Media Inward Investment: Film4 Inward investment in the film industry is where
a group of companies (in the film/media industry) help to invest their money
and maybe services to a film that is going to be made. For example, Looking for
Eric is a film about a man whose life is descending into a dark place, who
finds his idol, Eric Cantona, through hallucinations. His idol then uses his
philosophical ways to help him in his life. This film was produced by ten film
companies, including Film4, Sixteen Films (the company) and France 2 Cinema,
distributed by twenty film companies and twenty two other companies helped with
funding or other aspects of the film process.
Other films that Film4 have produced or co-produced are: - Trainspotting - 127 hours - 4 weddings and a funeral - This is england - The lovely bones - co produced with Dreamworks - Inbetweeners Movie - Submarine with warp films - Nowhere Boy - Shaun of the Dead
Whilst editing our opening sequence, we were thinking about what kind of parallel sounds we could use. Our genre is horror, so we are looking for a mysterious sound that is building up to something. We are looking to include the music at the beginning, and when the stalker is behind her to create effect, and let the audience know that something is about to happen. Below I have analysed a few examples and said whether we liked them and whether they would be effective and relevant in our opening sequence.
*All music is from 'Royalty Free'*
The House of Leaves - Kevin MacLeod:
As we wanted, this sound was mysterious yet we felt like it was to quick into building the tension. We would prefer a sound that starts slow and eventually builds up fairly abruptly to coincide with our opening sequence.
Aftermath - Kevin MacLeod:
We felt that this particular piece of music took too long to build up, and wouldn't go with our opening sequence. Furthermore, the instruments used were not appropriate for the type of horror genre that we are using.
Ice Demon - Kevin MacLeod:
This sound was quite effective and didn't take long to build up. The instruments with in it make it sound very mysterious and tension-building, which was what we were aiming for. We may look to introduce parts of this into our opening sequence where needed. However, the sound is very repetitive and we would therefore need to think about which bits we could put in each place.
Static Motion - Kevin MacLeod:
I think that this piece of music is very intriguing, and really effective for the type of engagement we want from the audience. There is a constant tapping sound which eventually gets faded out towards the end. Parts of this could be used leading up the event at the end.
Gathering Darkness - Kevin MacLeod:
The sounds in this gives the impression of a terrifying horror, as the instruments sound like a screeching and screaming sound which is what we are aiming for. It also gives the impression that it is leading up to something, and the constant repetition of the screeching supports this.
As a group we decided what features we wanted to include in our opening sequence. We took into account that we wanted our characters to contrast as much as possible, with the girl (victim) being represented in light colours and the boy (enemy) being presented in dark colours. Also, when they are together it is a mixture. The features include:
Costumes
Props
Mise-en-Scene
Sound
Lighting
Costumes: Girl - black trousers/leggings, light top and cardigan, uggs and coat. Boy - black trousers, black top, black coat and dark shoes.
Props: Girl - phone, make-up, laptop, clothes, bag, shoes and iPod. Boy - phone and knife.
Mise-en-Scene: Girl - tidy room, mirrors, purple room and girl features in room. Boy - dark kitchen
Sound:
Door slamming
Speech
Heavy breathing
Overexaggerated footsteps
Snapping of twigs
Screams
Lighting:
Fairly light in bedroom - turns dark when exits room.
Light in landing, goes into darkness when going downstairs.
A narrative should be created within a 'unity' of time, place and action.
It should all take place in the same location, in real time, and with all action moving towards a logical conclusion.
Levi-Strauss' Binary Opposition:
Narrative tension is based on opposition or conflict.
Two characters fighting, but more often functions at an ideological level.
Freytag's Dramatic Structure:
Gustav Feytag was a 19th Century German dramatist and novelist.
Constructed his theory from the analysis of ancient Greek and Shakespeare drama.
In modern films, each of these parts are used yet are sometimes in a different order.
Divided into 5 parts:
Exposition
Rising Action
Climax
Falling Action
Resolution/Catastrophe
SYD Field's Three Act Plot Structure:
A typical Hollywood film can be split into 3 sections:
The setup
The confrontation
Resolution
Plot points move the action from one act to another.
These could turn around the lives of characters, change their relationships with others and alter the tone of the film.
The Setup (First Act): The field claims that within the first ten minutes the audience will decide whether they like the film or not. Their minds are usually not changed later on. Therefore, its vital to make sure that the audience enjoy the opening ten minutes and they have a sense of who the characters are, what the film is going to be about and what they can expect from the film.
The Confrontation (Second Act): This is the longest part of the act and where most of the action happens. We usually see characters in many troubles or situations that could affect them, especially in horror and action films. An example of a confrontation would be where the main character(s) would confront their enemies.
The Resolution (Third Act): The hero takes control with their problems and defeats the villain and will achieve victory at the end of the film.
Todorov's Theory:
Proposed a basic structure for narratives.
Films and programmes started with an equilibrium (a calm period).
Agents of disruption cause disequilibrium (unsettlement and disquiet period).
A renewed state of peace and harmony from the protagonists and a new equilibrium brings the chaos to an end.
The simplest form of narrative is 'Classic' or 'Holloywood'.
Barthes' Enigma Code:
Establish enigmas or mysteries as it goes along.
The narrative functions to establish and then solve these mysteries.
When we start to unravel a text, we encounter an absolute plurality of potential meanings.
Texts may be open or closed.
Vladimir Propp:
Characters take on the role of narrative 'spheres of action'.
The hero is usually male, restores the narrative equilibrium by embarking on a quest.
Propp disguinshes between the victim hero (centre of the villain's attentions) and the seeker hero (aids others who are the villains victims).
The hero is normally the central character.
The villain creates the narrative disruption.
The donor gives the hero something (helps in resolution).
The helper aids the hero in the task of restoring equilibrium.
The victim is usually the character most threatened by the villain and has to be saved at the climax by the hero.
The dispatcher sends the hero on their task.
The false hero appears to be good but is revealed to have been bad.
To film our opening sequence we have decided on the days where we will be filming and where. They are: January: Wednesday 30th - filming in house/room.(Female Actor)
February: Wednesday 6th - finish filming in house, possibly start out of house. Thursday 7th - starting to film from alleyway, possibly finish. (Both Actors) Saturday 9th - filming anything that is needed.
Monday 11th - filming anything that is needed. Wednesday 13th - filming anything that is needed. (Both Actors) Thursday 14th - filming anything that is needed.
As well as filming, we will be editing along the way to make sure that all the shots we have taken are correct. If we finish filming relatively early/earlier than expected, we will be able to use some days to re-film so our opening sequence is as good as it can be.
After the results from our poll, we have decided to call our opening sequence 'Hunted'. We thought this would be the most appropriate name and would reflect on our storyline as the others didn't coincide as much. Tormented didn't work as it was more of a psychological horror. 'The Obsessed' and 'The Hunted' was not chosen by our specific target market and we therefore agreed with them and chose 'Hunted'.
Below is a print screen of our blog and in the top left if the result of our online poll:
