

Edited by: Stefano Towell

 

 

Below is a storyboard of the different shots in the Preliminary task that my group created.

 

 

Interview with a Horror film editor

Interview with a Horror film editor

Within the next week, a Skype call will be organised with BAFTA nominated editor Mike Harrowes who is currently editing a Horror drama for British TV. as it is not often that an opportunity arises to speak to a professional in this area of work, our class has come up with some questions that we would venture to him in which the answers could actually benefit us when it comes to making our opening sequence. Questions that we would ask him would include;

1. Can you name 3 key things we should aim to achieve when creating our opening sequences?

2. Do you have any useful tips about what we could add to our title sequences in order to improve the overall quality?

3. What would you consider to be the most challenging aspect of editing?

4. How would you say the way editing differs when you go from editing say a Comedy to a Thriller?

5. How has the use of Foley enhanced the quality of your films?

6. How, using editing alone can you increase the intensity of a film/ sequence

7. Can you tell us about the importance pace and rhythm have on a film?

8. How closely do you work with the director in a film?

9. In terms of editing how would you describe the thriller genre itself and how it should be portrayed
via editing?

10. And to finish, what element of the editing process do you yourself enjoy the most?

The answers he gave us were very beneficial and helpful as they included tips and advice for when making our own opening sequences. The YouTube video below shows the interview we had with Michael Harrowes and the answers he gave us. A link to his IMDB page has also been added.

Michael Harrowes IMDB

 

 

Pre-Production - Location Reconasance & Risk assessment

Pre-Production - Location Reconnaissance & Risk Assessment 

As part of our groups pre production planning, one of the tasks is to make sure there are no problems in the places we choose to film in, otherwise known as location reconnaissance. This includes asking permission to film in certain areas and whether it will affect anyone in any certain way. The places we have decided to film in include Kings Langley school in which we would use the alley ways between the English blocks. The school has already given us the green light to film in any particular area we like so as part of our location reconnaissance, that is checked off. 

Other places outside of school may be slightly more difficult to ask permission to film which may include needing to ask the local parish however in most circumstances, people will be allowed to film wherever they want as long as it is reasonable. Me and my group have asked permission to film outside of a certain shop for part of our scene and the answer was positive. Other places including Kings Langley village were also fine with our request with wanting to film in the location required. The locations have all given us permission to film so we have no problems regarding location so this task has been successfully completed. 

 

Below is a table of the locations we will film in with possible problems and a risk assessment;

The Art of Foley

The Art of Foley

Foley is the reproduction of everyday sound effects which are added in post-production to enhance the quality of audio for films, television, video, video games and radio. Everyday sounds including footsteps and the cracking of glass can be replicated after with sound specialists making the sounds in a studio using objects and themselves. The best Foley art is so well integrated into a film that it goes unnoticed by the audience. It helps to create a sense of reality within a scene. Without these crucial background noises, movies feel unnaturally quiet and uncomfortable.

Foley artists look to recreate the realistic ambient sounds that the film portrays. The props and sets of a film do not react the same way acoustically as their real life counterparts. Foley sounds are used to enhance the auditory experience of the movie. Foley can also be used to cover up unwanted sounds captured on the set of a movie during filming, such as overflying airplanes or passing traffic. In the locations that me and my group will be filming in, there will be a significant amount of unwanted noise including cars and other background noise however with Foley being used within the editing, the unwanted noise can be erased and other sounds that have been recorded afterwards can be included instead.

I believe that if used in the right way, Foley can be extremely effective in a production such as an opening sequence as it can change a piece of filming from an average standard to a piece of high quality in a matter of hours.

 

Targets

Targets

Below are some targets I made for myself that I should work towards.

Planning- One big aim for me to achieve is planning as that is what stitches the rest of your work together. Once I can get some good planning skills, me and the rest of my group should be able to pull off a well structured and presented piece of work. It will take some time however it can be accomplished with practice.

Research- This is another simple but very effective target that myself and my group can follow and make sure we get the grades we know we can get. We have recently started watching trailers and opening sequences for both new and old thrillers and discussed them as a group. With effective research, the work we produce can be to its fullest potential as we would have explored different techniques within opening title sequences.

Action- Another target in which I think is key to set is how much action is played within the sequence. In a lot of opening sequences I have viewed of previous candidates, action has been kept low key with only minimal tasks being acted however if the role of action is explored more, our opening sequence may well be much more successful and will achieve a higher grade. Again this target will take a lot of practice and learning but the outcome is sure to be a triumph.

Mise-En-Scene- A target which really relates to most people is working towards understanding mise en scene and how important it becomes when constructing the opening title sequence. Through opening title sequences I have viewed of real production films, the clothing and props used are very effective and fit in very well to the story's genre and theme. I am trying to learn and set a target for myself to pick up what mise en scene is appropriate and well fitting to when me and my group produce our own opening title sequence

Sound- Adding a Foley which Pete Fraser mentioned on the trip to the BFI would be extremely useful for my groups success when making our productions. Sound is something we are around all the time, we hear things wherever we go. If our opening title sequence just included the sound that was present at the time of filming, it would be very dull and uninteresting to watch however with the use of editing, additional sounds, diegetic or non diegetic can be added to enhance the production. Music is very key as well which comes under the headline of non diegetic sound however music is highly important as it sets an atmosphere and broadcasts to the viewer of what genre the film they are watching will likely the revolve around. My target is to get a greater understanding of sound in general when adding it to the opening title sequence and how effective it can be. This can be achieved by watching a fair amount of productions created by top film producers.

Textual analysis of a Opening Thriller Sequence

Textual analysis of a Opening Thriller Sequence

Analysis of Inception (2010)

Inception is a film produced in 2010 by Christopher Nolan which by watching presents a tense atmosphere matching it to thriller. Below I will analyse the films camera, sound, mise en scene and editing.

Camera; In this opening scene there are several camera shots of the main character, the man laying at the sea bed looking confused of his situation and surroundings. The camera shots include close up shots of the mans face showing his expression and POV shots looking at a few children playing on the beach. Form this the viewer would be confused to why he is in this state while there are children playing with no fear on the beach. However after this shot, the camera is shown behind the man with a machine gun pointed to his back. Following this, the man with the gun is shown in a shot looking up at him which signifies that he has the power. While he calls for someone, an establishing shot shows another man in the distance trying to make contact with him. The establishing shot shows the setting that the scene is in, on a rocky shoreline. After this scene, there is a conversation with what looks like the leader of a group discussing what has happened to this man and why he is carrying a gun and a sharp object. These camera shots present a tense atmosphere that the film which link to the other feature such as mise en scene, editing and sound.

Sound; From the very start where the film companies logo appears on screen, a low, deep and tense source of music begins to play that runs into the opening scene. This by its self show the film to be of a tense nature. The music that follows while the camera is focused on the man washed up on the shore is a kind showing confusement as he looks around wandering where he is. The sound of the waves crashing together is also played as non diegetic sound, probably added with the use of Foley for enhancement. The music that plays quietly in the background is interspersed with the sounds of the children playing and laughing which is a complete contrast and juxtaposition from the situation he finds himself in. The diegetic sounds that follow is the voice of the soldier finding him on the shore calling for backup. After this opening scene, it moves onto where there is a conversation between the leader and a few of his colleagues discussing what the man is doing here and why he carries such weapons. The only sound here is the diegetic sound of the men speaking as they are in an enclosed room.

Mise en scene;  The clothes and props that are used in the opening scene are crucial to the sequence as they match characters to roles. The clothing the man is wearing as he lays washed up on the beach are rugged, used and dirty signifying that he has been on a journey. However the contrast of this is the bright, colourful and clean clothes of the children playing in the background. The supposed soldier that finds him is wearing his uniform and pointing a gun at his back, showing that the film will revolve around fighting, crime or violence. When the scene changes location to the board room with the leader, all the characters bar the washed up man on the shore are wearing new, expensive looking suits as they discuss the matter in hand. This provides the viewer with an enigma to what is going on? Who are these people and what do they want?

Editing; When the scene opens, there is a camera shot of they waves crashing together which have been edited by using show motion and focusing with detail on the waves. The use of slow motion continues as the man on the shore looks around in bemusement seeing the children playing. All of this is edited with slow motion almost showing the viewer what the man can see through his eyes. This editing is effective as it sets a feeling to the film and provides an enigma to what is going on and what will happen. However after this setting, editing is not particularly used in great fashion as the scene is of the men in conversation.



Marketing techniques - The Lego Movie

Marketing techniques - The Lego Movie

Below is a Slideshare presentation I created explaining marketing techniques that the creators of The Lego Movie used to promote their film to audiences around the world.

Treatment of log line

Treatment of the chosen log line

 I will be treating the logline; 'A 22 year old man from the suburbs of London who was threatened for dear life now has to choose between an innocent victim or his own life.' In a previous post, I have developed the logline but in this post I will be going into detail on what will consist in my groups opening title sequence. This post is the treatment of the log line plus additional details including camera shots and props that will be included within the opening title sequence.

The opening scene will be of a young man (Ben Page) leaving his work in the village to go home. A mixture of shots mostly consisting of medium close ups and long shots will be used to show this scene. After he has left the door, a two people, one male, one female walk past the man with a strange glare in their eye looking at the man. They pass but when they walk on, they both turn around where the camera will be partly on the man walking off with them in the background with the camera slowly focusing on them from a distance. Within the scene, non diegetic sound including music will be played as soon as the man leaves the door. This music will be tense and deep which will set an atmosphere showing the viewer of the genre of the film. The music will include a two heartbeats following the music's beat to add tension.

The following scene will show the man making his way home in which he will stop to make a phone call to get a friend to pick him up and to drop him off near his house. Props included will be earphones which he will take out before the phone call and a phone to make the call. In the background when he is making the call, the two villains will be seen in the background at a distance watching the man. The will be standing at quite a distance however at the end of the call when the man hangs up, the camera focusses on them. A close up shot will be shown when he is making the phone call to show his expression while showing the two villains in the background.

The man then gets picked up but shows a bit of fear in the car. While in conversation with the driver he says he had the feeling he was being watched by someone but he doesn't know who. He then blames it on the fact he's stressed from work. When he arrives at the road not far from his house, he takes a deep breath and starts on the short walk to his house. In the background, the two people that were seen before are also seen arriving but quietly stay where they are before continuing to follow the man. The setting is on a cold winters day, adding to the tension. The man on his way home then takes the short cut down a dark alley which he usually takes to get home. The music at this point starts to get louder gradually as the two appear behind him. The camera angle will be facing the man as he walks so it will be following him while he walks. The heartbeats also start to get more frequent. At this point, the two mysterious figures nod to each other when the run behind the man and put him against the alley wall. At this point the music has stopped and the only sound is of the people breathing and speaking. The man tries to scramble but they hold the male villain pulls out a sharp kitchen knife. They tell him after he has quietened that he has to do a 'little' job for them. They tell the man to kill someone they have had some major money issues with and if he doesn't comply his family will be murdered instead. After the villains threaten the innocent man, the title 'RELENTLESS' will appear sharply on screen and that will be the end of the opening title sequence. The actors names and roles portrayed for creating the sequence will appear on screen while the sequence is running. I have decided that the titles will be in red capitals which signifies danger and blood. This will also hint to the viewer that the film is a serious story of a genre of tension. 

Independent Work Towards Targets

Independent Work towards targets

In a previous post, I have set myself 5 targets that I would ant to achieve for the opening title sequence that me and my group would create. There are many ways that I would be able to achieve them as stated in the post however not all of it involves independent work. Independent work is the objectives that I can do in free time when I don't have the support of others. 

For example for independent work for research, I can watch a number of opening title sequences of different genres and learn the techniques of how producers have created them. This is simple and easy to do, requiring no one else for support as it is analysing and picking up information from those sequences. When working independent towards planning, I can practice different techniques that can help me improve at it because planning isn't something that you can analyse and learn from, it is a target that has to be carried out first hand. If I practice planning on some low key tasks, my execution of it when it comes to making out production will be a lot simpler and smoother. My other targets including the understanding of mise en scene, the understanding of sound and the understanding of action would follow the direction of research as they are targets that can be achieved by analysing film sequences and picking up techniques.

Audience positioning (Padlet)

Audience Positioning - Using Padlet

Below is a post I have created on Padlet showing different techniques producers use to involve audiences in their productions using different camera shots. Many of the ones listed I have described before in a previous post however the ones selected are camera shots used with audience positioning.

Created with Padlet

Opening Sequence analysis timeline

 

Opening Sequence analysis timeline
 

Here is a picture of a timeline I made for the Opening Title Sequence of the Thriller film Taken, analysing which titles are placed where and who's names are on them, this will hopefully give me a good idea of how to conduct a similar timeline for my Final Opening Title Sequence which myself and my group will be making soon