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Research for our sequence

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EddieDew

The document provides details on the research conducted for props, costumes, locations and atmosphere for a student film sequence. It discusses: - Props like candles, crosses, ropes and chairs to enhance realism and tension. Costumes like torn clothes for the victim and a devil costume for the antagonist. - Two potential locations - a member's house or graveyard. The house allows easier access but a graveyard is a more typical horror setting. - Atmospheric lighting techniques like low-key candle lighting are discussed to increase tension without access to professional equipment. The document considers budget constraints and how to maximize realism, tension and narrative mysteries on a low budget through creative use of props, costumes and

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RESEARCH FOR OUR SEQUENCE Danny O’Brien, Daniel Regan, Geraint Padfield and Edward Dew
INITIAL PROP RESEARCHEDWARD DEW A large section of our film is similar to the opening of the successful thriller “Se7en”, therefore, I have watched the opening to this many times to make sure we maximise the enjoyment of our sequence. From doing this research I was able to pick up many prop ideas. However, as we do not have the budget that the producers of ‘Se7en’ had not all ideas could be used and this was taken into consideration whilst watching the opening.
• The candle will be used in high quantity and will be the only source of light for a large section of our sequence. We have decided to use this technique as candles are very atmospheric and increases the tension dramatically. It also does not reveal the characters face due to the low key lighting and this will create further narrative enigmas and raise the tension significantly. This atmosphere is key because it is a convention of horror thriller films and candles will complete this atmosphere perfectly. On our low budget we cannot afford special lighting and so candles are the perfect substitute and we will already have many collectively around our households.
• We will also have a cross as this is a key symbol for religion. The cross will be held to enforce the ritual and this will increase the realism when the ceremony is taking place. This is important as realism is a problem for us due to the mysterious events that take place in the sequence.
• We will also be using a chair and rope in a later part of this sequence. This will be used in the ritual to hold the victim in place. We thought this would be effective as it enhances the realism of the scene as he has no escape and is in serious danger. It will also highlight the generic conventions of an antagonist as it shows he is brutal and smart and this increases his danger and intimidation and therefore he is more feared and this will consequently increase the tension further.
• The bibles purpose will be similar to the cross, essentially, to enhance the realism of this sequence, something we feel is very important. Also, as in the ritual the antagonist is required to speak In latin (supposedly from the bible) we realised this would be difficult as we cannot speak latin, therefore the bible is a good place to hide the dialogue he is reading so he can read off this and it will come out better and therefore be more effective. This will create a narrative enigma as to what he is reading and the purpose of it.
• We will have a notebook that the antagonist will be flicking through (inspired by the se7en opening). In this notebook will be mysterious images and many narrative enigmas will appear. This will be dramatic as the audience will wonder what importance this book has in the story. Included in this book will be pictures of people that are crossed out and old newspaper articles. These are generic for our genre as it creates narrative enigmas and emphasizes the seriousness of this dangerous antagonist which further raises the tension in this sequence.
• For the climax of our sequence we will be using these all white contact lenses that will appear at the end of the ritual. The purpose of these is to connote that the victim has been converted and is now evil. These again enhance the realism and tension as the audience will realise this victim has been converted from this strange ritual. It will also portray the antagonist more powerfully as the audience will see what he has done works and see his danger, this will all be very exciting and the realism now enhances this. It will also create narrative enigmas as to what has happened to this victim and his eyes.
INITIAL COSTUME IDEAS – GERAINT PADFIELD • In any film Genre, costume is a vital to the mise en scene. Its what tells apart the antagonists from the protagonists. It also reveals the characters nature. Generic conventions of Horror/Thriller movies are mysterious antagonists, who match the protagonists with their intellect. Below are some examples of costumes worn by antagonists in Horror movies. If you look at the two famous costumes, you can see that they’re quite intimidating and mysterious. They Leave narrative enigmas for the audience to discover.
• The key component to our film opening is the costume of the Antagonists. In our case, the antagonists are a devil cult, performing an act on an innocent person. As our group’s genre is Horror Thriller, we need to ensure that the antagonists costume is mysterious and relatively frightening. Our initial idea for the antagonists costume was a sort of devil dress The purpose of this costume is that it creates a narrative enigma as to who is the under the dress and the purpose of the clothing. Although it doesn’t reveal much about the antagonists physical features, it does reveal a lot about the characters nature. It connotes to the audience that he is a danger to society. The only drawback is that a costume like this could be quite expensive or hard to find.
• There is only one protagonist aside from the devil cult, so the amount of costume used is quite limited. The group need to find a way to signify to the audience that his life or welfare is in serious jeopardy. The initial idea for clothing is torn T shirts and shorts. • We will rip the t shirt to connote to the audience that the protagonist’s life is in danger. Another suggestion is staining the t shirt to signify he has been held captive for a long time. In order to make the scene more realistic, our group has decided to make the protagonist wear shorts as its less formal attire and it fits the situation he is in. This will connote the dangerous situation the victim is in and it be more realistic and therefore enhance the tension.
• The benefit of having shorts and a stained or ripped T shirt is that they’re easily accessible and relatively cheap. The makeup side of things may be harder to gain access to and we need someone skilled to make the protagonists facial features look realistic. • The initial costume ideas are very common and stereotypical in the Horror thriller genre. The monk/devil costume reveals a lot about the characters nature and beliefs, but hides his physical features which leaves a narrative enigma for the rest of the movie and keeps the audience engaged.
LOCATION RESEARCH – DANIEL O’BRIEN • Our group has a few different ideas for the possible locations in which will act as our main setting. The candidates for our location are the house of one of the members of our group and a graveyard. We have not fully concluded where we will film as of yet but this is something important to us and it will massively effect our film so we are conscious of making the right decision. As our film is based around a plot of a somewhat psychologically impaired antagonist in a graveyard/house, we have decided to film in a graveyard or a house of one of the group members. The decision to film in the house would be made through the ease of accessing the location and the low shooting problems within the house. The graveyard would be a preferred location because it is a more generic place to film a horror thriller film, however is less easy to access and we would most likely have to get permission to film there. We have taken images from our two locations and inserted below.
• This is a shot of the garden in the house where we potentially intend to film, it is a good sized garden with features that could be used well in our film such as the garage for a slightly dimmer lit area. The garden also offers a stereotypical representation of our antagonist, of his class in particular. A possible issue with our location is the amount of noise that could be coming from the surrounding neighborhood which could affect the sound quality of our film in a negative manner.
• As it is outside it gives us the freedom to choose between many different camera angles and shots when filming as there is a lot of room to move round and try different things. We plan to film our opening when it is getting dark to ensure the lighting does not affect the amount that can be seen by the audience and to give us a mixture of high and low key lighting. Another benefit of filming when it isn’t very dark is that the risk of running into something such as the tree for example is massively reduced, there are fortunately no other health and safety issues with filming here.
• The interior of the house is a typical representation of ethnicity and class – white British and C1 to be specific. This semidetached house has a study, which is shown to the picture to the left; studies are a commonly found feature in houses that are considered of class C1. It is a small room, therefore limiting our ability to vary our camera angles and framings. The curtains in this room can be drawn which will allow us to create a dark, more menacing atmosphere in the room than would be created without the window being covered. It can also give us the flexibility to have low key or high key lighting, which could prove of great importance in the portrayal of our antagonist, helping make him seem more frightening.
• This is the other location that has been suggested by a group member that we film in. These photos below are all located in a graveyard, which is typically more likely to feature in a horror film and helps set the scene admittedly better than filming in the house would. This location is slightly less accessible than our other location and would require us to be granted permission to film here, nonetheless it would be a more generic setting and many generic conventions and narrative enigmas could come as a result of filming in this particular location. The graveyard is a quiet place which would enable us to have maximum sound quality on our film and allow all dialogue and effects to be heard. There are not many health and safety risks associated with this location, apart from minor low risk risks such as trip hazards which should not act as a reason for us not to film here.
• This pathway shown on the right could work well with our narrative which involves a scared individual at various points. This individual at one of these moments could be walking down this path, easily allowing us to make it scary, which will be one of the main generic pleasures the audience will get from watching our film opening. Another positive thing about filming here is that it gives us a stereotypical appeal for the genre as many other horror films have footage within them that has been shot in a graveyard, and from the research we have done of other films we think we could replicate this effectively.
• The picture on the left shows a large amount of space just behind the above picture where a camera on a tripod could be placed to film one of the characters walking down the pathway. It gives us a lot of room for wide shots and other interesting shots to make sure that we do not lose the interest of our audience during our opening. We plan, if we decide to film here, to do so when the sun has gone down and it is dark, mainly to add suspense and to heighten the drama in our film as we aim to make it gripping.

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Research for our sequence

  • 1. RESEARCH FOR OUR SEQUENCE Danny O’Brien, Daniel Regan, Geraint Padfield and Edward Dew
  • 2. INITIAL PROP RESEARCHEDWARD DEW A large section of our film is similar to the opening of the successful thriller “Se7en”, therefore, I have watched the opening to this many times to make sure we maximise the enjoyment of our sequence. From doing this research I was able to pick up many prop ideas. However, as we do not have the budget that the producers of ‘Se7en’ had not all ideas could be used and this was taken into consideration whilst watching the opening.
  • 3. • The candle will be used in high quantity and will be the only source of light for a large section of our sequence. We have decided to use this technique as candles are very atmospheric and increases the tension dramatically. It also does not reveal the characters face due to the low key lighting and this will create further narrative enigmas and raise the tension significantly. This atmosphere is key because it is a convention of horror thriller films and candles will complete this atmosphere perfectly. On our low budget we cannot afford special lighting and so candles are the perfect substitute and we will already have many collectively around our households.
  • 4. • We will also have a cross as this is a key symbol for religion. The cross will be held to enforce the ritual and this will increase the realism when the ceremony is taking place. This is important as realism is a problem for us due to the mysterious events that take place in the sequence.
  • 5. • We will also be using a chair and rope in a later part of this sequence. This will be used in the ritual to hold the victim in place. We thought this would be effective as it enhances the realism of the scene as he has no escape and is in serious danger. It will also highlight the generic conventions of an antagonist as it shows he is brutal and smart and this increases his danger and intimidation and therefore he is more feared and this will consequently increase the tension further.
  • 6. • The bibles purpose will be similar to the cross, essentially, to enhance the realism of this sequence, something we feel is very important. Also, as in the ritual the antagonist is required to speak In latin (supposedly from the bible) we realised this would be difficult as we cannot speak latin, therefore the bible is a good place to hide the dialogue he is reading so he can read off this and it will come out better and therefore be more effective. This will create a narrative enigma as to what he is reading and the purpose of it.
  • 7. • We will have a notebook that the antagonist will be flicking through (inspired by the se7en opening). In this notebook will be mysterious images and many narrative enigmas will appear. This will be dramatic as the audience will wonder what importance this book has in the story. Included in this book will be pictures of people that are crossed out and old newspaper articles. These are generic for our genre as it creates narrative enigmas and emphasizes the seriousness of this dangerous antagonist which further raises the tension in this sequence.
  • 8. • For the climax of our sequence we will be using these all white contact lenses that will appear at the end of the ritual. The purpose of these is to connote that the victim has been converted and is now evil. These again enhance the realism and tension as the audience will realise this victim has been converted from this strange ritual. It will also portray the antagonist more powerfully as the audience will see what he has done works and see his danger, this will all be very exciting and the realism now enhances this. It will also create narrative enigmas as to what has happened to this victim and his eyes.
  • 9. INITIAL COSTUME IDEAS – GERAINT PADFIELD • In any film Genre, costume is a vital to the mise en scene. Its what tells apart the antagonists from the protagonists. It also reveals the characters nature. Generic conventions of Horror/Thriller movies are mysterious antagonists, who match the protagonists with their intellect. Below are some examples of costumes worn by antagonists in Horror movies. If you look at the two famous costumes, you can see that they’re quite intimidating and mysterious. They Leave narrative enigmas for the audience to discover.
  • 10. • The key component to our film opening is the costume of the Antagonists. In our case, the antagonists are a devil cult, performing an act on an innocent person. As our group’s genre is Horror Thriller, we need to ensure that the antagonists costume is mysterious and relatively frightening. Our initial idea for the antagonists costume was a sort of devil dress The purpose of this costume is that it creates a narrative enigma as to who is the under the dress and the purpose of the clothing. Although it doesn’t reveal much about the antagonists physical features, it does reveal a lot about the characters nature. It connotes to the audience that he is a danger to society. The only drawback is that a costume like this could be quite expensive or hard to find.
  • 11. • There is only one protagonist aside from the devil cult, so the amount of costume used is quite limited. The group need to find a way to signify to the audience that his life or welfare is in serious jeopardy. The initial idea for clothing is torn T shirts and shorts. • We will rip the t shirt to connote to the audience that the protagonist’s life is in danger. Another suggestion is staining the t shirt to signify he has been held captive for a long time. In order to make the scene more realistic, our group has decided to make the protagonist wear shorts as its less formal attire and it fits the situation he is in. This will connote the dangerous situation the victim is in and it be more realistic and therefore enhance the tension.
  • 12. • The benefit of having shorts and a stained or ripped T shirt is that they’re easily accessible and relatively cheap. The makeup side of things may be harder to gain access to and we need someone skilled to make the protagonists facial features look realistic. • The initial costume ideas are very common and stereotypical in the Horror thriller genre. The monk/devil costume reveals a lot about the characters nature and beliefs, but hides his physical features which leaves a narrative enigma for the rest of the movie and keeps the audience engaged.
  • 13. LOCATION RESEARCH – DANIEL O’BRIEN • Our group has a few different ideas for the possible locations in which will act as our main setting. The candidates for our location are the house of one of the members of our group and a graveyard. We have not fully concluded where we will film as of yet but this is something important to us and it will massively effect our film so we are conscious of making the right decision. As our film is based around a plot of a somewhat psychologically impaired antagonist in a graveyard/house, we have decided to film in a graveyard or a house of one of the group members. The decision to film in the house would be made through the ease of accessing the location and the low shooting problems within the house. The graveyard would be a preferred location because it is a more generic place to film a horror thriller film, however is less easy to access and we would most likely have to get permission to film there. We have taken images from our two locations and inserted below.
  • 14. • This is a shot of the garden in the house where we potentially intend to film, it is a good sized garden with features that could be used well in our film such as the garage for a slightly dimmer lit area. The garden also offers a stereotypical representation of our antagonist, of his class in particular. A possible issue with our location is the amount of noise that could be coming from the surrounding neighborhood which could affect the sound quality of our film in a negative manner.
  • 15. • As it is outside it gives us the freedom to choose between many different camera angles and shots when filming as there is a lot of room to move round and try different things. We plan to film our opening when it is getting dark to ensure the lighting does not affect the amount that can be seen by the audience and to give us a mixture of high and low key lighting. Another benefit of filming when it isn’t very dark is that the risk of running into something such as the tree for example is massively reduced, there are fortunately no other health and safety issues with filming here.
  • 16. • The interior of the house is a typical representation of ethnicity and class – white British and C1 to be specific. This semidetached house has a study, which is shown to the picture to the left; studies are a commonly found feature in houses that are considered of class C1. It is a small room, therefore limiting our ability to vary our camera angles and framings. The curtains in this room can be drawn which will allow us to create a dark, more menacing atmosphere in the room than would be created without the window being covered. It can also give us the flexibility to have low key or high key lighting, which could prove of great importance in the portrayal of our antagonist, helping make him seem more frightening.
  • 17. • This is the other location that has been suggested by a group member that we film in. These photos below are all located in a graveyard, which is typically more likely to feature in a horror film and helps set the scene admittedly better than filming in the house would. This location is slightly less accessible than our other location and would require us to be granted permission to film here, nonetheless it would be a more generic setting and many generic conventions and narrative enigmas could come as a result of filming in this particular location. The graveyard is a quiet place which would enable us to have maximum sound quality on our film and allow all dialogue and effects to be heard. There are not many health and safety risks associated with this location, apart from minor low risk risks such as trip hazards which should not act as a reason for us not to film here.
  • 18. • This pathway shown on the right could work well with our narrative which involves a scared individual at various points. This individual at one of these moments could be walking down this path, easily allowing us to make it scary, which will be one of the main generic pleasures the audience will get from watching our film opening. Another positive thing about filming here is that it gives us a stereotypical appeal for the genre as many other horror films have footage within them that has been shot in a graveyard, and from the research we have done of other films we think we could replicate this effectively.
  • 19. • The picture on the left shows a large amount of space just behind the above picture where a camera on a tripod could be placed to film one of the characters walking down the pathway. It gives us a lot of room for wide shots and other interesting shots to make sure that we do not lose the interest of our audience during our opening. We plan, if we decide to film here, to do so when the sun has gone down and it is dark, mainly to add suspense and to heighten the drama in our film as we aim to make it gripping.